Happy Summer!
There’s only SIX more days for any new folks to join
our CSA and there’s a CSA sale till then too (Half & Half Sale…half the
hours to get the Work Deposit back and half the Work Deposit paid and MORE off
if the person is a member of the Cinema Arts Centre). Or if you’re
sharing a CSA share with someone and you’d like to turn your one share into two
if you’ve decided you each want your own share you can still do that till Sept
5th.
If you know anyone who might be interested in joining our
CSA, have them stop by the CSA this week or have them get in touch by email or
phone to get info on the sale and a contract if they want to join. After next
Monday…no more new members for the rest of the season even though our CSA
doesn’t end till December 8th.
CSA Weather report…80 and sunny (don’t leave
your CSA share in the car…it will be very unhappy because it’s WAY too hot in
there)!
CSA mystery (haven’t had one of these in a
while)…someone picked up for a CSA member last week and they were going to eat
the food and not just deliver it. That person left me an email address so I
could send them info about Bitter Melon. The email address (which they left at
the desk and didn’t check to make sure I could read it) LOOKED like berlinerland@optonline.net. Well,
it was rejected and now I have no way to tell this person there was a problem
and I don’t recall who they were picking up for so can anyone out there solve
this for me? You can at least tell your friend that I tried to email but there
were problems. Not sure if her email was rejected by my computer (or if it was
the wrong email address) or mine was by her computer.
Keep in mind…any time you try a food you’ve never
eaten before…
1.
Do some reading about what it is, and find out
if there are medical contraindications if you’re on medication or have health
issues
2.
Eat a single serving size and give it 24 hours
to see how your body reacts (some might be fine, a lot might not)
3.
When in doubt how to cook something, look to the
countries that have been using it for decades/centuries, and see what they do
and don’t do
4.
Any questions, don’t hesitate to ask
What happens if you don’t get any CSA emails and
Thursday rolls around and it’s time to go to the CSA? GO ANYWAY! There
have been times over the years when various things have prevented a CSA email
from being sent…computers, storms, health emergencies, etc. However, the thing
to do is to come to the Cinema and in all probability, your CSA share will be
there (unless there’s weather that’s so treacherous travel would be extremely
ill-advised and even then, the farm will show up and drive from Water Mill to
Huntington before some CSA members would drive from Huntington…to Huntington).
And if not (which I doubt…there was only one snowstorm where the farm showed up
on Friday instead of Thursday because no one could drive anywhere), there would
be a sign on the door saying something, or you could call me (though with
Hurricane Sandy, even my land line was down because of the Verizon battery it’s
hooked up to….grrrrrrr…I need to get that detached so I can get phone calls
during those times when the power goes out).
Parking suggestion…try parking all the way
around the building in the upper parking lot where the day care center play
area is. You hopefully will find a spot, and it’s a short walk down the stairs
to the entrance from there, and most people don’t seem to think of parking up
there. If you park illegally you can get a parking ticket, it does happen!
If you are going to show up at the CSA later than
7:30pm, but before the Box Office is closing for the night (can be
different every week but probably be open till at least 10pm) and it’s the last
minute and you’re running late…call the Cinema Arts Centre Box Office at
631-423-7610 xt 0 and ask them to transfer the call to the café (do NOT leave a
message to be given to the CSA because there have been occasions where we
didn’t get the message and someone showed up to get their food and was not
happy their food wasn’t there) so we can pack a bag for you, put your name on
it, and leave it at the Box Office. If you don’t get to the Cinema before the
Box Office closes, your food will NOT be there the next day. The Cinema is
under no obligation to store your food, and we don’t want to be the cause of
bugs being attracted to our wonderful CSA food.
If you’re sharing a CSA share with someone…it’s
possible they’re not on this email list yet (if not email me their full name
and email address…or have them do it), so check with them and then forward this
if they didn’t get it (and always check the junk/spam folder).
