Week 7 Newsletter 2018

Flowers to attract bees to the garden

Hello Everyone,       

This past week we have been harvesting my favorite black sweet cherry variety. The Ulster has great flavor and a stand out "crunch" texture. This will be the type of sweet cherry that will be in your bin this week.

Our farm is in full swing, we are hand picking cherries as well as packing and delivering cherries. It is remarkable how fast our hand picking crew gets the fruit off the trees while carefully handling each and every cherry with care. As soon as a picker completes a box, it is removed from the orchard and stored in our cooler. The cherries are cooled down before they are washed, run through a packing line which includes sizing, sorting, weighing and packing the cherries. We custom pack to fill orders for local customers and have deliveries to southern Michigan. This past week some of the cherries took a ride on the ferry from Michigan to Wisconsin.

While hand-picking with buckets and ladders is the traditional method of harvesting fruit, technology has made it possible for cherry growers to get their fruit harvested much faster. We hand pick our highest-quality fruit but mechanically harvest the rest for a Michigan fruit processor (where it becomes cherry pie filling, frozen fruit, dried cherries, yogurt filling etc.). In the 70s, the price of processing fruit dropped so low that farmers could no longer afford the cost of hand-picking. Thus the method of using machines to shake the tree and catch the fruit was born. This is much faster than picking, and when done right, does not damage the tree.  At this point we are also mechanically harvesting cherries at different locations on the peninsula. 

You might be amazed to learn about the long, hard hours and meticulous methods that cherry farmers and their crews are currently enduring. Although the work can be tough, this time of year most growers and workers are all smiles. After a years worth of work, it is a joy to see what we have produced and our crews take pride in this accomplishment.


What to expect to find in your bin this week:

Purple Beans

Cherries
Zucchini
Lettuce
Mixed Beans
Arugula
Apricots
Broccoli
Cucumbers

...and in the buckets:

Cherries
Cucumbers
Zucchini
Mixed Beans
Arugula

Here are a couple of recipes that include beans, cherries and arugula.

Green Beans With Ginger and Garlic

JULIA MOSKIN
YIELD 
10 servings
TIME
 20 minutes


INGREDIENTS

Salt
2 ½ pounds green beans (French-style slim haricots verts work especially well), trimmed
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
¼ cup minced fresh ginger (about 6 inches ginger root, peeled)
4 medium-size garlic cloves, minced

PREPARATION

Broccoli

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, and fill a large bowl with ice water. Working in two batches, boil beans until just tender but still crisp and bright green. Start testing after 4 minutes or so, being careful not to overcook. When done, plunge beans into ice water to stop cooking, lift out immediately when cool and drain on towels. (Recipe can be made to this point up to a day in advance and kept refrigerated, wrapped in towels.)
When ready to cook, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wide skillet over high heat. Add half the beans, half the ginger and half the garlic, and cook, stirring and tossing constantly, until beans are heated through and ginger and garlic are softened and aromatic. Sprinkle with salt, and remove to a serving dish. Repeat with remaining oil, beans, ginger and garlic. Serve.

Arugula, Cherry and Goat Cheese Salad

MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN
YIELD
 4 servings.
TIME
 5 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 6-ounce bag baby arugula
16 cherries, halved and pitted
Scant 1/4 cup pistachios or almonds, (about 1 ounce), lightly toasted and chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

PREPARATION

Combine the arugula, cherries, half the nuts and the tarragon in a large bowl.
Whisk together the vinegars, salt and pepper and olive oil. Toss with the salad. Arrange on a platter, sprinkle the goat cheese and remaining pistachios over the top, and serve.
Tip
Advance preparation: You can have the salad and the dressing prepared a few hours ahead, but don't toss until just before serving.

Week 6 Newsletter 2018

Hello Everyone,    

1st sunflower of the season!

