CSA Week 3, 2019

CSA Week 3

Summer squashes – just in time for Summer!   You MAY have any type of summer squash, lettuce, chard, kale, beets, maybe beans and cucumbers toward the end of the week. Please don’t panic if you do not get something I list, you are sure to see it sometime – I can never be totally sure what goes into the box/bag each day.

This is gorgeous salad weather! Finally!!! A note about our greens for those who have missed it the first time: our greens are rinsed, but not washed. You should wash all your greens. We do not spray our greens, so there may be creatures on them. I always fill my salad spinner with salted water and let the leaves soak for a few minutes; then give a rinse, spin dry and store in fridge.

What I really want to talk about is summer squash season!  We generally stay on top of picking it so there are not any large ones; the great thing is even the large ones are super tender and not seedy when they grow fast. Any squashes with tender skin harvested in the summer are technically summer squash. There are slight flavor and texture nuances, but nothing to prevent you from using them interchangeably. I love that they have become the 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 out and make some veggie noodles. I have always used my mandoline to make thin ribbons for salad or think slabs for lasagna until this year when Lisa – you know, Lisa, bought me one as a gift. It is pretty sweet and I am noodling zucchini tonight! (*I lightly salted, kept draining, added more salt and pepper then grated Parmesan. Yummy!

Don’t forget, there are no pickups or markets on the 4th. That’s the only day (I may skip Labor Day too ;)), all other pickups will go on as scheduled. CSA days that we skip/cancel are made up at the end of the season.

Need more guidance on utilizing squash in every recipe?

Zucchini and Summer Squash Lasagna
Swiss chard, summer squash, black bean quesadillas
Sautéed Summer Squashes (any variety)
Here’s one from the Inspiralized website cold-spiralized-sesame-noodle-salad

One tip, no matter what you are doing with your squash, is to lightly salt it 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 wont make your finished dish runny, and if sauteing will allow the squash to brown.

Sprinkle squash with 1/2-1 tsp of salt, let sit for 10 minutes, drain and pat with paper towel if needed.

Check out the squash page

Grilled Summer Squash

any summer squash
S&P
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar

Wash and trim squashes. Cut into 1/3″ slices. Yes, you can go thicker or thinner, but you have to really be watching to make sure they don’t burn into up into squash paper or get to black while you are waiting for the center to cook. Preheat the grill. Lightly salt the squash, let drain and blot off excess moisture. Toss with oil and vinegar. Place the squashes on the grill, cooking for a few minutes per side. These can char pretty quickly, so don’t get involved with a good book. When done, they should be perfectly fork tender and have nice grill marks. Season with another drizzle of oil and vinegar, ground pepper, and salt if needed.

Cat story alert – no need to read further if you are not an animal person……

Typically I write the weekly letter on Friday, and post it Saturday after the Sunday weekly reminder goes out, BUT, my heart wasn’t into writing the letter this week. You all must know by now that we love our wildlife,we love all animals! We have always had a houseful too. Many cats have come and gone, those we could not take in ourselves, we spayed or neutered and found them new homes. Five cats in the house seemed to be a magic number until I got Glenn his first Savannah cat, and then another one, and seven cats became the new norm. No one thought we would have seven cats for long with a senior 17 year old and a 12 year old with IBD.

Five years later…

In a surprise to us all, our 4th youngest cat developed a tumor and suffered from Vestibular Disorder this Spring. We nursed him, cuddled him, and brought him food until one day he stopped purring and looked in great anguish. About 2 weeks ago we said farewell sweet Flint at 13. Fezziwig (Wig), our IBD kitty took a sudden turn after Flint passing and last Friday, he stopped eating and he was gone by Monday. Farewell Old Fezziwig at 17.

Now, The Bear, he came to us from Glenn’s father’s farm. The mother had been run over and Curtis (Glenn’s son) called asking if we wanted a black, double pawed, 2 week old kitten. Glenn jumped at that – we already had two black cats at the time, but he had to have this kitten. He was VERY sickly when he got here, the vet treated him and told me if he lived three days he would be all set! I was pregnant with Reid at the time and remember this tiny kitty sitting on my foot while I processed tomatoes. Bear became a skilled hunter – mostly rodents and flying squirrels, roamed all over the farm (the guys would see him upwards of a mile away in the farthest fields) and became the head, welcoming kitty to all new cats. We often quoted the “Mr. Owl, how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?” as Wig would present his head to The Bear for attention and Bear would respond with lick, lick, bite. The answer was three, every time!

Wednesday Bear developed a cold and stopped eating. Thursday I brought him to the vet (same one he saw his whole life) and he got fluids and antibiotics. He perked up a little, but more of a “Hey, why you messing with me?!” attitude. At home he puttered around a little, lay down in the spot where Flint spent his last month, then later climbed into his cave in the corner of my desk.

Our oldest, dearest cat, The Bear, joined his buddies sometime early Friday morning. He was a character, part of our daily lives, made it to another birthday and to see the child I was carrying when Bear joined our family, become a Junior in college. The Bear will be sorely missed.

RIP The Bear: June-July 1998 – June 28, 2019

So that’s the story of how we went form a seven cat household to a four cat household in the month of June and why I could not possibly sit down and write anything yesterday and why there is nothing new or creative in this week’s letter. I apologize.

I’ll do better next week!

With that, July will bring the first corn and tomatoes. It is also a perfect time to plan a visit to the New Braintree farm. Yes, come on out. Wear sensible shoes, plan on getting dirty, pack a picnic lunch or check our local attractions page for other options. Yes, you can pick some produce, bird watch, catch frogs, walk your dog, and see where and how your food is growing.

We wish all of you a SAFE and HAPPY Independence Day!!!

 

Eat well,

Geneviève Stillman