The Cornucopia

MOISTURE!!!

2012-01-20T06:00:00.000-08:00

Let it snow! It might not be much it is a start.

A new year, an new season!

2012-01-12T13:27:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! Oh, my what a mild start to winter. Quite a contrast to the last 4 or 5 years. We took most of December "off" from daily farm activity. Took advantage of some mild weather and cleaned up a couple of dead trees. We enjoyed time with children, visited with friends and now we begin a new season.

This time of year there are lots of events and meetings we can go to and recently we spent a day at Western Missouri State at a vegetable growers conference. One of the take aways for us is a new to us method of dealing with cucumber beetle. We are going to plant a trap crop to capture those little critters. We met some new people, reconnected with growers we have met before and gained some insight.

The seed potatoes, sweet potato slips are ordered, and the seed list is just about ready to be called into our 2 main suppliers. We are reviewing our crop rotations, evaluating some varieties and looking for some new ones to try.

Week 17 of 18!

2011-08-30T19:39:00.000-07:00

Wow, I was just getting used to it being August and September happens this week. Time moves so fast, it seems like we just got started with this season, it goes so rapidly. I washed some French Fingerlings this afternoon and they reminded me of small smooth stones on a beach on one of the great lakes! Just right size, the shape of them did that, and they taste good too! We had a little rain this morning, first measurable precipitation since when? July 1? We had a lot of trouble with seeds germinating in early August, this past week lettuce, salad greens, carrots, beets are all popping up! What a pleasant change. Tomatoes continue to frustrate us, recently we noticed all regular red tomatoes developed a "cat face" on the top, thinking what did I do now, I did a little reading and sure enough when it is very hot at the time a blossom turns into a little tomato, the fruit develops a "cat face". We will plant them earlier next year to avoid it. I think I have heard my self or someone else say next year about a dozen times this week. The small "cherry" tomato plants didn't mind the heat and continue to grow.

We got manure spread and worked in on our large east garden. We plan on planting strawberry plants there late in September. We missed not having strawberries this year. We have garlic, onions and shallots in the barn, we are beginning to see the end of potato digging. We have three varieties left, one we set aside as a storage potato.

Tomato season

2011-08-16T19:51:00.000-07:00

Yes, the tomatoes are FINALLY ripening in numbers. They still have a long way to go after a late start from our cool spring, and we are hoping that the weather will continue to be good so that we get some decent production before any hard frosts hit. Enjoy the taste of summer!

We need our bags back! (and boxes) - PLEASE. Every week, it seems, we lose a few of one or the other. If you have a bag, or two or three, sitting at home we need you to return them! That little flat piece holding the bottom of the bag in place is missing in a few, also. Even if last week's box is falling apart and could go in the recycling we really appreciate it if you would return those so that WE can throw them out and know exactly how many are still in use.

If you forget your bag or box this week could you please ask us to put your items in plastic bags to take home so we can keep the bag or box and have enough for next week. Thanks!

KMEG Channel 14 personality Erika Thomas does a program called Your Hometown Farmer on Thursday mornings on her news cast sometime between 5 and 7 am. She was here today with a camera man and interviewed us. She needs to shrink 3 hours of visiting into a 2 minute 45 second segment. She will let us know when it airs - likely in about 3 weeks.

Today John took out two rows of zucchini plants and began to remove cucumber plants. They certainly didn't earn their keep this year. We'll add some compost and begin a late season seeding of greens or radishes.

Janna is peeling bad (a.k.a. cracked) tomatoes this evening, there is a pot of something cooking on the stove. This is the bliss of wanting to eat well in winter, you need to stay up late in summer to get it all done.

This week in the bag you'll find:

Cucumber

Beans - whole shares will also have some little filet beans (very tender - don't overcook them)

Eggplant - try this sliced, breaded and fried or baked as an appetizer - YUM. It's also nice as a layer in your lasagna to replace one of the noodle layers

Pepper

Tomato

Lettuce

Onion - if you find your onions are getting a little ahead of you, chop them to the size you like and freeze them, then later when you are in a hurry, you can grab them out of the freezer ready to add to any dish you are cooking.

Potatoes

Leek

Cherry Tomatoes

Eggplant Appetizer (I am trying to remember what the girls did, so I hope I remember it all)

1-2 beaten eggs

Flour, salt, pepper, a little Italian seasoning or other herbs/spices of your choice.

(you could also just use pre-seasoned bread crumbs instead of the above mix)

Slice the eggplant (we sliced them about 1/4" thick) and pat the pieces dry, dip in beaten egg and then the dry mix. Fry in hot oil, or bake in the oven. Probably 375-400 until nice and golden brown. Be sure to flip them to brown both sides. If you fry them have several layers of paper towel ready to drain them on when they come out of the pan. I think these would also be good with a little parmesan cheese added to the breading. (try not to burn your mouth - we couldn't wait for them to cool before eating them)

Have a great week!

August Already!

2011-08-09T20:06:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

This week we have been planting broccoli, lettuce and watering the beets and carrots that germinated last week. We have some issues with beans, zucchini, cucumbers not producing like they should. We think that they dropped flowers during the hot days in July so there is little fruit. The yield on beans has been very poor on the first two plantings. We have two more plantings up and growing.

The tomatoes are starting to turn, both in the tunnel and outdoors. The mid to late season potato plants are starting to show that they are done growing so we see some different varieties in the next month. The carrots that we seeded in early July never germinated so we will have a gap for a week or more on carrots. The ones seeded last wednesday are up already. This past week and for the next day or three we will be getting all the onions out for storage. The onion crop is much better than last years!

We really liked the weather today and would like more of the same. The students are thinking that school is around the corner. One went to Dordt to clean her room and move in some things, the high school students are taking time for fall sport practice. I don't think I am ready for this.

