Thank you!

Celeriac harvest on a lovely fall day.

This is the final box of our regular season.  Thank you Tipi members!  We truly appreciate your commitment to our farm.  We could not farm without you.

Many of you have signed up for continued deliveries with our extension and storage shares.  We will be in touch with more information as those deliveries approach.

We will open registration for our 2017 season within a few weeks.  Watch for emails from us.  In the meantime, you can continue eating our produce through the winter.  Our stored cabbage, carrots and other roots will be on the shelves at these stores: Willy Street Coop (Madison, Middleton), Outpost Natural Foods (Mequon and Milwaukee area), Basics Coop (Janesville), Whole Foods (Madison only), Good Harvest Market (Pewaukee), and Health Hut (Brookfield).

How was the season?  Our thoughts.

It has been a challenging year for us but you probably did not notice.  It was a good year to test our version of CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).  In the classic CSA model, you as members, would share in the risks of the farm. We operate a little differently.  More than half the crops we grow are intended for our store customers but are available to the CSA as needed, providing a reliable buffer in a poor season.  We dipped into that reservoir this year to make sure you got your expected value of good produce.  For example, beets, summer carrots, and leeks all had smaller harvests than expected so we put them all into your CSA boxes.  We were glad to have that supply at hand.

It was an unusually long growing season, with a record-early start.  We were in the fields planting radishes and spinach in mid-March.  The season extended with a mild fall, allowing us to harvest peppers right up to this week.  Humid, rainy days in August and September did not do us any favors.  The greatest effect was on our fall crops, then in their adolescent phase.  This is why we grow 40 different crops.  Each year, something will do poorly but something else will do well and take its place.  That’s the nature of a mixed vegetable farm like ours.

It was a good year for peppers and watermelons.  The greens and most summer crops thrived.  The sweet potatoes are terrific.  The cauliflower and Romanesco were late to produce heads but we are thrilled with how much we’ve had to harvest recently.

Our work crew was wonderful this year, both newcomers and old hands.  They were a joy to work with: smart, diligent, thoughtful, and kind to each other.  

Our field work will continue for another three weeks, as we bring in cabbage, carrots and other roots to store and sell through the winter.  It’s always a big effort, so we are preparing mentally and physically.  Steve has run through his checklist.  The carrot harvester is ready to go, with new modifications.  The wooden storage bins are all in good shape.  Steve and Roger are tightening up the coolers for winter.  We expect to have all the crops out of the field by mid-November.  Then we can slow down for a few months.  Our crew drops from 25 people down to five.  That’s enough people to prepare and deliver our winter crops.  In December and January we will mull over our 2017 plans so we can order seed.  Greenhouse work begins by early March, and everything flows from there.  Soon we will wrap up our time as the Organic Farmers of the Year.  It has been a very special year for us.

Thank you again for your patronage.  We are already envisioning changes and progress for next year.  Join in and give us your feedback.

Beth and Steve.

How was the season?  YOUR thoughts.

Now it’s your turn to share your thoughts.  Please complete our annual survey.  I sent the link in our 10/27/16 email, and look forward to poring over the results.  This is an essential part of the CSA model – we need to hear from you to make the CSA work for you.  

This week on the farm

We kept ourselves busy with farm maintenance, in anticipation of our big upcoming harvests.

Our beautiful barn, before and after painting.  Roger completed the project in a day and half, with helpers, a lift, harnesses and an extended handle on his paint sprayer.  We almost made it to the roof peak.  The top gap will have to wait until a friend’s taller lift is available.

Roger in the cage, with Billy steering.

Veggie list and veggie notes (Oct 27/28, 2016, week #24, purple EOW)

Red cabbage
Sweet potatoes, 2+ lb
Brussels sprouts, 0.6 lb
Kale, 1 bunch
Beets, 2 lb
Celeriac, 1 or 2
Yellow onions, ~2
Carrots, a few
A pepper of some sort
Jalapeños (HOT), 2
Baby ginger, 1 knob
Most sites get cauliflower (white or orange or purple) but we might pair it with Romanesco broccoli for some sites.

