Five firsts
- On: July 15, 2015
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We harvested five new crops this week. Now it’s summer. Clockwise from left, basil, cherry tomatoes, green beans, green bell pepper and a slicing tomato in the center. Everyone gets a sprig of basil and lots of beans (1.75 lb!) The other crops are just starting so look for only one of these in your box: cherry tomatoes or a tomato or a green pepper or a bag of sugar snap peas.
Farm news
Steve is absorbed in planting carrots. The first few weeks of July, he plants all the carrots we will harvest for winter storage. If you buy our carrots from November through next April, they have been planted during this short two weeks in July. It takes finesse (and daily irrigation) to get the delicate seedlings out of the ground.
The seedlings are tiny when they get their first mechanical cultivation. Wait too long and the weeds will overwhelm the carrots.
Can you see the three lines of seedlings in this bed? We have to trace these faint lines to cultivate closely. Mechanical cultivation is essential, but we still have to weed every row by hand.
Veggie List and Veggie Notes (July 16/17, 2015, week #9, purple EOW)
Tomato juice, 1 quart
Green beans, about 1.75 lb
Lacinato OR Red Russian kale
Broccoli, 1 or 2 medium heads
Zucchini and summer squash, about 2 lb
Cucumbers, 3
Walla Walla onions, 1 or 2 or 3
Kohlrabi, 1
Basil, 1 sprig
We have small harvests of several delicacies. You will get one of these …
cherry tomatoes
OR a slicing tomato
OR a modest bag of sugar snap peas
OR a green bell pepper
Next week’s box will probably contain green beans, a few tomatoes or a pepper, cabbage, fresh garlic, Walla Walla onions, carrots, zucchini, cucumbers, an herb, and more.
Tomato juice – This is juice we had bottled from our tomatoes last summer. It’s a great way to capture ripe tomatoes at peak season, at a moment when we have too many to pack into your CSA boxes. We are sending the juice this week because it combines so readily with early summer produce. Try making an easy soup with the tomato juice, beans, sweet Walla Walla onion, zucchini and basil. Honestly, any of this week’s produce will work.
Store the juice out of sunlight at room temperature when unopened. Refrigerate after opening. The juice is already seasoned so don’t add salt if you cook with it. I’ve listed the ingredients and nutritional information here.
Broccoli – Broccoli does not like hot weather. Some heads are uneven or have yellow beads due to the blast of high temperatures earlier this week. Boy, it is frustrating to bring a crop so close to harvest, then watch it get damaged at the very end.
Basil (curly-leaved sprig) – This is the variety ‘Napoletano.’ The leaves are larger and more frilly than most basils. We like this variety because the its leaves remain tender and flavorful even as the plants mature. Basil will blacken if stored in the refrigerator. It is best stored at room temperature with the cut ends in water, for example in a glass or teacup. Give the stem a fresh trim. You will receive one sturdy stem this week. We snipped these sprigs to shape the plants.
THIS WEEK’S RECIPES
Comforting Classics
Lovage Bloody Mary (No worries about the lovage, it’s used as a straw. Got some celery in the fridge? Try that!)
Balsamic Roasted Green Beans
Braised Kale
Summer Squash and Kale Fried Rice with Meat
Parmesan Roasted Kohlrabi
Cucumber and Kohlrabi Salad with Chili and Lime
Outside the Box Recipes
Spiced Tomato Juice Gazpacho
Five Spice Broccoli and Green Beans with Chicken
Creole Rice and Kale
Pasta with Summer Squash and Herbed Ricotta
Braised Lentils with Kohlrabi and Smoked Sausage
Quick Pickle of Cucumber and Sweet Onion
Kitchen Sink Recipe
Quick and Easy Dinner Idea
Coconut Red Curry with Kohlrabi, Kale, Shrimp and Lime
