Dobry Den!
As seems to be the norm, it’s been another hot and dry week here at Pekarek’s Produce. The work day starts in the 6 o’clock hour these days in hopes of being done in the field by noon. Some days this works – and some days it doesn’t.
So what gets done after noon? A lot! After everything gets picked, weeded and watered, it has to be washed, weighed, bagged, packaged and put into the cooler. And what about that cooler? Pekarek’s Produce began in 2004 and during that year, we didn’t have any refrigeration. In 2005, we built a small portable cooler. It was built portable because at the time our location seemed less than permanent. The small portable cooler is 8’ X 10’, built by Ryan and his father, and still working today. The refrigeration unit is from an old beer cooler. This was farmer ingenuity at its finest.
In 2011, we built a brand new packing shed and as part of this, a new cooler.
The new cooler is 13’ X 22’ – a significant size increase. The cooler officially got its first test in June and has been working its magic since.
Did you know that the cooler is not the end of what we do to keep our produce cool and fresh? As part of the new packing shed we also installed a new ice machine. This machine will produce 800 pounds of ice per day which is used to cool a huge variety of vegetables. It especially makes an improvement on market days. If only this could keep the workers cool during the long heat of the summer.
What’s in today’s bag:
This week’s full share has:
- Yellow Squash
- Slicing Cucumbers
- Beets
- Red Onions
- Yukon Gold Potatoes
- Green Beans
This week’s partial share has:
- Yellow Squash
- Slicing Cucumbers
- Beets
- Red Onions
- Yukon Gold Potatoes
Recipe Suggestions
Be sure to check out this week’s recipe and CSA Member Guest Post for Cabbage and Potato Bake! If you have a recipe to share, email it to pekareksproduce@hotmail.com or include it in the comments section.
As always, if you have any questions, concerns or suggestions send us an email or give us a jingle and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Your Farmers,
Ryan, Katie, and Crew