"To live is not enough. We must take part and celebrate." - Pablo Casals

What’s in the Family share:
Basil
Cabbage
Carrots
Chard
Cucumbers
Garlic
Kale
Lettuce
Sugar snap peas
Summer squash
Strawberries

and in the Small share:
Basil
Cabbage
Garlic
Kale
Lettuce
Radishes
Summer squash
Strawberries
(items in the small share may be less in quantity than in the family share)

... and if you have an extra-fruit option:
Strawberries plus rasp-berries or blackberries*
*this week Thurs. and Sat. members get the raspberries/blackberries, as last week Weds. members got them (see last week’s field notes from Farmer Tom). Everyone gets strawber-ries.

CALENDAR

Sat. June 18
Summer Solstice Celebration, field tours 2-5pm, celebration 5-9pm with Kuzanga Marimba again!

July 29, 30, 31
Children's Mini-camp, Friday eve. to noon Sun. (curious? see details in 2004's Week 15 newsletter!)

Sat Aug 6
Permaculture workshop #2 - Design methods; ecological observation and site mapping

Sat. Sept. 24
Fall Equinox Celebration
3-9 pm
with the Banana Slug String Band!

Sat. Oct 22
Halloween Pumpkin Pallooza

Sat. Oct 29
Permaculture workshop #3 - Polycultures & agroforestry; food forest design and installation

On Saturday June 18th we will celebrate the beginning of summer, the longest day of the year, with our 10th annual Summer Solstice Celebration. The Solstice marks the zenith of the sun, when the earth's fertility will peak in our hemisphere. Our celebration is designed to honor the connection between the food on our table and the land that gives rise to it. The Solstice is the perfect time to honor this bond and understand the delicate balance of the planet. We invite all of you to set aside a few hours of your busy lives and join us here on the farm, to meet as a community and acknowledge that our lives and our nourishment are connected to the rhythm of the seasons. As members of a CSA, you are naturally eating what's in season, and this teaches us patience as we wait for a particular crop to mature. As someone once said, "the fruit is green until it’s ripe, and you just can’t rush it."

So... mark your calendars! Saturday June 18th. Join us from 2-5 for farm games and tours, help us sow this year's pumpkin patch, learn and help bake bread in our wood-fired cob-oven, pick berries, and climb around in the new straw bale structure. The Banana Slug String Band will entertain us with their wonderful earth-tunes in the afternoon, so families with children make sure you come early as the "Slugs" will play starting at 4 o'clock. Our potluck will be around 6 o'clock, and then we'll be able to dance and enjoy wonderful Zimbabwean music by Kuzanga Marimba as we light our traditional solstice bonfire. Bring a dish to share for our traditional potluck, a sweater, maybe a blanket to picnic on, instruments, stories... but most importantly bring yourselves!

Important Potluck Request and a call for Volunteers to help with the Event
Since some members of our CSA community have food allergies and other limitations about the food they eat, it would greatly help if everyone labeled their dishes as to whether they contain wheat (or are gluten free), dairy, nuts or nut oils. A label indicating whether a dish is vegan or vegetarian would also help for our veggie-eating-only members. We will try to have cards and a pen handy so that you can label your dish when you arrive if you didn’t do so beforehand.

Preparing and organizing a Farm event is always a big effort since it takes time away from our regular (and currently very busy!) field work. We could really use the help of volunteers to ease that load, both to set up and coordinate the event. If you have some time to spare on Friday afternoon or on Saturday morning to help set up, please call us. Also, during the celebration we will need coordinators as well: to help with baking bread, parking, children and field activities, music, signage, safety, etc. Call me on my cell phone at (831) 760-0436 or the office at (831) 763-2448. - Tom

Field Notes from Farmer Tom
This week's new crop is sugar snap peas! Although they have tiny little spots from the late spring rains (remember the rain?), they are crunchy and sweet. First cucumbers are also in your share. You may only have one for now, until the season gets going. The bunches of red Russian kale are big this week. This ancient European vegetable was probably one of the earliest forms of cultivated wild cabbage. The red Russian kale is my personal favorite – it's a tender, colorful, specialty kale that many prefer over the Scotch kale; leaves are a dusty green with purple ragged edges and a (mostly) flat surface. Kale also is among the most nutritious of all vegetables, high in vitamins A, C, and calcium.
Coming soon: potatoes!! In 2 weeks we will dig for our first fresh red spring potatoes. (Remember... patience!)

[recipes at the bottom -- keep scrolling down!]