Sweet potatoes – These are the Covington variety. This is an especially tasty batch. Let’s repeat my newsletter information from a few weeks ago.
Here are a few things we’ve learned about sweet potatoes:
– For best flavor, cook your sweet potatoes so they brown and caramelize.  We have a simple, favorite way to roast sweet potatoes.  We used to prepare sweet potato fries.  Now we just quarter the potatoes, rub with olive oil, dust with salt and place cut-side-down on a cookie sheet.  Roast in a 450 F oven without turning until soft.  The flavors will caramelize (like sweet potato fries) but preparation is simpler and the cooking time less exacting.  Slender sweet potato fries go from undercooked to overcooked in the blink of an eye.  Larger slices are less exacting, and therefore are easier.  Small sweet potatoes can be cut just in half.  Jumbos will need to be chopped into pieces.  Otherwise, they will take a long time to cook.
– Store your sweet potatoes at room temperature.  They suffer chilling injury below 50 F.
– The sweet potatoes we grow require slightly longer cooking than ones from the supermarket, perhaps because they contain higher moisture so soon after harvest.
– Sweet potatoes are good at any size. We have cooked everything from tiny to jumbo and consistently find that all sizes taste good.

Brussels sprouts – The B-sprouts have taken their time sizing up.  Sprouts are small.  I’ve given you our usual cooking instructions below, but recognize that all of this week’s sprouts are small.
Here is our method to cook Brussels sprouts. Wash the sprouts and trim the cut ends. Cut an X in the stem end of large sprouts.  Cut a single slit in small or medium sprouts.  This does two things. It helps the Brussels sprouts cook evenly, plus it allows them to soak up any marinade or dressing.  Place sprouts in a pot with one inch of water in the bottom and steam until tender, 7 to 10 minutes.  If the sprouts are uneven in size, then set aside the smallest ones and add to the pot after the larger ones have cooked for a few minutes.  Don’t overcook them!  You can also oven-roast Brussels sprouts.  Here are a few dressing ideas for cooked sprouts:
– Sherry vinegar/olive oil/Dijon mustard/garlic/white wine/salt and pepper.  This is our favorite, especially when you combine the Brussels sprouts with slivered peppers and thinly sliced onions.  Delicious warm, cold, or at room temperature.
– Balsamic vinegar/olive oil/garlic/salt and pepper
– Lemon juice and zest/melted brown butter/poppy seeds/white wine/garlic/salt

Celeriac (knobby, round, bizarre-looking vegetable which smells like celery) – Flavorful celeriac is good raw or cooked.  It is excellent in mixed roasted veggies or in soup.  It’s especially good in cream soups, alone or mixed with potatoes.  Grated raw celeriac is a great starting point for winter salads.  Celeriac will store in your refrigerator for months.  Cut off chunks as you need them.  Peel before using.

Baby ginger – Wrap in a damp cloth or paper towel, and keep in the refrigerator in a plastic bag.  Eat soon; baby ginger is perishable.  It bruises easily so we gave it a light washing, and figured you could do the fine washing when you use it.

Everyone gets one knob of baby ginger.

RECIPES FROM LAUREN

GINGER, TURMERIC & COCONUT SOUP
Takes 40 minutes
Serves 4-6

2 tablespoon butter
2 carrots, diced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1/2 celeriac, peeled and diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 cup white rice
3 cups chicken broth
1 can coconut milk
1 bunch kale (6-8 leaves), stems removed, leaves roughly chopped
1 teaspoon fish sauce
Lime wedges, to serve

1. In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, melt butter.  Add carrots, onion, celeriac, jalapeno and ginger.  Saute for 5 minutes until fragrant.  Add turmeric and salt and saute 5 minutes longer.
2. Add rice.  Stir for about a minute to combine rice and toast it gently.  Add chicken broth, bring mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer.  Simmer until rice is cooked, about 15 minutes.  Add coconut milk, kale and fish sauce.  Simmer gently until kale is wilted, about 5 minutes.
3. Serve with lime wedges.

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SWEET POTATO & BRUSSELS SPROUT TACOS WITH RED CABBAGE SLAW:
Takes 1 hour
Serves 4.

5 cups diced and peeled sweet potatoes
1 cup Brussels sprouts, left whole if small, halved if a little larger
2-1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Pinch cinnamon

Red Cabbage Slaw:
2 cups shredded red cabbage
1 red pepper (bell or fryer), seeded and diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 limes, juiced
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Flour tortillas
Avocado
Sour cream or Greek yogurt
Hot sauce, optional

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and chop vegetables while you wait.
2. Toss sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts with olive oil and spices in a large bowl to coat. Pour out onto a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 40-45 minutes rotating occasionally.
3. While the sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts roast, prepare the slaw. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
4. To serve, top warm tortillas with a spoonful or two of sour cream. Add avocado, followed by warm roasted vegetables and cabbage slaw. Add hot sauce if desired. Enjoy!
5. Roast at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes

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LOCAL THYME RECIPES

Comforting Classics

Cheddar Cauliflower Fritter 
Chinese Spiced Hot Red Cabbage
Slow Roasted Vegetables with Mustard Seed Vinaigrette
Creamy Celeriac Dressing

Outside the Box Ideas

Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Hazelnuts
Sicilian Braised Red Cabbage with Capers and Olives
Red Velvet Cake
Celeriac with Lentils and Hazelnuts 

Quick and Easy Meal

Sweet Potato Soup with Miso and Ginger

Final green EOW box

This is the final delivery for our green EOW members.  Thank you for joining us this season!  We hope you enjoyed the produce and the experience.  We will be in touch with a survey in the next few weeks.

