CSA Week 14

Week 14 boxes were delivered Wednesday, September 13. New for week 14 were acorn squash and baby leeks!

CSA Newsletter for Week 14

In the Box: baby leeks, German Red garlic, celery, summercrisp lettuce, 2lbs Kennebec potatoes, pint cherry/grape tomatoes, four Prairie Spy apples, red onions, Ronde de Nice summer squash OR zucchini, heirloom tomatoes, Thelma Sanders heirloom acorn squash, mix snap/wax beand, rosemary sprigs, pint ground cherries (half shares).

A Dozen Wonderful Ways to Use Your Apple Butter

Alternative Roots Farm apple butter is made with love, local and organic ingredients. We use only our organic apples, organic spices and it is now made with local honey from Moody Bees Farm (the only honey you should buy from now on ;). But what should you do with it besides putting it on toast?!

1. Top your oatmeal or pancakes! This is a great way to add some clean-eating sweetness to your breakfast routine.

2. Add it into baked goods. This is a great way to add some subtle apple pie flavor and make a great moist, delicious baked good. Think muffins, pancakes, bread and more!

3. Freeze into ice cubes. Toss the frozen ice cubes into your smoothie for a delicious apple pie flavor! Try it with bananas, almond milk and vanilla protein powder. This is also a great tip for using up apple butter that you aren't going to use up.

4. Spread on sweet potatoes. Dip sweet potato fries! Again, a great clean-eating option.

5. Yogurt topping. Drop a blob of apple butter in your yogurt, maybe add a squirt of Moody Bees Honey and enjoy a bowl of delicious yogurt of breakfast, a snack or healthy dessert! You can always add another dash of cinnamon or cardamom to add flavor and health benefits.

6. Muffin spread. Choose apple butter, instead of regular butter, for your next muffin indulgence. In summer it’s a great way to add flavor to those zucchini muffins. ;)

7. Add to your pork! Drop a dollop on your pork chop or loin.

8. PB & AB. Make a simple sandwich with apple and peanut butter - a double-butter sandwich. I think the kids will like this one!

9. Cottage cheese swirl. Drop a dollop in and swirl it into your cottage cheese.

10. Just eat it. Grab a spoonful of apple butter and enjoy the apple pie flavor. No guilt, just pure joy.

11. Add to roasted nuts. Drizzle over nuts that have been warmed in the oven and enjoy.

12. Top that ice cream! Add some natural goodness to your bowl of ice cream. Feel free to warm it up.

BBQ Bonus tip from a customer! Put a jar of apple butter, a jar of BBQ sauce and an ARF pork roast in the slow cooker, HEAVEN!!!

Made with Organic apples, local honey and organic spices. Apple butter is a clean eating treat!

CSA Week 13

We're back! Missed a couple weeks in there...it's all good. My phone has been fussy with taking photos (and who even uses a real camera these days). Here are a couple photos of the week 13 boxes and a link to the latest newsletter, which features some tomato recipes. We are looking forward to enjoying the last third of the season - five weeks to go!

Week 13 CSA Newsletter ~ featuring: farm news, musings on preserving; tomato recipes, list of previous recipes.

In the Box: Jalapenos, Georgian Fire garlic, zucchini or zucchini & summer squash, head lettuce (half shares), Swiss chard (full shares), 1.5lbs mixed heirloom beans, carrots, mixed heirloom slicer tomatoes, pint of cherry/grape tomatoes, 2lbs Kennebec potatoes, trio of 'Prairie Spy' apples.

Some Tomato Shares members received 10lb boxes of mixed heirloom tomatoes; the rest of the these shares will be delivered over the next two weeks.

Herb Boosters continued with Basil, Rosemary and Sage this week.

The first of our Applesauce Shares were delivered. There is still time to grab an Applesauce Share! Stock your pantry with a case of farm fresh, clean-eating applesauce. Made with organic apples, local honey and love. A case of 12 is $65.

Apples :: Cortland

Mid - Late Season • Sweet-tart • Heirloom

Cortland apples.

Ripens

Late September to Early October

Characteristics

A rich sweet-tart flavor that is aromatic and vinous. The bright white flesh has a nice coarse texture. The medium-large apple has a deep burgundy stripes over green-yellow skin. Cortland is a great all-purpose apple that makes a nice textured puree; it is great for fresh eating, cooking, as well as salads, because it is slow to brown.

History

Developed at Cornell University, Geneva, New York, 1915.

Parentage: McIntosh x Ben Davis.

Storage

Keeps for 3 months.

Notes

One of the first successful varieties developed from the popular McIntosh, the parent that it gets it's white flesh from. It is a very hardy tree, tolerating winters down to -40°, making it great for Minnesota!

CSA Week #10

Quick and dirty - here's week #10! New this week - green pepper and red onions.

CSA Newsletter Week 10 ~ featuring: farm news; recipes: Melinda's Carrot Hummus, Chard-Potato Frittata, Chard Stuffed or Unstuffed.

Week 10 CSA Box ~ Aug. 16, 2017

In the Box: chives, Hungarian wax peppers (full shares), Swiss chard (full) or kale (half), Ronde de Nice summer squash, carrots, zucchini, German Extra Hardy garlic duo, Rattlesnake snap beans, 2lbs Reddale potatoes, celery, red onion pair, green pepper, cucumber trio.

CSA Week #9

It was a rainy CSA day, one where the full body rain suit is a necessity to get the job done. Most harvest work was done Tuesday, accordingly, but a few items still had to come out during the rain. So, after a quick harvest of celery, kale, squash and cukes, I pulled all the green onions out of the field to clean and bunch out of the rain. That wasn't too terribly bad, or wet, but it did make the hand chillier than one would think for August!

New this week - snap beans (finally), Reddale potatoes, celery, Beacon and Pristine apples, and German Extra Hardy garlic.

CSA Newsletter Week #9 ~ featuring: farm news and a few questions; featured veggie: cucumbers; recipes: Best Ever French Beans, Simple Turkish Bean (Fasulye).

CSA Week 9 ~ August 9, 2017

In the Box: cucumber trio, celery, German Extra Hardy garlic, French Gray shallots (half shares), Beacon (red striping) and Pristine apples, Dragon's Tongue wax beans (full shares), Rattlesnake snap beans (half shares), carrots, rosemary-sage bunch, 2# Reddale potatoes, Ronde de Nice summer squash (half shares), green onions, Cocozelle zucchini (full shares), beets with greens.

Dragon's tongue wax beans.

Heirloom carrots, after washing, before bunching.

It was very exciting to have our first harvest of Pristine, off our young orchard trees!

Beacon and Pristine organic apples.

Info on Apple Shares coming soon!

CSA Week #8

Jewels of summer in boxes this week, to celebrate reaching the half way point. New this week are French Gray shallots, tomatoes and Hungarian wax peppers!

CSA Newsletter Week #8 featuring: 
farm news
featured veggie: beans
recipes: 
-cucumber water
-Hungarian sour cream cucumbers
-carrot rice
-Paula Dean's zucchini bread (with a bunch of farmer notes)

In the Box: beet bunch, Russian Red garlic bulb, cucumber quartet, French Gray shallots, green onions, carrots, Swiss chard, pint mixed heirloom tomatoes (full shares), Ronde de Nice (round) summer squash, 'Cocozelle' zucchini, Hungarian hot wax peppers (half shares), Dragon's Tongue wax beans.