News and blog

It's Week 11 of our 24-week CSA season.  It's the middle of August, and many people think that produce season is winding down.  However, field tomatoes and green peppers are just starting to ripen, and we still have all of our fall crops to come.  You can look forward to varieties of squash, beets, melons, more green beans and potatoes, and more!  Our fields and gardens will be going strong for another two months, and then start winding down.

Again, our farmers have been so busy in their fields that Grateful Life Farm is the only farm that sent us an update this week. 

This week we cut the grass, moved our pen and fence, and transferred another batch of chicks from the brooder to the pasture pen.  The brooder is cleaned out and ready for our very last batch of chicks for this season, arriving today!  The hatchery we use has developed a new broiler strain called the Robust White, and they have offered us a free batch of chicks to try.  It is a cross between the white broilers we raise and the heartier red broiler.  Many pasture-based chicken producers prefer the red broilers because they seem to retain more chicken instincts, perform better in an outdoor system, and have a flavor more similar to heritage chicken.  However, they take another four weeks to finish so we have never tried them.  The hatchery tells me that the Robust White cross will finish in the same 8 weeks as our conventional broilers, but perform better on pasture.  I'm also excited to see if there will be any flavor differences.
     
We played a bit of musical chairs with the rabbits this week, moving our Silver Fox doe Coco and her litter to one of our pasture rabbit tractors, and shifting another young doe to a hutch.  The young rabbits especially love the pasture pens!  They race around, hop, play, and chow down on grass and clover.  The does visited the bucks on Wednesday night, which should result in more babies on September 9th.  We purchased materials to build another rabbit tractor for our New Zealand doe Brandi, and her litter.  Hopefully, they can move in on Sunday.  For the next tractor, we are thinking about some design changes to provide the rabbits with more shade in the outdoor area, and to make the hutches easier to clean.        

I'm still not done with my fall crop seeding, but have made good progress.  Romaine lettuce has been seeded and has germinated nicely, spinach has been seeded, and the mustard greens are outside hardening off in preparation for planting.  11 more flats of lettuce and 9 more spinach to go! 

One of our members shared an article with me entitled "Care Where Food Comes From."  Here is a short excerpt:

Read the entire article here.

CSA Shares

Full Shares

• 1 lb. tomatillos from NuWay Farm
• 1 pt. cherry tomatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 3 eggplant from Detweiler Farm
• 1 green pepper from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 garlic from Grateful Life Farm
• 3 choice from NuWay Farm, Mullett Farm, Detweiler Farm, Silver Wheel Farm, Springfield Acres, and Grateful Life Farm
• 1 herb from Silver Wheel Farm, Bushel and a Peck Farm, Springfield Acres, and Grateful Life Farm

Small Shares

• 1 lb. tomatillos from NuWay Farm
• 1 tomato from Detweiler Farm
• 2 eggplant from Detweiler Farm
• 1 green pepper from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 2 choice from NuWay Farm, Mullett Farm, Detweiler Farm, Silver Wheel Farm, Springfield Acres, and Grateful Life Farm
• 1 herb from Silver Wheel Farm, Bushel and a Peck Farm, Springfield Acres, and Grateful Life Farm

Mini Shares

• 1 tomato from Detweiler Farm
• 1 eggplant from Detweiler Farm
• 1 green pepper from Detweiler Farm
• 1 onion from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 choice from NuWay Farm, Mullett Farm, Detweiler Farm, Silver Wheel Farm, Springfield Acres, and Grateful Life Farm

Recipes

Fairy tale eggplant is a smaller eggplant with a light purple skin.  Since it is smaller than the black eggplant that you're used to, adjust the recipes accordingly.

Tomatillos have an outer husk that must be removed before cooking.  If you're not familiar with them, they look like a small green tomato.

The hot peppers in the Choice boxes include hot Hungarian (mildly hot), Inferno (larger than the Hungarian but similar shape and color; a little hotter), and Jalapenos (small and dark green, the hottest of the three).  We included the hot peppers because most people make salsa verde with their tomatillos, but we wanted to let you choose the amount of spice.

Super Easy Salsa Verde

Roasted Tomatillo Chicken Enchilada Pie

Roasted Tomatillo Chickpea Curry

Roasted Spicy Garlic Eggplant Slices

Grandma's Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Cheesy Stuffed Banana Peppers (You can use any of the peppers for this recipe...depends on your affinity for heat)

Chili Pepper Salt (Again, any hot pepper is appropriate here)

Chicken and Cheese Stuffed Anaheim Peppers

Enjoy your week!

Amy

My newsletter will be a bit shorter than normal today.  My mom is visiting from New Mexico this week, and I am trying to shorten my work load for the week in order to spend more time with her, since I usually only get to see her once a year.

