Morning Song Farm News

For identification purposes, above are images of Arugula, Passionfruit, Passionflower, and Kale. I made a simple salad for lunch today with an entire bunch of arugula and about a quarter of the bunch of cilantro; no lettuce at all. I added a few crushed macadamia nuts, and thinly sliced radishes. I used a whole lime, squeezed over the greens with a little California Olive Oil dashed across the serving with a pinch of the crushed Kung Pao dried chili pepper you've been getting in your baskets each week. As a finishing touch I crumbled a little dried mint over the whole plate. Delicious! We Pause Now for a Word About Kale Remember that Kale can be eaten cooked and served hot like you would Swiss Chard, or can be chilled after cooking and served as a salad ingredient. Kale is among the most nutrition-packed vegetables a farmer can grow. It is an excellent source of carotenes, vitamins C and B6, and manganese. One cup of kale supplies more than 70 percent of the RDI for vitamin C, wit...

Conventionally grown potatoes are almost certainly doused with chlorprohham (CIPC) which is the most effective post-harvest sprout inhibitor registered for use in potatoes in the U.S. While spraying your food, workers are required by safety regulations to don respirators and wear protective clothing. There is an inevitable and legally allowable accumulation of residue at the moment of consumption of even the peeled tuber.

From Vegetable Growers News , this just out: “The EPA has registered Syngenta Crop Protection’s Voliam Xpress insecticide. Voliam Xpress is approved for use on head and leaf lettuce, fruiting vegetables, head and stem brassicas and cucurbit vegetables.” …Voliam Xpress utilizes two modes of action to protect crops from chewing and sucking insects as well as lepidopteran pests. It contains chlorantraniliprole, a new mode of action from the diamide family of insecticides, and lambda-cyhalothrin, a third-generation phyrethroid insecticide. The two active ingredients are combined in an enhanced solution that provides fast knockdown and long-lasting residual control…”

Below is my favorite pumpkin pie recipe. The blue culinary pumpkins you have been receiving in your baskets are grown specifically for this recipe. Crack open your pumpkin on the driveway or other hard surface, scoop out the seeds and bake at 350 degrees until soft enough to scoop out. You can save that beautiful pumpkin for Thanksgiving if you like. It can be stored for months, unlike the Halloween pumpkins you may have purchased at the grocery store, these pumpkins are specifically grown for their storage and culinary uses. We have opened another drop off site in Costa Mesa at the organic leaning Coastal Children's Learning Center. The address is 2245 Orange Avenue, Costa Mesa 92672. Their website is http://www.coastalclc.com/ . Host Kristin Bryson can be reached at 949-722-1005. Also, we are actively trying to start a new drop off near UCI in Irvine. The address is in a residential neighborhood at the corner of University Drive and Goldenglow Street, Irvine. Please tell your Ir...

Although prettier than your average halloween pumpkin, these little blue treasures are much more than ornamental. Heirlooms, these pumpkin seeds have been passed down for generations because of their fine flavor and cooking qualities. To begin with, many cooks are familiar with following a pumpkin recipe that starts with "open a can of pumpkin puree." If you want to use your pumpkin, you'll need to back up one step and make your own puree. It's not complicated. Smash your pumpkin (don't try this on your countertop; I give this job to one of my kids: take it outside and throw it down on the sidewalk or driveway. ) Once opened, remove seeds and bake at 350 until soft. Scoop out meat of pumpkin, and throw away the outer skins. You can now put in a blender or cuisinart to perfect your puree. From here, you can follow any pumpkin recipe. This pumpkin makes a fine pumpkin soup, pumpkin muffin, pumpkin pie or pumpkin gravy. A winter squash, you can enjoy the ornamental q...

This is a really quick, easy meal if you have a cusinart. Boil pasta, set aside. Throw in cusinart: All the leaves of one bunch of our basil. Two cloves of garlic Quarter cup of walnuts Half cup of olive oil Salt to taste Little bit of water if it comes out too thick Puree in cusinart. Then add an additional, small handful of chopped walnuts to add texture. Stir over pasta, serve immediately.

