CSA 2011 - Week #13
What's in the Box - August 23, 24 & 25
VEGETABLE SHARE
The contents of the box may change this week. Please check back daily for an updated list. You can click on a crop below for recipes and storage information.
Sungold Cherry Tomatoes - 1 pint
Garlic Chives - 1 bunch - Delicious chopped finely in scrambled eggs!
Long Green Peppers - 1 piece
Green Bell Pepper - 1 piece
Cantaloupe Melon - 1 piece
Baby Watermelon - 1 piece
Shallots - 1.25 lb
Red Tomatoes** - several pieces
Nicola Potatoes - 1 quart
Baby Arugula -OR- Baby Carrots - 1 bag
Green Beans - 1 bag -OR- Zucchini - 2 pieces
FRUIT SHARE
The listing for the fruit share is for our Long Island sites ONLY. Please contact your core group if you belong to a Queens pick-up site for your updated weekly share.
Yellow Peaches - 1 bag
Bartlett Pears - 1 bag
QUEENS HERB SHARE
Pineapple Sage*
Thyme
*A posting on Chowhound recommends the following uses: -- flavors a basic vanilla ice cream recipe nicely -- chopped into mango salsa -- combine with mint, olive oil and rice vinegar and make an interesting salad dressing -- chopped with a bit of fresh garlic and rubbed onto chicken breasts for grill -- frozen into cubes with cranberry juice
notes on the share
This week marks the half way point of the CSA season and we have a spectacular harvest to celebrate! As we've mentioned before, our summer crops were delayed a few weeks, so they're all coming in now. This will probably be the last week of peppers -- so cut them up and freeze them if you need them for recipes this fall. Our pepper plants are dying of a root disease caused by excessively wet conditions.
Shallots! Shallots are not onions, but they are part of the Allium species. They have a mildly sweet onion flavor that some say also has hints of garlic. I like to use shallots in dressings and in place of onions in delicately flavored dishes.
**The red tomatoes need to ripen for a few days on the counter until they reach a uniform, deep red. Please be sure to wash the tomatoes before eating. We have been spraying them with an organically-approved copper spray to protect against late blight infection. The copper spray will wash off with a little soap and water.
News from the Farm
The tomatoes are finally coming in well, but it has been a lot of work to get them to this point! Late blight was detected on tomato and potato crops here in Suffolk County and we've had to be diligent about our organic spray regemin to prevent it from taking hold. Some of you may remember back to 2009 when pretty much all of the organic farms in the Northeast lost their tomato crop. We managed to save many of ours back then, and this year we were on top of it right away to ensure a good harvest. That said, the plants are definitely weaker than they are in a healthy year, so we're harvesting as much as we can, while we can!
Explore our Website
We welcome you to explore our website to learn more about our farm and the wonderful things you can do with your weekly share. Check out our CROP GUIDE to find tips on maximizing the life of your veggies, and our RECIPE section to search for ways to cook up your box!
THIS WEEK'S RECIPE SUGGESTIONS
Richard's Summer Salsa
Shallot Vinaigrette Dressing - delicious over a tomato salad!
More recipes for all the week's produce can be found here on our RECIPES page.