Veggie CSA Week #5

Half Shares:

Sugar Snap Peas - 3/4# - $3.75
Beets - 1 bunch - $3.00
Carrots - 1 bunch - $3.00
Turnips - 1 bunch - $3.00
Kale - 1 bunch - $2.50
Onion - 1 - $1.50
TOTAL - $16.75

Full Shares:

Sugar Snap Peas - 1.5# - $7.50
Beets - 1 bunch - $3.00
Carrots - 1 bunch - $3.00
Turnips - 1 bunch - $3.00
Lettuce - 1 head - $2.50
Summer Squash - 1# - $3.00
Onion - 2 - $3.00
TOTAL - $25.00

Veggie CSA Week #4

Half Shares:

Strawberries - 1 pint - $3.50
Sugar Snap Peas - 1/2 pound - $2.50
Lettuce - 1 head - $2.50
Spinach - 1/2 pound - $3.00
Broccoli Raab - 1 bunch - $3.00
Radishes - 1 bunch - $2.75
TOTAL - $17.25

Full Shares:

Strawberries - 2 pints - $7.00
Sugar Snap Peas - 1 pound - $5.00
Lettuce - 1 head - $2.50
Spinach - 1 pound - $6.00
Broccoli Raab - 1 bunch - $3.00
Radishes - 1 bunch - $2.75
TOTAL - $26.25

Veggie CSA Week #3

Half Shares:

Strawberries - 2 pints - $7.00
Escarole - 1 head - $2.50
Lettuce mix - 1/4# - $2.00
Kale - 1 bunch - $2.50
Green Onions - 1 bunch - $2.00
Cilantro - 1 bunch - $2.00
TOTAL - $18.00


Full Shares:

Strawberries - 3 pints - $10.50
Escarole - 1 head - $2.50
Kale - 1 bunch - $2.50
Swiss Chard - 1 bunch - $2.50
Lettuce mix - 1/2# - $4.00
Cilantro - 1 bunch - $2.00
Bok Choy - 1 large - $2.00
TOTAL - $26.00


Escarole and White Bean Soup (My favorite way to eat escarole!)

(NOTE: I have made this without the canned tomatoes, and it came out quite tasty....)

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 head escarole (about 1 pound), washed, dried, and torn into pieces
8 cups chicken stock
2 15-ounce cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice, drained
1 small chunk Parmesan rind
coarse sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add escarole and sauté until wilted, about 5 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add chicken stock, Parmesan, beans, and tomatoes. Cover and simmer on medium low heat until escarole is tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Yield: 8 servings.

Veggie CSA Week #2

Half Shares:
Strawberries - 1 pint - $3.50
Lettuce - 1 head - $2.50
Baby Bok Choy - 1 bunch - $2.50
Turnips - 1 bunch - $3.00
Arugula - 1/4# - $2.00
Swiss Chard - 1 bunch - $2.50
TOTAL - $16.00

Full Shares:
Strawberries - 2 pints - $7.00
Lettuce - 1 head - $2.50
Baby Bok Choy - 1 bunch - $2.50
Radishes - 1 bunch - $2.75
Kale - 1 bunch - $2.50
Dill - 1 bunch - $2.00
Green onions - 1 bunch - $2.00
Spicy greens mix - 1/2# - $4.00
TOTAL - $25.25

Baby Bok Choy & Black Bean Salad

Ingredients:

2 heads baby bok choy (or one head of big bok choy)

1 15oz can black beans, drained

1 head spring garlic

1 bunch spring onions

3 tbsp. cider vinegar

2 tbsp. Dijon mustard

¼ cup olive oil

Directions:

Chop up bok choy stems and leaves into 1 inch strips. Chop garlic and onions and mix with bok choy and black beans. Mix together vinegar, mustard, and oil and pour over salad and toss. Cover it up and throw it in the fridge for at least an hour (a few hours is better especially if you’re using big bok choy). Taste it and add salt and pepper if you want – it usually does fine by itself.

