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| Lucy, Susannah, Laura and Pigs Welcome Our New Arrivals |
The good news is rain finally came our way on Sunday. It has been close to 4 weeks since the last significant rain. As of Friday and Saturday, Brian and I were losing the faith and getting worried that if rain didn’t come soon the garden was really going to be hurting. But the rain came without any damage from wind. What a relief! You wouldn’t guess it after such a nice rain but we could use more. The ground was so dry. It will take more than one day of rain to make up for what we missed in July. But our faith has been restored for the time being and I look forward to one of these slim chances of rain to pan out.
The work continues this week as we try to wrap up the garlic harvest. We’re on the last bed but we’re short-handed this week and next so we’re digging when we can. The onion harvest will begin as soon as the garlic is out of the ground. We are also planting the next round of lettuces and greens, root crops, and a few more flats of fall broccoli and cabbage.
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| Susannah Is Happy to Help With New Baby Chicks |
On the livestock end of things, 400 new baby broiler chicks arrived at the farm on Friday. It was a hot dirty job getting them settled into the brooder but they are thriving. Baby chicks need lots of warmth and that is in abundance right now. Brian brought home 8 more young pigs Sunday morning. We purchase these pigs from a young farmer in northern Illinois who raises his hogs clean – no medications, no growth hormones, no GMO feed. It’s a good start. Now they are on our good pasture and vegetable scraps plus certified organic feed.
It's a good box this week with more tomatoes. Enjoy.
In Your Box Today
Tomatoes – Yeah! More tomatoes are ripening each week. Today is a variety of slicers, cherry and small salad tomatoes. They are all delicious!
Kohlrabi – The kohlrabi is minus the greens and all you need to do is peel, slice and eat. This firm vegetable also lends itself well to grating for salads or chopped into stir fries where it absorbs the flavors of the pan. But most often, we peel, slice and enjoy them raw.
Onions- These are fresh onions that really need refrigeration if you are not going to use them right away. They are a variety called ‘Copra’ and will keep well for you.
Lettuce Blend - We harvested mostly red leaf, some green ‘Deer Tongue’, and a speckled romaine lettuce called ‘Freckles’ and put them all together.
Bok Choy –Nice, reasonably sized heads of bok choy today. We left a few in the field that are showing signs of heat and lack of moisture stress. But these heads are nice and will go well in soups, salads or stir fries. Bok Choy is also another good keeper if you need to set it aside for a several days.
Radishes – I won’t kid you here – these radishes will have some heat. Do you know how to use a hot radish if you don’t like the spiciness? Remove the greens, chop the radish and throw it in with your stir fried veggies. All heat will be lost and the radish roots will absorb the good flavors of your dish. The greens are in good shape as well. They are an excellent source of nutrition. The rough feeling of the greens will be lost once they are thrown into your stir fries and wilted.
Parsley – The poor parsley did not get the moisture it needed the last several weeks and shows some signs of stress. But we had enough plants we could go over most of them and take the beautiful leaves. Excellent flavor – use it anywhere you need a sprinkle of fresh green flavor.
Cucumbers var. ‘Diva’ – Our cucumbers have gone from insect free to having some damage from the spotted cucumber beetle. Peel away any imperfection on the skin to reveal the very delicious cucumber inside. Try the recipe below for Tzatziki below. This is a vegetable that far surpasses any conventional or organic counterpart in the store.
Recipe
Tzatziki
Here is a recipe for the sauce that is typically eaten with a gyro sandwich, lamb, pita bread, or just spooned over a few slices of tomato. It is very easy to make and very delicious. There are a few variations but this is the one we made over the weekend for a picnic.
1 cucumber, diced into small pieces, can be peeled or not depending on your taste
1 small onion diced fine
2 cups plain full fat organic yogurt
1 T finely chopped dill or mint
1 – 2 T finely chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp Ground cumin
1 tsp Ground coriander
Salt to taste
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and taste for seasoning and adjust. Sauce improves with time and will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
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| Tzatziki Over Organic Lamb Patties, Sliced Tomatoes Inside Our Homemade Pita Bread |
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