Thursday, November 26, 2020

Huntington CSA Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2020 Week #26

 

Happy Autumn!

 

CSA Weather Report…cool and breezy

 

Thanksgiving reminder…the week of Thanksgiving, our CSA will be held on Wednesday, November 25th, and the hours will be from 1:30pm to 7:30pm (if you’re not picking up and no one is picking up for you, please let us know before noon today so we don’t end up waiting for someone who’s not coming, and could possibly leave early…but if you need to show up at 7:30pm – that’s fine too! 😊).

 

Important…can you help solve this mystery?

Last week at the end of the night the counts of Broccoli and Cauliflower were not correct (everything is counted at least twice by two different people before you get to the CSA to make sure there’s no errors on the part of the farm). There was more Cauliflower than there should have been, and not enough Broccoli for every CSA Member.

 

By any chance did any of you notice that you had either A) more than one piece of Broccoli, or B) didn’t get any Cauliflower? My concern is that someone picking up for a CSA member who normally comes, perhaps thought it was ok to make substitutions…but it’s not, and doesn’t end up well for the people who come later in the evening (and self-selection isn’t how our CSA works).

 

If you have any insights about this, please get in touch. This is NOT about being punitive but just trying to find solutions to a problem as every CSA member deserves to have everything in their CSA Share.

 

And lastly, please be mindful when picking up your CSA food, please read the CSA Wall Chart, and consider checking what’s in your bag(s) with the CSA Wall Chart before you leave to make sure you A) didn’t forget to take anything, or B) accidentally take too much. As it is in the story of the three bears…the idea is for it to be not too much, or not too little, but just right! 😊

 

Since people are starting to ask…last CSA pickup day for this season is Thursday, December 10th. There’s still plenty more good local, seasonal, certified organic food to come 😊!

 

Important…if you send anyone to the CSA to pick up food for you, please tell them to BRING BAGS!

 

This email includes…

 

  1. What you need to know
  2. If you haven’t watched this yet, it’s really worth checking out…Food safety and COVID-19
  3. Click activism
  4. And now, for something completely different…

 

Anything in these emails not directly related to the functioning of the CSA feel free to take or leave at your discretion, and anything related to health issues always consult with your physician(s) before taking any action.

 

 

1.What you need to know (will be either new info to first time CSA members, or reminders/old hat to returning CSA members)…

 

Before you leave the houseBRING BAGS to pack up your food (CSA members are responsible for packing up their own shares) – canvas/plastic/paper…bring whatever suits your fancy. The CSA does NOT provide bags for CSA members.

Time – 3:30pm to 7:30pm

Place – Sky Room Café in the Cinema Arts Centre at 423 Park Ave, Huntington

Parking* – park in the all the way around at the back of the building by the day care center (you’ll see a fenced in playground area with a sandbox)…*except when it’s raining (read the CSA Weather Report above)

When you arrive at the CSA

  1. Check in at the desk with our friendly CSA worker
  2. Read the Wall Chart that tells us every week what we’re getting, how much we’re getting, and what the farm charged us for it…some weeks it’s take one of everything but SOME WEEKS IT’S NOT!!! So you have to make sure you read the Wall Chart every week, and not assume anything. You can also ask your fellow CSA members that are working that day what the story is for the day (they should have name tags on).
  3. When you enter the CSA area, start at Table #1 at the left side of the table and work your way to the right, then to Table #2, Table #3, Herb Share table (if you have one), Flower Share table (if you have one), and then out the back door to the Cinema garden by the upper parking lot stairs. We’re arranging the food so if you only have one bag with you and you follow this, the heaviest things are on the bottom of the bag, the lightest are on the top, and the wettest things aren’t going to get the things that need to stay dry the most very wet. Plus, it makes social distancing easier, and we have only one entrance and one exit being used.

Before you leave the CSA – Make sure you have everything on the list! If you get to talking with people, have kids with you, etc., it can be easy to be distracted and if you get home and find out you don’t have everything that was on the list, you’re out of luck because at 7:31pm the food is donated to a local food organization that’s waiting to pick it up and get on their way.

 

Veggie info sheets added as needed. This is the link to the: Veggie Info Sheets. Print out, put in a notebook and you end up with a cookbook at the end of the CSA season. Also there are good tips on storage, prep, and nutrition.

 The list…this is a general list and you’ll be sent another email within the next week with the detailed list after I get it (which isn’t till the day of the CSA…the list is subject to change without notice because farming is like that! 😊 However, most of the time it’s accurate and if it’s not…usually only one food item will be changed)…

 

CSA words to live by…when trying any new food you’ve never eaten before…START SLOW!!! Read up about it (make sure it doesn’t interfere with any medications you might be taking or any health conditions you might have), see what traditional/conventional ways it’s prepared (cultures that have been eating certain foods for many years basically have a good idea what they’re doing, and we can learn from that), try a small portion, see how your body/digestive system reacts, and proceed from there. Then try preparing in different ways and see what you come up with, and feel free to ask for suggestion/info/recommendations!

