Week 20
Things are winding down around the farm. The garden's bounty is evident in our freezer and in the glass jars full of dehydrated fruit, peppers and tomatoes but the fields are almost empty. We still have a lot of root vegetables to dig and will continue to dig them throughout the winter.
It is a strange time of year for us. I am sure most of you assume we are ready for a break and we are enjoying some good nights of sleep but I am also sad to see the overwhelming chaos go away. There is a part of me that really enjoys being able to do nothing but farm, eat and sleep day after day. However, having some extra time has allowed us to get our pantry and freezer stocked. Our meat birds went from field to freezer a couple weeks ago, we did the last of our pig butchering (sausage) last night and hopefully by the end of today we will have a few jars of pickled cauliflower on the shelf. We will have a lot of great meals this winter made from food that reminds us of the past season and a lot of dinner discussions about what we can do better next year. If you can't farm the next best thing is to talk about farming!
We wish you all a wonderful and peaceful winter.
Carrots
Beets
Bunch of Greens
Winter Squash - Choice of Delicata or Sweet Dumpling
Leeks
Red Cipollini Onions
Rutabaga - There is a lot of debate around our house what rutabagas taste like but we both enjoy eating them. We even have a cheer for them that starts with "when I say ruta you say baga". I am sure you can imagine the rest. For some reason it amuses us every time we do it. I am happy I farm with someone who is just as silly as I am!
Monday, October 21, 2013
Monday, October 14, 2013
Week 19
Our farmer friends all have their own unique combination of ways they sell vegetables. Some drive to Seattle and sell to high end restaurants, some go to the Olympia market and many have CSAs and sell to the Co-op. We are all trying to figure out a way to keep doing what we love and make enough money to be able to do it another year. We consider ourselves to be incredibly fortunate. We have the farm stand and the farm share, neither which require us to leave the farm and the Olympia Co-op which is fairly close. Our hope is that that combination allows us more time to focus on the gardens and the produce. You all have made a decision to support local agriculture. Some of you might appreciate our organic farming methods, others might find it convenient and some of you might have just signed up on a whim. Regardless, we appreciate your support. Some farms find it difficult to fill their farm share/CSA and we have been lucky to find such great customers. Although the interest in locally grown food is growing not everyone is up for receiving a box of vegetables every week. We think you all are awesome for giving it a try. We hope you enjoyed it and thank you again.
For some of you today is your last box. Now you can go back to eating take out pizza without that bunch of kale yelling at you from your vegetable draw. If after a couple pizzas you realize that you miss kale please come see us at the stand. We will be open on Saturdays and Wednesdays until the end of November.
If you would like any storage vegetables (beets, carrots, onions, squash) just let me know and we will get you set up for the winter.
Carrots
Yellow Onions
Parsnips - They may look a bit like a white carrot but they have their own unique flavor. They can be boiled, steamed or roasted. They are great in stews and delicious mashed.
Broccoli
Spaghetti Squash or Pie Pumpkin - your choice
Watermelon Radish
Cucumber
Pepper
Parsley
Green Cabbage - Large Only
French Onion Soup
I have a memory of being a little kid, about four and sitting in front of the television watching Julia Child on PBS. We had a black and white TV and I think it must have been before cable. I don't know what it was about her that I loved as a kid but as an adult I continue to love her. If I could have dinner with any two people, dead or alive, she would be one of them. Despite my adoration I haven't actually made many of her recipes. Below is one that I do make a couple times a year, french onion soup.
The only change I have made to this recipe is that I use an extra cup of onion. She calls for 5 cups and I like to use 6 cups. Perhaps I cook the onions down more than I am suppose to or perhaps it is because the last couple times I have made it I used a higher moisture onion and I lost more to evaporation. This soup requires a little patience because it really tastes better if you allow the onions to properly caramelize.
Soup
6 cups thinly sliced onion
3 Tb butter
1 Tb oil
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
3 Tb flour
2 quarts beef stock (I use homemade chicken stock when I don't have any homemade beef stock)
1/2 cup dry wine or dry white vermouth
3 Tb cognac
Cook onions in the butter and oil with the lid on for 15 minutes in a heavy bottomed sauce pan. Uncover, add salt and sugar and cook for another half hour or so until the onions have fully caramelized. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir for 3 minutes. Add the wine and continue stirring and then add the stock a little at a time. Simmer partially covered for another half hour or so. Just before serving stir in the cognac.
Garnish
Slices of French bread
Grated Swiss or Parmesan
Put French bread in oven at 325 until hard and golden brown. Place cheese on top of bread and broil until melted or use oven proof bowls and put bread in cheese in bowl on top of the soup and put the whole thing under the broiler.
Our farmer friends all have their own unique combination of ways they sell vegetables. Some drive to Seattle and sell to high end restaurants, some go to the Olympia market and many have CSAs and sell to the Co-op. We are all trying to figure out a way to keep doing what we love and make enough money to be able to do it another year. We consider ourselves to be incredibly fortunate. We have the farm stand and the farm share, neither which require us to leave the farm and the Olympia Co-op which is fairly close. Our hope is that that combination allows us more time to focus on the gardens and the produce. You all have made a decision to support local agriculture. Some of you might appreciate our organic farming methods, others might find it convenient and some of you might have just signed up on a whim. Regardless, we appreciate your support. Some farms find it difficult to fill their farm share/CSA and we have been lucky to find such great customers. Although the interest in locally grown food is growing not everyone is up for receiving a box of vegetables every week. We think you all are awesome for giving it a try. We hope you enjoyed it and thank you again.
