CSA MEMBER NEWSLETTER HIGHCROSS CSA MEMBER NEWSLETTER FARM To everything there is a season, a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted. Finest F i n e s t Quality In This Issue Lotsa Rain In the Box this Week Pole Bean Blossoms 6/19/14 H i g h C r o s s F a r m HighCross Farm CSA Newsletter Summer Share Week #2 - June 19, 2014 Lotsa Rain True Confessions of an Organic Gardener This Week s Recipe from Chef Bernie Harvest Bell Curves Photos from the Farm This Week 2014 Summer CSA Shares are Available We rely on the rain to grow the food that keeps all of us alive. So we dare not complain, even when it is a whole lot more than we needed (4 inches this week with more on the way). It does, of course, make it difficult to keep up with the planting of seeds and transplants, which we do all summer long, in order to keep the produce coming. We ll work around the too wet soil as best as we can, between the rain drops. To learn more about how we determine what ends up in your share, see the article below Harvest Bell Curves. And Kath s article on Swiss Chard. We hope that you are enjoying the fruits of our labors. -Farmers Steve & Kath & Crew I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. 3 John 2 Recipes Note that your pick-up site host contact info is available (for most sites) through your CSA online account under Pick-up Directions. HighCross Farm Fresh Market Produce Steve & Kath Vogelmann W2292 Rustic Drive Campbellsport, WI 53010-3126 920-533- FARM (3276)
In the Box this Week Storage information: Lettuce, leafy greens (and all of the items in today s box) should be kept in the coldest area of your refrigerator, ideally on the lower level or in the crisper drawer. Place all items in plastic bags or wrap in a damp towel, to prevent wilting due to the dehydrating effect of refrigeration. Monitor the produce over time; it should be kept neither too wet nor too dry inside the plastic bag. Slightly open the bag if you see water droplets forming on the inside. Rainbow Swiss Chard - Chard is a member of the beet family, and therefore tastes similar to beet greens. Steam until tender or sauté with garlic and olive oil, or slice a little raw into your salad to add festive color. See the reprint of an article Kath wrote about her experience of getting to know chard. Lettuce - Two heads in all shares today. A gorgeous Red Butterhead variety named Skyphos, and either Green Summercrisp, Green Butterhead, or Green Oak Leaf. One head in all shares next week. Rainbow Swiss Chard at HighCross Farm Turnip Greens (Large share) - These are the green leafy tops from the last of the turnips which were harvested out of the hoophouse several weeks ago. Lettuce at HighCross Farm Spinach - Even more spinach this week than last. This crop is peaking; next week will probably be the last, for a while. Prefers cooler weather, so enjoy it while it lasts. It will keep for at least several weeks if properly stored. Great raw in a salad. Or steam just until tender, then serve with butter and salt. These leaves are large but very tender will melt in your mouth! Blanche and freeze any you cannot use. They should be considered to be a last minute bonus item; we were not planning on putting them in the share because the leaves have tiny holes from predation by a tiny beetle. These beetles LOVE to eat turnip greens some humans are not quite so enthusiastic about the taste. We suggest you use some in your next stir-fry or soup, or simply steam and serve with butter. They are loaded with nutrition. Let us know if you have a good recipe for using turnip greens. Here s a couple of links with more info and how-toprepare: Turnip greens How to Cook Turnip Greens: 15 Steps - wikihow
Garlic Chives - Garlic Chives taste like...well, garlic and chives. Use anywhere you would use chives with garlic flavor. Will keep a long time refrigerated, or preserve as described below. Good chopped on potatoes with sour cream, or in a salad, or omelette. This is a good supply, which will last a long time if you put some up to store. To preserve, chives can be cut into small pieces and dried; or simply chop up and store in a ziplock bag or container in the freezer, to sprinkle out as needed (best used in cooking, as the texture will not be the same as when fresh). Use to make Kale Spread (see recipes below). See the recipe for Cheddar and Chive Biscuits below. Also, the following link has many recipes which use chives: http:// www.recipe4all.com/dishes/contain-chives/ Large Share: Lettuce Spinach Rainbow Swiss Chard Turnip Greens Garlic Chives Fresh Herb - Oregano Small Share: Lettuce Spinach Rainbow Swiss Chard Garlic Chives Fresh Herb - Oregano Tentative list of some of the items in next week s share: Lettuce Spinach Maybe Baby Beets, Green Onions, Bulb Fennel, Kohlrabi Herb of the Week - Oregano - The pizza herb, often used in Italian cooking. Good with tomatoes. Try it in an omelet. Great to use when grilling. If there is more than you can use now, oregano dries beautifully; hang a sprig up in your kitchen to dry. When fully dry, put it in a ziplock bag to extend the season throw some in a soup next winter. Or you can freeze it in zip lock bags for future use. Potato blossoms at HighCross Farm Note that we are thinking about postponing CSA delivery during the 4th of July week and tacking that delivery onto the end of the season. Our reasoning is primarily two-fold: First, many people are out-of-town over July 4th weekend. Second, there will be a gap in the gardens production about that time. Fresh Oregano at HighCross Farm We ll let you know the final decision by next delivery day, if not before.