We are in the heat of the summer now, and brighter-colored veggies are going to start filling up your bins and buckets where there was once only green. Along with all the heat we've been dodging some storms. So far, we are not seeing any cracking in the cherries with the rain we had this past Saturday. It has been a great season in the garden and the heat loving plants have really moved ahead this week.

Listed below are the items that will be in your bins this week:

Cherries
Zucchini
Mixed Greens
Yellow Beans
Peppers
Rat Tail Radishes
Bok Choy
Sage

and the buckets:

Cherries
Zucchini
Green Beans
Rat Tail Radishes
Sage

Here a couple recipe ideas for you to give a whirl.

Fettuccine With Zucchini

FLORENCE FABRICANT
YIELD
 6 servings
TIME
 1 hour 20 minute

INGREDIENTS

1 pound medium-size zucchini, about 6, diced
Salt
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ cup minced onion
1 cup pine nuts
3 cloves garlic, slivered
1 pound fresh fettuccine
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley leaves
½ cup grated Grana Padano

PREPARATION

Place zucchini in a colander, toss with salt and set aside to drain in sink or over a bowl 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons oil in a heavy sauté pan, add onion, pine nuts and garlic and sauté over low heat about 10 minutes, until onion is soft and nuts start to brown. Rinse and drain zucchini and add to pan. Sauté about 20 minutes, until tender.
Bring large pot of salted water to a boil for pasta, cook pasta about 3 minutes and drain, reserving about 1 cup pasta water. Add pasta to sauté pan, cook over low heat about 5 minutes, to blend ingredients, adding pasta water as needed. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in parsley, cheese and additional olive oil and serve.

Tuna and Bean Salad

MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN
YIELD
 Serves 2 as a main dish, 4 as a starter
TIME 
About 15 minutes


INGREDIENTS

1 small or 1/2 medium red onion, peeled and very thinly sliced
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
1 (6 1/2-ounce) can water-packed tuna, drained
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans or borlotti beans, drained through a strainer and rinsed
3 fresh sage leaves, slivered
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 small or medium garlic clove, finely minced
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon plain low-fat or nonfat yogurt (or omit and use 4 tablespoons olive oil)
½ Japanese cucumber, cut in half lengthwise and sliced, for garnish

PREPARATION

Place the onion in a bowl and add 1 teaspoon of the vinegar and cold water to cover. Let sit for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water, then dry on paper towels.
In a medium bowl or salad bowl, combine the tuna, beans, onions, sage, and parsley.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix together the remaining vinegar, salt to taste, freshly ground pepper, garlic, and Dijon mustard. Whisk in the olive oil and the yogurt. Toss with the tuna and beans and serve, garnishing each plate with cucumber slices.

Week 5 Newsletter 2018

Hello Everyone,

Rattail Radishes

It is tomato trellising time! Tomatoes are a vine and we use a trellising system called the Florida weave to keep the plants erect. The tomato plants grow up rather than crawling on the ground which helps with moisture control, disease prevention and makes it easier at harvest time. We are looking forwards to walls of tomatoes!

I know many of you take vacations in July and August. Remember to let me know a week ahead if you would like to skip a bin or bucket. Also be sure to also schedule which week you would like to have your extra bin or bucket.

What to expect to find in your bin this week:

The beginning of the leeks

Cherries
Lettuce or Mixed Greens
Rattail Radishes
Zucchini
Leeks
Broccoli
Basil
Sugar Snap Peas or Snow Peas
Cucumber

and buckets:

Butterhead Lettuce

Cherries
Lettuce
Broccoli
Zucchini
Rattail Radishes

Here are a couple of recipes that include zucchini.

Zucchini Cake With Ginger and Hazelnuts

MOLLY O'NEILL
YIELD
 12 servings
TIME
 1 hour, plus cooling time

INGREDIENTS

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups sugar
2 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
⅓ cup orange juice
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 teaspoons peeled, grated ginger root
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups grated zucchini
½ cup finely chopped hazelnuts

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, orange juice, zest, ginger and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the flour and stir until just combined. Fold in the zucchini and hazelnuts.
Butter and flour a tube pan. Scrape the batter into the pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack. Slice and serve.

