In the Share: Week 2

In the Share: 

TAT SOI: As deep green as can be, tat soi is mild enough for a fresh salad, a stir fry, or even a kimchi. Some of this week’s bunches have some flowertops, all of which is very edible and add color to your dish.

RED LEAF LETTUCE The lettuce is starting to size up well. The “New Red Fire” variety is both crispy and tender.

BUTTERHEAD LETTUCE: A favorite around here. Cut it into wedges and dress with shredded root vegetables, nuts, raisins and dressing.

RADISH/SALAD TURNIP BUNCH: The radish is crisp and fresh, while the turnips are sweet and juicy. These are some of our best.

SPROUTING BROCCOLI: It seems to us that the broccoli is only getting sweeter. It is good both raw and cooked when topped with mustard vinaigrette.

ASPARAGUS: The asparagus plants are starting this season strong and we are happy to be able to get a bunch to everyone. Snap off the tough, white end and enjoy this spring treat. We dusted the spears with garlic and onion powder before frying in a little oil until crisp.

CILANTRO/DILL BUNCH: A fresh garnish for most anything you cook, we like to add it to yogurt to make a dressing/dip.

SPINACH OR CHARD: These two greens are actually in the same botanical family. Only spinach is recommended for fresh eating. This week’s chard is bagged, so there is not as much stem as with the bunches. So all you have to do is rinse it, cut it up, and add it to your pasta sauce, soup or potatoes. 

Farm report: 

Greetings from the farm! Our “home office” is the great outdoors which is a lot quieter these days without the community working with us. In the evening we go indoors and catch up on the news and our hearts sink, but during the day our spirits are lifted by the natural world that surrounds us. The high tunnel has never been happier.

Turnips, red lettuce, spinach and sprouting broccoli fill the frame. All of what is in the share this week, except asparagus, is coming out of the high tunnel. After this share, the indoor pickings will be slim and we will need to rely on the outside fields to keep us fed. The freeze two weeks ago did do some damage. It may be a lighter share in two weeks as a result.

The freeze came under the covers.  Some of the strawberry flowers were lost. Any with black centers won’t bear fruit. Luckily many more healthy flowers are blooming now.

The aerial shots were from the last transmissions of our first drone-SKYBOT-1. Too lightweight for a stiff wind, we lost the little guy in the pond. The pics do a good job of showing how we have changed from a rectangular farming system to one on the contour.

 The swales are placed to move water throughout the farm, rather than letting it rush away and erode the soil. The space between the swales, (aka, the “alleys”) is where we will be growing our crops, pasturing livestock, planting perennials, and managing water. We are glad we could get a view from above of what we have been doing. It helps us better visualize our progress.

Fair Share Farm CSA---Week 1

IN THE SHARE:

SWISS CHARD: If you are new to chard be sure to chop and cook the stems first, and then the leaves. We add a quarter cup or so of vinegar while the chard is cooking, to help mellow it out. Green garlic is a nice addition too.

CABBAGE: The cabbages have been stored in our cooler since fall, awaiting their return to our tables. Grate it into a slaw, cook it with the potatoes, or add it to a soup.

POTATOES: These Kennebec potatoes were dug late last summer. We keep them cold and in the dark, fast asleep until now. We like them this time of year in a hash.

SPOUTING BROCCOLI OR BOK CHOI: The sweet taste of broccoli vs. the crunchiness of bok choi make this a tough choice.

LETTUCE:  First little heads from the high tunnel.

SPINACH OR LETTUCE:  We may have one or the other at each distribution site, farmers choice.

GREEN GARLIC: It’s great to have the chance to harvest some garlic again. Chop it fine and add to egg salad or other spreads.

CHIVES: Garnishing your meal with fresh chives connects you with the first growths of spring. Mix it with sour cream or yogurt to make a great dip, or into your morning scrambled eggs.

FARM REPORT:

The farm is in week three of hunkering down due to the virus. We are staying home and away from others as much as possible. We are hand-washing, using sanitizer, physical distancing and other measures to ensure that we keep our community safe. Face masks arrived last week. We use them during post-harvest handling and at farmers markets and CSA pickup.

