Huntington CSA Thursday, June 24, 2020 Week #4

 Happy Summer!

 CSA weather report…warm and pleasant

 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. It’s not all bad news!
3. Food safety and COVID-19…
4. Recipe for a quick & easy Strawberry dessert – could come in handy after the farm visit this Saturday
5. What you actually got last week
6. 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 house…BRING 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)

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).

Before you leave the CSA – Make sure you have everything on the list (like the story of the 3 bears…not too much, not too little, but just right 😊)! 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!

 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 #4

June 24, 2021 

1. Lettuce: Romaine* – 1 head
2. Asparagus** – 1 bunch
3. Peas: Sugar Snap – 1 bag
4. Marjoram – 1 bunch
5. Mustard: Green*** – 1 bunch

 Total Items: 5

 Flower Share – Week #2 (maybe yes…maybe no…)

 Herb Share – June 2B

Mint**** AND Upland Cress

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=61

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=12

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=93

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

While this is about Peppermint…am including it as not sure what kind of Mint is coming AND whatever it is, they’re all from the Mentha plant and are similar.

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=102

2.It’s not all bad news!

 How cool is this!

 4^th, 5^th and 6^th graders dressing as fruit & vegetables marching for healthier food options in NYC…

https://www.brooklynpaper.com/fighting-food-deserts-children-march-over-brooklyn-bridge-calling-for-healthier-options/

The end quote from the 10 year old girl gives one hope for the future! 😊

  

3.Food safety and COVID-19…

 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

  

4.Recipe for a quick & easy Strawberry dessert (imagine one could veganize this as pretty much anything can be veganized 😊) – could come in handy after the farm visit this Saturday

 This was suggested by CSA member Selma Lewis who’s used it and likes it…

If desired, imagine one could veganize this as pretty much anything can be veganized 😊

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1021174-strawberry-spoon-cake

My only suggestion is to not microwave frozen Strawberries…instead just let them sit in the fridge overnight…

https://www.mashed.com/70561/foods-never-put-microwave/

  

5.What you actually got last week

 Week #3

June 17, 2021 

1. Lettuce: Leaf, Green – 1 head - $3.75
2. Asparagus* – 1 bag (1/2 lb.) - $3.50
3. Peas: Snow – 1 bag (1/2 lb.)- $3.75
4. Garlic Scapes** – 1 bunch - $3.25
5. Lavender – 1 bunch - $3.75
6. Radishes: French Breakfast – 1 bunch - $3.75
7. Curley Cress*** – 1 bunch (left off truck by accident last week) - $3.25

 Total Items: 7

Total Amount: $25.00

(We pay $20 per week for our CSA share…some weeks we get a bit more, some a bit less. This week, it was $5.00 more. So at the moment we’ve already gotten $5.25 more than we paid for. This adds up over the course of the CSA season, and we seem to always get at least one CSA share’s worth of food every year that we didn’t pay for…some years two, and some between one and two…it’s all good! 😊)

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=12

 *Garlic is one of the world’s 100 healthiest foods (good info and recipes)…as long as you don’t microwave it (keep reading)!

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=60

And I BEG you…NEVER MICROWAVE GARLIC!!! Why? Short story…if you microwave Garlic for 1 minute, all the anti-cancer, antibacterial, antifungal and basically all the health properties in Garlic are GONE!

It takes over 45 minutes of cooking by conventional methods to achieve the same effect. So if you microwave your Garlic (or a dish with Garlic in it), you might as well be eating wood (which has no health properties beyond being a source of fiber 😊).

Here's a scientific paper to support this info (and while it says you can mince Garlic, let it sit around for 10 minutes, microwave for 60 seconds…not more… and get SOME of the health benefits…just don’t bother and get ALL the health benefits by lightly sautéing or using raw…just sayin’ 😊).

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11238815/

 ***No official CSA Veggie Info Sheet for this but here’s the lowdown on…

Cress, Curly (also known as Peppercress and Garden Cress)

It’s speecy spicy, very good for you, and goes well in small amounts in any salad, sandwich, wrap for starters…read on…

https://harvesttotable.com/cress_cress_is_a_common/

https://www.healwithfood.org/health-benefits/garden-cress-nutritional-benefits.php

 Web MD on “garden cress” (basically same as Pepper/Curly Cress)…please read if you have any underlying health conditions (diabetes, low blood pressure, etc.)…

http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-453-garden%20cress.aspx?activeingredientid=453&

 

Pepper Cress – tangy/spicy herb that can be used raw in salads, on sandwiches or wraps and you can toss a small amount in at the end of a stir-fry or cooked recipe to give things a bit of a culinary punch

http://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/ingredients/article/peppercress

