CSA Week Nine

News from the field:

A rockin midsummer basket!!!

We take pride in our melons. We grow a french charentais melon that is amazing. But we are on the very Northern edge of melon viability, so there is always some anxiety about the melons. Right now they are small. Which could mean that melon season may be a little late - late August instead of mid-August. Or it could just mean that they will be small this year. Which could be due to any number of things: weak pollination (likely), weed pressure (possible), or soil fertility problems (unlikely).

In the Basket:

Tomatoes and basil - This is the perfect time of year for caprese salad - tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and olive oil. And Sarah gave us a great recipe for easy raw tomato spaghetti - the recipe is on the back.

Onions and cukes - Combine with the tomatoes for gazpacho. Recipe on the back.

Beets and sun golds - Color, color, color! Boil the beets till fork tender, plunge into cold water, slip the skins off, dice, then put in the fridge and add to your salad all week. Cold cooked beets would also be great in a Nicoise type salad with the fingerlings and tomatoes.

Red leaf lettuce - Speaking of salad.

Green beans - Sarah had the great idea to add beans to pasta pesto - just toss them in the pasta cooking water along with the pasta, about 3-4 minutes before its all done.

French fingerling potatoes - These are a specialty heirloom potato known for their rich, earthy flavor and for their dense, firm flesh that holds together well when parboiled or roasted. We like them boiled with butter, but they are also great for potato salad, especially a Nicoise type salad with tomatoes, tuna, olives, and a light garlicky olive oil and lemon juice dressing. If you boil them, stop cooking before they are soft – as soon as a knife can easily pierce the skin. Dress them while still warm so that they absorb the flavors of the dressing.