Garlic harvesting has begun!
We'd like to say thank you to the members who came out to our Great Garlic Harvest on Saturday to help with the fun. Here are some shots from the day:
It was such a great day, and we loved hosting an opportunity to strengthen the bond that our community has. Thank you so much for coming out! We look forward to the next event.
This garlic will get hung up in our barns and dried out for use later this year. Curing the garlic this way simply helps to store it, as we won't use it fresh all at once.
We'd love to feature two crew members this week: Eric L. and Mark.
This is Eric L., who is our SOLE crew member who is scheduled to work on Saturdays. Last weekend he harvested squash, zucchini, cucumbers, and eggplant alongside Randy in the 90-degree heat. He also took over the job of watering the greenhouse last Saturday. I think we can honestly say we wouldn't have made it through the day without him. Eric also harvests on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, to help bring in all of the vegetables in your shares. Thank you, Eric!
This is Mark, who works behind the scenes to service and repair all of our vehicles and equipment. Mark is skilled and knowledgable beyond our own skill sets, and we are so grateful for the necessary work he does at the farm.
This past week we wrapped up our contest and crowned our 2021 LGF Greatest Griller. Our winner was Mary S., who wowed our social media followers with her zucchini parmesan. We set out to prove to everyone that you can grill an array of vegetables creatively, and we were blown away by the 25 submissions we received. We let social media reactions be the judge of the contest. Here was Mary's prize:
And here was her submission:
If you'd like to try it yourself, the recipe was from https://thefeedfeed.com/lisathompson/grilled-zucchini-parm-1. Congratulations, Mary!
This fall we're going to do a veggie bake-off: think butternut squash, beets, carrots, acorn squash, zucchini, and spinach...
Next week is our Week of Choice, and we just want to explain how it'll work for those of you who opted in (the deadline was Saturday, July 24th).
On your regularly scheduled pickup day, you'll come into the store. We'll confirm the amount of money you have to spend (there will be no physical voucher):
Small pickups: $17
Large pickups: $26
Small deliveries: $24
Large deliveries: $32
You'll shop in the store to pick out vegetables totaling that amount. We'll have scales and scrap paper in the back in case you'd like to be precise. When you go to check out, we'll deduct the value of your share from your total. If your total is slightly over your "voucher" amount, (less than $1.00) we won't require you to pay the difference. If you'd like to add on additional vegetables, or any non-vegetable items, we'll check your items out through our system and you can pay the difference by cash or credit card.
If you're receiving a box that week, your pickup process will be as normal!
We are hiring for markets this fall, beginning September 3rd. We are searching for one or two hard-working crew members to join us for the Monroe Farmers' Market on Fridays and Shelton Farmers' Market on Saturdays. The Friday shift is from 1 to 7 p.m. and the Saturday shift is from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. If you know someone interested in applying, visit https://www.laurelglenfarm.com/join-our-team
In Your Share (In approximate order from shortest to longest shelf life)
Small:
1 head of bok choy
1 bunch of scallions
1 bunch of kale
1 eggplant
1 lb. of squash
1 onion
1 bunch of oregano
Large:
1 bunch of cutting celery
1 bunch of beet greens
1 head of bok choy
1 bunch of scallions
1 bunch of kale
1 eggplant
1 lb. of squash
1 red cabbage
2 onions
1 bunch of oregano
Caring For Your Share:
Trim the bottoms of the cutting celery and scallions and place the stems in a glass of cold water, like a bouquet. You can put a plastic bag over the greens for extra moisture retention.
Leave the outer leaves on and store the head of cabbage in the fridge. The outer leaves will keep moisture in the head and prevent it from drying out.
Store beet greens, kale, beet greens, and bok choy in a plastic bag in the fridge (use two, one on each end, if needed due to size). Kale and beet greens can also be stored in the fridge like a bouquet.
Store your squash and eggplant in the crisper drawer in the refrigerator. Eggplant can be stored on the counter at room temperature, but it will need to be used within a day or two.
Wrap oregano in a paper towel and put it in a plastic bag in the fridge for a week.
