Author: Core Group

Dear CSA Member

The green that was summer is slowly melting as the trees are now well on their way to reds, yellows and oranges. Even though it has been very rainy, the bright yellows are highlights in the landscape.

The garden is also settling in to a different rhythm. The hectic, sun filled summer is now heavier, grounded and very fall like. We are pulling vegetables from the earth: Beets, Celeriac, Black Radish and Leeks. You will be able to tell right away because even though we do wash the root crops, during very rainy times, the soil holds despite our best efforts. We use a Barrel Washer to wash the root crops. It really is an oak barrel with spray nozzles attached to the top. It spins and the root crops are washed as they make their way to the other end. Mennonite crafts people created and manufacture the barrel washer and it works rather well but you will still need a good vegetable brush.

Great news from the Yorkville CSA and Yorkville CSA member Dick Sandhaus Dick is the voice behind the Better, Cheaper, Slower e-news site subscriptions@BetterCheaperSlower.com.

CSA Cooking Contest
At long last we have a winner representing the Yorkville CSA at the first CSA Smackdown to be held later this season by Just Food. Dick Sandhaus smoked the competition with his root rosti served with deliciously crispy lacinato kale chips and warm, chunky salsa of apples, pears and fresh mint. The rosti was a play on the classic swiss pancake-like dish but instead of the traditional potatoes Dick combined grated beets, carrots and garlic for a dish that was crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. And the whole thing was done in 30 minutes.

If you have recipes that you would like to share, please send them to me and I will post them in the recipe section of the farm website.

Market Place orders will be delivered with the CSA shares. Maple and honey are going quickly so please place your order if you would like to stock up for the winter months. The coffee is freshly roasted and really is delicious.

Enjoy the beautiful fall and the vegetables. The vegetables have been growing since the spring and it is time to harvest and enjoy the fruits of our labors.

Deborah
for everyone at Stoneledge Farm

Dear CSA Member

The mornings are cool and the fields are wet with dew. The rains have been coming more frequently as the ponds and creeks fill with water for the winter.

Beautiful Siberian Kale is bursting from the crates. The leaves are still tender and the cold starts to enhance the flavor.

Freshly dug potatoes and leeks make a perfect pair. Add a bit of parsley and you have a soup that will be a treat.

The vegetables are hearty and perfect as the weather and seasons change.

THIS WEEK IS COFFEE SHARE PICK UP WEEK. PLEASE REMEMBER TO PICK UP YOUR COFFEE IF YOU HAVE A COFFEE SHARE.

We have been having trouble with our internet service and so Market Place orders will probably be a week late if you are just getting them in.

Enjoy the vegetables.
Deborah for everyone at Stoneledge Farm

Dear CSA Member

The kale is beautiful. Slightly cooler weather and the flavor is even better. This week is Lacinato, some call it Dinosaur Kale. It is long, thin and blueish in color. I think it is one of the favorite kale varieties. Steam it, make kale chips, use it raw in a marinated kale salad. I actually never heard of eating raw kale until this year. Kale chips were also new to me a couple of years ago.

Garlic, at long last, will also be in your share. It is some of the nicest garlic we have ever harvested. What a treat to finally be able to savor the wonderful flavor.

The new photos will be on the Farm Face Book page. A monster black bear ran across the field the other day. We think he was about 400 pounds. It was in the afternoon and our farm day off. Thank goodness. Pete and I happened to be going by in the truck just as the bear made his way across the newly planted rye. They are just magnificent to see but we were glad we were in the truck. Hopefully it was a rare afternoon outing for the bear. I took photos of his foot prints and posted them on the Face Book page. It just isn’t as impressive as his massive, shiny black hide shimmering across the field, but a lot safer.

Market Place orders will be delivered with your CSA shares. Honey and Maple Syrup are perfect partners with Winter Squash. There is still a good supply of A and B Grades of Maple and also Honey, but it is good to order earlier rather than be disappointed that we have sold out the size you would like.

Enjoy the Vegetables, enjoy Fall.
Deborah
for everyone at Stoneledge Farm

Dear CSA Member

Cooler night times, cooler day times, the sun is shining with bright fall intensity.  The sky seems extra blue and the colors of the fall vegetables are like a sea of greens and blues.  During the farm visit a young member asked why some of the leaves of kale are blue.  We live with the shades across the field every day.  The variety of fall colors are taken for granted until they are viewed with fresh eyes.  There are many varieties of Brassicas that fill the shares during the fall and cooler months.  Kale, Collards, Cabbage are all family members, each with its’ own color, texture and flavor.

Each Brassica is bursting with health related benefits, beautiful colors and textures and taste.  This week Green Fall Cabbage is in your share.  There are  recipes for Sauerkraut in a Mason Jar, Cole Slaw and Braised Cabbage on the farm website, Recipe link.  Cabbage will also keep in your refrigerator vegetable bin for a very long time.

Carrots in colors.  The bunch of carrots in your share this week is something Peter tried for the first time this year.  We grow nice big delicious orange carrots.  They can’t be beat. Each December when we are ordering seed for the next season, the seed catalogs tempt us with new varieties, colors, shapes of the tried and true vegetables. Carrots come in many colors: orange, yellow, purple. This year Peter decided we would order a smaller amount of the purple and yellow carrots and mix those seeds with some orange carrot seeds. planting them all together in one row.  The result is a beautiful bunch of carrots with orange, purple and yellow.  I still think the orange are the best tasting, but the bunches are beautiful.  The yellow carrots almost seem like a Parsnip.  Long and thin.  The purple carrots are dark skinned but still orange on the inside.  We hope you like this diversion from orange.

If you would like to order Honey, Maple, Coffee or another of the Market Place products,  Click on Market Place at the farm website and log into your account.  The order will be delivered with your CSA shares.

This week on the farm Face Book page are a variety of photos of early fall.

Enjoy fall, enjoy the vegetables,
Deborah
for everyone at Stoneledge Farm