2015 Week 1

It's Opening Week of the 2015 CSA season and we are rockin' and rollin'. Woohoo! The weather is warm and things are growing! After a long, cold winter, greens are looking so good. While we were all hoping the strawberries would be ready for week 1, alas they are not. Soooo close! We are hoping for a good 2-3 weeks of harvest coming up.

***The most important thing when bringing fresh greens home from the farm is to take time to clean and store them well.  Here is a link to specific instructions on how to prep your greens (romaine, bok choy, spinach)
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So each week here on the blog I try to introduce the new veggies and some of my favorite ways to prepare them.  Since it is week 1 and every thing is new, its a long blog post.

Romaine- I am so excited for some fresh romaine.  Salads-BLTs-Lettuce Wraps!

Baby Bok Choy -  This is still my absolute favorite way to serve Bok Choy.  But I also pinned some new recipes to try. Check them out here.

Hot House Tomato- Aren't they beauties! While we have grown these gems for a few years now, we've never given them out as part of the CSA. This is because one of the joys of CSA is eating what's in season and becoming more in-tune with the real seasons of produce. May is simply not tomato season. July, August and September are the tomato months and, believe me, we will have plenty of tomatoes to share when the time comes. So why are they in your share this week? Consider it a consolation prize for not getting strawberries! (we know, not a direct replacement for berries)

Easter Egg Radish - Click here for some ideas of what to do with radishes.

Broccoli Rabe is a bitter green, very similar to mustard greens.  I love broccoli rabe cooked with lots of garlic!  I recommend blanching the rabe in boiling water to take the edge off the bitterness first then sautéing with olive oil and garlic.  Here is a recipe "Broccoli Rabe with Pasta and Sun Dried Tomatoes"

Asparagus - If you are not going to use it that day, you should store asparagus in your refrigerator in a bowl or mug with some water in the bottom.  The asparagus will slowly drink up the water and you may need to replenish.  Asparagus is delicious roasted or grilled! This asparagus was grown by John Catalano, just down the road from us!

Spinach- This spinach was grown by Michael Catalano in Mannington Township. They always have the most beautiful spinach fields. Most of their crop is harvested by machines and sent off to be packed and frozen. We were able to hand harvest this from the edges of the field where the harvesters won't be able to get. Throw it in your morning smoothie, or eggs, saute it for dinner or add it to your soup.