Hello Farm members,
In your box this week:
Green Beans Onions Delicata squash Leeks Sage Thyme
Lettuce Bell Peppers Tomatoes Cherry Tomatoes Ground Cherries
Jalapeno peppers Broccoli Sweet Corn
Sad news from the farm. We found out today, that we have late blight on our tomato plants. We were hoping that we were invincible. It was not to be. Too much rain. Too much cold. Too many cloudy days. The tomatoes you are receiving were picked on Monday. We pick the tomatoes a few days early, while still partially green. They hold better, ripen more evenly and are less cracked than if we let them ripen on the vine. This saved the tomatoes you are getting today from getting blight. Blight will move very fast through the field and will likely have caused all the tomatoes to rot by the end of the week. We’ll try and pick some green ones in the next two days and if we catch them early enough, we may get them to hold until we send the boxes next week. We’ll see. Late blight is not dangerous to us, only the tomato plants. It also affects potato plants (Remember the great potato famine in Ireland? Same blight.) Mike mowed the potato plants down a few weeks ago when we heard reports of blight in the area. They were done growing any way, so the potatoes won’t be affected. We will soon be destroying all the plants in order to help stop the spread of the disease to neighboring gardeners.
On the positive side, the sweet corn is young and sweet! The ground cherries are ready too! They are in the bag with the cherry tomatoes. Ground cherries are ripe when the paper husk they grow in is brown and papery. Peel the paper off and pop it in your mouth. It’s a favorite treat for everyone around here! If your ground cherries are not brown and papery yet, just leave them sit on your counter. They will ripen. And the green beans are still beautiful! Winter squash is also on the way! We are sending the first of them, the delicata Delicata are great for slicing and roasting or sautéing, because they have thin skins that can be eaten.
The kids are all off to school this week. That makes for some intense mornings of getting everyone out the door, but a quieter day around here. I’ll miss their help, their chatter and how well they kept Tess and June (Our dogs) busy and on the run.
Please remember to order your Bifrost cheese for next week’s delivery. www.bifrostfarm.com
We also have Phil’s raspberries for $4 a pint. If you would like to order some, please let me know! We can send them with your share box.
And also remember to sign up for the fairy house making event, here on the farm, with farm members Sharon Overland. I can’t wait to see what Claudia and I come up with for our fairy house! Check out last week’s newsletter for all the info. (Can’t find it? GO to www.threshingtablefarm.org to see our newsletters for all the info).
Sign up online with New Richmond Community Education at https://www.newrichmond.k12.wi.us/Domain/14 Or call or stop in the Community Ed. office from 7:30-4:00. 715-243-7421
Storage tips
Squash, ground cherries, thyme, tomatoes and onions: All of these will do well sitting on your counter. The thyme will dry nicely, and if the tomatoes are getting “too” ripe, then you can stick them in the fridge to keep them a bit longer.
Lettuce: Plastic bag in the crisper drawer
Corn, peppers, leeks, broccoli and beans- Crisper drawer
Sage- try keeping it in a plastic bag in the refrigerator to keep it fresh. You can also put it on the counter and leave it to dry.
Bell Pepper Relish
1 bell pepper, chopped into small pieces
1/2 onion, chopped in small pieces
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes or a bit of jalapeno pepper cut up
Add everything to a small sauce pan an stir all ingredients well. Cook the relish on medium heat for 5 minutes and turn down the heat to medium low for an additional 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until most of the liquid has reduced. Remove from heat and cool before serving. Serve on bagels with cream cheese, crackers or bread with brie.
Corn and Bell Pepper Vegan Soup
2 T. Olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 cups finely chopped bell peppers
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
6 ears of corn, kernels cut off
4 cups vegetables stock
4 sprigs thyme
1 jalapeno, chopped to taste
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
Saute onion, peppers, and garlic in olive oil on medium-high heat. Stir to coat and cook 3-5 minutes until softened. Add corn and stir again, let cook another 3 minutes. Add vegetable stock and leaves from four thyme sprigs and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Remove 2 cups of the soup and puree with an immersion blender. Add salt and pepper. Add puree to the remaining soup and Garnish with fresh thyme.
Squash with sage and leeks
2 delicata squash
olive oil
1 T. salt
2 leeks, washed, all but first 2 inches of green removed
1 stick butter
4 T. fresh sage leaves
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Preheat oven to 350.
Rub the squash generously with olive oil and season well with salt. Pierce 3 holes in the top of the squash with a sharp object to allow the seam to vent when cooking. Place on a baking sheet and roast for about 45 minutes, until thoroughly soft and easily pierced with a fork. Remove from the onion.
When cool enough to handle, cut open the squash, carefully remove the seeds and throw away. Using a large spoon, scoop out all the flesh and place in a bowl.
Cut the leeks lengthwise and julienne into straw like strips, about 2 inches in length and set aside.
Heat the butter over medium heat in a large saucepan and cook until the color reaches brown-butter stage. Add the fresh sage leaves and continue cooking until the sage becomes slightly crisped. Add the julienne of leeks and continue stirring until cooked, about 2 minutes. Add the 1 T. of slat and 1/2 tsp. pepper and stir to blend.
Add the cooked squash and continue to stir over medium heat to mash the squash and to blend all the ingredients together. Spoon into bowls to serve.