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Week #16 — A Note from the Farmer

Dear CSA Member

Falling into fall. Things are changing all around the farm moving from the warmth and long days of summer to the cool, shorter days of fall.

Potatoes, Celery, Carrots, Shallots and Parsley. Sounds like soup. Kale and Broccoli that you can use fresh or cooked. The Featured Recipe section on the farm website is all about Kale.  Kale soup, fresh salad and chips.  If you have a favorite Kale recipe please pass it on and it will be added to the Recipe section. This week is Lacinato Kale also known as Dinosaur Kale.

The Celery in your share is dark green, flavorful and a bit tougher than the fat and pale celery of the grocery. The Celery is wonderful in any cooked dish, soup or stew. The leaves are full of flavor and can be chopped finely and used as well.

The last of the Peppers and some hot Jalapeño Peppers to keep things spicy. New this week French Breakfast Radishes. Some even like to cook the radish leaves which are a spicy green.
The Marketplace items will be posted on the Farm Blog each Saturday and also on the farm Face Book page so all members have a chance to order. To order from the Marketplace log into your CSA Member Account from the farm website home page, www.stoneledge.farm, CSA Member Login.  Use your e-mail address and password you created when registering.  If you forgot your password select the Forgot Password link and you will be directed to create a new password.  Select Marketplace and then items you would like to order. Your order will be delivered with your CSA shares.

Posted on the farm Face Book page https://www.facebook.com/StoneledgeFarm, new photos of Geo, Juan, Julian Sr. and Julian Jr. picking carrots for your share and a fascinating trio of carrots that created a braid. I also included a photo of the bulk fruit that is available this week and photos of what the fields are looking like now that we are moving into fall.

Enjoy the beautiful weather and the wonderful produce.
Deborah for everyone at Stoneledge Farm.

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Week #15 — What’s in the Bag

FULL VEGETABLE SHARE
Red potatoes-2 pounds
Tomatillos-1 pound
Bell peppers-2
Frying pepper-1
Hot peppers-habanero- very hot so use with caution-4
Red Russian kale-1 bunch
Broccoli-1 head
Cabbage-1 head
Onions-2
Red Ace beets-4

FRUIT SHARE
Concord grapes–1 basket from Tousey Vineyard
In one bag:
Nectarines-from Klein’s Kill Orchard
Simpka Plum-from Klein’s Kill Orchard (these are a sweet eating plum)

MUSHROOM SHARE
White Button

NEW — available through the online CSA Marketplace this week:

RED POTATOES 10-POUND BAG
WHITE POTATOES 10-POUND BAG
CABBAGE 6 HEADS
NECTARINES 1/2 BUSHEL BOX
PLUMS-SIMPKA SWEET EATING-1/2 BUSHEL BOX
CONCORD GRAPES 4 QUARTS

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Judi’s Weekly Recipe — Week #15

Greetings everyone, and welcome to Week 15!

As many of us have discussed, the shares are getting heavier now that the root vegetables are coming in. This week we have potatoes, beets, broccoli and cabbage. If you have a carrier with wheels, now is the time to start using it.

Here’s an easy, no-cook recipe that utilizes two of this week’s vegetables.

Creamy Kale Salad with Apples and Raw Beets

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1 ripe avocado, halved and seeded
2 TBS white wine vinegar or lemon juice
2 tsp Dijon mustard
3 TBS extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
8 oz. kale, stemmed and coarsely chopped
1 small red beet, peeled and thinly sliced
1 crisp apple, cored and cut into thin wedges
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1. Combine avocado, vinegar, mustard, and oil in a food processor. Pulse until smooth. It will be thick. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Combine kale, beets, apple, and walnuts in a large bowl. Toss with avocado dressing. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Helpful hint: Add some cooked grain for added texture and nutrition.

So easy and great for one of the warm nights we still have left. Enjoy, and have a delicious week!
Best,Judi

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Week #15 — Note from the Farmer

Dear CSA member:

A special note:
Just Food’s annual Let Us Eat Local tasting benefit is Wednesday, Sept. 17 at the Altman Building (135 W. 18th St.) in Manhattan. CSA members receive a 15 percent discount by using the promotional code JFCSA2014. It’s a delicious night that highlights the restaurants in NYC that support local farmers. Just Food, as you know so well, works to create a sustainable food system in New York City by empowering and supporting communities to increase access to local, healthy and sustainable food. Members can buy their tickets through this link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/let-us-eat-local-2014-tickets-12042811373.

Here on the farm, we’ve had beautiful blue skies, crisp days and sunshine. It just does not get any better. The leaves on the trees are starting to turn from the bright green of summer, taking on the yellowish tints that will lead to the colors of fall.