Thank you to those that have sent in checks for the fall subscription.

In the bags this week we have;

Red Thumb potatoes...ultimate oven fries

tomatoes

pepper

onion

garlic

lettuce

parsley

fennel

Whole shares should also find carrots and zucchini in their boxes.

Cucumber Poetry?

2011-07-19T20:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it was a little warm around noon today while I was picking cucumbers. I had salty sweat running into my eyes (it stings a little) and there were big fat bumble bees humming all around. Bumbling from bloom to bloom - you get the picture - and I think it was all making me a little goofy and so I started making corny rhymy poetry in my head while I looked forward to taking a break in the air conditioning over lunch. We are very proud of the work the girls have done this week with all the heat. They even volunteered to come early (6am) to avoid the hottest later part of the afternoon. Way to go!

Garlic harvest began Monday morning and will hopefully be done by the end of the week with all of it hung up to dry. Once we are done with the garlic it is usually time to start thinking about planting some fall crops. John also informs me that the tomatoes are starting to turn color-Yeah!

We are also thankful for safety granted last week at our Sioux Center farm stand. A car crashed into our van and farm stand. While we had damage to our property, none of our customers or anyone else was hurt.

This week in your share.....

Rio Colorado Potato - red with nice white flesh. We oven roasted some potatoes last night and served them with pesto - yum!

Onions - big sweet white ones (still waiting for the reds to size up)

Beans - green or yellow

Swiss Chard - if you have leftover potatoes, try wilting in the chard when you reheat them with some garlic and onion and seasonings of your choice.

Cucumbers - always refreshing on a hot day

Peppers - purple, pale yellow or lime green - wonderful in an omlet or salad

Parsley - not just a garnish - parsley has many health benefits and is high in vitamins A, C, and K - try the leaves mixed in with a salad.

This week the 1/2 share will also have zucchini, whole shares will have beets and basil.

Note on Basil: putting it in the fridge will cause it to turn brown more quickly. If your house is air-conditioned, you could just leave the bag on the counter until you use it. Better yet, take the longer stems out and trim the ends as you would fresh flowers and put them in a little jar of water on your counter and use as needed.

Pesto: this is a basic recipe, but you can easily adjust amounts to your taste.

3 cups basil leaves

1/2 cup olive oil

1/3 cup pine nuts (you can also substitute pumpkin or sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, etc)

2 - 3 cloves of garlic chopped roughly

Parmesan cheese

mix it all up in your food processor or blender and use with pasta, as a veggie dip, on potatoes, etc.

Simple Beet/Carrot/Parsley Salad

Grate equal amounts of beets and carrots, add some chopped parsley and dress it with your favorite oil and vinegar dressing.

Pulling carrots out in the rain...

2011-07-12T21:28:00.001-07:00

Good Evening,

This morning it was actually a pleasant experience pulling out carrots one by one in rain gear, feeling the drops on my back, nice and cool compared to the sweat that it took to dig potatoes on Monday. We have the boxes and bags ready in the cooler to go to town in the morning. The showers today and possibly tomorrow will help us get some carrots and lettuce started for fall. The lettuce that was planted about a week ago was already harvested ( by a rabbit or rabbits) or some if it died because of the heat so we replant.

The potato of the week was developed years ago at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada's "Ag School". It is the Yukon Gold. Light yellow skin with yellow flesh, not as smooth as some potatoes we will have over the next month but a texture that you can detect on your tongue. It is considered a general purpose potato, I like them fried as leftovers, of course to be leftovers they are boiled and served first the night before and then the left overs are fried. To get that to happen one needs to bring extra to the kitchen when one is asked to bring potatoes for supper.

Most of our crops are coming along well because of the recent heat and sunshine. The tomatoes are looking better, we did plant them later than we usually do so we may not have them as soon as you might expect but so far the plants look much better than last year in July. Last year the outdoor ones basically rotted because of wet ground.

The boxes this week have;

Green and Yellow Beans

Onion

Garlic

Yukon Gold Potato

Broccoli

Zucchini

Carrots

Shunkyo Radish

Along with the Sunshine, You need a little Rain

2011-07-05T09:15:00.000-07:00

We hope that you had a wonderful Holiday weekend. We are grateful for our many freedoms and thankful to our Service-men and women who have dedicated themselves and given their lives to preserving those freedoms.
This has been a beautiful week of warm weather and this is the perfect kind of day for setting out transplants - a little moisture and cloud cover to help them make the transition to the field without too much stress. This morning I bolted out of bed when I heard thunder because I knew that I had a lot of lettuce to go out into the field. Last night John helped me put out around 100 basil (3 varieties) and about 200 lettuce. This morning during and after the rain I was able to put out another 800. I'm glad no one had time to take my picture - it was a pretty muddy business :) It was the kind of day every kid loves - out in the rain with mud squishing between your toes.

I'm excited about your shares this week - mostly because I think this is the first time I've had such a nice harvest from a second blooming of Peas and also because the Broccoli is ready!

This week in your share......

Purple Viking Potato - purple skins with white flesh - makes a pretty potato salad if you leave the skins on. We have washed these to get the mud off, so you'll want to use them soon or store them in the fridge.
Broccoli - steam it or serve it raw with dip or in a salad
Sugar Snap Peas - just string them and eat the whole thing - pod and all. We love them raw, but if you do cook them be sure not to overdo it or they'll get stringy.
Chives - 1/2 share has garlic chives and Whole share has regular chives. These will be perfect chopped into some sour cream and served with your new potatoes.
Onions
Lettuce - crunchy summer lettuce for your salads and sandwiches.

Whole shares will also have Carrots, Beets and Garlic this week. The garlic is not dried down yet, so either hang it up to dry, or cut off the stem and store it in your fridge. Peel the cloves like usual when you are ready to use it. If you store it in the fridge you'll want to use it in the next week to 10 days.

