"Life is change -- the ebb and flow of all natural things, of all life, is a constant of our earth."
- Veronica Ray (Zen Gardening)

What’s in the standard share:

... and if you have an extra-fruit option:
peaches, blackberries or raspberries, and strawberries

CALENDAR


Aug 8, 9, 10 - Children’s Mini Camp
Friday evening to noon Sunday

Sat. Sep 20 - Fall Equinox Celebration
3pm - 9pm
with the Banana Slug String Band!

Sat. Oct 26 Halloween Pumpkin Palooza
all day.
the Banana Slug String Band will play here too!

Leaving the farm in the middle of the season is always a bit stressful since so many things are going on all at once, it feels like leaving the concert in the middle of an important ‘crescendo’. On the other hand, to let go for a moment gave me a deep sense of appreciation for all the Live Earth Farm members and workers who inject so much care and dedication to make this land be alive, bountiful and nourishing. During my short getaway to Washington D.C. we had the opportunity to go to "The Mall" with its historical and imposing buildings. The Department of Agriculture alone is an enormous concrete building, 3 to 4 blocks long and 2 blocks wide. As a farmer, nothing provoked my interest to set foot inside that building, here where power brokers and policy makers supposedly shape the structure of our nation’s food system. In my search for something more welcoming I was excited to find, tucked away in a parking lot, a small farmer’s market. I immediately felt at home, talking "shop" with the vendors. Washington D.C. exudes a powerful sense of centralized control, however the farmer’s market appeared to me like that beautiful flowering and resilient weed breaking through the cracks of a concrete highway. – Tom

Mini Camp
SIGN UP FOR OUR MINI CAMP AUGUST 8 - 10. WE STILL HAVE OPENINGS!! Leave a message for Constance at 831-763-2340 or 831-763-2448 if you are planning to come or have questions about any logistical aspects.

What is Mini Camp? Since 1999, CSA members have come to join us for a week-end "camping" stay at the farm. This once-a-year event is designed so participants can experience the farm and its peacefulness without the concern of having to drive at the end of the day. Equipped with baskets, we spend our days harvesting, tasting and discovering the magnificent diversity of fruits, vegetables and herbs growing on the farm, and preparing a meal from the bounty we harvested. This process is at the same time ambitious and fun, compelling all participants to explore all corners of the land (we currently have about 30 acres in production). It is a time to enjoy being together, to meet other CSA members, and to allow the children to set the pace. Farm games such as finding the 'weirdest' most interesting, bizarre-looking fruit or vegetable are popular, and so is pizza making (in our wood-fired oven) with freshly-harvested crops. Our hide-and-seek by moonlight in the orchard has become a tradition among mini-campers! Visits to the farm animals (chickens, goats and our pony, "Peanut") is a must, to make sure that no living creature is left out of the party! Families and kids of all ages are welcome!!

Crops News
TOMATOES: New this week are our long awaited tomatoes! You will all get a basket of our delicious "Sungold" cherry tomatoes, plus the first early slicing tomatoes which are small to medium in size. The heirloom tomatoes will be ripe in a couple of more weeks, and our tasty dry-farmed tomatoes probably a week thereafter.
CUCUMBERS: "And where are the cucumbers this year?!" you are probably wondering. What happened was we lost a key planting in April's frost, and couldn’t re-plant until early May. So... crystal ball says we should have cucumbers (finally!) in another couple of weeks.
PURSLANE: A wild addition to the mix -- back by popular demand -- is purslane, something you probably pull from your garden as a weed. No I haven’t gone over the edge. These "wild vegetables" are among the most nutritious -- rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, fibers, and healthful fatty acids. "Sure, try getting my kids who won’t even eat broccoli to eat 'wild vegetables'!" you're thinking. But many of you may have been eating them for a considerable time now. How about arugula, or dandelion? Others you might have heard of in some fancy restaurant are "vegetable amaranth," lamb’s quarters, curly dock and plantain. And many of our common vegetables used to be weeds at one time. They were simply improved with breeding to make them larger and more palatable. Purslane has little succulent, pillow-like leaves, tasty and filled with moisture. Sometimes I'll even eat them in the field to tide me over until lunch! You can add purslane's tender sprig-ends to salads for an interesting crunchy texture, or use the more mature plants in stir-fries. Purslane has been eaten in Europe as a treatment for arthritis and to promote general good health. We all know now that a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids helps lower cholesterol levels and reduce heart problems. Purslane has more omega-3 fatty acids than any other vegetable, and six times the vitamin E content of spinach. In Mexico and among our workers, purslane is eaten in omelets, as a side dish, or in soups and stews. Enjoy and don’t be shy to try! Your kids may find adventure not only by searching for it in their own garden, but also through eating something typically considered a weed.

