Green Thumb Farm Huntington CSA

Happy Summer!

MYSTERY OF THE WEEK!!! The mystery this week is…why was there no mystery last week?  At least nothing happened that was obvious enough for me to know about (another hectic week at the CSA even with enough help).

We only need ONE pound of Mushrooms to be adopted to get some very patiently waiting Mushroom fans their ‘Shrooms! Anyone interested in ¼, ½, or 1 lb of Mushrooms to get our second 5 lb batch of Mushrooms delivered? See #5 for details!

This email includes…

1. Your CSA does not need you this week, however…
2. It’s time to weigh!!!
3. We still could sure use some more CSA members!
4. CSA member, Bob Buhmann (also known as the Cow Harbor Race Cow mascot), could probably use your positive thoughts and/or prayers
5. You can still get in on the Flower Shares, Herb Shares and Mushroom Shares!
6. This week’s list (subject to change without notice…farming is like that!)
7. Tough Lettuce and seasonal eating
8. WBAI-FM, a local radio station that supports healthy living and eating, needs your help!
9. Event Listings
10. What you actually got last week
11. And now for something completely different…



1. Your CSA does not need you this week, however…

You can ALWAYS stop by the CSA a little before 3:30 or 5:30 to offer to help in case someone doesn’t show up (or is late) without letting anyone know…life happens! 

If you didn’t get a confirmation email from Judi (occasionally it’s me), you’re not scheduled to work this week.



2. It’s time to weigh…

A. Check the wall chart before taking any food so you know what you’re taking and how much to take…assume nothing and please ask questions! 

B. Bring your reading glasses or ask someone to help if you can’t see the numbers on the scale clearly.

C. PLEASE DO NOT GO OVER THE AMOUNT STATED on the Wall Chart. Please err on the under side of the weight posted…NEVER over. It may not seem like much to you but we have 56 members and if every person is off by ONE OUNCE (for crying out loud! It’s only an ounce!!!) …that means we’ll be short almost THREE AND A HALF POUNDS of produce and 3 CSA members won’t get the food they paid for. And I’m sure you wouldn’t want it to be you.

D. IF you are asked to weigh more than one food item at the same time…please follow the directions given to you and weigh in the order you are asked (you might not think there’s a good reason to be doing this but our farmer does and that should be enough of a reason right there…if you want a further explanation – ask suzanne…there is a method to the madness )



3. We still could sure use some more CSA members!

If each of us could get one other person/family to join the CSA, our membership would go from the current 56 members to 110. If at least half of those folks would work at the CSA (more is always better), I bet we could finally have an Exchange Table again. That’s where we start with an entire CSA share on the table and CSA members can exchange one entire food item for another because they want more of something, or are allergic to something, or for whatever the reason. Believe me, once you try it, you’d like it.

However, we don’t have one because we barely have enough working CSA members to do the minimal amount of what needs to be done and as they say…many hands make light work!

Contact me if you need attachments of any CSA info to forward, any CSA brochures to distribute, and I’d be happy to receive any phone numbers to call anyone, email addresses to email, places to go leave CSA brochures, and I’m sure you know I’d go anywhere and talk to anyone about the wonderfulness that is Green Thumb CSA – Huntington (or heck, CSAs in general)! 



4. CSA member, Bob Buhmann (also known as the Cow Harbor Race Cow mascot), could probably use your positive thoughts and/or prayers

Bob, who is an invaluable part of the CSA as he helps set up the CSA before you guys get there and helps our farm worker Tim lay out our food on a bi-weekly basis (along with his wonderful co-worker Beth Sherman), is in the hospital in NYC dealing with having a recently diagnosed brain tumor. He had a seizure Wednesday night and texted me from the hospital Thursday afternoon before I left for the CSA saying…In hospital. Sorry. He was supposed to work that Thursday. Such dedication!

If you are a practicer of prayer, perhaps you’ll include him. If you’re not, any kind thoughts sent his way (if you’re so inclined) I’m sure would be appreciated. I’ll be in touch with Bob and hope he’s back at the CSA and feeling better soon.

Interesting articles on the power (or not) of prayer…
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/candy-gunther-brown-phd/testing-prayer-science-of-healing_b_1299915.html
http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/can-prayer-heal



5. You can still get in on the Flower Shares, Herb Shares and Mushroom Shares!

If you’re interested…ask! If the only thing that’s stopping you is that you share with someone and they don’t want what you want…ask! I bet I could find someone for you to share with (or at least I’d try  ). If you have a share and want more than your one share…ask!

