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CENTRAL BROOKLYN CSA

Bringing fresh, local, and affordable produce to the Central Brooklyn Community of Bed Stuy, Crown Heights, and surrounding areas


Summer Season Newsletter 14,  Sept 11, 2014

 

Fresh from the Field: 
Our 14th week's share

  • Lettuce
  • Choy
  • Parsley
  • Chiles
  • Sweet peppers
  • Onions
  • Potatoes
  • Tomatoes
  • Eggplants
  • Beans
  • Fruit and flower shares have yet to be determined.

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Meet our Member: Melissa 


 

Using CSA vegetables is like a game of Tetris, says member Melissa Olson. She and her husband tend to first target vegetables with the shortest shelf life, such as leafy dark greens.

“It’s a challenge,” Melissa says. “You’ve got your leafy greens, you’ve got your salad. … First there is the kale ...chard and the choy come next.” Her go-to summer dish: sauteed mushrooms and kale with eggs.

As a nutritionist and registered dietitian, Melissa knows that over time vegetables lose not just flavor but nutrients, too.  She’s also well-aware that fresh vegetables, an essential part of health, can be unaffordable for some Brooklyn individuals and families. So she puts the Central Brooklyn CSA on the table.

“I recommend it whenever they’re on food stamps and they’re having trouble getting access to affordable vegetables,” says Melissa, who has worked at Community Healthcare Network for four years. “The clients that have used it have really done well with their health.”

“I truly believe a CSA share could be a life-changing experience for someone’s health,” she says in a tone of humility. “I know it has been for us.”

That the Community Healthcare Network branch is located close to the Central Brooklyn CSA distribution site makes it even more accessible for Melissa and her clients who choose to participate. Hebron SDA happens to be on Melissa’s way home from Community Healthcare Network, such that she integrates Thursday pick-ups seamlessly into her routine.

Melissa also encourages others to attend the Windflower Farm annual Harvest Party, if possible. She and her husband so enjoyed seeing the coop houses where tomatoes grow and the lush fields of green where herbs and - yes - the kale stalks grow.  “Now when we eat our vegetables we can picture where the vegetables were grown,” says Melissa.

Until the summer CSA season ends, she and her husband, along with their two year-old child, will continue to team for CSA Tetris, at which they’ve achieved a high level of creativity to accommodate her husband’s gluten allergy.  Melissa is also working on her blog on gluten-free basics, called the Gluten Free Game, where she has recently posted her first video on gluten-free baking.  That, along with her CSA participation in both professional and personal aspects, is a win-win. 



Editor's note: This feature does not displace Farmer Ted's weekly letter. Please email centralbrooklyncsa@gmail.com (attn: Bridget) if you would like to be featured in this Meet our Member series.
 



Tomato paste

Suggested by our Member Virginia who was distributing the tomatoes and fruit last week.
From Saveur

Makes about 1 cup
 

INGREDIENTS

5 lbs. plum tomatoes
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil plus 2 tbsp.
Kosher salt, to taste

 

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat oven to 300° . Roughly chop tomatoes. Heat ¼ cup of the oil in a 12" skillet over high heat. Add tomatoes and season lightly with salt; bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until very soft, about 8 minutes.

2. Pass the tomatoes through the finest plate of a food mill, pushing as much of the pulp through the sieve as possible, leaving the seeds behind.

3. Rub a rimmed 13" x 18" baking sheet with remaining 2 tbsp. of oil; spread tomato purée evenly over sheet. Bake, using a spatula to turn the purée over on itself occasionally, until most of the water evaporates and the surface darkens, about 3 hours. Reduce heat to 250°; cook until thick and brick colored, 20–25 minutes.

4. Store sealed in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one month, or freeze, wrapped well in plastic wrap, for up to 6 months.


Editor's note: If you don't happen to have a food mill (how many New Yorkers do?!), process the soft foods until mostly smooth, and then press the food through a fine-mesh strainer or sieve. 



MARINATED EGGPLANT WITH CAPERS AND MINT

From Smitten Kitchen, Adapted from Epicurious
 

Ingredients

1 pound thin Italian or Asian eggplants (2 to 3), cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1/4 cup chopped mint
2 tablespoons small capers, rinsed
 


INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat broiler. Arrange eggplant in 1 layer on a large baking sheet and brush both sides with 2 tablespoons oil (total). Broil about 4 inches from heat, turning once, until golden, 8 to 12 minutes total.

Stir together vinegar, mint, capers, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and remaining 3 tablespoons oil and toss with warm eggplant. Marinate at least 20 minutes.

Marinated eggplant can be made 1 day ahead and chilled. Bring to room temperature before serving.

 

Our CSA is a partnership between the Central Brooklyn Community and the New York City Coalition Against Hunger (NYCCAH). 

If you have any questions or concerns, please call Carrette at 212.825.0028 ext. 217 or email centralbrooklyncsa@gmail.com.