Week 17

It is still dark out and I can't see the rain yet but I can hear it.  Ha, as I just wrote that I heard on the radio that Olympia has had a record amount of rainfall this September.  We have had eight inches!  It isn't keeping us out of the  garden completely although we have cut a few days short this month.  It was a mad dash last Thursday and Friday to get all tractor work done and the cover crop out before the heavy rain started falling.  Hopefully the seed germinates.  Even though the weather forecast called for rainy weather I don't think either Kelly or I expected to see standing water in our fields.

Yikes, hopefully the thunder and lightening calms down a bit before it is time to leave the house.

Rainbow Carrots - These look really pretty in a salad or in spring rolls.  

White Russian Kale

Red Onion

Broccoli

Brussel Sprouts

Orange Kabocha - When people are looking for a pie pumpkin I often try to sell them on an orange kabocha.  We do sell a good pie pumpkin but I love the orange kabocha for breads, cookies and pies.  Last thanksgiving we made "pumpkin" ice cream with one.  It has a sweet, dry flesh that is also good for soups and squash purees.  The variety we grow is called sunshine.  

Summer Turnip

Poblano Peppers - Large Only

See you this afternoon.

Week 16

Fall arrived Sunday in the most fantastic way.  I did the co-op delivery Sunday morning and the streets were empty of people but full of blowing leaves, twigs and puddles.  I was so excited to go home and do nothing.  Except I forgot I don't like to do nothing.  But, I don't like to do housework either so nothing it was at least for a little while.

Our cover crop seed arrived this week.  We bought some Washington grown seed from Sequim.  We typically plant rye and vetch but are experimenting with some triticale (similar to rye) and some fava beans as our legume this year.  We always mix a grass/cereal grain and a legume for our winter cover crop.  The grass is fast growing, good for weed suppression and for preventing erosion.  When tilled in it will add organic matter to the soil.  Legumes grow much slower but can convert nitrogen from the air into the soil when they are tilled in in the spring.  Although we do add additional fertilizer, usually in the form of a pelleted chicken manure, cover crops are an important part of our nutrient plan and contribute to the health of our fields.

Carrots
Lettuce
Delicata Squash
Napa Cabbage
Beets
Leeks - The most common way to use leeks is in potato leek soup but they can be used in other dishes as well.   They are great braised in a little chicken stock and white wine or in any kind of braised meat dish.  They are delicious with mussels and clams too.  The easiest way to clean them is to trim off the roots but leave the base of the leek.  Cut off the dark green tops.  Slice the leek in half long ways and soak in a large bowl of water.  Swish them around a little so the dirt between the leaves falls out.  
Frying Peppers
Zucchini - Because it is late in the season and we don't have much heat I am not sure how many squash you will get but I thought we would try to squeeze in one more harvest for you.
Cherry Tomatoes - Large Only
Cauliflower - Large Only

Soba Noodles with Napa Cabbage

I am including a link for a soba noodle recipe.  Although the recipe is fairly light the heartiness of buckwheat noodles makes them good cold weather food.  The recipe also calls for edamame which some of you may still have staring at you when you open your produce draw.  I don't always use them when I make this recipe.  I just use whatever veggies I need to use up but I do really like napa cabbage in it.

Soba Noodle

Week 15

Last week someone called to see what we had available for wholesale.  I mentioned rutabagas.  He is very particular and he wanted to know how sweet they were.  We try to eat everything before we sell it as a form of quality control but there was zero chance I was interested in eating a rutabaga last week.  Despite the fact that we were hauling winter squash it felt a bit too much like summer.  Well, after looking at the 10 day weather this morning I think I have some rutabagas and a fire in the wood stove in my near future.

The large metal building at our house is filled with winter squash on pallets and dry beans hanging from the rafters.  It is so colorful that it makes me smile whenever I walk in.  We are going to start winter squash a little earlier than usual this year because it is ready to eat and the weather seems to have turned.  The variety of acorn we grow is honey bear and it is nice and sweet.