Here's this week's planned pick list: Reed Avocados Persimmons Juice Limes Apples Carrots Basil Jalapenos Heirloom Dried Red Peppers Radishes Swiss chard Heirloom Blue Pumpkin (culinary) Garlic Fioja Guava Head Lettuce Dill Cukes Green Peppers (maybe just in large baskets?) Macadamias, large baskets only

It's not even related to a tomato, and is actually a tree fruit. For years the coyotes beat us to the punch and ate every one. We pruned the trees last year, so the trees couldn't be easily climbed by Wiley anymore, and so this year is the first ever that we have a good crop. Hopefully Mr. Coyote won't turn to my avocado trees instead.... Anyway, you can eat these persimmons when they are still somewhat hard (although as they soften, they are sweeter). Don't confuse this Fuyu persimmon, which can be eaten hard, with a Hichiya, which is longer and pointier. You eat one of those before the dead ripe stage and you with never, ever, make that mistake again. The unripe fruit's taste is bad, and I think, just to make myself clear, the word taste, is an understatement, you are more likely to look back on it someday, after getting over it, as a culinary train wreck, The ones in your baskets this week are good to eat at any stage. They can be peeled and sliced into a fru...

Hardly a recipe, but applesauce is so easy, it's really not worth ever buying. Peal your apples, squeeze a little lime juice, drop a couple drops of stevia if you think it needs to be sweeter (make sure you get the good stuff that isn't cut with sucrose or other additives; get the pure stevia extract) and put everything in a Cuisinart. Puree. I buy little disposable containers from Smart and Final and add these little treats to my kids' lunches.

As many have been challenged by recent economic issues, Morning Song Farm's CSA program lost 25% of its supporters this last month. Wow! We sure are passionate about continuing our CSA program, but do need our local community's support. I thought perhaps I should consider offering a Laguna Beach, Hungtington Beach or Orange drop off. If anyone has a friend or organization that might be interested in joining or hosting in those communities, please let us know.

Greetings! What a scorcher of a week! Fruit photo at right is a Fioja Guava. Some people slice long ways and scoop out the contents. I like the spicy skin and eat the whole thing. Try it both ways and see what you think. Photo at right is sage, which you'll find in your baskets as well this week. The garlic is another heirloom, and is medium hot, and fairly easy to peel. Garlic Butter: Either churn your own butter like I do, or buy butter and toss a cube in the Cuisinart. Add a couple cloves of garlic and salt to taste. Puree. Remember that garlic adds "heat" to a dish, as well as the familiar garlicly taste that at least I'm addicted to. So add as many cloves as you like to your butter as it's being pureed, but make sure you don't overdo it. If you do, just add more butter. Use the finished product on baked fish, as a dip with cheese and crackers, on toast in the morning, on your baked potato, or over steamed green beans, Following is this week's basket ...

Okay, I admit I was less than enthusiastic about adding kale to my baskets. I got so many requests, I thought I'd at least try it. It looks light Swiss Chard, only tough; I thought. But you have to try this simple preparation before dismissing kale: Chop up, boil with a little salt in pan. Drain, chill. That's right, chill it. Serve as a sidedish with a little goatcheese, crushed walnuts, drizzled olive oil and lime juice. If you tried doing that with Swiss Chard, you'd be disappointed but Kale keeps its shape even after steaming, so lends itself to a sort of cooked salad. I think the taste is stronger than spinach or Swiss Chard, but really delicious. Of course you can serve it hot like you would Swiss chard or Bok Choy, but I think what makes Kale special is that you can eat it cold. I did try eating it raw. Don't try that. I think Kale is too tough to eat raw. Just my opinion.

We could use some help with our new hoop house! We're putting up a small hoop house in an area of the farm that burned completely down (no clearing necesssary). We've discovered that the tiny greenhouse on the hill isn't big enough to keep the flow of flats going that we need for our row crops, so we're adding a cheaper version closer to the fields. Called a "hoop house" it's constructed by bending PVC pipes in an arch, attaching to rebar into the ground and then covering with plastic. It's like a giant tinker-toy project covered with greenhouse plastic. No beauty queens, but they get the job done. Anyway, it's just been too darn hot to invite subscribers to enjoy our farm, but I would think by October it will have cooled considerably. Adults and teens only, as this is a work day. Bring a picnic lunch, closed toe shoes, sunscreen. For those who have never seen the farm, I'll do a tour at 9:00 and start work right after, breaking for lunch aroun...

It's been suggested that I put the pick ticket up on my blog before we harvest, and I'd like to try doing that this week. The drawback is that sometimes our best laid plans are circumvented by harvest disappointments, or surprises, so pre-harvest tickets won't be absolute. That said, here's what we're planning on this week: Lettuce, kale, zuchini, bok choy, tomatoes, maybe the first of our apples, Asian pears, avocados, radishes, Swiss chard, hot peppers, cukes, limes, mint, maybe figs. We're planting brocoli, cauliflower, and kale in our little greenhouse this week and Swiss chard, radish, cilantro, beets and lettuces in the field. We should begin the macadamia harvest this month, so by mid-October I would think we'll be putting our wonderful raw macadamias in our CSA baskets again.