*Keep in mind that anything you read in this email (unless
it’s directly related to the functioning and operation of the CSA) is
subjective and like they say in the 12 step world…take what you like and leave
the rest!
This week’s email includes…
1. The
CSA doesn’t need you this week (but we will soon enough)
2. CSA
101 – Bring Bags!!!
3. We
started weighing our produce last week…not rocket science but there are things
to be mindful of!
4. The
List- subject to change without notice because…farming is like that
5. Event
Listings…both near and far
6. What you actually got last week
1.The CSA doesn’t need you this week (but we will soon
enough)
We’re talking about working at the CSA.
We have the help we need for this week. Whoo-hoo!
If you didn’t already get an email from Rene or/and suzanne
talking to you about being at the CSA on the Early Shift (3:30pm to 5:30pm) or
the Late Shift (5:30pm to 7:30pm) this week, you’re not on the schedule for
this week.
HOWEVER, you can always show up a little before 3:30pm or
5:30pm and offer to help out just in case someone doesn’t show up (stuff
happens).
2.CSA 101…Bring Bags!
CSA basic, for this CSA anyway, is that you need to
bring your own supply of bags for packing up your CSA share every week from now
till December 8th!
So, my suggestion…put bags that you’re setting aside for
your CSA share in EVERY vehicle you own or might ride in! J Put them in the trunk, or the glove
compartment, or in a bigger bag somewhere in the car, or whatever you think
will work for your situation. That way, you don’t even have to remember,
they’re just there.
The CSA is under NO obligation to provide you with bags for
your food.
I also recommend a selection of canvas, paper and plastic. I
bag my CSA share up in my paper (Strawberries) and plastic bags (most
everything else) and put it in my bigger canvas bag so when I get home,
everything’s pretty much (with some exceptions…like herbs) ready to be put
right into the fridge.
And if you send someone to pick up your CSA share for
you, you need to tell them to…BRING BAGS!
3.We started weighing our produce last week…not rocket
science but there are things to be mindful of!
It’s time to weigh our food!
A.
Please be aware that it may take a little more
time for you to collect your CSA share when weighing is part of the experience
so plan accordingly.
B.
Check the CSA Wall Chart that our farmer brings
in every week before taking any food so you know what you’re taking and how
much to take…assume nothing and please feel free to ask questions! J
C.
Bring your reading glasses or ask someone to
help if you can’t see the numbers on the scale clearly.
D.
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 CSA members this week,
and if every person is over by ONE OUNCE (for crying out loud! It’s only an
ounce!!!) …that means we’ll be short over 4 1/2 POUNDS of produce and 5 CSA
members (and one of them could be you) won’t get the food they paid for.
E.
IF you are asked to weigh more than one food
item at the same time (and you probably will at some point in the CSA
season)…please follow the directions given to you, and weigh in the order you
are asked (you might not think there’s any good reason to be doing this but our
farmer does, and that should be enough of a reason right there but if you want
a further explanation – ask someone working at the CSA or contact suzanne…there
is always a method to the madness J)
4.The List - subject to change without notice
because…farming is like that!
September 1, 2016
Week #14
1.Cantaloupe*
2.Tomatoes
3.Celery
4.Squash, Summer
5.Peppers
Total Items: 5
Flower Share – Week #11
THE END
*Old school summer drink recipes…
One uses Cantaoupe or Strawberries (we get both at our
CSA)…and then there’s Mint which we get in either the Herb Share or our regular
CSA shares…
5.Event Listings…both near and far
Thursday, September 1st
10am to 11am
iEat Green online radio show with Bhavani Jaroff
888-874-4888 (to call in during the live show with
questions)
And if you miss it, you can listen in the archives.
