Are you a new member who hasn’t attended an orientation yet? Orientation dates and times can be found at the bottom of the newsletter.
THIS WEEK’S HARVEST
Mustard Mix, Arugula, Purple Komatsuna, Dino Kale, Green & Gold Zucchini, Pink Little Gem Lettuce, Red Butter Lettuce, Easter Egg Radishes, Hakurei Salad Turnips, Scallions, Carrots, Kohlrabi, Baby Fennel
U-PICK
Check the u-pick board in the barn for weekly u-pick limits.
🌟 Albion Strawberries: 2 pint per share this week | Ripe berries are MUCH more plentiful on the right side of the patch, and to the back! Don’t get stuck right by the door where the plants are very picked over.
Herbs & Edible Flowers: Tulsi, Parsley, Chamomile, Calendula, Nasturtium, Pansies/Viola, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Thyme, Oregano, Marjoram, Lemon Balm, Lemon Verbena, Vietnamese Coriander, Shiso/Perilla, Catnip, French & Culinary Lavender, Sorrel, Italian Basil & Assorted Mints
Flowers! Many perennial flowers and the first of the year’s annuals! | You are welcome to pick any flowers on the farm, including the sunflowers along the edge of the parking lot.
HARVEST NOTES
Kohlrabi: Kohlrabi look a bit like a UFO and taste like the stem of a broccoli plant, with a refreshing crunch reminiscent of jicama. We love eating it raw as a snack or crudités, but it can also be sautéed or grilled. This morning after harvest the crew was exclaiming about how sweet and delicious they are right now. Peel off the fibrous skin before eating.
Hakurei Salad Turnips: These sweet, crunchy snacks are mild and juicy and best eaten fresh, on top a rice bowl, sliced on a salad or popped straight in the mouth. They are also delicious pickled, sauteed or braised in miso, as are their greens!
ZUCCHINI KOHLRABI CARROT FRITTERS WITH HERB YOGURT SAUCE
From The Foodie Dietitian
Arabella recommended these versatile and delicious fritters to us in the field as we were harvesting Kohlrabi and we can’t wait to try them. She says they work beautifully with any number of vegetable substitutions. This week we’ll likely make them with zucchini, scallions, kohlrabi and salad turnips, and lots of herbs from the garden.
INGREDIENTS
For the Fritters:
1 medium-large zucchini, grated
1 spring onion, minced
3 small carrots, peeled and grated
2 small kohlrabi, leaves removed, peeled and grated
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 egg
1/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
For the Yogurt Sauce:
1 cup low-fat Greek yogurt
1/2 tbsp lemon zest
1/2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp avocado oil
1/8 tsp salt
DIRECTIONS
Combine zucchini, carrots, kohlrabi, and spring onion in a cheese cloth and wring out any excess water. (Or, if you don’t have cheese cloth, add veggies to a strainer, sprinkle with salt and let sit for 10 minutes and then wring out excess liquid with hands.) Transfer to a medium mixing bowl.
Add egg, flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper and mix to coat evenly.
Add olive oil to cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot enough, drop 1/4 cup of fritter batter into the pan and flatten out with a spatula. Depending on the size of your skillet, cook a few fritters at a time, leaving space in-between. Cook for a 3-5 minutes on each side, or until golden-brown and crispy.
Transfer cooked fritters to a paper towel to absorb some oil. Serve with yogurt sauce.
Make the yogurt sauce: Mix yogurt, lemon zest, parsley, avocado oil, and salt until combined. Serve alongside fritters.
The scallions and lettuce in this week’s share, one month ago.
VOLUNTEER WEEDING PARTY!
Join us Thursday, June 25th from 10 am - noon for a weeding party in the flower garden. Arabella will be hosting and we’ll have some light snacks and plenty of good conversation. Hope to see you there!
SONOMA MOUNTAIN BAKERY OFF FOR THE NEXT 2 WEEKS
We’ll be missing their amazing croissants at the Saturday pickups the next two weeks but hope to welcome them back soon.
FARMER’S LOG
VOLTAIC
As we farmers settled into the harvest rhythm this week, the fields entered their most exciting and transformational time of year. The season of power.
The word power comes to mind for this time of year in the sense of the raw power of light and vegetative growth. At no other time of year is this power more palpable or more awe inspiring than the 50 or 60 days surrounding the solstice.