True Confessions of an Organic Gardener: A word from Kath about Chard, reprinted from our July 9, 2009 newsletter: I have a confession to make: I never really liked Swiss Chard. I was in somewhat of a quandary because I loved to grow Swiss chard, but I never got around to eating it. Draped in a rainbow of vibrant colors, Bright Lights Swiss chard is one of the most visually stunning garden plants there is. When you come upon it in the garden, it is a virtual visual feast. But for me that s all it ever was: a VISUAL feast. It would pile up in my refrigerator, beautiful, but uneaten. Then I discovered the secret of chard: treat it as two plants in one, the stems and the leaves. Now I separate the stems from the leaves and treat them as two separate things. I use the stems in the same way I use celery: I ve used them in soups and stews, even in chili. The leaves I use as a green in any way you use spinach or beet greens. After the stems and leaves are cooked, you can add them back together again if you like. However, if you cook them together, by the time the stems are done, the leaves are usually way overdone. Now I love feasting my eyes on chard, as well as feasting on chard. Here is a really good recipe that uses Bright Lights Chard stems. They are delicious in any kind of a cream sauce. Vegetables From Amaranth to Zucchini by Elizabeth Schneider This comprehensive book is a market manual, an encyclopedia and a treasure trove of recipes for over 350 vegetables. Stunning photographs as well as chef commentary on selection and preparation tips make it a bible for the kitchen gardener. There's no reason to throw out perfectly good chard stems when a recipe calls for just the leaves. This thrifty dish reveals just how delicious the entire chard plant can be. Chard stems from which the leaves have been removed can be refrigerated in a sealed plastic bag, so you can cook the leaves one day and the stems the next. HarperCollins Publishers (available at www.amazon.com) Chard Stems with Golden Onions and Fresh Bread Crumbs 1 pound chard stems (about 12 large stems) 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 medium onions, minced 1/2 cup heavy cream Freshly ground black pepper Salt 1 cup fresh bread crumbs Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Trim off any bruised parts off the stems. Add the chard stems; salt to taste. Cook until the stems are almost tender, about 8 minutes. Drain and reserve the stems. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Use 1 tablespoon of the butter to grease a 13" x 9" glass or ceramic baking dish. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium skillet. Add the onions and sauté over medium heat until richly colored, about 8 minutes. Add the cream and simmer just until thickened, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Arrange the chard stems in a single layer in the greased baking dish. Drizzle the onion mixture over the chard. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Bake until the crumbs are golden-brown and the cream has glazed the chard, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately. Serves 4 as a side dish.
