10/21/13

20131022-112313.jpgA colorful share today, with the red potatoes that you’ve seen before, tomatoes, that are loving the heat generated in the hoophouse from all this sun, beets (finally!).  Also we have Delicata winter squash today, which are very exciting due to their sweet flavor AND their amazingly tender skin which you don’t have to peel.  See how to easily prepare Delicata squash below.  Rainbow Lacinato kale makes another appearance after quite a hiatus.  It’s looking strong in this fall weather.  Cucumbers are still hanging around as well.  In fact, today we have some lemon cucumbers from the children’s garden which they weren’t going to harvest.  A zucchini or few as well – hangin in there just barely.  New and exciting this week are the cippolini onions!  These are very sweet and delicious roasted whole in the oven.  I would stick the beets in there too while I’m at it.  Two heads of lettuce round out the share: Nevada is the green, and double density is the green/red.

Here is a simple way to prepare delicata squash which I like:

Simple Sautéed Delicata Squash

Recipe by Meta Dunn  (from fruitguys.com)

INGREDIENTS
1  delicata squash
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced (or 1 tablespoon of minced shallot or onion)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Marinara sauce (optional)
Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional)

PREPARATION

  • Cut delicata squash in half, clean out seeds, and slice thinly (1/4 to 1/2 inch).
  • Heat olive oil in a skillet to medium-hot, and sauté minced garlic (or shallots or onions) for around 2 minutes or until garlic just starts to color. Add in sliced delicata squash and sauté until just tender (or to your liking).
  • Season with salt and pepper to taste, and eat as-is, or try topping with warm marinara sauce and a little Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Serves 2 as a side or 1 as an entree. Prep time, 5 minutes; cook time, 7–10 minutes.

Cook’s note: Delicata skin is edible, so no need to peel this delicious squash!

Field Notes & fall crop inventory

I’m still mowing down and tilling under beds that are finished, and sort of waiting for a bit of rain to come to spread more cover crop to help it germinate, though that may be a long wait!  The late beet plantings are beginning to size up, so I will try to alternate carrots and beets week to week for a bit.  Carrots will definitely last through til the last CSA week.  You will see more leeks and garlic in the allium department from here on out, as the onions are basically gone.   We’ll have probably about 2 more weeks of potatoes before they’ll be done.  Winter squash & pumpkin (in various forms) should last us until the very end, just barely.  Between collards, kale, and swiss chard (and maybe a hint of mustard greens) our braising green supply should hold us til the CSA finish line as well.  Lettuce will peter out here in the next couple weeks.  Then we’ll move on to the bitter (and more cold tolerant) salad greens: the chicories – which include radicchio, escarole, and sugarloaf chicory.  The purple top turnips should provide everyone with one harvest toward the end.  Also, you’ll probably see a small brussel harvest toward the end.  Parsnips will dive in for a quick visit as well in the late season.  Hopefully these last few items will take the place of the potatoes when they run out.  Thursday folks got a little bit of cabbage this past week, but I don’t have enough right now for Monday peeps.  Hopefully there will be some sort of cabbage harvest for Monday folks from the later planting before the season is through (fingers crossed).  OK I think that pretty much covers the crop round-up for now.

Out to the fields for more putting more beds to bed.