In this week’s box:
Basil: SweetChard: Rainbow MixCherry Tomatoes: Jubilee Mix (see description on 8/2)
Head Lettuce: asst
Shallots: Ambition (tan) &/or Camelot (purple)Sweet Peppers: asst.
Tomatoes-Slicers: asst. (see description on 8/2)Baby Turnips: Hakurei
and at least one of the following:
Beans: Provider (green) & Carson (yellow) MixBroccoli FloretsCantaloupe: Hannah's Choice or Minnesota Midget
Cauliflower: Snow Crown or Song
Eggplant: Orient Express, Asian Delight or Listada de Gandia
Okra: Candle Fire and BurgundyWatermelon: Cream of Saskatchewan
Herb It! option: lemon basil, garlic chives, bronze fennel
Bread Share: Italian Herb
Featured Recipes:
BGF Pesto **see below**
Head Lettuce: asst
Tomatoes-Slicers: asst. (see description on 8/2)
and at least one of the following:
Beans: Provider (green) & Carson (yellow) Mix
Cauliflower: Snow Crown or Song
Eggplant: Orient Express, Asian Delight or Listada de Gandia
Okra: Candle Fire and Burgundy
Bread Share: Italian Herb
Featured Recipes:
BGF Pesto **see below**
What’s up on the farm?
Precipitation in the past week: 0.1" (ugh!)
While we were again very pleased to miss the hail that fell around central Iowa this week, we were very disappointed to also miss almost all of the rain. We did have a couple of brief showers, but it didn't add up to much of anything so we are continuing to irrigate on a daily basis. The drought and decreasing daylight hours are really starting to affect our midseason crops, tomato and eggplant ripening has slowed way down, melons are pretty much done. Peppers are also slowing a bit, but not nearly as much as the others. We had planned to do our annual "Salsa Box" this week, but I wasn't confident that we would have enough tomatoes to really do it justice, so we are postponing it for a week in hopes of greater tomato volume.
We spent much of the past week taking advantage of our dry conditions and catching up on weeding and cultivating many of the crops on the farm. We continue to clear spent crops like early plantings of kale and lettuce plus melons and replace them with cool weather crops like Purple Peacock, head lettuce, komatsuna, misome, and more arugula.
We also renovated the spent cucumber bed in the big high tunnel and planted kale and Napa Cabbage. These are crops that we will harvest throughout the winter.
Speaking of crops that are finishing up, we're not there yet, but basil season will be coming to an end in the next month. This is your heads up that now is the time to take advantage of bounteous basil and make a couple batches of pesto to freeze for winter use. Believe me, you will thank yourself for it in January! Our favorite pesto recipe is at the end of the newsletter, including our preferred way to freeze it.
Precipitation in the past week: 0.1" (ugh!)
While we were again very pleased to miss the hail that fell around central Iowa this week, we were very disappointed to also miss almost all of the rain. We did have a couple of brief showers, but it didn't add up to much of anything so we are continuing to irrigate on a daily basis. The drought and decreasing daylight hours are really starting to affect our midseason crops, tomato and eggplant ripening has slowed way down, melons are pretty much done. Peppers are also slowing a bit, but not nearly as much as the others. We had planned to do our annual "Salsa Box" this week, but I wasn't confident that we would have enough tomatoes to really do it justice, so we are postponing it for a week in hopes of greater tomato volume.
We spent much of the past week taking advantage of our dry conditions and catching up on weeding and cultivating many of the crops on the farm. We continue to clear spent crops like early plantings of kale and lettuce plus melons and replace them with cool weather crops like Purple Peacock, head lettuce, komatsuna, misome, and more arugula.
We also renovated the spent cucumber bed in the big high tunnel and planted kale and Napa Cabbage. These are crops that we will harvest throughout the winter.
A little detail on your produce this week:
Basil hates the cold and will turn black with exposure. Keep long stemmed basil in a glass/vase of water on your counter top (out of direct sunlight). Stems that are too short (trimmings/tops) should be placed in a plastic bag, with a dry paper towel. Then put inside of a paper bag (for insulation) and put in the warmest part of your refrigerator (usually the door) or on the top shelf towards the front.
Beans: Fresh beans are an easy "store." Just leave them in their plastic bag and keep them in the produce drawer. Can last up to 2 weeks.
Broccoli & Cauliflower: Wrap loosely in a plastic bag and keep it in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator for up to a week. Immediately before cooking, soak 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 or cauliflower in salt water before storing, it will become too rubbery and wilted to enjoy.)
Cantaloupe: If your cantaloupe seems a bit short of ripe, keep it at room temperature for a few days or until there is a sweet smell coming from the stem end. Once the melon ripens, store it in the refrigerator. It is best not to cut a cantaloupe until you are ready to eat it. If you need to return cut melon to the refrigerator, do not remove the seeds from the remaining sections as they keep the flesh from drying out. Use within 3-5 days.
