Irrigation Frenzy and CSA Week 4

Our soils are naturally quite sandy, but the recent lack of rain combined with the heat has made our fields sometimes feel like a beach rather than a vegetable farm! With the last substantial rain of the season occurring on June 5th, setting up and running irrigation has been one of the primary tasks on the farm for the past 3 weeks (aside from the usual harvesting, planting and weeding that occupy our time every June!).

Our systems for irrigation vary by crop, depending on factors like how long the crop is in the ground before harvesting, the length of harvest window, how the irrigation system fits in with the weed control methods used on the crop, and also how the nearby crops get irrigated. Many of our heat-loving summer crops, like tomatoes, squash, eggplant and peppers, are planted into black plastic mulch with a drip irrigation line running underneath. These crops have been holding up the best during the hot dry weather, as the plastic mulch helps hold moisture and nutrients in the soil around the plants.

Not everything can be planted into a nice moist plastic-covered environment, however. Some crops like carrots, beets, potatoes and greens are seeded directly into the bare ground. Many transplanted crops, like lettuce, are in the ground for too short a time to justify the effort of laying plastic and drip lines (lettuce also doesn't appreciate the extra heat in the soil generated by black plastic). For these crops, we often set up low-volume overhead sprinklers to keep the soil moist while seeds are germinating or transplants are settling in to life outside the greenhouse.

In spite of our vigorous irrigation efforts, we haven't had enough time to give all of our crops the water that they need, and a few crops have suffered as a result. Strawberries and peas saw a slightly earlier-than-usual demise due to the dry heat. Some of our lettuce plantings have also struggled this past week. Overall, though, we are happy that we've managed to sustain most of our crops, and the future is looking bright for our summer and fall crops!

In the Vegetable CSA:

• Summer squash
• Zucchini
• Carrots
• Beets
• Scallions
• Garlic Scapes
• Kohlrabi
• Kale
• Chard
• Lettuce
• Salanova
• Arugula
• Red Russian Kale
• Baby Bok Choi

CSA Pick-your-own: Strawberries and peas were finished off by the drought, and beans and sunflowers are still a week or two away, so this week the picking is the following herbs:

• Basil
• Cilantro
• Dill
• Sage
• Thyme
• Parsley

In the store: All of the crops available in the CSA will also be available in the store. In addition we will have eggs, mushrooms and possibly radishes.

Vegetable Summer Rolls

Gourmet | May 2001

Peanut sauce

• 3 tablespoons finely chopped onion
• 1 small garlic clove (or one garlic scape), minced
• 3/4 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
• 1 teaspoon tomato paste
• 3/4 teaspoon sugar

Summer rolls

• 1 ounce bean thread noodles (cellophane noodles)
• 1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
• 4 (8-inch) rice-paper rounds
• 2 lettuce leaves, ribs cut out and discarded and leaves halved
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced baby bok choi
• 1/3 cup coarsely shredded carrot (1 medium)
• You can also add scallions or shredded kohlrabi

Make sauce:

Cook onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes in oil in a small heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring, until pale golden, about 4 minutes. Whisk in remaining sauce ingredients. Simmer, whisking, 1 minute, then cool.

Make summer rolls:

Cover noodles with boiling-hot water and soak 15 minutes, then drain well in a sieve. Pat dry between paper towels and toss with vinegar and salt to taste. Put a double thickness of paper towel on a work surface and fill a shallow baking pan with warm water. Soak 1 rice-paper round (make sure there are no holes) in warm water until pliable, 30 seconds to 1 minute, then transfer to paper towels. Arrange 1 piece of lettuce on bottom half of soaked rice paper, folding or tearing to fit and leaving a 1-inch border along edge. Spread one fourth of peanut sauce over lettuce and top with one fourth each of mint, basil, cabbage, and noodles. Roll up rice paper tightly around filling and, after rolling halfway, arrange one fourth of cilantro and carrot along crease. Then fold in sides and continue rolling. Transfer summer roll to a plate and cover with dampened paper towels. Make 3 more rolls in same manner. Serve rolls halved on the diagonal.

Happy Summer! CSA Week 3

It is officially summer and we feel it on the farm as we finish the spring planting of many of our fruiting crops and spend more of our time harvesting, mulching, and weeding.  And irrigating! Some of the crops that are on their way out will see the effect of the dry weather the most but we are working hard to lay out more irrigation and keep up with our rotation for irrigating the crops to come. The changing of the season is also evident in the harvest this week with the arrival of the first carrots of the season! Other early summer vegetables such as summer squash and cabbage will be following close behind in the coming weeks.  Just as we pass one milestone, another appears ahead to demand our attention. It is time for us to start seeding and planting the crops for fall! This week we will plant our Brussels sprouts, finish our winter squash planting, and seed our fall root crops.

