Member Perspectives | Alissa talks with Jesse

As Jesse mentioned, we first met at the Urban Ecology Center local farmer open house. He passed us by the first year, but we do remember meeting him the second year.  The next season he helped at our onion weeding party last season and we enjoyed a root beer float together out of the back of our farm end after a hard morning of work crawling around on our hands and knees. We were glad to have his help with more weeding this spring. He helped to hand weed the carrots available in this weeks CSA boxes on a work morning this spring when the weather was particularly cantankerous and moody-with scattered storms and rain. We always tried to pick his brain about pumps to understand better how they work since we have to deal with them on the farm and that is his expertise. We still don't understand how they work but are happy to say that as of this morning the well at our new site is outfitted with a pump and pressure system that will allow us to start irrigating on our broader acreage--just in the nick-of-time. Its real hot and dry out there.

Give us a brief introduction...
I live in Milwaukee and am an engineer working in Germantown. I have a ten year old son named Carter. 
 How long have you been a member with Three Sisters CSA Community Farm? 
This is our third year with Three Sisters, and we had two other CSA’s prior to this. 
 What is your dropsite?
Wauwatosa
 How did you hear about the farm? 
I did the open house{UEC local Farmer}. But when I went the Three Sisters table was too busy so I joined someone else. But that only lasted a year then I jumped on with Jeff and Kelly. 
 Have you ever met Jeff and/or Kelly in person? 
Yes. I’m not a worker share but I go out to the farm sometimes. I just did a morning with them about a month ago. I try to give back on top of the financial purchasing of the share.  
 I grew up on a farm, so for me (the work) is kind of second nature. I did have my own garden for a while but it got into disarray. It’s a lot easier working in a garden that’s fairly well maintained, even if it’s a lot bigger. 
 In three words, how would you describe the experience of seasonal eating you have through your CSA share? 
Fresh 
Unique 
Enjoyable
 When other people ask you what it’s like to be a CSA member or why you do it, what do you usually say? 
Main reason is because I can guarantee where my food came from. Growing up on a farm I always knew where my stuff came from because I was in a small town, and often they would use the local food sources to stock their shelves during the season. I grew up on that, so it’s normal for me. And I have always thought that it taste better in general. 
 What is your favorite CSA food item? 
I really love the radishes right now, but I can’t wait for tomato season. Some of the time, I swear I eat all those cherry tomatoes in one sitting. And I’m like “Dang! There was only one container!”
 Is there a CSA food item that most confounds or stumps you when it comes to cooking or eating, or used to before you knew what to do with it? 
I would definitely say the kohlrabi. At first maybe celeriac, but I’ve figured out some things to do with that. Kohlrabi seems like it shouldn’t be cooked. I bet you could do a quick pickle with it, but pickling is an art that I have yet to master. 
 How do you use the box each week?
I pretty much regularly turn the box into weekly salads for my lunches at work. Then once the summer squash and zucchini come in I pan fry it, because I grew up on that dish. I try to be patient with them to get the caramelization, but I don’t always have the time for that. It’s also good if you throw in cut up fennel - that was another one I didn’t know what to do with at first. 
 Do you still order things you don’t know what to do with or aren’t sure about?
Since sometime last summer I have not chosen the contents of the share - I have left it up to them. Partly because I think it might be easier on them, and partly because I love to cook and I see the challenge in that. 
 What is your favorite thing about being a member of Three Sisters Community Farm? 
The variety of food that I have received. And the personalities - primarily of Kelly, she is very bubbly. It’s just easy to get along with both of them. I can relate to them. 
 And I’ve not been disappointed with any of the food I’ve received. With another farm it was just OK - it may have been because of the weather that season, or it seemed like they were trying to do more meat production than veggies. 
 (The variety) from Three Sisters might be because they have the greenhouses that they use so much.  And not many places include mushrooms. They are constantly trying to change varieties of things like tomatoes and melons - they are willing to try out new things and that means more variety for me. 
 Do you have a funny anecdote related to a CSA experience? Confusions, misunderstandings, strange vegetables? 
When I first started doing the CSA I could not figure out how to unfold the box without ripping apart. It’s a simple box but...the very first farm we went to sent a video about how to unpack the box and I watched that in the driveway of the pickup site trying to figure out how it worked. 
 What’s the most delicious meal you have had recently? 
I would say it was some pork chops that I made with homemade chimichurri sauce. And I’m looking forward to making that again with the garlic scapes when they start popping in. When I first had a CSA I had no idea what the garlic scape was, now they are a favorite. 
 What’s the strangest thing you have ever eaten? 
Probably something my grandmother made for me. She was 100% Polish. She used to make homemade perogies and stuff them with plums. Which a lot of people find to be weird but for me it was awesome. It was almost like wrapping a wonton around a plum and eating it. 
 What is your favorite place to have a meal? 
If it’s a restaurant then La Merenda - I love their grilled octopus. But my absolute favorite is grilling in the backyard. I just love the flavor of the food - no gas, has to be hardcore, true charcoal. So maybe camping is even better than grilling in the backyard. 
 What is one thing that is bringing joy into your life these days? 
The last couple months I’ve been doing this Friday morning group workout called the November Project - the whole premise behind it is pretty cool, their mantra is “bringing free workouts to the world.” They are a national organization but a couple of people here in MKE are volunteering their time to lead various workouts around the city. They switch locations, and you check their Facebook page to find out where the next workout will be. 
 What is one thing that is giving you pause, or reason for concern? 
The obvious one is politics, but I don’t even want to go down that road. 
 Chard or Kale? 
Probably Swiss Chard. I fell in love with this sauteed bacon and swiss chard thing I found a couple years ago and I can never get enough of it. 
 Is there anything you would like to share about seasonal eating, local food, CSA membership or anything else related to these topics that you have never had the chance to say? 
It’s worth it - it’s worth the cost and even the time to make it up to the farm and go help them out. 
 Anything in particular related to your son and the CSA?
My son likes his specifics. I keep trying to get him to try more things, but usually “green is gross.” But he thinks carrots and tomatoes are the best, and he likes it when melons are in season.