We need some rain!!! Luckily we have a new watering tank that fits on the back of Kates truck and gravity-feeds a hose. This makes watering about 5 times faster! The heat really hurt the last of our cold weather crops last week but some things have been loving it. Tomatoes, peppers, summer squash and egg plant are looking great! We have plenty of broccoli and it's looking pretty bug free. We triple washed the cauliflower but you may want to double check for bugs before you throw it in the pot (remember we grow using organic methods). We pulled all of the garlic last week and have it curing now... looks great!
WHAT'S IN YOUR BOX THIS WEEK:
BROCCOLI
CAULIFLOWER
ARUGULA
SUMMER SQUASH
RED CABBAGE
GREEN BEANS
SALAD MIX - (Winona and Trempealeau)
CARROTS - (La Crosse and Rochester)
We will be doing our Certified Naturally Grown inspection soon and will need a few CSA members to inspect the farm. If you are interested in doing this for us please give Bryan a call at 507.450.5877. It shouldn't take more than an hour or so and would give you a great opportunity to better understand how we grow your food.
Your Farmers,
Bryan, Katelyn, Ayden, Katie and James
RECIPES WE THOUGHT YOU WOULD ENJOY:
Grilled Green Bean Salad with Lentil Vinaigrette
(
http://www.foodandwine.com/)
2 tomatoes (about 8 ounces each), halved
1 basil sprig
1 bay leaf
2 garlic cloves, halved
2 shallots—1 halved, 1 minced
2 cups pure olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons black beluga lentils
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon chopped oregano
1/2 pound green beans
4 ounces thickly sliced pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch dice
3 small zucchini
Pinch of crushed red pepper
1 packed cup baby arugula
1.Preheat the oven to 300°. Put the tomatoes in a small baking dish, cut side up. Add the basil, bay leaf, garlic and halved shallot. Add the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cover with foil and bake the tomatoes for about 2 hours, until very tender. Let cool slightly. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatoes to a plate and break them up slightly. Reserve the tomato oil. Discard the basil, bay leaf, garlic and shallot.
2.In a small saucepan, heat 1 teaspoon of the tomato oil with half of the minced shallot and cook over moderate heat until softened, 2 minutes. Add the lentils and 3 cups of water; season with salt and pepper. Simmer over high heat until the lentils are tender, 15 minutes; drain and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in the vinegar, oregano, 1/4 cup of the tomato oil and the remaining minced shallot. Season with salt and pepper.
3.Heat a cast-iron grill pan. In a medium bowl, toss the green beans with 1 tablespoon of the tomato oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat, turning once, until lightly charred, 2 minutes.
4.In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the tomato oil. Add the diced pancetta and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 6 minutes. Add the pattypans and the crushed red pepper, season with salt and cook for 1 minute. Add the roasted tomatoes and green beans and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Spoon the vegetable mixture onto 4 plates and drizzle half of the lentil vinaigrette on top.
5.Add the arugula to the remaining lentil vinaigrette and toss. Mound the arugula on the green bean salad and serve.
Make Ahead The tomatoes in their oil and the lentil vinaigrette can be refrigerated separately for up to 3 days.
Hot Cabbage Slaw
(From Asparagus to Zucchini)
2 bacon stips or 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
6 cups shredded cabbage
chopped fresh dill to taste
pinch of sugar
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon vinegar
Chop the bacon, fry in skillet, remove, and drain on paper towel. Add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons water, the cabbage, dill, sugar, salt, pepper; cover and simmer until wilted but still crunchy. Add bacon or oil and vinegar and toss. Makes 3-4 servings.
We harvested the first of our fall successions this week. Spinach, which you will receive in your box, and a few pie pumpkins! We washed the spinach once already but were hesitant to wash it again because we didn't want it to bruise. We would recommend washing it once more!
