Tantre Farm CSA Newsletter
WEEK #3
June 10-16, 2018
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. **Also, if you’re having trouble identifying any unfamiliar produce, please look for “Veggie ID” with additional information on our website under CSA INFO or under RECIPES.
THIS WEEK’S SHARE
GREENS ADVICE for the entire season: Please keep in mind that greens are especially prominent during this early part of the farm season, so basically, “It’s salad time!” If you’re not sure how best to enjoy your green, taste it. Greens can be eaten raw in a salad or lightly steamed or sautéed with garlic, green onions, or butter in order to mellow their flavor. They can also be tossed into a dish (such as soup or a smoothie) for an extra nutritional and flavorful boost.
ARUGULA or SPICY GREENS: This will be for Fri/Sat. Members only, since not quite ready for Wed. members. Arugula (known as “wild rocket” with more deeply lobed leaves and a more pungent flavor; an aromatic, bright salad green with a peppery mustard flavor) OR Spicy Greens (gourmet-quality greens for quick cooking; includes Kale, Tatsoi, Hon Tsai Tai, Green and Red Mustard).
-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.
-How to store: wrap in damp cloth and plastic bag, then refrigerate.
NAPA CABBAGE: crinkly, thickly veined leaves, which are cream-colored with celadon green tips; unlike the strong-flavored waxy leaves on round cabbage heads, these are thin, crisp, and delicately mild; good source of vitamin A, folic acid, and potassium.
-How to use: use raw, saute, bake, or braised; common in stir-fries and main ingredient in traditional kimchi; also eaten raw as a wrap for pork or oysters; the outer, tougher leaves are used in soups.
-How to store: refrigerate, tightly wrapped, up to 5 days.
ROOT CELLAR CARROTS (Chantenay): This will be for Wed. members only. These carrots are shorter than other cultivars, but have greater girth with broad shoulders and taper towards a blunt, rounded tip; most commonly diced for use in canned or prepared foods. These carrots have been stored for the winter, so some may have spots to cut off, but are still good to use, but every once in awhile, a rubbery or mushy carrot will have escaped our crew’s watchful eye. Please feel free to make soup stock or compost out of the carrots that are considered “ugly” or “unfit”.
-How to use: best used for cooking in stews, soups, casseroles, or stir fries, since may have a stronger carrot flavor from being stored for several months in cold storage.
-How to store: refrigerate roots in plastic bag for up to 2 weeks
GARLIC SCAPES: slender green stems with a slight bulge at the bottom (resemble chives, except for the bulge and often curled); the flower top of a garlic plant; 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 sauteed.
-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 1 week or wrap in slightly dampened cloth or plastic bag and store in refrigerator.
**At some locations you may CHOOSE ONE bunch (NOT one bunch of each) from the following 5 options. Those with prepacked boxes at limited drop off sites will receive 2 of any of the following herbs. Please keep in mind that there are a limited amount of each herb, so it is first-come, first-serve:
–Chamomile— These small, daisy-like flowers are best known for making a soothing, sleepy time tea; also the flowers make a flavorful addition to salads and garnish. The whole bundle can be used fresh or dried upside down, and then the flowers plucked and put into a jar for a restful, calming tea for the winter.
–Chives: mild, onion-flavored herb with long, slender, hollow leaves; often used as a garnish or chopped into any foods that call for onion; good in soups, egg dishes, and meat.
–Lemon Balm: these fragrant lemon-minty leaves make a delicate herbal tea, served hot or cold; good addition to lettuce or fruit salads and ice cream; nicely paired with grilled fish or lamb and tossed with steamed vegetables; also aids in depression and nausea.
–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 and can be infused into a delicious vinaigrette!
–Thyme– tiny green leaves used in meat and vegetable dishes and most casseroles, soups, stews, and medicinal teas, which
LETTUCE: You will receive 2 heads of Red Leaf lettuce and/or Romaine lettuce.
-How to use: raw in salads, sandwiches, or use in soups or smoothies
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 3-5 days.
BABY LETTUCE MIX (Wildfire): a beautiful bag of dark 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.
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.
-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: long, cylindrical, creamy-white roots with sweet flavor; contain small amounts of iron and vitamin C. These parsnips were harvested midwinter during a thaw, so they are frost-sweetened, but have been stored for several months.
-How to use: can be baked, boiled, sauteed, 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.
RADISHES: You will receive Easter Egg Radish (a beautiful mix of red, purple, pink, and white round radishes; crisp and mild flavor) or D’Avignon (also called, “French Breakfast”; traditional variety from Southern France; 3- to 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.
STRAWBERRIES: red, conical fruit with tiny white flowers. This week each share will receive 2 quarts of this member of the rose family.
