One of the beautiful things about belonging to a CSA farm is the opportunity to know your farmer. A different experience than what we get at a store. We know our store-owners (sometimes). We know our neighborhoods that we shop in. We might even know the friendly cashiers or the produce buyers if we’re really regulars somewhere. But knowing the farmer or better still, the faces of the actual people who work in the fields and touch the food is a whole new level. A more intimate level that may make you feel excited to explore or may make you feel uncomfortable.
I encourage you to look a little closer this summer. Read the newsletters, check out the pictures, come to the farm events, imprint in your mind the look of the place where the food is grown. Create an image with a collage of faces and land-marks and stories that becomes your farm. For this summer or for every summer, you will have a comforting little family farm in a warm place in your chest set high up on top of a ridge in southwest Wisconsin where your food comes from.
A brief history about Adam and I. We started our little CSA with 23 members in 2006. We were full of energy, excitement and ideas and 100% committed to the idea of running a CSA farm. We had very little infrastructure, help or money. But we persevered, survived and grew! Each year our little CSA grew from 23 to 60 to 90 to 100 to 150 to 200 CSA members and so on. We’re at a cozy little 275 this year that keeps our farm feeling sustainable. This would be our 12th growing season. We are now married with two children and living our dream. For help we have a fantastic crew of 31 Worker Shares, 4 employees, and my very helpful and involved mother who lives next door in her own home and on her own 5 acres. There’s nothing like a grandma nearby!
Running a farm is damn hard work though. It’s almost a phenomenon that Adam and I found each other at the times of our lives that we did and that our marriage happily thrives, even through the stress of running a farm like this. My impression is that very few people are interested in working this hard for the living we earn or living this remotely. But us, we feel a little like we’ve got something secret and special in our pockets. Like we’ve just unwrapped the chocolate bar with the golden wrapper. I dunno. Maybe the joke is on us. But it’s working! That’s good!
The farm has grown to where we have the infrastructure and the help we need to get the work done. We have a stronger CSA member base (that’s you!) and we have some years of experience now to genuinely help us in our decision making processes. We have room for growth in our work/life balance. I know farmers who never-ever get better at this. They go to their graves wishing they hadn’t worked so much and had spent more time with their families. But I’m determined to solve this little problem. It’s only been 12 years. Give us another 12 and I think we’ll get there!
Come to the farm this Saturday! We are having our Spring Strawberry Picking Event with a tractor-pull ride farm tour and potluck towards the end. Bring the kids, your parents, Frisbees, sun hats, a dish to pass and bucket to fill with strawberries! We are selling the you-pick strawberries for $3/lb. But pick as many as you like-enough to make Dad a fresh strawberry cream pie for Father’s Day on Sunday! 
Strawberry Picking from 2:00-3:30pm
Farm Tour from 4:00-5:00pm
Pot-Luck Dinner from 5:00-6:00pm
Curly Green Kale- A very young and tender bunch of curly green kale. This was the first picking from this patch and the leaves are very succulent! Is Kale new to you? This a frequent item in CSA boxes throughout the summer. We typically offer a cooking green each week. Watch for fun, delicious and easy recipe ideas for your cooking greens each week, and PLEASE send me your tried and true and I would love to share them with everyone! Stores best in a plastic bag in the fridge.
Arugula- The arugula grew up a bit from last week. The bunches are a little bigger than they were last week. Lots of positive feedback on the arugula! It grows well in the Spring and Fall, but does not tolerate summer heat very well so you may not see it again until late summer CSA boxes. Great on pizza, mixed into salads, tossed with pasta or however you like it to get it into your belly! Stores best in a plastic bag in the fridge to preserve moisture.
Panise Green Oakleaf Lettuce- A tender and very buttery Spring Oakleaf lettuce. This lettuce was grown in a greenhouse to ensure an early harvest for the first couple CSA boxes. Stores best in a plastic bag in the fridge to preserve moisture.
Pac Choi- This unique asia vegetable has the most juicy, watery stems/stalks! It is very lovely and mild! An asian green that makes a great asain salad or stir-fry.
Asparagus- Asparagus is the only crop that we actually buy each year. We have an amish friend with a very large patch of certified organic Asparagus. This was all picked fresh on Tuesday morning and packed out by his daughters. He says it hasn’t been a very good aspargus year since it has been cooler. This is more of a straight run with a mix of #1 and #2 quality. Our amish farmer, Elmer, says this is the best he could offer us this year. In past years we have gotten beautiful #1 looking asparagus from him, but this year hasn’t been his best year. The final Asparagus giving.
Spinach- A very nice half pound bag of spinach for everyone this week! Still very tender and wonderful though. We put some on pizza, some in salad, and some in our eggs. Eat is everyway!
Rhubarb- The final giving of Rhubarb for this year. Our rhubarb plants are still very young. We’re not sure why, but some of them have very thin stalks and we get a very wide range in sizes at harvest. Since we just give it in the Spring, we clean most of the stalks off of the plants for just a few givings, and they have the rest of the year to regenerate their roots. Although some of them are skinney stalks, they are still very edible in recipes!
Cherry Bell Radish- A teeny bit spicier this week than last. The greens on the radishes are perfectly edible and delectible. Toss the greens in with your salad, wilt them into a stir fry or toss them with rice. Lots of creative ways to incorporate more greens into your diet!
Overwintered Shallots- Slightly less than a half pound bag of overwintered shallots. Overwintered means that these puppies were grown last summer on this farm, cured, cleaned and put into storage for the winter and they’re stil holding up fabulously. Since they have been in cold storage for so long they will want to sprout if left out on your countertop. We recommend keeping them in your fridge until you plan to use them. Use them up quick-more yummy veggies coming soon!
Pea Shoots- Did you know you could eat these? Yes, it’s true! These are only a little bigger than what we might have liked them to be so their stalks might be a bit chewey. But the leaves and tendrils have all the flavors of Spring and Snap Peas that we know and love! Keeps best in a plastic bag in the fridge. You can snap the leaves off and toss them in a salad. You can mix them in a pesto or stir fry or do whatever you wish with them!
Herb Pack- These cute little packs are for you to transplant out into a little space in your yard or in little pots near your kitchen. We believe in cooking with fresh herbs, so we provided you here with little plants so you can always snag a sprig of fresh thyme or oregano or parslely or basil now and then throughout the season for cooking with fresh herbs! Transplant into the ground or a pot with plenty of fresh, fertile, organic soil mix and allow to grow in a full-sun space. Be sure there is plenty of water at transplant!
Next Week’s Best Guess:
Salad turnips, lettuce x 2, cilantro, strawberry quarts, garlic scapes, kohlrabi, collards, maybe zucchini and summer squash, maybe broccoli, maybe spinach
