This week’s share:

Basil

beans

broccoli

brussel sprouts

chard

cucumbers

kohlrabi

yellow or red onion

summer squash

This Past Week…

we have been waiting for the ears of sweet corn to grow, but they haven’t grown more than 6 inches long. Those that have survived the raccoon attacks are short in length and short kernels. So, unfortunately, there won’t be any sweet corn this year. But, we will be offering some corn stalks for our members who are interested in fall decorating. Just trying to make a little lemonade out of that situation.

We forgot to set out the swap box for last week’s pickup – so sorry!

We are planning a harvest event held jointly with the Community Gardens, including a pot luck, scarecrow building contest, and some other fun events. Look for more information coming in the weeks ahead.

While many of the summer plants are dying back, there are many plants growing quickly to offer us delicious fresh food in the fall. In the weeks ahead you will see lettuce, radish, beets, and green beans, just to name a few.

New for pickup, please choose the bag with your name on it. There have been a few mixups, with some not coming on their scheduled weeks and others coming on unscheduled weeks. We don’t know who has come and who has not, so we’ll try this to keep track of things. If you show up and there is no bag for you, please get in touch so we can sort things out.
Some more ways to use those nutritious greens:


Green Smoothie
(From allrecipes.com)

1 banana, thickly sliced, frozen
2 cups chopped kale
1 tablespoon flax seed meal (optional)
1 tablespoon coconut oil (optional)
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup orange juice

Place the banana, kale, flax seed meal, and coconut oil into a blender, pour in the milk and orange juice. Cover, and puree until smooth and serve.

Pumpkin, Kale & Black Bean Soup
From allrecipes.com

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 yellow onions, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 small pumpkin, peeled, seeded, diced
4 cups beef broth
1 (16 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bunch kale, stems removed, chopped
1 pound cubed cooked ham
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon thinly sliced sorrel (optional)

Heat olive oil over medium heat, cook onion until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and pumpkin and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the beef broth, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and simmer until vegetables are tender. While soup is simmering, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the kale and simmer until softened, about 3 minutes. Drain into a colander.

After soup has cooked for 15 minutes, add the kale, ham, and black beans; simmer for another 5 minutes. Stir in the sherry vinegar and sorrel; remove pot from the heat.

Chard W/ Currants & Pine Nuts
From the New York Times

3 tablespoons currants, raisins, or golden raisins
2 pounds Swiss chard, stems diced and set aside
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 to 2 garlic cloves (to taste), minced
3 tablespoons pine nuts
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Place the raisins or currants in a bowl and pour on hot water to cover. Soak 10 minutes and drain.

Fill a bowl with ice water. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil and add the chard. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until just tender. Transfer to the bowl of ice water and let sit for a few minutes. Drain and squeeze out as much water as you can. Chop coarsely.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick skillet. Add the chard stems and cook 3 to 5 minutes, until tender. Add the pine nuts and cook, stirring, until they begin to color, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, about 1 minute or just until the garlic begins to smell fragrant. Add the chopped greens and raisins or currants and toss together until they are well coated with oil and heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve, or allow to cool and serve at room temperature.

Enjoy your week!


~ Kathy

This week’s share:
basil
broccoli
carrot
wax, purple & green beans
eggplant
sweet pepper or hot pepper
kale
summer squash
tomato

This Past Week…

Has been very uneventful – love it!

The peppers are sloowwwwly making an appearance, as are the eggplant.

As we were washing the chard today, we noticed that it just wasn’t up to our standards. So, there will be no chard this week, but we’ll see what we can do for next week.

Some carrots are finally getting large enough to pick, so you’ll get some of those. It was not easy finding larger carrots that weren’t split from all the rain. We’ll just keep planting more in hopes that they’ll be delicious this fall.

Today you will either have a green bell pepper (sweet) or a long, thin hot pepper. Hopefully there will be enough for both kinds soon!

