Sage

By Sage

Hi All!

My name is Sage and this is my fourth week here at the farm. I'm so excited to be here and have been thoroughly enjoying every moment I get to listen to the birds singing in the fields, meeting all the farm animals, and the many rainbows that have appeared thanks to the rain.

I graduated last June from UCLA and have since worked on a goat dairy in Vermont, volunteered on a vegetable farm in Southern California, and WWOOFed on several vegetable farms in Japan. During my time at UCLA I worked at the community garden on campus creating online gardening courses and was part of the student gardening club. I'm from Santa Barbara and moving to Los Angeles, I felt separated from the natural world and overwhelmed by the sheer number of undergraduate students, and gardening was where I first found a community on campus. Six months after starting school in 2019, we were sent home for the Covid lock down, but I stayed tuned in to the Zoom gardening workshops every week and took an online permaculture design course through the local community college. I'm looking forward to spending this season on the farm and learning more about farming in Northern California. 

Hope to see you all around the farm!

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 4/14 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Summer hours: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Bora King Daikon Radish

• Storage #5 Green Cabbage

• Rubro

• Finale Fennel

• Parade Scallions

• Mei Qing Choi

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!) - Note there has been a price increase!

• Revolution Bread: Frozen bread Tuesday and Fresh bread on Friday (Frozen bread available if we sell out.)

Oven-Baked Frittata with Veggies, from feastingathome.com

• 1 onion or leek, diced

• 1–2 tablespoons olive oil

• pinch salt and pepper

• 12 large eggs

• 1 cup ricotta (or sour cream)

• 1 cup heavy cream (or sour cream)

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro (save some for garnish)

• 1–2 cups chopped spinach

• 1–2 cups grated mozzarella (or other melty cheese- cheddar, jack, or crumbled goat cheese)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make the veggie filling: At the same time, saute the onion or leek in olive oil, 3-4 minutes, over medium heat. Keep sauteing until tender.

Make the custard: While the veggies are cooking whisk (or blend in a blender) the eggs with the ricotta, cream, salt and pepper. ( Most any combo of ricotta, sour cream and cream will work here- 2 cups total.)

Assemble the frittata: Grease a deep 9 x 13-inch baking dish or 12-inch skillet. Pour 1/2 of the egg mixture in the bottom. Add the cooked veggies (you should have roughly 6 cups). Add the cilantro, spinach and cheese and pour in the remaining egg mixture. Give the veggies and little swirl so egg mixture is incorporated.

Bake: in the middle of the oven until the center is puffed and the frittata is nice and golden about 1 hour. Check at 30-40 minutes and tent with foil if getting too dark.

You’ll know frittata is done with it puffs slightly at the very center and is not too wobbly.

Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Leftovers keep 4 days in the fridge.

Veggies: Feel free to swap other veggies for these- just make sure they are cooked and lightly seasoned with salt and pepper. Think roasted potatoes or sweet potatoes, roasted butternut squash, roasted cauliflower, sauteed zucchini, frozen spinach or corn, roasted peppers, sundried tomatoes, chili peppers, wilted kale or chard. In summer I’ll top it with fresh vine-ripened cherry tomatoes. In spring, I’ll add raw asparagus tips. You’ll need 6 cups of cooked veggies total. 

Cast-Iron: If you would like to bake this in a cast-iron skillet- no problem, make sure it is extra-large (12 inches in diameter) and greased well.

If making ahead: assemble, refrigerate, and make sure to bring unbaked refrigerated frittata to room temp one full hour before baking. Frittata can also be baked ahead and reheats well.

When Halving the recipe-bake in a standard 9-inch pie pan, or 9-inch cast-iron skillet.

Passionflower

By Kelsey

Passionflower is one plant that I would love to get established on the farm. I have seeded and planted it the last two years, but it has yet to survive the frosty farm winter. This year my goal is to cut it back and mulch it heavily before the first frost. Hopefully that will do the trick! Here is a mini monograph on passionflower~

Passiflora incarnata 

Family: Passifloraceae

Distribution: Most native species of Passiflora are found in tropical and subtropical regions of Mexico, Central America, Florida, and South America, plus a couple species in Southeast Asia. It has also become naturalized in places outside of its native locations, such as parts of Europe.

Cultivation: Hardy, but frost tender. Plant in early Spring in partial to full sun. Prefers well-drained, consistently moist soil. It is a fast growing vine that can either be trellised or not.

Parts used: Aerial parts (flower, leaf, and stem) are typically used medicinally. The fruit is edible and delicious, often used in jams and jellies.

Herbal actions: Nervine (having some beneficial effect on the nervous system), mild sedative (having a calming effect on the nervous system), anodyne (pain relieving qualities), hypnotic (inducing/aiding in sleep), antispasmodic (relieving/relaxing muscle spasm & cramping)

Constituents: flavonoids, alkaloids

Indications: Insomnia, especially when due to circular thinking or avoiding going to sleep; muscle cramping or spasms (and any condition that includes those symptoms); whooping cough; drug withdrawal; teething; mania; digestive cramping; heart palpitations caused by stress; hypertension; apathy; anxiety and exhaustion due to overstimulation

Pairs well with: Valerian and hops as a sleep aid, Hawthorn for heart concerns, Jamaican dogwood and crampbark as  spasmodic pain relief, Motherwort for menstrual-specific insomnia, skullcap for teeth-grinding during sleep

Cautions and Contraindications: Though generally considered safe, passionflower is a sedative that should not be combined with prescription sleep, pain, or anxiety medications. Passionflower should never be combined with MAOIs.

Personal Reflections: Passionflower is the best sleep aid I have ever tried, as someone with an anxious mind at night. It is very gentle, yet extremely effective, and feels like a comforting lulling to sleep rather than a “knock you out” type feeling. I love to blend the tincture with other nervines such as chamomile, skullcap, Motherwort, and tulsi. I have found that passionflower is better when tinctured fresh than dry, though a tea made with the dry plant works well. I would absolutely love to be able to offer tea blends with passionflower one day, but I think that is a goal for several years down the line!

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 4/14 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Summer hours: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Bora King Daikon Radish

• Storage #5 Green Cabbage

• Treviso and Rubro (Last week of treviso)

• Finale Fennel

• Parade Scallions

• Mei Qing Choi

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!) - Note there has been a price increase!

• Revolution Bread: Fresh bread on Tuesday and Friday (Frozen bread available if we sell out.)

Shepherd's Pie with Rutabaga Topping, from marthastewart.com

• 1 rib celery, coarsely chopped (or 1 cup celeriac diced)

• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, plus 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

• 1 sprig fresh thyme

• 2 dried bay leaves

• 1 clove garlic

• 1 ½ teaspoons unsalted butter, plus more for rutabagas and potatoes

• 2 pounds boneless beef chuck or leg of lamb for stew, cut into 1-inch pieces

• 2 medium onions, chopped

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• 2 cups dry red wine

• 1 cup homemade or store-bought low-sodium canned beef stock

• 4 carrots, cut crosswise into 3-inch pieces

• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 3 rutabagas (about 3 pounds), peeled and cut into large pieces

• 4 russet or Yukon gold potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into large pieces

• ½ cup hot milk, or more if needed

Tie celery, rosemary sprig, thyme, bay leaves, and garlic in a small piece of cheesecloth to make a bouquet garni; set aside. Heat a wide, heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat until hot. Melt butter, and brown meat in two batches, taking care not to crowd the pieces or they will steam and not brown; transfer meat to a bowl using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add onions; cook until slightly softened, about 8 minutes. Return meat to pan and sprinkle flour over the meat and onions, cook about 1 minute, stirring often.