Ordering Almonds or Goat Cheese
In both cases, contact the seller directly to place your order and to pay (do not order through Live Earth Farm). We will deliver your order (usually) the following week with your share.

From Anderson Almonds, a certified organic, small, family-owned and operated farm, you can get almonds or almond but-ter. Almonds are available raw, roasted, or roasted and salted. Almond butter comes in 15 oz. jars. Prices: 5 lbs. almonds + 1 jar almond butter, $32; Almonds only (5 lbs.), $25. Almond butter only, $10, or a 6-pak of jars for $32. A case (25 lbs.) of almonds (raw only) is $120. Contact Mele (rhymes with 'jelly') Anderson at (209) 667-7494 or go to their website at www.andersonalmonds.com.

From Summer Meadows Farm, just across the Pajaro Valley from Live Earth Farm, you can get raw goat milk chevre or ri-cotta, made fresh then frozen, and delivered (frozen) and left in a cooler at your pick-up site. Prices: either cheese is $6 for a half-pound, or get a half-pound a week for 4 weeks for $24. Supply is somewhat limited. Contact Lynn Selness at (831) 345-8033 to place your order, then mail your check to Summer Meadows Farm, 405 Webb Road, Watsonville, CA 95076.

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

Oh me oh my, purslane returns! There are a few recipes for this in the recipe database on our website from last year, and I will get a picture of it up as soon as I can so those in doubt will know what purslane looks like! But as far as cooking and eating with it goes, what Tom describes above works fine. Put the tender ends into salads, chop and cook the bigger stuff into eggs and stir-frys. My experience from last year is that no matter how you cook it, it doesn't require much cooking time. - Debbie

Side-by-side grated beet and carrot salad with ginger, mint and more!
Necessity is the mother of invention, or in this case, it has been so hot out lately I've been concocting things to eat out of 'what's in the box' that don't require cooking! This one came out so well I'm passing it along!

beets
carrots
fresh ginger root
an orange
fresh mint leaves
chevre or similar fresh cheese
toasted walnuts

and for the dressing...
a fruity vinegar like fig, balsamic, or raspberry
juice from aforementioned orange
honey
dijon mustard
salad oil -- canola or walnut would be good, but not olive oil in this case
pinch of salt

Start by scrubbing a few carrots and washing/peeling a few small beets. Grate one medium carrot and one small to medium beet per person. Keep the grated carrot and beet in separate bowls; do not mix together! Now grate a little fresh ginger root into the grated beets. And grate the zest of an orange in there too; mix this together. Stack several fresh mint leaves and cut into slivers, then stir this into the grated carrot. Make a dressing with (I'll give you proportions here for about a 2-beet 2-carrot salad) a tbsp. of juice from the orange, a tbsp. of fruity vinegar, a dab (1/2 tsp?) each of honey and dijon mustard, 2 to 3 tbsp. oil, and a pinch of salt. Whisk together to emulsify and then divide equally between your grated bowls of carrots and beets. Stir each to mix. To serve, put a pile of each color side by side on a plate (would be nice on a pretty leaf of butter or red-leaf lettuce), then top with crumbled chevre and toasted walnuts. I think you'll like it... !

I know I know, not another grated veggie salad! "But it's hot out!" she protests.

Deb's quick zucchini 'raita' or tsatziki

zucchini
red onion (white or yellow will do too)
plain yogurt
seasoned rice vinegar
salt

Grate a medium zucchini into a bowl. Coarsely grate in about a tbsp. of fresh onion. Splash in a little rice vinegar, and stir in a heaping spoonful or two of plain yogurt and a pinch of salt. Serve in small bowls rather than on plates as it is a touch soupy. But it tastes good! Serve it nice and cold.

*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 key ingredient. Recipe site is updated weekly during the season.