Paste tomatoes (firsts) – $3.00/lb; $2.50/lb over 10 lbs
Tomato seconds (heirloom and hybrids) – $2.50/lb; $2.00/lb over 10 lbs
Drying tomatoes: $4.00/qt
Tomatillos: $2.00/lb
Salsa Packs: $2.50/pack
Jalapenos: $2.50/pint
Herbs (summer savory): $2.50/bunch

Sunrise tomato harvest

When a bounty of food enters the home, a plan is needed to make the most of the surplus. With this week’s share one thing you can do is eat as many fresh tomatoes as you can, as such windfalls are fleeting. Eating a whole fresh tomato, cut into thick wedges, and topped with some salt and olive oil is an opportunity that should not be missed. The simpler the better.

You can also juice them into a drink. Tomato juice with some salt, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco is a refreshing drink.

You can also make sauce. We made some on Monday with a couple crates of tomatoes one step away from compost. Slicers like you are getting are make a tasty sauce, but it is a bit thin unless you cook it down. We cook ours in an electric roaster on the porch. It keeps the house cooler.

Another option is to freeze your excess tomatoes. Drop them into a pot of boiling water for 45 seconds to one minute, then remove with a slotted spoon, and place in cold water. The skins should be cracked . Peel the skins off the tomatoes, squeeze and drain them before placing in a freezer bag.

Well the Outstanding in the Field Dinner was a rousing success. After all the planning and preparing to host, things went off as well as we could have ever hoped for. The weather cooperated, as it was the coolest day in the last week or so.

My sister Fran and her husband Woody visited for the weekend. Along with some good family time, Woody helped us put up our new barn door the morning of the dinner. That, along with all the onions the CSA crew helped us harvest and fill the barn with gave the old timbers a new shine.

Things began on Saturday night when the OITF crew rolled onto the farm near midnight after a 14 hour trip from Colorado. The next morning they slowly roused themselves before quickly hitting full stride.

We walked the farm with founder Jim Denevan, discussing how to lay things out. He then mulled things over with his staff and they promptly set up the communal table in the field where it rose up and over a ridge. One of the guests said you could see the curvature of the earth.It was neat to watch their efficiency and timing. We really enjoyed their visit.

Next the restaurant crew arrived after working all night. They too went right to work. That included cooking the ribeye in a charcoal roaster. A picture of the roaster in action is here. This link has been shared with us from Bud Hirsch, who sat at the table with us and has linked an entire album of photos from the dinner.

150 people trickled onto the farm around 5pm for a reception and farm tour and electric tractor demo by Rebecca. We then sat down to a dinner in our field that included green bean lollipops; duck egg fettuccini with goose confit, chanterelles and cherry tomatoes; and roasted Majinola Wagyu rib eye, carrot gnocchi, onion, arugula, romaine with sweet vermouth and black raspberry. Jonathan Justus and his staff cooked an incredible meal. I get tired just thinking about all the effort they put into it. All of the guests seemed to have a wonderful time.

Paste tomatoes (firsts) – $3.00/lb; $2.50/lb over 10 lbs
Tomato seconds (heirloom and hybrids) – $2.50/lb; $2.00/lb over 10 lbs
Drying tomatoes: $4.00/qt
Tomatillos: $2.00/lb
Salsa Packs: $2.50/pack
Jalapenos: $2.50/pint
Swiss chard: $3.00/bunch
Carrots: $3.00/bunch
Herbs (summer savory, tarragon, thai basil): $2.50/bunch
Large basil bunch: $3.00/bunchJalapenos: $2.50/pint

Medium and large/slicer pickling packs are available in a limited quantity this week, depending on harvest. If we cannot fill your order this week you will be put on a wait list for next week.
When placing your order, be sure to specify what types of aromatics you want. Choices are:
cornichon (tarragon, thyme, garlic, onion, hot peppers, grape leaves)
dill (dill flowers, onion, hot peppers, grape leaves)
garlic (garlic, hot peppers, grape leaves)
Pickle pack (medium cukes): $14/pack
Pickle pack (large cukes): $12/pack

TOMATOES (F/P) The tomato crop is in and lookin good.
GREEN BEANS (F/P) Last pickin’s off the first planting. Partial shares get a choice of beans or a salsa pack.
COLORFUL CARROTS (F/P) Not all carrots are orange.
WALLA WALLA ONIONS (F/P) Sweet and mild, they are a quality fresh onion
SALSA PACK (F/P) Roasted or fresh, add a tomato and the pack makes a salsa muy bueno
CUCUMBERS (F) Some large picklers and regular slicers. Let us know how you like the varieties
SUMMER SQUASH (P) Rounds and pattypans
HERB CHOICE (F) Mixed bunches including parsley, basil, thai basil, thyme, summer savory, tarragon, or jalpenos or dried herbs.

