In this week’s share, members will find tomatoes, cucumbers (pickling and slicing), Swiss chard, sugar snap peas, green cabbage, salad mix, scallions, summer squash/zucchini, jalapeños (dark green and medium to hot), sweet peppers (bells both green and purple; Carmen which is long), Hungarian hot wax peppers (medium to hot) and parsley.

This week, we include news about our first community event at the farm and a recommendation for a new cookbook we’ve been enjoying. As always, scroll to the bottom for some recipes for this week’s produce.

This week at the farm

Sitting out in the field picking snap peas this week, we could feel the change in the air. It was a little bit cooler and still. As we move toward late summer, we’re not hearing the repetitive sound of the red eyed Vireo or the other birds. But we can see the start of activity as birds start to think about migration. We can hear the chickadees which have been absent for most of the summer. You can feel that things are starting to change as the light gets different and the days get shorter.

We are also starting to see the beginning of the peak harvest season for the farm. Our summer squash, cucumber and high tunnel tomato plants are producing in great abundance. We harvested our first cherry tomatoes this week, though not quite enough to include in this week’s CSA shares. This week, we will harvest our garlic crop and lay them out for a few weeks, so they can cure. Our winter squash and pumpkins have taken over a portion of the field with their broad, deep-green leaves. Our snap pea plants are finally producing after being delayed by the drought and hot weather and the first round of green beans is not far behind them.

The field looks rich and plentiful, but not all plants are producing for us yet. The fingerling potato plants look big and healthy, but we’ve pulled a few and the potatoes appear to be a ways off yet, which is puzzling to us. Our carrots are slowly developing, but they, too, were delayed in germinating and growing. Our eggplants look large and healthy, but so far we have had only a few flowers and only three actual fruits despite putting in 100 feet of the plant.

Last week, we took part in a focus group discussion that is part of a research project being done by some professors at the University Minnesota Duluth. We joined in a discussion with other farmers and talked about how small farms and other sources of locally produced foods can be sustainable in a world where large-scale production and an expectation of low costs for food dominate. No one had very many answers, though it has been exciting to be a part of a regional expansion of smaller farms like ours.

As we discussed the topic later, we thought back on the history of our own farm and remembered that small, local farms have never been completely sustainable. The family that owned this farm always had other jobs off the farm and relied on the farm to both feed them and provide supplemental income. 

While we continue to work toward having our farm reach a place where we are breaking even between what we spend and what we earn, we do also believe that the CSA model can work. For us, the goal is to keep the size small and manageable without having to expand, hire more help or invest in large machinery. 

Meanwhile we continue to be motivated and inspired by feeding our members and our neighbors as we learn about growing food and caring for the land and the soil. We were reminded of all of this on Saturday when many of our CSA members and a few neighbors came out for an outdoor movie night at the farm. We showed our members the field and what was growing and then we sat down in lawnchairs and enjoyed a movie together. 

Remember that we will have two more community events this season.

Kimchi Kamp (Sunday, August 15, 3 to 5 p.m.): We are excited to be hosting a fermentation cooking class led by CSA member Jean Sramek at Peace Church in Duluth. Stand by for more details.

Annual CSA Member Potluck (mid-September): We will close out the year with our annual farm potluck out here at the farm.

Recipes for this week’s vegetables

Making sense of the squashes

This week, members will find an abundance of summer squash and peppers in their shares, among other things. We’ve gotten a few questions about the different squashes. While there are four different varieties (yellow summer squash, zucchini, round yellow called Patty Pan and a light green rugby ball called Magda), they are all summer squash and can be prepared using the same techniques. They can be roasted, sauteed and shredded for breads.  But their skins are thin and will not store for very long.  Winter squash are still in the field and growing and you won’t see them in your shares until October (hence being called winter squash). 