This Week s Recipe from Chef Bernie My favorite springtime summer salad...... Spring s around the Corner is the name. Ingredients: Mixed salad greens, gorgonzola cheese, candied pecans, sliced fresh pears. Balsamic vinaigrette dressing. Candy your pecans by putting a small amount of water in a fry pan and add brown sugar till it is thicker liquid. Stir in chopped pecans and make sure they are coated with liquid. Repeat these steps until you have enough liquid to cover your desired pecans. Put wax paper down on a cookie sheet and spread pecans evenly over wax paper; bake at 300 F. using a spatula to make sure all parts of pecans are cooked. Chef Bernie always makes extra so he can use em again on another salad; should last one month sealed. How to make balsamic dressing: 1 cup of balsamic vinegar of Modena, 2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil. 1 teaspoon of sugar, 2 teaspoons of chopped garlic. Shake in salad bottle and let marinate for at least one hour. Enjoy the taste sensations. - Chef Bernie. HighCross Farm Lettuce
Harvest Bell Curves Many crops have an approximately 3 week primary harvest period; so we plant crops more than once, in succession, during most of the growing season. For example, each week we plant another 600 or so lettuce seeds into seedling flats for transplanting out about 4-5 weeks later. Then it takes another 4-5 weeks in the ground for the lettuce plants to reach maturity. Most crops do not ripen all at once; they tend to follow a bell curve pattern, with a few ripe plants or fruits at the beginning, then reaching a peak, and then tapering off. This often presents a challenge for a CSA operation, because early and late in a particular harvest, there is often not enough of the harvest to go around for all the CSA shares, whereas at the peak of the harvest, there is often too much. We have several ways to help with these uneven numbers. One of the main ways we can deal with this is because we offer 2 different sizes of shares. The first week, one size of share receives the item, the next week the other size; then back again to the other size, repeating, until that particular crop harvest is complete. During peak harvest times, both boxes may receive the item. presents a challenge in maintaining a steady production schedule. Here in Wisconsin, the majority of vegetable crops are not ready for harvest until the second half of the season. That is why CSA boxes are typically light until the middle of August, when the frostsensitive plants first start producing, such as peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, and beans. Unlike some CSAs, we cull produce we do not think is high enough quality for our CSA members. It must LOOK good, as well as TASTE good, in order to make the cut here at HighCross Farm. Therefore we often end up with what we call B quality produce - blemished by physical injury, or insect or disease damage. We send some of this home with the workers or to the local food pantry, and offer some for sale on the web store. We will offer grade B tomatoes for sale when they come in, if you are looking for a quantity of canning quality tomatoes. More info when the time comes. We will be offering one or more deliveries of fall harvest shares starting sometime in November, depending upon how the year end harvest goes. Another tool that we and many CSAs use is to sell under-producing and over-producing crops wholesale to restaurants and grocery stores. We also sell these odds and ends through the web store. Some of our planting beds will grow three successive crops on them during the season. Weather, of course, is a huge factor, and can speed up or slow down a crop. Some crops prefer hot weather, whereas others prefer cool. Atypical weather Ripe Tomatoes at HighCross Farm
Photos from the Farm This Week Several of the wonderful HighCross Farm Team Members on lunch break. Adrianna, Natalie, Allison, and Tim. Oh, and Little Lizzie on the picnic table.
Photos from the Farm This Week Rain puddles in the radish seedlings :-( First fruit on the hoophouse tomatoes Green Onions sizing up Kohlrabi sizing up Red Norland Potatoes doing great Next week s lettuce sizing up, with broccoli beyond
2014 Summer CSA Shares are Available Shares for the 2014 Summer CSA seasons are still available, as we are increasing the size of our operation again this year. Price will be automatically prorated during the sign-up process. (The 2014 Fall/Winter Share will again be offered and open for enrollments in late summer.) Up to this point in time, we have been able to hold the line on the cost of our CSA shares for the third year! Howsoever, due to potential volatility in the economy and the possibility of price increases from our suppliers and for fuel, we may eventually have to raise prices for new sign-ups. Lock-in the same price as 2012 and 2013 by signing-up and making payment now. Make your payment in full, or the first half of the 2-payment installment plan (2nd payment due July 1, 2014). Or contact us to make other arrangements, as we do not want to turn anyone away. To sign-up click here: CSA 2014 HighCross Farm Lettuce seedlings for the Summer Share Consider giving a 2014 Summer Share to someone you care about a gift that keeps giving all season long.
