Weekly Weeder

Olin-Fox Farms Volume No. 10 Issue No. 15 July 9, 2008

www.olinfoxfarms.com Summer Season Week 5

STANDARD REMINDER

Please be sure to wash your weekly share thoroughly before serving. To preserve freshness, it is NOT ‘table ready’ (i.e., pre-washed). We deliver your Olin-Fox Farms’ produce right from the fields to ensure highest quality.

REMINDER: This is the Fifth week of the Summer Program,

and Week 7 of the Fruit Share Program.

The Sixth Week of the Summer Program is July 16-19.

Schedules can also be found on our website, www.olinfoxfarms.com

This Week's News From The Farms

We hope everyone had a great Fourth of July.

This week is the start of tomatoes and sweet corn, Yeah! The start of each season's crops is usually slow to start, with smaller quantities that will increase as the season progresses, and then slows again before ending.

Next week's shares should have more corn and tomatoes, with Mother Nature's cooperation. We should have corn for several more weeks, and tomatoes well into the Fall. So, enjoy the taste of more to come.

Please note: the sweet corn in your shares in naturally grown and may have some tip damage due to corn worms. If you are weak at heart or squeamish, ask someone else to remove them and cut the ends off the corn.

Also, due to weather conditions, some items may need to be picked before they are completely ripe. For example, a heavy rain can split an entire tomato crop in one downpour. So, if you receive some near-ripe tomatoes, you can finish ripening them in a sunny window or place them in a brown paper bag for a couple of days.

Tip for your carrots: After washing, soak them in cold water for a while for a crisper carrot.

We greatly appreciate the prompt payments for the CSA program, which enables our farms to continue to provide you with fresh, locally grown produce.

In Your Produce Basket This Week

Sweet Peppers, Red Grape Tomatoes, Slicing Tomatoes, Beans, Lettuce, Potatoes,

Cucumbers, Corn, Carrots, German Stiffneck Garlic

See your site's produce list for more details.

For Those With Fruit Shares: Blackberries

Please Note: With elements beyond our control such as the start or the end of a harvest, or extreme weather conditions that may limit the quantity of produce coming in, we systematically address each delivery and pick up group each week and do our very best to see that everyone receives some of everything.

Recipes/Information

Tabbouleh

Syria and Lebanon's national dish, where it is commonly eaten on a lettuce leaf. In the US it is often used as a dip with pita bread. Tabbouleh is also popular in Brazil and the Dominican Republic (where it is known as tipili), due to the large number of Middle Eastern immigrants. One of the largest bowls of tabbouleh ever was made in Lebanon in 2001 – and it weighed 3,348 pounds!

An interesting insight into the importance of tabbouleh amongst Lebanese families can be found at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/brunel/A23428587. In essence, when making tabbouleh for your mother-in-law, tread very carefully!

Ingredients

1 large ripe tomato, chopped, or 1/2 bag Grape tomatoes, quartered

1 cucumber, diced, with skin left on

1/2 bunch parsley, chopped very fine

1 bunch mint, chopped very fine

1 cup bulgur wheat

1 tsp. Salt to taste

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Juice of 1 lemon

Soak bulgur wheat in 1 ½ cups water in a large bowl for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Add water if bulgur soaks up all the water in less than 30 minutes.

Once the bulgur wheat is ready, add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Delicious immediately, but flavor improves with time spent in the refrigerator, 2 hours to overnight.

Bulgur information according to Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgur

Bulgur is typically made of durum wheat. It is parboiled and dried... It is more nutritious than rice or cous cous.

Bulgur can be found at natural food markets, as well as stores carrying Middle Eastern foods. We have found it at the International Market in Alexandria/Springfield.

Bon Appetit!