Colcannon

You’ll find this classic dish on the menu at any real Irish restaurant. It’s a recipe that takes two staples of the island, potatoes and kale (or sometimes cabbage), and transforms them into a dish truly worthy of the word classic. Angelic Organics Kitchen.

Serves 6

1 1/2 pounds medium boiling potatoes (about 3 medium potatoes)

2 teaspoons salt, divided, plus more to taste

1 1/2–2 pounds kale (15–20 large leaves)

1 cup chopped leeks or scallions

1 cup half-and-half or milk

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup butter, melted

1. Put the whole potatoes in a large pot, cover with water, and bring to boil. Add 1 teaspoon of the salt and boil until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and mash. Put in a heatproof dish and keep warm in a 200° oven.

2. Meanwhile, put the kale in a pot, cover with water, and bring to boil. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and cook until the kale is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. (There you go Mrs. Nesbit, it’s in the directions. Don’t worry, everyone will do it this way now that it’s spelled out exactly.) Drain and finely chop the kale.

3. Place the leeks or scallions in a small pot, cover with the half-and-half, and cook over low heat until very soft, 15 to 20 minutes.

4. Add the kale to the warm potatoes and mix well. Add the half-and-half with leeks or scallions. Add the pepper; season with salt to taste.

5. Spoon a little of the melted butter over each serving and serve hot.

Have a wonderful week!

Things are Heating Up!

2011-06-28T20:37:00.000-07:00

It looks like we will be having a break from all the wet weather and enjoy some heat and sunshine. We also look forward to seeing some of the benefits of the sunshine for plant growth. There are some great grilling options this week for the hot weather. Most of these veggies will be great in a foil packet for some easy summer meals.

This week in your share:

New Red Potatoes
Carrots
Big Red Radish
Cilantro
Butterhead Lettuce
Onions

Whole shares will also have Scarlet Queen turnips, Garlic Scapes and Swiss Chard this week.

Have a great week!

days are too short

2011-06-23T20:50:00.000-07:00

Hi,

We brought chickens to B and B Poultry Processing this morning, fortunately it was not raining! It has rained a lot, and it seems to rain when I need to put chickens in crates to take to Hospers. This morning Jessica and Madeline helped. I will be picking up the frozen birds tomorrow afternoon.

In the subscription shares this week we had;

white turnips
garlic scapes
onion
dill
parsley
kale
arugula

whole shares also had leaf lettuce and spinach

This morning we notice that the summer crisp head lettuce is looking good for next week. The herbs are also coming along nicely. We will be very busy as the sun warms up the next week or so. The weeds have done well with the recent wet spell.

We look forward to putting next weeks delivery together.

John

Last Wednesday Sioux Falls Argus Leader

2011-06-20T16:03:00.000-07:00

http://www.argusleader.com/article/20110615/LIFE/106150311/Color-me-happy-Achieve-great-amount-nutrients-by-adding-unusually-colored-veggies-your-diet

Another rainy day...

2011-06-14T14:08:00.000-07:00

Hi. Madeline here. Mom isn't here to write this week so I'm taking over for now.
After seeing so many tops go to the compost, I tried something yesterday and it turned out pretty good! I'm not sure what to call it but many dishes don't have names so it will just have to be called Beet Tops. Look forward to the next experiment: Carrot Tops! :)
Beet Tops
4-6 beets with tops
1 bunch green onions or 1 small onion
1 green garlic (opt.)
sauce:
1 cup chicken/vegetable broth
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp tamari
Boil beets in a small pot on the side or save in the fridge for later.
Heat large pan w/ olive oil, add chopped garlic and onion and soften. chop beet tops (and stems if desired), add and cover to wilt. adding a little water helps the wilting process.
mix sauce and pour over wilted greens, let simmer until tender and ready to eat.
serve immediately. approx. 4 servings

This week in the whole share:
salad mix
carrots
leaf lettuce
arugula
radishes
onions
beets
peas

The half share includes:
salad mix
leaf lettuce
arugula
radishes
onions
beets

Remember! We have chickens for sale tomorrow in Sioux Center! call or email to place an order.

Ribollita Recipe

2011-06-07T19:42:00.000-07:00

Here is the link to the Ribollita Recipe

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/ribollita-reboiled-italian-cabbage-soup/Detail.aspx

Green fields

2011-06-07T19:35:00.000-07:00

Suddenly this week, everywhere I look is a lush green. The brown spaces in the fields are giving way to the canopy of crop cover. It is amazing to see the huge variety of color from light lime green of the ditch grasses to the deep blue green of leek and garlic. The potatoes have gone from being "down in the trench" to being up on the ridge of the hill. All of this green is accented with the light pink and white of blossoms unfolding. John went through all the rows this week with the hiller to pile up dirt around the plants to keep the tubers covered and out of the sun so they don't turn green as they develop.

This week in your share....

Lettuce - Green Romaine this week

Red Radishes

Scallions/Green Onions

Green Kohlrabi - just like the purple, only green instead :)

Turnips -

Kale - try the recipe for the Ribollita from the link listed below

Beets - the first of the season

Full share will also receive Rhubarb this week - if you don't want to use it now, just wash, chop and freeze for later. Make some rhubarb sauce, or add it to your favorite fruit and make some jam.

Rhubarb Cake (from my mom)

1/2 c. butter

1 1/2 c. sugar (part white/part brown)

1 egg

1 c. sour milk or buttermilk

2 c. flour

1 tsp soda

1/4 tsp. salt

2 c. rhubarb- diced

cream the sugar and butter, mix in the egg, mix dry ingredients together and add alternately with the milk. Stir in the rhubarb. Pour batter into 9x13 pan and top with 1/2 c. sugar and some cinnamon. Bake @ 325 for 35-40 minutes.

