The Weekly Share

Here’s what to expect in this week’s share:

• Celery
• Cucumbers
• Green beans
• Herbs
• Onions
• Potatoes
• Scallions
• Sweet peppers
• Hot peppers
• Swiss chard
• Yellow squash
• Zucchini
• Tomatoes (maybe!)

*Due to the unpredictability of weather, pest problems, and other factors produce in the weekly shares are subject to last minute changes.

Farm Fresh Celery

One of the joys, and sometimes the surprise, of farm fresh produce is the difference between it and the grocery store bought variety. In your CSA you get varieties, like purple viking potatoes and green zebra tomatoes, that just aren’t found at the grocery store. Well, farm fresh celery is also different from the grocery store variety. The celery in your CSA is unblanched, not blanching like dipping in hot water to par cook them but rather to blanch celery the plants are covered and shielded from sunlight. Blanching creates a sweeter less flavorful plant. The celery in your CSA is packed with flavor and as such is better for cooking than perhaps eating raw. It is wonderful used in stews or soups or in any dish calling for mirepoix (that wonderful carrot, celery, onion sauté that is used as a base for many dishes).

When trimming celery many people throw away the leaves but here’s a tip – freeze them instead. I keep a ziploc bag in my freezer, when trimming plants all the stems and leaves that I might usually throw away get saved in the bag instead. When it is full, I make vegetable stock. Celery leaves, carrot tops, parsley stems, even rinsed onion skins are just some of the scraps that make for great stock.  To make stock just throw the vegetable scraps into a pot, add some salt, pepper and herbs of your choice (I love a chunk of ginger and a good squeeze of lemon juice in mine). Then cover with water and bring to a boil. Once boiling turn down the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes or until all the vegetables are fully cooked and your stock is a light amber color. Then just strain and you’ve got stock ready to use as a soup, gravy, or sauce starter.

News From the Farm

If you pick up your share from the farm, fresh flower bouquets will be available for sale at the farm.  Enjoy some of the beauty that intern Betsy has been growing in your home!

A note for folks who’s pickup is at Seventh and George, please return the CSA boxes so they can be reused.  They can be dropped off when you pick up your share. Thank you!

Connect and Share

What is your favorite part of your CSA share? If you have a recipe or picture you want to share, a trick you learned, or a question about your CSA produce please let us know at csa@hornfarmcenter.org. Share on social media with the hashtag #HornFarmCSA.