Hello dear community of meadowlark farm eaters,

          We are so pleased to be able to bring to you the first of the summer share boxes!  You are about to enter into a veggie and fruit eating extravaganza, and if this if your first time participating in a csa or meadowlark csa, we welcome you…..what is csa?  Community Supported Agriculture is what lies at the heart of meadowlark farm.  Our passion for growing beautiful, healthy, vital food for you, our community keeps us focused and happy and moving on a day when the temperatures soar above 80 degrees. Today saw us dodging rain which was a bummer when we were picking strawberries.  The boxes today are bursting with surprises and treats and maybe some new veggies that you’ve never experienced before.  As we pick and wash and pack your food, we keep in mind that many shareholders(that’s you) tell us that they feel like they’re receiving a gift each week when they open their box of veggies!  Sorry for the extra dirt in your box; when it rains it makes for dirtier than usual greens.  The salad mix is rinsed three times and the spinach once, all other greens need to be washed in a sink of cool water….

We send this lovely food out to you with the hope and desire that you will expand your cooking horizons and through that process of appreciation, your health will benefit.  The vitamins in food are important, yes.  They feed your cells and through that process keep you functioning properly.  But we are also concerned with some of the more subtle ways that this fresh food can affect your body.  Cultivating a quiet awareness of process, how we handle food, how we create space in our busy lives to accommodate cooking and then how we actually eat food, together or in groups has the potential to feed you in deeper, spiritual ways.  Take some time in your family to look at, feel, smell and experience this box of food. Yes, there is still some soil here and there; this food is alive!  Your box today include:  triple rinsed salad greens, baby spinach, scallions and a bunch of pink beauty radishes together in a bag, shallots(the oniony looking little bulbs),a big bag that includes 2 bok choy and a bunch of kale/chard/senposai, plus a head of tender hoophouse lettuce and a little bag of cilantro. Strawberries for fruit shares(can you believe it?)Premium shares receive asparagus and the first hakkurei turnips plus other extras.

This week  our friend nancy allen came and cooked lunch for us(such a treat) and she and ella made a salad that was so divine tasting, we couldn’t get enough.  She took several different kinds of greens(like bok choy, kale, chard and collards) and slivered them very fine into thin, thin strips without a lot of stem.  Then she massaged the greens with salt until they get a little bit wilty. Then she added green onion, chopped cilantro, sliced radish and some carrot, tossed it with a simple vinaigrette of toasted sesame oil, tamari and rice wine vinegar.  It was soooo delicious!   Enjoy your week of fresh salads and green food.  Please remember to return your box next week, flattened and empty and ready for more.

Today you’ll find enclosed in your box two information sheets on 2 different options for eating fresh, local, pasture raised meat.  The amish community plans to meet up with folks today who’ve place chicken orders and for next week they are making a sweet and generous offer. Anyone can try a fresh amish chicken, FOR FREE!!!!  Call or stop by and meet the Keims and place your order in person; they’ll be parked at F&M park today after 5:00.   Love, the meadowlarks