The words of the day lately have been remodeling and greenhouse. We are wrapping up the remodel and getting our life back in order in the house. While the trim work and other jobs await us, we are now able to move our concentration back to farming.

Yesterday and today were filled with planting…cherry and determinate tomatoes, kohlrabi, pac choi, herbs, more broccoli. As the sun gets stronger and the fields dry out we get closer to the days when we can again work in the fields. The sunshine and warmth are most welcome.

Broccoli growing

Kale and lettuce growing well

Painting

More painting

Done except for trim (yeah!)

Considering the fact that an estimated 100,000,000 people were impacted by the Blizzard of 2011, this is but another snow story. Here at the farm we experienced mainly bliss though it all. The heads-up that modern meteorology provides allowed us to plan ahead, and view the snow and wind from the safety and warmth of our small farmhouse.

We spent the day moving our office and living room out of the back half of the house to prepare for our latest home renovation project—total tearout of plaster and lath, insulating of exterior walls, some carpentry, electrical, drywall, painting, and a new wood stove. We ended the day making a large pot of chili, cole slaw and pumpkin-coconut pie.

We awoke today to 5 degrees and a beautiful sunny morning, with an inch of snow in some areas and drifts of 2 to 3 feet in others. The cats as you can see have the life, sitting on a sunny chair looking out at the bird feeder (a word that means something different to them).

The knowedge of impending snow also kicked us into gear on Friday and Saturday to do some much needed repair to the greenhouse before the start of the season. Both corners of the greenhouse were rotted and required repair. Also, the plastic had several major rips and needed replacement.

With the help of one of our 2011 interns, Lucas Knutter, we tackled the job over two days. Day one consisted of the carpentry. Day 2 with installing the new plastic. Once we get some openings sealed along the roof line the greenhouse will be ready to go. The only things keeping us from planting the onions is the arrival of our Microleverage compost (Tuesday’s delivery had to be cancelled), and waiting for the single digit and sub-zero temps to pass. The season is about to begin.

Removing the rotten lumber

Installing a new corner

Removing the old plastic

Installing new wiggle wire channels

Installing the new plastic

The bubble inflated, trimming the plasic

We do our best every year to push our farm work to the back burner in December, and save time for some serious rest and relaxation. Vacation travel has been sparse the last several years, so this year we made plans to visit Kauai, Hawaii and some free family lodging.

It was a wonderful week, complete with sun every day, great beachs, snorkeling, amazing flora and fauna, and local food that included tropical fruit and fresh seafood. We were able to cook at our accomdations, so we visited the market each day, and prepared many of our meals “at home.” Here are a few photos we took. Aloha.

Rebecca along a north shore beach

Breakfast

Taro fields

After a day of paddling an
outrigger with Rebecca’s
Aunt Phyllis

The everpresent wild rooster

The Thanksgiving share harvest continues into it’s third day on Friday as we reap the last of the 2010 vegetables from the fields. While we unfortunately have to scratch brussel sprouts from the list (too many aphids on them to make them palatable), we have a quality crops of 13 items.

Lettuce: Small to medium sized heads, crisp and delicious.

Endive: A bitter green that adds a nice bite to a late Fall salad. If you saved any strawberries from the Spring try our Week 4 recipe of Garlic and Strawberry Dressing over Endive.

Kale, Collards or Arugula: Kale (or Collards) with Vinegar and Egg is an awesome side dish to add some greenery to a Thanksgiving meal. The last few frosts have sweetened up both of these greens. The arugula has a bit of a kick this time of year, so you may want to use it as you would a herb in your salad, chopped somewhat fine.

Asian Greens: Chop them up and add them fresh to your salad, or stir-fry a light meal on either side of the holiday.

Butternut Squash or Sweet Potatoes: Recipes abound here in the cyber world. Or use a family
favorite, if you have one. Roasting, mashing, soup and pie are all options.