 

Peppercress Aioli…

https://food52.com/recipes/10884-peppercress-aioli

 

more Peppercress recipes…

https://www.florettesalad.co.uk/recipe-category/peppercress

 

more recipes from a place that does Peppercress Sprouts more than growing them in soil outdoors…

http://www.urbancultivator.net/learn-about-peppercress/

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_cress

 

 6.And now, for something completely different…

 Sources of plastic wrapped foods I wouldn’t have thought of (enough already!!!)…and we wonder where’s all this plastic’s coming from (it ain’t just water bottles)!

https://www.boredpanda.com/unnecessary-wasteful-food-packaging/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletter

 Events…both near and far

  

Thursday, June 24th

 

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, June 25th

 

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, June 26th

 

10am, 11am, OR 12pm

 

Annual CSA Strawberry Picking Farm Tour (rain or shine)

Green Thumb Farm

2 Rose Hill Rd (and Montauk Hwy)

Water Mill

FREE

For more info and to RSVP (for last minute planners, you can probably call the farm on Saturday morning after 9am, before you leave, and still make one of the farm tours)…

631-726-1900 (call between 9:30am and 4:30pm, Monday thru Sunday)

Directions are basically to go past the Green Thumb Farm farm stand (if you’re headed east), make the first right, and the first driveway to the right is the path to the farm tour. Park along the road and walk down the path and there should be a sign-in table right there.

 

COVID Protocols for Tour and Farm Stand…

Tour…outside in sunlight and easy to be socially distanced…no face coverings requested or required. Sunlight kills COVID-19 and does a darn good job…though they don’t exactly know how…

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210330171006.htm

Farm Stand…staff will be wearing face coverings…not requiring face coverings for anyone who is vaccinated

 

This is a one hour walking tour, and then you’re let loose in the Strawberry fields. Everyone attending is given a quart basket. This tour is free, and limited to CSA members and their immediate family members. If you’re sharing a CSA Share with someone, usually one person does the Strawberry tour and the other does the Pumpkin picking and the CSA Share Partner needs to use the name of the CSA member when signing up for the tour (since technically, the CSA Share Partner isn’t a member of the CSA as far…as far as the farm is concerned – they don’t exist! 😊).

 

Bathroom access…there is ONE portapotty and it’s as clean as things things go, but last time I was there I felt it was a little unstable and needed to be careful (kind of rocked a bit) and felt I could tip it over (probably not but wouldn’t that be an awful and amusing tale to tell! 😊). Maybe they stabilized it more since the last time…I hope 😊.

 

CSA members attending the this event will be able to get a 10% discount on ALL purchases at the farm stand (this discount is available to our CSA members on farm tour days only).

 

If you have a home garden, or plant things in pots, keep in mind that Green Thumb Farm has their own certified organic farm grown vegetable and herb plants for you to purchase and add to your garden.

 

Suggestion for somewhere to eat before or after your Green Thumb Farm visit (this is where I’ll be going 😊)…

Barrow Food House

https://barrowfoodhouse.com/

My go-to place (Bay Burger in Sag Harbor) has gone and been replaced by Ed’s Lobster Roll (a NYC chain). ☹ But am very pleased with this replacement (reasonably priced for the area and some local farm-to-table food used…they have a farm in the back of the property).

HOWEVER, if I get to Barrow Food House and the wait is really long, may ditch this part of the world and instead go to a personal favorite Turkish restaurant in Medford called Pita House (have been going here almost since they opened…and they opened about 25 years ago). It’s on the way back, right off the LIE…south on Exit 64…

https://www.longislandpitahouse.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=gmb&utm_campaign=gmb

AND…there’s a Turkish grocery store next to it so if I end up there, may pick up some Urfa Biber Pepper to use instead of Aleppo Pepper (which is in short supply because of war…the city of Aleppo in Syria is being destroyed and any “Aleppo” being sold now may either be over 5 years old, smuggled in illegally, and/or counterfeit)…

https://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/everything-you-need-know-about-urfa-biber-miracle-spice-youre-missing-out

OR…could check out a place I’ve never been before in Riverhead (Farm Country Kitchen) so I can eat Ice Cream for dessert at Snowflake in Riverhead.

Will depend on wait times/reservation options (or not).

 

And last but not least, not to be a Debbie Downer/groove killer BUT since you’ve been in nature…consider checking for ticks after you return home! MUCH better to be safe than sorry then to end up with Lyme’s (or some other dreadful tick borne disease), even though at Green Thumb Farm they have a sizeable Guinea Hen population and if they’re doing their job, hopefully, those Guinea Hens ate all the ticks! 😊

 

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, June 29th

 

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

8:15pm – Drive-thru distribution

 

Huntington Food Share

Community Solidarity

Fairground Ave. & 6^th St.

