CSA For August 29th!

Everything was a little wet and dirty today!

A stormy start to the day.  Harvesting was delayed until about 11:30 AM, so the boxes are a little small today.  We had to wait until the rain stopped and then gave it a bit more time to dry up a bit.  As it was, everything was still wet and dirty!  Highly recommend any beans that are not being eaten promptly be laid out on a towel or something to dry out.  Beans are a little prone to rust at the best of times and damp beans sitting in plastic bags is a recipe for disaster!  Even though we waited until mid-afternoon, digging carrots was still a mucky chore and potatoes were an impossibility!

Our carrots are finally starting to look like, well, carrots!  The taste is fantastic so carrots should start to be regular in the baskets.  Heavens, were the carrots dirty and mucky when we dug them today; forgive us if a little soil still clings!  Amanda and Ed came up with corn for everybody today: hip hip hooray!  I sure wish our tomatoes would get going!

The summer squash continues to do well!  No, we're not yet leaving them on people's doorsteps and running away but...We've often talked about lovin' the Crookneck coated in cornmeal and Cajun spices and fried.  Here's a DIY recipe for Cajun or blackening spices!  How about using slices of zucchini as the base or crust for mini-pizzas!

Love buffalo chicken?  How about this buffalo chicken stuffed zucchini, with cheddar, bacon and an avocado blue cheese dressing?  Sounds fabulous!  While you're on that link, stay to take a look around the blog Closet Cooking - tons and tons of great ideas!  As a matter of fact, here's his link to 25 great things to do with zucchini!  Also found, on another great blog called Fountain Avenue Kitchen, zucchini pizza casserole - fast and easy!  Here's an interesting link from a blogger who's vegan and gluten-free and 'examining' a paleo-diet.  She making 'rice' of grated zucchini and cauliflower.  Bookmark this one, maybe, because I've heard a rumour Amanda and Ed gave a try to growing cauliflower this year!  Also sounding yummy is this Tunisian Summer Squash Casserole; a little exotic with harissa sauce and chick pea flour but you could substitute your favorite hot sauce and regular flour!  Here's some smart ways to preserve summer squash for the winter season: from butter to relish to making chocolate zucchini bread and freezing it now!

So, in the boxes today:

FULL SHARES:  Cucumbers including, perhaps, Armenian and English, green zucchini, golden zucchini, Patty Pans, Papaya Pear summer squash, carrots, Dragons Tongue beans, corn, radishes, Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot pepper, herbs either oregano or basil.

PART SHARES:  Cucumbers, green zucchini, golden zucchini, Patty Pan, and Papaya Pear summer squash, carrots, corn, radishes, Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot pepper, herbs either basil or dill.

SINGLE SHARES:  Cucumbers, golden zucchini, Patty Pan and Papaya Pear summer squash, carrots, shelling peas (a wee bag), corn, radishes, Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot pepper.

CS A For August 27th

Look what Amanda and Ed found! Corn!!  The first of this summers' corn, only for the Full Shares today, but more will be coming in good supply for the next few weeks.  Ours is still a good week away, Amanda and Ed have more growing so we should all get a good feast in the next little while!  We're all growing chemical-free, but we haven't noticed a problem with the corn borer this year but you may, may find a little caterpillar in your corn.  Just cut it out: it's generally in the top inch!  Amanda and Ed also got an interesting pick on cucumbers, including a pale green we think is an Armenian (they were given the seed, without a name), as well as some long English cucumbers.

The hot weather has really kick-started a few crops like cucumbers.  The cucumbers are spreading and flowering like crazy.  Field tomatoes and peppers finally look like they're going strong.  The winter squash, which all have a few fruits, are flowering and spreading and taking over now!  The hot weather does mean the demise of the lettuce and the peas look like they're giving one last pick.  We've already seeded some lettuce for fall and it's slowly coming along, as well as some beans we seeded just a couple of weeks ago.  Unfortunately, we seeded some radish with the lettuce which are ready now.  We're sorry to say potato picking did not go well today so we have just a few bags on the table for purchase or trading.