Here is our remaining schedule:
Oct. 20/21 (this week) – final week for green EOW members.
Oct 27/28 (next week) – final week for weekly and for purple EOW members
November – Deliveries are available in November for members who signed up for our extension or storage shares.  Those already registered should have received a recent confirmation email from us.  We still have a few shares available.  If interested, go here to sign up.  The deadline to register and pay is this Sunday Oct. 23.

Getting ready for the big push

By mid-November, our coolers will be stuffed with crops to sell through the winter.  It’s almost time to begin these harvests.  The carrots and other roots are growing happily underground, so we don’t want to interfere yet.  We think carrots, in particular, improve in quality if they get a month of cool nights as they mature.  In the meantime, we continue our usual CSA work, as well as preparations for the big upcoming harvests.

Steve is making improvements to his carrot harvester, the one we imported from Sweden last year.  It is a monster!  He loves the thing!  It operates best with a team of two or three people but, in a pinch, Steve can run it solo.  He beams after a successful run with this machine.

Roger patches weak areas on our barn.  We plan to paint it next week if the weather holds.

Looks like Ireland, doesn’t it?  As each crop finishes, we plant the empty field with cover crops.  The rye and vetch are in full, lush growth, a beautiful shade of green.  The cover crops keep the soil from eroding over the winter then burst into growth in spring.

Maggie and Rebecca harvest kale.  We’ve loved the mild weather.  No rain, no snow, no mosquitos.  Ahh.

Thinking ahead

Matt Schaeffer and Steve check out the remains of Matt’s mulched fields.

It’s not too soon to ponder improvements for next year.  Steve and I visited neighbor Matt Schaeffer of Sandhill Family Farms to pick up his potatoes for this week’s CSA box.  Matt and wife Peg raise organic vegetables about 15 miles south of us.  It’s interesting to swap farming notes because they are so close, and grow many of the same crops.  Steve and I wanted to see the tomato fields that Matt mulched with a thick layer of straw and hay.  It gave him good weed control in a rainy, challenging season.  It’s an approach we are considering for next year, so it’s helpful to see it in action on another farm.

I also checked out Peg and Matt’s winter squash, to compare notes on disease problems we saw this season.  I showed Matt our stored squash a few weeks ago, ranting about how tantalizingly close they got to harvest before rot set in.  Matt looked at me and said in his calmest voice,
“I’ve had enough time to come to terms with the winter squash problems.  But you aren’t quite there yet, are you?”
Sigh.  Two weeks have passed and I’m getting close.  Beth

Veggie list and veggie notes (Oct. 20/21, 2016, week #23, green EOW)

Butternut squash
Carola potatoes, 3 1/3 lb
Leeks, ~1 lb
Yukina greens
Green frying peppers, ~2
Bell pepper, ~1
Poblano chiles (HOT, in bag), ~4
Carrots, 2 lb
Beauty Heart radish
Garlic

Some get cauliflower (white or purple or orange)
Some sites get broccoli.
Some get Romanesco broccoli.
Who knows, you might get a mix.

Butternuts – Like last week, many of the squash we send this week have flaws.  Cut the flawed areas away before cooking because they are difficult to recognize once the squash is cooked.  The squash are very good cooking quality, worth the bit of extra effort.  The plants made beautiful squash before the rainy weather caused problems.  We’re packing a mix of different butternut varieties.  If you receive a small squash with very dark orange color, that’s the ‘Honeynut’ variety.  They are quite small and very tasty, a result of breeding program directed at high quality, ‘single-serving’ squash.  They are too small to send on their own, so I will pair it with other small butternuts.
Storage: Store at room temperature with good ventilation.  Eat soon – these might not store for long.

