Weekly Weeder

Olin-Fox Farms Volume No. 7 Issue No. 37 November 30, 2006

www.olinfoxfarms.com Fall Season Week 3

STANDARD REMINDER

Please be sure to wash your weekly share thoroughly before serving. To preserve freshness, it is NOT ‘table ready’ (i.e., pre-washed). We deliver your Olin-Fox Farms’ produce right from the fields to ensure highest quality.

This Week's News From the Farms

We hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving and are looking forward to the next 3 weeks of produce as we are.

Over the course of the past week, we managed to get the last of the garlic planted, just before nor'easter round 3.  That's 3 in 3 weeks!  Since the conditions were extremely harsh on plants, wildlife, and us humans, field operations came to a standstill as we kept up  a constant vigil over the farm to ensure covered crops stayed under cover during high winds as we checked for any storm damage, with the occasional straightening up and retrieval of windblown and airborne objects.  On top of all that, we were on high alert for any signs of a tornado.  Who ever said a farmer’s life is boring?

Well, the storm passed and the sunshine smiled on us once again.  As the crops slowly recover, the nights have been a mix, alternating between heavy dew and a light frost.  Many of the fall and winter crops develop a better taste after a few frosts: kale, collards, and broccoli become sweeter and horseradish gets hotter.  Tender crops (such as  lettuce, Arugula, Pac Choi, Tatsoi and radishes) are covered with Remay, a material much like cheesecloth, also known as floating row cover.  This material helps protect against frost, snow, heavy rains and serves as an insect barrier in warmer weather.  Other crops are being grown in the protection of greenhouses. Even so, some of these need to be covered with a second layer of protection. 

At this time of year, as many farms close for the season, not starting up again until next spring, Olin-Fox Farms and the Fine Family of Farms are gearing up by offering seasonal and year-round produce programs, providing you and your families truly local, fresh, high-quality produce throughout the year.  We hope you are enjoying the Fall Harvest as much as we are and share our excitement as we anticipate our second All Season Program starting in January 2007.  Plans are in the works to include naturally grown Florida citrus in the first share of the New Year - the only exception to our ‘locally-grown’ policy.  John will meet with several natural citrus growers in late December and personally bring the fruit up just prior to the first delivery, to guarantee its quality and freshness.  Normally, fruit only appears in the Summer Fruit Share Program; however, including a citrus”lagniappe” in the regular Winter Program is our way of saying "thank you", to you our loyal patrons, for signing up. 

 By the way, if you haven't yet signed up for the Winter, All Season, Spring or Summer Programs, openings are still available at this point; but, please bear in mind, the Spring and Summer tender to sell out early on.  Making an early commitment also helps us in planning for the upcoming seasons and generally makes things run more smoothly.  Even though we were able to increase the number of shares late in this year, we still have a waiting list for 2007.  In 2006, we reached 78 weekly shares.  For 2007, we have a goal of 100 shares; when that is reached, we will create a waiting list for 2008.

Thank you again for your belief in Community Supported Agriculture.

Weekly Weeder, November 30, 2006 Page 2

Crop Report

 As mentioned, with the recent frosts, we will be harvesting the first of our horseradish in the coming weeks.  A sample root pulled last week proved to be sweet yet hot enough for most.  Other crops making good progress are lettuces, Arugula, fall greens, radishes, winter squash, sweet potatoes, eggs, and a number of our specialty crops to be announced.

In Your Produce Basket This Week

Broccoli Crowns, Sweet Dumpling Winter Squash, Free Range Eggs, Selection of Fall Produce (see your Produce List at your Distribution Point).

Recipes

Roasted Sweet Dumpling Acorn Squash and Apple Soup
(veggies and spices can be adjusted)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet or sheet pan with tin foil. Toss together the following ingredients:
1 medium acorn squash, cut in half and seeds scooped out
1 medium sweet potato peeled and cubed
1 medium onion cut in large chunks
2 cored Granny Smith apples cut in large chunks (remove the skin if you want)

Drizzle olive oil over the veggies and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place acorn squash cut side down on baking sheet. Toss other veggies to coat. Roast for about 30-45 minutes until veggies are soft. Scoop soft acorn squash out of skins.

In a large Dutch oven, heat two 14½ ounce cans of chicken broth, add in roasted veggies. Add 1/4 teaspoon each of ginger, cloves, cinnamon and about 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder. Toss in a touch of curry powder, if you wish.

Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for about an hour. Or slow-cook everything a crock-pot. Blend to a smooth consistency with an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender.  Return to pot over low heat and add about 1/4 cup of half-and-half and fine-tune seasoning to taste.

Top soup with some Parmesan cheese and/ or make some Parmesan croûtons.

Newsletter and Recipes by Ethan Brent, Official Newsletter Focalizer

Bon Appetit!