While the weather has been beautiful this week with the cooler temperatures, it has delayed ripening of our field tomatoes and peppers.  The tomatoes that have been in the shares so far have been grown in the ground in a greenhouse at Detweiler Farm.  Cherry tomatoes that are in the field ripen more quickly than the larger tomatoes.  So you will have to wait patiently for the delicious field-ripened heirloom tomatoes.  Sweet corn is coming soon, too.

We have an update from Grateful Life Farm:

On Monday, we processed our third batch of chickens, marking the halfway point of our broiler chicken season.  Nine more weeks and three more butcher dates to go!  Each time seems to go faster and better as we settle into routines in our new space.  We've been planning to purchase another freezer, but so far our inventory has not exceeded our storage and we should be able to wait a few more weeks.  This time we're getting an upright freezer with shelves.  I've been lusting after one ever since visiting a friend's farm and seeing her pork storage area, each cut neatly organized and labeled on the outside freezer doors.
 
We've had several nights this week of being woken by the eerie sound of howling coyotes.  They sound so loud and near and the noise seems to swell to surround us on all sides as every coyote in the neighborhood calls to one another and answers back.  One night we even got out of bed and jumped in the side-by-side to check the chickens.  Fortunately, the coyotes have not bothered them, yet, but I would love to know if the fence is working to repel predators or simply has not yet been challenged.  We received the game camera I ordered this week.  It is capable of sending real time pictures to our cell phones or e-mail, but I'm still working on setting it up as electronics are not my forte!  Hopefully this weekend we can have it operational and be able to see what is going on back there while we're sleeping.  

The fall crops we seeded, including mustard greens, lettuce, and green onions have germinated nicely with the air conditioner running to keep the grow room temperature down.  We ran out of lettuce seed, but received another shipment this week.  I hope to finish my seeding work this weekend to be ready to fill up the garden again through the second half of August. 

I was not very familiar with the endive that is in your shares this week, so I had to do a little research.  I thought you might be interested in reading some of the info:

Health benefits of Endive

• Endive is one of the very low-calorie leafy vegetables. 100 g fresh leaves carry just 17 calories; however, it contributes about 8% of daily-required intake (DRI) of fiber.

• Current research studies suggest that high inulin and fiber content in escarole help reduce glucose and LDL-cholesterol levels in diabetes and obese patients.

• Endive composes good amount Vitamin-A and ß-carotene. Both these compounds are known to have antioxidant properties. Carotenes convert into vitamin-A inside the human body. Furthermore, vitamin-A required for maintaining healthy mucosa and skin. Also, it is also an essential vitamin for good eyesight. Consumption of natural vegetables/greens rich in vitamin-A helps to protect from lung and oral cavity cancers.

• Further, it contains good amounts of many essential B-complex groups of vitamins such as folic acid, pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), pyridoxine (vitamin B6) and thiamin (vitamin B1), niacin (B3). These vitamins are essential in the sense that human body requires them through external sources to replenish. They take part as cofacors in fat, protein, and carbohydrate metabolism.

• Additionally, escarole is a good source of minerals like manganese, copper, iron, and potassium. Manganese used as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Potassium is an important intracellular electrolyte helps counter the hypertension effects of sodium.

  (from http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/endive.html)

CSA Shares

Full Shares

2 lb. white potatoes from NuWay Farm

1 qt. sunsugar cherry tomatoes from Detweiler Farm

1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products

1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm

1 garlic from Red Dog Farm

2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm

1 lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm

1 endive from NuWay Farm

2 choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Silver Wheel Farm, Harmony Grove Farm, and Grateful Life Farm

1 herb from Silver Wheel Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Bushel and a Peck Farm

Small Shares

1 lb. white potatoes from NuWay Farm

1 pt. sunsugar cherry tomatoes from Detweiler Farm

1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products

1 garlic from Red Dog Farm

1 zucchini from Detweiler Farm

1 lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm

1 endive from NuWay Farm

1 choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Silver Wheel Farm, Harmony Grove Farm, and Grateful Life Farm

1 herb from Silver Wheel Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Bushel and a Peck Farm

Mini Shares

1 lb. white potatoes from NuWay Farm

1 pt. sunsugar cherry tomatoes from Detweiler Farm

1 onion from Miller Farm Products

1 garlic from Red Dog Farm

1 zucchini from Detweiler Farm

1 choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Silver Wheel Farm, Harmony Grove Farm, and Grateful Life Farm

Recipes

(Endive is also called escarole)

Charred Escarole Salad

Wilted Escarole with Feta, Walnuts and Honey

Italian Beans and Greens

Marinated Cherry Tomato and Herb Salad (my family loved this when I made it last week)

Quick Spiralized Zucchini and Grape Tomatoes

Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad

Creamy Basil Dressing

Have a great week!

