Our Daily Tasks: Covering and Uncovering

Our Daily Tasks: Covering and Uncovering

The winter wonderland where we grow your veggies.

The winter wonderland where we grow your veggies.
Photo credit: Emily Hammon
Want to join and receive your own share of delicious veggies each week? If you are interested in signing up, please email us at greededgegardens@gmail.com. For more information or to download our Enrollment brochure, visit our website at www.greenedgegardens.com/CSA.

We love sharing our wonderful produce with you! We started this blog so that we can keep you up to date with all that is happening on the farm. It is also an opportunity for all of us to get to know one another better. One of the strengths of a CSA is the direct relationship between the farmer's experience and your experience receiving fresh vegetables weekly.

We want to hear from you, so please feel free to share recipes, thoughts and ideas-just click on the COMMENT below each post to add to our CSA community.

September 14, 2011

Week 13 Newsletter

Athens Hills CSA
As the days get shorter, the work load seems to increase for us.  More tasks with less daylight.  Periodic rain showers make things even more challenging as we await drier soil to harvest the fall crops.  Fortunately, there are warm, sunny breezes blowing today and we hope that we will see an opportunity to bring in parts of the harvest soon!
Yesterday, Liz (the new CSA coordinator) sent the first of the Winter Reservation letters to last winter’s members.  Already we have folks replying.  In another week or so, this summer’s members (that’s you) will be receiving the same letter of reservation.  If you are interested in a share of this winter’s bounty, please don’t hesitate to send in the deposit and the form so that we can put your name on the list.  For the first time, we have a waiting list of new folks who are anxious to become a part of the farm’s community, but we always want to let current members to have their share secured before we open the enrollment to the new folks.  This winter season we are offering another partner item called the Sweet Share.  Delivered once a month, it will include maple syrup from Sticky Pete’s and  honey from Cantrell’s Honey and Candles.                     
We have ordered two more greenhouse frames and hope to have at least the ground stakes in place by the end of September.  With those in, at least we can begin to prepare the soil.  Building around soil that has been ‘worked up’ is more time consuming, but we do what needs done to assure that we can plant when it’s time.  Fortunately, most of the crops that go into those houses don’t mind being a little chilly.  After all, they survive and thrive in an unheated greenhouse all winter!  Seeding, planting, transplanting, weeding, and harvesting continue throughout the week as we continue to fill orders from our other customers and deliver the weekly shares.           
I offer a brief reminder about the OSU CSA survey (link in sidebar).  Please take a moment if you haven’t already done so.  And take another moment to reflect on the beauty of the season.  All of the rain this spring and summer will mean a very colorful fall. 
Make hay while the sun shines!
From all of us at Green Edge,                    
Becky  (Kip, Dan, John, Maria, Kurt, Rob, Marie, Penny, Guinevere, Diedra, Bethany, Alicia, Corey, and Liz)

This Week's Veggies
Salad Mix – In the mix this week are 7 varieties of lettuce and mizuna. The last one is a mild Asian green. 
Mushrooms  -  Shiitakes this week….
Heirloom Tomatoes  -  Heirloom tomatoes differ from hybrids.  Their amazing flavor is the trade-off for their delicate nature that is easily bruised difficult to transport.
Eggplant  -  We have included a half-pound of eggplant this week.  The varieties include Nubia (striped), Orient Express (dark purple) and Peng Tung (pink tongue?) Don’t bother to peel them; the skins are tender.  Try the chunks on a shish kabob.
Sunflower Microgreens  -  If you’re not familiar with microgreens, you are in for a surprise!  These have a mild, almost nutty flavor and are juicy and crunchy. 
Sweet Peppers – We grow a variety of sweet peppers, and your shares will reflect that variety.  For the names of each, just refer to the blog where they are labeled with a picture…
Green Beans -  The green beans  this week are tender and fresh.  Whether steamed, sautéed, boiled, or stir-fried with other veggies, we know you’ll enjoy them.  No strings either…
Garlic – We are having more success with this each year.  This is such an essential component to most sautéed dishes, we glad to have a small portion of your needs.
Parsley – After the cold and wet spring, the parsley has finally made an appearance in the garden.  We hope it will be here for a while.  This flat Italian parsley is prized by cooks.

