Kretschmann Farm July 15, 2008

257 Zeigler Rd., Rochester, PA 15074 (724)452-7189

don@kretschmannfarm.com www.kretschmannfarm.com

Greetings from the Kretschmanns,

The timely rains continue. I usually check the weather forecast daily. But we had a cousin visiting from California and I ignored looking toward the end of last week. Because it had been getting a little dry, I turned on the irrigation pump when we took dip in the pond late Saturday afternoon with the boys. It was a pleasant surprise to hear a thunderstorm approaching later in the evening. This not only watered the tomatoes we were irrigating, but also the newly seeded carrots, beets and beans. Of course, it feels foolish to have the irrigation running in a downpour.

As you can see, we have come into the heart of cucumber season. Since we went through two weeks ago and hand weeded the aisleways between the rows of plastic mulch, they have grown like gangbusters. Last week I asked I asked the crew how many crates were out in the field. Vicente said, “Un million.” They are the perfect fruit in hot weather, cool and slaking the thirst. Slice them up with a little vinegar and salt to dress.

We tuned and cranked up the bean/pea picking machine on Saturday and sailed it out through the weedy pea field. It wasn’t exactly ideal conditions, and hard to keep centered on the barely visible rows. We had deliberately delayed picking to wait until there were a lot of peas on the plants (though, that meant some were a little overmature) because the machine rips them up and spits them out the blower—only one picking. It appeared that no matter what we did, the picker only got a fraction of the peas. This comes on the heels of two prior plantings of peas lost because the seed rotted in cold weather in the spring. We’re quite disappointed again this year with these pods—as you likely are as well. We’re planning one last try next year, broadcasting the peas en masse like we do the field peas (we use these for soil improvement and pick some of the shoots for salads). At least then there would be few weeds and lots of peas. I’m not quite sure why this crop is so difficult for organic growers. Ones who do grow peas for CSA, usually offer them as pick-your-own only.

Stacking of the crates: Please try to keep the crates orderly when picking up your veggies. Same size crates can be nested placing one crate on it’s side inside another and then turning a third one upside down on the second one. Again, don’t leave refuse for the host to clean up.

Surprise--blueberries! Richard Hunter gave a call on Monday saying they were coming on quickly. Enjoy.

Don, Becky, & The Kretschmann Crew

Fresh Dill Pickle Spears: Slice 1 or 2 cucumbers into spears and place in a glass quart jar with a few sprigs of fresh dill or dill seeds. Then heat 1/8 c salt, 1/4 c vinegar, and 2 c water to boiling with a cut-up clove of garlic. Pour this over the cukes and when it cools, refrigerate. (To avoid breaking the jar with the boiling water, run hot tap water on the outside of the jar just before pouring the boiling liquid in.)

Linguine with Fennel and Tuna: Quarter, core, and thinly slice fennel bulb crosswise; cook in 1/2 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat until golden, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Meanwhile cook 1/2 pound linguine. Drain and return to pot; reserve 1/4 cup pasta water. Add fennel to pasta along with 1/8 c.fronds, 1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon each capers and olive oil, and reserved pasta water. Season w/ salt/pepper. Flake in one can solid light tuna. Toss/serve.

Zucchini Stuffed with Feta and Dill: Halve lengthwise, and scoop out the flesh of 2 med. zucchini, reserving it and leaving 1/4-inch-thick shells. Arrange the shells, cut sides up, on a steamer rack set over simmering water, covered, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until they are just tender. Invert and drain. Cut another 2 zucchini crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Saute 2 chopped onions in 2 tbs olive oil until they are softened, add the reserved flesh, chopped, and the zucchini slices, and sauté the mixture until it is golden. In a food processor chop the mixture with ¼ # Feta until the zucchini slices are chopped coarse and stir in 3 tbs. fresh dill. Divide the filling among the 4 zucchini shells, arrange the stuffed zucchini in an oiled baking dish, and broil about 4 inches from the heat for 3 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and deep golden.

Kale Chips: Destem kale and cut into 1’ pieces. Whisk together 2 tbs agave nectar, 1 tsp salt, 1 ½ tsp. garlic powder, 1/8 tsp. cayenne, 2 tbs. cider vinegar, 3 tbs. olive oil. Toss kale with mixture and bake on oiled cookie sheet. @ 350 8 min. then turn and bake another 7 min. until crispy.

Cheeses: The cutoff for the next cheese orders is Aug. 1, for delivery with veggies the week of Aug. 11-15. We’ll have feta and plain chevre from goats’ milk; also raw milk cheddar, Colby, and pepper Jack from grass fed cows. All cheeses are @$6.00/half pound. Raw milk Camebert must be ordered 60 days in advance. It’s $10/half pound wheel, and is best eaten within a week to 10 days. If you’ve gotten cheese, rather than sending a small check, just add this to the next payment in August.

Billing Note:You should have sent in the June payment by now. (S-$225, M-$275,L-$325, 1/2S--$75) Attention to this would be appreciated.