Week 13 of 26 : Enjoying August Plenty

CSA shareholder Precious Lewis sent us this gorgeous photo of an intrepid butterfly taking some quick sips of nectar from Tithonia flowers while Precious gathers her bouquet.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

Featured farmer oyster sale

We’ll have another Featured Farmer oyster sale on Thursday, September 2 at the Annapolis pickup location with Pirates Cove Oyster Company. Visit piratescoveoysters.com/CBF to order.

At checkout, select “Pickup” as the order type, then choose “Chesapeake Bay Foundation Headquarters” as the pickup location from the dropdown menu. Select September 2, 2021 as your pickup date.

• As news about climate change goes from bad to worse, we’re so glad to be part of this community. We’re making small changes together, and like so much of our life’s work, we are only a small part in a movement that will probably succeed or fail past our own lifetimes. Even still, our efforts matter, and we appreciate you.

• Thanks to Loring Ingraham for coming up with a new name for the BHN tomatoes — Bohemian! This is the swan song for La Boheme. We don’t expect any large red slicing tomatoes in the share next week, so enjoy them while they last!

• We’ll be selling our own farm’s ground beef at the Clagett Farm pickups beginning in the last week of September. We’ll sell it frozen in one-pound packages, $10 each (or $9 each for five or more).

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This Week’s Share:

• Tomatoes

• Cucumbers

• Garlic

• Yellow onions

• Squash

• A green bell or ripe, sweet pepper

• Choice of beans, okra, chilies, or tomatillos

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U-Pick:

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon, and Tulsi)

• Cilantro

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Parsley

• Sage

• Shiso

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Flowers and ornamental greenery for your vase.

• Blackberries (a few short rows to the right as you approach the CSA pickup)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area, next to the washing station:

• Parsley

• Lots of basil of various types!

• Sunflowers, Zinnias, Cosmos, Gomphrena, and Tithonia

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Recipes:

Have you made fresh salsa yet? It’s super easy, and with the addition of beans and a tortilla, you have a meal! Obviously, we can all buy salsa from a jar, but fresh salsa is a treat we can only enjoy in the summer.

• You can make roasted tomatillo salsa by putting your tomatillos (husks removed), garlic, and chilies (any kind will work, but I highly recommend the poblanos) on an oiled, rimmed sheet pan under the oven burner. Broil until blackened, cool, then toss in the blender (juices included) with some onion, cilantro (or parsley if preferred) and salt. Add a little olive oil and lime juice if desired.

• Fresh tomato salsa is even easier. Dice some tomatoes and add finely diced shallots (onions or scallions also work), minced garlic, finely chopped pepper (you could use a bell + a small hot chili or simply add one poblano; include seeds and the white ribs of the chilies if you want more heat), lime juice, and salt. Stir together and add more of any ingredients to your taste. If you don’t have lemon or lime, use vinegar.

We always need more ideas for how to use squash. Here’s a few:

• This Epicurious recipe suggests grilling the squash and then marinating it in order to keep a better texture. Interesting idea!

• This simple pasta recipe encourages you to sauté the summer squash slices until they’re “jammy,” and then mixing them with pasta, parmesan, and fresh basil. It calls for dried Aleppo pepper, which is mild and earthy. I think the red Anaheim peppers would be a good substitute, diced very fine.

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Coming Soon:

• Next week you’ll see a reduction in the pounds of tomatoes in your share.

• Squash and cucumbers will continue through late August.

• Red potatoes will return shortly.

• Peppers should slowly increase in abundance and continue producing through early October.

• You’ll continue to see a mix of different chili types each week through mid October. Those plants are doing quite well, so if you like chilies, be patient and you’ll be rewarded.

• Tomatillos should stay steady for probably a month.

• We’ll give out okra in larger portions in the coming weeks, but we’ll keep it optional. No one needs to take okra they don’t want.

• Garlic until the end.

• One set of green beans was eaten down by deer that found a low spot in the fence. Fortunately, an older planting revived. We might get one more picking from them.

• The eggplants will keep producing all season, but there are still very few of them. We’re rotating it through the pick up sites, so we can’t tell you which weeks you’ll see it in your share.

• We’ve found a way to pin down the groundhog traps more securely so the foxes don’t run off with them. I have high hopes for the sweet potatoes and winter squash. The final planting of watermelons probably won’t recover.

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 12 of 26 : Summer Summer Summer

CSA shareholder Sara Gillespie demonstrates a knack for arrangement of her double share. Photo by Elissa Planz.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• We’ve been using a lot of green berry baskets to portion out your okra, onions, tomatillos, chilies, and other small items so you don’t have to do as much weighing. We’d love to keep them here on the farm so we can reuse them. If you don’t need the basket, empty the contents into your bag and leave the basket stacked with the other empty ones. Here are the health rules:

  • We can reuse clean baskets that stay in our possession.

  • We cannot reuse the baskets once they’ve gone home with you.

• It rained! We’re delighted. Between Thursday and Sunday, we got over two inches of rain. Everyone here breathed a big sigh of relief.

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This Week’s Share:

• Tomatoes

• Bell pepper or sweet pepper

• Garlic

• Red potatoes

• Yellow onions

• Squash

• Choice of okra, chilies, or tomatillos

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Our current selection of ripe tomatoes. We’re taking nominations for better names for the red slicer, BHN589, since the seed company dropped the ball. If you think of a good one with the letters B, H, and N, let us know! Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

U-Pick:

We’ve had a lot of questions about when we’ll put tomatoes on the U-Pick list. It’s tricky this year. Our main tomato field is suffering from blight, and the field of tomatoes we hoped to relegate to U-Pick is super healthy but not very ripe yet. We’re prioritizing picking plenty of tomatoes for everyone’s shares before we open up a field for shareholders to pick for themselves. So the answer is: soon, we hope, but not yet.

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon, and Tulsi)

• Cilantro

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Parsley

• Sage

• Shiso

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Flowers and ornamental greenery for your vase.

• Blackberries (a few short rows to the right as you approach the CSA pickup)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area, next to the washing station:

• Parsley

• Lots of basil of various types!

• Sunflowers, Zinnias, Cosmos, and Tithonia

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Recipes:

• Tomatillos

  CSA shareholder Maureen Clapper recommends Shakshuka as a way to use your tomatillos. She enjoyed this recipe from Blue Apron. It calls for a thyme and sesame spice blend called za’atar. If you don’t have any on hand, you can make your own za’atar. Don’t let the lack of a few minor ingredients stop you from the whole recipe. Also, Maureen mentioned that the shakshuka sauce was terrific on chick peas.

• Tomatoes, Potatoes, and Squash

  My uncle, Rick Thomas, is a superb home cook, so this week I’ve tapped him for a recipe to accommodate the ingredients we have on hand. We first give instructions to use as a vegetable dish alone, and at the end you’ll see a note to convert this recipe to use as a pasta sauce.

  • Ingredients:

    • 1 pound very ripe tomatoes. If you prefer the skins removed, drop them whole into a pot of boiling water. Once the water returns to a boil, cook for about a minute, then drain and allow to cool. When cool enough to handle, peel them and cut them into large pieces. For those of you using this recipe as a pasta sauce, you can return this water to boil and use it to cook your pasta.

    • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

    • a couple small onions, sliced (about a quarter cup)

    • 2 teaspoons garlic, roughly chopped

    • 1.5 pounds zucchini or yellow squash, sliced into half moons

    • 1 pound potatoes, washed and chopped into half-inch pieces

    • salt and black pepper

    • 1 cup fresh basil leaves

  • Instructions:

    • Toss the squash in salt and allow to drain for 5 minutes in a colander or on some paper towels.

    • Choose a large sauté pan with a lid. Heat a tablespoon of oil and brown the zucchini. Remove the zucchini from the pan and set aside.

    • Add the olive oil, onions, and garlic. Turn on the heat to medium and sauté until the garlic becomes colored a pale gold.

    • Add potatoes, put the lid on the pan, and cook for a few minutes. Then remove the lid and continue cooking the potatoes until they’ve browned a bit.

    • Add the tomatoes, turn up the heat, and cook for about 5 to 6 minutes.

    • Turn down the heat to medium, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cover with the lid. Cook, stirring occasionally, until all the vegetables are tender.

    • If the vegetables are tender but the sauce is watery, remove the lid and return the heat to high. Boil away the excess liquid.

    • Return the squash to the pan and stir everything together until the squash is hot again. Taste to add more salt or pepper if needed. Remove from heat. Stir in the basil and serve.

  • Notes:

    • To use this as a pasta sauce, Rick prefers using extra wide pasta ribbons.

    • Since pasta dilutes the flavor, you will find that you need a full tablespoon of garlic, plus extra salt and pepper.

    • Wait until you’ve stirred the sauce into the pasta before you add the basil.

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Coming Soon:

• These are definitely the end days for BHN589 (the large, red tomatoes). Blight is killing them off. Fortunately, we have other tomatoes that produce fewer pounds per plant but are surviving longer. You’ll see some new varieties ripening up in the coming weeks.

• Squash will continue through mid-August. We are between cucumber successions right now, but they’ll pick back up next week.

• Potatoes will continue for a few more weeks.

• We probably have another week of onions.

• We’re hoping peppers pick up production soon. They are a little sluggish getting started because of that dry spell.

• Our first chilies are a little hotter than I was expecting. The little purple ones (buena mulata) seem to be the mildest. Many more varieties are coming soon. Poblano and shishito should be especially productive this year.

• The okra plants are growing like gangbusters. Buckle up. Tomatillos are also producing surprisingly well.

• We’re increasing your garlic to two heads per week, as long as we can clean it faster than you take it.

• Green beans are imminent.

• The eggplants are anyone’s guess. The plants look good, but the production is slow.

• We’re in a head-to-head battle with groundhogs over your last succession of watermelons, sweet potatoes, and winter squash. And now the foxes have begun dragging traps away into the woods to eat the groundhogs, so my tools are disappearing. (Feel free to use David Attenborough’s voice as you narrate this story in your head.)

I leave you this week with a photo reminder that wild lotuses are in full bloom. Shellie Perry worked at Clagett Farm a few years ago and now owns Atlantic Kayak Company with her husband, Joe. You can rent a kayak from them to get this same heavenly experience that I had on Mattawoman Creek!

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 11 of 26 : New Bee Neighbors!

Michael Heller (first photo, smoking a hive to calm the bees), Alex Outten, and Jared Planz welcome six new hives, six new queens (never too much royalty around here), and lots of honey! Photos by Jared and Michael.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• Thanks to a new sponsorship from Hannon Armstrong, we are able to start some new farm projects, such as this new enterprise of selling honey. Hannon Armstrong is an investment firm headquartered in Annapolis that focuses on solutions to climate change. Thanks for your help and your great work, Hannon Armstrong!

• We’re not sure yet when we’ll have honey ready to sell from these hives, but you’ll be the first to know! In the meantime, the bees will be doing great work pollinating your crops and the wild plants all around the farm.

• Worried about being stung? Don’t bee! These bees are located almost a quarter mile from the CSA pickup area and a safe distance from anywhere you’ll be walking around.

• We haven’t had a significant rain since July 2! That’s a mighty long time when it’s this hot. We were able to get water this week onto the most desperate crops, thank goodness. But you’ll see a dip in production.

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This Week’s Share:

• Tomatoes

• Bell pepper or sweet pepper

• Garlic

• Potatoes

• Onions (red and yellow)

• Cucumber

• Squash

• We have a small amount of several items. You will probably have a choice from a few of these: okra, eggplant, chilies, and tomatillos.

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Elissa Planz sets out a gorgeous display. Photo by Diane Williams.

U-Pick:

One of the reasons you may not cook with more fresh herbs is that they are expensive. But now that you’re a CSA shareholder, you have an entire library of fresh herbs ready for you to pick in abundance, all week long. They’re ready to transform a meal from blah to spectacular!

