Week 16

Happy Autumn

 A couple of you have asked about winter squash. Next week will be the first week of winter squash.   We will probably start with acorn.  They came out of the field last week looking good and should be cured properly by next week.  

This past week was the week of the pepper for us.  We have been roasting, drying, hot saucing and freezing like crazy.  We have a nice pile of peppers for you today as well.  Most or all of the peppers in your box are a variety called Antohi Romanian.  In my opinion they are the most beautiful pepper we grow.  They start off a creamy yellow color and gradually turn red.  They are named after a Romanian acrobat, Jan Antohi, who brought the seed to the U.S.

Leeks
Peppers
Potatoes
Carrots 
Cukes
Arugula
Slicing Tomato
Cherry Tomatoes - Large Share Only
Swiss Chard - Large Share Only


Carrot Quinoa

This recipe is adapted from The Grains Cookbook by Bert Greene.  It introduced me to quinoa many moons ago and is my favorite way to eat quinoa.  

2 tbsp  butter
1/2 cup or so chopped orange carrots 
1/4 cup chopped onion, shallot or leek
1 2/3 cup chicken stock
2/3 cup quinoa
1/4 tsp cumin

Rinse quinoa and set aside to drain.

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Add your onion/shallot/leek and cook for a minute.  Add carrots and cook for another couple minutes.

Add 2/3 cup broth, stir and bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes or until carrots are soft.

Transfer carrot mixture to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Rinse your saucepan and then return carrot mixture to pan with the rest of the stock. Heat until boiling and add the quinoa.  Lower the heat and cook covered for about 15 minutes until quinoa is tender.  

Feta Stuffed Peppers

This recipe is from Saveur magazine.  I made a couple minor changes to the recipe.  The recipe called for Fresno chiles but we made this using the sweet peppers you have in your box today and it was fantastic.  While everyone gets the same amount of peppers in weight there is quite a bit of size variation among the peppers.  As a result you will have to use your own judgement of how many peppers to use. 

5 - 10  sweet peppers
9 oz feta, cumbled
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp greek yogurt
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1/4 tsp lemon zest
1/4 tsp dried oregano
2 egg yolks
ground pepper

Set oven to broil.  Put peppers on a baking sheet under the broiler (not too close).  Turning once or twice cook about 5 minutes until peppers have softened.  You don't want the skin the char.  Let the peppers cool until ready to use.

Mix everything but the peppers in a bowl with a hand mixer.

Carefully cut each pepper in half lengthwise and remove the seeds.  Stuff each pepper with some of the feta filling and put in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up a little. Broil peppers until cheese is golden brown and bubbly, about 6 minutes. Transfer peppers to a platter and serve hot.  

Other recipes call for the top to be cut off the pepper, the pepper stuffed and then the tops tooth picked back on the pepper before cooking.  I opted for the easy way out but even the easy way requires you keep the shape of the pepper so you have a little boat for your filling. 

Hope you all have a chance to enjoy the beautiful weather. 

Week 15


It has been a fun week on the farm.  Last Tuesday Kelly and I took the day off and went up to Mount Vernon.  One of the seed companies we order from had a field day at their trial gardens.  It was fantastic.  We got to relax but still talk about vegetables.  We met a couple other farmers and saw a few new varieties for next year.  On Thursday we started hauling winter squash out of the field.  The butternut plants had died back the most and we started with them.  The squash field is impenetrable in the summer so harvest is always filled with surprises.  Thus far all the surprises have been good.  And finally, yesterday we slaughtered our chickens and filled the freezer with meat for the winter.  That task isn't a fun one but it went quickly and it is a good feeling to know it is finished and we are stocked up for the year.

Jacob, our friend, and one of the owners of Calliope Farm helped us with our chickens yesterday.  I asked him if they do fall radish plantings and he responded that they do and fall radishes time well with taco season.  We eat all sorts of tacos year round but only at this time of year do we have the luxury of freshly roasted poblanos.  They are great on Mexican style street tacos or in veggie tacos. A few radishes on the side with a squeeze of lime are a must have item according to Jacob and I am inclined to agree.

Enjoy your veggies.

Lettuce
Carrots
Broccoli
Cherry Tomatoes
Onions
Poblano Peppers
Radishes
Baby Stir Fry Greens - Large Share Only

Poblano Pepper Recipes

Roasted Poblanos

I like to use the grill to roast my peppers but you can do it over the flame of a gas stove or under the broiler if you prefer.