Huntington Station

FREE

For more info…

https://communitysolidarity.org/foodshares/huntington

To volunteer…

https://communitysolidarity.org/volunteer

Or to make a donation (they REALLY need a new truck)…

https://communitysolidarity.org/donate/funds

 Community Solidarity (formerly Long Island Food Not Bombs) is an amazing group, doing much needed good works. These are the folks our CSA donates food to (and have for the last several years). If you’d like to volunteer, make a donation (they REALLY, REALLY need a new truck), or have need of their services (or know people who might)…get in touch/get information via their website (listed above).

 

They also need/accept donations of the following…Bicycles, Books, Clothing, Flowers (good for general mental health…taking care of the mind AND the body), Food, Medical Care (is there a Doctor or Dentist in the house? 😊), Plants/Seedlings, School Supplies, Toys and more. For details on donating items, please go to the Home Page, scroll to Donate, and read the appropriate listing (and scroll to Material Goods to see the topics not initially listed)…

https://communitysolidarity.org/

 Here’s founder Jon Stepanian’s TED Talk (TEDxNYU) on Community Solidarity and Hunger Relief…

https://www.ted.com/talks/jon_stepanian_community_solidarity_hunger_relief

 ###

Huntington CSA Thursday, June 17, 2020 Week #3

 Happy Spring (not really summer till June 21^st 😊)!

 CSA weather report…warm and pleasant

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

 This email includes…

 What you need to know

1. First CSA meeting of the year this Saturday…and there will be raffles! 😊
2. Food safety and COVID-19…
3. Click activism – you don’t have to do much, or spend any money, to help make a positive change in the world
4. What you actually got last week
5. 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 house…BRING 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)

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).

Before you leave the CSA – Make sure you have everything on the list (like the story of the 3 bears…not too much, not too little, but just right 😊)! 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!

 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 #3

June 10, 2021 

1. Lettuce – 1 head
2. Asparagus* – 1 bunch
3. Peas: Snow – 1 bag
4. Garlic Scapes** – 1 bunch
5. Lavender – 1 bunch
6. Radishes – 1 bunch
7. Curley Cress*** – 1 bunch (left off the truck last week)

 Total Items: 7

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=12

 *Garlic is one of the world’s 100 healthiest foods (good info and recipes)…as long as you don’t microwave it (keep reading)!

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=60

And I BEG you…NEVER MICROWAVE GARLIC!!! Why? Short story…if you microwave Garlic for 1 minute, all the anti-cancer, antibacterial, antifungal and basically all the health properties in Garlic are GONE!

It takes over 45 minutes of cooking by conventional methods to achieve the same effect. So if you microwave your Garlic (or a dish with Garlic in it), you might as well be eating wood (which has no health properties beyond being a source of fiber 😊).

Here's a scientific paper to support this info (and while it says you can mince Garlic, let it sit around for 10 minutes, microwave for 60 seconds…not more… and get SOME of the health benefits…just don’t bother and get ALL the health benefits by lightly sautéing or using raw…just sayin’ 😊).

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11238815/

 ***No official CSA Veggie Info Sheet for this but here’s the lowdown on…

Cress, Curly (also known as Peppercress and Garden Cress)

It’s speecy spicy, very good for you, and goes well in small amounts in any salad, sandwich, wrap for starters…read on…

https://harvesttotable.com/cress_cress_is_a_common/

https://www.healwithfood.org/health-benefits/garden-cress-nutritional-benefits.php

 Web MD on “garden cress” (basically same as Pepper/Curly Cress)…please read if you have any underlying health conditions (diabetes, low blood pressure, etc.)…

http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-453-garden%20cress.aspx?activeingredientid=453&

 Pepper Cress – tangy/spicy herb that can be used raw in salads, on sandwiches or wraps and you can toss a small amount in at the end of a stir-fry or cooked recipe to give things a bit of a culinary punch

http://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/ingredients/article/peppercress

 Peppercress Aioli…

https://food52.com/recipes/10884-peppercress-aioli

 

more Peppercress recipes…

https://www.florettesalad.co.uk/recipe-category/peppercress

 

more recipes from a place that does Peppercress Sprouts more than growing them in soil outdoors…

http://www.urbancultivator.net/learn-about-peppercress/

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_cress

 2. First CSA meeting of the year this Saturday…there will be raffles!

 We’d be happy to see you for part or all of the meeting (drop by and say hi). Since the Cinema Art Centre’s Sky Room Café is still closed, feel free to bring your beverage of choice, a snack, or breakfast! 😊

