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- Cabbage – members get “espresso” a new quick variety with a manageable size. The gopher ate over half of them and is tunneling everywhere in the field. Juve is in hot pursuit, but. . .
- Zucchini – This is the first taste which looks to be a good year for these cucurbits.
- Lettuce – We have “Little Gem” back again. This small Romaine is so sweet you can eat it without dressing. “Concept” and “Sylvesta” the butterheadaren’t bad either.
- Green onions (Scallions)
- Garlic ! – enjoy these early alliums, as the weeks go by they will become more pungent.
- Kale or chard – eat your greens every week
- Beets
- Radish or kohlrabi
- Broccoli or Chinese Broccoli
- Sugar snap peas
Festivities for graduation began last week and will continue into this coming weekend. We are so proud of Diego who graduated from Liberty High School on Friday night. He achieved so much in his four years! Academically he did great and he was one of only an handful of his classmates to be a “12 sport”, participate in an organized sport every season for 4 years. He will be with us this summer and then he heads off to Oregon State University on September 20th. I can use all the hugs I can get as apparently for me it is not any easier to have my second child leave home.
The cooler weather and little bit of rain really gave a boost to crops on the farm. All the lettuce that was carefully planted week by week is coming ready at the same time. The outdoor zucchini planted weeks after the hoop house zukes have caught up with them. The outdoor sugar snaps look unmanageable and they are! The tomatoes both indoors and out have been pruned and tied twice now and are on a regular schedule of weekly attention. We have started replanting some of the spring beds with summer and fall crops. The garlic will come out in the next week or so to make way for Brussels Sprouts.
With the rain, came the weeds, so goes the story of farming. Juve and Vincent made short order of the majority of those devils and the farm is looking pretty darn good. We will turn over 2 of the hoop houses for summer crops over the next week if we can tolerate being in the them. The early kohlrabi and lettuce that flourished is now ready to be pulled out and fed to hungry pigs, chickens and goats.
Speaking of goats, still no babies! We just keep watching as the does get fatter and fatter. They waddle out to the pasture in the late afternoon, but their udders tell the real story, still another week. The buck that is the father of all the soon to be born kids is a huge white Saanen billie.
We appreciate members doing their part to help with the harvest. We start early (7 – 7:30) and expect helpers to arrive early and stay through the end of the harvest (11- 12). Please bring two adults is you bring your kids, one to watch and supervise them and another to help harvest.
We are off to harvest and get it done before we and the plants wilt. Have a great last week of school.
Kohlrabi Coleslaw from Jane Brody
Salad:
1 1/4 lbs kohlrabi, peeled and coarsely shredded
2 lge carrots, peeled and coarsely shredded
1/2 sweet red pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 c. chopped scallions, including green
Dressing:
2 T oil, pref olive oil
2 T vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)
2 t or more fresh snipped dill
1 t sugar (I used 1/4 t)
1/2 t ea. cumin and mustard powder
1/4 t crumbled tarragon
1/4 t ea. salt and pepper
1/3 c plain yoghurt
Toss salad ingredients in a bowl. In a separate bowl, blend oil and vinegar, then blend in other ingredients. Pour over salad, toss, cover and refrigerate for about 2 hrs before serving.
Serves 6
Spring Onion Sandwiches
from Chez Panisse Vegetables by Alice Waters
Onion Sandwiches were an old favorite of James Beard’s. These are best made in may when onions are very sweet. Trim the crusts off thin slices of good white bread. Spread two slices of bread with mayonnaise, on one side. Slice fresh onion very thinly and make a layer of onion slices on one slice of bread. Top that with the other slice of bread. Dip the four side edges of the sandwich into thin mayonnaise and then into chopped parsley.
“One of our favorite ways to enjoy scallions is as a vegetable side dish.” Marcella, a CSA member:
occasionally, 5 minutes.
Zucchini Trifolati (family favorite)
Sautéed Zucchini
The secret to this fabulous cooking technique is the long slow cooking which infuses all the flavors. Vegetables cooked this way make great pasta sauce or you can serve them as crostini. Try mushrooms with garlic and mint.
2 pounds Zucchini
4 cloves of garlic, sliced
chili pepper (or herbs)
Salt
Cover the bottom of a large sauté pan with olive oil. Add the sliced garlic and chile peppers to the pan; NOW turn on the heat. Slice the zucchini into thin slices and add to the golden garlic, salt and cover the pan. The salt will bring out the liquid in the zucchini and they will stew in their own juices and infuse with the garlic. Let them over cook. It is a pleasant surprise.