And the FLOWERS! Don’t get me started…

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon, and Tulsi)

• Cilantro

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Nasturtium (peppery, edible leaves and flowers)

• Oregano

• Sage

• Shiso

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Lilies, Echinacea, Yarrow, Gladiolus and other flowers and ornamental greenery for your vase.

• Blackberries (a few short rows to the right as you approach the CSA pickup)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area, next to the washing station:

• Parsley

• Lots of basil of various types!

• Sunflowers, Zinnias, Cosmos and Tithonia

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Recipes:

• This week’s share is begging for a potato salad, don’t you think? Here’s a way you can make it work with whatever is in your kitchen this week. I’m not going to give you quantities. Just look at what you’re cooking and imagine—how much of this do I want to eat tonight? And then multiply that by the number of people eating with you.

  • Cut your potatoes into bite-size chunks, put them into a pot of water with a tablespoon of salt. The water should be about an inch above the potatoes. Boil them until fork-tender (about 20 minutes, depending on size of pieces).

  • If you’re willing to heat up the oven or grill, roll your small onions whole in oil (olive oil works great). Also coat your squash pieces in some oil. Roast or grill until they are fork-tender and browned, or even a little charred, in order to get those sugars caramelized. (If you’d rather, you can do the potato pieces this way too, instead of boiling.)

  • That was it for the cooking. The rest of the ingredients are tossed in raw. Consider tomato chunks, handfuls of fresh herbs (such as parsley, chives, and lemon basil), and cucumber chunks. I love olives, so I would add them or capers. To each their own.

  • Mix up a dressing:

    • Minced garlic clove (or if any of you are smart enough to still have some scapes, this is a perfect time to use one or two)

    • If you didn’t add chives above, add a minced shallot here

    • Olive oil (about 1/3 cup is good for a pound of potatoes plus a few cups of other ingredients, so start there)

    • Lemon juice and zest (start with juice from half a lemon and add more to taste)

    • Salt and pepper (start with about a half teaspoon of each)

    • A spoonful of mustard

  • Stir it all together and voila!

• If you’re looking for a fun, quick way to brighten up your meal, try pickled shallots. This recipe from Feasting at Home is nice, and it definitely gives a hamburger or taco an upgrade.

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Photo by Diane Williams

Coming Soon:

• Right now, you’re seeing a lot of large, red tomatoes. But that won’t last long. Pretty soon you’ll be seeing more variety of shapes and colors, and you’ll be asking us where the big red ones went.

• Squash and cucumbers will continue through mid-August.

• Potatoes will switch from yellow to red soon (probably next week).

• Onions and shallots will continue for at least one more week and probably more.

• We’ve just gotten irrigation on the peppers, which should help. Some of those very hot evenings diminished their flowering. And you can’t get the fruit without having flowers first. This was an even bigger issue with the eggplants, which are also glad to have a bit of irrigation right now.

• Chili peppers look good and should increase in production very gradually through October. At the beginning, expect all the chilies to be relatively mild. They increase in heat as summer progresses.

• The okra plants are only about a foot high, but they’re creating their first pods. As they get taller, they bush out more, and each plant generates more pods per day. Last year, they got to be 12 feet tall! That was a little crazy.

• Of course, garlic. Need I say more?

• The beans petered out for lack of rain. We’ve got a new round about to start producing and just got water to them. You’ll see those beans in a few weeks.

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 10 of 26 : Tomato Season Begins, A Friendship Ends

Super volunteer, Ray Steiner, leans into the job of weeding oregano. Photo by Elissa Planz

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

Ray keeping us entertained at wash time, 2008.

This past Saturday, our dear friend, Ray Steiner passed away. Ray volunteered with us for nearly 20 years, which gave us plenty of time to adore his terrific sense of humor and story-telling. He came to us after a career as an air traffic controller and then doing the same task for satellites, keeping them from colliding in space.

Ray found a thousand ways to be helpful. When a crop excited him, such as shiitake mushrooms and hot chilies, he would take charge of large jobs on his own. He patiently plugged mushroom spawn into hundreds of logs. He planned our chili varieties, harvested them every week, and gave a report at the end of the year of which varieties were most successful.

He frequently appeared with gifts when we needed them, such as markers, baskets, spray nozzles and his own homemade salsas. He knew how to be useful without being instructed, but was also happy to take instruction and do drudge work when it needed to be done.

Ray at a farm party, telling a great story. Photo by Lewis Tannenbaum.

We loved Ray for his zest of life. He threw himself joyfully into baseball, skiing, craft beer and friendships. His family and friends became volunteers and friends of ours, simply because they assumed if Ray loved the farm, it must be a blast. Thank you, Ann, for sharing your husband’s time with us. We are so grateful to have had him in our lives.

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This Week’s Share:

• Tomatoes

• Bell pepper

• Garlic

• Potatoes

• Onions (red for sure, possibly some yellow)

• Cucumber

• Squash

• Basil for members who pick up at Dupont and Annapolis (if you’re picking up at the farm, the herbs will be fresher if you pick your own.)

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Ray picking flowers. Photo by Lauren Schnabel.

U-Pick:

In the fields:

• Kale and collards (last chance!)

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon, and Tulsi)

• Cilantro

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Nasturtium (peppery, edible leaves and flowers)

• Oregano

• Sage

• Shiso

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Lilies, Echinacea, Yarrow, Gladiolus and other flowers and ornamental greenery for your vase.

• Blackberries (a few short rows to the right as you approach the CSA pickup)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area, next to the washing station:

• Parsley

• Cilantro

• Lots of basil of various types (This is a great time to pick basil—freeze pesto for your winter pasta and dry Tulsi for tea.)

• Sunflowers! Zinnias, Cosmos, Tithonia and Cleome flowers

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Recipes:

• Consider replacing pasta noodles with zucchini or yellow squash “zoodles”. This is easy with a spiralizer, but if you don’t have one, you can cut the squash into matchsticks for the same effect. This recipe for Veggie Noodles with Basil and Tomatoes can be made with any type of fresh tomato chunks.

• Everyone loves a pretty Martha Stewart recipe, right? This one uses just the right amount of tomatoes, potatoes and onion. Super simple and easy.

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Coming Soon:

• Next week, our third succession of summer squash kicks in so they’ll be looking fresher and prettier.

• Our main crop of tomatoes will increase in production over the next few weeks, and soon we’ll have cherry tomatoes and some other heirlooms in our U-Pick field.

• Potatoes, onions and shallots will continue for several more weeks.

• Bell peppers have started for the summer and after some delay, we’ll start seeing some of the sweet red and orange peppers, as well. We’ll pick our first hot chili peppers this week, and but only a few. It will probably take a week or two before we have enough for everyone.

• We start picking okra next week! There won’t be much at first, but it will gradually increase. (Not nearly as much as last year, though, which is some relief to us. Last year was overwhelming!)

• Eggplants are struggling. We’ll get a few within about two weeks, we think, but probably not much overall for this summer.

• About 50,000 garlic bulbs are now stashed in the barn. We’ll save roughly half for next year’s seed so we can keep you safely in garlic for eternity.

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 9 of 26 : Potatoes, Onions, and More!

One of our amazing farmers, Elissa Planz, is happy to show you that potatoes will be included in this weeks share! Even this blistering heat cannot keep her excitement to share our harvest with you.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• The flower garden in the field to the left of the wash station is really starting to bloom! Remember, you are welcome to cut some flowers to bring them home and enjoy a piece of the farm at your house. This would be a great week to do so.

• Got any great farm photos? Send them to us in a reply to this week’s email or tag us on Instagram #clagettfarm. We’d also love to get your recipe suggestions!

Onions Explained

We have been getting some questions about the difference between shallots, red onions, and yellow onions.

Shallots: They are milder in flavor and lighter in color than red onions but more assertive then yellow, and they have a hint of a garlic flavor. They are often seen in French dishes but also indispensable to Asian dishes and more.

Red onions: Though they can be pungent and spicy, red onions are great for eating raw, bringing crunchiness and brightness to a variety of dishes.

Yellow onions: Nearly 90 percent of onions grown in the United States are yellow onions. Their deep but not-too-strong flavor makes them endlessly versatile in cooking. They are assertive when raw and deeply sweet when cooked.

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This Week’s Share:

• Garlic

• Potatoes

• Onions ( red, yellow, or shallots)

• Cucumber

• Squash

• Kale, collards, or chard

• Other items ( such as beans, melons, cabbage, fennel, and some other items in short supply, so you will have to see what extras you get when you show up!)

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U-Pick:

In the fields:

• Kale and collards

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon, and Tulsi)

• Coriander

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Nasturtium (peppery, edible leaves and flowers)

• Oregano

• Sage

• Shiso

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Lilies (their fragrance is as gorgeous as their looks!), Echinacea, Yarrow, and other flowers

• Blackberries (a few short rows to the right as you approach the CSA pickup)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area, next to the washing station:

• Parsley

• More basil of various types (This is a great time to pick basil—freeze pesto for your winter pasta and dry Tulsi for tea.)

• Zinnias, Cosmos, and Cleome flowers

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Recipes:

INDIAN CABBAGE AND POTATO CURRY

“Check out this wonderful Indian recipe from Esther Schultz that we found on thewolesomefork.com. Great way to use your potatoes, onions, and cabbage this week.”

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp coconut oil

• 1 tsp cumin seeds

• 1 tsp mustard seeds

• 1 onion, finely sliced

• ¼ tsp garlic powder

• ¼ tsp cayenne

• ½ tsp ground turmeric

• 1 tsp ground coriander

• 1 lb gold potatoes*, diced into ½” cubes

• ½ small head green cabbage, cored and sliced (about 12–14 ounces)

• ½ cup diced fresh tomatoes

• ¼ tsp salt

• ¼ cup chopped cilantro

• Salt and pepper to taste

• *Don't peel the potatoes unless they have thick skins

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over a medium heat.

2. Add the cumin and mustard seeds and cook for 1–2 minutes.

3. Add the onions, stir well to combine, and cook for a further 2 minutes.

4. Stir in the garlic powder, cayenne, turmeric, and coriander and cook for 1 minute.

5. Add the potatoes, cabbage, tomatoes, ¼ tsp salt, and ¼ cup water.

6. Stir well, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 30–35 minutes. Check it every now and then to make sure it is not sticking. If it is, add another tbsp water.

7. Once cooked, remove from the heat, stir in the cilantro, and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

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Coming Soon:

• The kale, collards, and chard are starting to get attacked by the Harlequin bug. This bug is most prolific in the month of July and starts to mark the end of kale and collards. We will fight as long as we can for you, but the end is soon.

• Garlic bulbs from now until the end of the season!

• A steady but modest supply of squash and cucumbers for the foreseeable future. In a few weeks, the amount of squash and cucumbers should increase again.

• The tomatoes are really starting to come along and we should have plenty for everyone soon.

• Potatoes will continue for the next couple of weeks.

• Onions will continue for the upcoming weeks, but the tops will start to die back and there will just be the bulbs.

• Peppers, eggplants, and okra are still pretty small. I wouldn’t expect those until the end of July.

• Chili peppers are starting to make their way into the picture, and we would expect them in a couple of weeks.

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 8 of 26 : Baby Melons!

Three cheers for the TWO incredible volunteer groups that came to harvest garlic with us in one million degree heat today. One was a staff team from a medical marijuana dispensary (above) and the other were missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (below). They weren’t just smiling during the popsicle break—both groups were enthusiastic all day, which was impressive considering the withering weather.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• We’re back! CSA share pickups resume this week, July 7, 8, and 10.

• Got any great farm photos? Send them to us in a reply to this week’s email or tag us on Instagram #clagettfarm. We’d also love to get your recipe suggestions!

Flower Garden Pollinator Video

Check out this wonderful footage taken by our very own farmer Jared Planz highlighting the native pollinators busy in our flower garden!

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This Week’s Share:

• A baby melon!

