January 23, 2019
Camel CSA growers Mark and Bridget have begun marking out our first two vegetable growing beds above Wadebridge at Treraven Farm owned by the Gaia Trust.
We’re practising the No-Dig Method of organic cultivation championed by Charles Dowding. A thick layer of mulch will be applied in a few months’ time once the rye grass has died out underneath the black plastic. Then we’ll plant up the surface compost with our first winter crops – kale, purple sprouting broccoli and swede.
Over the next 18 months we’re gradually relocating our polytunnels, growing beds, equipment store, solar panels and packing shed to the new site at Treraven.
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January 22, 2019
Growers and volunteers dodged heavy showers under glowering skies on Friday to pack a record 61 veg boxes and get them into the van. Big thanks to Mark and Bridget, and Charlotte, Jane, Janet, Rinca, Spencer and Toby.
In all the boxes:-
*sprouted mung beans (Camel CSA)
red cabbage (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
*parsnips (Mark Norman, Bodmin)
*Jerusalem artichokes (Mark)
purple sprouting broccoli (*CSA / Total Produce)
cauliflower (Total Produce)
potatoes – ‘Wilja‘ (Colwith Farm, Lanlivery)
Standard boxes also have:-
beetroot (*CSA / Restharrow)
*leeks (Mark)
curly kale (Restharrow)
*= grown to organic principles. Please wash all produce thoroughly.
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January 15, 2019
We’re extremely grateful to Wadebridge town councillors who have generously agreed to grant us £500 from their voluntary community and social enterprise budget.
We’ll be using the money to help fund the cost of erecting the first polytunnel on our new veg growing site above Wadebridge at Treraven Farm. Weather permitting, we’ll be relocating the tunnel from our St Kew Highway site very soon. Our other polytunnels, growing beds, equipment store, solar panels and packing shed will follow over the next 18 months.
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January 14, 2019
We also have hand-harvested winter salad leaves in our veg boxes this week. They’re fiddly to pick, but worth it. Many thanks to our growers Mark and Bridget and Friday’s picking and packing volunteers Bea, Celina, Charlotte, Darren, Jane, Phillippa, Rimca, Rob, Toby. And not forgetting Betty the dog!
In all the boxes:-
*mixed winter salad leaves (Camel CSA)
Brussels sprouts (*CSA / Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
*swede (Mark Norman, Bodmin)
celery (Restharrow)
cauliflower (Total Produce)
onions (Total Produce)
potatoes – ‘Wilja‘ (Colwith Farm, Lanlivery)
Standard boxes also have:-
*fennel (Camel CSA)
*kohlrabi / turnips (CSA)
*purple sprouting broccoli (CSA) / curly kale (Restharrow)
*= grown to organic principles. Please wash all produce thoroughly.
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January 1, 2019
Happy new year! We’re about to sign the lease on our new veg growing site above Wadebridge at Treraven Farm, owned by the Gaia Trust.
Over the next few weeks we’ll start gradually relocating our polytunnels, growing beds, equipment store, solar panels and packing shed.
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December 21, 2018
We got 60 festive veg boxes ready for pick-up and delivery by 12 noon on the Friday before Christmas. Big thanks to our growers Mark and Bridget and to volunteers Anna, Bea, Charlotte, Danny, Darren, Finn, Helen, Jane, Janet, Max, Phillippa, Rob and Toby.
In all the Christmas veg boxes:-
*mixed winter salad leaves
*kale
*dried borlotti beans
*parsley / bay leaves
*parsnips (Mark Norman, Bodmin)
*baby leeks (Mark Norman)
Brussels sprouts (CSA / Mark Norman / (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
carrots (Total Produce)
green tomato chutney
honey (James family, Bodmin)
potatoes – ‘Wilja‘ (Colwith Farm, Lanlivery)
Standard Christmas boxes also have:-
*fennel bulbs
*squash
*celeriac (Mark Norman)
*= grown to organic principles.
Please wash all produce thoroughly. Veg grown by Camel CSA unless stated otherwise.
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December 16, 2018
There’s a typical winter seasonal selection in our veg boxes this week.
