Dear CSA Members:
Conrad Vispo is an amazing person. Trained as a wildlife
biologist, he and his wife Claudia did extensive field work in
Venezuela. After the birth of their beautiful son, they returned
to the area to be near Conrad's parents. He joined the farm
staff as a grocery buyer for our farmstore and it became clear
that his talents went even further. So, we are supporting Conrad
as he develops a wonderful new ecology program called the
"Farmscape" program. He and Claudia will be working with
apprentices, high school interns and others to research the
intricate relationships between Hawthorne Valley Farm and its
surrounding natural environment. Conrad and Claudia have already
produced several interesting displays for the entry to our
current store, and they will have a special center in our new
farmstore from which to help educate our consumers about our farm
and its ecology. Below is Conrad’s contribution to the
CSA News
Rachel Schneider, CSA Coordinator
.
One of the best times to appreciate a land is as the Sun goes
down. Not for any fiery display of sunset color, but rather for
the gentle glide towards darkness. The ground relaxes; the
day’s work is done. In cities, it is that sweet time
between coffee and wine when conversations are more meaningful,
more free yet imbued also with a tinge of the serious mystery of
Night. In the country, the shadow-less midday Sun has given way
to the long afternoon shadows that highlight textures and leave
space in the air for bird songs. The plants release the fists
that they had clenched against the heat, and water begins to
breathe fog into the evening.
The distance between Farm and Woodland narrows with the hour.
In the full Sun of day, the trees were tall in their pride and
the tilled land eager to announce its complicity with humankind.
But now Night sends simple reminders of mortality in the little
breezes circling amongst the clover and tickling the needles of
the pine, poking gentle fun at the Day’s artifices. And
that is a hope for the Farm – not that the fields
won’t be ploughed, the meadows not grazed nor some forest
cut, but that when the Sun goes down, field and forest can still
find themselves content bedmates, spinning dreams into the Night
in a shared tongue.
Conrad Vispo
Anticipated Harvest
for August 14th
Vegetable Share
- Braising Mix
- Chard
- Cucumbers
- Garlic
- Green Beans
- Lettuce
- Zucchini
- Peppers
Your share is a great example of the bounty that results from
farmer cooperation.
The Hawthorne Valley Farm CSA connects you to other reputable
growers, but it is not through an anonymous distribution
system.
These items come directly from the farmers that Rachel and
Steffen of Hawthorne Valley Farm know and trust – their
friends, neighbors and colleagues.
Here is a sampling of the farms they work with, based on
what’s in this week’s delivery:
- Corn comes from the fertility of Kinderhook Creek
Farm.
- Green beans are supplied by Markristo Farm, which
has a labor-saving mechanical bean picker.
- Grindstone Farmin Pulaski provides the
blueberries for your fruit shares.
- Hepworth Farmproduces a variety of stone
fruits – apricots, peaches, and more.
- Windflower Farm grows acres of flowers and
arranges them into cut flower shares.
SEND RECIPES!
Blue and White Salad
To turn this light luncheon salad into a more substantial
main-course meal, add strips of roast lamb, beef, pork or
chicken. Serves 4.
For the vinaigrette:
2 Tablespoons blueberry vinegar*
¼ cup chicken broth
1 Tablespoon mild olive oil
½ teaspoon minced garlic
1 ½ teaspoons honey
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
or ½ teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 Tablespoons blueberries
For the salad:
8 cups torn, mixed salad greens
1 cup fresh blueberries
¼ pound feta cheese, crumbled
Make the vinaigrette by placing all the ingredients in a
blender. Blend until emulsified. (You should have about ½
cup.) Transfer to a jar, cover and refrigerate until needed.
Make the salad: Just before serving, toss the mixed greens
with the vinaigrette in a large mixing bowl.
Divide the salad among chilled dinner plates. Top with
blueberries and crumbled feta cheese. Serve at once.
from Nicole Routhier’s Fruit Cookbook
*BLUEBERRY VINEGAR: Place ½ cup blueberries in a
glass jar and smash them lightly with the back of a wooden spoon.
Add ½ cup white vinegar. Cover the jar and refrigerate for
at least one day before using. It keeps for several weeks
refrigerated.
Chard, Chard…
If consecutive deliveries of Chard have you craving for
interesting was to serve it, refer to back issues of this
newsletter.
There you’ll find recipes like “Chick Peas and
Chard”, “Pasta with Chard and Goat Cheese”,
and “Ravioli Stuffed with Chard”. Of course,
recipes that call for “cooking greens” taste great
with a substitution of chard. Pick this season’s back
issues up from your site manager or on the CSA page at www.hawthornevalleyfarm.org.
The page also has an index so you can easily find recipes in the
past season’s newsletters, which are also posted on the
site.
…and More about Chard
Some recipes call for just chard leaves because the
stems take longer to cook. To separate leaves from
stems, fold a leaf in half and grasp it firmly in one hand, with
your fingers and thumb close to the main rib. With the other
hand, grab the stem and pull it away from the leaf.
To use the stems in a “leaves only” recipe,
sauté the chopped stems with any onions used in the recipe,
then add the chopped leaves to the onion mixture as
directed.
Stems can also be served separately. Treat them like
asparagus - trim tough ends, then steam or parboil. Serve warm
or cold with vinaigrette or a splash of lemon juice. They also
make a nice gratin, baked with a little bit of cheese and
sauce.