 

Anything in these emails not directly related to the functioning of the CSA feel free to take or leave at your discretion, and anything related to health issues always consult with your physician(s) before taking any action.

 

Paraphrased wise words by a nutritionist that I read (and don’t remember where I read it or who said it), BUT it’s pretty smart info regarding eating seasonally in our part of the globe…

 

Spring… is all about detoxing (what we get from the CSA at this time is a lot of green things that are really good to help clean us out from whatever we accumulated during the winter)

Interesting piece about spring greens (out of the 14 listed, we get 12 of them with our CSA…watercress nutritionally and botanically similar to Curly Cress/Peppercress) and detoxing…

http://www.nourishingmeals.com/2012/03/detox-with-spring-greens.html

 

Summer is all about being hydrated (the popular summer foods are all full of water…Tomatoes, Lettuces, Summer Squashes, etc.)

 

Fall/winter is all about storing energy (we get all the dense vegetables…Sweet Potatoes, Winter Squashes, etc…. that are energy powerhouses to fuel us through the winter) to get you through the winter to make it to…Spring!

 

 

Week #26

November 25, 2020

 

  1. Sweet Potatoes* – check CSA Wall Chart for details
  2. Sage** – 1 bunch
  3. Squash, Winter*** – 1
  4. Cauliflower**** – 1
  5. Rutabagas – check CSA Wall Chart for details

 

Total Items: 5

 

Herb Share – Nov 2B

Arugula AND Dandelion Greens

 

*Sweet Potatoes are one of the world’s 100 healthiest foods (good info and recipes)!

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=64

 

**Sage is one of the world’s 100 healthiest foods (good info and recipes)!

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=76

 

***Winter Squash is one of the world’s 100 healthiest foods (good info and recipes)!

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=63

 

****Cauliflower is one of the world’s 100 healthiest foods (good info and recipes)!

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=13

 

 

 

2.If you haven’t watched this yes, it’s really worth checking out…Food safety and COVID-19

 

One of our CSA members told me that after watching this, it made them feel better about going grocery shopping.

 

Watch writer J. Kenji Lopez-Alt (son of a Harvard University geneticist and immunologist, grandson of a chemist, and author of Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science), talk about COVID-19 and food safety…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkvw9lZ3v3I

 

And read in more detail here…

https://www.seriouseats.com/2020/03/food-safety-and-coronavirus-a-comprehensive-guide.html#covid-on-food

 

 

 

3.Click activism

 

A.Tell Biden…we can do better at the USDA than Heidi Heitkamp (different petition…same message). Her big donors are corporate agriculture (Monsanto, et al) and the fossil fuel industry (British Petroleum/BP, et al)…neither of these groups of corporate donors bode well for the future of organic agriculture in the USA…

https://p2a.co/LVX9utG

 

B.Tell the Biden transition team to make sure that certified organic agriculture is a part of their plan to combat climate change!

 https://secure.everyaction.com/EORUa9k-zkSzYxkXA_NScA2

 

 

 

4.And now, for something completely different

 

Thanksgiving edition…Did you know that Thanksgiving is the most popular day of the year for firefighters to respond to fires started in the kitchen? Who knew???

 

Part of this is due to people deep frying Turkeys. So here’s how NOT to fry a Turkey (and you can find many more on YouTube, etc.)…

https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/how-not-to-fry-a-turkey-firefighters-demonstrate-dangers-of-deep-frying-your-thanksgiving-bird

 

Though we are not in a deep (fried Turkey) state…NY is more about the roasted bird…

thanksgiving turkey cooking method.png - Google Drive

 

A brief history…

https://www.vogue.com/article/food-thanksgiving-deep-fried-turkey

 

A more detailed history…

https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/11/history-origins-southern-deep-fried-turkey-thanksgiving.html

 

7 reasons to not bother trying 😊

https://www.delish.com/food-news/a50135/why-you-should-never-fry-a-turkey/

 

And after all this, if you still want to cook one…

https://www.eatturkey.org/a-deep-fried-delicacy-the-how-to-on-deep-frying-turkey/

 Events…both near and far

 

Anything in these emails not directly related to the functioning of the CSA feel free to take or leave at your discretion, and anything related to health issues always consult with your physician(s) before taking any action.