The summer squash is coming on strong!  Here's a great post with ten awesome recipes for zucchini, although any summer squash can be substituted!  Found this on Facebook: a baked, coated zucchini fritter, which includes an nice, easy recipe for homemade tsatziki sauce.  For something a little different on the snacking front: Salt and vinegar chips - with zucchini!  Here's another great link with ideas on dehydrating zucchini: as chips for snacks or shredded, for re-constituting for winter soups and stews.  I am also rather fascinated by this recipe for raw zucchini ravioli - a little fancy, with some ingredients we don't actually keep in the pantry, but worth a shopping trip I think!  Here's an interesting twist on pancakes with zucchini and broken-up pieces of angel hair pasta!  I'm also thinking of trying this recipe for meatloaf with turkey and zucchini flavoured with Thai green chili paste, which we do keep in the pantry!  Stuffed Patty Pans are all the rage: here's sausage stuffed Patty Pans.  This recipe would also be great with Papaya Pear or Moroccan.  It's similar to what we do with a Vegetable Marrow....which is coming soon!  Any size Patty Pan can be stuffed:  if using a large one it's very cute to cut it into pie-like wedges for serving.  Smaller sizes can be an individual side dish.  Zucchini desserts like these zucchini applesauce oatmeal cookies are fun for upcoming school lunches or an evening snack with tea!  I saw, someplace, a recipe for an orange and zucchini loaf - would love to find it again; anyone know of a nice recipe?

With the cucumbers in good supply have you tried making a Japanese sunomono salad - a lovely, light vinegar salad, usually with rice vinegar (we have substituted a white wine vinegar in a pinch, cut with about 1/5 water).  This creamy cucumber salad looks scrumptious, too!  For something a little more exotic how about these spicy Sichuan pickles, which only need to sit in the vinegar for a couple of hours - although more time would be spicier!  Of course, at tea time you need a proper English cucumber sandwich, white bread and no crusts, please!

So, in today's baskets:

FULL SHARES:  Shelling peas, corn (probably Peaches 'n Cream), mixed cucumbers including Armenian, English and slicing, Dragons Tongue beans, Royal Burgundy purple beans, large zucchini, Crookneck or Papaya Pear, assorted Patty Pan, carrots, radish, peppers Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot Wax.

PART SHARES:  Peas mixed edible pod and Snow peas, mixed cucumbers, Dragons Tongue beans, zucchini, Crookneck or Papaya Pear, assorted Patty Pan summer squash, carrots, Swiss chard, peppers Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot Wax.

SINGLE SHARES:  Cucumbers, pole beans 'Blue Lake', zucchini, Crookneck or Papaya Pear summer squash, assorted Patty Pans, carrots, pepper Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot Wax.

CSA For August 22nd!

Fresh spearmint! Tea or iced tea? Ice cream? Mojitos?

More odd weather - a low of 6 C last night, but highs in the 30's C coming up in the next few days!  It's been a see-saw year and it shows in the slowness of some things to develop like tomatoes, peppers and cukes, and in the longevity of other crops like lettuces!  We did, finally, get a decent pick of cucumbers and there is still lettuce to go with them for salad!  We're digging carrots today - and you'll see why we've waited; the sizes are still very small even though there's been lots of rain.  Go figure!

Included in your boxes this week is some info on ordering some of our favorite perogies, handmade locally.  Penny is a retired lady who makes yummy perogies.  One of the things we like best is that she pre-cooks hers, so it's just de-frost and microwave or fry.  On busy days we love skipping the boiling part of perogy preparation!  I've got an order form and if you're interested bring your money next week and we'll get an order in for delivery with your CSA in a couple of weeks!

