It’s been a wetter season so far than we’ve been used to in recent years, so we took advantage of a couple of warm and sunny days last week to kill some weeds! Carmella, Siobhan and Anna all got some quality time atop our cultivating tractors. We also made a big dent in putting down landscape fabric in between beds (the landscape fabric prevents weeds from growing so that we don’t have to hand weed, hoe or cultivate with tractors all season long). This week we are bracing for some stormy weather. While thunderstorms can make it challenging to safely accomplish important field tasks like harvesting, they do force us under cover for some equally important tasks like seeding in our greenhouse and trellising in our high tunnels!

In the CSA this week:

Beets - The variety that we are harvesting this week is a classic red variety.
Red mizuna - a mild green with pinkish-red stems. These leaves are large and best for cooking.
Mustard greens - Usually these are cooked, but they can also make a colorful and spicy addition to a salad!
Garlic scapes
Fennel
Summer squash
Zucchini
Slicing cucumbers
Carrots
Radishes - We’ll have both the red cherriette variety as well as a new purple variety we are trying out this year!
Salad turnips
Curly kale or Swiss chard
Lettuce
Salanova lettuce mix
Arugula

CSA Pick-Your-Own:

Shelling peas - Unlike snap peas, you do not eat the pods. You “shell” them (remove the pods) and enjoy the fresh peas inside!
Herbs - sage, thyme, parsley, dill, cilantro and basil

In the farm store:

In addition to the items listed in the CSA, we will have seedlings, pickling cucumbers, seedless thin-skinned cucumbers, kohlrabi, bok choi and daikon radish. We will also have mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm and eggs from Pete and Jen’s.

We accept credit card, cash, check and EBT in the farm store. The farm store is open Tuesday - Friday 11am - 6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. We also continue to take online pre-orders for Wednesday and Friday pick-up. The link for online orders is https://openfoodnetwork.net/barrett-s-mill-farm/shop#/shop. Online ordering currently opens at 6pm on Tuesday for Wednesday pick-up and 6pm on Thursday for Friday pick-up.

Mushroom CSA:

You may come to pick up your mushrooms anytime the farm store is open (Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm). Your mushrooms will be kept in the cooler and retrieved by the shopkeeper when you arrive at the store. It is the final week of the 8-week Spring Mushroom CSA!

Sautéed Summer Squash & Zucchini Ribbons

from America’s Test Kitchen

Ingredients:

1 small garlic clove, minced (or use garlic scapes!)
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 1 tablespoon juice
4 (6- to 8-ounce) yellow squash or zucchini, trimmed
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 ½ tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Before you begin:

To avoid overcooking the squash, start checking for doneness at the lower end of the cooking time.

Instructions:

Combine garlic and lemon juice in large bowl and set aside for at least 10 minutes. Using vegetable peeler, shave each squash lengthwise into ribbons: Shave off 3 ribbons from 1 side, then turn squash 90 degrees and shave off 3 more ribbons. Continue to turn and shave ribbons until you reach seeds; discard core.

Whisk 2 tablespoons oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and lemon zest into garlic/lemon juice mixture.

Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add squash and cook, tossing occasionally with tongs, until squash has softened and is translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer squash to bowl with dressing, add parsley, and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to serving platter and serve immediately.