Amy

It has been a beautiful week, but it's getting to the point where your farmers are hoping for a little rain.  Some farms received a little bit yesterday, and some received only a drop or two.  The warm, dry weather is great for tomatoes and peppers; lettuce and beans would like a drink.  Some of our fields are watered with drip irrigation hoses, while others are left to the whims of Mother Nature.  However, a good soaking rain is always preferred to irrigation because there are other substances in rainwater that are not found in well water, plus the energy savings of running the pump. 

All of our farmers must be very busy these days.  I only have an update from Grateful Life Farm this week:

This week we turned our attention back to the garden, where we are working to get ready for planting our fall crops.  We harvested the rest of our garlic, the German Red variety, and hung it in the shed to cure.  The garlic beds can now be replanted with successions of beans and radishes.  For our fall transplants, we seeded flats of lettuce, green onions, and mustard greens in our indoor grow room.  Because the grow lamps make a lot of heat, we've installed a window air conditioner to keep the temperature low enough for our seeds to germinate.  So far it is working as we have seen excellent germination rates. 

The chickens in the back pasture are doing very well and we are enjoying having so much room to move the pen each day, unlike our other spaces, where every inch counts and we are constantly squaring up the pen to make sure we were not losing any precious ground.  I've been obsessively checking the electric fence to make sure it is hot enough to hold off predators.  A charge of at least 2500 volts is recommended.  In the afternoons on nice days, the fence is very hot, as high as 5200 volts, but after the sun goes down and dew starts to form, the charge drops off quickly.  In the mornings, I have tested as low as 1400 volts.  I spoke with the fence manufacturer this week and was told that it doesn't take as much voltage to deliver a shock to a predator when the ground and their paws are wet from dew, but he also gave me some pointers on improving the charge.  

Yesterday afternoon when we arrived to move the pen, we saw a section of fence had been knocked partially down.  It seemed odd that it had happened during the day, but there was no evidence of any digging around the pen, so we believe it was a deer running out of the woods, or perhaps a neighbor had hit the fence with a side-by-side.  We are planning to set up a game camera shortly so we can see what's going on back there when we're not around.

On Monday, we will process our third batch of chickens.  We package them as wholes, halves, boneless skinless breasts, leg quarters, and wings, and soup bones, livers, hearts, gizzards, and feet are also available. 

CSA Shares

Last week we had a couple of complaints about the peaches being too ripe when you received them.  Sometimes fruits are difficult to put in CSA boxes.  We can not pick them at the peak of ripeness or they will be past their prime at delivery.  We don't put certain items in plastic bags because they do not breathe.  However, brown paper bags speed up the ripening process of certain fruits, including peaches, because a gas that is released is trapped inside.  If we just put loose peaches in your box, they will be damaged.  So this week we tried putting them in paper bags and leaving them open so the gas is not trapped.  Let me know if it works better.  There is nothing worse than expecting delicious, non-sprayed peaches and finding them inedible!

Full Share

• 1 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lb. beans from NuWay Farm
• 1/2 lb. lettuce mix from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 cabbage from Detweiler Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 2 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Mullet Farm
• 1 Herb choice from Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Bushel and a Peck Farm

Small Shares

• 1 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lb. beans from NuWay Farm
• 1 cabbage from Detweiler Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Mullet Farm

Mini Shares

• 1/2 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 tomato from Detweiler Farm
• 1/2 lb. beans from NuWay Farm
• 1/4 lb. lettuce mix from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Mullet Farm

Recipes

Apple Cranberry and Almond Coleslaw

Sautéed Cabbage

Marinated Tomatoes

Parmesan Roasted Tomatoes

Green Bean, Mushroom and Chicken Skillet in Creamy Garlic Sauce

Garlic Roasted Green Beans and Mushrooms

Green Bean Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

There are also lots more recipe ideas on our other Pinterest boards, as well as in the Recipes  section of our Website.

As always, if you receive inferior produce that you would like replaced, please let me know.  Have a great week!

Amy

It has been a beautiful week, but it's getting to the point where your farmers are hoping for a little rain.  Some farms received a little bit yesterday, and some received only a drop or two.  The warm, dry weather is great for tomatoes and peppers; lettuce and beans would like a drink.  Some of our fields are watered with drip irrigation hoses, while others are left to the whims of Mother Nature.  However, a good soaking rain is always preferred to irrigation because there are other substances in rainwater that are not found in well water, plus the energy savings of running the pump. 

All of our farmers must be very busy these days.  I only have an update from Grateful Life Farm this week:

This week we turned our attention back to the garden, where we are working to get ready for planting our fall crops.  We harvested the rest of our garlic, the German Red variety, and hung it in the shed to cure.  The garlic beds can now be replanted with successions of beans and radishes.  For our fall transplants, we seeded flats of lettuce, green onions, and mustard greens in our indoor grow room.  Because the grow lamps make a lot of heat, we've installed a window air conditioner to keep the temperature low enough for our seeds to germinate.  So far it is working as we have seen excellent germination rates. 

