In our newsletter, we try to give you an accurate listing of the produce in your box; however, since the newsletter is published before the harvest, we may sometimes substitute some vegetables for others. The information provided here is also published each week on our website. **Also, if you’re having trouble identifying any unfamiliar produce, please look for “Veggie ID” with additional information on our website under CSA INFO or under RECIPES.

THIS WEEK’S SHARE

GREENS ADVICE for the entire season: Please keep in mind that greens are especially prominent during this early part of the farm season, so basically, “It’s salad time!” If you’re not sure how best to enjoy your greens, taste it. If it’s too strong-flavored for a salad, then cook it. Greens can be eaten raw in a salad or lightly steamed or sautéed with garlic, green onions, or butter in order to mellow their flavor. They can also be tossed into a dish (such as soup or a smoothie) for an extra nutritional and flavorful boost.

ASPARAGUS: Also known as “sparrowgrass”, you will receive these green or purple spears; each contains vitamins A, B, and C, and iron.
– How to use: serve raw, chopped in salads, or with dips. You can also steam, roast, grill.
– How to store: wrap in damp cloth and plastic bag, then refrigerate. Alternatively, bundle spears with rubber band and place upright in container with an inch of water.

BABY RED ACE BEETS AND GREENS: round, smooth, deep red, small roots with sweet flavor and luscious medium-tall, red-veined green leaves. **Some folks don’t realize how nutritious and delicious the greens are and they are especially in top form right now, so we are harvesting them so you may get the most of them before the heat or the insects get them. We will have larger beets for you off and on throughout the summer. Right now it’s time to celebrate the greens! See recipe at end of newsletter for greens and beet recipes.
-How to use: greens can be substituted for spinach and chard in recipes; roots good in soups, stews, roasted, boiled, steamed, excellent grated raw into salads or baked goods.
-How to store: separate roots from leaves and store unwashed in plastic bags in hydrator drawer of refrigerator for up to 2 weeks; store greens wrapped in damp cloth in plastic bag for up to 1 week.

GARLIC SCAPES: slender green stems with a slight bulge at the bottom (resemble chives, except for the bulge and often curled); the flower top of a garlic plant; tender and milder in flavor than mature garlic, but can be substituted for garlic cloves in recipes. Use this link for garlic scape recipes: https://www.seriouseats.com/the-crisper-whisperer-what-to-do-with-garlic-scapes-recipe
-How to use: mild garlic flavor, so delicious chopped in salads, roasted, and sauteed.
-How to store: put in refrigerator in plastic bag for up to 2 weeks.

NO HERB BUNCH THIS WEEK! Our herb patch is much smaller this year, so we will not be able to provide herbs every week, especially with this heat. If the herbs look better by the end of the week, we will put Oregano, Sage, Chamomile, Mint, and maybe Savory in the Fri/Sat. Boxes, and next week Wed. members will receive them.

KALE (Red Russian): the stems are purple, and leaves are deep gray-green, purple-veined, flat, non-curled, and tooth-edged
-How to use: for salads, soups, and light cooking.
-How to store: keep in plastic bag or damp towel in refrigerator for up to 1 week.

KOHLRABI (Green or Purple): a delicious bulbous member of the cabbage family about the size of a golf ball to tennis ball size with no greens attached; green or purple skin and crisp, apple-white flesh tubers. Most people enjoy taking the skin off and eating them raw like an apple with a taste and texture somewhere between cabbage and broccoli stems.
-How to use: good steamed and then mashed with potatoes, added to soups or stews, added to slaws or salads, or delicious sliced and eaten raw with dip
-How to store: store in refrigerator for up to a month.

LETTUCE: rich in calcium, iron, and vitamins A and C; you will receive Red and Green Leaf Lettuce.
-How to use: raw in salads or (believe it or not!) use in soups.
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 3-5 days.