• Small fennel bulbs with the ferns, probably as a choice with Genovese basil (the classic Italian type for pesto)

• Either red shallots or red bulb onions

• Cucumbers

• Green cabbage (one head)

• Summer squash (a few)

• Kale and collards

• Garlic bulbs (when they’re this fresh they really pack a punch!)

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U-Pick:

In the fields:

• Kale and collards

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon, and Tulsi)

• Coriander

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Nasturtium (peppery, edible leaves and flowers)

• Oregano

• Sage

• Shiso

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Lilies (their fragrance is as gorgeous as their looks!), Echinacea, Yarrow, and other flowers

• Blackberries (a few short rows to the right as you approach the CSA pickup)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area at the washing station:

• Parsley

• More basil of various types (This is a great time to pick basil—freeze pesto for your winter pasta and dry Tulsi for tea.)

• Zinnias, Cosmos and Cleome flowers

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Recipes:

Fennel, Cabbage, and Zucchini

These three items can seem tricky but in fact they are so versatile! I bet you could incorporate any of them into the dinner you’re planning to make tonight. The roasting pan with your chicken? The sauce on your pasta? Your salad or sandwich? Definitely.

The fennel we grow has a smaller bulb than the ones you see in the grocery store, but they have the advantage of being fresher and tastier—the bulb is less woody and the ferns fluffier and more delicate. If you like the taste of licorice or anise, then this is a great vegetable to add to your repertoire.

• Try slicing the fennel diagonally into 1/2-inch pieces, toss them with olive oil and salt, and roast them in a hot oven (or toaster oven, if your kitchen is like mine and feels like one of the circles of the Inferno) until soft and lightly browned. Roasting caramelizes some of the sugars to bring out the sweetness a bit.

• Slice the bulb very thin and add to salads or sandwiches the way you would add celery. Garnish with the chopped fennel leaves.

• Fennel is a close cousin to dill, and you can chop the ferns and add them to dishes that normally call for fresh dill leaf.

The cabbages are remarkably sweet and juicy right now. If you’re not used to cooking with cabbage, or you think cole slaw is the only thing it’s good for, this is a great time to try something new.

• Cut the cabbage in half through the stem, and then in half through the stem again. Now you can see where the tough core is, and slice it away from your cabbage quarters. (If you want a visual, here’s a one-minute YouTube video.) I usually slice it into thin ribbons for most recipes.

• Those cabbage ribbons make a great base for your salad—better than the boxes of lettuce for sale in the store. It matches well with just about any dressing, especially thick and creamy dressings or vinaigrettes with mustard.

• Or you can try sautéing your ribbons of cabbage with some olive oil and salt until its soft and buttery. I recommend including your shallots and fennel (the sliced bulb and chopped green leaves of both) in the sauté. This is a terrific bed of greens for whatever protein you’re serving (chicken, fish, tofu, etc.).

Thanks to CSA shareholder Dale Rubenstein for passing us this Milk Street recipe for a tahini and tomato paste dressing for roasting vegetables, such as zucchini (the recipe is for roasted cauliflower, but really it works for all kinds of vegetables). I combined it with cabbage, fennel and shallots in an attempt to put together a meal with as many of our CSA share ingredients as possible. I thought it was delicious, but you decide.

Roasted Zucchini and Tofu on a Bed of Cabbage with Fennel

Dressing for tofu and zucchini:

• 3 Tablespoons olive oil

• 3 Tablespoons tomato paste

• 2 Tablespoons tahini

• 1 Tablespoon hot sauce

• 2 teaspoons corn starch

For roasting:

• A few fennel bulbs, sliced 1/2-inch thick (save the ferns for later)

• A block of extra firm tofu, cut or torn into approximately 1-inch pieces

• About a pound of zucchini, chopped into 3/4-inch pieces

• A little olive oil and salt for the fennel

For the bed of sautéed cabbage:

• A half a head of cabbage, sliced into ribbons

• 1 Tablespoon of olive oil

• 1/2 teaspoon of salt, more to taste

• 1 shallot or red onion, bulb thinly sliced and green leaves chopped

• Ferns from one fennel, chopped

Instructions:

• Heat the oven to 500 degrees F

• Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil or just coat the pan with oil.

• Combine the dressing ingredients in a jar, put the lid on tightly and shake vigorously until well combined.

• Put the tofu and zucchini into a bowl and pour enough dressing over it to give it all a thick coating. (If you have leftover dressing, use it for your next salad or future roasting.)

• Spread the tofu and zucchini onto the pan in a single layer. Save a little space for the fennel.

• In a bowl, toss the fennel with a little olive oil and salt. Spread the fennel on the pan if you have space. If you don’t, you can add it to the sauté pan with the shallots.

• Roast the vegetables about 25 minutes until tender and browned.

• While the vegetables are roasting, heat a large pan and add the tablespoon of olive oil.

• When the oil is hot, add the sliced shallot or onion bulb and, if necessary, the fennel bulb.

• Shallots don’t need to cook long. You’re just infusing the flavor into the oil. Cook until the shallots have softened.

• Next add the cabbage and salt and shift it around in the pan until the cabbage has softened.

• Add the shallot or onion greens and the fennel ferns. Stir frequently until the cabbage is tender and buttery but still vibrant green. Add more salt if needed.

• Plate a bed of cabbage topped with roasted vegetables and tofu.

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Coming Soon:

• These are the melons we seeded in the order that we’re likely to pick them (we’re picking the first three varieties this week and the cantaloupes as soon as they’re ready). You should see them over the next few weeks. Some varieties are sweeter than others, but none of our melons so far has been knock-out-of-the-park sweet. Expect them to be pleasant, fruity, and refreshing.

  • Mini love watermelon

  • Torpedo Korean melon

  • Diplomat honeydew

  • Sarah’s Choice cantaloupe

  • Trifecta cantaloupe

• We’ll continue for at least three more weeks to have various types of onions—shallots, red bulb onions, and yellow bulb onions.

• The kale, collards, and chard are holding up remarkably well considering the heat. We’ll continue offering them as long as we can.

• Garlic bulbs from now until the end of the season!

• A steady but modest supply of squash and cucumbers for the foreseeable future.

• Green beans return beginning next week.

• We think your first tomato might be next week! Come on tomatoes! Also some tomatillos.

• Potatoes soon—maybe week 10?

• Peppers, eggplants, and okra are still pretty small. I wouldn’t expect those until the end of July.

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 7 of 26 : Cucumbers, Cabbages and Garlic bulbs

This is the view from the seat of the tractor, looking back at our old tobacco transplanter. Tiffany and Jared are feeding sweet potato plants into the pinchers. The transplanter creates a furrow, drops the plant into the ground, gives it a dollop of water, and covers it. But that’s only when it’s working perfectly. We’ll be replacing this machine this month so this was its farewell tour. You can see Caroline and John in the back, filling in with spare plants as needed. Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• Yes, you DO have a CSA share pick up this week, but next week, don’t come! We’ll be taking the opportunity to get other work done and also to get a quick break with our families. You will not be getting shares Wednesday June 30, Thursday July 1, or Saturday July 3.

• Meeting the masking/un-masking needs of everyone can be tricky. If you would rather we bag your share and leave it on a table for you out of the area with other members and staff, we are happy to accommodate! If you’re picking up at the farm, come around to the far side of the washing station, near the walk-in cooler, and flag down someone working there to place your order. The Dupont and Annapolis pick ups are smaller so making your request will be straightforward.

• Please also note that the pick ups are busiest the first hour. If you are requesting a bagged share, or generally prefer to pick up when the area is less crowded, please avoid the first hour of pick up. Thanks!

Calling All Oyster Shells

If you purchased oysters from us last week (or any oysters any week from anyone) we’d love to have your shells! They make the perfect home for baby oyster spat—your discarded oyster shells are prime real estate.

• The Chesapeake Bay Foundation has oyster collection sites all around Maryland, including at the entrance of the farm, and at the CBF headquarters in Annapolis.

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This Week’s Share:

• Cucumbers

• Green Cabbage (one head)

• Summer squash (a few)

• Kale and Collards (lots)

• Garlic bulbs (these are so fresh they’ll still have their green tops)

• This week’s share is a little hard to predict so there might be something in your bag that isn’t mentioned here.

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U-Pick:

In the fields:

• Strawberries (There’s two rows that still have a some ripe berries.)

• Kale and collards

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese, Greek, Thai, Round Midnight, Lemon and Tulsi)

• Coriander

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Lilies, yarrow, and other flowers

• Black raspberries (a few along the fence to the right)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area at the washing station:

• Parsley

• More basil of various types

• Cosmos and cleome flowers

Growing wild on the farm:

• Mulberries

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Recipes:

Cucumbers

I love the way nature gives a glut of one fruit or vegetable, and just when I’ve grown tired of it, I’m swimming in something different. These days it’s cucumbers. I eat most of my cucumbers out of hand because they are a rehydrating treat on an exhausting harvest morning. But for your sake, I’ve assembled some ideas that require more preparation than just opening your mouth.

• This Marinated Cucumber Salad in Honey-Cider Vinegar was lifted from Farmer John’s Cookbook by John Peterson and Angelic Organics. You can assemble this salad in a jiffy (particularly if you slice the cucumbers with your food processor), and then leave it in your fridge for the moments when you need something crunchy.

• I was a skeptic of Chilled Cucumber Mint soup, but I tried it last night and now I’m a convert! Just toss the following in a blender:

  • 6-8 cucumbers (about 4 cups)

  • 1 cup water

  • 2 cups plain yogurt (whole fat yogurt makes it richer)

  • 1 garlic clove

  • a few sprigs fresh mint

  • 2 teaspoons dried dill (or 2 tablespoons fresh)

  • 1 tablespoon honey

  • 1 teaspoon salt

    Blend it until smooth and eat it right away or chill for later. Garnish with some fresh herbs or finely chopped scallions. Courtesy of the same John Peterson cookbook as above.

• Let’s talk about pickles. There’s a lot of different styles of pickles and some of them are incredibly easy.

  • Basically, if you pour hot vinegar over some cucumbers and leave the jar in your fridge for a day, you’ve made “refrigerator pickles”. Here’s a recipe for refrigerator pickles that includes sugar and spices, all of which can be adjusted or eliminated according to your preferences.

  • Another super simple option is the fermented pickle, which has the added bonus of being probiotic. Sandor Katz is the sage of fermentation, so you can feel comfortable with any recipe or book from him. Here’s his recipe for a crock of pickles. If want to make just a quart jar, adjust the recipe to 1 pound of cucumbers and 1.5 tablespoons salt. A grape leaf improves the “crunch” texture but is not required. Ask us and we can point you to grape vines on the farm. I made a jar last night and after just one day of fermenting they are already delicious.

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Coming Soon:

The Waiting Game

• Next week, if you want something from the farm, you’ll have to pick it yourself! We’ll add squash and cucumbers to the U-Pick list for one week only.

• Garlic bulbs from now until the end of the season!

• Onion bulbs will be weeks 8-11.

• The kale and collards do not enjoy this hot weather. We might get some in week 8, but we’re not sure.

• We think chard will hold up through week 10, but in small quantities.

• Green cabbages again in week 8.

• Our first planting of squash is on the decline, and our second succession is not as robust as our first. This means you’ll get a little yellow squash and zucchini in the weeks to come, but you won’t be overloaded.

• We’re in peak cucumber right now. There will be more in weeks 8 and 9 but if pickles are on your mind, do it now.

• Fennel week 8

• Some small Korean melons and baby watermelons should start ripening in time for weeks 8-10.

• The first planting of beans is toast. The second planting is already flowering, so you’ll probably be eating those weeks 8-11.

• I’m taking a wild guess that we give you your first tomato or two week 11.

• The potato field is looking spectacular. Potatoes are still a ways away, but they’re definitely coming.

• Peppers and eggplants are still pretty small. I wouldn’t expect those until the end of July.

