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S U M M E R S H A R E 2 0 1 5 : W E E K 15
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Hi there
Week 15-- we're streamlining the bags and speeding up the lines.
Thanks for everyone's patience last week as we tried to eke out the last of the Summer crops for you-- we couldn't get everything we had hoped for into everyone's bags, but hopefully you enjoyed all the other things we were able to put together as replacements.
We really appreciate you guys. We appreciate your willingness to meet us in the blazing sun and in the rain to collect your bags, your patience when we bag up your peaches and tomatoes, and for your enthusiasm about all this delicious local food. So we're throwing you a party.
Mark your calendars for our annual Customer Appreciation BBQ-- this year on Sunday, September 27th. More details to come, but this free event is one of the best of the year, great for the whole family.
This week, we're streamlining the bags: all the smalls as the same (Omnivore, Vegetarian and Vegan) and the larges are the same (Omnivore and Vegetarian.) This will not only help us get back onto budget so we can safely finish out the rest of the season, but it will help bring down your wait time.
You'll also all get to try out some of the first Fall squashes-- acorn and butternut-- as well as some tomatoes that reaped the benefit of all that sun over the weekend. It's a great bag, filled with lots of different veggies to jumpstart a bunch of different meals.
Speaking of which-- have a favorite cauliflower recipe you'd like to share? Please share on our Facebook page or send it into Cat to be included on our website or in a future newsletter.
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Here are a couple of reminders about the program:
Please bring back your bags.
Our green bags make very nice purses, gym bags, swim-suit carriers, and have all sorts of other uses besides for your share. But we kinda need them back. They're really expensive to replace, and there are a few of you stockpiling them in your trunks right now. We love you too, but if you could bring them to your stop next week that would be awesome.
Time to make your monthly payment.
If you're on our monthly installment payment program, it's time to add that payment to your account. Only one more after this for October! And for everyone else, it's a good idea once a month to pay off that balance. You can sign into your account and pay with a credit card, or bring a cash or check to the stop. And if you're trying to sign up for Winter, you have to pay off the remainder of your balance first before you can add a new subscription to your account, then you'll be right as rain.
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EGG SHORTAGE
We are very sorry about the recent egg shortage. It has been a turbulent summer on keeping eggs supply going. In short, we are struggling to transition from one group of egg producers to another.
Why, you might ask, would I attempt to do this midseason? Necessity. While we have had a great relationship with Scenic Acres over the last 7 years of producing eggs, we had started to notice a quality difference between the eggs from there and Wholesome Valley Farm. As seen in the photo below, the pale egg is from Scenic Acres and the rich, orange colored one is from Wholesome Valley.
The cause: not enough pasture and grass. Scenic Acres --technically 6 farmers cooperatively market their eggs as Scenic Acres with a total of 3,000 hens-- had to consolidate their hen operations and reduce the size of the flock to meet ODA standards.
We moved many of the hens to another farm, which with the change in environment, combined with the extreme heat and dry spell as of late, caused some hens to go into a molt and others to greatly reduce their output. The hens essentially went from 85% production to 40%, if that.
In much better news, in the meantime, Wholesome Valley has an additional 1,000 poulets on pasture. A poulet is a young hen about 20 weeks of age that is just starting to lay small eggs. They will lay marketable eggs in about 6 weeks. They also have another 300 hens being hatched each month to give us a steady supply of eggs into the future.
The problem now, however, is that the new breed we selected is...how should I say it...wild. The Black Astrolorp is a heritage chicken that should forage better on pasture and lay eggs for more than one year (hybrid birds only lay one year.) The Black Astrolorp's production is cyclical, which works well for us as well. The bad part is these birds can't be contained. They easily go over 4 ft fences and lay their eggs everywhere on the farm except where they are supposed to. Here is a photo of some escaped into the hog house for a little vacation.
So, all in all, we are aware there is a huge problem for us with eggs. We market 1,000 dozen eggs per week between direct to consumer and wholesale accounts like Market Garden Brewery, Bar Cento, Ann Marie's Dairy at the West Side Market, Urban Farmer, and other restaurants. Right now, all of our eggs are going to the pre-order sales through our website and we hope to overcome this shortage before the end of this season.
