Farm updates and CSA Week 3!

It is crunch time for us on the farm! While we started devoting much of our time to harvesting, the weeds staked their claim in some of our fields! Pictured above are Molly, Rebecca and Janel working to weed and therefore rescue the leeks. Fortunately, the leeks are healthy due to early season care (tractor cultivation gave them a head start of the weeds) but it's now or never so we are happy to have the crew almost to full strength with Molly's return from school for the summer. This week we also had the help of Alice, a high school student and weekend waterer, who came out to the fields with us a couple of mornings to give us a boost.  Elsewhere on the farm experiments are reaping benefits such as in our greens field where we now plant an extra row per bed. Fertilizing, seeding 4 rows, hoeing, than covering, has produced lush stands of greens for a bountiful harvest while using up a smaller area.  This week we will continue, to plant, weed, harvest, and of course enjoy strawberry season!

This week in the CSA:

• Carrots - First harvest of the season!
• Beets - We will have two varieties to choose from: Boro and Chioggia. The Chioggia are a lighter red color and have white rings when sliced, the darker Boro are like the Red Ace beets we grow for much of the season and are slightly sweeter than the chioggia.
• Yukina Savoy - This tasty green is great in salads or lightly cooked.
• Scallions - It's the perfect week for stir fry!
• Curly kale
• Salanova lettuce mix
• Lettuce - We will have romaine, red leaf, panise (oakleaf), and more.
• Salad Turnips
• Radishes
• Arugula
• Baby Bok choi

CSA pick-your-own:

• Strawberries! All rows are still producing! Walk in the straw pathways and don't forget to check further down the row in case the first area has been picked more recently!
• Sugar Snap, Snow, and Shelling Peas - To pick, gently hold the plant in place while you snap the stem just above the pea pod. Remove the top before eating (For shelling peas remove the entire pod). There is a new planting of snap peas ready now, closest to the farm stand.
• Herbs - Cilantro, basil, sage, oregano, thyme, garlic chives and mint.

CSA pick-up hours

Tuesday and Thursday 11am - 6pm

Saturday 9am - 3pm

This week in the Farm Store:

We will have all of the veggies listed in the CSA available in the farm store. In addition, we will have Happy Rich mini broccoli, green garlic, fennel, mini daikon, and basil plants. We will also continue to sell Pete and Jen's Backyard Birds eggs, and mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm.

Farm Store Hours

Tuesday-Friday 11am - 6pm

Saturday 9am - 3pm

Cold Peanut Noodles

adapted from a recipe by Parsley on GenuisKitchen.com

NOODLES

• 1 lb spaghetti, or you can use linguine
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 1 cup chopped scallion
• 1 cup chopped sugar snap peas
• 1⁄4 cup chopped cilantro, can use parsley

SAUCE

• 1⁄3 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1⁄4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1⁄4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1⁄4-1⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1⁄4-1⁄2 teaspoon hot sauce, I use red pepper flakes
• sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of boiling water to a boil. Cook spaghetti noodles according to package directions; drain; rinse in very cold water and drain again.
2. Place cooled noodles in a large bowl and toss with the carrots, scallions, sugar snap peas and cilantro.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients until smooth.
4. Drizzle the sauce over noodles mixture; toss to coat well.
5. Serve room temp or cold.
6. Garnish with sesame seeds if desired.

Roasted Beet and Avocado Salad

from Frankies Spuntino

• 4 medium beets (about 1/2 pound each), scrubbed
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for rubbing
• 1/2 cup water
• Salt and freshly ground white pepper
• 1 cipollini onion, finely chopped, or 1/3 cup finely chopped sweet Spanish or white onion
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil or other mild vegetable oil
• 2 Hass avocados, cut into 3/4-inch pieces

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a small baking dish, rub the beets with olive oil. Add the water and season with salt and white pepper. Cover tightly with foil and roast for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or until tender when pierced with a knife. Let cool, then peel the beets and cut them into 3/4-inch pieces. Transfer to a large bowl. Meanwhile, in a blender, combine the chopped onion with the red wine vinegar, lemon juice, mustard and honey. Season with salt and white pepper and blend until smooth. With the machine on, add the grapeseed oil and the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a steady stream. Add the avocado to the roasted beets. Pour the onion dressing on top and toss gently to combine. Season the salad with salt and pepper and serve.

Beet Greens and Feta Pasta

from chowhound.com

• Kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 medium white onion, finely chopped
• 4 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 pounds beet greens, washed, ribs removed, and coarsely chopped (about 11 cups)
• 1 pound penne pasta
• 5 ounces crumbled feta (about 3/4 cup)

 Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. When shimmering, add the onion and garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook until the vegetables are translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the beet greens and cook until just wilted, about 3 minutes. Season well with salt and pepper, remove from heat, and reserve.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water Return the pasta to the pot and place over low heat. Add the reserved pasta water and the beet green mixture, then sprinkle in the crumbled feta. Stir until thoroughly combined and heated through. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.