Monday, May 29, 2017

2017 CSA Week 4

Happy Memorial Day, fellow CSA members!

I hope you enjoyed a weekend celebration of some sort: Whether with family, friends, or just quiet reflection on our many blessings. I'm writing from Indiana tonight as we celebrate with some very special friends.

Today marks the unofficial start to summer and our shares are starting to usher in the season as well. I am excited to fill you in on the goodness coming our way this week:


Produce
Storage
Longevity
bok choy
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
zucchini and summer squash
unwashed, in fridge
1-2 weeks
swiss chard
washed and thoroughly dried, or unwashed, in fridge, sealed in container
1 week
romaine lettuce
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
garlic scapes
washed or unwashed, in fridge
1-2 weeks
kale
washed and thoroughly dried, or unwashed, in fridge, sealed in container
1 week
broccoli
unwashed, in fridge
1 week

Ford wasn't sure how much summer squash and zucchini his harvest would yield this week. Shares may be supplemented with additional broccoli if there isn't enough squash. Some shares may also get sweet potatoes instead of squash.

For those of you who weren't CSA members last year, garlic scapes might be new to you. Not to worry, Amanda gave us all a great primer for them.

The beautiful bok choy just before
I sautéed it.
The CSA member-only Facebook page also has some great recipe ideas from fellow members. I've loved seeing how everyone is using their shares!

In case you all missed it, I will share a picture of Matthias eating bok choy for the first time. I was so happy he loved the recipe I shared with you all a couple weeks ago.

Maybe you all have picked up on the fact that kale is not my favorite of the vegetables. I've tried it in salad, baked as chips, pureed in smoothies (probably my favorite, but I still prefer other greens). I decided to do a search for different ways to eat kale and I found a new one to try: Creamed. The website said to just substitute kale for spinach in a creamed spinach recipe. Worth a shot, I think.

If you don't already have a go-to creamed spinach recipe, try this one from the Pioneer Woman that Amanda shared with us awhile back.

Which got me thinking: Maybe it could be used as a spinach substitute in other recipes, too. Like this chicken and spinach dumplings that is a favorite of mine.

Monday, May 22, 2017

2017 CSA Week 3

Hello fellow CSA members!

I didn't want to come inside from this beautiful weather to tell you about our wonderful share this week. I have said for many years that if I could have weather like today every day it would almost make me willing to trade in our lovely winter snows. I hope you all got to enjoy it a bit. I'm afraid we won't get many more like this one. We grilled out burgers with our neighbors this evening (thanks again to the winter meat share) and kept getting compliments on the meat. If you haven't tried it, you should. You really can taste the difference.

But what you're really interested in is what you'll be getting this week. Ford has another great share lined up for us:


Produce
Storage
Longevity
strawberries*
unwashed, in fridge
2-5 days
red leaf lettuce
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
romaine lettuce
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
kohlrabi
washed or unwashed in fridge
1-2 weeks
kale
washed and thoroughly dried, or unwashed, in fridge, sealed in container
1 week
tatsoi
nwashed, in fridge
1 weeks
sweet potatoes**
in a cool, dark place
2 weeks
broccoli**
unwashed, in fridge
1 week


*High quality, local, but not USDA certified organic
**Regular and robust shares will receive either sweet potatoes OR broccoli. Small shares will not receive either this week. Please note, the sweet potatoes will be smaller in size, like the first share, which I think are great for chopping and roasting or slicing and baking as fries.

Ford shared a video of the greens growing in the field this week. I was hoping to be super tech-y and embed the video in the blog here. Instead, I'll only be partially tech-y and link to the video. Just imagine how impressive this would have been 20 years ago.

Kohlrabi is making its debut in this share. I had never eaten kohlrabi until I was a CSA member. I didn't even know what it was or how to say it. And, I'll sadly say, I actually forgot what I did with it last year. But I did remember I was excited about it so I decided to look back in the blog to see what I had made. I'm so glad I did! I used pickled kohlrabi in a knock-off banh mi sandwich recipe. (You can actually just remove the outer layer, slice it and eat it raw if you're looking for something simpler.) And it was just so delicious. I thought it was worth re-sharing the picture of it from last year. The picture actually popped up on my phone a couple weeks ago and I couldn't remember the recipe I used. Thank God for blogs and archives. :) And friends who grow delicious food.

