Oct. 6, 2012 - Share # 13

Colors changing back at the farm pond

 IN THE BOX:

LETTUCE

TOMATOES

NAPA (CHINESE CABBAGE)

HAKUREI TURNIPS (small, white "salad turnips")

KOHLRABI (round, white cole veggie with light green leaves

BRUSSELS SPROUTS

RED/GREEN PEPPER

HOT PEPPERS (Jalapeno - dark green, wide on top; Serrano - dark green, slender)

GARLIC

SWEET POTATOES

WINTER SQUASH (choosing from Butternut, Acorn or Delicata)

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: With this share we say goodbye to one group of our Bi-weekly members. Thanks for your support and we hope you have become so accustomed to fresh local produce that we'll still see you at our market stall in the weeks to come!

We finished the sweet potato harvest and did notice the effects of the drought in the yield. Interestingly, the sweet potatoes were very spread out under ground, as opposed to last year when there was plenty of moisture and the sweet spuds were found all in one large clump right at the base of the vine. This year the crew had to dredge throughout the field to find all the sweet potatoes - a big job! Our guess is that the dry conditions caused the plants to forage farther afield, perha spreading out the competition for the moisture. Smart spuddies!

Also, and we have no explanation for this, many of the sweet potatoes were cracked and creviced. We always assume that the plants know more about what they're doing than we do, and trust it was a necessary response to the drought. Any ideas?

You'll see some cracked sweet potatoes in your shares. We kept the beauties in the photo for our own consumption. They ain't pretty but they taste great!

We're continuing to bring in more fall crops, as reflected in your share, while gleaning the last of the beans, summer squash and tomatoes.

NOTES FROM THE FROG HOLLER FARM RECIPE BOX: Roasting and root veggies just go together! The People's Food Coop newsletter has a short feature on roasting veggies, and reports:

With fall's chillier temperatures, meals made in the oven take on new appeal. Delicious smells and savory flavors are simple to create with oven-roasted vegetables, meat and poultry, and even fruit. So what is roasting, exactly? Basically, roasting is a way to cook food using dry heat.

Roasted sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts and onions

Here's a simple method for tasty roasted root vegetables:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut approximately two pounds of root vegetables (carrots, beets, potatoes, rutabagas, turnips, in any combination) into 1-inch chunks. Add onions and garlic cloves if you like, and toss the veggies with a tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt (or to taste). Place the veggies on a baking sheet and roast for 45-50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so, until tender and just beginning to brown.

In our experience, the combinations are endless and the results are always delicious! We especially like sprinkling fresh or dried rosemary over a tray of potatoes, or spicing up a tray of sweet potatoes with cumin and cinnamon.

If you don't already have a favorite way to prepare brussels sprouts, try cutting off their ends, then in half, removing any yellow leaves. Then roast away - leave them in a long time and you have brussels sprouts chips - who knew!?

More ways to use the sweet potatoes and squash in your box this week: Gingered Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup, or Spicy Sweet Potato Fries, or Roasted Sweet Potato Salad, or Pumpkin (or squash) Pie with Coconut Crust, or Sweet Potatoes with Pecans and Parmesan, or Butternut and Sage Lasagna, or Roasted Pumpkin (or squash) Apple Soup, Warm Butternut Squash and Chickpea Salad with Tahini Dressing, or Chipotle Smashed Sweet Potatoes. 

Where did all these delicious-sounding recipes come from? We'll find out when we...

(RE)MEET THE INTERNS: KIRSTIN POPE!

 Kirstin arrived at Frog Holler for the first time in July of 2010. She has spent winters with her parents in England, but returned to the farm for last year's season and again for this year. With all that experience, Kirstin has assumed a number of responsibilities at the farm.

Kirstin with bouquets of celosia and cockscomb

If you ever shop on Wednesday, you will see Kirstin there, as she is our Wednesday market manager. And because Kirstin likes variety at the stall, she has tended a number of interesting crops that Wednesday shoppers have come to appreciate.

First, the flowers. Kirstin personally researched the varieties and has done her best to maintain and harvest the small flower beds, on a farm where vegetables rule!  Some of those flowers do make it to the Saturday market - look for them at the stall.

Next, okra. Okra? Well, if there ever was a "down south" summer, this was it and okra did very well. It was interesting to see how the okra flower furled in on itself and started to harden into the okra veggie (fruit?).

Okra flower

Okra flower turning into okra

Okra!

Bulb fennel

Then, bulb fennel. This is turning out to be a popular item and we are considering adding it to our field crops. Thanks Kirstin for taking the trouble to grow an experimental plot!

Also, tomatillos, which we were also able to offer to interested share members. Oh yes, and husk cherries. And stevia, anise hyssop, white sage, lovage, and many other perennial herbs that sometimes get overlooked in the demand for the high production annual herbs. Kirstin has also established a small patch of watercress; hopefully it likes the setting and will return and thrive so you may see watercress in your share someday!

But the special crop nearest to Kirstin's heart is the mushroom crop. Last year Kirstin assisted in the inoculating of the "mushroom logs". When this summer's dry conditions couldn't provide the moist environment that mushrooms require for fruiting, Kirstin and intern Samuel did some research (okay, Googled it) and cooked up a scheme to soak the logs, sort of like an artificial rain shower. They set up an old bathtub back in the woods by the logs, filled it half-full of water, and took turns soaking different logs throughout the summer.

Just a crazy internet idea? Not at all! Several "blooms" of shiitake mushrooms emerged from the soaked logs. Mushrooms need a moist woodsy environment, and with acres of hardwood forest at Frog Holler, we look forward to developing this delicious new crop!

Kirstin with mushroom log on the way to its bath

Murky mushroom logs

Shiitake mushrooms fresh off the log!

Although Kirstin  is usually only seen at the Wednesday market, she will be at the Saturday market this week. Do you have a favorite specialty vegetable you would like to see Frog Holler grow? Kirstin would be the one to tell! Thanks, Kirstin, for keeping things interesting this summer!

Kirstin in the flower garden

Have a great week everyone!