 And after the CSA meeting if you plan on having lunch in Huntington Village, you might consider visiting Herrell’s Ice Cream Shop on closing day, after 13 years of being in the neighborhood (not organic BUT they did make their own Ice Cream, Hot Fudge Sauce and Whipped Cream in-house), and being a good friend of the Cinema Arts Centre (donating Ice Cream whenever asked over the years). I was a fan of their Hot Fudge Sundaes with any of their  Coconut and Coffee flavors, topped with Whipped Cream (regular…though they also had Chocolate!)…

https://greaterlongisland.com/herrells-ice-cream-in-huntington-is-closing-after-13-years-in-business/

And if they’ve run out of whatever (or everything?) by the time I get there, I’ll head over to Fiorello Dolce on Wall St. for some Gelato (or something else that’s decadent and delicious). 😊

 Saturday, June 19^th

 10am to noon

 CSA Meeting – Get to know your CSA, and your Strawberries!

Cinema Arts Centre

Sky Room Cafe

423 Park Ave

Huntington

RSVP so we know our seating/spacing limits, and how many copies of materials to make, by responding to this email or calling 631-421-4864

 We’ll be viewing an episode of Alton Brown’s tv show Good Eats that’s all about Strawberries (best way to freeze, recipes and more) to prepare us for the following week’s visit to the farm for the Strawberry picking tour.

 Meeting Schedule (approx.)…

10 to 10:15 – gather and optional recipe swap (bring a copy of a recipe for something you’ve used in the past 3 CSA Shares and we’ll make copies for everyone attending!)

10:15 to 10:30 – What’s a CSA (and what it’s not)? And…a brief history of Green Thumb Farm

10:30 to 11:30pm – Good Eats episode – Strawberries (recipes from the show will be given to those attending)

11:30am to 12pm – chat time and raffle drawings…ask any questions regarding the CSA or the food we get, future meetings, restaurant outings, etc., and there’s THREE raffles - one for new CSA members, one for rejoining CSA members (no attendance required to win) AND another raffle for those attending the CSA meeting!!!

  

3.Food safety and COVID-19…

 

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

 

 4.Click activism – you don’t have to do much, or spend any money, to help make a positive change in the world

 

I just urged EPA Administrator Regan to include soil health in pesticide risk assessments and regulatory decisions, because pesticides harm beneficial organisms critical to soil health (and if it ain’t in the soil, it ain’t in our food so what’s in the soil is REALLY important).

 

Please join me! https://bit.ly/357r5ZY?source=email&

 

5.What you actually got last week

 Week #2

June 10, 2021

1. Lettuce: Boston, Red – 1 head -$3.50
2. Strawberries* – 1 pt. - $6.00
3. Jerusalem Artichokes (Sunchokes) – 1 bag (2/3 lb.) - $4.25
4. Kale: Greenhouse** – 1 bunch - $4.00

 Total Items: 4

Total Amount: $17.75

(We pay $20 per week for our CSA share…some weeks we get a bit more, some a bit less. This week, it was $2.25 less [VERY unusual BUT it was because the Curly Cress we were going to get never got put on the truck so we’ll be getting it…or something equivalent to it…this week]. So at the moment we’ve gotten $.25 more than we paid for (which will change next week for sure 😊). Doesn’t sound like a whole lot, but it adds up over the course of the CSA season. We seem to always get at least one CSA share’s worth of food every year that we didn’t pay for…some years two, and some between one and two…it’s all good! 😊)

 Herb Share – June 1A

Oregano AND Sorrel

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=32

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=73

   7.And now, for something completely different…

 Fun with food (and other objects 😊)…

https://www.boredpanda.com/tiny-world-everyday-photography-tiny-wasteland-peter-csakvari/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletter

 Events…both near and far

 

 Saturday, June 19^th

 

10am to noon

 CSA Meeting – Get to know your CSA, and your Strawberries!

Cinema Arts Centre

Sky Room Cafe

423 Park Ave

Huntington

RSVP so we know our seating/spacing limits, and how many copies of materials to make, by responding to this email or calling 631-421-4864

 

We’ll be viewing an episode of Alton Brown’s tv show Good Eats that’s all about Strawberries (best way to freeze, recipes and more) to prepare us for the following week’s visit to the farm for the Strawberry picking tour.

 Meeting Schedule (approx.)…

10 to 10:15 – gather and optional recipe swap (bring a copy of a recipe for something you’ve used in the past 2 CSA Shares and we’ll make copies for everyone attending!)

