Welcome to box #4! And Happy 4th of July!
Important!!! This week's delivery is on WEDNESDAY, JULY 3RD instead of Thursday due to the 4th of July.
This is due to people being out to town and also there are several of our drop sites that are closed on this day. This only happens every 7 or so years!
On the farm these days have gotten some nice rain, which I call "money from the sky," because you can never irrigate like a rain can irrigate your crops, which makes them pop and grow so much faster. Also irrigation takes full time when you have to do it, so we love rain on this farm!
Also, we are doing some of our last broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower planting in the greenhouse for the season. This weekend I am planting the fall succession of carrots and beets. Just before summer starts, we are thinking of fall! Weird, but true. And tomatoes haven't even started!
Since we pushed the delivery day up a day for the 4th of July, we worked in the muddy rains on Sunday to ensure we could get the box packed on time to get it out to you! So, please keep this in mind and wash your produce this week! Thank you!
Here are a few things for you to remember about the CSA and the boxes:
ALWAYS take the box with your name on it that is from BLACKBROOK FARM! If someone is picking your box up for you, please tell them to take the box with your name on it from BLACKBROOK FARM! This is very important.
IF you can't pick your box up on THURSDAY, please communicate with me about this so I can arrange for it to be kept at the dropsite instead of donated or used.
Please return your box either the same week (bring a bag to empty your veggies into) or the following time you pick up your box. Please collapse your box and neatly stack it or put it where the other boxes are.
If you are half share, your box is delivery every other week ( unless you have rearranged your schedule with Harvie). Please remember to check if this is your week or not. Full shares are delivery every week. When your box is delivered on Thursday, a delivery email is sent out. EVERY one at that dropsite gets that email, even if you do not get a box that week. So it is important for you to know which weeks you pick up. Please email me with questions. Here is information on how to access when and where to pick up your box
We also have 100% pastured Pork extras for SALE! If you order pork from us in your share we put it in a foil pack very frozen and deliver it to you in your box. It will either be partially frozen or very very cold when you receive it. We also have Pastured Pork Packages for sale that we home deliver to your door. This is a great way to load up on all the cuts of a hog and get your good healthy fats! You can find our sign up share for that on our website or our Harvie site under shares. Let us know if you have any questions! Raising animals is a large part of what we do at Blackbrook Farm!
In the box this week we have: (I will update this list more accurately when I send it out on Tuesday again)
Carrots (some)- We cleaned out our carrots in the hoophouse to give the cucumbers more room to breath and grow. These are as sweet as ever! Top them to keep them crispy for longer. The field carrots are looking nice and aren't far out now.
Scallions- These are great for fresh eating or cooked into a dish. They store for a couple weeks. Wash first, as these were harvested muddy!!!
Broccoli- Yay! First harvest of these. Now, we harvest these three times a week to maximixe the yield and make sure they do not flower or get too loose. This broccoli is so tender and fresh, you just have to use the whole things stem and all!
Salanova Salad Mix- We have to admist, this salanova got away from us a little and got pretty big. Some of the varieties decided to bolt in the humid heat and so you are getting more the green frills than anything else. We are learning this new lettuce and have a few other successions coming on soon. Still will hold for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. Wash frist, harvested muddy! ( actually all of the vegetables were harvested muddy this week!)
Dino or Curly Kale- This year we grew a veriety of the Dino (or lacinato) called Dazzling Blue, it has a purplish tinge. You may have gotten a bunch of this, or the traditional Toscano Dino kale (flat leaves) or the Winterbor Curly. These store well in a bag in the fridge. Simple kale salads with olive oil, maple syrup and dijon are great (even with cut up strawberries and some kind of nut and feta cheese!) Strawberry Kale Salad
Cilantro- My personal favorite herb, but I know it tastes like soap to some. We chop it up and put in on everything. Chimichurri Sauce with Cilantro
Summer Squash 1 or 2- The yellow squash and zucchini are just starting to come on. We harvest these 3 times a week to ensure they don't get too big, but in this heat and with this rain, it is hard to keep up with crops like this! Sometimes we find a baseball bat out there! We love to thinly slice these and fry them up with scallions, garlic and any herb and then melt cheese on top! Great side dish. Also, wonderful with potatoes or in eggs.
Strawberries- The picking was tight this week as a lot of strawberries have turned to mush due to the downpours we have had in the last week. Weather! Enjoy!
Butterhead Lettuce- Nice buttery heads of lettuce. Make sure to wash your lettuce first, please! Store in a plastic bag to keep fresh.
Salad Turnips- Somehow we've ended up having a good turnip year. The radishes bolted super quick this spring, but the turnip are great! This will be the last week for them, however. You can saute up the greens, too! Quick pickled turnips are nice for tacos or as a side dish.Quick Pickled Turnips
Garlic Scapes- These are technically the flowers of a garlic plant. They should be cut off in order to give the bulb underground more energy to grow, instead of the plant putting energy into flowering. So, we cut them off and eat them! Garlic scapes are a special treat for chefs. They are a mild flavored garlic, mixed with a scallion. It is recommended to cook them, or use them for a pesto. Keeps well in fridge for weeks. Garlic Scape Pesto
Spinach (some)- Some members got bagged spinach this week. This will be the last of the spinach until the fall, as it is getting too hot for it! Keep well in the bag for over a week or 2.
What's on the pick list for next week?
Garlic Scapes
Collard Greens
Basil
Summer Squash
Broccoli
Scallions/Bunching Onions
Fennel
Head Lettuce
Beet Greens Bunch
Important Date: Saturday, July 13th
For the 2nd year, we are participating in the Annual Co-op Farm Tour. This is a self-guided tour of farms in and around the Twin Cities. We will be giving wagon rides on the hour starting at 11 am. We will have meat and vegetables for sale. You can see our animals, bees, taste fresh grilled brats and go home with some extra produce and meat! There are a few other farms near us, too, so you could make a day of it! Kid- friendly, but we have enough dogs on our farm!
Here is more info https://www.coopfarmtour.com
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Have a great 4th of July!
your farmers,
Ayla and James and the crew