Add wine, and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the brown bits. Add the stock and bouquet garni, bring to a boil, cover, and cook on low heat until meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid after 1 hour; add carrots, and cook, uncovered, for the last 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Place rutabagas and potatoes in separate saucepans; cover with cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender, 30 to 40 minutes for the rutabagas and 25 minutes for the potatoes. Drain; return to the saucepans to dry out any moisture from the vegetables for a few minutes.

Put the rutabagas and potatoes through a food mill fitted with a fine disk, or ricer, or mash by hand. Add butter, as desired, and enough hot milk to make a creamy puree. Season with salt and pepper; stir in chopped rosemary.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove bouquet garni; transfer stew into a deep 2-quart baking dish. Top with puree; dot lightly with butter. Bake 1 hour, or until top is brown and crusty. Serve hot.

Happy Spring and Some Musings about the Weather

By Kelsey

I am always peeved when I hear people refer to discussions about the weather as "small talk," as though it's mundane and insignificant. As though the weather doesn't play a massive role in our moods, energy levels, circadian rhythms, and consciousness. As though our bodies are not also composed of earth, water, heat, and air, continuous with the rest of nature. Perhaps it's because I'm outside for a good chunk of every day- although I think if I had more time I could write a pretty convincing argument- but in my view, weather is everything.

The other day, I was talking with a member about how just two years ago I remember thinking, "what if it never rains again?" And of course this year I've found myself wondering, "is it ever going to stop raining?" I wish that I could say that I am reflecting on this and coming away with lessons on accepting what is, surrendering to what I cannot know, and trusting that the Spring will always return. But the reality is, if I seem grumpy in the barn, it is probably because I am mad about the weather.

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 4/14 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Summer hours: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Yellow Finn Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Bora King Daikon Radish

• Storage #5 Green Cabbage

• Treviso and Rubro

• Parade Scallions

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

• Revolution Bread: This week frozen bread on Tuesday and fresh on Friday (Most weeks, we will have fresh both Tuesday and Friday. We will also sell frozen bread if we have it.)

Beef Picadillo

https://thenovicechefblog.com/beef-picadillo/

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 medium white onion, diced

• 1 lb ground beef

• ¼ cup sofrito

• 1 tablespoon adobo seasoning

• 1 packet sazon seasoning

• 1 teaspoon cumin powder

• 1 teaspoon dried, ground oregano

• ½ teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

• 2 teaspoons finely minced garlic or garlic paste

• 1 cup tomato sauce

• 1 cup green olives with pimento

• cilantro, optional garnish

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and ground beef. Cook breaking the beef apart and stirring often, until meat is evenly browned and onions are tender.

2. Drain the excess liquid/grease from the pan and add the sofrito, adobo, sazon, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper.

3. Stir and cook for an additional minute or so, then add the garlic and cook for two more minutes or until the garlic becomes fragrant.

4. Turn the heat down to low-medium then pour in the tomato sauce and stir. Bring the sauce to a low simmer, then turn the heat off and stir in the olives.

5. Serve over rice and garnish with cilantro, if desired.

A Tale of Two winters

By Sarah

Walking in the hills this weekend, there was water oozing out of the soils everywhere. The ground is so saturated. It reminded me of when your skin is so soft and pruned, which I imagine many of us have been this winter. While this amount of rain has been overwhelming at times, I am still so grateful to be so completely full of water, and for so many rainbows!

We have lived on the farm for 11 winters now (which truly is not that much time). We have only had one other winter with constant rain. We have definitely been inundated with large storms in other winters, but then there has been a break. During the winter of 2016-2017, it rained consistently, similar to this winter. The difference has been the temperature. That winter was our best grass year yet. We did not feed any hay. While the cows did have to graze through wet pasture, I could not believe how well the grass grew even though it was so wet. This year we have fed more hay than any other year. The cold temperatures have greatly slowed the growth rate of the grass. Who knows what the spring will bring but I am very curious to watch and see.

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 4/14 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Summer hours start this week: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Yellow Finn and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon Radish

• Finale Fennel

• Storage #5 Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Treviso and Rubro

• Prize Choi

• Parade Scallions

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Parmesan Cabbage Soup, from nytimes.com

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 2 onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

• 3 garlic cloves, minced or finely grated

• ⅛ chile powder, plus more for serving (optional)

• 1 small head of green cabbage (about 1¼ pounds), cored and coarsely chopped (about 9 cups)

• 1½ teaspoons fine sea or table salt, plus more to taste

• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

• 2 quarts vegetable or chicken stock

• 1 cup long-grain rice

• 5 thyme sprigs

• 2 Parmesan rinds, or use another 2 tablespoons grated cheese

• 1 lemon

• ¼ cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

In a stock pot or large Dutch oven, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic and chile (if using), and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add cabbage, salt and pepper, and cook until cabbage wilts slightly and begins to caramelize, about 10 minutes.

Stir in stock, rice and thyme. If using the Parmesan rinds, add them now, and bring everything to a simmer. Cook, partly covered, over medium-low heat until cabbage and rice are very tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

Discard thyme sprigs and Parmesan rinds. Using a Microplane or other fine grater, grate in the zest from the lemon. Stir in grated Parmesan and cilantro.

Halve the lemon and squeeze in the juice from half of it. Cut the remaining lemon half into wedges for serving. Taste soup and add more salt and pepper, if needed. To serve, ladle into soup bowls, and garnish with more grated cheese, a lemon wedge and more red-pepper flakes, if you like.

Farm Food Challenge

By Cecilia

This year I am challenging myself to eat exclusively from the farm.  This is something I have wanted to do for a long time, but never quite felt ready to take the plunge.  I am having some misgivings about starting this endeavor during what looks like a long, wet, and probably food scarce spring.  I don’t expect to do this perfectly.  I hope that through the season I can update everybody about how well (or horrible) it’s all going.  I would love to be able to share some of my reflections on what it feels like to really get creative with the food we grow here.  If I knew I would be doing this I definitely would have spent more time canning last summer, but I am excited about the way this will inspire more commitment to food preservation techniques. 

I’ve always thought about how easy it would be on this particular farm to never have to go to the grocery store for anything.   Because we have meat, eggs, oil, bread, herbs, and vegetables, there is really no need to buy food off farm.  Of course, we don’t grow peanut butter, chocolate, or pamplemousse LaCroix. 

I think it will be motivating for me to feel like the entire Open Field community is on this journey with me.  In the spirit of food blogs everywhere that nobody asked for, I will lay out the perimeters of this year-long challenge. 

·      No Buying Groceries: this is the goal, but it might take time to fully wean.  If you see me in the fancy cheese section of Petaluma Market, please mind your own business.  Or actually please reprimand me. 

