2024 CSA Week 10
I think the story for this week is the storm that blew through on Tuesday evening. We received over 3" of rain, plus some hail, at our farm. There were strong winds and we were watching closely for funnel clouds, but thankfully they missed our farm. We do have branches down and our large chicken tractor sustained some damage. I haven't heard of any major damage on any of our other farms.
In the summer of 1986, a bumper crop of raspberries was hanging on the canes while it rained buckets for nearly 2 weeks. Rather than allow the fruit to rot, it was picked and frozen for winter sales. After several unsuccessful attempts to sell the frozen raspberries, a family friend reminded David Tait of an old Colonial beverage called Raspberry Shrub. Shrub is made by preserving fresh fruit in vinegar and sweetening it with sugar. Most often, this concentrate is then mixed with sparkling water, iced tea, lemonade, or distilled spirits to make a delicious sweet, tart beverage. It was the perfect solution! The first bottles of Tait Farm Foods Raspberry Shrub were made in David’s kitchen in 1987. Since that time, Tait Farm Foods Inc. has grown into a line of more than 65 specialty food products.
Today, our culinary development team is comprised of company president, Kim Tait and product development manager, Cindy Tait Law. This dynamic duo has successfully envisioned, developed, and curated each product we make with careful attention to the sourcing of every all-natural ingredient. Additionally, our team has stayed true to the holistic process of making each item in small batches by hand, preserving the unique, artisanal quality that people have come to expect from Tait Farm Foods.
NWPA Growers carries several of their jams and conserves. We have considered adding shrubs to our offerings. Let us know if you would like to see more Tait Farm Foods products in our store.
You can also check out Autumn's great recipe threads on our members-only Facebook page. Add some recipes of your own to share!
We're getting ready to host over 35 people at our farm for five days for another kosher butchering class. That means I will be cooking up a storm all week and away from email much of the time. So if you try to contact me during the next week, I'll reply as soon as I can.
Have a great week!
Amy
This Week's Features
This is B Week for biweekly shares.
- Only 5 dozen corn available this week. We should have a new planting ready for next week with higher harvest.
- Lots of tomatoes in many varieties from several farms. It's tomato heaven!
GO SHOPPING HERE
Featured Business
Tait Farm Foods is comprised of 8 acres of certified organic vegetables, fruits, and greenhouse production near State College, PA. Marian and Elton Tait purchased the farm in 1950. They were both Penn State graduates working for Agricultural Extension. Their new hobby farm was just the place to raise their 3 children (Sandy, David, and John), as well as sheep, chickens, hogs, horses, a few Basset Hound dogs, and Christmas trees. In the late 1970’s, the 2 prodigal sons left their day jobs and decided to return to the family farm to make a living off the land. Perennial crops of raspberries, asparagus, apples, and more Christmas trees followed. By the mid-1980’s, Tait Farm was the local place to come for pick-your-own crops, Christmas trees, and dogs.In the summer of 1986, a bumper crop of raspberries was hanging on the canes while it rained buckets for nearly 2 weeks. Rather than allow the fruit to rot, it was picked and frozen for winter sales. After several unsuccessful attempts to sell the frozen raspberries, a family friend reminded David Tait of an old Colonial beverage called Raspberry Shrub. Shrub is made by preserving fresh fruit in vinegar and sweetening it with sugar. Most often, this concentrate is then mixed with sparkling water, iced tea, lemonade, or distilled spirits to make a delicious sweet, tart beverage. It was the perfect solution! The first bottles of Tait Farm Foods Raspberry Shrub were made in David’s kitchen in 1987. Since that time, Tait Farm Foods Inc. has grown into a line of more than 65 specialty food products.
Today, our culinary development team is comprised of company president, Kim Tait and product development manager, Cindy Tait Law. This dynamic duo has successfully envisioned, developed, and curated each product we make with careful attention to the sourcing of every all-natural ingredient. Additionally, our team has stayed true to the holistic process of making each item in small batches by hand, preserving the unique, artisanal quality that people have come to expect from Tait Farm Foods.
NWPA Growers carries several of their jams and conserves. We have considered adding shrubs to our offerings. Let us know if you would like to see more Tait Farm Foods products in our store.
Recipes
Because I have poor internet where I'm writing this newsletter, I'm going to skip the recipe section this week. It would take me a really long time to find and post recipes with the speed available right now. So head on over to our Pinterest page and check out all the recipes we've saved and shared over the last several years.You can also check out Autumn's great recipe threads on our members-only Facebook page. Add some recipes of your own to share!
We're getting ready to host over 35 people at our farm for five days for another kosher butchering class. That means I will be cooking up a storm all week and away from email much of the time. So if you try to contact me during the next week, I'll reply as soon as I can.
Have a great week!
Amy