Ribollita - keep this in the fridge to serve with salad for a satisfying meal.

Tip: the ribollita recipe calls for cabbage and swiss chard - feel free to use the kohlrabi and beet leaves as substitutes. Also, use your shallots for the onion.

Have a great week!

2011-06-02T06:30:00.000-07:00

Greetings everyone!

It looks like we are jumping right into summer with temps in the 90's this week. It is quite a change, but the drying weather has allowed us to get some major weeding done and continue some planting that was put on hold during the rains last week. This week was also the start of two markets for us - Sioux Center market and the Wednesday market at Sioux City. We have been watching the news closely regarding flooding in the Sioux City area and hope that everything will go well for our customers and friends who may be suffering from flood damage.

This week in your share.....

New Carrots - always a marvel to pull those first tender slim carrots - eat them raw - or give your dinner plate a gourmet look by trimming the top to 1" and lightly steaming.

Green Butterhead Lettuce

Red Butterhead Lettuce

Purple Kohlrabi - these are just beautiful this year. Peel the "bulb" and snack on it raw, lightly sprinkled with salt or dipped in your favorite dressing. The leaves may be cooked, chopped into salads etc. Use them like you would cabbage leaves.

Hakurei Turnips - best eaten raw, and the tops are great cooked or raw in salads

Swiss Chard - great on a sandwich, steamed, chopped and tossed with pasta, fabulous in a "green smoothie" boost your veggie intake.

This week Full shares will also receive....

Shallots - a.k.a. green onions - great fresh or added to your favorite cooked dish - stir the green part into some sour cream or cream cheese for a flavorful dip addition.

Spinach - this will be the last picking of this round of spinach while we wait for the next bed to size up and mature. Spinach lasagna anyone?

Have a great week!

Even the Birds want to come Indoors

2011-05-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

Well, as you all know, it is raining again, but we are happy to be harvesting under the cover of the high tunnel. This morning, while Madeline was seeding some trays a little hummingbird found its way into the garage. We all enjoyed watching it for a little while, and then opened the big door wide to be sure it could find its way out again. Well, 2 hours later, it is still fluttering around - not seeming too distressed. I think it is enjoying being out of the wet weather.

This is an exciting week for our family. Madeline will graduate from Unity Christian H.S. on Thursday, and yesterday her grandparents from Ontario, Canada flew in to help us celebrate. In addition, John's cousin from Holland (yes, The Netherlands), also arrived yesterday to surprise his parents with whom she spent a year when she was a teenager. And, Allison also joined us from California. I think we will have lots of coffee drinking and story telling in the next week.

In your share this week........

Spinach -

Green Kale - use this like the red kale last week. The leaves are a little bigger, so be sure to tear out the larger stems. Try kale chips for a fun treat.

Choy

Red Lettuce - make a lovely salad with these beautiful red leaves and their lovely light green centers

Hakurei Turnips - for some reason they have short tops this spring(blame it on the weather). Eat these raw for a wonderful snack, chop up into your salad, or lightly steam them. The tops are also good cooked.

Cilantro - add flavor to salsa, salads, or make into pesto.

Full shares also have a head of Flashy Troutback - a speckled type of Romaine lettuce.

Try this link with pictures for Kale Chips

http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/03/baked-kale-chips/

And here is a link for Sweet Annie Kale Salad

http://dickmanfam.blogspot.com/2009/07/sweet-annie-kale-salad.html

Enjoy your week!

Bring on the Sunshine!

2011-05-18T06:14:00.000-07:00

This will be a brief post because the sun is shining and we are going full steam ahead to get as much in the ground as possible before the rain starts again on Thursday. It looks like a great week for seeds to sprout. I'm going to also provide some information about greens from Angelic Organics - a CSA farm with their own cookbook and great online resources. Grilling season is also fast approaching (already here) and many veggies are great on the grill in foil packets (smaller pieces) or simply split in half, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with seasonings and placed directly on the grill. Enjoy the Sunshine!

In your share this week....

Spinach

Green Butterhead Lettuce

Red Butterhead

Red Russian Baby Kale - I love this added to salads, soups, or served as a side.

Green Pac Choi

Garlic Greens - looks like green onions - use anywhere you'd use garlic - also great on the grill

Choi

Choi (also spelled choy) has been cultivated in China for centuries and is now commonly found in markets in the United States. Choi is practically two vegetables in one: the leaves can be cooked and eaten like spinach, while the crisp stems—sweet and mild in flavor—can be used like celery or asparagus.

Storage
Refrigerate unwashed choi in a plastic container or loosely wrapped in a plastic bag. Choi keeps for over a week but is firmest and tastiest if used within a few days.

Handling
Just before using, rinse choi under cold running water and gently shake it dry. Cut the stems into 1-inch pieces and slice, shred, or tear the leaves. If you will be eating the stems raw, slice or julienne them.

Choi with Gingery Butter

This sauce has characteristically Asian-inspired flavors, but this recipe uses butter instead of oil for added richness. Don’t be fooled by how simple this is; it is an interesting and wonderfully flavorful side dish. Angelic Organics Kitchen (adapted from Judy Gorman’s Vegetable Cookbook).

Serves 4 to 6

2 medium choi (any kind), sliced crosswise into 1-inch strips

6 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari

1 tablespoon grated or finely chopped fresh ginger

1 clove garlic, minced or pressed (about 1/2 teaspoon)

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro

salt

freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the choi; cook until the choi is tender but still crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain the choi in a colander and immediately run under cold water. Drain well.