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Thank you for Supporting our Farm!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 6 of 26 : Cucumbers and Squash Galore

We had so many zucchini last week that even the food pantry was overwhelmed. Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

Pick up at Clagett Farm

Saturday June 19 1:00–4:00 PM

38 North Oysters

 12 ct bag                    $12

24 ct bag                    $20

60 ct bag                    $45

To order

Call 301-872-5051 or email jd@38northoysters.com

by noon on June 18

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• We will be taking one week off from harvest at the end of this month, so you will not be getting shares Wednesday June 30, Thursday July 1, or Saturday July 3.

• Mask and social distancing update: Won’t you be glad when we no longer have to talk about this? Masks are not required for customers. Vaccinated staff have the option to be mask-free at the pickup (but not unvaccinated staff). At the Clagett Farm pickup, we’re noticing that people are still sometimes lining up closely behind each other and we’d like to reinforce that there should be only one person at a time at each of the four stations. We’d like to know how our mask/distancing situation suits you. Send us a note if you’re not feeling comfortable with your pick up arrangement, or let us know when you’re getting your share.

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This Week’s Share:

• Cucumbers (We grow two categories of cucumbers: slicers, which are long and dark green, and picklers, which are short and lighter green. They both can be sliced, and both can be pickled, so don’t let the name stop you. This month we harvest a pickling variety called Little Leaf, which yields well for our farm and resists cucurbit plant diseases that sometimes happen when we have too much or too little rain.)

• Beets (a few)

• Summer squash (still plenty, especially zucchini)

• Lots of kale and collards, as well as some bok choi, lettuce, and chard

• Garlic scapes (still plenty)

• Kohlrabi and purple-top turnips

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U-Pick:

In the fields:

• Strawberries (Of the three varieties, one has finished, one is ripe now, and one is just beginning to be ripe. There are fewer to pick than in weeks past, but there are still a lot.)

• Kale and collards

• Beans (The first flush of beans has past. You’ll still find plenty, but it will take a bit longer.)

• Blueberries (We have a small amount of these growing near the high tunnel with the beans. It’s not worth making a special trip to the farm to pick them, but if you’re here anyway, check them out.)

In our herb and flower garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese)

• Cutting celery (adds celery flavor to stews and salads)

• Cilantro

• Dill

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Lilies, yarrow, and other flowers

• Black raspberries (a few along the fence to the right)

In field G2, which is beside the parking area at the washing station:

• Parsley

• More basil of various types

• Cosmos and cleome flowers

Growing wild on the farm:

• Mulberries

All CSA shareholders may U-Pick any week, as often as you’d like, any daylight hours. CSA shareholders include anyone in the household of the person who paid for the share and any household that split the payment of the share with you.

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Recipes:

Zucchini, Scapes, and Kohlrabi

It’s helpful to remember that freshly-harvested vegetables in season are spectacular with very little preparation. This week, the recipes focus on simple and easy (and healthy and delicious, too!).

Thanks to CSA shareholder Bethanne Barnes for her suggestion of zucchini chips! There’s a lot of different versions online. Here’s a few ideas:

• I tossed the sliced zucchini “coins” in a bowl with sesame oil and seasonings. Bethanne suggested sesame seeds, but I was out of those and instead used an “everything bagel” seasoning blend (sesame seeds, dried onion, dried garlic, salt, and pepper) plus some cayenne powder. Then I laid them out in the dehydrator and dried for 8 hours at 125F. They came out sweet and still soft-textured, which I loved. It’s possible they could get crispier at a higher temperature or for longer drying time, if that’s your preference. Note: Don’t over season! As the zucchini shrinks, the seasoning becomes more concentrated. You can add more seasoning after they’re dried if necessary.

• Don’t have a dehydrator? Here’s a recipe to bake them in your oven.

CSA shareholder Jennifer Amerkhail reminded me of a garlic scape recipe that we published on our blog way back in 2007. She’s been enjoying it every June since then:

• Sauteed garlic scapes by Kristin Carbone. I didn’t have halloumi in my fridge, but I did have a chunk of creamy goat cheese (leftover from that collard recipe from last week), which dissolved into the tomato sauce. It was perfect.

Still have a kohlrabi in your fridge?

• There are lots of recipes for cole slaw out there that use kohlrabi as the main ingredient instead of cabbage. If you’re not a mayonnaise person, consider using a vinaigrette instead. Peel the kohlrabi, cut into matchsticks, combine with ribbons of whichever greens you have on hand, maybe toss with matchsticks of apple or some dried cranberries to add some sweetness, and then add the dressing of your choice. (Here’s some inspiration from chef Bryant Terry if you need it.)

Speaking of Bryant Terry, if you still have some collard peanut pesto from last week, he recommends eating it with grilled or oven-roasted zucchini.

• Roasting zucchini is similar to baking zucchini chips, but you use bigger chunks (try quartering the zucchini lengthwise and then half-inch pieces). Toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper, lay out on a baking sheet (parchment paper makes the cleaning easier) and put in a 400F oven. It needs about 20 minutes to brown up. So easy!

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Coming Soon:

What to Expect from the Rest of June

• Note that we have a week off between weeks 7 and 8. This follows a natural lull as spring crops like greens begin to bitter in the heat and summer crops like tomatoes are still ripening.

• Strawberries will stay on U-Pick until there’s nothing left. They should last through the end of the month.

• Garlic bulbs will begin next week or after the break.

• Onion bulbs will begin after the break.

• We have a purple variety of kohlrabi that has been slow to size up. We hope to harvest it for week 7.

• Kale, collards, and chard next week and continue on U-Pick through the break

• Green cabbages next week

• Squash and cucumbers next week and probably on U-Pick during the break

• Baby melons and fennel after the break

• Beans will continue on U-Pick over the break. We might pick them for shares again once or twice in June and July. Our second planting is growing nicely and about a month away.

• Tomato plants look large and healthy but are slow to produce fruit this year. We usually expect the first ripe tomatoes in your share in mid-July. Fingers crossed!

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Thank you for being our SHAREHOLDERS!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 5 of 26 : Zucchini, Beans, Greens and More

We’ve spent a lot of time in the last few weeks picking garlic scapes. The scapes are the flower buds. When we pick them off, the garlic plant puts more energy into growing a larger bulb. As an added bonus, this harvester/photographer’s laundry room smells like an Italian restaurant. Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• We have removed the mask requirement for vaccinated individuals. If you decide not to wear one, please be extra cautious about maintaining a wide distance between you and other CSA members. Each pickup site has distinct stations (different tables at Dupont and Annapolis; four bench sections at the farm). Please do not step into a station if someone is already there. And if you would like to pause to chat, please step away from the pickup area so others can carry on picking up their share.

Saturday June 19 1:00–4:00 PM

38 North Oysters

 12 ct bag                    $12

24 ct bag                    $20

60 ct bag                    $45

Pick up at Clagett Farm

11904 Old Marlboro Pike

Upper Marlboro, Maryland

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To order

Call 301-872-5051 or email jd@38northoysters.com

by noon on June 18

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• If you’re having as much fun watching and listening to cicadas as we are, you might like to download the Cicada Safari app. You can learn more about the insects and upload photos that will help local scientists understand the distribution of the 3 (!) species of 17-year periodic cicadas. Yay, citizen science!

• We will be taking one week off from harvest at the end of this month, so you will not be getting shares Wednesday June 30, Thursday July 1, or Saturday July 3.

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This Week’s Share:

Green Is Still the Theme

• Summer squash (The term “summer squash” includes squashes we pick when the skins and seeds are young and tender, such as zucchini and yellow squash. In the fall, we hope to give you winter squash, which includes things like butternut, spaghetti, acorn, and kubocha squashes.)

• Various greens (kale, collards, bok choi, lettuce, chard)

• Green onions

• Garlic scapes (A lot; possibly even all you want. And remember, you can push them to the back of your fridge and store them so long that we have no idea if it’s possible for them to go bad.)

• Green beans (Not getting enough in your share? Pick your own! We mean that in a loving way, but we’re also a little exasperated with this particular chore.)

• Kohlrabi, French breakfast radishes, and purple-top turnips (I know we said you’d get kohlrabi last week, but this week we really mean it.)

• Possibly a few beets

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U-Pick:

Strawberries Still Going Strong

Current CSA shareholders should have received an email with a U-Pick map last Friday. If you’d like one but didn’t get it, reply to this email.

In the fields:

• Strawberries (any time, any day, no sign up required; don’t let these gems go to waste!)

• Kale and collards

• Beans (it’s hard for us to keep up with the beans, so you’ll help us a lot by picking them)

In our herb garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese)

• Cutting celery (adds celery flavor to stews and salads)

• Cilantro

• Dill

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage (with edible flowers)

• Sorrel

• Thyme

CSA shareholders are always welcome to pick any flowers on the farm. We’re getting a nice flush of lilies right now.

Growing wild on the farm:

• Mulberries

• Serviceberries

All CSA shareholders may U-Pick any week, as often as you’d like, any daylight hours. CSA shareholders include anyone in the household of the person who paid for the share and any household that split the payment of the share with you.

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Recipes:

Turns Out That Collards Are Delicious

I cooked all four of the following recipes (in one meal!) to compare them and loved them all. Some call for collards, others for kale. I find that the two can be used interchangeably, so I used collards in all of them. Also, whenever the recipe called for garlic, I substituted one scape per clove. The garlic flavor in scapes is a little more delicate than in cloves, so you don’t need to cook them as long. Push the chopped scapes around in hot oil for a minute to infuse the flavor into the oil, and that should be enough before you add the other ingredients.

• Citrus Collards by chef/activist Bryant Terry. This one was my favorite of the four. I added orange zest because it was in the photo (but not the recipe), and it seemed helpful. And if I did it again, I might add fewer raisins.

• Collards Pesto. I’m obviously a big fan of pesto, especially with garlic scapes. What I liked about this pesto variation is that it stays so green because there’s no basil threatening to oxidize and turn black. Also, the peanut flavor is fun and unexpected but not too strong.

• Collards with Miso Butter. I climbed on the miso paste bandwagon during the pandemic and never looked back. Caramelizing it was quick and yummy. I had a hard time incorporating it with so much butter, but it still tasted delicious. If you don’t eat butter, try it with olive oil. The butter here is just a flavor carrier—the miso/mirin/vinegar combo is the star of the show.

• Collards and Goat Cheese by Alice Waters. If you’re looking for local cheese from pasture-raised animals, goat cheese is the easiest and cheapest to find. I like its strong, bright flavor, which is highlighted in this very simple recipe.

• This is not a recipe but a quick hint for freezing greens, which I’m including here since they’re on U-Pick and you might want to stock up! Plus, most of the recipes above call for blanching greens in boiling water, so you might as well blanch some extra for the freezer while you have the water boiling.

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Coming Soon:

Our Crystal Ball Says…

• Strawberries will stay on the U-Pick list for several more weeks.

• Cucumbers begin week 7?

• Garlic scapes, one more week

• Green onions several more weeks

• Kohlrabi, two more weeks

• Kale, collards, and chard continue until July

• Beets next week

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Thank you for being our SHAREHOLDERs!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 4 of 26 : U-Pick Greens!

This lacinato kale is now open for U-Pick. We planted these rows between beds of clover that were seeded in 2020. If you were a shareholder last year, you might have seen the clover growing between rows of zucchini and onions. The clover protects the soil and provides habitat and nectar for beneficial insects. Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• In recognition of Juneteenth, we invite all our CSA shareholders to celebrate on the farm. Please use this as your space—there’s a lot of space for picnics here!

• If you purchased a 26-week share, remember that you may take two shares at any time to make up for weeks that you have missed.

• No matter which pickup day you selected, you are welcome to pick up at the farm on Saturday (1:00–4:00 p.m.) or Wednesday (3:00–7:00 p.m.) any week, without advanced notice.

• Please continue to wear a mask while you are picking up your CSA share. Some shareholders with compromised immune systems are more comfortable when the people standing near them are masked. Thank you for your patience! If you do not wish to wear a mask, a staff person can pack your share for you.

