Week #14, Is that mud??

Farm News

Have you heard about this stuff called … mud?  We rediscovered it on Monday, during the first all-day rain of the year.  We had to get the rain gear out of storage.  That’s pretty crazy; it’s August.  We are happy to get the rain – it has been a very droughty season here.

The irrigator is parked, at least for now.  

We said good-by to longterm employee Karen.  
After ten years working for us, she’s returning to school to become a registered nurse.  Karen is great, up for any challenge and friends with all her coworkers.  We will miss her energy and deep Tipi experience.  She lives across the road so this is not a formal goodbye.

Gorgeous corn.
This is a beautiful batch of sweet corn.  It’s the ‘Vision’ variety again.  You know you can eat raw corn, right?  That’s how we celebrate the end of each sweet corn harvest. It is amazing straight from the plant.

Corn smut.
Here’s a twist.  If you find large black kernels in your sweet corn, it is a naturally occurring fungus called corn smut.  Known in Mexico as huitlacoche, it’s a delicacy when young.  By the time the corn is ready to harvest, the kernels are fully black inside and not good to eat.  If you catch it younger, the corn kernels are their normal color, often veined with black.  It’s a delicacy and very delicious.  Tastes like a combo of corn and mushrooms.  Corn smut is more common at the tip of the ear but we throw away those obvious ears.  It’s harder for us to detect when under the husks, and therefore more likely to show up in your CSA box.

The rest of the ear is perfectly fine.  Snap off and throw away the black kernels, then eat the ear of corn.

Looks like I will lose a chunk of garden. That’s the risk if you plant too close to the road.

Power outage
Our power was off Tuesday afternoon.  That’s a huge problem because we need functioning coolers and plenty of wash water.  Turns out that a crew installing underground fiber optic cable severed the main electric line for our road.  What a sheepish-looking group of men standing by the side of the road.  They freely admitted it was their mistake.  And a dangerous one!  The utility got the power back in a few hours and life went back to normal.  Next step, they tear up the roadside in front of our house.

Believe it or not, Steve and I got away for a weekend.  I rented a lake house halfway to St. Paul and our kids met us there.  It was great!  It’s amazing how restorative just a few days can be.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great week!
Beth

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #14, Aug 17 / 18, 2023

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ green
– Sampler/ B group

Sweet corn, 9 ears
Red watermelon
Green beans, 3/4 lb
Slicing tomatoes, ~3 lb
Cherry tomatoes, 1 pint
Zucchini or yellow squash, 1 or 2
Cucumbers, 3
Silver Slicer cucumber, 1 or 2
Red bell peppers, 2
Yellow ‘Elsye’ onion
Jalapeno chile

Next week’s box will probably contain sweet corn, melon, tomatoes, peppers and more summer goodness.  It’s that time of year!

Red watermelon – These compact beauties are ‘Mini Love’.

Zucchini or yellow squash – First harvest from a new patch!

Cucumbers – Folks, enjoy these cukes as their season will end soon.  I have sent a lot of cucumbers recently, including this week.  Our second planting is on richer soil and has cranked out so many fruit.  It peaked in this week and last week but I think it’s going to crash soon.

Yellow onion – This variety is supposed to be mild, but we are finding that all the onions this year are pungent.  These will fry better than the recent Walla Walla onions.
Storage: Room temperature or refrigerate.

RECIPES by PHOEBE

Sheet Pan Gnocchi with Tomatoes and Peppers

I’ve developed a few sheet pan gnocchi recipes for Love & Lemons this year, and I think they’re such a fun, easy way to make dinner! You don’t have to boil the gnocchi—just toss it with veggies, olive oil, and flavorful seasonings, and roast until it’s tender and the veggies are browned. The red pepper flakes add a spicy kick to this recipe. Use less (or omit them) if you’re sensitive to heat.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Serves 3 to 4

1 pound store-bought gnocchi, refrigerated or shelf-stable
1 large slicing tomato, cut into thin wedges
1 bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and thinly sliced
½ small onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, less if sensitive to spice
Freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, torn

Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the gnocchi, tomatoes, peppers, onion, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, oregano, salt, red pepper flakes, and several grinds of pepper. Toss until the gnocchi and vegetables are well coated in the seasonings.

Spread evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Roast for 17 to 22 minutes, or until the gnocchi is tender and the vegetables are browned.

Remove from the oven and scatter the cheese evenly on top. Season to taste and serve.

Photo by Jack Mathews and Jeanine Donofrio

Watermelon Gazpacho

From Love & Lemons
It looks like we have a warm week ahead of us, so I thought a gazpacho recipe was in order! This recipe is a great fit for this week’s box, using watermelon, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and jalapeño. Here are a few tweaks to save you a trip to the store:

• Make sure to seed the watermelon!
• Replace the green onions with 1/8 white or Spanish onion. Add more to taste.
• Omit the basil if you don’t have any on hand.

