The In Between Spaces

By Ashley

There's a big theme on farms: Constant Change.  Of course there are working systems to keep the general every day of life humming along.. but nothing changes faster than life on a farm. 

For me, Ashley, you've been seeing me a lot at the barn during your CSA hours. This is new since Kelsey had her maternity leave and in turn, her baby. It's been lovely getting to know all of you and keep the barn in working order. This change for me has coincided with moving out of the crew house into the tiny house on the other side of the property in preparation for the new crew to join us in March. The crew house will be completely empty for the first time in, who knows really how long, in time to welcome the 2024 veggie crew! 

Speaking of change, the storm this past weekend (2/3/24) was an incredible object of change. Our waterfalls, waterways, and fields are all full of water. The grand winds picked up and moved our sheep barn over a fence and into another field! Imagine our surprise when we woke up the next morning! We are working on moving it out of our field and maybe turning it right side up. Please do not let the children play on the upside down barn, as tempting as it may look. 

Lastly, we are waiting for many babies to arrive here for the spring. Celeste, our CSA/ flower crew, is patiently waiting for her second child to say hello! (And it is always a treat when her first son joins us in the wash station for some fun.) As well as lambs! We are watching our mom group of sheep closely as they will be lambing anytime between now and the end of March. 

It is still cold most days, though we are getting hints of a sweet, warm spring to come. Sip some tea, enjoy the changes in life, and remember to give praise through your day. 

Upcoming Events: Pancake Breakfast and Walk Saturday February 10th

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Parade Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Rosalba and Treviso

• Mei Qing Choi

• Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Spinach

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Sonora Wheat Flour

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread is back! We will have bread on Tuesday and Friday.

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Short Rib Beans

3 garlic cloves
1 large red onion
Peppercorn
Farm ground pepper of choice
One short rib package
One cup dried beans

Crush garlic cloves with your knife, rough chop onion, throw into slow cooker. Place spices, beans, and a defrosted package of short ribs. Salt to taste. In the slow cooker it takes about 3 to 4 hours, on a stove stop it will take around 8 hours. Enjoy as a delicious stew with rice and sour cream!

Cycles of life and death

By Alyssa
Today it was peaceful to harvest in the field to the gentle hum of honeybees. They’ve been buzzing about the mustard flowers, drinking nectar and collecting pollen. I hope you’ve gotten outside these last few days, in this preview of spring before the rains come again! I walked a big loop on the farm Saturday – up to the pond, then up to the oak in the hills above the tunnels, then down the watershed that flows past the tunnels. It’s my favorite place to walk in the winter and spring because of the flowing water. This weekend the grass was thick, but still easy to walk through. The first flowers were beginning to bloom on the hillsides and in the flower field.

I double appreciated the vigorously growing things all around me this weekend, because I have been holding a lot of death in my hands this winter, trapping for gophers and voles in the tunnels. The tunnels are one of the few places on the farm that we seriously trap in, because of how important those crops are to us in the wintertime, how few predators can help us manage them in that specific environment, and how excellent of a habitat they are as some of the driest ground around in the wintertime. It’s been a heavy thing, to start and end each day with trapping. I’m good at it, which I always have mixed feelings about; but I’m not always good at figuring out how to honor and release the weight of it. That being said, weekends like this last one, when I get to spend my time outside around so many lively plants and creatures, are always a balm to my heart no matter what troubles me.

Upcoming Events: Pancake Breakfast and Walk Saturday February 10th

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Rosalba and Treviso

• Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Lettuce Mix

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Sonora Wheat Flour

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread is back! We will have bread on Tuesday and Friday.

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Red Cabbage Salad w/ Crispy Spring Onions and Potato Sticks

https://thewoksoflife.com/red-cabbage-salad-w-crispy-scallions-potato-sticks/

For the salad:

• 5 cups red cabbage (shredded)

• 1 medium carrot (cut into matchsticks)

• 1 potato (cut into matchsticks)

• 1 scallion (cut into thin strips)

• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds (toasted)

• 2 tablespoons cilantro (chopped; optional)

For the dressing:

• 1/2 tablespoon honey

• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

• 1 tablespoon oil

• 1 ½ tablespoon rice wine vinegar

• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

• salt (to taste)

• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1/8 teaspoon five spice powder

1. In a large bowl, combine the cabbage and carrots. Rinse the potato sticks in cold water to remove some of the starch and use a kitchen towel to dry them really well. Do the same with the scallion. In a shallow pan, fry the scallions and potatoes in oil until crisp. Drain on paper towels.

2. Combine all the dressing ingredients and toss with the cabbage and carrots. Put the salad in a bowl. Garnish with sesame seeds, cilantro, and the fried potatoes and scallions. Serve!

It’s my birthday, I can cry if I want to

By AJ

Tomorrow, i will be 35 years old. For 15 of said years, i have been farming in California (aside from a short stint of unemployment and 6 months at a wolf sanctuary). That’s basically my whole adult life. I don’t usually reflect on the passage of time in, what feels to me, quite an arbitrary way. But for some reason, today i have feels about it. Not in an I’m-scared-of-getting-older kind of way, just in a don’t-forget-you-are-weightless-to-the-universe kind of way. I generally enjoy the moments in my life when i can be reminded of that— the soil, the sheep, the plants…they don’t give a shit that it’s my birthday. They are far more in sync with the rhythms of sun and grass and water— the kind of passage of time that feels far more reasoned and seasoned than birthdays, or January First’s. But today, as much as i want to revel in the one-ness of all the specks of sand, i just the vegetables to make themselves into a you-deserve-it meal. And I want the sheep to wake me up in the morning and say “haaaaaa-ppy birthday” and make me a grass cake that i can’t actually eat, but appreciate just as much as if I could.

Upcoming Events: Pancake Breakfast and Walk Saturday February 3rd

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Rosalba and Castelfranco

• Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Lettuce Mix

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro and Parsley

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread is back! We will have bread on Tuesday and Friday.

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Rutabaga and Carrot Soup

 From "Sundays at the Moosewood restaurant"

• 1 Med Onion, chopped

• 1 Tbs oil or butter

• 3 small carrots, chopped

• 1 small rutabaga, peeled and chopped (about 2 cups)

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 cup stock (veg or chick--- you can make both from farm scraps and stewing hens!)

• 1/2 tsp ginger

• 1/4 tsp nutmeg

• 2 C orange juice

• pepper to taste

• top with cream/sour cream and dollop of cranberry sauce (optional)

    Saute onion in oil for about 5 min

    Add chopped vegetables and salt. Saute for another 10 min.

    Add stock and cook, covered, on low for 20-30 min, until vegetables are soft and tender. 

    Add spices

    Puree with juice, until smooth and thick.

To The Rain

The rain this year has been a slow build up. We have had many lovely, small rains and the ground is truly saturated now. The last storm caused the drianages to fill and there is still water flowing around the farm. And yet, the level of the large dam has not risen only about a foot. We are hoping this weekend’s rain will be big rain and replenishing.

To the Rain, by Ursula Le Guin

Mother rain, manifold, measureless,
falling on fallow, on field and forest,
on house-roof, low hovel, high tower,
downwelling waters all-washing, wider
than cities, softer than sisterhood, vaster
than countrysides, calming, recalling:
return to us, teaching our troubled
souls in your ceaseless descent
to fall, to be fellow, to feel to the root,
to sink in, to heal, to sweeten the sea.

Upcoming Events: Pancake Breakfast and Walk Saturday February 3rd

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Rosalba and Castelfranco

• Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choi

• Lettuce Mix

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread is back! We will have bread on Tuesday and Friday.