·      Eating Out with Friends Okay:  This is not about self-denial and I don’t want my social life to suffer as much as local Reese’s sales inevitably will.  

·      Pantry Items Okay:  I have a lot of food in my pantry and I am not going to let it go to waste just because it is not from the farm.  I am hoping that this helps me feel like my diet is still bountiful until we start really having summer harvests. 

·      Gifts Okay:  Any gift of food brought to the farm counts as farm food.  Shout out to members that bring extra lemons from their trees!  And also to Seth and Sarah when they can’t eat all the yogurt from their milk share. 

·      Salt: I will be buying salt.  Diamond Crystal, specifically.  I don’t know what else to say about that. 

 My main motivation in all this is to create a deeper sense of connection to the land I live on and the community I share it with.  Even though I only started this a little over a month ago, I already feel aware of the deeper sense of gratitude.  Because I don’t have a constant immediate access to sugar, the candies Kelsey brought back from Japan felt so special (as they were!).  Every bite was a gift.  It is a good feeling to have a deep sense of appreciation for everything I eat. 

I am also already amazed by unexpected abundance, even in this time of year.  Last week I almost cried because I used the last of my popcorn from my pantry.  Four days later, AJ sent me a message saying that she had milled all the popcorn from our experimental trial last summer and that it was bagged and ready to eat.  Honestly I had kind of forgotten that we tried growing popcorn.  

 I don’t really have a recipe this week, instead I would like to share my menu for a dinner I hosted this weekend.  When I told my non-farming friends what I’m doing, they all seemed to think I am on some kind of extreme diet.  In reality my eating has not changed too much.  Even without summer veggies, there is still so much to eat (but I might have to reassess that when we finally run out of spaghetti squash). 

I had two friends over for burger night and this was all the ingredients used:

 BIG SALAD:

Rosalba chicory

Mei Qing choi

Thinly sliced watermelon radish

Grated celeriac

Chopped scallions (scallions available next week!)

Lots of cilantro

Dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, and salt

 BURGERS:

Ground beef seasoned with salt and Chimayo ground pepper, with an egg mixed in

Revolution bread baguette for buns

TOPPINGS:

Cabernet onion slices

Pickles made from our salt & pepper cucumbers

Ketchup canned from our paste tomatoes

Salanova butter lettuce

Diced fermented Aji Crystal peppers

 CRISPY ROASTED POTATOES:

Thinly sliced Harvest Moon potatoes roasted in lots of oil at high heat until crispy

Seasoned with salt, thyme, and Basque ground

 pepper

Dipped in homemade ketchup!

 DILLY BEANS:

I’m actually still going through jars of Dilly Beans that I preserved 2 years ago.  They are the ultimate side dish for any meal. 

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck This Friday 3/10 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon Radish

• Finale Fennel

• Storage #5 Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Treviso and Rubro

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choi

• Lettuce Mix

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Cycles

By Ashley

There is a steady amount of death as well as visceral feeling of lack on any given day.
Here at the farm, for me at least, and I know of at least one other, it has been a hard week. We have lost lives of young and old animals alike and I have touched that death with my hands. I have heard with my own ears the bleets of an ewe who could not give birth to a live, healthy baby, the whispered cries of humans saying goodbye to their bestfriends, laughter at the remembered memories, and deep heavy sighs in an effort to move through the grief. We have spoken to each other the worry we have about the cold and wet weather that will push back when we can open our fields for summer crop and makes our grass grow oh so slowly. 
This is not written to worry you or to strike fear into your heart, dear reader. But to remind everyone, including myself, that to be abundant all the time, to live in the illusion that nothing changes and life is forever, is just that: Illusion. Life would not be as strikingly beautiful without the shifts and changes death brings to us. We would not hold each other so securely and with grace without death. The grief of being a human and living amongst those who also grieve is, to me, one of the most fundamental human experiences. A foundational piece, if you will. It creates the experience of deeply enjoying a sip of tea, being satisfied at the end of the day of hard work or hard love. It creates the experiences that are once in a lifetime and the mundane beauty of day to day routines. 

McCall Erickson writes:

“The hallmark of a human life is loss, it seems. And the body is a vessel for grief. 

This is not an if, but a when. When is loss gonna hit? 

And then it's how. How do you carry it? All that grief. And don't even ask why. Why is not a question that grief ever answers."

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 3/10 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Storage #5 Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Treviso and Rubro

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Prize Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Cabbage Kuchen, from Laurel's Kitchen

Topping: 2 onions, 4 cups shredded cabbage, 2 T butter, 1 cup yogurt, 2 eggs beaten, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp black pepper, 1 T caraway seed.

Dough (Kuchen): 2 cups whole wheat flour, 2 tsps baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 egg beaten, 1 cup milk, 2 T butter melted.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

To make topping , slice onions thinly and saute with cabbage in butter. Mix in other topping ingredients and set aside.

Stir flour, baking powder and salt lightly with a fork. Combine egg, milk and butter and stir briefly into dry ingredients.

Spread in greased 8 x 8 pan. Spread with topping and bake for 35 minutes.

Tunnel B

By Alyssa

The weather change is on the wind this morning. When a harvest day dawns breezy and cool like this, starting in the tunnels is a welcome reprieve. Wind is a powerful force on this land. We try to work around it, or with it, but we don't always succeed. As we begin to till and plant, you might see us battling with huge tarps that turn into sails when the breeze picks up.
During those windy storms in January, the plastic covering Tunnel B tore in several places. At the time, Jesse and Danny did a quick fix with Tyvek tape, and the veggie crew threw shade cloth over the whole thing to help keep it in place against the winds. It stayed secure, but began to slow the growth of some of the crops in that tunnel. 
Over the weekend, after several false starts, we finally had both the necessary number people (four) and the good weather (warm, no wind) to replace the old plastic. Using the high tech tools of tennis balls, rope, pliers, an electric drill, and several ladders, Jesse, AJ, Cecilia, Sarah, and I removed the old plastic and secured the new plastic without much of a hitch. There is a little bit left to do, but at least for me, it is a relief to have the majority of the task completed. I hope everything growing in B will get a good boost from the added light and warmth. Next up (eventually): the shade house! 

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 3/10 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Storage #5 Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Rosalba, Treviso, and Rubro

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Prize Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Spaghetti Winter Squash and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Sauteed Rubro with Onion and Apple

This is a side I like to make for lunch with a slice or two of bread and a few fried eggs, but it would also go well with meat or beans. The sweetness of the onion and the apple easily balances out the bitterness of the radicchio. For a single serving, I usually use 1/4 onion, 1/2 small head of rubro, 1/2 a small apple.

• 1 head of Rubro, chopped 

• 1 apple, diced

• 1 onion, diced

• salt and pepper to taste

Heat a pan with a tablespoon or two of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch or two of salt. Once translucent, add the apple, and cook both until they begin to brown. Add the chopped Rubro, and cook, stirring occasionally until wilted and beginning to brown. Season with salt and pepper to taste. A squeeze of lemon or a splash of vinegar or wine to deglaze would not go amiss, either!

Sheep on pasture

By AJ

The sheep are currently split into two groups. 

The pregnant ewes are in the barn, where they loaf around, preparing their bodies for the labor that is lambing. (Any day now!)