This week — beets. So many members at the farm visit requested them. The Red Ace beet, which does not have anything at all fancy about it, is still the best tasting beet.

The red potatoes are just perfect. The color of the skin is a rosy red color with white flesh. We have a very good potato harvest this year and should have potatoes almost every week until the end of the season. If you would like more, there are 10-pound bags of white and red potatoes on the CSA Marketplace. These potatoes will store into winter if kept in a cool place.

A bit of the summer remains and there will still be the brightly colored peppers and tomatillos. Red Russian kale and cabbage from the fall crops will complete the share.

Concord grapes from Tousey Vineyard are in the fruit share this week and also available in bulk from the Marketplace. This will be the only week for Concords. When Ray pulled in with his truck loaded with the totes of grapes, the whole barn filled with the smell of the Concords. Delicious.

Enjoy the harvest.
Deborah for everyone at Stoneledge Farm

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Judi’s Weekly Recipe — Week #14

Greetings!
It’s Week 14 – we are marching toward Fall. This means the root vegetables will start coming in. This week we’re getting potatoes. Stoneledge Farms potatoes are always amazing!

Here’s an easy classic Spanish recipe that is great for lunch or dinner with a green salad and a glass of wine. It’ also great for breakfast when served with a side of bacon or Canadian bacon.

TORTILLA ESPAGNOLA
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1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 potatoes, thinly sliced – whether or not you peel them is up to you.
1 white onion, chopped
4 eggs, scrambled in a large bowl
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the vegetable oil until the pan is filled halfway.
2. Once the oil is hot, add the potato slices and onion, making sure they are well-covered by the oil; add more oil if necessary.
3. Cook for 20 minutes until the potatoes and onions are soft. Drain the oil and combine the potato mixture with the eggs. Add the salt and mix well.
4. In a 10-inch,  2 1/2 inch deep nonstick skillet, add the olive oil and heat over medium-high heat.
5. Pour in the potato, egg, and onion mixture. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until the bottom of the omelet is very light brown.
6. Using a flat ceramic plate, cover the frying pan and flip the omelet over onto the plate. Immediately slip the uncooked side back into the pan. Cook for another 4 to 5 minutes, until the other side is a very light brown.

This is great for a Sunday night, when you’re not ready for a giant meal, or don’t want to spend an hour in the kitchen preparing one. Enjoy, and have a delicious week!

Best,
Judi

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Week #14 — What’s in the Bag

FULL VEGETABLE SHARE
Green Beans-1 pound
Tomatillos-1 pound
Lipstick Peppers-2
Broccoli-2 heads
Cabbage-1 head
Flat Leaf Parsley-1 bunch
Collards-1 bunch
Onions-2
Potatoes-2 pounds
Eggplant-1
Islander Peppers-2

FRUIT SHARE
White Peaches-1 bag
Empress Prune Plums -this type of Plum is better for cooking. 1 bag There is a recipe, Plum Cake with Walnut Topping from a cook book that we were asked to participate. This cook book and other favorites can be found on the farm Recipes link, top of the page.

MUSHROOM SHARE
Portobello

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Week #14 — Note from the Farmer

Dear CSA Member

Thank you to all the members that attended this years’ Fall Farm Festival. We never felt a drop of rain nor heard a rumble of thunder although the weather predictions were dire. The sky was clear all day.  Everyone enjoyed picking up freshly dug carrots, gathering a bouquet of flowers and taking a ride on the wagon. Again, thank you for coming.

The vegetables are moving quickly into the fall favorites. This week we have started to dig potatoes.  The potato digger is pulled behind the tractor and unearths the potatoes, laying them neatly on the hill that once covered the growing potatoes. It takes human hands to pick them up, though. We then wash the potatoes using the barrel washer, an oak sided barrel that rotates as water is sprayed onto the potatoes as they make their way from one end to the other. There is nothing so perfect as as freshly dug potato. A video that Peter took while digging potatoes posted on the farm Face Book page.  Actually, it is posted twice because I didn’t think the first went through.

The online CSA Marketplace offers bulk vegetables as we have extra after harvest. Please check the Marketplace as the vegetables and also fruit will change week to week with availability.  Coffee, Chocolate, Honey and Maple are available as well.  

Enjoy the Harvest.
Deborah for everyone at Stoneledge Farm

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Judi’s Weekly Recipe — Week #13

Week 13, and we’re headed toward Fall, which means even more and heavier vegetables. If you have a carrier with wheels, this is the time to bring it to the CSA for pickup. We are getting tomatillos this week, and people always ask me what to do with them.  Here’s a recpe for roasted tomatiloo salsa. It can also be used as a sauce for chicken, fish or vegetables.

