2020 CSA Share ~ Week #24 ~ Final Share of the Season!!

November 20, 2020

Special Announcements

Most importantly, stay safe out there this winter! As we listen to the news of COVID cases skyrocketing, all we can do is stay home as much as we can, and wear our masks and wash our hands when we do need to venture out. While we’ll all miss our usual family and friends gathering through the holidays, we can console ourselves by realizing that if we all take care of each other now, we’ll have each other to celebrate with next year. We wish you all a healthy & happy winter season, however you may choose to find joy and peace. Our hearts will be with you all, and we look forward to the light returning on the New Year ahead….

RESERVE YOUR SHARE FOR 2021!

We are reserving shares with a $25 deposit. You can just send a check to the farm office, or use a credit if you have one, or call/email with debit/credit card info.

WHAT’S IN YOUR SHARE THIS WEEK:

  • Curly Kale
  • Carrots
  • Potatoes
  • Leeks
  • Celeriac
  • Beets
  • Apples ~ Rubinette or Gravenstein
  • Butternut Squash
  • Strawberry Spread

RECIPES:

Butternut Squash Leek and Goat Cheese Galette - Overhead shot of galette on dark background garnished with thyme sprigs and toasted almonds
This looks so yummy that I plan to try it out this week, and if it’s good, make it for Thanksgiving!

The final share of the season!! After days and days of rain, the sun is a welcome guest today. Nice to toss off the foul weather gear and let the warmth soak into our bones.

This year seemed to go so quickly, and seemed so long all at the same time. While we’re sad to have the season end, we also look forward to some down time to evaluate the season, and prepare for the new year. I’m certainly looking forward to not wearing a mask 24/7, as I won’t be in the office so much! I had planned on this being my last season as CSA Coordinator, but the position wasn’t a good fit for Bronwynn, so we’ll be training someone new in the New Year. Hopefully, third time’s the charm!

The crew is smiling and wishing you a wonderful winter underneath those masks!!

We so appreciate you taking this journey with us in 2020! We have all adapted on a daily basis to the unforeseen changes that continued to come our way. We thank you for supporting our farm, and for your understanding and flexibility through these crazy times. We couldn’t have asked for a better membership and community than you all and we are so grateful. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Our thoughts will be with you all as we maneuver through the winter months ahead, all working toward keeping our Covid numbers down, and maybe even looking forward to a safe, effective vaccine. Fingers crossed to start the New Year with more compassion in our lives and government, and healing for Mother Earth!

Today we are saying farewell to one of our long time crew, Jeremy Mixon. Jeremy has been on the farm for 12 years! He has taken on many roles through the years, from harvest crew, to delivery driver, to tractor driver, and the last few years he has been the CSA Harvest & Field Manager. It has been fun to watch him grow into the amazing man, and father he is today, and we will miss his easy smile and way on the farm. We wish you good luck in your new venture!!

We’re happy to send some BUTTERNUT SQUASH in this week’s share for you! Butternut Squash is often used to make Pumpkin Pie and this recipe sounds like a fantastic one!

BUTTERNUT SQUASH PIE

Ingredients for the Crust

  • 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
  •  Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening, chilled
  • 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, in 5 pieces
  • 1 large egg, beaten

Ingredients for the Filling

  • 2 large eggs plus 2 egg yolks
  • 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ cup dark brown sugar
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  •  Pinch cayenne pepper
  • 1 ½ cups roasted squash purée (see note)
  • 1 ¼ cups heavy cream
  •  Whipped cream, for garnish (optional)

For the Candied Squash & Ginger Relish (optional)

  • ¾ cup finely diced peeled butternut squash
  • 1 ½ tablespoons finely diced lemon peel (cut from thin lemon slices)
  • 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  •  Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons finely diced candied ginger

Preparation

  1. Make the crust: Combine flour and salt in food processor bowl, and pulse. Remove lid, scatter vegetable shortening and butter over surface, and pulse 5 or 6 times.
  2. Combine beaten egg and 3 tablespoons ice water. Pulse liquid into dry ingredients, continuing until mixture is evenly moist and dough looks curdy, about 10 seconds. Turn onto work surface, and press firmly into disk, adding drops of water if dough feels dry. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or overnight.
  3. Roll dough into 15-inch round on lightly floured surface, about 1/8 inch thick, and fit into shallow 9-inch pie pan. Trim and crimp edges, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour. Meanwhile, place large pizza stone on lowest rack in oven, and heat at 425 degrees for 1 hour. (If you don’t have a pizza stone, you can go without. It can help prevent a soggy bottom crust.)
  4. Line chilled pie pan with aluminum foil and fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake on pizza stone for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake until crust dries out and crimped edges begin to color, 3 to 5 minutes. Lower oven heat to 300 degrees.
  5. While crust bakes, prepare filling: Combine eggs, vanilla, sugars, salt and spices in food processor, and process until smooth. Add squash purée, and process until smooth. With machine running, pour in heavy cream, and process to combine.
  6. Scrape filling into hot prebaked shell, and bake on pizza stone for 20 minutes. Turn the oven up to 325 degrees and continue baking for another 20 to 25 minutes until filling is set two-thirds of the way in from the perimeter and the center still jiggles, about 40 to 45 minutes total (custard will continue to cook after pie is removed from oven). Tent edges loosely with foil if browning too quickly.
  7. Meanwhile, prepare the candied squash and ginger relish, if using: Combine squash, lemon peel, lemon juice, sugar and salt in small bowl, and stir well. Macerate 30 minutes. Turn into small saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until tender and liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. Add ginger and mix well.
  8. Remove pie from oven, and cool to room temperature on rack. Garnish with whipped cream and the relish, if desired.

Tip

  • To make roasted squash purée, heat oven to 400 degrees. Trim the stems from 2 butternut squashes (3 1/2 to 4 pounds each), and then cut through them horizontally, where bulb begins. (Reserve bulbs for another use.) Cut squash necks in half lengthwise. Slice into 1-inch sections, coat with 1 tablespoon grapeseed or other neutral oil, and place in a single layer on a sheet pan. Bake until tender and beginning to caramelize, about 40 minutes. Cool slightly, remove skin with a paring knife, and force flesh through a food mill. You should have 2 1/3 to 3 cups purée. (It will keep in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 4 days, or in the freezer up to 2 months. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.)

As the season comes to a close, we’d like to wish you all a warm, safe, & healthy winter and holiday season. We so appreciate all of you & have enjoyed sharing the season with you. We look forward to feeding you in the New Year!!

Linda and all of your Winter Green Farmers ❤️