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Cheesy Frittata, from nytimes.com

• 8 large eggs

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), plus more as needed

• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• Up to 2 cups frozen, cooked or quick-cooking mix-ins (such as packed kale, cooked rice, leftover pasta, frozen corn, tender herbs, pitted olives, chopped tomatoes or cooked chicken)

• 3 to 6 ounces any cheese (such as mozzarella, Cheddar, feta, halloumi or pecorino)

• 2 tablespoons any fat (such as butter, olive oil, bacon fat, ghee or neutral oil)

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Chop or tear your mix-ins so they are all bite-size. Shred, tear, crumble or chop the cheese into small pieces. Set a rack about 6 inches below the broiler and heat on high.

Add the fat to a 9- to 10-inch well-seasoned cast-iron or broiler-safe nonstick skillet and heat over medium until shimmering, about 1 minute. Add any quick-cooking or frozen mix-ins first, lightly season with salt if needed, and stir frequently until wilted and tender, 2 to 7 minutes. Add any cooked mix-ins next, lightly season with salt if needed, and stir frequently until warmed through, 2 to 3 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in the eggs. Stir to combine and cook. As the edges and sides set, use a spatula to scrape them into the middle, allowing the runny center to flow to the edges. Repeat this process until you have some large curds set within the mostly runny mass, 2 to 3 minutes.

Reduce the heat to low and spread the mixture flat into an even layer, giving the pan a firm tap against the stovetop to evenly settle the mixture. Cook, undisturbed, until the bottom and sides feel set when you shake the pan, while the eggs on top are slightly runny, 2 to 4 minutes.

Remove from heat, dot with cheese and broil until puffed and browned, the top is set and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 1 to 3 minutes. Let rest for at least 5 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.

Hello for the last time to the whole Open Field Farm community!

By Cecilia

After six incredibly fun, challenging, wacky, uplifting, and unpredictable seasons, this is my last week working here. It still feels totally unreal to me. This week has been going along like normal, and it is nice to have the stability of the work day rhythms to keep me grounded during this time of immense change.

Open Field is the place that I have lived longest in my adult life. It truly feels like home to me.

The sunrises here on the farm over the last couple of weeks have been some of the most beautiful I have ever seen. So much time has passed since I started my commute to work across the fields (before the farm road!), but being able to watch the sunrise on my way to work never gets old. I have continued to feel so grateful for my time on this land.

More than anything I am grateful for the incredible people. Friends, mentors, crazy characters, an entire pack of dogs, new babies- they have all made my life so full and will continue to do so far into the future. It is difficult to put into words. It is an embarrassment of riches.

And even though I haven’t met all of you in person, so much of my gratitude goes out to our members. It is your choice to support small organic farms that has made it possible for me to experience all of this.

The pictures for this week’s blog post are a collection of pictures I have taken out in the fields over the years. You would think that looking at vegetables, plants, and bugs everyday for years would make it all start to seem mundane and commonplace. It is just the opposite, and my camera roll reflects this. Hardly a day goes by that I don’t see something at work that charms me to the extent that I have to take a picture and show it to as many people as I can. I will deeply miss all the comically tiny pumpkins, weird unidentifiable insects, misshapen tomatoes, and even the most regular old things that bring me so much joy. I wanted to share some of these pictures that are forever draining storage space on my phone.

Upcoming Events: Pancake Breakfast and Walk Saturday February 3rd

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Rosalba and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choi

• Lettuce Mix

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro and Parsley

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread is back! We will have bread on Tuesday and Friday.

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Salt Potatoes, Crispy Potatoes

My final recipe contribution is just going to be me talking about salt potatoes again. If you don’t remember my last post (or two) about salt potatoes, it is a traditional recipe from New York, originated by Irish immigrants working in salt springs. The recipe is basically to take all the tiny bite sized potatoes that everyone always leaves behind, and boil them in lots and lots of salt. Recipes vary, but many say to use a cup of salt for every two pounds of potatoes. They can be eaten right away with butter, but can also be stored without refrigeration for longer amounts of time because the salt forms a strong crust that preserves them. Salt potatoes have their own Wikipedia page that I highly recommend looking up.

All of that is to get to my real point: crispy roasted potatoes. Just like everyone else on the entire planet, I like very crispy potatoes. But every recipe for crispy potatoes tells you that the trick is to boil them first, and then fry them. I am a very lazy cook. Nothing in this world could motivate me to COOK MY POTATOES before I have to COOK MY POTATOES. And then last week I realized, looking at my beautiful colander full of little salt potatoes sitting on my counter, that I already have cooked potatoes! So I cut each tiny boiled potato in half, making perfect bite-sized wedges. I fried them in a cast iron pan on very high heat with lots of oil and lots of Chimayo chili powder. They were so crispy and so delicious. I just felt like I had to share this information with all of you because it has kind of changed my life. The moral of this story is to take all the tiny little potatoes that accumulate at the bottom of the grey bin on CSA day. They are such a treat, and we often end up composting them because nobody wants them. Instead of compost they can be the crispy potatoes of your dreams!

Happy New Year

We are grateful to be starting the new year with rain and green grass. We are hopeful that a big pond filling storm will appear on the horizon soon!

Upcoming Events: Pancake Breakfast and Walk Saturday February 3rd

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Covina Broccoli

• Rosalba, Sugarloaf, and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Mei Ching Choi

• Lettuce Mix

• Esmee Arugula

• Cilantro and Parsley

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread is back! We will have bread on Friday.

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Roasted Butternut Squash with Chili Yogurt and Scallions

From Seasoned: Recipes for Rain, Hail, & Shine by Casey Lister

For the salad

• 1 2-pound butternut squash or other winter squash (or “pumpkin” as Australians refer to many winter squashes), unpeeled, seeded, sliced into ¾-inch or so rounds and (when you get to the seed end) half-moons

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 cup cold plain Greek yogurt

• Handful cilantro leaves

• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

For the scallion topping

• 1 bunch scallions, roughly chopped

• ⅓ cup olive oil

• 3 red chili peppers, finely diced (I used Fresnos)

• 2 garlic cloves, finely diced

• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds

• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds

• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

• 1 teaspoon dashi stock (if you don’t have dashi stock, a teaspoon of chicken or vegetable broth will do, or leave it out)

• Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375°F (200°C)

Cut the squash into slices ¾ to 1-inch thick. In a bowl, toss together the sliced squash, olive oil, and salt. Place on a lined sheet pan and roast, turning over once or twice, for about 60 minutes, or until squash is tender all the way through and has begun to caramelize.

Meanwhile, place all the ingredients for the scallion topping in a medium saucepan and cook on moderate heat until the scallions are very soft and the spices are fragrant (5 to 10 minutes). Using a slotted spoon, remove the scallions and peppers from the oil and transfer to a plate. Reserve the remaining oil and spices.

Spread the yogurt on the bottom of a serving dish and drizzle with the reserved oil and spices. Arrange the warm squash slices on top of the yogurt then spoon the scallion and chili mixture all over. Scatter with the fresh cilantro leaves. Serve with lemon wedges on the side for individual squeezing.

The Vegetable Prayer

By Cecilia

This week I just want to share a poem that I always like to share during the holiday season. 

The Vegetable Prayer, By Reverend Max Coots

Let us give thanks for a bounty of people.

For children who are our second planting,

and though they grow like weeds and the wind too soon blows them away,

may they remember fondly where their roots are.

For generous friends with hearts as big as hubbards,

and smiles as bright as blossoms;

For feisty friends as tart as apples;

For continuous friends, who, like scallions, keep reminding us that we’ve had them;

For crotchety friends, as sour as rhubarb and as indestructible;

For funny friends, as silly as brussel sprouts.

