2016 CSA Week 4

Hi Folks!
Happy Summer! Today is the first official day of that wonderful, beautiful, fleeting season. I plan to enjoy every bit of it this year. Living in Central New York, I think I have developed a real appreciation for our summers. They are definitely short, but they are also incredibly nice. They aren't usually too hot, and with our deep green forests and hazy hay fields, sparkling lakes and quiet rivers make these months a special time in a special place. So I hope you have some fun summer plans and have many opportunities to enjoy our lovely area. 

Things on the farm are doing pretty well. The rain we received last night was very welcome, especially because it wasn't accompanied by any hail. Nothing does as much damage to outdoor crops as hail. This is a gap of time when the spring stuff is starting to fade, but the summer crops haven't quite come on yet. But they're on their way! 
In the meantime, here are some more beautiful greens for you:

Spicy Summer Salad Mix (has some zesty greens mixed in to the lettuce)
Arugula
Spinach
Rhubarb (because it's strawberry time!)



Here are some more recipes you might like to try:

1) Personally recommended by one of members, here's a recipe from Wegmans: 
Simple Arugula Salad

2) And this one, though it calls for some things that aren't in season here yet, is supposed to be incredible. Our member said she would happily eat this all day:
Arugula Peach Salad

3) Rhubarb Muffins - from Joanna Frittelli:

1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups diced rhubarb
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
Topping:
1 teaspoon melted margarine or butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinammon
Preheat oven to 400. Grease muffin tins. Combine sugar, oil, egg, vanilla and buttermilk; beat well. Stir in rhubarb. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda and powder, and salt. Mix dry ingredients in rhubarb mixture just until blended. In a separate bowl, mix topping ingredients. Spoon batter into tins, sprinkle with topping and press lightly into the batter. Bake 20-25 minutes until muffins are golden brown and a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Makes 20 muffins.

2016 CSA Week 3

Hi Folks!
Another week at the farm, and things are progressing nicely. Claude started cutting hay yesterday, and the weather is looking promising for getting in some really nice hay in the next few days. Most of the vegetables have been transplanted or seeded into the ground (except for the broccoli, cauliflower and cabbages- they'll be next week) and everything's growing! The peas are coming along, the beans are up, the summer and winter squash are growing fast, and the onions are looking healthy. It'll be a little while before all those crops are ready, but one of my favorite things about farming is the hopeful anticipation of things to come; a delayed gratification. 

But for this week, we have a nice bagful:

Salad Mix
Spinach
Baby Carrots
Asian Greens
Rainbow Swiss Chard 

All lovely veggies from the greenhouse, but it won't be long before the field crops start coming in. 
Also, if your bag of veggies is simple not enough, then feel free to come by the farm stand on the weekends. The stand will be stocked from Friday through Sunday, 9AM - 6PM. It's at 4976 Lincklaen Road, Cazenovia. 


Here are some recipes to consider:

Swiss Chard with Chick Peas (aka Garbanzo beans) and Fresh Tomatoes 

from Allrecipes.com 

Serves 4

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 shallot or small onion, chopped

2 scallions, chopped

1/2 cup chickpeas, drained

salt and pepper to taste

1 bunch Swiss chard, rinsed and chopped

1 tomato, sliced

1/2 lemon, juiced

1) Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Stir in shallot/onion and scallions. Cook and stir for 3-5 minutes until soft and fragrant. Stir in garbanzo beans, season with salt and pepper, and heat through.

2) Place chopped chard in the skillet, and cook until wilted. Add tomato slices, squeeze lemon juice over greens and heat through. Serve immediately. 

Baked Swiss Chard and Spinach w/ Chickpeas and Feta Cheese

4-6 servings

4 Tbsp olive oil

10 oz Swiss Chard, heavy stems removed

1 Lb Spinach, heavy stems removed

One 15-oz can of chickpeas, drained

4 scallions (white and green) chopped

4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped dill

salt and pepper to taste

3 oz feta cheese, crumbled

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees, spread 1 Tbsp oil around a 12x9x2- inch casserole dish

2) In a steamer pot, steam Swiss chard until it wilts, about 4 mins. Add the spinach to the steamed chard and steam another 4 minutes until the spinach wilts, too. Remove both greens and drain, squeezing out excess water once they are cool enough to handle.

3) Chop greens and toss with remaining 3 Tbsp of oil, chickpeas, scallions, garlic, dill and season w/ salt and pepper.

4) Transfer to the casserole dish Push the feta cheese down into the mixture and bake until it's sizzling, about 35 mins. Serve hot. 

Spinach Salad w/ Strawberries and Pecans

8-oz Spinach

1 c. strawberry halves

1 c. pecan halves (or walnuts, or almonds)

Dressing:

1/2 c. cider vinegar

1/3 c. oil

1/4 c. sugar

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 small onion

2 tsp poppy seeds

In a large bowl, combine spinach, strawberries and pecans.

