Hello CSA Members!
June and summer is officially here with some real hot weather coming in. We’ve got a great crop mix this week for you this week regardless. Between all the harvesting and washing of crops coming in we have spent all our time picking strawberries! They have been ripening fast in the heat and are so tasty and sweet! My daughter finished her freshman year of high school this week and my son finished 6th grade! I’m happy to be driving the kids around a little less now and have more time for the farm, but with all this heat it really takes all the energy I have to keep it rolling. The heat made growing micro greens incredibly difficult this week also and we had some crop loss on that. Really hoping for rain but it just isn’t coming this year so lots of time has been spent moving water around and keeping the crops irrigated including some tasty new crops this week like broccoli, romaine lettuce, and of course strawberries!
This week in boxes we have a great list of crops for you and some of my favorites including.
Broccoli: Broccoli is so good farm fresh! These heads are dense and tasty, I would try to use the broccoli before other items as it has the most vitamins the fresher it is from the field! Don’t overcook it also for the most nutritional value.
Strawberries: I don’t think i need to describe many suggestions for uses of these deep red organic vine ripe berries we like to eat them with whip cream. We have two varieties of berries, one is smaller and one larger but both have really good flavor.
Cilantro: This will be out last week of cilantro in shares this season likely although its possible there willl be time to plant more so enjoy this fresh herb while you can.
Radish: More crunchy radish for your salads with the head lettuce this week.
Romaine lettuce: These heads will pair well with just about anything, I’ve even heard you can grill romaine but i’ve never tried it.
Garlic Scapes: These flowering shoots of the hard neck garlic plant are good blended with olive oil for a garlic spread for breads or pizza, or i grill them in a foil wrap for a garlicky asparagus like side that goes great with grilled chicken or other grilled foods. They can also be used minced up just like garlic and sautéed in stir fries, pasta dishes, etc…
Swiss Chard: Last week you had the first of the chard and it continues on this week with this richly flavored and colorful green. Anywhere you use spinach you can use swiss chard and its’ great in pasta dishes cooked with olive oil or butter with eggs like a frittata or quiche…. the stems and leaves are edible but chop the stem up and toss that in first as it takes longer than the greens to cook down a little.
Thanks everyone and enjoy the early summer crops! There is just not enough time in a day even with these longest days of the year coming up right now. We are working all day every day to keep up. If we have time and space in the share box we may add Kohlrabi to the list this week too which is basically a cabbage apple and its great grated into salads, or eaten raw with cheese as a snack, or even sautéed or roasted. For now eat well and be well! -Kyle