Photo by A Couple Cooks

Easy Corn Fritters

From A Couple Cooks
These corn fritters really are easy, made with basic ingredients that you likely have on hand. Replace the green onion with a couple tablespoons of minced white onion.

Photo by Cookie + Kate

Cucumber Tomato Salad with Greek Dressing

From Cookie + Kate
This simple salad will pair nicely with almost any summer meal. Omit the fresh herbs if you don’t have any on hand—the tangy dressing packs this salad with plenty of flavor.

Photo by Minimalist Baker

Almond Butter Tofu Stir Fry

From Minimalist Baker
Almond butter adds rich, nutty flavor to this simple weeknight stir fry. The recipe calls for green beans and small, spicy peppers (your jalapeño would work!), but for a milder version, you can toss in a bell pepper or two.

Photo by Eva Kolenko

Zucchini Smoothie

From Love & Lemons
I thought it would be fun to feature some zucchini breakfast recipes this week. First up is this smoothie. Even though it’s made with a vegetable (and other good stuff like almond butter and dates), it tastes like a chocolate milkshake. A perfect breakfast for a hot summer day.

Photo by The First Mess

Zucchini Baked Oatmeal Cups

From The First Mess
The easiest way to take oatmeal on the go! These cute little oatmeal cups are vegan and gluten-free…and studded with chocolate chips, because who doesn’t like chocolate for breakfast?

Week #13; Seven weeks of corn

Staggered corn plantings.

This week’s sweet corn is week #3 of seven plantings.  If all goes according to plan, we will have seven straight weeks of corn for you.  You told us you want steady corn (and lots of it!) so this is it.  This is a very nice batch this week, of our favorite ‘Vision’ variety.

We have small sweet corn fields scattered around the farm.  You can see staggered plantings in the photos.  The top photo, taken July 15, shows a field with three sequential plantings, transplanted one week apart.  The youngest are the wispy ones on the right.  The bottom photo shows corn closer to maturity.  The rows on the left should be ready to harvest in three weeks.  The taller ones on the right should be ready in two weeks. 

Salsa box!

We’re sending ingredients to make a batch of salsa this week, with tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, jalapeño chile, and cilantro. For adventurous salsa makers, corn kernels are great too.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #13, August 10/11, 2023

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ purple
– Sampler/ A group

Sweet corn, 9 ears
Yellow Doll watermelon
Slicing tomatoes, 3 lb
Cherry tomatoes, 1 pint
Green beans, about 1 lb
Bell peppers, red or purple, 2
Silver Slicer cucumbers, a handful
Cucumbers, 2 or 3
White onion
Cilantro, 1 bunch
Jalapeno chile (HOT), 1

Next week’s box will probably contain sweet corn, melons, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, onion and more.

White onion – These are more pungent onions than the Walla Wallas that we’ve sent in recent weeks.  We consider them intermediate between Wallas and yellow storage onions in both pungency and ability to be fried.  In other words, these will fry better than Wallas but not as well as a yellow onion.
Storage:  These can be stored at room temperature or refrigerated.

Cilantro (small bunch, fragrant leaves) – Used in both Mexican and some Asian cuisines.  Good to season stir-fries, salad dressing, salsa, etc.
Storage:  Cover and refrigerate.

Jalapeno chile – I suspect most of you are familiar with these small green chiles.  Good flavor and medium heat.
Storage:  Refrigerate.

RECIPES by PHOEBE
Phoebe is back and sharing recipe duties with Deb, who has been a trouper while Phoebe was away. I am lucky to have these two fabulous helpers!

Creamy Tahini Chicken Salad

A Mediterranean spin on chicken salad! A creamy tahini-yogurt dressing coats tender chicken breast, juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumber, and artichoke hearts. I love it on a sandwich, with crackers, or stuffed into pita bread.

Serves 2 to 4
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 slicing tomato (8 ounces), cut in a ½-inch dice
½ large cucumber (6 ounces), peeled if skin is thick, seeded, and cut in a ½-inch dice
4 canned artichoke hearts, drained and rinsed, cut in a ½-inch dice
¼ cup kalamata olives, pitted and torn
Pita bread, optional, for serving

Creamy Tahini Dressing
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup whole milk Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, grated
½ teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoons water, plus more as needed

At the bottom of an 8×8-inch baking pan or other shallow dish, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken and flip to coat in the marinade. Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Transfer the chicken to the baking sheet and bake for 15 to 25 minutes, or until the internal temperature reads 165°F when pierced with an instant read thermometer in the thickest part of the breast. Remove from the oven and let rest for at least 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the tahini, yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and water. The dressing should have a creamy but pourable consistency. If it is too thick, add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches your desired consistency.