Organic Carola potatoes – Carolas are small to medium potatoes with yellow skin and flesh, grown by Matt and Peg Schaeffer of Sandhill Family Farms.  Matt says they are his favorite potato and referred me to this description online: “These yellow-fleshed potatoes have moist, creamy-sweet flesh and satisfying texture; a favorite for oven roasting to a rich golden-brown, as well as grilling, steaming, mashing or frying.  They add sensational flavor and texture to soups and stews.”
Storage:  Can be stored at room temperature or in a cool spot.  Keep in the dark so they do not turn green.  The Carolas are thin-skinned and prone to drying out, so keep an eye on them.

Yukina (large heads of dark green leaves) – This is my favorite fall green.  It is nutritious, delicious, a great combination of mustard-like leaves with crunchy stems.  These yukina look big, but will shrink once cooked.   We usually steam and drain chopped yukina, then dress it with a cooked mixture of fried garlic and ginger simmered with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, a little sugar and a lot of paprika or hot pepper flakes.

Poblano chiles (triangular, shiny, green or red) – These are mildly hot.  Poblanos are the creme de la creme of chiles.  They have lots of great flavor in combination with manageable heat.  Steve protected these plants from frost so we would have the chiles for you.  Roast and add to soup or casseroles.  For our household, they are emblematic of fall cooking.

Beauty Heart radishes (round, white with pale green shoulders and bright pink interior) – Refrigerate. The interior color is lovely. Slice thinly and add to salads, cook lightly in mixed vegetable medleys or cut into matchsticks and add to pasta salads. We have sent the Beauty Hearts in combination with carrots because they make lovely, mixed salads, like Lauren’s dish below.

RECIPES FROM LAUREN

BEAUTY HEART RADISH, CARROT & AVOCADO SALAD
Takes 20 minutes
Makes 4-6 servings

1 giant Beauty Heart radish, peeled and cut into 1/16-inch slices
1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1/16-inch slices
1-2 avocados (I always opt for more avocado when there’s an option), cut in half and sliced
Kosher salt

Orange Garlic Vinaigrette:
2 garlic cloves, minced as finely as you can
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
Pinch black pepper

1. Combine radish and carrots in a large bowl.
2. In a small bowl, combine all vinaigrette ingredients. Whisk until well combined and creamy in appearance (this means it has emulsified and will hold together well–mustard helps you achieve this emulsification so don’t leave it out!). Taste and adjust seasonings (some people will like more vinegar, salt or sugar).
3. Pour dressing over radish and carrots.
4. Lay out 3-5 avocado slices on each plate. Top with radish and carrots. Sprinkle with salt and drizzle with any dressing that remains in the bowl.

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FALL HARVEST RISOTTO
Takes 1 hour
Serves 6-8

4 tablespoons butter
2 large leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced in half lengthwise and sliced
2 cups Carola potatoes, diced
4 cups butternut squash, peeled and diced
1 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup white wine
6 cups chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper

1. Melt butter in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add leeks along with a couple pinches of salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes.
2. Reduce heat to medium low. Add potatoes, butternut squash and a few more pinches of salt and pepper. Cook for 15 minutes until soft, stirring every couple minutes. The bottom of the pan may brown a little, but don’t worry about this. It will just add flavor!
3. In a separate large sauce pan, bring broth to a low simmer.
4. Add rice and stir to combine. Stir for a couple minutes to toast the rice. Add wine and use a wooden spoon to scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
5. Use a ladle to add a couple spoonfuls of simmering broth to the stockpot. Stir to combine and continue stirring every minute or so to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pan. The idea is to stir it often enough that it has no chance to stick, but not so frequently that it doesn’t have a chance to simmer. Add sage after first addition of broth. Continue adding ladlefuls of stock every few minutes. You will keep adding and stirring and adding and stirring (slowly) for 30-35 minutes. Taste occasionally to test the texture of the rice. You want it to be cooked but not too mushy at the end. Adjust seasonings as desired.

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LOCAL THYME RECIPES

Comforting Classics

Rancheros Sauce
Yukina and Goat Cheese Frittata
Cauliflower Leek Blue Cheese Soup
Vegan Winter Squash Bisque

Outside the Box Recipes

Poblano Custard
Wilted Yukina with Raisins and Pine Nuts
Buffalo Cauliflower
Butternut Squash and Apple Calzones

Quick and Easy Meal

Carrot Ginger Vichyssoise

Box count down

Our regular CSA season is almost over.  Let’s review the final three deliveries.
– October 13/14 = This week (purple EOW)
– October 20/21 = Final delivery for green EOW members
– October 27/28 = Final delivery for weekly and purple EOW members.
Additional deliveries are available for those who have signed up for our Extension or Storage shares.  Look for an email from us earlier tonight with instructions to register.

