CSA News 9/19 (Final Week of Fruit Share)

This Week's Vegetable Harvest:

• Beets
• Arugula
• Salad Mix
• Juliet Tomatoes
• Beefsteak Tomatoes
• Dill or Cilantro
• Carrots
• Head Lettuce
• Sweet Red Peppers
• Basil

The Final Harvest of the Fresh Fruit Season:

• Golden Delicious Apples
• Empire Apples
• Concord Grapes
• Neptune Grapes
• Red Raspberries

Farm Photo Journal

In a typical week I try to have my newsletter written and posted by early Wednesday morning so that it arrives in your email in-boxes bright and early. This week's farm to-do list has gotten the better of me (it's a long list!), so the newsletter has been delayed by a day. Wednesday is always a hectic day on the farm, but it's also exciting because we get to see the product of all of our hard work come together in the form of beautiful CSA boxes. As we prepare to pack boxes on Wednesday morning, I feel like I am backstage watching last-minute preparations before the opening of a big performance. On our farm, the curtain goes up at precisely 12 noon when the delivery truck leaves the farm.

Before CSA boxes are assembled Donna bags carrots...

 ...and Tyler and Jeff bag salad mix.

Meanwhile, Nadia and Jen get a start on sorting and packing fruit.

This is the last week for fruit shares, but there are loads of awesome vegetables that have yet to be harvested this season. There are 2 weeks left in the summer season and then 8 more weeks of the fall season. If you haven't joined for fall, please let me know because I still have a couple of spots available.

Have a great week! -Peg

Notes from the Farm Kitchen

This week's share conains a rather sizable bunch of arugula. If you're looking for something to do with it besides salad, here are some ideas:

• Make pesto (see recipe below)
• Use it as a pizza topping
• Wilt it in a pot of hot pasta. Dress pasta with olive oil, balsamic, and grated parmesan.
• Add chopped arugula and dill to a potato salad
• Use it in place of lettuce on a BLT or other sandwich
• Spread cream cheese on a toasted bagel. Top with arugula and sliced tomato.

Many of you will also receive a large bunch of dill this week. Since a little dill goes a long way, you may find that's it's too much to use up this week. (By the way, fresh dill should be kept in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.) If you'd like to preserve what you won't use this week, try freezing some of your dill in olive oil. Freezing in oil prevents the discoloration and freezer burn that usually goes along with freezing herbs. You can either use the olive-dill cubes as the base of a soup or stew (beet borscht, for example) or as the base of a vinaigrette dressing. To freeze dill, pack the wells of ice cube trays about 2/3 full of dill and then pour olive oil over the dill. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze over night. Remove the frozen cubes and store in a freezer bag.

Tuesday night we had our first light frost. It was enough to do some light damage to the top leaves of the tomatoes, eggplant and peppers. My crystal ball tells me that we may only be harvesting these crops for another week or two. This thought doesn't bother me in the least as I am ready for all of the goodness of fall. In particular, I'm looking forward to winter squash, pumpkins, sweet potatoes and lots of gorgeous greens!

This Week's Recipes

Arugula Pesto
4 cups packed fresh arugula
1 tablespoon minced garlic

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 cup pure olive oil

2 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted, plus 1 tablespoon

1/8 teaspoon vitamin C (optional)

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1. Prepare an ice water bath in a large bowl, and bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Put the arugula in a strainer and plunge it into the boiling water. Immerse all the arugula and stir so that it blanches evenly. Blanch for about 10 seconds. Remove, shake off the excess water, then plunge the arugula into the ice water bath and stir again so it cools as fast as possible. Drain well.
3. Squeeze the water out of the arugula with your hands until very dry. Roughly chop the arugula and put in a blender. Add the garlic, salt and pepper to taste, olive oil, and 2 tablespoons of the pine nuts. Blend for at least 30 seconds. In this way the green of the arugula will thoroughly color the oil. Add the cheese and pulse to combine. The pesto will keep several days in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.
4. Pull out before dinner to get to room temperature. Before serving, add the remaining 1 tablespoon toasted pinenuts.

Beets with Walnut-Cilantro Dressing or Walnut-Dill Dressing

2 pounds red beets, about 4 large, trimmed of greens

1/8 cup olive oil

1/2 cup walnuts

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

one bunch of cilantro or dill

Salt and black pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash beets thoroughly. Drizzle beets with olive oil and wrap them individually in foil. Bake beets for 60 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a food processor combine olive oil, walnuts, vinegar, and cilantro or dill. (Make sure to reserve a little bit of the cilantro or dill to use as a garnish.) Chop for 30 seconds. You should have dressing with small walnuts pieces that will add a little crunch.
3. Remove beets from the oven. Peel skins. Slice beets into cubes.
4. Add dressing, salt and pepper to taste, garnish with chopped cilantro or dill, and serve.

Next Week's Harvest (our best guess)... leeks, Swiss chard, lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, parsley, bok choy, potatoes and more!