Last week was a very exciting and much anticipated week on the farm. It’s the beginning of carrot harvesting!

We got to dust off the carrot harvester that has been sitting in storage since last Fall. It’s such a fun time on the farm when we start bringing out the harvesters. Whenever we bring out a harvester, we split the crew into two groups. One group is on the harvester using their quick reflexes to sort through the carrots or potatoes as they speed past on their way into the pallet box. This crew is in charge of removing any rocks, weeds, or defective veggies while we’re still out in the field so these things don’t make their way to our washing line. Group two is in charge of the washing line. This group accepts the pallet boxes when they come off the harvester, and run the veggies through our washing assembly line. This group is always working extra hard. The people at the beginning of the assembly line are sorting out anything that made it past our quick eyed harvesting team. The veggies then go through a rinse cycle to get nice and clean. After that, the veggies pop out onto a roller table where they go through one final round of inspections to ensure only the best veggies end up in our root cellar.

On a typical day on the farm, the crew is spread out working on multiple projects at once, but on harvesting days, it’s all hands on deck focused on one task. It’s also a cool time because we get to see the carrots come full circle. We were there when the carrots got seeded, we crawled around for many hours weeding all of them, and now we get to see all of our hard work in a beautiful orange bundle as they head off to all of you in your weekly boxes.

Speaking of your boxes, you’ll find lots of new goodies in them this week. If you’ve never had them, or even heard about them, New potatoes are potatoes that are prematurely harvested. They’re generally smaller in size, a little sweeter, slightly less starchy, and have a very thin skin. The thin skin does mean you will want to enjoy these sooner rather than later, and it is highly recommended that you store them in your fridge rather than on the counter like you might with a mature potato.

We are also introducing peppers! I always like to give people a little warning before we send Jalapenos for the first time. The variety that we grow on the farm are big, beautiful, and incredibly spicy. Jalapenos are usually spicy, but the ones from the farm pack an extra punch, so I would recommend using just a little and adding more to your preference.

In your share this week:

Basil – Carrots – Cilantro – Hot Pepper – Bell Pepper – Cucumbers – Chard/Greens Mix – Lettuce – Green Onions – Snap Peas – New Potatoes – Tomatoes

This cucumber salsa is a bright and refreshing way to use up multiple veggies in this week’s box. This would be great eaten as is with chips or toasted bread. If you want to get a little more adventurous, try it as a topping for fish tacos or a beautifully grilled steak.

By now you might all be curious for a way to use up sugar snap peas that isn’t eating them straight out of the bag. If you need a little inspiration, try this Spring Garden Pasta Salad. It’s another great way to use up multiple veggies at once. The recipe calls for chard or kale, but a handful of greens mix would be perfect in this as well.