What a welcome break from the heat today! The hint of fall in the air matches the beginning of the fall harvest this week. The first winter squash (spaghetti squash!) will be in the CSA and farm store along with the first fall planting of kale and beets that are ready for harvest. But summer is not over yet! Tomatoes are still coming in strong, colored peppers are at their peak, and the flower field is still in full bloom. The fields are very much in need of some rain, for our current veggie crops as well as investments in next year like next year’s strawberries and germination of cover crops. While we are able to irrigate many crops, it is difficult to irrigate the large areas needed for the germination of cover crops so we will be carefully checking the forecast looking for our window to seed fields that are ready for cover crops in order to maximize the growth that will provide nutrients, organic matter, and erosion protection until next spring.
In the CSA this week:
Beets - A new planting of red ace beets is ready, the greens are in great shape and taste great sauteed with garlic!
Curly Green Kale
Spaghetti Squash- See cooking instructions in the recipe section below. The squash is ready when bright yellow, if yours isn’t bright yellow yet just leave it on your counter for a few days before cooking!
Heirloom Tomatoes
Slicing Tomatoes
Colored sweet peppers
Green and purple peppers
Eggplant
Cucumbers
Garlic
Watermelon - The variety this week is called Blacktail Mountain, an award winning heirloom variety with a pinkish red inside.
Zucchini
Summer Squash
Arugula or Mizuna
Lettuce
CSA PYO:
Please bring scissors from home for your herb picking. We do have some you may borrow but quantities are limited each day due to necessary sanitizing measures.
Herbs: basil, cilantro, dill, sage and thyme
Cherry tomatoes - All varieties are now available: Sungold (orange), Cherry bomb (red), Jasper (red), Red Pearl (red grape), Mountain Magic (red), Yellow mini (yellow), Sunpeach (pink), Black cherry (deep brownish purple), Supernova (red with yellow flecks), Moonbeam (pale yellow), mightnight pear (brownish purple).
Husk Cherries - A relative of the tomato. Pick the fruit that have brown husks and have fallen off the plant. Remove the husk before eating (the ripe berry will be yellow inside).
Hot peppers - jalapeño, Fresno, Aji Rico, Hungarian hot wax, shishito
Pick-your-own Flower CSA
The flower field is open to both flower CSA members as well as for those who would like to purchase PYO flowers by the jar. Picking is open anytime the Farm Store is open: Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm. For the safety of everyone, there are capacity limits in the flower field and everyone over the age of 2 must wear a mask in the PYO fields. Flowers available for picking this week include: zinnias, bachelor’s buttons, bells of Ireland, scabiosa, didiscus, cosmos, snapdragons, rudbeckia, dill flowers, decorative basil, strawflower, gomphrena, sweet Annie, amaranth, and verbena. Don’t forget your pruners and scissors from home and water for your jar! Check in at the farm stand before picking.
In the Farm Store:
In addition to the items listed in the CSA we will also have honey from Double B Honey (harvested from hives on the property) and sweet corn from Verrill Farm. Fat Moon is taking a break from mushrooms right now ( they are tough to grow in the heat!), but will be back in early September. Online pre-orders continue, but please note that pre-orders are now available for Tuesday, Friday and Saturday pick-ups only. We will not be offering pick-ups on Wednesday and Thursday as we try to improve efficiency and focus on the most popular ordering days. The link for online orders is https://openfoodnetwork.net/barrett-s-mill-farm/shop#/shop. Online ordering opens at 2pm the day before pick-up. Walk-up sales continue to be open for all Tuesday-Saturday.
Farm Store Hours
Tuesday - Friday 11am - 6pm
Saturday 9am-3pm
Please wear a snug fitting mask with multiple layers when approaching the farm stand. If you cannot wear a mask, simply order online and include a note in your order letting us know what car you will be driving (as well as roughly what time you will arrive) and we will bring your bag out to your car when you arrive. Thank you for your understanding!
How to Cook Spaghetti Squash
By Jeanine Donofrio, Love and Lemons: https://www.loveandlemons.com/how-to-cook-spaghetti-squash
Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash
extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and ribbing. Drizzle the inside of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Place the spaghetti squash cut side down on the baking sheet and use a fork to poke holes. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes or until lightly browned on the outside, fork tender, but still a litte bit firm. The time will vary depending on the size of your squash. I also find that the timing can vary from squash to squash.
Remove from the oven and flip the squash so that it’s cut side up. When cool to the touch, use a fork to scrape and fluff the strands from the sides of the squash.
Gazpacho
from Best of Life Cookbook
For the soup:
3 lb tomatoes, chopped (6 cups)
1 onion, cut in chunks
½ cup green pepper chunks
½ cup cucumber chunks
2 cups tomato juice
1 clove garlic, minced
½ tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup white wine vinegar
Combine tomato, onion, green pepper and cucumber chunks. Puree them until smooth/ Transfer to a large bowl and stir in tomato juice, garlic, cumin, salt and black pepper. Cover and chill. Before serving stir in the oil and vinegar.
For the garnish: ½ cup diced tomato, ½ cup diced green pepper, ½ cup diced cucumber and garlic croutons (see recipe below
Garlic croutons: 6 slices white bread (dry), ½ cup butter, 2 cloves garlic
Cut the bread into cubes. Heat butter at medium heat. Stir in garlic. Add the bread cubes and sauté, stirring until crisp and golden. Drain on a paper towel.