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.

October 22, 2013

Week 20 Newsletter, Summer 2013

ATHENS HILLS CSA
This is it! We say thanks to all of you who have participated this summer. Thanks for your support! Thanks for answering the questions on the survey that only helps us get better! Thanks for remembering to return the green bags each week! Thanks! Thanks! Thank you! We hope to see you back next summer, or better yet – join us this winter! 

Last Saturday evening, we caught a HUGE break! No one was expecting the light frost. The break came in the form of NO damage to anything that was in the field. On Friday, the crew had spent extra time picking all of the peppers and eggplants that were still in the field. Those would not have survived that frost. Whew! Preparing for frost was already on the list of tasks for this week, but now we have a little head start. Kip and Matt spent most of Sunday preparing for another frost should it come. 

And speaking of that last minute harvest on Friday, look for the Surplus Boxes of green peppers today. If you aren’t quite ready for stuffed peppers for dinner, then take what you can use. Remember just how easy they are to freeze – wash, de-seed, cut into pieces of your desired size; place flat in a plastic baggie (or loosely on a cookie sheet) and freeze. If loose, fill plastic bags with frozen pieces of peppers and keep in the freezer until you need them for sauce or soup, or that special something you’ll fix this winter. 

Preparations are underway for putting the asparagus beds to rest for the winter. We have been waiting for the foliage to turn brown and now they’re mostly ready. Cutting the foliage and mulching heavily is the process for this task. Of course, even thought the CSA is over for a few weeks, there are still tending tasks like weeding and thinning that still need done weekly in the greenhouses. There is still more to plant like lettuces, arugula, carrots, salad mix and more Asian greens. Lots of those will be harvested early next spring, but planting now ensures that they will be large enough to harvest when needed. 

Please remember that you have been an important part of our lives at the farm this season, and we thank you for your support. Have a great month, and we'll be back December 4 for the winter season.

From all of us at Green Edge,
Becky (Kip, Dan, Mark, Penny, Emily, Matt T, Michelle, Josh, Paula, Andy, Natalie, & Miranda)


THIS WEEK’S VEGGIES 
Salad Mix – Our fall and winter salad blend of 7-10 varieties also includes 3 varieties of mild Asian greens. mizuna, pe-t’sai, and tatsoi.
Mushrooms - Shiitake for most of the shares and Oyster for one of the sites.
Sunflower / MicroMix Microgreens - Some of you will get our more delicate mix this week, and some will get sunflower. They have a tangy flavor and do not store as long as the sunflower.
Tatsoi - Tatsoi is a very mile Asian green that is delicious raw or lightly stir-fried, steamed, or added to soup ( at the end). The stems are juicy and tender.
Arugula – This pungent green is truly one of our ‘love it or hate it’ products. We use it raw in salads or as a pesto, or sautéed in a variety of dishes.
Spinach – We are thrilled to bring you this new item. This wonderful green is so versatile. Use it raw in a salad, or cooked in many different dishes.
Salad Radishes or Japanese White Turnips – French Breakfasts are thin and long; the Easter eggs are round and multi-colored purple, red, pink and white; white icicles are all white and shaped like a carrot. All are delicious grated into salad, or in a wrap, on a sandwich with butter and salt, or just plain crunch for your mouth. Japanese White Turnips are MILD and crunchy. Most folks are thrilled to eat them raw.
Butternut Squash - This is a great variety for storage, but is equally tasty right now. It can be substituted for pumpkin in most recipes. It can be steamed, baked, or made into a savory satisfying soup. 

THE COMBO CORNER
The fruit share from Cherry Orchards includes Staymen Winesap apples. This apple is a hard, tart apple; excellent for eating or baking. The bag is topped off with Golden Delicious and Gala apples, both a sweet apple. We hope you have enjoyed your summer CSA Fruit Shares.
The bread from The Village Bakery and Café is Oatmeal Stout Rye with - oat flour, rye flour, wheat and Artisan white flours, oatmeal stout beer, sea salt and yeast- The beer gives it some nice sweetness.
The cheese from Integration Acres is Caprino Romano.


PICKUP CONTACT NUMBERS & HOURS
BEXLEY MARKET-614-252-3951, 3-8pm
CLINTONVILLE COOP – 614-261-3663, 11 am-8 pm
ECOFLORA – 614-266-1618, 12pm-7pm 

DUBLIN TREK BICYCLE 614-791- 8735, 3-7 pm
HILLIARD POWERSHACK 614-506-3086, 4-7pm
NEW ALBANY – 614-216-9370, 12-8pm

ATHENS COMMUNITY CENTER - 740-592-3325, 12-8 pm
HYACINTH BEAN – 740-594-9302, 12-6pm
BELPRE - 304-488-3620, 3-6 pm

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!
 You can return this week’s green bag to your host site before next Wednesday and we will get it when we return to pick up the coolers. Thanks.