GREEN ONIONS (also called “Scallions or Bunching Onions”): young shoots of green or red onions with long green stalks and milder tasting than large bulb onions; full of great fiber and antioxidants, high in potassium and source of vitamins C and B-6.|
-How to use: the bulb, flowers, and green leaves are edible; can be cooked, grilled, roasted whole as a vegetable; chopped in salads, soups, and other dishes for flavor.
-How to store: refrigerate in damp towel/plastic bag for 5-7 days.

SUGAR SNAP PEAS: flat-round pod of edible-pod pea with immature peas inside; often lighter green than the shelling pea pod; eat the whole pod!
-How to use: add pea pods to soups, stews, sautes, or stir-fries; blanch or steam for 2-4 minutes only until color is bright green; snap or snow peas can be eaten raw in salads or cooked quickly as in stir-fries or deep fry in tempura batter.
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag for 4-5 days; if kept too long, their sweet flavor and crisp texture diminishes.

RADISHES (French Breakfast): also called “D’Avignon”; traditional variety from Southern France; 3- to 4-inch long root that is part red with a white tip and tapered to a point).
-How to use: raw, roasted, used in soups, sliced in salads, sandwiches, or stir-fries, grated in slaws; radish greens are delicious in soups or stir-fries and are an excellent source of vitamins.
-How to store: refrigerate in plastic bag/damp towel for 1-2 weeks.

U-PICK STRAWBERRIES: red, conical fruit with tiny white flowers. We are currently short-staffed, so we can’t pick enough strawberries for all of you. We are encouraging you to come to our Honey Bee U-pick site (5700 Scio Church Rd.) at the corner of Zeeb and Scio Church Roads in Ann Arbor to pick your own FREE 1 quart as part of your share (and you can pick any quarts for someone else less able-bodied, if you like) through Sunday, June 19. If you have a physical disability such as an injury or the inability to bend or walk very well, please preorder your 1 quart to pick up for this week’s share at the Honey Bee U-pick, the Farm in Chelsea on Wed. or Friday distributions, the Wed. or Sat. Washtenaw Food Hub distributions, and possibly at the AA Farmers Market. Unfortunately we can’t deliver preorders to any other sites due to lack of refrigeration and logistics. Extra quarts for U-pick are $5/qt, $40/flat or $4/lb and Already Picked are $6/qt or $48/flat (8 trays).
-How to use: excellent raw, juicing, jam, pie, sorbet, in desserts
-How to store: Do not wash until you are ready to consume them. Place them on a paper towel in a tightly-covered container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.

WHITE HAKUREI BABY TURNIPS and GREENS: white salad turnips with round, smooth small roots with sweet, fruity flavor and a crisp, tender texture. Both roots (good source of Vitamin C, potassium, and calcium, and delicious raw!) and greens are edible and full of Vitamins A & C! This is the time of year to enjoy the greens!
-How to use: greens good in salads and soups and can be steamed or sautéed with leeks; roots can be roasted, steamed, or sautéed.
-How to store: remove greens from turnip root and store separately in plastic bag in refrigerator for up to 3 days; roots can last up to 1-2 weeks in refrigerator.

ZUCCHINI (Golden & Green): gourmet golden and green zucchini with uniform, cylindrical fruits.
-How to use: use in salads, dips, grilled, casseroles, stuffed, or mashed with butter and seasonings.
-How to store: store in plastic bag in refrigerator for up to 1 week.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. STRAWBERRIES ARE READY! See above for details about Strawberries in “This Week’s Share”. We will continue to have limited amounts of “already picked” strawberries at Tantre Farm on Wednesday (10 AM- 7 PM) and Friday (2 PM – 7 PM) or the Washtenaw Food Hub on Saturday (9 AM – 12 PM) for $6/quart or 48/flat (8 qts). Just a reminder that there will be no you-pick strawberries at Tantre Farm this year, but rather at a new location called “Honey Bee U-pick” (See details above). We will provide buckets for picking and bags or cardboard trays for you to transport berries home, or you may provide your own.

