BGF NEWS - September 10 , 2024 - VOL. 53, NO. 15

In this week’s box:

Beans: Yellow & Green Mix
Cherry Tomatoes: Jubilee Mix
Cucumbers: Corinto, Generally, Marketmore, Dragon or Lemon (yellow, round)
Eggplant: Orient Express, Purple Shine or Listada

Head Lettuce, assorted varieties
Hot Peppers: Wenk's Yellow Hots (in small plastic bag)

Onions: Candy

Pears: Bartlett

Peppers: Asst. sweet (see 8/13 newsletter for descriptions)

Tomatoes: slicers (see 7/30 newsletter for descriptions)

and perhaps one of the following: (see **NOTE below)
Cauliflower: Twister

Okra: Candle Fire, Bowling Red & Okinawa Pink

Summer Squash: Patty Pan, Golden Glory and/or Zephyr
Watermelon: Early Moonglow (yellow) or Sugar Baby (red)

Herb It! option: Sweet Basil, Parsley, Pineapple Mint

Featured Recipes:

Fresh Tomato Salsa

Roasted Tomato Salsa

Okra Corn Salsa

Pear Salsa

Mezair (Cutting Board Salsa), BGF Favorite **see below

BGF Balsamic Tomato Salsa, new BGF favorite **see below

Watermelon Salsa, BGF Favorite **see below

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past week: 0.00"

Welcome to our annual Salsa Box! Or Sauce Box if you prefer. Every year when the tomato harvest is at it's height, we "stuff" as many of them into the boxes as possible to give folks the opportunity to stock up on some salsa or sauce. We try to include recipes to appeal to lots of difference salsa tastes, but always include our favorite: Mezair (a fresh Kurdish salsa).  As many of you may know, the "FarmHer-in-charge" isn't particularly fond of cilantro so we always substitute parsley/par-cel, mint, sorrel or roselle in our salsa recipes. If you have the same issue, we encourage you to try one of these alternatives. If you do like cilantro, well, that's ok too.

I mentioned to someone last week that the tomatoes will never taste as good as they do right now (until this time next year!) So now is the time to relish all that they have to offer. Sauce them, salsa them, soup them, dry them, preserve them however you prefer. If you have the opportunity to "put them up" now, you will love yourself for it come January! And if you don't have the time or inclination, then enjoy every last fresh bite! As the temperatures start to slide lower (evidently not this week) the sugars in vegetables start to rise. It's what makes fall/winter carrots and greens so very tasty! But the tomatoes will start to lose their zing and their flavor will flatten. So embrace all that they have to offer now before it's too late!

This is the time of year when we start to say our fond farewells to a number of crops. It started with the summer squashes, we're sending the last ones out in a few boxes this week. Very soon we will be doing the same for the cucumbers, cantaloupes and watermelons as the vines are starting to fail. This weekend we mowed down finished crop areas in our east fields, getting ready for our fall composting. There are still a lot of crops in the various plots, but more and more are wrapping up all the time. 

That said, we transplanted the last of the fall field crops this past week and started direct sowing seeds in one of the high tunnels.  So there are still lots of new crops coming along.

We finished the pear harvest a couple weeks ago and it was a pretty good crop. Pears are picked a bit green and then allowed to ripen in the cooler for best quality. They are now ready to eat, so we are sharing a little fruity bonus this week. Ripe pears are pretty perishable, so be sure to refrigerate them and use within a few days. 

Finally, a couple of weeks ago we sent out a little thank you gift of Purple Basil Salt in all the CSA boxes for Customer Appreciation Month. 

Unfortunately when I loaded up at the end of the delivery, I discovered one bag had slipped out of a box in the car. So someone in DM missed their salt, if it was yours, please let me know and I'll get it to you. We don't want you to feel unappreciated (or miss out on the salt).

Upcoming Dates to Note:

Tues, Oct. 15: Final CSA delivery

Sat, Oct. 26: Final Saturday VegEmail delivery

Tues, Nov. 5: Fall VegEmail schedule begins, delivery every 2 weeks on Tuesdays 4-6pm.

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 glass or plastic container 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.

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.

Cucumber: Store unwashed cucumbers in a sealed plastic bag in the vegetable crisper bin for about a week. Keep cucumbers tucked far away from tomatoes, apples, and citrus—these give off ethylene gas that accelerates cucumber deterioration. You can do a lot of fancy things to the skin of a cucumber, but when it is young, fresh (and unwaxed), it really only needs to be thoroughly washed. However, if the skin seems tough or bitter you can remove it; if the seeds are bulky, slice the cucumber lengthwise and scoop them out.

