Sundog CSA August 23, 2021
Another rain storm - this one seemed resentful and blew rain at us Friday night, breaking tree branches and upturning things that were not “nailed” down and depositing 2.29 in our rain gauge. Thursday morning there was a short shower on the hill that added .15 to our August moisture totals. If we could custom order rainfall, it would come down slow and gentle and without wind and cracks of lightning followed by loud echoing thunder that rolled as though being played by a drummer. And now we are looking at a few days of high temperatures again this coming week. It is definitely still summer in Kansas! 😊
Quick turnaround greens are in the ground in the bottom tunnel and Saturday night the moon sign was sitting right for “fruit” crops so in the ground at the bottom of the new turnip patch went some cucumber and squash seeds. These seeds were planted with a lot of hope that we will see the departure of the squash bugs, blister beetles and lemon cucumber beetles. They were all a part of the end of our gorgeous squash bed this past few days. Izzy’s birdhouse gourds are now under attack so we are hoping that all the gourds hanging will be able to mature as they are fun to hang in the trees. And our midnight turnip planting has resulted in a solid bed of tiny little plants - in most places. Turns out that we weren’t planting in some places and it looks like we may have double or triple planted in others. It looks good for a ground cover!
We are trying to start some lavender plants off of one of our established plants. An article said that breaking off pieces of the plants new growth and sticking them in potting soil (dipping in rooting solution is a plus) will start new plants. We lost a lot of lavender and so would like to have it again as a draw for bees and because it smells and feels luxurious as you walk by it when working in the dirt.
Besides pests, we also have tomato varieties that are susceptible to fungus so we have been removing any blight withered foliage and getting them out of the tunnels. We aren’t having quite as many problems outside as inside. The chard is being dined on by beetles and we are going to pick it to the ground and hope that the beetles move on to better “greener pastures”! So, your greens bundles this week are “holey”!
The weekend was spent baking bread, canning salsa, tracking down hornets, visiting with my sister and picking and weeding and digging in the gardens as we find treasures among the weeds.
YOUR BAG THIS WEEK –
- Tomatoes and more tomatoes
- Potatoes
- A few cucumbers
- Sweet Peppers
- Carrots – we found a few as we weeded among the peppers and eggplant.
- Eggplant OR Okra
- Basil and Chives
- Swiss Chard
Maggie’s Fresh Tomato Sauce - One United Harvest (creative recipes from America’s CSA Farms
This recipe is from Maggie Wood, The Golden Earthworm Organic Farm, Jamesport, Long Island, New York
Recipe Note: I love to prepare this first thing in the morning and let it sit on the counter all day. It fills the house with the most heavenly aroma and keeps me away from the stove! I usually toss with pasta but I can just as easily drain the tomatoes and make bruschetta with this versatile sauce – Maggie
3 lbs. tomatoes, peeled and diced 2 Tablespoons fresh parsley
3 cloves garlic, minced ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ cup olive oil 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
¼ cup chopped fresh basil penne pasta
Combine all the ingredients except salt and pasta. Let it sit in a large non-aluminum bowl at room temperature, covered for 30 minutes up to 6 hours. Prepare pasta. Toss with sauce and add salt just before serving.
Fresh Basil Pasta Sauce – One United Harvest (creative recipes from America’s CSA farms).
This recipe is from Julie Vitale, Jupazza Specialty Products/Vitale Farms CSA, Rochester Hills, Michigan
Recipe Note: You may use ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese (more or less to taste) as a salt substitute when tossing the drained pasta with the melted basil sauce.
Don’t Dy Basil: freeze it!
Frozen Basil Cubes:
2 cups fresh, washed and dried basil leaves (no stems) ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice (to preserve color)
Place the basil leaves and lemon juice in a blender. Add the oil and allow the blender to chop the leaves. Add more oil if necessary to make the blades spin. Blend for 30 to 60 seconds on medium speed. Pour the basil mixture into ice cube trays and freeze overnight. Transfer the cubes to storage bags or containers for use all year long.
BASIL SAUCE:
Salt 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 lb. pasta 3 basil cubes (see above)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Boil water and add salt for your choice of pasta (either packaged or fresh homemade). Cook pasta according to the directions. While the pasta is cooking, measure 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a skillet. Add 2 to 3 cloves of finely chopped garlic. Cook until golden. Place 3 basil cubes into the pan for each pound of pasta. Turn off the heat and allow the cubes to melt slowly. Add salt to the basil sauce to taste. Frain the pasta and place the cooked pasta back into the same pot. Add the basil sauce to the pasta and stir well. Add fresh ground pepper to taste.
Sauteed Cherry Tomatoes with Feta Cheese - One United Harvest (creative recipes from America’s CSA farms).
This recipe is from Marlene Washington, Eatwell Farms, Dixon, California
2 Tablespoons extra -virgin olive oil 1 Tablespoon chopped basil or parsley
1 medium onion freshly ground black pepper
1 pt. cherry tomatoes 2 oz. crumbled feta cheese (about ½ cup)
Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add onion and sauté until golden, about five minutes. Raise heat to medium high and add tomatoes. Cook just until tomatoes are heated through and skins are beginning are beginning to brown in spots, about 2 minutes. Add olives, herbs and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with cheese and serve immediately.
I am not sure why but it seems magical when something happens that you did not have a hand in – this summer we have split the chicken pen into two spaces because Izzy was gifted with a pair of Bourbon turkeys by our friend Judy and it seemed safer to keep the chickens and turkeys separate. So, in the “turkey pen” along with their water and feed and huge shade tree is a place where Katy set out some pumpkins from last fall’s corn shock celebration. The chickens love to peck at the pumpkins and we watched them disappear as the poultry dug in. This spring since the pen has been largely deserted, there was opportunity for some greens to germinate and actually grow. The prominent feature of this new “turkey pen garden” has been a vine that has climbed out of the fence and up the nearby tree. We bend down to get in the pen as the vine hangs across the gate. For weeks it seemed as through the huge yellow blooms were for show and most of them seemed to be but then, hanging out of the tree we spied a tiny pumpkin that has now grown into a fairly large pumpkin. We all raced out Saturday morning to see if the pumpkin made it through the windstorm and it did. It is like a rare gift and each day, we find ourselves looking at it and wondering how big it is going to grow and if it will change color and when it will be done growing because we know little about this tree hanging pumpkin except it is stubborn as it hangs onto a small tree limb, determined to make it to “big pumpkin” stage. We walk around it and talk about erecting a support net but so far, we are just standing back because this pumpkin has made it without any help from the people on this hill - rather humbling for resident gardeners! 😊
Blessings from the farm - Jen, Zach, Izzy, Seth, Dan, Katy and Teresa
Ominous signs from the resident ants who look like they are preparing for a gully washer!!!!
This is a picture of the moon setting one night last week – wishing that I could have captured the spell that it set in the sky!
Sharing the path to the field with someone requires one of us to know about traffic courtesies such as keeping to your side of the path! 😊