9/9/26 Crunch Time & Transition Time
Having amazing late summer harvests are necessary to a good small farm for bur us, so is farming year-round. Late August and early September is absolute crunch time on our farm more than many a farm. Everyone understands about huge harvests coming in but what they don’t understand is the planting that needs to happen to make winter farming happen.
In order to make winter farming happen we already have in process: our winter squash finishing in the field and some already curing in the barn, Potatoes and Onions are coming from friends who are still tending those. But the fresher crops need planting NOW especially the heading Brassicas including Broccolis, Cauliflowers, Cabbages and even Kolrabi, for winter Beets, for the bunching greens to take us through May, for the bulk of our winter chicories… all of those need to be in the ground by their own deadlines from Sept 1 to Oct 1st.
These need to get in now because of shortening day lengths. Once we hit 10 hours of sunlight a day there is a big change in growth and we need plants to be ready for that. If you’ve been a CSA member before, you’ve heard us talk about the Persephone Period from Nov 18th - Jan 23rd at this latitude.
In the last 10 days we’ve planted:
425 bed feet of Cauliflower
255 bed feet of Broccoli
305 bed feet of Romanesco
288 bed feet of Kales
270 bed feet of Cabbages.
= That’s almost 3500 Brassica plants in the ground!
Hence we’re running overtime and a heat wave like this week isn’t exactly helpful. Many thanks to our crew, many of whom came in at 5am this morning to get veggies harvested while cool and fresh and also so work could get done on our human bodies before the heat.
In addition to this Crunch Time, we have the major transition time of humans on the farm this year. It’s a rough time for it but Elizabeth has been working much of this summer to get new staff coming in.
A big goodbye this week to Sam and Amaia who are heading out to Green Acres in Cincinnati. Yes like the old TV show, it’s a real place that’s a non-profit farm that does research and education in addition to events and feeding folks. Sam is starting a grain project and Amaia will be joining the animal team (something she’s missed while being on our farm with not so many animals).
As for the new folks, this week we welcomed Amal, the last of our new crew coming in (Pippin, Owen, Glen and Baldomero). And to top it off, Elizabeth started interviews this week for 2027 new crew - probably only 1 or 2 but we already have a couple awesome applicants. Many of the best farmers are looking for jobs now, prepping for their next season.
Here’s to farming through the crunch time! Thanks everyone for your support!
This Week’s Box
Lettuce Leaf Mix
🍅 Mixed Tomato Quart 🍅
Shishito Peppers
Brussels Greens (SR) OR Toscano Kale (WC)
Amaia’s Fresh Onions (SR) OR Carrots (WC)
Summer Squash (SR) OR Cucumbers (WC)
Basil (SR) OR Scallions (WC)
Family: Italian Sweet Peppers + Baby Bok Choi
Produce Notes & Recipes
This week’s Lettuce Leaf Mix is in plastic bags rather than paper. We did this only because we thought it would hold up better in the heat. Usually we prefer paper because you can recycle or compost them but they do worse for the produce. So any week, get your produce out of the paper bags (or this week plastic) wash in cool water to clean and revitalize your greens and store away in appropriate containers.
A reminder that our CSA Member Handbook has much more detailed information on Washing & Preparing Greens as well as Greens Substitutions, Preserving your Produce and Kitchen Tools & Gadgets plus oh so many more bits of information.
You’ll find a beautiful bunch of Fresh Onions in today’s CSA box. These were grown by Amaia as a passion project, it’s her last week we feel it’s a lovely hurrah for her. Check out last week’s newsletter for more on them.
Shishito Peppers are rocking and we’ve given a few ideas around blistered Shishitos, and although this is certainly yummy, you can use other ways too (although honestly most of these are blistered first):
Add raw to salsa (great in a tropical salsa with mango, red onion, lime juice and cilantro);
Shishito Pepper Pesto - either blister first or use raw, it adds a little heat to pesto;
Add roasted or blistered shishitos to hummus for a smoky and spicy flavor;
Blistered shishitos and green beans on toast;
Add to a stir-fry (I saw one recipe for shishito, eggplant and shrimp stir-fry);
Add to a curry;
Tempura fried shishitos.