Compared to most, our lives have not changed much due to the virus. We work from home, grow food, with no kids and few social engagements. We are a crew of four which can easily keep our social distance across the fields. Less cars on our little country road have meant we hear more birds and frogs instead. So far we are all healthy.  It is an embarrassment of riches during a worldwide pandemic.

We had thought perhaps that even Spring itself had gone into hiding. Bitter cold north winds blasted the farm on Easter weekend. The same storm that left a foot of snow in Wisconsin, led to 50 tornadoes across the South, gave us freezing temperatures and a relentless wind that turned our covers into tatters.

They were all patched and back on the next day, but it is too soon to tell how the crops will fare. The plants aren’t dead but they might be stunted.

Other crops are fine and happy for the moisture and cooler temps. The strawberry patch has been growing leaves, but no blossoms yet, luckily. May flowers bear June fruit, but they will probably start flowering in late April.

 The onion transplants are adjusting to their new ground. They can handle cold nights and don’t need cover. You can also see here our new farming system on the contour with berms every 40 feet.

It has been fun learning to wrap ourselves around the berms and swales that we installed this winter. They attempt to solve the problem of uneven distribution of water on our farm. The berms slow down the movement of water down our slopes, preventing erosion and allowing more moisture to stay on the land and soak in. So far, they seem to be working.

Meanwhile, the hens are enjoying the fresh Spring growth of the cover crops and whatever insects might buzz their way.

We look forward to the day when we can welcome the community back to the farm to see it all in person. Until then, let’s stay home and be well.

In the Share: Week 16

BONITA SWEET POTATOES: The Bonita’s definitely live up to the word sweet. Also, be careful as they cook relatively quickly, so check them often for tenderness. Treat them as you would a white potato and make a unique salad.

SALAD TURNIPS AND RED RADISHES: Fresh and crispy, all you need is a little salt to enhance the flavor of these fresh roots.

BOK CHOY, SWISS CHARD OR SPROUTING BROCCOLI: .

SPINACH OR LETTUCE MIX: Fresh greens from the high tunnel. A tough choice, but no losers here. The spinach is full of body and flavor while the lettuce is tender and crunchy.

ROOTS MIX: A mix of carrots, beets, and two types of colorful radishes can make for a bright fresh slaw, or a yummy roast. More suggestions below.

BULB FENNEL OR LEEK: Great roasted with the root mix.

GARLIC: We store the garlic in a cool and dry cooler to keep it at peak quality. It goes with everything in the share.

DILL OR ROSEMARY: We still have some herbs in the high tunnel. Just the thing to garnish a slaw or cooked greens.

RECIPE: The root mix this week is a versatile group of vegetables. When used fresh, you simply have to clean and grate them together with some salt, garlic, and a dressing of your choice. That has been our angle the last few days. A finely chopped couple stalks of fennel really enhances the dish’s freshness. On the other hand, all you have to do is clean and cut the vegetables into chunks, toss with a little salt, oil and herbs, and roast at 400 F for 30 to 45 minutes. Mix in some fennel and sweet potatoes for a real mix of flavors.

FARM REPORT:
‘Tis the final week of the 2019 CSA season, and just in time as old man winter arrived last night. The low dipped to 5 degrees, although by the time the sun was up enough to take the photo it had reached a balmy 7.

This is perhaps the coldest weather this early in the fall that we have experienced in our 17 years of growing food on the Graff place. It was an abrupt change from the 65 degrees we enjoyed on Saturday during our hike across the farm.

In the high tunnel with two heavy layers of row cover, we still had some freezing. Most plants recovered but you may notice a bit of tinged stems and leaves in your share this week. They are all still completely edible and may be even sweeter due to the cold snap.

The cold has kept the farm crew indoors as much as possible. Between the high tunnel and the fermenting kitchen there is still plenty of space to work even when it is freezing outside. The cooler is full of cabbages and roots destined for pickles and krauts. Today we made green kimchi from the last field harvests of bok choy and tat soi. The kitchen is spacious enough that we move the winter packing work inside as well. Having year-round work is important for our employees and the farmers too. We look forward to watching the winter season from the big kitchen windows.

