Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Week 2, May 2-8 Share Contents

Hi folks! I have pictures of the share contents for Week 2. To avoid forgetting to take the pictures, I photographed the produce pre-wash, so you'll notice soil on the veggies. They'll be nice and clean when you pick them up, of course. But it's always good to give them another cleaning before you use them. The only thing we don't wash at the farm are the strawberries, as they should only be washed right before eating them (to maintain their "shelf" life).

I also just printed out this week's newsletter. You can expect more in this newsletter compared with last week. This week we've included Michele McKinley's description of Farm It Forward, an idea Ben and I approached AHA (Advocates for Health in Action) in February. We're having our first fundraiser this Sunday at Market Restaurant. For more info on that, please see the preceding post. We've also include some basic information (storage and cooking instructions) to help members make good use of your weekly shares. We've highlighted bok choy, rainbow chard, lettuce and dill. And finally, Ben wrote a little segment we're calling "Farmer Musings" to let members know what's going on here on the farm. We hope you find the newsletters helpful.

Okay, now, for the pictures!



Here's a regular/small sized share. Everything is pictured here but the chard and the herbs.
Items in this weeks share include: strawberries, bok choy, tatsoi, beets, dill and cilantro, lettuce, spinach and scallions.







This is a green bib, called Nancy.

This is a red romaine, called Marvel the Four Seasons.
A recipe for tofu stuffed lettuce rolls is in the newsletter.

Tatsoi

Bok Choy. The newsletter includes a recipe for Stir-Fried Bok Choy with Cashew Sauce.

Spinach. We like to steam it all and eat it with eggs for breakfast.

These are scallions. The difference between scallions and green onions, is that green onions are basically baby (bulbing) onions, while scallions will not bulb.

Detroit Red Beets (for full shares only - but many more are on the way for all share sizes)

You can steam or saute the beet greens too!

Cilantro and Dill (a recipe for dill and horseradish biscuits is included in the newsletter)

Yummy, yummy strawberries! This variety is called Chandler. 




Here's Ben about to wash all of the produce. This week I completely forgot to get a picture of the Rainbow Chard, but I think y'all know what it looks like. And if you forgot, you can always check the Week 1 CSA Share post. We included a recipe for Swiss Chard Gratin in the newsletter.











Washing the spinach.
Well, I suppose that's it for now! If you have any questions or suggestions for how we can make your membership experience better, please feel free to send us email or give us a call.

Also, we would really love it if members would contribute some recipes of your own so we can share them with everyone.

Thanks for stopping by! Ben will see you at the pick ups and at market. I'm MIA for the time being, working on my doctoral exam (prelim) for global sociology. I take the exam Monday, May 16th. After that, you'll be seeing my face around a whole lot more! Ben told me a lot of folks from market wished me luck - thank you! I can certainly use it!

P.S. If you know folks that are interested in joining a CSA and you are happy with us, please let them know we are still accepting CSA members. We will prorate new members to account for missed pick ups.

8 comments:

  1. Everything looks delicious! Wish I was close enough to indulge in these beautiful and yummy fruits and veggies!

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  2. We wish you were close too! We can't wait til you get to make it south and come visit for a bit. We'll see you in July for the wedding :).

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  3. I sent two friends (and co-workers) your way, hopefully they will sign up!!

    :) Laura

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  4. Thanks, Laura! We hope they do too. Please let them know if they have any questions or concerns to give us a call or send us an email. We'll be happy to talk with them about the strengths and limitations of the CSA model and what we do to try to overcome those limitations and build on the strengths.

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  5. This is our first CSA experience, and this blog and the newsletter are super helpful, though I know they must take a lot of time. Also, we love the concept of Farm it Forward. Great idea!

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  6. Thanks, Jen! We're glad they help :). They do take time, but if it helps, then that time is well worth it!

    Thanks for the support for Farm It Forward. It's something Ben and I have been thinking about for a while. We're so happy to have found AHA, Energize!, Matt (of New Grass Gardens) and Chad (of Market Restaurant) to collaborate with. We're excited about the program and hearing that CSA members also support it, well, it makes us pretty happy.

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  7. Btw, Laura, I think one of your friends and co-workers did sign up! Thanks for spreading the word! We missed you at pick up today, but heard you were in a meeting. See you next week :).

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  8. Yes, Ann-she's excited about joining! Wish I could have been there-month of May is crunch time for teachers! We made reservations for the brunch at The Market on Sunday, so either see you there or next week. :) :)

    ~Laura

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