By Alyssa
“The plow; the raw September earth; the massive-haunched and mighty-hoofed old bay clomping and farting down the furrow; Father holding the plow, my brother the reins, and me with a sack following, gathering the fruits of the overturned soil – the earth apples…
“Richly abundant, brown fat potatoes, thick as stars, appearing like miracles out of the barren, weedy, stony patch, thousands of big hefty solid spuds, bushel after bushel, a hundred bushels per acre, a mass of treasure from the earth…
“How our hands and eyes delighted in that harvest, how gladly we dragged our bulging gunnysacks to the wagon…a wagonful of potatoes! Dark, crusted with dirt, soil, earth, cool to the touch, good to eat even raw; we plowed the shabby-looking field and turned up nuggets, plenty, abundance, more than we needed, riches unimagined…”
― Edward Abbey
Potatoes are one of my favorite harvests, and these new potatoes are particularly gorgeous! Yesterday we dug up the first four rows of the planting near the tunnels, and these rows alone yielded an incredible bounty. It is a breath of relief for us to receive such a gift from the earth after such a long, slow start to the season!
Just about a year ago now, I injured my back. I’m not sure exactly how – likely some combination of awkward bending, heavy lifting, and tractor work – but for most of late summer, I was unable to work normally. I spent most of my time weeding or in the wash station, the greenhouse, and the egg room, doing chores, sorting the summer crops, watering, and sowing. I think nearly every single tomato we gave out last year passed through my hands at least once.
It wasn’t until Thanksgiving that I was able to find some true relief from the pain, through a combination of acupuncture and medication – thank goodness for worker’s comp! As winter passed into spring, I was able to build back up to a normal level of work. In so many ways I have been grateful for this slow, cold winter. It has given me the space to heal, recover, and build my strength back up, one batch of potting mix at a time. Now as the crops start coming in, I am relishing not only the delicious taste of summer vegetables, but also the strength in my body. So many days this spring I felt such joy at being able to move and to work again, and yesterday, harvesting potatoes, I felt it again.
Upcoming Events:
Farm Potluck Friday, July 28th
BBQ and Baseball Sunday August 27th
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 Onions
Red Gold New Potatoes
Garlic
Pink Beauty Radishes
Dark Star, Cocozelle, and Yellowfin Summer Squash
Mideast Peace Cucumbers
Finale Fennel
Evergreen Hardy Scallions
Lettuce
Champion Collards
Ruby Red Chard
Regiment Spinach
Cilantro, Dill, Parsley, and Basil
Albion Strawberries (just a taste for now!)
Sonora wheat flour and wheat berries (Please bring your own jars!)
Herbal Tea (Blends are done until the fall; Please bring your own jars!)
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: Only frozen bread will be available this week and next week!
Open Field Farm 2023 | The "ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW" guide for members
Roasted Salt and Vinegar Crushed New Potatoes
Serves 4
750g small red or brown new potatoes
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Black pepper
2 tbsp cider vinegar
1-2 tsp flaked sea salt, for sprinkling
2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Boil the potatoes in salted water until knife-tender. Drain. Put back in the pot to dry out a little. Tip on to a very large baking tray.
2. Gently crush each potato but leave them whole. Drizzle them with the olive oil and season with pepper. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the edges are browned and crisp.
3. Remove from the oven and gently toss with the vinegar. When all of the vinegar has been absorbed, sprinkle with sea salt and parsley.