community supported agriculture

CSA, Weeks 12, 11, and 10

August 28, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

Week 12: Scallions, cherry tomatoes, radishes, fennel, sunshoots, heirloom tomatoes, and string beans. It finally happened—heirloom tomatoes are here! Granted, some of the cherry tomatoes we’ve been getting for the last few weeks are heirloom varietals, but I’ve been waiting (somewhat) patiently for these guys. I’ve even been (for the most part) passing up buying them elsewhere in anticipation. I was told by an acquaintance who has done this CSA share for years that I can expect a bounty of heirloom tomatoes. This year, all the rain might be the culprit, but the heirloom tomatoes only came the very last week of August. But hey, now that they’re finally here, I’m definitely thrilled.

I see a very happy tomato-filled week ahead!

Week 11: Green plum tomatoes, lettuce, pick-your-own cherry tomatoes, husk cherries, red onions (with the greens still on—pretty!), peppers, pistou basil, basil, zephyr squash, and four funny-looking apples.

Week 10: Plum tomatoes, red and white potatoes, husk cherries, zephyr squash, cucumbers, string beans (three colors), eggplant, and scallions. We also had pick-your-own cherry tomatoes. We had to go back to pick them, since it was raining when we went for the initial pickup.

CSA, Week 9: Too Much Rain and the Inherent Uncertainty of Farming

August 9, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

Week 9: Peaches, cherry tomatoes, husk cherries, purple cabbage, tea herbs (mix of anise, mountain mint, holy basil, sweet fern, fennel, and lemon balm), cippolini onions, squash, and carrots.

We weren’t sure what to expect this week. The lead farmer sent out an email a couple of days before pick-up in which she shared her deep worry over the rain that has hammered our area for the last few weeks. The rain has hurt the existing crops, causing incomplete pollination and blossom drop. And then there’s the impact on future crops… As she explained it, her first responsibility is to be a responsible steward of the land. And that means no breaking ground during periods of heavy rain because doing so would lead to soil erosion. The upshot? Less to harvest as the summer wears on. And that means less for the CSA.

When we signed up for the CSA, it was made clear by the farm that there is inherent risk in pre-paying for produce. There are many factors that can come into play and impact or even destroy the output of a small-scale organic farm. Buying a CSA means investing in our local farm. And investments sometimes fail.

So, I feared the worst this week. It was not a great haul, but not as bad as I had feared. To be fair, given the weekly cost of the CSA, none of the shares so far have been of a quantity that would warrant the price tag. But there are other things we get: supporting local agriculture, getting organic just-picked produce, bringing my daughter to a farm every week, going into the fields to pick our own, giving her the experience of tasting a strawberry or raspberry or blueberry straight from the plant. And we have been introduced to new food, and to new variations of old favorites. These things are all very important to me. Without a garden of my own, the CSA provides me with these joys.

Meanwhile, the forecast calls for even more rain. And that means the farm’s lead farmer will have more sleepless nights, the crops will continue to suffer, and our CSA share will dwindle….

CSA, Week 7

July 24, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

It’s already been seven weeks! This week included basil, carrots, cucumbers, eggplant, kale, string beans, yellow squash, and scallions. There were also PYO berries, but it was raining, so I’ll go back later in the week. Still no tomatoes.

Here are a few close-ups…

Three colors of string bean:

Carrots just loosened from the ground:

Look at that shiny, inky skin:

Look at these lovelies. So diverse below the surface.

This time with five instead of six:

CSA, Week 6

July 17, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

Week 6. A bag of arugula, red and purple potatoes, blueberries, pistou basil, napa cabbage, cipollini onions, zucchini, and cucumbers. Lots of possibilities. I was hoping we’d get to some tomatoes this week, so I was rather sad to see that was not the case. Maybe next week? But there was still plenty to be very happy about this week. The zucchini keeps on coming, which is great. There are long months to endure with no zucchini, so I have been happy each time it’s in the CSA share. And those cucumbers are so sweet. My four year old loves them, so my husband and I don’t usually take more than a bite or two. But we sure enjoy those bites! The arugula has a lot of bite this week. I added some finely chopped napa cabbage to the arugula, which worked out pretty well. If the cabbages keep coming, I’ll try to make some kimchi.