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Salmon from Wild Salmon Co.
So Salmon.... not really local, right? Well we learned about this fantastic product and company from a fellow Fresh Forker, and we really wanted to share it with our membership.
We heard about Heidi and the Wild Salmon Co. based of Asheville, NC. from a fellow forker. Heidi, who lives 9 months of the year in Asheville, grew up in Seattle and her family has always fished salmon in Alaska. At age 15, her dad bought her a commercial fishing permit for one of the fisheries in Alaska, and she has fished salmon every Summer since.
The Wild Salmon Co. fishery is internationally certified as Sustainable from the Marine Stewardship Council, and they go to great lengths to make sure their fishing, packing and shipping practices are environmentally responsible. The product is sushi grade, IQF frozen, and we get all center-cut fillets for our subscribers. It is fantastic and very reasonably priced. Click here to learn more about their practices and why we think they're such a cool operation.
Each center-cut, wild caught Alaskan salmon fillet is about 6-7oz.
We have them available by the piece ($7) and by the 10# box ($165).
The more you get, the better a deal it is -- savings of $20 on a box!
Also, this is a one time per year buy, so if you run out we may not have more until next October. And if you need to get a chest freezer just for fish, we won't judge.
To purchase the salmon: sign into your account, and find the salmon listed under "Meats." Add to cart, finish your payment, and then once you get your confirmation email for your order, please print it out and bring it with you to the stop when you pick up (we're expecting the week of October 7th, but we'll send you an email to confirm.)
Have any questions - drop us a line, 800-861-8582 or an email, and Lyn will be glad to help you.
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Everyone is getting a vegan bag this week, so in case you want to up the meat quotient in your share, you can add some bacon for just $7/lb. It pairs really well with many squash recipes, and adds a little savory oomph to other veggie sides.
This bacon is nitrate free, hickory smoked Berkshire bacon. For those of you who have had our bacon before, you recognize that it is so good it is practically addicting. It's also an amazing deal-- just $7 for a full pound of the best bacon you can buy. We suggest roasting it in the oven at 350 on a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet for less shrink, even cooking, and easy clean up.
Add some to your share this week by placing a special order. It also re-freezes really well, so grab some extra for a last minute brunch at your place!
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This week, our bulk options for preserving Tomatoes, & Apples. We will just keep selling these bulk packs at these prices until their seasons end. You can peel or leave the skin on, and roughly chop your apples leaving the core out. Toss them all in a slow-cooker to make fruit butter or sauce, and freeze in portioned ziplock bags for your Winter oatmeal. Sign into your account and get started! - San Marzano Roma Tomatoes- half bushel (20#) - $18
- Apples- bushel (45-50#) - $40 ($5 refundable crate deposit)
- Apples - half bushel (20-25#) - $25 ($5 refundable crate deposit)
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~ TOMATO OVERLOAD ~
Monday, September 14th 6-8:30pm
Chef Parker Bosley is cooking up an AMAZING amount of food for next week's class-- feels a little like Forrest Gump, but we're deciding which to sample:
Tomato jam, Tomato Sauces, Tomato Soup, Tomato-Braised Chicken, Tomato Pudding, Tomato Tarts, Tomato Juice, Tomato and Corn Stew and more.
Parker is tweaking his final choices, but it's going to be an incredible amount of delicious food. I honestly don't know how we're going to eat all of it, but we're gonna try! Come on out to learn about the most versatile item in your bags.
$30 per participant includes instruction, recipe packet, & a lot of delicious food served in multi-course tastings
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Time to sign up for your Thanksgiving Feast!
We created a whole Thanksgiving Guide for you to check out our different Thanksgiving offerings for this Holiday, including full-feast packages, heritage and standard pasture-raised turkeys, and all the delicious pies you could ask for to top off your all-local celebration.
Wondering what you're going to make this year? Save the date for our most popular class-- Thanksgiving Beer Pairing Dinner on Monday, November 9th.