Saturday, Sept 10th
6pm to 10pm
Gala in the Garden
Estia’s Little Kitchen
1615 Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Tpke
Sag Harbor
$350
For more info and to buy tickets…
Hosted by Chefs Colin and Jessica Ambrose and Estia’s Little
Kitchen. Wine tasting, limited edition wine auction, music, hors d’oeuvres
followed by a multi-course dinner. It’s a benefit for Slow Food East End, ALS
Ride for Life (in honor of Chef Gerry Hayden) and Project MOST and honoring Ted
Conklin, Tom and Mary Morgan, and Kate Plumb with the Slow Food Founders Award.
Sunday, Sept 11th
10am to 4pm
10th Annual North Fork Foodie Tour
Peconic Land Trust Ag Center at Charnews Farm
3005 Youngs Ave
Southold
$25/FREE – under 12 years old
For more info:
To buy tickets (if you wait till the event it might be sold
out)…
A few of us CSAers (Alyssa Axelrod, Patti Edward, Vickie
Muller…brought her daughter and a few friends, suzanne j zoubeck…forgive me if
I’ve forgotten anyone) have gone and met up with each other at various places
on the tour in the past (and met for lunch at the North Fork Table lunch truck)
and it was a blast. This year should be just as swell.
Tuesday, Sept 13th
5:30pm to 7:30pm
Compost Made Easy
Queens County Farm
73-50 Little Neck Pkwy
Floral Park
$5 – Members/$10 – General Public
To purchase tickets and for more info:
If you don’t have one, start one! Great way to use vegetable
scraps (or whatever unused vegetables that are beyond eating you might have
around) and lawn clippings and yardwaste. The basics of composting for an urban
setting (and I’m sure it will be applicable for a suburban one too). Will be
bringing home compost for your garden.
Saturday, Sept 24th and Sunday, Sept 25th
11am to 6pm
34th Annual Queens County Fair
Queens County Farm
73-50 Little Neck Pkwy
Floral Park
FREE – Members/$10 (per day) – Adults/$5 (per day) –
Children 12 and under
To purchase tickets and for more info:
Friday, Nov 4th and Saturday, Nov 5th
2016 WFAN (Women Food & Agriculture Network) Annual
Conference
Lied Lodge and Conference Center
Nebraska City,NE
$80 – Student/beginning Farmer/$100 General Public (plus
food/lodging and optional events)
For more info and to register…
Keynote speaker is Karryn Olson-Ramanujum, permaculture
educator and teacher at Ithaca College, NY (co-founder of the Finger Lakes
Permaculture Institute in NY).
Saturday, November 12th
12pm to 5pm (optional health screening starts at 8am)
Dr. Joel Fuhrman’s Breast Cancer Seminar
Hunterdon Central High School
84 Rt 31
Flemington, NJ
$59.95 (plus $29.95 if interested in optional non-invasive
health screening)
To register and for more info…
Dr. Joel Fuhrman’s slant is vegan and calls his
diet…nutritarian. Author of the book, Eat to Live, and many others.
6.What you actually got last week (not always what was in
the email the week before because farming is like that regarding occasional
last minute changes)
August 25, 2016
Week #13
1.Cantaloupe – 1 - $3.50
2.Eggplant: Black OR Purple Rain – 1 - $3.00
3.Leeks – 1 bunch - $3.75
4.Tomatoes, Mini: Cherry, Red – 1 pt - $5.50
5.Cucumbers – up to 1 lb – added together with…
6.Bitter Melon - up to 1 lb (up to 2 lbs total with
the Cucumbers) - $3.50
Total Items: 6
Total Amount: $19.25
(since we pay $18.50 per week for our CSA share, this week
we got ($.75 more than we paid, SO that means at the moment, our farmer has
given us $12.75 more than we paid for up to this point. Over the course of the
CSA year…and over the years…we have gotten at least one, and sometimes up to
two, share’s worth of food that we didn’t pay for…so keep reading this and see
how it plays out from week to week)
Flower Share – Week #10
Zinnias
Herb Share – August 2B
Lemon Thyme AND Sage
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