The information for onions in the Library of Resources is for dried onions. Store your fresh onions in the refrigerator. You can place a plastic bag over the greens to keep them fresh, and you can use those like scallions!
LGF Cooking Club (The Library of Resources is filled with TONS of ideas about all of these veggies)
Pork, Kale, and Bok Choy Stir Fry https://www.familycookbookproject.com/recipe/2917885/pork-kale-and-bok-choy-stir-fry.html
Eggplant with Oregano and Red Onion https://www.chatelaine.com/recipe/vegetarian/nigella-lawsons-baby-eggplant-with-oregano-and-red-onion/
Mediterranean Beef Stuffed Squash https://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/mediterranean-beef-stuffed-squash/
Stuffed Shells with Eggplant, Ricotta, and Greens https://mountainmamacooks.com/stuffed-shells-with-eggplant-ricotta-greens/
Greek Oregano Lemon Marinade https://www.bertolli.com/recipes/recipes-greek-oregano-lemon-marinade/
Skillet Chicken with Baby Bok Choy https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/skillet_chicken_with_baby_bok_choy/
Yellow Squash Cheddar Cheese Biscuits (Add in the scallions!) https://www.turningclockback.com/yellow-squash-cheddar-cheese-biscuit-recipe/
Warm Eggplant, Mushroom, and Kale Salad https://livelytable.com/warm-eggplant-mushroom-and-kale-salad
Biweekly Catch-Up:
It's time to harvest our garlic! You're all invited to the Great Garlic Harvest, happening this Saturday, July 24th from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the farm (weather permitting). If you'd like to come hang out with us, harvest some garlic, and receive a bag of veggies as a thank you, click the link below to RSVP.
Randy and Hannah weeded the garlic patch last week in preparation for the event. Looking forward to seeing you and building our community!
Hannah's also been working on a very important but tedious task here on the farm over the past few weeks: sanitizing our plug trays for future seedlings. This is a necessary step to help us reduce the spread of disease between plants on the farm.
Succession planting is another important aspect of farming. To ensure a steady supply of certain crops, we need to continue to seed and plant them. We're currently harvesting squash, zucchini, and cucumbers off of succession planting #3 out of 8. There is typically overlap in a couple of those plantings, which is why our yield increases during the height of the summer. Laina's also been responsible for seeding and tending to the fall crop seedlings, like more herbs, kale, fennel, and other cabbage family crops.
Future kohlrabi
Baby kale
The next round of cilantro
Upcoming basil
Summer colors are slowly making more of an appearance. Last week, we harvested the first of our carrots, plus a basket of Asian eggplant, and a few handfuls of teeny currant tomatoes. So much more beautiful color to come!
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Mark your calendars! The Week of Choice is happening during the week of August 1st to the 7th. We'll be verifying with you at pickup (if we haven't already) if you're interested in receiving a voucher to spend on vegetables of your choice instead of receiving a pre-packed box that week. If you receive a delivery during that week (weekly members only; it's a biweekly pickup week) and would like to opt in, please follow the link below: https://forms.gle/KqpC35nF6NHDCFx47
Delivery members: Remember to leave us your KIND bag from the previous delivery for us to pack into for the following delivery. And don't forget to leave a cooler! We'd hate to leave your beautiful veggies outside in these hot temperatures.
Pickup members: Thank you so much for remembering to bring a bag to pick up your vegetables. We can no longer provide courtesy plastic bags, so we appreciate your help!
Don't forget to vote for us for Connecticut Magazine's Best Farm Stand! The deadline is July 31st, and you can vote once with a valid email address. We've gotten so much incredible, positive feedback, and we are so appreciative of all of your kind words and votes. Even if we don't win, this nomination was an unbelievable honor that means the world to us. Click here to vote!
Here are all of the amazing grilling contest submissions to date. If you're reading this on Sunday, July 18th, the deadline to submit is tonight! We pick a winner to win a fun prize tomorrow! Just snap a photo of your grilled veggies, share it with us, and label what it is.