CSA Week 2, 2023
There will be no CSA pick up on Independence Day, Tuesday July 4th, all other pick up days will be happening as scheduled. I’m talking to you July 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, etc people 😉
The picture above does not reflect what is in your bag….but it does have nice pics of the various peas chard and beets 🙂
Things you MAY find in our bag or box this week: lettuce, snap, snow or MOST LIKELY shell peas, garlic scapes, the first summer squash, Swiss chard, green onions, basil, and possibly radishes or beets with the tops (I did not know you were getting beets last week, LOL)! Yes, eat the tops. Don’t worry, you are not getting one of each variety, LOL!.
I wrote about pea varieties last week, but to recap, if you can eat the whole thing pod and all, do not shell, if it is a fibrous mass after chewing, you scored English Shell Peas and you must shell.
If you pick up your CSA at a location you see one of us, please feel free to return any containers or frosty bags in good shape for us to reuse. I know you wouldn’t BUT please do not leave anything behind at any of the private homes or businesses that host CSA pick ups. And, if you are picking up at a business, we hope you will shop from time to time and support our supporters 😉 Thank you.
Fun Fact: purple vegetables like peas and beans will turn green after 4 minutes of cooking.
Again: no pick ups anywhere Tuesday, July 4th. We will add on at the end. Thanks!
Summer Squashes
It is summer squash season! We generally stay on top of picking it so there are not any large ones but if (when?) you get a large one, don’t fret, even they are super tender and not seedy when they grow fast. Any squashes with tender skin harvested in the summer are technically summer squash. Yes, that’s right, a zucchini is a summer squash. While there are slight flavor and texture nuances, use them interchangeably. I had a member complain that she had no idea how to use yellow summer squash, only the zucchini. That was funny to me… and, obviously, she didn’t read my letter about summer squashes, LOL. 🙂 Any of the summer squashes are my go-to replacement for pasta and why not? They are low carb, low calorie, high in vitamin C and a good source of fiber, B-6, Potassium and Magnesium. Get the spiralizer or mandolin out and make some veggie noodles! I also use them sliced the long way instead of lasagna.
Zucchini and Summer Squash Lasagna
Pro tip: lightly salt squash after spiralizing, slicing, etc, to draw out some of the water. In a fresh salad this process tenderizes the squash and also prevents your dressing from becoming watery, if used as the lasagna layer it won’t make your finished dish runny, and if sautéing will allow the squash to brown nicely.
Sprinkle squash with 1/2-1 tsp of salt, let sit for at least 10 minutes, drain and pat with paper towel if needed. I toss mine in salt right in the colander and let it drain while I organize the rest of dinner.
Recipes
Easy Lettuce Wraps according to me
Lettuce wraps are a fun and simple supper. The longest part of the whole process is cooking the brown rice 😉 This is what I normally do and , but you could easily sub in chicken or beef or go vegetarian. Leave out the rice and go carb free!
- Lettuce – leaves carefully removed, rinsed, excess water shaken off or layer between toweling to dry
- 1 lb ground pork
- 4 or 5 garlic scapes chopped
- 1 can water chestnuts drained and chopped
- 1 1/2 cups cooked rice
- minced pickled ginger (if you have fresh – grate away, or not, use powdered)
- splash toasted sesame oil
- 1 Tb ish Oyster sauce
- 1 Tb ish Hoisin
- splash soy sauce
- sprinkle rice vinegar
In a large skillet, cook the sausage and scapes until the meat is cooked through. Stir in water chestnuts, cooked rice, seasonings. Sample your good work. Serve with lettuce leaves and let everyone fold/wrap their own. This is another great time to break out the garlic chili sauce. Yum!
Swiss chard and squash enchiladas – this is a good one and I have pictures 😉
Farm Dirt
We are hoping to get through the week with a second round of strawberries…we have not been able to do that for a few years. This year’s crop has been epic and we all deserve it. Anyway, the whole season can just come to a screeching halt- as always, there are no guarantees. The potatoes are in full bloom and so pretty. The Superior have lavender blossoms and are so striking, most of the other white and yellow fleshed varieties have white blossoms. Blossoms mean there will be taters soon 🙂
The Barn Swallows are occupying several buildings and they are SO fun to watch! We have 4 nests at differing stages going in the big barn. This morning at 8 one nest I was observing had 4 babies faces peeking put. 3 hours later one of the 4 had hopped out and was standing on a brace near the nest stretching his wings and getting fed first, LOL. To narrate the picture above, the bird on the left is mama or papa, the kid outside the nest is hogging the food from it’s siblings, and the siblings are opening wide, in hopes they get some of the goods next. I also caught a great shadow of another adult! Oh to fly!
Part of our conscientiously grown® philosophy is stewardship of the land to provide great habitat for our native species; we feel blessed every time we see one of our bears or birds or bugs (some of them anyway) and strive to be good neighbors.
Eat well,
Geneviève Stillman
Your grower, Glenn, with his cat Apollo.