Farm Share Newsletter August 14 2019

August weeds

It’s mid August, and in the garden, we are spending about half of our time harvesting. There are still seedlings to transplant, but their numbers are dwindling, because in two months from now, we’ll be in the middle of October. August is notorious for weeds, because if you’ve put off weeding until now, those weeds are probably five feet tall with roots so deep they’ll pull out half the garden with them! Thanks to the hard work of our interns and a 70 year old cultivating tractor, we have avoided that scenario. The weeds seem to know, though, that their time is waning, and they seem to put extra effort into producing great quantities of seed this time of year.

Aunt Ruby’s German Green heirloom tomato

A tomato that’s ripe AND green! One of our all time favorites, I think Aunt Ruby’s German Green is best used raw. I like it in salsa, or in sandwiches, or just on its own. Tart and tangy, it is a delight. Color is most vibrant when uncooked, when cooked it is still tasty but not as pretty. Don’t use for fried green tomatoes, it will turn to mush.

Celery

I’ve been hemming and hawing about whether to harvest celery this week and I decided why wait? We are giving you the whole plant, which includes the tender heart, the central light colored stalks, and the darker outer stalks. These outer stalks have great flavor and most aren’t too tough for using raw. I found two tasty stir fry recipes that use lots of celery, in case you’re having trouble using it. Celery also freezes well, just slice and bag it up. It won’t have the same texture, but is good for cooking. Mirepoix! - Aaron

Vegetables

Melon Celery Squash or Cucumber Pepper or Eggplant Carrots Tomatoes Garlic Lettuce

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil

Flowers Nasturtium, Snap Dragon, Shasta Daisy, Dahlia, Sunflower, Amaranth, Dyer’s Coreopsis, Echinacea, Nigella, Zinnia

Pasta with roasted tomatoes, grilled eggplant and smoked cheese

1-2 lbs eggplant

fresh ground pepper

2 1/2 lbs tomatoes

3/4 cup red wine

1/2 large onion

parsley to taste

1 clove garlic

4 oz smoked Provola or Mozzarella (cut in 1/4” dice)

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 lb fusilli or other pasta

Slice eggplant 1/2” thick, sprinkle with salt on both sides. Leave 1/2 hour then squeeze out excess water. Brush lightly with olive oil. Grill over hot coals a few minutes on each side, until browned and tender. Cut into bite size strips. Core and quarter the tomatoes, lay on baking sheet skin down, and roast at 375 for 30-45 minutes until browning on the edges. Scoop out pulp, reserve. Chop onion and garlic, sauté in 1 tbsp olive oil until they begin to color. Add tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano and wine. Simmer until you have a medium thick sauce. Cook fusilli, drain. Toss fusilli with sauce, eggplant strips, and smoked cheese cubes. Serve sprinkled with parsley. The Vegetarian Epicure (web), Anna Thomas

Gazpacho Andaluz

3 lbs tomatoes

2 tsp salt

3 medium bell peppers

black pepper

2 medium cucumbers

1 tsp sugar, if needed

1 onion

1 cup water

2 oz bread, crusts removed

2-3 tsp chopped garlic

1/3 cup fruity olive oil

5 tbsp sherry vinegar

garnishes:

diced bell pepper

diced cucumber

cherry tomatoes, halved

Blanch tomatoes in boiling water, peel, core, coarsely chop. Chop bell peppers, peel, seed and slice cucumbers. Chop onion and taste- if it is too hot to eat raw, only use some of it. Cut bread into chunks, soak in water until soft, then squeeze out excess. Mix all together in large bowl, then puree in blender, working in batches. Puree to desired texture. Taste and add more salt, vinegar, or sugar until piquant but well balanced. Chill thoroughly. Serve with garnishes and extra olive oil. The Vegetarian Epicure (web), Anna Thomas

Celery stir fry

2 tbsp oil

3 small dried chile peppers, broken in half (or 1/8 tsp red chili flakes)

4 cups julienned celery (2 inch long pieces)

1-2 tbsp soy sauce

a few drops sesame oil (opt)

Heat oil and chiles over high heat until chiles become fragrant. Add celery and stir fry 3 minutes. Add soy sauce, stir fry 1 minute. Add sesame oil if using. Serve hot or at room temperature. from simplyrecipes.com

Stir fried celery in meat sauce

1 bunch celery

1 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp sriracha or other hot sauce

1 tbsp dry sherry

1/4 tsp sugar

1/4 cup canola or peanut oil

1 clove garlic, lightly crushed

2 tsp minced ginger

1/4 lb ground pork

1/2 cup chicken stock

1 tsp sesame oil

Remove strings from outer celery stalks. Trim leaves, slice stalks into 1/4 by 1 1/2 inch sticks. Combine soy sauce, hot sauce, sherry, sugar. Heat wok over high, add 2 tbsp oil, celery, cook 1 minute. Remove celery. Reheat, add 2 tbsp oil, garlic, then ginger, pork, stirring to break up. Add sauce mixture, return celery to pan, toss. Add stock, cover, steam 2 minutes medium-low heat. Uncover, increase heat to high, stir until liquid has evaporated. Add sesame oil, toss well. Discard garlic clove. from wednesdaychef.typepad.com

Farm Share Newsletter August 7 2019

What is an heirloom?

Once unknown except to gardeners and farmers, heirloom vegetables are in the spotlight these days. Even Price Chopper is selling “heirloom tomatoes”. So what makes them different? One important difference is that an heirloom must be open pollinated, which means that it is a stable, self replicating population. In contrast, hybrid vegetables are the result of a cross between two specific parent lines. Their seeds will not produce plants similar to the hybrid. Heirlooms are usually older varieties introduced before WWII, or recent stabilized crosses of older varieties. They tend to exhibit wildly different colors, tastes, and shapes, with little standardization. Sometimes they suffer from cosmetic defects and uneven ripening when compared with hybrids, but the flavor makes up for these shortcomings.

Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato

This is typically the first of the heirloom tomatoes of the year. Cherokee Purple is a very dark maroon on the bottom, with green around the top. When cut, the flesh is dark red with contrasting green. They have a good balance of sweet and tart with a little smokiness. Best used raw, but would add complexity to a sauce along with a good deal of water to cook off.