The rest of the gang are finally out grazing what was very recently "the swamp", after receiving so much rain. Even though they are accustomed to the winter regime of eating alfalfa, their memory of pasture life is very accessible. They know how to get what they need and are content to be the wandering, grazing creatures that they are. 

We will be harvesting lambs in April, when we will have more merguez, along with other cuts. Until then, we still have sirloin and chops available.

Upcoming Farm Events: Potluck Friday 3/10 at 5:30 pm

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Storage #5 Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Parade Scallions

• Rosalba, Treviso, and Rubro

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Joi Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Esmee Arugula

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti and Butternut Winter Squash, Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

LAMB SIRLOIN ROAST

this recipe is super quick and easy! serve it up with some roasted winter root vegetables

• 1 lamb sirloin roast

• 1 teaspoon olive oil

• ¼ teaspoon dried thyme

• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary

• ½ teaspoon dried rosemary

• salt and pepper

Rub olive oil over both sides of the lamb

Slice garlic into thin pieces and then with a sharp paring knife, poke holes in the lamb, then slide one garlic slice in each hole nad follow that with an end piece of fresh rosemary.

Grind salt and pepper over the roast, then sprinkle the rosemary and thyme.

Preheat oven to 400F

Leave lamb to come to room temperature while oven is heating.

Place lamb into the oven and cook for 20 minutes - check internal temperature with a thermometer 

Rare = 120-130F

Medium Rare =130-140F

Medium = 140-150F

Well Done =150-165F

Pancake Breakfast

By Sarah

Thank you to everyone who came to the pancake breakfast this Saturday! We hiked to the big pond, which was still receiving inflow and spilling over, creating a small waterfall. The cows were grazing in the field below the pond. We then headed through the pasture to grandmother oak. Immediately, the tree was filled with children climbing all over her trunk and branches. From there, it was a race back to the big barn for pancakes, strawberry syrup, and many delicious toppings and sides.

For those who were unable to join this year, we plan on this being an an annual event. We prefer to host our events near a transition point in the year, this one being close to February 1st, the midpoint between the winter equinox and the spring solstice. We are beginning to emerge from winter, the days are lengthening more rapidly, and hopefully, the plant growth begins to speed up.

Our main goal for the event is to come together to celebrate this land and our connections, as well as to have fun and eat good food. As well, we wanted to orient you to more of the farm and to invite you to come hike and explore on your own. Lastly, I meant to pause at the pond and give thanks to the water and our ability to grow vegetables for another season. Instead, I got engulfed in the kid’s joyous energy and curiosity, which was actually an excellent way to show our gratitude.

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots (Last week; limited amounts)

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Storage #5 Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Rosalba, Treviso, and Rubro

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Mei Qing Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Lettuce Mix

• Spaghetti and Butternut Winter Squash, Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Buttermilk Pancakes, from Bette’s Oceanview Diner in Berkeley
(These are the pancakes my mom has made for as long as I can remember. I have a very worn recipe card that I follow.) We rarely use buttermilk, instead do half yogurt and half milk.

• 2 cups flour (we always use farm flour and love the flavor that it brings!)

• 2 Tbsp sugar

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 eggs

• 2 cups buttermilk

• 1/2 cup whole milk

• 1/4 cup butter, melted

Mix dry ingredients. Whisk liquid ingredients together and add to the dry ingredients. Do not overstir!

Strawberry Syrup

We always freeze any leftover strawberries after a CSA pick up. We eat them all winter in smoothies and in other recipes! I do not have an exact recipe for the syrup. My ratio tends to be heavy on the strawberries but you could always add more syrup if you prefer. Here is about what we made on Saturday:

• 1 gallon bag frozen strawberries (Defrosted overnight, it became about 6 cups)

• 1-1.5 cups maple syrup

Put both in a blender and mix well!

Weekend Chores

By Kelsey

This just in! Plants and animals don't really care what day it is. They need to be fed and watered and tended to, regardless of our "schedules" and "weekends" and "labor laws." There's been a lot of talk on the farm lately about how to make our work feel more sustainable, how many hours of work per day is ideal, the benefits and consequences of a 40-hr work week for agriculture workers, etc. Its a lot to mull over-- how do we make farming, an endeavor that ultimately is on Nature's schedule, fit with our modern lifestyles, which require us to earn a wage and exist within an industrial structure?

Thankfully, I wasn't thinking about any of that stuff while I was doing farm chores on Sunday. I was sitting on the wagon piled with hay, while my good friend Jesse drove the tractor through the mud. I was smelling cow manure, fresh damp grass, and diesel. We drove straight into the herd and the cows trotted over to us, and tried to sneak in a few bites before the baling twine was even cut, just a couple feet away from where I sat. I was seeing green hills, gray clouds broken up by sun beams that made me squint, red-tail hawks soaring. I was thinking, "this is awesome. I could do this everyday."

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List: The list is light this week as we continue to allow the plants in the tunnels to grow. We think we will be able to offer lettuce mix, spinach, and pac choy next week. We have eaten through some of the winter storage crops as well: leeks and kohlrabi, plus some varieties of onions and winter squash. The leeks and kohlrabi were definitely affected by the early cold weather in November. We have plenty of storage onions and spaghetti squash to eat through!

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and Harvest Moon Potatoes

• Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks (last week, may be limited!)

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Deadon Savoy Cabbage and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Castelfranco, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Ruby Red Chard

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Greens Pasta, from nytimes.com

• 1pound rigatoni, penne rigate, penne or ziti

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced (about 2 packed cups)

• 5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated

• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

• 1 cup pasta water

• ½ cup heavy cream (optional)

• 8 to 10 ounces chopped chard, kale, or other cooking greens

• 1 juicy lemon, zested then halved

• Parmesan, for serving

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season generously with salt and cook the pasta until al dente, then drain pasta, reserving 1 cup of water for the sauce.

Place a Dutch oven or large heavy pot over medium heat and add the butter. Once melted and bubbling, add onions, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring and pressing often with a spatula or wooden spoon to help them cook down faster, until very soft, translucent and almost jammy with golden brown edges, about 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and mustard and cook until very fragrant and softened, about 2 minutes.

Turn the heat up to high, add ¾ cup pasta water and the heavy cream (if using) and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Bring to a simmer, then in small handfuls, add the greens, stirring until wilted and tender. Stir in the pasta. Turn off the heat, add the lemon zest and juice the lemon halves over the top; stir again. Add the remaining ¼ cup pasta water if more sauciness is desired.

Sprinkle with grated Parmesan. Serve immediately, with more pepper and salt to taste.

Persephone Days

It certainly has been a cooler and, thankfully, wet winter so far. The freezing nights came early in November and have remained fairly constant, except for during the storms. I usually think of the window between Seth’s birthday, November 22nd, and Oliver’s birth, January 22nd, as our coldest days. These dates roughly correspond to our Persephone days, when we have less than 10 hours of sunlight and plant growth essentially stops. I have noticed that if we have warm temperatures during this window, we can still have decent plant growth. This year the cold temperature have definitely affected plant growth. Some crops, such as the leeks, did not size up as much in November as they usually do. The grass and the tunnels crops have been inching along. While this slowness has brought some hiccups (less produce for all of us and more hay being fed to the cows), I have been thinking about how the soil has truly received a winter rest and hopefully recharge, which has not happened as much in the last few years.

