Week #6 - FFF CSA - Extending the harvest

Whether you are a CSA share holder or just have your own garden from which you harvest your own vegetables, you will sometimes get into situations where you have too much of one thing or not enough time to cook or use something right away. Today's blog is going to be focused on some tricks and ideas you can do so that that lovely produce doesn't go to waste and in fact you can extend your season of enjoying them all into the winter months.

Drying

While nothing beats fresh herbs sometimes you just can't use them in time. Instead consider drying them either by hanging them in a cool, dry place (upside down) or drying on very low heat on a cookie sheet in the oven. Once they are fully dry, you can crumble and re-fill those spice jars with the intense flavours of fresh dried herbs. You can also dehydrate or dry other items such as tomatoes, melons, berries, etc.

Freezing

Our CSA shareholders have been getting loads of fresh beans. If you are actually tired of beans or want to save them for later - freeze them! Wash and trim the ends and cut to the desired length, then blanch them (dip in boiling water) for 3 minutes.  Blanching is an important step as otherwise the beans will lose color and nutrients after only 4-6 weeks in the freezer. Blanching stops enzyme action that causes them to lose freshness and flavor. (Note: each vegetable may have a different time period that it should be blanched for best results). Directly after blanching, immerse in or run under cold water to cool them quickly and stop them from cooking. Then you can freeze them knowing that they will last long into the next season.

You can freeze lots of other veggies - also after blanching - such as cauliflower, broccoli, peas, carrots, etc. As mentioned there are different time periods of suggested blanching so take a look at this link for the right time:  How long should I blanch?

Pickling

You can also pickle just about anything these days - beans, carrots, of course cucumbers are frequently pickled but I've even heard of pickled cauliflower, beets and onions. I am in no way an expert in pickling so I don't speak from first hand experience. There is a tonne of resources on the internet on recipes and how to guides for pickling... take a look and give it a try!



Storage

There are all kinds of tricks about storage and I will pass along only one today... produce bags! I am not in anyway employed by the company or paid for this endorsement... I've just used and like these bags. At most supermarkets you can pick up produce bags - usually in with all the other zip lock bags. These bags are plastic ziplock bags specially designed with holes that allow moisture out and therefore keep produce fresh much longer. We use them all the time and they do work! The other trick is to store your veggies uncut and unwashed - hence dry and only wash and cut once you are going to cook or prepare them.

OK.... What's in this week's box? Week #6 FFF CSA box holds the following treasures:

Lettuce
Kale
Herbs (Parsley, Basil, Chives, Cilantro, Oregano)
Carrots
Zucchini
Potatoes
Beans (yellow & green)
Turnip
Cucumber
Peppers (jalapeno or banana peppers - its a surprise)
Swiss Chard

So I want to go on record.... I'm sorry for complaining about the heat... I really am! Please tell the heat to come back! I'll be more grateful! I'm sure you all agree that its been a tad cool these past few weeks. Here's hoping we are not done with heat for the summer!

Our garden is growing well despite the cool temperatures. The frequent but not too heavy rains are helping! We have tonnes of tomatoes ripening on the vines and we are really excited about our watermelons that are growing so fast!

Anyway, that's all for now... take care until next time! Happy eating!