Rossa Lunga di Tropea onion

The name means red long from Tropea, and this is indeed an elongated red onion. It has a mild flavor and is good used raw, but also can be cooked. It is a good candidate for grilling, whether skewered or just cut in half. The long shape makes it ideal for cutting into evenly sized rounds. These onions have not been fully cured yet, so I recommend removing the tops and storing in the refrigerator if you won’t use them within a week. -Aaron

Vegetables

Melon Cucumbers or Peppers Eggplant or Zucchini Carrots Tomatoes Rossa di Lunga Onions Lettuce

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil

Flowers Bachelor’s Button, Nasturtium, Snap Dragon, Shasta Daisy, Dahlia, Sunflower, Amaranth, Dyer’s Coreopsis, Echinacea, Nigella, Zinnia

Chilled carrot soup with tarragon

2 tbsp canola oil

1/4 cup white rice

1 onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon

1 lb carrots, sliced

salt, pepper

3 cups chicken broth

sugar

1/2 cup white wine

Heat oil in large pan. Add onion, sauté 3-4 minutes until soft. Add carrots, 2 cups broth, wine, rice, and tarragon. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then simmer, covered until carrots are completely soft, about 45 minutes. Cool briefly. Puree in blender, return to pot, add remaining broth, taste and season adding a little sugar if needed. Chill before serving or reheat to serve hot. Garnish with sprigs of fresh tarragon. Serving up the harvest by Andrea Chesman

Panzanella

Heat oven to 350. Spread on a baking sheet:

5 cups 1 inch cubes of crusty bread Bake until browned, 10-15 minutes.

Whisk together:

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

3 tbsp minced fresh parsley

1 tsp minced garlic

salt, cracked black pepper

Toss the croutons in a salad bowl with:

2 cucumbers, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

2 large tomatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 red onion, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1/3 cup pitted halved black olives

1/3 cup torn basil leaves

Add dressing and toss well. Remove to large platter or bowl. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup Parmesan shavings. from The Joy of Cooking

Farm Share Newsletter July 31 2019

Pesto Time

This time of year, when it’s hot and humid, I keep an eye out for signs of disease. Tomatoes are very susceptible to fungal diseases, and in the past I have used copper based fungicides to control blight. This year I am trying out some of the newer bio fungicides that are derived from giant knotweed (the invasive plant found along stream banks) and bacteria. They are much safer for the applicator and also have no “re-entry interval” after use. So far the plants look healthy.

Basil is in your share this week. You can store it in the refrigerator, in the crisper drawer, but not in the coldest spot of your fridge. It can also be stored in a vase of water on the countertop. A quick and easy way to preserve basil for the winter is to simply puree it with a bit of olive oil, then freeze into cubes. Look out for a pesto recipe in Annie’s monthly newsletter.

At our Pesto Party, we made a Sicilian style pesto (Pesto a la Trapanese), a tomato based pesto that we found delicious. To preserve the green color, quickly blanch the leaves in simmering water, then cool in ice water. We also found that pesto made in a mortar was the most flavorful version- versus a food processor or knife.

-Aaron

Vegetables

Basil Cucumbers Kale Potatoes Yellow Squash/Zucchini Tomatoes Sweet or Red Onions

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil Flowers Bachelor’s Button, Nasturtium, Fancy Pants Daisy, Cerinthe, Snap Dragon, Sweet Pea, Shasta Daisy, Dahlia, Sunflower, Amaranth, Dyer’s Coreopsis, Echinacea

Fattoush (toasted pita with veg & herbs)

1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, diced

2 7” pita breads

3 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1/2 sweet onion, finely diced

1 small green pepper, diced

1/3 cup chopped parsley

2 tbsp chopped cilantro

1 tbsp chopped mint

1/4 cup olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

1 garlic clove, minced

1 1/2 tsp ground sumac (optional)

Put cucumber in colander, toss with 1 tsp salt, set aside to drain. Heat oven to 350, open breads, bake until crisp and light brown, about 10 minutes. Break into bite size pieces. Press excess water from cucumber, rinse quickly, blot dry. Put in bowl with rest of vegetables and herbs. Shake together oil, lemon juice, garlic, sumac and 1/4 tsp salt. Add to salad, toss, add bread, toss again.

Chile lime chicken tacos with zucchini

6 medium zucchini or yellow squash, halved and sliced

1 lb boneless skinless breasts, cut into thin strips

3-4 tbsp lime juice

2-4 tsp minced chipotle en adobo

4 tbsp olive oil

2 ripe tomatoes, seeded & diced

1 red onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

flour or corn tortillas

sour cream

lime wedges

Combine squash and salt in colander, drain 30 minutes. Combine chicken, lime juice, chipotle. Set aside 20 minutes. Heat 2 tbsp oil in large skillet over medium high. Add chicken and marinade, cook about 4 minutes until no longer pink. Remove and set aside and keep warm. Add remaining oil to pan over high heat. Blot excess moisture from squash and add to pan along with the onion. Saute about 5 minutes. Add in chicken with juices, tomatoes, cilantro, garlic and cook about 5 minutes. Season to taste. Serve with warm tortillas, sour cream and lime wedges. from Serving up the harvest by Andrea Chesman

Yogurt soup with crushed nuts and garlic

1 qt yogurt, drained 25 minutes

1 1/2 cups milk or buttermilk

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup walnuts, pine nuts or almonds

2 cucumbers, peeled

1 tbsp best quality olive oil

few drops lemon juice

4-6 mint sprigs, for garnish

Combine yogurt and buttermilk in a bowl. Pound nuts with the garlic in a mortar with some salt. Add a little yogurt to loosen the mixture as you work. Cut cucumbers in half, scrape out seeds, finely dice. Stir cucumber, garlic-nut mixture and oil into the yogurt. Taste for salt and add pepper and lemon juice. Chill well and serve with mint sprigs. from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison

Farm Share Newsletter July 20 2019

First garlic, last cabbage

Yes, it’s the third week in a row we are giving out cabbage. But it’s the last for awhile (probably until September/October). Cabbage will keep in your fridge for 1-2 months if in a bag. This week we are also giving out some of the freshly harvested garlic. This garlic is uncured, so keep it in the fridge. Uncured garlic really means garlic that has not been dried. When you use it, you’ll find that there is a hard layer encasing the cloves; this would eventually dry out and become papery. Just peel it off and use the cloves as you would any garlic.

Broccolini is in your share this week. It’s a cross between Chinese broccoli and European broccoli that has very tender and sweet stems, leaves and buds. The entire plant is edible and can be sautéed or stir fried.

Farm Tour

Join us at 10:00 AM on 7/27 for a guided farm tour. This is open to the public and will be a walking tour. The tour will be tailored to the interests of the attendees.