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Shallots, Cortland Yellow and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Deadon Savoy Cabbage and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Castelfranco, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Ruby Red Chard

• Dazzling Blue Kale

• Esmee Arugula

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Arroz Blanco con Mantequilla, from Rick Martinez on food52.com

• 4 tablespoons (57 grams) unsalted butter

• 1/2 medium onion (154 grams), chopped

• 2 medium carrots (175 grams), finely chopped

• 1 medium chile poblano (125 grams), stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped (frozen poblano or numex green chiles would be excellent or you could use chile powder)

• 1 cup (164 grams) corn kernels

• 1 garlic clove, finely grated

• 2 teaspoons (16 grams) kosher salt

• 2 cups (200 grams) long-grain white rice

• 3 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion, carrots, chile poblano, corn, garlic, and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and just beginning to brown, for 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the rice, stir to coat in the butter, and cook until the rice is opaque, for 4 minutes. Add the stock, stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook undisturbed for 20 minutes. Quickly check to see if all of the liquid has been absorbed; if not, continue to cook and check again in 10 minutes. If the liquid has been absorbed, remove the pot from the heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork to separate the grains and serving.

Sunshine

By Sarah

I imagine many of us are ready for some sunshine and a break in the rain. It certainly would help the plants in the tunnels grow and for the grass to flourish. I know the sheep will be excited to be out of the barn and the chickens to wander out from under the shelter. And yet I have a hard time saying goodbye to the rain. I want to bathe in the saturation a little more, to do my best to say thanks and to relish it. The reluctance to have this rainy period end comes from the fear that it will leave for too long and from the many years of only light rainfall. While I am sure I will not be able to distill this fear completely, I am going to have faith that it will return and to be grateful for the some days of blue skies.

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Elyse Sweet, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Gypsy Broccoli

• Deadon Savoy Cabbage and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Castelfranco, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Ruby Red Chard

• Champion Collards

• Lettuce Mix

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Carrot Leek Soup, from nytimes.com

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 4 cups peeled, cubed carrots (from about 6 medium carrots)

• 2 medium leeks, white part only, chopped

• Salt and black pepper

• 8 cups water or vegetable broth

• 2 tablespoons yellow or white miso

• 1 small lime

Melt butter in a pot over medium heat. When the butter starts to sizzle, add carrots and leeks. Season generously with salt and pepper, and stir to coat well. Sauté for a minute or 2, then add water (or broth, if using). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer. As soup simmers, taste and add salt as needed. Cook until carrots are soft, about 15 minutes.

Once the soup is cooled, reserve 2 cups liquid, then purée the remaining contents of the pot in a blender. (Alternatively, use an immersion blender in the pot.) Use reserved liquid to adjust the purée’s thickness, adding just enough so the consistency is that of a thin milkshake.

To serve, heat soup and whisk in miso. Divide among 4 bowls. Grate a little lime zest over each bowl. Quarter the lime and add a good squeeze of lime juice into each bowl. Scatter with chives, if using.

Sugarloaf

By Cecilia

Our irrigation pond is completely full for the first time in a few years.  It is incredible to see how much water is rushing in and out of it.  Yesterday I walked up to one of the highest points on the farm and looked down onto the whole valley.  There seemed to be water everywhere.  If you walk around the farm you will also see that our last growing field is flooded.  While we hope this happens every year, it is a turning point for harvest.  Some things will continue growing, like the chard, chicories, and celeriac.  The cabbage we will have to get out of the field before it splits, and the kale might all die back.  Brassicas do not hold up well to flooding.  This means that going forward through the winter we start to rely more and more heavily on tunnel production and storage crops.  Some of our tunnel plastic ripped off in one of the storms last week, so Jesse and Danny scrambled to tape it back together for a quick fix.  The crops in those houses become increasingly valuable as we get deeper into winter. 

I mostly wanted to spend my time on the blog this week talking about sugarloaf.  I have a problem where I say that every single chicory we grow is my favorite chicory.  Usually, whichever variety I am holding in that moment will be the one I claim as my favorite.  But really, at the end of the day my favorite is the sugarloaf.  Maybe I just hold on to it as my favorite because it was my gateway chicory.  When I first started growing them I wasn’t really sure how to use them.  I didn’t fully understand how to highlight their bitter flavor in whatever I was cooking.  The sugarloaf is so mild compared to the other varieties, which makes it a great place to start.  Now I prefer chopped sugarloaf to lettuce in my salads.  The name comes from the fact that it has a sweeter flavor, and because it is shaped like a baguette, or a loaf of bread.  We are soon approaching the final harvests of our early season type called Nettuno.  But do not fret!  There is much more sugar loaf on its way.  We have a whole untouched planting of a later season type called Borca. 

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Elyse Sweet, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Primo Green Cabbage and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Castelfranco, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Joi Choi

• White Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Chicory Salad Dressing

My recipe for this week is the salad dressing I like to use for chicory salads.  I think vinegar balances the bitterness of the greens and the savory miso flavor holds up even to stronger chicories like Treviso.  It’s a super simple 3-ingredient recipe, which is also why I like it so much.  I can’t really remember where or when I first read about it.  I’ve never forgotten it though because the ratios are so easy to remember.  I make large batches of this in a mason jar and keep it in my fridge. 

• 1 tablespoon miso (I use any type of miso that I have on hand.  Right now I have a traditional red miso)

• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• (salt and pepper to taste)

It’s not technically part of the dressing, but I always add LOTS of chopped herbs to my chicory salads.  In the summer I love dill, but right now I’m using a lot of parsley and cilantro.  

The Flow of Satisfaction

By Ashley

Adrienne Maree Brown asks in her 'Hurry Slowly' podcast: "are you satisfiable?

Earlier on last weekend I was having a conversation with my dear friend and farmhand badass whe she brought up the idea that "unless it is a perfect sunny 70 degree day, most people will tend to complain one way or the other about the weather." It gave me pause and as the crew is out in our flooded fields harvesting food for CSA, i've been thinking about it. Also, today, I've been thinking of that question Adrienne Maree Browns asked... "Are you satisfiable?" Because at what point in a day will we sit back and enjoy the rain that makes us slow and grow, and trudge and work for what we need? At what point do we stop wishing things were different; because the world is operating in the ways it needs to in order to give itself sustenance? I also have been having a (very quick) think back across Brown's teachings on pleasure and how she derives inspiration from the natural world. Finding beauty from the interdependence we have with the Earth, which is a about 90% of why I personally want to be farming, keeps a days work in perspective. It is cold and work is always hard, but hey! two years ago many farms this size didnt know if they would be able to keep operating because there was no water. Every summer here in California we have less and less snow pack to get us through and we pray for rain. So, I wanted to stop by today and say "My feet are wet and my hands are cold, I cant wait to get back into my warm house and pet my animals, but right now while I'm out here in the wet earth I'm going to laugh when my feet sink into the mud and I'm going to marvel at how full our waterways are. I will remember the animals and pieces of vegatation that are rejoicing in the dampness they waited the hot summer to experience."