In the Vegetable CSA:

• Carrots: The first of the season! This variety is called Nelson.
• Garlic Scapes: Tastes just like garlic but looks like a work of art! Scapes are the stem and flower of the garlic plant and have a mild garlic flavor when chopped up and used raw or lightly cooked.
• Scallions: Our scallions have light thrip damage to the tops but it does nothing to distract from the great flavor these add to early summer cooking.
• Arugula
• Mustard Greens: These colorful and spicy greens
• Kohlrabi
• Fennel
• Yukina Savoy
• Red Ace Beets
• Curly Kale
• Lettuce: Despite the hot weather we still have a nice selection of spring lettuce varieties this week.
• Salanova Lettuce Mix

CSA Pick-your-own:

• Strawberries
• Sugar snap and snow peas:Remember to look on the underside of plants that have fallen to one side to find the biggest peas.
• Parsley
• Cilantro: Please excuse the weeds! We will work to clean it up this week.
• Dill
• Basil: First of the season! Please pinch the tops to encourage future growth.

In the store: All crops listed above for the CSA will also be available in the farm store.  We will also have some radishes, a new delivery of mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm in Westford, MA, and shell peas by the end of the week.

In the flower fields: The yarrow is just starting to bloom. If enough is ready we will open that bed for flower picking.

We love when folks pass on recipes that feature farm veggies! This recipe was shared with us by a CSA Member which he adapted from Men's Health.  If scallions are used they would need less cooking time to retain their flavor. 

Eggs with Arugula with Leeks

2 leeks or 1 onion (or 1 bunch Scallions, chopped)

2 tbsp butter

1 garlic clove, finely chopped (or 3 garlic scapes!)

pinch of salt

pepper to taste

6 to 8 cups baby arugula

2 tbsp white wine

4 eggs

Directions

In a large skillet, sauté leeks (or onions) in 2 Tbsp butter until soft. Add a finely chopped garlic

clove and a pinch of salt and cook until fragrant. Stir in baby arugula and white wine. Cook until

the greens wilt; season with more salt and some pepper. Crack in 4 eggs gently on top of

arugula, put the lid on, and cook over low heat until the eggs are lightly set.

Week of June 14th in the CSA and Farm Store!

This week of bountiful strawberry picking needs very little introduction, we hope everyone is enjoying their time on the farm!  The crew has been busy planting, weeding, and harvesting to be sure that the next crops are on their way to you.  Pictured above is Lauren, a part time crew member from last season who returned to help us out for a few months this spring. Lauren is now leaving to move to Berkeley, California as planned. We will miss her company and hard work out in the fields but have requested frequent updates! Fortunately the approaching end of the school year means an increase in crew members who are teachers and students including Juliana, Kathleen and Emma in the farm store. Kathleen and Emma have returned from last season and new to the farm is Juliana, a kindergarten teacher and our main weekday shopkeeper.  They have all begun to help out in the evenings after the school day and you will be seeing them more often when summer begins.  It is a big boost to have the additional help as well as more smiling faces around the farm!

In the store: All crops listed below for the CSA will also be available in the farm store including Red Ace and Chioggia beets. In addition we will have Happy Rich broccoli and basil plants for sale.  The strawberries have are coming in strong so they will be available every day again this week! 

In the flower fields: We continue to have Sweet William available for picking as well as in the Farm Store. PYO Flower CSA members can begin picking, and folks who are not members are welcome to purchase picking jars "a la carte."  This will likely be the last week for the Sweet William. Next to bloom: yarrow!

In the Vegetable CSA:

Kohlrabi!

• Kohlrabi: A crunchy vegetable that looks like space ship but is in the cabbage family! A great addition to any salad. 
• Fennel: Our fennel is small due to our dry growing conditions but it is packed with flavor! It is great shredded raw in salads or roasted.
• Yukina Savoy: A dark green color, yukina savoy (also known as tatsoi) looks a lot like spinach and can be eaten in many of the same recipes, particularly those that call for raw spinach. (Now that spinach season is over I use swiss chard or beet greens in recipes that call for spinach.)
• Beets: Chioggia (brighter red with white stripes inside) and Red Ace. 
• Salad Turnips or Radishes: If you like spice the red radishes are the ones for you! Salad turnips look like white radishes and are similar but less spicy.
• Kale: Curly and Toscano (Dinosaur) varieties
• Lettuce: we have many different types available, including romaine, butterhead, oakleaf and red and green leaf.
• Salanova Lettuce Mix
• Red Russian Kale- One of my favorite greens to eat both raw in salad and lightly cooked with eggs or pasta.
• Swiss Chard
• Bok Choi: Large and Baby Bok choy are ready this week. They don't love the heat so we want to eat our fill before summer weather sets in! 