The chickens in the back pasture are doing very well and we are enjoying having so much room to move the pen each day, unlike our other spaces, where every inch counts and we are constantly squaring up the pen to make sure we were not losing any precious ground.  I've been obsessively checking the electric fence to make sure it is hot enough to hold off predators.  A charge of at least 2500 volts is recommended.  In the afternoons on nice days, the fence is very hot, as high as 5200 volts, but after the sun goes down and dew starts to form, the charge drops off quickly.  In the mornings, I have tested as low as 1400 volts.  I spoke with the fence manufacturer this week and was told that it doesn't take as much voltage to deliver a shock to a predator when the ground and their paws are wet from dew, but he also gave me some pointers on improving the charge.  

Yesterday afternoon when we arrived to move the pen, we saw a section of fence had been knocked partially down.  It seemed odd that it had happened during the day, but there was no evidence of any digging around the pen, so we believe it was a deer running out of the woods, or perhaps a neighbor had hit the fence with a side-by-side.  We are planning to set up a game camera shortly so we can see what's going on back there when we're not around.

On Monday, we will process our third batch of chickens.  We package them as wholes, halves, boneless skinless breasts, leg quarters, and wings, and soup bones, livers, hearts, gizzards, and feet are also available. 

CSA Shares

Last week we had a couple of complaints about the peaches being too ripe when you received them.  Sometimes fruits are difficult to put in CSA boxes.  We can not pick them at the peak of ripeness or they will be past their prime at delivery.  We don't put certain items in plastic bags because they do not breathe.  However, brown paper bags speed up the ripening process of certain fruits, including peaches, because a gas that is released is trapped inside.  If we just put loose peaches in your box, they will be damaged.  So this week we tried putting them in paper bags and leaving them open so the gas is not trapped.  Let me know if it works better.  There is nothing worse than expecting delicious, non-sprayed peaches and finding them inedible!

Full Share

• 1 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lb. beans from NuWay Farm
• 1/2 lb. lettuce mix from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 cabbage from Detweiler Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 2 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Mullet Farm
• 1 Herb choice from Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Bushel and a Peck Farm

Small Shares

• 1 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 lb. beans from NuWay Farm
• 1 cabbage from Detweiler Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Mullet Farm

Mini Shares

• 1/2 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 tomato from Detweiler Farm
• 1/2 lb. beans from NuWay Farm
• 1/4 lb. lettuce mix from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, Springfield Acres, Silver Wheel Farm, and Mullet Farm

Recipes

Apple Cranberry and Almond Coleslaw

Sautéed Cabbage

Marinated Tomatoes

Parmesan Roasted Tomatoes

Green Bean, Mushroom and Chicken Skillet in Creamy Garlic Sauce

Garlic Roasted Green Beans and Mushrooms

Green Bean Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

There are also lots more recipe ideas on our other Pinterest boards, as well as in the Recipes  section of our Website.

As always, if you receive inferior produce that you would like replaced, please let me know.  Have a great week!

Amy

I am loving the weather this week!  Cool at night and not too hot during the day.  It makes working on the farm and going to farmer's markets so much more enjoyable.  We are currently attending two farmer's markets:  Monday afternoon in Robinson Twp. outside of Pittsburgh and Friday afternoon in Hermitage.  Some of our farmers also have a presence at Bellevue market on Wednesday, Grove City market on Thursday, and Lawrenceville market on Saturday.  Sometimes at market I hear complaints about how expensive our food is.  What they don't realize is that I spend 8-9 hours for a 3-4 hour market, plus the hours that our farmers spend harvesting and preparing their products for the market.  Thank you for your commitment to local farms this season with your prepurchased CSA Share!

My family was discussing whether the tomato is a fruit or a vegetable.  Of course, there was a difference of opinion.  So I asked Google.  Evidently, it depends on what classification system you are using.  If you're looking at the question as a botanist would, the tomato is definitely a fruit, as are cucumbers, pumpkins, beans, and a host of other "vegetables."  But in the everyday world, the Supreme Court ruled that the tomato is a vegetable because that is how it is generally eaten.  So we still haven't resolved our argument.