Take a look at these pictures of our winter squash field taken from the same place on June 18th and July 27th, 2023 (just 40 days a apart).
This week, our plant babies came out of their initial transplant shock from the nursery. They have found their feet, spread their roots into the native soil, started greening up and taking their lives into their own hands.
They seem to grow before our eyes now, devouring every ray of sunlight and drop of water they can find. Over the next 60 days they will flower, have sex, and start growing their own seeds. Our fields will transform from fragile nursery plots into teaming jungles.
It’s kind of scary.
And it is a humbling time of year for the farmer. At no other time do we feel more clearly the fact that we are not actually growers but shepherds.
Sure, we work hard moving things here and there. But it is all just setting out the dreamcatcher for the real power to enter.
And when it comes, boy, do we know it.
At this time of year the farm feels possessed with light and plant growth.
All this energy is the heavy, nutritious staple foods we’ll enjoy all summer and fall — just in a different form.
The corn, the potatoes, the squash, the tomatoes — they are here with us now, their incandescent spirits, crackling and pulsing through swelling green foliage.
It’s best to stand back a little.
See you in the fields,
David
FARM ORIENTATION TOUR FOR NEW MEMBERS
All adult members who will be regularly visiting the farm and picking up produce are required to attend an in-person orientation. We’ll go over farm safety, rules and etiquette, give you your farm tote bags, show you the ropes in the flower and herb garden, and share the secret to finding the sweetest strawberries.
If you are new to the farm, please join us promptly for one of the orientation tours below:
Week 2:
Friday, June 19: 1:00 pm. 3:00 pm, 5:30 pm
Saturday, June 20: 9:00 am, 11:00 am, 1:00 pm
Tuesday, June 23: 1:00 pm. 3:00 pm, 5:30 pm
Week 3:
Friday, June 26: 1:00 pm. 3:00 pm, 5:30 pm
Saturday, June 27: 9:00 am, 11:00 am, 1:00 pm
Tuesday, June 30: 1:00 pm. 3:00 pm, 5:30 pm
You can come get oriented and pick up your first share on any of the 3 pickup-days (Friday, Saturday or Tuesday), whichever day and time works best for your schedule. Tours last about 30 minutes.
If you are alternating weeks with another household, one household should attend an orientation Week 1 and the other an orientation on Week 2, or something to that effect.
If you can’t attend a tour time above, please reach out to us to schedule a time that works for you.
THE BASICS
Check out our new Brief Membership Guide: A quick-reference on the essential guidelines and tips for your enjoying your CSA membership.
For new members, here are the essentials for your first visit.
What time is harvest pick-up?:
Friday harvest pick-ups run from 1:00 pm - 6:00 pm 🌟 NEW PICK-UP DAY! 🌟
Saturday harvest pick-ups run from 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Tuesday harvest pick-ups will run from 1:00 pm - 6:00 pm
U-pick hours: Oriented members can come to the farm any time, 7 days a week, sunrise to sunset, to u-pick and enjoy the farm.
2026 CSA program dates: This year’s harvest season will run from Friday, June 12th through Tuesday, December 8th this year.
Where is the farm? The member parking lot is located at 1720 Cooper Rd., Sebastopol, CA 95472.
Slow on Cooper Rd. Please drive slowly on Cooper Road — 20 mph. It's a neighborhood with kids, animals, and neighbors who generously share the road with us.
Where should I park? Follow our sign on Cooper Rd. down a short gravel driveway. Please find a parking spot under the solar panels to your left, or on either side of the road in front, or below, the greenhouse.
Where is the food? The produce pick-up barn is just to the right of the solar panels and above our big greenhouse. You can’t miss it!
What should I bring?:
Former members, please bring your WCCF tote bag if you have it! You can grap a new one if you need one. (New members will be given a new one.)
Pint baskets or small containers for strawberries and herbs (if you have some, we will provide a few pint baskets to be used as measures)
A vase, bucket, or water bottle to keep your flowers and herbs happy
Clippers or secateurs to cut flowers (if you have some)
Water / sun hat / picnic supplies if you plan to stay awhile!
Newsletters & email communication: All our important CSA communications are sent through this email address, which is sometimes spam blocked. Please make sure this email address is in your address book so you get important CSA communications. All newsletters and important updates, like this one, are also posted on the Newsletterspage of our website weekly.