Click here to learn more, and if you have any questions about your order just reply to this email or call Lyn at 800-861-8582.
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~ WINTER SHARE 2015/16 ~
Wednesday, Nov 4th 2015 - Sunday, May 7th 2016
There are only 8 weeks left of your Summer Share, but you can keep on enjoying all this amazing local food all Winter long through the Winter Farm Share!
Registration is open, and the earlier you sign up the more helpful it is to us as we plan our Season with our farmer and suppliers.
The share picks up right where Summer leaves off, the next week after Summer finishes.
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| | Click here to see last year's Winter Bags |
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| | Click here to see Winter Pick Up locations |
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What's in this Week's Bag
Summer Share 2015: Bag Contents Week 15
BAG CONTENTS SUBJECT TO CHANGE
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Butternut Squash - 1
Acorn Squash - 1
Carrots - 1 bunch
Zucchini - 2 ct
Cherry Tomatoes - 1 pint
Leeks - 1 large one or a bunch of small ones
Longhorn Peppers - 2
Green Peppers - 2
Stanley Plums - 1.5#
Spelt Berries - 2#
Butternut Squash - 1
Acorn Squash - 1
Carrots - 1 bunch
Zucchini - 2 ct
Cherry Tomatoes - 1 pint
Leeks - 1 large one or a bunch of small ones
Longhorn Peppers - 2
Green Peppers - 2
Stanley Plums - 1.5#
Spelt Berries - 2#
Cauliflower - 1 head
Cantaloupe - 1 ct
Yellow Doll Watermelon - 1
San Marzano Romas - 2#
Butternut Squash - 1
Acorn Squash - 1
Carrots - 1 bunch
Zucchini - 2 ct
Cherry Tomatoes - 1 pint
Leeks - 1 large one or a bunch of small ones
Longhorn Peppers - 2
Green Peppers - 2
Stanley Plums - 1.5#
Spelt Berries - 2#
Butternut Squash - 1
Acorn Squash - 1
Carrots - 1 bunch
Zucchini - 2 ct
Cherry Tomatoes - 1 pint
Leeks - 1 large one or a bunch of small ones
Longhorn Peppers - 2
Green Peppers - 2
Stanley Plums - 1.5#
Spelt Berries - 2#
Cauliflower - 1 head
Cantaloupe - 1 ct
Yellow Doll Watermelon - 1
San Marzano Romas - 2#
Vegan
Butternut Squash - 1
Acorn Squash - 1
Carrots - 1 bunch
Zucchini - 2 ct
Cherry Tomatoes - 1 pint
Leeks - 1 large one or a bunch of small ones
Longhorn Peppers - 2
Green Peppers - 2
Stanley Plums - 1.5#
Spelt Berries - 2#
Need to get something extra? Place an order before Tuesday at Midnight!
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What's Cooking?
Recipes Featuring this Week's Share
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| | Bag Contents in recipe: Acorn Squash |
Roasted Acorn Squash & Apple Soup
This is the easiest Acorn Squash Soup recipe you'll ever meet-- a handful of ingredients, and a delicious meal without much fuss.
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| | Bag Contents in Recipe: Roma tomatoes, Longhorn or Poblano Peppers |
Fresh Salsa
It is weirdly easy to make your own salsa, lightening fast, and then you get to determine mild, medium or hot to your own taste! A great raw side dish that is put together in minutes.
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Parker's Summer Vegetable Soup
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Savory Breakfast Muffins
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Carrot, Date & Spelt Berry Salad
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| | Bag Contents in Recipe: Butternut Squash, Leek |
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| | Bag Contents in Recipe: Butternut/Acorn Squash, Leek |
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| | Bag Contents in Recipe: Carrots, Spelt Berries |
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Other Recipes from Around the Web
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GET IN TOUCH
We'd love to hear from you. Drop us a line anytime! Call us at
(800)861-8582
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LIGHT READING
Read our 2015 Almanac-- hot off the press and full of stories about our farmers, our food, and our program.
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THE STOPS
We have more than two dozen stops all over town. Click here to see where the trucks are headed!
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