At a pick-up a few years ago, one of our members confessed to Aaron that she didn’t have time to wash her salad greens the previous week and that they seemed perfectly clean. That is when we realized we hadn’t done a good job letting members know what is washed and what you will need to wash.
Author Archive for Robin McDermott
There are several things you can do to track down the problem of not receiving our newsletters:
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Aaron and Tonya are passionate about their organic salad greens; they are truly a labor of love.
Because the greens are harvested when they are young, the mesclun, kale, mustard greens and arugula need to be sown every two weeks throughout the season to assure availability for our CSA. If a heavy rain hits before the seeds have germinated and started rooting, the entire planting could be washed away. That is why sometimes you see the new plantings covered with a thin white fabric known as remay. It helps protect the fragile plants from rain and sometimes hail that shreds even well established lettuce.
In this picture you can see that different greens are grown separately. This enables us to provide members with a “salad bar” of lettuce leaves to chose from so each person can create their own mix depending on the flavors and textures they and their family prefer.
Before the greens get too big, they are harvested by hand with a mechanical cutter and then are immediately washed several times to remove the sand and soil that clings to the leaves. Finally, they are dried in yes, a washing machine set on the spin cycle (don’t worry, the same machine is not used to wash clothes!). Drying the greens well is critical to their shelf-life!
We encourage our members to bring their own bags for the salad greens to cut down in the amount of plastic used for the CSA. A zippered plastic bag works great and can easily be washed and used many times over. Some of our members have found other bags made especially for storing vegetables that they swear keep the greens super fresh such as these from Debbie Meyer or these machine washable fabric bags or these organic cotton bags. TIP: Always store your greens with a folded sheet of paper towel. It will help absorb moisture and keep the greens fresh longer.
What is Jun (pronounced “hoon”)?
Jason Chojnicki, long time Muddy Boots CSA Member, makes Jun, a kombucha-like beverage and offered it to Muddy Boots members last season. He will be offering Jun again this season to Muddy Boots members from a self-serve, pour your own kegerator. Bring your own 32 ounce growler and fill it up with Jun for just $10 a bottle. There will be a small supply of bottles available for sale at $3 each.
What distinguishes Jun from Kombucha is that it is made with a different strain of bacteria that has been trained to digest honey. This means that Jun is made with locally sourced honey instead of cane sugar. The other distinguishing factor is that it is made with green tea while classic kombucha is made with black tea.
Jun delivers the same benefits that you get from Kombucha, but without the strong vinegar flavor that even kids like!
Jason will be at our first pick-up for a couple of hours on Wednesday offering samples for anyone who wishes to try this light refreshing beverage.
This is from Sweetwater Organic Farm a pioneer in the organic vegetable movement. The farm is located in Tampa Florida!
Carrot roots should be firm, smooth, relatively straight and bright in color. The deeper the orange-color, the more beta-carotene is present in the carrot. Avoid carrots that are excessively cracked or forked as well as those that are limp or rubbery. In addition, if the carrots do not have their tops attached, look at the stem end and ensure that it is not darkly colored as this is also a sign of age. If the green tops are attached, they should be brightly colored, feathery and not wilted. Since the sugars are concentrated in the carrots’ core, generally those with larger diameters will have a larger core and therefore be sweeter.
Short-Term Storage
Carrots can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a month if stored properly. Cut off carrot greens, place carrots in a containers with lid and cover completely in water. Keep container in the refrigerator, changing the water ever 4-5 days. Do not store carrots next to ethylene gas producing fruits, such as apples and pears. The ethylene gas they release speeds up the ripening process of other fruits and vegetables.
If you purchase carrot roots with attached green tops, the tops should be cut off before storing in the refrigerator since they will cause the carrots to wilt prematurely as they pull moisture from the roots. While the tops can be stored in the refrigerator, kept moist by being wrapped in a damp paper, they should really be used soon after purchase since they are fragile and will quickly begin to wilt.
Long-Term Storage
Carrots can also be stored unwashed and covered by sand. If stored in this manner in a dark, cool, well ventilated area, the carrots will last up to 5 or 6 months. They can also be left in the ground, covered with mulch, and used as needed until the ground begins to freeze. Carrots can also be peeled, cut up, blanched, and then frozen to preserve them for approximately a year.
