2024 CSA Week 3
Let me state the obvious. IT'S HOT! If you are spending this heat wave going from home to car to work that all have air conditioning, be thankful. Your farmers are still out there working in this heat, although we have to take more frequent breaks and make sure we stay hydrated. Even early morning and late evening aren't cool enough right now. But we're still out there farming for our community.
For Biweekly Shares, A Group orders this week.
Important Reminder
When placing your order for your CSA Share each week, please make sure to complete the entire process. A couple of members have thought that they had ordered, but they failed to click on the final green button that says "Complete Order and Pay $___." If you don't receive an email receipt confirming your order, you won't receive a box that week.
Time Change
We have switched the Hermitage and Mercer deliveries around to give the larger Hermitage group a little more time to pick up your shares. From now on, Hermitage shares should be ready by 2:15 and Mercer by 2:45, barring unforeseen delays. All other pickup locations remain the same.
New Website
We just launched our redesigned website www.nwpagrowers.com. After you finish reading this newsletter, check out some of the other pages on our new site.
We're sad that we haven't had any strawberries to offer this year. Detweiler Farm has supplied strawberries for several years, but they moved out of state this year. We thought we could still get berries from the new owner, but their picking schedule didn't allow for berries that were fresh enough to withstand delivery on hot days. One of our new growers has strawberries, but their plants weren't productive enough this year. They are planting hundreds more strawberry plants to meet the demand for next year. But just as local strawberries are finishing up, the blueberries are starting!
This Week's Features
- Blueberries from Hochstetler Farm
- Broccoli, cucumbers, yellow squash, and zucchini sourced from Clarion River Organics farmers.
- Due to the great response, Moose Family Farm has decided to run their BUY 3 GET 1 FREE special on ground beef, split chicken breasts, and beef soup bones for one more week. Just order 3 and we will include a fourth for free. 25% savings!
- While the heat knocked out the tender lettuce in the fields, we have a good variety of heartier greens, including chard, collards, kale, koji (very similar to spinach), arugula, and more.
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Farm News
The livestock doesn't like this heat much either, but they're making the best of it with lush pasture, some shade, and lots of water.
arm
Recipes
Mediterranean Pasta & Kale Salad with Garlic Basil Dressing
This summer salad has several swap suggestions to customize. If you don't have fresh basil, you can make garlic scape pesto or use jarred pesto. Order pasta, kale, garlic scapes, basil.Arugula Blueberry Avocado Salad with Mint Lime Vinaigrette
Spicy arugula, creamy avocado, and sweet blueberries make a winning combination. Order arugula, blueberries, and mint.Hearty chickpeas and fresh cucumbers make this salad hearty enough for a main dish. Order cucumbers and celery.
Cold Cucumber Soup
This refreshing summer soup takes just 5 minutes to make. No cooking required! Order cucumbers, parsley, and spring onions.How to Store Garlic Scapes (Plus 16 Free Recipes)
Pickled, garlic butter, roasted, pesto...so much to do with garlic scapes!
You can find lots more recipes that we've saved on our Pinterest boards. And Autumn shares recipes in our 2024 CSA Members Group on Facebook.Show us what you do with your share! It can be really creative or super simple.
Here's hoping we get some relief from the heat soon so our plants don't wither in the fields. Have a great week, and happy eating!