Pesto Party

Come learn to make pesto! We will make the classic and a few non-traditional types of pesto, using food processors and a mortar and pestle, then taste them all on some good bread! Potluck to follow. -Aaron

Vegetables

Green Beans or Cucumbers Lettuce Carrots or Beets Yellow Squash/Zucchini Cabbage Garlic Broccolini

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil Flowers Bachelor’s Button, Nasturtium, Fancy Pants Daisy, Cerinthe, Snap Dragon, Sweet Pea, Shasta Daisy, Poppies

Macaroni & Cheese Lite

1/2 lb dry pasta

2 tbsp butter

2 cups chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced

4 cups shredded cabbage, about 1/2 head (you could add some broccolini to this as well)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp caraway seeds

1 lb cottage cheese

1/2 cup buttermilk or yogurt

2 tbsp fresh dill, minced

2 cups grated cheddar

handful sunflower seeds

Heat oven to 350, grease a 9x13 pan. Cook pasta until just tender, drain and dump in large bowl. Melt butter in a large deep skillet, add onions, cook 5 minutes. Add garlic, mushrooms, cabbage, salt and caraway. Cook covered until cabbage is just tender. Add to pasta. Stir in cottage cheese, buttermilk, dill, pepper, and half the cheese. Add more salt if needed, spread into pan, top with remaining cheese and sunflower seeds. Bake uncovered 20-30 minutes. from The Moosewood Cookbook

Zucchini- Crusted Pizza

2 cups packed grated zucchini

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup grated mozzarella

1/2 cup grated parmesan

fresh herbs

2 tbsp olive oil

Heat oven to 400, oil and flour a 10 inch pie pan. Combine zucchini, eggs, flour, cheeses and herbs and 1 tbsp olive oil; mix well. Spread into prepared pan and bake 35-40 minutes. Remove to cool a few minutes, then loosen from pan. Top with your favorite toppings, bake at 400 until heated through. from The Moosewood Cookbook

Cabbage Salad with peanuts

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup hot water

1/2 cup plus 1 T rice vinegar

3 tbsp brown sugar or honey

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

7-8 cups shredded cabbage

crushed red pepper to taste

garnish: 1/2 cup peanuts

grated carrots

fresh cilantro

In a large bowl, mash peanut butter and hot water until uniform. Mix in vinegar, sugar, salt, soy sauce and sesame oil. Add cabbage in 2 cup increments, mixing well after each addition. Add red pepper to taste. Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate 4 hours. Add garnishes right before serving. adapted from Still Life with Menu by Mollie Katzen

Farm Share Newsletter July 9, 2019

The July Garden

Early to mid July is a very distinct time in the garden. We’ve started to get some hot days, and the soil dries out between rains. Lots of plants have green fruits- the melons, peppers, tomatoes- that are using this heat to ripen. I’m going to head off the tomato question by saying it will be a few weeks before you get them in your share. (I won’t be any more specific than that!) So far the “peak summer” crops look healthy and vigorous. This year I’ve planted more zucchini than yellow squash since it seems to disappear faster. It’s also easier to harvest since the plants are more open, so that means fewer scratched arms for us! Last year’s problem with onion thrips appears to be a non-issue this season. The onions are now enlarging their bulbs, and we will probably give out the first sweet onions in a few weeks.

Fennel (Anise, Florence Fennel)

What to do with this anise flavored vegetable that looks like a flattened onion? The bottom is the part you eat; the stalks are usually not used, but you can use the leaves. For using raw, it’s best to slice the bulb very thin across the grain. If you’re going to cook it, make thicker slices. Cooking mellows the anise flavor, becoming soft and sweet. It pairs well with Italian sausage, makes a good pizza topping, or, if you want to try something really good, makes a delicious pesto (recipe on back). -Aaron

Vegetables

Green Beans or Cucumbers Lettuce Carrots Yellow Squash/Zucchini Cabbage Scallions Fennel

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil

Okonomiyaki

Half a small head of cabbage

2 scallions, thinly sliced

1 cup all purpose flour

2 large eggs

1/2 cup water

9 slices bacon (optional, I usually don’t add it)

other shredded/diced vegetables (onion, carrot, garlic)

Finely shred the cabbage and combine with the scallions and flour and toss to distribute everything evenly. I usually mix it with my hands. Add eggs and water and whisk together until it’s all evenly incorporated. If you want to add other ingredients, this is the time to add them. Lay out the bacon in a cold pan, overlapping the slices slightly. If you aren’t using bacon then add a few tablespoons of oil. Add enough of the cabbage mixture to cover the bacon about 3/4 inch thick. Cover with a lid and cook until well browned, 7 minutes. Flip the okonomiyaki and cook uncovered another 7 minutes. I like this with tamari or a mixture of tamari, rice vinegar and sesame oil.

Roasted Fennel Pesto

1 cup chopped fennel bulb

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds

3/4 cup fennel fronds

2 cloves garlic salt

Preheat oven to 400. On a rimmed baking sheet toss fennel with a little olive oil and roast, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly browned, about 12 mins. Meanwhile, scatter almonds on another sheet and toast 5 minutes. Let both cool a bit. In a food processor or blender, pulse fennel, fronds, garlic and 1/2 cup olive oil until pureed.Add almonds and 1/4 cup oil, season with salt and pulse to combine. Add remaining oil and pulse. from Serious Eats (Daniel Gritzer)

Zucchini Fritters

1 lb grated zucchini

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup sour cream or yogurt

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp lemon juice

1 large egg

1/2 cup flour

3 scallions, minced

1 tsp minced thyme

1 tsp minced basil

1/2 tsp lemon zest

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 cup oil

Salt and drain zucchini with 1 tsp salt for 10 minutes, then press out excess water. Wrap in a towel and squeeze out water. Mix sour cream, garlic, zest, juice and pinch salt to make sauce. Mix squash with egg, flour, scallions, herbs, zest, salt and pepper in large bowl. Heat oil in large skillet until hot. Drop tablespoons of batter, flatten slightly, brown on both sides. Serve with dipping sauce. Can be reheated under the broiler. adapted from simply recipes.com

Farm Share Newsletter July 6, 2019

Slaw Season Starts

Cabbage is often though of as a cool weather crop, but I find that our early cabbage crop is in some ways superior to the fall and winter crop. The cabbage in your share has grown very quickly, and has gotten plenty of rain, so it’s extra tender, mildly flavored and juicy. I recommend making slaws with it because it really needs no cooking. The carrots and scallions are natural partners. If you want something lighter than the traditional slaw, citrus juice and herbs with a little olive oil are refreshing, and I’ve also made an Indian spiced slaw which has cumin seeds bloomed in oil that you pour over the cabbage. If you’ve still got kohlrabi kicking around, shred that and add it to your slaw. Don’t know what to do with the choi? Even that could be chopped up and added to a slaw.