Cut the cooked chicken breast into a ½-inch dice. Place it in a large bowl and add the tomato, cucumber, artichokes, and olives. Pour in the dressing and fold to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately with pita bread, if desired.

Photo by Jeanine Donofrio

Homemade Salsa

From Love & Lemons
If you’ve never made homemade salsa before, this is the week to try it! It’s easy to make in the food processor, and it has a fresher, brighter taste than typical jarred salsa. Great on your favorite Mexican dishes or with tortilla chips.

Photo by Eva Kolenko

Elote

From Love & Lemons
One of the most delicious ways to eat grilled corn on the cob! Slather the ears with mayo and sprinkle them with Cotija cheese, chili powder, cilantro, and lime for a flavorful side dish or snack.

Photo by A Beautiful Plate

Charred Green Beans with Cilantro Vinaigrette

From A Beautiful Plate
Char this week’s green beans in a hot oven or on the grill. Then, toss them with a simple cilantro dressing for a zesty side dish!

Photo by Spoon Fork Bacon

Best Corn Salad

From Spoon Fork Bacon
If you’re looking for an out-of-the-box corn salad recipe, this one might be for you. It has a few unique elements:

1) Charred halloumi cheese offers a rich, salty contrast to the sweet corn kernels.
2) It has a brown butter dressing, which gives it nutty depth of flavor.

The recipe calls for chives, but you could sub in a little diced white onion for a similar savory kick.

Photo by Andrea Bemis

Summer Crunch Salad

From Dishing Up The Dirt
This salad recipe was made for this week’s box! It features sweet corn, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and bell peppers, all tossed in a tangy vinegar dressing with some creamy goat cheese. Swap out the parsley for cilantro.

Photo by What’s Gaby Cooking

Castelvetrano Greek Pasta Salad

From What’s Gaby Cooking
This pasta salad recipe would be great for a simple dinner, packed lunch, or picnic. It’s filled with chewy pasta, briny olives, tangy feta, and lots of veggies—you’ll use some cucumber, cherry tomatoes, peppers, and onion from this week’s box.

Week #12; Abundance

We are wealthy in watermelons.

Wow, the farm is incredibly productive right now.  This is common in a drought year on a vegetable farm IF you have irrigation.  Everything is growing strongly, probably because diseases are low during the dry weather.  Insect populations can go either way in a drought but seem to be at normal levels right now.  It was great to get rain over the weekend but it soaked in quickly and we are irrigating again already.  

I’ll be honest.  We’re pretty whipped by the extra work, so I don’t have much to share tonight except a beautiful evening sky over the barn and silo.  The farm is absorbing all our attention and energy right now.
Take care,
Beth

Tomato Care

Ripe (top) and less ripe tomatoes (bottom).

We are heading into peak tomato season.  Yeah!  Ripe tomatoes are delicious but highly perishable so let’s talk about their care.

Ripeness:  Each delivery, we pack a mix of ripe and less-ripe tomatoes so you can stretch them through the week.  In the photo above, the top two tomatoes are ready to eat.  The bottom two tomatoes can ripen at room temperature for a few days.

Storage:  Tomatoes retain their best flavor and texture when stored at room temperature, no lower than 55 F.  I encourage you to spread your tomatoes on plates so you can watch them.  Eat the ripest ones first, or any showing flaws.  
However, you should refrigerate your tomatoes if they are fully ripe and you don’t expect to eat them right away.  It is better to sacrifice a little flavor and texture than to let your tomatoes spoil.  Also, fully ripe tomatoes are less sensitive to chilling injury.

They might need washing:  We handle the ripe tomatoes as little as possible to avoid bruising.

(Left)  The yellow arrow shows small inconsequential flaws that will grow with time.  Eat now!
(Right) The purple arrows show leaf residue bits stuck to the tomato.  Wet the tomato and the residue will come right off.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #12, August 3/4, 2o23

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ green
– Sampler/ D group

Sweet corn, 9 ears
Carrots, 2 lb
Slicing tomatoes, ~2.5 lb
Cherry tomatoes, 1 pint
Green beans, 0.8 lb
Cucumbers, ~2
Silver Slicer cucumbers, 2 or 3
Green bell pepper, 1 large
Zucchini &/or yellow squash, ~1 squash
Walla Walla onion
BY SITE: muskmelon OR Yellow Doll watermelon

Next week’s box will probably contain sweet corn, tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, melons, onions and more.

Sweet corn – There are far fewer caterpillars than last week.  This is good news.  If you see browning at the tip, cut off the tip before shucking the corn.

Green beans – Storage: Store in the warmest part of your refrigerator.