Recipes - Kale & Chives HighCross Farm CSA Member Nancy sent us this note: Newbie here. I noticed that you occasionally feature recipes from your subscribers. I experimented with the kale in my first share by using it in a dip/spread recipe my aunt would make. It's quick, easy and inexpensive. Feel free to try it yourself and share with others... the photography is my own, so there's no copyright and you're free to reproduce it, along with my variation on my aunt's recipe. (She would make this recipe using cucumber and dill.) Ingredients: 1 bunch of chives (maybe a dozen stems?) Leaves from 3 stalks of kale 1 package of cream cheese Seasoning salt (such as Penzey's 4S or Lawry's) to taste Chop chives and kale using a food processor, hand blender, or your own muscles and a sharp knife. Soften the cream cheese in the microwave and add the green chopped chives and kale. Stir until uniform in distribution of green flecks. Add seasoning salt to taste. Serve on crackers of choice. We found garlic Triscuits and rosemary olive oil Triscuits to be our favorites. If you want to be even healthier, serve on celery stalks. Enjoy. P.S. I would really like to try this recipe using a creamy goat cheese such as a Montchevre in lieu of the cream cheese, but that quadruples the price. (If you make your own goat cheese, you may not be at this disadvantage.) If I collect enough spare change in the car to buy some goat cheese, I may try out this variation on the theme.
More Recipes 4. Add the buttermilk and combine until just mixed. 5. Stir in the chives. 6. Place the dough on a lightly floured clean surface. Knead for a minute then form into a 3/4 inch high circle. 7. Using a 2 1/2 inch (6 cm) biscuit cutter, cut into rounds and place on the baking sheet. 8. Gather any scraps and form together to make the last few biscuits. 9. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Chives Blooming at HighCross Farm CHEDDAR CHIVE BISCUITS (Makes 12) *If you don't have butter milk, place 1 Tbsp. lemon juice in a measuring cup. Add milk to reach 3/4 cup. Options: For a nice finish on the biscuits, you can brush with an egg wash before baking. (Whisk 1 egg along with 1 Tbsp. water.) Recipe from the London Free Press, April 29, 2009: 2 cups (500 ml) of all purpose flour 1/2 cup (125 ml) grated white or yellow old cheddar cheese 1 Tbsp. (15 ml) baking powder 1 tsp. (5 ml) salt 1/2 cup (125 ml) cold unsalted butter, diced *3/4 cup (175 ml) buttermilk 1/3 cup (75 ml) chopped fresh chives 1. Preheat oven to 400 F (200C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. In a large bowl combine the flour, cheese, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine. 3. Add the butter and cut in with a fork or a pastry blender until the butter is about the size of small peas.
Recipes: From Chef John Scheepers Website: Jo-Anne van den Berg-Ohms John Scheepers Bantam, Connecticut It may sound strange but these herbed butter balls are a real life saver in the kitchen for all of us short-order cooks. Herbed Butter Balls Unsalted butter, room temperature Lemon zest Garlic Ginger root Fresh herbs: basil, chervil, chives, dill, lemongrass, marjoram, oregano, parsley, sage, savory, tarragon or thyme It may sound strange but these herbed butter balls are a real life saver in the kitchen for all of us short-order cooks. In a medium mixing bowl, blend butter until soft and creamy. Add your favorite combinations of finely chopped herbs, lemon zest, minced garlic or finely grated ginger root and mix to blend. Refrigerate until almost firm. By spoonfuls, roll the herbed butter mixture into little balls and place on a cookie sheet with sides and freeze until solid. Once frozen, remove from the cookie sheet and freeze in airtight, plastic freezer bags, labeled by flavor and dated. Use as you like to pan sear scallops and fish or to deglaze skillets after swordfish steaks, salmon or boneless chicken breasts: then add snow peas, asparagus tips, roasted bell peppers or whatever wonderful vegetables you have on hand to create spontaneous and easy masterpieces. It is also nice to use your signature herbed butters on toast points for hors d oeuvres. Don t be shy: experiment and create different herbed butters with international flavors: French (chervil, chives, marjoram, parsley, tarragon, thyme or sage), Italian (basil, garlic, oregano, parsley, sage or savory) or Asian (chives, coriander aka cilantro, lemongrass, Siam Queen basil or grated ginger root). Recipe Seeds: Basil, Chervil, Chives, Dill, Lemongrass, Marjoram, Oregano, Parsley, Sage, Thyme