We all may be feeling a sense of whiplash from the swings in temperature in the past week. You wouldn’t know it from the summery weather of the past couple of days, but we had multiple frosts last week that finished off our tomato and pepper plants for the year. We cleared fruit off the plants right before the hardest frost, so we’ll still have peppers as well as green tomatoes this week, but the versatile fall crops are the real stars of the show now! I’m looking forward to more roasted vegetables, soups, stir fries and pickled radishes to garnish some of my favorite staples!
This is the last week for the Main Season CSA (Extended and Flex members still have 4 more weeks after this one). This is also the final week for regular store hours, but we do hope to have a couple of pop-ups before the end of the year. We have a couple of spots left in the Extended Season Add-on CSA if you want a more weekly veggie fix: http://www.barrettsmillfarm.com/online-store/2024-extended-season-add-on-4-weeks
We are finalizing our CSA plans for 2025 right now and current members should get an email within the next couple of days with information about sign-ups. We’ll open up sign-ups to everyone else soon as well! The biggest update this year is that we’ll be offering a smaller CSA option (in addition to the large CSA membership size we currently offer).
In the CSA this week:
If you usually collect your CSA on Wednesdays between 6 and 6:30, please email the Shopkeeper (shopkeeper@barrettsmillfarm.com) to arrange a pre-packed bag this week. It is getting too dark to see under the CSA tent after 6pm. We will move CSA pick-up into the lit greenhouse once we have room in there (hopefully next week!).
Sweet potatoes - We have some monster-sized ones that could feed a family of 10 (which means less peeling)!
Leeks - The variety were now harvesting is larger than the type we harvested earlier in the season.
Watermelon radishes - These have a similar level of heat as the daikon. The insides are magenta, so it’s visually stunning!
Storage turnips
Autumn Frost Squash - This is a type of butternut that has the appearance of a decorative squash. It has ribbing similar to an acorn squash. Very sweet flavor and the skins are edible
Beets from Atlas Farm in Deerfield, MA. Certified Organic.
Fennel
Green peppers
Colored peppers - We picked out the high tunnel right before the frost, so this will be the last colored peppers for the season!
Broccoli
Mini Daikon
Savoy cabbage
Kale
Bok Choi
Mustard greens
Lettuce
CSA Pick-Your-Own:
Please note that its getting dark earlier and earlier, so we will close the PYO at 6pm.
Parsley
Possibly also some sage
In the farm store:
In addition to the items listed in the CSA, we will have:
Asian Pears (Korean Giant variety) from Long Run Orchard in Boxborough, MA. We got a delivery at the end of the day on Friday and they had all sold out by the end of the day on Saturday, so we got some more! Certified Organic.
Keepsake Apples from Long Run Orchard in Boxborough, MA. These versatile apples are suitable for cooking or fresh eating. They have great storage qualities and are crisp and sweet. Certified Organic.
Spinach
Arugula
Salanova
Green tomatoes
Butternut
Pie pumpkins
Potatoes
Carrots
Salad turnips
Cranberries from Fresh Meadows in Carver, MA. Certified Organic.
Honeycrisp Apples from Westward Orchard in Harvard, MA and Cortland Apples from Autumn Hills Orchard in Groton, MA. Not organic.
Honey from Double B (from hives on the property). Not organic.
Mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm - Farmer’s Mix and Shiitake. Certified Organic.
Raspberry vinegar and jam from Silferleaf Farm in Concord. Certified Organic.
Mushroom CSA:
It is the final week of the 8-week Fall Mushroom CSA. This week is Lion’s Mane!
Best Buddha Bowl
from Love & Lemons
Ingredients
1 large sweet potato, cubed
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
1 watermelon radish
2 medium carrots
1 cup shredded cabbage
Lemon wedge, for squeezing
8 kale leaves, chopped
2 cups cooked brown rice or quinoa
1 cup cooked chickpeas or cooked lentils
¾ cup sauerkraut or other fermented veggie
2 tablespoons sesame seeds or hemp seeds
Turmeric Tahini Sauce, for serving
Microgreens, optional
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Toss the sweet potatoes with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and spread onto the baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Thinly slice the radish into rounds (this is best done on a mandoline), and use a vegetable peeler to peel the carrots into ribbons.
Toss the radish slices, carrots, and shredded cabbage with a squeeze of lemon. Set aside.
Place the kale leaves into a large bowl and toss with a squeeze of lemon and a few pinches of salt. Use your hands to massage the leaves until they become soft and wilted and reduce in the bowl by about half.
Assemble individual bowls with the brown rice, chickpeas, kale, carrots, radishes, cabbage, sweet potatoes, sauerkraut, sesame seeds, and microgreens, if using. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the Turmeric Tahini Sauce.
Sweet Potato Soup With Ginger, Leek and Apple
by Martha Rose Shulman, from NY Times Cooking
Ingredients
2 tablespoons canola oil or butter
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, cleaned and sliced
4t easpoons minced fresh ginger
2¼ pounds orange sweet potatoes (like jewel yams or garnet yams), peeled and diced
½ pound Yukon gold or russet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 to 1¼ pounds tart apples, like Braeburn or Granny Smith, peeled, cored and diced
2 quarts water
Salt to taste
Fresh lime juice and medium-hot chili powder or chipotle chili powder for garnish
Preparation
Heat the oil or butter in a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the leek and cook, stirring, until it is tender, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and stir together until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sweet potatoes, regular potato, apples and water and bring to a simmer. Add salt to taste, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes to an hour, until all of the ingredients are thoroughly tender.
Using an immersion blender, purée the soup (or you can use a regular blender, working in batches and placing a kitchen towel over the top to avoid splashing) until very smooth. Return to the pot, heat through and adjust salt. Ladle into bowls, squeeze a little lime juice and sprinkle a little chili powder over each serving and serve.
Advance preparation: You can make this a day ahead, but it's best freshly made.