We’ve had a surprise visitor to the garden. A great deal of the sweet corn has been either beaten down by the wind and rain, or attacked and devoured by what we think are raccoons. They weren’t very diligent about hiding the evidence.

During the extreme hot weather, the plants slow down their production. Such is the case with the cucumbers. Last week we were begging people to take them so they wouldn’t be wasted, and this week we have none to share. The same with the summer squash and musk melon. Keep your fingers crossed for melons next week.

Pesto

From allrecipes.com

2/3 cup packed, coarsely chopped fresh basil
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons pine nuts or sunflower kernels
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 clove garlic, peeled

Ratatouille

2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 eggplant, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
salt to taste
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 zucchini (or summer squash), sliced
1 large onion, sliced into rings
2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1 green bell pepper, sliced
2 large tomatoes, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat bottom and sides of a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic until lightly browned. Mix in parsley and eggplant. Saute until eggplant is soft, about 10 minutes. Season with salt to taste.

Spread eggplant mixture evenly across bottom of prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle with a few tablespoons of Parmesan cheese. Spread zucchini in an even layer over top. Lightly salt and sprinkle with a little more cheese. Continue layering in this fashion, with onion, mushrooms, bell pepper, and tomatoes, covering each layer with a sprinkling of salt and cheese.

Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes.

Sweet and Savory Kale

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
4 teaspoons white sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
4 cups stemmed, torn and rinsed kale
1/4 cup dried cranberries
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic; cook and stir until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mustard, sugar, vinegar, and chicken stock, and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the kale, cover, and cook 5 minutes until wilted.

Stir in the dried cranberries, and continue boiling, uncovered, until the liquid has reduced by about half, and the cranberries have softened, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with sliced almonds before serving.

Stuffed Eggplant

1 eggplant, halved lengthwise
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup olive oil, divided
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup white wine
2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Scoop out the flesh of the eggplant, chop, and reserve. Season shells with salt and pepper, and coat with some olive oil; set aside.

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Saute sausage and garlic until sausage is evenly brown. Stir in the reserved chopped eggplant. Season with parsley, salt and pepper. Pour in wine, and cook 5 minutes. Mix in the bread crumbs and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. If mixture is dry, stir in more olive oil. Stuff mixture into eggplant shells, and sprinkle top with remaining Parmesan cheese.

Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until eggplant is tender.

Eggplant Parmesan

From allrecipes.com

(This recipe still tasted great even without the mozzarella!)

2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
 garlic clove, minced
1 small eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 medium tomato, thinly sliced
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Combine oil and garlic; brush over both sides of eggplant slices. Place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes; turn. Bake 5 minutes longer or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

Place half of the eggplant in a greased 1-qt. baking dish. Sprinkle with half of the basil and Parmesan cheese. Arrange tomato slices over top; sprinkle with remaining basil and Parmesan. layer with half of the mozzarella cheese and the remaining eggplant; top with remaining mozzarella. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes. Uncover; bake 5 minutes longer or until the cheese is melted.

Dried Basil

I’ve found the easiest way to have chemical-free basil for cooking is to put it in a brown paper bag and set it on your car’s dashboard for a few days in the hot sun. Just shake it a few times when you think of it. When it’s completely dry, grind it in your coffee bean grinder, then put it in an airtight container.

Have a great week!


Kathy

Pickup:

Front porch if rainy
Right side yard if nice

This week’s share:
basil
Chioggia beets
flat-leaf cilantro
green beans
kale
kohlrabi
red leaf lettuce

This Past Week…

We’ve kept busy staking and trimming tomatoes. They’re between three and four feet tall right now, and love this heat. The sunflowers and pumpkins have really taken off. They’ve grown over a foot in four weeks! We’ve even picked a few carrots. Yumm.

How is it going?

How have your CSA bags been? How can things be improved upon? Tell us how we’re doing.

Chioggia Beets
Not Grandma’s Beets!

What about it: Chioggia is an Italian coastal town situated on a little island. It's here that this wonderful beet originated, which is highly sought after for its striking colors.

