Summer 2024
Hello and welcome to the newsletter!
It’s the first week of our Summer CSA program! I can barely begin to describe my excitement for what this season will bring. Every Tuesday night, before the CSA delivery, you’ll receive an email with a link to the weekly newsletter. It will usually hit your inbox in the late evening. Between a busy harvest and box packing day, and baby bedtime I don’t usually have time to write until later in the evening.
In these newsletters you’ll hear all about my musings from the farm, upcoming events and info, recipe challenges, ways to engage with the CSA community, and so much more. I will also include pictures and descriptions of what veggies you’ll find in your box on Wednesday. It’s basically just my space to pour my heart to you a little bit so you can share in all the wonderful (and toiling) things vegetable farming has to offer. I hope my writing can bring you a little closer to the food on your plate and help you feel connected to the earth that helped grow your veggies.
Today we had the first CSA harvest of the season! The day started out rainy, but ended on a very sunny and hot note. This season I have two wonderful employees who work with my 20 hours per week. Their energy brings so much life into the veggies and you’ll definitely hear all about our field adventures this season. Up until today we’ve all been busy planting our crops and weeding them while they establish themselves. The fields are really starting to bulk up and the plants are getting stronger every day. We have had an incredibly lucky spring, full of RAIN. After three years with moderate-severe droughts, the rain this spring has been perfectly timed to keep all of our crops happy. As soon as I think “hmmmmm maybe I should irrigate today….” it RAINS again! It’s been so helpful in relieving any stress I have for our plants. We do have an irrigation system setup on the farm for backup, which my lovely husband, Pearce, installed for us. Even though the rain has been keeping up with us, we never know what curveball the weather will throw at us!
As we approach the first delivery tomorrow, just a reminder to you to read the CSA member handbook. It lists out all the details of the CSA program and your dropsite logistics. You are also allotted two vacation days for the season, so if you know those, feel free to email/text me those dates so I can make a note. We won’t pack a box for you on those days. The member handbook is linked below:
Here are some photos from the field:
- Me, Tara, and Henry harvesting dill for the CSA.
2. Working in the collard patch.
3. Looking north, towards the hoophouses in our field.
In your box….
Here are photos of what you’ll find in your box this week!
Large CSA
Small CSA
Some Inspiration…
There are so many beautiful spring veggies in your box this week! Here is information on some of the veggies:
Collards: collards are a leafy green in the brassica family, they are closely related to kale. Traditionally they are eaten cooked, steamed and eaten over rice, or simmered in a soup. Cooking them allows them to break their fibers down and make the more digestible. You can saute them with eggs for breakfast, or toss in a soup. I chopped some last week and put in a pot of homemade chicken noodle soup and they were divine! They really hold their shape and flavor when cooked, rather than getting mushy.
Radishes: These radishes are a variety called “french breakfast”. They are long and more mild than a round, red radish. Traditionally they are sliced in half lengthwise, fried in butter, and eaten on toast for breakfast! I’ve tried it, and it is soooooo good. I recommend separating the roots from the tops for best long term storage. The greens are edible, and taste best cooked.
Chard: swiss chard is an awesome leafy green, full of anti-oxidants and iron! It’s one of my favorite leafy greens to eat. I usually cook it and eat it over rice or eggs. You can also tear up the leaves for a salad, its flavor is similar to spinach and can be substituted for spinach in any recipe. Chard won’t hold its shape in a soup as well as collards, so I recommend sautéing it or steaming it instead!
Butter Lettuce: This lettuce head can be broken down very easily and turned into a salad mix. For best storage I recommend breaking it down, soaking it in cold water, then spinning it out in a salad spinner (makes for a great way to involve little kiddos!). You can store your lettuce in a ziploc bag or a damp towel, or cloth bag in your drawer in the fridge.
Recipe of the week:
This week, everyone received a GIANT bunch of dill. Dill loves the springtime weather and has just been thriving in the field! My favorite thing to do with a fresh bunch of dill is to make homemade RANCH dressing. You can also dry it to store for winter, garnish your fish, or eat chopped into a salad. There are countless ways to enjoy your dill! Here is my homemade ranch recipe:
You can absolutely sub out the sour cream and milk/cream for mayo, or soaked cashews for a dairy-free option. You really can’t go wrong with how you make your farm ranch. You can also skip the green onion, or sub for fresh garlic or garlic powder. There are so many variations of this lovely dip!
Can’t wait to share these veggies with you tomorrow. Please let me know if you have ANY questions and if you need anything while I’m on the delivery route, please text or call me at 952-688-2114. Hope I get to see some of you at the dropsites.
Soil and sunshine,
Eleanor