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Onions curing in the barn loft
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What's happening on the farm right now?
Onions have been up drying in the barn for a week or so and will be making their first appearance at market and in our store today. It's not the bumper crop we often get from our fall planted onions due to the up and down temperatures over the winter. Young onion plants can take a lot of cold, but when it goes from a warm spell to extremely cold overnight, they aren't used to it and some of them just freeze and don't come back. As a result we have fewer onions, but some of them are really big!
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This week we've walked our potato patch scouting for Colorado potatoes beetles. We didn't find too terribly many and I think this is partially due to the number of beneficial insects we found out there. We found lots of assassin bugs, shield bugs, lady beetles and pirate bugs, some in the act of eating (that is sucking the guts out of) the potato beetle larvae.
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Assassins bugs getting ready to multiply!
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What's available in the store and at market this week?
Online we have pickling and slicing cucumbers, zucchini and zephyr summer squash, carrots, yellow and red onions, romaine, red leaf and lettuce mix. Green kale, black kale and rainbow Swiss chard. Basil. Fresh cut flowers in mixed bouquets and straight bunches of peonies and cosmos. We'll have a small amount of tomatoes and blueberries at market. We aren't listing these online because we aren't sure of the amounts and don't want to over promise. More of these coming next week!
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Please note: Pick up locations for this coming Saturday are at the North Asheville Tailgate Market 8am until noon, and out here at the farm, 9m until dusk. Remember: You don't have to wait in line at market! Come to the check-out table and we will quickly grab your box for you.
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The tomatoes are growing fast. No pink blush yet but we are checking everyday!
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John's Recipe of the Week
John Loyd is our dear friend, neighbor, CSA worker member and a gourmet Southern cook. His delightful cooking observations and delicious recipe offerings appear here each week.
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“If you can read you can cook, if you can season you can delight.” Nanette L. Avery
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A note: In our recipes, unless called for, pepper is always ground at home and butter is unsalted. Use your produce as soon as you can.
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CUCUMBERS – From India, they slowly moved west through time, and made it to Haiti in 1494. They soon arrived in Florida and then were adopted by Native Americans. Cucumbers have a reputation for indigestibility, and way back, were fed only to farm animals. Gherkins are not related.
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We are using Kirby cucumbers. Meaning regular ones.
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Add 3 or four sliced cucumbers to your slaw.
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Finely diced, add to salad dressings
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Add 3 or 4 thinly sliced cukes to green salad
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Pickling – We make bread and butter mostly. Enough for a year, about 8 to 10 pints. This is not as hard as it sounds, and the product is supreme. Cold packed is really easy if you have the space.
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We like them thickly sliced, and baked with Parm.
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SLICED CUCUMBERS DRESSED WITH VINEGAR AND SUGAR – Thanks to Edna Lewis. She wrote “The Taste of Country Cooking” a wonderful memoir and one of the best books on food, ever. Sugar is not only ok for cooking your beans, but also, down this way, ok for salads too! This recipe great on vegetables, grilled meats and on sandwiches. For 6 or 8.
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4 kirby cucumbers, peeled or not, and thinly sliced
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Put the vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add the cucumber slices, and toss well to mix. Cover and chill for 1 hour. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve very cold.
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This one has a short shelf life, so plan to use in two or three days.
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We've had some good help on the farm this week, including Belle, our youngest daughter. She's been working like a champ. Here she is with Sam, Sophia and Taylor weeding beets and obviously loving it!
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Your farmers, Vanessa and Alex
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Love the flowers. Honor the vegetables. Let the weeds go!
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- Cheri Huber and Ashwini Narayanan
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