2017 CSA Week 9

Happy Independence Day!

I hope you all are getting some extra rest and relaxation over the holiday, as well as time with family and friends, as we all celebrate our country's independence. Of course, our democratic freedom is what July 4th is all about but I've been reflecting a lot this weekend on our other freedoms. Namely, the freedom we have to eat what we choose.

I had the pleasure of eating lunch with the Waterstrats this weekend. As I talked about some of the restaurants and foods I enjoyed on my recent trip we began to ruminate on the blessing it is to have the financial means to eat delicious, healthy food. So many people in the world (and even in our community) do not have the opportunity to choose what they eat. And especially as parents, we are so thankful we have the access and resources to feed our children healthy, nourishing meals. Often, in my kitchen, I offer prayers of thankfulness that the Lord allows me such an abundance of food.

I visited Amanda's dad last week and he invited me to pick some wild blackberries on the hill behind his house. To me, nothing says July is here like blackberries. The sun and clouds and skies filtering through the trees. The humidity that seemed thicker and heavier with each step of the climb. Wildflowers and briars and my sweet boy who ate the ripe berries as fast as I dropped them in the green bucket. I was flooded with memories of my grandparents and cobblers and my own efforts to eat the bucket empty. And was overcome with thankfulness to live in such a beautiful, agriculturally rich place.

So too am I thankful that all of you choose the Sustainable Harvest Farm CSA to feed your family. We know you have the freedom to choose from many wonderful options, and we are so glad you are investing in the work and efforts of Ford and his family and crew to nourish the earth and the community through sustainable organic farming.

With all of that, here's what's coming your way this week:

Produce	Storage	Longevity
summer squash and zucchini	unwashed, in fridge	1-2 weeks
tomatoes	room temperature	1 week
kohlrabi	washed or unwashed, in fridge	1-2 weeks
swiss chard head	unwashed, in fridge	1 week
broccoli	unwashed, in fridge	1 week
beets	remove tops, in fridge	1 month +

The Swiss Chard Head is a brand new CSA item. Ford is trying it for the first time. It is an effort to get more lettuce-like leafy greens in our shares for a longer period. This is more heat-tolerant than lettuce.

I'll be excited to see how you all use it this week. Be sure to post in our Facebook group!

You'll also be receiving double the amount of beets this week (compared to last week). If you are not a beet lover, do not dismay. They keep for more than a month in your fridge. You've got some time to figure out how to eat them, pickle them, preserve them, or pass them on to someone else.

As I said last week, beets haven't always been my favorite, but I do like them pickled and, as it turns out, in chocolate cake. But I am growing even more impressed by beets' nutritional profile. I had a cold-pressed juice concoction a few weeks ago that had a good serving of beets and I loved it. I added it to my short list of ways I enjoy eating beets.

I prefer having other people make my juice for me, but I may just dust off the old juicer this week and mix up some beet juice drinks. If you'd like to, here's a recipe to get you started. If you don't have a juicer you can look up videos for hand-juicing beets. I watched one and I'll just stick with my juicer, but it might be neat to do as a science experiment with younger kids (and let them do that grating and squeezing). They might be more willing to drink it if they made it. Also, if you're making your own juice, I've learned a little apple goes a long way. If it is tasting not-so-pleasant, just throw an apple in there. It helps.

Hope you all enjoy!