ATHENS HILLS CSA
With all the rain in the past few weeks, some of the low-lying roads were finally closed due to high water this Tuesday morning. Fortunately for us, they were not any roads that the crew uses to come to work! So all of the shares as well as restaurant orders were harvested and packed just as efficiently as ever. Planting of salad mix and more transplanting of basil and Swiss chard is scheduled for this week. Finding soil that is ‘dry enough to work’ is pretty challenging currently. This excess moisture is just one of the reasons that we are increasing the number of raised beds in the center field. Having ground that is slightly higher than the surroundings means that some drainage will occur. This drainage is critical to the survival of plants, since most plants that we eat don’t grow well in standing water (Rice is the most well-know exception). As the fields begin to dry, we will be weeding, hoeing and mulching to keep the weeds from growing faster than the crops.
This Thursday around 15 young folks who are working with the Godman Guild in Columbus will be visiting Athens and our farm. We will be showing them how high tunnels and unheated greenhouses can provide year-round employment opportunities. Currently, these teens are working at community gardens in and around Columbus. We’re very excited to have young people visit and see for themselves how these simple systems can work in other places.
You can see our simple systems for yourself at our Open Farm Day. This summer the date is Sunday, July 21 from 1–5 pm. We begin the event with a potluck dinner at 1:00 at the Amesville Grange. Around 2:30 we will head out to the farm for tours of the fields, the greenhouses, the microhouse, and the mushroom grow room. Come meet your farmers. Come and visit your veggies!
Have a great week!
From all of us at Green Edge,
Becky (Kip, Dan, Mark, Rob, Theo, Penny, Emily, Matt T, Brittany, Michelle, Josh, Matt C., Natalie, & Miranda)
THIS WEEK’S VEGGIES
Salad Mix – This week our salad mix includes our lettuces plus French sorrel. The pungent herb has a clear lemon flavor. This mix is best stored in an air-tight container with some paper towel or cloth to absorb any moisture. Mushrooms - Shiitake for all.
Sunflower Microgreens - Sunflower microgreens should store well for a week or so in the plastic bag they come in. If they seem too wet, add a piece of paper towel to the bag. They are a delicious and nutritious favorite of our CSA members. As someone recently wrote us "they are worthy as a snack all on their own," but you can also add them to salad, sandwiches, eggs, tacos, etc.
Parsley, Flat-Leaf – Prized by chefs, this type of parsley has the same great flavor, but the flavor holds up to the heat of cooking without bitterness.
Mixed Summer Squash – Most of you will get zucchinis, but a few will get yellow, or patty pan. The yellow looks like yellow zucchini and the pattypan look like pies. They all cook and taste very much the same.
Beets – Two veggies in one! The roots make one meal and the greens are another. Some like them raw, but most prefer them roasted or steamed.
Onions – The onions this week are from another local organic grower. Along with garlic, onions are another crop that our soils don’t allow us to grow.
Cucumbers - Besides just slicing these with some onion and vinegar, sugar, and oil, cukes are used widely in many cuisines of the world.
Swiss Chard – We grow chard throughout the year. In fact, it’s the only green that will survive the heat of high summer. Look for new recipes throughout the season, or better yet - share your favorites with us!
THE COMBO CORNER
The fruit share from Cherry Orchards begins today with Lodi apples, tart and most delicious when made into applesauce or pie. The second item is the first peaches of the season. These are ‘cling’ peaches meaning it’s hard to get the pit out of the peach. The bread from The Village Bakery and Café is Honey Oat.
The cheese from Integration Acres is Herbes de Provence Chevre, a soft, fresh goat cheese rolled in kosher salt and a blend of basil, thyme, rosemary, savory, fennel seeds, and marjoram.
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! Don’t forget to return your bag from last week!
RECIPES
Lodi Apple Sauce Recipe from Cherry Orchards Ingredients:
¼ PK apples–about 7 apples
Directions:
Peel, core and slice into 8ths.
Place in 3 qt. pan with ½ cup water or apple cider. Simmer until apples are tender.
Add ½ cup sugar (or more to taste!) Spices may be added- ½ teaspoon cinnamon or ½ teaspoon nutmeg.