And serious friends, as complex as cauliflowers and as intricate as onions;

For friends as unpretentious as cabbages

And friends, like parsnips, who can be counted on to see you through the winter;

For old friends, nodding like sunflowers in the evening-time

And young friends coming on as fast as radishes;

For loving friends, who wind around us like tendrils and hold us, despite our blights, wilts, and witherings;

And, finally, for those friends now gone, but who fed us in their times that we might have life thereafter;

For this bounty of friends, we give thanks.

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter break: We are closed next week, 12/25-12/29!

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo Green, Savoy, and Ruby King Cabbage

• Rosalba, Sugarloaf, and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Red Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choi

• Esmee Arugula

• Cilantro and Parsley

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread will be on a break while Eli recovers from illness. We wish him a smooth recory!

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

And here is one of my favorite super simple and super delicious recipes:

Ina Garten’s Parsnip Puree

From Go-To Dinners: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

• 1 ½ lb. Parsnips, scrubbes, sliced 3/4 “ thick

• Kosher salt

• Freshly ground pepper

• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, diced

Place 1½ lb. parsnips, scrubbed, sliced ¾" thick, in a medium pot, add 1 Tbsp. kosher salt, and add enough water to cover the parsnips. Cover the pot, bring to a boil, then uncover, lower the heat, and simmer for 15–20 minutes, until the parsnips are very soft when tested with a small knife. Don’t drain the pot!

With a slotted spoon or small strainer, transfer the parsnips to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse to chop the parsnips. Pour the cooking liquid into a glass measuring cup and pour ½ cup down the feed tube. Purée the parsnips, adding more cooking liquid (about 1 cup total) through the feed tube until the parsnips are creamy and almost smooth but still have some texture. Add 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, diced, and ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper and purée until combined. Taste for seasonings and serve hot.

In the Dark of Winter

By Ashley

We are in the heart of winter. I'm sure you have heard the phrase "It's time to be quiet and still" or maybe "Wintertime is the time to go within and rest." Those are good phrases, healthy ways to look at winter as opportunity to connect with yourself.

 We feel it right now at the farm. Summer seasonal crew is gone, it's just a small few now with another leaving us in just a month. The pace of the days have grown slower, more methodical. We have larger projects to do, but not in the way we do in the summer. They are longer projects that take time and attention, like the slow shaving of a whittled down piece of wood. 

I think its hard to be slow. Not only in the sense of we are not used to it and so it doesn't come easily to us, but also in the sense that it is scary. Because it is scary, no? To be slow, to have space, to move with intention is to have the opportunity for the things we have been avoiding to approach us and ask to be seen. It's these slow times where the deepest healing comes from picking up that deeply unsettling object in our lives and integrating it into ourselves. We want to avoid these things, we want to stay busy so we do not see them, don't have to hear them speaking to us. It is easier to avoid them. Yet the nights are long and time spent not moving grows until the solstice and even then, it is a far ways off from spring. 

If I have learned anything from farming is that putting off a project that needs to happen to move the farm along a path of good working only creates larger and more complicated problems farther down the road. It is necessary, even if I personally don't like it, to make potting mix now when it is not raining so we have good soil to put seedlings into for the crops of next year. It is necessary to sit down to oil and sharpen the tools so they last us into the next season, though it may be boring or messy or lonely if doing it alone. It is necessary to get dirty, wet and sometimes a little bit cold to pull out weeds, cut down old growth in the perennial garden so that when the sun comes back around and the soil warms the plants will have space and energy to grow new shoots for us to enjoy. It is not easy and sometimes it is not enjoyable, but it is necessary. 

I find it helpful to face the things I dread when I have filled more of my down time with beautiful things I enjoy. To sketch and to read and maybe to sew had given me enough time to sit and ponder the hard things and take into account all that I've avoided. At the farm, we have more opportunity to sit and chat with one another and gain valuable perspective on the way our lives move around one another. And this rhythm will  never cease, even when we are dead. Time will continue to move and somewhere in the universe there will be creation and destruction moving its way towards infinity.

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter break: We are closed 12/25-12/29!

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower and/or Covina Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Rosalba, Sugarloaf, and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Red Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Prize Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean Dried Hot Peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread will be on a break while Eli recovers from illness. We wish him a smooth recory!

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Beef Cheek Tacos

• One or two beef cheek packages 

• One red onion

• Small head of garlic 

• 1 tablespoon black pepper 

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/2 tablespoon basque pepper

• 1-2 pinches of salt

Cabbage slaw

• 1/2 cabbage in a Cuisinart or thinly sliced

• 2 tablespoons of lime juice

• 2 teaspoons of cumin

Cilantro lime dressing

• One full bunch of cilantro

• 2 tablespoons lime juice

• 2 tablespoons mayo

Should make enough for 5 or so tacos

I like to defrost a beef cheek or two and put them into a slow cooker while I'm at work. I will place one large red onion and a head of garlic, black pepper, cinnamon, salt, and basque into the water and let it simmer.

Once it is done and I'm ready to be home I will grab cilantro, mayonnaise and lime juice, blend them together for a citrus sauce, heat up tortillas (homemade will always be more delicious but of course, more time intensive), make the cabbage slaw, and put it all together for a delicious and quick beef cheek taco that tastes delicious with very minimal work. 

Crew changes

By Alyssa

I spend more hours with the veggie crew than with any other person in my life, and we spend quite a lot of those hours talking with each other about every possible thing under the sun. On any given day, we might share some hot gossip, or talk about death and the meaning of life, or tell funny farm stories. I’ve learned the plot to many movies and TV shows that I will never watch. We learn each other’s values and beliefs, and the dreams we might have for our lives. We don’t always agree with or understand each other, but that is okay. That is something that I value, too. While we don’t always spend time together outside of work, the relationships I form with my fellow crew are some of the most important in my everyday life. They are also relationships that are always changing.

 Crew turnover is a normal part of farming, and last week was Gemma and Sage’s last week on the farm. They are each moving on to new chapters in their lives, and we are just as excited for them as we’ll miss them. I feel so thankful to have had the opportunity to know and to work with them, and hope that they are setting off with nothing but good luck at their backs.

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter break: We are closed 12/25-12/29!

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower and/or Covina Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Rosalba, Sugarloaf, and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Lettuce Mix (During the winter, when our tender crops are all coming from the tunnels, we only offer lettuce mix. We will not have lettuce heads until next summer. We hope to offer lettuce mix consistently until then.)

• Red Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Mei Qing Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro (We should have parsley again in a few weeks. It is growing slowly in the tunnels.)

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• New! Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean dried hot peppers and Ground Chile Peppers

• Beef Bone Broth for sale again! (Made by Olla Products)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread will be on a break while Eli recovers from illness. We wish him a smooth recory!

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Chicken noodle soup (with a stewing hen), from smittenkitchen.com

From Alyssa: To use a stewing hen to make this recipe, I just cooked the hen with the broth ingredients on high in a pressure cooker for 90 min. Then I strained the broth, shredded the chicken, and proceeded with the recipe as written, though I made about twice as much.

You’ll want about 4 to 4 1/2 hours to make this in one afternoon. Or, you can break it up over two days or cooking periods by making the broth either on the stove in 2 to 3 hours or in a slow-cooker for longer (such as while you’re at work), at which point you’ll need just an hour to finish the soup, making it weeknight accessible.

If you’re a total heathen, as we sometimes are, you can use up to 12 ounces soup noodles here for recipe that will be almost more noodle than soup. But I recommend at least starting with the 9-ounce level before determining if overkill will be necessary.