 

 

Saturday, November 21st to Monday, November 30th

 

Community Solidarity’s Annual Vegan Thanksgiving Bonanza

For more info, and to sign up and volunteer (or if you can’t help out…consider making a donation to this worthwhile organization)…

https://communitysolidarity.org/vegan-thanksgiving-2020?utm_source=Community%20Solidarity%20Newsletter&utm_campaign=934608cfd9-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_Nov_18_NonVol_Unsigned_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_775a503f33-934608cfd9-118908453&mc_cid=934608cfd9&mc_eid=f41b0ad66c#rsvp

 

This is the country’s largest vegan Thanksgiving event, organized by American’s largest vegetarian hunger relief organization. Thousands of people in need attend to get a hot meal (which may or may not be possible this year), and get a week’s worth of vegetarian food (including fresh produce), toiletries and other necessities (this year because of the pandemic they’re shooting for a month’s worth of non-perishable food for each person/family). Bring vegetarian non-perishable food and/or clothing to donate. Masks and gloves required to participate, as well as social distancing. The event will be a drive-thru. There will be other events scheduled to attend/volunteer for from Saturday, November 21st to Monday, November 30th.

 

 

Thursday, November 26th

 

10am to 11am

 

IEatGreen radio show

To listen to the show live (or listen to the archived programs)…

http://prn.fm/

 

Hosted by Long Islander Bhavani Jharoff. Older shows can be accessed in archives.

 

 

Friday, November 27th

 

6pm to 7pm

 

Green Inside and Out

WUSB-FM/90.1 FM

https://www.wusb.fm/

 

Long Islander Beth Fiteni is the host. Rotates with Healthy Planet radio with Huntington resident Bob DiBenedetto.

 

 

Saturday, November 28th

 

12pm to 1pm

 

Food Chain Radio

https://metrofarm.com/food-chain-radio-3/

 

Host Michael Olsen always has interesting guests on the issues of food, food politics, health, and related topics. Check out the archives.

 

 

Tuesday, December 1st

 

8am

 

Resetting the Food System from Farm to Fork

FREE

To register…

https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_sFfqmqCNQESls5bM70_Y7w

 

This is an international kickoff event (co-hosted by Food Tank and the Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition) leading up to the 2021 UN World Food Systems Summit. Speakers include…Dan Barber (chef/Blue Hill at Stone Barns), Jose Andres (chef/World Central Kitchen), Dr. Mark Hyman (author/functional medicine), Julia Moskin (NY Times food section), Danny Meyer (Union Square Hospitality Group) and a LOT of other folks.

 

10am to 11am

 

Green Street Radio

WBAI-FM/99.5FM

To listen live or check out the archives…

https://www.wbai.org/program.php?program=365

 

Join Long Islanders Doug & Patti Wood (founders of the Port Washington Farmer’s Market…the only all organic greenmarket in New York State), in their weekly show featuring conversations on health and sustainable living.

 

7pm - Volunteers/8pm – Food Distribution

 

Community Solidarity Food Share Distribution

Fairground Ave & E. 6th St.

Huntington Station

For more info and to sign up to be a volunteer (though you can also just stop by)…

https://communitysolidarity.org/foodshares/huntington

 

This is the group that Green Thumb CSA – Huntington has partnered with for the last number of years to donate produce remaining at the end of the night from our CSA.

 

 

Saturday, December 5th to Saturday, March 27th

 

9am to 1pm

 

The Huntington Winter Farmers Market

John. J. Flanagan Center

423 Park Ave

Huntington

www.longislandfarmersmarkets.com

 

 

Saturday, January 16th to Saturday, January 23rd

 

NOFA-NY 2021 Winter Conference: Rooted in Resilience (online event)

For more info and to register (no registration info at this time but will keep y’all posted)…

https://nofany.org/2021-winter-conference/

To submit videos for the talent show, photos for the photo conference, and get on the email list for this event…

https://nofany.org/2021-winter-conference/get-involved/

 

This event isn’t just for farmers. Home gardeners, home cooks, and people interested in holistic health will all have something to enjoy checking out and learning (there may also be programs for children and teens as well).

 

There will be a virtual talent show (dance, jokes, music, poems, sketches, or stories) so check out the link above for more info and how to submit videos, and a photo contest (again, check out the link above for more info).

 

This event will also contain the 3rd Northeast Organic Seed Conference. If you have a home garden and would like to save your seeds and not need to buy them next year, or if you already save them and would like to upgrade your seed saving knowledge, this is the part of the NOFA-NY Winter Conference to check out.

 

I personally think everyone that eats anything organic should be a member of NOFA-NY anyhow 😊 . Become a member of NOFA-NY (the Northeast Organic Farmers Association – New York Chapter) and you’ll be more hooked in to the info about this event. They are the organization that certifies farms, etc., organic in New York (and has been doing so for 37 years). They were doing this work before the federal government got involved (who then immediately tried to make the regulations weaker) and fought for, and succeeded in, keeping organic standards to the higher standards of organic farming, and will be doing so if the national program goes away (you never know any more). These are good people doing good work, and deserve your support.

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