Dressing: mix cider vinegar, oil, sugar, dijon mustard, salt pepper and onion in a food processor until smooth. Add poppy seeds and mix

2016 CSA Week 2

Hi everyone,
Welcome to Week #2 at the farm. We've been working on overdrive on the dry days, and now the peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, celeriac and cut flowers have been transplanted to their permanent homes! The greenhouse is turning out some really beautiful greens and early root crops while the field veggies are getting established. This week the beans popped up, as well as the potatoes and summer squash, and the winter squash won't be far behind. So things are nicely on track for harvests later in the summer and fall.

This week we have some more spring treats for you, including a nice variety of greens. Here's the list:
Salad Mix
Arugula
Spinach
Radishes
Baby Beets with Greens
Rhubarb

Similar to last week, but keep in mind that a lot of these veggies are only available this time of the year. Once the weather heats up, crops like radishes, arugula, spinach and rhubarb stop growing well and tend to not be nearly as nice. So enjoy 'em while you can!

Here are some recipes to inspire you:

1) Balsamic Glazed Baby Beets w/ Greens

Ingredients

10-14 Baby beets with greens attached
1 small white onion
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 sprigs fresh tarragon or thyme
salt
pepper

Method

Rinse and scrub the beets under cold water. Remove the greens, cut the beets to bite size and corsley chop the greens. Julienee the onion into 1/4″ pieces. Using a pan with a lid, arrange the beets and onion into a single flat layer. Sprinkle EVO and balsamic on top. Add herb sprigs, a pinch of salt and enough water to cover. Bring pot to a boil, then add the lid and reduce to a simmer. Cook the beets for 15-20 minutes or until they are right on the verge of being properly tender. Add the greens to the pan, cover and cook for three more minutes. Fold everything together, reduce the liquid to a glaze (it should evenly coat the back of a spoon) and season to taste.
Cooking time (duration): 40


2) Sauteed Spinach w/ Roasted Garlic, Sun-dried Tomatoes and Feta
-Kelli Johnson
 ~10 oz spinach
3 Tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1/2 c. sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 c. sherry
1/4 c. lemon juice
5 Tbsp butter
1/2 c. feta
salt & pepper to taste

1) Over medium heat, saute garlic and onions in olive oil until golden brown.
2) Add sun-dried tomatoes. Add sherry and lemon juice and reduce by a third (~ 3 mins).
3) Add butter and toss until it melts. Add spinach. Cover and stir occasionally until spinach is slightly wilted and warm (~ 3 mins).
4) Add feta and cook briefly until slightly melted, ~ 30 seconds. Add salt and pepper to taste

3) Potato, Red Onion, Arugula and Brie Pizza
-"From the Earth to the Table" cook book
Makes enough topping for one 14 inch pizza or two 8-10 inch pizzas

Pizza dough, either homemade or dough from the store (check in the section with the cheese)
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 c. sliced red onions
salt and pepper
12 oz red potatoes, thinly sliced
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
6 oz Brie, thinly sliced
1 c. loosely packed arugula leaves
1 medium red bell pepper, charred, peeled and finely chopped

1) Prepare pizza dough. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. In a deep, heavy-bottomed pan, heat the olice oil and saute the onions until crisp-tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
2) In a medium sauce pan, blanch the potatoes in lightly salted boiling water until crisp-tender, ~ 3 mins. Cool in ice water to stop cooking, drain and pat dry.
3) Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the dough. Layer the potatoes evenly on top, followed by the onions and slices of Brie. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4) Bake the pizza for 12 to 15 minutes on the top rack. Scatter the arugula and red pepper on top and serve immediately. 

4) Quinoa Risotto w/ Arugula & Parmesan, from the New Mayo Clinic cookbook
Serves 6 as a side, double to serve as the main dish 

1 Tbsp olive oil 
1/2 onion, chopped 
1 clove garlic, minced 
1 cup quinoa, well rinsed 
2 1/4 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock or broth 
2 cups chopped arugula (~ 3 oz) 
1 small carrot, shredded 
1/2 cup thinly sliced shitake mushrooms 
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese 
1/2 tsp salt 
1/4 tsp pepper 

1) In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and saute until soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and quinoa and cook about 1 minute, stirring occaisionally. Do not let the garlic brown.  
2) Add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the quinoa is almost tender to the bite, but slightly heard in the center, about 12 minutes. The mixture will be brothy. Stir in the arugula, carrot and mushrooms and simmer until the quinoa grains have turned from white to translucent, about 2 minutes longer.  

3) Stir in the Parmesan and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately. 

Lucky Moon Farm CSA 2016- Week 1!