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This Week’s Share:

Zucchini and Garlic Scapes Join the Party

• Zucchini (1 or 2 small ones)

• Various greens (Chinese cabbage, lettuce, kale, collards, bok choi, spicy mix, arugula — choices and amounts TBD)

• Green onions (1 bunch)

• Garlic scapes (these are the flower buds of the garlic plant; chop fine and use them as you would garlic cloves)

• Green beans (likely an option in a category with zucchini or greens)

• Kohlrabi, French breakfast radishes, and purple-top turnips

• We’ll see how much time we have to pick your strawberries. Please come pick some for yourselves!

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U-Pick:

Sign Up No Longer Required

CSA shareholders may now U-Pick without signing up in advance!

In the fields:

• Strawberries are abundant! — You may pick as much as you’d like any day of the week, but we are limiting the following two days to these times:

  • Wednesday 3:00 p.m. until dark

  • Saturday 1:00 p.m. until dark

• Kale and collards

In our herb garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor; makes a nice tea)

• Basil (Genovese)

• Cutting celery (adds celery flavor to stews and salads)

• Cilantro

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage (with edible flowers)

• Sorrel

• Thyme

CSA shareholders are always welcome to pick any flowers on the farm. We have a few beginning to bloom in the flower garden behind the washing station.

Growing wild on the farm:

• Mulberries — Most of our mulberries are ripe when they are black and fall easily from the tree. The most efficient harvesting technique with tall trees is to lay a sheet on the ground and shake the branches so the ripe berries drop. There are mulberries growing all around the farm. Look for the ripe berries on the ground and you’ll see the tree above you.

• Serviceberry — This is a native shrub. In addition to the one growing in front of the washing station, you might see them in your neighborhood. Fruit are ripe when they are dark purple.

All CSA shareholders may U-Pick any week, as often as you’d like. CSA shareholders include anyone in the household of the person who paid for the share and any household that split the payment of the share with you.

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Recipes:

Garlic Scape and Salad Ideas

This week I’m just passing along some links:

• If you’ve been a shareholder for a while, you know that garlic scapes make a divine pesto. Here’s two variations on that theme. Both include parmesan cheese, but if you are non-dairy, you can replace with some nutritional yeast and it is still terrific.

  • With basil (now on U-Pick, by the way): NY Times Garlic Scape Pesto

  • Without basil: Dorie Greenspan’s Garlic Scape and Almond Pesto

• In case you’re in a salad rut, I enjoyed this recipe with Chinese cabbage and kale cut into thin ribbons, but any sturdy greens would have worked. (Also, I replaced the mandarin oranges with the fruit I happened to have on hand—serviceberries and mulberries, although truthfully, citrus probably would have been a better compliment.)

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Coming Soon:

Strawberries continue if you’re Picking

Hooray for soaking rain! The tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants should respond nicely. Big thanks to the four stalwart harvesters—Jared, Elissa, John, and Alex—who picked to exhaustion in the rain all day Saturday.

• Strawberries will be u-pick only, peaking now and continuing (declining slowly) for several more weeks

• Soon, yellow squash and cucumbers will be added to the zucchini

• The rest of June will look a lot like this week, but with a gradual decline in salad greens and an in squash and beans.

• Garlic scapes, 1-2 more weeks

• Green onions (aka scallions) through the end of the month

• French breakfast radishes, 1 more week

• Kohlrabi, 2 more weeks

• Purple-top turnips, 1-2 more weeks

• Bok choi, 1 more week

• Kale, collards, and chard continue until July

• Beets in weeks 5 or 6

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Thank you for being our SHAREHOLDERs!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 3 of 26 : U-Pick Strawberries Beginning Wednesday 3:00pm

CSA pickup at Dupont last week. Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

• If you’d like to purchase oysters for pickup in Annapolis on Thursday, the deadline is NOON TOMORROW, May 26. Order here. Be sure to select Local Delivery for your shipment method and write “CBF EVENT” in the notes. Otherwise your oysters will be waiting for you three hours away in Salisbury, MD.

• Our next opportunity to purchase oysters will be at Clagett Farm in Upper Marlboro on June 19. Stay tuned for details on how to order.

• Please continue to wear a mask while you are picking up your CSA share. Some of our members (such as young children) cannot be vaccinated, and some need to take extra health precautions. Outside of the pickup area or other spots where we are closely congregated, you do not need to wear a mask. Thank you for your patience!

• Don’t forget to bring back your empty seedling pots! We’ll reuse them for next year’s seedlings.

• We’ve sold out of CSA shares for 2021! Thank you—we’re grateful for all of you!

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This Week’s Share:

Greens Still Going Strong

• Strawberries (1 pint)

• Chinese cabbage (aka Napa cabbage, 1 head)

• Other greens (kale, collards, chard, bok choi, yukina savoy, possibly spicy mix or arugula — choices and amounts TBD)

• Green garlic (a half dozen or so)

• Green beans (this week or next)

• Hakurei turnips

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U-Pick:

Strawberries, Herbs, Mulberries, Flowers

We will open strawberries for U-Pick at 3:00 p.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, May 25. You must sign up for a slot. U-Pick is open to all CSA members. Strawberry U-Pick is limited to Wednesday 3:00 p.m.–Thursday 8:00 p.m. and Saturday 1:00 p.m.–Monday 8:00 p.m. This gives a few days for berries to ripen before we harvest for your CSA shares.

In our herb garden behind the washing station:

• Anise hyssop (licorice flavor, makes a nice tea)

• Cutting celery (adds celery flavor to stews and salads)

• Cilantro

• Garlic chives

• Onion chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage (with edible flowers)

• Sorrel

• Thyme

CSA members are always welcome to pick any flowers on the farm. We have a few beginning to bloom in the flower garden behind the washing station.

Growing wild on the farm:

• Mulberries (Most of our mulberries are ripe when they are black and fall easily from the tree. The most efficient harvesting technique with tall trees is to lay a sheet on the ground and shake the branches so the ripe berries drop. There are mulberries growing all around the farm. Look for the ripe berries on the ground and you’ll see the tree above you.)

• Serviceberry (This is a native shrub. In addition to the one growing in front of the washing station, you might see them in your neighborhood. Fruit are ripe when they are dark purple.)

All CSA members may U-Pick any week, as often as you’d like, as long as you sign up first. CSA members include anyone in the household of the person who paid for the share and any household that split the payment of the share with you.

---

Recipes:

Chinese Cabbage

Many people find Chinese cabbage (also known as Napa cabbage) intimidating because it’s large and unfamiliar. To beat this hesitation, try chopping it into bite-sized pieces right away and storing it in a big salad clamshell or ziploc bag. Then you’ll be more likely to toss it into your salad when you’re hungry and in a rush.

DUMPLINGS:

If you’ve never tried making dumplings, it’s easier than you think. It’s also a fun project with kids. Wonton wrappers are easy to find in most grocery stores in the same refrigerated area where you would find tofu. The filling cooks up quickly, and they can be pan fried or boiled. These filling recipes come from Peter Chang. The first is for vegetarians, the second for meat-eaters.

Vegetarian Filling

• 1000 grams of Chinese cabbage

• 150 grams of fresh mushrooms

• 15 grams of salt

• 8 grams of ginger (finely minced)

• 30 grams of green onions (finely minced)

• 40 grams of sesame oil

  Cut fresh mushrooms into fine pieces, mince the ginger, and mince the green onions. Wash the Shanghai cabbage, and quickly blanch it in hot water for two minutes. Remove it and rinse with cold water to dry. Then chop it into fine granules, wrap it in gauze, and press out the water by adding weight on the top of the wrapped gauze. Take it out after two hours, pour it into a plate, add the mushrooms, salt, minced ginger, and minced green onion, mix well, and then add sesame oil.

Meat Filling:

• 450 grams ground pork (or any meat)

• 450 grams Chinese cabbage (finely chopped soybean size)

• 20 grams soy sauce

• 5 grams salt

• 15 grams ginger (finely minced)

• 30 grams green onion (finely minced)

• 5 grams white pepper

• 30 grams sesame oil

Cut the Chinese cabbage into small, bite-sized pieces and set aside. Mince ginger and mince green onions. Add salt, soy sauce, and minced ginger to the ground pork, stirring constantly, then add the diced cabbage several times and stir while adding it. When the diced cabbage is added, add white pepper, sesame oil, and chopped green onion and mix well.

To make dumplings:

Moisten the edges of a dumpling wrapper, set a small spoonful of filling in the center, then fold the wrapper and crimp the edges. To boil them, drop them in boiling water for about 5 minutes. If you prefer to pan-fry them, set them in a hot pan and fill the pan with water and a tablespoon or two of oil to about half-way up the dumplings. Boil away the water and allow the dumplings to brown.

Dipping sauce:

• 2/3 Black vinegar (available at Chinese grocery stores; if you haven’t tried it, you should—it’s a lovely vinegar. You can substitute with balsamic if needed.)

• 1/3 soy sauce

• Sugar, green onion, ginger to taste

CHINESE NOODLE SOUP WITH CABBAGE:

From Serving Up the Harvest, by Andrea Chesman

Ingredients:

• 8 cups chicken broth (or substitute vegetable broth)

• 1/4 cup soy sauce (or less if your broth is salted)

• 1 Tablespoon Chinese rice wine or sherry

• 6-12 dried wood ear mushrooms, chopped if large

• 2 Tablespoons minced fresh ginger

• 3 green garlics, finely chopped

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 3/4 pound Chinese egg noodles

• 1 Tablespoon dark sesame oil

• 2 cups chopped cooked chicken or 1 pound firm tofu, cubed

• 4-6 cups chopped Chinese cabbage (or a mix with other greens such as bok choi)

• 1 carrot, julienned

• Chinese chili paste with garlic (optional)

Instructions:

• Combine the broth, soy sauce, rice wine, mushrooms, ginger and garlic in a large saucepan. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 25 minutes.

• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and sesame oil and cook until the noodles are just barely tender. Drain well and return the noodles to the pot to keep warm.

• Add the chicken or tofu, cabbage, and carrots to the broth and simmer for another 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender.

• To serve, place a nest of noodles in each bowl. Ladle the broth, vegetables and chicken/tofu over the noodles and serve hot, passing the chili paste at the table for those who like a little spice.

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Coming Soon:

Squash, Beans, more Greens

We got a little rain yesterday, but we’re still quite dry. Last week’s dry weather slowed down a few crops. We’re glad to see some significant rain in the forecast.

• Summer squash (mostly zucchini) begins in week 4 or 5

• Green beans from our greenhouse begin week 4 (Some plants are fruiting much sooner than others, so it’s been hard to gauge when you’ll see them. This is the first time we’ve grown beans in the greenhouse.)

• Garlic scapes, weeks 4 and 5

• French breakfast radishes, weeks 4 and 5

• Kohlrabi, weeks 4 to 6

• Purple-top turnips, weeks 4 and 5

• Continuing for several more weeks: strawberries, kale, collards, bok choi, and chard

• One more week of Chinese cabbage

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Thank you for being our members!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 2 of 26 : STRAWBERRIES

CBF Educator Kris Belessis returns for the day to help the farm team plant a field of peppers. We use rye straw as a mulch to prevent weeds, retain moisture, protect the soil from erosion, and feed our soil microbes. That dead grass is doing important work! Photo by Carrie Vaughn.

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│ Announcements │ This Week’s Share │ U-Pick │ Recipe │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

Oysters and Flowers

ANNAPOLIS OYSTER SALE

You can order oysters for pickup with your share in Annapolis on May 27! Eating farmed oysters is unambiguously great for the environment. Oysters spend their lives clarifying the Chesapeake Bay (leaving the sediment and pollution on the Bay floor), and by purchasing them, you are helping watermen grow more. Order online by noon May 26.

**IMPORTANT: When checking out, choose Local Delivery for your shipment method and please write “CBF EVENT” in the Notes section at the bottom of the page.