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

Well I neglected to line someone up to do a ‘what I’d do with this week’s box’ this week, as the last few weeks I’ve had so little room. Now I have plenty, of course, so I’ll have to dig through my archives of emails and clippings. I can always find something. I think I’ll start with a recipe for the advent of sugar snap peas! - Debbie

Rice Salad with Sugar Snap Peas, Mint and Lime
from Bon Appétit, June 2005 (modified slightly)
serves 6

1 1/2 C uncooked white rice
2 C sugar snap peas [how the heck do you measure snap peas by the cup?? I’d say use 2 or 3 large handfuls. – Debbie]
1/2 C chopped fresh mint leaves
1/2 C chopped green onions
3 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 tbsp. peeled julienned fresh ginger
1 tsp. sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Bring 2 C water and 1 tsp. salt to a boil. Stir in rice, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Turn off heat, let stand 5 minutes, fluff with fork, then cool completely in a large bowl. Wash, de-stem and de-string sugar snap peas. Cook in boiling salted water 1 minute, drain, rinse under cold water, drain again, and add to rice. Combine rest of ingredients with rice and snap peas and toss to combine.

The following recipe was given to me by member Catherine Barale last year!

Zucchini and Fresh Herb Fritters
from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison

Salt and freshly milled black pepper
2 lbs. zucchini, coarsely grated [can sub-stitute any of Tom’s summer squash]
2 eggs, beaten
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced (including about 1" of the greens)
1 C dried bread crumbs
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 C chopped parsley
1 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
1 tsp. chopped fresh mint
olive oil, as needed

Lightly salt the zucchini and set aside in a colander to drain for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the remaining ingredients to-gether except for the oil and pepper. Quickly rinse the squash and squeeze out the excess water, then stir into the batter. Taste for salt and pepper. Film a large skillet with olive oil (don't use too much). When hot drop the batter -- 1/4 cup makes a fritter about 3 1/2 inches across-- and cook over medium heat until golden on the bottom. Turn and cook the second side. Serve hot.

Catherine says, "You can fill a large ziploc bag with water and place it on top of the zucchini to help ‘push’ the moisture out while it's in the colander. Also, be sure to really squeeze out the excess water after rinsing so that the grated zucchini is pretty dry before you add it to the batter. This was very yummy."

Here are two Cabbage Salads and a Bulghur/Basil pilaf recipe, both submitted by longtime member Farrell Podgorsek:

Bulgur Pilaf with Basil
Sauté finely chopped green garlic and leeks. Add some orzo pasta or any other shape, or spaghetti broken into small pieces, and sauté until brown. Add 2 C stock or water and bring to a boil. Add 1 C bulgur and salt to taste, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20-25 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes. Add in 2 tbsp. finely sliced or chopped basil and 1 tsp. minced garlic.

Cabbage Salad
from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman

2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. vinegar – balsamic, white balsamic or sherry (see Farrell’s note, at bottom)
1 tbsp. sugar (or more to taste)
1/3-1/2 C oil
6 C cored and shredded cabbage (Napa, savoy, green and/or red)
2 red bell peppers, stemmed, peeled if desired, and diced
1 C diced scallions
salt & pepper
1/4 C minced fresh parsley

Whisk together mustard, vinegar and sugar, then add the oil al little at a time, whisking. Combine the cabbage, scallions and red pepper and toss with the dressing. Season with salt and pepper and refrigerate until ready to serve (best if it rests for at least one hour). Just before serving sprinkle with parsley.

Farrell’s note: One of the better cabbage salads I've made. I used a white balsamic vinegar from Trader Joes - the extra sweetness helped.

Another Cabbage Salad
(modified from a SJ Merc. clipping from 7/2004)

1 small head cabbage, shredded
2 medium carrots, grated
1 small white onion, sliced into slivers
1/2 C raisins
1/2 C pine nuts, toasted
Dressing:
3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 tsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cumin
3 tbsp. olive oil
salt & pepper

Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar and shake to mix. Combine all salad ingredients except nuts. Add dressing and toss. Refrigerate at least one hour to let flavors blend. Just before serving add pine nuts.

Kale, Corn and Mushroom Barley
(I made this one up back in February – Debbie)

I had a bunch of left-over cooked pearl barley, but this would be fine on rice too. First cook the kale: wash, strip from stems, boil 2 min. in salted water, drain, chop. In a skillet, sauté some green garlic (or a crushed garlic clove) in olive oil. Slice up some mushrooms and sauté with garlic. Throw in some thawed corn kernels (I like Trader Joe’s frozen organic), a little salt, and the cooked kale and sauté another minute or two. Serve over the reheated cooked barley (or over rice, or some other cooked grain. I liked the barley though!).

*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.