Newsletter for 7/7 Pickups

Wow! What a difference a few days can make! Just a few days ago, we needed blankets for warmth, but the current temperatures are a far cry from that! Tuesday’s harv-est started at 6:00 am to take advantage of the morning coolness. This is good for your farmers as well as your veggies. This is also the case for herbs. Waiting to cut means that the plant has already moved its liquid reserves to the roots to stay cool meaning the leaves can be limp and wilty. And even though we aren’t quite acclimated to this new heat wave, the nightshades like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants are thrilled! Warm nights are the missing ingredients these plants need for their fruits to ripen.
Because we are a part of the Conserva-tion Service Program, we have to wait until after late June before we can mow our fields. This late date protects the nests of birds who raise their young in fields not trees. So, Kip has finally been very busy mowing the fields. We hope to have them done before you visit with us on the Open Farm Day.
As this season progresses, we are continually answering inquiries about internships and WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms). We are pleased to be of such interest to folks who are looking and learning. As we view the fall, we know there will be more. Is this because more people are truly interested in growing know-how, or more a reaction to the lack of jobs available in the broader market? That’s hard to know for sure, and is likely some of both.
The new perennial herb bed has had the first tilling, and is waiting for the spare time to finish the soil preparation. In the meantime, tomato tying looms large on the weekly tasks along with the picking of the tomatoes and other fruits as they start to ripen. We’ve been busy staying current with the irri-gation needs of the all of the different houses and fields. And we are ever grateful for the new and larger holding tank for the irrigation water. This week we’re also hoping to sow the cover crop on the West Field which is fallow is season. Have a great week!!
From all of us at Green Edge,
Becky (Kip, Dan, John, Cale, Julia, Penny, Guini-vere, Morgan, Rob, Martin and Maria)



THIS WEEK’S VEGGIES
Salad Mix - This week the salad mix is an all lettuce blend of about 10 different varieties. We hope you enjoy it!

Sweet Basil – The official start of summer for us is pesto, and we’ve been enjoying it for several weeks now! We hope you will too! You may also see packages of this in both Columbus Whole Foods. (Look for the Green Edge logo.)

Parsley - Use this aromatic herb in salad, potato salad, tabouli, and many other dishes. Today you received either Flat Italian Parsley (prized for cooking) or Curly Pars-ley (that familiar garnish). Both have the amazing parsley flavor and can be used in the same reci-pes interchangeably.

Mushrooms - This week’s mu-shrooms are shiitake. These bold flavored treasures are great as kabob ingredients, inside an ome-lets, or in a myriad of other reci-pes.

Sunflower Microgreens - If you’re not familiar with micro-greens, you are in for a surprise! Unlike sprouts (which are only grown in water), these are grown in soil and therefore im-part the nutritional additions from the soil. These have a mild, almost nutty flavor and are juicy and crunchy.

Swiss Chard – We’re thrilled to have this hearty green for your share this week. Sautéed, stir-fried, or steamed, this luscious and mild green is sure to please.

Eggplant - Your first eggplant of the season, and definitely not the last! This is the variety called “Orient Express’. It is prized (at least by us) for its lack of seeds and its tender skin. This means that blanching and peeling is not necessary when using this trea-sure. This is also a great addition to kabobs on the grill.



The Combo Corner
The fruit selections from Cherry Orchard will start in July.

This week’s bread from The Village Bakery and Café is Pan Marino with olive oil and rosemary.

The cheese share from Integration Acres this week includes Feta and Smokey Goat.



The GREEN BAGS or Waxed BOXES provided by us for you to carry your veggies are actually on loan to you for the season. We have two per member, so please return your GREEN BAG or Waxed Box each week that you pick up. We are happy to support the goal for all to use fewer resources. But you need to help by joining with us in the effort to keep the GREEN BAGS and WAXED BOXES in the recycling loop. Thanks so much!
 

PICKUP CONTACT NUMBERS & HOURS
NEW ALBANY – 614-216-9370 3-10pm

TIBET – 614-784-8124 11am-6pm

BEXLEY MARKET-614-252-3951 3-8pm

UPPER ARLINGTON- 614-284-1188 2- 6pm

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!
 
 
Recipe:  BASIL FETTUCINI
Serves 2

¾ Cup chopped fresh basil 1 ½ Cups sll-purpose flour 1 Egg 1 tsp. olive oil 2 Tbl. water 2 ½ Tbs. all-purpose flour

1. Using a food processor, process basil leaves until very fine. Add 1 ½ Cups of flour and pulse two or three times, or until combined. Add egg, 1 teaspoon oil, and the water until dough forms a ball shape. If dough seems dry, add a bit more water. Wrap dough in a piece of plastic wrap that has been coated with a few drops of olive oil. Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.

2. Remove dough from refri-gerator, and cut into 6 equal size portions. Run pasta through pasta machine, or roll with rolling pin to desired thickness. Use the additional flour to coat pasta while roll-ing.

3. Allow pasta to dry for one hour prior to cooking.

4. Cook in a large pot of boil-ing water unil al dente. This should take only 3 to 5 mi-nutes, depending on the thickness of the pasta.

Recipe: EASY TABOULI
Tabouli salad is one of those recipes that has as many variations as it has cooks. Traditionally, this Lebanese dish contains both parsley and mint, olive oil, lemon juice and onions.
Serves 4 Prep Time: 1 hr.

1. Rinse the wheat berries under cool water and remove any stones/debris. Place in a medium saucepan and cover with water so that the water is about 1” above the wheat berries. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat. Cook, uncovered for about 1 hour. Drain excess water before adding to salad.

2. While the wheat berries are cooking, rinse the parsley, onions tomato and lemon under cold wa-ter. Using a sharp knife or food processor, chop the parsley leaves finely. Add to a large bowl. Mince the green onion and tomato and add to the bowl. Squeeze the lemon juice into the bowl, and drizzle the olive oil over the top. Stir well. Season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper, to taste. When the wheat berries finish cooking (berries will be plump and soft), strain excess wa-ter. Let the berries cool slightly, then add them to the bowl. Stir all ingredients together. Chill to help the parsley soften and the flavors meld. Serve Cold. – jill harris allrecipes.com

 
This season’s weather has been unlike any summer that anyone here can remember. The sudden changes from warm to cold and back (several times) and the shift from WET! to DRY! have been challenging to say the least. We are experiencing a little delay in the supply the abundance we have begun to expect at this time of year. All of this is to say that one little eggplant is not much for the creation of any recipe I could find. BUT, we had these and we wanted to share this new crop with you as soon as it was possible.


Tonight was the monthly meeting of the local Grange. Our program was a docudrama from the early 1950’s about the need for the formation of a union for farmers, small farmers like us. As we know, those early farmers did organize into buying, selling, marketing, and distribution cooperatives to protect the livelihood of small family farms.

And even though those cooperatives were successful in what they were seeking to accomplish, the overall goal of keeping the small family farm as a viable way of life was not realized. At that time, one-quarter of the population was involved with the production of food for the rest of us. Now, that percentage is far smaller. We want to take this opportunity to say thank you for your support of our efforts to bring whole, fresh, certified organic vegetables to your home.