2014 CSA Week 8

Hello,
This is going to be a short post because it's been a long day and I'm beat.
But you have a nice assortment of veggies this week:
Salad Mix
Arugula or Mixed Asian Greens
Green/Yellow Beans
Summer Squash (!)
Garlic
Basil
Bell Pepper (green or purple)

Large Shares have an Eggplant this week
(don't worry, everyone gets them, but we don't usually have 75 eggplant ready all at the same time, so we stagger their distribution)

So make some tasty food! I don't have a great recipe to share this week, but I imagine you can think of some nice options with this mix of veggies.

Also, a quick note:
This Saturday, July 26th, is the annual Madison County Open Farm Day!
It's a day where participating farmers open up their operations to visitors for a sort of "open house." It's quite a lot of fun, actually. You get to visit a bunch of different farms and try some samples and ask the farmers face-to-face about what they do to produce your food.
For more information, visit the website: http://www.openfarmdaymadisoncounty.com/passport/

Lucky Moon Farm will be participating, so if you have some time on Saturday, come by and say hi! It'd be great to show you around the place and answer any questions you might have. Plus, it's a beautiful place and the weather is supposed to be pretty nice, too. Hope to see you there!

Best,
Sarah VanNorstrand
for Lucky Moon Farm

2014 CSA Week 7

Hi everyone,
Hope you all are doing well. Things at the farm are super busy- between rain storms we've been catching up on weeding projects, pruning and clipping-up tomatoes, and keeping up with harvesting the peas. The summer squash and zucchini are just starting up. We had the first picking the other day, so you can expect to start seeing them in your bags soon. And the beans are right behind them! Also, a few cherry tomatoes are ripening up and it won't be long before we're giving out tomatoes and eggplant, too!

Your bags this week include:
Spinach
Parsley
Young Onions
Salad Mix
Snow Peas
Sugar Snap Peas
Hot Peppers (either Poblanos, which are a dark green, Czech Black, which are wicked-looking little black peppers, or Hungarian Hotwax, which are a light, yellowy/green- see pics below)

Poblano Pepper

Czech Black (they eventually turn red)

Hungarian Hotwax (go from green, to yellow, to orange to red)

One of my favorite kinds of food is a good curry- Indian, Thai, whatever- I love it. And curries especially are great for using some of the veggies from this week and last. Here's a simple dish from Joy of Cooking:

Coconut Chicken (Or Tofu) Curry

4-6 Servings

2 lbs chicken thighs or breasts

Salt & pepper to taste

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 large carrot, sliced (or multiple smaller ones)

Snow peas, sliced in thirds

1 hot pepper, seeded (if you wish) and chopped

1 Tbsp finely chopped peeled ginger

2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 Tbsp curry powder (or more, to taste)

1 tsp salt

cooked rice

1) heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat, add the chicken and brown on both sides. Remove from the pan.

2) Add to the same pan the onions, carrots, peas, hot pepper, ginger and garlic and cook until the veggies are soft, about 5 mins. 

3) Add and bring to a boil the coconut milk, raisins, curry powder, and salt. 

4) Add the chicken back, reduce the heat and simmer 20 minutes for breasts, 25 minutes for thighs, or until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked. 

5) Serve over rice (Basmati is especially nice)

Best,

Sarah VanNorstrand 

for Lucky Moon Farm

2014 CSA Week 5

Hi everyone,
Happy 4th of July! I hope you all have a great weekend celebrating-

Life on the farm continues- we've had some major thunder storms this week that have brought on more torrential rain that we would like. Since the whole farm is on a hill, working to prevent erosion is a constant struggle. But things are still doing pretty well. We got the cabbage and the first of the broccoli transplanted this week, the first picking of peas went well, and the indoor and outdoor tomatoes look very healthy and have little tomatoes on their way!

In your bags this week:

Salad Mix
Kale
Snow Peas
Garlic
Cilantro or Mixed Basil

The garlic is still a bit young, which means it's extra flavorful. We'll be harvesting all of it in a few more weeks, but we were able to pull a few on the early side. I used a few cloves in a spinach sauté I made last night, and it was delicious! I really love garlic, and when it's this fresh, it's hard to beat.

Here's a kale recipe that looks pretty good (and it's quick and easy!)

Garlicky Mushrooms and Kale
Ingredients
1 teaspoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
4 ounces cremini or button mushrooms, sliced (about 1 cup)
1/2 pound kale, coarse stems removed, leaves sliced or torn into pieces

Directions

Preheat a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the garlic in the oil for about 2 minutes, being careful not to burn it. Spray it with a little nonstick cooking spray if needed. Add the mushrooms and sprinkle on the salt. Let them cook for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring often, until the moisture has released and the mushrooms are lightly browned. Add the kale and pepper, and use tongs to sauté for about 10 more minutes. Add splashes of water if the pan seems dry. The kale should be tender and cooked down pretty well. Serve immediately.

Here's another from the Martha Stewart website for a Kale and Chorizo soup (aka Caldo Verde)

Be well,

Sarah VanNorstrand

for Lucky Moon Farm