What’s in the box?
full share
green cabbage
broccoli
cucumbers
summer squash
green top carrots
sage
zucchini
cauliflower
single share
red cabbage
cauliflower
broccoli
zucchini
summer squash
cucumbers
sage
purplette onions
Notes on the box….
It’s hot again this week… Get those veggies in the fridge ASAP!
Broccoli is all ready at once! We loaded you up, but the next few weeks will have far less broccoli. If you find yourself with too much, broccoli is very easy to freeze. Simply chop it up as you would if you were going to cook it, blanche it for a few minutes in salted boiling water, drain well, allow it to cool, and place it in a freezer bag in your freezer. It’s even better if you have the space to let it freeze on a cookie sheet and then vacuum seal it for storage. You can freeze your cauliflower the same way. Broccoli and Cauliflower should both be stored in an open plastic bag in your crisper. It will hold for a week and a half (less if it spends much time outside of the fridge at your drop site), but it is best used sooner. Cauliflower is a good example of a vegetable that you may have thought you didn’t like if you have not had it fresh. It can also easily incorporated into macaroni and cheese for any nay-sayers in your family. Just chop it small and add it to the boiling noodles a few minutes before you are ready to drain them. The blanched cauliflower will meld nicely with the noodles and cheese sauce. Broccoli is good this way, too. But it’s more easily recognized.
If you buy zukes, summer squash, or cukes in the store, they are often coated in wax to help them last longer on the shelf. Ours are not waxed and store best in the fridge in a perforated or open plastic bag in the crisper of your fridge. Best to use them within the week. Cukes can easily be added to ice water for a nice refreshing drink. They are also good on sandwiches.
The cabbage can be stored in your crisper (or if your crisper is full, it can sit on the bottom shelf of your fridge. It will last for quite some time (a month +). We will try to get full shares purple cabbage next week. It seems that the single shares may not get green cabbage because the heads are just too big. We will see! The cabbage for the summer is intended for fresh eating. So think slaws and salads. You can certainly cook it though, or use it for sauerkraut or kimchi, but it’s great fresh. Sometimes we shred it and use raw it in place of rice with curries or other spicy dishes.
Carrots will store best with the tops removed. It is suggested that you can use carrot tops in place of parsley in recipes, or you can use the tops in vegetable stock. We will try to get carrots into the single shares next week.
Sage is best stored in a small glass with about an inch of water in the bottom. You can place a plastic bag over the top of the glass and keep it in your fridge. Sage pairs well with eggs, pork, chicken, or tempeh. Sage is a cooling herb. We add some leaves to our water jug on very hot days. It’s also great with roasted cauliflower or on a flatbread pizza with zukes, summer squash, and goat cheese. YUM!
Recipes….
Roasted Cauliflower with Sage and Carrots
Preheat oven to 425. Chop cauliflower into medium size florets, pick sage leaves from stem, stack one on top of another, and slice them into strips, chop carrots into coins. Toss veggies and sage with olive oil. Place in a roasting pan and roast for 20-30 min. You can remove the pan from the oven 5 min before cooking is done and toss with some fine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese for the last 5 min of cooking, but this step is optional. You can also add broccoli and leave out carrots.
Amish Style Summer Squash
I asked our Amish neighbors how they like to prepair summer squash and zucchini. Turns out they keep it simple and cook it just like my grandma did… Slice summer squash and zukes into 1/2 inch coins. Melt a lot of butter in a pan and cook the squash/zukes over medium high heat with a pinch of salt, stirring frequently. Keep them covered for most of the cooking so that they steam themselves and break down into a nice mush. Take the cover off and let the juices mostly evaporate. Pretty tasty!
Roasted zucchini, Black Bean, and Goat Cheese Enchiladas
zucchini Cheddar Bread from Weelicious
Cucumber Basil Gimlet We made this one, but instead of making a basil simple syrup, we threw the basil leaves in the food processor with the cucumbers and used plain simple syrup. Also quite tasty without the gin, and with some bubble water.
On the farm….
Just born! Welcome, Valentine!
She has a white heart shape on her leg, so we named her Valentine. So sweet! Good job, Mama Red!
Working on the delivery van.
Delivery van troubles…. one of the least fun things about being a farmer.
Next week…
broccoli?
cauliflower
cabbage
cukes
zukes
summer squash
new potatoes!
green beans!
parsley
carrots?
