CSA Newsletter for the Week of June 29th
Hello Everyone,
This week in your box:
Cilantro, Strawberries, English Peas - last week!, Green Kale, Swiss Chard, Italian Parsley, Red Beets, Dino Kale, 1 lb of strawberries, bunch of carrots, green romaine, red butter lettuce, red oak leaf and lolla rosa lettuces
These beautiful lettuce heads make a fabulous salad on their own or mixed together. Boil or roast some beets, remove the skin and eat with toasted walnuts and goat cheese with a nice vingarette. Toss some shelled english peas on top for nice color and flavor.
Chard and Kale are great in lasagna in place or in addition to meat. They are also great tossed in soup or with other types of pasta. Goat cheese and kale and chard are wonderful also. It doesn’t take too much - just chop into small pieces and steam in water until the water is gone then stir in some goat cheese until it coats all of the leaves. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper and sun dried tomatoes if you have them. Yum!
Can you believe we are about to enter July? We have been so very busy tending to our tomatoes - staking and tying them. Our Heirloom tomatoes are just around the corner. You can expect them in your boxes around the last week of July. We come in with our tomatoes later than other farmers that have land more inland. We have the coastal influence being only 5 miles from the coast of Carmel. Unfortunatley on a wholesale basis we have tomatoes a month later than most farmers and start harvesting when the market is flooded. But the taste of Carmel Valley tomatoes beats any other tomato. The fruit sits on the vine much longer continuing to sugar up while the skins turn from green to whatever crazy color the heirloom might be!
On the flip side of coming into the market late with tomatoes, we usually are still harvesting tomatoes until Thanksgiving. Some years I have had fruit in January! Please be patient with our tomatoes; once they begin to ripen there will be an abundance of all shapes, colors and sizes of heirloom, early girls, San Marzano romas, sungold cherry and red grape tomatoes in your box every single week!
We plan to start our Saturday U–Pick the first week of September and continue as long as the weather cooperates. Look for the sign on Carmel Valley Rd between The Holly Farm and Chateau Julian just before Mid Valley Center. As a CSA member you get half price at the U-Pick for all of your friends and family too!
We are looking for some untreated wood stakes to stake our tomatoes. If anyone out there wants to donate or sell some 2″ x 4″x 6 feet stakes or something close to those dimensions please contact me at 831-726-9432 or via email.Serendipity Farms is in the new Big Sur Bakery cookbook which just hit the stores on June 24th. It is a great book with not only recipes but a year in the life of an independent restaurant that uses sustainable ingredients and supports those that grow or raise food in the same way. There is a private party this Saturday, the 4th of July with food and drinks included if you buy a cookbook from 1 - 5pm. The cookbook is $40 at the Big Sur Bakery. If you aren’t already a devoted Big Sur Bakery regular, be sure to stop in for a bite.
We want you to know how much we appreciate your support. Farming is not easy and there are so many variables and ways to lose money. Our potato crop was muched on by ground squirrels before we had a chance to harvest them, causing us to lose a large portion of our income. We can still use the potatoes for seed potatoes, but we will have to replant and wait another 100 days until harvest. I came to the realization that farmers feel the way folks affected by the current economic situation feel ALL of the time - so many variables in play with lots on the line that can be lost to such things as weather, squirrels, pests, weeds, etc. We farmers need all the support we can get and we thank you for helping us with the upfront costs associated with growing good, organic food with loving hands.
Have a beautiful week everyone!
Enjoy this amazing weather.
Jamie Collins