I mentioned in a previous post that we're nearing the finish line to offer our farmhouse for vacation rentals to our CSA membership. We have planned on welcoming our first guests starting the weekend of October 3rd. Price for CSA members is $250 a night, two night minimum, with a $100 cleaning fee which includes bed linens. I'm working on an activities book that guests can make reservations from, prior to their arrival. There's a local Swedish and Deep Tissue Massuese that will come out to the farm with her table. Ever the diligent farmer, I have voluntered to submit to a massage this weekend to see if I should include her in my activities book. I'll let you know! There's also several wine tours, cheese tasting, olive oil tasting, ballooning over the wine country of Temecula (which is just one exit north) and antiquing. I also thought I'd try to reach my old spinning teacher, Lila Sturges, to see if she'd come out by appointment and give an individual class ...

That Parsley Isn’t Plate Decoration! Many of my adventuresome supporters must have rolled their eyes when they saw the parsley in their baskets this week. But wait! Hear me out! I too, remember being told not to eat the Denny’s plate parsley as a child. It wasn’t to be consumed, it was just there to class the plate up a little. The logic escaped me then, and the value of parsley has been in question ever since. But several people have said how they enjoy cooking with parsley, and the seed catalogs claim it’s easy to grow (true) so I thought we’d enjoy trying it out. Of course numerous thumbs’ down will affect next year’s seed buying forays, so don’t hold back if you hated it. But first just try this recipe, which is so easy it hardly counts as a recipe. I made 2 cups of a brown rice (no bleached rice in my kitchen which really is a kissing cousin of the zero value Twinkie and Ding Dong). I chopped off the woody stem ends of the entire bunch of parsley and put half in the cuisinart and ...

Here’s the pick ticket for this week: Parsley Kale (that’s the heavy duty looking green thing) It can be chopped up and cooked just like spinach Lettuce Head Beans Avocados Asian Pears Cherry Tomatoes; red and yellow Swiss Chard Beets in large baskets only Baby lettuce in large baskets only Mint Basil Peaches (I think I should grow more of this particular tree; they aren’t super pretty, but sure are good!) Limes Heirloom Cukes Jalapenos

By October or so, we will finally be able to offer our little farmhouse for weekend farm experience rentals. It has 3 bedrooms (2 heated) with a total of 4 queen beds. We had always planned on doing this, but have had maintenance issues that needed addressing. We're almost there! Feed the llamas, gather eggs, walk the miles of trails that cut through our farm. You're far enough away from the city to actually see the stars! One exit away from the Temecula vineyards and numerous golf destinations, there's plenty to do for everyone. Temecula has a wonderful craft/food/farmer fair on Saturdays in the middle of their Old Town section of town. While you're in Old Town check out Temecula Olive Oil Company's tasting room. Farmers themselves, the olives for their oil is pressed from their own harvest. They actually have a CSA program just for their oil that may interest some of you. There's plenty of antique shops, candy stores, a magic store my own kids love, several re...

We're happily pumping from our new water source, the well we successfully drilled months ago is operational. Before we had over 30 valves to cover the east portion of the farm, now it's down to 2 valves. Water pressure is outstanding! Work load is reduced! We're giving our beautiful macadamia trees more water than they've ever had, and the crop looks excellent. We should begin harvest in earnest end of next month or early October. The clunker of a Kabota tractor we inherited isn't working yet, but we plan to get it fixed. I can't believe how much even a used crummy tractor costs, so this one will have to be repaired. It looks more like it has more value as scrap than anything else, but we've been told it can be fixed. Meanwhile we rented a nice one from the rental yard and tilled the rented acreage next door for our winter plantings. The summer has proved to be pleasant! No heat waves since May. Would love to invite interested parties to a weeding event end ...