When its round root is cut, it reveals superb rings, alternating white and deep pink. After cooking, the flesh turns completely pale pink, which is why it is preferred in its raw form.

It matures early and has a mild flavor, and so requires less cooking time than most varieties of beet. (from theworldwidegourmet.com)

The news: Still found mainly in farmers’ markets but starting to show up in specialty grocery stores, these red-and-white–striped roots are sweeter than other beets, and so beautiful, they might win over any beet doubters.

Feel-good factors: Beets have lots of fiber, potassium, iron, and folic acid, a B vitamin. Betacyanin, the pigment that gives beets their color, is a powerful antioxidant.

Ways to try them: Sauté the greens. Roast beets until just tender; cut up for salads (they’re great with avocados). Slice raw beets paper-thin; add to soup. From sunset.com.



Roasted Beet Salad

6-8 small beets, scrubbed, tops trimmed to 1 inch
Olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
¼ cup pecans
1 tbs Dijon mustard
4 tbs white wine vinegar
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 cups baby salad greens
½ small bottle onion or sweet onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup crumbled blue cheese

Heat grill. Place beets on heavy foil; drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Wrap tightly, grill until beets can be easily pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, toast pecans in a dry pan on the grill, tossing frequently. Finely chop the nuts. When beets are cooled a bit, use a paper towel to remove the peel, stems, and tails. Cut beets into quarters. Combine mustard and vinegar in a bowl. Whisk in olive oil until thickened. Add salt and pepper. Toss salad greens in a bowl with a little dressing. Portion the greens onto 2-4 plates. Top with beets, onions, blue cheese, and pecans. Drizzle with as much dressing as you like.

Adapted from Michael Waupoose’s winner in the 2001 Food for Thought Recipe Contest. Printed in “From Asparagus to Zucchini”.





Fried Beets & Carrots from Linda Derrickson, Sunporch Café

2 tbs olive oil
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 medium beets, quartered, sliced ¼ inch thick
2 medium carrots, sliced ¼ inch thick
Tamari sauce
Beet tops, fresh spinach, or Swiss Chard

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add cumin, cook about 1 minute. Add beets and carrots; fry until tender. Remove from heat, sprinkle on a little tamari, and serve. Variation: if using young beets, save the tops. When the beets and carrots are tender, add chopped greens, cover, and cook until soft. Toss mixture, sprinkle with tamari, and serve. Makes 2-4 servings.


Enjoy what may be the last of the basil – looks like all the plants are diseased and they may succumb quickly. Big sad face :(

We are running low on brown paper bags. If you have any you could spare, we would sure appreciate it!

Have a stress-free week!

~Kathy

June 22, 2010 CSA News

A Note Regarding Pickup:


If there is inclement weather, you can pick up your bag on the front porch, in the large Styrofoam cooler. If the weather is nice, you can pick up your bag on the shady side (right side) of the house in the large white Styrofoam cooler.

This week’s share:

cilantro

basil

dill

kale

green head lettuce

red leaf lettuce

oregano

Swiss chard

Hello! Summer is here, and I am happy not to harvest in the rain this week. But, it rained last night, so I spent a good portion of my time today rinsing lettuce.

Trying to keep up with the weeds is NOT going to kill me…I keep telling myself. That has been a challenge in between all the rain. Another challenge that has come up is the finding of Colorado Potato Beetles in the community gardens. My son helped pick the bugs off, and so far we have been safe from them. They like to feed on potato, peppers, eggplant, and tomato. These little bugs can be quite devastating, so “drop everything & pick bugs” is the directive.

We found five beans yesterday, which are signaling the onslaught of bean harvesting which will begin soon. We also harvested one kohlrabi today, so the other’s time is near! There are tomatoes forming, and the potatoes, watermelons, and muskmelons all have blossoms.

