Dear CSA Members:
I am sure
you are enjoying your vegetables - the shares are plentiful and the variety is
good this year. The thing is, I am not even sure how we are managing it
because the weather is becoming VERY DIFFICULT for us.
The
vegetables seem to be holding up, but we have reduced our irrigation way down
as each time we use water from our creek, it takes longer for the creek to
refill for the next time. As our creek
dries up more quickly on us we may have to further reduce our irrigation.
Our staff is not holding up as well under these weather circumstances. There is quite a bit of heat exhaustion,
stomach flu and all around weakness and lightheadedness. Most of us are having a hard time sleeping
with just fans. Recently a researcher who is working for the Nature Institute
down the road from us was measuring the ozone levels in our air.
Apparently they are seriously high in the valley. Add that to the
temperatures, and that helps explain how our staff and apprentices have been
feeling.
Since we can’t change the weather (that’s why Jodie made me promise not to
write about the weather all the time!), we have changed the work schedule. On harvest days it is now much different
than what I mentioned last week. Now we harvest at 5AM when it is still
dark and cooler out, and have been using the headlights of the truck for
light. Last Friday, we harvested until 10AM with a short food and water break
in the field. Then we worked until 12 and took a 4 hour break until
4PM. We weeded some carrots and tried to keep cool until 6PM and that was
the day. On Thursday we actually took a half day off due to the heat.
So think good thoughts for us. We very much want you to enjoy your
vegetables - we are keeping as healthy and hydrated as we can while harvesting
for you....just know that the season is rough right now and if the food starts
looking a little off...you simply need to know and understand this: it is
very much the weather.
Until next issue,
Rachel Schneider
CSA Coordinator
Looking Forward to
Next Week’s Harvest
Anticipated Share for August 22nd
·
Beets
·
Carrots
·
Corn
·
Cucumbers
·
Lettuce
·
Onions
·
Summer Squash
·
Zucchini
·
Tomatoes or Peppers or Eggplant
Send
your recipes, cookin tips, comments, and other newsletter items to
RiverdaleCSA@aol.com
For
back issues of newsletters: www.hawthornevalleyfarm.org
Tabbouleh
Here’s
one version of this popular cracked wheat salad.
½
cup bulgur
1
cup boiling water
1
cup finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
3
medium scallions, finely chopped
1
medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely diced
¼ cup finely chopped fresh
mint
¼
cup fresh lemon juice
¼
teaspoon ground cumin
Salt
and freshly ground pepper
3
Tablespoons olive oil
2
tomatoes, chopped
In
a bowl, cover the bulgur with boiling water and let stand for 1 hour. Drain and transfer to a large serving
bowl. Stir in the parsley, scallions,
cucumber, and mint. In a small bowl,
whisk the lemon juice with the cumin, a ½ teaspoon of salt, and pinch of
pepper. Whisk in the oil. Stir the dressing into the bulgur. Cover and let stand at room temperature for
2 to 5 hours to allow the flavors to blend.
When ready to serve, add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to
taste. Toss to combine.
Makes
4 Servings.
Minty Cucumber
Salad
3 large cucumbers, peeled,
halved, seeded, & sliced
½ cup chopped fresh mint
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
grated rind of 1 orange
½ cup olive oil
1 cup red wine vinegar
¼ cup granulated sugar
Toss
cucumber slices in a bowl with mint, parsley, and orange rind. Whisk the oil, vinegar, and sugar together
in a small bowl. Pour over salad. Cover salad and refrigerate for at least 4
hours. Toss again before serving very
cold. 6 Servings.
The Silver
Palate Cookbook
Summer
Squash-Lemon Thyme Soup
This recipe comes from Oprah’s
magazine.
2 Tablespoons olive
oil
2 large sweet
onions,
chopped
1 leek,
chopped
6 garlic cloves
chopped
6 yellow summer
squash
(about 3 lbs), trimmed
and chopped
4 sprigs thyme
2 strips lemon peel,
5 cups broth
½ teaspoon salt
2 to 4 Tbspa fresh
lemon juice
Hot pepper sauce
Parmesan cheese,
pine nuts and lemon zest for garnish
In a 4-quart Dutch
oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
Add the onions, leek and garlic and cook, stirring, for 10 minutes or
until onions are soft. Add the squash
and lemon thyme and cook, stirring for 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high;
add the broth and salt. Cook,
partially covered at a low boil for 20 minutes, or until the squash is soft.
Discard the
thyme. Puree the soup in batches in a
covered blender, then return to the Dutch oven and heat through. Add the lemon juice and hot pepper sauce to
taste.
Garnish the soup
with some shaved Parmesan, pine nuts, thyme sprigs and lemon zest. Serve hot.
Makes about 8 cups
(or 8 first-course servings.)