Well, we sure are knee deep in cherry tomatoes. I hope the majority of my supporters are tomato fans. Here's a pick ticket for this week Avocados Limes Head Lettuce Baby Lettuce Carrots Chilis (both the medium hot Japapeno which is plump and the long weird Pico de Gallo which isn't very hot at all) Peaches Swiss Chard Mint Pok Choy (large head) Green Beans Cukes Leeks in large baskets only Oranges Cherry Tomatoes

I can't believe July is here already! July 15th is the beginning of our seed planting routine for our winter crops. We'll be starting califlower, brocoli, leek, onion, garlic winter lettuces, asian greens, winter roots crops (beets, potatoes, carrots, etc.) We're excited about leasing the neighbor's flat land so that we have more room to expand our row crop plantings. We've also acquired a large shade house to grow lettuce and greens during the dog days of summer.

Pick Ticket for July 1-2, 2008 Item Large Basket/ Small Basket Avocados-Hass 4 /Half Baby Lettuce 2 large bags /Half Mint 1 bunch Same Limes 10/ Half Apricots 20 /15 Zukes 3 pounds /2 pounds Tomatoes, cherries 2 clamshells /Half Kumquats 1 clamshells/ Same Oranges, Valencias 6 /4 Carrots 1 bunch /Same Arugula 1 bunch /Same Swiss Chard 2 bunches /Half Radishes 1 bunch /Same Onion, green, bunch 1 bunch/ Same Pok Choi 1 /Same Beets 1 bunch /none Beans 1 large bag/ Same Basil 1 bunch /Same Blackberries 2 clamshells /Half

The well we've dug has been at the center of a continuing saga for us, and we are thrilled to say we are stepping this week into a new chapter. Everything is installed, pump, wiring, etc. We're now ready to ask the County of San Diego for an inspection. Once our installation is approved, we can go to SDGE and get the line connected. Since the heat is here now, and the line isn't live, we'll probably still be way over our water use allotment this coming month and will be forced to pay the whopper overuse fine from Metropolitan Water District.

Great news for berry lovers! Just when the meager mulberry crop is coming to an end, blackberries are beginning to arrive to bolster our spirits and remind us that summer has arrived! You'll see them first, starting next week when there's enough to pick for every basket. A week early, I might add! Tomatoes may be in as soon as next week, as well! Pick-It Ticket for June 3-4, 2008 Item Large Basket Small Basket New Crop Valencia Oranges! 12 half Juice Limes 8 half Avos: Hass 4 half Mulberries 1 clamshell 0 Mint 1 bunch same Rosemary 1 bunch same Swiss Chard 2 bunches half Strawberries 2 baskets half Radishes 1 bunch same Carrots 1.5 pounds 1 pound Lettuce head: Romaine 2 heads half Zuchini 3-4 half Cukes 2 half Baby Lettuce 1 bag half

Many years ago we bought a mulberry tree whose fruit you've seen in baskets recently. Since then we have bought several other trees only to discover their fruit isn't as fantastic. Last week Farmer Donna searched through invoice archives from 2002 and found the purveyor of the exact trees we are enjoying this season. In horticulture, a cultivar (culivated variety) is always the same. By that I mean an Anna apple from Home Depot and an Anna apple tree from Stark Brothers produces the same, identical fruit. I haven't found that to be true with the mulberry. I bought every last mulberry tree he had, with confidence, because the trees are in fruit this month and I was able to identify for certain I was getting the right trees. I'm told it may be 4 or more years before more planting size trees are available from them! So next year, we can all expect more fruit, and every year after that a little more.

Hey, it's getting hot out here, and I think as the heat approaches it's time to change the Temecula drop off to a later time so greens aren't wilted. We've been getting to Temecula on Tuesdays by 1:00, but would like to put it out there we'd like to change it to much later, say after 4:00 to avoid the worst of the day's heat. That way your baskets haven't been sitting there waiting for the majority of you who pick up after work anyway. Any comments would be appreicated!

The licorce flavored ferny looking herb that could easily be mistaken for dill, is wild fennel. There are two kinds of fennel; one is grown for the bulb, the other is the one in your basket, grown for the ferny top. I tried something interesting that should definately be tried for St. Patrick's Day next year: I followed a standard sugar cookie recipe. I cut maybe a fourth of the fennel bunch tops into the cuisinart with all the sugar required and hit blend. What resulted was a bright (and I do mean shockingly bright) green sugar. I then made those cookies with that sugar. The result was a gently licorce flavored cookie that was so green it looked like it had to be dyed. Try it! Chef Mark Mcdonald says he's using the fennel in a pasta dish.

The wierd looking black-berry kind of fruit is Pakastani Mulberries. Enjoy them fresh right out of their little baskets! Many of our avocados that were burned in October will come back in the next couple years. One hundred of them won't. We plan to replace those 100 with the mulberry tree, which has less water needs. Tell me what you think!

