Archive for September, 2010

2010 CSA Season Week 17

Friday, September 24th, 2010


First Year Fruits Photo Credit: April Jones

Meet Your Food

Watermelon: This is it.  The entire season’s watermelon supply.  You might end up with one of two varieties, Sugar Baby (a red fleshed melon) or Cream of Saskatchewan (with white/yellow flesh).  We should all count our lucky stars that we are eating melon at all, given the cool summer we’ve had.

Butterhead Lettuce OR Beet Greens

Carrots

Sweet Corn: Half share members, read last week’s newsletter regarding the sweet corn.  You don’t want to overcook this delicious (end of) summer treat.

Cauliflower: Absolutely beautiful as well as very tasty roasted with olive oil and a bit of salt.

Tomatoes: We’re coming to the end (short lived, I know) of the heirloom tomatoes.  Eat up while you can.

Farmer Jones Notes

It’s a little after seven p.m. on Thursday, and I am absolutely bushed.  We’ve been harvesting pretty much non-stop since seven this morning, and there’s still a few chores left to finish up before I can get a bite to eat.  The rains slowed us down, no doubt, but we also harvested a record amount of produce today, and everything just takes time.  I’m marveling at such a bounty, especially with October right around the corner.

Speaking of bounty, we pressed over 88 gallons of cider on Saturday, with a record turnout of friends.  I hope everyone who came enjoyed themselves and drank their fill of the freshest cider around.  Look for the efforts of your (collective) labor to arrive in CSA shares come October.

Finally, this week at CSA pickup is officially melon-palooza.  Hillary harvested all the rest of our cantaloupe and green sweet melons, and they just won’t keep long.  I have had so many compliments about these melons that instead of sending them to market, I am giving all of you first dibbs.  So bring your spending money and stock up.  This is the very last of the melons for 2010!  Prices are as follows: 2 melons for $6 or 4 for $10, baby melons 4 for $2.

Tired down to the bones,

April

Posted in Nourishing Bites | No Comments »

2010 CSA Season Week 16

Friday, September 17th, 2010


A Cruciferous Start to Fall Photo Credit: April Jones

Meet Your Food

Swiss Chard OR Braising Mix OR Red Romaine Lettuce

Melons OR Apples

Summer Squash

Eggplant

Carrots

Sweet Corn: Don’t (over)cook this corn!  Picked early Friday morning, it should be eaten in the next day or two for the sweetest flavor.  Boil a pot of water.  Add the shucked corn, put a lid on the pot, turn off the burner and carry the pot of water (carefully) to the table.  Use tongs to drain and dish.  Eat and enjoy.

Broccoli & Cauliflower Mix: Hands down the best, (and prettiest) cauliflower I’ve ever grown. I like to boil pasta and add chopped broccoli/cauliflower to the water for the last 2 minutes the pasta needs to cook.  Drain it all in a strainer, toss with olive oil, chopped tomatoes, fresh herbs (sage, oregano, rosemary or basil) and a bit of salt.  If you are so inclined, sprinkle with grated mozzerella or parmesean.

Tomatoes: Heirlooms, dry farmed and cherry tomatoes- all you can eat!

Potatoes: Oh the joys of learning how to operate a new implement.  This spring I was fortunate enough to acquire a potato digger.  Which means I had to learn how to use it by practicing on this year’s potato crop.  Which means there was a little trial and error.  Which means you get to take home a few slightly-cut-up-but-otherwise-delicious potatoes.

Farmer Jones Notes

This week’s produce has a little bit of summer, (corn and tomatoes), and little bit of fall, (broccoli and cauliflower).  As it should be, considering we are in a transitional point in the growing season.  You’ve also probably noticed the size of your share the last few weeks has grown substantially.  We are way above the $30/week mark.  As a CSA member, you ‘shared’ in the skinny spring season, and now you get to share in the over-abundance of late summer.  To that end, bring extra bags this week, as noted above, it’s the second round of all-you-can-take-home tomatoes!

Thursday was a full, long harvest day, with rain showers, muggy weather and a whole lot of mud.  Unlike many situations where rain delays may cancel or postpone events, Farming is like the Post Office… thru wind, rain, sleet, and yes, mud, the harvest must go on.

Likewise, the CSA will go on too, specifically in 2011.  Do you want to join in the fun again?  I’ll have commitment forms for next season at the CSA pickup location over the next few weeks.  The cost for next season’s subscription will not be due until January.  I am simply asking for a commitment at this time.  Knowing how many of you will join me next year for the CSA season will allow me to plan and understand how many new members I’ll need to recruit.  Existing CSA members who sign up before Oct. 15th, 2010 will pay the 2010 subscription price.

Finally, don’t forget!  It’s Cider Pressing Time. Please join us this Saturday, September 18th from 10 a.m. – 12 noon to pick and squeeze apples into delicious fresh cider.  All CSA members and their families are welcome to come, especially kiddos young and old.  The cider pressing will take place under cover, so this event is happening, rain or shine. Bring your favorite cider mug, meet your fellow CSA members, and enjoy a September day out of doors.  You’d be hard pressed to find a better Saturday morning activity!  No pets please.  Please email me to RSVP and get directions.  We’ll be pressing at “Mom and Dad’s Place,” which is right up the road from the farm.

Appreciatively,

April

Posted in Nourishing Bites | No Comments »

2010 CSA Season Week 15

Thursday, September 9th, 2010


The Abundance of September Photo Credit: April Jones

Meet Your Food

Swiss Chard OR Napa Cabbage: Don’t know what to do with swiss chard?  Try the delicious recipe below, compliments of my friend Chandra.

