Farm updates and CSA week 1!

This week the crew planted over 2,000 pepper plants in just one afternoon! The last week of May was a planting frenzy that ended with peppers, eggplant, lettuce, cucumbers, and husk cherries all out of the greenhouse and into the ground.  Most of our time not spent harvesting or planting was used to cultivate, hoe and hand weed to be sure that our crops have the sunlight and nutrients they need to grow. This week we will try to keep up the weeding and planting momentum while also harvesting for the CSA and farm store! A note about the harvest: While our vegetables often look clean, you should definitely wash at home before eating. There is a lot of pollen on the farm this week so even rinsing off strawberries is a good idea, especially if you have seasonal allergies!  Flower CSA members, picking officially begins in early July when our flower field begins to bloom. We will send out an email before the flower season begins. However, if you are interested in picking the early season flowers for some of your allotted bouquets (mainly sweet william and yarrow) please contact melissa@barrettsmillfarm.com to arrange. 

This week in the CSA:

• Salanova Lettuce Mix - this cut lettuce mix is similar to mesclun, but a little crisper and will keep well in a plastic bag in your refrigerator for about a week.
• Bok Choi - Great in stir fry - see recipe below!
• Radishes - A crunchy, peppery addition to salads! They can also be lightly sauteed for a more mild flavor. 
• Scallions 
• Spinach
• Salad Turnips - Also known as hakurei, salad turnips look like white radishes but are sweet rather than spicy and free of the peppery flavor of radishes. 
• Red Russian Kale - Great raw in salads or lightly cooked. 
• Arugula - A slightly spicy salad green. It is great in sandwiches and as a pizza topping. 
• Scarlet Frills Mustard Greens - A spicy purple "green!" It can be eaten raw in salads for a spicy kick or cooked for a more mild flavor. 
• Fennel - Our fennel is smaller than the bulbs you'll often find in the grocery store but it has the same light licorice flavor.
• Baby Bok Choi - The baby version of bok choi is a different variety than our full size version and it's so sweet I like to eat it raw! It is also popular grilled. 
• Lettuce: Panisse (a variety of green oakleaf), Red and Green Leaf and the first of the Romaine and Butterhead

CSA pick-your-own:

We hope you enjoy the pick-your-own! We welcome children into the fields but please always have an adult with younger visitors to help. Please walk in the pathways  (along the grass and down tire tracks or straw mulched pathways depending on the crop) as other areas may look like just dirt but are likely newly seeded rows!

• Strawberries! The first few rows (closest to the farm stand) are the first to ripen! Pick the brightest red berries you can find. Check the tip of the berry to be sure the tip isn't still white before you remove it from the plant. To harvest, pinch the stem just above the fruit to avoid pulling on the plant. 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 Peas - You can eat the whole pod and the peas of this sweet crunch snack! To pick, gently hold the plant in place while you snap the stem just above the pea pod. Remove the top before eating. These are just starting to come in so pick the largest pods you can find to keep the small ones growing for future weeks! We are picking from the rows furthest from the farm stand this week (you'll pass future plantings of peas that do not yet have pods on them on your way out). Make sure to keep walking until you see the sign!

 

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. We will be picking strawberries for the farm store all week and sugar snap peas at the end of the week. In addition, we will have Pete and Jen's Backyard Birds eggs, and mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm.  We will also continue to sell basil plans and will be selling the first of our own Sweet William flowers of the season! 

Farm Store Hours

Tuesday-Friday 11am - 6pm

Saturday 9am - 3pm

Stir-Fried Bok Choy or Sturdy Greens

By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN

INGREDIENTS

• 12 to 16 ounces bok choy
• ¼ cup chicken broth, vegetable broth or water
• 1 tablespoon Shao Hsing rice wine or dry sherry
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• ¼ teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon peanut or canola oil
• 3 garlic cloves, smashed with the flat side of a chef’s knife or minced
• 1 slice ginger, smashed with the flat side of a chef’s knife or minced
• Salt to taste
• ¼ teaspoon sugar
• 1 to 2 teaspoons sesame seeds, to taste

PREPARATION

1. If using bok choy, trim off the bottoms and separate into stalks. Rinse if necessary and drain on paper towels. Cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces.  Bring an inch of water to a boil in the bottom of a steamer, and place the bok choy or greens in the steamer basket. Steam 1 minute, remove from the heat and rinse with cold water. Squeeze out excess water and drain on a kitchen towel.

2. Combine the broth or water, rice wine or sherry, soy sauce and cornstarch in a small bowl and place within arm’s reach of your pan. Have the remaining ingredients measured out and near the pan.

3. Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok or a 12-inch skillet over high heat until a drop of water evaporates within a second or two when added to the pan. Swirl in the oil by adding it to the sides of the pan and swirling the pan, then add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 10 seconds, until fragrant. Add the bok choy or greens, sprinkle with salt and the sugar, and stir-fry for about 30 seconds. Stir the cornstarch mixture and swirl into the wok, then stir-fry 1 minute, or until the greens are just tender. Sprinkle on the sesame seeds. Remove from the heat and serve.

Roast Chicken With Fennel

MARK BITTMAN

INGREDIENTS

• ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil, or as needed
• 2 bulbs fennel, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
•  Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 whole (about 3-pound) chicken, cut up, or about 3 pounds drumsticks and thighs
•  Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish
•  Lemon wedges

PREPARATION

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Drizzle bottom of shallow roasting pan or baking sheet with about half the olive oil and cover it with a layer of the fennel. Overlap pieces if necessary but use whole pan. Drizzle remaining oil over fennel and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cut up chicken if necessary and sprinkle the pieces with salt and pepper.
2. Top fennel with the chicken parts, skin side up. Ideally, you'll have a layer of fennel pretty much covered by a layer of chicken, but it's fine if some of the fennel roasts uncovered. Spoon some of the oil from bottom of pan over chicken. If there is not enough, drizzle additional olive oil over the chicken. Roast about 15 minutes, then baste chicken with pan drippings and rotate the pan. If necessary, adjust oven temperature so chicken browns but does not burn.
3. The chicken will be done in about 30 minutes. Serve each piece with some fennel and a little of the pan juices spooned over, garnished with parsley and a lemon wedge.