Heat your grill and lightly rub your peppers with oil.  Place peppers on a hot part of the grill turning after the pepper has blistered and darkened a bit.  I don't like to char them quite as much as I do with a roasted red pepper.  The flesh is a little more delicate and can get a bit bitter if completely blackened.  Once all sides have cooked/blistered remove peppers to covered dish and let them cool.  They should peal easily.  I have sensitive skin and like to wear gloves when I am peeling the peppers.  When I forget my hands burn for a long time after I finish.

In addition to using these as a garnish for tacos I also like to layer them in a little dish with some cheese and bake them until the cheese melts.  It is delicious with warm tortillas.  Last week we sliced them in half, took out the seeds, rubbed a bit of oil on them and then placed them cut side up on the coolest part of our gas grill.  We cracked and egg in each one, added a little salt and pepper and then closed the grill until the egg was just cooked.  It made a great meal with rice, beans, tortillas and a salad.

Here is a link to a Rick Bayless recipe for skirt steak tacos with poblanos.

Tacos de Arrachera al Carbón con Rajas

Week 14

Sometimes I am unsure if we do nothing else but farm because we need to or because it is just our personalities.  We both want our farm to be successful, to look great and to produce as much food as possible.  Of course we can't do everything but when someone invites us to dinner and we have the choice of enjoying the company of friends or getting something transplanted we usually choose to stay in the garden.  I have been thinking about this because I missed a wedding this weekend and because we have said good bye to some great part-time help this week that allowed us to accomplish so much more than we ever could have when it was just the two of us.  One left to go sailing in the San Juan Islands and the other to California.  Both worked hard and provided us with a lot of laughs.  Claire, our full-time employee will stick it out to the end of the season with us.  The end of the summer always leaves me with such mixed feelings.  I love that I can sneak away from the garden a little without feeling like there is something that should have been done.  But, it also makes me sad.  The fields on Shincke Road are almost empty.   All the evidence of the hard work we have done is disappearing.  Plus there are so many meals I haven't made that call for tomatoes and cucumbers!

But, I am getting a little ahead of myself.  Autumn has not arrived yet.  You will begin to see a change in your boxes over the next couple weeks.  Items like radishes that you haven't seen since spring as well glorious fall root veggies are just around the corner.  Hopefully you all have been enjoying the beautiful late summer days.

Corn - It isn't pretty but it is fresh out of the field this morning.  Most importantly, it is delicious, sweet and tender.
Loose Beets 
Beans
Lettuce
Tomatoes - Savor your tomatoes, they might be one rainfall away from death.  They have been showing signs of disease for sometime but the warm, dry weather has kept it under control.
Cukes
Zucchini 
Garlic
Eggplant - Small Only
Romenesco Cauliflower - Large Only

Have a great week.

Week 13

Carrots
Lettuce
Red and/or Yellow Sweet Peppers
Green Bell Pepper - Large Share Only
Tongue of Fire Shell Beans - This is one of the beans we grow for dry beans but it also makes a great fresh shell bean.
Sweet Onions
Sungold Cherry Tomatoes
Red Slicing Tomato
Juanne Flamme and Glacier Salad Tomatoes - If you have a home garden and struggle getting tomatoes to ripen I highly recommend the Juanne Flamme.  It really cranks out tomatoes.  I read about it in the Barbara Kingsolver book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle a few winters ago.  When I saw a pack of seeds at the Co-Op I decided to give it a try and have been really happy with it.  The downside for us is that it doesn't sell great.  Most people want big slicers or cherries.  The golf ball size is always a tough sell.  As a result we have a bunch of them for you to help yourself to today.
Flat Leaf Parsley
Eggplant - Large Share Only (coming soon for small shares)
Green Cabbage - Large Share Only

Shell Bean Recipe
You will need to remove the beans from the pod and cook them in water for about 30 to 40 minutes or until they are a texture you like.  Sometimes I like to throw in a little onion and a bay leaf while they are cooking.  They will turn grey when you cook them. 

I wish our timing was better.  Corn and fresh shellers make an amazing succotash.  I am including a link to a recipe from a blog I read.  I make something similar with corn, beans and whatever I have on hand.  While it wouldn't be a succotash without corn I am sure it would still be good.

Smitten Kitchen Summer Succotash

Shell Beans are great in salads.

Shell Bean Salad

While your beans are cooking chop up a little onion, one small clove garlic and some parsley.  Mix up your favorite vinaigrette and toss it in a bowl with the garlic, onion and parsley.  Chop up one large tomato.  Drain the beans and mix everything together adding salt and pepper as needed.  Serve room temperature or refrigerate until you are ready to eat.

Fresh Shellers are also delicious added to your favorite chicken or vegetable soup recipe and they are good with braised chicken and vegetables.