Those little apricot looking fruits in the baskets are loquats. Save the seeds of a particularly good tasting one, and try growing it in a little pot. They do make decent house plants for a few years. they're as easy to start and grow as corn! Also, if you throw the seeds in your garden, many with sprout and grow without even being buried. They make an amazing fruit pie; follow a standard apricot recipe. Last night I made a tropical stir fried chicken with loquats. Here's the receipe: I used Trader Joe's frozen breast meat. I boiled several pieces in a shallow pan until just cooked through. Drain the water (or save for soup later) and cut into strips. Pour a kumquat reduction (recipe again below) over chicken, seed all loquats and leaving skins on, cut in pieces and add to chicken. Slice a few whole kumquats and scatter the rings. Heat again and serve. Finish with a little wild fennel sprig. Kumquat Reduction: Throw all washed kumquats you have in the blender. Add water to ...

I have received an e mail from a much appreciated long-standing supporter about our price increase of March, and would like to share my response. My guess is, many farm members would like to know why in this economic climate Farmer Donna would increase prices. Donna: What is going on with the dynamic invoicing price swings and increases? Are these rates expected to be stable for the next several months? Also, it seems like you just raised the rates.......... Here's my response: Hi ____, I really appreciate your support and understand price increases effect everyone. Two and a half years ago, when diesel fuel was half what we’re paying today, the large basket was 40 a week. Now it’s 44.50. Since fuel costs are a critical component of our produce delivery program, I don’t know what the future holds. Rumors of diesel going to $6 a gallon would certainly effect our weekly basket price, as well as everything else for sale in this country. The basket’s recent price increase was at the en...

1 cup pureed kumquats 2 cups butter 1 TBS vanilla 3 cups sugar 10 large eggs 4 cups all purpose flour 1/2 tsp. ginger 1/4 tsp. nutmeg Cream butter with half the sugar. Then add the other half of the sugar, ginger and nutmeg. Beat at high speed for 4 minutes. Add eggs two at a time. At low speed, add flour until blended. Stir in kumquat puree. Turn into greased and floured 10" tube pan. Cover with foil and bake 1 hour and 15 minutes. Invert and remove from pan and cool. Serve with strawberries and freshly made whipped cream.

1 baked shell, I use Trader Joes which come frozen in two packs. They're as good as the ones I make myself and don't have any preservatives or chemicals. 3 tbs. butter 1 cup sugar 1/3 cup pureed kumquats, seeds removed 3 egg whites 3 yolks 1 and 1/2 cup water 1 tsp. lime juice 1 pinch salt 3 tbsp. cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract Combine water, sugar, constarch and salt. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Boil for around 2 minuites until thickened. Remove from heat, add juice, kumquats and butter. Cool a little and pour in baked pie shell. For the top of the pie: whip egg whites with a little sugar and the vanilla. I add the sugar and vanilla after a minute or two of whipping. Whip until peaks are easily formed, and they are glossy. Spatula onto the top of the pie, making pretty peaks and put in a 450 degree oven for 3 or 4 minutes until golden. Eat.

Adapted from the Kumquat Growers, Inc. Recipe site Packed with wholesome food value, these are different and delicious! 2/3 cup butter 2/3 cup brown sugar 2 large eggs 1 and 1/2 cups REAL oatmeal (none of that weird already cooked stuff) 2/3 cup white chocolate chips 2 cups all purpose whole grain flour (I actually use half white whole grain purchased off the shelf from Trader Joe's and half whole wheat berries freshly milled in my kitchen., using the Vitamix. I've discovered 100% freshly milled can be a little heavy. This is a function of the type of wheat, nothing else. On my to-do list is to find a California organic wheat grower that can supply the different kinds of wheat berries for different cooking needs ) 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp salt 2/3 cup pureed kumquats (cut lengthwise, flick out seeds, add a little water to assist blending, drain off water) Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs to the mixture and mix well. Combine everything else except kumquats and chocol...

This weeks pick ticket: Limes, avocados, kumquats, radishes, navel oranges, baby lettuce and head lettuce, Swiss chard, golden and red beets, green onions, green garlic, cilantro, strawberries, and mint. Large baskets saw peas and the first of our passionfruit. Here's something quick to do with kumquats: Throw a handful in the blender with water and a little powdered stevia and a couple sprigs of mint. Blend, sieve pulp out, pour liquid over ice, enjoy. Although I love raw kumquats, I have to admit the full flavor of the fruit doesn't appear until cooked. I think that may be true, also, of quince. A kumquat marmalade will made a jam-eater out of just about anyone!

