Wk 5,thanksgiving box

carrots – orange winter variety that can withstand 10-20 degrees no problem

butternut squash – great for pies too!

garlic

onion

herb bunches – sage, parsley, cilantro, thyme, mexican tarragon )great in tea, lemon thyme

kale (lacinato) – kale chips, I’m making that for T day

mild mustard OR cabbage

fennel (baby) – Throw in soup or salad . pair well with squash or roots

persimmon (fuyu)- they are good when hard or soft, unlike the hayucha. they need to ripen more, let them sit at room temp until the green turns to orange

Happy feasting and Giving Thanks day!

On Monday, as I watched the weather reports and felt the air, I scrambled to harvest and pull in or cover veggies that could be damaged by the hard freeze. It was exciting to feel the cold front coming.  I covered the CSA boxes and left the harvest for Portobello restaurant in my truck, thinking this would protect them from the weather enough.  I kicked myself in the morning when I found most o the produce was affected in some way.  For the CSA, I switched out cabbage for the frozen mustard greens, and took out the salad mix, figuring the more tender greens would turn to mush when thawed out. As a pleasant surprise, I found that they held up great.  Perhaps this is due to their quality, full of good minerals and nutrients?!

I’m curious how the fall beets (not hardier winter varieties) and daikon hold up in the fields.  I covered them both with remay (row cover), raising the temp 2-4 degrees and some got another layer of burlap sacks.  17 degrees is pretty harsh though!!

Walking on the farm, the earth was crunchy had no give.  I felt the stillness of the freeze.  All the plants greens flopped down, as they put energy in their roots.  It felt like on all was on hold.  I savored the quiet and the pause . . .

 

 

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Pics

Erica and Aaron picking beans

September CSA SE ptown pickup

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Wk3 &4, Nov 9 &16

I feel the slowing down of activity in the fields.  With the cold and shorter days, biological life slows in the soil. The plants seem to be at home inthe earth, varieties that do well in this weather.  I love the garden this time of year, as the crops are surrounded with all sorts of other plants (weeds). It’s abundant and beautiful green forest.  For the fall and winter crops, I weed when they are young, until they are established and then leave it.  It’s best to have the ground covered and not bare and I’m also loving the chickweed. It is part of the salad mix.  Wild foods are an important part of our diet too.

Monday night we had an amazing farm dinner at Acena restaurant in Sellwood.  Gabe, the chef, was inspired to have a dinner featuring a farmer.  We created a menu together and I prepped in the kitchen several days before.  It was such a festive night. The farm got a portion of each dinner and now we have more funds to build a greenhouse! Pics will be posted soon…

Tuesday marked halfway point for the fall CSA. We have 2 new members:)

November 16

onions

garlic

spicy mustard – the spice decreases when cooked. you could chop it small and have a super spicy salad

collards

parsnip – great roasted with other roots and tubers, or in soups or in sweets, like cookies and cakes

green tomatoes – these come from the 2 plants in the propogation house

parsley

russet potato

beets

I just made a yummy stew.

Lentils and Veggie Hearty Comfort Stew

2 potatoes

2 carrots

1 lg parsnip

1 lb winter squash

1/2 onion

2 lg cloves garlic

fresh or dried sage,thyme,oregano, 2 tablesppoon or 4 sprigs fresh

parsley

2 cups green or red lentils

any greens, chopped, I used cabbage, but the collards, would be great

mushrooms – i used dried shitake

Bring 10 c. water to a boil.  Cube all roots to 1/2 in.  Put all potatoes, onions, garlic, carrots, parsnips, squash in boiling water and simmer 5 min.  Add lentils.Sautee herbs in hot oil or butter until flavor releases.  Add to soup, along with mushrooms and greens.  Cook another 15-25 min until lentils are cooked.   Top with parsley.  Best if sits a few hours to overnight for flavors to marinate

Creamy Potato Parsnip Gratin

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Creamy-Potato-Parsnip-Gratin-232885

Nov 9

arugula

mild ustard

radish

butternut

herb bunch – sage, lemon thyme, parsley, mint

fennel

escarole head

onion

beet

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Wk 2, Nov 2

Sorry this is a late, I got hit with a mild flu type sickness.  It provided me with the opportunity to read a book! I savored the stillness.  I’m still eager to tie up loose ends on the farm, today I can take it slow and do some work in the fields.  We’ll pick up rocks and pull the last of the drip tape irrigation, and harvest some parsnips and carrots for Gino’s restaurant in Sellwood.  I dug the first parsnips a couple days ago and had to really work to get them.  The taproot is fiercely secured in the ground.  I’m guessing it’s because of both the duration, (they’ve been in the ground since April,) and their interest in finding water, (they went through some dry spells.)  Nutritious roots pulling up good stuff from the subsoil:) Happy sunny days!

Red Cabbage – I just made my first round of sauerkraut.  It’s easy, tasty and so good for us because of the lacto-fermentation process.

Collards

Escarole – A chicory, it has some bitterness.  If you’re not into that, put some sweetener in a dressing.  Heat up your dressing to soften these hardy fall greens.

Cilantro

Delicata Squash – Distinctively nutty and with a tender skin, great sauteed or roasted.

Fingerling Potato – Fancy, creamy variety.

Garlic

Onions – Roasted in the oven sweetens them, yum!!

Beets – Greens great in stews!

Semame Cabbage Salad

My mom makes this and our family has all always loved it. I don’t use exact amounts when I cook so I don’t know amounts, throw on what feels right.

Cabbage – chop small or grate.

Sesame oil

lime

cilantro – chopped

hot chili flakes or some kind of heat

Mix together and best if sits 30-60 min before serving.

 

Roasted Delicata Squash Salad Recipe

From FreeWorldDiet.com

**Substitute hot chili and/or cumin for harissa, topped with cilantro!

Roasted Delicata Squash Salad Recipe Profile:1/2 pound / 8 oz / 230 g small fingerling potatoes, washed and dried 3/4 pound / 12 oz / 340 g delicata squash 1/4 cup / 60 ml extra virgin olive oil scant 1/4 cup / 50 ml white miso scant 1 tablespoon harissa paste 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 1/2 ounce […] Continue reading

1/2 pound / 8 oz / 230 g small fingerling potatoes, washed and dried

3/4 pound / 12 oz / 340 g delicata squash
1/4 cup / 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
scant 1/4 cup / 50 ml white miso
scant 1 tablespoon harissa paste
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 1/2 ounce / 45 g kale, de-stemmed and finely chopped

4 radishes, very thinly sliced
1 1/2 ounces / 45g Marcona almonds, toasted pepitas, or other toasted nuts

Preheat the oven to 400F / 200C degrees. If the potatoes aren’t tiny, slice them into pieces no larger than your thumb. Cut the delicata squash in half length-wise, and use a spoon to clear out all the seeds. Cut into 1/2-inch wide half-moons. You can leave the peel on these squash.

In a small bowl whisk together olive oil, miso, harissa. Place the potatoes and squash in a large bowl with 1/3 cup / 80 ml of the miso-harissa oil. Use your hands to toss well, then turn everything out onto a baking sheet. Bake until everything is baked through and browned, about 25-30 minutes. Toss once or twice along the way after things start to brown a bit. Keep an eye on things though, you can go from browned to burned in a flash.

In the meantime, whisk the lemon juice into the remaining miso-harissa oil. Taste, it should be intensely flavorful, but if yours is too spicy or salty, you can dilute it with a bit more olive oil or lemon juice. Stir the kale into the leftover dressing and set aside.

Place the warm roasted vegetables in a bowl and toss with the kale mixture, radishes, and almonds.

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