CSA Pick-your-own:

• Sugar snap peas: More beds are now open for picking and they are filling out nicely! Picking should be easy- and tasty! Remember to look on the underside of plants that have fallen to one side to find the biggest peas.
• Snow Peas
• Parsley: Please pick the outer stems to keep the parsley growing for weeks to come!
• Strawberries: The strawberries are in their prime this week!

Coming Up:  Next week we will have the first carrots of the season as well as garlic scapes and likely scallions. So much to look forward to! 

Kohlrabi and Apple Slaw from The Farmer’s Kitchen by Brett Grohsgal and Julia Shanks

2 Kohlrabi

1-2 apples

fresh herbs such as parsley, basil, tarragon or mint, chopped

Dressing:

¼ cup mayonnaise

1 tbsp sour cream or plain yogurt

1 tbsp lemon juice

½ tbsp. Dijon mustard

1/ tsp sugar

salt and pepper to taste

1.     Combine ingredients for dressing

2.     Peel kohlrabi and cut into small matchsticks

3.     Core apple and cut into matchsticks

4.     Toss kohlrabi with apples, dressing and fresh herbs

Other dressing ideas for your Kohlrabi Slaw from mathastewart.com: combine olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and combine with your kohlrabi and apple matchsticks

Sautéed Beet Greens With Garlic and Olive Oil

NY Times Recipes for Health

By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN AUG. 9, 2008

This simple classic is great on its own as a side dish, or you can toss the greens with pasta, add them to an omelet, or use them in a gratin or a quiche.

1 pound beet greens

Salt

1 to 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, to taste

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes (optional)

Freshly ground pepper

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil while you stem the greens and wash the leaves in 2 rinses of water. When the water comes to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of salt and the greens. Blanch for 2 minutes, until tender. Transfer immediately to a bowl of ice water, then drain and squeeze the water out from its leaves. Chop coarsely.

2. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick skillet. Add the garlic and hot red pepper flakes (if using) and cook, stirring, until the garlic is fragrant and translucent, 30 to 60 seconds. Stir in the greens. Stir for a couple of minutes, until the greens are nicely seasoned with garlic and oil. Season with salt and pepper, remove from the heat, and serve.

Week 1 of the Vegetable CSA, SNAP program pilot and PYO Flowers!

We're so excited for our third CSA season to start this week! This year pick-ups are available Tuesday & Thursday 11am - 6pm, and Saturday 10am - 3pm. Members do not need to always come on the same day each week - you may come whichever pick-up day works best in a given week. If you are new to the CSA and were unable to make the orientation on Saturday, we'll be happy to fill you in on more details about how the CSA works on your first pick-up day!

If you have any friends who have been on the fence about signing up for a CSA this year, let them know that it's still not too late to sign up! We increased the number of spots we have available this year and as of Monday there are 6 available. We also just received the official approval to participate in a pilot project to allow SNAP recipients to use their benefits to purchase a CSA share! If you or anyone you know might be interested, please send an email to Lise at lise@barrettsmillfarm.com.

The store will continue to be open during CSA hours, as well as additional hours Wednesday & Friday 2pm-6pm! We will generally have similar crops available in both the Store and the CSA, however occasionally there will be limited supplies of a particular crop and we will only make it available in one.

In the store: We'll continue to have plenty of asparagus, basil plants and salad greens, as well as a more limited supply of Happy Rich broccoli, radishes, salad turnips and strawberries. New this week we will also have kale, chard and some sugar snap peas! Beets may also make an appearance in the store later this week as they continue to size up.

In the flower fields: We continue to have Sweet William available for picking. PYO Flower CSA members can begin picking, and folks who are not members are welcome to purchase picking jars "a la carte."

In the Vegetable CSA:

• Beets: Chioggia (striped) an Red Ace. Many people overlook beet greens, but they are actually quite tasty! See the recipe idea below for one idea on what to do with them!
• Lettuce: we have many different types available, including romaine, butterhead, oakleaf and red and green leaf.
• Salanova: this is a cut lettuce mix. It is similar to mesclun mix, but crisper and it keeps much longer in the fridge!
• Arugula
• Spinach
• Chard
• Kale
• Bok Choi

CSA Pick-your-own:

• Sugar snap peas: Check the undersides of plants - often the fattest peas are found there!
• Parsley
• Strawberries: The strawberries we planted in the CSA field aren't quite as far along as the ones we planted for the store, but you will get a taste of them this week. There will be more soon!

 

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.

