8 THINGS WE LOVE ABOUT FARMING THIS YEAR

This year we have farmed more and harvested more vegetables than we ever have in previous years.  As Fall approaches and our growing season winds down, we wanted to take a little time to reflect on what we love about farming this year. Below are 8 things we love about farming this year.

1. BEING OUTSIDE IN THE SUN. Now granted, every day was not sunny while we were farming; however, it was marvelous on the days that were. On days where we got out to the farm early, we were able to see the sun heat up the dew on the leaves of our vegetables and create a swirling steam effect much like a hot cup of coffee on a cold day. In the afternoon, the sun would warm up our bodies and give our plants the necessary dose of light energy to create photosynthesis. In the evening, we often found ourselves working harder and racing the sun so we could get home before dark. There is something to be said for getting out of the house, away from computers, and soaking up the sun's rays.
2. THE VARIETY OF VEGETABLES THAT WE ARE GROWING.  This year, we branched out beyond our leafy greens and tried growing many vegetables that we haven't tried before. Most were successes. We were proud to get root vegetables such as beets, carrots, and parsnips to grow this year. We tried out several squashes and cucumbers this year and found out we are in love with spaghetti squash. We were able to grow beans and tomatoes like never before after learning from our mistakes in the previous years. We also discovered some spicy leafy greens such as arugula and nasturtium leaves that we plan to grow more of next year. When we look in seed catalogs, there is so much variety. We know we can grow them all, but we sure can try enough variety to learn how to be dangerous. :)
3. HAVING CSA MEMBERS AND BEING ABLE TO TALK TO THEM EVERY OTHER WEEK.  This year, we started a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program and provided produce to 10 families every other week. It has been so cool to see their faces as we give them a box of vegetables and explain what they are getting in the box. We get to talk to them about what we do on the farm, healthy living, and fun recipes to try with the vegetables they are getting. We get to learn about their families, jobs, and interests. It is so fascinating what brings each family to the decision to eat healthier and support local farmers. We appreciate each and every one of them. 
4. KNOWING THAT WE ARE FEEDING OTHERS WITH PESTICIDE FREE PRODUCE.  We have recognized in the past how disconnected we were with where our food came from and what chemicals had been used to grow the vegetables we bought in the store. By farming, we are able to control how our vegetables grow and we choose not to contaminate them with questionable chemicals that have even more questionable long-term effects on our bodies. It takes more time and effort to farm organically, but it is worth it to know that our food does come from industrialized factories. We cover most of our growing vegetables with row cover to protect them from insects, we weed by hand instead of by using herbicides, and we clean our produce with good old-fashioned water instead of chemical-laden preservatives or waxes. We are making an impact in the local community and letting companies like Monsanto know that we don't need them to be sustainable or grow successful crops.
5. EATING MORE FRESH VEGETABLES THAN WE EVER HAVE BEFORE.  Even after providing our CSA members and wholesalers vegetables, we have a lot of extra vegetables. We are eating them, canning them, and freezing them like crazy! We have discovered the wonderful versatility of kale and collards this year. We have probably cooked zucchini 1,000 ways and loved most of them. We have replaced pasta with spaghetti squash in several recipes. We have taken more salads in our work lunch boxes than ever before. Even though it is a lot of extra work now, we have also frozen pre-made dinners with vegetables, soups, and blanched vegetables so that we can enjoy them all winter long. We probably have over 50 different vegetable dishes in our deep freezer right now.
6. SHARING A FOCUSED GOAL WITH MY PARTNER. There is something beautiful about sharing a farming hobby in a relationship with a loved one. Most couples bond by a shared interest in the beginning of their relationship and sometimes it is challenging to keep that going through the years. Whether it is going out dancing, drinking, or mountain biking, it is good to have something other than responsibilities and bills to share with your partner. Damian and I share the mutual love of farming and have a goal to keep farming for many years to come. 
7. WORKING HARD WITH A PURPOSE. Americans get a bad rap for being lazy and we don't want to be lumped into that category. There is so much that can be done to make our lives and our world more interesting, but often we wait for someone else to get things started.  We don't want to just want to be spectators in our world. We wanted to make an impact by growing organic produce. In order to do that, it takes A LOT of hard work. From putting the seed in the soil, taking care of each plants basic needs, and getting the fully grown vegetables to the consumers, it is a lot of love and work that has to go into it. We have watched sweat roll off of each other and witnessed crabbiness from exhaustion. When one of us is tired, the other one pushes us to finish what we have to get done in order to go home and be rewarded with a delicious meal. No one ever told us farming would be easy. Most of them told us that it is a lot of hard work. They were right.
8. WATCHING HOW EACH OTHER DEALS WITH CHALLENGES AND THE GROSS PARTS OF FARMING. Everything we planted has not grown. Deer, bugs, and mother nature have caused us to lose plants and caused us frustration. When it rains, the plants get watered for us, but it also means we have to weed a lot more. When playing out in nature every weekend, we ran into some pretty gross things that I don't even want to go into detail about. Mostly smells and rotting dead things, but I still don't think this blog post needs to get into the icky details. Through the year, we have gotten better at communicating with each other about how to get through challenges we have at the farm. We have to be able to let things go and recognize that we are not "perfect farmers" or anywhere near that. We still have a lot to learn. When we encounter challenges at the farm, we might squeal, curse, or puke depending on the situation. However, we are still hear to tell about it and poke fun at each other for how we reacted to certain things. Thank goodness we have had each other to witness the best and the worst of farming because I don't think I could have done it alone.