RECIPES
 
Arugula and Sautéed Mushroom Salad with Mint 
 from www.foodand wine.com/recipes

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons mayonnaise 
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest 
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 
Salt and freshly ground pepper 
1 tablespoon vegetable oil 
½ lb shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps thinly sliced 
8 ounces arugula 
1/3 cup thinly sliced mint leaves

Directions:

1.) In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the lemon zest and juice. Whisk in the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2.) In a large skillet, heat the vegetable oil. Add the shiitake mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook over moderate hear, stirring a few times, until browned, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool to room temperature.
3.) In a bowl, toss the arugula with the shiitakes, mint and dressing. Serve the salad right away.

Browned Butter Pasta with Tatsoi

serves 2

Ingredients:

Pasta of choice, preferably curved or with ridges 
½ stick unsalted butter 
salt and pepper 
Leaves of 2-3 bunches of tatsoi, rinsed 
½ cup chopped sage 
Freshly grated parmesan 
Lemon wedges, optional
 

Directions:
Cook the pasta to al dente in salted water. When pasta is almost done, melt the butter in a skillet. Swirl the butter in the pan as it foams. When butter begins to brown, toss in pasta and mix to coat with butter. Salt and pepper to taste. Add tatsoi and sage and cook until slightly wilted, about 1 to 2 minutes. Plate and serve immediately with grated Parmesan and lemon wedges on the side.
from Backyard Farming – Marisa’s blog

Creamed Mushrooms
from Epicurious.com
This recipe sounds like it would be a wonderful topper to chicken, pasta/noodles, cooked greens or just as a side dish of its own. 


Ingredients: 
1 large shallot, minced (about 1/4 cup) 
1 tablespoon unsalted butter 
1/2 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded and caps chopped coarse (this is the exact amount you usually get in your shares) 
1/2 cup dry white wine 
1 tablespoon white-wine vinegar 
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves or a rounded 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled 
1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Cook shallot in butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened. Add shiitake, salt, and pepper to taste and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring, until mushrooms are softened and browned lightly. Stir in wine, vinegar, and rosemary and boil until all liquid is evaporated. Add cream and simmer, stirring, until thickened slightly, about 1 minute. Season mixture with salt and pepper.
Stuffed Squash
For 4 servings of stuffed squash, split acorn or butternut squashes lengthwise and remove the seeds. Bake face-down on an oiled sheet for 30 minutes at 350, or until tender enough to eat. Make your filling while the squash is baking.

Mushroom-Cheese Filling
Ingredients:
½ lb. chopped mushrooms

1 cup onion
1 clove crushed garlic 
1 cup cottage cheese
½ tsp. basil 
½ cup chopped parsley
salt, pepper
¾ cup bread crumbs or cooked rice
2 Tbls. dry white wine
butter

Directions:

Sauté mushrooms, onions, & garlic in butter with salt and pepper until onions are soft. Drain well (save liquid) and combine with remaining ingredients. Fill the squash cavities amply and bake, uncovered 25-30 minutes at 350. Baste with liquid from sauté while it bakes.

Pasta With Brie, Mushrooms, And Arugula

from: www.realsimple.com
 

Ingredients:
6 oz. penne 
½ tablespoon olive oil 
½ lb mushrooms, quartered 
½ small red onion 
¼ cup dry white wine 
 kosher salt and black pepper 
4 oz. Brie, cut into 1” pieces 
2 cups baby arugula

Directions:

1. Cook the pasta according to the package. Reserve ¼ cup of the cooking water, drain the pasta, and return it to the pot. 
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet overt medium-high heat. 
3. Add the mushrooms, onions, and cook, tossing occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to release their juices, 2-3 minutes. 
4. Add the wine, ¼ tsp salt and pepper. Cook until the mushrooms begin to brown, 5-6 mins. 
5. Toss the pasta with the Brie and reserved cooking water until the pasta is coated. Stir in the mushroom mixture and arugula. Serves 2.

Quick and Easy Sautéed Spinach 

from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 Tbls olive oil 
1 bag spinach leaves, washed 
1 ½ teaspoon garlic salt 
 ¼ C. grated Parmesan cheese 

Directions:
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the washed spinach to the skillet and cover; allow to cook 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic salt and cover again for 5 minutes; remove from heat. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

The stems of both the oyster and shiitake mushrooms can be saved in the refrigerator until there is a spare moment to simmer them for about 1½ hours. In a small saucepan, immerse the stems of the used mushrooms in 2 cups of water and 1-2 teaspoons of salt. Cover simmer for at least 1 hour, more is better. Strain, and pour broth into a container and freeze. Great as a soupbase, for rice, for savory sauces and more.

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