"The great man is he who does not lose his child’s heart."
- Meng-tse

What’s in the box this week:

... and if you have an extra-fruit share:
4 more baskets of strawberries

(coming next week: blackberries!!)

CALENDAR


Sat/Sun Aug. 3&4 - Children’s Mini Camp,
10m Saturday - noon Sunday. Optional early arrival Friday night.


Sat. Sep 21 - Fall Equinox Celebration,
3pm - 9pm

Sat. Oct 26 - Halloween Pumpkin U-Pick,
all day

It never ceases to surprise me how much the farm is transformed by the presence of its community. Last Saturday’s Solstice celebration was alive with joy and excitement, sprinkled with many moments of magic and wonder. It seems that with more children than adults there was no end to the excitement as every corner of the farm was explored and treasures were gathered. Only Doug, Larry, and Steve from the Banana Slug String Band were able to capture their energy as the children gathered around to listen, laugh, dance, and sing to their wonderful music and lyrics. Four long tables were covered with delicious food, giving expression to the generosity and loving creativity of this community. Thank you to everyone who brought a dish, and also to Ken for baking the bread, Charles for grilling the veggies and Sara for preparing the refreshing strawberry agua fresca. When the children lit the bonfire it was as if their energy instantly ignited. The powerful fire rose high into the sky and we all stepped back and with caution allowed it to burn down. The celebration’s closing gift came when Linnea, by the light of a silver moon, performed a beautiful fire dance reminding us how our relationship with this powerful element can be channeled and transformed into a graceful art form. Thank you all for blessing this farm with your presence and support. I wish that everyone enjoys this summer season. - Tom

Q&A continued...
From all "Dirt" lovers to Live Earth Farm:
We, the undersigned, demand a retraction of the "dirt" propaganda put forth in the last newsletter. Dirt is wonderful, dirt don't hurt, we love dirt, dirt is our life... DIRT MADE OUR LUNCH!!!!!!!
Signed, the kids playing in the mud at the Solstice party (aka the Banana Slug String Band)

Tom replies:
Last week I wrote about the distinction between dirt and soil saying that dirt in the dictionary is defined as something that is filthy, an excrement, or worthless and yet how we often use the two terms interchangeably. Well it got me into deep "dirt" during our celebration when Larry from the Banana Slugs pointed out that in their well known song; "Dirt made my lunch," dirt refers to something that is healthy, nourishing, good for the plants and good for our bodies. Even Doug, one of the members of the band, is endearingly called "Doug Dirt." So since I am not good at backpedaling and Webster won’t change its definition, let's forget the semantics. We are really praising the same thing. What we call dirt or soil is really at the heart of nature’s way of renewal and life. Most of the time we are not inclined to praise and exalt nature's process of death and decay that keeps the nutrients cycling through endless generations; we don’t want to know too much about that unknown, dark, musty smelling stuff that's underground... that’s just dirt. We tend to focus on what grows in the light: the green, vibrant, sweet smelling fruits and flowers. As a farmer, though, I happen to love to run my fingers through that rich, dark, earthy brown stuff. So, lets keep singing to dirt, soil, humus and compost to remind us of the wonderful creations of nature which give us sustenance and health every day.

Crop Gossip continued...
Mary Jo Aloi, our resident homeopathic practitioner, has this to say about Tom's "Crop Gossip" from last week, "Crushed garlic, applied to the skin and left there, can burn the skin. Anyone who is considering using crushed garlic poultices should do so with caution. Consulting someone trained in naturopathic or herbal medicine, or at least a good book on the subject, may be wise."


Member to Member Forum
Hi everyone, it's Debbie, your humble newsletter editor and recipe provider. Just wanted to let you all know that I will be away from the farm and my editorial position for about a week. So if you email me during that time and get no reply – this would be the reason! Also, Tom will be doing next week's newsletter solo, so I want you all to give him your best support while I am gone!

Notes from Debbie’s Kitchen . . . . . . . . Have a recipe you’d like to share? Contact the newsletter editor.