Farm News

It is likely to frost tonight.  Run out and cover your garden plants, if you are still hanging on to something precious.  I covered a beautiful dahlia that I can’t let go yet.  We are protecting one pepper field with row cover, so we can continue harvesting for a few more weeks.  Everything else is either already harvested (sweet potatoes, squash) or can handle substantial freezing (broccoli, kale, cauliflower, root crops, etc.)  Brussels sprouts will even improve with frost.

MOSA inspector Dan Marten and Steve review farm records at our kitchen table.

We had our organic inspection this week.  It’s an annual step in maintaining our farm’s organic certification.  Four hours of reviewing records indoors, on a beautiful sunny warm day.  We passed with flying colors.  The inspection is always interesting because it gives us on-the-ground insight into how other farms in Wisconsin are faring.  Our inspector Dan Marten has visited vegetable farms all over the state.  He reports it was a difficult season in most regions.  Most got too much rain but some didn’t get enough.  Like he said, “We didn’t get many gentle, overnight rains.”  Seems like everyone got pounding deluges instead.

A few more gleaning photos.

I was taken with the mud boots everyone wore to our gleaning party.  Here are a few beauties.  You folks are so stylish!

Veggie list and veggie notes (Oct. 13/14, 2016, week #22, purple EOW)

We paired the napa cabbage with cilantro, scallions and jalapeños because they combine well in many Asian recipes.  Temperatures are predicted to swing wildly this week.  You can make a warm cooked dish with half your napa cabbage, then a cold salad once temperatures hit the mid-70’s again.  Roast your butternut squash with a pan of oiled carrots and onions to warm the house.  Then grill your peppers outside once it warms up.

Napa cabbage
Romano beans, ~1.5 lb
Butternut squash
Frying & bell peppers, mixed colors, 6 – 7
Carrots, 2 lb
Yellow onions
Scallions, 1 bunch
Jalapeño chile (HOT), 2, green or red
Cilantro, 1 bunch
UPDATE; Garlic, 1 bulb

Some sites get Romanesco broccoli.
Some sites get broccoli.
Some sites get cauliflower (white or purple or orange).
Some sites get Yukina greens.
If your squash or Romanesco is small, we’ll toss in an extra pepper or a sweet potato.

Napa cabbage (large, pale green cabbage with crinkled leaves) – This is an interesting vegetable, useful for both fresh, raw salads and for cooking.  These napa are large enough to split among several recipes.  Napa’s most famous use is fermented kimchi.  I like to prepare a fresh, unfermented kimchi.  Same seasonings, but it’s ready to eat right away.  You will be amazed at how much shredded napa cabbage shrinks when prepared this way.  See here for an example, but cut the salt in half: Grilled Flank Steak with Kimchi-style Coleslaw.
Storage:  Napa stores very well.  Cut off wedges as needed and keep the rest covered and refrigerated, and it will keep for several weeks.  Peel off the outer layer and it will be ready to use.  Here are a few preparation ideas from the ‘Asparagus to Zucchini’ cookbook.
– Chop raw napa into green salads.
– Substitute napa in traditional coleslaw.
– Chinese cabbage cooks quickly.  Steam 3-5 minutes, or until leaves are wilted down but remain slightly crisp.
– Substitute napa cabbage for common cabbage in recipes, but reduce the cooking time by 2 minutes.
– Napa cabbage is the main ingredient in egg rolls.  Try making an egg roll mixture to eat as a cooked side dish instead of preparing time-consuming egg rolls.

Romano beans – This is the final delivery of beans for the year.  Quality is very nice.  The beans are big but juicy and tender.  We never thought we’d have this many to send in mid-October!

Jalapeño chile, HOT (small, green or red) – These are quite hot.  As usual, remove the seeds and midveins to reduce their heat.

Cilantro – Well, it has taken us forever to get cilantro in the box again.  We seeded repeatedly but none of the plantings work out.  Except this one.

Cauliflower – We grow cauliflower in a variety of colors; white, purple and orange.

Garlic – This batch is from our friend John Hendrickson.

Butternut squash – This is our “Metro” variety, a favorite because it cures and sweetens quickly after harvest.  These are medium-sized squash, average weight ~2.0 lb.
Hint for cutting winter squash:  If you want to peel or dice your butternut squash, microwave the intact squash on high for one minute.  That will warm and soften the squash, making it much easier to peel or cut.  I find this trick useful even when just cutting the butternut in half.
Storage: Store at room temperature. On your kitchen counter is perfect.

