Week 11 Newsletter 2018

Hello Everyone,


Ah, sun kissed tomatoes are the best! It seems like we have had many chances of rain pass us by this past week. Of course, everything in the garden enjoyed the gentle showers the past few days and the landscape has taken on a rich green color. The warm loving plants seem to be standing tall. The tomatoes continue to show more brilliant color everyday. Yes, it is certainly harvest season in the vegetable garden.

What to expect to find in you bin this week:

Watermelon

Cantaloupe

Mixed Greens or Arugula

Cucumber or Zucchini

Jalapeno Peppers

Sweet Peppers

Eggplant

Tomatoes

Leeks

.... and in the buckets:

Cantaloupe

Eggplants

Arugula

Leeks

Tomatoes

Here are a couple of recipes you

may like to try this week.

Melon With Red Chili Flakes, Salt and Lime

JEFF SCHWARZ AND GREG KESSLER

YIELD
 4 servings

TIME
 About 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 muskmelon (honeydew or cantaloupe), rind and seeds removed

8 six-inch skewers

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes

1 jalapeño, finely diced (seeds removed)

½ lime

PREPARATION

Cut the melon into 1-inch cubes.Skewer the melon pieces (about four pieces for each skewer), and place them on a serving plate.

Place the salt and red chili flakes in a coffee or spice grinder and pulse until finely ground. Sprinkle about a teaspoon of the salt/chili mixture over the melons, followed by the diced jalapeño.

Squeeze the lime over the melons, and serve.

Greek Baked Squash Omelet

MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN

YIELD
 Serves six to eight

TIME
 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 leek, white and light green parts, cleaned and chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

¾ pound winter squash or zucchini, cut in 1/4- to 1/3-inch dice

Salt

freshly ground pepper to taste

¼ cup chopped fresh dill

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

8 eggs

½ cup drained yogurt or thick Greek-style yogurt

¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy skillet. Add the leek and cook, stirring, until tender, about three minutes. Add the garlic, stir together until fragrant, about 30 seconds, and add the squash. Cook, stirring, until tender, 10 to 12 minutes for winter squash, about 8 minutes for zucchini. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the dill and the mint. Remove from the heat.

Place the remaining tablespoon of oil in a 2-quart casserole or in a 9-inch cast iron skillet, brush the sides of the pan with the oil and place in the oven. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs in a large bowl. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Whisk in the yogurt and the Parmesan. Stir in the squash or zucchini mixture.

Remove the baking dish from the oven and scrape in the egg mixture. Place in the oven, and bake 30 minutes or until puffed and lightly colored. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Week 10 Newsletter 2018

Hello Everyone,


Did you notice the surprise in your bins/buckets last week? After a very long wait, finally the continuous heat ripened the tomatoes. I hope you enjoyed your first CSA tomatoes for 2018. This week will kick-off what we hope will be another tomato tsunami. They have grown into a wall almost as tall as your friendly gardener! From heirloom to grape tomatoes, there are lots of varieties to look forward to!
This week the melons ripened as well and they are super sweet. It looks like there will be plenty of melons for everyone for  next couple of weeks.

It is a beautiful time of year in the garden with lots of colorful peppers, eggplants and flowers popping up everywhere! Most of our crew has finished for the season except for the year-round crew and a few extras to help with the upcoming apple harvest. With cherries behind us, we are beginning to hand thin the apples from the apple trees and making other preparations for the apple harvest. It looks like it is going to be a big crop this year and we would love to see some rain to help size up the fruit.


What to expect to find in your bin this week:

Watermelon
Cantalope
Lettuce
Peppers
Tomatoes
Eggplant
Zucchini
Cucumber
Basil

....and in the buckets:

Watermelon
Peppers
Tomatoes
Eggplant
Cucumber


Let's have some lucious summer salads this time around!

Tomato and Watermelon Salad

SAM SIFTON
YIELD
 6 to 8 servings
TIME
 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 to 6 large tomatoes, ideally heirloom varieties, cut into 1 1/4-inch cubes
1 small seedless watermelon, cut into 1 1/4-inch cubes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup feta cheese, torn into large crumbles

PREPARATION

Combine the cubed tomatoes and watermelon in a large, nonreactive bowl and toss gently to combine. Add salt and let stand 5 to 10 minutes while you prepare the dressing.
Whisk together the oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add the cheese to the tomatoes and watermelon, then the dressing, and toss gently to combine.

Grilled Eggplant Salad

MELISSA CLARK
YIELD
 about 1 1/2 cups
TIME
 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 large eggplant
1 plum tomato, diced
1 ½ teaspoons red wine vinegar
½ teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
½ teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
Black pepper, to taste
Capers, for garnish, optional
Grilled pita bread, for serving

PREPARATION

Heat grill to medium high. Prick the eggplant all over with a fork, put in on the grill and close the cover; cook, turning occasionally, until eggplant is very soft and skin is blistered, about 15 minutes.
When cool enough, scoop out the insides of the eggplant and coarsely chop. Transfer to a bowl and toss with tomatoes, vinegar, salt, oregano and garlic. Stir in oil and parsley; season with pepper and more salt if needed. Garnish with capers if you like them. Serve with warm pita bread.

