8-12-2008
CSA Newsletter
August 12th, 2008
By the time one is eighty, it is said, there is no longer a tug of war in the garden with the May flowers hauling like mad against the claims of the other months. All is at last in balance and all is serene. The gardener is usually dead, of course. ~Henry Mitchell, The Essential Earthman, 1981
Brrrr, it was cold here this morning. In fact, it frosted a bit! Caught me off guard, that’s for sure, but, all is well, and it’s supposed to warm up again, which is a relief.
The Harvest
1# salad mix
¼# arugula
½# stir fry mix
1 bunch carrots
1 bunch leeks
Hot peppers (Fish (red) and Jalapeno (green))
1 bunch herbs (dill, cilantro, chives or mint)
Not everyone will get the following:
¼# basil (a good amount to make pesto with)
1 bunch turnips
Sweet pepper (Sweet Cal Wonder Bell)
Summer Squash (cash flow, flying saucer, and zephyr)
1 bunch beets (Chioggia (red striped inside), Golden Detroit (gold), Detroit
Dark Red (purple))
1.5# Heirloom tomatoes
Cucumber
1 oz edible flowers
Eggplant (Snowy)
Cabbage (Farao)
2 oz shiso
U-Pick – Purple beans or Sungold cherry tomatoes while they last. Ask us where and how.
Leeks - These are Lincoln Leeks. They are an early, slender leek – perhaps not the big fat guys you are used to. Enjoy.
Shiso – I talked about this one a few weeks ago – but it’s very new to many people, so I’m going to touch on it again. If you didn’t get basil this week, but you got some other leafy herb, then it’s Shiso. Shiso is a member of the mint family. We are growing 3 different varieties this year: English (one side of the leaf is purple and one side is green), Green (light green leaves), and Purple (you got it – purple leaves). The different varieties have VERY distinct and powerful flavors. I am really enjoying this herb because of the big fun leaves, and the incredible flavors! I hope you enjoy experimenting with it. Keep me posted if you come up with some good recipes.
The News
It was great to see some of you last Wednesday at the Tomato Tasting. Thanks for coming! For the rest of you – I hope you can make it next year, it was good fun.
And…………….the results are………………………….
**A dead tie between Sungold Cherry Tomatoes and Green Zebra Tomatoes as the CSA favorites**
Looking at the board to see which tomatoes people liked and didn’t like has helped me decide which varieties to grow next year. I will probably not be growing Brandywines next year, as they didn’t get many stars for flavor from you all, and I don’t like how the plant performs here. My experience with them is that they are very susceptible to all tomato fungal, viral, and pest problems.
Now, Green Zebra on the other hand……the flavor is great, the plant is a prolific producer, and it has been one of the more disease resistant varieties all season. It’s a keeper!
Sungold Cherry Tomatoes – of course we’ll grow those again!
Striped German – I’ve liked this one. Produced early, big beautiful fruit, and I think a darn good flavor (even though it did not stand out in the ratings last Wednesday).
Cherokee Purple – An old favorite. Going to grow this one again also; I like the plant, it produces early, nice mellow flavor, nice color, and it rated along with the Striped German with you guys.
Yellow Pear – this tomato got some very purposeful stars from a few people…..but I’ve gotta say that it has not impressed me. I am going to keep searching for a more flavorful pear tomato.
Becca’s Nutritional Tip
Phytonutrients are compounds found in vegetables and fruits that interact in a synergistic manner to help boost immunity and overall health, as well as create the colors of each plant. Scientist are finding that phytonutrients help to guard against and cleanse away carcinogens, support heart health, enhance the immune system, and support healthy, graceful aging. So every bite of leafy greens, arugula, beets, turnips, and herbs are working to support your overall health and wellbeing. A quick trick to make sure each meal is full of phytonutrients - the more colorful each dish is, the more phytonutrients you and your family are ingesting.
The Recipe
These both come from the Quail Hill Farm Cookbook:
Spicy Coleslaw (they actually got this one from the Chez Panisse Vegetable Cookbook)
Great with anything BBQ’d or fried.
For every 4 cups of sliced cabbage (cored, quartered and sliced into 1/8” strips), add 1 diced small red onion, 1 thinly sliced jalapeno pepper (with seeds and veins removed), juice of 1 lime, 1 tbsp white balsamic or wine vinegar, ¼ cup olive oil, the leaves from a good –sized bunch of cilantro, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss it all together and let macerate for 1 hour. Serve at room temperature. Serves 3-4.
Carrot Cake
Beat 4 eggs. Add 2 cups sugar and 1 ½ cups safflower or canola oil and beat well. Sift and mix 2 cups flour, 2 tsp baking soda, ½ tsp salt and 2 tsp cinnamon. Fold in 3 cups of grated carrots. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes in a greased 10”X13” pan.
Top with cream cheese icing: mix together ½ stick sweet butter, 4 oz cream cheese, 1 cup confectioner’s sugar and 1 tsp vanilla. Spread over cake.
Daisy and Alayne’s Summer Concert Series Barley Wraps
2 cups cooked barley (follow cooking instructions for the barley you get – there are different kinds (pearled, hulled).
½ cup roasted beets (quarter beets, toss with olive oil, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper, sage, and thyme. Roast at 350 for about 25 minutes). Dice the roasted beets after they have cooled.
Diced cucumber
Diced heirloom tomatoes
Diced sweet bell pepper
Diced Parsley
Diced Thyme
Grated carrot
Juice from 1 slice of lime
Salt and pepper to taste
Goat cheese
Toss it all together and bring it to the concert along with basil or shiso leaves to make little bit sized wraps out of. It’s very refreshing!
Please bring back jars if you have them.
