Hello Members! Welcome to July!
I guess I feel likes its been July for a month with this heat! We got 1/10 inch of rain over the weekend, hardly enough to wet the ground, but every little bit helps. The crops in general are fairing well. The brassica crops ( broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage) do NOT like the heat and it seems only a natural rain will do for them. So, alas, we are awaiting our lovely broccoli for the boxes until we see heads emerge. Nothing in sight so far. However, the melons are growing fast and the cucumbers have exploded. I hope they keep it up! Everyone will see a few cucumbers in the box this week. The cherry tomatoes are rapidly putting on fruit and are looking good, too.
We are having a mobile USDA-inspected chicken butcher to the farm on Thursday morning! We are excited to see the process and have the chickens here on the farm while they have their one bad day. That also means...chickens are soon to be delivered! For anyone who already signed up for chickens, we will be in contact about delivery. If anyone want to order whole chickens in bulk please go HERE. We will also be adding chickens back in to the weekly extras options soon, too. For now, we still have our pastured pork and grass- fed beef as well as various other items.
I will again post this PICK UP INFORMATION in case someone has not seen it yet!
Here are some very important details about how the CSA works and what to expect: PLEASE READ THIS!!!
All CSA deliveries are on Thursdays.
These are customizable boxes, that means if you don't like what in your box you can swap for items that are available! For instance, this week I am putting cilantro and dill on the list again as it needs to be harvested now. You can opt out of getting those again if you got them last week or if you like them, leave them in there!
wait for the Delivery Confirmation Email from us before going to get your box. At first, we make no promises as to the exact time as we are getting our route and schedule down. All boxes will be to their locations before 5 pm, please wait for the email. Most, if not all, will be by 1pm.
Please pick your box up ASAP after you get the email and do not leave it overnight!! most dropsites will throw it away or donate it- please arrange someone else to pick your box up for you or email me if you cannot pick your box up.
Only take the BLACKBROOK FARM BOX WITH YOUR NAME ON IT!!! We label our boxes and your name or your boxmates name will be on it!
If you are a half share, you get a box EVERY OTHER WEEK- starting either this week or next week.
If you are UNSURE of where you pick your box up or when you pick your box up, please look back at your CSA confirmation email you received when you signed up. You can also go to your account here: https://www.harvie.farm/login to see when and where you pick your box up. You can always email us, too at blackbrook.farm.llc@gmail.com
You can also find the dropsite information (where to pick up exactly) in your login and in that email.
Please take the plastic liner with veggies or just the veggies with you and leave the box (broken down please!) at the dropsite. You can take the box with you, too, just remember to bring it back with you the next time you pick up! We DO NOT keep track of boxes or who returns them or doesn't, but we DO reuse them and buy enough for each member to have 2 boxes throughout the season- so it is important to return them!
Our produce is harvested fresh within 24-36 hours of delivery. We are an organic farm and we have lots of post harvest washing/packing methods we use. However, we grow food in the dirt. So, we DO recommend that you wash all of your vegetables if you do not want grit in your salad. We're used to it, but some are not! We do our best, but understand you may find a bug, slug or dirt in there occasionally. It's a living farm! Enjoy knowing your eating the most nutritional, fresh local food you can get your hands on!
If you need to reschedule a delivery or Add a contact- please go to your account by logging in to https://www.harvie.farm/login. You will find under your account details that you can easily reschedule and add contacts. please email me if you need help with this. I have had lots of emails about adding contacts and cant keep track of them all! If you did not hear back from me, that means I probably did NOT do it and you will have to or email me again! Sorry!
Don't forget to customize your box if you want! You can swap out items or add extra items into your box- you can add more vegetables, pork, beef, honey, mustard, coffee beans and more!
Okay, I think that is it!
Here are the items that may be in your box this week: ( I will add descriptions and recipes by Wednesday!)
Swiss Chard- a rainbow full of vitamins, minerals and crunchy goodness. We like to stir fry this with soy sauce, sesame oil and any other veggies you may have lying around.
Lentils and Chickpeas with Chard
Kohlrabi- the only aliens we grow, I promise. Peel these and slice thin to put on a sandwich or into a salad. Great quick snacks for kids to dip or just eat raw. I like to keep some in a jar of water in the fridge.
Salad Turnips- to be eaten raw, not cooked. delicious like an apple, with a mild radish flavor. Top them and slice or grate onto a salad or chop into matchsticks for a snack. Store in a plastic bag or container in the fridge.
Salad Turnips with mint and Couscous
Zesty Kale Power Mix- This kale mix has other mustards and some arugula in it so it is a bit spicy and great for you! We like to eat this as a salad. you can cook it, too, but it is best eaten raw. Keeps well in the bag.
Kale and Quinoa Bowl (sub the big kale in this recipe for the bagged kale mix)
Sweet Sweet Carrots- These are some sweet carrots! Top them and wash again. Keep in a plastic bag to keep crunchy.
Purple Scallions-Great diced or sliced into any stir fry, saute, salad, or eggs. Wash and clean before using.
Salad Mix- We thought we would need to mix spinach into this mix to bulk it up, but we had plenty of lettuce. So this is straight salad mix. Keeps well in the bag. Pre washed but you can wash again if you want.
Cucumbers!- We have had an explosion of cucumbers this past week. We hope they keep it up as it is great to have so many! Every should get a couple/few.
Thai Cucumber Salad ( try to thai basil in here with scallions!)
Garlic Scapes- A great addition or substitution for garlic. A little more mild with a nice crunch. You can cook them or eat them raw.
Pac Choi- This pac choi can be sliced thin and sauted into a veggie stir fry or grilled or roasted, too, if you want to turn your oven on!
Bok Choy Slaw ( you can use any veggies you have on hand too)
Thai Basil- This basil is a bit for fragrant than your typical genovese type. It goes very well with many thai dishes, Asian Slaws or just salads in general.
Celery- This celery will keep very well in a plastic bag in the fridge. We love it sauteed into a marinara with carrots or in a stir fry with any other veggies we have.
Kitchen Sink Stir Fry ( use what veggies you have!)
Fennel- A great veggie to have on hand for pastas, sauces and fresh salads.
Chickens are getting big!
A tired and hot carrot picker
Have a great week!
Your farmers