10:15 to 10:30 – What’s a CSA (and what it’s not)? And…a brief history of Green Thumb Farm

10:30 to 11:30pm – Good Eats episode – Strawberries (recipes from the show will be given to those attending)

11:30am to 12pm – chat time and raffle drawings…ask any questions regarding the CSA or the food we get, future meetings, restaurant outings, etc., and there’s TWO raffles - one for new CSA members, and one for rejoining CSA members (no attendance required to win).

 

 Tuesday, June 22nd

 

7pm – Volunteers

8:15pm – Drive-thru distribution

 

Huntington Food Share

Community Solidarity

Fairground Ave. & 6^th St.

Huntington Station

FREE

For more info…

https://communitysolidarity.org/foodshares/huntington

To volunteer…

https://communitysolidarity.org/volunteer

Or to make a donation (they REALLY need a new truck)…

https://communitysolidarity.org/donate/funds

 Community Solidarity (formerly Long Island Food Not Bombs) is an amazing group, doing much needed good works. These are the folks our CSA donates food to (and have for the last several years). If you’d like to volunteer, make a donation (they REALLY, REALLY need a new truck), or have need of their services (or know people who might)…get in touch/get information via their website (listed above).

 They also need/accept donations of the following…Bicycles, Books, Clothing, Flowers (good for general mental health…taking care of the mind AND the body), Food, Medical Care (is there a Doctor or Dentist in the house? 😊), Plants/Seedlings, School Supplies, Toys and more. For details on donating items, please go to the Home Page, scroll to Donate, and read the appropriate listing (and scroll to Material Goods to see the topics not initially listed)…

https://communitysolidarity.org/

 Here’s founder Jon Stepanian’s TED Talk (TEDxNYU) on Community Solidarity and Hunger Relief…

https://www.ted.com/talks/jon_stepanian_community_solidarity_hunger_relief

  

Saturday, June 26th

 10am, 11am, OR 12pm

 Annual CSA Strawberry Pickin’ Farm Tour (rain or shine)

Green Thumb Farm

2 Rose Hill Rd (and Montauk Hwy)

Water Mill

FREE

For more info and to RSVP (for last minute planners, you can probably call the farm on Saturday morning after 9am, before you leave, and still make one of the farm tours)…

631-726-1900 (call between 9:30am and 4:30pm, Monday thru Sunday)

Directions are basically to go past the Green Thumb Farm farm stand (if you’re headed east), make the first right, and the first driveway to the right is the path to the farm tour. Park along the road and walk down the path and there should be a sign-in table right there.

 This is a one hour walking tour, and then you’re let loose in the Strawberry fields. Everyone attending is given a quart basket. This tour is free, and limited to CSA members and their immediate family members. If you’re sharing a CSA Share with someone, usually one person does the Strawberry tour and the other does the Pumpkin picking and the CSA Share Partner needs to use the name of the CSA member when signing up for the tour (since technically, the CSA Share Partner isn’t a member of the CSA as far…as far as the farm is concerned – they don’t exist! 😊).

 CSA members attending this event will be able to get a 10% discount on ALL purchases at the farm stand (this discount is available to our CSA members on farm tour days only).

 If you have a home garden, or plant things in pots, keep in mind that Green Thumb Farm has their own certified organic farm grown vegetable and herb plants for you to purchase and add to your garden.

 Suggestion for somewhere to eat before or after your Green Thumb Farm visit (this is where I’ll be going 😊)…

Barrow Food House

https://barrowfoodhouse.com/

My go-to place (Bay Burger in Sag Harbor) has gone and been replaced by Ed’s Lobster Roll (a NYC chain). ☹ But am very pleased with this replacement (reasonably priced for the area and some local farm-to-table food used…they have a farm in the back of the property).

 And last but not least, not to be a Debbie Downer/groove killer BUT since you’ve been in nature…consider checking for ticks after you return home! MUCH better to be safe than sorry and end up with Lyme’s (or some other dreadful tick borne disease), even though at Green Thumb Farm they have a sizeable Guinea Hen population and if they’re doing their job, hopefully, those Guinea Hens ate all the ticks! 😊

###

Huntington CSA Thursday, June 10, 2020 Week #2

 

Happy Spring (not really summer till June 21^st 😊)!

 CSA weather report…warm and breezy

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

 Our farmers are of New England/Yankee stock and as far as I’m concerned, the men are people of few words BUT they did manage to sneak in a few words of welcome on the first CSA Wall Chart of the year. In case you missed it (easy to miss as it was on the bottom, and on the first week of the CSA there’s a lot to take in), the gang said…THANK YOU and WELCOME TO THE 2021 SEASON! I know they are quite sincere and if you make it to the Strawberry Picking event on Saturday, June 26^th, you’ll get a chance to meet and spend some time with this amazing 11^th generation farm family (and you might want to talk to them about your home vegetable/herb/flower garden questions/problems).

