Fall on the Farm

Our crew has been finished for a couple weeks now so I am back to doing all the farm work (it’s like our first season of farming again!). Not having people around to help out has taken a little adjustment. In some ways this means I can be more flexible — I only have my own day to plan, plan my own errands and I don’t need to continually think three steps ahead to make sure everyone is prepared for the next project. In other ways, it is a little tricky I am now doing all the harvesting, washing and packing along with getting the fields ready for winter and caring for the livestock. All in all, I enjoy working on my own, even though some things take a little longer than I expect and its nice to have some time to slow down and think after a very busy summer season.

This week is also brought the first of many big things to be happening on the farm this fall/winter. 350 day-old chicks are coming to increase the size of our flock of layers. We are partnering with The Learning Farm to brood the chicks (half are theirs). We will be sharing space as well as the chores. Last year, we brooded our first batch of chicken in early February in little more than a tent within a tent and heat lamps. There was more than a foot of snow on the ground and it was brutally cold outside. Baby chicks need the temperature to be 95 degrees for the first week of their life dropping the temperature by about 5 deg each week until they are fully feathered. This was very difficult to maintain with the setup we had last year, however, we learned a lot and a much better prepared this year. The Learning Farm has a space much better suited to raising baby chicks for all of us, which is much larger and better insulated. Plus working as a team will provide us all more eyes and hands to help out….which is helpful since we’re out numbered with about 115 to 1 person!

In your veggie CSA box, you’ll find:

• Arugula – Your bunch of arugula can be stored like any other salad green — in plastic or veggie storage bag in crisper. Cut off the roots and put into salad, or our favorite — saute with olive oil and garlic very lightly and use as a bed for your favorite hearty fish.
• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Kohlrabi – The taste and texture of kohlrabi are similar to those of a broccoli stem or cabbage heart, but milder and sweeter, with a higher ratio of flesh to skin. The young stem in particular can be as crisp and juicy as an apple, although much less sweet.
• Spigariello Lisca (aka Leaf Broccoli) – With a taste between broccoli and kale, we find this delicious green great to cook with (one of my favorite greens). Cook similar to kale, lighty braised with olive oil, garlic and crushed red pepper flakes with a splash of balsamic vinegar or lemon juice at the end.
• Beets - With wonderful texture and an earthy, nutty flavor. They’re nutritious and filling. They can be juiced, boiled, pickled, cooked in soups, mashed, sliced in salads, or roasted. Although they have the highest sugar content of all vegetables, they are very low in calories
• Hakurei Turnips – Sweet, tender and delicous raw in salads, veggie platters, as a snack or in stirfry. I just heard someone call them the, “Hello Kitty of turnips”. No need to peel.
• Brussels Sprouts (on the stalk) – Keep them on the stalk until you’re ready to use them, which will keep them for longer. Simply cut off the sprout, peel off exterior layer and prepare as you like!
• Celery – This celery is tasty but a little tough (this is common for locally grown celery). It is best used as more as a flavoring in soups.
• Red Bok Choi - “White cabbage” or Chinese cabbage, put this delicious vegetable into stirfry, soups or saute with a splash of soy sauce at the end.
• Onions
• Garlic

Recipes
Golden Beets and Brussels Sprouts – Roasted beets and parboiled Brussels sprouts are quickly sauteed in a pan with roasted almonds, shallots, and thyme.

Cider-Braised Brussels Sprouts

Cut an X in the bottom of each sprout. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add sprouts and return to a boil. Cook, covered, 20 minutes until sprouts are tender but still firm. Drain. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add sprouts and garlic; sauté 5 minutes, stirring, until garlic is soft and fragrant and sprouts are coated with oil. Add cider and turn heat to high, stirring constantly, until cider is reduced in volume by half, making a sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.
Serves 3.

Sweet Broccoli & Kohlrabi Salad

Dressing
1 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Mix the broccoli, kohlrabi, bacon, nuts, raisins and onions together in a large bowl. In another bowl, beat dressing ingredients together gently until smooth. About 10 minutes before serving, toss the salad with teh dressing to allow the flavors to blend.

Cream of Celery Soup with Bacon

Braised Hakurei Turnips

Easy Hakurei Turnip Gratin with Thyme

Melt butter in a medium non-stick skillet. Layer the sliced turnips in the pan. Sprinkle with thyme, salt, pepper and cayenne. Cook for 3 minutes over medium heat, then pour the cream and stock over the top. Cover and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes. The turnips will be completely cooked, but there will be liquid left in the pan. Remove the cover and cook to reduce the liquid. When most of the liquid has reduced, and the sauce is thickened, sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the top. Serve hot.

Serves 2.

Have a great week!
The Miller Family

This week is the first week for fall CSA share and it’s been a bit of a whirlwind — and it’s not just the windy weather!