Hail storm

Last week after pickup, a powerful thunderstorm dropped some hail on us. Some of the vegetables in your share, mostly the peas, squash and lettuce may have some scars or holes from the hail. The damage is mostly cosmetic, and won’t affect flavor. -Aaron

Vegetables

Snap/Snow Peas Lettuce Carrots Yellow Squash/Zucchini Cabbage Scallions Fennel

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil

Bowties with Sugar Snaps, Ricotta and Lemon

1 lb sugar snap peas, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 lb bowtie pasta

1/2 cup finely grated pecorino romano

olive oil

sea salt

black or red pepper flakes

juice of 1 lemon

few leaves mint

1 cup ricotta

Cook pasta, then add peas three minutes before it would be done. Drain, reserve 1 cup pasta water. Add back to pot with 1/2 cup pasta water, grated cheese, a few tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss over high heat for a minute, adding more water if it looks dry. Take off heat, dollop with ricotta, tip into serving bowl. Drizzle with oil, lemon juice, sprinkle with mint and extra grated cheese. from smittenkitchen.com

Roasted Fennel Pesto

1 cup chopped fennel bulb

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds

3/4 cup fennel fronds

2 cloves garlic

salt

Preheat oven to 400. On a rimmed baking sheet toss fennel with a little olive oil and roast, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly browned, about 12 mins. Meanwhile, scatter almonds on another sheet and toast 5 minutes. Let both cool a bit. In a food processor or blender, pulse fennel, fronds, garlic and 1/2 cup olive oil until pureed.Add almonds and 1/4 cup oil, season with salt and pulse to combine. Add remaining oil and pulse. from Serious Eats (Daniel Gritzer)

Creamy Coleslaw

8 cups shredded green cabbage

3 carrots, shredded

1/4 sweet onion, finely chopped

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

3 tbsp cider vinegar

3 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp mayonnaise

1/2-3/4 tsp celery seed

salt and pepper

Combine cabbage, carrots and onion in large mixing bowl. Stir together buttermilk, vinegar, sugar, mayonnaise and celery seed in another bowl. Pour over cabbage mixture and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. It will be dry, but the longer it stands the wetter it will become. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. adapted from Serving Up the Harvest, by Andrea Chesman

Farm Share Newsletter June 29 2019

Mark Bittman Edition

It’s the end of June, and the garden is growing quickly in the long hours of sunshine. Tomato plants have small green fruits, zucchini are forming, beans are flowering, and we are trying to keep up with all of it. Now, I am planning fall and winter crops; we planted late season carrots and rutabaga on Monday, and the last of the winter squash gets planted this week. I need to think one season ahead, and at the same time, pay attention to the needs of the current moment. Our first “storage crop” harvest will be garlic, which is usually ready mid July. This is the garlic we have pulled the scapes from, which will be given out, once cured, starting in late August.

Gleaning/U-Pick

For certain crops, once production wanes, we open them up for gleaning. I use the word gleaning when there’s still some to harvest, but not in great quantities. I’ll say U-Pick for times when there is still an abundance of that crop to harvest. Flags or markers are set up to guide you to the right area.

Basil

Just a reminder that when picking basil, pinch off the top set of leaves. Don’t cut the whole plant. This way it will regrow for more harvests. -Aaron

Vegetables

Peas or Broccoli Lettuce Turnip or Beet Yellow Squash/Zucchini Kohlrabi Garlic Scapes Pac Choi

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil

Braised and Glazed Broccoli from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon minced garlic (or scapes!)

salt and pepper

1 pound broccoli, trimmed and broken into florets

1 tablespoon lemon juice chopped

parsley leaves for garnish

Put the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the garlic and cook 30 seconds. Then add the broccoli and 1/4 cup of water. Cover the pan. Cook, uncovering and stirring occasionally, until the broccoli is just tender, 10 minutes. Uncover, raise the heat, and cook out all but a little of the remaining water. Just before serving, stir in the lemon juice, drizzle with some more oil, garnish with parsley, and serve.

Barley Salad with Peas - same cookbook

1 cup pearled barley

salt

1/2 pound snap or snow peas, roughly chopped

3 or 4 scallions, chopped

freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons lemon juice (more to taste)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup yogurt

1/2 cup fresh chopped dill, mint, or parsley leaves, or a mix

1. Rinse barley and put it in a saucepan with water to cover by at least 2 inches. Add a large pinch of salt and cook over medium- high heat, stirring occasionally, until the barley is tender, about 20 minutes from when the water boils. Drain and spread on a plate to cool (or rinse under cold water). 2. Meanwhile, chop the peas and scallions. Whisk together the lemon juice, oil, and yogurt. Set aside until the barley is cool. 3. When the barley is cool, toss it in a large bowl with the veggies, sprinkle with black pepper, and then add the dressing and mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add herbs, toss all together, and serve.

Stir-Fried Vegetables, Vietnamese Style - same cookbook

1/4 cup neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn

broccoli florets in about 1 inch pieces

salad turnips, sliced

snow or snap peas, ends trimmed

1 medium to large onion, thinly sliced

2 dried chiles

1 tablespoon minced garlic (or scapes)

2 tablespoons fish or soy sauce (more to taste)

1 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste)

salt

Put 1 tablespoon of the oil in a nonstick skillet or wok over high heat. When hot, add the broccoli. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about a minute, then add 2 tablespoons water. Continue to cook and stir until the vegetable is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and repeat the process with the turnips and then the peas. Put a little more oil in the pan and then add the onion. Cook over high heat, stirring once in a while, until it softens and begins to char, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the chiles and garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Add 1/4 cup water, the sauce, and the pepper; return the cooked vegetables to the pan. Cook, stirring, until the mixture is combined and lightly sauces, then taste and adjust seasoning, adding salt if necessary, and serve.

Farm Share Newsletter June 19 2019

Sharing bin, Compost

I want to point out a few things that might make your time in the farm stand a bit more satisfying. When you walk in, to your right is a black bin on the floor, which is the sharing bin. If there’s something in this week’s share that you don’t like or won’t use, place it in the bin, don’t just skip over it. If you see something in the bin you’d like, take it! You don’t have to give something up to take something from the bin. Sometimes we will give you a choice between several vegetables. This will be indicated on the board when we write something like “Turnips or Radishes”. That means you can take one bunch of either turnips or radishes, not both. This is important because everything has been counted out for the number of members that day. So, you’ve found that head of lettuce from a few weeks ago in the back of the fridge... we’ll take it back! In our compost, that is. To the left of the farm stand is a black garbage can labeled “Compost”.

