Early summer beauty

Red Ace beets
photo: Meg Wilson

Summer has truly arrived here at the farm. Hot days and warm nights are bringing out the squash and finally, the first of the field cucumbers.We're happy to be picking all three of our beet varieties now: the heirloom Chioggia with the red stems, the attention-grabbing purple-stemmed Red Ace, and the lovely sunset-colored Golden Beets. I enjoy each of those varieties for different reasons--let me know which one is your favorite.

Heirloom Chioggia beets
photo: Meg Wilson

Colorful chard bunches
photo: Sophie Shillue

In your share this week: more of our bumpin' squash crop, a mix of greenhouse and field cucumbers (finally!), beets, a basil pot, chard or kale, peas, a choice of cabbage/fennel/escarole, and popcorn.
Our cucumbers are fresh-picked and never waxed, so you don't have to peel them like grocery store cucumbers--plus most of the nutrition is in the skin!

Recipes of the Week

Since this week isn't going to be super hot like the weekend was, it's a great opportunity to bake some delicious zucchini bread. My recipe is spice cake-type based on Jane Brody's, from her Good Food Book. It's easy and fragrant and melt-in-your-mouth yummy. When I make it, I more than double the amount of zucchini she calls for (and you could even go higher I think), plus I increase the signature spices (nutmeg and ground cloves) in line with that. I also double the nuts, which are optional. The lower end of the ranges below are as written in the recipe and the higher end is how I make it.

3/4 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 c. white flour
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 - 1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 - 1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 egg white
1 whole egg
6 Tbs vegetable oil
1 1/4 - 3 c. packed, finely grated, unpeeled zucchini
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 - 1 c. finely chopped nuts, optional (I use walnuts or pecans).

Mix dry ingredients. Mix wet ingredients. Combine, add nuts. Pour into a greased 9x5x3 inch pan. Bake at 350F for 50-60 minutes.

~ ~ ~

These beet slices are almost like a beet chip, so you can snack on them like that, or serve them as a side to a main dish. Susie Middleton's genius tip is to put a piece of parchment paper or brown butcher paper on your cutting board before slicing the beets to prevent it from getting stained. Or you could use the Golden variety of beets and they won't stain your cutting board OR your fingers :)
Try to keep all your beet slices to a consistent thickness so they all cook evenly.

Quick Roasted Beet Slices
from Susie Middleton's Fast, Fresh & Green
serves 2

1 bunch beets, trimmed, scrubbed (but not peeled) and very thinly sliced (between 1/8 and 3/16 inches)
1 Tbsp EVOO
1/2 tsp coarsely chopped fresh thyme (you can grab some out of the PYO herbs if you don't have any at home...the thyme is just finished flowering, so it looks a little raggy, but it's fine to eat)
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 475F. Line a large (18x13x1) heavy duty rimmed sheet pan with a piece of parchment paper. Put the beet slices in a mixing bowl and toss thoroughly with the olive oil, thyme, and salt. Arrange the slices, evenly spaced, on the sheet pan (it's OK if they touch a little).
Roast until the beets are tender, shrunken, wrinkled, glistening, about 16-18 minutes. You can flip them over halfway through if you like them equally browned on both sides. When done, the smallest slices will be black around the edges. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

~ ~ ~

Enjoy your veggies this week!

Beautiful shot of last week's share!
photo: Lindsay Grimes