Shishito & Kale Sauté with Garlic, Lemon and Basil
1 qt shishito peppers (about 20–25)
1 bunch kale (about ½ lb), stems removed, torn into bite-sized pieces
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 Tbs olive oil
½ tsp salt
Juice of ½ lemon
1 handful fresh basil leaves, torn
Optional: 2 Tbs grated Parmesan or toasted sesame seeds
Heat olive oil in a wide skillet over medium-high. Add shishitos and cook, stirring occasionally, until blistered and slightly softened, 4–5 min.
Add garlic, kale, and basil. Toss until kale wilts and brightens, 2–3 min.
Season with salt and squeeze lemon over. Top with Parmesan or sesame seeds if desired. Serve warm as a side or with rice.
Shishito Pepper & Tomato Salad (Honest Cooking)
1 lb (450 g) shishito peppers (or any other kind of sweet peppers if not available)
1 Tbs (15 ml) olive oil
Pinch of coarse salt (kosher or sea salt)
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1 large heirloom tomato, sliced
1/4 cup (60 ml) fresh cilantro, chopped
2 green onions, sliced
In a sauté pan, heat 1 Tbs of olive oil over high heat until fragrant.
Add the shishito peppers, a pinch of salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Sauté for five minutes, or until the skin starts to blister.
Remove the peppers from heat and let them cool slightly.
In a large bowl, combine the sliced heirloom tomato, chopped cilantro, and sliced green onions.
Add the sautéed peppers to the bowl and gently toss to combine all ingredients.
Serve immediately as a refreshing summer salad.
Recipe Notes:
Shishito peppers are mostly sweet with an occasional spicy one.
No need to remove the insides or stems due to their small size.
This salad is best served fresh but can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one day.
For a variation, try adding a squeeze of lime juice for extra freshness.
We have our first Brussels Greens (aka Brussels Collards) in today’s box. In writing about all the Brassicas I didn’t mention Brussels Sprouts because they take so long they were all planted in July! As they grow, we love using this crop as a double crop. The Brussel Greens are very similar to a Collard but they have a Brussels flavor. They’re a great late-summer green because they have the sturdiness of collards but that mild Brussels-sprout/cabbage flavor loves tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, corn, basil, garlic, and onions. I’d lean away from heavy winter-style preparations and use acid, olive oil, fresh herbs, and summer vegetables. Ideas:
Brussels Greens, Tomatoes & Garlic: Ribbon the greens and sauté with lots of garlic and olive oil. Add chopped ripe tomatoes toward the end so they collapse into a light sauce. Finish with lemon or red-wine vinegar and Parmesan. Great over pasta, polenta, or toast.
Zucchini + Brussels Greens with Basil: Brown summer squash fairly hard first, remove it, then sauté onion/garlic and sliced Brussels greens. Return the zucchini and finish with basil, lemon and feta or Parmesan.
Brussels Greens & Fresh Tomato Pasta: Garlic, chile flakes, greens, juicy chopped tomatoes and pasta water. Toss with spaghetti/orecchiette and pecorino. This might be particularly CSA-friendly because it uses several things people are getting right now.
Brussels Greens Pesto: Blanch the leaves briefly, squeeze dry, then blend with basil, garlic, Parmesan, nuts and olive oil. The Brussels flavor would make this more interesting than straight basil pesto and stretch precious basil.
Extra Shares
Flower Share: 🌹 American Beauty Dahlia Focus
Lettuce Share: Red Butter Lettuce + Gems 🥬
Bunched Greens Share: 🌈 Rainbow Chard
Herb Share: Parsley
Summer Pint Share: Strawberries
Eggs: 🥚