As we have been adding more and more row crop to our little farm, it was suggested we fire up the old Kabota tractor to so some of the heavy work. Son in law Duane, a professional rancher for many years, came down from Sacramento this week and took the time to give me his opinion. Could the Kabota be repaired, or should it remain a "lawn ornament?" It's a pretty cruddy looking thing; you have to stick a knife in the ignition to get it to turn over, and it needs $1,000 worth of tires all around. There's not much remaining of the seat and the paint is so faded it looks like it belongs in the trash heap. It's missing part of the starter mechanism and a valve. He added up all the parts we need to get it running again, and it definately makes sense to repair. That's great news. Daughter Tessa says the most important thing is new paint.

Plenty of the ususual stuff, but I want to mention a couple new things this week. There's a strange looking lemon that has a little cap on the top. That's the Pakastani Sweet Lemon. I use its zest; the juice isn't really sweet, and it's juice isn't really sour. It's the skin that's to die for. Use a potato peeler and shave off every bit of the outer layer of skin. Chop and use in a number of different recipes. I like to add to my sugar cookies, imparting a scented geranium note that is very unusual. I also add to a basic olive oil and lime juice salad dressing. Or make a limeaide with the juice limes in this week's basket, and then add the juice and very finely shopped zest of the Sweet Lemon. There's a bunch of young garlic greens that looks something like the green onions (also in this week's basket). Use it chopped in stir fries, raw salads, soups, etc. to impart a gentle garlic flavor and aroma. There's a large head of Kale in each basket...

At left San Clemente resident Marina Carson acts as photographer's assistant to Photographer/Writer David Karp with Ian Crown and Stephen Facciola. We've planted all the new trees we purchased, and are now finishing up the new blackberries and the low-chill raspberries. Also we're planting rhubarb and more asparagus. We haven't had much luck with rhubarb and asparagus; it may not be cold enough in Rainbow, but I'm still trying. David Karp, well-known fruit writer came for a visit this week with his author friend, Stephen Facciola and Puerto Rican mangosteen grower Ian Crown. Some of you may have read Stephen's Sourcebook, Cornucopia II, A Source Book for Edible Plants. It's an incredible compilation of edible plants and their seed sources. He was kind enough to sign a copy for me! Many of the things that Ian grows in Puerto Rico I grow as well; although I have no chance of growing anything tropical, which Ian specializes in. We enjoyed comparing notes on the...

This week's baskets: Our juicy, juicy limes, pomellos, avocados, peas, tangalolos, blood oranges, navels, baby heirloom lettuce, heirloom new potatos, young heads of lettuce, Swiss chard, turnips (large baskets) beets, radishes. I know I've shared the lime merainge pie recipe before, but am including it here because there's so many new members. Juice Lime Meringue Pie Prepare a baked pie shell. For simplicity’s sake, I use Trader Joe’s ready-made. It doesn’t have any preservatives or chemicals and tastes the same as the ones I make myself. The following recipe makes a pretty tart pie. If you like your dessert a little sweeter, add more sugar. Put into a saucepan: ¾ cup of sugar, 5 tablespoons cornstarch, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1 cup lime juice. Blend until smooth. Add 3 well-beaten egg yolks (save whites for the meringue), 2 tablespoons melted butter. ¾ cup warm water. Bring mixture to full boil, stirring gently. Mixture will thicken quickly. Remove from heat, pour into pie shell...

Sorry to have to announce a small price increase this coming quarter of $2 per basket. Although operating costs have gone up a little in most areas, (wage, feed, fertilizer) fuel and delivery costs have doubled in the last year. Today, 3/17/08, diesel is 4.25 a gallon, with media commentary that higher prices should be expected soon. Effective for baskets delivered after April, 2008, small baskets will be 34.50, and large 44.50. I understand some of our fabulous supporters have to really budget thier food bills to participate, and apologize for the increase.

Here's what's in this week's baskets, barring harvest mishaps: Juice limes, pomellos, hass avocados, arugula, peas, tangalolos, blood oranges, baby red-leafed and green leafed lettuce, bagged; also our older head lettuce, Swiss chard (rainbow), dill, radish, and beets. Remember beet tops can be used as a steamed green, just like Swiss chard. We maybe went a little overboard on the lettuce this week, would appreciate comments! We're going to dig our oldest potato planting of heirloom potatoes for next week's basket, and we're hoping to add radish sprouts from our sprouting system by next week, or week following. All our new trees are finally in and many are happily flowering! Farmer Donna continues to slog through the red tape of getting the recently dug well operational. SDGE won't put in the power pole until the County of San Diego issues an electrical permit. It's a 2 hour round trip to Kearny Mesa in San Diego to the County Planning Department for uni...

