Week #13, The derecho missed us.

We are very fortunate that Monday’s derecho skipped our farm on its path of destruction across the Midwest.  We were close to the edge of the storm, which left us 2.2 inches of rain and this beautiful rainbow.   The day before, the weather forecast predicted 0.15 inches rain, so this was quite a change.  We welcome the rain but worry for the Iowa’s farmers who had 10 million acres of crops damaged or destroyed.  What a loss.

Tossed Melons

You cannot choose to join our melon harvest crew; you have to audition.  Auditions are held at lunch.  Billy tosses a melon to random people to check their reflexes.  Once the melon is dropped and cracked, auditions are over and they eat the melon.  
Above, Steve (out of view) chooses ripe melons, then tosses to Billy (in back), who tosses to Maggie on the wagon.

Maggie washes the melon and …

… tosses to Anna who puts it in a bin.  

Once we’re done, Steve goes in the house to lie down on the floor a bit and stretch his back.  It’s a big job.  Beth

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #13, August 13/14, 2020
– Weekly shares
– EOW/ green

Sweet corn, ~10 to 11 ears
Green beans, 1.3 lb
Slicing & plum tomatoes, ~3 lb
Red Summercrisp lettuce
Red frying pepper, 1
Cucumbers or pickles
Walla Walla onion
Basil, a few sprigs
By site, orange watermelon OR muskmelon.

Next week’s box will probably contain tomatoes and other summer vegetables.

Sweet corn – This planting is the ‘Vision’ variety, the same as last week.  We hope you enjoy it.  We think it is a terrific variety.

Pickles – Some people get normal slicing cucumbers, some get Silver Slicer cukes, some get pickles.  Of course, pickles can be used for refrigerator pickles but are really great as a crisp salad cucumber too.

RECIPES

Visit our 2020 Recipe Log or our 2019 Recipe Log or join our Facebook discussion group.

LOCAL THYME/ Cooking 101
Parmesan Corn on the Cob
Pepper and Watermelon Salsa
Composed Salad with Tunafish and Boiled Eggs

LOCAL THYME/ Cooking 202
Corn and Wild Rice Fritter
Garlic Basil Marinated Veggie and Fruit Kebabs
Tofu, Green Bean, Bell Pepper Stir Fry with Rice

LOCAL THYME/ Quick & Easy Meal
Summertime Paella

RECIPES FROM LAUREN

SWEET CORN, WALLA WALLA, & BASIL PIZZA
Makes 1 pizza
Serves 3-4
Takes 45 minutes

1/2 cup basil leaves, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil
3 ears sweet corn
1/2 Walla Walla, finely chopped
1/2 batch favorite pizza dough (or 1 store-bought pizza crusts)
1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
2. While you wait for the oven to preheat, prepare you basil sauce. Combine basil, garlic, lemon and salt in a small bowl. Stir to combine then add olive oil and slowly incorporate.
3. Bring a large kettle of water to a boil. Once boiling, cook corn for 3 minutes.* Rinse under cold water.
4. Use a knife to remove kernels from ears. Place in a medium bowl along with onion.
5. When oven is pre-heated, roll out crust and bake for 10 minutes.
6. Spread basil sauce on pre-baked crust. Top with sweet corn mixture and shredded cheese. Finish with red pepper flakes. Bake for 10-15 minutes longer until crust and cheese are golden brown.
7. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

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SWEET CORN POLENTA WITH GRILLED TOMATOES
Takes 30 minutes
Serves 4-6

2 pounds tomatoes, sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt, divided plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
2 tablespoons butter
2 ears sweet corn, kernels cut off cob (no need to cook first!)
1 red pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup whole milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup polenta (also known as corn grits, cornmeal or polenta; I’m obsessed with this polenta from my friends at Meadowlark Organics)

1. Preheat your grill to medium high heat. Alternatively, if you don’t have a grill, preheat the broiler of your oven.
2. In a medium bowl combine tomato slices with olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss gently to combine. Place on preheated grill. Grill for 10-15 minutes until blackened on both sides. Remove to a bowl.
3. Meanwhile, get your polenta going. You can easily walk away from your grilling veggies for 5 minute intervals to do this inside, but if you have a burner on your grill, by all means use that to make the polenta!
4. In a large stock pot or sauce pan, melt butter. Add corn, pepper, remaining salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until beginning to soften (about 5 minutes). Add in water and milk. Increase heat to medium high and wait for mixture to just begin bubbling. Stir once or twice with a whisk while waiting for it to bubble to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan.
5. Pour in polenta slowly, whisking while you pour them in to create a smooth texture. Reduce heat to a low simmer and continue whisking every couple minutes to keep the mixture from clumping or sticking. When polenta looks creamy and consistent, it’s ready! It can cook very quickly, about 10 minutes. If they cease up while you prepare other parts of your meal, just cook them over low heat and add more milk until they have the desired consistency.
6. Add about a half cup of polenta to a large bowl, top with tomatoes.

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LATE SUMMER GREEN BEAN SALAD
Adapted from Vegetarian Times
Serves 4
Takes 20 minutes.

1 pound green beans, ends trimmed and cut in half if large (about 4-5 cups)
1 head washed lettuce, thinly sliced
1/2 Walla Walla onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
2-3 large tomatoes, diced
1 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 minced garlic cloves
1 tablespoon sherry or red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 minced garlic cloves
3 tablespoons olive oil
Flaky sea salt, for serving

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add green beans and cook for 4 minutes then rinse under cold water. Pat dry with a towel.
2. Toss together lettuce, beans, onion, and tomatoes in a large bowl (or four small bowls). Top with feta and walnuts.
3. Whisk sherry vinegar with dried oregano, salt, pepper, and garlic. Once combined, whisk in olive oil. Taste and adjust flavors as desired. Drizzle over salad. Sprinkle with a little extra flaky sea salt right before serving.

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