Hi Kecklers,

I’ve really been enjoying my first CSA experience…you all run a great operation!

Speaking of kale—I’m a big fan of kale chips, thanks for including the recipe!  Also wanted to share a Kale smoothie recipe I made recently (which was surprisingly tasty), in case people are looking for even more ways to use it!  :)

Looking forward to the next season!
Daphne

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup chopped kale, ribs and thick stems removed
• 1 small stalk celery, chopped

• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 cup apple juice
• 1/2 cup ice
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. Place the kale, celery, banana, apple juice, ice, and lemon juice in a blender.
2. Blend until smooth and frothy.

(Recipe by Sarah Copeland via this blog)

Dear Folks,
  This week's shares will include:  sweet corn, nectarines, tomatoes, peppers, sweet onions, apples, and mystery item.

ATTENTION
The deadline to sign up for the Fall session is SEPTEMBER 2.  Please let us know by that date if you plan to participate.
   If you have not paid up your extras bill for the spring session, please do this ASAP.

ABOUT CHICKEN
Oliver has now butchered all his chickens.  They are free-range, grass and bug eating chickens.  They weigh between 3-4 lbs.  Get them while they last!

A word about sauce apples.
  I have been making some great sauce from Summer Rambo apples.  It makes a nicely tart sauce.  You can also make sauce from Ginger Gold apples.  They would be naturally a bit sweeter.  Making sauce is very easy.  After it is made you can freeze it, can it or just eat it as is.  It is great knowing that you made it from real apples in your own kitchen.  So you know whose hands were on it and how clean everything was!

A Word from Gregg
Short essay on "organic" vs sprayed apples

   A near neighbor of ours has 5 acres of full grown apple trees.  Several years ago he decided to go "certified organic" in his farming practices.  (No spray of inorganic chemicals)  His productive trees rapidly deteriorated into an apple orchard infested with various "scabs" (fungi which blemish the exterior with black blotches) and borers (insects which will feed on the apple itself - IE worms)  These pests will eventually damage and destroy the trees much as certain uninhibited bacteria would damge our bodies.  This past winter, Pete asked me if I would take over the care of his orchard.

   Knowing the pre-existing problem and dealing with it can be an interesting dilemna.  I did not treat the diseases seriously enough and as a result some of the varieties are still suspect to damage.  Even after thinning (the process where excess or damaged small fruit is removed in late June/early July so that healthy fruit may fully develop and size up.)  there still remained a fair amount of scab.  Scab is particularly bad when there is a lot of early spring rain as the fungus spreads rapidly with added moisture.
  
     As with any learning curve, I hope to do better with Pete's apples next year.  Relatively speaking, I'm pretty happy with the results, considering the magnitude of the problem.  One neighbor about 2 miles from us expects an 80% loss on his orchard due to scab infection.  With that being said, I'm suspicious when some merchants sell their fruit As "organic" yet their fruit looks every bit as nice as ours.  Pete's "organic" apples were unsightly and unsellable.  (He could not even get the processing plants around us to take his fruit for sauce or cider.)  In low stress regions or isolated environments some apple varieties can do well organically, but the vast majority of apples would not. 

     Be learious of people who claim "totally organic" and have fruit which looks like it was sold at Giant.  Someone is being completely disingenuous.  We are not spray manics, but do what is reasonable and safe in order to produce high quality fruit and maintain healthy trees.  Vegetables are far more forgiving than fruit when it comes to the organic issue.  Hope this essay was helpful and informative.    Gregg

See everyone this week!  Gregg and Louise Keckler - Orchard Country Produce and Fruit Farm



Extras list

red heart plums - $3.50/pint
large bell peppers - 2 for $1.50
cherry tomatoes - $4.00/pint
peaches - $4.00/quart
1/2 bushel of tomatoes for canning (seconds)- $15.00

unsorted apples to eat or for sauce (choose a variety and an amount) 
Ginger Gold (sweet)
Summer Rambo (tart, soft)
$3.50/quart
$9.00 / pack
$16.00/ 1/2 bushel



BEEF

 $4.50/lb                                                              $6.99/lb                                                        $3.50/lb
Lean Ground Beef (1 lb pack)                                 Round Steak                                                 Beef liver (1 lb pk)

$11.99/lb                                                              $13.99/lb                                                      $15.99/lb
New York Strip (1 steak/pk)                                 Flat Iron (1 steak/pk)                            Filet Mignon (1 st/pk)
Sirloin Steak                                                          Delmonico (2 steaks/pk)  


Smoked pork bologna $8.00/lb or $4.00/half lb


CHICKEN
about 3 - 4 lb whole chickens    $5.99 /lb
chicken broth and stock     $4.00/quart



CHEESE

$9.99/lb                                                              $11.99/lb                                                       $14.99/lb
Farmers                                                               Smoked Cheddar                                           mild Goat Gouda
Cheddar                                                               Smoked Jalapeño
Baby Swiss                                                          Sharp Cheddar
tomato/basil
dill/bacon
colby jack

JAMS                                                                    EGGS                                                              BUTTER
$4.50/half pint jar                                                 $4.00/doz                                                     $3.50/half pound
Red Heart Plum
Strawberry
Raspberry
Black Cherry                                                          HONEY
Grape                                                                      $5.00/half pint jar
Orange Marmalade
Blackberry
Pink Lady and Pomegranate