Welcome to the 24th week of the Pitchfork & Crow CSA!
Here’s what’s in the share:
- Garlic
- Shallots
- Cauliflower
- Broccoli
- Beets
- Sweet Peppers – Back to the mix of Stocky Red Roaster & Gatherer’s Gold sweet peppers this week
- Jalapenos
- Purple Peruvian Fingerling Potatoes
- Napa Cabbage
- Delicata Winter Squash – a new variety for us called Honey Boat from Adaptive Seeds bred by a professor at OSU. The coloring is more copper than yellow and they’re rumored to be sweet and long-storing.
- Pears
Have I said it before that this may be my favorite time of year? The crisp air, the colorful leaves, the bountiful harvests. What’s not to love? Each season has its highs and lows of course, but by autumn we have enough perspective on our growing season to appreciate it all.
The weather has continued the general foggy mornings, often clearing to sunny skies by mid-afternoon in our neck of the woods. The weather folks are predicting temperatures below freezing tonight (Monday), bringing our first real hard frost of the season. We feel well prepared with our storage crops already in storage and we’re looking forward to many of the non-frost hardy weeds dying off. Of course a frost has the added bonus of helping to sweeten all the greens out in the field too.
This past week we enjoyed a good mix of work and friends. We harvested apples and noticed the local wild turkey flock skirting along the eastern treeline in the neighbor’s field as seen up above on the right. Jeff worked on some maintenance projects, including cleaning out the seed drill we use to sow our cover crop seed seen above on the left. We also took time away for gatherings with friends and we may have been dressed as scarecrows at some point this past weekend. I’m not sure it could have been a more autumn-themed week. We hope you’re enjoying the seasonal shift and are gearing up for a fun and safe Halloween!
Enjoy the vegetables!
Your farmers,
Jeff Bramlett and Carri Heisler
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Here are a few recipes to get you inspired:
Last week CSA member Moon McCarley mentioned a recipe for delicata squash that sounded fantastic. Lucky for all of us she emailed the recipe below for Delicata Squash Rings and we made sure to include shallots this week along with the delicata.
Delicata Squash Rings
- 2 med delicata squash
- olive oil (generous amount in baking dish and enough to coat mixed squash)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt and pepper each
- 3 lrg shallots, minced and mixed with light oil
- 1 Tbsp dried thyme
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400’F.
2. Cut the ends off the squash. Then, using a fillet knife clean out the insides of the squash, remove the stringy parts and the seeds. Then cut them into 1/2″ pieces. Try to be consistent. The rings will cook much better if they are the same size.
3. If all the insides don’t come out when you’re using the knife you can clean the rest out once they are cut in rings.
4. Put the rings in a large bowl and pour a good portion of olive oil on them, toss to coat. Add the salt, pepper, shallot and thyme and toss again.
5. Get yourself a large oven tray with sides and oil it using one of the squash rings, this works really well. Use the oil from the bowl. Then put the rings on the tray in one layer.
6. Put in the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Flip the rings over 1/2 way through the cooking process to ensure even browning.
7. Enjoy!
From Moon McCarley, P&C CSA member!
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Hot-and-Sour Cabbage Salad
- 1 pound Napa cabbage (1/2 head), thinly shredded
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
Put cabbage and scallion in a large bowl.
Bring vinegar, ginger, sugar, and red pepper flakes (to taste) to a boil in a small saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Pour hot dressing over cabbage, tossing to combine.
Broccoli, Red Pepper, and Cheddar Chowder
- 1 small head broccoli (1/2 pound)
- 1 large boiling potato (1/2 pound)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- l large garlic clove, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 6 oz sharp Cheddar, coarsely grated (1 1/2 cups)
Discard tough lower third of broccoli stem. Peel remaining stem and finely chop. Cut remaining broccoli into very small (1-inch) florets. Cook florets in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking, then drain. Reserve 3 cups cooking water for chowder.
Peel potato and cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Cook potato, onion, bell pepper, broccoli stems, and garlic in butter in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add cumin, salt, pepper, and mustard and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add flour and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Add reserved cooking water and simmer (partially covered), stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in cream and cheese and cook, stirring, until cheese is melted, then season with salt and pepper.
Purée about 2 cups of chowder in a blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids) and return to pot. Add florets and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 2 minutes.
From Epicurious via Gourmet, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Broccoli-Red-Pepper-and-Cheddar-Chowder-105893
pitchfork & crow 