Hello CSA Members!
It was so hot out this last week but we were lucky we got some rain and the only damage was an old rotten branch came down and took out some of our jalapeño plants. This week we harvested a lot of early summer crops for your shares and did a lot of tomato trimming and weeding. We also have our organic inspection coming this week to continue our commitment to growing certified organic. This last week we also had summer solstice which marks the longest days of the year! I hope everyone gets out and enjoys some outdoor activities this week after getting energized with some healthy veggies! The sunsets this time of year make for a great end to long days of work. Spring greens are finished now and summer salads can consist of heartier things like grated kohlrabi, shaved beets or fennel for coleslaw or other interesting salads. This week I had a pasta alfredo at home with golden beets, zucchini, and fennel and it was so good.
Fennel: Fennel is a great vegetable and although the bulb is the best part the stalks and fronds are edible and can be used also. I like to thinly slice the bulb for coleslaw with kohlrabi, or roast it with beets, or saute it for pasta dishes. It can be roasted, grilled, sautéed, and eaten raw. The anise flavor is more prounounced raw but I love the fresh flavor of it.
Beets: we will have a random selection of beets this week either red, gold, or chioggia.
Kohlrabi: We will have green white or purple kohlrabi for everyone this week. These “cabbage apples” are good raw or cooked, i like them grated as a slaw or sliced up for a fresh snack.
Swiss Chard: This saute green is great in place of any recipe you would use spinach in. I like it best in a frittata in the morning with some scrambled eggs but it would make a great spinach pie or calzone also.
Kale: Our kale this week is a beautiful curly kale and it can be shredded or chopped and used for salads or cooked.
Microgreens: this week we will have a random selection of micro green which may include radish, broccoli, spicy mix, pea shoot or sunflower shoots.
Scallions: Fresh and tall green onions are sweet and mild and go well with all the other veggies!
Zucchini: small and dense is the way we like to pick these whenever possible and they are good sautéed, or grilled
I hope everyone has a good week and enjoys all the new veggies like the zucchini, micros, and and the official beginning of summer. I am expecting carrots, tomatoes, celery, and more to be ready for fourth of July week shares… a note on that also is that Fitchburg Shares will be delivered to W Madison on the fourth of July because there is no farmers market that day so all fitchburg members will have to come to the W side drop on Thursday July 4th. I’ll send out another reminder on this later this next newsletter also. If there is time we may add edible flowers to the shares this week also
. -Appreciate you all, -Kyle