Fall on the Farm

It has been a rough week to work out side, I find being out in the strong wind as exhausting as the long hot days of summer(plus I had to run around and make sure everything was buttoned down so it wouldn’t blow away). Luckily we didn’t have any serious damage and it seems like most of the wind has past.

Fall is definitely a time of adjustment. We’ve just completed our summer CSA (thank you to member who have stayed with us this fall!), completed our summer markets (thank you to those joining us from the markets!) and we’re starting a new adventure (thank you to YOU for joining us for our inaugural fall share!).

The fall veggie share came to us last fall when we had a lot food left in the field in late October/November. Many of our crops enjoy the cooler weather and actually, taste much better because of those deep frosts. We wanted to offer these veggies to our customers and continue to farm as long as we could.

It’s our goal to eventually farm year-round. Unlike farms in warmer climates, this takes a good deal of planning and creative thinking. One way we’re doing this is that we’ve built a hoop house structure this year to extend our egg season. The chickens don’t mind the cold, but aren’t wild about the snow and will produce more eggs if they don’t need to put all their energy doesn’t go towards keeping them warm….so they’ll be spending their fall/winter months in a hoop house, which is essentially a green-house built on soil (rather than a gravel/fabric flooring). The chickens tend to slow in their egg production with less sunlight, but we’re still expecting an egg every other day from our 150 chickens. We’re also increasing the size of our flock by 175 next week. They’ll be kept in a separate structure and you’ll likely see eggs from them next year.

We’ll continue to share more about the happenings during the fall at the farm in weeks to come…until then, enjoy your fall-sweetened veggies and eggs this week!

In your veggie CSA box, you’ll find:

• Baby Salad Mix – Sweet and tender
• Mesclun Mix – A mix with some spicy mustards and sweet asian greens
• Parsnips – While parsnips can be eaten raw, they are more commonly served cooked. Parsnips can be boiled, roasted or used in stews, soups and casseroles. Larger parsnips may have a tough core which should be removed.
• Turnips – Cook like a potato, roasted boiled, mashed etc. Smaller one don’t need to be peeled whereas you will probably want to peel the larger ones.
• Rutabaga – Sometimes called swedes or yellow turnips. Rutabagas can be cooked just like a turnip or potato.
• Russet Potatoes – These are little guys but are delicious roasted.
• Butternut Squash
• Broccoli (see photo above) – I love broccoli this time of year, it is a joy to grow and has the best flavor. As I harvested broccoli this morning I was amazed at how big and beautiful it had gotten in this cool weather.
• French Breakfast Radishes – French Breakfast radishes have a more mild flavor than regular radishes and after a couple frosts their sweetness really comes through.
• Mustard Greens – With a distinct horseradish-mustard flavor mustards are delicious sauteed, in stir fries and in soups.
• Cipolini Onions - A rich flavored onion of Italian origin, cipolinis are perfect for roasting which really brings out their sweetness and flavor.
• Garlic

Recipes
Cider-Glazed Roasted Root Vegetables This would be delicious with the parsnips, cipolinis, turnips, rutabagas and potatoes. Regular apple cider would be fine. Also, keep an eye on them the cooking time in the recipe might be a little long.

Mustard Greens with Chipotle and Bacon

Balsamic-Glazed Chickpeas and Mustard Greens

Silky Butternut Squash Soup

If you don’t own a folding steamer basket, a pasta pot with a removable pasta insert works well. Some nice garnishes for the soup are freshly grated nutmeg, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, a sprinkle of paprika, or Buttered Cinnamon-Sugar Croutons (see related recipe).

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

1. For the Soup
   1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until foaming; add shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add squash scrapings and seeds and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and butter turns saffron color, about 4 minutes. Add 6 cups water and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to Dutch oven and bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low, place squash cut-side down in steamer basket, and lower basket into pot. Cover and steam until squash is completely tender, about 30 minutes. Off heat, use tongs to transfer squash to rimmed baking sheet; reserve steaming liquid. When cool enough to handle, use large spoon to scrape flesh from skin into medium bowl; discard skin.

2. 2. Pour reserved steaming liquid through mesh strainer into second bowl; discard solids in strainer. Rinse and dry Dutch oven.

3. 3. In blender, puree squash and reserved liquid in batches, pulsing on low until smooth. Transfer puree to Dutch oven; stir in cream and brown sugar and heat over medium-low heat until hot. Add salt to taste; serve immediately.

4. For the Croutons
   1. Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Toss the bread cubes with melted butter in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, combine cinnamon and sugar; sprinkle over the bread cubes and toss to combine.

5. 2. Spread the bread cubes in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes (The croutons can be stored in an airtight container for several days.) Sprinkle over soup just before serving.

Let us know if you have any questions,
Jeff, Jen, Owen & Gavin