More ideas on what to do with greens from fellow members. - Debbie

Two from Anne Baldzikowski:

Spanikopita
Heat 2 tbsp. of oil in a large pot.
Add 2 chopped onions (incl. the greens).
Add 1 chopped fresh clove of garlic.
Sauté until translucent.
Add one enormous bunch of roughly chopped greens.
Cook down to about a quarter of their original size.
Let mixture cool.
Crack 8 eggs and fold them into the greens.
Crumble 8 oz. of feta cheese into the greens.
Sprinkle a little salt and pepper into the mix.
Set aside your filling and start working with your pastry.
Thaw one package of filo dough on your kitchen counter for 2 hours.
Unwrap the dough and cover with a cloth.
Melt one quarter pound of butter.
Brush butter on the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan.
Lay two sheets of pastry on the bottom of the pan, letting the edges hang over the side of the pan.
Brush the pastry leaves with butter.
Continue layering the pastry and buttering each sheet until you have used 10 sheets.
Pour in your egg/greens/cheese filling.
Wrap up the spanikopita with the dangling leaves of pastry.
Layer any remaining pastry dough on top and brush with butter.
Bake at 350 degrees about 30 minutes.

Baked Veggie Egg Rolls
Heat 2 tbsp. of oil in a large pot.
Add 2 chopped onions (incl. the greens).
Add 1 chopped fresh clove of garlic.
Add 1 tbsp. of freshly chopped ginger.
Sauté until translucent.
Chop up one heaping pile of veggies and add to your pot.
Stir the mix-ture until it cooks down.
Drizzle in some soy sauce.
Crumble up a pound of tofu and sprinkle it into the mix.
Now you're ready to wrap up some egg rolls!
Lay a square wrapper on your counter.
Fill with one heaping tbsp. of veggie/tofu mixture.
Fold in two opposing sides and brush the pastry with water.
Fold in one other side and roll the packet away from you.
Place egg rolls on an oiled baking sheet, brush lightly with oil and bake at 350 degrees about 20 minutes.

One from Kyle King:

Greens Delight
All of the different greens except spinach
All the onion, scallions and garlic in the box
1 small jar of minced sun dried tomatoes (I use the organic one from Trader Joe's)
1 heaping cup of pinenuts
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Extra garlic, (optional)
A heaping cup of fresh, minced oregano, thyme, and basil. (optional)
1 lemon or lime

First wash all the greens thoroughly, remove the stems, and cut into strips. I use a cuisinart to slice all the onion, scallion and garlic. Add extra garlic if you like garlic (we do!). In a large skillet heat a liberal amount of olive oil and add half of the onion/scallion/garlic mix with a little salt, tamari or Bragg's and sauté until translucent. Add all the greens and cover skillet. Cook for several minutes and stir mixture around to coat greens with oil and onion mix. Cook a bit longer, until greens are very well softened and smaller in volume, then set aside in a large serving bowl. Heat skillet again with a touch more olive oil and the rest of the onion/scallion/garlic mix. Add pine nuts and sauté for several minutes. When onions are translucent and pinenuts are unevenly brown, add the whole jar of sun dried tomatoes, including the oil. Add ground pepper and salt to taste and minced herbs (more than you think, as you will be adding this to the greens mixture). Sauté for a bit longer, cooking pinenuts well (you want the onion mix and the pinenuts to begin to brown). Five or so minutes on high heat, stirring often should do it. Immediately add to greens in large bowl and mix thoroughly. Squeeze entire lemon or lime over all and mix again. This is a great side dish with pasta and salad. Enjoy hot or cold. It keeps well in a covered bowl in the refrigerator. My two carpenters, son and partner, take it to work for lunch with a hearty bread and some hard cheese.

...and a tip from Ken Seylar:

For those who don't seem to know what to do with all the greens, I have a suggestion. Wash and cut greens, then put in a covered glass microwave container and cook on high for 1 minute. Cool and freeze in air-tight containers in the portions you think you'll need. When you need them, you don't even have to thaw them since most of the time you are going to have to finish cooking them. Works like a charm for me!

*Click Here* for a link to a comprehensive listing of recipes from Live Earth Farm's newsletters going back as far as our 1998 season! You can search for recipes by harvest week OR by key ingredient. Recipe site is updated weekly.