Tantre Farm CSA Newsletter
WEEK 3
June 7-13, 2015
If needed, please contact Richard Andres & Deb Lentz at 2510 Hayes Rd. Chelsea, MI 48118 e-mail: tantrefarm@hotmail.com phone: 734-475-4323 website: www.tantrefarm.com
In our newsletter, we try to give you an accurate listing of the produce in your box; however, since the newsletter is published before the harvest, we may sometimes substitute some vegetables for others. The information provided here is also published each week on our website.
THIS WEEK’S SHARE
ARUGULA (Sylvetta): also known as “wild rocket” with more deeply lobed leaves and a more pungent flavor; an aromatic, bright salad green with a peppery mustard flavor -How to use: add to salads, soups, and sautéed vegetable dishes -How to store: very perishable, so use up quickly; store in plastic bag with a paper towel in refrigerator for up to 5 days.
ASPARAGUS: You will receive a bunch of green, purple, or white variety; each contains vitamins A, B, and C, as well as iron. – How to use: serve raw, chopped in salads, or with dips. You can also steam, roast, grill, or serve “cold” with a bit of olive oil, a dash of salt, and lemon juice. – How to store: wrap in damp cloth and plastic bag, then refrigerate. Alternatively, bundle spears with rubber band and place upright in container with an inch of water.
GARLIC SCAPES: This popular and highly delectable flower top of a garlic plant has a slender green stem with a slight bulge at the bottom (resemble chives, except for the bulge and often curled); tender and milder in flavor than mature garlic, but can be substituted for garlic cloves in recipes. -How to use: mild garlic flavor, so delicious chopped in salads, roasted, and sautéed. -How to store: put in refrigerator in plastic bag for up to 2 weeks.
FRESH HERBS: In general, store herbs upright with cut stems in 1 or 2 inches of water and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or wrap in slightly dampened cloth and store in refrigerator.
You may CHOOSE ONE from the following:
Thyme– tiny green leaves used in meat and vegetable dishes and most casseroles, soups, stews, and medicinal teas, which soothe sore throats. The flowers are edible and make nice garnishes!
Lovage—celery flavored herb, excellent in vegetarian soups and stews, especially potato or tomato dishes. A little bit goes a long way, so use sparingly, since it does have a strong flavor.
Sage–an herb from an evergreen shrub in the mint family with long, narrow, grayish-green leaves; a musky aroma and a warm and spicy taste; used in making sausages, stews, breads, pickles and teas. The flowers are edible and make nice garnishes!
French Sorrel–slightly tart, lemon-flavored green shaped like spinach, but paler green in color; excellent for salads, soups, sauces, omelets; high in vitamin A and contains some calcium, phosphorous, potassium, magnesium, and vitamin C; refrigerate in plastic bag for up to 3 days.
PAC CHOI or KALE: Wednesday members will receive Red Pac Choi (an Asian Green with dark red, oval shaped leaves with a mild flavor) and Friday/Saturday members will receive Red Russian Kale (the stems are purple, and leaves are deep gray-green, purple-veined, flat, non-curled, and tooth-edged). -How to use: for salads, soups, and light cooking in stir fries -How to store: keep in plastic bag or damp towel in refrigerator for up to 1 week
BABY LETTUCE MIX (Wildfire): a beautiful bag ofdark reds and vibrant greens including Green and Red Oakleaf, Green and Red Romaine, and Redleaf lettuces. Your lettuce has been rinsed once, but probably needs more washing. -How to use: raw in salads, sandwiches, or use in soups -How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 3-5 days.
LETTUCE: You will receive 2-4 heads of lettuce, which may include Panisse (large, lime-green, lobed oak leaves with excellent flavor) along with possible Green Leaf, Red Leaf or Romaine. -How to use: raw in salads, sandwiches, or use in soups -How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 3-5 days.