Zucchini With Shallots

PIERRE FRANEY
YIELD
 4 servings
TIME
 About 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ pounds small zucchini
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 tablespoons fresh bread crumbs
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons chopped shallots
4 tablespoons chopped parsley

PREPARATION

Rinse the zucchini and pat dry. Trim off the ends, but do not peel them. Cut into 1/8-inch slices.
Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet and when the oil is hot, add the zucchini. Saute the zucchini over high heat, shaking the pan and tossing gently. Add salt and pepper, and cook a total of 5 minutes.
Add the bread crumbs and butter to the pan. When the crumbs start to brown, add the shallots and cook for another minute, tossing. Serve sprinkled with parsley.

Week 4 Newsletter 2018

Happy Summertime Everyone!

It looks like we have some warm weather continuing to come our way this week. It will give all the warm loving plants a boost including the zucchini squash, eggplants, tomatoes, peppers and melons. Things are definitely moving ahead.

We started hand picking black sweet cherries on our farm on Monday of last week. The new cherry packing line is up and running and we packed our first order this afternoon. It is quite a gadget and more sophisticated than I ever imagined. Our cooler is well filled with hand picked cherries and I think we will have plenty of packing taking place in the packing shed this week.


Items to expect in your bin this week:

Cherries
Lettuce
Mixed Greens
Zucchini
Broccoli
White Turnips
Cucumber or Baby Kale
Sugar Snap or Snow Peas

Blue buckets:

Cherries
Lettuce
Peppers
Zucchini
White Turnips

Here are a couple of recipes that include sweet cherries.

Cherry Tabbouleh

MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN

YIELD 4 servings
TIME 10 minutes, plus 20 to 30 minutes' soaking

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup fine bulgur
Salt to taste
½ cup boiling water
1 ¼ cups finely chopped parsley, tightly packed
¼ to ½ cup finely chopped mint, to taste, tightly packed
24 sweet cherries, such as Bing or Queen Anne, pitted and diced
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, more to taste
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 ½ tablespoons pistachio oil
¼ cup pistachios, lightly toasted and coarsely chopped

PREPARATION

Place bulgur in a bowl. Add a little salt, cover with boiling water and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes, until bulgur is tender and has absorbed most of the water.
Transfer bulgur to a strainer and press out excess water.
Combine the bulgur, parsley, mint and cherries in a large bowl and toss.
In a separate bowl, whisk together lemon juice, salt to taste, the olive oil and the pistachio oil. Toss with salad mixture. Add pistachios, toss again and serve.

Pork Chops With Brandied Cherries



MELISSA CLARK

YIELD 4 servings
TIME 45 minutes 


INGREDIENTS

1 ¾  teaspoons kosher salt, more to taste
1 ½  teaspoon garam masala
½  teaspoon black pepper
¼  teaspoon ground allspice
2  bone-in pork chops, 1 1/2 inches thick, about 1 pound each
1  tablespoon olive oil
1  garlic clove, smashed and peeled
2  tablespoons brandy
2  cups fresh sweet or sour cherries, pitted and halved
4  sprigs thyme, plus thyme leaves for garnish
1  tablespoon unsalted butter
½  teaspoon sherry vinegar or honey, or more to taste (use the vinegar with the sweet cherries, the honey with the sour cherries)


