First off, Sorry that I didn't write a post last week. I try and do it religiously but usually 2 times during the season I miss my writing window and there is no newsletter for the week. Please forgive me, but I had the opportunity to take a 36 hour vacation in the San Juans and I couldn't say no. It is very rare that Willy or I get a chance to step away from work during the summer. Farming is a career choice that does not come with weekends or vacation leave. A prime example: Last Friday, Willy and I were feeling tired after an already full day of work, so we decided to forgo our usual routine of picking cucumbers, beans and zucchini until dusk. "It will have to wait until Sunday", we said to ourselves, knowing that Saturday would already be filled by farmers market, a wedding, and another miserably hot afternoon. The weather was too much for us; we were feeling sweaty and dusty and sapped. Sunday came and went and still, the beans were only marginally picked and the cucumbers and zucchini went untouched. "It will have to wait until Monday morning...." we said to ourselves, "On Monday, we will have time to harvest." Finally, on Monday, Laura showed up for work and we began the process of reaping in the bounty.....and reaping....and reaping.....and reaping. By the end of the day (meaning the end of the ENTIRE workday) we had finally almost reached the end of harvest. I say almost because after a full day of 3 adult and 1 medium-sized child's worth of labor, we still hadn't entirely completed bean harvest but all of the cukes and the zuchs were done. All told, we ended up running out of tubs to hold the bounty. These 3 crops in particular created a mountain that stretched approximately 5 feet tall, 5 feet long, and 3 feet deep of bins full to the brim. The cucumber harvest alone nearly topped 500 lbs. It was surprising, to say the least. We have never had a harvest that looked quite like the one that we experienced this week. It was mildly over-whelming and a consequence of our desire for a little R&R. So, without any further explanation needed, don't be surprised to see a nice big bag of cucumbers in your box this week. Trust me, I have a strong desire to give you many more than what we are doling out. But that desire to rid myself of this excess is outweighed by my respect for what your refrigerator can realistically hold. As a CSA member, if you feel that you have not received enough cukes in your box this week, please let me know and we can rectify that situation. There are plenty more where those came from and I am not shy about sharing with the appreciative.
I will also include a few cucumber recipes to get you thinking about creative ways to deal with this watery favorite. For us, personally, we have been making lots of refrigerator pickles, fermented pickles,raitas and cucumber salads.
Well, that is enough rambling for this week. Happy August! This box marks the 1/2 way point of the CSA.....potatoes, winter squash and maybe even a few melons are yet to come.
In Your Share This Week:
Kale/Collards/Chard, Pak Choi, Garlic, Sweet Onions, Carrots, Eggplant, Dill, Beans, Cucumbers, Zucchini, and probably a surprise or two....like Diakon Radish.....that was in the box last week too....it looks like a parsnip, but isn't.
Recipes:
Cucumber Salad
Ritas
Fermented Pickles
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