Welcome to the 17th share of the Pitchfork & Crow 2023 Summer CSA! Here’s what’s in the share this week:

• Lettuce Mix – A mix of four lettuces.
• Basil
• Celery
• Broccoli
• Purple Cauliflower or Red Curly Kale
• Purple Bunching Onions
• Garlic
• Carrots
• Mixed Roman Beans – For all your green bean needs.
• Mixed Cucumbers – Including green and yellow slicers.
• Mixed Zucchini & Summer Squash – Choose from green, yellow, and light green Mexican zucchinis.
• Mixed Sweet Peppers – Mixed Bell and elongated/pointy Italian Frying Peppers, different shapes but similar in taste and use. Some with more color than others (these varieties ripen to red and yellow) but all are sweet with no heat.
• Numex Suave Orange Low Heat Habanero Peppers – Bred by the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State to have all the habanero fruity flavor but only some of the heat!
• Mixed Cherry Tomatoes or Slicer Tomatoes
• Bartlett Pears – Leave at room temp to ripen.

The mini heatwave we had this past weekend seemed to help many crops put on some good growth. The fantastic pepper season continues, the last round of cucumbers is flush with fruits, the broccoli came on strong. While I wouldn’t be sad if we didn’t see another 90 degree day this season, a little extended summer weather is getting us in a good place as we head into the big cool down that’s sure to arrive soon. The weather forecast is projecting a wet one next week for the CSA pickups. Will we be ready? Time will tell.

The past two weeks have been a flurry of Winter CSA logistics and sign-ups interspersed with all the other things that need to happen this time of year. Harvest beets, then process Winter invoices. Harvest pears, then process more winter invoices. Once again we filled up the memberships in just a week and a half with 87% returning members and 13% new members. Many thanks to everyone who jumped into the Winter CSA so quickly. We appreciate your continued support through the dark months and look forward to all the tasty roots and greens we’ll be sharing with you.

If you missed the announcements and wanted to snag a Winter CSA spot let us know via email at farmers@pitchforkandcrow.com and we’ll see if we can fit you in or get you added to the waitlist.

Thanks to some advanced planning we were able to secure some seed and get some open areas sown to cover crops for the winter. The mix of rye/winter peas/clover will hopefully come in strong and help keep these areas stable and happy during the rainy months. We’ll work in the growth as a green manure in the spring for added nutrients. It’s nice to have gotten some seed in early this year, before the growth slow down in the coming months.

In the week ahead we’ll be tackling the dry corn harvest ahead of next week’s rain and hopefully get some apples and potatoes in storage too. The winter squash harvest is looming as well. We’e also got some transplanting to do in a greenhouse for winter eating. Before we know it we’ll be inviting members out for the annual pumpkin patch event in October. We’re seeing a lot of orange in the patch!

Enjoy the vegetables and we’ll see you here next week!

Your farmers,
Carri Heisler & Jeff Bramlett

.

Here are a few recipes to get you inspired:

Garlicky Lemony Roasted Broccoli

• 2 pounds broccoli
• 2 small heads garlic
• 9 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 ¹/₄ teaspoons kosher salt
• ¹/₂ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 scallions, both white and green parts thinly sliced
• 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• 1 serrano pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1 handful shaved Parmesan (optional, but recommended)

Heat the oven to 420°F or 220°C.

Cut off the pointed top of the garlic heads off, drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil on each head of garlic and wrap each one of them tightly in aluminum foil.

Cut the broccoli florets off the stem, wash them, and place them on a baking sheet. Evenly coat the broccoli with 4 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Place the garlic next to the broccoli and bake everything for 20 to 25 minutes, then remove the baking sheet from the oven.

Squeeze out the slightly caramelized garlic onto a cutting board and roughly chop it. In a bowl, add the thinly sliced scallions and serrano pepper, roughly chopped parsley and garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Roughly mix all the ingredients together using a spoon. Toss half of the mixture on the roasted broccoli, evenly coating the florets.

