It’s Week One

Welcome! We are excited to have you for our first Fall CSA. This year, we are thrilled to have your support, and we have worked hard to provide 8 weeks of produce for you and your family. We are excited to get started!

By now, you should have received a welcome email with information about your pick-up location and day of the week. Some of you were a part of our summer CSA and have already experienced some of the changes that were made to our CSA. For those that were not a part of our summer CSA the next few paragraphs are for you.

We have made a few changes to our CSA this year. One of the changes we've made is that we will no longer be sending generic last-minute emails, which includes eliminating Kim yelling, “I’m sending an email soon” as you're picking up your bag! (Veteran members will know what we mean. lol) This newsletter will include recipes and storage information to help you make the most of your CSA bags every week. We hope that this new format will energize you for the season and encourage you to try new vegetables and recipes, expanding your culinary repertoire.

We are striving to set up our CSA exactly as we envisioned it when we started four years ago. While we still have many ideas, we are being realistic and implementing them gradually year by year. In the weekly newsletters, we will also highlight a crop each week, providing information on how to use it and sharing our go-to recipes as well as, my new category of, if all else fails do this (insert what this is). This is something we have attempted in the past, but now we are committed to doing it to the degree we had originally planned.

Furthermore, we will include short updates on the farm in each newsletter. These updates may include recent developments or events that have taken place on the farm or something to do with our family. We have received requests from multiple members to know more about us, the farmers. We understand that pick-up locations can be busy, and we haven't always been as accessible as we would like. So, consider this newsletter as a glimpse into our crazy farm life.

Lastly, we will be providing a list of vegetables that you COULD be getting in your box for the next week at the end of each newsletter. We are hoping to be more transparent earlier in the process to allow you to get a glimpse of what could be coming and have the time to look up your own recipes that you want to try.

We appreciate your support and trust in us. We couldn't live this life without you. As we embark on this journey together for at least the next 8 weeks, we ask for your well wishes and prayers if you're the praying type. Thank you once again for being a part of this community.

Warm regards,

Matt and Kim

In Your Box This Week and How to Store Them

CANDY ONIONS (red and white) - Store in the refrigerator crisper drawer for up to one week. You can peel off layers that become dry or slimy if used after one week. These won’t be quite as large as the goliaths we have sent previously. $1.00 x 3

HEIRLOOM TOMATOES- The best way to keep summer tomatoes fresh and full of flavor, store them on the kitchen counter at room temperature and turn them shoulders-down. 60 to 65° is an ideal temperature for storing and we recommend placing your tomatoes out of direct sunlight. NOTE: Heirloom tomatoes are not as shelf stable as red slicers. They will be softer, which is okay, but they will go bag quicker than the others. We DO NOT recommend putting them in the refrigerator to try to prolong shelf life, they will lose flavor. 1.00lb $4

ZUCCHINI -Wash, thoroughly dry, then wrap your cucumber in a dish towel or paper towel, place in an unsealed plastic bag to allow some airflow and place them in the crisper drawer. Can store for up to 10 days. Storing zucchini in the fridge is a quick and simple way to keep zucchini fresh. Keep the zucchini whole until you're prepared to use it, avoid washing zucchini prior to storage. $1.50 x 2

OKRA - Refrigerate unwashed, dry okra pods in the vegetable crisper, loosely wrapped in perforated plastic bags. Wet pods will quickly mold and become slimy. Okra will keep for a few days. $5 (1lb)

BELL PEPPERS - Clean the peppers and ensure they're dry, add them to a mesh or plastic produce bag, leave the bag open, and place them in the low humidity drawer. Peppers when nice and firm can last one-two weeks in the fridge. $1.75 x 2

GOLDEN DELICOUS APPLES - I prefer to pick this variety a little early, they are still mildly tart but also sweet, which is perfect. You can display on your countertop, but they'll only last between 1 and 2 weeks, depending on the variety and room temperature. Apples in the fridge last from 2 weeks to several months. $6

ACORN SQUASH - Winter squash will last up to a month in a cool (50 to 55 F) dark cellar or storage area, but only about two weeks in the refrigerator. We keep ours out on the counter out of direct sunlight and haven’t had any issues with it lasting several weeks. 2.75lbs $5.50

Veggie of the Week

Bell Peppers

Bell peppers are one of our favorite fall vegetables. We much prefer the orange, red and yellow ones as we think they are sweeter compared to the green which sometimes can taste a little bitter. I also love them because they add visual appeal to our plate, which only adds truth to the statement, “we eat with our eyes and not our stomachs.” Bell peppers are an excellent source of vitamins A and C, which support eye health and boost the immune system. One medium-sized bell pepper contains more vitamin C than an orange, did you know that…. because I didn’t! They also provide fiber, which aids digestion and keeps you feeling full plus, their high-water content keeps you hydrated. Bell peppers also known as “sweet peppers” are very versatile. You can enjoy them raw in salads, grilled, roasted, or stuffed. They pair well with a variety of dishes, from stir-fries to fajitas. Try adding diced bell peppers to omelets for a colorful breakfast or toss them into pasta for a burst of flavor. I also love them with fresh hummus, which is so easy to make!

