Tantre Farm CSA Newsletter
WEEK #3
June 13-19, 2021
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
ARUGULA or SPICY GREENS: You will receive either 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 Sp icy Greens (gourmet-quality, peppery greens for quick cooking or a salad; 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: Also known as “sparrowgrass”, you will receive these green or purple spears; each contains vitamins A, B, and C, and 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. Alternatively, bundle spears with rubber band and place upright in container with an inch of water.
NAPA CABBAGE or BOK CHOY: You will receive Bok Choy (a traditional stir-fry vegetable from China with a sweet and mild flavor; looks like white Swiss chard with the stems all attached at the bottom) OR Napa Cabbage (crinkly, thickly veined le aves, which are cream-colored with 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 ; 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.
BROCCOLI: deep emerald green, tiny buds that are clustered on top of stout, edible stems; high in vitamins A, C, calcium, potassium, and iron; known as an anti-cancer vegetable.
-How to use: use raw, steamed, sauteed, stir-fried, in casseroles, soups, pizzas, etc.
-How to store: store loosely in plastic bag for up to a week.
NO HERB BUNCH THIS WEEK! Our herb patch is much smaller this year, so we will not be able to provide herbs every week. Most of our herbs are taking longer to grow back with this heat , so we are letting our s maller patches of herbs recuperate.
LETTUCE MIX: a bag of dark reds and vibrant greens including Green and Red Leaf lettuces; your lettuce has been rinsed once.
-How to use: raw in salads, sandwiches, or use in soups.
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 3-5 days.
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. Use this link for garlic scape recipes: http://sfc.smallfarmcentral.com/dynamic_content/uploadfiles/3774/GARLIC%20SCAPES%207%20Great%20Ideas.doc).
-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.
POTATOES: You will receive any of the following “old buddy” certified organic, storage potatoes. from Waywar d Seed Farm in Ohio such as Crimson King (Attractive, oval tubers with red skin and red flesh; good for baking, boiling, roasting, or frying) or All Blue (deep blue skin and flesh; moist texture; perfect in salads, baked, or boiled) *Interesting note: Most blue fleshed cultivars contain 90 times more antioxidants than white tubers, and the antioxidants in potato tubers are enhanced by cooking them.) These “old buddies” potatoes have been over-wintered in optimum storage conditions; possibly slightly less firm and slightly more sweet than a new potato, but good for cooking as suggested above.
-How to store: keep in cool, dark place in paper bag; ideal temperature is 38-40 degrees with 80-90 pe rcent humidity
RADISHES (Bacchus): stunning, purple, round radish with white inner flesh. Very good flavor and not too hot.
-How to use: raw, roasted, used in soups, sliced in salads, sandwiches, or stir-fries, grated in slaws; radish greens are delicious in soups or stir-fries and are an excellent source of vitamins.
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag/damp towel for 1-2 weeks.
SPINACH: crisp, dark green leaf; best eaten raw or with minimal cooking to obtain the beneficial chlorophyll, rich in many nutrients and antioxidants.
-How to use: delicious flavor when juiced, toss in fresh salad, add to sandwiches, saute, steam, braise, or add to crepes, quiche, lasagna, and soups.
-How to store: refrigerate with a damp towel/bag for up to 1 week.
RAINBOW SWISS CHARD: close relative of garden beets; multi-colored, large veined, semi-crinkly, dark green leaves; mild flavor; good source of vitamins A, E, and C, as well as iron and calcium.
-How to use: greens can be prepared like spinach, and stalks like asparagus; good steamed, sauteed, stir-fried, and in soups.
-How to store: wrap in damp cloth in a plastic bag and refrigerate for up to 2-4 days.
UPICK STRAWBERRIES: red, conical fruit with tiny white flowers. We are currently very short-staffed, so we can’t pick enough strawberries for all of you. We are encouraging you to pick your own 2 quarts for FREE as part of your share (and you can pick 2 quarts for someone else less able-bodied), if you are able to come to our Honey Bee U-pick site (5700 Scio Church Rd.) at the corner of Zeeb and Scio Church Roads in Ann Arbor. If you are less able-bodied with an injury or the inability to bend or walk very well, please preorder your 2 quarts to pick up at the Honey Bee U-pick any day of the week through Sunday, June 20, or at the Farm in Chelsea on Wed. or Friday distributions, or at the Washtenaw Food Hub distributions on Wed. from 6 to 8 PM or Saturday from 9 to 12 PM. Unfortunately we can’t deliver preorders to any other sites due to lack of refrigeration. Extra quarts for U-pick are $4/qt, $32/flat or $3.50/lb and Already Picked are $5/qt or $40/flat (8 trays).
-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.
WHITE HAKUREI TURNIPS and GREENS: a 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 delicious raw!) and greens are edible!