The Combo Corner
The fruit selections from Cherry Orchard this week include Gala and Golden Supreme apples, Crest Haven peaches, and a Bartlett pear.                                                   
This week’s bread from The Village Bakery and Café is the Country Wheat loaf.
This week’s Cheese Share from Integration Acres is a new variety call Tomme. This is a natural rind hard goat cheese.

PICKUP CONTACT NUMBERS &; HOURS
NEW ALBANY – 614-216-9370  12-8pm
TIBET – 614-784-8124    11am-6pm
BEXLEY MARKET-614-252-3951 3-8pm
UPPER ARLINGTON- 614-506-3086 4-8pm
CLINTONVILLE COOP – 614-261-3663 11 am-8 pm
PLATES STUDIO –DUBLIN - 614-336-9502 4-8 pm
HYACINTH BEAN – 740-594-9302 12-6pm  
Please remember to call your host first if problems arise.  Since they are closer to you, they can usually resolve the problem.  Feel free to call us if the host is unable to help you – 740-448-4021 Thanks!

Please keep those green bags coming home! 
OSU/Ag Survey
Please take a moment and answer these questions. Thanks!   
     

Recipes
I am so thrilled to have another recipe from a member.  This is an original recipe for beets. 
I realize that there aren’t beets in this week’s share, but you might have some still hanging around….

Carmelized Beets
Scrub and thinly slice 5-6 medium beets (peel first if desired).
Melt 2TB butter in large skillet until hot.
Add beet slices.
Cover and sauté on medium heat about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add a few drops extra-virgin olive oil if needed.
Add 1-2 pinches dry ground mustard,
1/4 tsp ground black pepper,
1/2 tsp sea salt.
Stir well, and lower heat to medium-low. Cover and continue to cook about 10 minutes more, stirring occasionally, until soft. Remove lid and sauté about 5 more minutes, until lightly caramelized around edges. Serve hot.
Yum yum yum - they were amazing!! I will probably be cooking most of my beets this way in the future. :-)
Thanks Rose!  I wonder if this is a way to caramelize other veggies, hmmm…..  b.

Parsley Pesto
Ingredients
2 cups fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
1 1/2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
(ed. note – as with all pesto recipes, you can most likely sub walnuts, cashews, or sunflower seeds for the pine nuts)
Preparation
Combine all ingredients in a food processor; process until smooth.
~from myrecipes.com

Parsley Potatoes
Ingredients:
1 ½ pounds new red potatoes                                           
1 tablespoon vegetable oil                                                          
1 onion, chopped                                                              
1 clove garlic, crushed                                                    
1 cup chicken broth                                                                 
1 cup chopped fresh parsley                                            
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions: 
1)  Peel a strip of skin from around the center of each potato, place the potatoes in cold water. Set aside.  2) Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Saute onion and garlic for 5 minutes or until tender. Pour in broth and 3/4 cup of the parsley; mix well. Bring to a boil.  3)  Place the potatoes into a large pot full of salted water. Bring the water to a boil; then reduce heat. Simmer covered, for 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. 4) Remove potatoes with a slotted spoon to a serving bowl. Sprinkle the black pepper into the skillet and stir. Pour the peppered sauce over potatoes and sprinkle with remaining parsley.
~myrecipes.com

Sweet Pepper Crostini
Ingredients:
 6 slices baguette (1/2-inch-thick)                  
 2 tablespoons olive oil                                   
½  to ¾  cup roasted red bell pepper strips
1/3  to ½  cup grated smoked mozzarella or fontina
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Arrange the bread slices on a baking sheet. Brush the oil over the bread slices. Bake until pale golden and crisp, about 15 minutes. Arrange the bell pepper strips atop the bread. Sprinkle with the cheese. Broil until the cheese melts, about 2 minutes.
~foodnetwork.com

Sweet Pepper  Rice
Ingredients:
½  cup uncooked long grain rice       
1 clove garlic, minced                       
1 tablespoon butter                              
1 cup chicken broth                        
¼  cup chopped sweet red pepper  
¼  cup chopped green pepper         
½  teaspoon dried oregano             
1/8  teaspoon salt                                     
1 pinch pepper                
Minced fresh parsley 
Directions:
In a small skillet or sauce pan, sauté the rice and garlic in butter until rice is browned. Add broth; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; add the peppers, oregano, salt and pepper.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until rice is tender.  Fluff with a fork.  Sprinkle with parsley.
~from allrecipes.com

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