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Month: August 2013

Melon Mania

As this newsletter goes out the crew is still harvesting, trying to get ready for the tuesday pick-up. We have reached the point in the season where we have very little time to anything else but harvest! The timing is right as we have our last seedlings/transplantings of the year this week which consist of mostly greens. The weather is great to work in but we could surely use a little rain…

Watermelon and cantaloupe in abundance this week. Try as we do to stager these crops so that they won’t come in at the same time…Just in time for the holiday weekend!?

Pork and Lamb for Your Freezer

We are taking orders starting this week for custom pork and lamb . This is a great way to put quality local meat in your freezer.  These are our own animals, raised here at the farm and processed how you like by our butcher. This is a great deal to put high quality, non- factory raised meat in your freezer this winter. Bacon, ham, sausage, chops, roasts and ribs all processed and packed as you like. Neighbors and families can whole of halves. Ask for an order form and talk to us at pick-up for more details.

Labor on Labor Day

Each year at this time we celebrate the transition to fall with our annual Labor on Labor Day Potato Harvest Party.  This coming Monday, September 2nd, from 9am to 12pm in the fields along Pleasant Hill Road we will harvest our potato crop. Come join us at any point that morning.This has come to be a favorite event for CSA members of all ages.  We’ll be picking up spuds that our harvesting machine has already dug from the soil. Last year was a bumper crop and we were able to bring in over 14,000 pounds in a little over 2 hours with the help of about fifty folks! If you’re looking for something fun to do before the barbecues and picnics get rolling in the afternoon come out and jump in with us. Look for us (and the tractors and trucks) along the north side of Pleasant Hill Road and  park where you can.   Or better yet ride your bike!

What’s In Upic?

Cherry Toms

Green Beans

Flowers

Herbs

What’s In  The Share This Week?

Carrots

Beets

Leeks

Tomatoes

Arugula

Lettuce

Baby Bok Choi

Kale/Chard

Watermelon
Cantaloupe

Going, going,….

Summer is coming to an end. Rapidly. The farm is in the hands of the very capable apprentice crew as the farm family takes a few days away from the farm…

What’s In Upic?

Green Beans

Flowers

Herbs

What’s In  The Share This Week?

Cucumbers

Carrots

Chinese Cabbage Hearts

Tomato

Arugula

Lettuce Mix

Arugula

Baby Bok Choi

Kale

 

 

Tomatoes Begin….

Its the first tomato this week. Its been a late year for this crop but there is quite a bit of fruit on the plants so it looks like we should have a good season now that we are underway. One factor that has slowed us down a bit has been the crows. We have an active colony of ebony pranksters that frequent this part of Brunswick, making trouble and living high on the hog between the farms and wednesday trash pick-up.

With the exception of our upic cherry tomatoes, all of our tom plants are raised inside our field greenhouse tunnels. This protects the plants from disease and temperature fluctuations but when we open them every day for ventilation, they aren’t protected from the crows. They walk up and down the outsides of the houses looking for the perfect tomato, just ripe and they peck it a few times and move on. The few peck on many fruits are the insult added to the injury as one bird will destroy many tomatoes  instead of eating just one completely. We have this same problem with our melons as well and in years past have had big losses in our strawberries too. What can we do about this? Well short of spending a lot of time hunting them, which we don’t do, our only tools are to try and scare them off. In our experience the most effective protection for crops is flash tape. This is a mylar tape with bright red and silver foil on either side. Its light and strong and by stringing it from posts above the crop the wind and sun make a glittering flash factory like a daytime disco. The crows generally find this light show too stimulating to bother the crop below but sometimes they just dance under it as they enjoy lunch.

Chinese Cabbage Hearts

Think of romaine but with a little more flavor. These can be shredded into a salad, quick slaw or stir fry…

What’s Coming…

Eggplant, cantaloupe and peppers will be here soon!

What’s In Upic?

Green Beans

Flowers

Herbs

What’s In  The Share This Week?

Summer Squash/Cucumbers

Sweet Onions

Carrots

Chinese Cabbage Hearts

Tomato

Arugula

Tatsoi/mustard

 

Olive Oil Roasted Tomatoes and Fennel with White Beans

Makes 6 servings

active time
35 minutes

total time
1 hour 10 minutes

The sweetness of the tomatoes and the fennel is balanced by the savory, starchy beans.