Finally, we thank our 100 CSA member families from the bottom of our dirty boots for joining us this season. Our farm is growing stronger every day due to your consistent support. We hope you have a happy, healthy winter season and look forward to feeding you again in the Spring. We also encourage you all to support the Brookside Winter Market, which has a record number of vendors this season: https://www.brooksidefarmersmarket.com/   We hope to see you there!

In the Share: Week 15

SALAD TURNIPS: We can’t grow these turnips any better. Eat these fresh with a little salt for a wonderful appetizer or snack.

SPINACH: The spinach has flourished in the protection of the high tunnel. Enjoy it with some fresh cheese or with some free-range organic eggs.

CABBAGE: Fresh fall cabbage is always a treat. The harvest always coincides with the coming of cold autumn nights. To keep cabbage crisp and tender, salt it after cutting.

KALE AND BROCCOLI BUNCHES: Tender tops of the kale rescued from the field before the freeze. Bundled with some hefty sprouting broccoli, they make a great greens combo.

GARLIC: This softneck garlic stores best in the vegetable crisper. And if you have a garden, you can plant the larger cloves in your garden now to get a head of garlic next July.

LETTUCE/ARUGULA: Wednesday pickup will be lettuce, Satuday and Monday will get the arugula.

FARM REPORT
With the onset of wintery weather, the best work environment on the farm is the high tunnel.

The first picking of the spinach crop is outstanding. If we are lucky, we will continue to pick it every few weeks throughout the winter into next Spring. For the next several months, our harvest field has been reduced to this 30 ft. by 96 ft. space. While buttoning up the end wall, we got a bird’s eye view.

Left to Right:  Swiss Chard, sprouting broccoli, spinach, salad turnips, lettuce.  Outside is another story, with the fields headed towards a winter slumber.

This was on a lovely fall day last week when we got out the big ladders and buttoned up the end of the high tunnel.  Since then, we have just a few tasks left to complete before we can settle in to the winter routine. We could use a few more sunny, dry days to plant and mulch the garlic, wind up the remaining irrigation tape and chop down the sunflower stalks. As the season draws to a close, nature dresses herself in her own Halloween decorations.

In the Share: Week 14

BULB FENNEL: Chop the white part of a couple stalks along with some fronds and add to any fresh salad.

SWEET POTATOES: Dug several weeks ago and cured in the greenhouse. We’ve cutting them into wedges and covering with a cumin, coriander, paprika and garlic rub. Toss in olive oil, then the spice mix, and bake at 425 30 minutes or until browned and tender.

LEEKS: Started in the greenhouse in February and in the ground since March, these slow growing cousins of onions are worth the wait. Check out this recipe from our first season in 2004. www.fairsharefarm.com/archive/info/Newsletter/2004/week_18_september22.pdf

LETTUCE: Big, leafy heads from the high tunnel.

ASIAN GREENS: It’s a great time of year for a fresh stir fry. Check out these recipes from our first blog of 2011 https://fairsharenews.blogspot.com/2011/05/welcome-to-vegetables.html

KALE OR CHARD: happy, leafy greens

GREEN PEPPERS: Summer’s swan song, a great stir fry addition.

SAGE: Chop the sage leaves fine and add them to the sweet potato rub described above.

RECIPE: Going through old blogs checking for leek recipes, I came across the final blog of 2016. https://fairsharenews.blogspot.com/2016/10/what-to-do-with-your-share-week-24.html. Leeks and fennel were center stage, just as they are this week. It’s a nice tradition to carry on.

FARM REPORT:
Just two weeks ago, the summer sizzled and the fields were full of flowers and a buzz with insects including a migrating monarch who is hopefully far to the south by now.

Saturday morning, frost laid a heavy blanket over the farm. In a few hours, the heat-loving plants were gone and our fields turned into a graveyard. Only the hardiest roots and leafy greens survive. In anticipation for the big event, the farm crew worked quickly to dig the sweet potatoes and pick crate after crate of green peppers.

Meanwhile, inside the protected high tunnel the plants are happily oblivious to the drama.

Nature puts on quite a show out here. You never know what you are going to see next. After one little shower last week, this was the view from the farm house.

