Farm News

This week’s farm news is brought to you by Apprentice Jake Lau. Jake’s been working on the farm for 2 seasons now and apparently has seen his share of surprises. Jake writes:

Work on the farm is often unpredictable. We have to be ready for anything to happen, and to improvise on the spot. Trying to plan on the farm is like pulling a rabbit out of a hat. Except you are blindfolded and you have no idea what is in the hat. You just reach in and… Surprise! Surprise! a hole in the drip tape gushing water. Surprise! a hole in a truck tire. Surprise! that bed of just sprouted carrots has disappeared. Not all surprises are negative, however. Surprise! no mold in the strawberries. Surprise! great sweet corn. And the best surprise of all…baked goods left for us by grateful shareholders at distribution. On one hand, the surprises are what keep work feeling fresh and, on the other hand, the unpredictability of farming means that sometimes the third best choice is the only choice.

This last week provided a perfect example of the surprises we encounter on the farm. With Paul out of town last week the crew was prepared to deal with more of the unexpected than usual. So on Monday we were ready. And then, Surprise! The John Deere, the tractor used for moving the irrigation gun and seeding greens, wouldn’t start. Well, at least we could still use other tractors for the irrigation gun and the Allis Chalmers G for seeding greens. Problem solved. Whew, that was close. And then again, Surprise! The ‘G’ stops working. Ok, now what do we do? We eventually rigged up another ‘G’ tractor, and walked in two extra rows with a walk-behind seeder. Not exactly as planned, but close enough. Hope you enjoy the share this week. It is full of the good kind of surprises.

Jake, for Paul, Janine, Alice, Amanda, and Nate

-Pick Your Own at the farm: Plenty of basil and other herbs for the picking. Green beans are in, about 1 pound limit per share. Lots of Sunflowers, up to 3 per share. Flower patch is opened as well. The Pick Your Own patch is open to all shareholders, once per week, Tues. and Thursday 2:30 to 6:30 PM and Sat. 8 AM to noon.

Featured this week:

Sweet corn: Surprise! We had 2 weeks worth of corn come in all at once, so we are picking it all now and getting it to shareholders. If you have a lot of people looking to eat fresh sweet corn, that should be a great surprise. If you have a smaller number of people to feed, here are your options: 1) eat as much as you can fresh in the next 2 days, storing it in the fridge. 2) Use it in the great recipes at www.forthillfarm.com, click on “Recipes” and then “Sweet Corn”. Janine particularly recommends Corn and Tomato Gratin, Corn Chowder, and Corn and Tomato Salsa. 3) Freeze it! Corn is just about the easiest vegetable to store. First shuck the ears, and then blanch them by submerging them in a pot of boiling water for one minute, and then immediately plunge into cold water. Cut off the kernels in to a zip lock bag, purge the air, and freeze. You’ll have a nice surprise for some cold winter night when you can get a sweet taste of summer.

Tomatoes: Surprise! We actually have tomatoes this year. Talk about boom and bust cycles. Last year, the patch yielded nothing, nada, niente, because of the latest tomato scourge, late blight. This year the combination of hot weather and low rainfall has brought us (for the moment…) some very healthy plants loaded with yummy, tasty fruit. Time to don your tomato processing gear and store the harvest. Try them in the following recipes at our web site: salsa cruda ( a no-cook tomato sauce), Gazpacho (a refreshing, cold tomato soup), fresh tomato and corn salsa, and slow roasted plum tomatoes (works with any kind of tomato). Tomatoes can also be cored, quartered and frozen for later cooking use. Or give a nice surprise to your next door neighbor!

Ailsa Craig big sweet onions: a crew favorite. Slice into ½ inch slabs, coat with olive oil and grill for a tasty treat. Or chop into any recipe. Store these guys in the fridge as they have not been cured.

Also available: cucumbers, summer squash, basil, fresh garlic, Swiss Chard, and Farmers Choice.

Potentially on the way: tomatoes, cukes, summer squash, corn, potatoes, carrots

Recipes, suggested by Janine McCormick

Mexican-Style Zucchini Tacos, From Recipes from America’s Small Farms

1 ½ TBSP vegetable oil 4 medium summer squash, cut into ½ inch cubes

1 medium white onion, chopped 3 TBSP chopped fresh cilantro

2 medium to large tomatoes, chopped 2/3 cup heavy cream

2 garlic cloves, minced Salt to taste

2 large fresh poblano chiles Kernel from 1 ear of corn

½ cup Mexican queso fresco (or salted pressed farmers cheese or feta) crumbled

24 fresh, warm corn tortillas

Preparing the flavoring base: Measure the oil into a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until richly browned, about 8 minutes. While the onion is cooking coarsely puree the tomatoes in a food processor or blender. Add the garlic to browned onion, cook for 1 minute, stirring, then add the tomatoes. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover the skillet, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Roasting the chiles: Roast the poblanos directly over a gas flame or on a baking sheet 4 inches below a very hot broiler, turn regularly until the skin has blistered and blackened on all sides, about 5 minutes for an open flame, about 10 minutes for the broiler. Cover with a kitchen towel and let stand for 5 minutes. Rub off blackened skins, then pull out the seeds and stems. Rinse briefly. Slice into ¼ inch strips. Finishing the dish: Uncover the skillet and raise the heat to medium-high. Stir in the poblanos, corn, zucchini, cilantro, and heavy cream. Cook, stirring frequently, until the zucchini is crisp-tender and the liquid has thickened enough to coast the vegetables nicely, about 8 minutes. Taste and season with salt. Serve with the corn tortillas and crumbled cheese.

Roasted Chicken with Swiss chard and Fresh Corn Relish, From Recipes from America’s Small Farms

2 TBSP cider vinegar 1 cup fresh corn kernels

2 TBSP vegetable oil 1 large red bell pepper, chopped

1 TBSP sugar 2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 tsp chili powder 2 (3 pound) chickens, halved

1 tsp ground cumin 1 TBSP chopped fresh thyme

Salt and Freshly milled black pepper 1 ½ pounds Swiss chard, washed, thickly sliced

Combine the vinegar, oil, sugar, chili powder, cumin, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl. Stir in the corn, bell pepper, and onions. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Preheat the oven to 400F. Arrange the chicken halves in a large roasting pan. Sprinkle with the thyme, ½ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. Roast for 45 to 60 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 180F. Meanwhile simmer the greens in a large pot of boiling water until wilted. Drain well. When the chicken is cooked through, move it to a plate or board; add the chard to the roasting pan and stir until the pan juices are combined with the greens. Taste and add salt, if necessary. Divide the chard among 4 plates; top each with a chicken half and serve with the corn relish.

Albanian Cucumber Salad

Inspired by my brother in-law, Bes Islami, this is his mother’s classic cucumber salad.

2 cucumbers, sliced into half moons 1 large or 2 small tomatoes, chopped

½ -1 small red onion, thinly sliced Feta cheese, crumbled

Extra Virgin Olive Oil Salt and Fresh ground pepper to taste

White vinegar (I often use white balsamic or white wine vinegar)

Put the sliced cucumber, tomato, onion and feta (as much or as little feta as you like) into a bowl (preferably with a lid, or use a large tupperware container). Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil, about a ¼ cup and a good few Tablespoons of vinegar over the veggies. Season with salt and pepper. Put the lid on the bowl and shake until the ingredients are thoroughly combined. Adjust seasoning to taste. Serve as a side dish; with crusty bread and a salad for a light lunch or dinner; or use as a salad topper. It’s delicious!!! I make it weekly. It’s also good the next day.

Fort Hill Farm

Newsletter 8: July 28, 2010

Farm News