Tantre Farm CSA Newsletter
WEEK #17
Sept. 18-24, 2016
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 often before the harvest, we may sometimes substitute some vegetables for others. The information provided here is also published each week on our website.
We try to keep the printed newsletter to a 2-page maximum, which means that we won’t list all the share items’ descriptions every week, but refer you to previous newsletters for information on items that have already appeared in your shares.
THIS WEEK’S SHARE
ARUGULA: an aromatic, bright green, salad green with a peppery mustard flavor; rich in iron and vitamins A and C. See Week 1 newsletter for usage and storage information.
GREEN, PURPLE, or YELLOW BEANS: You will receive E-Z Pick (a round, tender, dark green, snap bean with good sweet flavor), Royal Burgundy (brilliant purple, smooth, round, meaty pods; add stunning color to salads when used raw; pods turn dark green when cooked; excellent fresh or frozen), or Isar (beautiful, yellow, fillet bean with excellent flavor). See Week 8 newsletter for usage and storage information.
BROCCOLI: emerald green, tiny buds that are clustered on top of stout, edible stems. See Week 5 newsletter for usage and storage information.
SWEET CORN (Potawatomi): yellow kernels with excellent sweet flavor. (We don’t treat our corn with pesticides, so you may find some ear worms enjoying the corn too; just break off the damaged part and cook the rest of the ear.) See Week 12 for usage and storage information.
EGGPLANT: You will receive Nadia (slender, purplish-black, glossy-like, bell-shaped fruit) or Orient Express (dark purple Asian type with long, slender, glossy fruits, which are tender, delicately flavored, and quick cooking). See Week 8 newsletter for usage and storage information.
U-PICK FLOWERS (only available on the farm): A bouquet per household of up to 15 stems will be part of your share, if you are able to come and pick it. This means that if you are splitting a share, each household can pick a bouquet in the u-pick flower garden at the farm. Please call or email ahead only if you plan to pick on other days besides Farm Distribution Days (Wed. and Fri. , when we are here!), so we can make sure someone is around to help you. More information about u-pick flowers in the “Announcements” section.
GARLIC: a bulb of several papery white cloves; believed to help in fighting infections, cancer prevention, bolstering the immune system. See Week 6 for usage and storage information.
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:
–Italian Flat-leaf Parsley—flat, glossy, dark green leaves have a strong parsley/celery flavor for use dried or fresh; high in vitamins A and C, and other minerals, such as iron; especially good in omelets, scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, soups, pasta and vegetable dishes, as well as, sauces.
–Oregano–member of the mint family and is similar to marjoram, but not as sweet and more pungent flavor and aroma; good in soups and tomato-based dishes.
–Marjoram–a small and oval-shaped leaf, which is light green with a greyish tint. When fresh it is spicy, bitter, and slightly pungent with camphorlike notes, so often added to fish sauces, salads and dressings, tomato-based sauces, grilled lamb and other meats; goes well with vegetables including cabbages, potatoes, eggplant, and beans. It is usually added at the end of cooking to retain its delicate flavor or as a garnish. Traditionally, it was used in tea to cure headaches, head colds, calm nervous disorders, and to clear sinuses.
–French Sorrel–slightly tart, lemon-flavored green; excellent for salads, soups, and sauces; can be used in omelets, breads, or cooked as a side dish; leaves are shaped like spinach, but paler green in color; refrigerate in plastic bag for up to 3 days.
KALE: You will receive Lacinato Kale (dark green, noncurled, blistered leaves, but heavily savoyed). See Week 1 newsletter for usage and storage information.
LETTUCE: You will receive a head/heads of Green Leaf, Red Leaf or Buttercrunch (bib). See Week 1 newsletter for usage and storage information.
MUSHROOMS (Shiitake): flower-like cracking pattern on brown cap; edible mushroom native to East Asia; many medicinal qualities too; grown on logs at Tantre Farm. If you don’t care for mushrooms, then leave them for someone else or gift them to a friend! See Week 11 for usage and storage information.
HOT PEPPERS: You will receive Jalapeño (small and conical pepper, ranging from green to red; hot chile pepper used commonly in Mexican or southwestern cooking) and Joe’s Long Cayenne (long, slender, bright red fruits tapering to a point with medium heat; are excellent for homemade hot sauce and dry well for ristras and dried hot pepper flakes). See Week 15 for usage and storage information.
SWEET RED PEPPERS: You will receive Carmen (6 inch long, tapered fruit that ripens from green to a deep “carmine” red; sweet taste in salads and when roasted and fully red-ripe) and/or Cupid (fruits are blocky to slightly pointed, snack size, and are particularly sweet when red). See Week 14 for usage and storage information.
POTATOES: You will receive Mountain Rose (rosy-skinned inside and out, these versatile, all-purpose spuds are deliciously moist, but not waxy textured. Extra nutritious, and high in antioxidants. Excellent baked, mashed or fried) and/or Carola (yellow potato from Germany; smooth, creamy texture that is good for baking or frying). See Week 8 newsletter for usage and storage information.
TOMATOES: You will receive some choices of any of the following: Red Delight (round, cluster cocktail tomato with firm, deep red, shiny fruits), Amish Paste (large for a sauce tomato, slightly irregular, plum-to strawberry-shaped fruits avg. 8-12 oz. with excellent flavor; good in salads and great for processing. A Slow Food USA Ark of Taste variety.), or Geronimo (newer variety but already one of the most widely used beefsteak varieties; fruits are firm, nice red color and good taste), Our Heirloom slicer tomato varieties are slowing down, so you may receive one if we have enough.