Here is an update from Grateful Life Farm:

We made it!  Our fourth batch of broiler chicks went out of the brooder and into the pasture pen in our large back pasture on schedule on Tuesday evening.  Sunday was a very busy day, processing rabbits in the morning, then moving to the back pasture to cut grass and put up portable electric net fence in the afternoon.  We didn't finish the grass, but only cut what we would need for the first week or so, because of how long it was taking.  Finally, we disassembled the chicken pen, hauled each half up the path, then reassembled it inside the fence line.  The next day, we got some great news: our sickle bar mower was ready to be picked up!  That evening, we made quick work of the rest of the grass, cutting more area in an hour than we had in 3 hours on Sunday.  Check out our Facebook page for a video of this powerful mower.   https://www.facebook.com/GratefulLifeFarm/

Tuesday, Shawn set up the feeder and waterer, we crated the chicks, and they arrived at their new home just in time to clean out the brooder and welcome another batch of day old chicks in the morning.  Although we have two layers of protection in the pen and the electric fence, we still worry about predation so far from the house and I didn't sleep well, having nightmares about our birds being eaten by bears.  In the morning, I drove back at dawn to find them all well and safe.  If you would like to see lots of pictures of the whole process, check out my latest blog post on our website.  http://gratefullifefarm.com/this-week-on-the-farm/taking-back-our-field

This week in the garden we are working to get the rest of our garlic harvested.  Yesterday we pulled our Deerfield Purple hardneck garlic.  Rather than coming from purchased seedstock, this garlic was saved from our own harvest last year, selecting the largest, nicest heads to replant.  It is bundled and hanging in the shed and we only have our German Red left to harvest.  Summer crops are coming along well with basil really taking off, flowers on the green beans, and green fruits on the tomatoes.

CSA Shares

Full Shares

• 1 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1/4 lb. basil from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 4 pickling cucumbers from Detweiler Farm
• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from Miller Farm Products
• 1 head garlic from Miller Farm Products
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 3 Choice items from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Mullet Farm, Miller Farm Products, Silver Wheel Farm and Grateful Life Farm
• 1 Herb choice from Silver Wheel Farm, Springfield Acres, and Bushel and a Peck Farm

Small Shares

• 1 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1/8 lb. basil from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 2 pickling cucumbers from Detweiler Farm
• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 2 Choice items from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Mullet Farm, Miller Farm Products, Silver Wheel Farm and Grateful Life Farm

Mini Share

• 1/2 lb. peaches from NuWay Farm
• 1 bag basil from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 tomato from Detweiler Farm
• 2 pickling cucumbers from Detweiler Farm
• 1/4 lb. lettuce mix from NuWay Farm
• 1 Choice items from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Mullet Farm, Miller Farm Products, Silver Wheel Farm and Grateful Life Farm

Recipes

Easy Peach and Basil Flatbread (I wasn't going to give you any recipes for peaches, because I imagine some of you will eat them by the end of the day because...fresh peaches!, but this one caught my eye since it uses basil too and is very simple)

Fresh Basil Garlic Bread

Lemon Basil Vinaigrette

How to Freeze Fresh Basil

Spicy Zucchini Soup

Amazing Zucchini Brownies (If you don't have the stevia blend, you can use regular sugar in the larger amount)

Guilt-Free Garlic Parmesan Zucchini Noodles Pasta (for those of you with veggie spiralizers, or you can julienne the zucchini)

Cucumber Salsa

Cucumber Greek Salad

Tomato Basil Mozzarella Toasts

Grilled Balsamic Zucchini

Parmesan Tomato Zucchini Bake

Avocado/Tomato/Mozzarella Salad

I always end up with more recipes than I mean to share.  When I'm searching for recipes, so many look good and I want to share them.

Have a great week!  Check out our Facebook page in the coming days for posts from a book I've been reading.

Amy

Welcome to our Peak of the Season CSA members!  Each week you will receive this email, which I send to all of our Farm Share members.  In it you will find reports from some of our member farms, a list of what is in your CSA box, and recipe suggestions for your Share.  Of course, the share contents won't be pertinent for Select Share members, but the rest is.  If you want to read past newsletters, you can view the most recent ones here.

With the (finally!) dry weather this week, many farmers are rushing to put up hay.  We usually do our first cutting in mid-June, but we haven't had any streaks of dry weather to do so.  This means we will only get two cuts this year, rather than the three that is always hoped for.

David Yoder from NuWay Farm writes about Horse Power versus Horsepower:

Certainly the heavy draft horse was designed to work.  Their bones are heavier than standard sized horses, making them durable enough to withstand the rigors of farm life.  They also tend to have a gentle demeanor, which makes them highly sought after in the field.

Leah Wilson from Grateful Life Farm shares an update from their farm last week:

Another batch of chickens went in the freezer on Sunday and we are now 4 days from our deadline for moving our pen and fencing to our back field.  The neighbor mowed the field on Saturday, but rain has slowed our progress since then.  Luckily, the weekend weather is looking favorable for us to hit it hard on Sunday.  Sadly, we have lost a couple of the rabbit kits that were born almost two weeks ago.  In each litter, the ones that were noticeably smaller than their litter mates didn't make it.  However, all 11 remaining babies are growing fast and seem strong and healthy.  Their eyes are starting to open and their fur is coming in quickly. 

