Hi everyone,
It’s really starting to feel like fall now. We’ve been having cool nights and there are winter squashes in the shares (and football is back). I want to thank everyone again for being part of the first season of the CSA Club. Its been very fulfilling for us and we hope that you all have enjoyed it as much as we have. Lisa and I are starting to finalize plans for the CSA Club over the winter (and for next season) and we want your help to form those plans.
First though, I want to share some of our accomplishments so far through the season. Together, the CSA Club has enjoyed a whopping 1200 lbs of locally grown produce. All of that coming from just 70 mi away, compared to the average of over 1500 mi of what you would find in a grocery store. I had also planned on listing the percentage of diet grown in Illinois that would represent, but based on a typical thrifty diet according the USDA food plans each of the CSA Club shares would only account for 28% of fruit and veggies. That doesn’t quite seem right to me. Lisa and I are usually working hard to use everything up before the next share rather than supplementing with additional produce, but let us know if you think different!
Now the ask for help; we want your feedback on the CSA Club to help guide the direction we continue to grow. If you could please fill out this survey, it would go a long way in helping us plan. We appreciate any thoughts, ideas or critiques, that you might have.
Enjoy the veggies!
-Ben
We’re always thinking about the balance between making things convenient for all, and making sure items last as long as possible. This week we opted to just leave the bell peppers whole to give you all some more time before you have to get around to using them.
This will be the first of a lot of apples that will be in the shares through the remainder of the season. The beauty of them though is that they will last for a good long time in the crisper box of the refrigerator. Last year, Lisa and I were still eating apples from our shares in February. Just keep putting the newest apples in the very back so you eat the oldest first.
Yukon Golds have a beautiful yellow tint with thin skins, making them an awesome all purpose potato. They’re great for soups, mashed, or just roasted. Think potato and leek soup. These are still fresh dug and I would consider them ‘new’ so recommend keeping them refrigerated.
We had baby leeks a few early last month when they were still small. Now they’re big boys, so I’ve cut them down into nice sized pieces that will be manageable to work with as you will.
What corn is to summer, brussels sprouts are to fall. Simply halved and roasted, these are a treat.
As all peppers do when left to ripen long enough, the shishitos are a vibrant red. The surprise spicy ones are still there (and maybe a bit more spicy), but majority are not spicy, just sweet and fruity.
This is likely the last corn we’ll see in the share for the season. So with that we left them whole again for grilling in this nice cool weather to close out the season. If you don’t have a grill, another option is to bake husk-on on a sheet tray at 350F for ~45 mins.
The melon has been fantastic this year. We hope you all are continuing to enjoy it as much as we have been.
This is probably our least favorite variety of kale. Curly and a little thicker, it can often take some work to chew. Because of that, I like to both chop this kale small and either braise it, use it in soups, or in other situations with longer and moist cooking times to soften it as much as possible.
We froze the shells from the peas received in the shares earlier in the season so that we could make this stock. Steeped lightly with herbs and garlic, this stock is stock is light and aromatic. It would work great for a light ramen, or split pea soup.
Some memories of spring; pickled at the peak of the asparagus season. Because the anthocyanins that give the purple color are water soluble, they’ve bled from the outside of the asparagus to the pickle liquid and flesh giving a beautiful pink hue. These would be the ultimate garnish for a Bloody Mary.
Red and orange bell peppers (the same included in this week’s share), dried and ground to a powder. This paprika is zesty and fruity with a vibrant orange color.