BUTTERNUT FLAWS
Almost all of this week’s butternut squash have flaws, another legacy of the wet weather.  The flaws are small enough to either peel away or cut around.  We debated whether to pack them in the CSA boxes – I don’t usually send flawed squash.  However, it was a choice between composting them (and having no squash for you this week) or sending them to you to enjoy, albeit with trimming.  We hope you agree.  Don’t try to hold these for long.  Find the flaw and cut it out before cooking.  It’s more difficult to recognize after cooking.  Check around the stem.

RECIPES FROM LAUREN

NAPA STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS
Adapted from Things I Made Today
I wish I could take credit for these cabbage rolls but alas I cannot. One of my favorite Madison bloggers- Vicky from Things I Made Today– whipped these up on a tired Sunday night after an exhausting day of housework and cooking. She didn’t expect them to be anything special and boy was she wrong!  Something about napa cabbage, scallions, carrots, cilantro and hoison sauce is just magical. I love this dish endlessly and know you will to!
Takes 1 hour, 20 minutes
Makes 4-6

1 cup jasmine rice
1-1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 ounces mushroom of your choice, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried ginger
1 pound ground pork
2 large carrots, shredded
4 scallions, sliced
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 large head Napa cabbage, leaves separated
1/2 cup hoison sauce
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1/4 cup water

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a medium sauce pan, combine rice, water and salt. Bring to a boil, stir and reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 18 minutes. Remove from heat after 18 minutes (but don’t remove the lid!) and let sit for 5 minutes.
3. While the rice cooks, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushroom along with garlic and ginger. Saute for 10 minutes until mushrooms are tender but not mushy.
4. In a large bowl, combine cooked mushrooms, pork, cooked rice, carrots, scallions, cilantro, red pepper flakes, soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. Use your hands to combine.
5. Lay a cabbage leaf flat on a baking sheet. Scoop 3-6 tablespoons of mushroom mixture into middle of leaf. Roll up leaf (tucking in sides if there’s extra leaf) and then place roll, seam side down, on baking sheet. Continue with remaining leaves.
6. In a small bowl, combine hoison sauce, peanut butter and water. Brush the sauce over the cabbage rolls. Bake for 35-40 minutes until pork is cooked through.
7. Enjoy!

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BBQ Butternut Squash & Pulled Pork Pizza
You don’t have to have the pulled pork if you are vegetarian. I suggest doubling the butternut squash if you decide not to do the pork.

Takes 1 hour (not including time to make pulled pork), add an additional hour if you plan to make the dough from scratch
Makes 14-inch pizza that serves 4-6

1 batch pizza dough (your favorite or use my recipe below!)
2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup BBQ sauce
1 cup pulled pork (here’s one of my favorite super easy slow-cooker pulled pork recipes!)
1 red Italian fryer, seeded and diced
1 green Italian fryer, seeded and diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 cups smoked cheddar cheese, shredded

For the pizza dough:
1-1/2 cups warm water
2 teaspoons active yeast
2 tablespoons honey
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons Kosher salt

1. If you are making the dough from scratch, begin here. If not, skip to step 2. Combine warm water (but not hot!) with yeast and honey in a small bowl or measuring cup. Whisk to combine and let sit for 5 minutes. Combine flour and salt together in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in water with yeast. Stir to combine but do not work the dough at all, just stir until all the ingredients are incorporated together. Let dough rest for 15 minutes. Turn out onto a well-floured counter and knead for 3-5 minutes until smooth and uniform dough forms. Grease or oil a large clean bowl. Add dough, cover with plastic wrap or a towel and let rest in a warm place for an hour or until dough has doubled in size.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
3. Combine butternut squash, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl to evenly coat. Add to a large baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Once finished remove from oven and add back to small bowl. Set aside.
4. Preheat oven to 525 degrees.
5. Once dough is risen. Roll it out on a well-floured counter until it’s about the size of the baking sheet you used for roasting the squash. Transfer the dough to the baking sheet.
6. Top dough with BBQ sauce leaving an inch border on all the edges. Add pork followed by butternut squash, peppers, onions and smoked cheddar.
7. Bake for 20 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly.

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LOCAL THYME RECIPES

Comforting Classics

Buttered Romano Beans Pignoli
Chipotle Lime Cilantro Slaw with Napa Cabbage
Butternut Squash Soup with Cider Cream
Slow Roasted Salmon on Lentils Braised with Carrots and Greens

Outside the Box Recipes

Romano Beans with Caramelized Onions
Five Spice Stir Fry with Cabbage and Carrots
Butternut Pancake
Carrot Hummus

Quick and Easy Meal

NPR’s Ensenada Slaw with Fish and Pepper Tacos

Gleaning fun

It is time to review our schedule for the rest of this season.  We still have extension shares (Nov. 3/4, $30) and storage shares (Nov 17/18, $105) available for those who want to extend their CSA season.  I’ll send information to register for these shares in the next few days.
– October 6/7 (this week) = green EOW
– October 13/14 = purple EOW
– October 20/21 = Final delivery for green EOW members
– October 27/28 = Final delivery for weekly and purple EOW members.

