Hi all,

Here are the Week 15 CSA contents.  This week's bag has a slight "picnic theme" twist and is designed for quick, easy packing to get you guys in and out for the holiday weekend!

In the TRADITIONAL
SMALL BAG:

-         
1 lb 100% grassfed, organic ground beef (extra
will be available for sale at the trucks)

-         
6 ears miniature “mira” sweet corn

-         
2 slicing cucumbers

-         
1 pint mixed cherry and grape tomatoes,
including ground cherries, black cherries, and white cherries (newsletter will
help you identify them)

-         
3 lb Yukon gold and/or red norland potatoes

-         
1 candy onion

-         
1 red slicing tomato

-         
1 bunch cilantro

-         
1 medium red seedless watermelon

-         
Eggs (west route and mentor) or Havarti cheese
(east route and Tremont)

At the Tremont stop, we are changing things up this
week.  Last week I was shorted the
colored beans and fingerlings and most Tremont customers got onions and
peaches.  This week we’ll substitute the
beans and potatoes for the slicing tomato, onion, and cilantro at that stop so
you can get these treats.

Vegetarian and Vegan Substitutes:

-         
1 lb Luna Burgers (vegetarians and vegans), will
be two 2-ct packages

-         
2 lbs peaches (vegan)

-         
1 head broccoli (vegan)

In the TRADITIONAL
LARGE BAG:

-         
Small bag plus the contents below

-         
One 4-5 lb Muscovy pasture raised duck***

OK…so the large add-on seems too simple this week, but
I’m very excited about these ducks (and I’m completely ignoring my budget to
get them to you!).  I’ve been working
with producers all year to raise a heritage breed, pasture raised duck.  Just as we were getting them on the ground in
May, the National Fish and Wildlife Service outlawed the sale of all Muscovy
ducks outside of Texas because they were considered competition to native,
local breeds.  The Muscovy has often been
introduced to hunting preserves outside of Texas, where they then compete with
local birds.  So just as we were getting
started we couldn’t get the birds.   I
ended up talking to a few reps at NFWS and found out that they could be
purchased for “meat birds.”  We then
worked with a local hatchery and got the chicks started.

***The ducks I’ve seen so far are looking really
good.  The only challenge in terms of
telling you that they are coming is that they have not been harvested yet.  The biggest challenge in me getting you these
birds (besides price per lb on duck meat and processing costs) is the processing.  The processor can harvest about 15 chickens
in the time it takes to pluck one duck. 
Their feathers repel water so they cannot be scalded to remove the
feathers.  The birds are dipped in wax
repeatedly until all the feathers are gone, and the birds must be harvested
during a very specific period to prevent “pinfeathers” from sticking in the
skin.  The “pinfeathers” are essentially
an undercoat of feathers that grow on ducks.

So for the larges, in the scenario that the ducks don’t
clean up the way we need them too, I’ll be putting together an alternative
add-on for you that will contain some protein item. 

Thanks, 
Trevor Clatterbuck

Beth Davis-Noragon from the Grovewood Tavern sent me this
recipe after hearing about the green tomato bread.  She claims that this recipe tastes somewhat
like pizza.:

-       2.5 cups flour

-       1 tsp baking powder

-       1 tsp salt

-       1 tsp garlic salt

-       1 tsp crushed oregano

-       1 tsp sugar

-       1 / 2 c shredded mozzarella

-       1 / 4 c grated Parmesan

-       1 / 3 to 2 / 3 cup milk

-       2 eggs

-       1 / 4 cup oil

Stir
together flour, baking powder, salts, oregano, sugar, and cheeses. Add enough
milk to drained tomato liquid to make two thirds cup.  Blend liquid with eggs and oil.  Stir liquid and chopped tomatoes into flour
mixture until thoroughly moistened.  Pour
batter into greased loaf pan; bake 75 to 80 minutes at 350 degrees.  If bread browns before baking time is
complete, cover with a foil tent.  Coil
10 minutes in pan and remove to rack. Freezes wheel. 

Last week I pulled up to meet Donna and Jerry from Lacroix
Farm in Berlin.  Donna is rather crafty and
often makes me baskets of goodies to take home. 
This time…she went over the top. 
She gave me this small loaf of bread and said “Eat it.”  Anytime someone says that you know there is
going to be something shocking about it.

Well the bread was amazing. 
Then she told me it was green tomato bread.  I had never heard of such a thing, so she
gave me the recipe. 

About a mile down the road I had to stop and put the bread in
the back of the truck because it wasn’t going to make it home.  

This bread resembles zucchini bread in texture and
color.  Below is a photo and the
recipe. 
 

Ingredients:

1
cup canola oil

3
large eggs

2
cups sugar or 1 cup honey

1
sp vanilla

2
cups diced green tomatoes

3
cups flour

1
/ 2 tsp baking powder

1
/ 4 tsp baking soda

1
cup nuts and/or raisins (optional)

Beat the eggs well.  Add oil, sugar, and vanilla and
tomatoes.  Add the dry ingredients to
mixture and blend well.  Stir in nuts and
raisins if desired.  Pour into greased
loaf-pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45
minutes, depending on depth of pan. 

 By P. Bosley

Shred the cabbage in a way that creates long strips rather than in the manner used for coleslaw. Peel and mince a couple of garlic cloves. One half of a large head of cabbage will serve three or four people. Use small portion as a side dish. Use a large serving for a meatless meal. Remove the core before you shred it.  Heat a good portion of olive oil in a saute pan.  Keep the heat at medium and add the shredded cabbage. Toss the shredded cabbage with tongs. As it softens you may need a little more olive oil.  Raise the heat to medium high and add the garlic.  Continue to toss and turn the cabbage. Total cooking time will be 15‐20 minutes. Taste a piece.  It should be softened but retain a crunch. Season it well with salt and pepper. That’s it. Enjoy.

 So don’t let Outback trick you into thinking any of

 OK, no beating around the bush here. If you like your beef cooked well, just throw this meat out now.  It’s not meant to be enjoyed well done.  Steaks should be medium at most; roasts cooked slow with moisture; and ground is A‐OK dark pink in the middle and juicy.

 

 Ratatouille is a traditional French vegetable dish. This dish is essentially without rules.  There is a basic procedure…but many vegetables can be omitted, added, or changed. Throughout the rest of the summer, I’ll try to plan a “ratatouille” bag each few weeks. Why? Because the ingredients here may compliment things still in your fridge from the week before or the ingredients in this bag may compliment some of the proteins you may have frozen. Below is a photo of ratatouille tossed with

 Fun Fun Fun. Thanks to those who came on the winery tour. In our adventures, we proved that some Ohio wines can go toe to toe with the best in the world. Oh, and we had fun discovering that!

 

   

 Try a classic American preparation. Slice the cucumbers pealed or unpeeled. Add a little vinegar to a bowl with the slices and add some very thin slices of onion. Add salt and pepper. After an hour fold in some sour cream or yogurt.

 Remove the beets from the leafy stems. Don’t peel the beets. Place them in cold water, bring to the boil and cook until the largest of the beets can be easily pierced with a knife. Remove the beets and place in an ice bath. Trim the tops and bottoms with a knife and slip off the skins. Store until ready to use. Cold beets with goat cheese and on lettuce with a balsamic vinaigrette is a summer treat.