CSA Week 4

Beets and Broccoli will be making their debut this week, as will Cherries for the fruit shares!

WHAT’S HAPPENING ON THE FARMHappy 4 weeks of CSA!  The farm has been experiencing quite the wet spell lately which has created some flooding in low-lying areas, but has also provided some nice opportunity for some grasses and crops to flourish! Our ponds and streams are also filling up, which we all hope to take advantage of for some after-work swimming when the heat returns!  In the coming weeks, many parts of the farm will be working with summer campers who will be here through the beginning of August. Campers and camp staff will be weaving their way around parts of the farm, working alongside farmers and other professionals on the production side of things, from livestock to our vegetable gardens and the creamery, among others. On a personal note, I attended this camp as a young person and it shaped who I am today and led me onto this path of farming and community. It is a treasure trove of joy to witness young people connecting with land and food!  This week you will find some lovely beets in your shares from our good friends at Markristo Farm! These early season beets are perfect for roasting and then slicing over a summer salad with a crumbled soft cheese, and sweet enough to cut into chips and enjoy raw with a dip! The greens are delicious went sauteed with some garlic scapes and scallions with salt and pepper- just be sure to pick through any leaves that aren’t green and tender.  We are grateful for local farmers who help us bring you a wider variety of produce at this time of the year! More homegrown beets will be coming your way later this season!   Thank you, as always, for your support! We wish you a great week!   Betsy and the Farm Team

A SNEAK PEAK! At what’s growing in one of our greenhouses… they’re not ready yet, but we can’t wait for cukes!

PICKING UP YOUR SHARE The site host is Marina Kubicek and she can be contacted at info@foresthillscsa.com CSA shares are pre-boxed. A volunteer will check your name off of the list, ensuring that you receive your share and any add-on items, fruit and/or eggs. If there are ever any mistakes, this person will make note to share with the farmers, so that can correct any issues the following week.  FARM CONTACT If you ever need to get in touch with the farm directly, please email us!

CARDBOARD BOXES Please remember to bring your own bags to get your vegetables! Follow directions from your site host regarding return of CSA boxes. We collect these back each week to reuse for the next pack-out. Our CSA driver appreciates your help loading them back onto the truck. Thank you, volunteers, for helping! No returns of egg cartons or fruit containers, please. We cannot reuse these on our farm. We can accept returns of the folded cardboard boxes that hold the fruit containers. These we are able to reuse!

TIME Pick up is every Thursday from 4:00 – 8:00 PM.

LOCATION We are excited to be providing fresh veggies for the Forest Hills CSA this season! Church-in-the-Gardens 50 Ascan Avenue in Forest Hills

We would like to encourage members to form groups and to carpool.  If you would like to find members in your local area to carpool with please email Monica for help connecting!

GROWN BY ONLINE STORE DIRECTIONS Through our online Grown By store, you can place special weekly orders for eggs, bakery items, and dairy products. To purchase these items, log on during the purchasing window from Friday early morning through Sunday at midnight. Our system does not allow you to proceed through your purchase if you’re trying to add these items outside of this timeframe. So, just remember to snag these items over the weekend before your desired delivery week.  Click the bottom below to be directed to the Grown By store:

BUY ADD-ON ITEMS!

VEGETABLE SHARES   These lists are always subject to change d/t weather and crop availability. Amounts of a listed item may vary between partial and full shares. PARTIAL Kale Arugula Broccoli  Beets grown organically by Markristo Farm  Summer Squash/Zucchini  Radish Lettuce Garlic Scapes   FULL Kale Arugula Salad Mix Broccoli x2 Beets grown organically by Markristo Farm  Summer Squash/Zucchini  Radish Lettuce x2  Chard Garlic Scapes  FRUIT SHARES 1 QT Cherries grown and picked by Fishkill Farms  ADD ONS Baker’s Choice- House Milled Wheat   Cheese Maker’s Choice- Alpine

This Week’s Recipes! We cannot emphasize the versatility of garlic scapes enough, so here are a few more suggestions!Kept whole, pan seared with salt and herbs (or an herbal salt!!) Minced and stirred into ground beef with breadcrumbs, salt and pepper make a super easy and garlic-y meat ball!  Pickle them! 1:1 ration of water:vinegar, salt, sugar and peppercorns! Stick them in fridge for easy snacking!  Craving garlic bread? Process garlic scapes with salt, pepper and parsley until a chunky paste forms, add unsalted butter and grated Hawthorne Valley Alpine cheese or parmesan until a spreadable butter forms- slather on a delicious slice of your favorite bread and toast in the oven!   Zucchini Fritters Have some extra zucchini or summer squash leftover from last week? Zucchini fritters are a great way to use up any squash that have started to go soft. And really, you can add any veggie in there to make a larger batch! Here’s what you’ll need:  2 lb zucchini/summer squash  1 1/2 tsp fine sea salt, divided 2 large eggs, lightly beaten ½ cup chopped green onions  ¼ cup chopped garlic scapes  3/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp ground black pepper olive oil for sautéing Grate zucchini with the largest grate size on a box grater or a food processor grater. Add 1 tsp of salt to grated zucchini and let sit for 10 mins to draw out water.  After 10 mins, squeeze as much excess liquid out of wilted zucchini as possible- it’s helpful to pack it into a cheesecloth or clean dish towel in batches, and squeeze! You can reserve about ½ cups worth in case your batter is too dry Add the eggs, green onions and scapes to the zucchini. Mix until just incorporated  In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, and then add that to the zucchini and mix together. The batter should be wet but not overly runny. If too dry or clumpy, add a little bit of the excess zucchini liquid!  Heat a skillet, add oil, and ladle/spoon/scoop your fritter batter in! Cook on both sides until crispy and golden, about 2-4 mins per side!