 This email includes… 

1. What you need to know
2. CSA Strawberry Picking Farm Tour Update
3. Food safety and COVID-19…
4. Click activism – you don’t have to do much, or spend any money, to help make a positive change in the world
5. What you actually got last week
6. Think you’re gardening organically? Think again…
7. 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 house…BRING 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)

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).

Before you leave the CSA – Make sure you have everything on the list (like the story of the 3 bears…not too much, not too little, but just right 😊)! 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!

 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 #2

June 10, 2021 

1. Lettuce – 1 head
2. Strawberries* – 1 pt.
3. Cress: Curly (also known as Peppercress/Garden Cress)** – 1 bunch
4. Kale (greenhouse)*** – 1 bunch
5. Jerusalem Artichokes – 1 bag

 Total Items: 5

 Herb Share – June 1A

Cilantro**** AND Oregano*****

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=32

 **No official CSA Veggie Info Sheet for this but here’s the lowdown on…

Cress, Curly (also known as Peppercress and Garden Cress)

It’s speecy spicy, very good for you, and goes well in small amounts in any salad, sandwich, wrap for starters…read on…

https://harvesttotable.com/cress_cress_is_a_common/

https://www.healwithfood.org/health-benefits/garden-cress-nutritional-benefits.php

 

Web MD on “garden cress” (basically same as Pepper/Curly Cress)…please read if you have any underlying health conditions (diabetes, low blood pressure, etc.)…

http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-453-garden%20cress.aspx?activeingredientid=453&

 

Pepper Cress – tangy/spicy herb that can be used raw in salads, on sandwiches or wraps and you can toss a small amount in at the end of a stir-fry or cooked recipe to give things a bit of a culinary punch

http://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/ingredients/article/peppercress

 

Peppercress Aioli…

https://food52.com/recipes/10884-peppercress-aioli

 

more Peppercress recipes…

https://www.florettesalad.co.uk/recipe-category/peppercress

 

more recipes from a place that does Peppercress Sprouts more than growing them in soil outdoors…

http://www.urbancultivator.net/learn-about-peppercress/

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_cress

  

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=70

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=73

 

2. CSA Strawberry Picking Farm Tour Update

 

Check the events email for more details but the basic new info is (and any additional info will be added as I get it)…

 

1. Tour times begin at 10am, 11am, and 12pm
2. Please RSVP to the farm by calling 631-726-1900 between 9:30am and 4:30pm Monday to Sunday
3. For last minute planners…you can call (starting at 9am) before leaving for the farm and probably still be able to attend
4. CSA members attending the this event will be able to get a 10% discount on purchases at the farm stand (this discount is available to our CSA members on farm tour days only)
5. If you have a home garden, or plant things in pots, keep in mind that Green Thumb Farm has their own certified organic farm grown vegetable and herb plants for you to purchase and add to your garden

 

 3.Food safety and COVID-19…

 

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

 

 4.Click activism – you don’t have to do much, or spend any money, to help make a positive change in the world

 

Tell Home Depot and Lowe's to remove toxic herbicides from their shelves and replace them with products that promote least-toxic practices…

https://secure.everyaction.com/Uk4HdNd820u2XdqKrw4VmQ2

 

 5.What you actually got last week

 

Week #1

June 3, 2021

 

1. Lettuce: Romaine AND Leaf, Red – 1 head of each -$5.00
2. Strawberries* – 1 pt. - $6.25
3. Arugula – 1 bunch - $3.75
4. Kale: Siberian, White** – 1 bunch - $3.50
5. Onions: Spring*** – 1 bunch - $4.25

 

Total Items: 5

Total Amount: $22.75

(We pay $20 per week for our CSA share…some weeks we get a bit more, some a bit less. This week, it was $2.75 extra. Doesn’t sound like a whole lot, but it adds up over the course of the CSA season. We seem to always get at least one CSA share’s worth of food every year that we didn’t pay for…some years two, and some between one and two…it’s all good! 😊)

 

Flower Share - #1

Sweet Williams

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=32

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38

 

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=45

 

 

6.Think you’re gardening organically? Think again…

 

There’s a LOT more to growing “organic” food than just not spraying pesticides (check out the NOFA organic standards book at the CSA sometime to see what’s required to be a certified organic vegetable farm).

