In the Share - Week 19

hot pepper wash

TOMATOES (F/P) They aren’t as pretty as they used to be, but they are packed with flavor.

LETTUCE (F/P) The cucumber beetles are after anything they can find, including the lettuces. We are picking them young while they are still nice.

RATTLESNAKE BEANS (F/P) We will have a pound for all this week, if our guess is right.

KOHLRABI (F/P) check out Tom’s post to hear from our one of our most misunderstood vegetables.

CABBAGE (F/P) our early-maturing green cabbages are ready. Still growing in the fields are red, savoy and Napa types.

CARROTS (F) The last of the stored carrots. We hope to have many fresh ones in late October and into November for the extended season.

RADISHES, KALE, COLLARDS, OR CHARD (F) Eating a rainbow includes the color green!

EGGPLANT OR OKRA (F)  The okra is being shy this summer but the eggplant is starting to kick in to it's fall flush.

SWEET PEPPERS (P) We are mostly harvesting purple peppers right now while we wait for the other colors to ripen.

HERB CHOICE (F) Hot peppers, tarragon, or garlic chives.

NEXT WEEK: More tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and beans. Onions and sweet potatoes.

FARM REPORT:

pole bean pick

This past Saturday Tom and I joined the FSF CSA Core Group at our mid-season meeting. On the agenda: review of the CSA member survey results and the planning of the End of Season dinner.

The 9th Annual Fair Share Farm End of Season dinner will be held Saturday, October 27th, 4-6 pm at the St. James Lutheran Church (same spot as the Spring Sign-up). As always, the event is a potluck with some of the best food in town. Man, our members know how to cook! Kid’s crafts and a scavenger hunt. Halloween costumes are encouraged. Bring an instrument to play in the pre-program jam if you like. Keep your eyes out for an “evite” coming to your mailbox soon.

The 2012 FSF CSA survey results are in, with over 100 responses. Thanks to all of you who took the time to offer your thoughts and feedback. We actually want to know your answers to the questions in the survey and we use your feedback to guide us in our planning for the future. We were delighted to hear that over 90% of you plan to re-new your membership for 2013 and that you believe the CSA share is a “good value” and a “sufficient” amount of produce. 100% agreed that your time at the farm was productive and that distribution is clear and efficient.

Beyond the produce, many of you commented that you appreciated the opportunity to connect with where your food comes from, that there is a great benefit to the children especially in having that experience, and coming to the farm is a good remedy for the cubicle blues. Getting out of bed early, dealing with the heat and hard labor were your least favorite aspects of it all, but most acknowledged that they couldn't have one without the other. Thank you again for all your comments.  I plan to include more on the 2012 survey in the following weeks.

What to Do With Your Share---Week 19

A member of our CSA family recently asked to have a chance to talk in the blog.
 

Hi CSA members. You all know me, as I have been a member from the start. My name is Kohl Rabi, but you can call me Cole.

The results of the recent survey showed that there are some of you who have a mixed opinion of me at best. While I can appreciate that, I can’t help but have a little bit of a complex. I know I look a little like an alien, and that I have a thick skin, but I really do have a tender heart.

My lineage is in the Brassica family. My oldest know relative is the wild cabbage. The rest of my lineage is closely tied to human desire. I exist only through the hands of agriculture, being made the way I am by manipulation. Some say my family line goes back to the time of the Roman emperors. Others that it was the Germans that brought me to be in the 1400's.

 

I’m not as strong as my cousin Purple Top Turnip (which FSF no longer grows), or as hot and spicy as my cousin Radish. In fact, my flavor is closer to Broccoli, which I hear is a favorite of most all in the group.

 

 

While I look like a root, I actually spend my days above ground as, I admit, I am a stem. It does makes me a little bit of an oddball. After all, how many fat stems do you know? Which is why I suppose, I am so misunderstood.

 

All I ask is that, if you haven't already, try Tom's simple kohlrabi and dip snack. I hope we meet again.

 

Your vegetable,

Cole

 

How to Use Your Kohlrabi

Well put Cole. He did not mention though, how right now the kohlrabi is at its peak at Fair Share Farm. Now is the time for the 2012 Fall crop to be harvested.

 

To eat kohlrabi you need to know how to easily clean kohlrabi. Below are shown a few photos of this procedure. First you will want to trim the top and bottom flat, so that you can easily use a knife or vegetable peeler to take off the skin.

 

 

Once you have a cleaned bulb you can cut it however you want. You can start out cutting it in half, and then into half moons. From there it is easy to cut wedges, julienne strips or cubes.

 

Once you've cut them, set out a bowl of your favorite dip or salad dressing, and snack away. A sprinkling of lemon or lime juice is a nice touch.

 

 

So, there you have it. Cole at his best.