Cucumbers – We’ve begun harvests from our second cucumber field.  These are beautiful, beautiful cukes.  You’ll notice less scarring now, which is typical as we move from an older to younger planting.  We are sending both green slicing cukes plus a special variety called Silver Slicer.  These smaller cucumbers are thin-skinned, like pickling cucumbers, and have delicious flavor.  No need to peel these ones.  For that matter, there’s no need to peel the green cucumbers either, unless you receive an unusually large one.  We will distribute the green and Silver cucumbers by site over the coming weeks, as we harvest them.

Walla Walla onion – Please refrigerate your Walla Walla this week.  They are not storage onions, and the recent hot weather is not good for them.  Keeping them cold is your best option.

Muskmelons (some sites) – Refrigerate or let ripen at room temperature for up to two days, max.

Yellow Doll watermelon (some sites) – Watermelons can be refrigerated or stored at room temperature until they are cut.  Once cut, they need to be refrigerated.

You’ll get a mix of slicing cucumbers (green) and Silver Slicer cukes (white) over the coming weeks.

RECIPES by DEB

Photo by DebsLunch

Summer vegetable stir fry with peanut sauce

You can adapt this recipe using what you like and have on hand. You need about 8 ounces of protein, plus 4-6 cups chopped vegetables (not counting onions and garlic!) to serve four. I used ground turkey, but you can sub ground pork or chicken or tofu. My stir fry has green beans, carrots, yellow summer squash, and bell pepper, but again use what you have. The peanut sauce recipe makes about 2 cups and you’ll only need one so will have extra for another purpose. This is a plain & simple peanut sauce that you can jazz up by adding Siracha or other hot sauce, and is great as a dip with cucumbers or steamed broccoli, and on sauteed chicken, or to make cold noodle salad. You can also top your stir fry with marinated cucumbers – here’s a pic; method in the week 11 newsletter (in the headnote for the Spicy Peanut Noodles with Cucumber recipe).

Serves 4-5
Takes about 45 mins. to 1 hour

Peanut sauce:
1 cup peanut butter, natural smooth or crunchy or commercial will all work fine
3 tablespoons lime juice or rice or cider vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar, maple syrup, or honey
approximately 1/2 cup coconut milk or hot water or a combination to thin

Stir fry:
1 cup white or brown rice
kosher salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 ounces ground turkey or pork, or firm tofu, crumbled
2-4 cloves garlic, minced or put through a press
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup sliced onion
2 medium carrots, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 to 1 1/2 cups green beans, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces – measure after cutting
1 medium yellow squash or zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into chunks
1 green or red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 cup of the peanut sauce
1 tablespoon Siracha or other Asian hot sauce, optional
Optional toppings: salted roasted peanuts, more hot sauce, cucumbers tossed with a little rice vinegar and salt, as discussed last week under Spicy Peanut Noodles with Cucumber.

1. If using brown rice, start cooking that first. Start white rice after you make the peanut sauce. Combine the rice and two cups water in a sauce pan with a lid. Bring to a boil, uncovered, add a pinch or two of kosher salt, then cover and turn the heat way down. Check after about 45 minutes to see if the water is absorbed and there are steam holes through the rice indicating it’s done.
2. Make the peanut sauce: Combine all the ingredients except the coconut milk or hot water in blender or a bowl, and either blend or whisk to combine. Add coconut milk and/or hot water until you get a good pourable consistency.
3. Cook the stir fry: Pour the oil into a deep wide skillet with a lid and heat over medium. Add the turkey or other meat, or tofu crumbles, and cook stirring, and if using meat, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and salt and pepper, and stir until fragrant. Add the onions. At this point add the veggies in order of the length of time they take to cook, and cover the pan for a few minutes to steam the veggies a bit – add a few tablespoons of water if things start sticking. In this version, start with the carrots, then green beans, and finally squash and bell pepper. Total cooking time will be about 15 minutes.
4. When all the veggies are cooked to your liking, add the peanut sauce and Siracha. Mix to coat everything with the sauce and once it’s bubbling, cook for a few minutes uncovered to meld. Taste to see if it needs more salt, peanut sauce, or Siracha, and serve over rice with optional toppings.

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Photo by DebsLunch

Corn and green bean salad with cherry tomatoes and nuts

You can cook the corn for this salad using any method you like: steaming, as Beth suggests (Veggie Notes/ Sweet corn), boiling, or even roasting, on the grill or in the oven (see this link for oven roasting in the husks) or on the stove in a grill pan. You’ll need about 4 ears of corn, so if you cook up a bunch of corn to eat on the cob, you can use the leftovers!