The summer squash is (finally) coming along well.  Discovered this recipe for zucchini fries - seems quite fast and easy...and tasty.  We're going to try that this weekend. A great side dish for burgers on the BBQ!  Or how about zucchini chips - these would freeze well for winter snacking!  Stuffed and baked summer squash are delightful - and can be done on the BBQ in hot weather!  This recipe for sausage and onion stuffed squash reminds me of the recipe my Mother used for stuffed a winter squash called Vegetable Marrow (which is coming along nicely, too).  Of course, there is the most fabulous chocolate cake:  Chocolate zucchini cake!  It's a gorgeous, fluffy, moist cake with the added nutrition of zucchini - and quite easy!  Tuesday's CSA blog post had a nice recipe for chocolate chip cookies with zucchini, as well as some other good things!  Check it out here.

Some different herbs will be coming your way!  Always awesome to use them fresh...but we love preserving them for winter use, too.  Of course, you can just hang them up in a cool, dark place to dry, then crumble and put into glass jars.  Here's a great way to prepare and freeze herbed butters; the butters would be awesome on potatoes in the winter, or for basting chicken, perhaps.  You'll be surprised at how much more flavour home-preserved herbs have than the bottles from the store!  That method works best for the savory herbs.  Today everyone is getting fresh spearmint!  Perfect, of course, for a delightful cup of tea.  Necessary in a mojito!  Fabulous added into iced tea!  Here's a great link with eleven things to do with fresh mint, including a mojito recipe!

The 'late' beans are available.  Regular bush/snap beans are largely finished but the Romano and Blue Lake pole beans are just getting going!  The Blue Lake are big, fat, long round beans - very like a regular bush bean - just mondo!  The Romano (related to Dragon's Tongue) are flat podded, big guys.  They've got a bit more texture and they do have a string along the spine so pull it out as you top them.  The Romano's are very good for soups, stews and stir fries; they will stand up a little better.  Also nice in tin foil packs on the BBQ; you'll find they won't go as limp as regular beans!

On a different note, the Brandon Community Gardening Network has some great workshops and presentations coming up!  This one next Tuesday includes a look at everything 'hot' in foodie circles:  lacto-fermenting, komboucha and cheese/yogurt making.  Here's the scoop, straight from their Facebook page:

Ferment yourself next Tuesday evening (Aug.27). The Community Garden Network presents the fall workshop series. On Tuesday learn to make lactic acid ferments, komboucha, tempeh, seed gurt, yogurt and cheese in your kitchen with instructors Esan Azor and Keith Williams! workshop takes place at Central United Church 327-8th street. from 7pm-9pm. Free!!

So, in the boxes this week:
FULL SHARES:  3 lbs. Carlton white or Aladdin red potatoes, couple of green zucchini, golden zucchini, mixed Patty Pan summer squash, Red Sails lettuce, cucumbers, carrots, edible pod peas, Romano beans, spearmint
PART SHARES:  2 lbs. Carlton white or Aladdin red potatoes, green zucchini, golden zucchini, assorted Patty Pan summer squash, Red Sails lettuce, carrots, shelling peas, blue Lake pole beans, cucumbers, spearmint.
SINGLE SHARES:  Cucumbers, zucchini, golden zucchini, Patty Pan summer squash, Red Sails lettuce, small bag either Romano or Blue Lake beans, carrots, spearmint.

Enjoy!

CSA For August 20th!

Every year I think I say it's a weird growing year...but this year seems to be the oddest yet!  It was striking that at Saturday's Global Market there were no cucumbers and no tomatoes!  In the middle of August!  I shared a picture on our Facebook page of the pumpkin patch, which is all foliage, finally some huge flowers but very little pumpkin!  A number of our Facebook friends responded to the picture; one said she's hardly had any zucchini, another said the fruit is rotting before it's big enough to pick!

We've got another great local product to share with you this week!  Penny's Perogies are handmade by a retired lady named Penny.  What we love (aside from the fact that they are yummy) is that Penny cooks hers - so all you have to do is thaw and fry or microwave, what ever your preference.  I love skipping that step where I boil perogies before frying!  I've got an order sheet from Penny, so if you'd like to order bring your cash or cheque to me, we'll get you on the order list and we'll get them delivered to our CSA pick up in a couple of weeks!

