CSA Summer Share 2012-2013 - Week #2 (8-14 December)
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NOTES ON THE SHARE Beetroot – Perfect for raw eating, sliced on a mandoline or grated, steaming whole or in quarters and/or roasted. Each bunch has a mixture of ‘Ruby Queen’ and 'Cylindra'. The young tops can also be mixed into a salad! Cabbage - 1/2 head of cabbage Corriander - A bunch in every box Baby Carrots – Extra big bunch. Mixture of ‘Scarlett Nantes’, ‘Cosmic Purple’ and ‘Red Core Chatenay’. These are beautiful and young and just need a light scrub. Fennel – The variety is '4 Seasons'...lovely as a raw salad or braised! Garlic – All boxes will have two cloves of freshly harvested garlic. Golden Beetroot – We have included one of these lovely beetroots. They are wonderful raw, cut into matchsticks and tossed with the salad or dipped into the beetroot dip below. Mesclun – We immerse the greens in very cold water and then spin them dry. You should still wash and spin before consuming. More on that below... Parsley – 'Flat Leaf Italian' Spring Onions – One bunch per box. Sugar Snap Peas – We will dividing the harvest of 'Sugar Anns' this week. The shelling peas are still very skinny. Hopefully next week. Potatoes – Red Skin 'Pontiac' or white skin 'Dutch Cream'. Steam them with butter or quickly boil for a beautiful potato salad. Radish - 'Plum Purple' These will be in Saturday 1/2 share boxes and Thursday boxes. Saturday full share boxes will have a large bunch of spinach. Rosemary – A bunch in every box. Tatsoi – A tender Asian green lovely in a stir-fry or raw in an Asian salad. Zucchini - We have begun harvesting zucchini!!...I am sure the excitement might end, but I really do love zucchini and they are only here for four-five months out of the year. These are small to medium size, delicate zucchini - some still with their flowers attached. If you have never tried a raw zucchini, this is the week to try one! The flowers are edible and very tasty as well.
NOTES ON WHAT'S GROWING We apply weekly seaweed applications. The plants love the seaweed and we really coat them with it. We do not wash everything that is in the box. The seaweed will not hurt you if you eat it, but it will change the flavour of whatever you are eating. We recommend rinsing everything.
We have certainly appreciated the rain in the past week and were very happy to have harvested all the garlic before it began. The climbing beans are climbing. There are tiny green beans, cucumbers and capsicums growing. The red cabbage has thrived in the cool weather. We have planted successive plantings of rocket, spinach, bok choy and mesclun to try and catch the gap felt by the heat wave.
BEING PART OF A CSA All of you are members of a CSA. I know that does not mean much to most Australians, but it should. You are supporting sustainable farming, you are supporting the farmers growing your food, and you have say in that whole process! Please let us know what you think about what is in your box - How could it be better? - What is great? - What could be improved? We are growing this food for you and your families. If there is another vegetable you would like, a bunch you think should be bigger, please let us know. This is the difference between community supported agriculture and buying from a market or a supplier. We, as your farmers, would like to work with you to make a food system that is localised. We will be sending out a survey this week which we hope will take 5 minutes to complete. Please do the survey - after you have received your box for the second week. We also hope that you call or email us with any feedback so that we can communicate with you about produce and what is in your box.
As part of a seasonal CSA, you have invested in this Summer season. Even though we have divided the invoice into monthly payments (to help with family budgets), we are growing food ALL summer for you, 65 families. If this service is not suiting you, please let us know now. RECIPE SUGGESTIONS Recipe suggestions for the week are: Thai Curry Paste and Thai Baked Tofu Braised Fennel with White Wine Fennel and Radish Salad Simple Potato Salad with New Potatoes and Spring Onions Beetroot and Cream Cheese Dip
You can also search by key ingredient on our website recipe page for many more ideas.