Place the roasted broccoli on the serving plate and spoon the rest of the salsa on top. As an optional step, sprinkle some Parmesan shavings on top of the broccoli.

From Food52.com by Carolina Gelen, https://food52.com/recipes/84305-roasted-broccoli-recipe-with-garlic-lemon-parmesan

Celery and Za’atar Tabouli

• Za’atar (If you can’t find it ready-made)
• 3 tablespoons dried thyme (or lemon thyme, if you can find it)
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
• 2 tablespoons sumac
• ¹/₂ teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (not traditional, but adds a nice bite of heat)

• Tabouli
• 1 cup bulgur wheat
• ¹/₄ cup za’atar
• 1 ³/₄ cups boiling water
• 2 lemons, juiced and zested
• 2 tablespoons walnut or olive oil
• ¹/₂ cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley
• 6 inner stalks of celery with leaves, finely chopped (about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of chopped celery with leaves)
• 1 spring onion or 2 scallions, minced
• 1 pinch salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• ¹/₂ cup plain Greek yogurt
• ¹/₄ cup chopped toasted walnuts
• More za’atar as needed
• ¹/₂ cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)

In a large bowl, stir za’atar into bulgur wheat and pour boiling water over the mixture. Let sit until the water is completely absorbed, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, zest and juice your lemon, chop your parsley, onions and celery, toast your walnuts.

When the wheat has absorbed all the water and cooled to room temperature, stir in zest and juice of one lemon (you might add more later) and 2 tablespoons of walnut or olive oil. Add in chopped parsley, onions, and celery and stir well. Taste. Add salt and pepper to taste, and adjust the rest of the seasoning to your taste. You may need more oil and/or lemon juice, and you may want to stir in more za’atar.

To serve, scoop the tabouli onto a plate and add a tablespoon or so of plain yogurt. Sprinkle the yogurt with a tablespoon of the chopped walnuts and a pinch or two of za’atar. (I’ve also eaten it with a sprinkling of feta cheese, and it’s really good!)

From Food52.com by DRBABS, https://food52.com/recipes/16513-celery-and-za-atar-tabouli

Pear Ginger Muffins

• Pear Ginger Sauce
• 4 small, ripe pears (Bartlett or similar), peeled, cored and diced. Should yield about 2 cups.
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• ¹/₄ cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons grated ginger (I keep my peeled ginger root in the freezer and grate it with a microplane when I need it, which tends to make the gratings a little fluffy. So if you’re using fresh, unfrozen ginger, you might want a little less)

• Muffins
• 1 ¹/₂ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 ¹/₂ teaspoons baking powder
• ¹/₂ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger for batter + 1/2 teaspoon for topping
• ¹/₄ teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• ¹/₃ cup sugar for batter + 2 tablespoons for topping
• 1 stick (1/2 cup), plus 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup pear ginger sauce (recipe above)
• 1 ¹/₂ cups walnuts, coarsely chopped

Pear Ginger Sauce

Heat butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. When butter is melted and frothy add pears, tossing with a wooden spoon to coat.

Add 1/4 cup of sugar, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.

Add grated ginger and cook over low heat for about 15 minutes, until pears are soft and most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and allow to cool for at least 15-20 minutes.

Muffins

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F. Grease muffin pan.

Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, 1 teaspoon of ground ginger, and salt in a bowl.

Whisk together eggs and 1/3 cup sugar in a large bowl until combined well, then add butter whisking or blending with electric mixer until creamy.

Stir in pear ginger sauce, then fold in flour mixture to combine. Stir in 1 cup of walnuts and divide batter among muffin cups.

In a small bowl, combine remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger and 1/2 cup walnuts. Sprinkle topping evenly on top of muffins. Bake until muffins are golden and toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes, then remove muffins from pan and cool slightly. Enjoy with coffee, preferably in a sunny spot in the backyard. Once cooled completely, the muffins can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature 1 day, or in the freezer for about a week.

From Food52.com by MS. T, https://food52.com/recipes/14405-pear-ginger-walnut-muffins