Also, if you happen to love pickled and fermented foods too (I'm a big fan), I'll also share with you a recipe passed on to me by fellow CSA member, Alice, for kim chi with the radishes from last week.

Hope you all enjoy!

Monday, May 15, 2017

2017 CSA Week 2

Hello fellow CSA members!

I hope you enjoyed your first week's share. If you liked last week, you're sure to like this week. I was surprised by the variety so early in the season when I got the email from Ford. Here's what is coming your way:


Produce
Storage
Longevity
strawberries
unwashed, in fridge
2-5 days
radishes
unwashed, in fridge, can remove greens
up to 1 week
lettuce
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
bok choy
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
tatsoi
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
kale
Washed and thoroughly dried or unwashed, sealed in a container in fridge
1 week

Please note, the strawberries this week will be from the same farm as last week and are high quality but not USDA certified organic. It is disappointing when crops don't turn out how we hoped but this was an effort to give CSA members some strawberries we've grown to expect and love in our first shares. We're sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

For your planning purposes Ford also wanted me to let you know that we will be seeing more and more greens each week until about mid-June when tomatoes and squash will be thrown in the mix. So prepare for tons of beautiful leaves in your shares in the coming weeks!

And so I must confess now: I'm not very good at eating a lot of greens. I told myself I was going to come clean with you all but I didn't think it would happen this early in the season. Many weeks there are more greens in my share than my taste buds care for. I love a good salad. Really I do. Really. I can eat and enjoy some of it, but many a kale leaf has wilted in my fridge. When I get some of our more green-heavy shares it feels daunting to me, the only actual leaf-eater in my house, to find a way to enjoy them all before my week runs out. (This is why I appreciate sweet potatoes, y'all. They give a girl some time.)

I couldn't believe how good the
lettuce still looked.
This year my game plan for greens includes a lot of green smoothies. I first tried them last year and truly love them. My favorite way to eat greens. I wrote a general recipe and some tips on the blog last year. I said it then and will say it again: No one could have been more reluctant to put handfuls of fresh greens into a blender and then drink them, but I did and it was delicious.

When I saw the list for all the greens this week I knew I'd be making some green smoothies. I actually started craving one. I decided to make a fruit smoothie for breakfast this morning. Except the morning got away from me and by the time I started making my breakfast it was after 11 am. I was lamenting not having my share yet. I had hoped to make a few salads with the lettuce, but life got in the way and it was still in my fridge. I had read that some people put actual lettuce in their green smoothies (not spinach or kale). I didn't like the idea but I wanted to add some more nutrition for what had become my brunch smoothie, so I made it a green smoothie with two small heads of the CSA lettuce and a heaping scoop of peanut butter. (Sounds gross, but try it. Seriously.) It was SO good! Lettuce. In a smoothie. And bonus: My one year old - who hates lettuce leaves - agreed with me!


And here's my second confession: All this hate talk about greens, but I adore bok choy. I thought about what word to use and I do believe adore is most appropriate. (Whatever that says about me.) I think it is beautiful and I love the crunchiness of the stalk paired with the leaves. It is good in salad. Good in stir-fry. Good in a green smoothie. Over the winter I found a bok choy recipe on the back of a bag of egg noodles and was saving it for the next time I would get bok choy in the CSA. So, here it is:

Egg White Pasta with Roasted Turkey and Bok Choy

Serves 4-6

12 oz extra wide egg noodles
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp Asian chili sauce (or sriracha)
12 oz. turkey fillets (I bet you could use chicken)
Salt and black pepper
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp garlic, chopped
1 lb baby bok choy, thinly sliced on the bias
3/4 cup green onions, sliced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine hoisin sauce, soy sauce and sriracha.