Dressing:
1 large clove garlic, minced or put through a press
2 tablespoons white wine or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar, plus more to taste
2 teaspoons grainy or Dijon mustard
1/4 cup olive oil or vegetable oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Salad:
3-4 cups corn kernels, cut from about 4 ears of corn
2/3 to one pound green beans, cooked and cut into 2 inch lengths
3/4 cup toasted nuts, coarsely chopped – I used whole almonds but walnuts or pecans would also be good
9-10 cherry tomatoes cut in half

1. Make the dressing: Combine the garlic, vinegar, sugar, and mustard in a small bowl or spouted glass measuring cup. Whisk in the oil until emulsified. Season with salt & pepper. Alternatively, combine everything in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to combine.
2. Add the corn and green beans to a large mixing bowl, and toss with most of the dressing. Add the nuts and cherry tomatoes, toss again, and taste to see if it need more dressing or seasoning. This salad is good right away, but can also be chilled overnight – bring to room temperature and add the nuts right before serving.

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Photo by Christy Denney

Corn Salsa Recipe | The Girl Who Ate Everything

From The Girl who Ate Everything
This corn salsa recipe also provides a few more suggestions for how to cook your corn. I suggest saving the cobs for veggie stock; see this 2020 Tipi newsletter for tips on corn cob stock, under ‘Sweet Corn Risotto with Corn Cob Broth & Cherry Tomatoes’.  Feel free to omit cilantro, and sub Walla Walla onion for the purple onion – place the chopped onion in a strainer and rinse with cold water if it seems strong, then drain and add to salsa. You can also omit the jalapeño or use jarred or canned chiles, or a few dashes of red pepper flakes if you don’t have fresh.
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Roasted Carrot Hummus | Foolproof Living

From Foolproof Living
There are plenty of versions of dips with roasted carrots out there; this hummus from Foolproof Living is gluten free (if served with gluten free dippers) and vegan – and will surely appeal to any hummus lovers.
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Photo by DOTDASH Meredith Food Studios

Marinated Cucumber, Onion, and Tomato Salad | Allrecipes.com

Recipe by BogeyBill from Allrecipes.com
This marinated salad only takes a few minutes of chopping, and because it’s marinated, it’s actually better made ahead.
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Roasted Tomato Cream Sauce | Midwest Foodie

From Midwest Foodie
As this recipe says, you can use whatever kind of tomatoes you have for this sauce – the roasting process concentrates even the juicier slicers. It calls for 3 pounds of tomatoes, which is about what we got this week, but it makes 5 cups of sauce, and that’s more than you need for a pound of pasta. So, if you don’t want to devote all of this week’s tomatoes to sauce, you could halve it and still have enough for a pasta dinner. You can simply omit the fresh basil if you don’t have any, or substitute dried.
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Photo by Tieghan Gerard

Smashed Cucumber and Watermelon Feta Salad | Half Baked Harvest

From Half Baked Harvest
This recipe from Half Baked Harvest combines the watermelon & feta salad that’s been popular for years, with the smashed cucumber technique that’s we’ve been hearing about much more recently. Muskmelon can sub for watermelon if that’s what you get in your box – or try this cantaloupe and feta salad, with fresh mint. The salad will taste good without the fresh herbs, or you can sub small amounts of dried – about half a teaspoon of dill or basil. Like all Half Baked Harvest recipes it calls for avocado, which you can omit. Persian cucumbers are small and seedless, and a combination of 2-3 of our silver slicer and regular cucumbers will work fine here, and you can seed the green cucumbers if you wish.

Week #11; Sweet corn begins.

Our garlic crop is harvested and safely drying.  It was a sweaty, grimy harvest but very, very satisfying.  It does not matter how many showers I take; I will smell of garlic for days.  We were glad to get rain last night and doubly glad that the garlic was safe before it started.

Once the bulbs are dry enough, we’ll start packing them in the boxes.  
Beth

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #11
July 27/28, 2023 (Th/Fri sites)

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ purple
– Sampler/ C group

Sweet corn, 7 ears
Muskmelon
Broccoli, ~2 lb
Cherry tomatoes, 1 pint
Slicing tomatoes, a few
Carrots, 2 lb
Globe eggplant, 1
Zucchini &/or yellow squash, ~2.5 lb
Cucumbers, 2 or 3
Walla Walla onion

Next week’s box will probably contain melons, tomatoes, carrots and more.

Sweet corn – Now it’s summer!  
Advice about bugs.  This is organic sweet corn.  Many ears have caterpillars or bug damage at the tip.  I suggest cutting off the tips before shucking the corn.  Sweep the trimmed tips into the compost and you will never see the bugs.  Going forward, not every harvest (nor every ear) will have the caterpillars.  They come and go as the moths fly in from the south.  I’ll give you an update here in the newsletter each week.
Storage. Sweet corn is best when fresh, so we encourage you to eat it asap. Store in the refrigerator, in the husks if you have the room, or husked and placed in a container or plastic bag.
Cooking.  It is quicker to steam sweet corn than to boil it.
1.) Stand ears of corn upright in a tall pot. Put one inch of water in the pot.
2.) Bring the water to a boil. If the corn is cold when you begin cooking, steam for 5 – 6 minutes. If the corn starts at room temperature, steam for 4 – 5 minutes. The cooking time will vary somewhat depending on how many ears are in the pot. Pay attention to how the corn smells. The scent changes once the corn is ready. Another clue: water will bead on the corn until it is cooked. Don’t overcook it.