Hi everyone,
Welcome to the 2016 growing season! If this is your first time in our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture, fyi), thanks for joining us! We hope you enjoy partnering directly with a local farmer. We'll work hard to grow truly superb produce for you and your family to enjoy.

In the bags this week are a variety of tasty greens and other spring treats. Here's the lineup:
Salad Mix
Spinach
Radishes
Arugula
Rhubarb

I love the spring greens- after a drab, long, grey winter, those vibrant, juicy leaves are packed with all sorts of goodness! So make a big bowl of salad, or a skillet of wilted spinach or a pasta with arugula pesto and restore some green to your menu.

I don't usually consider myself a radish fan- the flavor of them raw is a bit sharp for my taste. Though I know they are great to pep up a salad or toss in a stir fry for some spicy crunch. But, if like me, you've never been in love with the little red beauties, why not try roasting them with some butter and maple syrup? I had never seen this before, but I was at an event where I was volunteering in the kitchen, and my job was to sautee radishes in butter and maple syrup until they were soft. They were completely transformed into sweet, tender root veggies that made a beautiful and tasty side dish.  I don't have the exact recipe, but here's a similar one I found where you bake the radishes:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/roasted-maple-syrup-baked-radishes-recipe-zmrz11zalt.aspx

And rhubarb! One of my all time favorite things- It seems like such improbable food. If you've never seen a rhubarb plant, it's a giant mess of big leathery leaves and red/green stalks. We eat the stalks (never the leaves, because they are mildly poisonous) and when raw, they taste really sour and are crunchy and rather unappetizing. But pair rhubarb with strawberries, blueberries, or just a fair bit of sugar and it's delicious. 

So, off to do more planting! This time of year is a big rush to get everything seeded and transplanted right on schedule. The peas are up, the beans are planted and tomorrow we transplant the outdoor tomatoes.

So enjoy your veggies and we'll see you next week!

All the best,
Sarah VanNorstrand
for Lucky Moon Farm

2014 CSA Week 10

Hello everyone,
Welcome to another week of beautiful veggies. I love the produce right now- the colors are so vibrant, and the plants are so productive! The tomatoes are flourishing in the greenhouse, though unfortunately, we did have to pull out and destroy the outdoor tomatoes due to an attack of Late Blight (for more information, see below). The summer squash is going at it full tilt, and the eggplant are producing a staggering amount of incredibly beautiful fruit. It's a nice time of year to be working on a farm growing food.

In your bags this week:

Salad Mix or Mixed Asian Greens
Summer Squash
White Onion or Purple Scallions
Basil
Green and Wax Beans
Carrots
Tomatoes
Cherry Tomatoes (remember to wash these and the large tomatoes before eating! We're spraying an organic agriculture-approved product to protect them from the blight. But you still don't want to eat it...)
Eggplant-all the regular shares on Thursday got it this week

Some recipe ideas to share:

Eggplant... a lot of people assume they don't like eggplant, but if you're like me, you probably just haven't been exposed to it very often, or in one of it's tastier forms. Recently, I've become an Eggie convert. When cooked long enough, it becomes incredibly tender and flavorful. Here are some ways to try preparing it:

1) Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch thick rounds or slices, brush with olive oil, then coat with (spiced) bread crumbs. Bake them on a cookie sheet in a 400 degree oven until tender and browned. Serve with pasta and tomato sauce, or just eat them up as a side dish!

2) Make a simple version of ratatouille by layering sliced summer squash, tomatoes and eggplant in an oiled casserole dish, adding a little olive oil between each layer, then top with bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Bake in a hot oven until all the layers are cooked through and tender. 400-450 degrees for about an hour? But check it sooner in case I'm not remembering correctly.

3) You can also take the whole eggplant, skip peeling it, but rub it with oil and poke it a few times with a fork. Stick it under the broiler and cook it about 20 minutes, turning it occasionally, until it's charred on all sides and the insides are soft. Remove it from the oven, allow it to cool, then cut it open and the insides can be scooped out and used to make Baba Ghanoush (Greek) or Baingan Bharta (Indian), both of which are excellent.