The summer squash are finally taking off for us!  Last year's members may recall that at this time last year, everyone was getting a couple or three interesting summer squash in the boxes, than regular zucchini were available quite freely!  Not this year!  We've waited a while and they are not filling in rapidly.  But, they're coming!  There's lots of great ideas out there on the web for zucchini and other summer squash!  I like this version of zucchini tacos (or taco-stuffed zucchini boats) made with turkey!  We've done this: replace lasagna noodles with thin-sliced zucchini for a low-carb version of lasagna!  This could be gluten-free, depending on your fillings!  This morning, just found this recipe for smashed yellow squash casserole - looks easy and yummy!  Everyone has Crookneck squash today, a lovely creamy version.  Farmer Man likes it sliced in the rounds and coated in cornmeal and Cajun spice then fried!  Here's a recipe for beer battered Crookneck!  And sneak some zucchini in your desserts: zucchini coconut chocolate chip cookies sounds great!  Full Shares have a Moroccan squash, with the green netted skin.  It's a little firmer than zucchini, good on the BBQ and awesome stuffed!

We love it when we get emails in the dead-of-winter from members still eating our produce!  Shared on the Facebook page a great idea for freezing zucchini for winter stews, sautes, muffins and breads: grate and pack into a one-cup measuring cup.  Turn out the cups upside-down onto a wax paper lined cookie sheet.  Fill the cookie sheet with these cups of grated zucchini, then freeze.  After, the frozen 'pucks' can be stored in a freezer bag or container for grab-and-go baking or cooking!  Here's the Facebook page here.

Beans are still on the menu this week: the pole beans and Romano beans are just coming on strong, the purple are just finishing!  Loved this idea for a bean, gouda cheese crescent roll - great for those upcoming school lunches!  If you're a DIYer, like doing things from scratch in the kitchen...here's a nice recipe for the crescent rolls!  Book mark that recipe for crescent rolls for something special for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner!  The Romano beans, like Dragons Tongue, are flat, wide pods; meaty but tender.  It's Jacob's Cattle we've picked, a bean we've saved the seed of for three years now.  Left to mature until late in the fall, the seed inside is excellent for baked beans, soups and stews.  We're taking some of them early as a snap bean.  It does have a bit more of a 'string' along the spine, so as you're snapping them pull the string!  Try this recipe for a great bean side dish!  We've also got some big old pole beans - Blue Lake is the variety.  Don't let them scare you with their size - they're really quite lovely!

Amanda and Ed have come up with nice (!) onions, cucumbers and herbs again.  I was kind of surprised by the number of CSA members not familiar with summer savory!  It's an awesome herb - here's a great article on it here.  While you're checking out the link..check out the rest of the blog Edible Manhattan - lots of great tips on growing and cooking, particularly in small spaces!  And I think that today Evelyn and Menno may be making a visit.....

Now, this next recipe has nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with what we grow but it sounds yummy!  Next cool day, we're trying this Gouda and Bacon Mac and Cheese!  Thought we'd share it with you!

So, in the baskets today:

FULL SHARES:  Mixed onions, cucumbers, snow peas, Red Sails lettuce, 3 lbs. Norland red potatoes, Romano beans, pole beans, zucchini, golden zucchini, 2 Crookneck squash, Romanesque and Moroccan squash, Swiss Chard, carrots, herb Summer Savory.

PART SHARES:  Mixed onions, cucumber, shelling peas, Red Sails lettuce, 2 lbs. either Norland red or Carlton white potatoes, Romano beans, zucchini, golden zucchini, two Crookneck squash, carrots, herb basil.

SINGLE SHARES:  Onion, cucumber, edible pod peas, Red Sails lettuce, mixed Romano, pole and purple beans, zucchini, two Crookneck squash, carrots, oregano.

CSA for August 15, 2013

The Swiss Chard 'Rainbow Lights' is finally
rebounding after being eaten by deer!