 

Does your “organic” fertilizer have toxic sewer sludge or other harmful chemicals in it that can then get into the “organic” food you’re growing?

https://beyondpesticides.org/dailynewsblog/2021/06/sewage-sludge-fertilizers-sold-at-hardware-stores-found-to-be-contaminated-with-pfas-chemicals/?emci=ffca0204-5ac9-eb11-a7ad-501ac57b8fa7&emdi=00451181-74c9-eb11-a7ad-501ac57b8fa7&ceid=68372

 

If you want to be (or are) an organic gardener, I HIGHLY recommend you consider joining NOFA-NY (the organic certification group that’s been certifying farms, like Green Thumb Farm, LONG before the federal government got involved). It’s only $45 for a basic membership and you get a lot of proverbial bang for your buck (and support certified organic farming in NY)…

https://nofany.org/about-us/become-a-member/

One of the things I like the best is their yearly listing of all certified organic farms in NY by county.

 

And the next step is to consider attending this year’s virtual NOFA Summer Conference (which includes all seven NOFA member states…including NY)…

https://nofasummerconference.org/

While a lot of this is geared toward farmers, there’s ALWAYS workshops for the home gardener/cook/food activist. Some of the speakers this year include Elizabeth Henderson (one of the founds of one of the first CSAs in the USA back in 1986…who I’ve met a number of times over the years…a great lady 😊), and Lee Reich (if you have any interest in growing fruit…he’s your man…have attended a workshop at his place upstate and ALWAYS worth hearing what he has to say).

 

 7.And now, for something completely different…

 Questionable vintage recipes (how did I miss these growing up? 😊)…

https://www.boredpanda.com/questionable-vintage-recipes/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletter

 

Events…both near and far

 Saturday, June 19^th

 10am to noon

 CSA Meeting – Get to know your CSA, and your Strawberries!

Cinema Arts Centre

Sky Room Cafe

423 Park Ave

Huntington

RSVP so we know our seating/spacing limits, and how many copies of materials to make, by responding to this email or calling 631-421-4864

 We’ll be viewing an episode of Alton Brown’s tv show Good Eats that’s all about Strawberries (best way to freeze, recipes and more) to prepare us for the following week’s visit to the farm for the Strawberry picking tour.

 Meeting Schedule (approx.)…

10 to 10:15 – gather and optional recipe swap (bring a copy of a recipe for something you’ve used in the past 2 CSA Shares and we’ll make copies for everyone attending!)

10:15 to 10:30 – What’s a CSA (and what it’s not)? And…a brief history of Green Thumb Farm

10:30 to 11:30pm – Good Eats episode – Strawberries (recipes from the show will be given to those attending)

11:30am to 12pm – chat time and raffle drawings…ask any questions regarding the CSA or the food we get, future meetings, restaurant outings, etc., and there’s TWO raffles - one for new CSA members, and one for rejoining CSA members (no attendance required to win).

 

 Saturday, June 26th

 10am, 11am, OR 12pm

 Annual CSA Strawberry Pickin’ Farm Tour (rain or shine)

Green Thumb Farm

2 Rose Hill Rd (and Montauk Hwy)

Water Mill

FREE

For more info and to RSVP:

631-726-1900 (call between 9:30am and 4:30pm)

Directions are basically to go past the Green Thumb Farm farm stand (if you’re headed east), make the first right and the first driveway to the right is the path to the farm tour. Park along the road and walk down the path and there should be a sign-in table right there.

 This is a one hour walking tour, and then you’re let loose in the Strawberry fields. Everyone attending is given a quart basket. This tour is free, and limited to CSA members and their immediate family members. If you’re sharing a CSA Share with someone, usually one person does the Strawberry tour and the other does the Pumpkin picking and the CSA Share Partner needs to use the name of the CSA member when signing up for the tour (since technically, the CSA Share Partner isn’t a member of the CSA as far…as far as the farm is concerned – they don’t exist! 😊).

 Suggestion for somewhere to eat before or after your Green Thumb Farm visit (this is where I’ll be going 😊)…

Barrow Food House

https://barrowfoodhouse.com/

 My go-to place (Bay Burger in Sag Harbor) has gone and been replaced by Ed’s Lobster Roll (a NYC chain). ☹ But am very pleased with this replacement (reasonably priced for the area and some local farm-to-table food used…they have a farm in the back of the property).

###

Huntington CSA Thursday, June 3, 2020 Week #1

 Happy Spring!

 CSA weather report…warm, windy, rain and thunder (but who cares…we’re getting Strawberries 😊)!

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

 This email includes…

 What you need to know

1. Flower Shares!
2. Get to know your Alliums…we’re getting some this week!
3. Food safety and COVID-19…
4. Need something a little cheerful and uplifting to read?
5. 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.

 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 house…BRING 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 all the way around at the back of the building by the daycare center (you’ll see a fenced in playground area with a sandbox)

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 taking 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).

Before you leave the CSA – Make sure you have everything on the list (like the story of the 3 bears…not too much, not too little, but just right 😊)! 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.