WINTER SQUASH: Everyone will receive Acorn (small, green ribbed squash with pale yellow flesh; great stuffed with rice, breading, or soups). See Week 16 for usage and storage information.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
1. FALL WORK PARTY/END-OF SEASON POTLUCK will be THIS SUNDAY, Sept. 25, between 1-4 P.M. Our end-of-season potluck will also be at this time, so please bring an hors d’oeuvre, snack, or refreshment to pass. Members are invited to bring family and friends to help harvest, weed, and explore. You may also come just to enjoy the farm and walk around to see the produce and the animals, listen to music, or just eat at the potluck anytime between 1 and 4 PM. We also will have sit-down activities, such as onion or garlic cleaning. Lots of kid-friendly activities, such as wagon rides, feeding animals, and bubbles. All who come will be able to take something home with them, such as a pumpkin or a winter squash. Please dress appropriately for the weather, since it will be scheduled rain or shine. Hope to see you at the farm this Sunday!
2. “15 HERBACEOUS PLANTS EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW” in Rachel’s FORAGING SERIES on Oct. 3 from 6 to 9 PM at Tantre Farm: This lecture covers a list of 15 herbaceous plants that every forager should learn. Each plant on the list is common, can be sustainably harvested in large quantities, is easy to ID, and provides multiple useful products throughout the year. More info at: http://willforageforfood.com/index.php/classes/foraging-101-series/ Cost: $25 per class. You may pay in person or pre-pay online at http://mkt.com/willforageforfood/foraging-chelsea.
3. U-PICK AVAILABLE: Please call ahead if you plan to pick on other days besides Farm Distribution Days (Wed. and Fri.), so we can make sure someone is around to help you.
– U-PICK Flowers–You may pick 1 bouquet of up to 15 stems per household for “free” in the u-pick flower garden on the farm. Whenever possible if you can donate $1 or $2 that will help to pay for some seed and labor costs. Extra bouquets will cost $4.
– U-PICK Tomatoes—these are limited varieties and locations, but still some out there on the vines for freezing, canning, and dehydrating. Members–$0.50/lb. Non members–$0.75/lb.
-U-PICK Christmas Limas Beans–$2/lb. (a large, flat dried pod with beans a light cream color with maroon splashes; this favorite heirloom has a butter-like texture and a subtle chestnut-like flavor; simply enjoyed after cooking with a drizzle of olive oil and a few grates of dry goat cheese; use in soups, stir fries…Yum!!)
4. PLASTIC OR PAPER GROCERY BAGS AND YOGURT CONTAINERS (quart size for u-pick flowers) NEEDED, if you would like to donate some to the farm or at markets. We are running low.
5. ENDING SUMMER CSA DATES: The end is drawing near. This is just a reminder that our summer shares are ending in just a few weeks. That means Oct. 12 (Wed.), Oct. 14 (Fri.), and Oct. 15 (Sat.) are the last distribution days for our Summer Shares.
6. ALCHEMY’S “FARM TO TABLE” MEAL at Tantre Farm on Sept. 24 has been cancelled.
7. PICK UP TIMES & LOCATIONS REMINDERS:
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 1 P.M.
REFLECTIONS ON THE FARM
by Deb and Richard
The crispy carrots glow orange under the dark brown soil. The emerald fronds above catch the last glowing rays of the gentle, September sunlight. More than any other part of the season the farm workers are focused now on digging potatoes, cutting arugula and broccoli, bunching kale, picking ears of corn and sorting out the ones that are too small or too wormy to give to the cows and pigs. Our minds and bodies are full of the work of harvest, sorting onions and garlic, picking tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and winter squash.
The tendrils and leaves of the winter squash are dying back exposing the bare earth and yellow, orange, and dark green fruit to the ripening rays of the sun. The tomatoes have overgrown their trellises and are cascading down in gravitational atonement. Day by day as the grape leaves pull away and expose the dark purple clusters, the fruit becomes sugary sweet and ready for the sweet smell of grape juice canning for the fall and winter months.
Each week we pick the corn and see the savanna sparrow flying through the tassels and pecking on the tips of the corn ears–not to eat the corn, but to eat the worms! So many worms! And so much fine protein for this small bird. As the nights grow cool and the rain comes, we hear the call of the blue jay heralding the end of summer in the mushroom forest as we pick an abundance of mushrooms. The long-legged cranes stand on the edge of the wood looking for toads, frogs, and insects in between the greens. All the birds are gathering and filling their bellies with insects and seeds to make their journey migration to the south.
We are gathering as well for the coming cold weather. The roots and fruits of the summer and fall will be stored in the barn basement: dried beans, winter squash, garlic, onions, carrots, beets, potatoes, celery root. We will look forward to having an abundance for the end of the year Summer CSA and also our Extended Fall Share in October and Thanksgiving Share in November. (More information will be coming soon about our fall shares!) We are attempting to become native to this place and discover the foods that are appropriate for this bio region. This fall we are planting a variety of hazelnut trees and 3 kinds of chestnut trees. Becoming native to this place and teaching our children to find what we need close to home, whether it is nourishment to the body or nourishment to the heart and mind. We are learning from each plant, bird, and insect as they respond to this end of summer. We are living by and with them and learning about the great mystery that each moment reveals.
RECIPES
**Keep in mind a very easy way to find recipe ideas for almost any combination of share box ingredients is to type the items into your preferred “search bar” with the word “recipe” after it, and many recipe ideas will pop up. Have fun searching! Lots and lots of ideas!