2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and choi; cook, stirring constantly, until the choi is well coated and heated through.
3. Remove the skillet from heat. Stir in the cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately

Salad Greens

Salad greens start early and keep coming throughout the season. Experiment with salad building! You can top greens with fruit, nuts, seeds, pasta, and whole grains in addition to numerous dressings. As nineteenth-century editor and author Charles Dudley Warner once wrote, “You can put everything, and the more things the better, into a salad, as into a conversation; but everything depends on the skill of mixing.”

Storage
Store unwashed lettuce or mesclun in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. (Wet greens will spoil quickly, so make sure they are truly dry before refrigerating them.) If you have a salad spinner, wash and spin the greens before refrigerating. Use mesclun mix within three or four days, and use lettuce within a week.

Handling
Salad greens bruise easily, so be sure to handle them gently. For lettuce, slice the head at its base with a sharp knife and let the leaves fall open. Discard any damaged or leathery outer leaves and tear large leaves into bite-size pieces. Wash lettuce and mesclun mix by swishing them in a basin of cold water. Dry the greens in a salad spinner. (Or place them loosely in a mesh bag or thin towel, then go outside and swing the bundle.)

Another possibility for lots of lettuce when you are in the mood for something warm is to wilt it and add to rice or potatoes. Simply wash and chop coarsely, then saute in olive oil or butter until wilted, season (try also adding a dash of balsamic vinegar) and toss with warm potatoes or rice.

The 2011 Vegetable Season is Here!

2011-05-09T13:25:00.000-07:00

Welcome to a new season of fresh produce from The Cornucopia! We look forward to serving you in 2011.

Yesterday I woke to the loud crack of thunder. John rolled over and said, "do you think I should pull those plants inside?" I was happy that he said "I", it was a good Mother's Day present to stay in bed a few more minutes while he dodged rain drops and pulled young plants out of the wind. Saturday was spent transplanting and planting seeds, so we were glad for the gentle rains Sunday morning to give the transplants a boost, provide moisture for germination and keep the soil crust soft so seeds planted earlier can break through. Every spring we eagerly watch as things start "popping up" and get established. This is a season of anticipation and wonder. We are glad that you are here to enjoy it with us.

In this blog, we try to keep you in touch with what is happening on the farm through words and pictures, as well as give you a listing of what to expect in your delivery each week and some useful information about how your food is produced, how to use it in recipes and storage tips. Above all, we hope that you enjoy the food.

In your share this week....(our best estimates for the week)

It's spring so pull out your spinner and get ready for salad fixings!

Spinach - great in salads or steamed. This spinach was growing through the cool days of April, so it has a lot more "umph" than the thinner leaves of summer spinach. So if you prefer it cooked, then go for it - it will hold its texture quite well. I like to steam it or just dunk it in boiling water quickly, then drain and serve.

Leaf Lettuce - lots of color to brighten your plate.

Arugula - we've kept it separate, but it's great on its own, or mixed in with your other greens. Be adventurous and layer it on a bread and butter sandwich.

Spectrum Greens - these greens are full of wonderful flavor and texture that make them one of my favorites. Really good with a light oil dressing and some chopped boiled eggs or nuts and dried cranberries. Make it a meal by adding some leftover grains like rice or quinoa.

Radish - slice some on your arugula sandwich or top a salad. Radishes are said to be a blood cleanser (probably why they give you that cool fresh feeling) - and the tops are also edible, containing lots of vitamin C.

Basic Salad Dressing (I give this recipe every year because it is a standard in our house and so easy to make) - you can easily expand the recipe to feed a crowd. Add crushed garlic or other herbs for a variation.

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1 Tbsp. lemon juice (preferably fresh)

1 tsp. brown mustard

2 tsp. honey

Put it all in a small jar and shake it up, or mix it with a whisk in a small bowl. Adjust the honey and mustard to your personal taste. If I'm making a big bowl of salad for the family I usually just pour it over top and toss it all together, but you can just as easily pass it and let everyone serve themselves.

Have a great week!

New Season is underway!

2011-04-19T12:53:00.000-07:00

No Complaining allowed Janna said, so I'll only tell you that I am waiting patiently for sunshine!

We have most potatoes planted. The garlic looks really good so far, and we have most of the onions planted. The tunnels are planted, all the beds have product in them and up and growing. We just need some sunshine!

2011-02-12T20:40:00.001-08:00

It has been a month, we have had cold, and snow and some days we thought winter would never end. We are not into spring yet but look at the ten day forecast! The snow is going to melt this week. It is going to warm up considerably which means work will progress on the third tunnel we are putting up, the beds will be prepared in tunnels 1 and 2 and seeds will be started. Spring is coming!

Planning for Spring

2011-01-15T19:47:00.000-08:00

Good Evening,

Planning for spring is happening. Seed Catalogs, garden maps, equipment brochures, there is so much to do!

Beautiful Fall Weather

2010-09-28T18:38:00.000-07:00

After some nasty weather and rain last week, we are basking in wonderful warm sun. This week we'll work on some fall tillage/cover cropping and work on finishing up the rest of the potato harvest. New carrots planted in August are ready as well as some wonderful fall greens, and those white turnips we love are the size of marbles. The peppers are steadily turning orange, yellow and deep red and the tomatoes continue to produce. What's not to love about Fall? (maybe those pesky Asian Lady Beetles)

I've been trying some new recipe ideas and thought I'd share some of them with you.

When working with hot peppers please be sure to protect your eyes with goggles or glasses - wear gloves and don't touch your eyes. If you don't wear gloves, you may experience numbness in your fingers after handling peppers and still transfer "heat" to your eyes even after washing your hands several times.

Jalapeno Cornbread

(you could also just take your favorite cornbread recipe and add 3-4 finely chopped jalapenos)

1 1/2 c. cornmeal

1/2 c. unbleached white flour

6 Tbsp. sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 eggs

1 c. buttermilk

1/4 c. olive oil

3-4 jalapeno's seeded and finely chopped

Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a 9-inch baking pan or muffin tins (for 12 muffins). Mix dry ingredients in a medium size bowl and blend well. Add the jalapenos and mix to coat (this keeps them from all floating to the top during baking). Add buttermilk, egg and oil. Stir just until moistened.

Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake 25-30 minutes. Fill muffins 3/4 full and bake 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot with butter and maybe a drizzle of honey or maple syrup.

This weekend I was inspired to make use of a lot of cayenne peppers that I had left over after market. I actually tripled the recipe. The result was spicy, but not overpowering. I decided that it would make a great "spicy ketchup". Good on potatoes, eggs, etc. I didn't have quite enough tomatoes so I threw in some chopped up carrots. I also strained it through a fine sieve when it was finished to remove the seeds and bits of pepper and tomato skins. You could do this with just about any kind of hot pepper.

Cayenne Pepper Sauce - from ehow.com

1 lb. cayenne pepper

1 1/2 Tbsp. minced garlic

1 slice onion

1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

1 can diced tomato (28oz) I just chopped up some fresh tomatoes

1 cup cider vinegar

7 oz. water

1. Cut off the pepper stems and cut the peppers into thin slices

2. Combine all ingredients in a large heavy pot and boil for 1 hour.

3. Reduce heat and simmer for one hour. Remove from heat and cool.

4. Process cooled mixture in blender until smooth. Pour through a sieve to remove seeds and skins.

5. Return the mixture to the pan and bring to a boil while stirring. Remove from heat.

6. Pour finished sauce into a clean glass jar after it cools and store in the refrigerator.

2nd last

2010-09-01T20:07:00.000-07:00

In your box or bag this morning you found some of the following;

zucchini*

tomato

cherry tomato

peppers

leek*

sweet potato

potato-maris piper

garlic*

thyme

carrots

* whole/full share only

Maris Piper potatoes are a favorite in the British Isles. We grew them instead of Kerr's Pink which we had in other years, they are popular in Ireland. Both are well regarded for making roasted potatoes or mashed potatoes. Unfortunately they developed a scab this year from something in the soil. We peeled ours and they cooked up just fine.

The seeds we put in the tunnel last week have germinated and are up and growing! We are looking forward to fall salads and greens. Tonight we seeded spinach, turnips, radish and lettuce outdoors. The Farmers Almanac says that we will have a warm fall so we hope they are right!

One more week of the summer subscriptions!

Feels like Fall

2010-08-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

School has started again, and the temps. the next few nights will give things that "fall feeling". I think I'll need to get out some moth balls as extra insurance against all of the moths that have been sneaking into my house. Every time someone comes to the door, we all rush to turn out the lights to try to keep them from coming in again. John has been seeding cover crop on newly tilled areas as things dry out. Tomorrow afternoon the tunnel will be ready for seeding some fall crops. John and the girls pulled shade cloth over the tunnel last week to bring down the soil temperature enough to allow seeds to germinate. After things germinate and are up and growing, the shade cloth will come off again to allow maximum light in for growth.

I have been spending some time indoors canning spaghetti sauce. Last year we managed to empty the pantry of everything tomato so it is time to replenish the stock. If you are thinking of doing some canning and would like some "seconds", just let us know and we would be happy to fill your order for a good price.

As you will notice from your share, the leek did manage to survive the floods of late July/early August. We are still holding our breath about the brussels sprouts though. While some of the seeds we planted before the really big rains did survive, many washed away or did not survive the muddy conditions. Waiting for things to dry up has created a rather large gap in our succession planting schedule.

This week in your share.....

Leek - remember to cut it up in little "circles" and then throw it in the sink for a good rinse. Then enjoy sauteed in your favorite dishes...eggs, stir-fry, soups...

Lettuce - sweet summer crisp

Celery - there is no match for the flavor of home-grown celery. It is not the prettiest, but the flavor is intense and is great in soups and other dishes. Store it wrapped in a bag in the fridge OR wash, chop, bag and toss it in the freezer for convenient use anytime.

Tomatoes - cherry and regular

Peppers - green and some jalapenos - try these stuffed with cheese and baked or grilled for a zesty treat.

Potatoes -

Squash - acorn or carnival(looks like acorn but more colorful)

Parsnips - in the whole shares - these are a great addition to soups and stews, and are also wonderful fried in some butter.

Have a great week!

August 18 already!

2010-08-18T21:20:00.000-07:00

The college students left for vacation before school starts up again several weeks ago and now our high school students are talking about being in school next week! Time flies.

This week we have been able to roto-till some ground, burying some rotted plants and weeds. We are incorporating some manure/compost and we will seed some cover crops for green manure.

In the boxes/bags this morning we had;

Filet beans

onion

garlic

potatoes, red thumb fingerlings for full shares, pink pearls for half shares

peppers

tomatoes

cherry tomatoes

beets

basil (full shares)

squash either an acorn, delicata (bright, colorful shaped like acorn squash) or spagghetti (oblong pale yellow)

carrots

eggplant

Pull Those Weeds!!!

2010-08-11T20:16:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy week. We were able to spend the weekend with John's parents and celebrate Dad's 83rd birthday. Crossing the state Monday, we saw lots of flooding and areas of standing water and just today viewed pictures of the flooding in the Ames area.

As usual, the work doesn't disappear when you leave for a few days and since the ground hasn't dried up enough yet to hoe, the crew spent the day pulling weeds in the beet rows keeping them from being overcome and digging carrots. Does anyone have any creative ideas for dealing with mosquitoes? I am not a fan of bug spray and would love to hear your ideas.

Pesto - last week you had basil in your share. If anyone is interested in doing some pesto for the freezer, we have lots of basil ready right now - let us know if you'd like a larger quantity. Freeze it in ice-cube trays and then you have an easy way to add a burst of flavor to your favorite dishes this winter. right now we love pesto with pasta served with chopped fresh tomatoes on top.

