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The Harvest :
- Turnip Greens - The heavy rains last week threw a bit of dirt onto these greens. We expect everyone to wash their greens each week, so this is a reminder!
- Okra
- Cucumbers - Cuke harvest is winding down, but you'll still get a lot this week!
- Tomatoes
- Still waiting for third round of tomatoes to come in. This weeks tomatoes were picked "first blush", meaning they are not quite ripe. Just set them on the table for a few days and they will be perfect.
- Peppers - Sweet peppers and all you can take for hot peppers
- Yard Long Beans
- Yellow
Squash - also winding down.
- Basil - Still all you can take.
- Garlic
- Zinnias
News from the Farm
The past week brought rain and the rain brought slightly cooler weather! Although the temperature has only dropped into the low 90s, it feels like fall to us after the past month's heat. Our days have been split into morning harvests and planting evenings, as we try to get a good fall garden going. Everything looks good so far, with lots of greens, carrots, parsley, beets, and more sprouting. The trick now is to keep the summer weeds away from the new seedlings as well as the more difficult task of keeping the late-summer bugs off the young plants. We have large, light covers (think huge blanket) that can be placed over plants to keep insects off, retain moisture, etc. The first cover we have laid down measures 20' x 1000' and will also serve as frost protection when we start getting our first October freezes.
The mentioned row cover, peeled back for only a few evening hours so we can transplant hundreds of fall seedlings before it is sealed again.
Heading towards the fall is exciting, but also a little worrisome. The summer crops we've eaten for weeks (even months) are now at their last leg and will stop producing any day. Although some of you are still loving the summer veggies, many of you will be happy to hear that this is the last week for squash, cucumbers, and likely beans. This is why the fall transition is rocky. All the summer veggies are on their way out, but the fall crops have not yet come in, leaving us a few scrambling weeks in September to ensure you're getting your value's worth. It should prove to be an interesting time!
Your farmers,
Eric,
Brooke, Kevin, Evan, and Amelia
Hi folks! Hope yall had a great week, and enjoyed the shocking 10
degree drop in temperature as much as we did! Here are some more
recipes to tempt your palette...
First here is a great squash recipe that two members sent in last week. Although our summer squash harvest is on the decline, many of you may have an abundance in your personal garden. The recipe calls for zucchini, but you can substitute yellow squash. Zucchini-tian
Roasted Okra
So, I forgot to mention roasted okra last week while on my okra
rant, and a few of you reminded me of this fabulous, not to mention
effortless, preparation - Toss the pods in olive oil and roast them in a
single layer at 450 degrees until blistering, and beginning to brown,
about 12 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste, and Enjoy!
Will Campbell's All Purpose Sauce
OK, I keep talking about this most awesome sauce, and how good it
is on okra and fried green tomatoes, and how you can find it in the
newsletter from three weeks ago, etc. But, the truth is, I only thought
about sharing it, and I thought about it so much, that I actually
tricked myself into thinking that I had. I'm terribly sorry about that,
but here it is for real, brought to you by John Egerton, and his
collection of Egerton family recipes...
Mix by hand 1 cup of mayonnaise, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 clove of
garlic (minced fine); season to taste with celery salt, onion salt,
black pepper and horseradish.
**We add LOTS of fresh herbs, too, like a large handful of fresh chives, parsley, or celery leaves.
THE Biscuit Recipe
This quintessential buttermilk
biscuit recipe was bequeathed to me by my sweetie, and though he is a
great teacher, my biscuits are never quite as good as his. Here, I will
try my best to explain the necessary technique that you need to master
in order for you and your loved ones to experience the kind of pure
bliss that only comes to those who have tasted the fluffy, buttery
goodness of the perfect biscuit.
Here's what you need:
2 cups White Lily flour, sifted!
a heaping 1/2 t salt
3 1/4 t baking powder
1 t sugar, if desired
1/2 t baking soda
5T cold lard or butter, cut into 1/2" x 1/4" squares (do some extra crunches later, or something)
7/8 cups buttermilk
Said technique:
Preheat your oven to
450 degrees F. Sift all your dry ingredients into a mixing bowl.
Please, don't try this with all purpose flour or some sort of healthy,
high quality whole wheat flour. Or, maybe you should, and then try it
with good ole' trusty White Lily, which is milled from a low-protein
wheat that makes for a much lighter biscuit.
Now for the fat - I usually choose butter because, well, we don't have a
source for good lard, and so butter is really the only choice, and a
delicious one at that! The butter MUST be cold. A good way to ensure
this is to cut your butter, then put your tiny butter cubes in a bowl in
the fridge, only to be taken out just before incorporating them into
your dry ingredients.
So, remove the butter or lard from the fridge, and, with your hands in
the flour mixture, quickly incorporate the fat by smearing the butter
bits between your thumb and forefinger, coating the flakes of butter
with flour and creating a shaggy mix. Then pour in your buttermilk and
gently mix by hand until the dough comes together. (It should be
sticky) Turn the dough onto a floured board and knead four or five
times. Roll out the dough to a 1/2 inch thickness, and use a 1" or 2"
biscuit cutter, to make cute round biscuits. OR, if you don't have a
cutter, just use a knife, and cut them into squares - whatever works for
you. Square biscuits taste good, too!
Place the biscuits on a sheet pan, or a pizza stone with room to
breathe, at least 1/2" apart (contrary to popular belief, they don't
need to be touching on the pan). Bake at 450 degrees until they rise
and begin to brown, about 8-10 minutes depending on your oven. Pass the
jam, and enjoy! |
