Greetings Country Valley Farm Members,
This is week 17 of the season and the last week of Summer. Next week is the Autumn equinox and the start of the Fall season.
We will continue to include summer veggies as long as the weather continues to cooperate. We will also begin sprinkling in a few fall items each week along the way as we make the seasonal transition.
We are excited to announce that we will be including certified organic Michigan grown apples from Almar Orchards in the shares starting next week. Almar Orchards is about 1 hour north of us, and is legendary for their longstanding family tradition of growing apples and making cider.
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR HOME DELIVERY MEMBERS: We have to change delivery days this week to Saturday September 16; as we have a family event Sunday morning and early afternoon. Deliveries will be Saturday afternoon and evening (this week only). Our delivery route is as follows, we are listing ranges to be safe:
- Superior Township and Ypsilanti – 3pm to 6pm
- Ann Arbor – 4pm to 7pm
- Plymouth – 5pm to 8pm
- Farmington Hills – 6pm to 8pm
- Hazel Park – 7pm to 9pm
- Dearborn – 7pm to 9pm
- Westland – 7pm to 9pm
- Canton – 7pm to 9pm
We apologize for the change, if this does not work for you please let Adam know ASAP and we will work out a good solution.
There is no change to pick up times at Genesis of Ann Arbor – Sundays from 4pm-6pm
We will include a farm update next week.
This week’s small shares contain the following items:
- Root vegetables – 1 mixed quart of kohlrabi and turnips from our farm
- Zephyr summer squash – 1 quart from Cinzori Farm
- Eggplant – 1 from Cinzori Farm
- Cucumbers – 3 slicers from Cinzori Farm
- Yellow bell peppers – 2 big ones from Cinzori Farm
- Roma tomatoes – 1 quart from Cinzori Farm
- Medium shares will receive extra tomatoes, bell peppers, and eggplant
- Large shares will packed as 2 small shares.
Some preparation and cooking tips:
- Root vegetables – these can be eaten raw, and are delicious when peeled and shredded into a salad, or sliced into chips and dipped in hummus or ranch etc. They also are excellent roasted on a sheet pan or in a casserole dish in the oven at a high heat with a little oil, maple syrup or brown sugar, and a touch of soy sauce/tamari or salt.
- Zephyr summer squash – these are light yellow color with green/grey tips. Super tender and great on the grill, in a soup, or an easy and tasty sauteed side dish with pasta. We are relishing the summer squash while we can, because their season is coming to an end soon. In this week’s recipe.
- Eggplant – check out Alissa’s eggplant recipe below for a yummy dish!
- Cucumbers – similar to the summer squash, their season is coming to an end soon. We like to slice up the cukes and eat as a side dish with most any meal, as a way to get extra raw veggies in the diet and to include their crunchy and freshness where we can.
- Yellow bell peppers – also included in Alissa’s eggplant recipe this week.
- Roma tomatoes – a classic paste or sauce tomato, these are picked ripe and are also great in a salad or on a sandwich..
Summer Ratatouille!
Ingredients:
- 4+ cloves of garlic
- One onion
- Two bell peppers (ideally red, orange or yellow)
- Eggplant
- 3-4 summer squash and/or zuchinni
- 4-5 fresh tomatoes
- Two 14 ounce cans of diced tomatoes
- Olive oil
Herbs & Seasoning:
- Lots of basil
- Parsley
- Garlic powder
- Optional: smoked paprika, rosemary, coriander
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375
Sauté the garlic, onion and bell peppers until soft, then mix in the two cans of diced tomatoes. Cook on the stove top until all mixed together. Add in some basil and seasonings to taste.
Chop the eggplant, summer squash and tomatoes in thin slices and arrange on top of the sauce, alternating vegetables. Drizzle olive oil on top and add additional seasonings to taste.
Cover the pan (I used a large cast iron skillet) with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes. Then remove the aluminum foil and bake for another 20.
Check out our website and peruse old newsletters for additional cooking tips and recipe ideas: https://countryvalleyfarm.com/newsletter/
That’s all for now. Looking forward to seeing everyone soon.
Adam Mitchel
Country Valley Farm