Bulb Fennel: A favorite of ours. We only grow it in the Fall, as that is when its flavor is the mildest. Treat it as you would celery. It is delicious cut into pieces and added to a salad dressed with a red wine vinaigrette. Check out the recipe below for another yummy dish.

Broccoli or Spinach: The last of the hearty broccoli, still as flavorful as ever. Or do you want some of our lone spinach crop of the year?

Roots assortment: The carrots, radish and Hakurei turnips will make a diverse crudités platter for your Thanksgiving guests. A little beet grated onto your salad adds a beautiful color.

Kohlrabi: Fall kohlrabi is the best, sweet, juicy and crunchy. Just trim the top and the root end, peel it, and cut it as you like. It is another staple crudités item, or a great addition to roasted vegetables (see recipe below).

Cabbage: We like it as a raw addition to the Thanksgiving meal. Think cole slaw.

Leeks: Use them wherever onions are called for, or in the recipe below.

Garlic: Everyone needs some garlic if they’re doing any cooking.

Cilantro: Fresh as can be for topping a salsa appetizer, or as an addition to a creamy dressing.

Roasted Fennel, Leeks and Kohlrabi
While harvesting the bulb fennel today, and being soothed by its aromatherapy, our apprentice Emily said how she thought the fennel would be great roasted. So, not being one to let a good idea go to waste, I decided that tonight’s dinner should test her theory. The result (with the addition of leeks and kohlrabi) was a warm, savory and hearty dish. Add what you want to this, potatoes, sweet potatoes, garlic…

trim the top and core the root

Ingredients
2 medium fennel bulbs
2 medium leeks
1 medium kohlrabi
1 tsp salt
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp butter

cut the fennel like you would celery

Method
Cut the tops off the fennel bulb and core out the root. Chop in half, and then crosswise to make celery like chunks.
Clean and chop the leeks into ½ inch slices and rounds
Peel the kohlrabi and chop into ½ inch size chunks
Mix vegetables with salt, oregano, thyme and olive oil
Spread on a baking sheet and top with butter
Bake at 375°F for 35 to 45 minutes, stirring once.

There are a few things we have extra of. Stock up now.

Sweet potatoes: $1.75/lb
Asian Greens (bok choi, tat soi): $3.00/large head
Kale/Chard/Collards: $3.00/bunch
Leeks: $3.00/lb

Another Season Eaten Up
Hard to believe that it has been 24 weeks since we first handed out shares for 2010. And while our bones and muscles feel it, our brain sees it all as having flown by. We want to thank everyone for there support, input, encouragement, and camaraderie. Community is the first word in CSA, and we couldn’t have done it without you.

The Last Share
We feel it is important to remind everyone of how to store items from the last several shares, so that they will last if you do not eat them right away. Sweet potatoes, for example, are from a tropical plant, and should not be refrigerated. Keep them in a warm, dark area that is over 55 deg F. They can keep until the spring if treated that way. Store your winter squash the same way.

If you happen to get a cabbage, you can store it in a bag in your crisper for at least a month. We store ours in the packing room cooler (after it has been turned off), and can enjoy cabbage for months. Try some cole slaw at Xmas.

Any root crops will keep a long time too. Simply cut the greens off of your winter radishes, kohlrabi, turnips or beets, before storing them in a bag in the crisper.

Butternut Squash-White Bean Stew
We got this recipe from Relish Magazine. Rebecca happened to recover it from the recycle bin, as it was apparently a supplement in The KC Star. To say this stew is hearty is an understatement. Leeks are an excellent substitute for onions in this dish, and sweet potatoes can take the place of the squash.

A 2-pound whole squash yields about 4 cups of cubes. Look for tomato paste in a tube, so you can use a tablespoon at a time. Serve with cheese toast.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup slivered onion
3/4 cup thinly sliced celery
3 cups mushrooms, halved
4 cups cubed, peeled butternut squash
1 (14-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
1 garlic clove, pressed
2 cups water
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 (15-ounce) cans Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)

Instructions
1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery and mushrooms. Cook until vegetables start to brown, about 8 minutes.
2. Stir in squash, tomatoes, garlic, water, tomato paste, rosemary, salt and pepper. Mix well. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and simmer until squash is tender, about 25 minutes. Uncover, stir in beans and simmer until stew consistency, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired. Serves 8.