What to Do With Your Share---Week 18

Turns out that I leave the farm for two days to attend my nephew's wedding, and next thing I know I miss the first major rain in probably a year. But it was fun to come back, walk the fields and see the cover crops germinating in nice rows, mushrooms popping up out of the ground all over, and a certain greeness take over the farm.

A welcome drink that is still soaking in, this moisture will help our plants add some robustness and plumpness, hopefully without bursting. So if you see a crack in something this week, you now know why.

This week's recipe is a soup that combines many of the items you have gotten in your share over the last several weeks. This curried soup can be made with either squash or pumpkin. You can even add some carrots in for sweetness and body. This soup turned out especially good, both in it's truly velvety texture and its savoriness.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
1 medium butternut squash, cleaned and chopped
3 to 4  small onions, chopped
2 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp finely chopped sage leaves
13 oz can of coconut milk

Method
1. Cut the squash just "above the waste." You can then peel them easily with a vegetable peeler. Next cut the squash from top to bottom, scoop out the seeds, and then chop the squash into one inch pieces.

 

2. Saute the onions in olive oil in a soup pot for 3 minutes. Next add the squash, garlic, jalapenos, salt, curry and sage. Stir and saute for 3 more minutes. Add the water and bring to a boil. Turn to a simmer, cover, and cook for 35 minutes or until tender.

 

3. Puree the soup in a food processor, return to the soup pot, add the coconut milk and stir. Cook at a simmer for 10 minutes to blend the flavors. Serve with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

In the Share - Week 18

 

TOMATOES (F/P) Five inches of rain bursts a ripe tomato like a balloon, so good “share-worthy" tomatoes are in short supply this week. Not that we are complaining, the rain was most welcome.

RATTLESNAKE BEANS (F/P) The snakes are coming on well now. A big THANK YOU goes to the Saturday crew which picked in the rain and mud with us – we couldn’t have done it without you all!

PINK BEAUTY RADISHES (F/P) The first fresh roots of the fall. I like their light mustardy kick, but if you aren’t so enchanted give them a quick fry to mellow their heat.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH (F/P) The last of the cucurbitae family for the year, unfortunately. Their early demise we think is due to a combination of record heat, record drought and the bugs who didn’t seem to mind either. Thankfully, the drought appears to be over.  See Tom's post for a great curried butternut squash soup recipe.

EGGPLANT, OKRA OR SWEET PEPPERS (F) These three summer fruits will escort us into the fall season and stay with us until first frost.

ARUGULA (F) the plants were beaten up a bit by the strong wind and rain last night, but they are still very nice for a fresh salad. A common (and tasty!) arugula salad is with a red wine vinaigrette, roasted beets and walnuts. Yum! Add a bit of goat cheese and wow! Partial shares get a choice of arugula with their herb choice.

KALE OR COLLARDS (P) The greens are so juicy right now with all of the rain which is just what is needed after a hot, sweaty day in the fields.

HERB CHOICE (F/P) Parsley, basil or a dried herb.

GARLIC (F/P)  Honestly, with every thing else going on this week we haven't looked at it lately.  Tomorrow we will clean and grade it and we think we should have garlic for all.

ALSO THIS WEEK: Parker Farms CSA shares

NEXT WEEK: More tomatoes, peppers, okra, eggplant, radishes and greens. Lettuce returns! More onions.

FARM REPORT:

It is wrong to appreciate a hurricane that caused the suffering of our neighbors to the south, but we were very happy to receive Isaac’s leftovers. Our rain gauge tops out at 5 inches, so we are guessing we got a bit over that in the last four days. Besides the cracked tomatoes and a few broken arugula leaves we seem to have survived the deluge in good shape. The rain cannot undo all of the damage from a summer of drought and extreme temperatures, but we can already see results in the field. Our young green plants for fall are growing fast and well. The summer fruits have a new batch of flowers and all of the cover crop seeds that wouldn’t sprout without rain all summer are sprouting now.

 

The farm crew continues on the high tunnel project. Both side walls with their drop curtains are up and finished. The last step for the curtain is to run a rope in zig-zag fashion down the length. Tom caught farm apprentices, Dani Hurst and Ryan Stubby, making shadow puppets as they secured the rope.

KC CSA Coalition Farm Tour

Come one, come all to the farm NEXT SUNDAY! 

Fair Share Farm is hosting a farm tour and potluck Sunday, September 9th.  All are welcome, whether you are currently a FSF CSA member or just want to learn more about what we are all about.

This event is sponsored by the Kansas City CSA Coalition.  The KC-CSA Coalition supports our efforts to build a more sustainable future by promoting area CSA farms and educating the public on the benefits of CSA. See more about them here

The farm is green and lush from the deluge (5 inches so far!) we received from Hurricane Isaac. See your crops growing, meet folks like yourselves who care about where their food comes from, and eat good food.

