Sunny Daze

Hi folks!

Hope you're enjoying more sunny weather! We're so glad it's cooling off at night again so that we can cool down and recharge. And unlike most folks in the summertime,we're not thrilled about all this sun. We'd need about 4 inches of rain to get back to where we need to be, and so far only have small showers in the forecast. But, we have a great irrigation system, and feel very lucky to be able to keep our plants relatively hydrated in these dry times.

We also harvested for one of our biggest orders ever this past week. We were in a deep potato fog by the end of it, but it was very exciting to see all of these rainbow new potatoes leave the farm at once! We look forward to many more potatoes as the season progresses - try some this week, we think they're phenomenal!

We've also been enjoying the tastes of summer this week - corn, fried green tomatoes, the first of our sweet peppers to name a few. I think I said this last week as well, but it's still so fun having such a bounty of vegetable choices each night when we go to make dinner!

What We're Eating

Fried Green Tomatoes

While we're waiting for our favorite summer veggies to ripen up, we'll continue to enjoy fried green tomatoes! Bryan made these for us on Thursday following essentially this recipe. As a non-gluten person we used only cornmeal as breading - it didn't stick super well, but it was incredibly tasty anyway!

Recipe adapted from Pinch and Swirl

Ingredients

3 medium green tomatoes, about 3/4 pound
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
pinch ground cayenne pepper
peanut oil or other high heat oil, for frying

Instructions

Slice tomatoes into 1/4-inch thick rounds.

To Make Breading Mixture:

Whisk egg and buttermilk together in a shallow bowl.
Scoop 1/4 cup flour onto a medium plate.
To a second medium plate add remaining flour, cornmeal, salt, pepper and cayenne; combine thoroughly with fork or small whisk.

To Bread Tomatoes:

Dredge a tomato slice in plain flour, shaking off any excess; dip in egg mixture; dredge in cornmeal until evenly coated and transfer to plate. Repeat with remaining tomato slices.

To Fry Green Tomatoes:

Line a plate with paper towels; set aside.
In a heavy skillet (ideally cast iron) heat 1/4-inch of high heat oil to 375°. (It's important for the oil to be very hot to keep tomatoes from absorbing it. Be sure to reheat between batches!) Carefully place tomatoes into hot oil and cook 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side, until golden brown. Transfer to paper towel lined plate (keeping tomatoes in a single layer so they don't get soggy). Repeat with remaining tomatoes. Serve hot.

Caramelized Shallots

We're topping everything with caramelized shallots! This includes fried green tomatoes, any chicken dish, burgers, toast, and hard boiled eggs. They're like an onion only better - richer, more flavorful, deeper. Follow these cooking tips to get perfect caramelized shallots every time (the key is patience, unfortunately!)

Reminders

There will be no CSA pick up on July 25th, so order this week to stock up!

Please return your waxed boxes! Better yet, bring a reusable bag with you when you pick up your share, and leave the box at your pick up location.

Have a great week!

- Joanna and Bryan