First Pick Up!

I could hardly wait for 11am, June 5th to arrive.  That was the time and day when I could pick-up my first CSA share from Clarion River Organics (CRO).  I belonged to another CSA for 15 years and quite frankly had grown a little tired of the predictable boxes each week.  An overload of strange greens in June (memories of massive daily lunch-time salads containing weedy mesclun and pea shoots still make me smile), more tomatoes in August than I could keep up with, and beets upon beets upon beets in the fall.  In addition, sometimes the produce was a little let's say "off".  When I was told by Farmer Joe, as I'll call him, to soak the kale in my sink to remove the grey-green aphids that clung to the underside of the leaves I knew I'd had enough.  I needed a change.  I needed variety.  Enter Clarion River Organics.

With ten families contributing produce, the potential for great variety intrigued me.  Still there was no guarantee of that - perhaps all the families grow similar things - no assurance of better quality either.  Afterall, they would be subject to the same environmental uncertainties as Farmer Joe since the growing season, climate, pests and geographic area are roughly the same.  Still I thought I'd take a desperate chance and so signed up and sent my money to CRO.

Anxiously wanting to form an initial impression, I set an alarm on my phone for 10:45am and entered the little market where I pick-up my CRO share at exactly 11am on June 5th.   I was handed a handsome, new, sturdy reusable shopping bag by the store's proprietor which was filled with the first fruits of the growing season.  I quickly left the store and examined the contents on a bench outside.  I had brought a shopping bag with me since I was not sure what the procedure for pick-up would be (with Farmer Joe I had to bring my own bag(s) and transfer all my veggies from his wooden crate to my bags).  Since I had walked to the market, I decided to split the produce between the two bags to balance the load for my walk back.  

Sitting on that bench dividing up the contents between my two bags I found a wonderful variety of fruit and vegetables: asparagus, rutabaga, Winterbor kale, strawberries, Romaine lettuce, Russet potatoes, rhubarb and mint; all in excellent condition and each item of a manageable quantity - not too much, not too little.  I could not wait to get cooking.  It's going to be a good season.

A Day at the Farm: Strawberry Harvest!

Before I had even received my first delivery from Clarion River Organics (CRO), I was invited to come to one of the farms  to pick strawberries!  I knew immediately that this was a must have experience for my 19-year-old daughter, Hannah.  Ever since she was a little girl she had dreamed of going berry picking.  As an avid reader of classics, I think she imagined herself as Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables walking through the fields of Prince Edward Island plucking ripe raspberries as she lazily made her way home.  But this was Sligo, PA a nearly two hour drive from our urban dwelling.  Was it worth it to go that far for a few fresh strawberries?  Well, if you knew me you would know that I can never say "no" to my beautiful daughter, and besides, I reasoned, it would be an adventure.  So with GPS in hand and printed directions as a back-up, Hannah and I set off on a bright, sunny Saturday in early June for the Clarion River Organics Strawberry Harvest.

As we drove down the long entrance road of the Schwartz family farm, the sights delighted us - two precious little Amish girls clad in long blue dresses and bonnets standing by a barn holding the reins of a horse, hens and roosters foraging in the barn yard with their babies trailing behind, sheep bleating and grazing in the field, a group of very young Amish women (one holding an infant also clad in long dress and bonnet!) talking by a small pen of lambs.  Taking it all in, we turned to each other with huge smiles and said "We made the right choice!" 

Since we did not arrive in time for the pot-luck lunch, we set right to berry picking.  A handsome, young Amish man handed us some empty quart-sized containers and directed us to the field.  There we found bright red, perfectly formed, juicy strawberries.  We quickly filled our first two boxes and returned to the young man for more.  I don't think either of us wanted the experience of bending down in the cramped rows searching for the perfect berry to end.  Before we knew it we had SIX quarts!  

Next, we were offered some homemade vanilla ice cream topped with what else - crushed strawberries!  Now as I said in my previous post, we don't eat dairy, but the young ladies offering were so kind and we knew that the ice cream would be of very high quality so we could not resist just a small taste.  In a word - delicious!  You could actually taste the cream and it was not overly sweet.  

After that, we drove to a second farm, River View Dairy, where the Byler family raises goats for cheese, milk and yogurt.  The Bylers also receive sheep's milk from the Schwartz farm to make sheep's milk cheese.  Mr. Byler told us that they have 90 goats to milk by hand each day.  Good thing for him, he has seven children to help.  In all, it takes two hours in the morning (at 5 am!) and two hours again in the afternoon to complete the milking.  The Bylers were gracious hosts offering samples of their cheeses and yogurt and giving us minted iced tea to drink as we talked.   

My daughter and I also met Nathan and Zeb that day (the founders and organizers of CRO) who are clearly caring and effective managers.  And had we gotten there a bit earlier we could have taken a tour of the farm in one of the Schwartz's horse drawn hay wagons!  Nevertheless, it was delightful to be out in the "country" and observe just how hard the families work to provide us with these wonderful products.  Hannah and I agreed that it was one of the nicest days we have spent in a long time.  Not only did we leave with six quarts of strawberries, but also with a fondness for these hard working Amish families. Their land is beautiful, their homes lovely, their children more well behaved than I have seen anywhere, and their manner humble, gracious, and friendly.  Now each day when I wash and cut up all that beautiful produce they have harvested for me, I think of them, giving thanks for them, and praying that "my God will meet all of their needs" (Philippians 4:19). 

Cooking with Clarion River Organics

Cooking With Clarion River Organics

This is a blog about my experience as a member of the Clarion River Organics CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).  I am a new member of this CSA in 2013 though I have subscribed to other CSAs for about 15 years.  

Primarily this is a cooking and recipe blog to show you how I used some of the produce I received each week.  

First, let me just say a few words about how I cook.  Our family (my husband, daughter, son and I) eat a primarily plant-based diet (well, son not so much, but that is a different story!).  That means we eat only fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains (though we do have a few "cheat" days each year on Thanksgiving, Christmas or other special occasions!).  We do this not out of some exceptional devotion to animals (although it is nice knowing that no animal died or suffered to be on our plate), but because we believe it is the diet that contributes the most to good health and helps us avoid disease.  So that said, you will not find any recipes here that include meat, poultry, fish, dairy, or eggs.  What we eat comes directly from the earth.  

Second, I probably will not show how I used every last item provided by Clarion River each week, not because I didn't use them or didn't love them all, but simply because I do not have enough time to document everything!  

Third, I realize I am getting a late start with this blog.  I have had quite a busy June preparing for and teaching both a bible study and Sunday School class.  As of this date, we have already received four deliveries from CRO!  I apologize that the first recipes will be outdated by the time you read them.  That is, you will probably have used up your first three or four weeks of produce by now.  However, I still hope this gives you ideas about how you might use things in future deliveries.

Lastly, I am a Christian.  I love the Lord Jesus Christ and my life is surrendered to Him. Thus, you may find that I sometimes make reference to my faith as I write just because it is such a huge part of who I am.  

What follows are my thoughts, pleasures, ideas, recipes and photos as I create beautiful, healthful meals with the produce received.  So I hope you enjoy the tales of my summer and fall Cooking with Clarion River Organics.