Eggplant: 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. The shape of an eggplant determines how it is best prepared. Slice a straight, narrow eggplant into rounds for grilling or broiling, and cut a rounded, bulbous eggplant into cubes for stews and stir-fries.

Garlic & Onions: Fully cured garlic and onions don't require refrigeration. For longest storage, keep in a dark place with good airflow. Once cut, store in the refrigerator. Green top alliums (scallions, shallots, garlic and onions) should be stored in the refrigerator, upright in a glass with a bit of water or wrapped in plastic in your produce drawer.

Herbs: Generally, except for basil, set unwashed bunches of fresh herbs (with stems) upright into small jars filled with 1 to 2 inches of water, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to two weeks. Rinse fresh herbs right before use. To release their scents and flavors, rub them between your hands before mincing or chopping. If you have no idea what to do with fresh herbs, there is one great default answer "compound butter." Finely mince leaves and knead them into a stick of room temperature butter. Roll the butter into a log in plastic wrap and store in the freezer. Then simply slice off the amount you need to add delicious, ready-to-use flavor to vegetables, bread or meats.

Okra: These lovely, horn-shaped vegetables are a warm weather treat. Extremely cold sensitive, wrap with a dishcloth or paper towel and 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."

Pears: These fruits are all ready to be eaten, depending on how soft you like your pears. They will continue to ripen in the days ahead, refrigerate to slow the process, leave on the counter to speed it up. Test for ripeness by gently squeezing and by color (light green is more crispy, yellow is juicy and succulent).

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.

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.

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, photos 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)

Mezair

(Cutting Board Salsa, from Kurdistan)

1 lg clove garlic

2 to 3 jalapeños, seeded (or other hot peppers)

½ c. lightly packed, chopped flat-leaf parlsey

3 to 4 tbs chopped fresh mint

1 pound ripe tomatoes

¼ tsp salt

juice of 1 lemon

On a large cutting board, mince the garlic and the peppers. Add the parsley and mint and chop. Slice and then chop the tomatoes, adding them to the other ingredients. Mix as you continue to chop by turning the salsa with the flat of your knife or cleaver. Mix in the salt. Transfer the salsa to a small serving bowl and blend in the lemon juice, The salsa will be quite runny.

Makes approximately 2 cups salsa.

Recipe source: Flatbreads and Flavors by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid

BGF Balsamic Tomato Salsa

3-4 tomatoes
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 medium clove garlic, minced

1 small shallot, minced

1 Wenk's Yellow Hot pepper, seeded and minced
1 tsp finely chopped fresh oregano
2tbs finely chopped fresh basil
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Stir it all together for a chunky salsa, but I really love it pureed right in the mixing bowl with my immersion blender. You can use a blender or food processor as well. I think this version really melds the flavors beautifully. 

Recipe source: BGF, based on the Balsamic Tomato Salad recipe from Smitten Kitchen 

Larissa's Watermelon Salsa

3c watermelon, seeded & diced
1/2 c. sweet pepper, seeded & diced
2 TBS lime juice
1 TBS cilantro, chopped
1 TBS green onion, chopped
1-2 TBS hot pepper, seeded & diced
1/2 tsp garlic, finely minced
salt, to taste

Combine all ingredients & refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Recipe Source: BGF friend, Larissa C.

BGF NEWS - September 3 , 2024 - VOL. 52, NO. 14

In this week’s box:

Basil: Sweet

Beans: Yellow & Green Mix
Cherry Tomatoes: Jubilee Mix
Cucumbers: Corinto, Generally, Marketmore, Dragon or Lemon (yellow, round)
Eggplant: Orient Express, Purple Shine or Listada

Ground Cherries
Head Lettuce, assorted varieties
Leeks

Peppers: Asst. sweet (see 8/13 newsletter for descriptions)

Tomatoes: slicers (see 7/30 newsletter for descriptions)

Winter Squash: Acorn (Thelma Sanders) or Delicata

and perhaps one of the following: (see **NOTE below)
Cantaloupe:  Hannah's Choice
Okra: Candle Fire, Bowling Red & Okinawa Pink
Watermelon: Early Moonglow (yellow) or Sugar Baby (red)

Herb It! option: Lemon Basil, Rosemary, Lemon Thyme

Jam It! option: Blackberry Jam & Salted Caramel Pear Butter

Spice It Up! option: Garlic Scape Salt

Featured Recipes:

Cherry Tomatoes with Leeks and Thyme

Sauteed Winter Squash with Leeks and Garlic

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past week: 0.8"

The calendar flipped to September and suddenly it looks and feels like fall. Morning chores require a flannel shirt and both the dawn and dusk light are low angle and roll golden across the hills, setting their edges aglow. The trees have shifted from brilliant summer green to a more subdued shade and we are starting to see more yellow in the timber canopy. 