Mostly sweet but some hot peppers

Likewise, we grow a variety of peppers, both hot and sweet.  Most of our sweet, or “bell” peppers are typically bulbous in shape, except for the variety called Carmen which are long, from 4-8 inches.  Some of our varieties of sweet peppers will turn red if left on the plant, another has already turned purple.  Our hot peppers are small and can range in color from green to red.  Hungarian Hot Wax is like a banana pepper and can be medium to hot.  Jalapenos are typically medium-hot and dark green.  As with all “hot” peppers, each one can be different and may not even be hot at all!  

A few blemishes on some tasty salad mix

In your share this week, you’ll notice that the salad mix has some blemishes on it from critters having snacks. We have tasted (eaten a lot of, actually) the mix and it’s delicious. We hope you appreciate that the blemishes on the salad are proof that your veggies are organically grown. The drought we are experiencing brings means an increase in pests.

A new cookbook!

We were recently gifted this amazing cookbook from John’s daughter and son in law: “Six Seasons: A New Way With Vegetables,” by Joshua McFadden. Turns out the chef, Joshua McFadden, worked with the celebrated farmer, Eliot Coleman. We are in love with this cookbook. It’s quite evident that McFadden worked on a farm. The book is organized by seasons and he highlights what is available at that time. Tonight, we are having a tribute to squash and chose two recipes. I pulled out the mandoline slicer to make these perfect ribbons. So excited for dinner We can’t recommend this cookbook enough!

On Monday night this week, we tried two dishes, both of which featured summer squash as the main ingredient.

Squash ribbons with tomatoes, peanuts, basil, mint and spicy fish sauce

4 firm zucchini or other summer squash

Kosher salt

1 pint cherry tomatoes

½ cup salted, roasted peanuts

1 bunch scallions sliced on a sharp angle

1 small handful basil leaves

1 small handful mint leaves

extra virgin olive oil

Spicy fish sauce

¼ cup seeded, minced hot chiles

4 large garlic cloves, minced

½ cup fish sauce

¼ cup water

¼ cup white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

Sauce preparation

Stir ingredients together until sugar dissolves. This sauce is better if made the day before and will keep for a month.

Preparation

Use mandoline slicer or sharp knife to create long ribbons of squash. Toss with 1 teaspoon salt and put in a colander to drain for 30 minutes. Blot with towel to remove moisture and pile into large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and toss. Add more salt if needed. Finish with olive oil.

Squash and “Tuna Melt” Casserole     

From the cookbook “Six Seasons: A New Way With Vegetables,” by Joshua McFadden

1 ½ pounds firm small summer squash (aim for different shapes and colors)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Extra-virgin olive oil

4 bunches scallions, trimmed (including ½ inch off the green tops), thinly sliced

1 tsp fresh thyme leaves

¼ tsp dried chile flakes

Two 5-ounce cans oil-packed tuna

1 ½ cups shredded good-quality extra-sharp cheddar cheese

Trim off the ends of the squash and halve lengthwise (with round or pattypan squash, cut through the “equator”).  Salt the squash on their cut faces with 2 teaspoons salt and leave to drain for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours (if for more than 2 hours, transfer to the refrigerator) .

Heat a big glug of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the scallions, thyme, chile flakes, ½ teaspoon salt, and several twists of black pepper.  Cook until the scallions are soft and fragrant but not actually browned, 3 to 4 minutes.  Take them off the heat, and when cool enough to taste, adjust the seasoning with more of any of the spices or the thyme.

Heat the oven to 450 degrees.

Spread the squash cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet (or two, if needed, to avoid crowding).  Roast until slightly shrunken and browned on the cut sides, on the way to tender, but not at all mushy.  Cooking time will depend on the size and shape of your squash, but for a typical slender 6-inch zucchini, this should take about 15 minutes.  (Leave the oven on).

Arrange the squash pieces in a baking dish that will fit them all snugly in one layer, this time cut side up.  Distribute the scallions over the surfaces.  Flake and crumble the tuna in an even layer over the scallions and then top evenly with the cheddar.  

Return to the oven and bake until the cheese is nicely melted and beginning to bubble and brown, 10 to 15 minutes.  

Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving.