To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: Spinach, choice of arugula, tatsoi, or broccoli raab, beets, peppers, radishes, choice of an herb, Honeynut squash, mixed onions, cauliflower, Napa cabbage or broccoli, and Japanese sweet potatoes.
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: Fuji apples
  • Flowers: finished for the season
  • Mushrooms: TBD
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “A” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• Today’s suggestion comes from CSA Member Jeff Schrimmer. Jeff was excited to receive a new batch of leeks and potatoes last week, “Yay. More leeks and potatoes. I do a version of Julia Child’s potatoes and leeks soup using a slow cooker. Besides tasting wonderful, it gives my home an earthy smell that lasts for a day or two. Wonderful.”
  • The official recipe is called “Potage Parmentier” and was published by WBGH a few years ago. I haven’t tried it yet but it’s not far off from how I make my own potato leek soup — simple is best. I usually keep two handfuls of diced potatoes in water while the soup cooks. My family prefers some chunks rather than a silky smooth consistency so I’ll throw those extra chunks in for the last 15-20min before serving (or, alternatively you could reserve a few spoonfuls before mashing/blending).

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

To view this year’s Stock Up Share info, click here.

Serving Suggestions:

• If you’re new to the CSA you may be unfamiliar with the “stock up share.” The stock up share is the annual add-on available at the end of the season; it is delivered the week of Thanksgiving which is good timing given the usual inclusions (potatoes, squash, greens, Brussels sprouts). My family has received the stock up a few times and split it with friends. It can be a challenge to use it all before it spoils but with some planning it’s possible.
  • Be ready with plenty of fridge space and ample ziploc/plastic bags to help you separate and store items.
  • Triage the things that need to be used first — greens before squashes. If you have a second fridge, make sure you’re keeping the most perishable items in the kitchen fridge so you don’t forget about them.
  • Plan to knock out as many Thanksgiving dishes as possible using the stock up share. That may require slight tweaks — like swapping the type of potatoes you used for your mashed — but it’s worth it.
  • If you are going to use the stock up for Thanksgiving, expect to need to supplement with some store bought veggies since the exact amounts you’ll receive is unpredictable year to year. Some years I’ve had plenty of Brussels sprouts to serve our family, others I needed to go buy more. Same for onions and carrots which I use a ton of that week. Sounds like onion and garlic will be light this year.
  • Don’t be a hero when it comes to the lesser-known veggies like rutabaga. Search some trusted recipe websites like NYT Cooking, Spruce Eats or America’s Test Kitchen to help you learn how to prep and cook them.

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: arugula or broccoli raab, peppers, cauliflower, rainbow
  carrots, cranberry beans, leeks, bok choy, fingerling potatoes, butternut squash, choice of an herb, mini-pumpkins, and sweet corn.
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: Jonagold apples
  • Flowers: finished for the season
  • Mushrooms: Lion’s mane
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “A” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• I’ve never tried cooking the mini pumpkins we get occasionally from the CSA. I liked John’s suggestion to cook them after displaying them for a bit, so I shared some recipe links below:
  • Savory: Mushroom stuffed mini pumpkins
  • Sweet: Baked mini pumpkins with cinnamon sugar
  • If you don’t cook your pumpkins, keep an eye on the I Love Living in the Caldwells Facebook group in a few weeks. A few members are often looking for pumpkins to use for feeding their animals.
• Just in case you don’t read through the update, a note that the cranberry beans are to be shelled!
  
  

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: Lettuce, choice of arugula or broccoli raab, colored peppers,
  spaghetti squash, Napa cabbage or kohlrabi, radishes, sweet corn, choice of dill or cilantro, baby bok choi, scallions, string beans, and sweet potatoes.
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: Macoun apples and Starkrimson pears
  • Flowers: finished for the season
  • Mushrooms: not mentioned in this week’s update from John
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “B” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• Last week I shared our kohlrabi with a family member who had never tried it before. For members who might be intimidated I share some kohlrabi info today:
  • Kohlrabi might look crazy but it’s a cousin of more familiar cabbages (think “kohl” = the “cole” of cole slaw)
  • Sometimes called a German Turnip, it’s not actually a turnip
  • It can be eaten both raw or cooked
  • High in fiber and more Vitamin C per gram than an orange!
  • In the past I have grated them and used them with potatoes to make homemade latkes
  • Add diced kohlrabi to bulk up vegetable soups
  • Try roasting thick slices and topping with parm and garlic

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: Swiss chard, choice of arugula or broccoli raab, lettuce, yellow
  onions, colored peppers, summer squash, beets with tops, kohlrabi or Napa cabbage, tomatoes, purple potatoes, sweet corn, edamame soybeans, and choice of an herb (parsley, thyme, basil).
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: ginger gold apples & bartlett pears
  • Flowers: finished for the season
  • Mushrooms: chestnuts or lion’s mane
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “A” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• Edamame returns this week. By my searching, we had the soybeans early last October but prior to the previous time was all the way back in 2017! In case you need some ideas, I gathered some interesting sounding edamame recipes to share here:
  • Many edamame recipes fall into the “ginger, garlic & spicy” realm. This one from Inspired Taste had the best looking thumbnail.
  • A different take was this one for Crispy Parmesan Garlic Edamame (although I kinda doubt the “crispy” part)
  • If eating them from the shell isn’t for you, you could try either of these NYT Cooking recipes and turn your soybeans into an Edamame Tofu Dip or Stir Fried Succotash with Edamame.