 Week #1

June 3, 2021 

1. Lettuce – 1 head
2. Strawberries* – 1 pt.
3. Arugula – 1 bunch
4. Kale: Siberian, White** – 1 bunch
5. Onions: Spring*** – 1 bunch

 Total Items: 5

 Flower Share - #1

Sweet Williams

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=32

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38

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

http://www.whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=45

1.Flower Shares

If you decided you want to get the next bunch that comes in…email (or leave a voice message at the phone number below)  and let us know (and how many shares you’d like…some get more than one 😊 ), and will put you on the list.

 We may or may not be getting Flower Shares this week because they basically show up when they’re ready.

 suzanne gtcsahuntington@gmail.com 631-421-4864

The prorated price at the moment would be $90 for the remaining 10 weeks, and you can bring cash (will get you a receipt) or a check (made out to Halseys Green Thumb) to the CSA this Thursday, and that will seal the deal.

 2.Get to know your Alliums…we’re getting some this week!

 Great NY Times article on the whole Allium family…

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/17/dining/onion-scallions-shallots.html

Over the course of our CSA season, we might get Garlic, Garlic Scapes, Leeks, Scallions, and/or Spring Onions.

 3.Food safety and COVID-19…

 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

 4.Need something a little cheerful and uplifting?

 Here’s a lovely interview (and charming promo) from last year by the star of the food travel series Somebody Feed Phil (as well as the creator of Everybody Loves Raymond), Phil Rosenthal (Queens born and Hofstra University graduate), about his thoughts on the future of travel and food…support your favorite local restaurants/eateries by taking out/dining in…

https://www.vulture.com/2020/05/phil-rosenthal-somebody-feed-phil-season-3.html#_ga=2.93139037.1952758007.1590824407-628690641.1558680387

5.And now, for something completely different…

 Creative fun with food!

https://laughingsquid.com/animals-cleverly-created-out-of-food/

Events…both near and far

 Saturday, June 15^th

 

10am to noon

 

CSA Meeting – Get to know your CSA, and your Strawberries!

Cinema Arts Centre

Sky Room Cafe

423 Park Ave

Huntington

RSVP so we know our seating/spacing limits, and how many copies of materials to make, by responding to this email or calling 631-421-4864

 We’ll be viewing an episode of Alton Brown’s tv show Good Eats that’s all about Strawberries (best way to freeze, recipes and more) to prepare us for the following week’s visit to the farm for the Strawberry picking tour.

 

Meeting Schedule (approx.)…

10 to 10:15 – gather and optional recipe swap (bring a copy of a recipe for something you’ve used in the past 2 CSA Shares and we’ll make copies for everyone attending!)

10:15 to 10:30 – What’s a CSA (and what it’s not)? And…a brief history of Green Thumb Farm

10:30 to 11:30pm – Good Eats episode – Strawberries (recipes from the show will be given to those attending)

11:30am to 12pm – chat time and raffle drawings…ask any questions regarding the CSA or the food we get, future meetings, restaurant outings, etc., and there’s TWO raffles - one for new CSA members, and one for rejoining CSA members (no attendance required to win).

 

Saturday, June 26th

 

10:30am, 11:30am OR 12:30pm (don’t quote me but this is what it usually is…will confirm as soon as I know)

 

Annual CSA Strawberry Pickin’ Farm Tour (rain or shine)

Green Thumb Farm

2 Rose Hill Rd (and Montauk Hwy)

Water Mill

FREE

For more info:

631-726-1900 (call between 9:30am and 4:30pm)

Directions are basically to go past the Green Thumb Farm farm stand (if you’re headed east), make the first right and the first driveway to the right is the path to the farm tour. Park along the road and walk down the path and there should be a sign-in table right there.

 

This is a one-hour walking tour, and then you’re let loose in the Strawberry fields. Everyone attending is given a quart basket. This tour is free and limited to CSA members and their immediate family members. If you’re sharing a CSA share with someone, usually one person does the Strawberry tour and the other does the Pumpkin picking and the CSA Share Partner needs to use the name of the CSA member when signing up for the tour (since technically, the CSA Share Partner isn’t a member of the CSA as far…as far as the farm is concerned – they don’t exist! 😊).

 Suggestion for somewhere to eat before or after your Green Thumb Farm visit (this is where I’ll be going 😊)…

Barrow Food House

https://barrowfoodhouse.com/

 My go-to place (Bay Burger in Sag Harbor) has gone and been replaced by Ed’s Lobster Roll (a NYC chain). ☹ But am very pleased with this replacement (reasonably priced for the area and some local farm-to-table food used…they have a farm in the back of the property).

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