For me, one of the more notable signs of the advancing season is one most people probably don't even notice. It's the first sighting of fall asters blooming. My grandpa always called them frost flowers and said they indicated it was 2 weeks until frost. We've found it's more likely 4 weeks, but still the visual reminder is there, it all it's beauty. My dad said he saw some a couple of weeks ago, but Sunday was my first sighting.

We harvested our entire winter squash crop last week. Sadly, it didn't take long. We reduced our plantings  to two varieties this season after many years of loss. This year we didn't lose them all, but it was a close thing. We've got just enough squash for everyone to get some this week and that will be the end. It's also (finally?) the end of summer squash/zucchini season. I know I've been saying that for weeks, but the final survivors died last week so we bid them a fond farewell until next year.

This past week marked the start of "season end" tasks. We spent an afternoon clearing most of the irrigation system out of our big east plots. This will allow us to clear and mow down retired crops and regain control of some weedy areas of the fields. At the same time we were planting fall crops like kale, chard and lettuce in plots we use for season extension. Speaking of season extension, the crew installed the first row cover last week on the new chard planting. For now, it's more to protect/hide the crop from the deer and rabbits than it is to keep it warm but it will serve dual purpose eventually.

A special treat in the boxes that may be new to some folks are ground cherries. They have produced well this season so we thought you'd like a little fruity adventure to liven up your CSA delivery.

Ground cherries, which are native to Iowa, are a husked fruit related to a tomatillo with a tropical taste like a cross between pineapple and mango. The husks and fruit start out light green and ripen to a golden/apricot color inside when ready to eat and the husks will be completely dry and papery. They store for several weeks to a month on the counter if the husks are still sealed, and they won't ripen outside of the husk. To enjoy, remove dried husks and eat as a snack, in salads , desserts or combined with cherry tomatoes in a pasta dish or sweet & savory pizza.

Finally, we bid said farewell to our younger crew members, Josiah and Natellie this week as they turn their attention back to school. We will likely see them back on the farm at least a couple of times yet this fall as we take on big projects like the garlic planting, but their daily time here is done and we will miss them! We want to say thank you to them both for their great attitudes, helpful natures and a whole season of hard work!

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 glass or plastic container 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.

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.

Cucumber: Store unwashed cucumbers in a sealed plastic bag in the vegetable crisper bin for about a week. Keep cucumbers tucked far away from tomatoes, apples, and citrus—these give off ethylene gas that accelerates cucumber deterioration. You can do a lot of fancy things to the skin of a cucumber, but when it is young, fresh (and unwaxed), it really only needs to be thoroughly washed. However, if the skin seems tough or bitter you can remove it; if the seeds are bulky, slice the cucumber lengthwise and scoop them out.

Eggplant: 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. The shape of an eggplant determines how it is best prepared. Slice a straight, narrow eggplant into rounds for grilling or broiling, and cut a rounded, bulbous eggplant into cubes for stews and stir-fries.

Ground Cherries: These are a husked fruit, related to a tomatillo. The husks and fruit start out light green and ripen to a golden/apricot color inside when ready to eat and the husks will be completely dry and papery. They store for several weeks to a month in an open container on the counter if the husks is still sealed, and they wont ripen outside of the husk. To enjoy, remove husks and eat as a snack, in salads , desserts or combined with cherry tomatoes in a pasta dish.

Herbs: Generally, except for basil, set unwashed bunches of fresh herbs (with stems) upright into small jars filled with 1 to 2 inches of water, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to two weeks. Rinse fresh herbs right before use. To release their scents and flavors, rub them between your hands before mincing or chopping. If you have no idea what to do with fresh herbs, there is one great default answer "compound butter." Finely mince leaves and knead them into a stick of room temperature butter. Roll the butter into a log in plastic wrap and store in the freezer. Then simply slice off the amount you need to add delicious, ready-to-use flavor to vegetables, bread or meats.

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.

Okra: These lovely, horn-shaped vegetables are a warm weather treat. Extremely cold sensitive, wrap with a dishcloth or paper towel and 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.

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.

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, photos 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)