Week 12: August 29 - September 1
Reminder: This week is our final Summer CSA pickup! Please bring back your purple bags so that we can continue to use them in future seasons!
It’s hard to believe it, but we’ve reached the final pickup of the Summer CSA! It has been an amazing summer on the farm - from snap peas and summer squash to potatoes and peppers, the veggies have been delicious and abundant. We hope you’ve enjoyed your summer eating them!
As the summer winds down, we’ve been reflecting on the defining characteristics of the season. We thought this would be a good space to share the five things we think defined the summer.
Rain / It seemed like every week (sometimes more than once) we found ourselves adjusting workflows to account for serious downpours. On the heels of two seasons of extreme drought, we aren’t complaining about the extra irrigation - although we’ve spent most of the season managing the diseases that accompany wet weather and the weeds that thrive in moist soils. Above all else, we’ll remember this season for its rain!
Tomatoes / After a disappointing tomato year last year marred by aphid troubles in our movable tunnels, this year was a triumphant rebound. We have enjoyed a wide variety of delicious cherries and slicers - and even had enough to do a tomato tasting in the market. We hope you’ve been delighting in the bounty the way we have.
So. Many. Kitchen. Goodies. / OK, this isn’t specifically a CSA-related one, but we can’t remark on the summer without calling out the deliciousness that Hallie has been cranking out of the kitchen. This feels like the first time the kitchen has been fully operational, and we’ve loved having full fridges cases on Thursday (and empty ones on Sunday!)
The serendipity of the market barn / We have loved seeing the market barn serve as an ad hoc community hub this summer. It feels like every week we overhear old friends catching up, or new friends meeting each other. We had one customer give another a car roof rack after seeing their car in the parking lot. Another CSA member noticed a freshly emerged Monarch butterfly that entertained our kids and other market visitors for over an hour. And we’ve loved having little ones underfoot in the barn nearby fields. The market barn is a special place on pick-up days, and we love seeing it come to life.
Our community / As we often say, it takes a village to raise a farm. And we have been so thankful for our community this season. We’ve had an amazing crew - eight people helping out in the fields and barns over the course of the past few months. We truly couldn’t do it without them. Our family and friends have helped out immensely too, providing extra hands, childcare, and - in the case of Ashley’s mom, Jamie - even spearheading the arranging of the beautiful flower bouquets you see in the market each week. And our community continues to expand outward. We held our first communal garlic harvest in early August, which was a great success. And we’ve felt the support of all of you each week, as you eat our vegetables, inquire about the farm, and spread the word about what we’re doing in our little corner of Afton.
We feel incredibly grateful for your support, and incredibly lucky to be your farmers. Whether you’re sticking around for the fall CSA or taking a break for now, we hope you’ve had an amazing summer and we’ve been able to play a small part in it. We’ll be sending out a summer survey in the next week or two to gather any feedback you might have on how we can make this experience the best it can possibly be, so please keep an eye out for that. And we hope to see you again soon!
Have a serendipitous week,
Ashley, Chris, Hallie, and the 10th Street Farm Crew
In Your Bag This Week
Flavor Mix microgreens: Mild and tasty, these make an easy salad on their own or can add some color to any other salad. Try them on eggs or sandwiches – or anything, really! Store in a bag in your fridge.
Sweet Peppers: We grow two types of sweet peppers - traditional bells and pointier Italian-style peppers. Both are amazing raw, with dips, or added to a skillet or grill. Store in a bag in your fridge.
Swiss Chard: Stunning rainbow chard offers a pop of color with an earthy, spinach-like flavor. Store in a bag in your fridge.
Walla Walla Onions: Sweet onions ready for fresh eating or caramelizing! Store in a bag in your fridge.
Cucumbers: Crunchy and refreshing, chop up for a salad, add to sandwiches or just eat raw! Store in a bag in your fridge.
Beets: These earthy beauties are good in sweet and savory roles alike. Boil, roast, or grate into baked goods! Store in a bag in your fridge.
Potatoes (half share): Great for summer potato salads, grilled or roasted. Store in a dark, dry place.
Cauliflower or Sprouting Cauliflower (full shares): Super versatile - eat it raw, steamed, grilled, roasted, or sautéed! Store in a bag in your fridge.
What should I make with what’s in the bag?
We've got some beautiful Swiss Chard this week - an often under-appreciated vegetable, if you ask us. Looking for ideas of what to do with it? Maybe try this Swiss Chard, lentil, and feta salad or Swiss Chard fritters. Or get a little further from the beaten path and try the French 'tourte aux blettes,' a pie that has both sweet and savory variations. If you're looking for beet recipes, we love them in a red flannel hash with eggs in the morning. Or pickled beets on toast with a little ricotta cheese - this pickled beets recipe roasts the beets first, which is a fun twist.
It's the time of year when tomatoes and bell peppers are both ripe, so consider bringing them together in a dish. Try a roasted pepper and tomato sauce or a pepperonata. Or this pepper stuffed with cherry tomatoes? A little strange, but veggie-forward and delicious. And if you're looking for something that uses lots of things in the bag together, you can never go wrong with gazpacho.
If you've found a recipe you're loving, please send it our way. We're always looking for new things to cook and share with other members!
We wash everything in your bag but we wash them in bulk so some things may need an extra rinse at home. Please bring your bag back next week so we can re-use them! Thanks!
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