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Norland, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Primo Green Cabbage and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Finale Fennel

• Castelfranco, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Joi Choi

• White Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Cilantro

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick Delicata, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Pie-Pita Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends, Ground Chiles, and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Kombucha Muffins From Jerrelle Guy, from food52.com

Note: If you are sensitive to the taste of baking soda, you can reduce the baking soda to 2 teaspoons—the muffins will still be fluffy, just not quite as fluffy. If you choose honey, the warm, sweet flavor of honey will come through most prominently. If you use agave, the flavor will be more neutral and you may be able to taste the baking soda more—a flavor I don't mind at all (think: pretzels!), but some people are more sensitive to. Whatever size your muffin cups are, don’t fill them much more than three-quarters full, and adjust the baking time accordingly. (For example, in my small muffin cups, I got 23 muffins and they baked in under 10 minutes.) Jerrelle notes that, to make these muffins vegan, you can use melted dairy-free butter or a neutral oil like grapeseed, safflower, sunflower, or canola oil, and use the agave option rather than the honey.

• 3 cups (360 grams) white whole-wheat flour or spelt flour

• 4 teaspoons (10 grams) baking soda (see Note above)

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup (112 grams) unsalted butter, melted, or neutral oil, plus more for greasing the pan

• 3/4 cup (180 milliliters) agave or honey

• 1 (16-ounce [470-milliliter]) bottle plain kombucha

Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C or gas mark 7). Oil the wells of a muffin tin and have it nearby.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Pour the melted butter and agave over the dry ingredients, and then pour in the kombucha. Whisk the mixture until just combined. Don’t mix beyond this point or your muffins will be tough.

Immediately scoop the mixture into the muffin wells, and bake in the oven for 5 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C or gas mark 5) and finish cooking for another 8 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. The initial high heat of the oven will make sure the muffins pop out over the edges of the pan. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Serve warm with more softened butter, if you like.

Sheep

By AJ

This coming year, I (AJ) am going to be doing more work/collaborating with the sheep. I’m excited about getting to know them better. Sheep can instill a sense of majesty and expanse in me, despite the fact that their lineage of domesticity often gives people the impression of stupidity. But i’d wager they know their way around the world better than i. 

I will be taking a poll about what products y’all would like to see coming from our versatile tunis sheep. So look for that in the near future. 

I would like to leave you with a poem by my revered queers at QueerNature:

https://www.apocalypticecology.com/poetry/project-two-cjlkr

THE ECSTATIC LAMENT OF THE SHEPHERD

 There is a time, out in the pasture,

(maybe dusk, maybe dawn,

one can’t be sure)

when the tide of this world goes out

and the Other-world washes in like a wave,

lapping rhythmically at the Shepherd’s feet.

Immersed in a green trance

she sees her soul shining back

in a single sheep’s eye.

With a Delphic smile

she remembers humankind is not the true shepherd,

but it is us—clan-hungry, earth-bound—

who become part of the flock that we tend.

transcending the boundaries of species

finding what is called ‘mammalian resonance.’

As we tend our sheep, it is our hearts and minds that are tended in return

like children dozing to an ancient lullaby.

For a time, inverting roles 

Mother Earth submits herself to the shepherd.

Her rocks become bones and hooves,

her soil becomes wool and flesh,

her water becomes blood.

And for a time, we protect her

—the Dark Mother with her life-extinguishing embrace—

now she is the lamb.

She allows us to hold her

and our hearts break daily because we must slay what we love

while the Great Mother seems do to it with such ease.

For a short time

When we are shepherds

She gives us the great gift

of imitating her.

We are closed next week!

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Gold, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Garlic

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Gypsy Broccoli

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage, Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Brussel Sprouts

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Finale Fennel

• Escarole, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Bopak Pac Choy

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Lettuce

• Parsley

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick Delicata, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Focaccia Onion Board, from smittenkitchen.com

Serve this with anything you like on a bagel, a cream cheese board, or just a schmear of salted butter. Note on an update: Based on feedback from comments, I’m suggesting you line your pan with parchment paper for easier removal.

• 3 cups (390 grams) flour

• Kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon (3 grams) instant yeast

• 1 1/2 cups (355 grams) lukewarm water

• Olive oil

• 2 large yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced

• 1 1/2 teaspoons poppy seeds

Make the dough: In a large bowl, combine the flour, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and instant yeast. Add the water and use a spoon, rubber spatula or a dough whisk [I have this one], mix until the water is absorbed and a shaggy, sticky dough is formed. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise until doubled at room temperature for 1 3/4 to 2 hours. Alternatively, you can let it rise in the fridge overnight for 8 to 10 hours.

Meanwhile, prepare your onions: Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Once hot, add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Once the oil is heated, add the onions and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Cook onions, stirring every minute or two, until a medium brown, almost caramel colored, about 25 minutes. [See Note at end.] Scrape onions onto a plate to cool while you finish the bread.

Finish the focaccia: When the dough is doubled, line a 9×13 cake pan with parchment paper and drizzle 2 tablespoons olive oil over it. Do not deflate your dough, just scrape it onto the oiled parchment. Drizzle the top of the dough with another tablespoon of olive oil and use your fingers to dimple the dough, flattening it out. It’s okay if it doesn’t reach the edges. Let the dimpled dough rest at room temperature for 15 minutes and heat your oven to 425°F. After 15 minutes, dimple the dough only where needed a little further into the corners. Let rest for a final 15 minutes before scattering the top with onions, poppy seeds, and a few pinches of salt.

Bake the focaccia: For 25 minutes, until deeply golden brown at the edges and across the top. While it bakes, you can prepare any toppings you’d like to serve it with, such as cream cheese or butter, lox, thinly sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, or capers.

To serve: Loosen the focaccia if it’s stuck in any place and slide it into a cutting board. Cut into 12 squares, using a sharp knife to get through the onions on top without pulling them off, and replacing any that scatter. Eat right away.

Do ahead: Focaccia keeps at room temperature for 1 to 2 days. Reheat on a baking sheet at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes.

Note: These are not caramelized onions; we do not need 60 to 90 minutes over low heat with constant stirring. That is not how any ancestor of mine cooked onions. I’m intentionally using a higher heat for more quickly developed flavor. If they’re not picking up color by 20 minutes, bump up the heat slightly. If they’re coloring too fast to make it to 20 to 25 minutes, reduce the heat. We want to stopping shy of a dark bronzed color, as the onions will finish in the oven and we don’t want them to burn.

Olive Oil

By Alyssa

Sometimes, things don’t go to plan. We all know this; we all experience this. As you can imagine, it happens often on the farm. Be it the weather, the soil, or the living things we work with, we have learned to adapt, hopefully with ease and grace, to whatever is thrown our way. But once in a while, something happens that we've never considered or planned for, and we have to pivot hard.

Two weekends ago, at some point between Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon, the freshly filled olive oil keg in the CSA barn was left open, and it all spilled out all over the floor. Likely it was left open when it was so cold that the olive oil had solidified; then as the day warmed, it began to spill. Certainly, it was an accident. Regardless, we had one heck of a mess to clean up Monday morning!