MUSHROOMS (Shiitake): lower-like cracking pattern on brown cap; edible mushroom native to East Asia; good in sandwiches and cooked—see below; many medicinal qualities too; grown on logs. If you don’t care for mushrooms, then leave them for someone else or gift them to a friend! -How to use: brush off dirt to clean or wipe with damp cloth, do not wash or submerge in water; good grilled, sautéed, steamed, in soups, and in sandwiches -How to store: place in paper bag or wax bag and keep in refrigerator for up to 5 to 7 days.
GREEN ONIONS (also called “Scallions”): young shoots of bulb onions with long green stalks and milder tasting than large bulb onions; full of great fiber and antioxidants, high in potassium and source of vitamins C and B-6. -How to use: the bulb, flowers, and green leaves are edible; can be cooked, grilled, roasted whole as a vegetable; chopped in salads, soups, & other dishes for flavor. -How to store: refrigerate in damp towel/plastic bag for 5-7 days.
PARSNIPS: frost-sweetened winter parsnips, barrel washed; long, cylindrical, creamy-white roots with sweet flavor; contain small amounts of iron and vitamin C. -How to use: can be baked, boiled, sautéed, steamed. Our favorite way to prepare them is to roast with olive oil and fresh herbs. -How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for up to 2 weeks.
POTATOES (Carola):this yellow potato is from Germany with a smooth, creamy texture that is good for baking or frying. -How to use: good roasted, baked, fried, or in salads -How to store: Keep unwashed in cool, dark place in paper bag.
RADISHES: You will receive Pink Beauty (pink-colored root with mild, spicy flavor) or D’Avignon (also called, “French Breakfast”; traditional variety from Southern France; 3-4 inch long root that is part red with a white tip and tapered to a point). -How to use: raw, roasted, used in soups, sliced in salads, sandwiches, or stir-fries, grated in slaws; Radish greens (excellent source of vitamins A, C, and the B’s) delicious in soups or stir-fries. -How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag/damp towel for 1-2 weeks.
SPINACH: You will receive a bag of this crisp, dark green leaf– best eaten raw or with minimal cooking to obtain the beneficial chlorophyll, as well as vitamins A & C; delicious flavor when juiced. – How to use: toss in fresh salad, add to sandwiches, sauté, steam, braise, or add to crepes, quiche, lasagna, and soups. – How to store: refrigerate with a damp towel/bag for up to 1 week.
STRAWBERRIES: We are keeping our eye on the berries as they continue to ripen, but not quite enough for Wed. members just yet. If you need some fresh berries, we will sell what we have so far at our market stalls. Friday/Saturday members hopefully will receive the first distribution of this member of the rose family. Next week our Wednesday members will receive this red, conical fruit with tiny white flowers. -How to store: Do not wash until you are ready to consume them. Place them on a paper towel in a tightly-covered container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.
WHITE HAKUREI TURNIPS and GREENS: A white salad turnip with round, smooth roots that have a sweet, fruity flavor with a crisp, tender texture. Use the greens as well, sautéed or braised. – How to use: good in salads and soups, roasted, steamed, sautéed, – How to store: remove greens from turnip root and store separately in plastic bag in refrigerator for up to 3 days; roots can last up to 1-2 weeks in refrigerator.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
1. HERB WALK on June 19 from 6-8 pm: Herbs are for more than just seasonings and teas. Those same compounds that give herbs their wonderful tastes and aromas also provide protection against plant pests and pathogens. This means that many herbs have medicinal and/or pest repellent properties. Local forager, Rachel Mifsud, will be leading this class at Tantre Farm for a Friday evening walk around the farm. On our walk through the yard and gardens you will be introduced to 25 different herbs that grow on the farm. A handout and u-pick samplings will be provided to help you remember their names and useful qualities. $5 for CSA members and $10 for non members. Please email us if you plan to attend, so we know.
2. KID FARM HIKE on June 26: Come join us for a guided monthly exploratory walk around Tantre Farm on Friday, June 26, at 2 PM. We’ll use all our senses as we take an approx. 45-60 minute hike with CSA member, Alisse Portnoy, who teaches at the University of Michigan. She and her daughter are in their sixth year of once-a-week day-long visits to the farm. They look forward to sharing some of its treasures and treasure spots with you. Meet at the Main House’s Distribution Shed at 2 pm.