ORDER HERE

• If you were a shareholder last year, you might have seen some of Bahiyyah’s gorgeous flower bouquets. You can purchase a subscription here and get them every week at any of our CSA pickups! We might also have a bouquet or two for sale on the spot, so keep some cash in your car just in case.

• If you’re picking up your share at Clagett Farm, please wear masks inside the washing station. Some of our members are at greater risk of illness from COVID-19 and will not feel safe if everyone is not masked. Let’s make sure everyone feels welcome!

• You no longer need to wear masks when you are U-Picking at a distance from others in the field. Please keep your mask handy in the herb garden during pickup hours in case people are picking near you.

• Last week you received a couple seedlings from us. We’ll take those pots back when you’re finished to reuse next year. Thanks!

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This Week’s Share:

Greens, Garlic, Roots, and Strawberries

Because we’re sending this email to you on Tuesday, rather than after we harvest on Wednesday, we can’t tell you yet what quantities you’ll get of each item or what choices you might have. Hopefully getting the information early will make up for the lack of specificity.

• Strawberries (small container)

• Lettuce (bag with a few small heads)

• Kale and/or collards (small bag)

• Green garlic (a robust handful)

• Pink Beauty radishes (a few)

• Hakurei turnips (these are in their prime right now – try slicing raw into your salad)

• We’re not sure yet if you’ll also have other greens options or another seedling

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U-Pick:

Spring Herbs

In our herb garden behind the washing station:

• Cutting celery

• Onion chives with edible flowers (the flowers have a strong onion flavor – try breaking them apart and sprinkling into your salad)

• Garlic chives

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage

• Sorrel

• Thyme

Growing wild on the farm:

• Stinging nettle

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Recipe:

Green Garlic Salad Dressing

Instructions

• In a blender, pulse the chopped garlic into small pieces.

• Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.

• Taste and adjust ingredients to your liking.

• Makes about one cup dressing.

Ingredients

• 2 stalks green garlic, roughly chopped (trim off the roots and yellow bits)

• ½ cup olive oil

• 2 tablespoons vinegar (try apple cider or champagne)

• 1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard

• Honey to taste (try a tablespoon)

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

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Coming Soon:

Our Educated Guess of What You’ll See in the Next Week or Two

• Summer squash (mostly zucchini) begins in week 3 or 4

• Green beans from our greenhouse beginning week 3 or 4

• Garlic scapes, weeks 4 and 5

• French breakfast radishes, weeks 3 and 4

• Bok choi, weeks 4 and 5

• Kohlrabi, weeks 4 to 6

• Continuing for several more weeks: strawberries, lettuce, turnips (Hakurei will transition to Purple-top), kale, collards, and various salad greens.

• We hope to have strawberries available for U-Pick very soon! Also coming soon to U-Pick—cilantro, dill, basil, and flowers.

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Thank you for being our members!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

Week 1 of 26 : The first harvest of 2021!

Pea shoots, ready for harvest. Photo by Carrie Vaughn

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Announcements │ This Weeks Share │ Field Report │ Recipe

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Announcements:

we’re excited to see you!

• We know there has been some trouble getting the emails to everyone. If you can’t find our email in your inbox, check out the blog, where we’ll be posting the weekly updates.

• We haven’t set up the online U-Pick signups yet. If you’d like to pick herbs, please go right ahead. The herb garden is behind the washing station. Please be mindful not to get too close to other members, and if it’s a busy time, try not to linger too long where others might also want to be picking. We’ll have online sign ups ready in time for strawberries.

• We all know how easy it is to forget to bring bags for picking up your share. Try putting some grocery bags and a mask in your car NOW while you’re thinking about it.

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This Week’s Share:

tender spring greens and more

• A choice of 2 bags of 1/4 pound greens, pre-bagged: spinach, arugula, pea shoots, spicy mix (a blend of baby Asian mustards that vary from very mild to a hint of horseradish), lettuce (small heads of green red oakleaf and green butterhead), tat soi (small heads with delicious florets) and kale

• A handful Green garlic (these are immature garlic plants; they look like onion scallions but carriy a strong garlic taste; you can eat both the green and white parts)

• A couple Radishes or a Hakurei turnip (it’s a perfect amount for your salad!)

• 2 Seedlings for you to plant in your garden or in containers for your window:

  • Tomatoes: Mushroom Basket, Dr. Wyche’s, Ozark Pink

  • Basil

  • Cucumbers

  • Green oakleaf lettuce

  • Edible flowers: calendula, hibiscus and nasturtium

  • Peacework bell peppers

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Field Report:

light, intermittent rain = happy plants

We’ve been delighted by the recent rain. We’ve had just enough dry weather to get your crops in the ground, and just enough rain to keep the new plants happy. Some recent plantings—melons, summer squash, cucumbers and tomatoes!

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Recipe:

Green garlic hummus

This recipe comes from your fellow CSA member, Sandra Hamorsky. It’s a real crowd-pleaser! It works well as a dip or in place of mayonnaise in a sandwich. Makes about 2 cups.

Ingredients

• 2-3 green garlics

• 2 cans chick peas (26 oz total)

• 1 Tablespoon tahini, or more

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil, or more

• ½ lemon, or more

Instructions

• Trim trim off the roots and top edges of the green garlic; cut two stalks into a 2-inch pieces

• Start the blender blades, remove the opening at the top of the lid and toss the garlic pieces onto the spinning blades through the hole in the lid until they're chopped fine.

• Stop the blender. Add one can of chick peas AND their liquid. Blend until smooth. Taste.

• Add about 1 Tablespoon Tahini and about 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil (this doesn't need to be exact--eyeball it). Add the tahini when the blender is off and pour the olive oil into the blender while it's spinning to help with smoothness. Blend until smooth. Taste.

• Drain the second can of chick peas but KEEP the liquid separate. Add the chick peas and blend until smooth. The hummus will be getting thick at this point. Scrape down the slides of the blender, squeeze half the lemon and add the juice. Add about 1 teaspoon of salt, then blend, adding either chick pea liquid or olive oil through the hole in the top of the lid onto the spinning blades until the hummus blends smoothly. Taste.

• Seem bland? Add a little more more green garlic (spicy) and tahini (kind of smoky).

• Seem dull? Add a little more lemon juice.

• Seem flat? Add a little more salt.

• This hummus should be light green, garlicky and bright tasting.

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Thank you for being our members!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

This Week — A Preview

Lettuce seedlings, photo by Elissa Planz

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│ Announcements │ This Weeks Share │ U-Pick │ Coming Soon │

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Announcements:

YES, THE FIRST CSA SHARE IS THIS WEEK!

• You’ll receive an email from us on Wednesday around 2:00pm, letting you know what is in your CSA share this week. In case you’re as excited as we are, below is our best estimate of what to expect.

• Like most years, the first weeks are smaller than most. Enjoy these early weeks for the delicious salad greens!

• Did you miss our last email answering all your pressing questions about how to pick up your CSA share, when and where to go, and what to do if you skip a week? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

• Love flowers? We’re partnering with EcoBlossoms Farm again this year! Sign up for weekly bouquets for pickup with your Clagett CSA share.

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This Week’s Share:

tender spring greens, garlic & seedlings

• A choice of salad greens: spinach, arugula, pea shoots and possibly spicy mix (a blend of baby Asian mustards that vary from very mild to a hint of horseradish)

• Small heads of lettuce

• Small heads of tat soi (a rosette of dark-green, spoon-shaped leaves that have a mild flavor good for salad or quick stir fry)

• Tender, young kale

• Green garlic (the immature garlic plant; it looks like an onion scallion but carries a strong garlic taste; you can eat both the green and white parts)

• A few radishes

• 2 seedlings for you to plant in your garden or in containers for your window, including tomatoes, basil, cucumbers, lettuce, calendula, hibiscus and nasturtium

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U-PICK:

‘tis the season for green herbs

• Onion chives with edible flowers

• Garlic chives

• Cutting celery

• Lemon balm

• Mint

• Oregano

• Sage

• Sorrel

• Thyme

• Growing wild on the farm: stinging nettle (wear gloves to harvest!)

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coming soon:

what to expect in week #2

• Strawberries! We expect to have 3-4 weeks of strawberries, and we’re estimating Week 2 for our first harvest (not a guarantee!)

• Salad greens - expect one more week of tat soi and several more weeks of head lettuce

• Kale - we have a healthy crop of both kale and collards, so you’ll see several varieties weekly until about mid-June

• Green garlic - one more week of these, and then you should start seeing garlic scapes

• Hakurei turnips - these are a sweet, white Japanese variety that we love to eat raw. You’ll get them for a couple weeks, as well as some radishes and later purple-top turnips

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Thank you for being our members!

CLAGETT FARM

Wednesdays, 3:00-7:00 P.M.
Saturdays, 1:00-4:00 P.M.

DUPONT CIRCLE DC

Wednesdays, 5:00-7:00 P.M.

ANNAPOLIS

Thursdays, 4:00-6:00 P.M.

2020 - your thoughts about the farm season and ours

For all that has been going wrong in the world, we are grateful that in 2020 our farm season went remarkably well.  In mid-March we wondered how we could get everything planted without interacting with each other in the field, and how we would give you your vegetables if you weren’t allowed to pick them up.  How would we keep the farm running if we all got sick at once?   

We switched our distribution to pre-bagging your shares, which was a lot of extra labor for us and less choice for you, but as far as we know, no one on the farm contracted Covid-19!  What a blessing.  And we made up for the lack of volunteers and seasonal hires with help from a dozen Chesapeake Bay Foundation staff who never thought their job descriptions would include farming. Phew!  Our yield was about average (62,475 pounds), which is pretty fantastic, all things considered.  It certainly helped that the weather through 2020 was wonderful.   

We have reviewed your survey responses and met together as staff.  As always, we are happy for you toread the complete survey results.  Here’s a few of the questions and comments that came up, and our responses.   

Overall 

Your satisfaction with your CSA share was 8.9 out of 10, and 97% of you would recommend our CSA, which we take as a big vote of confidence.  We received many, many messages of thanks and encouragement, and our hearts are full!  Thank YOU!   

To bag or not to bag  

If Covid were not an issue, most of you would prefer to weigh your own vegetables in order to have more control over the what ends up in your bag.  But if Covid remains at the current threat level, most of you would prefer to get your share pre-bagged and brought to your car.  The problem is, pre-bagging shares takes too much of our time, and it keeps us from getting other field work done.  In 2019, our work week was 2 days harvesting & distributing + 3 days field work.  In 2020, it was 2 days harvesting, 2 days packing & distributing, and 1 day field work.  There’s no way we can continue that in 2021.   

Most likely we’ll ask you to collect your vegetables in a staff-assisted buffet line of sorts, where we handle the vegetables and your bag is packed while you watch.  But a lot can change between now and May, so we won’t know for sure until harvest time is upon us.   

Note that only 4% of you liked the idea of limiting the pick-up window to 30 minutes to avoid waiting in line, so 96% of you will be glad to hear we’ve taken that option off the table.   

U-Pick 

More of you prefer to sign up in advance for u-pick than to come at will and risk a crowded field.  But we agree with the multiple comments that the on-line sign up was cumbersome.  We’ll be looking for a platform that we like better.  If you have one you like that’s cheap, let us know.     

E-mails 

We made an extra effort this year to boost the information in the weekly e-mails, since we wouldn’t have as many face-to-face interactions.  We heard that you appreciated the recipes and hearing about the farm.  Many of you who picked up on Wednesdays wished the emails were earlier and more accurate.  Unfortunately, if they are earlier, they will be less accurate.  It’s a perennial problem.  We’ll do our best.   

Crops you love and hate 

The big favorite crop this year was TOMATOES by a comfortable lead.  Also favored were strawberries, kale/collards, and garlic (in all its forms).  Honorable mentions are peppers (sweets and green bells), winter squash, spicy salad mix and summer squash.   