In an attempt to make lemons out of lemonade, we decided our poor, parched, well-used wood floor could use a refinishing. With push brooms and rags, and bolstered by a seasonal Spotify playlist, Geena and I pushed olive oil into every nook and cranny we could, then swept up the excess. We followed that up with four bags of kiln-dried diatomaceous earth (an oil absorber that is safe for use in food facilities) in a thin layer across the whole floor… and then after another trip to the store, sprinkled another four bags out, too.

We let it sit for a couple hours. In an ideal world, using something other than organic olive oil, we would have brushed very thin layers onto the wood one at a time, letting each soak in before wiping away the excess with a rag – not unlike seasoning a cast iron skillet, but without the application of heat. Since the oil was all dumped in one go and we didn’t have near enough rags to soak the excess up, we were hoping that the oil absorber would serve a similar purpose, leaving us with a surface that was neither slippery nor tacky.

I spent the next four hours sweeping away the oil absorber and wiping the remaining dust and residue with a rag, and by 6:15pm that Monday night, our barn floor had only a few specks of diatomaceous earth to be seen, and the wood looked rich and beautiful.

We successfully made lemons out of lemonade this time, but in an effort to prevent another expensive floor refinishing, we have posted a diagram of the spigot’s open and closed positions on the keg. Even if no oil comes out, please always assume there is oil in the keg and keep the spigot in the CLOSED position!

For the oil spigot to be CLOSED, the handle should point DOWN toward the table. 

For the oil spigot to be OPEN, the handle should point OUT toward you.

On the weekends, you may find the spigot itself rotated upside-down to help safeguard against any future leaks. If you decide to refill your oil on a non-CSA day, please return the spigot to that position.

While the barn floor gets used to its new finish, you may find wet areas of the barn and wash station floors to be unexpectedly slippery. We have scrubbed the wash station floor and will be keeping towels in the barn to wipe up any water spills, but please watch your step for a little while longer in case we missed any spots. Thank you!

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts THIS WEEK, always the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Gold, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Song Cauliflower and/or Gypsy Broccoli

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage, Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Brussel Sprouts

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Escarole, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Bopak Pac Choy

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Lettuce

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick Delicata, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

French Onion Panade 

Based off the recipe by Samin Nosrat in the NY Times.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019167-french-onion-panade

This is an excellent way to use up our enormous yellow onions! Any time I caramelize onions, I make extra to freeze for future uses. To make a smaller serving size like I do, halve this recipe and make it in a loaf pan. The croutons and onions can be made in advance.

• 1 loaf stale bread cut into 1" square croutons

• 8 Tbsp butter, divided

• 2 Tbsp olive oil

• 4 lbs yellow onions, thinly sliced

• 2 Tbsp vinegar

• 1/4 liquid to deglaze (wine, broth, water)

• 5-6 cups any kind of stock

• about 3 cups grated melting cheese like gruyere or jack

• about 1 cup grated parmesan

• salt and pepper

Bake croutons in a 325 degree oven until  nicely toasty (15-30 min).

To caramelize the onions: Set a large pot over medium heat with 4 Tbsp butter and the olive oil. When the butter melts, add the onions and salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally for 10-15 minutes. Once they release a lot of liquid, remove the lid and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for another 30 minutes or so, until the onions are tender and dark golden brown. Turn off the heat and deglaze with vinegar and wine; add salt and vinegar to taste.

Warm the stock, and season to taste.

To assemble the panade, place 1/3 of the croutons in a 9x13 or other large baking dish. Top with half the onions and 1/3 of the cheese mixture. Season with pepper. Repeat once. Add the last 1/3 of the croutons on top, and pour in the stock, being careful not to overfill. Bake for 30 min at 425, then add the last 1/3 of the cheese and bake again for about 15 minutes until golden brown. 

Strength

By Sarah

We are grateful for the return of the rains, to hear it pounding on the earth and to feel the soft soil beneath our feet. It has been very frosty most mornings. We wake to the farm blanketed in whiteness and often the plants do not thaw until 10 am. I am impressed by the strength of the plants to withstand the weather changes. Their leaves do droop more and more with each frost, but many continue to grow.

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Gold, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Cipollini, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Song Cauliflower

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage, Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Brussel Sprouts

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Escarole, Rosalba, and Sugarloaf

• Lettuce

• Regiment Spinach

• Parsley

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick Delicata, Tuffy Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Ginger Beer-Glazed Butternut Squash With Gremolata, from nytimes.com

• 2 cups ginger beer

• ¾ cup vegetable stock, plus more if needed

• 1 medium (3-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch jewel-shaped chunks

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 tablespoon honey

• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves (optional)

• Salt and black pepper

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves

• ½ teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger

• ¼ teaspoon finely chopped fresh garlic

• ¼ teaspoon finely grated fresh orange zest

Add the ginger beer and stock to a large, deep skillet. Bring to a boil over high.

Add the squash in an even layer. Top with the butter, honey and cloves (if using), and season with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash is tender and the sauce thickens to a glaze, about 25 minutes.

While squash simmers, prepare the gremolata: Chop the parsley, ginger, garlic and orange zest together until thoroughly combined.

Once the squash is tender and the sauce has reduced to a glaze, give it a taste and season with salt and pepper. Transfer the squash to a wide, shallow bowl. Sprinkle with the gremolata and serve.

Peace

In anticipation of rain, we are sowing cover crop, cleaning up fields, and pausing what little irrigation we have left. Everything feels expectant. The grass is beginning to show through the thatch, and herons and egrets are stalking the fields. Every day the hills look a little greener, and we look to the forecast, hoping for a good storm.

 This week we started winter hours – shorter days, and for a few of us, shorter weeks as well. The extra half hour of time in the morning and evening feel so luxurious! Unlike many of my coworkers, I love waking up in the dark in the winter. It feels secretive and satisfying to wrap myself in a blanket, enjoy a leisurely breakfast, and read or cross something off my to-do list. It’s when my mind feels the clearest.

 There is a poem I’ve been wanting to share, by Wendell Berry, called The Peace of Wild Things. Many of us on the farm find comfort in the work we do when the happenings of the world feel huge and horrible and overwhelming. I often check the news over breakfast, and to go to work and have my hands in the ground all day, my mind occupied by growing, living things, is the most heartening thing I could possibly ask for.

The Peace of Wild Things

By Wendell Berry

 When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

 I hope you all had a restful holiday!

Alyssa

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Gold, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Cipollini, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Song Cauliflower and/or Gypsy Broccoli

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage, Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Brussel Sprouts

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choy

• Escarole, Radicchio, and Sugarloaf

• Lettuce

• Regiment Spinach

• Esmee arugula

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick Delicata, Tuffy and Gil’s Golden Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash, and Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Herbal Tea Blends and Whole Dried Chile peppers (Please bring your own jars!)

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

One-Pot Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese, from food52.com

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 4 cups (about 1 pound) peeled and seeded butternut squash, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

• Kosher salt

• Freshly ground black pepper, plus more for serving

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves (from about 3 sprigs)

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage leaves (from about 12 leaves)

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 4 cups warm water, plus more as needed

• 1 1/2 cups (1 12-ounce can) full-fat evaporated milk

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

• 1 pound dried pasta, such as medium-sized shells or elbow macaroni

• 12 ounces sharp white cheddar, grated (about 3 cups)

• 2 ounces Parmesan, grated (about ⅔ cup), plus more for serving

Melt the butter in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the squash and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring often, until tender enough to smash with a spatula without much resistance and beginning to brown, 15 to 17 minutes. Add the rosemary, sage, and garlic and cook, stirring often, just until the garlic is aromatic and no longer raw, about 1 minute.

