Week 9                       Geauga Family Farms CSA                     Aug. 1, 2017             

The Fair Share     

What's cropping up!
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"Going green doesn't start with doing  green acts,  it starts with a shift in consciousness.
This shift allows you to recognize that
with every choice you make,
you are voting either for or against
the kind of world you wish to see.
When you assume this as a way of being,
your choices become easier.
Using a reusable water bottle,  recycling
and making conscious daily consumer choices
are just a few..."

~ Ian Somerhalder
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CSA cooking class
Welcome to Week 9 of the CSA season!

Last Friday's CSA cooking class was such fun! Here are some photos from the class. See below for a recipe from the class, and check our Facebook page for more soon.
Sarah Palagyi and Mike Rauttinger prepare the peaches for the Grilled Peach dessert.
Toni Watson of Hudson, whose son Austin is a member, toasts croutons for the Tomato & Cucumber Salad. Kathy Popelka is stirring the mixed berry sauce for the Grilled Peaches.

Jess Quirke uses the industrial-sized salad spinner. She cleaned, chopped and spin-dried her entire head of lettuce, all at once, making it ready to eat when she got it home.
Sarah & Tyler Tremaglio are first-year members. This was a fun night out for the couple, who are mixing the filling for the Stuffed Eggplant. 
Toni, Austin and Larry Watson prepare ingredients for the Cucumber & Tomato salad.
Tomato & Cucumber Salad
Stuffed eggplant atop Zoodles and Honey-Glazed Carrots & Green Beans


How does the name Lettuce Heads sound for loyal CSA members? 
And who was behind that head of lettuce but Chef Kate!

Join in on the fun! Sign up for a CSA cooking class now!

Warmly,
Laura Dalheim
~ with Rachel Machesky and the farmers and famili es of Geauga Family Farms
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In this week's shares
Look for some of these items in your share this week.

Lettuce (red leaf, green leaf, Romaine), cabbage, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, green peppers, sweet banana peppers, cucumbers, peaches, red raspberries, blueberries, potatoes and green beans.

NOTE: You will not receive all of the types of produce listed above. This is a list of possible items. Different size shares and shares received at different times of the week may include different items.
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Save the date
Our Fall Harvest Farm Festival will be Sept. 9. F arm tours, fall treats, old-fashioned games (bobbing for apples, sack races, etc.) and pony rides are planned. Stay tuned for more info, but until then, mark your calendar!
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Ride-along calendar
Our farmers, farm reps and warehouse manager will be riding along in our delivery truck. Here is our calendar so far. Look for these farmers at your pick-up site soon. Other dates to be announced.
Aug. 8 - Marvin Hershberger & Noah Yutzy
Aug. 10 - Harvey Fisher
Aug. 17 - Abner Miller
Aug. 19 - Tom Byler
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New in our farm store this week
The list is growing, and canning tomatoes are coming soon! Want to add some favorites to your weekly share or preserve a bunch of your favorite veggies to eat all winter? Look for quantities of these items, small and large, in our farm store. More items are added weekly. 

Beets
 - $3/bunch
Carrots - $2.50/bunch
Cauliflower - $3/small head; $4.50/large head
Cherry tomatoes - $3/quart
Green beans - $3.75/quart; $12/peck; $20/half-bushel
Green cabbage - $2.50/small head; $3.50/large head
Kale  - $3/bunch
Kohlrabi - $3/bunch
Lettuce  - $2.50/head
Sweet onions - $2.25/each (Large)
Slicing tomatoes - $2.25/medium, each; $3/large, each; $20/10 pounds
SALE! Zucchini - 2 for $1.50; $18/half-bushel
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How to access our farm store
We have heard from several of you that you have had difficulty accessing our farm store. To do so, go to our website at GeaugaFamilyFarms.org and click on Store or Account in the menu bar near the top of the page. That will take you to our CSA software page. Then, click on the brown and white box that reads Member Lo gin in the upper left-hand corner and it will bring you to the page pictu r ed  below. 

From there, simply click on the part of the farm store from which you would like to order. Once you select your items, click on View Cart and you will be directed to the shopping cart where you will click on Save & Check Out. You will be redirected to the payment page where you can enter your credit card info or use any farm store credits you may have.

Click here to access the farm store.
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Recipes
We include recipes each week using the items in your share. While we always find great recipes to share, we'd love for you to send us your favorite recipes as well. We will include them in the next newsletter. Please e-mail them to LDalheim@geaugafamilyfarms.org

This is one of the recipes from Friday's CSA cooking class. Chef Kate waits until the Tuesday before the class when she learns from our newsletter what she might expect to find in the week's shares before making up the recipes. It's one of my favorites.

