Dear Sweetlanders
Happy week 1 of CSA Season! We had a wonderful Spring Celebration last weekend and can’t wait to see many more old and new faces at your first pickup today! If you have questions about your share,remember to read through the CSA FAQ that I sent last week. One note that I forgot to include is that fruit shares will start in roughly one month, with the start of strawberry season. Look for a separate fruit CSA email in mid-June if you’ve signed up for this add-on share.
This week I couldn’t have been a more proud mama when Fern (age 20 months) both correctly identified a ramp – aka wild leek – in the woods AND requested that we cook it on pizza. There’s a recipe below in her honor. As the months go by, Fern is quickly becoming a bigger and bigger helper around the farm. Whether we’re picking kale, weeding the garden, or gathering tools for a project, she wants to be right there helping and learning. It’s an easy step from there to dinner prep and a request to sprinkle the “lantro” we harvested from the greenhouse onto her food.
This direct connection with where our food comes from and subsequent excitement about eating it is one of my favorite things about raising a kid on a farm, and I see it happening with our CSA kids (big and small), too. Last weekend we had dozens of kids swarming over the tractors, learning how to use a scuffle hoe, and seeding peas and sunflowers into freshly mixed potting soil. We [half] jokingly referred to these activities as our Future Farm Crew Recruitment Program. In all seriousness, though, learning the joys and challenges of growing food is a great way to connect the dots for kids AND grownups about the importance of local and sustainably grown food. We’re really looking forward to a season of teaching, learning, and connecting together. Thanks for being part of our farm community. Read on for what’s in your share this week.
Cheers
Norah and the Sweetland Crew
Week 1 Harvest, Half Pint
Ramps (aka Wild Leeks), small bunch
Mesclun Salad Greens, .25 lb
Broccoli Raab, small bunch
Carrots, .75 lb
Parsnips, 1 lb
Week 1 Harvest, Brimming Basket
Ramps (aka Wild Leeks), medium bunch
Mesclun Salad Greens, .25 lb
Broccoli Raab, medium bunch
Carrots, 1 lb
Parsnips, 1.5 lb
Week 1 Harvest, Veggie Monster
Ramps (aka Wild Leeks), large bunch
Mesclun Salad Greens, .35 lb
Broccoli Raab, large bunch
Carrots, 1.5 lb
Parsnips, 2 lb
What’s Cooking This Week
You can find ingredients for all of these recipes in our farm store! We source meats, dairy, grains, beans, sweets, and more from local and sustainable producers. Don’t forget to use your CSA member discount!
- White Pizza with Ramps This is a wonderful way to highlight this very special wild-foraged crop. Add some foraged morel mushrooms – or pick up a package of Mycoterra Farm’s shiitake from the farm stand – to really round it out.
- Spring Greens with Smoked Sablefish and Herbed Aioli If you haven’t tried Yakobi Fisheries’ smoked sablefish (in our fish freezer) you are about to have your socks blown off. Paired with the first spring greens it is a real foodie treat.
- Breakfast (or Snack!) Carrot Muffins Gotta love storage carrots! These were harvested late last fall and stored in our coolers all winter, to add a little color to the spring lineup.
- Sauteed Broccoli Raab We have a healthy debate going among the farm crew on Raab vs Rabe spelling this week!
- Garlic Roast Chicken with Creamy Parsnip Mash Parsnips are one of the slowest germinating seeds and longest to mature crops that we plant- sown in the spring and harvested a whole year later after sweetening in the field over winter. Sadly, we had terrible germination last spring, so many thanks to our fellow farmers at Brookford Farm for growing the beauties in your share this week!