This week the farm shifts from feeling like summer to looking and feeling very much like Fall. The maple tree that sits high atop our farm that feels ancient and wise is filled with leaves turning yellow and orange. The north wind blows through her branches making a rustling sound that make the dry leaves rattle a little. I hear crows in the neighbors corn. I hear crickets singing their songs on the long foggy mornings that trail through the better part of the day. I feel tired and excited and nervous and joyful all in one glorious Fall day.
As I walk the fields I see a farm that looks like it has had a season. I see the old onion beds waiting for the plastic mulch to be lifted. I see the dried sweet corn stalks still standing, waiting to be mowed down. I see the old green bean beds over taken by weeds now and the tomato trellising still standing with spent looking plants hanging over the trellis line. So much work to be done to put the farm to rest for a season.
At the end of a season, one cannot help but think of their own mortality. It’s a little like a birthday, somewhat joyful on the day of the occasion, but a reminder of the climbing number of years one has under their belt. The end of a season feels like an accomplishment, a bountiful achievement, and yet symbolizes the fleeting and determinate nature of a season, an experience, a life cycle.
Interestingly, there are still signs of youthful life in the fields. There are fall carrot planting still bright green with tender foliage. There are napa cabbage plantings that look as succulent and tender as spring lettuce. There is even a hopful planting of lettuce that we are watching and hoping will size up so we can share them with you yet this fall before the freezes come. There are very clean spinach beds that could pass as spring spinach if you didn’t know better.
The bright, earthy, warm and sun-soaked colors in the fall peppers and winter squash emanate a warmth brilliant enough to bring cheer to weariest of eyes. The shiny red apples, the glossy yellow peppers, the rainbow swiss chard and the beloved red kuri kabocha squash ignite a kind of fire within my heart that will carry me warmly into the coldest days of the upcoming fall. What is it about this food that connects me so intimately to the seasons and assists my mood and restructuring spirit for it? I feel thankful for these vegetables and what they do for my disposition.
Alas we feel deep gratitude for such bounty. We are packing CSA boxes filled to the top with amazing looking produce. In a season with a very long drought in the Spring followed by two sets of flooding rains mid summer, your farmers worry for the crops. We worry about vegetable diseases, insect pressure, the plants getting enough water when they need it most, weed control and so many other production related variables. It always feels a bit like a miracle to me when we pull off these fabulous looking boxes to the very end of the season. It is not without a fair amount hard decisions being made that we keep this ship a sailing.
Here’s to another week which is another day which is another season which is another year of season, fresh, local, organic, seasonal produce from your favorite small family farm.
Sooo…What’s in the Box????
Sunshine Red Kabocha Squash- These are the large, orange winter squash towards the bottom of your box. These are my personal favorite squash by FAR! Their flesh is sweet, creamy, flaky and absolutely everything you could ever dream of wanting out of a winter squash! They should keep for months on your counter top if you can resist eating them for that long and if they don’t develop any decay spots. Squash prefer a 60-70 degree dry storage temp, so your counter should be perfect!
Brussels Sprouts- These puppies are still on the stalks. We left the work of snapping them off the stalks to you. Snap all of your Brussels off of their stalks and store in a plastic bag in the fridge. They will keep longer and stay fresher and greener in cold storage. Discard the stalk itself. Brussels are such a wonderful fall treat and so nutritious!
Yellow Potatoes- 2lbs per member. We’re working on getting all of our potatoes out of the ground. The harvest is decent this year considering how worried we were about them this Spring after planting when we had a very long stretch of very hot and dry weather that took out a percentage of the plants right away. Nice looking potatoes.
Beets- Two to three large beets per member. Will keep best in a plastic bag in the fridge.
Carrots- 1 pound per member. These are still our summer carrots we have had in cooler that we’re sharing now. Still plenty of fall carrots to dig!
Eggplant- What a terrific eggplant year! We’ve never had one quite like it! I’m hoping that you’ve found ways to cook eggplant that are appetizing to you! I truly believe that every vegetable is delicious when prepared properly!
Onion- One onion to keep your dishes tasting delicious!
Garlic- This is the Chesnook red variety. It is a hardneck variety with 6-8 cloves per bulb. We have really fallen in love with this variety in the last couple years. Will keep on your counter through the new year, but needs refrigeration for long term storage.
Sweet Bell Peppers- 4-5 peppers per member this week. The pepper patch is really bumping right now. We’re so happy to be sharing such beautiful pepper harvests such as these with you after a hard pepper season we had last year. Our children really love stuffed peppers. We also love to make fajitas and put them on pizza.
Jalapeno Pepper- To add a little spice to your life.
Hungarian Hot Wax Pepper– A little more tame than the Jalapenos. Also called a Bananna Pepper
Swiss Chard- We don’t harvest swiss chard as much as we would like to in the summer because it’s such a time consuming harvest. In the same family as spinach and beets, we’re very happy to be sharing swiss chard with you this week!
Celeriac Root- Celeriac root is in the same family as celery. It is specially cultivated so that the roots of the celery plant grow large instead of the stalks. We left the stalks on these celeriac root so that you can still use them in your cooking. They would be a nice addition to soups or even fresh salads. Check out our celeriac mashed potatoes recipe below! Just boil and mash them with potatoes and you’ll fall in love with celeriac root! Will keep best in a plastic bag in the fridge. With the greens removed, celeriac root is a fantastic storage vegetable. It will keep nearly all winter long in cold storage. It is also nice par boiled and then grated into a hash with or without potatoes!
Lettuce- One smaller head of lettuce this week. Some received a green oakleaf head of lettuce or green buttercrunch or red buttercrunch. It’s a tricky time of year to have fresh lettuce heads, so we’re very happy to be offering this!
Next Week’s Best Guess– Sweet bell peppers, onion, jalapeno, Hungarian hot wax, acorn squash, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, broccoli or cauliflower, celeriac root, mini sweet peppers, eggplant, collards or kale, kohlrabi?