For some of you today is your last box. Now you can go back to eating take out pizza without that bunch of kale yelling at you from your vegetable draw. If after a couple pizzas you realize that you miss kale please come see us at the stand. We will be open on Saturdays and Wednesdays until the end of November.
If you would like any storage vegetables (beets, carrots, onions, squash) just let me know and we will get you set up for the winter.
Carrots
Yellow Onions
Parsnips - They may look a bit like a white carrot but they have their own unique flavor. They can be boiled, steamed or roasted. They are great in stews and delicious mashed.
Broccoli
Spaghetti Squash or Pie Pumpkin - your choice
Watermelon Radish
Cucumber
Pepper
Parsley
Green Cabbage - Large Only
French Onion Soup
I have a memory of being a little kid, about four and sitting in front of the television watching Julia Child on PBS. We had a black and white TV and I think it must have been before cable. I don't know what it was about her that I loved as a kid but as an adult I continue to love her. If I could have dinner with any two people, dead or alive, she would be one of them. Despite my adoration I haven't actually made many of her recipes. Below is one that I do make a couple times a year, french onion soup.
The only change I have made to this recipe is that I use an extra cup of onion. She calls for 5 cups and I like to use 6 cups. Perhaps I cook the onions down more than I am suppose to or perhaps it is because the last couple times I have made it I used a higher moisture onion and I lost more to evaporation. This soup requires a little patience because it really tastes better if you allow the onions to properly caramelize.
Soup
6 cups thinly sliced onion
3 Tb butter
1 Tb oil
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
3 Tb flour
2 quarts beef stock (I use homemade chicken stock when I don't have any homemade beef stock)
1/2 cup dry wine or dry white vermouth
3 Tb cognac
Cook onions in the butter and oil with the lid on for 15 minutes in a heavy bottomed sauce pan. Uncover, add salt and sugar and cook for another half hour or so until the onions have fully caramelized. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir for 3 minutes. Add the wine and continue stirring and then add the stock a little at a time. Simmer partially covered for another half hour or so. Just before serving stir in the cognac.
Garnish
Slices of French bread
Grated Swiss or Parmesan
Put French bread in oven at 325 until hard and golden brown. Place cheese on top of bread and broil until melted or use oven proof bowls and put bread in cheese in bowl on top of the soup and put the whole thing under the broiler.
Monday, October 7, 2013
A small share went home without any brussel sprouts last week. It was one of the first boxes to be picked up. Please let us know if it was you.
I am pleased with the boxes this week - lots of stuff I like to eat. I hope you enjoy it too.
Carrots
Bok Choy
Lettuce
Korean Daikon Radish - Do you ever eat banh mi, those delicious Vietnamese sandwiches? Do you love the carrot and radish pickle that is on them? Well, you now have a big ol' radish to make some of your own. Like many Southeast Asian pickles it is eaten shortly after mixing. It also makes a yummy side dish. We had some last week with grilled salmon. I will also include a link for a radish kimchi if you are feeling a bit more adventurous.
Butternut Squash
Shallots - These would be good roasted with some butternut squash cubes! They would also be good sliced and fried until crisp and then used as a garnish on your butternut squash soup.
Mixed Hot Peppers - If you don't think you can use all of these at once you can throw them in a Ziploc bag and put them in your freezer. Then you can just pull one out when you need it this winter.
Diakon and Carrot Pickle
Put a half cup white vinegar in a pan and add 1/8 to 1/4 cup of sugar to it. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally and remove from heat once sugar has dissolved.
Cut one or two radishes and one or two carrots into matchsticks.
Slice up a red chile pepper and add it to the above veggies. Use your own judgement on how much to use and if you should include the seeds.
Mix everything in a bowl with a bit of chopped cilantro. If you are a speedy chopper and your vinegar mixture is still piping hot you may want to let a it cool just a little before you add it to the veggies. Put in the fridge to chill and marinate. I usually like to eat it within a day of making it.
Radish Kimchi
I am pleased with the boxes this week - lots of stuff I like to eat. I hope you enjoy it too.
Carrots
Bok Choy
Lettuce
Korean Daikon Radish - Do you ever eat banh mi, those delicious Vietnamese sandwiches? Do you love the carrot and radish pickle that is on them? Well, you now have a big ol' radish to make some of your own. Like many Southeast Asian pickles it is eaten shortly after mixing. It also makes a yummy side dish. We had some last week with grilled salmon. I will also include a link for a radish kimchi if you are feeling a bit more adventurous.
Butternut Squash
Shallots - These would be good roasted with some butternut squash cubes! They would also be good sliced and fried until crisp and then used as a garnish on your butternut squash soup.
Mixed Hot Peppers - If you don't think you can use all of these at once you can throw them in a Ziploc bag and put them in your freezer. Then you can just pull one out when you need it this winter.
Diakon and Carrot Pickle
Put a half cup white vinegar in a pan and add 1/8 to 1/4 cup of sugar to it. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally and remove from heat once sugar has dissolved.
Cut one or two radishes and one or two carrots into matchsticks.
Slice up a red chile pepper and add it to the above veggies. Use your own judgement on how much to use and if you should include the seeds.
Mix everything in a bowl with a bit of chopped cilantro. If you are a speedy chopper and your vinegar mixture is still piping hot you may want to let a it cool just a little before you add it to the veggies. Put in the fridge to chill and marinate. I usually like to eat it within a day of making it.
Radish Kimchi
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