3. WEEDING VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: We have plenty of weeds to pull, especially after this rain. If you are interested in helping out–even if it’s just for 10 or 15 minutes before you pick up your box at the farm, come join us. Please contact us any day of the week or evenings until dark. Thanks for volunteering!
4. PICK UP TIMES & LOCATIONS REMINDER:
Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market (Wed.)–7 A.M. to 12 P.M.
MOVE Fitness & Wellness Studio (Wed)—8 AM to 12 PM
Farm (Wed.)–10 A.M. to 7 P.M.
Washtenaw Food Hub (Wed.) –6 P.M. to 8 P.M.
Farm (Fri.)–2 P.M. to 7 P.M.
Community High School (Sat.) –7 A.M. to 12 P.M.
Washtenaw Food Hub (Sat.)—9 A.M. to 12 P.M.
Chelsea Farmers’ Market (Sat.)–8 A.M. to 12 P.M.
NATIVE ABUNDANCE (by Deb & Richard)
Almost every week this spring we have had a nice shower of rain accompanied with a warm to cool cycle, which have made the perfect climate for lettuce, radishes, kale, pac choi, turnips, arugula, peas, strawberries, and fava beans (which are coming in a couple of weeks!). Additionally the weeds have enjoyed this weather, along with the wild plants, such as nettles, lambs quarters, and burdock. All of these are considered weeds, but are also edible for extra special, concentrated nutrition. You can learn more about these qualities on Rachel Mifsud’s Herb Walk on June 19 (See more info under “Announcements”). We have spent a considerable amount of work time hoeing and working to maintain a low level of weeds on the farm. We seem to be keeping up fairly well with the weed pressure in some areas with the cheerful help of many hands on the farm. These willing hands of this year’s farm crew come from many places around the country this summer, from places as far away as Nebraska, Missouri, Wisconsin, Maryland, Ohio, and of course, Michigan.
Closer to home, it’s good to see all the turtles, toads, snakes, and frogs hopping and crawling and wriggling through the tall grasses and hedge rows of the farm, along with the many birds that have nested in tree branches, the eaves of the barn, the eaves of the pump house, and on the ground. On the dangling branches of the trees we see meadowlarks, robins, song sparrows, savannah sparrows, and swallows. The large birds such as the white egret, the Great Blue Heron, and the sand hill crane can be seen stalking through the fields and wetlands with a graceful, deliberate gait, pecking the ground every so often. The sand hill cranes come to eat the strawberries and peck the freshly planted corn out of the ground. The killdeer can be seen running to and fro in the open fields trying to draw attention away from their nest. They stab at the soft open earth pecking at the cutworms and caterpillars.
It is good to welcome all of these creatures, great and small, back to the land for another season of native abundance. We hope you will enjoy this food in the company of all beings past and present.
RECIPES
RADISHES AND GREEN ONIONS WITH FETA CHEESE (from Rolling Prairie Cookbook by Nancy O’Connor) Serves 6 to 8.
2 c. thinly sliced radishes
3 or 4 green onions, chopped
4 oz. Feta Cheese, crumbled
10 to 12 Kalamata olives, pitted, and chopped coarsely
1 Tbsp. chopped freshmint or finely minced lovage
¼ tsp. salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 ½ Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. freshly-squeezed lemon juice
Toss together the radishes, green onions, Feta cheese, olives, and mint. Season with the salt and pepper. Toss again. Whisk the olive oil and lemon juice together and pour over the vegetable mixture. Toss to coat vegetables with dressing.
LETTUCE SMOOTHIES (You can always interchange the lettuce for any other kind of greens in your share box for a green smoothie!)
#1 (yields 1 quart) 1 cup strawberries, 2 bananas, 1/2 bunch lettuce, 2 cups water or fruit juice. Blend well.
#2 (yields 1 quart) 6-8 leaves lettuce, 1 banana, 1/4 cup blueberries, 2 cups water or fruit juice. Blend well.
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