Gleaning party

Our pumpkin u-pick and gleaning party was a big success.  I think it’s my favorite u-pick so far.  Thank you to everyone who sent us photos!  I’d like to share a collection from Katie Jarvis.  Her photos capture her family’s experience as they wandered the farm.

Arrival at the farm, with empty bags and anticipation.

The broccoli side-shoots are the perfect size for kids.

Carrots to dig!

Rhubarb to pull!

Flowers to pick!

For many children, farm puddles were the main attraction.

The farm is unusually green for this time of year, because of all the rain.  Despite the clouds, the weather stayed dry.  That felt lucky.

Julie Garret’s photos

Friend and farm advocate Julie Garret took some terrific photos. I think the overall message is that everyone found some corner of the farm to explore and enjoy.

Getting dirty is part of the day.

Karen and Sophie silk-screened t-shirts for everyone who brought a shirt.

Sophie’s favorite for the day!

UW grad student Solveig Hanson offered beets for tasting.  She collected members’ opinions about the flavor and appearance of her breeding lines.  Solveig asked me to thank all of you who participated.

Veggie list and veggie notes (Oct 6/7, 2016; week#21, green EOW)

Beth’s box logic for this week:
– We timed the scallions to be ready with the bok choy, as they are a natural pairing. If you like spicy, the Anaheims will add a manageable amount of heat, color and flavor to a bok choy stir-fry.
– I also think the Anaheims will go well with the sweet potatoes. Think about oven-roasting your sweets, then topping with pan-fried onions and Anaheims spiked with vinegar or lime juice to sharpen the contrast with the sweet potatoes.
– You should get enough bell peppers for a small pan of stuffed peppers, especially if you split the peppers and stuff each half.
– We always eat our edamame directly out of the pods as a snack or appetizer. The cooked soybeans are a great addition to other dishes but (frankly) it’s easier on the cook if everyone shells their own soybeans!
– Pepper season will be over soon.  Remember, you can chop and freeze peppers for use in winter.
– We start to cook beets as the weather turns cool.  Steamed or roasted, we usually eat them dressed with oil, vinegar, black pepper and blue cheese.  Pat has a few other ideas to offer.

Sweet potatoes, 2+ lb
Bok choy
Edamame soybeans, 1 bundle
Beets, 2 lb
Peppers, 4+, mostly green bells with something colorful mixed in.
Anaheim chiles, 2
(Note: If you find a slender green or red pepper in your box, then it is a spicy Anaheim.  None of the sweet peppers this week match that description.)
Scallions, 1 bunch
Yellow onions

Some sites get broccoli.
Some sites get Romanesco broccoli.
Some sites get globe eggplant.

‘Beauregard’ sweet potatoes – Here are a few things we’ve learned about sweet potatoes:
– For best flavor, cook your sweet potatoes so they brown and caramelize.  We have a simple, favorite way to roast sweet potatoes.  We used to prepare sweet potato fries in the oven.  Now we just quarter the potatoes, rub with olive oil, dust with salt and place cut-side-down on a cookie sheet.  Roast in a 450 F oven without turning until soft.  The flavors will caramelize (like sweet potato fries) but preparation is simpler and the cooking time less exacting.  Slender sweet potato fries go from undercooked to overcooked in the blink of an eye.  Larger slices are less exacting, and therefore are easier.  Small sweet potatoes can be cut just in half.  Jumbos will need to be chopped into pieces.  Otherwise, they will take a long time to cook.
– Store your sweet potatoes at room temperature.  They suffer chilling injury below 50 F.
– The sweet potatoes we grow require slightly longer cooking than ones from the supermarket, perhaps because they contain higher moisture so soon after harvest.
– Sweet potatoes are good at any size. We have cooked everything from tiny to jumbo and consistently find that all sizes taste good.

Bok choy (large rosette with thick white stems and green leaves) – This Asian green is good for stir-frying or sautéing or in soup.  You can think of the stems and leaves as two separate vegetables.  The stems require longer cooking.  The leaves will cook almost as quickly as spinach.  Bok choy stores well, so feel free to pull off leaves as you need them, or use the whole head at once.  Refrigerate in a plastic bag.