Your least favorite crops were okra and turnips.  Other frequent dislikes were eggplant, radishes and kohlrabi.   

Your comments 

Here’s just a taste of the comments we received, since there were too many to list them all… 

“I was over the moon satisfied with my share this year and plan on buying a full one next year.” 

“This was an awesome experience as a first time CSA member. I hope I can get to know the community more next time!” 

“Having fresh organic, sustainably grown produce from the farm was a bright light in this awful year of covid. You all literally kept me alive. Thank you!” 

“Other years, to avoid wasting food I only get what I know I'll eat. With prepackaged shares I ended up composting produce I don't like. I hope next year we have better customization for our shares so I can leave things I don't eat for others.” 

“I missed regular u pick so much this year!  Of course, I understand your thinking, but I felt COMPLETELY safe the times I signed up to come out, and for those of us who live in city apartments, especially now, being at the farm is just wonderful.  Thank you for whatever you can do to allow visits next year.” 

“Our household doesn't like eggplant. We've prepared it many different ways (and I used to be a vegan) and no matter what we do we do not enjoy it. It would be nice to be able to have the option to sub sometimes.” 

“After a few years of melons and corn, my opinion is they are not very good. Melons aren’t sweet and corn is often buggy. I’d prefer you grow something else that tastes better. Would love to see more mushrooms, asparagus if possible. Overall, I am still very happy with my shares, and congratulate you on managing to distribute shares so well and so cheerfully this year.” 

“Paper bags may be eco-friendly, but are not compatible with wet or damp produce.  You all did a fantastic job coping with extraordinary conditions!” 

“The road maybe needs to be 1-way.  It was very challenging to exit onto Ritchie-Marlboro and meet incoming cars!” 

“I did think it was odd to receive to small turnips or radishes.  Not much you can do with something like that.  Not even a serving for one.” 

“If you have to operate the same way in 2021 with Covid (your employees have to pre-bag our veggies), I continue to be concerned at how much extra work that is for your employees. Therefore, I think you need to increase the cost of the Share.” 

“Thank you so much for all of your hard work!!  No one complained at all when I asked to remove items from my share.  What a terrific group of volunteers.  The produce was beautiful and tasted so fresh.  See you next year!” 

Conclusion 

This year was a wild ride.  During all of the turbulence of 2020, the one thing that stood out to us most was the importance of community. We learned that in difficult times the most important resource that we have is each other. We learned how to adapt together throughout this crisis to continue something that we feel is truly vital, getting healthy food into your homes. Each and every one of us had to make sacrifices and changes throughout the year, yet together we made it.  

As we continue into 2021, we strive to remember these lessons.  We know that whatever the future brings we will face these challenges together and we will become stronger and more resilient than ever.  

Posted at 04:43 PM | Permalink 

Last Week of Vegetables!

We have questions for you...
 

Announcements

• It's survey time! This survey is for CSA members only (plus our few regular volunteers this year). We want your general impressions of the CSA share this year, and we also have a few specific questions about how to distribute your veggies going forward in the event that Covid is still a threat in the 2021 season. All your thoughts are welcome and the survey is anonymous. The deadline to complete the survey is November 30th, after which we'll send you the results.

• We're now taking wreath orders! Again this year, we'll be handmaking holiday wreaths for your door, your family's doors, friends, colleagues, doctor's office... It's a great gift! There are two pick-up days: December 5th at the farm and December 10th in Annapolis. The deadline to order will be 2 days before the pick-up day (or sooner if we sell out).

• Dupont members: it's forecast to rain all evening, so we're pre-bagging your shares and limiting the vegetable options to keep the pick-up moving as quickly as possible. We don't want people standing in line in the rain. We have a tent and lights. We recommend bringing an umbrella.

• This is the last week of our harvest season. We'll miss you! In a few weeks we'll be sending you an invitation to purchase a CSA share for 2021. We expect the shares to sell out early this year, so we're opening sales to returning members first. Make sure you sign up in that early window. We'll be charging a $50 non-refundable deposit to sign up, and you'll have until March 30 to make the rest of the purchase. When we send you the sign-up information, we'll also fill you in on any changes we plan to make to the pick-ups. Your survey responses will help guide those decisions.

This week's share

• Garlic, 6 ounces loose cloves

• 1 Butternut (some pick-ups will also have the option of sweet potatoes or a small cabbage head)

• Bok choi or tat soi (some pick-ups might instead be able to choose a turnip)

• Greens, a 6-ounce bag of spicy mix, collards or kale

• 3-4 Peppers

• 2 French breakfast radishes

• Optional: a bag of hot chilies (jalapeno, serrano and cayenne)

2020 has been a wild ride, my friends.  We're so, so grateful to serve such a supportive community of wonderful people.  We have high hopes for the future--for a food system that makes healthy vegetables available to everyone, that builds healthy soils, sequesters carbon, keeps our waterways clean, and pays the laborers a living wage.  We think we've found a pretty marvelous way to put those values into action, and this year made that clearer than ever.  Have a wonderful, wonderful winter, and you'll hear from us again soon!

The entire Clagett Farm Team,
Michael Heller, Clagett Farm Manager
Carrie Vaughn, Vegetable Production Manager
Jared Planz, Asistant Vegetable Production Manager
Dave Vernon, Assistant to the Farm Manager
Elissa Planz, Clagett Farm and Annapolis Pick-Up Manager,
Alex Outten, Matt Pombuena, David Tana, a dozen CBF educators, a dozen regular volunteers, and all the staff at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation that support us behind the scenes.

Week 25 of 26: Almost to the finish line

This week's share

• garlic cloves, a tight handful

• sweet potatoes, 1 anxious, sleepless pound and 6 ounces

• eggplant, half pound--can't seem to unite with the other half

• peppers, half pound--ripe & sweet? green? stay tuned...

• cabbage, one small head with a furrowed brow and clenched teeth

• lettuce, a few small heads, one green, one red (or maybe its purple, or maybe 2 green)

• you can make this decision all on your own: purple top turnip or head of bok choi

• optional bag of chilies: we said they would burn, but does anyone care?

Announcements

• Next week is our last week of shares! You can take a maximum of 2 shares at one time to make up for missed shares. Next week will have loose garlic cloves, a butternut, peppers, tat soi, collards, and either kale or mixed salad greens.

• One thing you can eat that is unequivocally good for the environment: Chesapeake Bay farmed OYSTERS. Order them now for pick up at the farm on Saturday November 14th. There will be another opportunity in Annapolis on November 24th, details to come.

• Ever seen bulldozers clearing a large, mature forest for a development no one wants, and yet your sound and fury signify nothing because the decision is already made? You should attend this webinar tomorrow: Before the Bulldozers. Learn how to make your voice heard early enough to have an impact.

• Garlic is sold out

Wishing we grew chocolate,
Carrie About-to-have-an-Aneurism Vaughn

Week 24 of 26: Sweet potatoes make an appearance

Have you noticed the tall plants with yellow flowers in some of our fields?  It's called sunn hemp, and we grow it along with sudan grass for a thick, carbon-rich cover crop to feed our soil.  Sunn hemp isn't related to cannabis.  It gets that name because of its strong, fibrous stalks.  It's actually related to peas and beans, and like them, has bacteria on its roots that gather nitrogen from the air and make it usable to plants. This is how we grow our own fertilizer.  

Announcements

• U-picking is still going on for herbs and any flowers you can find around farm (all by wash station, and some extra striped marigolds over by the where the sunflowers were in G2). We have a nice amount of parsley and cilantro, in addition to many of the other herbs we have mentioned in the past. We might have a frost this weekend, so if you're planning to pick any basil, this might be your last chance.

• The deadline to order fresh, Bay-friendly oysters has passed for the Annapolis pick up on October 29th, but you can order oysters now for pick up at the farm on November 14th! There will also be another chance to pick up oysters in Annapolis--just before Thanksgiving on 11/24. Details coming soon.

• We're still selling garlic!
  For CSA members, the prices are $8/lb or a discounted $6/lb for purchases of at least 10 pounds.
  Non-members pay $12/pound or $8/pound for 10 pounds or more.
  If you're purchasing more than 10 pounds for pick up at Dupont or Annapolis, please give us at least one day advanced notice so we can be sure to get it in the van for you.
  All the options are available for on-line purchase now. We do not ship or deliver, except to our CSA pick-ups.

• It is Week 24 which means after this week, we only have 2 more weeks of shares! Your final week of shares is November 11, 12 and 14.

• Don't forget that you cannot take more than 2 shares at a time. We can tell you at the pick-up how many you have remaining to use up.

• We can still use extra help in the fields with harvesting and other field work, any day, Tuesdays through Saturdays. Call 301-627-4662 to sign up.

This week's share

• 2 heads garlic

• 1.25 pounds sweet potatoes (some of them look pretty funny but they're still delicious!)

• 1 daikon radish

• 1 purple-top turnip

• 1 large head bok choi

• 1/2 pound eggplant

• 1.5 pounds peppers (mostly green)

• Choose 6 ounces of greens from a selection of options (including spicy mix and collards)

• Optional: 8 ounces of a mild or hot blend of chilies

Note that sweet potatoes store best with their dirt on.  If you don't find the dust a nuisance, wait until you're ready to cook them before you wash them.

Recipes

• Sweet Potato Oven Fries

  • Ingredients:
    Sweet Potatoes
    Olive Oil
    Coconut oil (optional)
    Salt

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice up however many sweet potatoes you want about a 1/4" wide, for them to be similar thickness, for even cooking. Toss in a bowl, with enough olive oil to coat, and a little salt.
    If you have coconut oil, I like to put a tablespoon or two on a baking sheet and set it in the oven for a minute to melt. Then spread the oil around the pan for a good coating. You could oil the pan with another high heat oil. I think the oil on the bottom gets them to brown better.
    Spread the sweet potatoes across the pan so none are piled on top of each other, and each has good contact with the pan. Cover the pan with tin foil. Put in the oven and bake until sweet potatoes are tender, about a 1/2 hr.
    Then remove the foil, and put the pan back in the oven to brown. Don’t stir, as this will mess up the browning. Scope the fries out periodically as they bake until you get the level of browning you want

• Baked Tofu with Peanut Sauce and Bok Choi from the Washington Post

• Bok Choi Salad

  • Dressing ingredients:

    • 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar

    • 1/2 cup sugar

    • 2/3 cup combination olive oil and toasted sesame oil, to your preference

    • 2 tablespoons soy sauce

    • a minced chili

    • If you have a flavor packet with your package of ramen (below), you can use it in place of some of the seasoning in this dressing).

  • Salad ingredients:

    • 1 head bok choi, chopped

    • 1 bunch green onions or chives, chopped (we have chives in the herb garden for u-pick)

    • 1 package ramen noodles

    • 4-8 oz slivered or sliced almonds

    • 1 tablespoon butter

  • Instructions:

    • Mix dressing ingredients and set aside (using a blender will thicken the dressing).

    • Chop bok choi and chives or green onions. Mix with dressing.

    • Crush ramen noodles. Mix with almonds and butter and brown in skillet. Use as a garnish on top of the salad.

    • Serve immediately.

Coming Soon

The forecast for this coming weekend is for a possible frost, so we're busy picking all the remaining peppers and eggplant.  We think we'll have more sweet potatoes, but they will be smaller and skinnier, like fat fingers.  This is the last week for daikon radishes.  We have one more butternut to give everyone, which we're saving for next week.  And we should have bok choi, salad greens, kale, collards, purple top turnips and garlic through to the last week.  


By this time next week election day will have passed!  May we all breathe a sigh of relief when it is over.  
The Clagett Farm Team

Week 23: Coming back to our roots. Big ones.

Sheep loving this fall weather, maybe even more than we are....maybe.
 

Announcements

• U-picking is still going on for herbs and any flowers you can find around farm (all by wash station, and some extra striped marigolds over by the where the sunflowers were in G2)

• Dupont members, many of you didn't get garlic in your share last week. Remind Carrie at your next pick up and we'll give you the missed garlic. Sorry!