Finally felt like a summer day today!  We're looking hopefully at the tomatoes and peppers; they should like this weather we're going to have the next few days.  First cut (!) on the Swiss Chard today - it has been slowly re-growing after being decimated by the deer back at the end of June.  Just enough for a good cut for the Full Shares - but it's coming nicely now! Lots of things just had little picks today:  Golden French Filet beans just for the Part Shares, shelling peas for just the Single Shares!  It's often like that for CSA and we've said many times that the hardest part of the day is dividing the harvest!

The summer squash, on of our obsessions, is finally producing.  Zucchini and more for everyone today!  Some of you have the classic zucchini, officially known as black zucchini.  Some of you have a mid-green, spotted fellow who is a Moroccan or Mediterranean.  A little firmer then zucchini, with a nice almond flavour; it's often stuffed and baked.  It is great for raw dipping or in a salad and just as good as anything you'd use a zucchini for.  There's some Patty Pans in the boxes - the flying saucer squash, some golden zucchini which is a little more delicate and creamy than regular zucchini, and a few small Papaya Pear, the pear shaped, firm squash great for the BBQ!

One of the recipes I've been dying to try is this recipe for baked summer squash chips!  The recipe calls for golden zucchini, for more of a potato chip look, but any squash would work.  Another recipe I've had bookmarked for a while is from one of my favorite blogs, Farmgirl Fare.  This lemon rosemary zucchini loaf sounds lovely and every recipe I've ever made from Farmgirl Fare has worked out beautifully!  If you've been thinking of making bread from scratch her recipe and instructions for Farm House White is where I started a few years back!

Last pick of the raspberries for the season.  Do enjoy!  They've done quite well this season, but the picking is now taking just too much time.  We'll also have with us the few last fabulous cabbage from Amanda and Ed, so grab one now while they're here if you're still hoping to make cabbage rolls or something.  Amanda and Ed supplied the onions today - so much larger than ours, it's amazing what a little heavier soil then our sand can do!  They've also supplied a nice mix of herbs.  Member Allison is bringing along some chocolate mint that volunteered in her garden so that will be available once she arrives.

Final call for anybody interested in some of the gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan baking mixes whose order form was in your basket a couple of weeks ago!  So happy to offer this awesome product from local company Swift Mix!  Bring your order form and cheque next week and we'll have the group order delivered to our pick-up the following week!

So, in the boxes this week:

FULL SHARES:  3 lbs Norland red potatoes, bag mixed Red Sails and Grand Rapids leaf lettuce, Dragon's Tongue beans, green beans, Swiss chard 'Rainbow Lights', a red and yellow onion, Moroccan squash, zucchini, cucumber, raspberries, herbs.

PART SHARES:  2 lbs. Norland red potatoes, bag mixed Red Sails and Grand Rapids leaf lettuce, Dragons Tongue beans, green beans, Golden French Filet beans, red and yellow onions, golden zucchini, papaya pear squash, zucchini, cucumber, herbs, raspberries.

SINGLE SHARES:  1 lbs. Norland red potatoes, bag mixed Red Sails and Grand Rapids leaf lettuce, green beans, Dragon Tongue beans, shelling peas, Patty Pan, zucchini, Papaya Pear, red and yellow onions, dill, raspberries.  

CSA For August 13th, 2013

Now, who gets what?

Apparently, this coming week is actually going to feel like summer!  Warm temperatures are coming our way - perhaps our peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes will kick into high gear!  The summer squash has finally gotten going and we've got a nice pick of crookneck, Patty Pan and some Italian Largo (or Romanesque) today.  The hard part of CSA is always how to divide the harvest!

If anybody was interested in the lovely gluten-free, dairy-free baking mixes please bring in your order forms next week with your cheques!  We'll have them delivered to our CSA meeting the following week!

A nice treat:  Evelyn and Menno are going to be able to harvest tomatoes for the Full Shares today.  Even Menno's hothouse is slow to produce this year with these cool nights.  Amanda and Ed have also harvested an awesome collection of assorted herbs for everyone: basil, summer savoury, flat leaf parsley, dill and oregano.  Amanda and Ed will have a small cut of cabbage for this weekend at the Global Market - if anybody is thinking cabbage rolls or something with this beautiful cabbage let us know or come see us at Global Market!  Saturday at the Global Market should be awesome:  it's International Women's Market meaning people from different ethnic cultures in our city will be presenting some of their traditional dishes for eating on the spot or for taking home!

