2017 CSA ~ Week 17

September 26, 2017

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SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Fall Harvest Celebration

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Our annual Fall Harvest Celebration will be held on Saturday, October 14th this  year, from Noon to 3pm. We’ll start off with a Potluck to share, and then begin hayrides around the farm. Elizabeth Lutz will join us once again for some amazing faceprinting, we’ll be pressing fresh apple cider and have some crafts for the kids to enjoy. Come join us as well celebrate the season!

Women space Vigil for Victims and Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence

As  you know, Winter Green Farm supports the Womenspace Transitional Program each season with donations of healthy food each week, to nourish the families who are transitioning from violent home situations. On Sunday, October 1st, the Womenspace Program would like you to join in remembering victims, standing up for survivors, and fighting for a safe community. Community members of all ages and genders are invited to attend a vigil in support of victims and survivors of intimate partner violence. The event will be held at the Wayne Morse Free Speech Plaza in downtown Eugene from 6:00-7:00pm. The vigil will include live music and speeches from community leaders, and will conclude after a ribbon ceremony to recognize different forms of abuse survived in our community, to celebrate survivors who have overcome abuse, and remember those victims who were not as fortunate.

WHAT’S IN  YOUR SHARE THIS WEEK:

  • Leeks
  • Stir Fry Mix
  • Pac Choi
  • Carrots
  • Red onion
  • Yellow onion
  • Broccoli
  • Pears
  • Winter Squash ~ Festival and Orange Kabocha
  • Sweet Peppers
  • Lettuce

SOME SITES ONLY

  • Eggplant
  • Cauliflower

RECIPES:

Festival Squash

Kabocha Squash & Goat Cheese Toast

Kabocha Squash Pie w/Spiced Crust

Leek & Olive Tart w/Two Cheeses

Cock-a-Leekie Pie

Sesame Pac Choi

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Celeriac root almost ready to harvest

It has been cloudy on the farm today, and my brain was feeling a bit muddled after the morning tasks of email, phone msgs. and counting market tills….I thought I would take a little walk about down to the fields for inspiration for today’s blog. It’s always a wonder to me this time of year, as to how the season has seemingly passed so quickly….watching

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Sunflowers that brought such beauty to the field, now forage for the birds for winter sustenance

the fields change from spring crops, to summer abundance, to fall mainstays. Maybe the season seems to pass so quickly because, as farmers, you always need to be several weeks ahead in your mind and tasks, preparing for crops that will need to be planted, tilling for winter cover crops, knowing what will be in the box 3 weeks down the line.

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Wild Rose Hips will provide nourishment for the critters during the cold winter months

As I walked among the winter crops yet to be harvested, I felt comforted to see that the brown, bone dry fields and riparian areas were already beginning to green. Little sprouts of grass and foliage were responding to the week of rain that occurred after such a long period without much moisture and with intense heat. I pondered all of the critters

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Acorns in abundance in the oak grove, making for happy foraging squirrels!

who would be feasting on what nature provides spontaneously for them this time of year, marveling at natures ability to adapt so well time and time again. There are so many lessons nature can teach us if we only take a moment to listen and learn……

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There are so many new vegetables in your box this week…..Leeks, Pac Choi,, Stir Fry Mix! The Stir Fry Mix gives the opportunity for quite a variety of dishes…..you can stir fry it with other veggies and serve over rice or quinoa….you can toss it into your soup or stew….sauteed with onions and eggs for breakfast. There are a few types of kale, tat soi, misuma and red lace mustard, along with a few other varieties, in the mix.

This week’s Winter Squash is the Orange Kabocha. Tuesday delivery folks will also receive a Festival Squash, as Friday folks received theirs last week. The Festival looks like a lighter, striped Acorn Squash, and tastes a lot like a Delicata. The Orange Kabocha is very sweet and has a fluffy, chestnut-texture that’s similar to a sweet potato crossed with a pumpkin. It is used widely in Asia, especially Japan and Korea, where it is fried into tempura, stewed, or even used in desserts. Food anthropologists have determined that the squashes originated in Mesoamerica and were then brought to Asia by the Portuguese. Full of beta carotene, iron, vitamins, and other good stuff, kabocha is also extremely good for you.

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Miles of irrigation pipe slowly coming out of the fields as the rains return.

On the farm, we see and welcome the changes in the season….crops are harvested,  fields are tilled anew for winter cover crops, the temperature changes, the light changes, and we all change with it, either dreaming of days to come when life slows down a bit, planning winter travels, welcoming the time to be inside near a warm fire, and within ourselves to ponder the season, and whats to come….we  hope you all have a lovely week ahead, and enjoy your veggies!

Linda and all of the Winter Green Farmers