Here we are the last week of August with the summer winding down and school about to start for our little ones and many of yours as well. We have several new members of the farm for the remainder of the season as Academic share members and welcome you all! A few important points for Academic members who will start picking up their shares next week: Please bring bags or other containers to bring your share home in and leave the grey tote at your drop site to be picked up later. We will gladly reuse egg cartons and pint containers too. If any new (or old members) have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
Almost September and we have just started really picking tomatoes. This has not been an average season with the cool temps at night (it was 46 degrees up here when we got up this morning!) many crops I know folks were looking forward to just did not do well. These include the melons, eggplant and peppers...While we hope to get peppers before the first frost (which usually comes late September) and can cover them with row covers to protect them afterwards, we can't guarantee anything. But the peppers at least have fruit on them; small but there. However many of our fall crops are growing beautifully. We sent Regular shares the first of the winter squashes; acorns and delicatas, and there will be more to come for all members. I just want all members to know that we are doing our best to get you the best variety available on the farm, and we did plan on better cool weather crops after last winter and the Farmer's Almanac calling for a very mild summer, we felt this would be the best way to go, and the season has proven this judgement correct.
This week Regular shares got summer squash, and other have the past few weeks that it seems some folks are unfamiliar with. They are flat, white, saucer shaped patty pans and can be used just like any other summer squash. The heirloom tomatoes everyone got this week were the first ripe picking we've done, and although the plants and fruit look healthy, they seem to not hold very well, and we apologize if anyone was disappointed with them. With all the rain they do tend to crack by the stem and this can lead to rot very quickly. We grow heirlooms for their flavor and to continue the genetics of old varieties by saving the seeds. So if you got tomatoes that seemed "rotted" at the stem, simply cut out the core and any bad spots and use as normal. This is just one of the challenges of growing! Even in the past while working for Grindstone and planting the heirlooms in the high tunnels, they still cracked even though they were protected from rain. Some of the smaller slicer varieties, such as the Rose, moskvich and valencias did much better than the brandywines, striped germans and purple cherokees. But the cherry tomatoes just keep coming, healthy fruit, sweet little globes of goodness.
So please keep in mind that while we intend to get our members the highest quality we can offer, we also want to offer the variety of what we grow, and this may include lesser quality at times. We hope everyone was happy with their shares this week with a little bit of summer and the beginnings of fall flavors.
With 9 weeks left to the CSA, there are plenty more tastes to experience, with celery getting bigger every day, the beets bulking up, and the carrots and daikon radishes being thinned so they can grow larger. Many of these crops sweeten up in the cooler temps, so the mild weather is good for something!
Also there has been a bit of confusion about when the CSA ends. On the website it says to Nov 1st, which will be the last delivery to the Regional Market on Saturday. The last week of the CSA is the last week of October. Our Oswego and Watertown Market pick up folks will have to pick up their shares at an alternative site for the last few weeks of the CSA season as both Markets are scheduled to end before the end of the CSA, but last season they both were extended, so we'll have to see what the market directors decide in October.
We are considering a fall harvest share, which will depend on the final harvest of storage crops such as winter squash, potatoes etc, as well as production in the high tunnel. If we do this, it will most likely be on farm pickup or Regional Market pick up options only. We also would like to continue the egg share option into the winter for the same pickup options. As we get into October, we'll let everyone know what we decide on this. If this is something you'd be interested in we'd love to hear feed back from you.
This week's recipe comes from my Grandmother's Kitchen. Some of my fondest childhood memories of my grandma are from her kitchen; the smell of dill that always lingered there. The salty taste of this dill pickle recipe brings me back to that steaming kitchen with the vinegar stinging the eyes and watering the mouth. I haven't found a dill pickle on the market, either in Grocery stores or at farmer's market that are anything like this very simple recipe, and make them every year to enjoy through the winter. If you don't want to can them, you can always use this recipe for refrigerator pickles too. Just let them set for at least three days before eating to allow the flavor to soak in.