Cutting celery

This year I planted some cutting celery in the picking garden. It looks very similar to flat leaf parsley, but the flavor is celery. The stems are mild in flavor, the leaves are stronger. Although it’s much smaller than standard celery, it can be used when you need the flavor of celery, but not necessarily the bulk. -Aaron

Vegetables

Broccoli Strawberries Lettuce Garlic Scapes Spinach or Peas Kohlrabi Broccoli Raab

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery

Bowties ’n’ broccoli

1 lb bowtie pasta

1 tbsp chopped mint

1.5-2 large heads broccoli, stalks sliced, florets broken up

1/3 cup olive oil

1 cup black olives

1 tbsp minced garlic or scapes

1 cup grated Parmesan

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

salt, pepper

Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta, cook 5 minutes, then add broccoli stems, cook 2 minutes. Add florets, cook 5 minutes longer. Reserve 1/2 cup water, drain. Return broccoli and pasta to pot. Meanwhile, heat oil, add garlic and pepper, cook 3 minutes or until fragrant. Stir in parsley and mint. Remove from heat. Pour over pasta, toss to mix. Add olives and Parmesan, season with salt and pepper. Add reserved water if it seems dry. Recipe fom Serving Up the Harvest by Andrea Chesman

Kohlrabi fritters

2 kohlrabi

1/2 avocado

1 carrot

1/4 cup plain yogurt

1 egg

1/2 lemon

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cayenne

scallions for garnish

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Peel kohlrabi and carrot, shred in food processor. Squeeze out moisture, mix with egg, salt and cayenne. Heat oil in large skillet medium high, fry small patties in the oil. Brown on both sides. Mix mashed avocado, yogurt, lemon juice and salt to make the avocado cream. Serve fritters with avocado cream and chopped scallions. from acouplecooks.com

Kohlrabi slaw

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 tbsp fennel seed

2 tsp mustard

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 lbs kohlrabi, peeled

1/3 cup minced parsley

4 scallions, sliced

Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl, stirring with a whisk. Cut kohlrabi into 1/8 inch thick slices, then cut each slice into matchsticks. Add all vegetables to dressing, toss to coat and chill 1 hour before eating.

Farm Share Newsletter June 15 2019

Picking garden tips

The picking garden can be a significant part of your weekly share. Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your time in the picking garden.

1.Pick whole stems. For most of the herbs, if the leaves are still attached to the stem, they will last much longer in your refrigerator. By cutting the stem near the ground in the case of parsley and chives, or at a node in the case of basil, it will help the plant generate new leaves.

2.Drying herbs when abundant. Many herbs, especially ones with woody stems, are easy to dry. They are highest in essential oils when they are just about to flower, but can be harvested for drying at any time.

3.Don’t know what something is? Not sure if it’s edible? Ask us, we love talking about plants.

Garlic scapes

Good luck finding these in the grocery store! Garlic scapes are the flower stalk of the garlic plant. They are removed to direct the plant’s energy into the bulb. If left on, the garlic bulb will not grow more than an inch or so in diameter. These scapes are garlic flavored, and you can use them in many of the same ways as garlic. They can also be roasted as a vegetable on their own, or even pickled like dilly beans. -Aaron

Vegetables

Scallions Strawberries Lettuce Garlic Scapes Radishes or Hakurei turnips Kohlrabi Chard

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery

Garlic Scape Pesto

10-15 garlic scapes, cut in half 1

/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup sunflower seeds or walnuts, pistachios, pine nuts

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor, process garlic scapes until finely chopped, scraping down the sides as needed. Add sunflower seeds or any of the various nut options (get creative!) and blend well. While running the food processor, add the olive oil and blend well. Add more oil to give your pesto a more mild flavor. Again, scrape the sides down as necessary. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper, and parmesan cheese, mix well. Enjoy! I like to make this as my base (freeze a few cups for later) then go back and add additional flavors, such as curry or add in a few spinach leaves to make it more mild. Recipe from Stephanie Aldrich, our former livestock manager

Swiss Chard Tahini Dip

1 1/2 lbs Swiss chard

2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided

5 garlic cloves or 1-2 scapes, finely chopped

1/2 cup tahini

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

kosher salt

Remove ribs and stems from chard and finely chop. Tear leaves into small pieces. Set both aside separately. Heat 1/3 cup olive oil in a large pot over medium low heat. Cook stems until tender 5-7 minutes, adding a little water if they start to brown. Add garlic, cook 1 minute, add chard leaves, cook until wilted and tender. Let it cool and squeeze excess liquid into a measuring glass ( should be half a cup). Add chard and 1 tbsp liquid into food processor with tahini, lemon juice and rest of oil. Season with salt and process, adding more liquid as needed until creamy.

Pickled chard stems

1 Thai chile, split

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

2 cups white vinegar

1 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

3 1/2 tbsp salt

12 oz chard stems

Trim off any bits of leaves and cut to fit in your jar. Add the stems along with the chile and garlic. Toast seeds in a skillet until fragrant, set aside. Heat vinegar, water, sugar and salt until dissolved. Cool 5 minutes. Pour into jar, add seeds and cover. Cool at room temperature for an hour. Make sure all stems are submerged. Refrigerate about 1 week before eating. Recipe from davidlebovitz.com

Farm Share Newsletter June 8 2019

Welcome to the farm And thanks for deciding to join our ‘share this year. I use this newsletter to share farm news, information on the vegetables in your share and recipes for how to use them. This has been a very wet spring so far, but we have been able to keep up with planting. Most of our soil drains well, so crops haven’t been drowning. I’ve learned to be very efficient when we get a few dry days!

Kohlrabi

By looks, it’s not obvious what to do with a kohlrabi, but its secret is hidden beneath the skin- crispy, fresh tasting flesh, mild with a slight bite. I prefer to use them raw. Think of them as a crudite, they go with many other flavors. If you must cook it, gentle sautéing or steaming is probably best.

Pac Choi (Bok Choi)

Pac choi is distantly related to turnips, and shares some of that flavor. It’s a very reliable crop for us, so I grow quite a lot of it. Choi can be used raw- it is crunchy yet tender enough for salads or as a raw element in noodle/rice bowls. If I want to cook it, I usually separate the leaves from the stems, so that I can add the leaves towards the end of cooking to keep them from getting overcooked. It can release a fair amount of water, so I would not add too much water when cooking. Quick, high heat sauteeing or stir frying are the best ways to cook choi.