Leeks belong to the allium family and, in my opinion, are an underappreciated vegetable.
One reason why people shy away from leeks is that they tend to gather sand and dirt between their layers of skin as they push up through the ground. If they aren’t properly cleaned, that grit could easily ruin a dish! But, as long as you know this and clean them properly (it’s easy – here’s how) you will come to love the sweet and subtle onion flavor that leeks add to dishes.
Leeks are supposed to store well over the winter in a root cellar, but I have never had luck with that approach and have tried many variations. Instead, I freeze leeks and they are great to have handy throughout the colder months.
The safest way to make sure you get all of the dirt out of leeks before freezing is to slice them down the middle lengthwise and then cut them into half-moon slices about 3/4 of an inch thick. Put them into a big bowl of cold water and swish them around vigorously. I usually do this a second time for good measure. Then, let them drain and dry on a baking sheet lined with paper towel. Only when they are completely dry should you put them into a zippered plastic freezer bag, push out as much air as possible and zip it up and store them in the freezer.
Frozen leeks are awesome for adding to soups and stews in the winter such as this super simple and wonderful classic Potato-Leek Soup from Julia Child, but are equally good as the star in a dish such as this Potato-Leek Gratin from the New York Times.
Below is a picture showing how the dirt gets lodged in between the layers of the leek.
If you are going to be eating the leeks fresh, try making them the star of a veggie side dish such as is done in Buttery Braised Leeks with a Crispy Panko Topping from Food 52. Or, if you are looking to dress up your leeks, try this Savory Creme Brulee with a Crispy Leek Topping also from Food 52.
Rapini, Chard and Kale can be cut and then washed in a large bowl of fresh cold water. Make sure the bowl is large enough to swish the pieces so that they can release any sand or soil that might be clinging to the leaves. Gently lift the greens out of the bowl so you don’t disturb any sand that has settled on the bottom of the bowl. If you notice a lot of sand when you dump out the water, repeat the rinsing process.
Now comes the important part. Dry the greens as best as you can. If you have a salad spinner, use it, but even then, I suggest you get a baking sheet lined with paper towels and spread the greens out onto it. If you don’t have a salad spinner, try putting the greens into a big salad bowl and gently tossing with a couple of paper towels to absorb the excess moisture. Put the greens into a plastic bag and add a folded dry piece of paper towel – it will absorb excess moisture.
Remove beet greens from the beets and wash them the same way you wash the chard and kale. Beet Greens are similar to Swiss Chard and can be sauteed with some garlic and olive oil for a great side veggie. Or, chop them up and add them to soup. I like browning some crumbled sausage, adding some hot pepper flakes and then adding in the beet greens. Toss that with pasta and you have made a meal out of something many people twist off and throw away.
The beets can be stored in a zipped bag in your produce drawer, but leave the top partially open so they can breath. These beets that we get early in the season are super sweet and tender – they are not intended to be stored although they can be. The sooner you eat them, the better they will be!
A member who is new to Muddy Boots this year asked:
Do you have any tips on what to grow in my home garden in light of the veggies we will be getting from Muddy Boots?
What a GREAT question!
Actually many of our members do also have home gardens so I thought I would share my ideas.
Here are some things to keep in mind about Muddy Boots CSA
- We try not to overwhelm you with too much of anything. This means that if there are things that you really like, week in and week out, you should also plan on growing it in your garden.The exceptions to this might be corn which last year we got for 7 weeks and we also offered in a bulk sale and also salad greens which we try to have each week throughout the season.
- We tend to get Muddy Boots produce earlier in the season than you will get from your home garden. For example, last year we got eggplant and cauliflower the first week in July, while those don’t typically come out of home gardens until later in August.
- We offer bulk sales throughout the season and in the fall for folks who like to put up some veggies for the winter. See below for information on our regular bulk sales throughout the season. If there are other veggies you would like that aren’t on the bulk sale list, please let me know and I will try to work with the farmer to get you what you want.
- Aaron offers some extra produce to members for sale each week. Often you will find carrots, onions, and kale.
My garden planning
My husband Ray and I have a fairly large garden. We have 18 3’X12′ beds. We have definitely changed what we grow since we have been Muddy Boots members.
