It’s Week Eight

Welcome! We are hope that you had a fantastic seventh week and that you were able to use everything in your bag. Did you discover a new recipe? Try something that will be added to your rotation of meals? Try a new to you vegetable that you liked? Let us know and I will share it here with our other members. If you loved it, others will too!

In Your Box This Week and How to Store Them

CARROTS - Store carrots in the refrigerator in a plastic bag or container. Cut tops off prior to storage. They can store for several weeks and sometimes even months $5

CELERY - Place the celery in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator, which should be set to high humidity. Don't wash or cut the celery until you're ready to use it. I would recommend storing in an open plastic bag. $5

ROVER RADISH - Remove the greens from the root. If you choose to keep the greens, wash them and then store wrapped in a damp paper towel in a bag. Place in the crisper of the refrigerator. The root can store up to two weeks in the fridge in a plastic bag. Wash before use. $5

MIXED LETTUCE - Store in a plastic bag loosely in your refrigerator. The ideal temperature for storing lettuce is at or near 32 degrees. Wash prior to use. Lettuce stores normally for UP to two weeks. $5

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

BEETS - cut off immediately. Store the roots in a bag in your refrigerator. Before use wash your beets., you can peel them with a knife or peeler, or you can roast them in foil or boil them, and the peels will come right off. Turnips do not require you to peel them, but you should use prior to use. $6

Veggie of the Week

BEETS

Beets, often underestimated, are colorful root vegetables that bring a wealth of health benefits to the table. They are a vibrant vegetable that not only enhances the appeal of meals but also enrich them with a unique earthy flavor. Rich in essential vitamins and minerals, beets are incredibly nutrient-dense while being low in calories, making them a perfect addition to your daily plate.

When I, (Kim), grew up we never ate beets. I was in my late 30’s before ever trying to incorporate them into a meal. I was please to find that I could roast, boil, pickle or juice them which all can be fairly simple. Beets also pair well with goat cheese and in salads. (Yum!)

Beet Salad with Goat Cheese (You can used beets, lettuce and apples from your bag this week!)

4 to 5 medium beets
Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
2 cups salad greens, arugula or spring mix
½ shallot, thinly sliced
½ green apple, thinly sliced
¼ cup toasted walnuts
2 ounces goat cheese
Microgreens, optional
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Sea Salt
Ground Pepper
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Wrap each beet in a piece of aluminum foil and drizzle generously with olive oil and pinches of salt and pepper. Place the beets on a baking sheet and roast for 40 to 90 minutes, or until soft and fork-tender. The time will depend on the size and freshness of the beets. Remove the beets from the oven, remove the foil, and set aside to cool. When they are cool to the touch, peel the skins. I like to hold them under running water and slide the skins off with my hands.
Let the beets cool and chill them in the fridge until ready to use.
Slice the beets into ¼-inch-thick rounds. Assemble the salad with the greens, shallots, apples, beets, walnuts, cheese, and microgreens, if using. Drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette. Season with flaky sea salt and pepper and serve.

Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Recipe - Love and Lemons

Sauteed Beet Greens

1 bunch of beet greens
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons golden raisins
Lemon wedge, for squeezing
1 tablespoon chopped walnuts or pistachios

Instructions

Separate the stems from the beet greens. Finely chop the stems and coarsely chop the leaves.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and the beet stems and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the beet greens, a few pinches of salt, and several grinds of pepper. Sauté, tossing, until just wilted.
Turn off the heat, add the raisins, and squeeze with lemon juice. Toss to combine. Transfer to a platter, top with the walnuts, and season to taste with more salt and pepper.

Sautéed Beet Greens Recipe - Love and Lemons

Additional Recipes

Whole Wheat Strawberry Beet Muffins Recipe - Super Healthy Kids

These look fun and something I might try with my kids!

Beet Smoothie | Healthy Breakfast Smoothie Recipe (wellplated.com)

Wilted Lettuce Salad Recipe (allrecipes.com)

My Favorite Carrot Cake Recipe - Sally's Baking Addiction (sallysbakingaddiction.com)

Parmesan Roasted Carrots Recipe - Cafe Deliteavs

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe - The Forked Spoon

Roasted Carrots Recipe - Love and Lemons

Easy Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup - Creme De La Crumb (lecremedelacrumb.com) (perfect for your kale and the cold temps that are coming! You can use mild Italian sausage and add red pepper to your spice level)

Week 8

Kim made it back from her trip to Charlotte, NC on Monday. Matt survived last week Friday’s CSA pick-up and farmers market, which we never had any doubt he would. The trip to NC has been scheduled for some time as a girl’s trip including aunts, great aunts, cousins and Kim’s grandma. Lots of food, wine and laughs overlooking a lake with beautiful weather and bonfires was a great way to spend a four-day weekend.

The farm is still in the process of preparing for winter. We are removing plants from the tunnels and burning them in our big burn pit. Clearing as much debris as possible from the garden areas is crucial, and we primarily burn the debris to minimize the risk of disease transmission in the future. Matt is putting the finishing touches on the end walls of our last tunnel and is relieved to complete this task before the onset of colder weather. Next week marks the beginning of garlic planting, and we are also applying fall compost to any open beds within the tunnels. Preparations for the upcoming season are well underway, especially since tomato seeds are set to be started in just two months!

I can hardly believe we are already in week 8. We've successfully completed 20 weeks of our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program this year, effectively doubling our offerings from the previous year. This wouldn't have been possible without the unwavering support from both our new and returning customers who have consistently shown their commitment week after week, and year after year. We are immensely grateful—thank you!

We sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed this year’s CSA, which included our enhanced newsletters, a diverse yet staple heavy weekly bag, along with the additional weeks we introduced. It’s our hope to welcome all of you back next year. Stay tuned for even more "upgrades" in the future as we aim to expand our CSA program even further!

We appreciate you and your support of small farms, small business and our small family!

Warmly,

Matt, Kim and kids

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 tasks:

Lettuce, spinach and kale will store for at least 7-10 days. We wash and spin dry your greens one time. You should wash and dry again before consumption. The best way is with a hand crank salad spinner. Keep in mind moisture leads to spoilage. You can wait to wash your greens until you plan to consumer them. Place greens in an airtight container such as a bag or Tupperware. Greens will hold for 7-10 days.
Make sure the greens are removed from the root vegetables. Your roots will store for a good while, your greens from your root vegetables need to be used or lose them.
Greens such as carrot tops or other veggie scraps can be saved and used for homemade vegetable broth. Try this recipe: How to Make Vegetable Broth Using Saved Kitchen Scraps ~ Homestead and Chill
Celery can be stored in your crisper drawer for quite a while but, you can also chop it and store it in a freezer bag to be used for cooking later.

Fall CSA Newsletter: Week 8