19 May Tue 2009
CSA week 2
Hello--
Gorgeous day today!
Our first week went off with only a miss or two. We have a couple details to add to a couple pick up sites. In Kalamazoo, at the Frayers', Portage, at the chiropractic center and in Benton Harbor--the Livery....if you would be the last person to empty a box, please carefully, without tearing the tabs off, fold the box to flat and set it to the side. TO do so, ON THE BOTTOM OF THE BOX, you need to gently slide the tabs that tuck into the slots, out of these slots. The tabbed flaps of the box fold/bend--if you look closely you see the factory pressed folds-- in order to make this easy, and to prevent ripping the tabs off of the box. Once these tabs are ripped, the box is non-functional except for kindling a fire....These are tedious instructions, but we would like to use these boxes until they fall apart from carrying so much produce again and again, not because they were needlessly damaged. Thank you for doing so. This simply helps our host by keeping the area tidy for their businesses or lives to carry on as undisrupted as possible.
SALAD MIX--there is a sampling this week. I say sampling because it is difficult picking since the resident weeds are less affected by cooler soil temperatures, and out-grew the salad mix. Given this, please pardon an occasional unintended plant this succession; It may be grass, or something else more exotic, but none of the uninvited will cause harm. ASPARAGUS will grace your box, though less abundantly than last week. This was a casualty of the frost we had over the weekend, your share will exhibit this. The RADISHES and SPINACH faired conditions fine--so you have another meal to enjoy these. Did you know you need to trim the greens from the radishes so that the radish doesn't loose moisture and become spongy? Even more, did you know that there is at least one cool recipe for radish greens? Well you do, and there is...a farm member (thanks Carol!) sent us this, and while I haven't tried it, it sounds great. Pasted at the bottom.
Email alert: It is a moot issue since this doesn't reach the folks that need to hear it--but not only does Yahoo block our emails, so now, it seems, does comcast. So if you know someone who uses these carriers, and would otherwise be getting our emails, you could let them know the symptom, and this would be great. We do send this out to the group--and have had it suggested that this is the problem. I believe that, but have no reasonable solution. These notes can be viewed at the blog which can be accessed through eatersguild.com
Have a great week!
LaurieLEe and Iris
Radish Leaf Pesto
- 2 large handfuls of good-looking radish leaves, stems removed
- 30 grams (1 ounce) hard cheese, such as pecorino or parmesan, grated or shaved using a vegetable peeler
- 30 grams (1 ounce) nuts, such as pistachios, almonds, or pinenuts (avoid walnuts, which make the end result too bitter in my opinion)
- 1 clove garlic, germ removed, cut in four
- a short ribbon of lemon zest cut thinly from an organic lemon with a vegetable peeler (optional)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more to get the consistency you like
- salt, pepper, ground chili pepper
Put all the ingredients in a food processor or blender or mini-chopper, and process in short pulses until smooth. You will likely have to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice. This produces a thick pesto; add more oil and pulse again to get the consistency you prefer. (This can also be done with a mortar and pestle; it's great for your karma and your triceps.)
Taste, adjust the seasoning, and pack into an airtight container (I use a recycled glass jar). Use within a few days (it will keep longer if you pour a thin layer of oil on the surface) or freeze.
Chocolate & Zucchini [http://chocolateandzucchini.com]
Gorgeous day today!
Our first week went off with only a miss or two. We have a couple details to add to a couple pick up sites. In Kalamazoo, at the Frayers', Portage, at the chiropractic center and in Benton Harbor--the Livery....if you would be the last person to empty a box, please carefully, without tearing the tabs off, fold the box to flat and set it to the side. TO do so, ON THE BOTTOM OF THE BOX, you need to gently slide the tabs that tuck into the slots, out of these slots. The tabbed flaps of the box fold/bend--if you look closely you see the factory pressed folds-- in order to make this easy, and to prevent ripping the tabs off of the box. Once these tabs are ripped, the box is non-functional except for kindling a fire....These are tedious instructions, but we would like to use these boxes until they fall apart from carrying so much produce again and again, not because they were needlessly damaged. Thank you for doing so. This simply helps our host by keeping the area tidy for their businesses or lives to carry on as undisrupted as possible.
SALAD MIX--there is a sampling this week. I say sampling because it is difficult picking since the resident weeds are less affected by cooler soil temperatures, and out-grew the salad mix. Given this, please pardon an occasional unintended plant this succession; It may be grass, or something else more exotic, but none of the uninvited will cause harm. ASPARAGUS will grace your box, though less abundantly than last week. This was a casualty of the frost we had over the weekend, your share will exhibit this. The RADISHES and SPINACH faired conditions fine--so you have another meal to enjoy these. Did you know you need to trim the greens from the radishes so that the radish doesn't loose moisture and become spongy? Even more, did you know that there is at least one cool recipe for radish greens? Well you do, and there is...a farm member (thanks Carol!) sent us this, and while I haven't tried it, it sounds great. Pasted at the bottom.
Email alert: It is a moot issue since this doesn't reach the folks that need to hear it--but not only does Yahoo block our emails, so now, it seems, does comcast. So if you know someone who uses these carriers, and would otherwise be getting our emails, you could let them know the symptom, and this would be great. We do send this out to the group--and have had it suggested that this is the problem. I believe that, but have no reasonable solution. These notes can be viewed at the blog which can be accessed through eatersguild.com
Have a great week!
LaurieLEe and Iris
Radish Leaf Pesto
- 2 large handfuls of good-looking radish leaves, stems removed
- 30 grams (1 ounce) hard cheese, such as pecorino or parmesan, grated or shaved using a vegetable peeler
- 30 grams (1 ounce) nuts, such as pistachios, almonds, or pinenuts (avoid walnuts, which make the end result too bitter in my opinion)
- 1 clove garlic, germ removed, cut in four
- a short ribbon of lemon zest cut thinly from an organic lemon with a vegetable peeler (optional)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more to get the consistency you like
- salt, pepper, ground chili pepper
Put all the ingredients in a food processor or blender or mini-chopper, and process in short pulses until smooth. You will likely have to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice. This produces a thick pesto; add more oil and pulse again to get the consistency you prefer. (This can also be done with a mortar and pestle; it's great for your karma and your triceps.)
Taste, adjust the seasoning, and pack into an airtight container (I use a recycled glass jar). Use within a few days (it will keep longer if you pour a thin layer of oil on the surface) or freeze.
Chocolate & Zucchini [http://chocolateandzucchini.com]
Laurie_2
02:34 PM EDT