We need to find enough people for 1 lb of Mushrooms for the next batch of folks to be able to start eating Mushrooms! Anybody interested in the Mushroom Share who hasn’t spoken up yet? Let me know! 

Anyone who HAS a Mushroom Share…want to upgrade your share to get more Mushrooms? Just a thought! 



6. This week’s list (subject to change without notice…farming is like that!)

Week #15
August 8, 2013

1. Lettuce: Crisp, Green – 1 head
2. Tomatoes, Mini: Sungold – 1 pt
3. Squash, Summer * - up to 1 lb (not over)
4. Cucumbers – up to 1 lb ( not over)
5. Dill – 1 bunch
6. Beets: Chiogga OR Red – 1 bunch
7. Peppers, Sweet: Green AND Purple – 1 of each color

Total Items: 6 (?)

Basil Shares
4 bunches per Share

Flower Share
Statice
Week #8

Herb Shares
Cilatro And Basil

Mushroom Shares

*
You can use pretty much ANY recipe for Zucchini with any other type of Summer Squash (as long as the pieces are cut up in the same size as the recipe suggests)…Zucchini is a Summer Squash but not all Summer Squashes are Zucchini…
http://www.ediblebrooklyn.com/topics/food-dining/how-do-you-solve-a-problem-like-zucchini/



7. Tough Lettuce and seasonal eating

One of our new CSA members reported back to me last week that she’s not eating the Lettuce (or not so happy about eating it) because it’s too tough.

I’d never heard this from anyone before but when one person says something, the odds are that there’s at least one other person (if not more) thinking the same thing and NOT saying anything. That said, I wanted to talk a little about CSA Lettuce and seasonal eating.

Let me say right off the bat…if you’re finding it challenging figuring what to do with your CSA food…PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH WITH ME!!! I’d be happy to help, and after doing this for 16 years, I might have some useful (and tasty) suggestions.  And if you stump me (it could happen  ), I’d also be happy to get unstumped and do a little research if need be (being a lifelong lover of learning).

We get around 16 varieties of Lettuce over the course of the CSA season. I should be able to list them after 16 years but I haven’t thought to do it before today but, it’s a good idea and will go on my list of things to do. However, I CAN tell you that they’re all planted in succession in the order of what will grow best in each part of the season. At some point, yes, we get the most tender of Lettuces…the Butterhead Lettuces like Boston/Bibb, and at the start of the CSA season in April/May, we sometimes get a baby Lettuce mix from the growing greens in the greenhouse.

Below is not a bad article on an intro to Lettuce (we don’t get Mache or Endive but do get everything else mentioned in the slide show) and the video is decent (though we don’t get old school Iceberg Lettuce we DO get a variety of Iceberg Lettuce that’s an heirloom kind…and I wouldn’t bother putting Sugar in my salad dressing but that’s just me  )…
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/25/lettuce-varieties_n_1626023.html
Informative too…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lettuce

The Lettuces grown in the summer have to be more rugged/tough than other ones otherwise they wouldn’t survive, and we’d have no Lettuce this time of year because of the heat and the beating they take with the heavy rains we now get during these days of climate change. If you find the Lettuce tough, try cutting them up in widthwise ribbons (I’ve seen them as small as ¼ inch wide in some locavore restaurants I’ve been to though ½ to 1” would be less work and be worth trying but if you find the wider width still not to your liking, go thinner till it works for you, and also try letting the Lettuce ribbons sit in your dressing of choice to allow the dressing to tenderize them as well…whatever works!). Try a cooked Lettuce recipe (google…Lettuce cooked recipe and see what you come up with or look on the back of your Lettuce Veggie Info Sheet, or any cookbooks you might own…what a concept! ). Combine with more tender Lettuces (bagged baby Mesclun mixes should do the trick) so the Lettuce you’re not so crazy about won’t be the dominant texture/flavor.

A bottom line with being a CSA member is learning to go with the flow and as the old saying goes…when you life gives you Lemons, make Lemonade (or Lemon Bars, or Chicken Breasts with Lemon, or Thyme and Lemon Trout, or Brown Rice with Olives and Lemon, or Lemon with Green Beans and Almonds, or one of my favorite winter recipes…Spaghetti with Lemon Sauce) but don’t throw out the Lemons before you’ve given them a chance to be delicious (and then you probably won’t be throwing them out at all)! 