• Don't forget about the oyster pop-up in Annapolis on October 29th. The deadline for ordering is Monday (10/26). And we'll have one on the farm on November 14th (details for that location coming later).

• We're still selling garlic!!!
  For CSA members, the prices are $8/lb or a discounted $6/lb for purchases of at least 10 pounds.
  Non-members pay $12/pound or $8/pound for 10 pounds or more.
  If you're purchasing more than 10 pounds for pick up at Dupont or Annapolis, please give us at least one day advanced notice so we can be sure to get it in the van for you.
  All the options are available for on-line purchase now. We do not ship or deliver, except to our CSA pick-ups.

• It is Week 23 which means after this week, we only have 3 more weeks of shares! The season is coming to a close and we hope to leave you with your fill of greens, winter squash, radishes and turnips. We are planning on digging up those small sweet potatoes soon as well for possibly Week 25.

• Concerned about how to store your winter squash? Here's the trick: do absolutely nothing. That's right, you can use it as a door stop or bookend or festive table display. And then 3 months from now, when you're thinking about how great it was to have a farm that grew vegetables for you, you can cook it and eat it. So easy!

• Your final week of shares is November 11, 12 and 14. Don't forget that you cannot take more than 2 shares at a time. We can tell you at the pick-up how many you have remaining to use up.

• We can still use extra help in the fields with harvesting and other field work, any day, Tuesdays through Saturdays. Call 301-627-4662 to sign up.
  
  

This week's share

• 2 heads garlic

• 1 winter squash (butternut)

• 1 daikon radish

• 1 watermelon radish

• 1 large head bok choi

• 1-3 eggplants (about a pound)

• 3/4 pounds peppers

• a few small French breakfast radishes

• Choose 6 ounces of greens from a selection of options (including spicy mix and collards)

• Optional: 6 ounces of a mild or hot blend of chilies
  
  Above, Elissa is gracefully displaying the rather extravagant size of one of our daikon radishes.  Be prepared for some big radishes in your bag today!  Note that the radish greens are quite delicious, so taste a little and decide if you'd like to cook with it or include some chopped leaves in your salad.  
   

Recipes

Aigo Bouido
Our volunteer, Vince Renard, likes to use our garlic to make this classic, French soup.
 
Creamy Winter Squash soup with ginger
TIME: 30 - 45 MINUTES (not including roasting time); SERVES: 6+
This soup can be made with almost any type of winter squash.  I prefer to use Kabocha because of its starchy, chestnut-like texture and flavor, but Butternut does wonders as well. 
*Go with a high-powered blender or food processor, rather than an immersion blender, for the silkiest texture.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium-large winter squash; roasted, flesh scooped out & reserved (about 2 cups)

• 2 tbsp. unrefined coconut oil or ghee/butter

• 1 large yellow or white onion (or 1 - 2 leeks), chopped

• 1 - 3 carrots (opt.), chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 1-inch piece ginger, grated

• Water, vegetable broth, or chicken stock (amount depends on desired consistency)

• 1, 14-oz. can full-fat coconut milk

• ~1/4 tsp. each coriander, ground turmeric, & Ceylon cinnamon

• A pinch of cayenne pepper

• Juice from 1/2 - 1 lime (depending on size; to taste)

• 1 tsp. fish sauce (opt.)

• Kosher salt & fresh ground black pepper, to taste

• Cilantro, chopped

• Greek yogurt or crème fraîche

METHOD

• Heat coconut oil or ghee/butter in a large dutch oven or soup pot. When hot enough to sizzle water, add the onions,celery, carrots, garlic, ginger, & spices. Cook until browned & fragrant.

• Add the coconut milk and roasted winter squash. Add enough water or stock to barely cover. (You can always add more liquid, but it’s hard to cook the soup down once it’s too thin without adding more squash.)

• Cover and simmer on low until soft and thoroughly cooked through, about 20 minutes. Stir often to avoid sticking.

• Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Transfer carefully in batches to the blender or food processor and purée until creamy.

• Adjust seasonings: add the lime, optional fish sauce, and salt & pepper to taste.

• Ladle into bowls and garnish with chopped cilantro and yogurt or crème fraîche.

 
Daikon Radish Pickles
TIME: 15 MINUTES (plus overnight marinating); SERVES: 2 CUPS
This quick-pickle “brine” can be used for a variety of different veggies: radish, cucumber, kohlrabi, celery, etc.. You can make more or less brine depending on the amount of veggies you wish to pickle.  This is not a fermented pickle, like kimchi, so it's a good choice for people who don't want that strong fermented taste.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups daikon radish (or a mix of veggies), sliced into bite-size lengths, but thin enough to soak in the marinade (I like a long, rectangular shape, or half moon)

• ~1 tsp. kosher salt

• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

• ~1 cup water

• 1/4 cup tamari, Nama Shoyu or soy sauce

• 1 tbsp. mirin or Chinese Shaoxing wine (opt.)

• A few dashes fish sauce

• 1 tsp. toasted sesame oil

• 1/2 tsp. gochugaru or crushed red pepper flakes

METHOD

• Place the sliced daikon radish in a large ziplock bag or a shallow pan/bowl. Sprinkle with kosher salt.

• Combine half of the water plus all ingredients for the marinade in a separate bowl. Pour over the daikon. You want the majority of the radish to be touching the marinade. If you need more liquid, add the other 1/2 cup of water.

• Let sit overnight in the fridge. Mix every few hours to incorporate the marinade on all sides. Pickles will keep for a couple weeks.

Enjoy this magnificent weather! 
The Clagett Farm Team

week 22 of 26 weeks: crunchy vegetables

We have some new items in your bag this week, so these photos might help you identify them.  Above, from left to right: watermelon radish, hakurei turnip, purple top turnip, sora radish and French breakfast radish.  You won't get all of these items this week, but it helps to see them all together for comparison. 

Bok choi and sunchokes (also known as Jarusalem artichokes)


These winter squash might look funny but they have knock-out flavor.  Clockwise from center: Thai kang kob, seminole and kubocha.  Don't expect to get many of these unique varieties, since they were experiments for us, but you might see one this week.  

Announcements

• If you want a chance to get outside and do something great for the world, plant trees this Saturday! And if you can't do it this weekend, there will be another tree planting November 14th. Here are the details, registration is required. All summer these trees have been growing in our nursery, and these two plantings on farms in northern Maryland will keep excess fertilizer out of the streams, carbon out of the atmosphere, and a host of other wonderful benefits.

• As we mentioned last week, we can use your help in the fields with harvesting and other field work, any day, Tuesdays through Saturdays. Call 301-627-4662 to sign up.

• We'll host an oyster pop-up in Annapolis on October 29th. And we'll have one on the farm on November 14th (details for that location coming later).

• We're still selling garlic! For CSA members, the prices are $8/lb or a discounted $6/lb for purchases of at least 10 pounds. Non-members pay $12/pound or $8/pound for 10 pounds or more. If you're purchasing more than 10 pounds for pick up at Dupont or Annapolis, please give us at least one day advanced notice so we can be sure to get it in the van for you. All the options are available for on-line purchase now. We do not ship or deliver, except to our CSA pick-ups.

• We have one more month. Your final week of shares is November 11, 12 and 14. Don't forget that you can't take more than 2 shares at a time. We can tell you at the pick-up how many you have remaining to use up.

This week's share

• 2 heads garlic

• 1 winter squash

• 1 pound radish and turnip medley

• 2 heads bok choi

• 1-3 eggplants

• 3/4 pounds peppers

• 1/4 pound sunchokes (this week only)

• Choose 6 ounces of greens from a selection of options

• Optional: 6 ounces of a mild or hot blend of chilies

Recipes

• Sometimes a basic stir fry recipe is in order. This one focuses simply on the bok choi. Consider adding chunks of winter squash, turnips and sunchokes.

  • Ingredients:

  • 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1 shallot, chopped

  • 1 pound bok choi, rinsed and cut into bite-sized pieces (if you received a baby head, you can quarter the heads length-wise with the core intact)

  • 1 Tablespoon soy sauce

  • Preparation:

  • Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add garlic and shallot and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add bok choi, soy sauce and 2 Tablespoons water, and cover immediately. Cook 1 minute. Uncover and toss, then cover and cook until bok choi is tender at the core, about 3 more minutes.

• As you might expect us to say, you can add the radishes, turnips, sunchokes, and all the new varieties of squash to the list of vegetables that roast well. Here's some hints for this week:

  • If you're in a hurry, cut your pieces smaller. The winter squash can take an hour to roast if you leave it whole or cut in half. But if you slice it thinly and coat each piece with a little oil, it could take as few as 15 minutes.

  • If you get a bumpy variety of squash, don't feel obliged to peel it. Thai kang kob and kubocha have thin, edible skins. The seminole has a tough skin, so you might try scooping it out of it's skin, once cooked, which is a little easier than peeling. The tough skin, by the way, is one of its assets--seminoles can store on your shelf for a year!

  • Sunchokes taste best if they are roasted until they are very soft through the middle, like potatoes.

• Soups are a perfect way to accomodate most winter vegetables, and sunchokes are no different. I'm going to give you the French style, with lots of butter and cream. Substitute for your dietary needs accordingly. I'm leaving amounts vague to encourage you to make it to your tastes.

  • Scrub the sunchokes and slice thinly. Attentive chefs (not me) will recommend peeling them and after slicing, putting them in ice water to retain their white color. Slice turnips and squash if you wish to use them. Note that squash with a green skin will change the color of the soup, so you might wish to peel it or leave it out for a different dish. Do you have carrots you'd like to use up? Slice them up, too. Don't be too concerned about the width of your slices, just be aware that fatter slices take longer to cook.

  • Choose a nice, heavy-bottomed dutch oven. Melt butter (think about 2 Tablespoons butter for every pound of vegetables in the soup). Add thinly sliced garlic and shallot to the butter until it is soft but not browned. Celery is also a nice addition at this point.

  • Add the sunchokes and other vegetables to the pan, then pour in stock (at least enough to cover the vegetables), and simmer until the vegetables are very soft.

  • Blend your soup. Now is the time to add salt, pepper and cream to your liking, but don't skimp--those ingredients are important. I like to use an immersion blender so I don't have to pour hot soup into a blender and back again.

  • Return to the heat until it's piping hot but not boiling.

• You might not need help coming up with salad recipes, but here's an interesting one from Farmer John's Cookbook (John Peterson is famous in farmer circles from Angelic Organics Farm in Illinois): Young Turnip and Apricot Salad with Toasted Walnuts and Creamy Greens Dressing. You could very easily include radishes with the turnips in this salad.

Coming Soon

• We've finally flattened the okra crop in order to get a good cover crop established. The cover crop (a combination of rye, vetch and crimson clover) will fertilize and protect the soil until May 2021, when we'll plant your peppers in that field. The okra plants measured in at 14 feet and 3 inches! It was our tallest okra crop ever.

• This is the last week of watermelon radishes, sora radishes and hakurei turnips. We'll continue to see purple top turnips and French breakfast radishes, and next week we'll add some daikon radishes to the share, which are quite large! Kimchi lovers, now is your time to shine! Kimchi, as well as other types of vegetables fermented in salt or whey, are magnificently healthy for your digestive system, and the pasteurized versions of pickles at the store don't have that same benefit. But not everyone loves the flavor. If you're new to the idea, check out anything written by Sandor Katz. Fermenting is incredibly easy, it doesn't require fancy equipment, and despite your fears, you won't mess up and make yourself sick.

• The eggplant and pepper fields were under-seeded with cover crop. Under-seeding allows the eggplant and peppers to continue growing, but the cover crop doesn't establish quite as well. Fortunately, we won't need their fields again until fall 2021, so we can grow a summer cover crop after this one to double our impact.

• The greens in your shares should remain about the same for the next several weeks, including bok choi.

Have a wonderful week, and thank you!
The Clagett Farm Team