October 10-17 Chatfield CSA e-news
Dear CSA Shareholders,
October is here! It's the last month of the CSA for the season; there are only three weeks of distributions remaining. The updated 2012 contract will be out shortly and we hope to see you all next year. Thanks to all of our volunteers whose hard work made 2011 so successful and especially to all of you, our members! Thanks for supporting agriculture and helping to build a community around local, honest food.
this week’s produce (October 10-14)
• Peppers (hot and sweet)
• Tomatoes
• Eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage
• Beets, carrots, turnips and winter squash
• Salad greens, kale, chard and arugula
• Tomatillos
• Sweet basil, thai basil, lemon balm, parsley and cilantro
• Leeks
this week’s fruit (October 11 and 13)
Due to the Fuji and Braeburn apple crop being very light this year, your 20 lb box of storage apples is not going to be the full 20 pounds as originally anticipated. Therefore, the amount of apples you received last week and this week will be more than normal. You will see plenty of apples along with pears and cider to make up for the smaller storage box of apples at the end. Our fruit growers are very dedicated to making sure you get the full retail value of your fruit share each week.
weekly recipe
Liz Tanner, Chatfield gardener – recipe adapted from herbalmusings.com
Lemon Balm Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 cups fresh lemon balm leaves
1/2 cup sliced red onion
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup coarse mustard
1 T Worcestershire sauce
Juice of 2 lemons
1 T olive oil
1 T butter
Marinate the chicken breasts in the lemon juice for 1-2 hours, set aside. Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet. Sauté the mushrooms and red onion just until tender then set aside. Add the chicken and lemon juice to the pan, cover and cook over low-medium heat 15-20 minutes, turning once, until lightly browned. Remove the chicken and keep warm. And the wine, mustard and Worcestershire sauce to the pan and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until the sauce thickens. Return the chicken and vegetables to the pan. Layer the lemon balm leaves on top of the mixture and continue to simmer until the leaves are just wilted. Serve at once over a hot bed of rice.
farm topic – growing winter herbs
Liz Tanner, Chatfield gardener
Now that it’s fall and the weather is cooling off, consider storing your CSA herbs for winter teas. As we learned earlier this summer, drying herbs is easy to do by simply hanging them in small bunches around the house; they can also be frozen. Some of the best herbs for tea making are mint and lemon balm. If using dried leaves, put a rounded teaspoon into a tea infuser or strainer. Pour about 2 cups of hot water over the leaves and into a pot; let steep for 2-3 minutes. If you have fresh leaves, use about 12-15 leaves and let the water steep for about 3-4 minutes. Both mint and lemon balm teas are caffeine free and help soothe sore throats.
Mint and lemon balm are also both very easy to grow at home in a windowsill. Now is a great time to plant a pot full of herbs so that you can continue to have fresh herbs throughout the winter when you are missing those from the CSA. Choose a relatively large pot with a good drainage hole and fill with potting soil. You can start both plants from seed if you give them a space with enough direct sunlight. If you don’t have access to a sunny window, you can use artificial grow lights instead, easily found at any garden supply store. Mint and lemon balm do very well as houseplants and tend to be very hardy. Make sure to give them enough water and light, and you will enjoy fresh teas all winter long!
mark your calendars
· Correction from last week’s newsletter: the final CSA potluck is Nov. 5 at the Green Farm Barn from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
· The CSA volunteer appreciation event will be Friday Dec. 16. Details to follow.
food safety note
Please note that although we have washed our produce once after harvesting it in the field, members should wash the produce at home again before eating. Our farm produce should be treated the same way as grocery store produce: always wash before eating! The best way to wash produce is by running it under cool water. Cleaning products are not necessary.