-Aaron

Vegetables: Scallions Spinach Lettuce Pac Choi Radishes or baby beets Kohlrabi Kale

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint (Chocolate, Apple, Mountain), Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory

Mixed greens with cumin and paprika

12 cups mixed greens (kale, broccoli raab, chard, mustard etc)

salt

4 garlic cloves

1 cup chopped parsley

1 cup chopped cilantro

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp paprika

2 tsp ground cumin

for garnish: oil cured black olives, wedges of lemon and tomato

Discard any inedible parts of greens. Set in a steamer with tougher leaves on bottom and cook until tender, or boil each type separately in salted water and drain. Chop into 1 inch pieces. Pound garlic with 1/2 tsp salt until smooth then work in herbs briefly to release their flavors. Warm oil with paprika and cumin until fragrant, be careful not to burn. Stir in garlic then add greens, cooking until excess moisture is gone. Pile onto a dish and garnish with olives, lemon and tomato. From Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.

Spinach salad with feta and pecans

1 cup pecan halves

6 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp honey

salt, pepper

1 lb spinach, large leaves torn (if not enough, use lettuce for half)

1 cup dried cherries or cranberries, or chopped apricots

6 oz feta

Toast pecans in a dry skillet, about 5 minutes. Combine oil, vinegar and honey, whisk to combine and season. Toss spinach, pecans, dried fruit in salad bowl. Crumble feta over the salad, add dressing and toss again.

Pickled chard stems

12 oz chard stems

1 Thai chile, split lengthwise (opt)

2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

2 cups white vinegar

1 cup water

Heat oil in large pan until very hot. Add ginger, chili and garlic, then choi stalks. Stir fry one minute. Add leaves and stir until wilting. Remove from heat, add pinch salt, soys sauce and sesame oil. Recipe from riverford.co.uk

Spring Share Newsletter May 29 2019

This is the final week of spring share, next week the main season begins. Frisee is a type of chicory that is often used mixed into salads for a bitter element. It pairs well with fruit, nuts and cheese, and can be used with hot dressings, which sweeten the bitterness.

In your share this week, you’ll find the following:

• Lettuce

• Dill

• Radishes ‘Pink Beauty’

• Beets- greens can be used like chard

• Spicy mustard

• Spinach

• Frisee

Picking garden has cilantro ready. Recipes are on reverse.

Thanks for your support! Your farmers, Aaron, Zack, Annie

Lyonnaise Salad

4 cups frisee torn into bite size pieces

1 piece thick bacon (or 2 thin), sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

1 tbsp white vinegar (for poaching eggs)

2 large eggs

1 medium shallot, finely minced

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp Dijon mustard .

Cook bacon in small skillet over medium heat until done but not too crispy. Remove from pan but reserve fat. Poach eggs for 2-3 minutes in a saucepan. Reheat skillet with bacon fat. Add shallots (or onion) and cook for 30 seconds. Add red wine vinegar, mustard, bacon and mix together. Pour over greens and toss. Season to taste, divide between two bowls and top with poached egg. Serve immediately. (the Kitchn)

Beet risotto with greens

5 1/2 to 6 1/2 cups stock

2 tbsp basil or 1 tbsp dried

3 tbsp butter or oil

2 cups peeled grated beets

1/2 cup finely diced onion

2-3 cups beet greens chopped

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

salt and pepper

1/2 cup dry white wine

zest and juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsp chopped parsley

1/2 cup Parmesan

Have stock simmering. Heat butter in wide pot, add onion and cook 3 minutes. Add rice, cook 1 minute. Add wine, simmer until absorbed. Stir in half the parsley, the basil, grated beets. Add 2 cups stock, cook at a lively simmer until absorbed. Add stock in half cup increments, stirring until absorbed. When you have 1 cup left, add beet greens, salt, pepper, lemon juice and zest. Serve with Parmesan and parsley. (Deborah Madison)

Spring Share Newsletter May 8th 2019

This week we harvested stinging nettle from our pasture, which should be handled with gloves when raw. Stinging nettle is very high in nutrients, so it’s a good thing to eat as a spring tonic. Cooking will eliminate the sting- steam, saute or blanch them. The flavor is similar to spinach.

In your share this week, you’ll find the following:

• Lettuce ‘Black Seeded Simpson’ and ‘New Red Fire’

• Dill

• Bok Choi ‘Shuko’

• Stinging Nettles

• Mild Mustard ‘Vibrant Joy’

• Arugula

• Scallions

Radishes not quite ready Recipes are on reverse. Thanks for your support!

Your farmers, Aaron, Zack, and Annie

Nettle Omelette with sharp Cheddar

4 oz stinging nettle leaves

1/4 tsp salt

3 eggs

2 tbsp cream or milk

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp chives

1 oz sharp cheddar, thinly sliced

Drop nettle leaves into a small pot, sprinkle with salt and a few tablespoons water. Set over medium-low heat and cover. Allow nettles to wilt until they release their juices, about 5 minutes. Strain off juices, set aside. Beat eggs and cream until loosely combined. Warm butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Once hot, add eggs, swirl to get an even layer and cook until edges begin to set. Turn heat down and cover for 30 seconds until eggs set. Fill with nettles, chives and cheese, fold and cook covered another 30 seconds.

Lemon Garlic Bok Choi

1 lb bok choi

1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

pinch red pepper flakes

salt

half a lemon, cut into wedges

Rinse bok choi, trim ends then slice in half lengthwise, or if large cut into quarters. Pat dry. Combine oil, garlic and pepper in a wide cold skillet. Place over medium heat until it just starts to bubble. Add choi in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and cook without stirring until the bottom is starting to brown, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook 2 minutes until wilted. Squeeze lemon juice over just before serving.

Spring Share Newsletter May 1 2019

Thanks for participating in spring share this year! We welcome our two apprentices Sarah and Avery to the farm, who will be with us throughout the season. We’re really getting into the swing of things now and our plantings are slightly ahead of schedule so far.