Muskmelon – Most are ripe and ready to eat.  Some need to ripen a day or two on your kitchen counter.  Refrigerate within 2 days.

Broccoli – Some of the broccoli is loose because of the warm weather but it all tastes great.  Refrigerate.

Carrots – Refrigerate in the bag.

Tomatoes – Store your slicing tomatoes at room temperature.  It’s only a few so you’ll eat them quickly.  Cherry tomatoes can be refrigerated.

Eggplant – For best flavor, store eggplants at room temperature for 2 – 3 days.  If holding for longer than three days, store in the warmest part of your refrigerator.  Eggplants do not store well for long periods of time.  

RECIPES by DEB

Photo by debslunch

Zucchini & Pinto Bean Enchiladas

This recipe for enchiladas and homemade enchilada sauce is very versatile! You can keep it strictly vegetarian or add meat, or do a vegan version using vegan cheese. Here I’ve used zucchini and pinto beans, but you could sub in corn or summer squash, and use purchased enchilada sauce if you don’t have time to make the sauce. Both the sauce and the enchiladas freeze really well, and if you want to add meat, I suggest 1/2 pound of ground beef, pork, turkey, or bulk chorizo. Brown the meat with the onions and then add any other vegetables you wish to use.

Serves 6-8
Takes about an hour and 15 minutes including baking

For the sauce:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup flour
2 cups vegetable or chicken broth, preferably home made OR one 14.5 oz. can of broth plus enough water to make 2 cups (about 2-3 tablespoons)
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder (You can control the heat of the sauce by using mild or hot chili powder. I often use part chili powder and part ground Ancho chile. Penzey’s is a good source.)
Optional, if you like heat: 1 chile from a can of chipotle chiles in Adobo sauce, finely chopped, plus a few spoons of the sauce
1-3 tablespoons of tomato paste
1 tablespoon brown sugar
salt and black pepper to taste

For the filling:
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
3/4 to 1 pound of zucchini or summer squash or a mixture, cut into bite-size chunks
1 cup of pinto beans or corn
3/4 to 1 cup finely chopped onions
salt and black pepper to taste

For assembly:
8-10 flour tortillas
1/2 pound cheddar cheese, shredded

1. Make the sauce: measure the oil and flour into a sauce pan and whisk to combine. Heat the broth in the microwave – a spouted glass measuring cup works well for this – and pour it into the pan while whisking until smooth and thickened. Add the chili powder, Adobo chile and sauce, tomato paste, and brown sugar and whisk until smooth. Simmer the sauce for about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Make the filling: Heat the oil over medium heat in a skillet. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent. Add the zucchini and cook until it is just tender, about 5-10 minutes. Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper, and stir in the beans (or corn if using).
3. Assemble the enchiladas: Heat the oven to 375°. Microwave the tortillas briefly (45 seconds to a minute, depending on your microwave) to make them flexible. Pour a thin layer of sauce into the bottom of a 13 x 9 baking dish. Fill each tortilla with 1/3 cup of filling, top with about 2 tablespoons of grated cheese (reserving about 1/4 cup of cheese for topping), tuck the sides in, and roll neatly. Place the enchiladas in the baking dish as they’re rolled.
4. Pour the rest of the sauce over the enchiladas. Place the baking dish in the oven and cook for about 20 minutes until bubbling. Top with the reserved grated cheese and return to the oven for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese. Serve the enchiladas with sour cream, chips, and salsa of your choice.

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Roasted Eggplant Spread Recipe | Ina Garten

From Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa Family Style
This quick and easy spread from Ina Garten, the doyenne of upscale comfort food, can be served as an appetizer or as the centerpiece of a light summer meal if accompanied by some protein. It also makes a tasty omelette filling. If you don’t have red bell peppers to roast along with the eggplant, you can use jarred roasted red peppers – just add them to the food processor with the other vegetables – no roasting required!

Since we have two pounds of broccoli this week, I’m including two cheesy main dishes that both feature broccoli.

