Hey CSA Members!
We only have 6 weeks left of the CSA! Wow. This summer is flying by. Just a reminder to let me know if you plan on using any vacation days through September. All of you paid for 16 weeks of the 18 week CSA. If you don’t use all of your vacation days, the last two weeks ( October 2nd and 9th) will be your vacation weeks. If you want these boxes, you will need to pay for them separately ($30 for the small, $40 for the large). I’ll check in about these weeks as the get closer. For now, just something to think about.
A note on carrots, onions, and potatoes…
As we get closer to fall, we’ve been harvesting more and more crops that store for longer periods of time in your fridge. All the potatoes will last and can be used for months to come, if stored properly. I recommend storing them in a brown paper bag in a cool, dark place. A pantry or basement is best, but you can store them in the fridge too. The carrots will store for a while in your fridge too, just be sure to separate the tops before storing. Onions store well in a pantry, around 60 degrees. Enjoy these veggies for weeks to come!
On the farm…
Unfortunately, I didn’t take any pictures of the farm this week, so I’ll just give you some written updates! We’re just finishing up our potato harvest. We have about 5 beds left to harvest. We planted 19 200ft beds of potatoes (about 500lbs of potatoes) in May and we’re excited to see what the total yield of potatoes is. At the moment we are storing our potatoes under a tarp in our garage so the skins can cure before we wash and store them for the winter. It’s really important for potatoes to develop a strong skin so they can last through the winter.
In the spring, we planted about 360 purple cabbage plants with hopes that we would have a BIG cabbage harvest this fall! Unfortunately the combination of pest pressure and a moderate drought in July affected the cabbages enough where they didn’t grow as well as hoped. That crate is the total yield from all those cabbage plants! They all made baby cabbages 🙂
Either way, they smell amazing and they’re so crunchy! Please enjoy these this week in a salad or make some cabbage ferments!
FERMENTED FOOD
Have you ever been interested in learning to ferment your veggies?!? I ferment almost everything we harvest. Each fall I make sauerkrauts, vegetable ferments, fermented pickles, fermented hot peppers for hot sauce, and fermented salsas! I store them in the fridge for the winter and I can enjoy probiotic veggies all winter. Fermenting can unlock the nutrients stored in vegetables and make your food so much more nutrious and flavorful.
My friends over at Toxy Free have created an online fermentation class that we will be launching SOON. Because you are CSA members with us, if you want to participate in this class, I will send you a promo code for $20 of the class so you can feel confident fermenting foods in your kitchen! STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFO.
FARM TOUR/EDUCATIONAL EVENT
Just a reminder that Pearce and I will be hosting a farm tour and educational event sponsored by the NRCS at our farm on September 15th from 3-6pm. I hope you’ll attend!! We’ve been working hard on creating the program to be educational and interactive. There will be a free dinner afterwards!
In the box….
Large Share
Purple cabbage, rainbow carrots, tri-colored beans, napa cabbage, jalapenos, onions, green curly kale, purple bumblee tomatoes, shishito peppers, magic molly potatoes, heirloom tomatoes.
Small Share
Rainbow carrots, purple cabbage, jalapenos, purple bumblebee tomatoes, tri-colored beans, green curly kale, shishito peppers, onions, magic molly potatoes.
Inspiration….
I really want to share the recipe for my favorite fall salad with you this week. This is a cabbage, kale, and carrot salad with a sesame dressing. It is hearty and it lasts for days! It will also put your cabbage, kale, and carrots to good use this week. Here is the link for the recipe:
The Magic Molly potatoes are SO FUN. They have purple skin AND purple flesh, making them a purple masterpiece for your plate! Since they are little, you can roast them whole, but you could also boil them and make purple mashed potatoes!
Enjoy all the food this week!
See you tomorrow!
Your farmers,
Eleanor and Pearce