Ingredients

  • 2 large fennel bulbs with fronds attached
  • 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt, divided
  • 2 pints grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
  • 4 large fresh oregano sprigs
  • 3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 15-ounce cans cannellini (white kidney beans), drained

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425°F. Chop enough fennel fronds to measure 1/2 cup. Trim fennel bulbs and cut in half vertically. Cut each bulb half ito 1/2-inch-wide wedges, leaving some ore attached to each wedge.

Heat oil in large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat until very hot, about 3 minutes. Add fennel wedges in single layer; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon coarse salt. Cook until fennel begins to brown and soften, turning occasionally, 10 to 12 minutes. Add tomatoes, oregano, garlic, and crushed red pepper; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon coarse salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Fold together gently.

Transfer skillet to oven. Bake fennel and tomatoes until soft, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Mix in beans and 6 tablespoons chopped fennel fronds. Bake 5 minutes longer to heat through. Transfer mixture to large shallow bowl. Sprinkle with remaining chopped fronds. Serve warm or at room temperature.


Italian Flavor

Fennel and Radicchio are sneaking into the share this week and both of them are great compliments to almost whatever you want to pair them with -as long as we’re not talking about a breakfast menu. Fennel gets a bad wrap as it is commonly lumped in with anise and bring back childhood memories of black jelly beans or bad holiday cookies. Unlike anise, fennel really mellows and sweetens with just a little cooking -especially if you are cooking in butter. As with all good things our kids didn’t like fennel but over the years we have slowly snuck it into many things, sautéing it in butter until soft and slightly browned. Try tossing  sautéed fennel with roasted beets and carrots. Follow our oven roasted beets recipe, adding coarsely chopped carrots before the beets go to the oven and tossing in the browned fennel when it comes out. Radicchio is that deep red leaf you may have seen shredded into a salad here and that but it also is a great cooked over high heat. We grill radicchio, bathing the cut side with olive oil and putting it cut side down alongside whatever else is for dinner. Cook until just starting to blacken around the edges and then drizzle balsamic vinegar whisked with a little maple syrup or sugar. This is great hot or room temp. If you are not grilling the broiler will also do a nice job here just put it cut side towards the heat.

Organic Maine Wild Blueberries…Preorder This Week for Delivery Next Week… 

Next week will be our last week to order these great berries…The Harvey family will be raking beautiful, high quality berries for us again this year in Oxford Co. They will rake the day before, if its not raining in western Maine,so the quality will be amazing.  Berries will be offered by the quart (quarts are 1.7 pounds each (3 qts.=5lbs.) for $9each. Pre-order at pick-up this Tuesday or Friday for delivery next Tuesday or Friday.  You can also order by email  (by Saturday at noon for pickup Tuesday or Tuesday at noon for pickup Friday). We usually freeze 10-15 pounds for winter muffins, crepes and pancakes…

Weeding Wednesdays in Effect…

The wet weather has really been helpful to the plants in the fields. Unfortunately the weeds are starting to out number the crops as the prevalent greenery this year. As in years past we would like to invite to out to join the crew as we beat back the competition in the fields. Look for us along Pleasant Hill Road east of the Farmstead from 9-11 each Wednesday in August (starting this Wednesday…July 31st). We will be in the fields near the blue or white farm trucks. Park where you can and jump in. We have a big crew this year and the work is fast and satisfying!

Pre-Labor Day Potato Harvest Save the Date

We are planning a mini potato harvest party on Saturday August 10th at 9am (more on this event as it get’s closer…) to pull early spuds. -Don’t worry we will also have our annual labor on Labor Day  potato harvest as well. But this one will give those of you with Labor Day travel plans another option to jump in. If you can’t get enough potato harvest come to both days!

What’s In Upic?

Green Beans

Flowers

Herbs

What’s In  The Share This Week?

Kale

Baby Bok Choi

Summer Squash/Cucumbers

Sweet Onions

Carrots/Beets

Fennel

Radicchio