-How to use: excellent raw, juicing, jam, pie, sorbet, in desserts
-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.
-How to freeze: This is so easy to do for fresh berries! Freeze whole strawberries hulled and washed on cookie sheets and when frozen put in freezer bags.
WHITE HAKUREI TURNIPS and GREENS: You will receive a large bunch of white salad turnips with round, smooth roots that have a sweet, fruity flavor with a crisp, tender texture. Both roots (good source of Vitamin C, potassium, and calcium) and greens are edible!
-How to use: roots and greens good in salads and soups; can be roasted, steamed, or sauteed.
-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. RUSSIAN SUMMER HOUSE FEAST – COOKING CLASS on June 21 from 6-8:30 PM: UM professors and CSA members, Alina and Michael Makin, will facilitate ways to use your early summer produce as a typical meal at the “Russian Summer-House”, which Alina remembers from her early years. Based on the culinary heritage of her native Russia, but making ample use of other culinary traditions, Alina’s meal will showcase the Tantré share with savory and sweet dishes that we will turn into a delectable meal by the end of the night. Please register by email with your NAME, EMAIL ADDRESS, and PHONE NUMBER. A small fee of $5 will help pay for any materials and extra ingredients. More details will come later in a separate email.
2. FAMILY FARM HIKE on June 22: Come join us for a guided monthly exploratory walk around Tantre Farm on Friday, June 22, at 4 PM. We’ll use all our senses as we take an approx. 45 minute hike with CSA member, Sheila Schueller and her daughter, Renia. You will explore the farm’s fields, wetlands, and forest. Sheila has taught ecology and field biology classes at Eastern Michigan University and the University of Michigan. Meet by the picnic tables in the backyard at 4 PM. No RSVP necessary, but if you email that you plan to attend, then we know to wait for you. GREENS ADVICE for the entire season: Please keep in mind that greens are especially prominent durivng this early part of the farm season, so basically, “It’s salad time!” If you’re not sure how best to enjoy your green, taste it. Greens can be eaten raw in a salad or lightly steamed or sautéed with garlic, green onions, or butter in order to mellow their flavor. They can also be tossed into a dish (such as soup or a smoothie) for an extra nutritional and flavorful boost.
3. WEEDING VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: We have plenty of weeds to pull. 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:
**If you need to switch to different pick up sites throughout the season that usually works for all but the “limited sites”, using the Membership Actions section on the registration page. These sites have less space to drop share boxes at, so are considered “limited”. Please always email ahead to see if they are at capacity before making any switches on your own.
–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.
–Pure Pastures (Wed.) (limited site) –9 A.M. To 7 P.M.
–Farm (Fri.)–2 P.M. to 7 P.M.
–Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market (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.
–NEW! Argus-Packard (Sat) (limited site)–10 A.M. To 12 P.M.
RECIPES
SAGE FLOWERS (https://www.splendidtable.org/story/sage-flowers-can-add-another-dimension-to-a-dish)
Herb flowers are delicate; you don’t want to do a lot to them because they are fragile in aroma and taste. You can flavor chicken or a robust-tasting fish with the sage leaves. Then sprinkle the sage flowers on the cooked food, encouraging people to eat the flowers with the sage-flavored dish — the flowers will add another dimension. You can also make Sage Butter by mixing it in the processor with some lemon juice and freeze it in logs for later use.
You might also fry them! Make a batter of flour, water, salt and pepper, and dip the flowers in the batter. Have about 1/2 inch of oil in a shallow pan, get the oil hot and drop in the batter-coated flowers. They’ll brown quickly. https://www.fivesensespalate.com/fried-sage-flowers/
NAPA CABBAGE SALAD (from www.allrecipes.com) Serves 6
1 head Napa cabbage
1 bunch minced green onions
1/3 cup butter
1 (3 oz) package ramen noodles, broken
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
1 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup cider vinegar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
Finely shred the head of cabbage; do not chop. Combine the green onions and cabbage in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make the crunchies: melt the butter in a pot. Mix the ramen noodles, sesame seeds and almonds into the pot with the melted butter. Spoon the mixture onto a baking sheet and bake the crunchies in the preheated 350 degrees oven, turning often to make sure they do not burn. When they are browned remove them from the oven. Make the dressing: in a small saucepan, heat vinegar, oil, sugar, and soy sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil, let boil for 1 minute. Remove the pan from heat and let cool. Combine dressing, crunchies, and cabbage immediately before serving. Serve right away or the crunchies will get soggy.
FRESH STRAWBERRY DRESSING (from www.eatingwell.com)
1 cup strawberries, rinsed, hulled and sliced
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
3/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp almond oil or canola oil
Place strawberries, vinegar, pepper, sugar and salt in a blender or food processor; process until pureed, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides. Add oil and process until smooth.