More recipes: Asian Lettuce Wraps & Zucchini Fritters

ZUCCHINI FRITTERS

Ingredients

Soy Dipping Sauce

• 3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• Crushed red pepper flakes

Fritters

• 1 1/2 pounds zucchini (about 3 medium), grated
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt plus more for seasoning
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions

Soy Dipping Sauce

• Mix vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and a pinch of red pepper flakes in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.

Fritters

• Place zucchini in a colander set in the sink and toss with 1/2 teaspoons salt. Let stand 10 minutes, then wring zucchini dry in a clean kitchen towel. Place zucchini in a large bowl and gently mix in egg, flour, chives, and cornstarch; season with salt and pepper.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Working in 2 batches, drop 1/4-cupfuls zucchini mixture into skillet, flattening slightly; cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer fritters to a paper towel–lined plate; season with salt. Serve with soy dipping sauce.
• DO AHEAD: Fritters can be made 30 minutes ahead. Keep warm in a 200° oven.

ASIAN LETTUCE WRAPS

Ingredients

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 pound ground beef
2-inch piece ginger, peeled and finely grated
2 scallions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 head Boston lettuce, leaves separated, cleaned and dried

Directions

In a skillet over medium-high heat, add the vegetable oil and saute beef until brown. Stir in ginger, scallions, garlic, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, and hoisin and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the peanuts. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm wrapped in lettuce cups.

Fun soup recipes for late summer vegetables -Creamy Tomato Basil Soup, Butternut Squash Soup, and Ratatouille

Cream of Fresh Tomato Soup

Total Preparation Time: 1 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped red onions (2 onions)
• 2 carrots, unpeeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
• 4 pounds vine-ripened tomatoes, coarsely chopped (5 large)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/4 cup packed chopped fresh basil leaves, plus julienned basil leaves, for garnish
• 3 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• Croutons, for garnish

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions and carrots and saute for about 10 minutes, until very tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, sugar, tomato paste, basil, chicken stock, salt, and pepper and stir well. Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes, until the tomatoes are very tender.
Add the cream to the soup and process it through a food mill into a bowl, discarding only the dry pulp that's left. Reheat the soup over low heat just until hot and serve with julienned basil leaves and/or croutons.

 

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 medium carrot, chopped

2 medium potatoes, cubed

1 medium butternut squash - peeled, seeded, and cubed

1 (32 fluid ounce) container chicken stock

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Melt the butter in a large pot, and cook the onion, celery, carrot, potatoes, and squash 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Pour in enough of the chicken stock to cover vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 40 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.
2. Transfer the soup to a blender, and blend until smooth. Return to pot, and mix in any remaining stock to attain desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. 

 Ratatouille

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more as needed
1 1/2 cups small diced yellow onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups medium diced eggplant, skin on
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 cup diced green bell peppers
1 cup diced red bell peppers
1 cup diced zucchini squash
1 cup diced yellow squash
1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Set a large 12-inch saute pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Once hot, add the onions and garlic to the pan. Cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until they are wilted and lightly caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the eggplant and thyme to the pan and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the eggplant is partially cooked, about 5 minutes. Add the green and red peppers, zucchini, and squash and continue to cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, basil, parsley, and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook for a final 5 minutes. Stir well to blend and serve either hot or at room temperature. 

