Tantre Farm CSA Newsletter
Extended Fall CSA Share
WEEK #1
Oct. 14-20, 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 often before the harvest, we may sometimes substitute some vegetables for others. **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.
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 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.
RED ACE BEETS AND GREENS: round, smooth, deep red roots with sweet flavor and medium-tall, red-veined green leaves.
-How to use: greens can be substituted for spinach and chard in recipes; roots good in soups, stews, roasted, boiled, steamed, excellent grated raw into salads or baked goods.
-How to store: separate roots from leaves and store unwashed in plastic bags in hydrator drawer of refrigerator for up to 2 weeks; store greens wrapped in damp cloth in plastic bag for up to 1 week.
CARROTS (Hercules): sweet, orange, cone-shaped roots; good eating quality and stores well; carrot leaves are very nutritious with high levels of vitamins, especially ‘C’ and ‘K’, and very tasty in soups.
-How to use: can be used raw as carrot sticks, grated in salads or juiced; steamed or sautéed, in stews, soups, casseroles, stir-fries; greens can be sauteed, thrown into soups, or tossed in salads or smoothies.
-How to store: refrigerate dry and unwashed roots in plastic bag for up to 2 weeks
CAULIFLOWER (Romanesco): lime green, spiraled heads with pointed, spiraled pinnacles; crisp and mild.
-How to use: raw for salads and dips, steamed, sauteed, or roasted.
-How to store: sweetest and best when used within a week when stored in the refrigerator, but can last up to 2 weeks.
EGGPLANT: You will receive Nadia (slender, purplish-black, glossy-like, bell-shaped fruit), Rosa Biana (an Italian heirloom; round fruit streaked with white and violet), or Orient Express (dark purple Asian type with long, slender, glossy fruits, which are tender, delicately flavored, and quick cooking).
-How to use: may be salted to remove bitterness from old fruit, but also makes it less watery and more absorbent, and can greatly enhance the taste and texture of your dish; can be baked, boiled, fried, grilled, or can be sliced into rounds for grilling or broiling, and cut into cubes for stews and stir-fries.
-How to store: best fresh, but can be stored at room temperature or in refrigerator drawer for up to 1 week.
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 needs washing.
-How to use: raw in salads, sandwiches, or use in soups.
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 3-5 days.
ONIONS: You will receive Red Zeppelin (medium to large, globe-shaped bulbs with deep red color), Cipolline (a traditional Italian onion known for its flat, oval shape and delicately mild, sweet flavor; ranges in size from 1-3 inches; used for pickling and to season a wide variety of dishes and especially good grilled on a skewer.), or Copra (medium-sized, dark yellow-skinned storage onions; excellent storage onion staying firm and flavorful after most other varieties have sprouted; highest in sugar of the storage onions).
-How to store: will store for six months or more, if kept in a cold, dark place, but remove any ones starting to go soft from the others.
SWEET PEPPERS: You will receive a variety of Red Knight Bell (big, blocky, thick-walled, green-to-red pepper with sweet flesh) and Carmen (6 inch long, tapered fruit that ripens from green to a deep “carmine” red; sweet in salads and when roasted and fully red-ripe).
-How to use: eat raw for best nutrient retention; can be added to soups, stews, omelets, quiches, stir-fries, etc.; excellent stuffed.
-How to store: refrigerate unwashed in hydrator drawer for 1-2 weeks.
POTATOES: You will receive Yukon Gold (yellowish brown skin with yellow dry flesh and pink eyes; long storage and good tasting) and 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).
-How to store: Keep unwashed in cool, dark place in paper bag
DAIKON RADISH (K-N Bravo): looks like an overgrown carrot with internal color ranging from pale purple to white with purple streaks; roots average 8- to 9-inches by 2 1/2- to 3-inches with good, sweet, eating quality.
-How to use: excellent julienned or sliced and used in a salad or tossed with your favorite vinaigrette; good eaten fresh, cooked, or pickled; greens are also edible and can be used like any tender green.
-How to store: not as hardy as you may think, so store wrapped in plastic to keep them crisp for up to 2 weeks.
WINTER SQUASH: You will receive 1 of each of the following: Acorn (small, green ribbed squash with pale yellow flesh; great stuffed with rice, breading, or soups), Spaghetti (3-5 pounds, pale yellow, oblong, smooth, medium size, only mildly sweet with “spaghetti” (stringy) flesh; bake like squash or boil and fork out the flesh, topping the “spaghetti” flesh with your favorite sauce; mildly sweet), and Black Forest Kabocha (smaller size Kabocha; dark green, flat-round fruits; buttercup size with no button on end; orange flesh is medium-dry and sweet).
-How to use: Slice in half, scoop seeds out and bake with a little water in baking pan at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until tender; boil or steam chunks for 15-20 minutes, or until tender (peel skins off “before” or “after“ cooked, but “after” is easiest when it’s cooled); mash cooked squash with butter; purée cooked squash for creamy soup, or add uncooked chunks to soups or stews; add small amounts to yeast breads, muffins, cookies, pies, oatmeal, etc.
