Week 6 - Reminder to return your boxes (and jars)

Please return Your CSA Boxes!

Reminder that we count on regular returns to keep the veggies flowing, and we are unfortunately seeing low return rates this season. Thanks for bringing your boxes back, and don’t be shy to drop off a stockpile if you have one ;)

Waxed boxes are super reusable, but not recyclable. Because of their reusability, they are also expensive. At nearly $3 each, we’re sending out about $1200 worth of boxes alone every week(!), another reason we really count giving a few more life cycles to each one; box returns help us keep our waste and costs to you as low as possible.

Just flatten and return your waxed boxes to your pickup each week (or leave them on your porch if getting home delivery), thank you in advance!

this week’s Full Plate veggies

crops are our best estimate & may change a bit after harvest

salad greens - remembrance
swiss chard - remembrance
kohlrabi - remembrance
spinach - stick and stone
napa cabbage - stick and stone
green meat radishes - stick and stone
garlic - stick and stone
dry beans - buttermilk bean
each box will get either rojo chiquito, black turtle, or pinto
sweet potatoes - three stone farm

Find your pickup details

See CSA Handbook for more member info

Fruit Bowl this week

Jonagold Apples - Black Diamond Farm, Interlaken
Honeycrisp Apples - Hurd Orchard, Holley, NY
Organic Oranges - Thorpes Organic Family Farm
a NY orchard with a Florida citrus grove, sending sunshine up north!
Apricot Stomp - Red Jacket Orchard, Geneva
Cherry Stomp - Red Jacket Orchard, Geneva
Cherry Berry Jam - Fruit Bowl special! This jam brings together favorite summertime fruits from several of our favorite orchards

updates from the farm & friends…

PAYMENT PLANNERS, MONTHLY PAYMENTS WERE DUE 1/15

All payments are $125 ($62 for HFFA members). Pay online here, pay via cash or check (to Full Plate Farms, PO Box 6898, Ithaca, NY 14851 or brought to your free choice pickup) or pay via EBT at GreenStar and send us a copy of your receipt. Find more payment plan info here.

FRUITION SEEDS’ ‘THE GIFT OF SEED’ EVENT FEB 1st

Join Fruition at Foundation of Light on Saturday, February 1st from 1 to 4:30. From Petra: “This event is an experience, so please plan to join for the duration and we ask you register the gift of your presence here. All flourishing is mutual, as Robin Wall Kimmerer reminds us, and seeds brilliantly embody this generosity, creativity and care. Together, let’s practice receiving hundreds of varieties of regionally adapted seeds as gifts, cultivating gift culture as well as community, nourishing all generations to come! Come ready to reflect, connect and honor your gifts as we seed a more abundant community and future together. Together we’re going to laugh, play, send each other home with many regionally adapted seeds from Fruition Seeds in Naples as we sing and perhaps even shed a tear or two.”

on our plates…

share what you’ve been cooking! We’re always glad to know, and eager to pass along. Just email Molly. Find this week’s ingredients in bold.

Chili

nothing feels cozier than a hearty bowl of chili on the coldest winter days!

FIRST… COOKING BEANS! Here are some good resources. Everyone will get either Rojo Chiquito, Black Turtle, or Pinto beans in this week’s shares, all of which are great in chili.

NOW ONTO THE CHILI…

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large sweet pepper, chopped
2 medium carrots or 1 med. sweet potato, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
½ teaspoon salt, divided
4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
2 tablespoons chili powder*
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika*
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 large can (28 ounces) or 2 small cans (15 ounces each) diced tomatoes**, with their juices
3-4 C cooked beans—black, pinto and/or red
2 cups vegetable broth or water
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnishing
1 to 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar or lime juice, to taste
Garnishes: chopped cilantro, sliced avocado, tortilla chips, sour cream or crème fraîche, grated cheddar cheese, etc.

PREPARATION

In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, warm the olive oil until shimmering. Add the chopped onion, bell pepper, carrot, celery and ¼ teaspoon of the salt. Stir to combine and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the onion is translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika and oregano. Cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
Add the diced tomatoes and their juices, the drained black beans and pinto beans, vegetable broth and bay leaf. Stir to combine and let the mixture come to a simmer. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally and reducing heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer, for 30 minutes.
Remove the chili from the heat and discard the bay leaf. For the best texture and flavor, transfer 1 ½ cups of the chili to a blender, making sure to get some of the liquid portion. Securely fasten the lid and blend until smooth (watch out for hot steam), then pour the blended mixture back into the pot.
Add the chopped cilantro, stir to combine, and then mix in the vinegar, to taste. Add salt to taste, too—I added ¼ teaspoon more at this point. Divide the mixture into individual bowls and serve with garnishes of your choice.