We're happy to continue our welcome to Early Summer Members, particularly every other week "Week B" members who join us starting this week.
We're also happy to report that we received rain for the second week in a row (0.5 inch)! We're grateful for whatever we receive and the plants seem grateful, too. They are expressing their happiness with blooms decorating the farm and in turn, the bees seem equally as thrilled! Here's are just a few of the pretty gems that bring us joy each day.
The new red potatoes are looking healthy and happy with beautiful purple flowers dotting the green fields.
Our newly planted elderberries are showing huge blooms of lacy, white flowers.
There are plenty of cucumber blossoms to greet the bees each morning. We appreciate every hard-working pollinator that visits these flowers and keeps the fruit coming for our members!
Happy Summer Solstice to all and enjoy this week's harvest! ~ Jen, Jeff, Tyler, Abbey, Arlet, Ben, Alex P., Peggy, Alex J., Laura, Jack, Lucas, Orion, Silas & Owen
Notes from the Farm Kitchen
The Rainier cherry is an attractive golden-yellow cherry with a bright red blush. These delicately flavored sweet cherries are best enjoyed fresh and sometimes bruise so handle carefully. They are beautiful on a platter of mixed cheeses and meats, and we also enjoy them sliced and pitted in a fresh lettuce salad with goat cheese and sliced almonds.
Members will receive one large storage kohlrabi in shares this week. As soon as you bring your kohlrabi home, separate the leaves from the bulbs. Keeps the both the leaves and the bulbs in the fridge; the leaves can go in a sealed zip-top plastic bag and the bulbs are best stored loose. Use the leaves within a few days, but the unpeeled bulbs will last for weeks. Kohlrabi is a member of the broccoli and cabbage family. Kohlrabi forms when the stem swells to a bulb right about the soil. Some varieties are purple and others are light green or white. The bulb is delicious peeled and eaten raw. Just peel it, slice thinly and serve with or without dip. I tend to slice into match sticks and kids eat like apples! The greens of kohlrabi can be used like kale, collards, and other hearty cooking greens.
Again, we're taking full advantage of a bountiful strawberry harvest! To say this strawberry season has been challenging for the Klugs is an understatement -- strawberries don't love excessive heat or surprise rainstorms -- but they still pull off a beautiful harvest. We appreciate your understanding of ripe berries. To maintain the best possible quality, keep your berries cool in the refrigerator, as dry as possible (e.g., pat gently after washing) and enjoy quickly.
Seasonal Recipes in the Farm Kitchen
Mixed Cooked Greens - This is a great way to use your greens from broccolini, kale, kohrabi, and any others you have in the refrigerator!
Scape Pesto The scape harvest continues so I'm including a recipe from our friends at River Valley Ranch. I make this pesto, then freeze portions in ice cube trays so I can use scapes in soups, pasta sauces and sandwiches throughout the winter.
1/4 cup pine nuts or walnuts 3/4 cup coarsely chopped garlic scapes Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon 1/2 teaspoon salt A few generous grinds of black pepper 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
Place the garlic scapes in a food processor and pulse for 30 seconds. Add the pine nuts or walnuts and pulse for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the olive oil and process on high for 15 seconds. Add the Parmesan cheese and pulse until the ingredients are combined. Add the garlic scapes and lemon juice, and process until reaching the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve. If freezing, wait to add the cheese until you plan to defrost and use the pesto.
Strawberry Soup - pictured below, this recipe is shared with us by CSA Member, Kora. She shares, "It was a classic in my Polish childhood home, my mom would make it as a treat for us."
400g (2 cups) ripe/very ripe strawberries, washed, stem removed and halved A few strawberries for garnish, diced 400ml (2 cups) cold water 120ml (1/2 cup) oat milk (or other milk, any kind) 1T +2tsp sugar (or more for desired sweetness) 1tsp lemon juice Polish egg noodles (Kluski, my preference)
Place strawberries, water, sugar, And lemon juice into a pot and bring to a gentle boil. Simmer on low for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, take off the stove and blend using an immersion blender or standing blender. Set aside to cool to room temp or put in the fridge to cool, if desired. Prepare noodles to preferred doneness. When ready to serve, combine oat milk with the blended strawberry mix. Place noodles in bowls, pour soup over noodles and garnish with diced strawberries. Served room temperature or cold, if desired. ~3 servings