In all the boxes: –
*sprouted mung beans
savoy cabbage (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
leeks (Restharrow)
beetroot (Restharrow)
parsnips (Restharrow)
*purple sprouting broccoli (Total Produce)
potatoes – ‘Wilja’ (Colwith Farm, Lanlivery)
Standard boxes also have:-
*kohlrabi or purple-topped turnips
cauliflower (Restharrow)
Jerusalem artichokes (Restharrow)
*= grown to organic principles. Please wash all produce thoroughly.
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December 3, 2018
The polytunnels provide welcome shelter at this time of year for our picking and packing volunteers on Fridays. Many thanks to Anna, Bea, Charlotte, Elliott, Helen, Phillippa, Toby D, Toby T and Trish.
In all the veg boxes this week:-
*pak choi or kohlrabi
celery (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
cauliflower (Restharrow)
beetroot (Restharrow)
parsnips (Restharrow)
onions (Restharrow)
potatoes – ‘Wilja’ (Colwith Farm, Lanlivery)
Standard boxes also have:-
*mixed winter salad leaves
*chard or *spinach (CSA / Mark Norman, Bodmin)
*purple sprouting broccoli or *cavolo nero (Camel CSA / Restharrow)*= grown to organic principles.
Please wash all produce thoroughly. Veg grown by Camel CSA unless stated otherwise.
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November 18, 2018
Waste not, want not… We’re sharing out the end-of-season green tomatoes along with this fantastic recipe created by Camel CSA member Maxine.
A great bunch of volunteers turned out to help growers Bridget and Mark prepare Friday’s veg boxes. Many thanks to Bea, Charlotte, Darren, Jane, Phillippa, Rob, Sarah and Toby.
In all the boxes this week:-
*green tomatoes
*mixed winter salad leaves
*chillies
onions (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
cabbage ‘Stonehead’ (Restharrow)
Brussels sprouts stalk (Restharrow)
potatoes – ‘Wilja’ (Colwith Farm, Lanlivery)
Standard boxes also have:-
*purple sprouting broccoli or *cavolo nero (Camel CSA / Mark Norman, Bodmin)
*kohlrabi or *celeriac (CSA / Mark)
*parsnips (Mark)
*= grown to organic principles. Please wash all produce thoroughly. Veg grown by Camel CSA unless stated otherwise.
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November 15, 2018
Avoiding food waste is an incredibly important aspect of being a community supported agriculture scheme. We’ve already made many of our leftover end-of-season green tomatoes into chutney to go in our Christmas boxes.
The very last of the green tomato glut are going in the weekly veg boxes alongside this delicious recipe that Camel CSA member Maxine has provided for us.
She says: “This recipe has been stolen and merged with a dozen or so others, so none of it’s original, but this is my take on it. It does tend to be different each time I make it according to what veg I have in the cupboard.”
Sometimes she serves it with a side dish of fried green tomatoes, immortalised in the southern US film Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.
Serves: 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: one hour
Ingredients
1 cup of yellow split peas or lentils
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp cayenne pepper
4 cloves of garlic
4 shallots or medium sized onions (the more flavourful the better)
1 large thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger
2 lemongrass stems
1 tsp ground cumin
4-6 medium-hot green chillies – finger type (according to taste)
2 tbsp fish sauce (or vegan equivalent)
2 tbsp oil
1 x 400g tin of coconut milk
250 veg stock, or boiling water with 1 veg stock pot pod, pouch or cube
500g green tomatoes
300g potatoes, roasted squash or roasted sweet potato according to taste (or combination) carrots, sprouts or any other veg you fancy
To serve:
fresh coriander
lime wedges
1 handful of roasted and salted peanuts Method
Add the split peas to a pan and cover with water, add turmeric and cayenne pepper and simmer until cooked but still nutty.
Peel the garlic, onions and ginger. Remove the tough outer leaves of the lemongrass and discard.
Chop everything finely (leaving half the onions aside just roughly chopped into chunks) and add to a food processor along with the cumin and chillies and half of the coriander leaves and all the stalks.
Blitz until it makes a paste, then add the fish sauce and whizz again.Heat the oil in a wok or pan and gently fry off the blitzed green paste for about 5 minutes, stirring gently.
Add coconut milk and boiling hot stock and allow to boil. Turn down and simmer for 10 minutes until thickened.
Add tomatoes and other vegetables and allow to cook through without going mushy. Stir in gently the yellow split peas or lentils and heat gently to combine the flavours.
Sprinkle with remaining coriander, peanuts and a squeeze of lime juice.
Serve with rice or any flat bread.