Here’s a GREAT and timely article about seasonal eating and cooking that was in this week’s NY Times Dining Section…(it’s a MUST READ for all CSA members)…
“Good cooking is about understanding the life cycle of your ingredients and knowing how to get the best out of them…being fully attuned to the seasons…is nothing new…It’s a traditional way of relating to agriculture and getting the most out of food cycles, which we’ve become distanced from…For cooks, it’s about getting that information back.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/07/dining/to-every-vegetables-season-another-season.html?ref=dining&_r=0

Next week I’ll be letting you know why it’s a good idea to be eating Lettuce (and in particular this time of year), and why it’s a good idea to be eating local Lettuce.

If you have any comments/recipes/suggestions about Lettuce, respond to this email and I’ll put them in the next CSA email.



8. WBAI-FM, a local radio station that supports healthy living and eating, needs your help!

Please spread this information if you feel motivated to do so!

If you’re at all interested in health (and if you’re motivated enough to be a CSA member you just might be), and alternative health in particular, WBAI-FM is the radio station for you!

Have you ever listened to WBAI-FM before? IMHO (as the kids say) it’s the most important radio station in our area. NPR is great (I’m a member of WNYC too) but WBAI has NO corporate sponsorship, is truly financially listener supported, and is more local. For example, WBAI is a good friend of the Cinema Arts Centre. Has WNYC ever done any shows about, or promotions for, the Cinema Arts Centre? I don’t think so (I’ll have to check for certain), and certainly not as many as WBAI has over the years. So, if you’re a fan of the Cinema Arts Centre, you might consider contributing to WBAI-FM in their time of need. One might not be a fan of everything heard over WBAI but you might be able to support the idea that there’s a place for a diversity of voices that you won’t hear anywhere else.

THEY MAY BE GOING OFF THE AIR!!! Not good…when Three Mile Island was going thru their nuclear crisis, WBAI was there with Geiger counters doing what NO other media source was doing…getting down and dirty to find out what was really going on and not having it filtered by corporate media sources or government agencies. There used to be a show on back then called Radioactivity and it was hosted by an old friend of mine, Warren Liebold, who’s now the Assistant Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection for the City of NY (still working hard for the environment), so I’ve known some of the behind the scene stuff about WBAI over the years. I’ve been listening to this station since I was a teenager and supporting it on and off over the years when I could.

Scroll down and see the shows they have under Health and Science/Ecology…
http://www.wbai.org/programlist.php
I’ve interned for Gary Null (and Slow Food Huntington organizer Bhavani Jharoff has a radio show on Gary’s internet radio station which he wouldn’t have if he hadn’t been involved with WBAI for a billion years…as they say at Disneyworld, it’s a small world after all), taken Asian Herbal Medicine classes alongside Kathy Davis, found a great therapist (at one point in my past) through Armand DiMele (he’s a sweetie pie), used to work with Barbara Glickstein, RN, back in the day (lovely human, good show), my partner Dylan’s folks used to be patients of Majid Ali, MD (and liked him but he’s in NJ…too far to be a regular patient), Patti Wood is from Pt Washington and is a local eco-hero, Emmanuel Goldstein is from Stony Brook and is a treasure, and these are just the people that I can talk about and tell you how valuable they are to be on the air. There are shows just in these categories that I haven’t listed to yet (why aren’t I a regular listener of Earthwatch???) but I know it’s important that they’re there.

To contribute…
Check out their section on Health and Wellness for the premiums (thank you gifts) you can get if you contribute a certain amount…
http://www.give2wbai.org/category_s/1814.htm
Or some of the environmental gifts on the Science and Technology section
http://www.give2wbai.org/category_s/1828.htm

General info about donating…
https://www.wbai.org/donate.php

or just call or donate online…it only costs $25 to become a member and if you’re a member, you can vote for the Local Station Board and help determine the direction and focus of the station!
516-620-3602
https://www.give2wbai.org/

We let our membership lapse and have been meaning to donate but let it slide, so we contributed something last week to get back in the fold.

Every little bit helps and counts! 



9. Event Listings

Thursday, May 2nd to Sunday, December 8th

8:30am to 5:30pm

Green Thumb Organic Farm
829 Montauk Hwy (east of the windmill)
Water Mill

Our CSA farm’s farm stand is open for the season! If you’re passing by, stop in and say hi and tell them you’re a CSA member and you’re sure to get a smile! There are plants for your garden, flowers for your home and/or friends you might be visiting in the area, and food…lots of food! 


