FULL SHARE & GREEN HALF SHARE PICK UP TONIGHT

Pick up today: 5pm - 7:30pm at PS 56 on the corner of Gates and Downing

This Week's Share

Arugula
Winterbor kale
Mustard mix
Sweet potato leaves
Radishes
Tomatoes
Peppers
Garlic
Potatoes
Delicata squash
Fruit: Zest Star apples

Letter from Windflower Farm

Delivery #16, Week of September 17th, 2018

This week’s share.

You’ll get arugula, Winterbor kale, mustard mix, and sweet potato leaves. Your share will also include radishes, tomatoes, peppers, garlic, potatoes and delicata squash. Next week, you’ll get carrots, more delicata squashes, leeks and a variety of greens, among other vegetables. This week’s fruit will be Zest Star apples. Next week it might be plums.

The delicata squash in your share is unlikely to last, so eat it up! Delicata is my favorite squash. I simply cut them lengthwise, clean out their seed cavity, place them cut side down on a moistened cookie sheet or pie dish to catch the juices, and bake at 350 to 375 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes, until fork soft. Their skins are edible. My mom would serve winter squashes with butter and maple sugar, but I don’t usually use anything. Delicatas can also be cut into smaller chunks and roasted alone or among a medley of vegetables.

We began our sweet potato harvest last week, and several large totes are now curing in the greenhouse. We’ll post images of the harvest on our Instagram page in the next week or so. They taste best after having been cured in a warm, moist environment for eight or ten days. We used the tractor to place the heavy totes near the greenhouse heater, then flooded the floor to achieve 99-100% humidity, and cranked up the heat to achieve a temperature of 80 degrees. During this brief period of time, the starch in the tubers will be transformed into sugar, making them ready to eat. We’ll send some sweet potatoes next week. In the meantime, we are sending bunched sweet potato leaves. They are a mild, slightly bitter green that can be used as a substitute for kale or Swiss chard in any dish.

Have a great week, Ted

Volunteering Update

The end of the season is rapidly approaching so it's time to get those volunteer hours in, if you haven't already!

We mostly need volunteers for early shifts (4pm-6pm), but we also need extra help for our Halloween Party (October 25) and the last night of the season (November 1.) You can sign up here.

Don't forget that you are welcome to bring any children in your care with you, and you also have the option of sending someone else to volunteer in your place if you can't make it!

Cookbook Swap Continues Tonight!

Here's what you need to know:

At every pick-up during September, we are running a swap table
Bring cookbooks you no longer want, and swap them for new ones to freshen up your recipe circulation!
As well as cookbooks, we're also happy to receive general food-related books, books on health, and parenting books
You don't have to bring a book to take a book - everyone is welcome to dip in to the selection
Anyone who donates a book is eligible to enter a lottery for a $10 gift card at Greenlight Books!

Choose a Cheese

Two longtime CSA members, Sue Boyle and Benton Brown, will be at distribution for the next two weeks to offer members a taste of the cheeses they produce through their business Crown Finish Caves.

This week, they will be sampling two cheeses:

Tubby
PRODUCER: SPRING BROOK FARM/ FARMS FOR CITY KIDS, VT.
MILK: RAW COW
RENNET: V E A L
AGE: 12+ MONTHS
WEIGHT: 30 LBS

This 30 pound Alpine-style from Spring Brook Farm is traditionally handmade in a copper vat and washed in brine for one year to encourage the development of beneficial microflora. Crack into one of these big ladies and prepare to be enveloped in its piña colada aromas. Tubby’s paste is bright yet brothy with a rind like crunchy peanut butter that will leave you craving another bite. Tubby is named for one of Brooklyn’s prominent turn of the century architects, William Bunker Tubby.

Bismark
PRODUCER: GRAFTON VILLAGE CHEESE CO. VT.
MILK TYPE: THERMALIZED SHEEP
RENNET: MICROBIAL
AGE: 4 - 6 MONTHS
WEIGHT: 1 1 LBS.

Named for a famous 19th century Vermont ram, Bismark is a cheddar/Pyrenees-style hybrid. It is savory, sweet, and yogurty, finishing with notes of candied hazelnut. Eat this cheese on its own or with a fresh green summer salad. While the cheese is made at Grafton Village Cheese in Vermont, the milk is sourced from nearby Amish farmers in New York State. Bismark’s paste is a wonderful and bold expression of sheep’s milk, while the rind takes on the natural cave environment of Crown Finish Caves. 2017 ACS Winner

They will take orders on the spot at pick-up tonight, or by email before next Thursday's pickup (September 27.) If you place an order, you'll receive an invoice through Square, and will receive your cheese at the following week's pick-up. Cheeses are priced at:

$10 (1) pc. (1/2 lb)
$18 (2) pcs. (1/2 lb each)

THE BEET: VOLUME 17; WEEK 16