Don’t like to peel? You may core apples – cut into eighths – cook until apples are soft and then press through a food mill or sieve.
Roasted Beets with Chevre
Ingredients:
1 large bunch beets (about 2 pounds)
¼ cup olive oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
½ cup crumbled fresh chèvre (about 2 ounces)
Directions:
Heat oven to 375ºF. Peel beets, cut into chunks, and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Cover in foil, and roast until tender. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Mix beets with another drizzle of olive oil and vinegar. Top with crumbled fresh chèvre.
Summer Squash Hummus
from www.relish.com
Ingredients:
1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed 1 cup coarsely chopped zucchini, or other summer squash 1 garlic clove, chopped ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley ¼ cup chopped fresh basil ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper ¼ C. extra-virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Directions:
Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until desired consistency is reached. Serve with pita bread, grilled tortillas or vegetable sticks for dipping.
The recipe below was sent to us from Beth – Thanks!
Zucchini, Mushroom and Goat Cheese Tart
from: seriouseats.com
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 lb zucchini or any summer squash, cut into ¼” rounds 10 oz. mushrooms, sliced, preferably a mix of types 2 Cloves garlic, minced 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves 2 tablespoons Madeira wine 1 sheet frozen puff pastry ( ½ of 17.3 oz pkg) 3 oz. goat cheese, thinly sliced
Procedures: 1.) Preheat oven to 400oF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. 2.) In a large (12”) skillet, heat half the oil over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini slices and cook until golden, 5-7 minutes, turning halfway through. Transfer to a place and add the mushrooms, a good pinch of salt, and remaining oil. Continue cooking until liquids have evaporated and mushrooms have browned; add garlic and thyme and continue cooking an additional couple of minutes until garlic softens. Add Madeira wine and cook until it has evaporated and absorbed into the mushrooms, about 1 minute. Season to taste. 3.) Lay puff pastry on parchment paper and prick all over with a fork, leaving ½“ border on all sides. Spread mushrooms over sheet, the layer zucchini and cheese on top. 4.) Cook in oven 30-40 minutes, until edges of pastry are golden and puffed. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing.
“Chard is a cruciferous vegetable, meaning that it is high in anti-oxidants and thus proclaimed to possess cancer fighting properties. Anti-carcinogenic or not, it is high in vitamins A and C, iron, potassium, and fiber”…. read the article about Swiss Chard that contains this quote : Swiss Chard article
Warm Beet and Chard Salad
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
6 medium beets (red, golden, Chioggia)
½ red onion, sliced
3 cloves of garlic
1 bunch chard, Rainbow or regular
1 cup cooked garbanzo beans (canned is fine, but rinse well)
2 tablespoons good olive oil
Directions:
1.) Roast the beets: Wrap beets in foil two and two together (of the same type so they don’t stain each other), place on a baking sheet in the middle of the oven and roast at 375 degrees for about one hour. Take the beets out of the oven to cool in the foil for a while. (Keeping them in the foil will help loosen the skin.) When cold enough to handle, remove the skin and slice beets in big pieces. Keep aside in a bowl. 2.)Sauté the onion and garlic on medium heat for about five minutes. Add roughly chopped chard, stems removed, and cook until the chard is done (5-10 minutes). Add the garbanzo beans and beets and heat for a few minutes. Taste for salt and pepper.
SWISS CHARD & BEET SALAD
from: foodreference.com
Ingredients:
• Stems from one batch of chard, chopped into small dice
• 1 large beet, chopped into small dice
• 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped into small dice
• 1 small red onion, chopped into small dice
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped into small dice
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• Parsley, chopped, to taste
• Thyme, chopped to taste
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
• Champagne vinegar, as needed
• Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
If you only used the leaves for the sautéed or braised chard, here’s a recipe for the leftover stems.
Simply chop and combine all the vegetables and add parsley, thyme, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to suit your taste.
If served immediately, the varying colors of the vegetables make for a visually striking and aesthetically interesting dish.
Resting the salad overnight improves the flavor but at the cost of the beet juices coloring everything a boringly uniform red. Your choice.
No comments:
Post a Comment