our first CSA
Hello!
Welcome to the first ever Dancing Greens CSA! Thank you so much for being here with us and supporting us as we are just starting. My name is Jamie, I am your farmer that will be growing your vegetables and I am beyond excited to share this harvest with you!
The path that led me into farming is maybe an atypical one. My parents worked in corporate America commuting to NYC everyday and I grew up in the suburbs where lawns were used just for playgrounds and food only came from the grocery store. However, I always loved vegetables from a young age. In elementary school I used to have a cucumber everyday (obviously I didn’t know anything about seasonality). I even brought in sliced cucumbers to my third grade junk food party! I sought out peppers, broccoli, tomatoes, any veggie I could get my hands on. My parents were confused, but I think delighted that they didn’t need to fight with me about eating all my greens.
In high school I took AP environmental science where my eyes really opened up to major issues that grabbed my attention. I was the type of kid who dug for worms and climbed trees. Being confronted with how amazing the world is and also how serious climate change was becoming completely shook me. What truly shocked me was the reality of how globalized, commercialized, and industrialized agriculture has become. I learned that our modern global agriculture system contributes to one third of CO2 emissions. I could not sleep at night. How could food, something we all enjoy every single day, be killing the planet on which it needs to survive!?!
It was around this time that I worked on a farm close to where I grew up called Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture. Here, I absolutely fell head over heels with growing food. Everything amazed me. I learned about the three C’s (compost, cover crop, and crop rotations), agroecology, diversification of crops and varieties, and so many other concepts. My heart and mind were completely full every day. And it was here where I put together that mitigating climate change, food insecurity, and many world issues can be approached from a farm point of view. And I absolutely love growing food as much as eating food!
Ok, that's enough about my life biography. There is plenty more to say but I don’t want to bore you. I share all of this with you so you can understand my introduction and approach with farming. My goal is to put the soil first and raise our vegetables with lots of care and love. As a farmer I am also a lifelong student learning how to care for the land.
CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. By purchasing your share at the beginning of the season, you can take the risk (and reward) with me to share in the bounty of harvest but also the reality of crop failures. Dancing Greens’ goal is to provide you with 8-10 different veggies for every share as well as a letter from me and a recipe from chef Madison.
I see the CSA as a relationship rather than a transaction. So please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart,
Farmer Jamie
in the box this week:
swiss chard
kale
arugula
lettuce mix
kohlrabi
fresh herbs
fennel
scallions
micro greens
garlic scapes
recipe from Chef Madison
charred chard over chard! (say it 3x fast)
a dish to use the whole plant
ingredients:
1 bunch swiss chard
extra virgin olive oil (evoo)
1-3 cloves garlic finely chopped (based on garlic-y preference)
1/2 cup tahini
1 lemon
salt, to taste
method:
remove ribs from swiss chard leaves, tear swiss chard leaves (set both aside).
make the dip:
add chopped garlic and swiss chard leaves to pan with evoo, saute over medium heat until leaves are wilted and garlic is fragrant. remove from pan and let cool. squeeze moisture from leaves into a bowl or cup (i like to place chard mix over a colander set over a bowl as it cools - then squeeze). save the excess liquid.
add chard mix and a splash of cooking liquid to a food processor, add tahini, 1/2 lemon juice and a generous glug of evoo. season with salt and process. add more cooking liquid as needed until dip is creammmmy. (you’ll be processing for a while - don’t be discouraged). taste it. add salt and more lemon if needed (this is how i decide: tastes like nothing? add salt. tastes boring? add lemon.)
make the charred stems:
preheat oven to 375 f. toss stems with evoo and salt. place on a single layer in baking dish or baking sheet with sides.
cover chard stems with tin foil and roast for 10 minutes. remove foil and bake an additional 20 minutes until stems are tender and browning. this may take longer depending on your oven (yeah, all ovens are different).
remove from oven, let cool and taste one. (missing something? add squeeze of lemon!)
put it all together: spread chard dip on plate, add charred stems on top, drizzle with evoo and sea salt. enjoy as is or add crackers/bread/veggies for dipping. mmmm!