2. FAMILY FARM HIKE on FRIDAY, June 24, from 4-5 PM: Come join us for a guided monthly exploratory walk around Tantre Farm with CSA member, Alisse Portnoy, who teaches at the University of Michigan, and her daughter, Jessica. Alisse and Jessica are in their thirteenth year of once-a-week, long visits to the farm. They look forward to sharing some of its treasures and treasure spots with you. We’ll use all our senses as we take an approx. 45-60 minute hike. Meet at the picnic tables behind the Main House.

3. STILL PLENTY OF BOXES AVAILABLE FOR OUR IMMUNE BOOSTER CSA THIS WEEK: Please feel free also to sign up for our weekly, collaborative CSA share if you would like to supplement your box or give it as a gift. The menu is updated on our website every Monday – Wednesday http://www.tantrefarm.com/how-does-our-immune-booster-csa-work/. Still time to sign up this week for a FATHERS DAY BBQ share!

4. PICK UP TIMES & LOCATIONS REMINDER: Please use your Member Dashboard to schedule Vacations or Pick up Location Changes or let us know if you are having any problems with rescheduling.

Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market (Wed.)—7 AM to 12 PM

*MOVE Fitness & Wellness Studio (Wed)—8 AM to 10 AM

*Farm (Wed.)—10 AM to 7 PM

*Washtenaw Food Hub (Wed.) –6 PM to 8 PM (Hub Farm Market now open during pick up time!)

*Pure Pastures (Wed.)—9 AM to 11 AM

*Farm (Fri.)—2 PM to 7 PM

**Community High School CHANGED TO AA FARMERS MARKET (Sat.) —7 AM to 12 PM

*Washtenaw Food Hub (Sat.)—9 AM to 12 PM

*Chelsea Farmers’ Market (Sat.)—9 AM to 12 PM

**Argus-Packard (Sat)**Change in starting time to 10:30 AM to 3 PM

*RoosRoast-Rosewood (Sat)–9 AM to 11 AM

*HoneyBee U-pick (Sat)–8 AM to 12 PM

RECIPES

BEET GREENS AND HONEY WALNUTS (from Capay Organic Farm CSA “Farm Fresh To You” website) Serves 6
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 bunch beet greens (or spinach, turnips greens,), stems removed, chopped
1-2 Tbsp chopped garlic scapes
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
1 cup whole, shelled walnuts
1 Tbsp whole butter
2 Tbsp honey

Heat oil in pan and add beet greens. Stir-fry greens over high heat and add garlic, salt and pepper. Lower heat and let greens simmer in own juices for 5 minutes before pouring into a serving dish. Heat butter in saucepan over medium heat for 1 minute before adding walnuts. Shake nuts in butter; add honey and coat before pouring over beet greens.

FRESH STRAWBERRY DRESSING (from https://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/248705/fresh-strawberry-dressing/)
1 cup strawberries, rinsed, hulled and sliced
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
3/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp almond oil or canola oil

Place strawberries, vinegar, pepper, sugar and salt in a blender or food processor; process until pureed, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides. Add oil and process until smooth.

GARLIC SCAPE-KALE PESTO (Makes about 1 1/2 cups of pesto)
1 cup garlic scapes (about 8-9 scapes) cut into 1/4-inch slices
3-5 leaves kale
1/3 cup walnuts, pecans, or pine nuts (toasting these adds a nice twist)
3/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt 
Black pepper, to taste 

Place scapes, kale, and nuts in the bowl of a food processor and grind until well combined and somewhat smooth but not purely pureed. Slowly drizzle in oil and process until integrated but there is still some “chunkiness”. Transfer mix to a mixing bowl. Add Parmesan, salt and pepper to taste.

Note: Keeps for up to one week in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Or transfer to an ice cube tray and freeze to be defrosted and used one cube at a time at your leisure.  The latter approach makes scape pesto available even in mid-winter, when its use can make a scrumptious dish.

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