Broth

• 2 medium-large yellow onions, unpeeled, halved or 1 large onion plus 1 large leek, cleaned and cut lengthwise

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed a little

• 1 large carrot

• 1 large parnsip (optional)

• 1 celery rib

• 4 quarts water

• 4 pounds chicken bones (from about two carcasses leftover from a roast or rotisserie) or a combination of fresh chicken wings (my first choice), backs, necks or feet

• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or 2 teaspoons chopped fresh

• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

• 1 tablespoon tomato paste

• 1 bay leaf

To Finish

• 3 bone-in skin-on chicken breast halves

• 2 large carrots, peeled and diced or 1 large carrot and 1 large parsnip, diced

• 1 large leek, trimmed and sliced into 1/2-inch segments

• 1 to 2 celery ribs, chopped or diced

• 9 ounces thin egg noodles or soup noodles of your choice

• 2 tablespoons finely-chopped flat-leaf parsley

Make the broth:

[On the stove] Combine all ingredients in a large (6 to 8 quart) stock pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a gentle simmer, skim any unpleasant looking foam (“skim the scum” is kitchen parlance for this step, but I’m trying to be polite) and cover with a lid. Simmer for 2 1/2 hours.

[In a slow-cooker] Combine all ingredients in a large (6 quart or larger) slow-cooker. Cook on LOW for 10 hours or HIGH for 5. Strain into a large pot (5.5 quarts or more) and let rest in the fridge until needed, or, if you’re finishing the soup right away, bring to a simmer on the stove.

Cook the chicken:

[Both methods] Add whole chicken breasts to simmering broth. Simmer for 20 minutes, until they’re cooked through, then strain broth [for stovetop method] or simply remove cooked chicken breasts [from the slow-cooker method] and set them aside. Taste broth, and adjust seasoning if needed.

Finish the soup:

Add diced vegetables to simmering broth on stove and cook for 5 minutes, until firm-tender. Add soup noodles and cook according to package instructions, usually 6 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, once chicken breasts are cool enough to handle, remove skin and bones and shred or chop into small chunks. Return chicken to soup and simmer for 2 minutes, until heated through. Finish with parsley and serve to some very lucky people.

To de-fat the broth: Once the broth portion is complete and the soup has settled a little, you can skim any fat that’s accumulated at the surface with a soup skimmer or spoon, to taste. If you’re going to chill the broth before finishing the soup another day, it’s easiest to take the fat off right before you use it; it will have solidified at the surface. P.S. Don’t toss it, please! It makes for wonderful matzo balls and fried latkes.

Waste streams

By AJ

I literally used to eat out of dumpsters. This may or may not have been over a decade ago but it was a huge source for feeding myself and others. It used to be a lot easier than it is now, when you could literally just open the lid of a dumpster and grab perfectly edible food. Now, because of "liability" (*cough* *capitalism*), most food items deposited in a dumpster are run through a compactor, rendering the things inside inedible and unattainable. As a farmer amongst the production of produce, it is far less necessary (and desirable) to seek out the "trash". But i think a lot about eating "trash" all the time, chewing on ideas of how to use the ugly and less-desired food products.

Today, for example, as I was stocking the meat freezer, i was trying to come up with ideas for going through organs. We end up with an excess of organs from our precious animals at the end of the year because we just don't go through them all. I started dehydrating the livers and hearts and kidneys for dog treats. Big hit around here. But even so, it is hard to go through everything. 

And then there's all the funky produce that ends up on the counters of us farmer folk because we don't want to give it to the compost. (We don't starve our compost either though, so don't worry. And I will mention here that I enjoy the practices and ethos we have here at the farm, when it comes to "excess".)

Part of what drew me to farming was the idea of having access to feeding the larger community. I often envision a local system that is capable of redirecting its excess food products from the dumpster to the mouths of community members. As i've aged in this profession, i've found I don't have the energy to address accessibility all by myself. Be that as it may, I have been using a lot of my brainspace envisioning "free food stations", or community fridges-- a few places where community members can bring, swap, and take food items. This would require some volunteers, from businesses willing to offer space, donations, to folx dedicated to keeping it clean and accessible. 

This is something I want for Petaluma. As it quiets here on the farm a bit, i delve more into my mind and ideas. And as a way to start gaining momentum, if there are any members who would be enthusiastic about molding this idea with me, lets talk! And grab some organs for your dogs, while you are at it. 

So, anyway, Eat Trash and Feed People.

My recipe this week is whatever you can make with what's getting funky in the fridge.

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower and/or Covina Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Radicchio, Sugarloaf, and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Lettuce Mix (During the winter, when our tender crops are all coming from the tunnels, we only offer lettuce mix. We will not have lettuce heads until next summer. We hope to offer lettuce mix consistently until then.)

• Red Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Mei Qing Choi

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro (We should have parsley again in a few weeks. It is growing slowly in the tunnels.)

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Sonora Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• New! Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean dried hot peppers

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread will be on a break while Eli recovers from illness. We wish him a smooth recory!

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Animal appreciation

By Abby

Biodiversity on the farm is a great reminder of regenerative agriculture. There are several species of birds that live in and pass through the fields. 

The migrating geese have been music to us each morning and evening.  Sparrow flight patterns are amazing designs.  Crows get stronger for the winter with thick cucumber and squash seeds from the mowed summer fields. I feel lucky knowing that I sleep within 50 feet of owl!! Appreciation of bird life also comes with harvesting the older chickens this month. 

Domesticated and wild animals are a part of the same cycles of life, as we are also a part of nature. Sending out my gratitude for animals for sharing their powers and healing with us. 

This week: Open today from 2 pm -6pm; Closed Friday

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower and Covina Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Radicchio, Sugarloaf, and Castelfranco

• Celery

• Lettuce

• Champion Collards

• Red Russian Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Parsley and Cilantro

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Sonora Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• New! Stoneground cornmeal from our dry corn! FYI: It does have large pieces of the outer skin in it which creates a different texture than the more uniform cornmeal. If you do not enjoy this, you can sift it with the right size screen. (Please BYO jars!)

• Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean dried hot peppers

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread will be on a break while Eli recovers from illness. We wish him a smooth recory!

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Russian Carrot Pie, from molliekatzen.com

• 1 Tbs. butter

• 1 egg

• 1 cup finely minced onion 

• 3 Tbs. fine bread crumbs

• 1/2 tsp. salt 

• freshly ground black pepper

• 1 lb. slender carrots, thinly sliced 

• 3 Tbs. minced fresh dill (1 1/2 tsp. dried)

• 2 medium cloves garlic, minced

• 3 Tbs. minced fresh mint (1 1/2 tsp. dried)

• 2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice 

• paprika for the top

• 1 Tbs. unbleached white flour 

• 1 Nut Crust, unbaked

• 1 1/2 cups firm cottage cheese 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onion and salt and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft (about 5 to 8 minutes).  

Add the carrots, garlic, and lemon juice. Cook and stir until the carrots are tender but not mushy- about 8 more minutes. Sprinkle in the flour, mix well and cook for about 2 minutes more. Remove from heat.  

Beat together the cottage cheese and egg in a large bowl. Stir in bread crumbs, black pepper to taste and fresh herbs. Add the cooked carrot mixture (It is okay if it is still hot.) and mix well. Spread into the crust and dust with paprika.  

Bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees F, then turn heat down to 350 degrees and bake another 30 minutes. Let it cool for at least 5 minutes before slicing. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature. 