Stuffed Eggplant
4 medium eggplant (Look for long & slender ones)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/4 fresh chives, chopped
2 cups Ohio sweet corn, or frozen and thawed
2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 cup quinoa, cooked
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper, to taste
Preheat oven to 425 °. Cut eggplants in half, lengthwise. Use a spoon to scrape out a little bit, about 1/2 an inch, of the flesh from the eggplants. Score the inside of the remaining flesh and lightly salt them. Set aside for 15-20 minutes. Blot the inside of each eggplant dry.
Toss corn, tomatoes, cooked quinoa, onion and chives together with olive oil. Season mixture with salt and pepper, to taste.
Stuff eggplant boats with corn mixture. Top with Parmesan cheese. Return to oven and reduce heat to 375°. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until browned and crispy on top.

I love all things local and organic. Part of my obsession is to subscribe to every newsletter I can find that features local farms and farmers, both near and far. One of the newsletters I receive is from nearby is Spice Acres, and it's one of my favorites. Spice Acres is operated by Ben Bebenroth, local farmer and chef at Spice Kitchen & Bar in the Gordon Square Arts District of Cleveland. If you haven't had the pleasure, take my word for it - you must go! The Spice newsletter recently included a recipe for pickling, a great way to preserve some of the items in your share that can become overwhelming at this point in the season, such as zucchini! Visit their website at http://spiceacres.com/ or http://spicekitchenandbar.com/. 

Quick Pickle Brine
2 pounds of choice vegetables 
2 cups cider vinegar
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. mustard seed
2 tsps. turmeric
5 each Star Anise
Combine in sauce pot and bring to a simmer, make sure all sugar is dissolved.  Place vegetables of choice in glass container. Pour hot brine over.  Allow to cool to room temperature, place in fridge and allow to pickle for 48 hours.  Enjoy! Keeps for (at least!) one month.
Recipe from the Spice Acres newsletter

This is a fun alternative to the usual loaded potato skins and another different way to use up all that zucchini.

Loaded Zucchini Skins
1/2 lb. bacon
4 large zucchinis
2 Tbsps. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. cumin
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups shredded Cheddar
1 cup sour cream
2 green onions, sliced
Preheat oven to 400°. Cook bacon until crispy, 8 to 10 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and chop into small pieces.
Cut zucchinis in half lengthwise. Using a large metal spoon, scoop out seeds from the insides, then cut each half into three to four pieces.
Transfer zucchini to a large baking sheet and toss with olive oil. Season with chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.
Bake until slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Top each piece of zucchini with cheese and bacon.
Return to oven and bake until cheese is bubbly and zucchini is tender, about 10 minutes more. Garnish with sour cream and green onions.
Recipe from Delish.com
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Sign up for the remainder of the season anytime
Taking a summer vacation and want to wait until later to sign up? No problem! The price of your share will be pro-rated to charge you only for the remaining weeks in the program.

Click here to sign up now.
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Area Events
The first two classes have sold out! Don't wait till the last minute to sign up for the next one if you want to be sure to get in. You can still sign up for the next class, which is Aug. 25, as well as the September and October classes. And, look for a special treat in October when our very own in-house chef, Rachel Machesky, will be teaching a class.

CSA Cooking Classes
Aug. 25, 6 p.m.
Loretta Paganini School of Cooking,  8613 Mayfield Road, Chesterland
Cost: $45 for members, $65 for non-members (The extra $20 covers the cost of a week's share, which is sent home with the student.)
Using products delivered straight from Geauga Family Farms Community Supported Agriculture bags, attendees will prepare and take home the week's share for several wholesome and delicious dishes. Chef Kate will lead the group in all aspects of preparation, packaging, will offer tips on handling and storage, and demonstrate how to make three dishes as she prepares a tasty meal for the group. One of the Farmers will also be at each class to answer questions. If you've ever been stumped by how to use the surprise items in your CSA, this is the place to find inspiration!
There will be additional classes each month. Visit lpscinc.com for more information.

To sign up for the classes, click here.

Farm-to-Table Dinner at Sapore
SOLD OUT!
Aug. 23, 6 p.m.
Sapore Restaurant, 8623 Mayfield Road, Chesterland
Join Chef Loretta Paganini and Geauga Family Farms as they join together for a farm-to-table dinner. The dinner will feature Chef Loretta's excellent cuisine fashioned from Geauga Family Farms' finest produce and meats.
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Local food, farming, environment in the news
We have so many things we'd like to share with you regarding the local food movement, what is affecting the food you eat and the world around us, and much, much more, but we don't want to make our newsletter any longer. So, we include links to articles you may find interesting. Here are a few. If you run across any articles you find interesting and think other members would be interested in reading, feel free to send us the link for inclusion in an upcoming newsletter.
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CONTACT US
(Between the regular business hours of 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday - Saturday ONLY PLEASE!)
 
Farm Representatives

Laura Dalheim, 440-478-9849, LDalheim@GeaugaFamilyFarms.org
Rachel Machesky216-246-8254, RMachesky@GeaugaFamilyFarms.org 

Geauga Family Farms, Middlefield, Ohio 44062