Lettuce
Acorn Squash 
Broccoli
Colored Peppers
Cucumber
Sweet Onion
Dinosaur Kale aka Lacinato Kale - Small Only
Yokatta Na aka Vitamin Green - Large Only - similar to bok choy
Edemame - Large Only

Week 14

We often talk about the fields at Shincke Road where you pick up your box and our fields on South Bay Road but we do have one more spot in cultivation.  It is two small fields off of 46th Avenue.  One had our garlic in it and the other has a small amount of drought resisitant ornamental corn and some winter squash (which we some how managed to plant everywhere this year).  After the stand closed on Saturday we went to take a look.  I was not that hopeful because I hadn't been over since it was last weeded and at that time the plants looked so-so.  We were greeted by some giant blue hubbards and pumpkins at the front of the field.  Yippee.  We walked around pointing out all the fabulous squash to each other.  It was a fine time.  I hope you all had some nice surprises this week as well.

Your box is typical of boxes this time of year.  It has some summer stuff and some fall stuff.

Carrots
Cauliflower
Summer Turnips 
Cherry Tomatoes
Poblano Peppers - I love fried chile rellenos but they are also great with out any breading.  I stuff the roasted and cleaned chiles with a bit of filling, set them in a casserole dish, cover with sauce and bake them.
Parsley - Large Only
Salad Mix - Small Only
Head Lettuce - Large Only
Collards - Large Only
Eggplant - rotating item

Have a great week and enjoy the heat!

Week 13

Every year I make up a t-shirt for the farm in my head.  I never get them made but I enjoy thinking about a good tag line while weeding.  I haven't come up with a clever one yet this year.  This year's theme seems to be disease and that doesn't seem like a fun t-shirt.  It started with the garlic.  The potatoes seemed to have a bit of everything this year.  We had to bust out an organic approved fungicide for the onions and finally late blight has hit the tomatoes(probably via the potatoes).  We still have some tomatoes in the hoop house that are doing okay and you have some of those in your boxes today.

We have several crops in the garden that are doing fantastic.  We have done a good job of staying on schedule for seeding and planting salad and lettuce and we haven't seen any of the mildew issues that plagued us last year.  Our peppers are healthy, abundant and turning red, orange and yellow earlier than normal.  We don't grow a lot of corn but our corn patch is also more productive than it ever has been.  And so farming goes - a moment of glory, a moment of defeat and for Kelly and I a lot of humor to off set the distress.  We have been a bit more sarcastically gloomy this year but are still cracking jokes and while the amount of disease has been unusual winter will renew our optimism.

In fact, despite everything we had our best day ever at the stand on Saturday and have so much good food that we had a hard time narrowing it down for your boxes.  One thing that didn't make the cut for today is cauliflower but you should have the first of our fall cauliflower in your boxes next week as well as poblano peppers.

Lettuce
Carrots - Back!  I know they were only gone for a week but I couldn't resist the exclamation point.
Cherry Tomatoes
Red Slicing Tomato
Basil
Beans
Eggplant - Everyone will have some eggplant over the next few weeks but not everyone will get one this week.
Corn - Small For Sure - Large Maybe  This is our last succession of corn.  It is a white variety called Augusta that we have never grown before.
Green and Yellow Zucchini 
Onions - Large Only 


Corn and tomatoes go great together in salsa or in a salad.  Below are a couple ideas of how we like to mix them.  

Salsa
Corn, cooked and cooled and sliced off the cob
Tomato, diced
Hot Pepper
Garlic, minced
Onion, chopped
Cilantro
Salt
Squeeze of Lime

Salad
Skip the hot pepper and cilantro and add some basil.  Replace the acid of the lime with a little vinegar and add a little olive oil and black pepper.

Baba Ganoush - Eggplant Spread

eggplant (about a pound/all the eggplant in your box)
1/4 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic, minced if making spread by hand
juice from half a lemon
2-3 tablespoons water
salt

Preheat your grill.  Rub the eggplants with oil and place on grill.  When the skin starts to blacken turn the eggplant.  Continue to turn until the skin is mostly charred on all sides.  You want the skin to be black and the eggplant to be soft and collapsed.  If your eggplant is still a bit firm you can pop it in the oven until it is soft.  You can also do this whole process in the oven by using the broiler if you prefer.  Set aside to cool.

Put the tahini, garlic and lemon in a food processor.  I use a mini-chop with good success.  Blend.  Mixture will be thick.  Add water and process again.  You want the mixture to be light and creamy.  I add water one tablespoon at a time until I achieve the desired consistency.  This step will assure a nice light and creamy baba ganoush.

Cut eggplant open and gently spoon out the flesh leaving the charred skin behind.  Put in the food processor and mix.  Add salt and more lemon juice if you think it needs it.

You can do this without a food processor.  I like the texture I get when I use the Cuisinart but it can be made by hand with good results.

Serve with pita bread or veggies