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Spring CSA Week 3

5/20/2015

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In This Week's Share: 

Radishes
Green Garlic
Japanese Lettuce (Tokyo Bekana)
Kale
Lettuce
Spicy Mix
Chard and Beet Greens Mix


How To Use It
We use the chard and beet greens mix anyway we would use spinach, either cooked or raw. It makes a beautiful salad, is delicious steamed just like spinach or added to a fritata or quiche.

Green garlic can be used any way you would use scallions, leeks, or garlic. The greens are great for stock or they can be used like scallion tops.

Farm News
Sorry for the tardy newsletter. Our internet was out from the thunderstorms yesterday. But thunderstorms mean rain and we've gotten almost 2 inches in the past week. Our crops are happier and we're glad to have a break from irrigating.

Our new refrigerated box truck arrived on Monday! A new (to us) market vehicle was part of a project we're funding with a grant from the Delaware County Economic Development office and from our crowd-sourced micro-loan from Kiva Zip. This sixteen-footer increases the amount we can bring to market six fold (!!) and gives us plenty of room to grow. For a while it will also serve as our primary cold storage, allowing us to increase harvest efficiency and improve quality. We named the truck Rosie, since she came from a nice couple who sells roses and hydrangeas in New Jersey.
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Spring CSA Week 2

5/12/2015

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In This Week's Share:
Lettuce
Ramps (2)
Bok Choy
Parsnips (all you can eat!)
Spicy Mix
Pea Shoots
Spinach


Farm News
We were inspected by our organic certifying agency last week and we are in compliance. Yahoo!

Today was a welcomed relief to the recent heat. With lots of irrigation and sun screen, all the plants and people on the farm have been staying happy. We've been planting and weeding like crazy. Our new tine weeder rocks and our trusty old hoes are coming in handy too. We're hoping to plant our (huge!) tomato plants on Thursday.

We applied for a loan from Kiva Zip, a crowd-sourcing micro-loan program, and last week we reached 100%! Now we have half of the funds to complete our farm improvements project. We should hear about the grant which would fund the other half of the project soon. These improvements include a market vehicle, a cold-storage facility, greenhouse improvements, and reusable packaging/totes. We're excited by and grateful for this opportunity to substantially grow our farm!

Talk to you soon!
~Eleanor & Patrick
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Luckily there are plenty of leaky hoses for Ernie to play with.
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Harvesting spicy mix
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Weeding everything!
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Which lucky member gets this bok choy monster?
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Today! Today! Today!

5/5/2015

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Finally - good, fresh, organic food!


In today's share:
Parsnips*
Carrots*
Ramps
Bok Choy
Tokyo Bekana (Japanese Lettuce)
Radishes
Spinach

*The parsnips and carrots were seeded last summer, survived the winter, and were picked this spring. Because they were overwintered, they have some blemishes, mostly cracking, some of which we cut off. But their flavor is awesome!


What Is THAT?!
Tokyo bekana looks like lettuce but is a type of Asian green. Use it however you would use lettuce, bok choy, or napa cabbage. Great flavor!

Ramps, aka wild leeks, are found in the woods for about three weeks every Spring. They take many years to go to seed, so we take care not to harvest more than 25% of any patch we find. They are all the rage in NYC but locals have been enjoying them forever. Both the bulb and the greens are good to use. Use them any way you would scallions, leeks, garlic, or onions. 

Recipes 
Creamed Spinach With Ramps
Ingredients:
2 T butter
2 T flour
1/2 bunch ramps, roots removed, bulb and leaves separated and chopped
1 bunch spinach, roots removed, torn or very coarsely chopped
1/2 cream

1. Heat butter over medium high heat. Once bubbles subside, add chopped ramp bulbs and cook for about five minutes. 
2. Add flour slowly while whisking constantly until well incorporated. Cook a couple of minutes, stirring frequently.
3. Add cream and bring to a boil, still stirring frequently.
4. Add spinach and cook until wilted and cream thickens. Add ramp greens and incorporate.
5. Salt and pepper to taste.

Roasted Parsnips, Carrots, and Ramps
Ingredients:
1 lb carrots, chopped (peeling optional)
2 lb parsnips chopped (peeling optional)
1/2 - 1 bunch ramps, roots removed
Olive oil

1. Heat oven to 375. 
2. Toss carrots and parsnips in olive oil and roast for 20 minutes
3. Add ramps, toss everything to coat ramps in oil and prevent veggies from sticking to the pan. Roast another 20 minutes or until parsnips are soft and everything is golden/slightly crispy.
4. Salt and pepper to taste.

Ramp Vinaigrette with Japanese Lettuce (Tokyo Bekana Greens)
Ingredients:
1 head Japanese lettuce, chopped and washed
2 Ramps, roots removed
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
teaspoon salt
teaspoon mustard or mustard powder
pepper to taste

1. Put everything but the lettuce in a blender or use an emersion blender to blend until smooth.
2. Drizzle as much as needed over Japanese lettuce, toss, enjoy!


Great to see everybody today!
~Eleanor & Patrick
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