While I know we haven't sent dill, and most likely won't as rain washed out most of our planting, and the surviving plants did not do well with the excessive moisture, I'm sure you can find dill locally at one of the many great framer's markets in Central New York.
Katherine Mahardy's Dill Pickles
Ing: 2 lbs of pickling cucumbers
4 cups white vinegar (you can use apple cider vinegar, but the taste is just not the same)
1 cup pickling or sea salt (DO NOT use iodized salt)
3 quarts of water
Dill and several cloves of garlic
Step 1: Place washed cucumbers in ice water in the fridge overnight; this ensures crispness.
Step 2: sterilize jars in boiling water for at least 10 minutes.
Step 3: Bring Vinegar, water, and salt to a boil in a NON METALLIC pot (I use an enameled cast iron pot for this)
Step 4: Place dill on the bottom of the jar and pack tightly with cucumbers. (If pickling whole, I've found that poking them a couple times with a fork helps keep them firm. Or you can slice them into spears or coins.) Top with a peeled clove of garlic or two or more.
Step 5: Ladle hot liquid over until filled to the top of the veggies. Using a non metallic spatula, or chopstick, poke the cucumbers to release air bubbles. Wipe the rim of the jar with a damp cloth and secure lids. My grandma never put them back into the water bath after this and we ate some of her pickles three years after she passed away and they were still crisp and no one got sick, but USDA recommendations are to place back in water bath for ten minutes of boiling to ensure a good seal. Generally the boiling liquid is enough to seal them. Whether you're canning for storage or for eating in a few months from the fridge, allow jars to set until cool. Lids should pop and seal.
You can use this recipe to pickle all sorts of food, from hot peppers, to cherry tomatoes (just omit the dill) and enjoy your season's share in the cold winter months.
Another recipe is one I created years ago, experimenting with ways to get my kids to eat winter squash. Again pretty basic and leaves room for alterations. This recipe works well with every winter squash we grow.
I cut a squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Poke the flesh several time with a fork. Place 1 tsp of butter in each 1/2. Add either a peeled and diced apple, or pear, Sprinkle with brown sugar or maple syrup to taste, and season with cinnamon, fresh grated ginger, nutmeg, or a basic pumpkin pie spice. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, depending on the size of the squash until tender enough to scoop out with a spoon.
Almost September and we have just started really picking tomatoes. This has not been an average season with the cool temps at night (it was 46 degrees up here when we got up this morning!) many crops I know folks were looking forward to just did not do well. These include the melons, eggplant and peppers...While we hope to get peppers before the first frost (which usually comes late September) and can cover them with row covers to protect them afterwards, we can't guarantee anything. But the peppers at least have fruit on them; small but there. However many of our fall crops are growing beautifully. We sent Regular shares the first of the winter squashes; acorns and delicatas, and there will be more to come for all members. I just want all members to know that we are doing our best to get you the best variety available on the farm, and we did plan on better cool weather crops after last winter and the Farmer's Almanac calling for a very mild summer, we felt this would be the best way to go, and the season has proven this judgement correct.
This week Regular shares got summer squash, and other have the past few weeks that it seems some folks are unfamiliar with. They are flat, white, saucer shaped patty pans and can be used just like any other summer squash. The heirloom tomatoes everyone got this week were the first ripe picking we've done, and although the plants and fruit look healthy, they seem to not hold very well, and we apologize if anyone was disappointed with them. With all the rain they do tend to crack by the stem and this can lead to rot very quickly. We grow heirlooms for their flavor and to continue the genetics of old varieties by saving the seeds. So if you got tomatoes that seemed "rotted" at the stem, simply cut out the core and any bad spots and use as normal. This is just one of the challenges of growing! Even in the past while working for Grindstone and planting the heirlooms in the high tunnels, they still cracked even though they were protected from rain. Some of the smaller slicer varieties, such as the Rose, moskvich and valencias did much better than the brandywines, striped germans and purple cherokees. But the cherry tomatoes just keep coming, healthy fruit, sweet little globes of goodness.
