There are several ways to make salsa but generally, there is the fresh, uncooked salsa or the cooked version. Decision about which method is for you, depend upon whether you are planning on eating this right away and/or if you want to be able to store the salsa for later use.
If fresh is your pleasure, then salsa is easypeasy!
Simply cut/dice fresh tomatoes, add chopped garlic and onion along with lime juice and/or a little bit of apple cider vinegar. Add cumin, minced hot peppers to your taste preference and plenty of fresh cilantro and you have a wonderful refreshing explosion in your mouth. For those of you who want a recipe to follow (I admit I never do...) I've linked to one here that will give you some ideas of ratios and amounts.
If you want to cook and can salsa for winter consumption, then set aside some time... but the effort is worth it! As mentioned, I'm terrible at following recipes but here is a good primer on what is involved and a suggested recipe. It walks you through how to can the salsa as well, if you are not familiar with that.
Some tips on veggie storage:
Don't keep tomatoes in the fridge. Flavour is best when kept on the counter at room temperature. We have provided you tomatoes that range from ready to eat to those that will take a few days to ripen so they last the whole week!
There are two major categories of squash - summer and winter. The scallop squash that you have received over the last couple of weeks is a summer squash and should be stored in the refrigerator and used within one to two weeks (sooner if not stored in fridge). Winter squash which will be coming such as butternut, acorn and spaghetti squash not to mention pumpkins will store much longer (weeks, even months).
In the CSA boxes this week, we've tucked in a special treat. A sample of our new Green Veggie Powder has been placed in every box for our shareholders to try!
This powder is made with greens that may have ripped or have holes in them and are thus not included in boxes or lettuce, spinach or broccoli that has bolted or flowered. Items that are less than perfect but still nutritious and healthy.
Last winter we experimented ourselves with dehydrating these greens and then tucked them into our smoothies, stews and sauces all winter to help keep us healthy when getting fresh greens is challenging. As we've talked about this with others, many have encouraged us to share and market the powder so... our shareholders are the first recipients of a sample bag of green goodness! Let us know what you think! Is this something you would be interested in? Your comments are appreciated!
So in summary... What's in the Box this week?
- Lettuce (mixed greens in bag)
- Zucchini
- Scallop Squash (Pattypan)
- Carrots
- Peas - full shares only
- Beans - full shares only
- Potatoes
- Kale
- Swiss Chard
- Tomatoes
- Peppers
- Beets
- Onions
- Green Veggie Powder (New)
- Herbs in the red cup:
- Oregano
- Chives
- Parsley
- Cilantro
- Basil
Notes to our CSA Share holders:
We pick the vegetables within 24 hours of the box being delivered. We do rinse the produce but it would be important to wash all vegetables before you eat them. Keeping the herbs (ends) in a cup of clean water will keep them fresh longer.
Please return your empty box along with all re-usable containers (pails, cups, bags etc) so that we can reuse them all over again.