Compost Share

Good compost is black gold to gardeners. We have been making our own compost, and approximately every 30 days we have a complete batch. The struggle we’ve been having is our kitchen waste cannot keep up with the demand. This is where you come in: You reduce the amount you put into the landfill, and at the same time help us build healthy soil. You fill up an ice cream bucket/coffee can, etc. with food scraps, and then bring your full bucket of compostables at the pick-up site when you pick up your share and we'll have an empty bucket waiting for you. This is good for you and your food, and good for the environment.



Acceptable:
• All fruit and vegetable peelings and pits

• Non greasy food scraps or leftovers

• Rice, pasta, bread, cereal etc.

• Coffee grounds with filter, tea bags

• Hair and nails (animal or human)

• Egg and nut shells

• Cut or dried flowers, wreaths

• Houseplants and potting soil

•Dryer lint

•Vacuum cleaner bag contents

Not acceptable:


• Meat, chicken and fish

• Greasy food scraps

• Fat and oil

• Dairy items: cheese, butter

• Dog or cat feces, kitty litter

• Coal or charcoal

• Coconuts

• Diseased and/or insect-infested houseplants and soil

Thank you CSA member Kris S for the following recipes:

Baked Kale Chips (from smittenkitchen.com)

Adapted from a bunch of inspiring places

1 bunch (about 6 ounces) kale (I used Lacinato or “Dinosaur” Kale but I understand that the curlier stuff works, too, possibly even better)

1 tablespoon olive oil

Sea salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 300°F. Rinse and dry the kale, then remove the stems and tough center ribs. Cut into large pieces, toss with olive oil in a bowl then sprinkle with salt. Arrange leaves in a single layer on a large baking sheet (I needed two because mine are tiny; I also lined mine with parchment for easy clean-up but there’s no reason that you must). Bake for 20 minutes, or until crisp. Place baking sheet on a rack to cool.

Kale-Dusted Popcorn If you’re making the chips with the intention to grind them up for popcorn, I’d use less oil — perhaps half — so they grind without the “powder” clumping. I ground a handful of my chips (about half) in a mortar and pestle (well, actually the “pestle” was MIA so I used the handle of an OXO reamer, not that anyone asked) and sprinkled it over popcorn (1/4 cup popcorn kernels I’d cooked in a covered pot with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil over medium heat, shaking it about with potholders frequently). I seasoned the popcorn with salt. I liked this snack, but I think Parmesan and Kale-Dusted Popcorn would be even more delicious. Next time!

Freezing Greens

So, you've been enjoying all the kale, spinach, and lettuce you can eat. But let's be honest. There might still be some greens left over, and perhaps you are thinking, "Gee, I wish there was some way we could save these greens for later."

Luckily, there is a fast and easy way to preserve greens like kale, chard, spinach and mustard. Greens freeze VERY well, and with a little preparation you can fill your freezer with packets of greens that will make your day in January!

HOW TO DO IT
Wash and chop the greens into roughly 1-2 inch square pieces, removing any tough stems. Then plunge the greens into boiling water for the following periods:

Beet greens, kale, chard, mustard greens, turnip greens, spinach......................................2 minutes

Collards............................……………........................................................................3 minutes



As soon as the cooking time is up, plunge the greens in cold (preferably ice) water to stop the cooking process. Drain VERY well, and pack into storage containers (I use quart ziplock bags). Cool completely, label, and freeze! It is not only delightful, but quite convenient to pull a bag of parboiled greens out of the freezer for use in soups, stews, stir-fry, or for braising or sautéing. The thawed greens will require less cooking than they did when fresh, but, as always, cook to your tenderness preference.



How is it going?

How have your CSA bags been? Have things been squished, wilted, or otherwise not in good shape? How can things be improved upon? Any feedback you can provide will make a positive impact on our operation and on your food. We welcome you, and well, beg you to tell us how we’re doing.

Want Eggs?

If you are interested in getting eggs every week with your CSA share from an organic farmer, let me know and I may be able to arrange this.


Hope your week is fantastic! Kathy