Winter 2022 CSA - Week of November 7th
Full: Braising mix, micros, roma tomatoes, onions, 4# squash, beets, carrots, cabbage
Half: Braising mix, micros, onions, 2# squash, beets, carrots
Hello CSA Members!
A snow filled week brings root veggies and cold weather crops into the hearts and homes of our Winter CSA members. A braising mix of baby collards and kale lends itself incredibly well to hearty soups and stews that could be brightened up with or served alongside colorful carrots, beets, and kabocha squash (my current favorite squash, though I am a lover of all members of the Cucurbita family). Lots of exciting culinary possibilities to keep you occupied now that the sun sets at 5pm! Before jumping in to recipes and farm updates, a quick reminder on how winter CSA pickup works:
Market style pickup at the farm happens from 12pm to 6pm on Wednesdays. This means we’ll have all of the week’s produce laid out in the market stand for you to choose, along with a swap box if you’d like to make any substitutions or exchanges. If you miss the pickup window, premade boxes will be stored in the cold room (walk through the market stand and turn left) and available for pickup from 8am to 8pm until the following Tuesday. If you get to the farm and can’t find your box, you can contact Matt (4065992361) or Jacy (4065992360). All Winter CSAs - apart from WFCSA half share members - are full shares. This means that when building your box, you’ll follow the top half of the list labeled “full”, or you will take one of the brown pre-made boxes.
Updates:
As promised, things here are slowing down quite a bit. The last two pigs were sent off last week and the first half of the lambs will be butchered next week, followed by the rest next month. Meat is available for purchase in the market stand! Check the upright freezer to the left of the sliding door coolers.
We’ve started making wreaths! Whole Farm members receive one each. There are a few ready to be taken home from the market stand and we’re aiming to have all of the WFCSA wreaths done by Thanksgiving. First come first serve but there will be more coming every day!
Produce:
Kabocha squash: Our kabochas are the sunshine variety. “Smooth, tender flesh that is sweet, bright orange, and excellent for baking, mashing, and pies. Superior appearance and eating quality when compared to other varieties of this type.” (Johnny’s). Kabocha squash has such a unique flavor and texture, if you haven’t tried it before I would recommend trying it steamed or baked simply with olive oil, salt and pepper to get a sense of its character. But if you’re looking for something more adventurous, this article had a lot of good options or try this recipe for simmered Japanese kabocha -- the images in both show green-skinned kabocha, but as far as I’ve been able to tell, the differences in kabocha varieties are mainly superficial (and all kabocha skin is edible!).
Roma tomatoes: “Roma tomatoes are great for making sauces since, among other favorable characteristics, they have a low water content. This means that sauces made with Romas do not have to be simmered as long. Roma tomatoes are also great for using in fresh salsas since, again, their meatiness means they won’t water down recipes” (The Spruce Eats). We recommend using these romas cooked rather than fresh. If you’re picking up at the market stand, check out the book “Umami Bomb” in the market stand lending library for some good options (always accepting more books! preferably food or farming related).
Recipes:
Roasted Beet and Winter Squash Salad - This recipe calls for a sprinkling of chopped fresh herbs (2 tbsps) — pick up a bunch or two in the market stand when you pick up your CSA today (market stand open 12-6pm).
Winter Greens and Sausage Soup - Ellen Ecker Ogden I like this recipe — I’d probably use it as more of a guide and swap in whatever I have.
Pumpkin and Black Bean Soup Recipe | Rachael Ray | Food Network I made a rough approximation of this last night and it was so easy and satisfying. I added ginger in with the garlic, skipped the tomatoes and switched up the spices a bit and it worked really well! Serve it with toasted bread or top with breadcrumbs and you’ve got yourself a very easy weeknight dinner.
I hope you all enjoy your vegetables! See you in a bit.
Sasha