In the Share: Week 15

 In the Share: 

GREENS CHOICE: CHARD, BOK CHOI, TAT SOI OR KALE* CHOICE: An asterisk on the kale because what we are calling kale is actually the luscious leaves of the sprouting broccoli plants seen above growing luxuriantly in the high tunnel. For all the kale lovers out there, these leaves are just as delicious… perhaps even more tender and sweet. 

 LEEK/BULB FENNEL: We harvested all the remaining fennel and leeks from the field before the snow and will distribute what we have to the shares this week. They are a great combination to flavor any dish. Add them to a soup or stew or roast. 

BUTTERHEAD LETTUCE: Straight out of the high tunnel, these heads are full, tender and buttery. We like to mix some yogurt, mayo, olive oil, vinegar and grated cheese to dress these beauties. Blue cheese is a favorite in our home. 

RED LEAF LETTUCE: Also out of the high tunnel, the red leaf is at its peak. 

SWEET POTATOES: This year’s crop was among our least productive ever, but we do have a mix of orange and white ones for the shares this week only. The skinny ones are perfect for this spiced sweet potato recipe from our 2012 blog https://fairsharenews.blogspot.com/2012/11/what-to-do-with-your-share-week-27.html 

RADISHES: Crisp and clean, these red radishes are sweet and juicy. Slice them thin to add to a sandwich, or grate onto a salad. 

ENDIVE: A versatile green for a fresh salad, or to add to any cooked dish. 

LAST OF THE SUMMER FRUITS: We have some tomatoes, tomatillos, jalapenos and other harvest items that need a home and will be distributing them in the shares this week. Enjoy this final taste of summer. 

Farm report: 

A rollercoaster of weather it has been these past two weeks. We hit 85 degrees last Thursday before dipping into the upper 20s yesterday morning with snow falling. 

 

Thanks to the hard work of our awesome crew, we were prepared and were able to enjoy the snowy morning and doing a bit of "farming the desk". The high tunnel crops were warm and cozy with their rebuilt side wall, the last of the field crops tucked a full cooler, a big load of well-rotted hay delivered for mulching, and our first fire of the season in our woodstove. 

The field work for 2020 is far from complete.  Stakes, row cover and irrigation tape need to come in for the winter.  The garlic will be planted on Friday and hopefully mulched soon after.  Plus, just in time for election day we will be planting 20 chestnut trees.  

The high tunnel will continue to provide for the last week's shares and intermittently throughout the winter.  We should have a nice share of leafy greens and hopefully some salad turnips and celery for the final week. 

In the Share: Week 14

In the Share: 

LEEKS: Last night we sautéed leeks with garlic and fennel, added canned smoked clams, and served it over lentils which turned out to be a really quick, nutritious and delicious meal. 

BULB FENNEL: Along with using it in the recipe above, it is great chopped into a fresh salad. 

BUTTERHEAD LETTUCE: Lots of fixings for a great fall salad. I can’t get enough butterhead lettuce. 

RED LEAF LETTUCE: These heads are sizing up as the days shorten and cool down a bit. 

GARLIC: A head of storage garlic. Keep it in your crisper between uses as garlic wants to sprout this time of year.

SPROUTING BROCCOLI: This has become such a staple in our kitchen from now through to Spring. 

SPINACH: We had our first harvest this week as we thinned the plants to six inches apart. 

KALE/CHARD/BOK CHOI CHOICE: Many greens are at their peak right now. Tonight a fried rice stir fry with bok choi makes a hearty meal out of our veggies and eggs. 

Farm report: 

We are making the most of the dry, warm weather to wrap up the end of the outdoor season. A freeze is in the forecast for Friday morning and the harvest is in earnest. We have filled the walkin cooler to the brim with Napa cabbage, daikon radishes, green cabbages and bok choy. The last of the outdoor CSA lettuces, fennel and bok choy are coming in and going out in this week’s shares. After this week, the bulk of the harvest will be coming from the high tunnel. 

Sprouting broccoli, spinach, Swiss Chard, lettuce, bok choi, tat soi, celery, turnips, onions and radishes are thriving inside. At the moment, inside is not so different than outside as we have a pretty big remodel going on. 

Nine years ago when we built the high tunnel we used the standard Douglas fir boards for the bottom and top of the side walls. Sadly, with continual exposure to weather and constant humidity, it did not take very long for the wood to rot. When we looked at replacing the boards, we decided to spend more to get steel boards that have a longer lifespan. While we are happy with our decision, the work of attaching the steel to the structure has required some brute strength to drill countless holes through the steel. Luckily the crew has some muscle and after a bit of trial and error, we should be wrapping up the project tomorrow with time to spare before the freeze.

The plants inside will appreciate cooler weather.  They have quickly grown to a hefty size and need to slow down if we hope to hold them until the last week of the CSA in November.  We don't begrudge the end of summer, but look forward to the crisp days to come as life retracts towards our winter rest. From here onward we must soak up the sun while we can and enjoy the beauty of the natural world around us.