Sundog CSA July 1st, 2024

Is this June? Or is it April or maybe August? So much rain falling in the middle of days where the heat indices are exercising your sweat glands and you are glancing at the calendar to see what day summer actually began on? We are only ten days into the warm season with approximately eighty more to go before the autumnal equinox. No matter what the season, this rain has been a blessing for the crops here on the hill. They are growing right along with the weeds this year.

Last week’s wind storm that was peppered with some rain drops here and there only amounted to .24 in the gauge, however, it left a lot of damage to the area all around us with broken tree limbs and roof shingles no longer in place. On the hill, we lost our bottom high tunnel’s cover so tomatoes, carrots and beets are discovering the great outdoors this season. There are a few squash and cucumber plants at one end who have appreciated all the rainfall and so far, the tomatoes seem to be doing ok. Friday evening’s rain was a gauge full and more as it hit 1.83 before it quit dripping. The clouds were menacing and cracks of thunder with lightning slices sent us running for the house, abandoning the barn and any ideas of finishing the row of peppers that we had started to weed.

This week’s visitors included our friend, Russell, bringing lots of jars. He knows that we treasure those glass containers as we make them into cow milk containers for the “ladies”. Our current barn crew is Pearl, Fawkes, Woodrow, Penny and Mimi. Katy is milking goats outside and her lineup is Ella, Susie, Junie B, and Blue. Other excitement this week was a “cow outage” on the road with neighbors sending messages and calls as everyone tried to figure out whose cows were taking a walk down the road. Katy and I breathed a huge sigh of relief as we figured out that they were not our bovines! At the end of the day, all critters were confined and the cows who had been judged rather harshly were found innocent as conversations revealed that a gate had been left open by someone who went into what they thought was an empty pasture. Excited clucks from the “chickmobile” made Monday special as one of our milk customers, Carrie, and her family gifted us with some new chickens. Now we are definitely going to get that chicken pen built this coming week! We moved the chickmobile to the side of the garden and our plan is to put a pen alongside a healthy crop of bindweed and see if chickens will remove that troublesome weed before it spreads any further into what is now our okra rows.

Gardening this week was digging here and there in whatever dry ground we could find and searching for potatoes, pulling knee high weeds and laying them down for mulch alongside some hidden hot peppers that we almost forgot we planted, enjoying the tiny miracle of dry bare root strawberries sending up rolled sticks of green that unfurled as curvy green leaves, squashing bean beetles and leaving their intact carcasses as a warning to all bean beetles (didn’t work), finding Izzy perched under the peach tree with a first ripe cherry tomato for each of us and we hope that you enjoy them as much as we all did.

YOUR BAG THIS WEEK –

• Fresh dug potatoes
• Green Beans
• Swiss Chard
• Kohlrabi
• Onion
• Squash
• Cucumbers
• Herb - Basil And the tiniest taste of the first tomatoes

ONION Information - “From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce”

There are 300 species of onions within the allium genus, seventy of which are native to North America. The famous and odorous group includes our familiar kitchen varieties: scallions, shallots, leeks, onions and garlic. The bulb onion is indisputably the most universal seasoning used by humans. Believed cultivated since prehistoric times, the onion seems to have originated in the middle East and southwest Asia with references dating back to 3200 B.C. The ancient Egyptians saw the concentric circles of the onion as a symbol of the universe and treated it as an object of worship. In North America, the native peoples used wild onion long before European settlers arrived with cultivated varieties. The pungency of an onion directly reflects the amount of sulfur in the soil in which it was grown. A sulfur compound within the onion turns into sulfuric acid when in contact with the water in eyes, causing a cook painful tears. Beyond flavor, the onion has always been touted for its various health and healing benefits.

RECIPES - Looking for recipes to share this week, I found variations of “Onion Pie” everywhere. I have read these recipes over and over and never put them to the taste test - maybe this is the year? Anyway, here are a couple of the ones that might be on the table –

Onion Pie – “Cooking from Quilt Country” by Marcia Adams

This is a Mennonite dish, sometimes called tzvivelle pie. Rich but delicate, and subtly seasoned, it is a perfect lunch dish and an ideal accompaniment to char-broiled steak.

3 tablespoons butter 1 cup half and half

2 cups sliced onion (approximately one pound) ½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon minced garlic ½ teaspoon Tabasco

1 unbaked 10-inch pie shell ¼ teaspoon white pepper

6 eggs, beaten ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg, rounded

¼ teaspoon powdered mustard Paprika

In a large skillet, place the butter, onions and garlic. Sauté over medium-low heat until the onions are soft, golden and just beginning to brown; don’t rush this – it takes about 20 minutes. (This can be done in advance and refrigerated until needed.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread onion mixture in the bottom of the pie shell. Combine the beaten eggs and the half-and-half. Add seasonings except paprika and blend. Pour the egg mixture over the onions and sprinkle with paprika. Place the pie on the lowest rack of the oven and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. The top will be puffed and brown and still a bit shaky; that’s all right.

And another “onion pie” from Rolling Prairie Cookbook by Nancy O’Connor

Equally good for brunch or dinner, serve slices of this crustless quiche with thick slices of fresh tomatoes, wedges of ripe melon and wholegrain rolls.

SAVORY ONION POTATO PIE

1 tablespoon butter 2 medium-sized onions, chopped coarsely

3 eggs ¼ skim milk

3 to 4 medium-sized potatoes, unpeeled, cooked, cubed ½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ ounces Gruyere or other Swiss cheese, grated black pepper to taste

A sprinkle of grated nutmeg

Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onions and sauté, stirring often, until slightly browned, but not quite transparent, approximately 10-to-15-minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Beat eggs and milk together. Stir in cooked potatoes, grated cheese, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Pour into a deep 9 ½ inch pie plate and bake for 30 minutes, or until beautifully golden on top and fully set. Serves 6.

VARIATIONS: For a really deep and full flavor, substitute smoked provolone for all or part of the Swiss cheese. Or you can bake the filling in a pie crust.

And the last of pie recipes, only this one is for squash. YELLOW SQUASH PIE from One United Harvest

Creative Recipes from America’s Community Supported Farms. Recipe shared by Jeni Galvin, Sunshine Gardens, Virginia

½ stick butter 1 Tablespoon flour 1 ½ cup shredded squash

1 tsp. lemon flavoring ½ cup sugar 1 tsp. coconut flavoring

3 eggs 1 unbaked pie shell

Mix all ingredients together and pour into an unbaked pie shell. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.

Sophie was giving Lenni a “wipe down” tonight –

Standing at the barn door tonight, I was waiting for Woodrow and Penny to make their way into the barn and noticed that Sophie was “talking” rather insistently to Lenni, who finally trotted over to see what “mom” wanted. Sophie did not waste any time, nudging and pushing Lenni from side to side, and vigorously brushing her down with a very rough tongue. Lenni had a rather scrunched up face, but she stood while being washed. I don’t know how many of you have had a shirt tail or licked finger scrub rather demandingly on some invisible spot as you are at some event or occasion but I remember those days and almost put my finger to my face as the memory made itself clear. Lenni was released with hair slicked back and nose wiped clean and I could only think how grateful I was that my grandma at least did not lick me!

Blessings from the farm – Izzy, Seth, Dan, Katy, Jen, Zach and Teresa