Season turkey with salt and pepper. Heat a large oven-proof frying pan over high [heat]. Add vegetable oil and sear turkey for about 1 minute a side, until browned. Remove from heat and coat top and sides of turkey with 1 Tbsp of sauce mixture. Place in oven and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until the internal temperature is 165 degrees. Transfer to a cutting board and let stand for 5 minutes, then thinly slice.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving about 1/2 cup pasta cooking water.

Scrape any black bits out of frying pan, add sesame oil and garlic and sauté on medium for 1 minute. Add bok choy and cook for 2 minutes, until wilted. Add pasta and remaining sauce and toss to coat, loosening with pasta cooking water as needed. Add roasted turkey and green onions and serve.

Refrigerate any leftovers.

Enjoy your beautiful, nutritious, delicious share this week! And I always love hearing from fellow members. amyrosekarr@gmail.com

I leave you with a picture of tonight's dinner because it was delicious and thanks in large part to Sustainable Harvest Farm. We grilled out some T-bones from the winter meat share and roasted some sweet and white potatoes with summer squash and zucchini. I can't believe I get to eat like this.

Monday, May 8, 2017

2017 CSA Week 1

Hello fellow CSA members and welcome to the start of another Summer Season with Sustainable Harvest Farm!

I picked up some strawberries at the local grocery store this week. And then put them back on the shelf. Because I remembered Ford saying we'd have strawberries in our shares this week and I was sure I'd regret not waiting for the good ones! True story. I have been looking forward to this share!

If it isn't your first season, you've probably been eagerly anticipating these strawberries with me. Here's the list of what will be included in this week's share:


Produce
Storage
Longevity
strawberries
unwashed, in fridge
2-5 days
lettuce
unwashed, in fridge
1 week
sweet potatoes
in a dark, cool spot
~2 weeks


One note about the strawberries: There were some complications in ordering the plants this year that prevented Ford's typical berry crop. We WILL be getting fresh, local strawberries grown in Richmond, KY by Marcum Farms. They WILL be delicious, though not USDA certified organic.

For those of you who may be joining us for the first time: I am so glad you made the decision to partner with Sustainable Harvest Farm to help provide your family with fresh, healthy, organic food! For me a CSA share is an adventure. This is my fourth season as a CSA member and each year I learn more and expand my knowledge and love of local produce.

Last year, some of you may remember, I looked for recipes that would help my husband enjoy vegetables. This year, I plan to focus on recipes that might appeal to my 18 month old son, as well as that might accommodate special diets (gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo, low histamine, anti-inflammatory, etc). Though each year the course I have planned on the first week has not become reality by the final week.

I hope that one thing we will all learn together is how to roll with the unexpected changes of life. Farming itself can sometimes be unpredictable. The shares Ford plans for us may change as weather interferes, crops mature at various speeds and harvests produce an abundance or lack. And after all the work to get them to our home, we never know when illness or overtime or unexpected guests or invitations might spoil our best made plans (and our kale). But we'll be talking about that more as the weeks go on.

Each week I'll send out at least one blog post detailing our share, including storage tips and recipes. I love hearing from fellow CSA members. I still use some of the recipes you all shared with me last year. I hope you have plenty more to send my way! Always feel free to contact me or Ford and Amanda with any questions or concerns you may have. We're happy to help! I would love to help you tackle the specific obstacles you may be facing in getting the most out of your share and am happy to research special recipes and tips for you! Drop me a line any time. amyrosekarr@gmail.com

You may also look through blog posts from previous seasons. Crops generally follow the same calendar each year. While Ford may vary what he plants from season to season, this can give you a feel for the types of things to expect in the coming weeks, including plenty of recipes.

This week, enjoy those delicious strawberries, And the beautiful lettuce and sweet potatoes. Feel free to share pictures and recipes on our social media, or email them to us. And for a little inspiration, here are some recipes!

Eight ways to use lettuce outside a salad
Sweet potatoes as a gluten-free toast alternative






I have known Amanda since we were children and Ford since college. I was blessed to call this beautiful family my friends before they were my farmers. If they are first your farmers, I hope you can get to know them as friends, too. Farm visits are always welcome with advance notice and farm events will be announced throughout the season.