ALSO THIS WEEK: Parker Farms shares

NEXT WEEK: More tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers and squash. Potatoes and garlic.

FARM REPORT
The high pressure dome of air sitting over us has brought lots of heat, and a south of the border farm schedule. In order to do all we have to do in this oppressive heat we are starting at sun-up and working past mid-day before taking a siesta until 6pm. It has worked well and our interns Luke and Kim have sweated it out with us, giving their all to help us harvest, pack, hoe, tie tomatoes, weed, irrigate, sow cover crops, take care of the sheep, etc.

We are moving to a new carrot bed this week to bring you the annual “colorful carrots.” Orange, red, and yellow, they are great for the palate and the eye. Varieties include White Satin, Yellow Sun, Dragon (purple) and our favorite orange, Bolero.

sweet potatoes happy in the heat

Tonight’s evening work stint has been taken over by the tomato harvest’s shear volume. We hope you enjoy this week’s share, one of our best tomato harvest’s yet. More to come next week and we hope for a while.
We have also been spending time preparing for the Outstanding in the Field dinner this Sunday. As Ronny, the host at Justus Drugstore told us last month, “It’s a big deal.” We have been planning and working to show the farm in a good light and provide a subtly beautiful Missouri farm setting for the event. Some details we won’t know until the dinner table arrives, so we will have to be nimble on Sunday morning when the OITF crew arrives.
Thanks again to all for your help and support. And we look forward to seeing some of you at the dinner.

For those of you interested in learning about water bath canning, fellow CSA member Emily Akins and I will be teaching a class at Bad Seed on Sunday July 31 from 1 to 4 pm. All the info you need on the class, the cost, and how to sign up is at http://www.badseedkc.com/farm/classes-events/. If you have never canned and are interested in learning the basics and a bit more, take advantage of this class.

For those of you that already know what to do, this email is to inform you that with this morning’s harvest the paste tomatoes have started ripening, and are coming off the vines by the bushel. We have 6 different varieties of paste tomatoes planted, of varying shapes and sizes. There are all great for making sauce, salsa, chili sauce, whole tomatoes, and any other recipe that calls for a meaty love apple.

We also have “seconds” of the slicers we hand out. These tomatoes may have cracks, bug holes, or serious “cat facing” that requires trimming them a bit. They can be a bit fragile, as they can have some damage, so be prepared to use them fast. They don’t make a thick sauce like the paste tomatoes, but are good for canning and a multitude of other uses.

One more note, the paste tomatoes are picked with a good overall blush, but take a while to ripen. So what we send in can be a few days away from being dead ripe, giving you time to prep for your tomato preserving. Prices are below.

We also have Principe Borghese drying tomatoes, perfect for the dehydrator, and a limited supply of extra salsa packs and tomatillos.

Paste tomatoes (firsts) – $3.00/lb; $2.50/lb over 10 lbs
Tomato seconds (heirloom and hybrids) – $2.50/lb; $2.00/lb over 10 lbs
Drying tomatoes: $4.00/qt
Tomatillos: $2.00/lb
Salsa Packs: $2.50/pack
Jalapenos: $2.50/pint
Swiss chard: $3.00/bunch
Carrots: $3.00/bunch
Herbs (summer savory, tarragon, thai basil): $2.50/bunch
Large basil bunch: $3.00/bunch

Medium and large/slicer pickling packs are available in a limited quantity this week, depending on harvest. If we cannot fill your order this week you will be put on a wait list for next week.

When placing your order, be sure to specify what types of aromatics you want. Choices are:
cornichon (tarragon, thyme, garlic, onion, hot peppers, grape leaves)
dill (dill flowers, onion, hot peppers, grape leaves)
garlic (garlic, hot peppers, grape leaves)

Pickle pack (medium cukes): $14/pack
Pickle pack (large cukes): $12/pack

Some suggestions this week for eating in the heat. This hot weather calls for only limited cooking, so as to keep the house coooool. Here are a few of the things we have been eating during the heat wave.