3:30 pm farm tour

5:00 pm potluck

Bring a dish to share. RSVP to rebecca(a)fairsharefarm.com.

In the Share - Week 17

cucurbit family fruit

 

TOMATOES (F/P) A combination of slicers and cherry tomatoes

COLORFUL CARROTS (F/P) This may be the last week of these. Thank you carrots of all colors for nourishing us during a brutal summer!

YELLOW OR RED ONIONS (F/P) The yellow onions are our best keepers and they’ve got a bite to prove it.

WATERMELON, CANTALOUPE OR PUMPKIN (F/P) We realize this is an odd-ball of a choice, but it is what we have. Choose which big ball of fruit you want.

 HOT PEPPERS (F) We continue to have a lot of hot peppers, one of the few fruiting plants that is not affected by high temperatures.

RATTLESNAKE BEANS (F) Precious, precious beans! Finally after months of watching six rows of beans sit and do nothing in the heat, our pole beans are ready to be picked. ‘Snake’ beans can get big but they stay tender and have a nice nutty flavor. Partial shares will get them next week and hopefully the full shares will too.

OKRA, BEETS OR EGGPLANT (P) The last of the beets until fall. Okra and eggplant should be going on for awhile more.

GREENS CHOICE (F) There is some kale and collard plants that need to be picked. They won’t be big bunches but it is nice to have something green for a change.

HERB CHOICE (F/P) We are sending in more dried herbs along with sage and thyme.

NEXT WEEK: More tomatoes, peppers, okra, eggplant, and beans. Arugula and radishes, we hope. Garlic returns.

FARM REPORT:

The big news on the farm is the glorious high tunnel taking shape over in its corner of the farm. See Tom’s post for more on the work day on Sunday, but I must say we are stupendously fortunate to have such capable, friendly folks in our corner. We slopped around in the mud together and cogitated over the plans together and in the end we managed to get a lot done and have a good time doing it. Today we began seeding the plants that will call the high tunnel home in about a month’s time.

Lettuces, bok choy, bunching onions, beets, and bulb fennel are seeded so far. Also on the list to enter the tunnel: radishes, carrots, young turnips, spinach, arugula, swiss chard, rapini and endive. Since we have never done this before we are very hesitant to predict how the season will turn out, but we hope to offer an extension of the CSA season by three weeks to a maximum of 50 current CSA members. The twenty-fourth and final week of the regular CSA season will be the week ending October 20th. Once we get to October, we will ask you to let us know if you would like to extend your share.

beneficial insect:  predatory lacewing

In the meantime, we are looking forward to the beginning of a new harvest season. The small bunches of kale and collards are ushering us into what looks to be a bountiful fall. The 0.75 inch rain on Sunday gave the thousands of baby seedlings a nice drink, but six inches down the soil is still dry. The irrigation pump stays on to supplement what nature provides. We are keeping an eye on Hurricane Isaac but it is unclear if any rain will get here. So far we are a foot of rain below average for the year. We hope that everyone stays safe down in the Gulf Coast and that they send some of their extra moisture on up to us.

What to Do With Your Share---Week 17

The high tunnel work continues. You can view the latest progress by clicking on the video to the right. Thanks once again to all who helped. Today John and I framed in the second end wall. The view from the top was quite nice.

High tunnel beds ready for planting

We hosted a farm tour for Lincoln University and MU Extension, as well as the Mattie Rhodes Center on Saturday and had a good time. Marlin Bates, one of our local horticulturalists from MU Extension, gave a talk on GAP or Good Agricutural Practices. The students toured our packing room facility and we talked about the importance of safe hygiene.

Lincoln U./MU Extension tour

Dr. Jamie Pinero, an entomologist from Lincoln talked about pests, beneficials, trap cropping, and stink bug and cucumber beetle management. We will be working together with him next year and feel good that we will develop systems for reducing loss from these pests over time.

The target of these bugs is the cucurbit crop, which includes melons and pumpkins. That is why we don't have enough pumpkins for everyone, or watermelon for everyone, but have just enough for them to be a choice. Some are larger than others so sorry if your portion size is small, we are working on it.

Melon Additives
Picking vine fruit like melons is a tricky process. You have to know the signs of ripeness, be they a thump or a sniff or a look. So we can not guarentee perfect ripeness in every melon. If your melon is just not up to ripeness, you can enhance the flavor a bit with some salt, sugar, honey, citrus, or whatever you like.

Rebecca uses a syrup of juice of half a lime, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 tsp honey. I like a dash of salt.

Lastly, you have to see this picture of a sunflower that grew in our yard all by itself. No tilling, planting, hoeing, weeding, trellising, pruning or watering. We estimate this helianthus is 12 to 14 feet tall. Amazing.

Farm Flowers