Hi everyone, Jess here to present to you the 6th CSA crate of the summer season at Springdell!
The CSA crates are getting heavier, and the flavors are delicious!
- butter and sugar corn
- green beans
- salad cukes (a few extra from the swap box)
- classic carrots
- zucchini (a few extra from the swap box)
- blueberries
- kale
- rainbow chard
For those with small shares, Monday’s pickup consists of corn, beans, blueberries, cukes and kale, along with a head of sweet summer cabbage!
To finish this week’s share, we have some beautiful flowers from the PYO garden. This photo was taken as soon as we got home, but they’ve perked up even more since settling out of the heat and into some water.
I wanted to point out the corn silks at the end of the husks. You know, the ones that stick out the top? These exposed silks are a great way to tell how sweet the corn is inside. If they are dark and sticky to the touch, such as in this photo, you know you have a sweet ear! There’s really no need to be peeling, poking, prodding and examining each ear. I quick boiled this corn (about 5-6 minutes) as soon as I got home and they were as sweet as their corn silks promised.
Here’s tonights Meatless Monday dinner, and there’s a little story here. My five-year old has recently become obsessed with The OkiPoke, our quick lunch stop when we are out and about in Westford. If you haven’t been, it’s a sushi lover’s dream, using fresh ingredients and you can build your own roll, salad or bowl. Traditionally, the poke bowl comes with a cubed fish such as salmon, but my five year-old opts for the soft tofu as his protein. When he wanted to go there yesterday for dinner and again today for lunch, and frankly our frequency is getting a little embarrassing and expensive- “what if I could make you this at home instead?” He was skeptical, and I assured him it would be amazing.
A few hours later, here we are! After starting the rice in the pressure cooker, I started some water rolling on the stovetop. I popped in the corn and edamame for 5 minutes, then blanched the beans and kale for one-ish minute.
His bowl traditionally consists of sushi rice, shredded carrot, cucumber, corn, soft tofu, edamame, and nothing else. Tonight, he added blueberries, and conceded that it was the best poke bowl yet. Thank you, Springdell!
I spiced it up a bit for the grown-up bowls, adding a Gochujang mayo. The mayo consisted of Gochujang, mayo, sesame oil and a sprinkle of brown sugar. This was so simple, and such a satisfying dinner, even for those at the table who are not huge fans of tofu- (when surrounded by farm fresh ingredients, it’s hard not to love even the tofu!)
I’m noticing that Farmer Jamie is adding some really awesome events to the calendar, including a potluck in the fall! I list the Springdell events here as well, so be sure to check out the “Upcoming Events” section on the CSA365 main home page. There, you’ll find fun Springdell events and other farm/cooking/CSA events in the local area. If you know of something that should be up on the events bulletin board, please drop me a line.
I’m looking forward to cooking with you this week! Tonight I hope to try out a zucchini bisque and probably some zucchini brownies, maybe some cauliflower leaf chips, perhaps a rerun of this delicious, nutritious, and incredibly simple swiss chard soup… Meanwhile, happy cooking and see you back here for the “Tell” of the Springdell Show and Tell very soon!`