Another week of sweet pick-your-own blueberries.

Look at this beautiful pistou basil and its diminutive leaves. Looks like a little bouquet.

Sweet little cipollini onions. I only wish there were more!

Earthy red and purple potatoes, a thin layer of soil still clinging to their colorful peels. My grandmother used to talk sometimes about boiling fresh baby potatoes, adding fresh peas, and topping with butter as a simple pleasure of summer. I’ll probably end up roasting these ones with the onions and some chicken, but her reminiscence about that simple dish has never left me. If we get more potatoes in the coming weeks, I’ll find some fresh peas and make it.

CSA, Week 5

July 10, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

Week 5. Hard to believe it’s been five weeks. The produce gets more exciting every week. This week: scallions, summer squash, chard, carrots (with all their glorious greens), thai basil, a quart of pick-your-own raspberries and blueberries (there are a lot of beautiful blueberries under there…), cucumbers, more summer squash (or is it zucchini?), and lettuce (red leaf salanova?). Maybe a Thai curry in there? We’ll see….

For the pick-your-own option this week, we could pick a quart of blueberries, raspberries, and/or red currants. We went with a mix of the first two. Last week’s raspberries were so delicious, and we had been looking forward to the blueberries. My daughter lost steam again—another hot day—so my husband and I got to work to fill that quart-size basket. The berries on the blueberry bushes were the loveliest shades of lavender and blue:

As the basket filled up, we ambled over to the raspberry patch:

My daughter loved last week’s raspberries, so she got almost all of the pint-sized basket to herself. This week, I’m gonna have to sneak a few of these treats for myself.

Some close-ups:

CSA, Week 4

July 3, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

This CSA share is really starting to heat up. This week, we got garlic scapes, kale, salad turnips, basil (yes!), pick-your-own raspberries (yes!), yellow and green zucchini, two types of salanova lettuce, and cabbage.

We’ve had quite a heat wave this week, so picking our own fruit was a pretty sweaty undertaking. But it was well worth it for a pint of perfect raspberries. I mean perfect. My daughter was very unhappy in the heat—who can blame her? As she wilted in the heat, my husband and I gathered berries. The discomfort was worth it, and based on how many my daughter has eaten, she thought it was worth the temporary discomfort as well.

No filter on those pics…just perfectly ripe raspberries in all their glory. As I said to my husband as we walked back to the car from the fields—I’d probably never buy a pint of perfect organic raspberries. Lovely as they are, it’s just not the kind of thing I’d splurge on. So it felt like I was taking home some precious gift.

And speaking of gifts: wow, that basil! There will be some homemade pesto this week. And those garlic scapes? My daughter loves to wrap them around herself: her arms, her neck, her legs…she can see how ornamental they are. I love that. And not to be too produce-crazy, but the salanova lettuce is just gorgeous. They look like flowers.

The yellow zucchini are enormous. I think maybe they’ll get stuffed. And we got salad turnips again. Two weeks ago, I sauteed them as well as the greens and they were great—the turnips had a subtle sweetness. These week, the greens were already a feast for some bugs, so they wound up in the trash. But the turnips will get sauteed or roasted any day now.

This week, our share also included cabbage. I love cabbage, but it’s pretty un-sexy. But this round, tight little head of cabbage was better looking than any I’ve purchased at the store. And last but not least, we got another head of kale. As someone or other once said, kale is the Kardashian of the greens world—really overhyped and overexposed, showing up in way more places than it should. But that’s not kale’s fault, is it? It’s still crazy healthy and can be really delicious. Check out these purple stems:

Quite a bit to work with this week. And I caught a glimpse of list of the expected crops due next week—blueberries and cherry tomatoes! I’ve heard from others who’ve done this CSA that I will be drowning in heirloom tomatoes this summer. I’m counting the days….