Nut Crust:

• 6 Tbs. cold butter, cut into small pieces

• 1 1/4 cups flour (use mostly white with a little whole wheat)

• 1/2 cup finely minced nuts of your choice

• 1/4 tps. salt

• about 3 to 4 Tbs. cold water 

Use a pastry cutter, two forks or a food processor to cut together the butter, flour, nuts and salt until they make a uniform mixture resembling course cornmeal. (food processor will accomplish this in just a few short bursts.) Finely minced means just this side of ground.  

As you stir with a fork (or as the food processor briefly runs) add the liquid, a little at a time, until the dough holds together. The varying humidity will affect the amount of liquid needed.  

You can now wrap the dough and chill it to roll out later or you can roll it immediately, using extra flour, as needed, to prevent sticking. Transfer carefully to a 9-10 inch pie pan and form a crust with an edge. If not filling and baking soon, refrigerate until use.​ 

Gratitude for community and Atticus

By Sarah

Thank you to everyone who came to the Harvest Festival, to the crew and members who helped make the day happen, to the flowers and Celeste, and to the land and the creatures! Also, you may have noticed our beautiful, new to us, popcorn machine, a special gift from Alan and his dad, allowing us to make bountiful and delicious popcorn with ease. The farm was full of people, crafting, eating, and celebrating another beautiful and precious growing season.

We also want to give our thanks to Atticus, the bull. Unfortunately, he injured his leg and we had to put him down. We are saddened by the loss and will miss his peaceful presence in the bullpen. While we do our best to appreciate each animal on the farm, Atticus stood out with his calm energy. The other animals in the pen were drawn to him. Danny shared his reflections on Atticus, along with the other animals he tends, at the All Member Meeting. He moved us all to tears. (It was actually Celeste who spoke, reading Danny’s words.)

CSA Barn Hours:

• Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland and Cabernet Red, Cipollini Sweet and Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Purple Top Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Hablange Parsnip

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower and/or Covina Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Radicchio, Sugarloaf, Castelfranco, Frisee, and Escarole (Last week of frisee and escarole)

• Celery

• Finale Fennel

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Parsley

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• This season’s first Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean dried hot peppers

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Frozen Revolution Bread for sale

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Miso Sesame Winter Squash, from 101cookbooks.com

• 2 pounds delicata squash (~3), halved, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch inch thick pieces

• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

• 1 tablespoons molasses

• 1 teaspoon tamari or shoyu

• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

• 1 heaping tablespoon white or yellow miso

• 2 freshly squeezed orange juice

• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 425°F / 220°C, with a rack in the middle.

In the meantime, in a medium-size bowl, whisk together the molasses, tamari, maple syrup, miso, orange juice, lemon juice, lemon zest, and the sesame oil. Toss the squash in the marinade

Transfer the squash to a 2-quart baking dish. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes, or until a good amount of the marinade boils off. Toss gently a couple times along the way. Finish under the boiler if you like, or if you like a bit of extra color on top. Remove from the oven, and season with salt, if needed.

Crafting Inspiration

By Sage

Yesterday’s early morning showers and crisp air made it feel like winter is really on its way. As the days get colder and we begin to approach the holiday season, I have found myself wanting to spend more time doing cozy activities. I learned how to crochet last winter through Youtube tutorials and have enjoyed the newfound ability to create handmade gifts for loved ones. Recently, I tried a new project using yarn from our sheep and although it didn’t turn out exactly how I had imagined, it was a great learning experience and inspired me to start crocheting holiday gifts a little bit early. I bought a bottle of Rit dye, used it to dye some of our yarn, and was happily surprised by the results. There are so many colors available online, and the options are really endless! The most difficult part was probably untangling the yarn after the dyeing process, but I am sure there are ways to keep the yarn from tangling. I hope that some of you will be inspired to use our beautiful yarn to make presents for your loved ones this winter! I think it is a wonderful gift to give and receive. 

CSA Barn Hours:

• New hours this Week! Winter hours: 2:30-6PM

  (starts the week after daylight savings in November)

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

Pick List:

The hardness of the frost two weeks ago not only ended the summer crops, but also affected the lettuce, cilantro, and dill that were planted in the fields. We hope to have lettuce heads next week, although they will be small. In the tunnels, the crops are protected from the frost and excess rain. The lettuce mix, spinach, and cilantro from there should be ready in a few weeks, but we will not have dill (or basil) until next summer. We will add a few more winter crops next week: parsnips and cipollini onions, plus we hope to have broccoli.

• Eggs

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

• Ailsa Craig Sweet and Cabernet Red Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Hakeuri Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Sweet Peppers (Time to freeze!)

• Radicchio, Sugarloaf, Frisee, and Escarole

• Celery

• Finale Fennel

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Regiment Spinach

• Parsley

• Joe E Parker Green Chiles

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, Butternut, and Delicata Winter Squash

• Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• This season’s first Tea Blends (Please BYO jars!)

• Whole Korean dried hot peppers

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Frozen Revolution Bread for sale

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Stewed Kabocha Squash, from justonecookbook.com

A recipe that I love making in this season features our delicious kabocha squash. It is a very simple recipe that highlights the texture and flavor of the pumpkin and pairs well with other Japanese dishes. My grandmother makes delicious stewed pumpkin for us every winter and this recipe closely replicates the way hers tastes. 

• 1 lb kabocha squash (½ small kabocha)

• 2 cups dashi (diltued as indicated on bottle) - dashi is a fish or seaweed based broth that you can find at Asian markets. I haven’t tried this recipe with other broth bases, but I’m sure it would be just as tasty :)

• 2 Tbsp sake

• 1 Tbsp sugar

• 2 tsp soy sauce

• ⅛ tsp kosher salt

1. Carefully cut the kabocha into wedges, then equal 2-inch pieces. Leave the skin on because kabocha skin is edible and nutritious.

2. In a large pot, place the kabocha pieces in a single layer, skin side down.

3. Add the dashi, 2 Tbsp sake, and 1 Tbsp sugar. (Tip: Swirl the pot to mix the seasonings so you don‘t break the kabocha pieces.)

4. Cook on medium high heat and bring it to a boil.

5. Add 2 tsp soy sauce and ⅛ tsp kosher salt, and swirl the pot again to mix the seasonings. The cooking liquid should come three-quarters up the sides of the kabocha pieces; if it does not, you can add a little bit of water. Bring it to a boil again.

6. Once boiling, turn the heat to medium low to maintain a simmer. Cover and cook for 20–30 minutes (depending on the size of your kabocha pieces and how long it takes the skin to cook). You can tell it‘s done when the orange flesh of the kabocha has tiny, thin cracks near the skin or a bamboo skewer pierces the kabocha easily. If you feel that the liquid is evaporating too fast, you can cover the pot with a pot lid 

7. Remove from the heat and let the kabocha sit covered with a pot lid until cool, about 30 minutes. This helps the kabocha absorb more flavor as it cools. You can serve it at room temperature or reheat before serving.

Storage Tetris

By Sarah

Most of the large harvest if storage crops are complete, with just celeriac, parsnips, and cabbage remaining to be brought in. We hope to have space in the coolers to add the cabbage next week and then can slowly work in the parsnips and celeriac throughout the winter. They both hold well in the field, unless the gophers get to them. We are grateful this year that so many crops did well and we have an abundance to offer throughout the winter. The winter squash, carrots, beets, rutabaga, radishes, and kohlrabi are beautifully sized and we have plenty. The potatoes are not quite as big but mostly look lovely and we are happy with the amount. In contrast to the past several years, our storage yellow onion crop did not do well but we do have lots of shallots and red onions!

