CSA Newsletter for Week 15 of the 2023 Season

 Farm Update

Hi everyone! Hope you're doing well and enjoying this lovely fall day!  As I write this, I am sitting at my deck table with a cup of coffee, trying to squeeze every last bit of nice weather out of this year.  Things at the farm are starting to get quieter and easier to manage.  While we are still weeding a little bit, the weeds grow a lot more slowly and are generally better-behaved than they were two months ago, when they were trying to swallow up the whole farm.  We're still bringing in the major harvests of what would generally be considered storage vegetables (squash, onions, etc.) for the winter, except that we don't intend to have a lot to store by the time we wrap up the season.  Just enough to keep our family in potatoes, carrots, onions, and squash until about February or March, until the first spring veggies start coming out of the hoophouses.

It's a bittersweet time of year for vegetables.  The tomato vines are definitely on the downswing, to the point where we never know exactly when they are going to be done for the year, but we know it's going to be soon.  We're going to keep harvesting the slicing tomatoes as long as they look nice and can refrain from cracking, but we don't have nearly as many as before.  I'm always sad to see the tomatoes go, because it's impossible to get a good tomato anywhere during the cold months, and they're one of my favorite foods.  But the upcoming fall plantings are looking beautiful and strong, and before we know it, we'll be back into spinach and some especially excellent fall carrots.  Right now, I'm really loving our arugula and cauliflower, which are special treats this time of year.  I asked Fred why our cauliflower is so much better than I remember cauliflower being when I was a kid, because I suspected it isn't just because I like vegetables in general a whole lot more than I did when I was young.  I was right.  He chose a special variety of green-stemmed Asian cauliflower that is sweeter, more tender, and just more lush than the standard varieties we grew up with, and you can definitely tell the difference!  

We have three new veggies making their debut this week, and I am super excited for the first sweet potatoes, baby amara greens, and radishes of the fall!  Last year was the first time we grew the amara greens, and they are so good!  They're like a slightly garlicky, mustardy baby kale, and would make a fabulous salad with apples and bleu cheese.  You could also sauté them lightly, but since they're a baby green, they would cook down pretty quickly into not much volume, so I'd definitely recommend enjoying them in their flavorful raw glory.  I am also super excited about sweet potatoes!  They feel like dessert for dinner, and I can't wait to have the first ones this week!  They'll be in the same station as the cauliflower at the drop-off, and this is one of the many times I am glad I don't have to choose one or the other.  But if you have a half share and that is going to be a really hard choice for you, here's a tip:  This week has a pretty strong possibility of being the end of cauliflower season (once the weather turns nasty, the cauliflower heads will go downhill pretty quickly), but we'll have sweet potatoes all the way up to the end of the season.  Just in case that helps you make your choice. ;-)

And, now for a big announcement!  Sign-ups are officially open for the 2024 season!  If you already know you want to sign up for next year, you can do so starting now!  Just fill out this form, and I'll put you on next year's membership list!  For anyone who signs up and puts down at least a partial payment before December 31, you lock in this year's price of $340 for a half share or $630 for a full share at one of our regular drop-offs!  (Just add $95 to that if you're signing up for home or workplace delivery.)  And just let me know if you have any questions about signing up for next year!  We would love to have you in the CSA again for 2024! 

What to Expect in the Shares this Week

 

If you pick up at our Alma, Mt. Pleasant, or Midland drop-off, here are the options for your shares!  If you have a half share, you’ll choose one item from each choice category, and if you have a full share, you’ll choose two.  And if there is something you don’t like or can’t eat, you can bring it to the trading station at the end and trade it for something you like better. 
 

• Potatoes or Delicata Squash
• Spring mix, arugula, or baby amara greens
• Carnival squash, butternut squash or leeks
• Cabbbage, kale, or beets
• Green pepper, tomato, or 3 serrano peppers
• Cauliflower or sweet potatoes
• Radishes, 2 kohlrabi, or 3 onions

If you pick up at our Lansing, Okemos, St. Johns, Midland hospital, or Alma hospital drop-off, or if you have home or workplace delivery, here are your options!  We have three different prepacked shares, and you can let me know which one you want by filling out this quick form by lunchtime the day before your drop-off.  If you have a half share, you can choose one of these options, and if you have a full share, you’ll choose two.

Share A:

• Potatoes
• Spring mix
• Carnival squash
• Kale
• Tomato
• Cauliflower
• 3 onions

Share B:

• Delicata squash
• Arugula
• Carnival squash
• Cabbage
• Green pepper
• Sweet potatoes
• Radishes

Share C:

• Potatoes
• Baby amara greens
• Butternut squash
• Beets
• 3 serrano peppers
• Cauliflower
• Radishes

Recipes

If you're looking for something yummy to do with cauliflower this week, check out this recipe for 20 Minute Sesame Cauliflower!  This is quick and flavorful, perfect for a busy weeknight dinner!  Enjoy!