-How to store: Keep for several months (depending on the variety) in a dry, moderately warm (50-60 degrees), but not freezing location with 60-75% humidity; will also store at room temperature.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
1. RICE CAMP AT TANTRE FARM, October 20 & 21: Some folks from Will Forage for Food will be processing wild rice using traditional techniques at the farm on Sat. Oct. 20 from 12 – 5 PM and on Sunday from 11 AM – 3 PM. All are welcome to come watch, learn, and participate. Free of charge. Just come behind the Main House into Tantre Farm’s back yard.
2. KIMCHI PRESERVING WORKSHOP at the Washtenaw Food Hub on Thursday, Oct. 25, from 6-8 P.M. Fermentation revivalist, Melissa Robinson, will demonstrate how to make kimchi, a spicy and pungent Korean condiment served at almost every Korean meal. The workshop will cover lacto-fermentation, a method utilized to brine and preserve vegetables, using produce from Tantre Farm. Participants will take home a jar of kimchi made during the workshop. Please register with “KIMCHI” in the subject line by email with your NAME, EMAIL ADDRESS, and PHONE NUMBER. Please bring a $10 fee for materials and other ingredients to class that day.
3. BASKET MAKING CLASS, Nov 4, from 1-4 PM at Tantre Farm: Weave your own basket from cattails or bittersweet. Or both! Local foraging expert, Rachel Mifsud, from Will Forage for Food will talk about how the materials are harvested and prepared for use. Students will learn a few different weaving patterns, and then you will create a basket of your own design. All ages are welcome. $25 per student. Register at: www.willforageforfood.com. Space is limited. You must pre-register to reserve your spot.
4. VACATION HOLD or PICK UP RESCHEDULE: If you know that you are not able to pick up or need to reschedule pick up days during these coming 3 weeks for any reason, you can make those changes yourself by going into this link http://tantrefarm.csasignup.com and choosing “Schedule vacations or pick up location changes” under the “Member Actions” box on the left. You will need to do this a week ahead of time, if you know that you will not be picking up your share or you want to change your pick up date or location, or just email us to make changes. Please make a strong effort to PICK UP ALL OF YOUR SHARES in the next few weeks. If you miss a share pick up, it is available at the farm ONLY for that day and 1 day after, but please let us know ASAP, so we know what to do with your share.
5. PRORATED SHARES: Those of you with prorated shares should know that you will all receive the online newsletter every week and also Pick Up Reminders the night before you are scheduled even though it might not be your week to pick up. This is all just computer automated, and it can’t be undone for individuals. Just FYI!
6. THANKSGIVING CSA Registration is OPEN! A more detailed email notice about this will come out to you soon. You can also read more details about the Thanksgiving Share on our website under “CSA Info”, and sign up on our website. This share is a one-time pick-up of 60 to 80 pounds of produce for winter storage or to stock up on vegetables before the holiday for $125. This share will be available for pick up on Nov. 17 (the Saturday before Thanksgiving) at the Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market from 7 A.M. until Noon and Tantré Farm from 2-5 P.M.
7. PLASTIC AND PAPER GROCERY BAGS NEEDED: We encourage you to bring cloth bags, coolers, or totes to take extra produce home that is on the side besides getting the share box, but we also ask for donated “grocery” (other sizes are less convenient) bags at Distribution Sites for those who forget their own. If anyone has piles and piles of bags, please donate them to any site you pick up.
8. PICK UP TIMES & LOCATIONS REMINDERS:
Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market (Wed.)–7 A.M. to 12 P.M.
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.
Pure Pastures (Wed)–9 A.M. To 7 P.M.
RECIPES
WHOLE ROASTED ROMANESCO WITH LEMON-THYME VINAIGRETTE (http://community.epicurious.com/post/whole-roasted-romanesco)
1 Romanesco cauliflower
1 lemon
2 Tbsp. olive oil
pinch of salt
1 tsp. thyme
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut the back off the Romanesco, rinse and air dry, laying it flat on a sheet pan. Drizzle with several tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Roast for 25-30 minutes until very tender, and browned at tips. Whisk the juice of one lemon, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a pinch of salt and 1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves. Drizzle over the top of the roasted romanesco, and roast for another 5 minutes.Pull away individual florets to serve.
SCALLOPED SQUASH AND POTATOES (from Farm-Fresh Recipes by Janet Majure)
3 cups dry winter squash (kabocha), peeled and cut into chunks
2 cups diced potatoes
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped cooked ham
1/4 cup flour
1 Tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 1/3 cups whole milk
2 Tbsp butter
Place half of squash and potatoes in a greased 1 1/2-quart casserole dish. Sprinkle half the amount of ham and onions. Whisk together flour, parsley, salt, pepper, and nutmeg with milk. Pour half the mixture over vegetables. Dot with half the butter. Repeat layers. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 10-15 minutes, or until vegetables tender.
BEET AND DAIKON SLAW (from From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce by MACSAC) Serves 2
2 beets, peeled and cut into 1/8-inch julienne (matchsticks)
1 6-inch Daikon radish, peeled and cut into julienne
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 tsp canola oil
1 tsp unsalted rice vinegar
1 tsp sea salt, to taste
Combine all ingredients in bowl, cover and let stand at least 30 minutes. Season to taste, and serve.