We planted the first succession in the tunnels last week, tucking in plenty of kale, lettuce mix, spinach and more. As it gets colder outside, the tunnels remain warm and we enjoy being in them for a break from the cold.

We hope to see you all this Saturday at the Harvest Festival!

Upcoming Events:

• Fall Harvest Festival this Saturday November 4th

CSA Barn Hours:

• Last week of summer hours: 2:30-6:30PM (starts the week after daylight savings in March)

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

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

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions, Monastrell Shallots

• Leeks

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Hakeuri Turnips

• Purple Daikon and Watermelon Radish

• Joan Rutabaga

• Mars Celeriac

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Sweet Peppers

• Radicchio, Sugarloaf, Chioggia, Frisee, and Escarole

• Celery

• Finale Fennel

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Cilantro, Dill, and Parsley

• Joe E Parker Green Chiles

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, and Delicata Winter Squash and Winter Luxury Pumpkin

• Pick your own herbs, mostly in the herb circle (and maybe a few flowers)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale on Friday (Frozen bread on Tuesday)

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Cauliflower Gratin, from nytimes.com

• 1 small-ish head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), green leaves removed

• Olive oil, for drizzling

• 1 small leek, white and light green part only, very thinly sliced

• Kosher salt and black pepper

• ¾ cup heavy cream

• 6 ounces sharp white cheddar, grated (about 1½ cups)

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Slice cauliflower head lengthwise into ½-inch thick slices, including the core and leaves. (Some smaller bits will fall away: That’s fine. You’ll use them as well.)

Drizzle some olive oil onto the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish. (An oval, square or rectangular dish will all work.) Layer about a third of the cauliflower along the bottom, and about a third of the leeks. Season with salt and pepper, and repeat until all of the cauliflower and leeks are used. (Don’t worry about perfectly layering them.) Season with salt and pepper and drizzle cream over. Scatter cheese on top, and season again with salt and pepper. Lightly cover with foil and place in the oven.

Bake until cauliflower is nearly tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until cream has thickened and reduced nearly completely and the top is golden brown and crisp, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before eating.

Hygge

By Gemma

Welcoming fall is a delicate thing. I can feel myself excited for colder nights and mornings because of the ample opportunity to sink into coziness. As we’re pushing to get the big bulk harvests ready to store for the winter, I have a stronger appreciation for warm beverages, and sleepy evenings. In Danish culture, being comfy and cozy is paramount, they even have a word to describe this somewhat elusive energy. Hygge. Hygge is defined as: a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being. It is regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture. As fall trickles in, and the wind sweeps our hair and rain penetrates the soil, I hope we can all counterbalance our hustle and bustle lifestyles with a respect for rest and sprinkle in the idea of Hygge. 

Pick List:

The summer crops are coming to an end! It seems like a frost will come this week or weekend, ending the season for most summer crops. We are clearing out the sweet peppers from the field today but will be able to offer them for several weeks from storage.

• Eggs

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Red Gold and Yellow Finn Potatoes

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Hakeuri Turnips

• Kossack Kohlrabi

• Primo and Caraflex Green and Ruby King Red Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Covina Broccoli

• Summer Squash and/or Cucumbers (Last week!)

• Sweet Peppers

• Radicchio, Sugarloaf, Chioggia, Frisee, and Escarole

• Lettuce

• Celery

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Cilantro, Dill, and Parsley

• Hot Peppers (Last week)

• Joe E Parker Green Chiles

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, and Delicata Winter Squash and Winter Luxury Pumpkin

• Pick your own Strawberries (Ask for directions and be sure to follow the signs! Last week!)

• Pick Your Own Green beans, Padron & Shishito peppers; Cherry Tomatoes & Tomatillos; Husk Cherries; Flowers & Herbs (Please BYO clippers and jars!)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale on Tuesday and Friday

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Heartier foods are taking the spotlight in my cooking these days: Root heavy recipes and soups are in my dreams. But I love a good breakfast hash, with leftover roasted squash and an egg (or two). This recipe is a creative take on hash browns, except with spaghetti squash, I’m hoping to try as many variations of roasted vegetables as possible in the coming months! 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked shredded spaghetti squash

• 1 tbsp oil *olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a large non stick skillet over medium heat.

2. Meanwhile, press the water and moisture out of the squash with paper towels or wring out in a clean kitchen towel.

3. Form patties – 2 tablespoons in size – and press the patties firmly between your palms.

4. Place the patties gently on the warmed skillet and let cook for 5-7 minutes per side. Only flip these once if possible to get the nice browned effect.

5. Transfer to paper towels to drain, then serve warm.

Harvest festival, Dahlias & Altar

By Celeste

Like every year we welcome you and your family to our last event of the year , the Harvest festival, where we will have pumpkin pie , herbal tea , apple cider , popcorn , and our popular wreath making station .

Every year when summer arrives and flowers are beautifully grown i start to harvest bunches of different kinds of drying flowers then i hang them in the csa barn for at least 2 weeks or until fully dried which im sure all of you noticed.

We offer 20 different flower options for wreath making : nigella, gomphrena, feverfew, craspedia, yarrow, lavender, celosia , flax , statice, basketflower, cempasuchi, scabiosa, frosted explosions grass, popies, broom corn, larkspur, safflower, strawflower, amaranth, sweet annie , our most used accent flowers are Strawflower , larkspur and Statice . Your wreath should last between 1-3 years if kept out of direct sunlight, wind and humid conditions. ( and it also depends on your flower choices )

Thank you so much for those of you who help me this year dried some of this flowers , i had such of great time getting to know you. Shout out to Jeanne , Zoreh, Paulina , Taralynn and my coworker Alyssa.

Thank you Dahlias

It is that time of year were we express our gratitude to the dahlias, I am beyond thankful for this year’s blooms , they did so much better than last year. This year we chose not to fish the dahlias , and to water them sooner .

You will noticed that i had label each tuber with a black sharpie and masking tape by color and cut the plant , they will stay buried without water for 2 weeks for them to get cured then i will dig them up and stored them until next year. I left some T-post for you pay attention were this tubers are , please watch your step and still do not jump/ walk over the bed ; and please make sure children and dogs do not pull out the dahlia bulbs . One bed is still up so grab as many as you can.

Altar - Dia de Muertos

One of my favorite festivities , yes festivities is to celebrate the life of those who have passed away to the spirit world. I will be creating an Altar to commemorate our beloved ones like last year so I welcome you to participate again with bringing a picture frame of that one person ( or as many as you want ) that is no longer with us to set it up in the altar , and if you can it will be great if you can bring their favorite treat as well ( candy , fruit , bread , etc. ) i will start making the altar on the 26 of October in the shed of the csa barn so bring all your items before this date and leave it inside the csa barn.

Typically altars are put up from 10/28 - 11/2 , but im not planning on working on Sunday. The 31st of October is the day to be said when the portal from both worlds starts to open and spirits start to visit us .

Upcoming Events:

• Fall Harvest Festival Saturday November 4th

CSA Barn Hours:

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

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Cortland Yellow and Cabernet Red Onions

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Red Gold and Yellow Finn Potatoes

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Pink Beauty Radish

• Hakeuri Turnips

• Dark Star, Cocozelle, and Yellowfin Summer Squash

• Slicer and Pickling Cucumbers (Lots! Time to pickle!)

• Finale Fennel

• Sweet Peppers

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Covina Broccoli

• Chioggia, Frisee, and Escarole

• Lettuce

• Celery

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, and Basil

• Tomatoes of all kinds! (May be last week, may be limited)

• Hot Peppers

• Melons

• Winter Sweet Kabocha, Spaghetti, Acorn, and Delicata Winter Squash and Winter Luxury Pumpkin

• Pick your own Strawberries (Ask for directions and be sure to follow the signs!)

