Newsletter #10 – August 21, 2013

  Contents of Share

• sungold cherry tomatoes or tomatillos
• green bell pepper (1)
• brocolli bunch, summer squash or zucchini
• green or yellow string beans (2 pounds)
• edamame (green soybeans) (~1 pound) – lightly steam and eat the beans out of the pods.  Do not eat the shells.
• cucumbers and/or Japanese cucumbers (4-6)
• red chard(1bunch)
• celery or head lettuce (1-2 heads)
• carrots (1 bunch)
• salad mix (3/4 pound)
• dill (1 bunch)
• dozen eggs or sprouts

Announcements

• Please RETURN YOUR BOXES, JARS, BAGS and clean egg cartons.  You can leave them where you get your share and we will retrieve them each week.
• WASHING YOUR VEGGIES.  We do not extensively wash veggies before delivering them to you.  We will do some washing if there is a lot of dirt on greens and we always wash root crops.  In general, this allows the food to stay fresher longer.  It also means you need to wash your veggies before consuming them.  For greens: fill a bowl with cold water.  Soak greens in water for a minute.  Drain water and repeat two more times.  Dirt will rinse to the bottom.  Bugs should float to the top.
• We are still looking for a delivery van.  If you have any leads on something efficient, in decent shape, and affordable, please let us know!
• If you are a shareholder, you have the option of volunteering 5 hours over the course of the season in exchange for an additional week of food in the fall.  Be in touch to schedule your work with us.
• Pasture raised poultry for mid summer and fall is available for pre-sale here.
• Remember that you are always welcome to visit socially and/or to volunteer. Give a call to schedule a time.
• All of our newsletters are archived on our website, along with lots more, including educational resources and recipes.

Food Justice News

We are so busy on the “food justice” front that its hard to make the time to explain it all! As part of our work with the Albany Food Justice Coalition, we are coordinating an educational community dinner at the Trinity Center in the South End on September 7. There will be delicious, nutritious food, cooking instruction, short film, and conversation on food security issues relevant to the community. We are also anticipating the report-out of the Arbor Hill Community Center youth who have collected 1000!!! surveys on barriers to food security in Arbor Hill, South End, and West Hill. They will be sharing their findings in early September after much hard work interviewing folks at community events, pantries, and health centers.

We are hosting 2-3 youth groups every week on the farm. Most recently, we have been working with children in foster care through Parsons. The children are not photographed for privacy reasons, but trust that they look BEAUTIFUL connecting to the land and each other, cooking food, working hard, and learning about their place in the food system.

Recipes

Edamame: Wash edamame well and put in a bowl. Boil ample water in a large pot. Add about 2 Tbsp of salt in the boiling water. Put edamame in the boiling water and boil for 3 to 4 minutes, or until softened. Drain edamame in a colander. Taste one edamame and if it’s not salty enough, sprinkle more salt over boiled edamame. Spread the edamame on a flat tray to cool. To eat, squeeze edamame from the pod into your mouth. Do not eat the pod. They are delicious!!!

Freezing Beans: De-stem and wash your green beans. Steam green beans for two minutes and then plunge immediately in pans of ice water for 2 minutes. Drain and put into freezer bags pressing out the air before sealing. Label and freeze. Stores at least one year. (Alternately, some people freeze without steaming or blanching – beans must by completely DRY for this method to work.)