We keep trying to do our best to bring you variety in your share despite being unable to do any planting due to weather conditions.

This week in your share....

Peppers

Tomatoes

Carrots

Parsley - keep it wrapped up in the fridge. Saute some in a little butter or olive oil and toss with your potatoes.

Potatoes - Austrian Crescent Fingerlings - these are a great roasting and salad potato - also nice for slicing in thin rounds and frying.

Green Beans

Garlic

Onion

Lettuce - a little dirty from mud splash up, be sure to double rinse it. Then how about some BLT?

Pickling Cucumbers - peel, slice, chop - great flavor for salads or just eat them plain

Whole shares also have a few ears of sweet corn - the last of the crop.

Yellow crookneck squash is definitely having a struggle - and seems to be losing the battle - hopefully we'll have some zucchini and patti-pan again later.

Have a great week.

Rain or shine? not this time:'(

2010-08-03T20:42:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, here's the evidence.

There was a waterfall from the brussel sprouts over to the beans (in the bottom of the picture).

The unfortunate celery and fennel are standing in a few inches of running water.

The leek rows make for nice creek beds don't you think?

There was about three inches of water standing in the tomatoes.

You can see the dismal sky and the water in the air, also, the puddles gathering in the garden.

Rain, Rain.....

2010-07-27T20:33:00.000-07:00

Rain continues to be the theme of the summer. We spent some time this evening watching video of the flooding in eastern Iowa and marveled at the power of water. Also, some pictures of flooding in China - scary! When we look at the damage in other areas we feel pretty blessed and humbled as well - our 5 1/2" last Wednesday doesn't seem so bad - at least we don't have water up to our eaves and we aren't watching our homes float away. And....we have air conditioning that allows us to sleep during those hot, humid nights - we have a lot of things to be thankful for!

That said - we wanted to let you know that all the excess moisture definitely has a detrimental effect on many crops. Our harvest crew will quickly tell you that the smell of rotting onions is not very pleasant - and there are lots of onions that will stay in the field and get plowed under due to rot. The cauliflower is also suffering from some kind of blight and most of it will not be harvested. But we keep going and keep planting.

Raccoons! Another critter to add to the list of wildlife sighted at our place this summer. We found some evidence of them raiding the corn patch, but not enough to cause a problem. Yes, we planted a little sweet corn this year and this week you will get to enjoy some of it.

This week in your share....

Sweet Corn - enjoy! Husk, boil, roll in butter and add a little salt - heavenly! Don't forget to add a side of dental floss :)

Beans - 1/2 shares will have fillet beans and whole shares pole beans.

Peppers - light green peppers

Tomatoes - the high tunnel continues to produce some really nice fruit

Potatoes - Rio Colorado again this week - next week we'll head into those yummy fingerlings

Carrots -

Cucumbers - always refreshing in hot weather - great in salads - I like them with dip or peanut butter.

Red Meat Radish - rain is good for something. Sometimes also known as "watermelon radish", these are firm with a dense texture and mild from the moisture.

Fennel - use the stems like celery and chop the bulb up to eat raw or toss it with olive oil and some chopped carrots and roast them together for a wonderful aromatic treat.

Onion - white and sweet

Garlic - we have it all harvested now and we'll keep feeding it to you - I hear it's great for repelling mosquitoes.

This week the whole share will have the fennel and radishes.

Easy Cucumber Salad - this is from Allison's friend Bailey

Cucumbers - peeled and sliced

White onion - thinly sliced in rings or half rings

Dressing: equal parts of the following - 1/2 cup of each will make a good amount

- White or cider vinegar

- Sugar

- Water

Stir together until the sugar dissolves and pour over the cukes and onions. Let marinade for at least an hour before serving. You can keep adding cukes to the leftover dressing as you eat your salad.

Variations to try: dill, fennel, celery seed

Sunflower Smiles

2010-07-20T19:21:00.000-07:00

The weeks have been flying by quickly. As the season turns, so do the gardens. Many crops have produced and finished and as they are harvested, John tills the spaces to get ready for another crop or seeds it in a cover crop that we will till under for soil fertility. Long term crops continue to mature and Sunday evening we were greeted with the first of the sunflowers blooms in a long row planted along the driveway. Sunflowers are always such a cheerful sight!

Parsnips - a late fall crop - are always a bit of a mystery to visitors. We hear things like "what have you got growing there - celery?" In spite of their large tops, the roots are still quite underdeveloped. The onions have begun to dry down in the field and no longer have their nice big green tops. Soon we will begin the process of pulling them all and laying them out to finish the drying process. Cucumbers seem to be the late bloomer this year - patience is the key word here.

This week in your share.....

Lettuce - the summer crisp continues to perform well. Think BLT's this week !

Tomatoes - red round and some cherries. Mixed in with the cherries you'll find some little Mexican Sour Gherkins. Not technically a cucumber, they have a crunchy texture with a little zing. Toss them in your salad, salsa, stir fry, etc.

Green Pepper - first of the season.

Beans - half share will have purple beans this week - fun for the kids - these turn green when you cook them. Whole shares will have yellow beans and green pole beans. The pole beans have just begun to produce - they have a flattened pod and a wonderful bean flavor. We have been watching them grow to over 13 feet on their trellis and now that they've reached the top, they've continued to grow and hang down towards the ground again - wow!

Potatoes - Rio Colorado. These have beautiful red skin with delicious white flesh.

Carrots - Cosmic Purple. These have an intense almost fuchsia color with a bright orange interior - and they are delicious.

Cauliflower -

Red Onion

Whole shares will also have Broccoli this week.

Have a great week!

Pigs, Chicks and Skunks!

