Crop Talk June 15, 2015: CSA Week 3 ~ Tart Cherries

Crop Talk

The Newsletter of Great Country Farms
June 15, 2015: CSA Week 3 ~ Tart Cherries

A Word from the Farmer

We'll be panting pumpkins this week -- after ordering a new culter to cut through the vetch/rye cover crop we planted to add nitrogen and provide a clean mat for the pumpkin vines to grow on. We'll also start our fall crop of broccoli in the greenhouse this week, and we'll put in our third plantings of sweet corn and green beans. Sweet potatoes may go into the ground this week as well.

CSA Week 3

Shares this week include:

bag of kale
two crowns of broccoli
bundle of asparagus
bundle of spring onions
quart of tart cherries
pint of sweet cherries

U-pick bonus for June 16-21: 2 quarts of tart cherries and 1/2 pint of black raspberries.

Note that bonuses run from Tuesday through the following Monday each week.

Wagons will run at least every hour on the hour, from 9:15 until 5:00 -- more Frequently if we are busy. Please allow enough time to check in before the wagon departs. And please bring back your empty berry containers to use again.

Remember that there's no CSA pick-up or delivery on Mondays.

Also available in the market:

watermelon, cantaloupe, tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet corn

A Tart Cherry Revival

By Dan Charles

"Some fruits, like apples, you can find anywhere. But others have gotten a little bit lost in today's global food business.

Take tart cherries, also known as sour cherries. Unlike sweet cherries, America's tart cherries are too fragile to ship very far, so most people never get to taste a fresh one.

They're typically frozen, then baked into that iconic American dessert, the cherry pie - and cherry pies aren't as popular as they used to be.

Yet the humble sour cherry is experiencing an unlikely renaissance - and the best may be yet to come.

The revival is partly based on the fruit's growing reputation as a nutrient-packed superfood. There are studies - many paid for, it must be noted, by the Cherry Marketing Institute - showing that this delicacy, with its addictive counterpoint of tangy and sour, can help reduce insomnia, or pain in joints and muscles."

Read more here.

In This Issue

Beekeeper Honey Extraction

Fishing Contest

Featured Recipe

Salad Sacs

Father's Day Weekend Features

Beekeeping, a Fishing Contest & Craft Beer

Saturday, June 20: We are excited to welcome beekeeping expert Bill Bundy to the farm on Saturday, June 20 from 10am-12pm. Bill has led the Loudoun Beekeepers Association for years and is "The Keeper of the Hives" which help pollinate so many of the fruits and vegetables here at Great Country Farms. Learn more about honey bees and hive collapse disorder, and watch Bill extract and bottle honey for our Farm Market.

Father's Day Fish-A-Rama

Sunday, June 21, 9am-2pm:

Brian Kelly, Bass Master Qualifier

Join us for our annual Fishing Derby with prizes from Urban Angler for the largest fish caught and the most fish caught. We are thrilled to welcome back Bryan Kelly , a 1994 BASS Master Qualifier and long-time Potomac River fishing guide for a spin-tackle demonstration and a fly-casting clinic at this year's event.

Would you join us for a cooking project?

On busy nights, wouldn't you love to be able to just pull a healthy meal out of the freezer, pop it into the microwave, and still say you made it yourself - meaning your spouse cleans up? If so, you might like to join us for a cooking workshop that would leave you with 15 meals pre-made from scratch, using organic oils and spices. The cost of the workshop would be $80, which covers oils, spices, and recipes, many of which may include items from your CSA box. If that sounds good, please click here to answer a couple of helpful questions. Thanks!

--Jacklyn Jenkins

2015 Bonus Ticker

May Bonuses: $25.24

Last week:

$6.98

This week:

$12.00

Year to date:

$58.52

Light and Fresh

Tart Cherry Pie

"I was so excited when my farmer's market had sour cherries; I've been waiting for years to make a sour cherry pie, but the supermarket never sold them. This recipe was PERFECT. I was worried that I had over-handled the dough, but it came out flaky and delicious. I did run out of corn starch, so I made up the difference with instant tapioca, which worked fine. Highly recommend! ."