Summer CSA Week 17, 2022

It’s pumpkin time!

This is the penultimate CSA week! You will be receiving a carving pumpkin with your share this week. The pumpkins do not fit in the box, so please remember to grab your pumpkin when you pick-up. Enjoy carving jack o’lanterns! Try roasting your pumpkin seeds for a bonus tasty snack.

Next week will be the 18th and final CSA box for this season. It has been a joy having you as part of the Food Farm family!

Loading up pumpkins for Monday deliveries.

In your share this week:

Noreaster Beans – Broccoli – Carrots – Garlic – Leeks – Lettuce – Onion – Sweet Red Peppers (not hot) – Jalapeño Pepper (hot) – Yellow Potatoes – Daikon Radish – Delicata and Acorn Squash – Tomatoes – Parsley


Leaves changing at the farm


Universal Cream of Vegetable Soup

This recipe works for nearly any vegetable the farm grows – from celery to leeks to squash! This is also a great way to use up veggies from last week.

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 6-8 cups coarsely chopped veggies (suggested starting point: 1 med onion coarsely chopped, 2 leeks, one clove garlic minced, 2 diced carrots,  2-3 stalks celery coarsely chopped, 2 potatoes diced. Add any other veggie like broccoli, cauliflower, or  squash to total 6 cups veggies.)
  • 1/4 cup flour.  
  • 4 cups broth (chicken, pork or veggie)
  • 1/2 to 1 cup milk or cream
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Sauté veggies in the butter 10-15 minutes (until tender but not brown).
  2. Add flour and cook for a couple of minutes.  
  3. Turn heat to high and add 4 cups of broth (chicken, pork or veggie), while constantly stirring as the soup thickens.  Bring to a boil.  
  4. Reduce heat to simmer the soup.  Cook, partially covered, until the vegetables are very tender (appx 30 minutes).   Using an immersion blender, food processor, or blender process the soup until smooth.  Add a little water or more broth if the soup is too thick and difficult to process.  
  5. Return soup to the pot and add 1/2-1 cups milk or cream.  Salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Can be served with grated cheese.

Recipe from Deb Rausch


What to do with Daikon Radish?!

This week you will find daikon radish in your box. Daikon is a large peppery variety of radish that is common in Asian cuisines. This crunchy vegetable can be eaten raw, pickled (like in traditional kimchi), or cooked.

Vietnamese Pickled Carrots & Daikon Radish (Đồ Chua)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb daikon radish*
  • 1/2 lb carrots*
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1/2 c boiling water
  • 5 tbsp granulated white sugar
  • filtered room temp. water
  • 4 tbsp distilled vinegar

Instructions

  1. Peel daikon and carrots, then cut with mandolin slicer medium to small matchsticks. Smaller cuts will pickle faster.
  2. In a large bowl, sprinkle with salt evenly and toss to coat. Soak for 15 minutes.
  3. Rinse thoroughly to remove the salt and in small hand-fulls, squeeze to remove as much moister as you can.
  4. Add to jars, filling almost to the top.
  5. Create the vinegar solution (brine) by boiling water then adding sugar. Mix to dissolve. Add vinegar.
  6. Pour this liquid evenly into your jars. If needed, add extra room temp water to barely fully submerge the veggies.
  7. Screw on the lids, store at room temperature until pickled to your taste, checking every 12 or 24 hours. It usually takes 2-5 days depending on the temperature.
  8. Refrigerate when ready, for up to 3 weeks, or until too sour or veggies lose their crunch.

*You can change the ratio of veggies to your preference and/or scale the recipe up or down depending on how much veg you have to pickle. Just make sure you have enough brine to completely submerge your veggies.

Based off recipe from Hungry Huy.

Check out other daikon recipes here.


For the farm crew,

Starr

Summer CSA Week 17

I hope everyone’s fall equinox was filled with fall festivities. Leaf watchers should be infiltrating the region en masse in the coming weeks. Luckily we don’t have to go very far at the Farm to see the beautiful colors of fall. For those who have been out to the Farm, you know what I mean. This is also the week where onion cleaning is in full swing which means that the falling leaves will become mostly indistinguishable from onion skins that are left to the ground.

