2013 CSA week 2 June 12th
June 13, 2013
Lettuce Harvest
As Juan, my crew boss and right hand man, knocked on the farm house door this morning to wake me up I was at first somewhat embarrassed and then a tad miffed at being pulled from the land of slumber seemingly too soon. With two farm hands missing and the seemingly never ending task of trying to manifest the destiny of the new farm, my tired eyes have seen the clock tick over to a new day too many times these last few weeks. Yet here I am again, keyboard clacking, eyes strained from the glow of the computer screen, searching my brain for the inner strength to be the mantra that has long echoed around this farm ‘Push on Through.’
It started in the early years when there were just four of us. Two families leaving it all in the dirt to build a farm, a life that could sustain. Late nights together in the packing shed or the prop house doing whatever had to be done. We still often reminisce about those days and raise a glass to the indestructible valor of youth and pride ourselves on how far we’ve come. To have taken that dream and brought it to fruition in its current manifestation is its own powerful reward. Now the next generation of young idealists toil alongside us and it feels good to be able to provide an environment for learning and a feeling of ‘right livelihood’ for those that follow in our path.
Sleeplessness aside it has been another good week on the farm. The rhythm established easily by the returning crew now long used to my bleary eyed direction and rambling train of thought communications. They are good at what they do and make the task of running this agricultural vaudeville act an easy and pleasant task. The last of the potatoes have been planted and we continue to ongoing task of trellising and pruning tomatoes. Parsnips are seeded and we’ll plant the celeriac and peppers later this week after a couple of days of much needed weeding gets done. If I think about it, Juan could have just let me sleep this morning, the crew knows what to do, but I’ll turn the volume up on the alarm anyway, I wouldn’t want to miss a minute of it.
Tim and Josie of Downpour Coffee Roasters would love to hear any feedback you may have about the coffee samples from last week. With any new business, what the people have to say is critical so shoot them an email and share your thoughts. http://www.downpourcoffee.com/contact/
Jenn Louis, chef and owner of Lincoln Restaurant and Sunshine Tavern (and soon to be Top Chef Masters contestant) has generously offered to help us raise some more funds to cover some of the transition expenses for the new farm by donating a portion of all proceeds from Lincoln Restaurant on Thursday June 20th. Come on down, have a drink and some food and meet your farmers (I’ll be the one asleep at the bar.)
Logistics:
Please remember that our pick up site hosts generously provide space for us and we ask that you keep the area neat and tidy. You can either ‘grab and go’ with the tote or transfer to your own bag or box and leave the empty in a neat stack.
If you would like me to add any additional emails to the list for folks you may be sharing with let me know.
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In The Box:
2 Lettuce ‘Parris Island Cos’ Romaine
1 bunch Japanese Salad Turnips
1 bunch Carrots – ‘Sugarsnax’
1/2 lb Spinach
1 ½ lbs Sugar Snap Peas
1 Walla Walla Sweet Onion
1 lb Broccoli
Crop Notes and Recipes:
Everything in your box this week will store best in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.
Remove the greens from the carrots and turnips if you plan to hold them for more than a couple of days as they will pull moisture from the roots.
We are working on developing a crop recipe and information database in our free time (maniacal farmer laughter) in the meantime, I’ll continue to include recipes, links and information in the box notes.
This is a link to an article about broccoli that came to me via the Eat Local Grown website:
http://eatlocalgrown.com/article/10982-best-ways-to-cook-broccoli.html
Japanese Salad Turnips
My favorite way to eat these semi-spicy little gems is to slice ever so thinly, drizzle with a little olive oil and vinegar then salt and pepper.
Turnip Tips
adapted from “From Asparagus to Zucchini”
*Eat turnips raw. Slice or thickly julienne and add to vegetable platter or eat alone with or without dip.
*Grate raw into salads.
*Bake turnips alone for 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees, basted with oil, or bake along with other seasonal roots.
*Cook turnips with roasting meats.
*Mash or scallop turnips, just like you would potatoes.
* Dice turnips into soups or stews, and julienne into stir fries.
Turnip, Carrot and Split Pea Soup
3/4 c Dried split peas
2 tb olive oil or butter
1 Onion, chopped
1 c Carrots, chopped
1 c Turnip, chopped
Turnip Greens, cleaned and chopped, optional
2 c Vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
Salt & pepper to taste
splash of vinegar
Wash peas and soak them overnight in cold water, or in hot water for one hour. Drain them and set aside. Heat the oil or butter in a saucepan and sauté the onion until light brown. Add the carrots and turnip and continue cooking 5 mins. Add the peas, bay leaf, and veg stock, and stir well. Cover the pan, bring to a boil, and simmer 1 – 1 1/2 hours until the peas are really tender. Stir occasionally, and add water if necessary. Season to taste. Stir in turnip greens 1-2 minutes before removing from heat. Serve with a splash of vinegar.
Sugar Snap Peas
Eat the whole thing pod and all. Grab the stem and peel down to remove the ‘string’ first.
Assuming these tasty little treats don’t just get gobbled up raw, my newest favorite snack from ‘Canning for a New Generation’ by Liana Krissoff is pickled snap peas. The recipe calls for them to be made with mint, Lori has made them with and without the mint and I prefer the without. This is a ‘refrigerator pickle’ not boiling water bath canning job.
Pickled Snap Peas
Makes 2 pint jars
1 1/2 cups white wine vinegar (acidity 6%)
1 tbsp kosher salt
1 ½ tbsp mild honey
2 dried hot chiles such as arbol broken in half
2 small shallots thinly sliced (Lori used some of the fresh Walla Walla)
4 sprigs fresh mint (in my mind, optional)
1 lb sugar snap peas stems removed
Submerge the jars, or one quart jar in a pot of hot water.
In a wide 6 to 8 quart pan, combine the vinegar, 1 ½ cups water, the salt and honey and bring to a boil over high heat.
Remove the jars from the water and set them upright on a towel. Divide the chiles, shallots and mint between the hot jars, then fill the jars with peas. Ladle or pour in the vinegar mixture. Let cool to room temp. then put the lids on and refrigerate; the peas will keep for several weeks (but I bet they won’t last that long!)
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