As much as I love winter vegetables, I sure am ready for something new! In the greenhouse are a beautiful array of heirloom tomatoes: Sun Golds, Romanian, the ever popular Brandywine, Pruden's Purple, Moskvich, Rosalita, and more. Also some nice heirloom eggplants: Black Beauty which is said to have a poor yield, but I love the fruit of this plant and haven't found a yield problem myself; of course the heirloom Listada de Gandia from France we grow every year and we're trialing Galine. Herbs coming along: Lemon Balm, Stevia, Sage, and Orange Thyme. In ground we're just starting to harvest cilantro, and soon dill. You'll notice this week the baby red-leafed romaine lettuce which is really tender and flavorful. We were having trouble getting it to germinate in the cold, but now we hope to be consistent with it each week. In the greenhouse are plenty of peppers, mostly heirlooms. We have the Chocolate Beauty, the Red Knight, Kung Pao, and the Jalapeno. We just put in ...

Lester Ip, charter member from the Costa Mesa gang has kindly pointed out a broc issue that seems to come and go. Aphids love our broccoli almost as much as we do! Herein lies the downside of organic production. Without the pesticides to whack down the bug population, it seems like every aphid in town occassionally drops by the living salad bar at Morning Song to stake a claim. I could say wash, wash, wash. But I've noticed with brocolli, that washing isn't enough. Those darn aphids cling happily to their little brocolli world and have no intention of moving on. Here's what I've discovered to be helpful if you're not planning on eating it raw: get a pan of water going to a nice boil, drop in your washed brocolli for 60 seconds. Remove and rinse. Aphids are much more easily rinsed off at this point.

We're moving out of the Satsuma mandarins and into the Sungolds. They're a little harder to peel, but I love their firm flesh and sweetness. You can tell the difference between the mandarins in your basket and the blood oranges: the mandarins are a little flatter. The oranges are very round. The Moro Blood oranges have a slight red tint on the exterior rind, and of course are quite red and juicy inside. Throw the mandarin in your lunch bag for school or office; save the messy blood orange for your kitchen. Remember the blood orange juice stains.

I've never considered cauliflower a mainstream vegetable, and the rubbery tasting thing I've bought a couple of times at the grocery store over the years had confirmed my suspicions. So I hope those of you who have never tasted cauliflower that was just harvested that morning will at least give it a try before tossing it into the trade-in-basket. Hey! This is good stuff! I just discovered an unusual combination that I've been enjoying. Try crumbling your cauli with a little bit of pure crumbled blue cheese. Actually the cheese and the vegetable look really attractive together as a topping on your salad. The combo is startling good. Of course you can steam it like you might brocolli, but just picked cauliflower is delicious, raw!

It's 3:00 on Friday, the day before our little Farm Day, and haven't heard from too many people. We don't need a crowd to have a good time, but I'd hate to miss someone who wants to come. We leave for the farm tonight and I won't have internet access on the farm, so if anyone needs directions, info, etc. please call me: 760-731-9566. Time is 11:00-4:00; potluck lunch at 12:00ish.

Unless we're rained out, we're planning a potluck and volunteer day this Saturday between 11ish and 4:00. Come to help out, come to just check out the farm, or come to meet your fellow CSA supporters! Bring a dish to share for a 12:00ish lunch. Give me a quick e mail to let me know you're coming. If you'd like to volunteer, we sure could use the help: We need to paint the barn, weed the west quadrant grove, remove burned irrigation pipe, mulch mulch mulch. If you'd like to help, do come with closed-toe shoes, long sleeves, and a shovel to aid in weeding would be nice.

In an effort to recoup some of the significant fire loss sustained in the October, 2007 fire, farmer Donna filled out the paperwork with the USDA's Natural Resources Conservatin Service which provides very small grants to farmers to pay for a portion of restoring micro irrigation, mulch and also for debris removal. It's not significant compared to our loss, but hey, it's better than a kick in the butt. I actually had to sign a contract promising to continue farming for a certain length of time after tax payers had helped to restore me, and also to allow the USDA to come onto my farm for inspections to make sure they were getting what they were paying a portion of; i.e. new irrigation pipes and new mulch. No sooner was the ink dry on the contract which I signed last Thursday, January 30, when the Natural Resources Conservation Service sent me a letter, dated the very next day, to halt labor on my farm until August 31st so that we might avoid the nesting/breeding season of th...