So please keep in mind that while we intend to get our members the highest quality we can offer, we also want to offer the variety of what we grow, and this may include lesser quality at times. We hope everyone was happy with their shares this week with a little bit of summer and the beginnings of fall flavors.
With 9 weeks left to the CSA, there are plenty more tastes to experience, with celery getting bigger every day, the beets bulking up, and the carrots and daikon radishes being thinned so they can grow larger. Many of these crops sweeten up in the cooler temps, so the mild weather is good for something!
Also there has been a bit of confusion about when the CSA ends. On the website it says to Nov 1st, which will be the last delivery to the Regional Market on Saturday. The last week of the CSA is the last week of October. Our Oswego and Watertown Market pick up folks will have to pick up their shares at an alternative site for the last few weeks of the CSA season as both Markets are scheduled to end before the end of the CSA, but last season they both were extended, so we'll have to see what the market directors decide in October.
We are considering a fall harvest share, which will depend on the final harvest of storage crops such as winter squash, potatoes etc, as well as production in the high tunnel. If we do this, it will most likely be on farm pickup or Regional Market pick up options only. We also would like to continue the egg share option into the winter for the same pickup options. As we get into October, we'll let everyone know what we decide on this. If this is something you'd be interested in we'd love to hear feed back from you.
This week's recipe comes from my Grandmother's Kitchen. Some of my fondest childhood memories of my grandma are from her kitchen; the smell of dill that always lingered there. The salty taste of this dill pickle recipe brings me back to that steaming kitchen with the vinegar stinging the eyes and watering the mouth. I haven't found a dill pickle on the market, either in Grocery stores or at farmer's market that are anything like this very simple recipe, and make them every year to enjoy through the winter. If you don't want to can them, you can always use this recipe for refrigerator pickles too. Just let them set for at least three days before eating to allow the flavor to soak in.
While I know we haven't sent dill, and most likely won't as rain washed out most of our planting, and the surviving plants did not do well with the excessive moisture, I'm sure you can find dill locally at one of the many great framer's markets in Central New York.
Katherine Mahardy's Dill Pickles
Ing: 2 lbs of pickling cucumbers
4 cups white vinegar (you can use apple cider vinegar, but the taste is just not the same)
1 cup pickling or sea salt (DO NOT use iodized salt)
3 quarts of water
Dill and several cloves of garlic
Step 1: Place washed cucumbers in ice water in the fridge overnight; this ensures crispness.
Step 2: sterilize jars in boiling water for at least 10 minutes.
Step 3: Bring Vinegar, water, and salt to a boil in a NON METALLIC pot (I use an enameled cast iron pot for this)
Step 4: Place dill on the bottom of the jar and pack tightly with cucumbers. (If pickling whole, I've found that poking them a couple times with a fork helps keep them firm. Or you can slice them into spears or coins.) Top with a peeled clove of garlic or two or more.
Step 5: Ladle hot liquid over until filled to the top of the veggies. Using a non metallic spatula, or chopstick, poke the cucumbers to release air bubbles. Wipe the rim of the jar with a damp cloth and secure lids. My grandma never put them back into the water bath after this and we ate some of her pickles three years after she passed away and they were still crisp and no one got sick, but USDA recommendations are to place back in water bath for ten minutes of boiling to ensure a good seal. Generally the boiling liquid is enough to seal them. Whether you're canning for storage or for eating in a few months from the fridge, allow jars to set until cool. Lids should pop and seal.
You can use this recipe to pickle all sorts of food, from hot peppers, to cherry tomatoes (just omit the dill) and enjoy your season's share in the cold winter months.
Another recipe is one I created years ago, experimenting with ways to get my kids to eat winter squash. Again pretty basic and leaves room for alterations. This recipe works well with every winter squash we grow.
I cut a squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Poke the flesh several time with a fork. Place 1 tsp of butter in each 1/2. Add either a peeled and diced apple, or pear, Sprinkle with brown sugar or maple syrup to taste, and season with cinnamon, fresh grated ginger, nutmeg, or a basic pumpkin pie spice. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, depending on the size of the squash until tender enough to scoop out with a spoon.
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