Happy Father’s Day! (one day late)

Farmer Papa Casey with the kids earlier this afternoon.

Happy Father’s Day [yesterday] everyone! Our family got to celebrate by spending the night at the beach with Casey’s family. It’s always sweet to get away and enjoy a different landscape (and visit with people we love). We are blessed with so many wonderful people in our lives — our own fathers, as well as mothers, cousins, siblings, friends. These holidays — cheesy as they may be — are always a lovely reminder to be grateful for the connections we have as we go about our daily lives.

Of course, they can be hard holidays too, for some. Many blessings to those of you who had a reason to feel sad this time around. Life can be an up and down kind of deal. Oh my, how this truth has come home for Casey and me in the last few years. In fact, I wrote a much longer newsletter that went a little more intimate on the idea of fatherhood, Casey, our family, vulnerability, and so much more — but sometimes it’s best to keep these intimate thoughts truly personal.

So, this evening, instead of a lengthy essay, I hope you feel our farm’s warm loving embrace reaching out to you. It’s golden hour here on the farm, and we feel loved by this place, and we hope you can taste that in every bite of nourishing food you eat from our farm.

Enjoy this week’s vegetables too!

Your farmers, Katie & Casey Kulla

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A note about FAVA BEANS! Read this! If you are new to fava beans, check these things out! They are awesome! Traditionally, they are either shucked and then peeled (because the green bean is cased in a white peel inside a soft squishy pod) for eating fresh (lightly cooked usually). Or they are grown to dry bean status and shucked and eaten as a dry type of bean.

We’ve discovered an easier way to enjoy them, thanks to tips from various customers over the years. Pick them even younger (such as you’ve received this week) and roast them and eat them whole! We have been eating fava beans roasted for a few weeks now (thanks to a small planting in our greenhouse), and I am just so in love with this preparation method! Just spread the whole beans on the pan with a bit of oil or butter. Roast at 425° until they are browning on the bottom and cooked through. Salt liberally and eat with your fingers. The “strings” on either side of the pod can sort of be pulled away as you eat, but make sure you eat the pod and all the bean-y goodness inside. Delicious! And no more crazy labor in the kitchen (or all that perception of waste).

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Meet this week’s vegetables:

• Carrots!!!!! It has begun! Carrots, carrots, carrots! We love carrots and grow lots of them! Oh, hoorah!
• Raspberries OR strawberries — These raspberries are The.Best.Raspberries.Ever. I know. We like to make such claims about varieties of fruit we grow. But, honestly, they’re the best. These are “Tulameens,” which are sort of the raspberry equivalent of “Hoods” (that delicious strawberry we grow). These are what they grow in Whatcom County, Washington for making a majority of the nation’s raspberry jam. Big, beautiful, delicious. They have very short shelf life (which is why you won’t find them in stores), so eat them immediately (as if you need to be told!). Savor with cream. Cream and berries!
• Rainbow chard — Pretty!
• Fava beans — See my note above!
• Kale
• Cut lettuce mix
• Giant green onions — You can use all parts of these giant green onions in your cooking!