In The Box: 5, Madison
What a week it has been. From drought to flood to heat wave. We are still living with boxes in our dining room, since we’ve got another flood watch for tonight, and I don’t know what might happen in the basement. Meanwhile, things grow. Beans are back on track, tomatoes are going gangbusters, and the bonus of this week’s harvest is a surprise benefit of the sustained heat: hard squash already! Here’s what’s in the box:
We started so much winter squash in the spring, that now we’ve got it planted everywhere – in flower beds, strawberry patches and here in our driveway island. This plant is threatening to eat Emma.
In The Box 5; Madison Delivery, August 9
Potatoes – These All Reds and Purple Majesty are lovely and tasty, but half of those we harvested after the flood were rotted when we dug them up. The rest of the potatoes are still too soggy to dig, and I fear we may lose most of them. Sad. Still have Yukon Gold, Purple Majesty, Superior and French Fingerling in the ground.
Tomatoes – In spite of the fact that very few of these are red, they are ALL RIPE! Heirlooms come in so many colors and shapes it’s dizzying. We’ve just touched the tip of the tomato iceberg here. I got sloppy with the labelling when I was transplanting, but you could have Red Zebra, Purple Prudence, Opalca Paste, and some crazy yellow, white, orange and rainbow varieties. The small ones are Sun Gold, Yellow Pear and Red Grape.
Basil – A good bet with tomatoes in any recipe. Enough here for pesto, and you can start freezing it (freeze as pesto, and it will stay green) since the basil will keep coming until frost.
Beets – All good, but the pink Chioggias are my absolute favorite.
Kohlrabi – Fantabulous little flying saucers. These are small enough to eat like apples, but you can use them in soups, potato dishes or anyplace you’d put cabbage. We just planted purple, white and yellow for fall.
Garlic – Yummy and spicy!
Summer Squash – These have some rust on their skins, as they were literally submerged in the flood for two days. Hopefully the vines make it through.
Fennel – These bigger bulbs are great to slice and saute in olive oil.
Cucumbers and Dill – These little guys are crisp and perfect for pickles. Dill included.
Beans – Just a few here, as the plants have suffered in the drought. Now they are muddy from the flood, but seem to be producing lots of flowers for a late summer harvest.
Salad Greens – Yippee! The first fall salad greens.
Peppers – The pepper plants are very small, still set back from the lack of rainwater, but the Hungarian sweet and hot bananas have started to produce. There’s one of each in here. The spicy one is the more yellow.
Cabbage – I’m still adjusting to the rich and spicy flavor of these late summer cabbages. Very very special. Try to ignore the slug and beetle damage, and cut off the chewed bits.
Hard Squash – Holy cow, it’s early for these. But these few hard squash had a head start in the garden, as they sprouted from squash I fed to the pigs last fall. Now the pigs have a new garden, and these Carnival and Acorn Squash are thriving in the plot they tilled last year.
Goat Cheese – CSA Member Hillary shared this fantastic recipe with us. I think these would be great alongside a meal of sauteed summer squash and tomatoes with basil
Breaded Goat Cheese Patties:
Ingredients:1 cup soft goat cheese, 1/3 cup fine bread crumbs, 1/2 tsp ground pepper, 1 tsp finely chopped thyme, salt to taste, 1-2 Tbsp olive oil. Serve with/on a simple green salad, English muffins or small toasts, sliced cucumber, cherry tomatoes.
Instructions: Take about 2 tablespoons and gently pat the cheese into a patty about 2 inches in diameter and 3/4 inch thick. Damp hands or using plastic wrap helps. Repeat with the rest of the cheese. Mix together the bread crumbs, thyme, pepper and salt. Press the cheese patties into the crumbs until coated on both sides and edges.
Heat a heavy, nonstick skillet over medium heat for 2 minutes, coat with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Saute the patties for 2 to 3 minutes/side, or until golden brown, adding more oil if necessary. Serve hot or very warm.
Chocolate Mint
Nasturtium Leaves and Blossoms
Herbs – Chives, Parsely, Thyme, Rosemary, Curry, Dill and Dill Seed. Curry and Rosemary look a lot alike, but you’ll know them by their aromas.
A word about storage and handling summer vegetables: Tomatoes should NOT be refrigerated. Keep them cool, even in the basement, but not in a fridge. Cabbage can also be kept in a cool basement. Summer squash is best kept in the fridge, but eat within a few days for the most crisp bite. Beans should be washed right before using, just like basil. Hard squash can sit on your counter.
Please do return your boxes, when you can, and any small containers used for packing tomatoes. Thanks for eating with us!
