The farm stand is now closed for the 2020 season. It felt like a fitting end with several inches of snow on the ground and temperatures at sunrise hovering around 18! We had been keeping an eye on the forecast all week, so we knew we were going to need to harvest and wash everything by Thursday. On Friday night, we sealed up the barn wash areas and temporarily shut off the water to prevent the pipes from freezing. Saturday was a beautiful but brisk day, and it was wonderful to see so many people turning out to stock up on veggies, particularly once it thawed a little in the afternoon!
Though the store is closed for the season, the Extended and Flex CSA will be continuing for another 3 weeks until November 21st. Pick-ups for CSA members are Thursdays 11am - 6pm and Saturdays 9am - 3pm. We have taken down the CSA tent and are moving pick-ups inside the greenhouse (accessed through the farm stand) for the last 3 weeks. We will have a greeter to check members in on the farm stand porch. If you do not feel comfortable going into the greenhouse, please email Melissa and let her know so that we can fill a pre-packed bag for you!
We have had a few questions lately about whether we will be doing any bulk or pop-up sales before Thanksgiving. At this point, we do not know whether or not we will be able to offer additional sales in November. Demand for local produce has been unprecedented this year, meaning that we’ve moved through more produce than we had planned for. Also, some of our field crops like Brussels sprouts and kale (both of which are usually hardy until December!) suffered quite a bit of cold damage last week from the sudden and unseasonably low temperatures on October 31st, reducing the amount of harvestable crops that we have available. This all means that we are holding off on selling any more produce until we are sure that we can fulfill our promises to our CSA customers. If, as we get closer to the end of the CSA, we find that we will have some surplus items, we will likely offer them up for pre-orders online, so stay tuned!
In the CSA this week (Thursday and Saturday):
Winter squash - tetsukabuto, pie pumpkin or butternut
Peppers - we cleared out all of the green peppers from our high tunnel last week before the hard freeze, so we will enjoy these for one more week!
Sweet potatoes - Mostly the traditional orange fleshed varieties, but we will have a few Murasaki (white fleshed sweet potatoes) in the mix as well! This was our first year growing the Murasaki variety, and for not entirely understood reasons, yields of this variety were extremely poor for us. Because the Murasaki potatoes made up 40% of our entire planting, we had fewer sweet potatoes than expected, so we have bought in a few orange fleshed sweet potatoes from Atlas Farm in Deerfield (certified organic) to supplement this week. Most of our sweet potatoes are quite large, but see the pudding recipe below for a a good usage of them!
Watermelon radishes - these are vibrant magenta inside - a great addition to salads not just for the visuals, but also the flavor!
Rutabaga - looks like a gnarlier version of a turnip, but with a sweeter flavor.
Carrots
Beets
Purple top turnips
Brussels sprouts - They suffered cold damage due to the incredibly hard freeze Friday night, especially on the lower ends of the stalks. This is likely the last week for Brussels.
Cabbage
Spinach
Lettuce
Leeks
Yellow onions - These have been cured and so should ideally be kept in a cool, dry and dark place (not for fridge storage).
Garlic
PYO: Parsley and sage look like they may be pick-able this week, barring any more hard freezes. You will likely have a choice of one or the other.
Other items coming up in later weeks of the Late Fall CSA: popcorn, organic yellow potatoes and russet potatoes from Atlas Farm (the drought caused severely reduced potato yields, so we decided to buy extra potatoes in), shallots, and celeriac. Kale and salanova will likely make a return for one more week as well!
Vegan Chocolate Sweet-Potato Pudding
This recipe comes from a member who thought it was a good use of our large sweet potatoes!
1 cup well-pureed roasted sweet potato flesh (roast a large sweet potato at 400-
degrees for 1 hour (or microwave for 13 minutes) – peel and puree flesh in a food
processor until perfectly smooth, measure 1 cup
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup, preferably grade B
¼ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk or use a milk of your choice (rice, soy, cow)
½ tsp. espresso powder
½ tsp. pure vanilla extract
Instructions:
1. In a food processor, combine all ingredients and puree until well-combined and smooth.
Yields: 2 cups
Servings: 4 – half cup servings
Nutrient Information per Serving: Calories 104; Carbohydrates 21 grams; Fat 3 grams;
Protein 2 grams; Sugar 19 grams.
Mashed Rutabaga with Sour Cream and Dill Recipe
by Elise Bauer from Simply Recipes
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Yield: Serves 4-6 as a side dish
Ingredients
2 to 3 pounds of rutabagas, peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
Salt and black pepper
2 teaspoons butter
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup full-fat sour cream (more or less to taste)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh dill or chives
Boil chopped rutabaga until tender: Cover the chopped rutabaga with about 1 inch of cold water and bring to a boil. Add a generous pinch of salt and boil until tender, about 30-40 minutes. Drain and return the rutabagas to the pot.
Let steam, then mash: Reduce the heat to low and let the rutabaga steam for a minute or two. Mash with a potato masher.
Add the butter, sour cream, and salt and pepper to taste. Just before you serve, mix in the chopped dill or chives.
Roasted Butternut Squash & Spinach Quiche
from King Arthur Baking Company
Ingredients
Crust
Your favorite single pie crust recipe or our Classic Single Pie Crust, prepared
Filling
1 medium-large (227g) yellow onion, peeled
2 tablespoons (25g) olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon (14g) balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cups (213g) butternut squash, cut into very small cubes
1 cup (227g) whole milk
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped; or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup (113g) grated Cabot Garlic & Herb Cheddar
1 cup (28g) fresh baby spinach, chopped
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
To prepare the crust: Roll the prepared crust into a 12" circle (to fit a 9" pie pan). Prick it all over with a fork. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then remove it from the oven and set it aside to cool.
To make the filling: Quarter the onion, and slice thinly. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized and deep golden brown. This will take about 20 minutes. Right before the onion finishes cooking, add the balsamic vinegar to the pan and cook for a few more minutes.
While the onion is caramelizing, spread the cubed butternut squash on a parchment-lined baking sheet and toss it with the remaining olive oil, along with a couple of good dashes of salt and pepper. Roast the squash until it starts to brown and soften; this should take about the same amount of time as the onions.
In a large bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs. Add the rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper. Add the caramelized onions, roasted squash, grated cheese, and baby spinach. Pour the mixture into the pie crust. Don't overfill! If you find you have too much filling, just leave a little out, baking it alongside the pie in a custard cup, if desired.
Bake the quiche for about 40 to 45 minutes. The edges should be golden brown and the center should feel just set.
Remove the quiche from the oven and let it cool on a rack. Serve warm, or at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftovers.