Veggies in your bag this week:
-Napa Cabbage (Monday only, Thursday will possibly get broccoli or some other delightful thing:)
-Lacinato Kale
-Endive/Frisee’ (these two names are used interchangeably…they are also very similar to Escarole and probably any recipe for Escarole would work with this green too).
-Lettuce
-Beets
-Snow Peas
-Green Onions
-Garlic Scapes (the long curly cue—chop and add to a stir-fry for a mild garlic flavor).
Our two-week onslaught of rain was capped off Tuesday evening with 1¾ inches in less than an hour. Needless to say the already saturated ground couldn’t absorb all that water fast enough and some rivers of mud began moving through the vegetables, mainly noted in the lettuce. So if you find some muddy lettuce, that’s why.
It is interesting to look back at what was happening on the farm a year ago. In my week three newsletter, I noted the explosion of potato beetles, weeding til dusk on the solstice and picking so much broccoli we didn’t know what to do with it all. Well, each year is different. This year we can still count on both hands how many potato beetles we’ve picked off (amazing really—must be due to moving fields) and less weeding (I can actually see all of our crops this year and I am not planning to abandon anything because it’s too weedy).
Our bees swarmed for real this year, taking the queen with them, leaving half the population behind to rear a new queen. As I contemplated the disloyalty of the bees to me, I tried to stay positive. There is much to be learned from the life of bees: if it’s too crowded, move on to new places; if you lose your leader, rear a new one; store all that you can for winter—it’s guaranteed to be long and cold; honey is the nectar of life.
Two-Way Street Beets from the MACSAC cookbook
A member pointed this recipe out to me last year. I finally had the chance to make it and finally fell in love with beets (even farmers don’t like all the vegetables).
1 bunch of small-medium beets
juice of 1 orange
1 tablespoon butter
pepper
1 tsp peanut oil
1 tsp dark sesame oil
1 tsp hot chili oil
1-2 tablespoons soy sauce
Cut beets off stems. Gently scrub beets. Wash the greens. Cut stems into 3-inch pieces and coarsely chop the greens; set aside stems and greens in separate piles. Steam beets until tender, 20-30 minutes. Cool briefly, slip off skins, and cut into wedges. Toss with orange juice, butter, and pepper to taste; cover and keep warm. Meanwhile, heat heavy skillet over medium flame. Add oils. Add stems; sauté 2-3 minutes. Add greens; cook, tossing often, until limp. Toss in soy sauce and pepper to taste. Arrange beets over greens on platter.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Week Two
Veggies in your bag this week:
-Napa Cabbage
-Swiss Chard/Kale/Collards in a bunch
-Spinach
-Lettuce
-Salad Turnips (yummy eaten raw, but cooked is okay too).
-Radishes
-Green Onions
-Garlic Scapes (the long curly cue—chop and add to a stir-fry for a mild garlic flavor).
I feel quite certain we have had more straight days of straight rain recently than we have had in the last three years. Usually the end of my long days weeding, planting or harvesting are punctuated by an hour futzing around with the irrigation system to get the plants a nice drink of water. Not so right now. We have resigned ourselves to weeding in the rain, dragging our mud-laden feet around the field. If it’s not one thing it’s another, and on one hand I am very thankful to not spend time irrigating, but on the other, our slug problem has gotten out of control. They fall out of the heads of lettuce by the hundreds (no joke). Once the sun comes out again, plants are going to explode with growth.
Most crops seem to be doing well. The exceptions have been due to problems of seeds not sprouting. Our second planting of carrots failed completely (I’m not sure why) so there will be a gap between carrot harvests. Peas and cucumbers will soon be on the menu. Tomatoes are taking off like crazy in the hoophouse. Broccoli and cabbage are on their way.
If you haven’t yet, you can fan Piney Hill Farm on Facebook. I can’t promise
we will update very often (my facebook usage drops dramatically in the summer), but you never know what the farm might post.
A recipe for this week:
Asian Fusion Slaw (from the Featherstone Farm Cookbook)
Dressing
½ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
¼ cup rice vinegar
1 ½ tablespoons fresh ginger
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Slaw
6 cups shredded napa cabbage, thinly sliced
2 bell peppers sliced into sticks
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
salt
1 cup chopped salted peanuts
1 cup minced cilantro
1. Mix the dressing in a small bowl.
2. In a big bowl, toss together the cabbages, peppers, and onions. Pour the dressing over the cabbage and toss. Salt to taste.
3. Add the peanuts and cilantro right before serving
-Napa Cabbage
-Swiss Chard/Kale/Collards in a bunch
-Spinach
-Lettuce
-Salad Turnips (yummy eaten raw, but cooked is okay too).
-Radishes
-Green Onions
-Garlic Scapes (the long curly cue—chop and add to a stir-fry for a mild garlic flavor).
I feel quite certain we have had more straight days of straight rain recently than we have had in the last three years. Usually the end of my long days weeding, planting or harvesting are punctuated by an hour futzing around with the irrigation system to get the plants a nice drink of water. Not so right now. We have resigned ourselves to weeding in the rain, dragging our mud-laden feet around the field. If it’s not one thing it’s another, and on one hand I am very thankful to not spend time irrigating, but on the other, our slug problem has gotten out of control. They fall out of the heads of lettuce by the hundreds (no joke). Once the sun comes out again, plants are going to explode with growth.
Most crops seem to be doing well. The exceptions have been due to problems of seeds not sprouting. Our second planting of carrots failed completely (I’m not sure why) so there will be a gap between carrot harvests. Peas and cucumbers will soon be on the menu. Tomatoes are taking off like crazy in the hoophouse. Broccoli and cabbage are on their way.
If you haven’t yet, you can fan Piney Hill Farm on Facebook. I can’t promise
we will update very often (my facebook usage drops dramatically in the summer), but you never know what the farm might post.
A recipe for this week:
Asian Fusion Slaw (from the Featherstone Farm Cookbook)
Dressing
½ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
¼ cup rice vinegar
1 ½ tablespoons fresh ginger
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Slaw
6 cups shredded napa cabbage, thinly sliced
2 bell peppers sliced into sticks
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
salt
1 cup chopped salted peanuts
1 cup minced cilantro
1. Mix the dressing in a small bowl.
2. In a big bowl, toss together the cabbages, peppers, and onions. Pour the dressing over the cabbage and toss. Salt to taste.
3. Add the peanuts and cilantro right before serving
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
2010 Week One
Nothing like the first delivery to send the farmer into a panic. CSA style marketing requires attention to detail and so I sort through the details making sure my numbers are right and syrup shares are in order. Everything is out of rhythm. Yet I am excited to get the deliveries underway. The next few weeks on the farm will be busy and somewhat frantic as there are still plants to put in the ground, weeds to stay on top of, and then harvesting and delivering to go along with all that.
Now our third season of operating the CSA, we find ourselves becoming more efficient and some of our hard labor from the first few years paying off. Farming is still hard, but maybe it will be just a little bit easier this year than the last. We can always hope…and as far as I can tell, there is a lot of hope and faith that go into farming.
I can’t remember if I said it in the member handbook or not, but it’s a good idea to wash your produce, even if it looks clean. We try very hard to wash everything and maintain a clean harvest area, but washing it yourself before eating is the only way to be sure it’s really clean. Occasionally you will probably find a slug or other bug in your lettuce or delivery bag. As a CSA we do what we can to make the produce look good and treat it right so it stores well. But if you compare how our produce looks to what you see in a co-op, you might think your carrots have more dirt or your Swiss chard leaves have a few more holes. I appreciate the CSA market style because we are able to use more produce…whereas only the most perfect produce can be sold at a co-op. They also put considerable time in at the co-op cleaning produce before putting it on the shelf and anything imperfect doesn’t sell.
We had wonderful helpers at our member work day a week ago—planting and weeding galore. The highlight for all was the homemade maple ice cream that one of our members brought for the potluck. We also had some great help from Josh and Becky and their sons harvesting for the first delivery. They did a great job on slug patrol.
The vegetable cast list for this week:
-Rhubarb
-Swiss Chard (white and colored stems)
-Spinach
-Lettuce
-Frisee (bright green leaves with serrated edges)
-Radishes
-Chives
-Tarragon
-Horseradish
I highly recommend having a really good cookbook for vegetables. Of course you can probably find good recipes on the internet, but I still like paging through the cookbook. Two that I have and use often are:
Asparagus to Zucchini from the MACSAC (Madison Area CSA Coalition) organization.
Farmer John’s Cookbook: the real dirt on vegetables.
A new addition to your bag this year is the frisee’ otherwise known as endive. It is a slightly bitter green that can be used in salads, but might be better off cooked. Here is a recipe we tried last night to great success:
Steamed Frisee with Pine Nuts and Raisins (from Farmer John’s cookbook).
3 tablespoons raisins
1 pound frisee (I think you could add swiss chard to this as well if you’d like).
¼ cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
3 tablespoons pine nuts
salt and pepper
1. Put the raisins in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside to plump, then drain.
2. Steam the frisee in a steamer basket until wilted, 2-4 minutes.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and pine nuts and cook, stirring constantly until the pine nuts start to brown.
4. Give the greens a few chops on the cutting board and add to the skillet. Stir until coated with oil, then remove from heat and stir in the raisins. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
About the radishes:
Whoa, they got kind of big! We started harvesting them early, but even so… The slugs had a chew on the radish tops. You can use radish tops in a stir-fry. Radishes themselves can be cooked too, which takes away the spicy edge. I also like them grated on my salad…not quite as intense as eating them whole, which I like to do if I am driving because it keeps me awake :)
Now our third season of operating the CSA, we find ourselves becoming more efficient and some of our hard labor from the first few years paying off. Farming is still hard, but maybe it will be just a little bit easier this year than the last. We can always hope…and as far as I can tell, there is a lot of hope and faith that go into farming.
I can’t remember if I said it in the member handbook or not, but it’s a good idea to wash your produce, even if it looks clean. We try very hard to wash everything and maintain a clean harvest area, but washing it yourself before eating is the only way to be sure it’s really clean. Occasionally you will probably find a slug or other bug in your lettuce or delivery bag. As a CSA we do what we can to make the produce look good and treat it right so it stores well. But if you compare how our produce looks to what you see in a co-op, you might think your carrots have more dirt or your Swiss chard leaves have a few more holes. I appreciate the CSA market style because we are able to use more produce…whereas only the most perfect produce can be sold at a co-op. They also put considerable time in at the co-op cleaning produce before putting it on the shelf and anything imperfect doesn’t sell.
We had wonderful helpers at our member work day a week ago—planting and weeding galore. The highlight for all was the homemade maple ice cream that one of our members brought for the potluck. We also had some great help from Josh and Becky and their sons harvesting for the first delivery. They did a great job on slug patrol.
The vegetable cast list for this week:
-Rhubarb
-Swiss Chard (white and colored stems)
-Spinach
-Lettuce
-Frisee (bright green leaves with serrated edges)
-Radishes
-Chives
-Tarragon
-Horseradish
I highly recommend having a really good cookbook for vegetables. Of course you can probably find good recipes on the internet, but I still like paging through the cookbook. Two that I have and use often are:
Asparagus to Zucchini from the MACSAC (Madison Area CSA Coalition) organization.
Farmer John’s Cookbook: the real dirt on vegetables.
A new addition to your bag this year is the frisee’ otherwise known as endive. It is a slightly bitter green that can be used in salads, but might be better off cooked. Here is a recipe we tried last night to great success:
Steamed Frisee with Pine Nuts and Raisins (from Farmer John’s cookbook).
3 tablespoons raisins
1 pound frisee (I think you could add swiss chard to this as well if you’d like).
¼ cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
3 tablespoons pine nuts
salt and pepper
1. Put the raisins in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside to plump, then drain.
2. Steam the frisee in a steamer basket until wilted, 2-4 minutes.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and pine nuts and cook, stirring constantly until the pine nuts start to brown.
4. Give the greens a few chops on the cutting board and add to the skillet. Stir until coated with oil, then remove from heat and stir in the raisins. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
About the radishes:
Whoa, they got kind of big! We started harvesting them early, but even so… The slugs had a chew on the radish tops. You can use radish tops in a stir-fry. Radishes themselves can be cooked too, which takes away the spicy edge. I also like them grated on my salad…not quite as intense as eating them whole, which I like to do if I am driving because it keeps me awake :)
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Off to the organic conference!
This year I have been working part time for MOSES (Midwest Organic and Sustainability Education Service). MOSES organizes the largest organic farming conference in the US, and it takes place this weekend. From Tuesday through Saturday I will be among over 2,000 farmers interested in organic and sustainable agriculture. The outcome will surely be the inspiration to kick off the 2010 season, which in many ways begins next week, the first week of March as we plant onions, shallots and leeks in the greenhouse.
We still have a half dozen memberships available. Please inquire if you are interested.
We still have a half dozen memberships available. Please inquire if you are interested.
Monday, January 11, 2010
2010 CSA
After the farmers took a brief vacation to Ecuador (where farming goes on year-round and we were able to help pull a few weeds to remind us of what it felt like), we are ready to begin signing up our members for this upcoming season. In truth, we've hardly taken a break this year as we are experimenting with growing in a winter greenhouse. Right now I can go out and harvest a fresh salad for my dinner--a treat to be sure. We've been selling our salad greens from the winter greenhouse locally and at a co-op in Eau Claire, WI.
Last year's farm members will have the first chance to sign up again until February 15th. After this time, we will take new members.
We look forward to our third season running the CSA. Our hope is that we now have the general infrastructure needed to run the operation with minimal new investments. Erin's parents will be on hand this summer to help, and we look forward to all the new season brings.
Last year's farm members will have the first chance to sign up again until February 15th. After this time, we will take new members.
We look forward to our third season running the CSA. Our hope is that we now have the general infrastructure needed to run the operation with minimal new investments. Erin's parents will be on hand this summer to help, and we look forward to all the new season brings.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Week Sixteen
In the Bag
~Butternut Squash
~Cucumbers
~Cabbage
~Carrots
~Onions
~Cherry Tomatoes (Black Cherries and Sungolds)
~Tomatoes of varying sizes and colors.
~Eggplant
~Green Peppers
~Salad Radishes and Turnips
~Summer Squash
~Basil, Sage
Farm Report
This is week sixteen of our eighteen-week season. If you are not looking forward to revisiting the produce section of your grocery store, I may be able to help. Piney Hill is going to collaborate with another area organic farm to offer a five week add-on share to extend the season. I am still figuring out the cost and details, but I will probably have 15 of these shares to offer and I am hoping to only have one drop site, which would be our Uptown Yoga studio drop site (no danger of freezing anything there and it’s a central location for many people). This will be a greens heavy share (lots of kale, collards, chard and salad greens, but will also include some storage crops like carrots, onions, potatoes and squash (the potatoes and squash are coming from the nearby farm—as you know I am giving out all the Piney Hill squash and potatoes to our current season shares). I’ll be sending out an email maybe later this week with cost and other info.
If you are feeling overwhelmed by the cabbage in your share this week, try making this frozen coleslaw recipe and storing it. You can also try making sauerkraut right in jars or in a larger bucket or crock (chop cabbage finely and pack into jars with layers of pickling salt), then let it ferment in a cool place for several weeks before canning or freezing it. Cabbage will also stay good in your fridge for weeks.
Here is a frozen coleslaw recipe:
1 medium head cabbage, chopped
1 t. salt
3 stalks chopped celery
1 small chopped onion
Mix together and let stand for 1 to 2 hours. Drain and add pepper.
Dressing: 1cup water 1 cup sugar (you can cut this back if you want) 1 cup vinegar 1 t. celery seed 1 t. mustard seed
Mix dressing ingredients together in a suacepan. Boil for one minute. Cool. Mix with drained vegetables. Pack in jars or bags and freeze.
~Butternut Squash
~Cucumbers
~Cabbage
~Carrots
~Onions
~Cherry Tomatoes (Black Cherries and Sungolds)
~Tomatoes of varying sizes and colors.
~Eggplant
~Green Peppers
~Salad Radishes and Turnips
~Summer Squash
~Basil, Sage
Farm Report
This is week sixteen of our eighteen-week season. If you are not looking forward to revisiting the produce section of your grocery store, I may be able to help. Piney Hill is going to collaborate with another area organic farm to offer a five week add-on share to extend the season. I am still figuring out the cost and details, but I will probably have 15 of these shares to offer and I am hoping to only have one drop site, which would be our Uptown Yoga studio drop site (no danger of freezing anything there and it’s a central location for many people). This will be a greens heavy share (lots of kale, collards, chard and salad greens, but will also include some storage crops like carrots, onions, potatoes and squash (the potatoes and squash are coming from the nearby farm—as you know I am giving out all the Piney Hill squash and potatoes to our current season shares). I’ll be sending out an email maybe later this week with cost and other info.
If you are feeling overwhelmed by the cabbage in your share this week, try making this frozen coleslaw recipe and storing it. You can also try making sauerkraut right in jars or in a larger bucket or crock (chop cabbage finely and pack into jars with layers of pickling salt), then let it ferment in a cool place for several weeks before canning or freezing it. Cabbage will also stay good in your fridge for weeks.
Here is a frozen coleslaw recipe:
1 medium head cabbage, chopped
1 t. salt
3 stalks chopped celery
1 small chopped onion
Mix together and let stand for 1 to 2 hours. Drain and add pepper.
Dressing: 1cup water 1 cup sugar (you can cut this back if you want) 1 cup vinegar 1 t. celery seed 1 t. mustard seed
Mix dressing ingredients together in a suacepan. Boil for one minute. Cool. Mix with drained vegetables. Pack in jars or bags and freeze.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Week Fifteen
In the Bag
~Swiss Chard
~Potatoes (the last of them)
~Cucumbers
~Hakurei Turnips and Cherry Belle Radishes in one bunch
~Carrots
~Onions
~Cherry Tomatoes (Black Cherries and Sungolds)
~Tomatoes of varying sizes and colors.
~Eggplant
~Green Peppers
~Summer Squash
~Salad Mix
~Basil (in with the salad mix)
~Red Celery
Farm Report
So far September has been very un-September-like on the farm. Last year we had a killing frost on Sept. 9th, which put a quick end to our season. This year, we are thinking it feels more like July, and the crops that are left think it’s divine.
We spent Sunday morning digging the last beds of potatoes to great dismay. Some combination of weeds, potato beetles and early drought led our last potatoes down the path of a low-yield. This seems to be a common theme on the farm this year, and once again I find myself thinking about how I’m going to do things right next year.
The bees are bringing in the last of the buckwheat nectar and we are all getting ready to hunker down. We are cutting wood for the wood stove and dreading the days we have to layer to go outside. But not just yet, right?
We’ve had a few complete farm meals this week. May I suggest a zucchini/tomato casserole that our farm volunteer put together? Just layer slices of blanched zucchini with onion and tomato, sprinkle on some salt and oregano and top with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. “I’ve notices you have all of these in abundance” she said before making it. She’s right, and it’s delicious.
We’ve also had mashed potatoes, steamed edamame, salad greens and kale. Apple crisp for desert of course.
~Swiss Chard
~Potatoes (the last of them)
~Cucumbers
~Hakurei Turnips and Cherry Belle Radishes in one bunch
~Carrots
~Onions
~Cherry Tomatoes (Black Cherries and Sungolds)
~Tomatoes of varying sizes and colors.
~Eggplant
~Green Peppers
~Summer Squash
~Salad Mix
~Basil (in with the salad mix)
~Red Celery
Farm Report
So far September has been very un-September-like on the farm. Last year we had a killing frost on Sept. 9th, which put a quick end to our season. This year, we are thinking it feels more like July, and the crops that are left think it’s divine.
We spent Sunday morning digging the last beds of potatoes to great dismay. Some combination of weeds, potato beetles and early drought led our last potatoes down the path of a low-yield. This seems to be a common theme on the farm this year, and once again I find myself thinking about how I’m going to do things right next year.
The bees are bringing in the last of the buckwheat nectar and we are all getting ready to hunker down. We are cutting wood for the wood stove and dreading the days we have to layer to go outside. But not just yet, right?
We’ve had a few complete farm meals this week. May I suggest a zucchini/tomato casserole that our farm volunteer put together? Just layer slices of blanched zucchini with onion and tomato, sprinkle on some salt and oregano and top with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. “I’ve notices you have all of these in abundance” she said before making it. She’s right, and it’s delicious.
We’ve also had mashed potatoes, steamed edamame, salad greens and kale. Apple crisp for desert of course.
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