Everybody is getting crookneck squash today: this summer squash is considered a delicacy in the Southern States.  It's creamier than zucchini, with lovely flavour.  The traditional southern style of cooking is coating in cornmeal and zesty spices and deep frying; the squash inside is like pudding!  You can pan-fry instead of deep frying, try this recipe!  It would work, of course, with any of the summer squashes.  We've also got a nice little pick of Patty Pans or Scallopinis - the 'flying saucer' squash.  This one is excellent for tinfoil packages on the BBQ - it's a little firmer than zucchini, with a nice light almond flavour.  Here's a great little recipe for a side dish using the Patty Pans here.  When they get bigger, they are awesome stuffed!  I recently shared on our Facebook page directions for canning the Patty Pans with ginger!  There's also the long, ribbed green Largo - like zucchini but with a wee bit more of an herbal flavour.

So, in the baskets this week:

FULL SHARES:  3 lbs. Norland red potatoes, Dragon's Tongue beans, snow peas, assorted herbs, Patty Pan and crookneck squash, mixed bag Red Sails and Grand Rapids lettuce, cucumber, Hungarian Hot pepper, onions, tomatoes, 2 pints Red Mammoth raspberries.

PART SHARES:  2 lbs. Norland red potatoes, Royal Burgundy and Yellow Wax beans, assorted herbs, Largo and crookneck squash, mixed bag Red Sails and Grand Rapids lettuce, cucumber, Hungarian Hot pepper, onions, pint Red Mammoth raspberries.

SINGLE SHARES:  2 lbs. Norland red potatoes, Dragon's Tongue beans, edible pod 'Sugar Snap peas, assorted herbs, crookneck squash, mixed bag Red Sails and Grand Rapids lettuce, Hungarian Hot pepper, onions, pint Red Mammoth raspberries.

CSA for Thursday, August 8th

Anybody thinking of adding a kitten to their home?
We've some adorable barn kitties looking for loving
forever homes!

Cool morning to start but warmed up nicely.  Nice to have family visiting who got 'drafted' into all kinds of assorted labor!  Sister Keltie and niece Laura were steaming some cherries for juice for jelly.  As well, Keltie did a lot of the weighing and bagging.  Laura picked peas and cleaned onions, nephew Jack cleaned Romaine and found a few interesting links for the blog!  The family goes home on the weekend so we're soliciting help picking raspberries next week!  If you love raspberries in your basket, as the picking gets a little harder we have less time for it - so if you can help next Thursday morning you'd be most welcome!  Volunteers always go home with a bonus!

A lovely first pick on cucumbers from both Amanda and Ed and ourselves - but only for the Fulls and Singles, sorry to the Part Shares this week!  That seems a bit more like summer when we can finally start picking cucumbers!  Amanda and Ed also came up with another round of gorgeous cabbage; cabbage and lettuce have loved this cool, moist summer.  Check out the newsletter for Tuesdays' CSA families for some great links for cabbage recipes.  Thursday CSA member Naomi is moving so she's sharing the herbs she can't take with her!  Yeah for fresh herbs!

Now, speaking of cabbage let's share some more good recipes because there is never such a thing as too much cabbage, and the season for summer cabbage is winding down. This is one my niece shared with me that uses pasta and bacon.


Cabbage & Noodles with Bacon

1 head of cabbage, chopped
1 pound of bacon
1 large onion, chopped
2-3 large handfuls of egg noodles
Black pepper

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels, then break into bite-sized pieces. (Warning: there’s a chance that you could end up snacking on the bacon bits while you’re finishing dinner. It’s been known to happen here.)

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the egg noodles. Add the noodles and cook until done. Drain the noodles and set aside.

