BGF News - October 17, 2017-Vol. XXXIII, No.19

BGF News - October 17, 2017-Vol. XXXIII, No.19

In this week’s box:

Basil

Long Island Cheese winter squash

Choi: Shanghai Green
Head Lettuce Bouquets
Kale mix
Leeks
Potatoes: Carola and/or Kennebec
Radish Mix
Sweet Pepper: asst
Winter Squash: Long Island Cheese
And perhaps one of the following:     
Broccoli: Belstar or Gypsy
Cucumber: Lemon
Spinach Mix 
Summer Squash: asst

           

For those with the Egg option [full shares]: one dozen free-range eggs (assorted colors)

For those with the Herb option: Thai Magic Basil, sorrel, lemongrass

Kind of a "leek-y" harvest.

Featured Recipes:  ** indicates a BGF favorite 
Long Island Cheese Pumpkin Soup
Stir Fried Bok Choy with Basil Lemon Sauce
Kale & Potato Gratin
Lemon, Leek & Basil Cream Sauce
Sauteed Radishes with Greens

 

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past week: 1.60"


Note: Half-Egg Share folks, in my post-surgical haze last week, I mistakenly switched up your egg delivery week and sent them out a week early. Ugh! Hope this didn't cause anyone an egg-jam in the fridge. So now we'll just roll with the "new schedule" and you will get eggs again next week and the #'s will all work out evenly. Sorry for the mix-up!
 
This past week has been much calmer than the previous one. Some rain, no emergencies, some harvesting, some cultivating and yes, even just a bit of planting. We cleared the final summer crop from the high tunnel, amended that bed and resowed (almost) the last of the fall seeds. We still have two successions of arugula and salad mix to go, but then we are truly done sowing seeds for 2017. The serious business of clearing spent crops is also underway with the tomatoes and their trellis all done. We've started pulling and storing the irrigation lines as well, which is an undeniably sign that this season's growing time is mostly past, though if this warm weather and rains keep up, things will just keep growing, albeit slowly. We thought for sure that last week was the final harvest of the summer squash, but before we could pull the nearly dead plants out, they flowered and fruited again. In 13 seasons of growing, we've never had summer squash this late, so we will send what we have of them out in some boxes this week. Same story goes for the last of the lemon cucumbers. Speaking of stories, you will require one for the radishes in this week's delivery. Yes, that crazy, bunch of big, weird-shaped, multicolored roots are indeed radishes. We grow heirloom varieties that, while not as "picture-perfect" as those you find in the grocery store, they tend to stay tasty even when large. We taste-tested several before harvesting to be sure the quality was still good, and they were. So carve 'em up like a thanksgiving turkey and enjoy! 
An additional heads-up on today's potatoes. These have been stored in our walk-in to keep them in best condition for long term storage, so please let them sit out at room temperature for at least 24 hours before using, or they will taste very sweet.

Final Delivery Note: as next week is our final delivery of the 2017 CSA season we want to give you a couple of bits of information that will make everyone's lives easier. First, please do your best to remember your empty box, that way you won't be stuck with an empty box sitting around your house all winter. We will pack your produce for the final delivery into plastic bags so you won't have to worry about returning that box either.

VegEmail Sales: This year instead of a Winter CSA, we are trying something new. We tested out this system late last winter and it worked well, so this fall we are rolling it out for the whole "backside of the calendar." Starting the week of Nov 7th we will send out an email with a link to an order form that lists all of the produce/products that we have available for sale that week. If you see things you would like to purchase, just fill out the order form and then meet us that following Tuesday at Peace Tree in DM or the Grand in Knox. Payment is due at the pickup. We will do it (nearly) every 2 weeks from Nov to the start of market in May. If you were a member of the CSA in the past year or ordered during the Jan-May VegEmail season earlier this year then you are on the email list.
 