Cucumber Salad

PIERRE FRANEY
YIELD
 6 servings
TIME
 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 cucumbers, about 2 pounds
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons heavy cream
3 tablespoons white vinegar
Salt to taste if desired
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tablespoon finely chopped dill

PREPARATION

Trim off ends of each cucumber and cut in half lengthwise. Scrape away and discard seeds. Cut each cucumber half into thin crosswise slices. There should be about 6 cups.
Put sour cream, heavy cream, vinegar, salt, pepper and dill in mixing bowl and blend thoroughly. Add cucumber slices and toss.

Week 9 Newsletter 2018

Hello Everyone,

The Peak Season main garden is very colorful with the red runner beans, sunflowers and zinnias. Some members made zinnia or sunflower bouquets when they picked up their bins/buckets last week. If you did not have flowers at your location last week, they will be there for you this week in a blue bucket.

 It is time for eggplant!

We’re growing three different varieties of eggplant on the farm this season. One variety is Black Beauty, it is cylindrical shape and a blackish purple color. We will try our best to get the other varieties to you, but each week’s harvest will differ and some of the varieties are more plentiful than others.

The way it looks out there now, there are enough eggplants for many weeks to come. There are fruits that are mature now, some that are still growing, and some that are only beginning.We sure hope you like eggplant! No worries if you don't’ know what to do with it! Over the next few weeks we’ll provide you with the resources to have an eggplant party in your kitchen! For starters, see this week’s recipes.

What to expect to find in your bin this week:

Plums
Arugula
Eggplant
Carrots
Cucumber
Zucchini
Beans
Yellow Peppers
Dill

…..and in the buckets:

Plums
Arugula
Beans
Eggplant
Yellow Peppers

Here are a few recipes that include items from your bin/buckets this week.

Broiled Eggplant With Parmesan

PIERRE FRANEY                                                                                                                                                                  Time 30 minutes Yield  4 servings

INGREDIENTS

2 eggplants about 3 inches in diameter, total weight 1 1/4 pounds
 Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to broil.
Trim eggplants and cut into 16 slices of equal thickness.
Arrange eggplant slices in one layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and brush both sides with olive oil.
Place eggplant under broiler about 4 inches from heat source. Broil about 3 minutes, and turn slices and broil for 3 minutes more.
In a small dish, blend garlic with Parmesan, and sprinkle mixture evenly over eggplant. Place under broiler until bubbling. Serve immediately.

Green Beans With Dill

AMANDA HESSER
YIELD 
4 servings
TIME 
20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Sea salt to taste
4 large handfuls haricots verts or green beans, stem ends trimmed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Coarsely ground black pepper to taste

PREPARATION

Fill a pot with water. Season with salt so that you can taste it. Bring to a boil.
Plunge beans into water. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until just tender but still quite firm. If you're using green beans, it will take a minute or so longer. Drain. Return beans to pot. Add butter, stir in 2 tablespoons dill and season with pepper.
Stir and toss beans in pot over low heat, until butter is melted. Taste a bean and season with salt and more pepper, or dill, if desired.

Eggplant Salad With Peppers, Mint and Caper-Feta Vinaigrette

MELISSA CLARK
YIELD
 4 to 6 servings
TIME
 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 ¾ pounds eggplant (any kind, or a mixture), trimmed and cut into 1-inch chunks
3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 2/3 cup)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon capers, chopped
1 pound mixed bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
¼ cup fresh mint leaves

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Whisk together the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Toss eggplant with 1/3 cup vinaigrette, reserving the rest. Arrange on a baking sheet. Bake, tossing occasionally, until tender and golden around edges, about 30 minutes. Let eggplant cool somewhat. (It can be warm but not hot enough to melt feta or wilt mint.)
Whisk feta, garlic and capers into reserved vinaigrette. In a large bowl, combine eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and mint leaves. Toss with vinaigrette, and serve immediately or within several hours. (It holds up all day.)

Week 8 Newsletter 2018

Hello CSAers,

We are in the cherry season wrap-up mode.  The mechanical harvesting was completed last Thursday and Wednesday was the last day of hand picking cherries for this year.  We still have cherries in our cooler and will continue to pack and deliver cherries for at least another week.  All in all it seems like the harvest went well. I would like to dedicate this harvest to Josh, I know how proud he would be of the crew who have carried out his dream.

The garden is producing a bumper crop of beans this year, so this is the week to dig out all of your favorite bean recipes!

What to expect to find in your bin this week:

Cherries

Lettuce 

Cabbage

Cucumbers

Snap Beans

Pole Beans

Zucchini

Shallots

Apricots

and in the buckets...

Cherries

Snap Beans

Cucumbers

Zucchini

Carrots

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

French Green Beans and Shallots

JACQUES PEPIN

YIELD 
4 servings

TIME 
21 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 cups water

1 pound very small, firm green beans, cleaned

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons peeled and chopped shallots

¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

1 teaspoon lemon juice

PREPARATION

Bring the water to a boil. Add the beans and cover the pot. Continue cooking the beans, covered, for 3 to 5 minutes until tender but firm. Drain and rinse under cold water.

At serving time, heat the butter in a skillet, add the shallots and saute for about 1 minute, until the shallots start to brown.

Add the beans, salt and pepper, and saute briefly. Sprinkle with lemon juice and serve with the chicken.

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.