Ingredients

What Can you do with Excess Vegetables from your garden or CSA?

We have had some requests from our CSA members to post more information about what they can do with excess vegetables. In our opinion, it is wonderful to make our summer vegetables last well into winter by canning and freezing. Freezing is by far the easier option, but most of the time there is still a little preparation involved. You can choose to prepare meals with your veggies and freeze them for the winter months or store quantities of the same vegetable to be used at a later time. Canning is far more labor intensive and requires special equipment, but stored properly the canned vegetables can last for years. There are certain vegetables better for canning than others - tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, okra. Especially, if you are into the puckery pickle flavor, than canning might be for you. Below, we will go through some ideas for freezing and canning summer vegetables.


Freezing Leafy Greens (Spinach, Kale, Collards, Chard)
If you don't always have the time to make something with them before leafy greens start going bad, freeze them.  When you want to use it, just defrost and add it to whatever dish you're making!
 
The trick is to blanch them first.  What is blanch, you ask?  We'll get to that in a minute, but first you need to prepare your greens.  Wash them in cold water.  At this point, I usually chop my greens roughly since most of my recipes call for sliced or chopped greens.  You don't have to do this, but I find it makes it easier for me later on. 
 
Once you've prepared the greens, it's on to blanching.  Blanching means that you cook the greens in boiling water just for a couple of minutes to stop the bacteria and enzymes from breaking down your veggies in the freezer.  (You can find the specific blanching times below.)  Start the timer as soon as you place the greens in the water and cover the pot.  You can use the blanching water up to five times before having to replace it with clean water.
When the timer goes off, you will need to shock the greens in ice-cold water to stop the cooking.  I use my big pasta pot with the strainer.  Then all I have to do is pull the strainer out and move the greens to the ice bath in a large bowl.  You keep the greens in the ice bath for the same amount of time that you cooked them for.  

Once they've cooled, take them out, squeeze as much water out as you can and let it drain a little.  I like to make one-cup-sized balls (so I know how much each packet is in the freezer) and set them on a clean kitchen towel to drain a little more.  Once they're drained to your satisfaction, put them in freezer bags, remove all of the air (Ziploc Vacuum Bags work great here), and then layer them in the freezer.  Make sure you label them with what is inside and the date!  You can store them for about 9 months in a regular freezer or up to a year in a deep freeze.

Blanching Times: 

Beet Greens - 2 minutes

Chard -2 minutes

Collard Greens - 2 minutes

Kale - 3 minutes

Spinach - 2 minutes

 

Freezer Salsa 

10 -12 large very ripe tomatoes
2 large cooking onions or 2 medium Spanish onions
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 cloves garlic, minced
8 jalapeno peppers or 1 can diced green chilis
2 -3 sweet green peppers (or mix of green and red)
2 (5 1/2 ounce) cans tomato paste
1/4 cup white vinegar or 1/4 cup cider vinegar or 1/4 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Peel,core, seed and coarsely chop tomatoes.
2. You should have 10 cups.
3. Peel and finely chop onions.
4. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.
5. When hot, add onions and garlic.
6. Cook, stirring often, until onions are soft.
7. Meanwhile, seed and finely chop jalapenos.
8. Seed and coarsely chop sweet peppers.
9. When onions are soft, stir in tomato paste.
10. Add tomatoes, peppers, vinegar, paprika, sugar and salt.
11. For extra heat stir in cayenne.
12. Bring to boil and lower heat until it gently boils.
13. Cook uncovered stirring occasionally until thickened, about 30 minutes.
14. Store covered in refrigerator for 1 week or freeze.
15. Flavor improves in the refrigerator or freezer.

 Freezer Spaghetti Sauce  

• 4 onions, chopped

• 4 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 green bell pepper, chopped

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

• 16 cups chopped tomatoes

• 2 tablespoons dried oregano

• 2 tablespoons dried basil

• 1/4 cup chopped parsley

• 1/4 cup white sugar

• 2 tablespoons salt

• 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste

Directions

In a slow cooker saute together the onion, garlic, green pepper, and vegetable oil. Cook until onion is transparent. Add the chopped tomatoes, oregano, basil, parsley, sugar, salt, and ground black pepper. Cook for 2 to 3 hours on low heat. Stir frequently. Let sauce cool. Pour sauce into quart size freezer containers. Store in freezer. When ready to use sauce, stir in can of tomato paste.