Onions are one of our main storage crops for the winter. Last week we harvested several thousand pounds of storage crops. These include squash, potatoes, cabbage, and daikon radish. Speaking of… daikons will be making an appearance in your shares this week. The following recipes are heavily influenced by daikons as they are probably not used as often in people’s cooking routines.

This is a really nice time on the farm.  The weather is not too hot, and not yet cold. The weeds and bugs have slowed, and we are no longer planting vegetable starts or seeds into the field with the exception of cover crop seed. The frost seems to be keeping its distance and we received a 3/4″ of rain this week. All of our “free time” is pretty focused on harvesting storage crops.

Also, this week we will be sending out pumpkins! Farmer Janaki notes that although these are technically edible, the texture and flavor is not as good for eating. This variety is mainly used for carving. Let the fall festivities ensue.

Thanks for reading,

Emily

Terri hauling pumpkins while wearing her pumpkin colored overalls.

In your shares this week: Pole Beans – Carrots – Celery – Cilantro – Cucumbers – Greens Mix – Onions – Red Peppers – Hot Peppers – Fingerling Potatoes –  Daikon Radishes – Spinach – Delicata Squash – Tomatoes – Zucchini

Beans in the greenhouse.

This recipe is good for a quick addition to anything that might need the crunch of a pickle (salads, grilled items).  The original recipe also called for carrots. 


Daikon Radish Quick Pickle (Modified from The CSA Cookbook (Ly)


1/2 lb daikon cut into 2-inch matchsticks

1tsp salt

1/2 cup rice vinegar

1/2 cup water

2 tbsp sugar


Toss the daikon with the salt and let it sit in a colander in the sink for about 30 minutes.  Toss once or twice to remove as much liquid as possible.  Combine the vinegar, water, and sugar in a saucepan.  Cook over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.  Let the brine cool to room temp.Rinse the daikon under cold water to remove the salt and pack into a container.  Cover the daikon matchsticks with the brine and let them stand for at least 4 hours at room temperature.  Pickles are best if refrigerated overnight.

Spicy Chinese Slaw (The Joy of Cooking)


Slice into 2-inch matchsticks- Daikon, cucumbers and cabbage (to equal 3 cups)

Place in bowl and toss with 4 tablespoons of salt.  Let stand to drain for 30-45 minutes. 

Rinse veggies with cool water to remove the salt.  Drain well and place into serving bowl. 

Stir in: 1 tsp minced garlic Red pepper flakes (to taste)

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1.5 tablespoons olive oil

1.5-2 tablespoons of sesame oil

salt to taste. Marinate for at least an hour.  

The 3rd recipe I chose should use some of the root veggies in this share…YUMMY!


Roasted Roots with Vinaigrette (modified from The Smitten Kitchen)


1 cup of cooked grains – quinoa, barley, couscous, farro (your choice!)

salt

3 small shallots or 1 small garlic clove

olive oil

3-4 cups mixed root vegetables (possibilities:  radishes, turnips, beets, carrots, potatoes, squash, cabbage, zucchini) – you can also include any non-root veggies from your shares.

2 tablespoons lemon juice


Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Peel shallots (or garlic), break the shallot into clove-sized portions and wrap in aluminum foil with a few drops of olive oil. Place in oven. Coat baking sheet or roasting pan lightly with olive oil. Arrange the root veggies in one layer and drizzle with as much olive oil as you like to use (at least 2T). Sprinkle with lemon juice, sprinkle generously with salt and pepper to taste. Add roasting pan to oven. Roast veggies for 20 minutes, flip them over and roast for 10-20 more (until tender and slightly brown).  Remove both veggies and foil packet from oven.


Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons mild vinegar (sherry is good)

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp olive oil

pepper to taste


Remove the shallot or garlic from the foil packet and toss into blender with the vinegers and salt.  Drizzle in olive oil and sample the dressing.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  
To assemble:  spoon the grain onto a platter.  Arrange roasted root veggies over the grains and drizzle with the dressing.