Eggplant: prefers to be kept at about 50° F, which is warmer than most refrigerators and cooler than most kitchen counters. Wrap unwashed eggplant in a towel (not in plastic) to absorb any moisture and keep it in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator. Used within a week, it should still be fresh and mild. Many people like to peel, salt, and drain their eggplant to draw out any bitter flavor; however, bitterness develops only in eggplant that has been stored for a while, so with farm-fresh specimens this is generally not necessary. Many recipes call for salting in order to make the vegetable less watery and more absorbent—much like draining tofu. Salting is not an essential step, but it can greatly enhance the taste and texture of your dish and is well worth the extra effort.
Okra: These lovely, dark red, horn-shaped vegetables are a warm weather treat. Extremely cold sensitive, store in their plastic bag in the warmest part of your fridge, or place the plastic bag in a small paper sack and store in the crisper drawer and use within the week. Traditional southerners will cut into rounds, bread in cornmeal and fry, but our favorite version is our dear friend Annie's method, "All I do is rinse off the pods and lay them in a saucepan with a little water in the bottom. Ten to fifteen minutes is all it takes...twenty if the pods are really big and "woody" feeling. I put salt on them and eat as finger food. It reminds me of young sweet corn."
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.
Shallots: the grown-up cousins of onions, shallots have a rich flavor that really shines in soups, sauces, salad dressings and egg dishes. Store like onions in a cool, dark place with good air circulation.
Tomatoes: always store whole tomatoes at room temperature, out of direct sunlight. Once cut, store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Turnips: keep best if separated from their greens. Greens are stored in a plastic bag and can be cooked like mustard or collard greens. Trimmed roots can go into a lidded container or zip-close bag. These aren't your grandma's turnips. These are a sweet, Japanese salad variety that is particularly tasty for fresh eating. They will still work great in cooked dishes, but we love to eat them raw, often right out of hand, like an apple. One of the farm crew's favorite mid-field snacks.
Broccoli & Cauliflower: Wrap loosely in a plastic bag and keep it in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator for up to a week. Immediately before cooking, soak 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 or cauliflower in salt water before storing, it will become too rubbery and wilted to enjoy.)
Cantaloupe: If your cantaloupe seems a bit short of ripe, keep it at room temperature for a few days or until there is a sweet smell coming from the stem end. Once the melon ripens, store it in the refrigerator. It is best not to cut a cantaloupe until you are ready to eat it. If you need to return cut melon to the refrigerator, do not remove the seeds from the remaining sections as they keep the flesh from drying out. Use within 3-5 days.
Eggplant: prefers to be kept at about 50° F, which is warmer than most refrigerators and cooler than most kitchen counters. Wrap unwashed eggplant in a towel (not in plastic) to absorb any moisture and keep it in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator. Used within a week, it should still be fresh and mild. Many people like to peel, salt, and drain their eggplant to draw out any bitter flavor; however, bitterness develops only in eggplant that has been stored for a while, so with farm-fresh specimens this is generally not necessary. Many recipes call for salting in order to make the vegetable less watery and more absorbent—much like draining tofu. Salting is not an essential step, but it can greatly enhance the taste and texture of your dish and is well worth the extra effort.
Tomatoes: always store whole tomatoes at room temperature, out of direct sunlight. Once cut, store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Watermelon: Handle watermelons carefully. When harvested at their peak ripeness, they can crack or split easily if bumped or roughly handled. Refrigerate watermelons right away. (Watermelons do not ripen off the vine and do not emanate a ripe smell.) Cut melon should be covered in plastic wrap, chunks or slices should be kept in an airtight container, and both should be refrigerated. Eat all melons within a week.
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.
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? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page at Blue Gate Farm Community.
That's about it for now.If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know.Best from the farm,Jill & Sean (and the whole BGF crew)
Sky, Wallace & Gromit
Blue Gate Farm Pesto
2 Tbs Sunflower seeds-toasted (can substitute pine nuts)
2 cloves Garlic (garlic lovers can add more) green garlic or garlic scapes are also good.
2 c. Basil (any variety, a mix is particularly nice)
1-2 leaves Sorrel (optional)
½ c. Olive oil
1 medium tomato
1 tsp Salt (if using pre-salted sunflower seeds, can reduce salt amount)
½ c. Parmesan cheese, fresh grated (not the stuff in the can)
Place sunflower seeds and garlic into food processor then pulse several times. Add basil and sorrel, drizzle with half of oil. Pulse several times. Add remaining oil, tomatoes, Parmesan cheese and salt if desired.
Pesto should be stored for a week or less in the refrigerator in a sealed container.
For longer storage, freeze in snack-sized, zip-top bags (about 1 1/2 TBS per bag), pressed flat. Once frozen, they can be stored upright in a larger plastic bag. To use, just break off the amount needed and return the rest to the freezer. Even if you are using the full bag, it is much easier to remove from the bag if you do so while it is still frozen.
Also, if we are making a large batch for the freezer, for best quality, we omit the cheese and seeds. Freeze as is and then add those items in when we are ready to use.
Also, if we are making a large batch for the freezer, for best quality, we omit the cheese and seeds. Freeze as is and then add those items in when we are ready to use.
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