With the tomato surplus rising, we continue to gobble them up. Our standard lunch for the last week has been tomato sandwiches. They always include some type of basil accompaniment. The simplest is to pluck some large leaves and layer them on. Another is to make some pesto and use it as a spread. You can add the pesto to some mayonnaise and it will last even longer. Dress it up however you want, and eat it quick, as you can’t pack it in your lunch unless you want a soppy sandwich.

Gazpacho is yet another quick meal from the share that fills our fridge regularly. Last year’s blog has a gazpacho primer. This no-cook, cool soup is one of those things that tastes so right on a 99 degree day.

As a Bread of Life specialty bread subscriber we regularly get pizza crust in our share. We bought a new toaster oven last winter that fits a 12 inch pizza crust. A few fresh veggies, some homemade goat cheese, a sprinkling of olives or anchovies, and dinner is served.

You may remember from two weeks ago that we started to ferment some cukes into pickles. This old, old food preservation method has held on for centuries for a reason. It works so well, is easy, and creates a taste treat you can only get from cukes, water, salt, seasoning, a crock, and patience.

The photo below is the finished pickle. Fragrant, tart, crunchy and juicy, you have to taste them to understand just how good they are.

On the bulk front, along with the paste tomatoes, we suggest trying the jalapenos. Last year we canned them Mexican style (Chiles Jalapenos en Escabeche). Our recipe is from the critically acclaimed The Art of Mexican Cooking by Diana Kennedy. A link to a very similar recipe is here. If you like jalapenos, and want some to tend to a wintertime craving, make this dish.

Jalapenos: $2.50/pint
Swiss chard: $3.00/bunch
Carrots: $3.00/bunch
Herbs (summer savory, tarragon, thai basil): $2.50/bunch
Large basil bunch: $3.00/bunch

Medium and large/slicer pickling packs are available in a limited quantity this week, depending on harvest. If we cannot fill your order this week you will be put on a wait list for next week.

When placing your order, be sure to specify what types of aromatics you want. Choices are:

cornichon (tarragon, thyme, garlic, onion, hot peppers, grape leaves)
dill (dill flowers, onion, hot peppers, grape leaves)
garlic (garlic, hot peppers, grape leaves)
Pickle pack (medium cukes): $14/pack
Pickle pack (large cukes): $12/pack

The soaring temperatures and humidity this past week has been enough to make you dizzy. The past week has been as long and hard and hot as I can remember, but with a nice payoff of a new barn front and a good harvest.

This week is peak for squash and cucumbers, while the peppers and eggplant continue to produce well. The tomatillos are coming on, as well as the hot peppers. We continue to dig a good crop of garlic, and hope for the okra to kick in soon (especially if we can weed it).

New to the share this week (as a choice) are salsa packs. Familiar to many, the pack contains most all the ingredients you need for a fresh salsa (tomatillo, garlic, onion and jalapeno). Just add a tomato and a few other ingredients, and you will have an incredibly fresh and flavorful dish

Check out our past blogs for our Fresh Salsa and Roasted Salsa recipes.

We are also starting to add hot peppers as an occasional choice. We don’t plan on giving everyone hot peppers, but if you like them, keep your eyes open as they may be a choice, or in the swap box. Right now the hot peppers are Numex Joe E. Parker (Anaheim type good for frying) and jalapenos.

This week also marks the return of dried herbs. We plan on having a selection of dried herbs available as a choice each week. These herbs are cut and dried in our hot, hot summer greenhouse. The tins they come in are reusable, so we will take them back if you have no need for them when you are done.

Another item that may be less familiar to some is Thai basil. An herb choice, this is the basil that often is a part of spring rolls and other Asian cooking. Try it in last week’s cucumber salad recipe.

Beans don’t pick themselves, and we have a lot of beans in the field as of today (and not enough pickers). Join the fun and have some good produce to eat, freeze, or make into dilly beans.

U-pick green beans $1.50/lb
Beets: $3.00/quart
Swiss chard: $3.00/bunch
Carrots: $3.00/bunch
Walla Walla onions: $3.00/bunch
Herbs (summer savory, tarragon, thai basil): $2.50/bunch
Garlic: $1.00/head
Large basil bunch: $3.00/bunch