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: choice of arugula or broccoli raab, colored peppers, baby bok choi, summer squash, salad turnips, cauliflower/broccoli/Napa cabbage, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, leeks, sweet corn, and choice of an herb
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: sweetie apples & asian pears
  • Flowers: sunflowers (final week)
  • Mushrooms: yellow or blue oysters
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “B” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• In case you need some inspiration to “spice up” your veggies this week, today I will share my favorite Burlap & Barrel spice blends below. I first bought spices from Burlap & Barrel about two years ago when I received a gift card. I felt the quality was high, loved their mission, and felt the prices weren’t much higher than I had paid for premium spices elsewhere online. Since that first order, I’ve purchased a few more times and have zeroed in on a few favorites:
  • Base spices: I always keep their Purple Stripe Garlic, Toasted Onion and Smoked Pimenton Paprika on hand. With some salt and pepper, I probably season 75% of my cooking with this trio.
  • Cacio e Pepe: Sometimes all you need or want is buttered noodles or some steamed rice (especially if you’re a 4 year old), a few sprinkles of this makes an otherwise simple bowl delicious.
  • Grillin’ Out: This is an all-purpose blend that I use to season meats destined for the flattop, like smash burgers. I also use it more generally as a blackening or Cajun style spice, often adding it to a pot of beans. (Sadly, this one seems to be unavailable at the moment!)
  • Za’atar: When I have this on hand I’ll use it in places where I might use a more generic Italian seasoning. Especially good mixed in some oil for bread dipping.
  • Tutto Porchetta: Not too many spice blends are heavy on fennel which is a favorite of mine. I tend to use it more on roasted vegetables than meats, but it’s versatile enough to go on anything.
    

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: arugula, beans, colored peppers, zucchini, broccoli
  or cauliflower, red onions, rainbow carrots, sweet corn, red fingerling potatoes, tomatoes, and choice of an herb (Cilantro, dill, basil).
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: gala apples & hardy kiwi berries
  • Flowers: paused this week
  • Mushrooms: chestnuts
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “A” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• If you’re looking for one last summer-y use for this week’s potatoes, try my trick for a mayo-less potato salad. I chunk and boil a few potatoes until they are soft and smushable. While they boil, I whisk together a quick mustard dressing with olive oil, vinegar, sliced shallot, salt and pepper. After draining the potatoes I put them back in the hot pot, and using a wooden spoon I “rough them up” a bit. I’ll smash a few, while others I’ll just roughly stir them up. The goal is to get plenty of mushy potato starch on the surface of the potatoes. It’ll mix with the dressing to make it creamy without mayo and also helps the dressing to stick. If you have some green herbs on hand, feel free to sprinkle some in after you chill the salad completely and before you serve. Two other important tips… 1) Don’t rinse the potatoes after you drain them, even if they have some starchy water clinging to them it’s fine, just toss them back in the pot. 2) Put the potatoes into the dressing while they are hot, I think they soak up more of the dressing than if you let them cool completely.

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: beans, colored peppers, summer squash, radishes, broccoli
  or Napa cabbage, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, gold potatoes, scallions, goldenberries (for those who have not received them yet) and choice of an herb.
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: paused this week
  • Flowers: paused this week
  • Mushrooms: yellow oysters
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “B” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• John’s update this week offers details about bulk tomato purchases for those who like to can or freeze. If you’re interested please see his note at the bottom of the attached update. For those who might be considering the bulk tomatoes, but are not experienced in preserving them, I compiled a few helpful links:
  • National Center for Food Preservation (see the menu on the left side)
  • Ball’s Tomato canning recipes (tested recipes from the most famous name in preservation supplies)
  • Food52 recipe (simple, no bells or whistles)
  • Reddit thread on why you can’t safely can diced tomatoes at home (something I did not know and judging by the comments is not common knowledge among home cooks)

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: Swiss chard, beets, beans, colored peppers, garlic,
  tomatoes, sweet corn, squash or cucumbers, red skin potatoes, and choice of an herb. (We will be sending goldenberries, the South American cousins of the ground cherries over the next few weeks, as availability allows.
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: nectarines & plums
  • Flowers: sunflowers
  • Mushrooms: chestnut & lion’s mane
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “A” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• Garlic returns to our deliveries this week after a month-plus off. I was just thinking about garlic because when we visited the Caldwell Marketplace this weekend for some pre-bbq shopping, my daughter just had to have a loaf of Nicolo’s bread. Her and I ate most of it before lunch so it didn’t make it until dinner but it would have made for a wonderful loaf of garlic bread. So, I’m thinking I need to get another loaf of bread. The key to making good garlic bread is thinking ahead — softening a stick of butter on the counter for a few hours, and in this case, roasting a head of garlic. Smash the two together in a ramekin with a hearty pinch of coarse salt making a paste that you can easily smear on the split loaf. Bake at 350 for like 10-15min until the crust is crispy but before it takes on much color. You might not need much more for dinner, but consider a tomato cucumber salad alongside.

To view Farmer John’s latest update, click here.

This week’s share will include:

• Veggies: Swiss chard, colored peppers, rainbow carrots, beans, yellow onions, banana fingerling potatoes, either zukes or cukes, green or savoy cabbage, tomatoes, and choice of an herb (parsley, marjoram, thyme).
• Add-on shares:
  • Fruit: grapes & peaches
  • Flowers: mixed bouquets
  • Mushrooms: oysters
  • Eggs: not mentioned in this week’s update from John, but assuming yes

For those with half shares, this is “B” week.

Serving Suggestions:

• I’ve been a subscriber to Milk Street magazine since their charter issue. I don’t read every issue cover to cover any more but I occasionally a recipe will catch me like a eureka moment. I haven’t tried this recipe for Butter Braised Tomato Soup just yet but my next batch of CSA tomatoes are destined for the Dutch oven. We often try to enjoy all of our CSA tomatoes raw to get their full potential but this recipe feels like it gives the tomatoes the reverence they deserve. (apologies for posting a photo of the printed recipe, I couldn’t find a non-paywall copy of it anywhere online)