Instructions for First Pick Up
Your shares will be prebagged and awaiting you at your drop location, but we recommend bringing a backpack or a cloth bag so transporting them is easier and you have a back up if your plastic bag splits.
Each week there will be 2 full shares in each green plastic bin – 2 (biodegradable) white bags and 2 black bags. The contents of each black bag will be the same, and the contents of each white bag will be the same. One share will consist of two bags – one black and one white.
For full share members, be sure to take ONE white bag and ONE black bag.
If you are a half share member with a partner, you and your partner can divide up the contents of one black bag and one white bag however you wish. Please try to be as neat as possible during the division process so as to keep our hosts’ space clean.
If you are a half share member for “A” weeks, take one black bag and one white bag.
If you are a half share member for “B” weeks, you will not pick up this week. Next week will be your first share, and you will take one black bag and one white bag then.
We are very thankful to our hosts at each location, so please be respectful of their space. If you have any questions or concerns about the pick up situation please contact us at csa@ghf.dreamhosters.com.
Pick Up Locations
WILLIAMSBURG/GREENPOINT – Awakening Center 607 Manhattan Ave – 6pm-8pm
PARK SLOPE – 1666 8th Ave #4 – 6:30pm-8:30pm
In This Week’s Share
- lettuce – green or red head lettuce
- spinach – dark green head with pointy leaves
- arugula – light green baby leaves in a bag
- mixed salad greens – mixed color baby leaves in a bag
- kale – frilly purple-ish/green leaves in a bunch
- collard greens – flat dark green leaves in a bunch
- swiss chard – green and colored leaves in a bunch
- radishes – multi-colored round roots in a bunch
- kohlrabi – bright purple bulbs with purple-green leaves attached
- chives – green shoots with purple flowers
- oregano – green herb
- sage – light purple herb
- mint – green herb with square stem
Notes on the vegetables
We will do our absolute best to keep your veggies cold and crisp. But if your some things do get a little wilted by the time you get home the best thing to do is place them in very cold water, let them dry out, and then put them in individual bags to keep fresh in your fridge.
We will only pick the nicest vegetables we have for your CSA shares. We don’t use any chemicals or sprays, so there may be some minor holes and slight cosmetic defects, but nothing that will affect a vegetable’s taste or nutritive value. We wash everything before we send it your way, but you may find dirt in hard to reach places, such as between the leaves near the root of head lettuce or spinach. We will do our best to provide you with clean produce, but for items that we would have to ruin to completely clean, please be understanding of a little soil. It’s organic.
Farm News
Keeping up with the weather has been a challenge, but a fun one for a couple of formerly Californian farmers. In the past week, we’ve seen it all: 90 degree heat, 100% humidity, driving rain, thunder and lightning, 35mph wind and two frosty mornings. In MAY. Though all this meteorological trauma has left us farmers riddled with anxiety, it appears that our crops have faired better. We used row cover supported by wire hoops to protect vulnerable plants from the wind and frost and almost all of them pulled through. We’d like to think that the hardship the plants face now will only make them stronger and more full of vitality when they reach maturity, and eventually, your plates. All in all, we are thrilled that we’re ready to start the CSA this early and can’t wait to share our bounty with you.
Recipes
You’ll have a couple of bags of baby greens in your share. Those are great to throw in literally any dish, but they really shine in a simple salad. Alice Waters, the queen of simplicity with quality ingredients, suggests a perfect vinaigrette:
Alice Waters’s Garlic Vinaigrette:
Ingredients
1 small garlic clove
Salt
2 tbs. red-wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
3 to 4 tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
(1) Wash the greens and dry them well, first in a salad spinner and then by rolling them up in a towel. Refrigerate until used. (2) Put a peeled garlic clove and 2 big pinches of salt in a mortar and pound into a purée, with no chunks remaining. Add the wine vinegar, grind in some black pepper, and taste for the balance of salt and vinegar. Allow to macerate for a few minutes, and (3) whisk in olive oil. Taste the dressing with a leaf of greens. It should taste bright and lively without being too acidic or oily; adjust the salt, vinegar, or oil as needed. To dress the salad, put several generous handfuls of greens in a large bowl. Toss with about three quarters of the vinaigrette, and taste. The greens should be lightly coated but not overdressed; add more dressing as needed. Adapted from In the Green Kitchen by Alice Waters (Clarkson Potter; $28).
You can never get enough kale, so we’ll be including it in your shares for the next few weeks. Here is some useful info on this superplant, plus a bunch of recipes.
All the larger greens in your share are great for stir frying and adding to soups. But they can also be used as vehicles to transport other delicious items to your mouth. This recipe for quinoa collard wraps is especially tasty.
Quinoa Collard Wraps:
(makes 4 wraps)
8 large collard greens leaves – washed and dried
2 cups quinoa – sprouted or cooked
1 tablespoon sesame tahini
freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup roughly chopped carrots
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 small shallot – chopped
1 tablespoon of miso paste (I used unpasteurized chickpea miso from South River)
1 teaspoon honey
3 tablespoons brown rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil (decreased from the original 3 tablespoons)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 cups of grated raw beets
1 avocado – peeled, pitted and sliced
1 cup sprouts or microgreens
Cut the end stems off each collard leaf and shave down the stalk, making it the same thickness as the rest of the leaf.
Mix tahini and a bit of lemon juice into the quinoa, set aside.
Combine carrots, ginger, shallot, miso paste, honey and vinegar in a food processor until smooth, adding sesame oil and salt at the end.
Using 2 leaves at a time, overlap them halfway to create a bigger wrapping surface. Place an even amount of carrot spread in each wrap. Top with quinoa, followed by beets, avocado and sprouts. Fold the collard sides over and roll tightly like a burrito. You can serve it immediately or store in the fridge, wrapped, for about 2 days.