Freezing Herbs

Chop herb and put into ice cube tray with olive oil. It is that simple! Pop your iced herbs into soups, pastas, or other recipes.

 Canning Salsa

For canning advice and directions, I want to direct you to one of the best websites I have found: www.pickyourown.org.  It may not have the best website design, but it is great. Check out their info about pickles and salsa.

Pickles: http://www.pickyourown.org/makingpickles.htm

Salsa: http://www.pickyourown.org/salsa.htm

Half way through our CSA, Recipes, and Movie night

This week marks half way through our first year of CSA boxes. We provided CSA box #6 to our CSA members yesterday. It included the following: kale, collards, napa cabbage, caraflex cabbages, cucumbers, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, herbs, peppers, beans, eggplant, and a few tomatoes. We are excited to have our pepper, bean, and tomato plants finally starting to yield.

Here are some fun new recipe websites we found to help you use what is in the box.

Kale & Collards - 14 Recipes on How to Eat More Kale and Collard Greens  (The Everyday Maven blogger compiled together 14 great soup and salad recipes for these healthy greens.)

Herbs - Seared Scallops with Herb Butter Sauce  (This herb butter sauce would go great over any fish or grains.  We used basil, thyme, and oregano. It is sooo tasty that I made a double batch.)

Zucchini and Peppers - No-Noodle Zucchini Lasagna (We made this one this week and it is time consuming, but marvelous. Makes enough that you can freeze some for later.)

Zucchini - Zucchini Pineapple ( Yes, turn this vegetable into a fruit! We have never heard of this before tonight, but we were given some to try and it is surprisingly delicious.)

Caraflex Cabbages - 10 recipes That Remind Us Why Cabbage is Awesome  ( We love the title and the recipes.)

Napa Cabbage - Napa Cabbage Salad  or Napa Cucumber Coleslaw (We have tried both and love both. For a healthier version, the napa cabbage salad still tastes good if you use less oil than they list.)

CSA members watching the farm-themed movie

Lastly, we just wanted to thank our CSA members/friends that joined us for our first Leafy Greens Farm potluck and movie night. It was a success! The food was great, the weather was beautiful, and the movie made us all think more about the meat and vegetables we eat. We look forward to our next potluck and movie night on August 17th!

Colorful and delicious potluck food!

Trying new recipes with our vegetables

Our most recent CSA Box includes the following: herbs, beets, carrots, onions, collards, red lettuce, green butterhead lettuce, caraflex cabbage, & broccoli. We wanted to send you a collection of fun new recipes to consider for these vegetables and herbs. Sure, you can eat all of these vegetables raw or make a regular salad, but have you ever tried carrot top pesto, lemon basil tea, or pasta with collard greens? What about a grilled lettuce salad? Check out the recipes below and let us know what you like the most.

Carrots Glazed With Balsamic Vinegar and Butter: http://www.food.com/recipe/carrots-glazed-with-balsamic-vinegar-and-butter-82032


Carrot Soup with Carrot Top Pesto:   http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/velvety-carrot-soup-pesto-50400000120383/



Carrot Top Recipes: http://www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/carrotops.html#leaves

Grated Raw Beet Salad ( I use basil as my herb in this one): http://blog.sanuraweathers.com/2010/07/grated-raw-beet-salad/

Roasted Beets with Thyme: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-beets-recipe/index.html

Tarragon Chicken: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/tarragon-chicken-recipe/index.html

Grilled Lettuce Salads: http://goodveg.squidoo.com/recipes/sandwiches-salads/5-sensational-grilled-lettuce-salads

6 Healthy Collard Green Recipes: http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes_menus/collections/healthy_collard_greens_recipes

Braised Collard Greens: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/26/health/26recipehealth.html?_r=0

Lemon Basil Tea: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Lemon-Basil-Tea

New Lettuce Recipes: http://www.frugalupstate.com/recipes/what-to-do-with-too-much-lettuce-in-the-garden/