My go-to meatloaf recipe is from the website Stuffed Peppers - Once Upon a Chef A few notes that I have made are:

I love to make a large batch of taco meat and set some aside to stuff peppers with later in the week. Replacing ground beef with ground lamb and lean pork. (We always have ground lamb and pork which is why I use it often) You can also sub in hamburger for Italian sausage, if you like it hot a hot sausage or you could also add black beans.
I also sub rice out for cauliflower rice as a lower carb options. It’s easy and I just throw it in frozen to the mix.
In the past I have simply cut the top off the pepper, scooped out the seeds and filled the pepper like a cup. Recently, I have started to cut the peppers in half and then fill. They are easier to cut into bite sized pieces this way or if you don’t cook the pepper all the way through you can pick them up like a burrito and eat them.

Bell Peppers and Hummus

BEST Hummus Recipe - Love and Lemons

Super simply hummus recipe and I have yet to dislike a recipe I have picked up off of Love and Lemons. I’m still tweaking the recipe to fit our family likes but, it is a good starting point. You can also add peppers to the hummus or you can pair with a nice warm pita on the side. YUM!

Easy Vegetarian Omelet With Bell Peppers Recipe (thespruceeats.com)

Easy omelets in the morning make for a great breakfast filled with protein and vegetables to make you full.

Western Omelette – Lemon Tree Dwelling

Bell Pepper Fajitas | Greater Chicago Food Depository (chicagosfoodbank.org)

Fajitas are also a great choice with peppers. Chicken, steak, shrimp they are all great and a crowd pleaser.

Additional Recipes

Best Southern Fried Okra Recipe – How to Make Fried Okra (thepioneerwoman.com)

Roasted Okra Recipe (allrecipes.com)

Air Fryer Okra - No Breading or Eggs! (runningtothekitchen.com)

Roasted Acorn Squash Recipe - Love and Lemons

This recipe calls for sage or rosemary. You don’t have to use it, but I will start incorporating weekly herbs to go with fall recipes!

Stuffed Acorn Squash – WellPlated.com

Cracker Barrel Copycat Skillet Fried Apples - Feels Like Home Blog

What’s Been Happening Here

For the last 6 weeks, since our summer CSA has ended, we have been packed with spending time with our kids before school returned on August 20th. We enjoyed time in the Smokey Mountains, took family pictures, visited Dollywood, went white water rafting, spent time with Kim’s parents, brother and nieces/nephews, saw several bears right at our cabin, went on numerous mountain coasters and more. We also went to the state fair for a day, school shopping, went to a pre-season Chiefs game and we welcomed our exchange student for the school year. WHEW! Are you tired yet…. because we are!

Our exchange student is from Mexico and is settling in nicely to his junior year with our son Wyatt. Football season is starting as well as 4H, gymnastics and all the other school events and activities. We also started our 8th high tunnel today and took possession of our strawberry plugs. So exciting for strawberries next spring! I’ll be posting pics next week of our progression on the tunnel. Matt is not new to the construction game, and I think this one will go up fairly quickly, which is good. Our schedule is crazy and will continue to be for a little while. We still have a LOT to harvest, and we are just finishing our fall planting this week of radish, turnip and spinach which should all be in your fall boxes by the 5th or 6th week!

If All Else Fails

If your week has been crazy and you haven’t had time to do a thing with items in your bag, focus on these three tasks:

I’m leaving this blank this week. It’s the first week and we better be using everything we sent!

Next Week’s Possibility’s

Your bag next week will include 6-7 of the following depending on availability and if it’s ready to harvest.

apples
potatoes
onions
okra
sweet potatoes
delicata
bell peppers
Other peppers (poblano, jalapeño, anaheim, banana, etc.)
Fairy Tale Eggplant
cherry tomatoes
slicing tomatoes (heirloom type)
butternut squash
spaghetti squash
acorn squash
zucchini
herbs (rosemary, sage, oregano, parsley)
San Marzano tomatoes (roma type)

Wishing you a fantastic week ahead, see you next week!

Fall CSA Newsletter: Week 1