ROASTED TOMATILLO SALSA
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1 lb tomatillos (about 6 large), papery husks removed, rinsed
1/2 large onion, cut into thirds
2 serrano chiles, halved, seeded
1 TBS olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 cup (loosely packed) fresh cilantro leaves

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Toss everything except the cilantro together.
3. Spread the mixture on a baking pan or in a glass baking dish.
4. Roast in the oven until the tomatillos and the onion are very soft, about 1 hour.
5. Transfer everything  to a food processor or blender and add the cilantro. Puree until almost smooth.
6. Chill or serve at room temperature.

This will keep in your refrigerator for up to a week. Enjoy, and have a delicious week!
Best,
Judi

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Week #13 — What’s in the Bag

THIS IS A COFFEE SHARE DELIVERY WEEK

LIMITED SUPPLY OF TOMATILLOS, TOMATOES, NECTARINES AND DONUT PEACHES AVAILABLE IN BULK FROM THE ONLINE CSA MARKETPLACE.

VEGETABLE SHARE
Slicer Tomatoes-8
Heirloom Sunkist Yellow Tomatoes-2
Tomatillos-1 pound
Edamame-1 bunch
Ancho Peppers-2  (slightly hot)
Bell Peppers-2 aren’t they beauties?
Long Green Peppers-2
Broccoli-1 head  The first of the broccoli for the season. Fall must be here.
Green Cabbage-1 head
Rosemary-1 bunch
Spinach-1 bunch
White Onions-2
Serrano Hot Peppers-4

FRUIT SHARE– 1 bag each
Nectarines –from Klein’s Kill Orchard
Donut Peaches –from Fix Brothers Orchard

MUSHROOM SHARE
Shiitake

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Week #13 — Note from the Farmer

Dear CSA Member,

Moving into September with the changes that fall brings.  It has been a very cool Summer with many nights in the 40’s.  We wonder what the normally colder season of fall will bring.  We are still harvesting many of the Summer vegetables.  It is a little too early to say goodbye to the tender sun loving peppers and tomatoes.

This week Edamame or Soy Beans.  Pluck the pods from the stalk, rinse and steam for about 5 minutes.  Sprinkle with salt if you like and pop the bean from the pod.  Good as a snack like you would eat peanuts.

Tomatillos are also ready for harvest.  These green husked vegetables are the base for Salsa Verde.  There are recipes on the farm website Recipe Section, Tomatillos for Salsa, Soups and info about canning or freezing Tomatillos.

Remember that the The Fall Farm Festival is September 6, 2014 from 11:30-3.  Please use the 145 Garcia Lane, Leeds, NY 12451 address.  Rain or shine.  No pets, please.

Come and meet your farmers, walk the fields where your vegetables are grown.  At 12 we will gather for lunch.  The farm will provide pulled pork and also a vegetarian stew, roast corn and portobello mushrooms, fresh fruit and coffee.  Thank you to Paradise to Go, https://paradistogo.com/ .  We ask members to bring a dish to share to help round out the lunch offerings and their own place setting.

There will be wagon rides, walks around the farm, freshly dug carrots to pick from the field to take home, help build a scarecrow, pick a bouquet of flowers.  If you would like to take flowers home, please bring your own scissors and something that will keep the flowers until you get home.  Wet paper towels or newspapers in a plastic bag will usually do the trick.

Chelsea CSA is chartering a bus to the farm and back to NYC. The bus will leave from the Hudson Guild (441 West 26 St) at 8:30 am SHARP! Please arrive NO LATER THAN 8:15 am, or you will miss the bus. We will begin boarding the bus at 8 am.
If you would like to take the bus, please purchase your bus tickets at: https://stoneledgefarmfestival2014.eventbrite.com
Tickets are $5
Bus tickets are to help defray the cost of the bus rental. BUS PAYMENTS ARE NOT REFUNDABLE.
The bus will make one bathroom stop on the way up to the farm and one on the return trip. There is a port-a-potty at the farm. The ride is about 120 miles and take 2 ½ hrs hours to get there. Plan to arrive back around 6 pm.

Driving directions are available on the Stoneledge Farm website at: www.stoneledgefarmny.org
Contact events@chelseacsa.org with questions about the bus.  This is a wonderful opportunity that the Chelsea CSA is offering all CSA members in the NYC area.

Hope to see you at the Fall Farm Festival.
Deborah for everyone at Stoneledge Farm