Photo by Deb Perelman

Broccoli, Cheddar and Wild Rice Casserole | smitten kitchen

From smitten kitchen
With this recipe, Deb at smitten kitchen “saves” a traditional Midwestern hotdish, typically made with canned cream soup and frozen broccoli. Deb says as a child she envied friends who ate things like this regularly, since they were never served in her home, and when she decided to research and develop the recipe she was warned by other foodies it would be awful. Her recipe definitely meets the challenge!
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Photo by Diana Chistruga

Easy One-Pan Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

From The Spruce Eats
I chose this stove top mac & cheese since I think it has the best macaroni to broccoli ratio: 8 oz. noodles to 12 oz. broccoli. It calls for frozen broccoli, but you can use fresh by simply adding the chopped broccoli to the macaroni cooking water when the pasta has about 5 minutes to go rather than the one minute suggested for the frozen.
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Photo by Laura Davidson

Spicy Peanut Noodles with Cucumber | A Beautiful Plate

From A Beautiful Plate
One inspiration for any one running out of cucumber ideas is to use the cucumbers in or as a topping for one of the spicy noodle salads that’re so good in the summer, or a stir fry. This recipe is an example of cucumbers in; looking back on some past Tipi recipes, you could try lightly marinated cucumbers in place of the asparagus on top of this tofu dish from Week 3, or this stir fry from October of 2021. To marinate the cucumbers, slice and place them in a bowl. Drizzle with a few tablespoons of rice vinegar, a pinch or two of salt, and optionally a little sugar. Leave them to marinate while you prepare the rest of the dish and then top individual servings with the cucumbers. I also found, but did not test, this recipe for cucumber noodles, where the cucumber is “zoodle-ized” to be the noodle. It strikes me that it would be tasty the first day and then potentially get kind of watery. If anyone tries it, how about posting to the Facebook group and let everyone know how it turned out! The recipe calls for seedless cucumbers – one way to adapt for seeded cucumbers is to cut your cucumbers into thin planks with a Y-shaped peeler then julienne the slices with a knife leaving out the seedy middles. And of course, if you have more zucchini than cucumbers, you could make this salad with actual zoodles.
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Roasted Zucchini, Thomas Keller’s Viral “Life-Changing” Method | The Delicious Life

From The Delicious Life
This recipe is all over the Internet this summer, and there are lots of videos illustrating how to prepare it if you like that kind of thing. Chef Thomas Keller’s method is to cut the zucchini in half, score it in a crosshatch pattern, and then salt and drain it, before pan frying it to brown the cut sides and finally roasting until tender. This free, non-video version of the recipe mentions the topping that’s in Keller’s original, a sauce vierge but doesn’t provide the recipe. Sauce vierge is simply chopped fresh tomatoes tossed with a little olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice, and whatever herbs you have. If you don’t eat all of our cherry tomatoes on the way home from box pickup, you could chop them up to top your zucchini!
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Photo by Goydenko Liudmila / Getty Images

Flavored Butter Recipes | The Spruce Eats

From The Spruce Eats
Since this is the first time we’re getting corn, everyone’s most likely to eat it on the cob. Here’s a top ten list of flavored butters you might want to try to jazz up your corn. Numbers 1-5 are savory butters that pair well with corn, but I think some of the sweet ones would work too, like #7, Cranberry Butter.

Week #10; Let me help you with eggplant.

Don’t worry about funky eggplant shapes.  They were shaped by growing quickly among the plant’s branches.

Team Eggplant brings in the harvest. The plants are very healthy, which makes a fun harvest.  From left, Aly, Raul, Katie and Mary Ann.

If you are intimidated by eggplant, I can help

Storage
For best flavor, store eggplants at room temperature for 2 – 3 days.  If holding for longer than three days, store in the warmest part of your refrigerator.  Eggplants do not store well for long periods of time.  

Hints for easy preparation.
Eggplant does not have to be time-consuming to prepare.  Here are a few suggestions.
– Many recipes instruct you to salt and drain eggplant “to remove bitter flavors.”  You do not need to salt this eggplant.  We are sending you fresh eggplant and it will not be bitter.  
– Try microwaving your eggplant, to speed preparation and reduce the amount of oil used.  Microwaving is quick and eliminates the need to peel the eggplant; the skin ends up soft and edible.  Unlike pan-frying, you need little oil when cooking in the microwave.  The “Microwave Eggplant with Scallion-Chile Crisp Oil” recipe below uses this technique.  The recipe is quick and absolutely delicious.

Eggplants are versatile.  Here are other ideas:
– Roast in the oven or over coals to cook and smoke your eggplant, then transform into baba ganouj with lemon, tahini, salt and garlic.
– Cut in 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices, peel, and rub with a little salad dressing (I use Newman’s balsamic dressing), then grill slowly until soft and smoky.  At this point, you can cut into cubes to make eggplant caponata with chopped tomatoes, onion, garlic, olives, capers, olive oil and red wine vinegar. 
– Use the grilled cubes in casseroles or to top pizza.  
– Add thin, grilled eggplant slices to grilled cheese sandwiches.  Use hearty bread – this doesn’t work well with soft sandwich bread.

How to prep fresh garlic

Steve was baffled about how to prep last week’s fresh garlic. He muttered something about needing power tools, which I felt was overly dramatic.  But perhaps some of you resorted to power tools last week, and I should show you the simple way to peel your fresh garlic.  The only tricks are to peel (not cut) the outer layers, and to crush each clove to release it from its wrapper.