- Onions: We like to grow veggies for storage such as garlic, onions and shallots. They are fairly easy to grow and we go through more than 100 of each of those over the winter.
- Peas: Shelling peas freeze really well and I love having them available so we grow a bed of these. We also love sugar snap peas which we only get once or twice a season with Muddy Boots so we grow them.
- Green Beans: We freeze and pickle green beans so we grow a full row of them – we like the climbing variety because they are easier to pick.
- Hard/perennial/soft herbs: Thyme, rosemary, chives, oregano, savory, sage, mint. We don’t get these herbs in our Muddy Boots shares. We do get basil, parsley, cilantro, Thai basil fairly regularly throughout the summer, but in culinary quantities. In other words, if you want to make batches of basil pesto to freeze, you will want to grow some at home. Typically you will get to mix and match herbs.
- Kale and Chard: We freeze a lot of kale to use throughout the winter and it is easy to grow. The same applies to chard.
- Carrots and Beets: I use a lot of carrots throughout the winter so I grow carrots for storage meaning that I plant a storage variety in mid-July so they are ready to harvest when the weather turns cool. I have stopped growing beets because we get enough from Muddy Boots for our purposes.
- Cukes and Zucs: Throughout the summer, we eat a lot of cucumbers and zucchini/summer squash and they are easy to grow.
- Tomatoes: Frustrated by yearly challenges with tomato blight, we have cut back to growing just cherry tomatoes and heirloom slicing tomatoes. I purchase Roma tomatoes in bulk when we offer them through Muddy Boots in August.
- Peppers and Eggplant: We eat lots of these throughout the summer and therefore include them in our garden plan.
Clearly Ray and I are huge veggie lovers and we get great joy with our garden. Muddy Boots has enabled us to reduce the amount of work we spend on our garden throughout the season. In addition, because of all the food we get with our large Muddy Boots share, we have converted two of our veggie beds to cut flowers (sunflowers and zinnias) which we really enjoy!
Tour Details:
- Thursday, June 23 5pm-6pm at Wood’s Market Garden in Brandon, VT
- Come early (4 to 5pm) for PYO Strawberries at $3.00 a pound
- Shop at their impressive Farm Stand – it closes at 6 so do your shopping before the tour
- Berries and Biscuits at the end of the tour!
Please scroll down and complete the form below if you plan to go on the tour.
About the Tour
This is the first tour to learn more about where our food is coming from. It is no coincidence we are going to Wood’s Market Garden during Strawberry Season. Between 4 and 5 we can pick strawberries for just $3.00 a pound – a special price for Muddy Boots members. Then, at 5, we will get a tour of the farm from farmer Jon Satz. The farm is impressive and has a rich history that Jon, Courtney and the boys are carrying on. The tour should last 45 – 60 minutes. Their impressive farmstand closes at 6pm, so come a little early if you want to shop.
At the end of the tour there will be Berries and Biscuits!
Yes! Brandon is a bit of a drive – a little under an hour. But, it is a beautiful drive over the Brandon Mountain Gap and you can build in some delicious stops along the way.
When Jon makes the Wednesday morning run to deliver our produce to Kingsbury Farm, a regular stop for him is Sandy’s Books and Bakery. While they close at 6, leave a little early to get to Brandon and you can stop midway for a latte or iced coffee and a pastry.
For dinner after the tour, you might consider Cafe Provence which is a sweet little restaurant in the heart of Brandon. It is a higher end restaurant, but if you have been wanting to go there, but haven’t found yourself in Brandon at dinnertime, this could be your big chance!
Take the long route home travelling north on 7 to 116 and pass through Bristol with a variety of restaurant options including the Bobcat Cafe and Mary’s at the Inn at Baldwin Creek.
Since this is the first time we are offering tours of our farms, we can’t gauge the interest. We know that many people will not be able to make it because they are just getting off of work at that time. But, we hope some folks will take the opportunity to learn more about where and HOW our food is grown. I promise you, your food will taste even better once you get an up close look at where is come from.
If you are planning on going on the tour, please fill our our brief form. That way we will know how many people to plan for and we will be able to contact folks in advance if weather is going to be an issue.
Please complete the form below to let us know if you are planning on going on the tour of Wood’s Market Garden in Brandon.