Grocery List Week 23: Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Jane is home from school and has been rocking the bread oven with Mark for farmer lunch each day. My favorite meal this week was this delicious-spiced lamb dish with chickpeas, roasted carrots and herbs, slathered in a simple garlic yogurt sauce, on a fresh flatbread. Good enough for me to enjoy it three meals in a row and wish there were yet more leftovers. There's no recipe to speak of — it's just ground lamb with some spices — cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cardamom? — plus salt and black pepper, mixed with the roasted carrots and cooked chickpeas. Throwing some lettuce and sliced onion into the flatbread just before eating was key.
To make the yogurt sauce (which is a fine accompaniment to just about anything, I say) drain the yogurt until it's as thick as you like (optional) and mix in a clove of minced garlic, some salt to taste, a glug of olive oil. You can add some chopped herbs here too if you feel like it. Done.
Greens
We have some new greens in the share this week, including a spicy greens mix that makes for a good salad. There's a braising mix of young kale/collards/chard coming online too, plus our friend salanova and a bit of head lettuce. We're not in the flush of it yet but it's coming and these hot days are going to help move things along at a nice pace.
Cuts of Meat
We'll be filling the meat freezers with a variety of cuts, as we are getting toward the bottom of our supply. We've got a load of lamb finished at the butcher shop that we'll pick up for next week, and one way or another we'll get the pigs and some more beef butchered as soon as we possibly can.
Kefir
Don't forget our generous member Amy Valentine has some lively milk kefir grains to share with the membership. I love kefir. It's the champagne of milk! It contains of a very diverse population of beneficial bacteria, which makes it both excellent for your gut and a great starter to use if you're doing your own cheesemaking. It's easy to make at room temperature. Here's a primer on what it is and the process. Amy says you can call her at (518) 570-8074 and arrange to stop by her house in Essex to pick it up. You should bring a jar with you, and she'll provide the grains, milk and instructions. Thanks, Amy, for doing this!
Plant Sale
I think this is the last week of the plant sale so get 'em while they are here! The sale table is two for one now.
I'm off on college tours with Jane until Monday so I won't see you at pickup, but Mark will be cooking for distro bistro. He is working on the menu as I type. He's been on a roll so I bet it will be delicious.
Thanks as always, members, for supporting the farm and what we do here! We love feeding you.
— Kristin
PS, If you are picking up over the weekend and notice we're out of or critically low on something, would you please send me a text at (518) 645-4658 so I can refresh it? Thank you!
Estimated Availability for Members This Week
Green = abundant, eat with abandon
Yellow = Somewhat limited supply, enjoy but don’t go nuts
Red = Limited supply, take just enough for one meal
Vegetables
Green:
Beets
Cabbage — Red, green
Carrots
Celeriac — here are some ideas
Garlic
Onions — red and yellow
Parsnips
Potatoes
Shallots
Frozen tomatoes
Yellow:
Spicy Greens Mix (salad mix)
Salanova (lettuce)
Rhubarb
Mint
Sage
Camomile
Green garlic
Red:
Head Lettuce
Braising Mix (young kale/collards/chard)
Cilantro
Dill
Chives
Thyme
Value-Added Products
Kraut/Kimchi — low right now, more coming
Lard
Beef Tallow
Hot Sauce
Eggs
Unlimited!
Farmer Only Raw Dairy
Our raw milk does not provide the protection of pasteurization.
Buttermilk
Cultured Butter
Sour Cream
Fresh Cream
Skim Milk
Whole Milk
Yogurt
Grassfed and Pastured Meat
Pork — Assorted cuts
Lamb — Ground and assorted cuts
Lamb — Assorted cuts
Beef — Ground and assorted cuts
Bones — Beef and lamb
Offal — Lamb and pork
Grains, Beans & Dry Goods
Everything not grown by Essex Farm is certified organic.
Note: we have more products than we have room for on the grain table so check the buckets under the table if you're looking for something.
Beans — Black and Pinto
Cornmeal — coarse ground
Chickpeas
Steel Cut Oats
Rolled Oats
Millet
Pancake Mix
Popcorn
Sea Salt (Cargill)
White Bread Flour
White Pastry Flour
Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
Whole Wheat Bread Flour
Wheat Bran — Available on Request
Wheat Berries
Please be advised that consumption of raw or undercooked foods including meats, poultry, dairy, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness.
This week's share is brought to you by: Anne Brown, Gracie Broughton, Beth Davis, Nicholas Johnson, Kristin & Mark Kimball, Barbara Kunzi, Brooke Wise, Lotta Hauswaldt, Joanie McMahon. Thanks to Nora, Will, Jackie, Jori, Kathleen and Gwen, for the help this week!