In the Share---Week 13

Zucchini and summer squash

SUMMER SQUASH: Our late summer planting is producing as well as any patch we have ever had. Enjoy these in fritters (see below.)


CARROTS: Their time in the cooler has only served to sweeten them up. Enjoy these crunchy delights.


LETTUCE: It’s been a scramble to keep the harvest the lettuce before it “bolts,” something that is normally not a problem in October.


GREENS CHOICE: The high tunnel chard and kale in the field are thriving right now. Our regular use for these healthy greens is to chop it fine and add it to our pasta sauce. We love the color and richness they add to a dish.


SWEET PEPPERS: They go with everything in the share.


GARLIC: The last of the hard neck variety.


SPROUTING BROCCOLI: Eat your broccoli!


HERB CHOICE:  A choice of common chives or rosemary.


When I was a kid we used to travel to South Bend, Indiana to visit my dad’s father and sister. Aunt Betty would always make a batch of zucchini fritters when we were there. Something about the wonderful aroma of them that takes me back to those days. Viva Italia!

Zucchini Fritters

Ingredients:
2 cups shredded zucchini
2 cloves of garlic, chopped fine
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup grated cheese (parmesan, goat cheese, mozzarella...)
1/2 cup water
flour to make a pancake-like batter (thick)

Method:
Mix together all of the ingredients except the flour. Add flour to form a thick batter.
Heat 1/2 inch frying oil in a pan.
With tablespoon, spoon batter into the oil to form patties. Fry until browned on both sides.



FARM REPORT:

The heat continues on this long summer. We look forward to cooler temps over the next few days and hopefully some more seasonal weather. Our fall plants that have been waiting for cooler days and nights to mature as the days grow shorter. Here’s to a good October.

Equinox sunrise

Work days have turned to days of harvest, collecting irrigation equipment from the field, mulching, and fortifying the high tunnel for the winter. 


On the adjacent Graff Property land the Indian grass is being combined to collect the seed. It has been a great year to see this stand of native grass thrive and produce seed to help establish other farms andconservation areas.

In the Share - Week 12

OKRA/EGGPLANT/SALSA PACK CHOICE: If you like okra, you are in the right place this week as this Ethiopian transplant is thriving. It’s an itchy crop to pick, but the beautiful view is reward enough.

TOMATOES: We are flush in ripe tomatoes right now, but the harvest is on the downslope. This will be the last chance to take advantage of bulk list seconds and the abundant share.

SPROUTING BROCCOLI: The side shoots are sprouting, so we should have a regular harvest of this CSA favorite. It’s nice to have a vegetable that can simply be chopped and cooked, a real fast food.

SWEET PEPPERS: They might be getting even sweeter!

SUMMER SQUASH: Our late summer planting is happy as can be right now and a treat to harvest. We’ve been zoodling at night and saving some to stuff our morning eggs.

RADISHES: Adding a little spice to the share, the radish’s fire is a manifestation of the heat it has been growing in. Salting them will take some of the heat away. They are perfect right now for a radish and butter sandwich.

LETTUCE: So far the lettuce is holding. Enjoy these heat tolerant heads while we got them.

CAULIFLOWER: These plants are too darn hot and are on the small side. The flavor is still quite nice.

FENNEL HEADS&SEEDS: The herb fennel has established itself on our herb bed with very little cultivation on our part. Many of the seed heads are plumped out, fresh and at their peak flavor. They are edible and delicious.

FARM REPORT

The heat has returned and with it the summer plants are ripening loads of fruit. The zucchini and yellow squash are picture perfect right now.

Pepper s continue to dazzle the eyes of the harvester.

Likewise, the tomatoes gave us one last week of tonnage.

The potluck and open house went as planned through the muggy weather. We enjoyed welcoming the die-hard picnickers who braved the heat. It was nice to catch up with those we knew from the CSA and farmers market, plus we met some new folks who had found us through social media. The potluck dinner was delicious as always. One of the Prairie Birthday fruit share members made a tasty wild plum chutney that went really well with the Parker Farms bratwurst.

I love that the ingredient list says "EVERY SPICE"  Delicious and funny!