-How to use: greens good in salads and soups and can be steamed or sauteed with leeks; roots 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. WEEDING VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: We really are shorthanded with our crew right now, and we have so many 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, since we really would appreciate it!
2. STRAWBERRIES ARE READY! This week you may come to the farm for “already picked” strawberries on Wednesday (10 AM- 7 PM) and Friday (2 PM – 7 PM) for $5/quart or 40/flat (8 qts). These are normal distribution days at the farm, so no need to let us know you are coming. If you come any other time, you will need to schedule it by emailing us, so we make sure we have berries at the farm. There will be no you-pick strawberries at Tantre Farm this year, but rather at a new location called “Honey Bee U-pick” on the corner of Zeeb Rd. and Scio Church Rd (5700 Scio Church Rd.). There will be signs and you need to enter the drive to a newly constructed timber frame barn in the middle of the field. We will provide buckets for picking, but please bring your own containers to transfer strawberries into or we will provide bags or cardboard trays. We will also have “already picked” berries there for sale at that location for $5/qt or $40/flat (8 quarts). Please let us know if you have any questions.
3. FAMILY FARM HIKE on this FRIDAY, June 18, from 4-5 PM: Come join us for a guided monthly exploratory walk around Tantre Farm with CSA member, Alisse Portnoy, who teaches at the University of Michigan. She and her daughter are in their twelfth year of once-a-week, long visits to the farm. They look forward to sharing some of its treasures and treasure spots with you. We’ll use all our senses and appropriate social distancing as we take an approx. 45-60 minute hike. Please feel free to wear a mask if it makes you more comfortable, but not required if you are vaccinated. Meet at the picnic tables behind the Main House.
4. IMMUNE BOOSTER CSA: Please feel free also to sign up for our weekly, collaborative CSA share if you would like to supplement your box or give it a s a gift. The menu is updated on our website every Monday – Wednesday http://www.tantrefarm.com/how-does-our-immune-booster-csa-work/. Still time to sign up this week!
5. PICK UP TIMES & LOCATIONS REMINDER: Please use your Member Dashboard to schedule Vacations or Pick up Location Changes. Please let us know if there are any problems with Rescheduling. Some sites have less space to drop share boxes at, so are considered “limited” (see below). Please always email ahead to see if the limited sites are at capacity before making any switches on your own to those spaces.
*Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market (Wed.)—7 AM to 12 PM (TANTRE STAFF there from 7-9 AM)
**CORRECTION: MOVE Fitness & Wellness Studio (Wed)—8 AM to 10 AM (SARA there the whole time)
*Farm (Wed.)—10 AM to 7 PM (TANTRE STAFF there with some self check-in)
*Washtenaw Food Hub (Wed.) –6 PM to 8 PM (LIZZIE will be missing this week, so you may need to self check-in)
*Pure Past ures (Wed.) (limited site) —10 AM to 5 PM (JESSICA there from 9 AM – 11 AM)
*Farm (Fri.)—2 PM to 7 PM (TANTRE STAFF there with some self check-in)
*Community High School (Sat.) —7 AM to 12 PM (SHANNON there the whole time)
*Washtenaw Food Hub (Sat.)—9 AM to 12 PM (RYAN and Staff there the whole time)
*Chelsea Farmers’ Market (Sat.)—8 AM to 12 PM (DEB and staff there the whole time)
*Argus-Packard (Sat) (limited site)—12 PM to 3 PM (ARGUS STAFF there the whole time)
*RoosRoast-Rosewood (Sat)–9 AM to 11 AM (DEBRA is there the whole time)
RECIPES
STRAWBERRY NAPA SALAD (from https://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/strawberry-napa-salad-303013)
1 head Napa cabbage
1 quart strawberries, coarsely diced
1/4 cup slivered almonds
3 tablespoons green onions, finely diced
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk or coconut milk
Cut Napa cabbage into bite-sized pieces and place into a large bo wl. Add onion, almonds, and strawberries. Mix mayo, red wine vinegar, and sugar in a medium bowl. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir and add milk, a little at a time, until milk is incorporated. Add dressing to the salad mixture and chill.
SAUTEED GARLIC SCAPES WITH BROCCOLI (from http://www.chatfieldcsa.org/recipe/sauteed-garlic-scapes-with-broccoli)
5-10 garlic scapes
1 head broccoli
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper (just a sprinkle of each)
Fresh Parmesan cheese
Cut the scapes into 2 to 3 inch pieces so they almost look like green beans. Cut the broccoli up into small florets as you would do for a stir fry. Heat oil in a skillet and add broccoli and cut scapes. Add salt and pepper to taste and cook until the broccoli turns a bright green (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat and serve right away. Sprinkle with fresh Parmesan if you so desire.