Wednesday night we harvested our first bed of garlic, tied bundles with twine, and hung them from the shed rafters to cure for a few weeks.  This year we grew one softneck variety and two hardnecks.  The hardnecks will not be harvested for a few more weeks, but the Inchelium Red softneck was ready and we were just waiting for a dry day.  I especially enjoy growing and harvesting crops like garlic and potatoes for the surprise factor.  You don't really know what you will find until you dig them up!  As we dug, lifted bulbs, and oohed and aahed over their beauty, size, and aroma, Shawn asked me the name of the variety and how it got that name.  Inchelium Red is an heirloom garlic that is said to be the oldest strain grown in North America, cultivated before the arrival of Europeans.  It was found on the Colville Indian Reservation in Inchelium, Washington and is on Slow Food USA's Ark of Taste.  We are planning a taste test with a head of roasted garlic drizzled in olive oil and some crusty bread.  If you try this recipe, beware!  Back in high school, my girlfriends and I would go out for this appetizer and when I got home, my mother would tell me she could smell the garlic coming out my pores!  http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/roasted-garlic-102291 

Share Contents

Full Shares

• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. yellow wax beans from Mullet Farm
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 pt. blueberries from Hochstetler Berry Farm
• 2 lb. potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 2 Choice items from NuWay Farm, Mullet Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, and Silver Wheel Farm
• 1 Herb choice from Silver Wheel Farm, Bushel and a Peck Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Springfield Acres

Small Shares

• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 lb. tomatoes from Detweiler Farm
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 1 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 pt. blueberries from Hochstetler Berry Farm
• 1 lb. potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 Choice item from NuWay Farm, Mullet Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, and Silver Wheel Farm
• 1 Herb choice from Silver Wheel Farm, Bushel and a Peck Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Springfield Acres

Mini Shares

• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 tomato from Detweiler Farm
• 1/2 lb. yellow wax beans from Mullet Farm
• 1 lb. potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 Choice item from NuWay Farm, Mullet Farm, Detweiler Farm, Miller Farm Products, and Silver Wheel Farm

Recipes

Garlic Herb Potato Salad (You will have to reduce the size to accommodate your potatoes.  Use your choice of herbs.)

The Yummiest Buttery Parsley Potatoes

Easy Zucchini Carrot Pancakes (maybe not for breakfast...but then again, why not?)

Summer Veggie Stew (carrots, zucchini, tomatoes...yum!  I would switch out real cream for the evaporated milk)

Roasted Wax Beans with Arugula and Lemon (Skip the arugula at the end, or use a different green.)

String Beans and Summer Squash (Green or yellow...makes no difference)

Garden Fresh Bruschetta

Parmesan Tomato Zucchini Bake

After looking at these recipes, some of you might be wishing you had a Small Share instead of Mini, or a Full Share instead of Small!  If you find that your share isn't large enough, you can increase it.  Or you can just order extras from the Webstore, too!  If you're in the area, we are at Hermitage Farmer's Market on Fridays and Robinson Twp (Pgh) Farmer's Market on Mondays.

We welcome your comments about our farms, the share contents, and anything else you want to tell us.  Feel free to share recipes and photos on our Facebook page.

Happy eating!

Amy

This week, we have updates from three of our farms.

Hazy Hollow Farm

   

Silver Wheel Farm

• 1 cabbage from NuWay Farm
• 1 bunch Swiss Chard from NuWay Farm
• 1 kohlrabi from Detweiler Farm
• 6 pickling cucumbers from Detweiler Farm
• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1/2 lb. lettuce mix from Grateful Life Farm
• 1/2 lb. kale from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 pt. blueberries from Hochstetler Berries
• 2 choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Springfield Acres

I hope you all had a wonderful Independence Day celebration.  It's very rare when farmers take the day off.  Most worked part of the day and then squeezed in some time for relaxation with friends and family. 

Here is an update from Grateful Life Farm that was written last Friday:

Although busy, this week was happily uneventful with no major storms or power outages!  On Sunday, we moved our turkey shelter, mowed around it, and set up another section of fence to transition the turkey poults to pasture.  We ran an extension cord and hung a heat lamp above the roost for a bit of extra warmth at night.  The first two evenings at dusk, I had to pick up each turkey and place them on the roost, but by the third night they were flying up on their own.  We also transitioned our third batch of broiler chickens from their brooder to pasture and received another shipment of day old chicks on Wednesday morning.  This was also the final week of gestation for our two rabbit does, who are expected to give birth this weekend!  Tonight I will place a nest box filled with bedding in each of their hutches in anticipation.