From left; Peel down the outer layers, one or two layers at a time.  When the cloves are freed from the outer wrapper leaves, break them loose from the base.  Crush each clove between two cutting boards to free it from its clove wrapper. 

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #10
July 20/21, 2023 (Th/Fri sites)

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ green
– Sampler/ B group

Green cabbage
Broccoli, about 2 medium heads
Globe eggplant, 1
Green leaf lettuce
Green bell pepper, 1
Zucchini &/or yellow squash, ~2.5 lb
Cucumbers, 3
Walla Walla onion
Basil, 1 stalk
Fresh garlic
By site: Muskmelon OR cherry tomatoes.  I will distribute melons and cherry tomatoes to each pickup site over the coming weeks, to be sure we reach all sites.  Please don’t open boxes at your site looking for variety – all boxes at each site are identical.

Next week’s box will probably contain sweet corn, melon, broccoli, zucchini and more.

Broccoli – Our second planting has done very nicely, much better than usual, considering the weather.  
Storage: Refrigerate.

Cabbage – You will receive either Caraflex (pointy) or Farao (round).  Both are intended as salad/slaw cabbages but can be lightly cooked too.
Storage:  Refrigerate.

Muskmelons (some sites) – These are ripe and ready to eat.  Refrigerate.

RECIPES by BETH

Deb is busy with family so I am on recipe duty. Let’s share a few of our favorite dishes and strategies.

Make a pot of rice

It’s not a joke!  It’s a cooking strategy.  We’re busy, you’re busy.  For us, strategy #1 is to cook a big pot of brown rice once per week. Sometimes I’ll come down in the morning and find Steve cooking rice at 6:00am, while he’s still in the house for an hour.  Then we prep dishes to accompany the rice through the next days.  
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Top: From Food & Wine, Photo by Antonis Achilleos, Prop styling by Christina Daley, Food styling by Ali Ramee.
Bottom:  My cooked dish.  It was delicious.

Microwave Eggplant with Scallion-Chile Crisp Oil

By Andrea Nguyen, in Food & Wine:
“This microwave eggplant recipe from Andrea Nguyen requires none of the usual fuss of salting and straining the nightshade beforehand. Cooking a whole eggplant in the microwave effortlessly, evenly, and quickly cooks its flesh to soft, silky tenderness while preserving its antioxidant-rich skin. Cut into thick slices and drizzled with generous spoonfuls of flavorful sauce, microwave eggplant is an easy and delicious side dish that comes together in 20 minutes flat.”

Here is a great, flavorful recipe that uses your microwave for eggplant prep.  I’ll bet that some of you still have a few scallions in your fridge.  Otherwise, sliced Walla Walla should make a good substitute.  I followed the cooking times in the recipe for my 1 lb eggplant, adding the suggested extra 60 seconds, and the eggplant was beautiful: plush, with edible skin.  Give the recipe a try – I think you’ll like it.
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Photo by The Woks of Life

Smashed Asian Cucumber Salad

From The Woks of Life
We rotate among a variety of cucumber salads while they are in season.  This smashed salad is Ari’s favorite.  The rough surfaces hold the dressing well.  We use a recipe from the New York Times (Chinese Smashed Cucumbers With Sesame Oil and Garlic) but that recipe is behind a paywall and this one from Woks of Life is virtually identical.  We skip the cilantro and use Korean pepper flakes instead of chili oil.

Cucumber salad is surprisingly good with rice, especially if you add cooked salmon or tofu.  It’s reminiscent of nori rolls.  You can always sprinkle toasted nori sheets on top.
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Grilled vegetables

I often grill a batch of marinated vegetables and tofu at the beginning of the week, without a clear plan how we’ll use them.  They always get eaten, whether with rice or pasta, or as a side dish.  In this week’s box, zucchini, Walla Walla onions and eggplant are all suitable for grilling.  
Zucchini or Zephyr squash – Slice about 1/3 inch thick.  Douse in a simple marinade.  We use a mix of rice vinegar, sesame oil and soy sauce.  Bottled salad dressing works great too.  If your marinade does not have oil, spray or brush lightly with oil.  Grill over low heat until tender, turning once.  Slice into ribbons and mix with the marinade again.
Walla Walla onion – Slice into chunks and thread onto skewers.   Grill over low heat until tender and nicely charred.  Flip at least once.
Eggplant – Cut in 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices, peel, and rub with a little salad dressing (I use Newman’s balsamic dressing), then grill slowly until soft and smoky.
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Photo by Love & Lemons

Broccoli Slaw

From Love & Lemons
The dressing for this mixed broccoli and cabbage slaw is traditional but nicely balanced, with mayo, cider vinegar, dijon mustard, and maple syrup.