Asian Greens... I'll admit, I don't always know what to do with greens. But whenever we harvest the Asian Greens, I munch a few leaves and I feel like there must be some excellent ways to prepare these highly flavorful, zingy greens. I was speaking with my friend (who's an excellent cook and also a Lucky Moon CSA member) and he recommended this recipe:

Asian Greens Stir Fry

2 Cloves Garlic, minced,

1 Hot Pepper Sliced in rings (optional)

1 big handful of Green/Yellow beans, trimmed

2 summer squash/zucchini sliced thick (too thin and they get mushy)

2 large handfuls of Asian greens rinsed (make sure to spin or shake off excess water)

Sauce:

1 TBSP Oyster Sauce

1 TBSP Soy Sauce

1/2 TBSP Rice Vinegar

1/2 tsp ground fresh Galangal or Ginger

1/2 tsp Sesame Oil

1 clove minced garlic

3 shakes/dashes cumin

1. Mix all sauce ingredients in small bowl

2. Heat 2 Tbsp Veg. Oil (oil with high smoking pt) over medium high heat in wok.

3. Add garlic, beans, and pepper (if using)

4. Let brown 1-2 minutes. Stir, let brown 1-2 minutes. (DONT OVERSTIR ,just a quick stir to keep it from sticking. Once is fine)

5 Add Zucchini and Squash, stir brieflly

6. Let brown 1-2 minutes. Stir, let brown 1-2 minutes.

7. Add Greens and turn heat to Medium Low. Stir constantly, and after 3 minutes taste the greens until they're cooked enough that the texture and spiceyness are to your liking.

8. Add sauce and serve over rice or lomein noodles.

9. Lomein noodles can be started after the greens have been added. If you add them to the wok, add them after the sauce and stir.

Late Blight

So Late Blight has officially hit Central New York for 2014. If you're a home gardener, please pay attention to this information, because it is up to all of us to do what we can to keep this nasty fungal disease at bay. First of, tomatoes can get a few different fungal diseases (commonly Early Blight and Septoria) which are detrimental to the plants, but won't usually kill them outright. These are characterized by brown spots and patches on the lower leaves, including yellowing and a bulls-eye effect on the leaves. Septoria is notable for its thousands of tiny black dots that appear all over the leaves and sometimes the stems. These are all bad. But Late Blight is really bad. It appears as black splotches on the leaves and black patches on the stems. It spreads incredibly quickly, especially in wet, humid, cool conditions (sound familiar?) and it will kill the tomato (or potato) crop. Once you see the black splotches on the stem, and on more than just a few leaves, you should pull the plants and put them in garbage bags and leave them in the sun to heat up. DO NOT compost the plants or leave them lying around. The spores of the fungi are airborne, and can spread miles around to infect your neighbors and neighboring farms. It's really disappointing to pull out what see like mostly healthy tomato plants, but it needs to be done. It's pretty impossible to save the plants once they've been hit, and especially with the weather conditions we've been having lately.


Also, potato plants are susceptible to the disease, but it can be harder to tell with them because often by the time they catch it, the plants are starting to die back anyways, as they normally do as the potatoes grow and mature underground. Because of this, it's best to always avoid putting potato plants or actual potatoes into your compost pile, because they could be carrying the disease and any volunteer potato plants that grow out of your compost pile could be broadcasting the fungal spores. Also, it's really necessary these days to plant seed potatoes that are certified disease-free. In the old days, you could simply save some extra potatoes from the previous year's harvest to plant in the ground for more potatoes. But that was before Late Blight occurred in the area. Now that it's here, planting your own seed potatoes is a really good way to accidentally spread the blight.

For more information, check out some articles on the Cornell Cooperative Extension Website.

Hope this was helpful- and thanks for taking the time to read it and put the methods into practice!

Be well and make good food for each other!
Best,
Sarah VanNorstrand
for Lucky Moon Farm

2014 CSA Week 9

Hello,
I can't believe it's already August! The weeks are flying by...
As you probably have heard, we've been having some ups and downs at the farm recently. It looks like we're going to have to pull all the outdoor tomato plants because of late blight (a really nasty disease!). So that's been a real bummer. Tomatoes are our most time-intensive crop, so losing so many is really disappointing. But if we don't pull them soon, the disease could spread to the greenhouse tomatoes or even the potatoes, which we want to avoid at all costs. So it goes- 

But other crops are doing well. The beans are really producing, the summer squash is up and running, and the indoor tomatoes are looking great! We have the first ones to distribute this week. 

In your bags:
Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes
Summer squash
Green/Yellow (Wax) beans
Spinach
Kale
Salad mix
White onions or Purple scallions
Some people received eggplant

Lots of nice stuff! 
Here's a recipe from one of our members- tried and tested on her family of 6.

Savory Spinach Salad

1 1/8c. cooked Einkorn wheat
2 T. spicy brown mustard
2 T. red wine vinegar
4 T. olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 yellow squash, halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise 1/4 in. thick (I used zucchini, too)
1 c. button mushrooms (I left these out)
2 c. fresh baby spinach
4 scallions, thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, whisk together mustard, vinegar, 2 T. oil, salt and pepper.  In a skillet, heat remaining 2 T. oil.  Add onion and cook until golden brown.  Add squash, mushrooms, and spinach.  Cook, stirring until tender.  Remove from heat; transfer to a bowl.  Add cooked einkorn, scallions, and vinaigrette; gently toss.