In the garden, our spring crops are looking a little ragged, with some of the spinach and lettuce going to seed after the hot spell, but the summer crops coming on strong.  The green beans, basil, and tomatoes and growing well, and I noticed the first flowers on tomatoes yesterday.  This weekend we will stake the tomatoes and prune off suckers.  The next succession of radishes will be ready in a week or two and the kale and collards look full and strong.  We harvested the scapes from our hardneck garlic, which means the heads will be ready in about a month.  Scapes have a delicious garlic flavor and make an intense pesto.   https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015301-garlic-scape-pesto
 
We also pulled a few test heads from the Inchelium Red softneck variety we planted and they looked much larger than we expected and very nice.  I even managed to get several more flats of lettuce transplanted yesterday just before the rain came.  It was a beautiful evening with a strong breeze to cut the humidity and hundreds of fireflies flashing as night fell.

CSA Shares

Full Share

• 1 pt. blueberries from Bushel and a Peck Farm and Bylers Blueberries
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 1 kohlrabi from Detweiler Farm
• 1 qt. red potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1/2 lb. mixed lettuce from Grateful Life Farm
• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from NuWay Farm
• 2 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Grateful Life Farm, Harmony Grove Farm, and Allegheny River Farm
• 1 herb from Bushel and a Peck Farm and Springfield Acres

Small Share

• 1 pt. blueberries from Bushel and a Peck Farm and Bylers Blueberries
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 1 qt. red potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 lb. onions from NuWay Farm
• 1 Choice from NuWay Farm, Detweiler Farm, Grateful Life Farm, Harmony Grove Farm, and Allegheny River Farm

Mini Share

• 1 pt. blueberries from Bushel and a Peck Farm and Bylers Blueberries
• 1 pt. red potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 zucchini from Detweiler Farm

Recipes

31 things to do with CSA Veggies  Some of these recipes look fabulous!

Blueberry Chicken Chopped Salad

Blueberry Feta Salad

Blueberry Balsamic Vinaigrette

1 Pint Blueberry Jam  Did you know that you can make blueberry jam with only 1 pint of berries?  It's honey-sweetened, too!

Lemon Grilled Zucchini  I made this to go with our burgers and dogs last night.  We love this recipe from Against All Grain.  Feel free to substitute whatever herbs you have on hand.

Enchilada Zucchini Boats

Carrot Cake Overnight Oats

Easy Thai Carrot Soup

Meaty Zucchini Casserole

Baked Kohlrabi Fries with Greek Tzatziki

I love to make a simple coleslaw with kohlrabi and carrots.  Dress it with a creamy dressing or a vinegar/oil dressing.  Just be sure to peel your kohlrabi before you shred it, or your jaw will get a good workout.

Thank you again for supporting local farms.  We welcome your feedback on the share contents.  Do you like herbs in the shares, or would you rather do without?  Too much lettuce?  Not enough lettuce?  Of course, we can't please everyone, and in the early weeks we have lots of greens, but we still want to know what you think so we can improve.  Cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes are coming soon!

Amy

Another week has already passed since I wrote the last weekly newsletter.  Sometimes my days go by in a blur during the summer.  Here is an update from my family's Bushel and a Peck Farm:

And another update from Grateful Life Farm:

After over a year of planning and construction, we processed our first batch of chickens last Sunday in our new state inspected facility!  We saved a lot of time setting up because our equipment was already in its place and we didn't need to string a tarp for shelter or run water hoses everywhere.  Shawn's kill area stayed shaded and breezy and my indoor room was cool and comfortable with lots of space to work.  It was truly a night and day difference from past years and a pleasure to use this workspace.  Unfortunately, all the time we saved in processing was lost in packaging when storms knocked the power out for several hours.  We scrambled to fire the welder and the generator and find all our extension cords to get the freezer running again and get our brooder lights back on our young birds.

We processed a few extra birds this time, as we had made the difficult decision to cull the older and less productive hens from our laying flock this year.  We got these hens back in June of 2014, not long after we moved to Rockland to start the farm.  One Saturday morning we set out in a rented minivan, the back seats folded down to accommodate chicken crates, for a road trip to the Meyer Hatchery in Ohio.  We had ordered 20 barred rock started pullets, approximately 18 weeks old and ready to lay eggs any day.  Our farm dream was new (and perhaps a bit naive) back then and our spirits were high with excitement to expand our flock.  We listened to Ringo Starr's It Don't Come Easy on the radio, changing the words to "You gotta pay your dues if you wanna be a chicken farmer, and you know it don't come easy."  Pickup day was bustling as the hatchery staff loaded panicked birds into customers' crates.  One of ours nearly got away, flying way up in the air before being caught.  The smell inside the van was atrocious on the drive back and we were glad to settle them into their new home, an A-frame shelter we had built them.  Although they were not pets, caring for them each morning and evening has become part of the rhythm of my life, and my heart was heavy to see them go, feeling as though a chapter had come to a close.