Saturday, May 25th to Monday, Sept 2nd

Swedish Culinary Summer
East Hampton
For more info:
www.swedishculinarysummer.com

Swedish cuisine, and worldwide interest in it, has grown exponentially over the last 20 years. Zagat just placed Swedish restaurants in the number two and number three positions in the top ten restaurants in the world and there are three Swedish restaurants on Pellegrino's World's 50 Best Restaurants list. Swedish food is now the darling of media worldwide and especially in the U.S. Swedish Culinary Summer uses food as the universal ambassador to "open the doors" at key charity events in the Hamptons during the summer season: a full summer of top Swedish chefs, food, beverages and consumer goods, plus there will be cooking classes and special dinners available at the Maidstone Hotel.



Friday, August 9th to Sunday, August 11th

NOFA Summer Conference
U Mass
Amherst, MA
For more info and to register:
http://www.nofasummerconference.org/registration.php
What is NOFA (in particular NOFA-NY)?
https://www.nofany.org/about

If you’re at all interested in organic gardening, food, food politics, the environment, green living, green housing, renewable energy, alternative health, etc. this is an AMAZING event to attend (over 200 workshops to choose from)! The food is local and organic and there are enough choices whether your diet is gluten-free, raw, vegan or paleo. There are farm tours and parties at night. Also, there are workshops and activities for children from ages 2 to 17 so it’s fun for the whole family…or for singles…or seniors…or anyone!


Friday, August 9th

6pm to 7pm

The Healthy Planet Radio Show
WUSB-FM (90.1 FM)
To listen live or on the archives…
http://wusb.fm/station/schedule/week
For more info:
http://www.healthy-planet.org/


Saturday, August 10th

12pm to 6pm

Vegan Shop Up
Pine Box Rock Shop
12 Grattan St
Bushwick, Brooklyn
For more info:
http://veganshopup.wordpress.com/2013/07/29/sweat-it-out-vegan-shop-up-august-10th/

NYC’s only all vegan pop up market!


Saturday, August 24th

10:30am

Monthly Green Thumb CSA – Huntington Meeting
Cinema Arts Centre
423 Park Ave
Huntington
For more info:
631-421-4864
Email: dskolnick@pb.net

Stay tuned for more details. Snacks as always!


Friday, September 13th

6pm to 7pm

The Healthy Planet Radio Show
WUSB-FM (90.1 FM)
To listen live or on the archives…
http://wusb.fm/station/schedule/week
For more info:
http://www.healthy-planet.org/


Friday, October 18th

6pm to 7pm

The Healthy Planet Radio Show
WUSB-FM (90.1 FM)
To listen live or on the archives…
http://wusb.fm/station/schedule/week
For more info:
http://www.healthy-planet.org/


Friday, November 15th

6pm to 7pm

The Healthy Planet Radio Show
WUSB-FM (90.1 FM)
To listen live or on the archives…
http://wusb.fm/station/schedule/week
For more info:
http://www.healthy-planet.org/


Friday, December 6th

6pm to 7pm

The Healthy Planet Radio Show
WUSB-FM (90.1 FM)
To listen live or on the archives…
http://wusb.fm/station/schedule/week
For more info:
http://www.healthy-planet.org/


Saturday, March 1st, 2014

10am to 5pm

TEDx Manhattan Viewing Party
Cinema Arts Centre
423 Park Ave
Huntington
FREE

Check out a sample of last year’s speakers such as chef Michel Nischan, LaDonna Redmond, Anna Lappe, White House chef Bill Yosses, Annemarie Colbin, etc, here…
http://www.youtube.com/tedxman

Details TBA



10. What you actually got last week

Week #14
August 1, 2013

1. Lettuce: Leaf, Green – 1 head - $2.50
2. Tomatoes, Mini: Grape, Red OR Sungold – 1 pt - $4.25
3. Squash, Summer * : Costata Romanesco, Eight Ball, Kousa, Yellow, Zucchini - up to and not over 1 ¼ lbs (1.25) - $3.25
4. Fennel – 1 bunch - $3.50
5. Basil – 1 bunch - $2.75
6. Scallions – 1 bunch - $3.00

Total Items: 6
Total Amount: $19.25 (we pay $17.50 for our weekly CSA share and this week we’ve gotten an extra $1.75 so the total extra value we’ve gotten so far this season…is $13.25)


Basil Shares
4 bunches per Share

Flower Share
Sunflowers
Week #7

Mushroom Shares

*
You can use pretty much ANY recipe for Zucchini with any other type of Summer Squash (as long as the pieces are cut up in the same size as the recipe suggests)…Zucchini is a Summer Squash but not all Summer Squashes are Zucchini…
http://www.ediblebrooklyn.com/topics/food-dining/how-do-you-solve-a-problem-like-zucchini/



11. And now for something completely different…

Does this remind you of your grandmother?
http://www.boredpanda.com/what-grandmothers-cook-around-the-world/

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