PREPARATION

Combine salt, garam masala, pepper and allspice in a small bowl. Rub mixture all over pork chops, covering their entire surface. Let chops rest for 15 to 30 minutes at room temperature, or up to 24 hours, covered, in the refrigerator.
Heat a 10-inch skillet at medium-high. Add oil. Sear pork chops until brown, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Add garlic to pan, then sear the fatty edges of the chops, using tongs to hold them up, for about 30 seconds to 1 minute each. (Flip the garlic after it browns on one side.) If the pan starts to smoke at any point, lower the heat. Transfer the pork to a plate, and spoon off all but a thin layer of fat from pan. (Leave garlic in the pan.)
Add brandy to pan, let it simmer until the alcohol burns off (about 30 seconds), then add cherries, thyme and 2 tablespoons water. Let simmer for 1 minute.
Move cherries to the sides of the pan and return pork chops to the center so they can make contact with the metal. Cover pan and cook over low heat for about 7 minutes, until meat reaches 130 to 135 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. (Its temperature will rise as it rests.) Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, add butter and vinegar or honey to the pan, stirring until butter melts and coats the cherries. Taste and add more honey or vinegar, and salt as needed. Serve pork with cherries and more thyme on top.

Week 3 Newsletter 2018

Hi CSAers,

I hope you all have been enjoying the warm weather and have found some extra special ways to stay cool! Not only does the 4th of July mark our nation's birthday, it is also the kick-off to Northern Michigan's cherry harvest. Tomorrow will be the the trial run for hand picking cherries on our farm. Big news, our new cherry packing line arrived last week and the final assembly is being done in our packing shed. Anticipation is the theme of the week!


The main delivery day for Week 3 falls on the 4th of July. Due to the holiday there will not be a delivery to the the Governmental Center or Mark's House this week. There will be 2 options for everyone who normally pick up their bin/bucket at these locations. You will be able to pick up your bin/bucket at the Wunsch Farmhouse (17017 Peninsula Dr) on July 4th from 6:00 - 8:00 PM  or on July 5th at the Senior Center from 7:30 - 9:30 AM. Please send me an email note to let me know where you would like me to direct your bin /bucket by Tuesday evening.

Here we are with the Cherry Festival underway, it is time to celebrate cherries, our community and the beautiful place in which we are so lucky to live! Have a great week!

What expect to find in your bin this week:

Strawberries

Lettuce

Sugar Snap or Snow Peas

White Turnips

Radishes

Tarragon

Peppers

Garlic Scape

Strawberries

Lettuce

Honey

Tarragon

Recipes of the week:

Sheet-Pan Tarragon Chicken With Sherry Vinegar Onions

MELISSA CLARK

YIELD  6 servings

TIME 1 hour, plus 6 hours marinating

INGREDIENTS

½ cup finely chopped tarragon (leaves and tender stems), plus 4 whole sprigs

2 garlic cloves, finely grated or minced

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for drizzling

1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed

½ teaspoon ground black pepper, more as needed

3 pounds bone-in chicken thighs (skin on)

2 large onions, peeled and sliced (about 4 cups)

4 thyme sprigs

Sherry vinegar, to taste

PREPARATION

In a large bowl, stir together tarragon, garlic, oil, salt and pepper. Add chicken thighs and toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 6 hours, and up to overnight.

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Spread onions out on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss well. Clear spaces on the baking pan, then place chicken pieces in the cleared spaces so the onions surround the chicken. Strew thyme and tarragon sprigs over onions and chicken.

Roast, tossing the onions after 15 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and the onions tender, 25 to 35 minutes. If the chicken skin or onions are not as brown as you’d like, run pan under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes at the end of cooking.

Place chicken on a platter. Drizzle onions with sherry vinegar and more salt and pepper if needed. Spoon onions around the chicken and serve.

Green Sugar Snap Peas With Tarragon

PIERRE FRANEY

YIELD 4 servings

TIME 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

¾ cup sugar snap peas, trimmed

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon or parsley

⅛ teaspoon ground cumin

PREPARATION

In a saucepan, bring to a boil enough water to cover the peas. Add the peas and salt to taste. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until they are crisp-tender. Drain immediately.

Return the peas to the saucepan and add the butter, tarragon, cumin, salt and pepper. Stir until the peas are well coated. Serve immediately.