Week 20

We did our best frost hustle on Friday, but there is only so much one can do at this point.  We double covered a few things in the field and harvested extra of some other things, but I think it is okay to say good bye to some stuff.  It is time.

We had some excitement on the farm this past week.  We dug sweet potatoes and harvested lemon grass. We have grown a very small amount of sweet potatoes for ourselves the past few years.  This is not sweet potato growing country and we planted them in a hoop house.  We have had a little success, enough to keep trying, but also a lot of culls and damaged potatoes.    This year we tried a few heirloom varieties that we have never tried before and planted enough to have some to sell.  At first glance they look really good.  We put them in crates and rigged up a curing chamber for them which has a higher temp and higher humidity than we could provide otherwise.  They will cure until the beginning of November and then hopefully they will still look nice when we wash them and taste sweet.  A freshly dug sweet potato isn't very sweet. The sugars develop in the curing process.  The idea for lemongrass came from reading a CSA blog for a farm in Oregon.  It also had to be grown in a hoop house.  The house at our house has a weird, narrow bed that runs up one side of the house.  It can be difficult to justify growing things for fun in the house because it is prime real estate but organic lemongrass is hard to find.   It did really well and fit in the narrow bed that probably would have just been left empty.  We are putting a little bit of it in the boxes this week.  Below are two of my favorite recipes that use lemongrass.  I have also been making lemongrass tea with the leaves.  Lemongrass freezes great if you wrap it tightly in plastic.

Tom Kha Gai - For most of you this will involve a trip to an Asian market.  Hong Phat on College typically has both galangal and kaffir lime leaves.  Galangal looks a bit like ginger but larger and smells of pine.  Neither is very expensive and both can be frozen and saved for another dish.  They also happen to carry my favorite brand of fish sauce - Red Boat.  It has been a while, but I have also bought lime leaves at the halal market on Martin and at the store on the West side across from Mud Bay.  I make my own stock so I don't bother with the stock reductions she mentions and it always tastes great.

Congee with Pork Meatballs - I make this same dish without the meatballs and sub leftover chicken or turkey as well.  The fried garlic is tasty but fried shallots and shallot oil are great too.  It is my favorite winter comfort food.

If you find yourself in need of fresh vegetables, we will be open on Wednesday for one more week and then on Saturdays from 9am until 3pm until the last Saturday in November.

I thanked you last week but I will say it again.  We really appreciate you supporting our farm.

Spinach - So good!
Butterkin Squash - Cute to look at and good to eat.  If you are really missing a squash that we normally give (we have given acorns, kabochas, pie pumpkins in the past) we should have a few of all of them on hand if you want to trade.
Rutabaga - This old fashioned veggie is actually very easy to use.  Cooked it reminds us a bit of broccoli stems.  It is great just steamed (takes a while to cook) and mashed with butter.  I usually roast everything and roasted rutabagas are good (they taste a little stronger roasted), but I enjoy them steamed and mashed best.  They go great with other root veggies and potatoes in hash browns or a gratin
Pepper
Lettuce 
Rainbow Carrots
Lemongrass
Zucchini - Large Only

Week 19

 I am sure that if you have learned nothing else about me, you have figured out that food runs my life.  What I eat, how I prepare it and who I share it with mean so much to me.  This carries over into our farm.  I feel so appreciative that you trust us enough to grow food for you and your families.  I hope you all enjoyed the vegetables we packed for you each week.  When you pull something out of your box and admire it or comment on how you are looking forward to eating it, it thrills me.  Honestly, it provides both Kelly and I with so much satisfaction.  We would still love farming without that part, but it makes the hard days easier to swallow and the good days better.   

As most of you know, this is our last year at Shincke Road and while we do know we will still be farming and selling vegetables next year we don't know exactly what it will look like.  The farm share is one of the big question marks.  Having you pick up the farm has been convenient for us, but it has also just felt much more personal than stashing a bunch of boxes on a porch.  Personally handing you your vegetable has been more satisfying than I think either of us realized when we chose to only have on farm pick-up.   However, change is inevitable and not necessarily bad.  We will keep you posted on our decision and welcome your input if you have ideas about the future of the farm share.  

Thank you all so much for supporting local agriculture.  Every year has its challenges and you may not realize it, but you have weathered them us and helped make our farm a success.  

I am including a few squash recipes.  We have hosted a farmer squash potluck a couple times where everyone brings a dish with winter squash in it.  Farmer potlucks, particularly those held in the slow season, always have great food.  Among my favorites are the empanadas I made last year.  The recipe, which I can't find in its entirety on the Internet, was from a vegan cookbook called Vedge.  I have a favorite empanada dough that isn't vegan so I used that.  The sauce, a green romesco  will make you a fan of green peppers.  The filling uses about one and a half pounds of cubed butternut, tossed with oil, salt, pepper and a half teaspoon or so (I like both of those spices a lot and used a little more) of both ground cumin and coriander.  Roast at 400 degrees until tender and then mash while still warm.  Let it cool and then fill your empanadas.   I have experimented with vegetarian dumplings and pot stickers over the years and these winter squash dumplings are the best I have had.  I like to fry food when people come over and  pakoras are usually a hit.  While it isn't a traditional choice, they are fantastic with very small pieces of delicata and kale.  Other delicious dishes I don't have the recipes for include some black bean and squash enchiladas, some cheese, squash gougres and squash gnocchi which were bit heavier than potato ones but still yummy.  Just cooking a squash and eating it with some butter is fantastic but if you feel like doing something different, there are a lot of options out there.  

Head Lettuce - Small Share
Baby Lettuces - Large Share
Russet Potatoes 
Daikon Radish - We are planning to leave the greens on these because for once we can.   Usually we see horrible aphids on them and it was a pleasant surprise to lift the cover and not see aphids.  
Cherry Tomatoes - Just a half pint for fun...field cherries are not usually a thing this time of year.  
Yellow Onion - These should keep really well.  If you still have a sweet onion that we gave you, use that first, its days are numbered.  
Butternut Squash
Kale