CSA, Week 3

June 28, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

For week 3, we picked up lettuce, radishes, mixed micro-greens, red currants, sugar snap peas, cilantro, and scallions.

Again, we got to do some picking, this time red currants. I don’t think I had ever eaten a fresh red currant before. Neither had my husband or daughter. One of the joys of a CSA—trying things you’ve never had before, and trying it fresh from an organic farm no less. The walk to the fields brings us past some content-looking sheep:

To get to the currants, we had to pass by the strawberries. Having picked strawberries there twice now, my daughter didn’t want to pass by, especially since she could see the plump little red berries, which of course meant they must be waiting for her little fingers…. Strawberries were an option for picking as well, put they were described as second pass, suitable for jam, etc., which is why we decided to try the currants instead. As we arrived at the rows of red currant plants, the jewel-toned little berries looked beautiful. I popped a couple in my mouth—wow, tart! Miraculously, my daughter liked them. She did in the field anyhow…she has not been a fan at home. I guess it makes sense—the fun of picking a berry straight from a plant and popping it in your mouth is pretty cool.

There was a lot in this week’s share that I was very excited about: I love snap peas and almost never treat myself to them at the grocery store. These ones did not disappoint. And yet I was unsuccessful in getting my daughter to try even one…. I was also excited about the microgreens, which added a peppery kick to salads this week. In fact, the radishes, microgreens, peas, cilantro, and scallions have all joined forces with the lettuce to make some pretty fantastic salads already this week. Hard to make out all the components in the image below, but they were all there.

Looking forward to next week…

CSA, Week 2

June 19, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

Week 2. As shown above, this week we got mixed greens, salad turnips (hakurei?), garlic ramps, red leaf lettuce, pick-your-own strawberries, kale, and oregano.

As I wrote in my week 1 rundown, last week I wasn’t able to stick around to pick strawberries with my daughter. This time, I could. And it was a lot of fun. I think she ate all of the ones she picked (sorry, farm!). At first I tried to fight it—it was wrong, the strawberries were dirty, I need to control my kid better, and so on. And then, I figured, what the hell? She’s a happy, sweet kid, and she’s having fun eating some strawberries. Let her enjoy herself. And that’s what I did. Last week, my husband and daughter picked the strawberries that came home. This week, I was the picker, and I brought, let’s say, a more exacting standard to the task. Here are a few shots:

I’m looking especially looking forward to the turnips, which can be eaten raw, and the turnip greens, which I’ll saute. And those garlic ramps—so beautiful! In fact, I kinda thought this whole group was great looking. I took close ups of them all:

CSA, Week 1

June 12, 2018September 29, 2018Leave a comment

We finally did it—we bought a CSA share. Kinda hard to believe it’s our first time. Honestly, I’m not sure why we’ve never done it. But now we have, and I’m pretty excited.

Our share is at an organic farm in town. Pickup is at the farm, which is as quaint and charming as you could imagine. An old farmhouse and enormous barn on acres and acres of lovely fields with open views of distant hills. The farm store carries the shelves of CSA items that you grab yourself (or containers for pick-your-own options—this week, you could pick your own strawberries). There are also additional items for sale from the farm, as well as items from other local producers. It’s the kind of place you’d love to have your kid remember when she grows up. I hope my daughter remembers it. I’m glad she can have this kind of experience buying food. I’m glad that I can have it. Here are a few pics:

As the picture at the top of the post shows, our first share included spring garlic, choice of cilantro or chives (we went with the latter; we have cilantro all the time, and I couldn’t remember the last time we had chives in the house), pick-your-own strawberries, radishes, arugula, pea tendrils, and kweik buttercrunch lettuce. My husband, my daughter, and I all went to the pickup together, but, unfortunately, I had to run back to work and couldn’t join them for the strawberry picking.

I’ll post images of some of the things I make this week on Instagram.