We’ve got our eyes set on a new piece of property and that means I finally get to plant the orchard of my CSA dreams. I’d love to hear the top 10 things you’d like to see in the CSA box in the future. We hope to include berries, a large fruit variety, enough eggs for everyone and possibly milk. This will be unraveling within the next few years, but any thoughts you have now, will help us make extraordinary CSA boxes in the future.
What’s happening with our chickens? Many people have signed up on our waitlist in anticipation of our eggs. We have about 28 laying hens at the current time producing about 10 dozen per week. We also have 4 different sets of 15 chickens being moved around on the farm to a new grassy location everyday. The grass is sparse and it’s becoming more difficult with the lack of rain. We’ve also found 2-3 roosters in each batch đ anyone need a rooster? Seriously. If not, some will become dinner. The oldest chickens of the batch should be laying by the new year, and the rest will soon follow every month after. We will pleased when we can fulfill all egg orders and make sure you are eating the happiest chicken eggs around.
Snapped a picture of one of my lovely ladies on the way out the door today. She’s no taller than a bottle of soda and gets super excited every time she’s moved onto new grass.
Granola of the week: is Coconut Seed. Please see our store for a list of ingredients. This granola is PACKED with healthy pumpkin seeds and coconut flakes. It’s one of my favorites. Lightly sweetened and a perfect snack, it’s made right here in Goleta by Cindy Dollar.
We’ve been subscribing to Deux bakery for several months now and we are trying to switch over to ALL organic loaves. In order to do that the price will go up a little bit and we do need a minimum commitment each week. We will start waiting lists for our organic bread and as soon as we get our minimum (6-8 people) we will begin the process. Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this matter.
CSA for the week of October 29th contains:
YELLOW GRAPE TOMATOES
GREEN BEANS
SALAD MIX
ZUCCHINI
BASIL
BUNCHED SPINACH
CUCUMBERS
CIPPOLINI ONIONS
BUTTERNUT SQUASH
RED TOMATOES
BIG BOX ADD: HEIRLOOM TOMATOES, AVOCADOS from VINCENT FARMS, GREEN LEAF LETTUCE, BEETS and ORANGE KABOCHA SQUASH from FRECKER FARMS
*Try throwing your green beans into a pan with some coconut oil and fry them up for about 10 mins, tossing every few minutes until they start to crisp up. Put them on top of salads, along side soups and main dishes. They are totally munchable, and our green beans have a slightly sweet flavor, so make a lot.
Butternut Squash Lasagna
Ingredients:
1 large butternut squash
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 jar organic spaghetti sauce
1 package no-boil lasagna noodles
3 cups Italian Cheese
1/4 cup fresh basil
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pierce squash with a fork, cover with aluminum foil and cook in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until it begins to soften. Remove from oven and allow to cool until the squash isn’t too hot to touch.
2. Use a sharp knife to cut the squash in half lengthwise. Remove seeds from the center of the squash. Place squash halves in a baking dish and return to baking for 20 minutes more.
3. Remove squash from the oven once more and, with a spoon, carve out a section in the center of each piece of squash. Save the center meat you’ve removed for use as a side dish in another recipe.
4. Drizzle carved squash halves with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
5. Spoon a small amount of Muir Glen spaghetti sauce into the bottom of each squash half. Top with a lasagna noodle (crack the noodles into smaller bits, if needed, to fit them into the center of each squash), more sauce, and a thin layer of cheese. Layer six or seven times, as needed, until youve filled the entire center of both squash halves.
6. Return squash to a baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, then remove foil and bake an additional 5-10 minutes, until the cheese on top is bubbly and lightly browned.
7. Sprinkle fresh basil on top just before serving. Season to taste with pepper (and salt, if desired!)
(Recipe from Tablespoon.com)
Zucchini-Basil Soup and Grilled Cheese
(The author mentions that a sharp cheese can offer a lot of awesome cheesy flavor without having too much cheese. And that when you blend zucchini into a soup it makes the soup really creamy!)