Drain some of the bacon fat from the pan, reserving enough to cook the onions. Add the chopped onion to the pan and cook for about 1-2 minutes, or until the onions begin to soften. Add the cabbage to the skillet and cook until tender, stirring occasionally. When the cabbage is tender, add the egg noodles and bacon, mixing thoroughly. Season with pepper. Serve immediately.

Sounds pretty good to me, check out this awesome rustic cabbage soup recipe also as it will use more than a few ingredients from today's batch of veggies but don't forget to adjust for how many people you are cooking for.  Now here is an interesting recipe for grilled cabbage wedges with a spicy lime dressing, seems like it would be a refreshing summer dish.

Dragons tongue beans are finally ready to pick; they look funky but they can be treated like any other beans out there.  They are tender, juicy and stringless with great flavour - our favourite bean now.  Nephew Jack has been googling recipes for me and did locate a nice recipe for a good side dish using them. The zucchini is coming in nicely now as well and we included a few nice recipes with the last blog entry and here are a few more: anyone who likes spanikopita might also like to try this recipe for kolokithopita, continuing the Greek theme here is some Greek style zucchini fritters and lastly how can a recipe post for zucchini be complete without some form of zucchini bread.

So, this week in the boxes:

FULL SHARES:  Large cabbage, cucumber, Dragons tongue beans, small bag purple beans, red onions, Red Sails lettuce, Romaine lettuce, summer squash (black and golden), 3 lbs. new Norland potatoes, two pints Red Mammoth raspberries, bunch of herbs.

PART SHARES:  Medium cabbage, Dragon's Tongue beans, purple  beans, red onion, Red Sails lettuce, Romaine lettuce, summer squash (black zucchini or Lolita Middle Eastern squash), 2 lbs. new Norland potatoes, pint of Red Mammoth raspberries, bunch of herbs.

SINGLE SHARES:  Small cabbage, cucumber, Dragons Tongue beans, purple beans, red onions, Red Sails leaf lettuce,  summer squash Papaya Pear, 2 lbs. new Norland potatoes, pint of Red Mammoth raspberries.

Enjoy!

CSA For Tuesday, August 6th!

Niece Laura in the raspberry patch!

Today seemed like a hard day to get anything going!  Our Hort student from ACC had left a message last night that she couldn't work today so we were behind before we even started!  A little frustrating as we had stressed to her that Tuesdays and Thursdays were our priority - if she worked for us those were the most important days!  We had two 'volunteers' coming today - both who left early because it was too cold and damp this morning.  **Sigh**  So, we've done what we can, got a little help from some other pals and put visiting family to work!  Sister Keltie has weighed and bagged, niece Laura has picked raspberries and nephew Jack has weighed and bagged, helped find some great links for this blog and helped feed the goats!  It's good to have family around!

Speaking of help if you're a raspberry lover we could use your help to get more raspberries in the boxes!  As the soon moves on, picking takes a little longer so we won't have as much time for it.  If you want more berries and are free on a Tuesday - do help come pick.  Volunteers always go home with a little extra treat!

Another round of beautiful cabbage from Amanda and Ed today!  We've heard about lots of good coleslaws and braised cabbage dishes being made by CSAers.  Of course, some cabbage rolls and a cabbage roll casserole have been happening!  Some of the more adventurous, like Naomi, have been making versions of kimchi, a spicy Korean side dish.  Kimchi would usually be made with the curly Napa cabbage, but it's working well with this cabbage!  Try this simple recipe  for kimchi from Cultures for Health, a great website if you're interested in more info on the health benefits of lacto-fermentation.  Fermented foods are extremely popular in foodie circles right now - big health benefits, as well as great taste!  Reta has recently purchased Sandor Katz' book on fermented food and has been experimenting with fermented sauerkraut, - quite unlike the common vinegar pickled sauerkraut!

Since cabbage is coming in great right now another easy way to store some excess is to freeze or preserve it as shown how in this awesome blog post that is also about fermenting cabbage. A couple other good recipes I have found:  great sounding slaw that can be prepared and frozen for up to three months before you even need to use it. And, another awesome idea if you don't like sauerkraut is a nice cabbage soup, this one is a Scandinavian style that can be prepared quite quickly.