We've waited longer than usual to harvest our blood oranges; waiting for a frost to nip them, which turns the skin a little reddish. The juice is delicious, and can be mixed with less intensely flavored (and colored) citrus for a beautiful fruit juice. The juice can stain. It's been really cold in Rainbow, but as I surveyed the farm today I found no actual frost damage. The mountains to the east are all snow capped. The drive into Temecula from my farm is spectacular with the mountains in the distance all covered in snow.

Because the first well driller didn't drill when he said he was going to, I had to pass up this years' annaul bare root purchases, usually made in December. They can be made much earlier, but the dead, dead line is mid December. After that, you can buy bare root in a local nursery, but not at wholesale or quantity pricing. With so much up in the air, I had to forgo my usual shopping trip through suppliers' catalogs. But when Paul told us we'd hit water, I did make a couple desparate calls, and got to squeeze in a few additions. Most of what I'd like is unavailable, but got a few items. We're adding 100 raspberry plants (300 row feet), 100 or so row feet of Rhubarb, and 200 heirloom Sweet Purple Asparagus plants. We're adding a few blackberries, some apples (most were unavailable), plums, chocolate persimmon, a few pears and maybe some jujubees. There's also an unusual pomegranate that is seedless, and I'll trial that. Subtropical additions that I do...

After the December, 2007 notice from Rainbow Water District telling us that since Morning Song Farm is an “Agricultural Discount” customer, they’re taking the fine print option of putting us on a mandatory 30% water use reduction, we decided to go for broke and drill for water. Amid the cinders of the October fire loss, Farmer Donna takes a quick look at her P&L for the year, and comes to the obvious conclusion that the farm couldn’t possibly continue to operate at all without an alternative water source. There’s just no way we could cut our production 30%, and continue a farming operation. The farm isn’t an income source for the Buono family as it is, but 30% less than “right around zero income” would mean we’d be paying a whole lot of off-farm income for the privilege to grow for others. I love my job! It is a privilege to do what I feel I was meant to be doing! But jeez, there’s a point where I guess I would have to let it go and find something else productive to do. Husband Fr...

Those would be some pretty whoppin' grapefruits, but no, they're pomellos. Considerably larger than grapefruit, the pomello is milder and takes a little more work to enjoy. The segments look exactly like grapefruit, but the pithe between each segment is too tough to eat. Separate the fruit from the pithey segment material and pile into a bowl to enjoy. They have very little tartness to them, so some people who don't enjoy grapefruit, do enjoy pomello. I keep saying I'm going to cut the few trees we have down because we only get a few fruit on each tree and they are a whole lot of work to eat. That is, if it weren't for my daughter, Tess, who loves the fruit and doesn't mind fiddling with the whole peeling procedure. Tess is quite protective of the fruit trees she in particular enjoys, (mulberries, guava, fig, blackberry, kiwi and pumello) so for now the pumellos are safe.

The weird root looking thing in baskets this week is kohlrobi. Peel and prepare much like you would beets. Cut into large pieces, steam, drizzle with a little olive oil or freshly made butter. A nice addition is a little crumbled macadamia nut scattered on top. Some people like them mashed, with butter, salt and pepper. I'm told the Chinese prepare it two ways, typically: one is very lightly sauteed and still a little crunchy, and the other is cooked fairly well to the consistency of a scallopped potato. Either way is delicious! Who knew such an ugly looking thing would be so tasty. Enjoy.

For some reason, Blogger is not cooperating today, so I am posting the following for Donna - T. Those little bitty orange looking things in the clamshell are Nagami Kumquats, in season now! Usually they come in, in time for Thanksgiving dinner. This year they're quite tardy. Chris Aliseo, Costa Mesa CSA supporter sent me this link for recipes: http://www.kumquatgrowers.com/recipes.html . My favorite use of kumquats continues to be a simple reduction. Throw them all in a blender, add water to top. Blend. Force through a sieve to get rid of the seeds. Boil down with sugar to taste into a syrup or reduction. I use the reduction in margaritas, on top of crepes, to sweeten limeade, and as a dessert topping. Another favorite is cooking them whole with a little sugar and water until they're translucent and using them as a jam.