In your share this week, you’ll find the following:

• Baby spinach- mild, good for salads

• Cilantro

• Cress- tangy, adds zest to sandwiches & salads

• Turnips- succulent greens

• Mildly spicy mustard greens- they’re just a little hot •

Arugula- a big bag, pesto recipe on back

• Scallions

Coming up next week: lettuce, radishes and stinging nettles Recipes are on reverse. Thanks for your support! Your farmers, Aaron, Zack, Annie

Pasta with arugula pesto

8 cups arugula leaves

1/2 cup pine nuts or other nut/seed

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

8 oil packed sun dried tomatoes, minced

1 lb vermicelli or other pasta

1/2 cup pitted cured black olives

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Blanch arugula 30 seconds. Shock in ice water, then drain. (Keep hot water for pasta). Drain and squeeze water from arugula. Chop nuts and garlic in a food processor. Add arugula and chop. Add oil and cheese, process to thick paste. Scrape into a bowl and add tomatoes, season with salt and pepper. Return water to a boil. Cook pasta, reserve 1/2 cup water. Mix pesto and olives with pasta in heated serving bowl. Serves 4. from Serving Up The Harvest by Andrea Chesman

Stir Fried Mixed Greens

1 tbsp peanut oil

1 tsp roasted peanut oil (opt)

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp ginger

1/2 tsp red pepper

2 tbsp chopped scallion

10 cups greens, ribbons 3/4 inch

1/2 cup stock, any kind

2 tsp dark sesame oil

1 tsp rice wine or sherry

1 tsp cornstarch in 3 tbsp water or stock

Heat wok/pan and add peanut oils. When hot add garlic, pepper, ginger and scallion, stir fry 30 seconds then add greens and stir fry 1 minute more. Add stock, cover and steam until tender, 2-3 minutes. Season with salt, sesame oil and mirin or sherry. Remove greens from wok and add cornstarch to remaining liquid and boil until thickened. Pour sauce over greens and serve. from Deborah Madison

Poultry Farming

This weekend, as is usual for me, I spent a fair amount of time dispensing advice and ideas on how to cook a chicken (pressure cooker! Dutch oven! Butterflied! Yogurt-marinated! I could go on ...) And, as I do most days, I spent some time considering the price of our chicken.

A big worry for Zack and I is that we are pricing out the lower-income consumers. This is not our intent, and is something we work to avoid. However, our profits are not very large, and we live on the margins, so we can't shave them too slim. With the food from Laughing Earth, you are paying closer to the full cost of your food than when you shop at the grocery store, which means the price tag is larger. 

However, paying more per pound up front does not mean you're getting a worse deal. You get the flavor, the moist meat, the heart-warming experience of buying direct from the person who raised the animal. You get the option to take a walk in a beautiful place to visit the chickens while they are growing on pasture. You get the opportunity to ask the farmer for cooking advice when you buy it. 

You also know that the people who raise the chicken are not locked into a sharecropper system of debt whereby their choices are eroded in the name of funneling more profits to a corporation.

You also know that the people who process the chickens (the same as the people who raise them, on our farm!) have safe working conditions, and only perform the job for half a day every two weeks, reducing the risk for repetitive stress injury. They are not berated and threatened to encourage them to work faster.

Our farm is not perfect. We don't pay our employees as much as we would like to, and our pastures could be more diverse and fertile. But we are trying to acknowledge the downsides of meat eating, and trying to address those issues and reduce them. 

So the next time you visit our farm or market stand and find yourself thinking, "Wow, that's a lot of money for chicken" ... think again. Your decision to purchase organic, small-scale, local chicken is helping to turn the tide away from human rights abuses in the poultry industry. It's also helping one family in your community to live their dream.

Why FarmShare?

So, it's full-on Spring, and I am deep into trying to convince community members to become FarmShare members. Why would someone do this crazy thing? Why on Earth would someone pay a farmer a huge chunk of money MONTHS before getting vegetables, and without even knowing what the vegetables will be? Why pay to have someone choose your produce for you? Why pay for produce that you don't even know if you'll like, and that you don't even get to choose to suit your menu for the week? 

I have a few good reasons. 

First off, I think for many people, the actual produce is secondary. The money that they give to me, their farmer, is their investment in a community - a human community as well as an ecological community. The money they pay me is their support for a system that I am striving to be a healthy, useful part of. The farmer and the members are making an agreement that locally, sustainably, ethically grown food is of importance to them. The members are saying, please, do this for us, and the farmer is saying, thanks for letting me do this for you. 

Secondly, the community of people at the farm is the best. All of our members come to the farm to pick up their veggies. This means, at least, they get reconnected to the place that grew their food when they come each week to get it. The farm is *their* farm - theirs to take walks on, have a picnic, swing by on the way home from (or to!) work to get the herbs they want for dinner. Even if they don't see any other people, the farm is here for them. Hopefully they do see people, though - one of their farmers, to answer questions about the weird vegetable in the share this week, or something ELSE to do with kale, or even just commiserate about the weather. And hopefully, they get to see some of their fellow members, for a chat in the picking garden while they harvest cherry tomatoes, or to exchange recipes. They are in this together - fellow members of a sisterhood of the faithful - those that have faith in the soil and in us, the hopeful farmers tending it.

Finally, the food. Same-day harvest means you're getting as much nutrition as possible from these tender, ephemeral veggies - no cross-country road trips here! Food harvested by someone you know also feeds something more than your stomach. When you eat food from your FarmShare, you know that you are contributing to 1. land that won't be turned into a housing development, but will continue to produce food for the community 2. the livelihood of a family in your community, a family that chooses to invest in other local businesses and thereby bolster the economy where you live and 3. a small farm that focuses on minimizing its negative environmental impacts in the community where you live (no effluent ponds here! no high-nitrate runoff into the Quackenkill here!).

So, that's why people choose to give up a little control over what is in their baskets of produce. The wonderful people who are members of my FarmShare community are making other choices, which have ripples far beyond their dinner plates.

Thank you to my community. Thank you for making all of this possible.

Community and the path forward

Today I am feeling very grateful to my elders. I don't mean old people, I mean those who walked this path before me. Those who walked this path before I discovered it, who improved the trail, built the bridges, and made a map. Those who did all that so that they could use the trail, but then stayed to help guide me as well. 

Farming is not an easy business. There is no kind of farming that is easy. Small-scale, sustainable, diversified farming is an especially difficult business. Not only are we growing food, but we are also trying to change people's minds, repair damaged ecosystems, alleviate climate change, build communities where they have been hollowed by the ravages of a capitalist economy that cares not for human lives, repair people's severed connections with the natural world ... In other words, there's a big load to carry. Maybe not all of my farming peers feel that this is their job description, but I do, and I often feel like I'm in the middle of the ocean riding on an inflatable pool toy. In this line of work, the community of fellow farmers is everything.