Increase the heat to high and add the warm water, evaporated milk, 1½ teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg. Bring to a boil and add the pasta. (The pasta won’t be completely covered by the liquid.) Boil over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the pasta is al dente and about two-thirds of the liquid has evaporated, 12 to 14 minutes. If at any point the liquid evaporates before the pasta is tender, add additional warm water (1/2 cup at a time) and continue cooking.

Remove the pot from the heat and add both cheeses. Stir until the cheese is completely melted and has emulsified into a creamy sauce. Let the pasta sit for 10 minutes. If the sauce becomes too thick, adjust the consistency by adding additional warm water 1/4 cup at a time.

Season to taste with additional salt and pepper and serve immediately with more back pepper and parmesan, if desired.

I'm Cold!

By Kelsey

Is it just me, or has this been a particularly cold Fall? It seems like every single morning I am waking up to white frosty grass, an icy windshield, and frozen hoses that are unusable for the first hour of the work day. I grew up in Fresno, so I am a bit of a wimp when it comes to cold weather, but after 5 winters spent working outside on this farm, I think I have finally figured out the correct formula and layering strategy to stay comfortable in freezing temps. From toe to head, it is: wool socks, wool-lined boots, fleece-lined leggings, work pants, base layer top, tee-shirt, sweatshirt, down puffy #1, thicker down puffy #2, wool fingerless gloves (full gloves would be better but then you lose dexterity), wool beanie.

My other strategies for staying warm are: a constant stream of hot herbal chai flowing into me, and taking Fire Cider! Fire Cider is a traditional folk remedy in which pungent, spicy, culinary herbs are steeped in apple cider vinegar. Fire Cider can be taken as a tonic for improved circulation, metabolism, and elimination (and thus vitality!), as well as a remedy for acute respiratory infection, like cold and flu. It is packed with warming herbs that are particularly supportive to the respiratory and immune systems during the colder months. I taught a Fire Cider making workshop at the end of October, and the herbs we used in our elixir were cayenne, garlic, ginger, onion, rosemary, and thyme. Our brew is currently still macerating underground in the herb garden, and I am excited to dig it up and taste it on Sunday!

CSA barn hours:

• We are only open on Tuesday this week, from 2 pm to 6 pm. We are closed on Friday.

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Gold, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Cipollini, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Parade Scallions

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage, Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Russian Kale

• Champion Collards

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choy

• Escarole, Radicchio, and Sugarloaf

• Lettuce

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick and Zeppelin Delicata, Tuffy and Gil’s Golden Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash and Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Braised Lamb Shoulder Chops, from thespruceeats.com

• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

• 2 medium onions, halved, sliced to 1/4-inch thickness

• 4 to 6 lamb shoulder chops

• 4 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 cup dry red wine, such as a cabernet or pinot

• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard, good quality or similar gourmet mustard

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, or about 1 teaspoon dried crumbled rosemary

Gather the ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 300 F. Put 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the sliced onions in a heavy Dutch oven or stew pot over medium heat.

Cook the onions, stirring frequently, until lightly browned. Remove to a plate.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the chops―in batches, if necessary―and cook, turning until nicely browned on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.

Add the onions back to the pot with the lamb and garlic.

In a bowl or 2-cup measuring cup, combine the dry red wine with the mustard, salt, pepper, and rosemary. Blend well with a spoon or whisk.

Pour over the lamb mixture.

If the pot isn't oven safe, move everything to a large baking pan or casserole. Cover the pot or pan tightly with a lid or foil.

Braise in the oven for 2 to 3 hours, or until the lamb chops are very tender.

Serve the lamb chops with the cooking juices.

Pair with mashed potatoes, roasted root vegetables, and cabbage!

Thank you!

By Celeste

I want to take the opportunity and say thank you to all of you who show up for the harvest festival and hopefully you have enjoyed all the delicious hot drinks and the best pumpkin pie . Also thank you for those of you who came to the wreath making workshop and express your talent and personality through flowers. Like every year it takes me couple of months to prepare for this day , i start harvesting flowers around July til the first frost; when im harvested the flowers and hanging them to dry i start imagining all the endless combinations for the wreath and it gets me so happy  think that with my work gets to cheer up their home with fresh smells and bright colors. 

** PS we had flowers left and we will put them up during csa for you to take home , same strategy applies , 1 bunch of base ( Sweet annie) and 2 products ( flowers ) 

CSA barn hours:

• Winter: 2:30-6 pm (starts THIS WEEK, always the week after daylight savings in November)

• Summer: 2:30-6:30 pm (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Red Gold, Yellow Finn, and La Ratte Fingerling Potatoes

• Ailsa Sweet, Cipollini, Shallots, and Monastrell Red Onions

• Leeks

• Parade Scallions

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya Carrots

• Joan Rutabaga

• Hablange Parsnips

• Mars Celeriac

• Purple Top Turnips

• Bora King Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Calypso Celery

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage, Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Song Cauliflower and/or Gypsy Broccoli

• Hot Peppers

• Sweet Peppers

• Green Tomatoes

• Russian Kale

• Champion Collards

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choy

• Regiment Spinach

• Escarole, Radicchio, Sugarloaf, and Chioggia

• Lettuce

• Spaghetti, Butternut, Candystick and Zeppelin Delicata, Tuffy and Gil’s Golden Acorn, Tetsukabota Winter Squash and Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries

• Pick your own flowers and herbs

• Revolution Bread (Friday only)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil (Please bring your own jars!)

Here is the pumpkin pie recipe that I used to make Saturday's pies. I am always working to perfect it so please feel free to adapt it to your taste and to give me feedback. I don't pre bake the pie shell. I struggle to get the center to set without burning the crust and I don't find that the crust is too doughy without pre baking. 

Sarah's Pumpkin Pie

• 1 - 9 inch unbaked pie shell

• 2 cups pumpkin puree (see below for recipe)

• 2 eggs

• 1/2 cup milk

• ½ cup maple syrup

• 1 Tablespooon flour

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon each ground ginger and nutmeg

• ¼ teaspoon salt and clove

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Whisk the eggs. Add the milk, flour, spices and salt. Then slowly add to the pumpkin puree.

3. Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake for about 50 minutes or until the center is set.

Pumpkin Puree *I make this at least a day in advance.*

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. You can cook the pumpkins faster in a hotter oven but I choose to use a lower temperature and then I don't have to worry about them browning or burning.

2. Select 2 to 3 pumpkins. Since pumpkins are so varied in flavor and texture, I like to cook more than just 1 to ensure that the puree has good flavor.

3. Cut the pumpkins in half and seed them. Place them face down on a baking sheet.

4. Roast until very soft.

5. Remove skins and puree the pumpkin in a food processor.

6. Place a strainer over a bowl that will fit in your refrigerator. Put the pumpkin puree in the strainer and cover it. Leave it in the refrigerator to drain overnight.