Ingredients: Serves 4
5 medium zucchini, ends chopped off and roughly chopped
1 onion, sliced small
3 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2/3 cup fresh basil, packed and roughly chopped
20-24 oz chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1/4 cup heavy cream (OPTIONAL! I didnât use any)
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
â˘For the Grilled Cheese:
8 slices multigrain bread, lightly toasted
sharp cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
1 bunch spinach, roughly chopped
Directions
1.To make the soup, heat a large soup pot over medium heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and the zucchini, onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Saute for 5-7 minutes, or until the onions start to become translucent. Add the basil and cook another 3 minutes.
2.Add the chicken stock to the pot, cover, and cook for 15 minutes on a low simmer. After the soup has finished cooking, pour it into a blender. Carefully blend until the soup is completely smooth. You may decide after blending to add a little more chicken stock, or the heavy cream, to really smooth it out. Transfer back to the pot and season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep on low heat while you make the grilled cheese.
3.Heat a large cast iron pan on medium-high. Spray with cooking spray and lightly sautĂŠ the spinach greens until they just start to wilt, about 3 minutes. Remove from the pan.
4.Assemble the grilled cheese by layering cheese, greens, and another slice of cheese onto each of the four sandwiches. Spray the cast iron again with cooking spray and cook the sandwiches for 3 minutes per side, or until the cheese is nice and melty. Serve each with a big bowl of soup.
(Recipe from Cooking in Red Socks)
Egg Muffins (With Spinach and Zucchini)
(Per author, “Super quick to make, and unbelievably delicious to eat (even cold!) Theyâre really like mini souffles since you separate the whites from yolks and hence are moist and light. Add any flavor combos you like. Bacon or ham bits would also work well. Other herbs you could try are tarragon or thyme.”)
Ingredients: Makes aprx 12.
1 scallion (or 1/4 of small onion)
1/2 medium zucchini
2 big fists-full of spinach leaves
2 tbsp feta (or grated Parmesan cheese)
5 large leaves fresh basil
1/4 cup milk
Salt and pepper (Youâll need a fair but of salt, especially if using spinach.)
5 eggs
Directions:
Set the oven to 375. Grease the muffin tin well. This is critical!! (Eggs can stick badly so donât go light and work the butter/oil into the bottom round part where the egg likes to stick. You could use liners but they donât allow the muffins to dry as they cool, hence a soggier bottom.)
Dice the onion and zucchini quite small and cut the spinach and basil into thin strips. Sautee onion and zucchini. Add spinach until just wilted. Add the basil. Separate yolks from whites and whip the whites until peaks form. Add the cooked vegs to the bowl of yolks, plus the cheese, the milk and the salt and pepper. (Donât skimp on the salt as I find that especially with spinach you need a fair bit.) Then fold the whites into the whole mixtureâŚ..
Cook for 15 minutes. Once out of the oven, wait 10 minutes then run a knife around the outside of the muffins and coax them off the bottom with the knife. Place on a wire rack. (If you leave them in the muffin tins too long, the bottoms will get soggy).
To store: (In fridge): Once cool, wrap in paper towel to absorb some of the moisture which will keep them fresher. (In freezer): Once cool, separate them with cling wrap and place in bag or simply lay them flat in a container (no wrap). If they are touching they will freeze together and it will be harder to pull just one or two out to thaw.
– See more at: http://www.thesweetbeet.com/egg-muffins/#sthash.UbUWNDOq.dpuf
(Recipe from The Sweet Beat)
Juice Feast Contains: *INCLUDES LEMONS OR LIMES
FUJI APPLES
BUNCHED SPINACH
CUCUMBERS
CARROTS
BEETS
LACINATO KALE
CELERY
ASIAN PEARS from GARCIA FAMILY FARMS
ITALIAL PARSLEY/MINT
DANDELION GREENS