CSA #26 (11/18/2025)
Tomorrow is the last CSA pick-up for 2025, and Mr. Potato (and Henry) need to know if you plan to renew your CSA membership for 2026.
If so, please click “Renew” below and you may choose to pay online, or to send a check, which Henry will cash at the end of January.
If not, please click on “Not Renewing” and let Henry know your reason(s).
Henry needs to have a simple Yes or No from existing members so that he knows how many new members he can admit next season. So far, only about 40% of members have responded Yea or Nay, so if you are one of the 60% please click below. (For Bloomington/Normal members, Henry will ask those he hasn’t heard from yet.)
And if you haven’t already placed your bulk order of vegetables, please do it now as many items are in short supply. Nearly all will keep well for months — see storage notes below — so stock up for the holidays, and beyond!
You’ll pick up your Bulk Order NEXT Tuesday, Nov. 25, at your usual pick-up time and place EXCEPT for B/N members who will pick up at the Unitarian Church Parking Lot from 6 to 7pm.
In Your Last CSA!
Popcorn! You will most likely get it still on cob, as we haven’t had time to shell it yet. You can put a whole cob directly in your microwave and enjoy the show as the kernels pop off and the cob dances around. Or you can shell the kernels and put them in a pot on the stove or in a popcorn popper.
Henry’s wife Hiroko just popped up a batch, and it is delicious but only about 80% of the kernels popped, which means it needs to dry down a little bit more. Just keep it in the paper bag you’ll get it in, and keep that bag on the counter, or anywhere in your house that is not damp. It will dry down to the optimal 14% moisture in a week or so, which is when you’ll get nearly every single kernel to pop. But you can also pop it right away, because 80% popped kernels is still a nice batch of yummy popcorn. But the longer you wait, the more kernels will pop!Potatoes
Carrots
Beets
Sweet Potatoes
Choi - Whatever variety you get, it is excellent stir-fried, sauteed, or boiled.
Scallions — These are the Japanese Scallions known as Negi. Even though they are large, they are mild and tender. Use as you would onions, in soups, sautees, and other dishes.
Kale - Winter kale is the best kale, as the cold days and nights make sweet and tender.
Henry’s Storage Tips!
Most vegetables keep best in a plastic bag in your refrigerator. If you don’t have enough room in your fridge, root crops like beets, carrots, turnips, and radishes will keep fairly well in the coolest part of your house.
If you order Henry’s Cornmeal or Polenta/Grits (like the Grand Prairie Grits pictured below), keep them in your fridge or freezer. We just stone-milled them yesterday, and they contain all the delicious and nutritious — but perishable! — oils and vitamins.
Exceptions to the general rule of keeping your veggies in the refrigeration are:
Sweet Potatoes — Keep above 55 degrees, and keep away from onions and other fruits or vegetables that produce ethylene gas.
Potatoes — These keep well at a variety of temperatures, from refrigeration to room temperature. Be sure t keep them out of the sunlight so they do not turn green and start to sprout.
Garlic also keeps well at a variety of temperatures, but keep it at a constant temperature and out of direct sunlight.
And of course popcorn is fine on your counter or in your cupboard at room temperature.
Thanks so much for being a member of Henry’s CSA, and we wish you wonderful winter holidays, and a good new year!