Recipe by Jean Kressy
Nutritional Information
Per serving: 150 calories, 4g fat, 0mg chol., 5g prot., 24g carbs., 7g fiber, 420mg sodium.

your cauliflower

BUTTERNUT SQUASH (F/P)
LEEKS (F/P)
CHOICE OF GREENS (F/P) Kale, collards or Swiss chard
CAULIFLOWER (F/P)
BROCCOLI (F)
WATERMELON RADISH (F) A big winter radish that is green on the outside and pink on the inside. To store for a month or more, cut off the greens leaving an inch of top and place in a plastic bag in your crisper.
KOHLRABI (F) Same story for storing long term. Peel it before you eat it. Great raw or lightly steamed.
HERB CHOICE (F/P) Sage, lemongrass or a dried herb

ALSO THIS WEEK: Bread of Life shares

NEXT WEEK: More broccoli, cauliflower and greens. Partial shares will get either kohlrabi or watermelon radishes or both. More sweet potatoes for everyone. Hopefully the lettuce will be ready.

cleaning off the bean plants

The end of the season is almost here (just one more week after this one) but yet the farm is as busy as ever. We had a big crew on Saturday and took the opportunity to tear down the pole bean fence.

walking out the fence under Rocky’s supervision

Later that day the FSF CSA Core Group gathered to plan the Fair Share Farm End of Season dinner which will be held next Saturday, October 23 from 5-7 pm. Look for an evite in your inbox in the next few days from Social Coordinator, Ann Flynn. We look forward to celebrating the season with you all by enjoying what is surely the best darn potluck around. This year the party will be festive with live music and face painting. Hope to see you all there!

The other big excitement this week is covered in Tom’s post. I’m keeping it short here so that we can return my dad’s “hot spot” internet service in a timely manner. If you need to reach us call, don’t send any emails.

Herbs are Great
We heard that the last time we had sage in the shares there were a lot of bunches that made it to the swap box instead of to folk’s homes. While you may not have an affinity for sage, we hope that you reconsider these last few weeks of the season.

Sage is an old, traditional herb (thus said the old sage.) While it is available most all year round from the garden, we save it for the time of year when winter squash and pumpkins are handed out, as it is an idea seasoning for these cucurbits. In past blogs and newsletters we have highlighted its culinary benefits, like in sweet potato ravioli with browned sage butter, or simply with sweet potatoes, as a substitute for sugar and marshmallows.

Lemongrass is another herb choice this week. A plant suited to the tropics, we were able to get an OK harvest this year. Its wonderful aroma is obvious, but how to utilize it in a dish might not be. These little plants pack a lot of flavor and to get to it all you have to do is grate the bulbous root end (after cutting off any root hairs.) Our favorite use is in Lemongrass Chicken. But search the web and you are sure to find many recipes.

The Trencher Strikes
Sorry if this blog is short, but it has been a busy couple of days. You may know that we recieved some stimulus funds to improve our irrigation system—75% cost share on the 2,300 feet of irrigation pipe, as well as 4 solar panels.

With 2 days of trenching behind us (see photo below) we have weathered the trencher hitch coming off our truck on the way to the farm (all is OK), a very wet day of work on Monday, and severing our internet line. We are fortunate enough to have Rebecca’s dad next door so we can borrow his Droid and have a hot spot for an hour to compose this latest installment.

Many thanks go out to our farm crew for putting pipe into the ground today, and especially to Tom Parker, a busy farmer and experienced water line installer, who assisted us today. We plan on being even better prepared in the future for all those hot, dry Missouri days that we know we will see.