Upcoming events:

Final Summer CSA delivery:
Our final delivery of the 2017 summer season will be Tuesday, October 24th

VegEmail sales begin: Tuesday, November 7th

A little detail on your produce this week:

Broccoli: Wrap broccoli loosely in a plastic bag and keep it in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator for up to a week. Immediately before cooking, soak broccoli, head down, in cold, salted water (1 teaspoon salt to a 8 cups of water) for 5 minutes. Any [organic] critters will float to the top where you can rescue them or allow them to suffer a salty death. (Note: If you soak broccoli in salt water before storing, it will become too rubbery and wilted to enjoy.) Slice the juicy, edible stems and use them wherever florets are called for. Peel particularly thick skin before using

 

Choi (a.k.a. - pac choi, bok choy or pok choy) is the large, structural-looking vegetable.  It is a member of the cabbage family and is a traditional Asian stir-fry vegetable.  Both the stems and leaves of choi can be used and are especially tasty in cooked recipes.  If cooking them, separate the leaves and stems, and begin cooking stems first to avoid overcooking the more tender greens. You can also use the leaves like any green-leafy vegetable and the stems like celery.  We tend to use choi leaves as a sandwich wrap, or just roughly chop the whole thing and sauté with garlic and/or onion.  Cook until stems are tender and dress with a little seasoned rice vinegar. Store choi loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in your produce drawer.

Leeks: Loosely wrap unwashed leeks in a plastic bag and store them in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator. They will keep for a couple of weeks. To use- Cut the leek about 1 inch above the white part, where the leaves begin changing from dark to light green. (Save the unused greens; they’ll give great flavor to your next vegetable stock.) Fan the leaves under running water to dislodge any dirt collected there, then pat thoroughly dry. You can julienne a leek by cutting it lengthwise, or slice it crosswise. If you want to clean a leek that you will be cooking whole, make a slit down one side to within an inch or two of the root end. Then spread the leaves under running lukewarm water to clean the leek. During cooking the leek will stay whole. When serving, arrange the leek with the cut side down.

Peppers: Place whole, unwashed peppers in a plastic bag, seal, and refrigerate for a week or more. Rinse peppers just before use. For sweet peppers, cut around the stem with a small knife and lift out the core. Slice down the side to open it up and then cut out the inner membranes. Store unused portions in a sealed bag or container in the refrigerator.

 

Potatoes: Keep unwashed potatoes in a cool, dark, dry place, such as a loosely closed paper bag in a cupboard. They will keep for weeks at room temperature, longer if you can provide their ideal temperature of 40 to 50 degrees. Beware: the low temperature of your refrigerator will convert the starch to sugars. Moisture causes potatoes to spoil, light turns them green, and proximity to onions causes them to sprout. (You can still use a potato that has sprouted, however; simply cut off the “eyes” before use.) Potatoes store best if they haven't been washed, so we send them out in their "dust jackets". Just before using, scrub potatoes well and cut off any sprouts or green skin. (Clean delicate new potatoes gently.) Peeling is a matter of preference.

Winter Squash:  Store winter squash in a cool, dry, dark place with good ventilation for up to a month, depending on the variety. Once squash has been cut, you can wrap the pieces in plastic and refrigerate them for five to seven days. To make it easier to prep winter squash for your recipe, try the prebaking method: pierce the squash to allow heat to escape while it is in the oven, then bake the squash whole at 350° F until it is just barely tender to the poke of the finger, 20 to 30 minutes. This softens the shell and makes cutting and peeling much easier.

A few other details: All of your GREENS will keep best if stored in a plastic bag, with the top folded over and placed in the produce drawer of your refrigerator.  

* NOTE: You will notice over the course of the season that some box contents listed above say "Perhaps one of the following..."  These are items that we can’t harvest in sufficient quantities for the whole CSA to receive at one time.  We do track who gets what and we will do our best to ensure that everyone eventually receives each item.  On some items this may take several weeks, so please be patient.

Is a weekly newsletter not enough for you and you want to read more about our daily adventures or see pictures of the farm?  Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm and/or share your recipes, experiences and questions with other BGF members at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That’s about it this week, if you have any questions or comments be sure to let us know. 

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and Blue, Luci & Indigo)

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