Veggie CSA Week #1

Half Shares:

Lettuce - 1 head - $2.50
Kale - 1 bunch - $2.50
Cilantro - 1 bunch - $2.00
Bok Choy - 1 head - $2.00
Radishes - 1 bunch - $2.75
Broccoli Raab - 1 bunch - $3.00
Garlic - 2 - $1.50
TOTAL - $16.25

Full Shares:

Lettuce - 2 heads - $5.00
Kale - 1 bunch - $2.50
Bok Choy - 2 heads - $4.00
Cilantro - 1 bunch - $2.00
Radishes - 1 bunch - $2.75
Swiss Chard - 1 bunch - $3.00
Garlic - 2 - $1.50
Arugula - 1/4 pound - $2.50
Turnips - 1 bunch - $3.00
TOTAL - $26.75

Hello everyone and welcome to our 2011 CSA season! We've been working hard to get ready for deliveries, and we are excited about what we are offering this week. As you all know, we do grow strawberries, specifically for our CSA members (although we are known to have plenty for sale at market as well). Our strawberries are looking great, but they just are a little late in ripening. We spotted 2 (yes, TWO!) berries turning from white to red this morning, and there are plenty more on the way. So, unfortunately, no strawberries in your boxes this week, but I would say most definitely they will be there next week. YAY!

Spring in North Carolina means greens, and lots of them! This is by far my favorite time of year - lots of lettuce, kale, swiss chard (!!) arugula, and did I mention lettuce? So for the next few weeks, until we start seeing the fruits of summer, you will be getting a lot of greens in your boxes. We will try to keep it exciting and alternate between them. We are not very fancy, and just heat up a wok or skillet with some olive oil and garlic, then add a big pile of whatever greens we might have (kale, chard, bok choy... even turnip greens or beet greens, add the root too!) and sautee for a few minutes. Sometimes we add a little broth and/or soy sauce and/or vinegar to the pan too. If you like sausage, crumbling a little into the greens mix is always a yummy touch.

Half shares are receiving broccoli raab this week (full shares should be getting some soon). Since this might be a new one for a lot of you, I'm posting a recipe for it below. And always remember, if you have a great recipe you want to share, please email it to us (castlemainefarm@gmail.com) and I'll post it for the group to see.

Pasta with Broccoli Raab and Sausage (of course, if you don't like sausage, just leave it out...)

Ingredients

• 1 pound pasta (any kind)
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 bunch broccoli rabe
• 4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
• 1 cup grated Parmesan (4 ounces)
• Kosher salt and black pepper

Directions

1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and return it to the pot.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until it’s no longer pink, 5 to 6 minutes.
3. Stir in the garlic and cook 1 minute.
4. Add the broth and red pepper and bring to a boil. Add the broccoli rabe and simmer, covered, until tender, 3 to 4 minutes.
5. Stir in the butter and Parmesan and cook, uncovered, until the sauce thickens slightly, 1 to 2 minutes.
6. Toss the pasta with the sausage mixture and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper.

By Sara Quessenberry, September 2005

Now taking members for our 2011 CSA!

Download a brochure here to sign up. If you sign up by December 31st, it's $10 off the share price. We now have pick up locations at the Saxaphaw General Store and Carrboro Farmers' Market.

Veggie CSA Week #20

This is the last week we will be delivering CSA boxes. Thanks so much for a great season!

Half Shares:

Turnips - 1 bunch
Spicy Greens Mix - 1/4 pound
Eggplant - 1/2 pound
Melon (Carrboro/Farm) - 1
Melon OR Winter Squash OR Bok Choy (RTI/Durham - 1
Peppers - 1 pound

Full Shares:

Turnips - 1 bunch
Spicy Greens Mix - 1/2 pound
Bok Choy - 1 bunch
Radishes - 1 bunch
Cilantro - 1 bunch
Peppers - 2 pounds
Basil - 1/4 pound

It's always interesting to me how the CSA boxes come full circle through the course of the season. We started with turnips and greens, and always manage to re-introduce these guys in the last few weeks. It is always a relief to me to see their return, because it is a sign of cooler days. Hopefully, those cooler days will show up soon! Needless to say, this hot hot summer has left us pretty depleted at this point. The fall greens are struggling under the stress of the heat/lack of rain, and are falling prey to various bugs.... it seems appropriate that our CSA delivery season is ending. We will now concentrate on getting the farm ready for next year. We will be taking down all the trellis, pulling up landscape fabric (used for weed control), mowing the sad summer crops, and planting cover crops to keep our soil where it is through the winter. We're hoping for a little taste of hurricane season (really, just a few inches of rain, no wind or other nasty hurricane potentials) to help get the cover crop seed to germinate nicely.

Once again, we thank you very much for your enthusiasm and support of our CSA. Every year, our farm faces new challenges, successes, failures, and surprises, and I do feel it is quite important for you to share those us. We always enjoy getting to know you all throughout the season, and we will miss you during the winter months.

Thanks for a great season,
Brian, Joann & Mark,
The Castlemaine Crew