Week 4: The Sunshine Returns
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Greetings Y'all,
Hope you all have been able to get out and enjoy some sunshine after such a long stretch of cloudy, rainy weather. I'm personally having a hard time believing that it is the first week in June already! Your farmers have been working hard making up for a lost month of planting, hoping for the best and appreciating your patience and understanding. Most of our returning members know that we are usually surrounded by abundance this time of year, looking for places to get rid of excess and feeling like we are off to the races on an abundant season. Instead, it seems like we are rationing food and feeling terrible that we can't keep up with demand. Although we know you all understand the risks and rewards of the CSA model, we really want everyone to have a good experience and hope that both our new and returning members will support us during this difficult season.
We can finally get into our fields and start re-prepping them for planting. That beautiful cover crop of Rye and Vetch in the picture was seeded last winter and with all the moisture, we have not been able to get it mowed or worked in the soil. The pro is that it is wonderful for the soil to have all that lush organic matter and green manure growing on it, especially during heavy rains. The con is that we are horribly late on getting stuff in the ground. If you are calling farmer Nic this week, he most likely won't hear the phone as he has spent most of his days on the tractor getting these fields ready for planting.
Photo by Claire Burnett
This week at the stand we are starting to see some of our old fiends back. Beets that we planted back in March are finally starting to trickle in, although not in the abundance that we would like. They are small and tender right now, great for roasting whole and adding to an arugula or spicy mix salad. We also have the first of the chicories ready for spring. A strangely pleasing bitter green, frise is one of my absolute favorites spring treats. Try some worked into a salad or just on its own, grilled with a warm lemon maple bacon dressing. Sometimes I just lightly wilt it with in a skillet with onion, garlic, and a little bit of good balsamic at the end for a lovely side. And of course, like most spring things, it always pairs well with a poached egg.
Finally, it seems that we have had a miscommunication with our market crew this past weekend regarding the farm stand pick-up option. The farm stand CSA pick-up is only available for those of you who chose that option at the beginning of the season. We know that we have not had as much stuff at market at we normally do, but this is due to circumstances beyond our control and we need to make sure that there is enough stuff in the market stand for those members who chose that option. If you would like to use the farm stand for CSA pick-up, please let us know and we will happily get you squared away. If you stop by the stand and have not signed up for that option, you will need to pay cash. Thank you for understanding, this is a new model for us and we are working through some of the growing pains.
See you all real soon!
Katie
This Week's Harvest
Kale
Collards
Chard
Salad Mix
Spinach
Arugula
Beets
Hakurei Turnips
Radishes (Saturday only)
Frise
Broccoli Raab
Spicy Mix
STORAGE TIPS:
Spring root crops are some of the best because they often offer two meals in one. Radish greens, beet greens, and turnip greens are all edible and extremely nutritious. When you get your roots home, cut them off the greens and put both the greens and the roots in a plastic bag in your crisper. If you leave them attached, the greens act like a wick and make your root vegetables soft over time. Once the greens are detached, the roots will store for weeks if kept in a sealed plastic bag.
