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Continued Late Summer Bounty, Week of August 29

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Farm News for the week of August 29th   

Reminders & Announcements

  • This week is a pick-up week for all Late Summer Vegetable, Fruit and Egg Share members. 
  • Next week, weekly Late Summer Vegetable and Fruit Share members will pick-up. 
  • Please fill out our farm share survey. More information is below. Thank you for your time and feedback.
  • Last call for bulk tomato cases! We have 20 lb. cases of tomatoes available at discounted pricing through next week. Please see details below.

  This Week's Vegetable Harvest

  • Bok Choy 
  • Carrots
  • Zucchini - onfarm members will receive this week.
  • Cucumbers
  • Sweet corn - from Didier Farms in Prairie View, IL
  • Bell Pepper
  • Tomatoes
  • Red Onions
  • Eggplant
  • Parsley

This Week's Fruit Share

  • 'Interlaken' Green Grapes
  • 'Canadice' Red Grapes
  • Peaches
  • 'Blondee' Apples

CSA Member Survey!  Your perspective is important to us. We welcome your input and feedback throughout the season. Your thoughts will help us to plan upcoming seasons. Click here to take our short member survey (takes 5-6 minutes) and let us know your thoughts.  Thank you!   

 

Last call!  Bulk Quantities of Tomatoes Available
We have 20 lb cases of tomatoes available this week, the week of August 28th and the week of September 4th. You can order cases by emailing Jen and we'll deliver them to your pickup site. Here are the options and prices:

  • Beefsteaks:  $38
  • Heirlooms: $48 
  • Mix of Beefsteak and Heirloom: $43

Please email tomato orders to me/Jen (jen@prairiewindfamilyfarm.com) and let me know when you would like to pick up your order.  I will send you a confirmation after our harvest to confirm your pickup.  Thank you!   

Farm Photo Journal Several years ago, we were struck by the number of news stories highlighting food deserts and food swamps (defined as areas swamped by poor quality, e.g., fast food, choices). We've always felt passionately that healthy food was a right to which we are all entitled, and as organic farmers, we realized we had the power to do something about this issue.

We started brainstorming ideas with Liberty Prairie Foundation: what if we could work together, the Foundation providing volunteers and our farm providing produce, to serve more families within our region with fresh produce? Would volunteers be willing to come in on a Sunday afternoon, despite mosquitos/heat/rain and harvest for someone other than themselves?  Could this create a greater sense of community on the farm?  We've found working together that we could accomplish all of these things. 

 

For centuries, farmers provided their farm access to those in need through a process called gleaning.  Gleaning means to gather up leftover produce or grain after a farmers' harvest. Families would come together to glean a farmers harvest not only for themselves but for others in their community. 

 

Each week, Karina (the Gleaning Program Intern pictured above) and I meet to tour Prairie Wind's farm fields and review the upcoming gleaning harvest, discuss harvest and washing techniques, and collaborate on ways to allow for an efficient (and fun!) group harvest.

Now in our fifth year of gleaning together, we've donated thousands of pounds produce to:

The boys and I were working on homework this Sunday afternoon and we couldn't help but peek out of our dining room window to watch the flurry of excitement and activity in our farm fields. We saw several groups of volunteers, of all ages, gathering together in our green bean, early tomato and kale fields, seeking out the remaining produce available for their fellow community members in need.
 

 

Thank you to those who have given your time to this program. If you're interested in volunteering on the gleaning harvest, you can learn more here. Thank you!
~ The Miller Family
(photo credits: Liberty Prairie Foundation)   

Making the most of your share   We're happy to continue to share the bounty of the sweet corn season.  The sweet corn in this week's CSA shares comes from a nearby farm, Didier Farm, located in Prairie View, IL. While their sweet corn is not organic, it is local and delicious  

We are thrilled to share refreshingly crunchy and fresh-tasting Bok Choy with you this week. Bok Choy has a mild, sweet flavor when cooked and is mild enough to eat raw. When cooking with bok choy, use the entire plant, both green leaves and white stems however I generally separate the stems from the leaves as their cooking times differ slightly.  The mild, crunchy stalks make a great addition to salads and vegetable platters.  I love to treat like celery (I make ants on bok choy log for an after school snack!). Refrigerate in a plastic bag and is best eaten within a week. 

 

This week's fruit shares include two varieties of grapes, Canadice Red Grapeand Interlaken Green Grape, both of which are seedless, extremely flavorful and perfect for snacking. We've heard of some drying these grapes for raisins, and these varieties also make delicious grape juice. They are best kept in your refrigerator, uncovered or very loosely bagged in plastic.     

Farm Kitchen Recipes
Corn Chowder with Chile, Lime and Cotija - I made this recipe last week for my family, and it was deliciously sweet (and the leftovers reheated well for lunches!) 

Bok Choy and Cucumber Salad 

Eggplant Caponata Crostini   

Next Week's Harvest (our best guess)... swiss chard, grapes, cabbage, apples, broccoli, tomatoes, garlic, basil and more!

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