CSAs
“Farming and banking don’t mix.” I can’t say it any better than that. It’s a line from a little movie called Sweet Land, which tells the story of a farming community in southwest Minnesota shortly after the first world war. Go watch it. Most of us from the upper Midwest have at least one set of great grandparents with a similar story.
Farming requires complex infrastructure and, thus, massive capital investment. Profits, minimal as they tend to be, take many months, sometimes years, to return. Any money introduced at the start of the season is incredibly helpful.
CSA stands for community supported agriculture. The model is a pay-up-front membership in a local farm. The farmer gets some guaranteed income, and you get a share of the harvest, distributed at intervals over the course of the season. Ya’ll know those brown waxed boxes.
CSAs aren’t just good for the earth, the farmers, the quality of produce, and the local economy. They’re good for your cooking, too (just in case we needed more reasons).
A CSA box brings new things. Discover curious new ingredients! Even if you do know all the vegetables (doubtful, even for us), the most important aspect of the box is that it’s finite. You get what you get. That’s when we find fresh combinations. Constraints are the key to creativity.
And if you’re struggling, whether it’s an otherworldly head of puntarelle or a regular bunch of carrots, don’t stress. That’s where we come in. This week we’re serving roasted carrots with spicy harissa onions, Marcona almonds, and aged manchego cheese. Recipe drops on Friday.
A lot of folks worry whether their dollars ever make it to a good place. Corporations have no honor, and even when donating, pathways are opaque. It’s hard to go wrong with a CSA. There’s nothing more tangible than a farm. If you want to vet the farmers yourself, you can. Please visit. They’d love to tell you all about their cabbages.
I won’t bore you with blatant bromides like “there’s never been a bad farmer.” I will say this: small farms don’t survive without love and friends. Real friends, that is, not sycophants. If a small farm has survived, it’s almost certainly through the effort of kind and dedicated folks.
We’re glad you’re cooking with us.
Cheers,
Sten and Mac
Chef Snacks
Purveyor Spotlight
This list is for Western Washington and is certainly not exhaustive. In fact, it’s just the farms I’ve personally worked for or with (who also offer CSAs).
Small Acres. Everson, WA. Notable because they’re powered almost entirely by renewable energy and offer their own line of fermented pickles.
Local Roots. Duvall, WA. Notable because they specialize in radicchio. They’re just past Redmond in the Snoqualmie Valley.
Boldly Grown Farm. Bow, WA. Magic Skagit Valley. Notable because they specialize in storage crops, which allows them to offer a winter CSA.
Steel Wheel Farm. Fall City, WA. Also just past the Eastside in the Snoqualmie Valley. Notable because they let you build your own CSA box from a list of available produce and grains.