Quiche with Swiss Chard and Mushroom

by Sue Lau, A Palatable Pastime

3 large pastured organic eggs
1 cup heavy cream
4 ounces white or crimini mushrooms, chopped (or try using some Fat Moon Farm oyster or shiitake mushrooms!)
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion or shallot
2 tablespoons butter
5 ounces Swiss chard leaves (no stems), chopped
salt and black pepper to taste
5 ounces Prima Donna aged Gouda cheese, shredded
1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces
Dash nutmeg
1 prepared pie crust or quiche pastry dough

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Beat room temperature eggs with heavy cream in a small bowl.

3. Place pie crust in a deep-dish glass pie plate and crimp edges.

4. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a saute pan and cook mushroom and shallot until browned.

5. Season vegetables to taste with salt and pepper and stir in chopped chard leaves, cooking only long enough to allow them to wilt; cool mixture.

6. Sprinkle about 2 ounces of the cheese in the bottom of the pie crust and spread vegetables over that, then top with remaining cheese.

7. Pour the custard (cream and egg) mixture over all.

8. Make sure the cheese and vegetables are covered or wet with the custard mixture.

9. Dot with butter pieces and sprinkle with nutmeg.

10. Bake quiche uncovered, in a preheated oven, for about 45 minutes or until domed and puffy and custard is set.

11. Allow to sit undisturbed for about 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

A taste of summer

We checked a lot of items off of our to-do list in spite of some of the challenges posed by last week's summer-like weather. We manage to work through some of the hotter afternoons by seeding plants for the greenhouse in the shade whenever possible, as well as a few strategic popsicle breaks!

Hot sunny weather is a great time to kill weeds, so we did a lot of tractor cultivating, hoeing and hand weeding in our spring brassicas, beets, carrots, greens, onions, leeks, asparagus, strawberries and blueberries. Monday's rain has brought up a whole new flush of weeds, but our hard work last week gave all of those crops some breathing space for at least a few days!

We also chipped away at our planting list last week, with summer squash, zucchini, cucumbers heirloom tomatoes, and some flowers and peppers in the ground. Because of the heat, we wait as late into the afternoon as we can to begin planting so that the young plants have as little time as possible out in the heat before it cools down for the evening. The new transplants seem to be able to withstand the heat the following day better once they've had an overnight adjustment period.

Melissa and Wyatt also made huge strides in our irrigation set-up. Because our soil is very sandy and dries out quickly, irrigation is essential to our crops' survival. Of course, one of the surest ways to make it rain is to complete an important chunk of irrigation set-up! Even when it does rain shortly after setting up irrigation, as it did on Monday, we are still always happy we did it. We know that we will use that irrigation set-up at many more points throughout the season!

What we're harvesting this week:

• Strawberries - We had our first taste of summer in the store on Saturday and we're anticipating a little more this week, though it's still early! Only the Chandler strawberries are producing right now, so we may not have strawberries every day and they will likely sell out early when we do.
• Asparagus
• Rhubarb
• Head lettuce
• Salanova lettuce mix
• Spinach
• Arugula
• Red Russian kale - we may not have this every day that we are open
• Bok choi
• Radishes - Easter egg and cherriette
• Hakurei salad turnips
• Happy Rich broccoli - this tender broccoli made an appearance in the store on Saturday and we may get another cut by the end of this week.
• Basil plants
• Sweet William flowers - should be ready at the end of the week!

Recipes of the week:

We have an abundance of spinach right now, but not for much longer, as spinach does not like heat. Get your fill while you can with these two simple recipes involving raw spinach and blenders or food processors!

Spinach Pesto
from chow.com - great on pasta or homemade pizza!

• 8 ounces spinach
• 3/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 2 medium garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
• 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 ounce), plus more for serving
• Finely grated zest of 1 medium lemon (about 1 1/2 teaspoons)
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 medium lemon)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Place half of the spinach and all of the pine nuts and garlic in a food processor fitted with a blade attachment. Pulse, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed, until coarsely chopped, Add the remaining spinach and pulse until coarsely chopped, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the Parmesan, lemon zest and juice, salt, and pepper and process until combined, about 30 seconds. With the motor running, slowly pour in the oil and process until a smooth paste forms, about 30 seconds. Serve on top of pasta (or whatever else sounds good to you!).

Cyra's Favorite Smoothie - My toddler won't touch most vegetables, but she will devour spinach and kale in smoothie form!

• 1 cup whole spinach leaves
• 1 banana
• 3/4 cup coconut beverage or almond milk
• 1 tbsp agave nectar

Puree in blender. You can adjust the amount of liquid to make the smoothie more or less thick. I sometimes make the smoothie thicker and add in chunks of fruit or berries after pureeing so that it looks a little like green fruit yogurt to my daughter!