Produce Subscription (Week 39)

Red is the name of the game this week. Tomatoes and pepper are overflowing your boxes. Get ‘em while the getting’ is good. Freeze ‘em if you have to…neither one needs blanching. Just chop and bag and freeze in recipe-sized portions. This season is offering a pretty short window for the heat-lovin’ things. Cucumbers are done. Tomatoes have had their crewcut…encouraging them to ripen what’s hangin’. And all field items that rely on warm nights are done, kaput, finito, bloto.

Tomatoes were pruned today— high and tight— to improve air flow, eliminate morning dew on the plants and reduce bacterial spotting that will end our tomato season real quick!

Your boxes will be in their respective drop site locations by 9am Wednesday. (Dropsite Location Details) Find the box with your name and have at it!

If you have any questions, please call Roger on his delivery phone 626 488 5437 (if before 10a) and the farm phone 715 426 7582 (if after 10am).

Watermelon outside your box and lots of variety inside your boxes this week. LIFT YOUR BOX FROM BELOW (33#) Pick up one watermelon from the common bin.

Potato, Goldrush baking variety Lightly russetted skin and golden interior; dry/mealy like any respectable baker should be!

Watermelon, Blacktail Mountain Crossing our fingers again, that these will be good. Make sure you pick yours up… it is NOT in your box.

Tomato, cherry variety

Tomato, paste A couple of varieties; one plump and juicy while the other is dryer and better for making a nice thick sauce.

Tomato, slicer variety Several different large slicers and a couple of the little orange Jaune Flamme.

Pepper, sweet Many! Italia (red), purple, chocolate, red/lipstick…all kinds of choices.

Pepper, sweet lunchbox A handful of these snackers for someone’s lunchbox. Stuff ’em with hummus for a nice combo.

Pepper, Sweet Habanero Ok, these are odd. Trust me, I tried them before I packed them. They are sweet (compared to a proper habanero, that is.) There is a mild mouth tingle when you eat them. They are sweet, citrus-y, floral-y, very thin walled. Odd, but appealing. I think they will create some diversity in a mixed salad or minced in a simple vinaigrette. They are way too slow in the growing…this is the first harvest and the take is puny.

Pepper (Jalapeno) Just one to kick-start your salsa or soup or what-have-you.

Squash, zephyr and Zucchini Ok, definitely the last week of these kids.

Cucumber, variety pack Probably the last week of these fellas too; the plants were chilled beyond recovery in the high tunnel. Sensitive little things, they are.

Cabbage, green A denser cabbage than earlier in the season; holds up well in*Bubbles and Squeak*.

Kohlrabi We have a report of someone loving the Baked Kohlrabi sticks. Check them out. Whole, they will store well in the fridge for a while.

Celery Made a great (and simple) lentil soup for lunch today with the celery, peppers and onions. Hearty enough for a stand-alone dinner with a nice crusty bread and will travel well for lunch-on-the-go. (Or can it with a pressure canner; my plan for tonight.)

Onions, white and red Working thru the various varieties…

Shallots These are milder cousins in the onion family. They work very nicely in salad dressings. Try the Maple Mustard Dressing.

Sage Dries very well; stores for those Thanksgiving recipes! Try it in the lentil soup for a rich flavor.

Chives A little sprinkling on the big bakers?

Recipes for your consideration

This is a quick cooking, quick preparing soup that can vary with what’s available. Change up the herbs, the veggies, the greens…different every time with the perfect lentil holding it all together with that fabulous flavor.¬

Simple Lentil Soup

1 cup lentils (green/French ideal, or brown)
4 cup water
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 cube vegetable boullion, optional
2 sweet peppers, chopped
5-6 stalks celery, chopped
2 onions, chopped
1 tsp herbs (thyme or sage or basil or rosemary)
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped (optional)
1-2 turnips, chopped (optional)
1 small rutabaga, chopped (optional)
1 cup winter squash, chopped (optional)
2 Tbsp dry sherry (optional)
1 packed cup kale, chopped fine

Wash lentils and add to pot with water. Start simmering with salt, pepper and bouillon.

Add chopped peppers, celery and onion; and any optional veggies you are using. Continue to simmer with lid on.

Add herbs and sherry and kale.

Simmer until lentils are soft, approx 30-40 minutes. Serve warm.

Here’s an interesting way to consume cabbage. Simple and tasty! Great way to gobble up the fabulous phytonutrients in your cabbage.¬

Garlic Rubbed Roasted Cabbage Steaks

1 2# cabbage, cut into 1" slices
1/5 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 garlic cloves
sea salt
black pepper

Preheat oven to 400F and brush or spray a baking sheet with oil.

Remove outer leaf of cabbage; cut cabbage from top to bottom (bottom being root) into 1" thick slices.

Rub both sides of cabbage with smashed garlic.

Use a pastry brush to evenly spread the olive oil over both sides of the cabbage slices.

Finally, sprinkle each side with a bit of kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

Roast on the middle rack for 30 minutes. Carefully flip the cabbage steaks and roast for an additional 30 minutes until edges are brown and crispy. Serve hot and Enjoy!

From— Everydaymaven.com

Quite a combo of flavors and textures; quite filling. Not something I would have made up myself, but I really like this recipe. Creative for the tastebuds.¬

Caramelized Cabbage and Onion Pasta with Bread Crumbs

Ingredients
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp margarine (Earth Balance the best)
3 slices wheat bread, torn into pieces
2 Tbsp fresh sage, rough chop
1/4 tsp ground black pepper, more to taste
1 lb whole wheat pasta, cooked al dente
1/4 cup reserved pasta water
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2-1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 head cabbage, roughly chopped
1-2 large onion (or 5-6 mini-onion)
1/2 cup grated Parmasan-style cheeze (Galaxy brand)
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

In a food processor, combine half the garlic, sage, and bread; pulse until you have fine bread crumbs.

Melt margarine in a skillet and add the bread crumbs. Stir and toast for about 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside.

In a large skillet, turn on the heat to medium-high and add the olive oil, crushed red pepper flakes, and the remaining garlic. When the oil is hot, add the sliced onion and cabbage, along with a pinch of salt.

Stir the cabbage and onions until they begin to reduce and caramelize, about 15 minutes.

Add a 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water to deglaze the pan. Scrape the bottom of the pan with the water.

Toss your cabbage/onion mixture in with the pasta and bread crumbs. Serve with grated Parmesan cheeze. Top with toasted walnuts.

From— New York Times, adapted by blogger A Little Bit Crunch, re-adapted by Razz_

Everyone feel free to add your favorite recipes to the website.

Farm News

We are winding down here on the farm. Fall came in with a rush, crunched all of the tender things, and then backed off for a nice run of warm weather…too bad we can’t convince the plants to come back and enjoy the sunshine. We enjoyed the beautiful sunshine and breezes today during harvest!

The end of the cucumber season at FarmWLIG

We have spotted some winter squash that might have matured sufficiently…little Dumpling variety…so hopefully will have enough of those for next week. No promises…they really needed 2 more weeks. On the upside, a nice bed of broccoli looks like it will give us a dose for next week too. We probably inundated you with broccoli this season, but just a bit to wind out the year! And if the deer stay out, we may have some fennel and beets next week. The deer have become quite bold in their attacks on the infrastructure. Out of sight, out of mind does NOT work.

Swiss chard "undercover"…NOT. What can chard possibly smell like to a deer-nose thru row cover?

Have a wonderful week, and enjoy the vegetables.

Roger and Lara