Zucchini is starting to come in now and there are a lot of nifty recipes out there other than just your usual stir fry, breads and muffins. An interesting one I've come across is silver dollar pancakes made out of the zucchini with a Dijon sauce on top. You can also try baking the zucchini with a number of herbs to be used on top of pasta or salad. Anyone who has a sweet tooth will appreciate this nice brownie recipe using zucchini and there is even a gluten free version too for anyone who might need it. Zucchini can even make a great snack like chips in this recipe. Now there isn't alot of zucchini right now but this is just the first batch of more to come.

So, in todays' boxes:

FULL SHARES:  Cabbage, Dragons Tongue beans, mixed yellow/green beans, 2 pints raspberries, zucchini, new red Norland potatoes, 'Red Sails' lettuce, Romaine lettuce, red onions

PART SHARES:  Cabbage, Dragons Tongue beans, mixed yellow/green beans, pint raspberries, zucchini, new red Norland potatoes, 'Red Sails' lettuce, red onions.

SINGLE SHARES:Cabbage, Dragons Tongue beans, pint raspberries, zucchini, potatoes, 'Red Sails' lettuce, red onions.

CSA for August 1!

Michele brought daughter Anna along to help pick raspberries
at 6 AM! A little chilly and dewy in the berry patch!

Hard to believe it's August!  We haven't had much of anything like 'summer' weather yet...it feels more like Spring (or maybe Fall) with highs just around 20C, cool evenings and lots of rain!  With a May snow, everything is late and the cool weather is making everything grow slowly.  It just doesn't feel like high summer!

Farmer Man will be meeting our CSA families solo today because I will selling our lovely goats milk soaps and natural body care at Cruise Night at Global Market.  And, our right-hand gal Michele has to leave early for a doctor's appointment.  Makes for a busy day because we have to get everything done early.  Raspberry picking started at 6 AM today (thanks, Michele!).  I've had all the crates laid out and labeled by 7:15 AM.  The goats are going to get milked a little early and then it is into the bean patch for me!

Included in each basket today is a little sheet from Swift Mix.  This is a local company producing gluten-free, dairy-free mixes for cupcakes, pizza dough and pancakes.  Easy as anything to make, a great stash for the pantry for the coming winter!  I've had a chance, at the Global Market, to sample the chocolate cupcakes and they were fabulous!  If anyone is interested, we can get together a group order and have pick up at one of our CSA meetings!  Love to support small, local start-up businesses, especially when they have such a nice product!  Check out Sarah's website here.

Those of you who were members last year know it wasn't a good carrot year.  Many gardeners around the area experienced extremely poor germination.  Well, this is looking like a good carrot year - and first dig was today!  Also an awesome treat today, for some members, is a nice pick of tomatoes from Evelyn and Menno's hot house!  Everyone will get some sooner or later - be patient!  Our growing partners Amanda and Ed came through with another round of beautiful cabbage!  For the Single Shares today, the beans are a beautiful 'Golden Child' filet bean - a wee, skinny bean always tender and sweet!

So in the boxes today:

FULL SHARES:  Onions, cabbage, 'Red Sails' leaf lettuce, 'Grand Rapids' leaf lettuce, Romaine lettuce, carrots, 'Norland' new potatoes, 'Red Mammoth' raspberries, ;Boyne' raspberries, tomatoes and a bag of mixed beans.

PART SHARES:  Onions, cabbage, 'Red Sails' leaf lettuce, 'Grand Rapids' leaf lettuce, Romaine lettuce, carrots, 'Norland' new potatoes, 'Red Mammoth' raspberries, 'Boyne' raspberries, tomatoes, mixed bag of beans.

SINGLE SHARES:  Onions, cabbage, 'Red Sails' leaf lettuce, 'Grand Rapids' leaf lettuce, carrots, 'Norland' new red potatoes, s pints 'Boyne' raspberries, golden filet beans.