Apples:  If you haven’t tried a napa cabbage slaw with fresh diced apples, this is the week!

Onions

Green Beans OR Fava Beans OR Fresh Shelling Beans: Half share members, see last week’s newsletter for information on how to cook fresh shelling beans.  For a great side dish cook any of these beans with sauted onions and summer squash.  Then toss with fresh diced tomatoes and a bit of salt… yum yum.

Cucumbers OR Summer Squash: Or a little of both, if you please.

Tomatoes: Red ones, yelllow ones, green ones, purple ones.  Heirloom tomatoes have arrived!

Sweet Peppers: So tasty I can’t help but eat them raw.

Melons: They aren’t pretty, (cracked by the rains), and they aren’t big, (not quite enough sun and heat), but here’s this year’s melon crop, sweet as can be.

Swiss Chard with Beans
1-2 onions sliced or diced
2 Tbls. butter or olive oil
1 can white beans (cooked)
1 large bunch Swiss Chard
1 cup White Wine (or White Wine Vinegar)
Salt to taste

Saute onions in butter in a large frying pan on medium high heat.  When the onions are soft and translucent, add the drained beans and 1/2 cup white wine, continuing to stir until the beans are heated and the liquid has cooked off.  Meanwhile, chop the swiss chard into 1″ strips, then chop crosswise to cut into squares.  Add chard to the frying pan with remaining 1/2 cup white wine and quickly put a lid over the pan to keep the steam in.  The frying pan should be hot enough that the white wine sizzles when it hits the pan.  After the chard wilts down (within a minute or two),  remove from heat, stir, and salt to taste.

Farmer Jones Notes

Hillary and I harvested over 700 lbs of apples in the rain on Tuesday, so…It’s Cider Pressing Time! Please join us on Saturday, September 18th from 10 a.m. – 12 noon to pick and squeeze apples into delicious fresh cider.  All CSA members and their families are welcome to come, especially kiddos young and old.  The cider pressing will take place under cover, so this event is happening, rain or shine. Bring your favorite cider mug, meet your fellow CSA members, and enjoy a September day out of doors.  You’d be hard pressed to find a better Saturday morning activity!  No pets please.  Please email me to RSVP and get directions.  We’ll be pressing at “Mom and Dad’s Place,” which is right up the road from the farm.

Posted in Nourishing Bites | No Comments »

2010 CSA Season Week 14

Friday, September 3rd, 2010


Please Bee Mine Photo Credit: April Jones

Meet Your Food

Swiss Chard OR Beet Greens

Cucumbers

Scallions

Hot Peppers: This week you get to take home a few hot peppers.  Here are the variety names:  Hungarian Yellow Hot, Cayenne, Jalepeno, and an Anaheim variety called Joe E. Parker.

Dragon Langarie Fresh Shelling Beans OR Fava Beans: Fresh shelling beans don’t look like much from the outside.  The pod is flimsy and the beautiful purple streaks on the pod have started to fade.  This means the beans are perfect for eating! The Fall Succotash recipe below was a 2009 CSA’er favorite.  Note: see the directions below for using fava beans in lieu of the fresh shelling beans.  They add a delicious twist.  For more on fresh shelling beans, check out last year’s CSA newsletter.

Carrots

Tomatoes

Fall Succotash Courtesy of Lapellah Executive Chef Dave Mork
This is an excellent dish that will complement fish, chicken or pork, but can also take center stage for a simple evening meal.

2 cups shelled dragon langerie beans or Fava Beans*
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic diced
½ cup onion finely diced
2 medium tomatoes, coarse chopped
2 ears corn, cooked & cut off the cob
1 sprig rosemary, finely chopped
1 pinch red pepper flakes (or 1-2 tablespoons finely diced Hungarian Hot Pepper if you prefer more heat )
salt & pepper to taste

Rinse beans in cold water, skim off any floating beans and/or debris and discard.

Put clean, rinsed beans to a large pot and add 4 cups of water.  Simmer over medium heat about 20 minutes, or until beans are soft.  Remove from heat, add 1 tsp salt to water, stirring to dissolve.  Let beans cool in salted water.

Heat olive oil over medium heat in large skillet.  Sauté garlic and onion until soft and slightly browned.  Add tomatoes, corn and rosemary.  Cook 2-3 minutes more, until the tomatoes start to break down.  Drain the beans and stir into the skillet, along with the red pepper flakes.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Serves 2-4.

*Editors Note:  You can use Fava Beans in lieu of fresh shelling beans in this dish.  Shell the fava beans, cook in boiling water for 3-4 minutes.  Strain the beans, (save the cooking water and add 1 tsp salt to dissolve), and pull the beans from their skin, then return them to the hot water.  Prepare as directed above, adding the drained fava beans at the very end.

Farmer Jones Notes

We started harvest at 6 a.m. on Thursday, with a sunrise just on the brink and fast moving clouds low on the horizon.  It wasn’t long before I recognized a forgotten achy-sorta feeling: cold hands!  The day sure started out brisk, but by 1 p.m. we were in short sleeves and sunhats, working out in the cucumbers and peppers.  September has arrived, and even with the mild summer we’ve had, it still feels like a changing of the guard.

There is more transplanting to be done, mainly winter goodies like cauliflower, kohlrabi and mustard greens.  For the most part, we are spending the majority of our time in the fields, delightfully tending all our wonderful and maturing crops.

I hope fall affords you time to appreciate and enjoy whatever summer has ripened in your life.

Happily,

April


Posted in Nourishing Bites | No Comments »