Week 20

Wow! This week marks the end of our 2009 CSA season and what a season it has been. We would like to thank every one of you for being with us for these past twenty weeks. You have played an enormous role in the success of our farm as well as our community's health and the progress of local foods. According to Debbie Roos, a Chatham county extension agent, in 2002 there were only around 30-35 CSAs in the state. Now there are around 100!

We are now going to shift gears and try to focus on getting our house built this fall and winter. Just yesterday our first shipment of lumber arrived so we hope to get started in a big way this weekend. It is a very exciting project and one we hope to see to fruition by this spring. Wish us luck!

A few final notes for everyone:

1. Please consider voting for the Durham Farmers Market in the national love your farmers' market contest. We are in sixth place and if we bump up to fifth place our market will receive a much needed $1,000. There are only two days left, so put in your vote soon and spread the word! Here is the link--

http://www.care2.com/farmersmarket/

2. Please remember to bring back your boxes this week. We are going to put everyone's box this week in a plastic or paper bag so that you do not need to come back to Foster's market or to the Anthonys' place at Falconbridge the following week with an empty box. This years CSA has been the best so far with returning boxes, so we thank you for being so considerate and remembering to bring them back. It makes things easier for us.

3. We will begin signing up returning members in mid-October. We will send out an email to all of you around a month from now so you have first dibs on joining our CSA for the 2010 season. We have seen an increased interest in the CSA and we will not be opening up too many new spaces, so it will probably be best for you to let us know sooner than later if you'd like to reserve a space.

4. We will send out a member survey by email. Please, if you have a moment, fill this out and return it. Customer feedback is one of our most important methods of improvement. This information will help us to make our CSA that much better and customer satisfaction.

In your boxes this week:

Half-shares

Falconbridge

okra

arugula

salad mix

french breakfast radishes

red peppers

cherry tomatoes

romas

Foster's Market

instead of okra you will get more red peppers and roma tomatoes

Full-shares

extra arugula

green peppers

were not sure about the next item

Recipes

We are delighted to have arugula in your boxes this week. This is a really delicious green that most people eat as a salad, but it can also be lightly sauteed to add zest and a green to pasta or a stir-fry. We usually eat it as a salad with some coarse salt, lemon juice, pepper, and a little balsamic vinaigrette. Some goat cheese chevre or any kind of feta pair really well with the greens, as does fruit as it contrasts with the mild spice of the arugula.

Delicious!

Here are eight great looking arugula recipes from Seasonal Chef's website.

Tomato and Sweet Pepper Salad adapted from The Vegetable Market Cookbook by Robert Budwig

3 sweet peppers
4 ripe tomatoes
1/4 preserved lemon (or 2 teaspoons grated zest with some of the lemon's juice)
2 cloves garlic peeled and crushed pinch sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 t black pepper

Grill or roast peppers, remove skins, cut into small cubes and set aside. Blanch tomatoes for 15-20 seconds in boiling water. Drain and remove skins and stems. Cut in half and remove seeds. Cut into small cubes. Rinse the preserved lemon under running water and remove the pulp. Cut the rind into fine dice. Arrange peppers, tomatoes and lemon in a dish. Mix remaining ingredients to make a dressing and pour over the salad. Mix well.

Flower Shares This week there will be a couple stems of our newly blooming tithonia, also known as Mexican sunflower. Be sure to feel how soft the stems are on this one! And what a great and vibrant orange to have right now.

Thanks so much everyone, you have been great!!!!!