• Pick Your Own Green beans, Padron & Shishito peppers; Cherry Tomatoes & Tomatillos; Husk Cherries; Flowers & Herbs (Please BYO clippers and jars!)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale on Friday (Frozen bread for sale on Tuesday)

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Calabaza en Tacha, from muybuenoblog.com

• 4-to 5 pound pumpkin

• 2 cups water

• 3 cinnamon sticks

• 5 whole cloves

Spiced Piloncillo Syrup

• ¼ cup water

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 8 ounces piloncillo , or 1 cup packed dark brown sugar

Rinse off the exterior of the pumpkin in cool or warm water, no soap. Using a serrated knife cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the pumpkin seeds. Scrape out the stringy layer (pulp) with a spoon. Discard seeds and pulp. Cut the pumpkin into 3- to 4-inch slices leaving the skin on.

In a large pot, steam the pumpkin in water, cinnamon, and cloves making sure to keep the lid on tight, for 20 to 40 minutes, or until pumpkin is tender. The pumpkin is ready when your fork slides easily into the flesh.

In a small saucepan place water, cinnamon stick, and piloncillo on a very low heat until the piloncillo melts. Be sure to stir frequently.

Serve slices of pumpkin with syrup.

Dry Corn

By Cecilia

As this week’s blog writer, I feel a personal responsibility to warn everybody that there is a very large inflatable dragon on the farm. 

 Anyway, dry corn is a crop that we have been growing for the last couple years on a very small scale, with the long term goal of being able to offer cornmeal and popping corn(!) in the way that we offer flour.  We have kept it small scale so that we can learn about how to grow this crop in our specific microclimate and in our unique soil.  One of the most fun parts of experimenting in this way is trialing different varieties.  There is so much diversity in dried corn varieties, and it feels like we could be experimenting forever.  Even though we might not be offering this year’s crop to members, I want to invite everyone to peek in the greenhouse behind the CSA barn and just look at how beautiful the cobs are.  While harvesting and laying them out, it was almost impossible for me to stop staring and taking pictures.  The yellow and orange variety that we have in there is a classic cornmeal variety, while the pink and black ones are popping corn. 

 In other fall news, we are slowly adding more and more chicories to the CSA barn!  This week we harvested the first heads of Chioggia, and I felt inspired to find a chicory recipe for everyone. 

Upcoming Events:

• Fall Harvest Festival Saturday November 4th

CSA Barn Hours:

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

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Cortland Onions

• Red Gold New Potatoes

• Yaya carrots

• Rhonda Beets

• Dark Star, Cocozelle, and Yellowfin Summer Squash

• Slicer and Pickling Cucumbers (Lots! Time to pickle!)

• Annina and Diamond Eggplant (Last week, may be limited)

• Sweet Peppers

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Celery

• Finale Fennel

• Pink Beauty Radish

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Covina Broccoli

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, and Basil

• Chioggia, Frisee and Escarole

• Tomatoes of all kinds! (May be last week, may be limited)

• Hot Peppers

• Melons

• Albion Strawberries

• Pick Your Own Green beans, Padron & Shishito peppers; Cherry Tomatoes & Tomatillos; Husk Cherries; Flowers & Herbs (Please BYO clippers and jars!)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale on Friday (Frozen bread for sale on Tuesday)

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Southern-Italian Style Sautéed Chicories

from mediterraneanliving.com

• 1 large bunch chicory (around 1 pound)

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1/4 tsp hot pepper flakes (optional)

• 4 anchovy fillets in oil

• 2 tbsp raisins

• 2 tbsp pine nuts

• 1 tbsp brined capers (if you use the salt-cured variety make sure to rinse them well)

• Sea salt, to taste

Wash the chicory greens, cut into 2-inch pieces and cook in boiling unsalted water for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. **** If you are using endive, escarole, radicchio or dandelion leaves, cut into 2-inch pieces and add to boiling water for about 30 seconds or skip the boiling process altogether and just add raw greens to the frying pan.

Drain the chicory and rinse under cold water. Then, squeeze out the excess moisture using your hands.

In a large frying pan, add oil, garlic, hot pepper flakes and anchovy fillets. Stir for 30 seconds on medium heat until the anchovies dissolve and the garlic is starting to sizzle and turn slightly gold.

Add greens, raisins, pine nuts and capers. Toss gently for 2 to 3 minutes.

Add salt, to taste. As capers and anchovies are already salty you shouldn’t need much.

Serve hot or room temperature.

Short ribs and Beans

I know we are all very excited for the seasons change, though it seems this week we will have a (hopefully our last) small heatwave. We have officially moved into doing fall projects such as: moving the tunnels to thier fresh winter pads, cutting the winter squash and gathering the pumpkins/ gourds for your fun fall needs. We also successfully harvested our first round of winter carrots, which I'm sure many of you will be thrilled to hear that we got a robust amount of.

I can personally attest that my body is ready for the slow down of winter and to have space to go inward and recoup from the summer season, but we are not quite there yet as fall asks us workers to push a little more in order to have a good storage supply of food to get us all through the winter. In order to maintain health in body and heart, I'd like us all to remember that eating enough warm rich foods will help us all to maintain energy to continue our days in a way that we can be present. We still have some hot peppers and are beginning to put our more stewing/ braising meats, I encourage you to use these foods to ensure your immune system maintains itself through the changing of the seasons. Stay well out there! 

Upcoming Events:

• Fall Harvest Festival Saturday November 4th

CSA Barn Hours:

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

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Cortland and Red Long Onions

• Red Gold New Potatoes

• Yaya carrots

• Dark Star, Cocozelle, and Yellowfin Summer Squash

• Slicer and Pickling Cucumbers (Lots! Time to pickle!)

• Annina and Diamond Eggplant

• Sweet Peppers

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Celery

• Finale Fennel

• Primo and Caraflex Green Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Covina Broccoli

• Lettuce

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, and Basil

• Frisee and Escarole

• Tomatoes of all kinds!

• Hot Peppers

• Melons

• Albion Strawberries

• Pick Your Own Raspberries, Green beans, Padron & Shishito peppers; Cherry Tomatoes & Tomatillos; Husk Cherries; Flowers & Herbs (Please BYO clippers and jars!)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale on Friday (Frozen bread for sale on Tuesday)

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

My favorite recipe for beans

• 1.5 cups of kidney beans

• 1 package of our short ribs

• 1 large yellow onion

• Half a head of garlic

• 1 tablespoon of whole peppercorn

• 2 pinches salt

• 1-3 hot peppers of your choice

Cover with water, about 2 or 3 cups.

If using a slow cooker, use the high setting until done. I like to leave it in through day while I work, about 8 hours. 

If on a stove top, allow to come to a boil then reduce down to a low simmer for 3 hours. It will be ready to eat after that though I highly suggest to slow it more time to get the most out of the short rib flavor. 5 hours is my suggestion. 

Lingering in Happiness

By Alyssa

Lingering in Happiness

Mary Oliver

After rain after many days without rain,

it stays cool, private and cleansed, under the trees,

and the dampness there, married now to gravity,

falls branch to branch, leaf to leaf, down to the ground

where it will disappear—but not, of course, vanish

except to our eyes. The roots of the oaks will have their share,

and the white threads of the grasses, and the cushion of moss;

a few drops, round as pearls, will enter the mole’s tunnel;

and soon so many small stones, buried for a thousand years,

will feel themselves being touched.