Today I had the pleasure of receiving knowledge and guidance from one of my elders, someone not so old in years but deep in his well of understanding. Sitting at his table, talking through what he has seen and what we are struggling with felt like climbing aboard a ship after being adrift in that ocean. There's hope. There are others feeling this way, others working through these problems, and workable solutions are attainable. We can succeed, and are not doomed to poverty and losing the farm and whatever other horrible fates visit my mind in the darkness of night. 

I left his house feeling so flooded by gratitude, that he had spent so much of his valuable time - not just on us, mind you, he is a mentor, a guide on the trail, to an entire generation of farmers - to reassure us and to show us where to go and how to build something successful. Here is someone who understands what a community is. When one of us is raised up, it raises us all. A rising tide lifts all ships, if you have a ship. So help the others get a ship, too, or pull them on board yours. 

Our mentor and his partner are exemplary in the community in their commitment to raising us all as they are raised, in distributing their earned knowledge as widely and as thoroughly as they possibly can. They are not the exception, though. I am so glad to be a member of a peer group that by and large views each other as co-conspirators rather than competitors. Our "competitors" are the industrial food system, human lethargy and ignorance about what we're doing to the world, and environmental degradation. Our fellow farmers are equally as important to our success as we ourselves are. I am glad to have been brought into farming by mentors such as these, who have gifted me with an abundance mindset, rather than a view of scarcity. See all that we have to work with - Sun, soil, water,  flora, fauna, people with such towering gifts. Such a huge net of interactions to learn from, to draw on, to benefit from. 

Spending time with mentors such as these helps me to re-center myself into a positive focus on the things that matter. We are here to grow life, to grow love, to leave things better than we found them. I only hope that, when given the opportunity, I offer similar help to those following me down the path.

The Real Cost of Meat

This willful blindness allows them to continue to participate in the industrial food system. If they cannot acknowledge that their hamburger has ever been a cow, then why would they care whether that cow had ever eaten grass or gotten to wade through a verdant pasture? Why would they care how that cow died? Why would they care whether the slaughterhouse workers were given adequate breaks, safety gear, or physical therapy if they experienced repetitive stress injuries? Why would they care what happens to the manure produced by that cow and its millions of brethren?

Read More

Winter Share December 20th, 2017

Thanks to those who decided to get the last two Winter Shares! We all hope that you are enjoying your delicious storage vegetables, and that they are storing to your satisfaction.

Aaron and I promised to share some good recipes for these veggies, particularly the Celeriac, so here goes:

Celeriac Recipes

Roast Chicken and Vegetables.

I just made this one-dish meal for the crew’s lunch the other day: simple, hearty, tasty.

Peel and cube 1 butternut squash into ½ inch cubes. Chop onions roughly – I had small onions, so I halved or quartered them. Peel a whole head’s worth of garlic, leaving the cloves whole or cutting them in half. Wash and roughly chop 4 or 5 carrots. Peel and chop 2 celeriac into ½ inch cubes. Put all the cut veggies on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle generously with oil (I use sunflower, because I can get NY-raised sunflower oil at the co-op!), and sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon salt and a generous dose of black pepper. If you have it, you can mince about 2 teaspoons of fresh rosemary or thyme. Mix until homogeneous, and then spread the veggies into a single layer – for me, this took two baking sheets. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Cut a thoroughly-thawed chicken into parts – drumsticks, thighs, wings, and breasts, with the breasts cut into halves or thirds so they are about the same size as the other pieces. Spread the chicken pieces on top of the veggies, skin side up. Put the trays in the oven. Let bake for about 15 minutes, then pull them out and stir the veggies around as best you can, to unstick any that are getting caramelized onto the pan. I always switch the two trays top to bottom at this point, to assist even baking. Bake for another 15 minutes, then stir again. I would expect all to be done after a third 15 minute stint, for a total of 45. This was enough to feed five farmers.

Celeriac Latkes with Apple Creme Fraiche

1 small onion, diced 1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil +2 tbsp 1 celeriac, trimmed, peeled, qtr
4 potatoes, peeled, halved 2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 egg salt and pepper
for the creme fraiche:
1 cup creme fraiche 1 apple, peeled, grated
juice of 1/4 lemon 12 chives, snipped

Saute onion in 1 tbsp oil with salt and pepper for 2 minutes. Add garlic. Saute 5 minutes until soft.

Use a food processor to grate potatoes and celeriac. Wring out as much liquid as possible using a kitchen towel. Tip into a bowl, season and add onion, garlic, and parsley. Add egg and mix well.

Heat 2 tbsp oil and press half of the mixture into the pan, spreading it out. Cook on medium heat 15 minutes. Place a plate on the pancake and flip, then slide pancake back into pan cooked side up. Cook another 15 minutes. Repeat with remaining pancake mixture.

To make apple creme fraiche, toss apple with lemon immediately to prevent browning. Chop as fine as you can. Mix into creme fraiche and season with salt, pepper, and chives. seriouseats.com

Celery Root & Potato Soup

3 large or 6 medium leeks (or 1 large onion), finely chopped
3/4 lb potatoes, well scrubbed, quartered and sliced
3/4 lb celeriac, trimmed and peeled, quartered and sliced
2 tbsp butter
salt and freshly milled pepper
milk, or water to thin the soup

Melt butter in a large soup pot, add leeks, potatoes, and celeriac and cook over low heat, covered, 10 minutes. Add 7 cups water, 1 1/2 tsp salt and bring to a boil. Simmer until potatoes and celeriac are soft and falling apart, about 35 minutes. Crush some to give the soup body. Thin with milk if needed. Season with salt and pepper. To add richness, use cream instead of milk.
Vegetarian cooking for Everyone, Deborah Madison

ALSO:

here is my favorite celeriac recipe I have made this year. Time consuming, and not the most visually stunning meal you will serve, but VERY worthy of company.

Butternut Squash "Lasagna"

https://www.mynewroots.org/site/2012/12/butternut-squash-lasagna/

As I type this in the darkness of the longest night of the year, I have no fear or sadness in the darkness, because I am warmed and my heart lighted by the friendship of our FarmShare family, of our upstate NY family, of our blood family, no matter how far away. We lighted candles this evening, as the last rays of sun melted away, and my little light felt a bit like a self-portrait. Thank you all for feeding my flame, for supporting me and Zack and Willa and Aaron and all of the more ephemeral but just as essential creatures - human and otherwise - that spend time with us on this farm to help us learn to better care for this land. May our hands feed this land that it may feed you, our community, in turn. May our love for you help us to better love this land, and make us more able to say thank you to it in tangible ways. Happy Solstice, and happy cooking.