Edamame soybeans (bundle of green stems with pods attached) – These edible soybeans are a treat.  Pull the pods from the stem and wash well.  It helps to submerge the pods and rub them together.  Boil in water until the pods have split and the beans are quite tender.  Season with salt and pop the beans out of the pods into your mouth.  This Japanese specialty is becoming more and more popular in the USA.
Storage:  Remove the pods from the stems promptly and refrigerate.

Bell peppers – You will get mostly green bell peppers this week.  We stripped one of our three pepper fields in anticipation of a possible frost this weekend, hence the green bells.  We will protect one or two fields from frost, so we should have at least a few peppers for another few weeks.

Anaheim chiles (MEDIUM HEAT, long slender peppers, red or green) – Anaheims usually have medium spiciness although it varies from pepper to pepper.  As usual, the heat is concentrated in the seeds and midveins.  Remove the seeds and midveins is to lessen the chili’s heat.  Anaheims are easily mistaken for Italian frying peppers. We never send them in the same box for that reason. Keep this in mind if you have peppers left over from previous weeks.

Romanesco broccoli (pale green conical head, possible tinged with purple) – This is the prettiest vegetable we grow.  Look at it closely to appreciate its branched beauty and repeating spiral pattern.  It is called broccoli, but is closely related to cauliflower which it resembles in flavor and texture.  Some of the heads have an unusual, leafy middle section.  It’s harmless, just weird looking.  The heads tighten up as the weather gets cooler.
Preparation: Like broccoli and cauliflower, it is fine eaten raw or cooked.  It requires cooking times intermediate between the two.  Don’t overcook it.  I usually steam it, then dress it simply with a butter-lemon-garlic-mustard sauce.

The only slender green or red peppers in your box are spicy Anaheims. None of the sweet peppers this week match that description.

RECIPES FROM LAUREN

SWEET POTATO & PEPPER CHILI
Takes 1 hour, 15 minutes
Serves 10-12

2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 teaspoons cumin, divided
5 teaspoons chili powder, divided
1 tablespoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 Anaheim peppers, seeded and diced
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
16-ounce can chili (or kidney) beans
15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
28-ounce can diced tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted)
28-ounce can diced tomatoes
8 cups water

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine sweet potatoes with olive oil, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 Kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Roast for 35 minutes, rotating once during baking.
3. Meanwhile, in a large stock pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and peppers and reduce heat to medium low. Cook for 15 minutes until well-softened.
4. Add remaining cumin, chili powder and salt along with brown sugar and garlic powder. Cook for a couple minutes then add beans, tomatoes and water. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes. Add sweet potatoes to the pot whenever they finish roasting.

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BOK CHOY SALAD WITH CASHEW SESAME CRUNCH
Adapted from Dishing Up The Dirt
Takes 30 minutes
Serves 4-6

1 bundle edamame
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 large head bok choy
1 bunch scallions, sliced
3 tablespoons sugar
1-1/2 cups roasted salted cashews
1/4 cup sesame seeds (white or black or a combination of both)

Tahini Honey Dressing:
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup tahini
1-1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce

1. Remove edamame pods from the stalk. Place them in a small bowl and cover with salt. Rub to make sure salt evenly coats pods. Let sit for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, prepare bok choy. Remove leaves from head and wash well. Pile leaves into a single stack and thinly slice them beginning at the stems.†Toss sliced bok choy and scallions in a large bowl.
3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add edamame and boil for 6 minutes. Drain and allow to cool while you prepare dressing.
4. Add†honey, tahini, rice vinegar and soy sauce to a small bowl. Whisk until smooth.
5. In a large saute pan, heat sugar over medium heat. It will slowly start to melt. As soon as it all is melted, remove from heat and stir in cashews and sesame seeds. It will begin to cool and clump together. This is perfect! Break the pieces apart with your hands if they are too big.
6. Squeeze edamame out of pods with your hands into the bowl of bok choy and scallions. Toss to combine and then add dressing. Serve salad with cashew sesame crunch

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LOCAL THYME RECIPES

Comforting Classics

Bok Choy with Scallion
Romanesco with Caper Dressing
Harvard Beets
Sweet Potato Oven Fries

Outside the Box Recipes

Chili-Glazed Salmon with Bok Choy
Steamed Broccoli with Mustard Butter
Tuna and Beet Salad with Coddled Eggs
Sweet Potato Scones with Brown Sugar Icing

Quick and Easy Meal

Sesame Braised Chicken and Bok Choy