July 10
THE BELLS BENDER
Week 9
The Harvest:
-
Potatoes - Our first digging of Yukon Gold potatoes...finally! We think they are well worth the wait.
-
Leeks - The first leeks we've grown and...it worked! I think these may qualify as "baby" leeks -- great tasting and good lookin'.
- Beans - Asian Yard Long beans and Italian Flat Beans, or your choice for half shares. These Yard Long beans are almost as long as the name suggests -- see recipes below.
- Tomatoes - more delicious "sungold" cherry tomatoes and/or slicing tomato.
- Beets - Golden, Red, and Chioggia beets.
- Zucchini and Zephyr Squash
- Onions
- Garlic
- Basil - pesto-making quantities of thai purple basil and sweet basil!
- Rosemary
- Blackberries - Our second variety of blackberries!
Organic Chicken from Bells Bend will be available at the Farm pick up and by order this week. Truly free-range and fed organic, local feed, these birds are not only incredibly delicious, but incredibly local! Either pick up chickens at farm on Tuesday from 4-6 pm or contact Fletcher at FletchersPoultry@gmail.com. East Nashville pick up can order in advance for Wednesday. Chickens are whole and are $5/lb.
Blueberries will be available for pre-order beginning this week. These incredible blueberries are biodynamically/organically grown at Hidden Springs Farm near Cookeville. These are the same blueberries we had last year and we highly recommend them. Email us for order at BellsBendFarmsCSA@gmail.com Cost is $6/pint, $30/gallon.
News from the Farm
The growing season for us is a completely externalized time. We spend our lives in the field -- no significant others, very few friends outside of the farming group, and almost no time spent alone. Many summer evenings, especially with these longer days, we are out of the field at 9, eat dinner by 10, and fall asleep with our boots on to start again the next morning. Even Sundays, our designated "day off", is usually spent helping neighbors and others who have done the same for us in a time of need. Eventually, enough builds up and several events happen at once, bringing us back to ourselves and bringing our lives into balance once again, if only for a short time. This was one of those weeks for me and I feel as if Brooke and the interns should be writing the newsletter this week, as I have been in the garden less than ever it seems.
Last week a friend of ours was riding to the farm for a potluck and got in a serious bicycle accident. An E.R. visit until 5am the next day followed by consistent trips into town to clean wounds and change bandages took me out of the farm bubble physically and mentally. Immediately after the Saturday pick up I flew to Florida, where I am currently writing this, to visit my grandfather who had a serious stroke. Eventually one realizes that the "I've got to work" excuse, although valid, needs to be put aside and off-farm responsibilities --and those we love-- need to be taken care of. All of this time in and out of hospitals makes me appreciate the farm, the food we eat, how healthy we are, and the incredible people who make it all possible. By the way, it's 80 degrees and rainy in southern Florida -- I'm sending it north!
The time I have spent in the garden, still 6+ hours a day, has been healing. We have accepted that it will not rain for a while longer (3+ weeks now) and that some things do need watering. We have been spending our days mulching the crops, which suppresses weeds while holding in significant amounts of moisture. We've planted about 3,000 feet of sweet potatoes and have another 4,000 feet to go. A little late in the season for them, as we have not been able to locate the small sweet potato transplants called "slips". Regardless, it always works out. As my neighbor, farm partner, and teacher George West always reminds me, "You could work all day and night for the entire season and still won't get it all done". Farming is constant, but a break under unfortunate circumstances is, at times, necessary.
 Early morning harvest following the full moon. This is what I meant last week by the significant increase in moisture before and during a full moon. From right to left, cosmos/zinnias, wax beans, peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, pole beans, etc.
Our fourth cucumber planting, and finally one we're pleased with. The others were pre-flood plantings that never did well due to their rough start, hence our current lack of good cucumbers. These little guys emerged after our last rain (over 3 weeks ago) and have doubled in size daily, despite the dry conditions. Better invest in canning supplies now--we'll all be making pickles in 2-3 weeks.
Have a great week!
Your farmers,
Eric, Brooke, George, Kevin, Peter, Evan, and more!
The band of outlaws, covered to keep the hay-dust out of our lungs. From right, Kevin, Evan, dog #4, Peter, and yours truly. Brooke present, but with camera.
Recipes
Potato Leek Soup
Some say you can't eat soup in the summer, but I strongly disagree. A nice simple soup with a salad or steamed veggies on the side makes a deliciously satisfying, but light meal in the summer when heavy foods just don't feel right. Besides, this soup can be served hot or cold. Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 pound leeks, cleaned and dark green sections removed, approximately 4 to 5 medium
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Heavy pinch kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
14 ounces, approximately 3 small, Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced small
1 quart vegetable broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon snipped chives
Chop the leeks into small pieces.
In a 6-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and a heavy pinch of salt and sweat for 5 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low and cook until the leeks are tender, approximately 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the potatoes and the vegetable broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer until the potatoes are soft, approximately 45 minutes.
Turn off the heat and puree the mixture with an immersion blender until smooth. Stir in the heavy cream, buttermilk, and white pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired. Sprinkle with chives and serve immediately, or chill and serve cold.
Basil Pesto
Pesto is a great thing to have around for a quick pasta or pizza sauce, to add to a vinaigrette for extra basil-y flavor, to gussy up some eggs, or bread, or squash, etc. You can't really go wrong with garlic, olive oil, basil, and salty cheese. Pesto grilled cheese, anyone?
We're cutting our basil all the way back this week to make room for fresh new growth on the plants, so here's your chance to stock up on a little pesto. Feel free to experiment with different ingredients. I almost never use pine nuts because they are so dang expensive, and my friend is deathly allergic to them. You can use just about any nut or seed in their place, but I would not recommend peanuts. Have fun!
Ingredients
2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup pine nuts
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Pecorino cheese
Directions
Combine the basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
If using immediately, add all the remaining oil and pulse until smooth. Transfer the pesto to a large serving bowl and mix in the cheese.
If freezing, transfer to an air-tight container and drizzle remaining oil over the top. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw and stir in cheese.
Yard Long Beans with Garlic
When I was a kid, my mom used to take me to a Chinese restaurant, and my favorite food there was the garlic green beans. Over the years I've tried to recreate this dish with green beans, and have failed miserably every time. Now I know that it was the flavor and texture of the yard long bean that I was missing. This recipe calls for pork, but it's delicious without it as well.
1 lb Long Beans, washed and cut into 3" long pieces
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1 TBS dark soy sauce
1 TBS Chinese Rice Wine like Shaoxing or dry sherry
2 TBS water
2 TBS peanut or canola oil
2 medium scallion or green onion cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 medium cloves of garlic, minced
2 oz ground pork (or sub for vegetarians)
Bring water to boil in a large saucepan. Add the beans and cook for approx 1 minute, drain and rinse with cold water.
In a small bowl combine the salt, sugar, soy sauce, rice wine.
Heat wok or large saute pan to high and ad the oil. Add the scallion/green onion and the garlic and stir fry for 5 seconds, add the ground pork (if using) and fry for 1 - 2 minutes. Pour the sauce into the pan. add the beans and cook for 2 minutes more until heated.
Enjoy!
Brooke
|