During harvest this morning, we saw so many small creatures out and about, enjoying the damp of last night’s rain – several little green frogs, a toad, a praying mantis. The air smells so fresh. I have mud on my rain boots, and the cuffs of my pants and sleeves are all wet. It might have been my imagination, but my midmorning cucumber snack tasted so spectacularly fresh and sweet.

CSA Barn Hours:

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

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Ailsa Craig Sweet and Red Long Onions

• Red Gold New Potatoes

• Yaya carrots

• Dark Star, Cocozelle, and Yellowfin Summer Squash

• Slicer and Pickling Cucumbers

• Annina and Diamond Eggplant

• Sweet Peppers

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Celery

• Faroa and Caraflex Green Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower or Covina Broccoli

• Lettuce

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, and Basil

• Tomatoes of all kinds!

• Hot Peppers

• Melons

• Albion Strawberries

• Pick Your Own Raspberries, Green beans, Padron & Shishito peppers; Cherry Tomatoes & Tomatillos; Husk Cherries; Flowers & Herbs (Please BYO clippers and jars!)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Beef – Scallion – Tomato Stir Fry

A riff of two Woks of Life recipes:

https://thewoksoflife.com/beef-tomato-stir-fry/

https://thewoksoflife.com/scallion-beef-stir-fry/

1 lb ground beef

6-10 tomatoes, depending on how saucy/tomatoey you want it, roughly chopped

2-4 sliced scallions (they’re huge this week! perfect for stir fries!) – reserve some green parts for garnish

1 summer squash, sliced into half-moons

a few handfuls of shredded collard greens or cabbage

1 red long onion, diced

1” piece of ginger, minced or grated

a few cloves of garlic, minced or grated

soy sauce, fish sauce, salt, white pepper, and chili powder or oil to taste

Shaoxing cooking wine if you have it (otherwise the liquid from the tomatoes is enough to deglaze)

neutral cooking oil

1.     Prep your veggies and get all your ingredients ready.

2.     Heat a wok or a large cast iron pan on high heat until smoking. Add the ground beef and break up; cook without stirring until browned. Season meat with salt.

3.     Once one side of the beef is browned, flip and add your aromatics (scallions, onion, ginger, garlic). Cook, stirring, for thirty seconds or so, until the aromatics are fragrant.

4.     Add in your summer squash and cook, stirring, for another few seconds.

5.     Deglaze with shaoxing wine if you have it.

6.     Add your chopped tomatoes. If you don’t have shaoxing wine, the juice from the tomatoes should be enough to keep your wok or cast iron from getting too dry.

7.     Add shredded greens.

8.     Cook, stirring, until everything is bubbling and cooked through to your satisfaction. Season with soy sauce, fish sauce, salt, and white pepper to your taste. Be careful with salt if you are using soy sauce, fish sauce, and chili oil – each condiment already has some seasoning, so it can be easy to over-salt. I like it spicy so I always add chili oil, but it certainly doesn’t need it to taste good!

Rams n lambs

By AJ

If you have ever been driving by pasture and wondered why you see sheep with bright-colored marks on them, there are… a lot of reasons, actually. But here, the only time you will see such marks on our ewes is during breeding season. The ram wears a harness with a crayon on the front so that we have a pretty good idea when the ewes are bred, based on how many brightly colored butts we see. 

Our ramly ram this year is one of our lambs from 2022, named UGG. I could be remembering wrong, but i’m pretty sure that the name originated from Teddy. We use letters of the alphabet to name our lambs. If the mothers name starts with a "B", for example, then the lamb from that ewe will also start with a "B". So Uni (RIP) would need lambs that have names starting with a "U". It's a trickier letter of the alphabet, AND we want short names so that we can fit them on an eartag. Thus, Ugg.

Ugg is big (bigger than I was hoping, actually) and has an adorable wrinkly face. He will be down with the ewes for a little over a month before he heads back up to the “bachelor pad” with the other rams and bulls. It is rare to see our rams out of the pad, so if you get a chance to check out the sheep, look for the harness!

Sheep have  a gestation period of about 5 months, so mid-September is a perfect breeding season for us. It puts lambing between mid-February and mid-March, just before we start to ramp up on the vegetable side of things. Once Ugg has done the deed, the bred ewes with join back up with the rest of the flock, nibble on alfalfa, shelter from the winter rain, and slowly get larger. And then we wait. Until it’s time for lambs!

Upcoming Events:

• Farm Potluck This Friday September 22nd (Date Change!)

CSA Barn Hours:

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

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

Pick List:

• Eggs

• Ailsa Craig Sweet and Red Long Onions

• Red Gold New Potatoes

• Rhonda Beets

• Yaya carrots

• Pink Beauty Radishes

• Dark Star, Cocozelle, and Yellowfin Summer Squash

• Slicer and Pickling Cucumbers

• Annina, Diamond, Kamo, Poamoho, and Beatrice Eggplant

• Sweet Peppers

• Evergreen Hardy Scallions

• Celery

• Faroa and Caraflex Green Cabbage

• Song Cauliflower

• Lettuce

• Champion Collards

• Lacinato Kale

• Ruby Red Chard

• Regiment Spinach

• Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, and Basil

• Tomatoes of all kinds!

• Hot Peppers

• Melons

• Albion Strawberries

• Pick Your Own Raspberries, Green beans, Padron & Shishito peppers; Cherry Tomatoes & Tomatillos; Husk Cherries; Flowers & Herbs (Please BYO clippers and jars!)

• Sonoma Wheat Flour & Wheat Berries (Please BYO jars!)

• Dried Herbs for Tea (Please BYO jars!)

• Saltonstall Olive Oil for sale (Please BYO jars!)

• Revolution Bread for sale

Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members 

Easy Tomato Pie, from thekitchn.com

• 1 pie dough (enough for a 9-inch pie), homemade or store-bought

• 2 pounds tomatoes (about 4 medium), cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

• 4 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated (about 1 1/4 packed cups), divided

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise

• 1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/2 cup)

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1 small shallot, halved and thinly sliced

• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves

Prepare the pie crust. Arrange two racks to divide the oven into thirds and heat to 425°F. Meanwhile, roll out the pie dough to a 12-inch round, then transfer to a 9-inch pie plate (regular, not deep dish). Roll the edges over on themselves and crimp the crust. Freeze while the oven heats, at least 15 minutes.

Prepare the tomatoes for the oven. Arrange the tomatoes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil and season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper.

Bake the crust and tomatoes. Remove the crust from the freezer and line with parchment paper. Fill with dried beans or pie weights. Place the tomatoes on the upper rack and the pie crust on the lower rack. Bake until the edges of crust begin to brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

Add cheese to the crust and bake again. Remove the crust from oven (leave the tomatoes in), and remove the parchment and pie weights. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of the cheddar. Return to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden-brown, about 5 minutes more. Remove the crust and the tomatoes from the oven (the tomatoes should be slightly wrinkly and look dry on top). Let both cool completely, about 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.

Make the topping. Place the mayonnaise, Parmesan, Dijon, remaining 1 cup Cheddar, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl and stir to combine.

Layer the tomatoes and shallots in the crust. Place half of the tomatoes in the crust in a single, even layer, then sprinkle with half the shallots. Repeat layering the remaining tomatoes and shallots.

Top with the basil. Tear the basil leaves and scatter them on top.

Top with the cheese mixture. Dollop the mayo-cheese mixture on top and spread into an even layer.

Bake, then let cool before slicing. Bake until the crust is deep golden-brown, the filling is bubbling, and the cheese is beginning to brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Check after 30 minutes to see if crust is browning too quickly, and tent loosely with aluminum foil if needed. Let cool at least 20 minutes before slicing.