The rest of the week was busy delivering chicken orders, harvesting and packaging produce and getting ready to put our turkey poults on pasture.  They are more than ready to leave the brooder and have more space, knocking over their feed and water constantly.  We've cut the grass and fence lines and only need to position their shelter and run an extension cord so they can still have some heat at night if needed.  Our third batch of chickens will also go into their pasture pen this weekend to make room for the next batch, arriving Wednesday.  

Leah usually writes her farm updates during the weekend, so their new chicks arrived yesterday.  Shawn delivered their products to our packing facility and left quickly to pick up the day-old chicks at the post office.

Farm Share Contents

Full Share

• 4 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 1 quart new red potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from NuWay Farm
• 1 bunch garlic scapes from Silver Wheel Farm
• 1/2 lb. kale from Grateful Life Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 2 Choice from Detweiler Farm, NuWay Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Silver Wheel Farm
• 1 herb from Springfield Acres, Bushel and a Peck Farm, and Silver Wheel Farm

Small Shares

• 2 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 1 quart new red potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from NuWay Farm
• 1 bunch garlic scapes from Silver Wheel Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 Choice from Detweiler Farm, NuWay Farm, Grateful Life Farm, and Silver Wheel Farm

Mini Shares

• 1 zucchini from Detweiler Farm
• 1 bunch carrots from NuWay Farm
• 1 pint new red potatoes from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm

Recipes

Save your carrot tops!  They're nutritious, too.  Separate them from the carrots before you put them in the fridge.  Roasted Carrots with Carrot Top Pesto and Goat Cheese or Carrot Top Pesto

Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes with Kale and Herbs (Use whatever milk you prefer.  The recipe calls for Almond Breeze.)

Fresh Dill and Red Potato Salad with Feta

Easiest Potato Salad Ever

10 Garlic Scape Recipes

Butter Steamed New Potatoes

Lasagna Zucchini Boats (These will be on my family's menu this week.  My kids love them, even the pickiest.)

Amazing Parmesan Zucchini

Garlic Parmesan Zucchini Casserole

Honey Balsamic Carrots (Fresh carrots never last very long at my house.  They're super sweet, and we always eat them fresh.)

More recipes are available on our Pinterest page or our Website.

Enjoy your Independence Day celebrations this weekend and next week.  Let Freedom Ring.

Amy

What a beautiful week!  After the oppressive heat and humidity, and then a virtual deluge in some areas over the weekend, we are loving this mild weather for the official start of summer.  We have more farmer news to share with you:

From Grateful Life Farm

From Harmony Grove Farm

Hello Friends! We had a sizzling hot summer day earlier this week – it went up almost 110 degrees in our greenhouse! Then we had great amount of gushing water from the sky yesterday!! Fortunately, all our greens survived through this week!

From NuWay Farm

CSA Shares

Full Shares

• 2 kohlrabi from Chester Detweiler Farm
• 1/2 lb. lettuce from NuWay Farm
• 1 lb. snow peas or sugar snap peas from NuWay Farm
• 1 bunch green onions from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Grateul Life Farm
• 2 Choice

Small Shares

• 1 kohlrabi from Chester Detweiler Farm
• 1/3 lb. lettuce from NuWay Farm
• 1/2 lb. snow peas or sugar snap peas from NuWay Farm
• 1 bunch green onions from NuWay Farm
• 1/2 lb. collard greens from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm
• 1 Choice

Mini Shares

• 1 kohlrabi from Chester Detweiler Farm (a couple of you got carrots instead because we ran short)
• 1/4 lb. snow peas or sugar snap peas from NuWay Farm
• 1 bunch green onions from NuWay Farm
• 1 head lettuce from Harmony Grove Farm

Recipes

Kohlrabi can be eaten raw or cooked.  See the link below if you're not familiar with this veggie.

My favorite way to eat snow peas is when I peel the stem and string off and just pop them in my mouth.  Sweet and crunchy!

Olive Garden Salad Dressing

Cranberry Almond Lettuce Salad

Warm Collard Quinoa Salad

Collard Greens Chicken Burritos

Asian Beef with Mushrooms and Snow Peas

Garlic Snow Peas Stir-Fry

How to Cut Up Kohlrabi

Raw Kohlrabi and Apple Salad

Kohlrabi Salad with Cilantro and Lime

As you can see from the Choice box, summer produce is slowly coming.  We should have more variety in your shares next week besides lettuce and greens.  It looks like carrots and zucchini will be ready.  Yay!!!  Strawberries are finished this week, but blueberries will come in a couple of weeks.

As always, if you have any comments about your CSA Share, your pickup location, etc., please email me.

Have a great week!

Amy