Clay Bottom Farm Summer Vegetable CSA

Follow is a list of foods that could show up in summer vegetable CSA boxes.

cabbage–both purple and green; the purple is packed full of nutrients, green makes good slaw (we’ll have recipes for our favorite slaws)

sweet corn–we prefer bi-color hybrid that are not overly sweet like some of the new breeds

cucumbers–both English cucumbers and pickling cukes

eggplant–both Italian and Asian varieties

edamame–delicious edible soybeans

kale we grow lacinato, or dinosaur, kale; a very versatile and nutrient-rich food

cauliflower–great steamed or fresh

onions–Superstar and Candy sweet onions, “copra” and “Mars” storage onions; also, “Mennonite Heritage multiplier onions,” a unique and tasty white onion–we picked up the starts for these four years ago at a Kansas Mennonite museum

shallots–our shallot harvest turned out great.  These are a gourmet item with a distinctive flavor somewhere between onion and garlic, but richer.  A favorite of Chicago restaurants.

French fingerling potatoes–these are gourmet red potatoes; some of you might have received these in your boxes

Carola potatoes–yellow potatoes

New potatoes–nothing beats early red potatoes with a sprig of parsley

French Breakfast radishes–these are mild and tender, popular in France

spinach–”Space,” a new hybrid, and our favorite spinach; fresh cut from our greenhouses; all of our greenhouse items are soil grown and organic

head lettuce–both red and green, from greenhouse

salad mix–small leaves of red and green lettuce mix with greens (see below)

greens mix–a mix of greens that can be braised or fresh eaten, includes arugula, kale, mizuna, tot soy

garlic–we grow a variety we picked up at the Toronto Farmers Market

rhubarb–we have sever recipes for this versatile crop

peas--we grow early snow peas and sugar snap peas; sugar snaps were invented in the 1970s as a cross between and snow peas and shelling peas

peppers–colored and green

tomatoes–despite the frost, we still have some tomatoes plants producing in the greenhouse

fresh herbs–parsley, basil, cilantro, chives

winter squash–butternut, delicatta, acorn; we’ll include some other squash recipes, including Ben’s mom’s holiday recipe

red beets--boiled like potatoes, beets make a nutritious side dish

watermelon–both seeded and seedless

cantaulope--we use small melons cut in half as ice cream bowls

Clay Bottom Farm Late Season CSA

Following are foods that could show up in Late Season CSA boxes.

apples–gala and honeycrisp–honeycrisp is a newer hybrid that is our favorite and which lives up to its name; the galas are great too

apple cider–we get our cider from friends Dean and Vera Witmer of Creekside Farm. It is raw, no preservatives, and simply amazing

cabbage–both purple and green; the purple is packed full of nutrients, green makes good slaw (we’ll have recipes for our favorite slaws)

cauliflower–great steamed as a side dish

mini-pumpkins–also called “pie pumpkins,” both decorative and edible

onions–”copra” storage onion, a yellow, mild onion; also, “Mennonite Heritage multiplier onions,” a unique and tasty

white onion–we picked up the starts for these four years ago at a Kansas Mennonite museum

shallots–our shallot harvest turned out great. These are a gourmet item with a distinctive flavor somewhere between onion and garlic, but richer. A favorite of Chicago restaurants.

French fingerling potatoes–these are gourmet red potatoes

Carola potatoes–creamy yellow potatoes

French Breakfast radishes–these are mild and tender, popular in France
spinach–”Space,” a new hybrid, and our favorite spinach; fresh cut from our greenhouses; all of our greenhouse items are soil grown and organic

head lettuce–both red and green, from greenhouse

salad mix–small leaves of red and green lettuce mix with greens (see below)

greens mix–a mix of greens that can be braised or fresh eaten, includes arugula, kale, mizuna, tot soy

garlic

peppers–colored and green

tomatoes–despite the frost, we still have some tomatoes plants producing in the greenhouse

fresh herbs–parsley, cilantro, and chives

winter squash–butternut, delicatta, acorn; we’ll include some other squash recipes, including Ben’s mom’s holiday recipe

red beets–great boiled as a side dish

watermelon–late season watermelons can be sweet

cantaulope–we can harvest melons until we get a hard frost