That’s all for this week, hope you had a great weekend. See you tomorrow - Daisy
August 12th, 2008
By the time one is eighty, it is said, there is no longer a tug of war in the garden with the May flowers hauling like mad against the claims of the other months. All is at last in balance and all is serene. The gardener is usually dead, of course. ~Henry Mitchell, The Essential Earthman, 1981
Brrrr, it was cold here this morning. In fact, it frosted a bit! Caught me off guard, that’s for sure, but, all is well, and it’s supposed to warm up again, which is a relief.
The Harvest
1# salad mix
¼# arugula
½# stir fry mix
1 bunch carrots
1 bunch leeks
Hot peppers (Fish (red) and Jalapeno (green))
1 bunch herbs (dill, cilantro, chives or mint)
Not everyone will get the following:
¼# basil (a good amount to make pesto with)
1 bunch turnips
Sweet pepper (Sweet Cal Wonder Bell)
Summer Squash (cash flow, flying saucer, and zephyr)
1 bunch beets (Chioggia (red striped inside), Golden Detroit (gold), Detroit
Dark Red (purple))
1.5# Heirloom tomatoes
Cucumber
1 oz edible flowers
Eggplant (Snowy)
Cabbage (Farao)
2 oz shiso
U-Pick – Purple beans or Sungold cherry tomatoes while they last. Ask us where and how.
Leeks - These are Lincoln Leeks. They are an early, slender leek – perhaps not the big fat guys you are used to. Enjoy.
Shiso – I talked about this one a few weeks ago – but it’s very new to many people, so I’m going to touch on it again. If you didn’t get basil this week, but you got some other leafy herb, then it’s Shiso. Shiso is a member of the mint family. We are growing 3 different varieties this year: English (one side of the leaf is purple and one side is green), Green (light green leaves), and Purple (you got it – purple leaves). The different varieties have VERY distinct and powerful flavors. I am really enjoying this herb because of the big fun leaves, and the incredible flavors! I hope you enjoy experimenting with it. Keep me posted if you come up with some good recipes.
The News
It was great to see some of you last Wednesday at the Tomato Tasting. Thanks for coming! For the rest of you – I hope you can make it next year, it was good fun.
And…………….the results are………………………….
**A dead tie between Sungold Cherry Tomatoes and Green Zebra Tomatoes as the CSA favorites**
Looking at the board to see which tomatoes people liked and didn’t like has helped me decide which varieties to grow next year. I will probably not be growing Brandywines next year, as they didn’t get many stars for flavor from you all, and I don’t like how the plant performs here. My experience with them is that they are very susceptible to all tomato fungal, viral, and pest problems.
Now, Green Zebra on the other hand……the flavor is great, the plant is a prolific producer, and it has been one of the more disease resistant varieties all season. It’s a keeper!
Sungold Cherry Tomatoes – of course we’ll grow those again!
Striped German – I’ve liked this one. Produced early, big beautiful fruit, and I think a darn good flavor (even though it did not stand out in the ratings last Wednesday).
Cherokee Purple – An old favorite. Going to grow this one again also; I like the plant, it produces early, nice mellow flavor, nice color, and it rated along with the Striped German with you guys.
Yellow Pear – this tomato got some very purposeful stars from a few people…..but I’ve gotta say that it has not impressed me. I am going to keep searching for a more flavorful pear tomato.
Becca’s Nutritional Tip
Phytonutrients are compounds found in vegetables and fruits that interact in a synergistic manner to help boost immunity and overall health, as well as create the colors of each plant. Scientist are finding that phytonutrients help to guard against and cleanse away carcinogens, support heart health, enhance the immune system, and support healthy, graceful aging. So every bite of leafy greens, arugula, beets, turnips, and herbs are working to support your overall health and wellbeing. A quick trick to make sure each meal is full of phytonutrients - the more colorful each dish is, the more phytonutrients you and your family are ingesting.
The Recipe
These both come from the Quail Hill Farm Cookbook:
Spicy Coleslaw (they actually got this one from the Chez Panisse Vegetable Cookbook)
Great with anything BBQ’d or fried.
For every 4 cups of sliced cabbage (cored, quartered and sliced into 1/8” strips), add 1 diced small red onion, 1 thinly sliced jalapeno pepper (with seeds and veins removed), juice of 1 lime, 1 tbsp white balsamic or wine vinegar, ¼ cup olive oil, the leaves from a good –sized bunch of cilantro, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss it all together and let macerate for 1 hour. Serve at room temperature. Serves 3-4.
Carrot Cake
Beat 4 eggs. Add 2 cups sugar and 1 ½ cups safflower or canola oil and beat well. Sift and mix 2 cups flour, 2 tsp baking soda, ½ tsp salt and 2 tsp cinnamon. Fold in 3 cups of grated carrots. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes in a greased 10”X13” pan.
Top with cream cheese icing: mix together ½ stick sweet butter, 4 oz cream cheese, 1 cup confectioner’s sugar and 1 tsp vanilla. Spread over cake.
Daisy and Alayne’s Summer Concert Series Barley Wraps
2 cups cooked barley (follow cooking instructions for the barley you get – there are different kinds (pearled, hulled).
½ cup roasted beets (quarter beets, toss with olive oil, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper, sage, and thyme. Roast at 350 for about 25 minutes). Dice the roasted beets after they have cooled.
Diced cucumber
Diced heirloom tomatoes
Diced sweet bell pepper
Diced Parsley
Diced Thyme
Grated carrot
Juice from 1 slice of lime
Salt and pepper to taste
Goat cheese
Toss it all together and bring it to the concert along with basil or shiso leaves to make little bit sized wraps out of. It’s very refreshing!
Please bring back jars if you have them.
That’s all for this week, hope you had a great weekend. See you tomorrow - Daisy
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