Week 11

VERNON’S CORNER
What a great day this has been. My friend Paul and I went on a leisurely expedition to Weaver Lake. We’d never done leisurely before. About an hour hike at 8,700’. Caught some fish, laughed and had a great day. Got home, checked the website and what do you know? You all can now go on and see what’s coming this week. A bit like shaking the presents under the tree before Christmas to see what you’re going to get. If you don’t want the surprise spoiled, don’t peek. But this knowledge could help when you’re making a shopping list. But wait, there’s more!! You can also rate the items in last week’s box both for quality and quantity. This is sooo important. Just yesterday I had a friend tell me they were getting too many potatoes, and I got an email saying “we need more potatoes” I can guarantee we can’t nail it for everybody every time, but this is your deal every bit as much as ours and we take very seriously your comments and suggestions. Now we have a mechanism to quantify this input which will help Abundant Harvest to better reflect your needs and desires.
I hope your Thanksgiving is filled with friends and family and all the people you love. Mostly I hope that Thanksgiving could be a part of our daily lives throughout the year.
Eat healthy! Vernon

HOW DO I DO THAT?
As Vernon told you there are some new and exciting things available to you. Right now your Subscription Dashboard is your key to these tools. Our hope is that you will participate fully in this venture by using them. To see what is in this week’s large box and small box you simply log in and on your Subscription Dashboard you will see a button labeled “View Case Contents”. This information will be available for the previous week, and you will be able to view the current week by Tuesdays, after all of our ordering is complete. Soon “View Case Contents” will be available from the Home Page also, so you will not have to log in to see this information.
Once your delivery day has passed you will be able to go to your Subscription Dashboard where you will see a button labeled “How Are We Doing?” When you select this button, you will be provided a list of what was in your box, and given the opportunity to rate each item individually for quality and quantity. At the bottom of that page is an area for you to tell us, in your own words, what you loved and what could have been better. Not only does this help us, but the ratings and your comments will be passed on to the farmers so they know where they can make improvement. Vernon alluded to it and we are very aware of that old adage “You can’t make all of the people happy all of the time”, but without your input we won’t know what makes the majority happy.
Soon we will have a testimonial page that newcomers will be able to view on the website. These testimonials will be taken directly from your comments.
As is evidenced by the number of orders, many of you have figured out how to select add-ons. For those of you who have not visited that area of the site, this too is done through your Subscription Dashboard. Where you see the option “Edit This Week” you can select that button and it will take you to a list of the add-ons available for the coming week. You simply enter the quantity you would like to receive and the site will do the rest. You will be charged, when your regular subscription is charged, on Monday morning. It is for that reason that your add-on orders must be placed prior to 9:00 am on Monday morning.
Very soon another exciting addition will be our Recipe Pages. They will be available from the Home Page and will be categorized by the main commodity used as an ingredient in the recipe. This will give you access to recipes previously included on the Fresh Facts Newsletter, and to additional recipes that will be posted there.
Many of you have asked to have previous newsletters available to you online. We have heard you and that option is currently being developed by our web design team. We hope you enjoy, and will use, these new tools to improve your experience as we journey together to improve the way our families eat, and at the same time support the family farmers that grow the food for our health and pleasure

SAVE THOSE GREENS.
Those flavorful turnip greens can’t go to waste. Whether braised, used as part of a soup, or folded into pasta, these greens are full of flavor and nutrients. Turnip greens contain high levels of vitamin A, vitamin C, and folate. Once they are cut from the turnip they should be used quickly; they will stay fresh for two days in the refrigerator if wrapped in a paper towel and stored in a plastic bag. If they do become wilted chop them finely and use them in a soup.
After removing the stems and heavy ribs, place the leaves in cold water in the sink. Let them stand a few minutes to loosen grit and sand. Repeat this procedure, several times if necessary, depending on how gritty the leaves are.

STORING TURNIPS
Store turnips, unwashed, in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

WHO GREW THIS?
Here is what you will find in this week’s box.
-Fuyu Persimmons
Olsson Family, Kingsburg
-Fuji Apples
Ridder & Son, Watsonville
-Cauliflower
-Celery
Bunny Organics, Salinas
-Loose Carrots
Wm Bolthouse, Bakersfield
-Yellow Onion
Dynasty Farms, Salinas
-Green Beans
-Italian Parsley*
-Turnips
- Butter Head Lettuce*
T & D Willey, Madera
-Yams
Doreva Produce, Livingston
-Crimson Royal Seedless Grapes
The Peterson Family, Kingsburg
*Denotes Abundant Box Only
Contents may vary due to availability on date of delivery.

VEGGIE IDEAS
Peel, quarter and boil your turnips with your potatoes.
Add boiled turnips to your mashed potatoes.
Substitute turnips for potatoes in your turkey soup.
Many vegetables are delicious when cut up, drizzled with olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper and roasted on a cookie sheet at 400º. Try mixing several together. Vegetables that work well are turnips, yams, potatoes, green beans, onions, and garlic. Use your imagination!
Add garnishes like pine nuts, slivered almonds or pecans to your vegetables before serving them.

This Week's Recipe
SWEET POTATOES
6 cups cooked and mashed yams
4 eggs
2-12 ounce cans evaporated milk
2 cups sugar
2 sticks butter
2 Tsp vanilla

TOPPING
2 sticks butter, melted
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
2 cups brown sugar

Place yam mixture in a 9 x 13 buttered dish (Cut recipe in half for an 8 X 8), sprinkle topping over yam mixture and bake in a 350º oven for 25 minutes.

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.”
W. T. Purkiser

Happy Thanksgiving