- Jan 17

Winter CSA Newsletter Week #10, January 14 - 20, 2024 “B” week

This week when we aren't "choring" or in the kitchen, you can find us ensconced comfortably in front of our fireplace reading, playing cards, dreaming for the summer, watching a movie, or just warming our feet! I doubt it'll be much different until this cold stretch passes. Except Bill and Aidan who can't resist going for short snowmobile rides even if just to check the greenhouse. Crazy, I know. photos by Marlee

Newsletter Table of Contents:

This Week’s Shares with Guides & Recipes- VEG, MES, EGG, APPLE
Recipes - Turnip and Spinach Gratin, Raw Turnip Salad
Field News & Photos from the Week -

VEG SHARES (see FULL and HALF list for which share has what, how much, along with info, guides, recipes)

FULL SHARE:

RUSSET POTATOES (2 lb) - Fully russeted skin with dry, white flesh perfectly suited for classic baked potatoes. from Mythic Farm Guide & Recipes

YELLOW ONION (2 lb) - Ready to be used now or later, this almost “cured” or dried onion should be stored on your counter or in your pantry out of direct sunlight. If you don’t use it in the next week, it’ll cure more and store longer. from Gwenyn Hill Farm

GOLDRUSH APPLES (1 lb) - Flesh is yellow, firm, and crisp. Described as - flavor has the honeyed sweetness of a Golden Delicious, wedded to a pleasing tartness with a touch of acidity. The tension between these flavors is just right and there are fleeting hints of pear, citrus, and spice to keep things interesting. Plus a little metallic fizz on the tip of the tongue. Tartness sweetens over time. from Blue Roof Orchard (formerly Two Onion Farm)

SPINACH (1/3 lb) - This green is very versatile (and YES! You can eat the stems, in fact they are very tasty too. ;) It can be eaten cooked or raw, requires little prep, works with sweet or savory ingredients, stands up to other hearty ingredients, and pairs well with rich, fatty foods such as cheese, butter, bacon, and cream. Raw is popular in salads with, or without, pecans, dried fruit such as cranberries, chunks of cheese, sunflower seeds, and roasted beets. Other possibilities are steaming, boiling, stir-frying, or sautéeing with butter or olive oil. Known as a longer keeper than lettuce, store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for a week or more. Note - Cooks down in size considerably. Guide & Recipes

SALAD TURNIPS (1 lb) - These popular white golf-ball or smaller size roots are juicy, sweet and less starchy than an average turnip, best eaten raw or barely cooked but can be used in a variety of ways. Use in salads, sandwiches, stir frys, sautes, scrambled eggs or sauces. To prep: Cut off the green tops (which can be eaten as well). Wash and cut the white roots into wedges or slices. Try: Serve raw with dip in a veggie tray. Or grate and add them to a salad. Turnips are delicious when roasted with other root vegetables (like carrot, potatoes, rutabaga, garlic). Add a turnip or two to your favorite mashed potato recipe. Or add them into soups and stews. To freeze: Blanch for 3 minutes in hot boiling water. Cool in ice water for 3 minutes, drain and pack into freezer containers or freezer bags. Best used within 3-4 weeks but will keep a long time! Guide & Recipes

GARLIC (2 bulbs) - Ready to be used now or later, this is “cured”, or dried garlic, and as such should be stored on your counter out of direct sunlight.

HALF SHARE: (see Full VEG Shares above⬆ for info on each item)

Dark Red Norland POTATOES (1 lb)

YELLOW ONION (1 lb)

GOLDRUSH APPLE (1 lb)

SPINACH (1/4 lb)

SALAD TURNIPS (1/2 lb)

GARLIC (2 bulbs)

OPTIONAL ITEMS: for FULL & HALF Shares - choose 1 or both: 1 dozen eggs, Tetsukabuto Squash

MES SHARES

B2 week so MES is at Home Deliveries

FULL: 1 ground beef, 1 breakfast sausage, 2 dozen eggs

HALF: 1 ground beef, 1 breakfast sausage, 1 dozen eggs

EGG SHARE Weekly Shares = 1 Dozen Biweekly Shares = 1 Dozen

PREPARED FOOD & RECIPES:

Click the link to go to a printable pdf of the recipe.

Turnip and Spinach Gratin (Turnip greens)

Raw Turnip Salad (Turnip roots)

Roasted whole squashes showing separated skin and the ease of scooping out seeds before adding to a Buttery Parsnip frozen soup we got from Soups I Did it Again! (Find them in the freezer section at Woodman's)

Field News & Photos:

As the storm blew in last week, Aidan planted the last couple beds in the greenhouse with more spinach and a greens mix to come up in spring while I harvested the spinach and turnip greens in your share this week. He then used the snowmobile to transport the snowy greens back to be washed.

I've been thinking about how something as simple as a snowfall makes everything look different.

The ordinary becomes extraordinary.

I've noticed details all around me that are always there just taken for granted.

Examples are the thin batons that cover the board seams along the whole barn. The wheel and hydrant we walk by daily as we go in to fake care of the animals inside.

The cattails in the marshy area that runs along between the pasture behind the barn and Byrds Creek.

The weeds that I usually try to not see, now look graceful and elegant.

The roll of extra fence wire forgotten on a fence post provides an evocatively stark contrast against the straight nature of the trees and brush all around it.

And the delicateness of the icicles hanging off the roof, old corncrib, the dinner bell that used to hang on the farm I grew up on, and the ones but failing to form on the screen door window fascinate.