It has been a busy week filled with planting another round of crops and weeding. The weather made it extremely challenging to accomplish.

As you can see, Sam and I raced a storm that had us in a flash flood warning this weekend. We are appreciative that we did not receive the downpour that friends south of us received. Thankfully no lightning at our place – so Sam thought it was a blast to play in the rain immediately following planting sweet potatoes.

I greatly appreciated his willingness to work with speed and understanding of the purposeful outcome we needed to have. So many good life lessons from this including teamwork, do it right the first time so you don’t have to do it over and things can be fun in the rain, one’s perspective and attitude drive the outcome.

Sam and I planted 50 sweet potatoes. We appreciate the help from our neighbors the Schwakes for their help with sweet potatoes.

An update on what is growing on: the radishes and kohlrabi appear to be loved by an insect this year. Now on the 4^th planting, we are hopeful that we can beat the insects on this round. Also, the sugar snap peas are blooming which means edible pea pods are around the corner. In fact, we harvested a handful yesterday so we are hopeful that the bounty will be available next week.

Garden Science

We thought you would enjoy a few of our views this week.

Looking down the top of a corn plant is always fascinating to see the swirls as the leaves and plant grow. Learn more about the corn plant growth here.

Blue potatoes are not a GMO. It’s origin is quite interesting. Learn more here  and at the Wisconsin Potato Growers.

Pick-up and Delivery

Remember that pick-up and deliveries will be on the schedule you have arranged with Harner Brothers CSA – please note the exceptions to this which were in the email.

It is your responsibility to know that the pick-up or drop-off time will occur at the agreed upon time, and it is your responsibility as a shareholder to know this and be responsible for the produce at that time. If you are unable to utilize your share that week, it is still your responsibility: find someone else to pick it up or donate it to the food shelf.

Each box is labeled for each family. The same boxes will be used for your family throughout the season. Boxes and containers should be returned the following week. Bags will only be used once.

Boxes of Produce

This list is prepared before we harvest your share. Some guesswork is involved! We do our best to predict which crops will be ready to harvest, but sometimes crops are on the list that are not in the share, and sometimes crops will be in the share even though they’re not on the list. Remember food safety in your kitchen when preparing, always wash your hands before working with your produce and always wash your produce before eating.

The Harner Bros are the 5th generation to raise this rhubarb originally planted on the family farm near Tracy by their great-great grandparents after immigrating from Norway and transplanted to our home near Northfield.

Rhubarb – One pound equals about 3 cups. Wash, cut the ends off, cut off any bad parts damaged by wind, chop into 1/4 – 1/2 inch pieces. No need to peel. You can freeze it in a Ziploc bag (no blanching) and use for months to come. Check out earlier posts on rhubarb for recipe ideas. Also, a recent rhubarb favorite was shared this evening – make rhubarb sauce and eat it with your favorite yogurt.

Asparagus – Fresh cut asparagus from the Chute’s Farm Fresh Gardens in Aitkin, Minnesota. These farmers are friends of ours who we know from Farm Bureau and also the Minnesota Agriculture and Rural Leadership Program. They had some extra they wanted to share with us, and the delivery time worked out well. They snap the asparagus vs. cutting so that you are getting all edible stalk and should have very minimal amount that you do not eat. Enjoy! See how asparagus is harvested in California. Check out these recipes.

Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce – One of my favorite garden crops. Some of the crops are ran under cold well water to take the field heat off of them so they last longer in your refrigerators. They are not washed – just cooled. So remember to wash your vegetables before eating. See how lettuce is grown throughout the year so it is available in our grocery stores even on our cold Minnesota days.

It is so fun to watch the crops that you plant sprout and grow. This is a young spinach plant. Do you know how long it takes for spinach to germinate? 7-14 days depending on growing conditions. You can cut and harvest several times. The plant will grow new leaves back every time you cut and harvest it.

Spinach – great for salads – check out this week’s recipe below.

Chives – wash then chop up chives into small pieces. I enjoy using them in potatoes on the grill. Here are a few ideas for using your chives. https://www.marthastewart.com/search/results?keys=chives

Cilantro – did you know that ¼ cup of cilantro only has 1 calorie. Here are a few ideas from Martha Stewart to use your cilantro.   https://www.marthastewart.com/search/results?keys=cilantro

Fresh cut arrangement – Hosta Leaves. I was so bummed that the peonies had already finished flowering.

Recipe of the Week

Strawberry Spinach Salad

Strawberry Dressing

3 Tablespoons apple juice

2 Tablespoons strawberry spreadable fruit

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Salad

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts

8 cups bite-size pieces spinach

1 cup strawberries, stems removed and strawberries cut in half

1/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese (1 oz)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. In small bowl, mix all dressing ingredients until blended; set aside.
2. Spray 10-inch skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in skillet 15 to 20 minutes, turning once, until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F). Remove chicken to cutting board.
3. Add dressing to skillet; stir to loosen any pan drippings.
4. Cut chicken into slices. Among 4 plates, divide spinach. Top with chicken, strawberries and cheese. Drizzle with dressing. Sprinkle with walnuts.

Source: Taste of Home