Hello everybody,
We’ve had our third major storm of the season come through very early on Wednesday morning. Winds reportedly got up to 60 mph! The good news is most of the crops fared pretty well. The corn was flattened but seems to be making its way upright again. Some onions had their tops bent over prematurely: this often signals them to stop growing and start curing. Some greens are a more than a little tattered. One of the tops of our silos was twisted off, half of the dome blew off to the ground and the other half is still hanging on by a few bolts. We had a lot of tree damage-one of our 30 foot pines snapped in half, our tallest pine lost the top 10 feet of trunk, and our biggest sugar maple lost its two biggest branches. We’ve lost almost half a dozen trees this year-we might have to seriously consider having a tree planting party! But, overall the farm is still intact and we are grateful that everyone stayed safe. Heather grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, part of the infamous Tornado Alley, and she had never seen wind and rain as intense as it was Wednesday morning. Yikes!
At least someone is working hard around here
Silk on young corn ears
tassels on corn plants
Whats in the box:
- Collard greens
- Zucchini
- Carrots: Mokum (1 lb small, 1.25 lb med, 1.5 lb full)
- Mint
- Spicy Salad (5 oz small, 6.5 oz med, 8 oz full)
- Garlic Scapes (med & full)
- Onions: Red Long (med & full)
- Fennel (2 heads full)
Notes and Recipes
Spicy Salad has made it back into the box this week. The greens are not in the best shape due to heavy bug pressure and damage from a heavy storm last week–we’d recommend eating them as soon as possible. Our apologies, and we expect better greens in the future. Besides their appearance they are as nutritious and tasty as ever. Chop up to enjoy raw in a salad or lightly sauté with eggs or mix with other veggies for an asian stir fry. Also really good when added raw to a hot pasta and allowed to wilt. Cooking will mild their spice.
We’re giving out the last of the scapes this week, and we’re sad to see them go. Remember, you can chop all the tender green parts and use it exactly as you would cloves of garlic. You can always pickle them and can them if you’ve got some saved up, or do that scape pesto we mentioned earlier and freeze it!
Recipes
Zucchini-The zucchini is starting to come in, and everyone will see more of it as all the plants start hitting their peak productivity. For right now, here’s a few recipes to take one or two zucchini and turn them into a more substantial meal. Fritters are a go-to for me at this time of year, since you don’t need to turn on the oven. Pair these with your spicy salad for a full meal.
Are you one of the lucky people that has a vegetable spiralizer? If you do, this recipe with zucchini noodles looks pretty amazing. I’m not one for gadgets, but I’m seriously thinking about getting one of these!
Carrots-Brandon has been waiting for the chance to put carrots and mint in a box so he can share his salad recipe with you! Here it is:
If you’re looking for something good to do with your carrots and mint, try making this refreshing side salad: Grate 1/2 lb to 3/4 lb carrots with a cheese grater. (You can also use the shredder attachment on your food processor) Combine in a bowl with 2-3 teaspoons minced garlic, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 3 tablespoons olive oil. Add a tablespoon of diced mint and salt to taste. Yum!
Sneak Peek at Next Week:
- Cabbage
- Beets
- Sweet Corn?
- Onions
- Snap Beans
All the best from all of us,
Heather, Brandon, Maybelle, Michele, Nicole, Hannah and Ted
sleepy root farm 
