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Week 20 Newsletter |
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Newsletter Archive |
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I remember when I was a child and *they* told me that what goes up, must come back down again. And even as the years have been passing me by, in my rebellious nature I am still trying to come up with something that goes up and does not come back down again. Isn’t there an exception to every rule? So long as I am still searching, even in my youth I do understand, and have even accepted, that all good things must come to an end.
A former Texan, neighbor-friend of ours who loves to garden told me that she just can’t bear to see the garden die and all of that lovely basil shrivel up, just like that, after one light frost. There’s something very sad about the “going back down” of the garden. I suppose it happens just to remind us that we’re not in control and something much greater than our personal love and desire for fresh food is holding the reigns. We all need our time to rest, and oh Lordie, do I need mine! My batteries need a little re-chargin’ and my body needs to remember how to be horizontal and with feet elevated.
Oh, don’t let me fool you, I don’t slow down quite that much in the winter months. There’s still too much to do to just collapse and re-awaken when the spring song birds return. I will surely be hard at work pounding nails, filling out catalog order forms, and fixing all of the broken things and systems on this farm over the course of the next five months of ‘rest’.
I would be remiss if I did not say thank you, in the most genuine way that I know how. I am not solely grateful for your money or even the fact that you give me a place to send all of these glorious amounts food. You also give me hope that we are starting a small movement together. I really do believe that together, just our little 100 member-family group, makes a real difference in the stabilization of our local food economy. You’ve probably heard the statistic that if everyone in the U.S. just purchased a measly 10% of their food from local sources it could make things very, shockingly difficult for our “big brother” corporations that truly are holding the reigns. I don’t really wish to get too political, but I kind of like the idea that we have the strength to hold our own reigns, and we don’t really need anyone else steering our food-ship for us. To me it feels like we’re re-claiming our rights to eat and purchase real food, from the ground up.
I hope that over the course of the last 20 weeks you’ve been challenged. My main objective was not to keep you inside of your comfort zone. Although I do want you to be cozy and comfortable in your kitchens, at least, steaming up the windows with aroma from your roasting root veggies. But I do hope that most of those funky celeriac roots, rutabagas, fennels, ancho peppers, swiss chard and radicchios made it into your tummies, at least once so you could try it, and not your compost piles. I want for you to realize that these funky foods only exist and people only still grow these out-of-the-norm foods because people like you and I actually eat them. We don’t just flip thru cute ‘seed savers’ veggie catalogs and look at all the pretty pictures, we actually order the seeds, plant them, weed them, harvest them and EAT them! And that was intended to include you. Yep, you and your whole greens-eating family.
I hope that you have deepened your sense of connection with the seasons. I hope that when you go to the grocery store this October and see strawberries, you at least remember that strawberries already had their season in June, regardless of whether or not you buy those strawberries, I care not. As this roller coaster comes to an actual coast and then to a stop, you may take with you on your walk home the memory of how delicious that spring lettuce was, and how refreshing those long-anticipated tomatoes and peppers were and how succulent were those first fall pickings of spinach. We also tried to softly share with you some of the difficulties of growing these foods. You now know, if you didn’t know before, that all of this food doesn’t just pop out of the ground all on it’s own, and that great lengths were taken to bring all of this food to you.
So, once again, I thank you! Thank you for trying something new, thank you for bearing with us thru the slow and difficult spring we had, thank you for keeping your hard earned dollars re-circulating back into our local economy, thank you for supporting a farm that strives towards sustainability and really cares about the quality of our air, water and soil, and finally thank you for supporting a small family farm of folks who are doing what they love to do, for we are an endangered species. Thank you all.
Sooo….WHAT’S in the BOX??? Butternut Winter Squash- Does not need refrigeration. Will store for quite a while in a cool place. Acorn Winter Squahs- Does not refrigeration. Will store for quite a while in a cool place. Broccoli— Another week of gorgeous broccoli. Keeps best in a plastic bag in fridge. Nappa Cabbage- An oriental vegetable. Definitely something new to try in the kitchen! Fall is the best time of year to grow and eat this seasonal specialty! Bell Pepper, Hot Pepper- Beautiful peppers. Garlic- One last giving of garlic to keep you warm and toasty. Red Leaf lettuce or Romaine- Beautiful fall lettuce. Cauliflower or Pac Choi- Not enough of either to go around to everyone. Both keep best in a plastic bag in fridge. Onions- You can always use an onion! Parsley- Parsley keeps best in a plastic bag in fridge. Can also be hung to dry in your kitchen. Kohlrabi- Kohlrabi keeps best in plastic bag in fridge. Greens are edible also. In the same family as cabbage and broccoli.
Week 19 Recipes Oriental Salad of Noodles and Nappa Cabbage 1 small head nappa cabbage, chopped 1 bunch green onions, chopped Put these 2 ingredients in a sealed plastic bag, and refrigerate them overnight. 2 packages Ramon noodles, crushed 4 ounces slivered almonds 1/2 cup sesame seeds 1 stick butter Melt butter, and brown the noodles, almonds and sesame seeds. Drain on a paper towel and refrigerate. Dressing: 1/2 cup sesame oil 3/8 cup sugar 1 Tablespoon soy sauce 1/4 cup vinegar Mix all together just before serving. Cream of Broccoli Soup
African Groundnut Stew Peanuts, known in Africa as groundnuts, are frequently used in African cooking. For this stew, peanut butter adds delicious crunch and rich flavor to this simple vegetarian dish. Ingredients
Cooking Instructions1. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chilies, ginger, brown sugar and cumin and stir to mix. Cook for a minute or two, then add the squash and toss to coat everything evenly. Add 1 cup (250 mL) of the hot water, the salt and pepper and bring the mixture to a boil. Meanwhile, stir the remaining 1/4 cup (50 mL) of hot water into the peanut butter, then add to the squash mixture in the pot. Mix well, cover and lower the heat to low. Let cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until the squash is nearly tender. 2. Add chickpeas and roasted peanuts to the stew and continue cooking for another 10 minutes. Stir parsley or cilantro in just before taking it off the heat. Serve immediately.
Baked Acorn Squash INGREDIENTS 2 acorn squash, halved and seeded salt and pepper to taste 1/4 cup butter, diced 6 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place squash in a shallow baking pan, cut side down. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until tender. Turn cut side up; season with salt and pepper, dot with butter and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Bake for 20 minutes more.
Basic Stir-Fry with Peanut Oil and Garlic by Terra Brockman from www.asiafood.org1 pound pac choi Cut stems into 1-inch pieces and slice leaves coarsely. |
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Frosted on Curley Kale |
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Nappa Cabbages lined up on the wash table |
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Pac Choi, Oh Boy!!! |