2010-07-13T18:45:00.000-07:00

Whoa! Skunks you may ask? Yes, it has been an interesting week (actually the last two). Pigs do not make very good guard dogs. We have always "trusted" them to be a good deterrent against other critters coming in to the hog house where we also house our baby chicks until they are big enough to go outside. Up until a few weeks ago it had been a pretty good arrangement - and then we lost a large number of baby chicks. We have had predators before, but this one had unusual habits and we were puzzled. John started asking around and while he secured the pen, we ordered more chicks and set several "live animal" traps. Well! in the course of 3-4 days, we had caught 3 SKUNKS! We've had raccoons, 'possums and cats, but this was quite a surprise. I am happy to report that things seem to be under control for the time being and no one got sprayed which is even better.

By the way, in case I had not mentioned it before, the hogs are going to the butcher on July 15 (Thursday) and if you would like to get in on some tasty Berkshire pork, we still have some halves left. Please let me know ASAP and I will get your cutting instructions to the butcher. If you are interested in a smaller quantity, we will also offer 20# bundles. In that case, you would not need to submit cutting instructions, just let me know of your interest.

Our second group of chickens is also just back from the butcher. These are whole, frozen birds and we will deliver them to you.

Work on the farm this week has been moving forward. Quite a few strips in the garden have been tilled upon completion of harvest making room for planting of new crops. The weeds, fed by all the rain, have also been going crazy. We have a great crew, but between harvesting, even they have not been able to keep up. If you feel a need at any time to work out some frustration and soak up some sun, we have lots of weeds to be pulled and we won't turn down any offers of help. Just let us know when you'd like to come.

Speaking of Harvest......the girls did a tremendous job today picking beans along with all the other picking. I believe that they brought in nearly 200 pounds in three colors: green, yellow and purple. Lest you think that only girls work here, don't worry, brothers Kyle and Micah have been pruning tomatoes and after a day and a half on his knees, Kyle has successfully unearthed the leek which had been overrun with wild purslane and pigweed. Thanks to everyone for a great job!

In your share this week.....

Tomato - this is good news! We wanted you to have the first taste of the season - either a regular round red, or some SunGold cherries (these are golden orange when ripe). Most of the red tomatoes will probably benefit from a day or two on the counter to continue ripening.

Beans - it certainly is bean season. More sunshine this week between the rain has really done them a lot of good. Green and yellow. Feel like you can't use them all? Blanch and freeze your beans for a taste of summer this fall or winter. While you bring a pot of water to a boil, trim and snap your beans. Add beans to the boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes. Remove from boiling water and plunge into a sink full of cold water to stop the cooking. Drain cooled beans and freeze in usable portions.

Potato - this week's offering is Keuka Gold. Looks a lot like a Yukon, but without the pink eyes that distinguish a Yukon.

Carrots -

Red Onion -

Garlic - peel off some of the outer layers then cut off close to the top of the bulb. Wrap it in foil with some butter and bake/roast it in the oven. Pop out the roasted cloves and mash in with your potatoes or mix it in with your favorite dips, etc. mmmmm......

We left the stem attached so that if you aren't ready to use it, you could just hang it up in your kitchen out of direct sunlight and let it dry to use later. If you decide to use part of it now, just put unused cloves in a container in the fridge - they will keep at least 2 weeks or more.

Lettuce - varieties of heat tolerant summer crisp.

Daikon Radish - the white "root thing". These are crisp and refreshing. Chop or grate into a salad, slice it on a sandwich.

Parsley - curly or flat leaf. Parsley stores very well in a bag in the fridge.

Whole share will also have Zucchini, Cauliflower and Kale this week. Half shares will see some of that cauliflower next week.

Have a great week!

Some new recipes to try.....from Simply in Season

Au Gratin Cabbage

2 cups cabbage, shredded

1/2 cup carrots, shredded

1/3 cup chopped onions (green onions or whatever you have on hand)

saute until crisp-tender in frying pan with a little olive oil. Transfer to a greased 1-qt. baking dish.

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

3 Tbsp. shredded cheese

Combine in a small bowl. Pour over vegetables. Garnish with 1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley and 1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes.

Green beans with Parsley and lemon

Cook 1 pound of beans in a small amount of water until crisp-tender. Drain.

In 1 Tbsp. butter or oil, lightly saute 2 cloves minced garlic and 2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley. Add the cooked beans, season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir gently and heat through. Sprinkle with the juice of 1 lemon and serve.

Garlic Potato Salad

6 cups new potatoes (cubed)

Boil in water until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

6 garlic scapes or 3 cloves garlic (minced)

1 cup minced onions

1/4 cup olive oil

2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

2 tsp. fresh chopped rosemary (or 1 tsp. dried)

salt and pepper to taste

Combine in a large bowl. Add cooked potatoes and stir to coat. Chill about 3 hours before serving.

Got Bugs?........

2010-07-08T05:13:00.000-07:00

Bugs, bugs, bugs...it's a bugs life. All this wet weather with lots of stagnant water seems to make perfect conditions for hatching lots and lots of bugs! I even heard earwigs (they are about 3/4" long with pinchers on their tails) mentioned in the news on my way to market Wednesday. Many people have also mentioned that garlic was a good deterrent for mosquitoes, but I haven't tried it yet :)

Speaking of garlic...the harvest has begun. This is always a big job involving pulling, cleaning and hanging, and when things are wet we also trim the roots to aid in the drying process.

As we work in the gardens, we are always on the lookout for pest and disease problems and once again we are on the lookout for signs of "late blight". This is the disease that was responsible for the Irish potato famine of the 1840's and was responsible for a poor tomato crop across the Midwest last year. It is a major problem that thrives in wet conditions and it travels on the wind via spores. We received word this week that it has appeared in Ohio - an early appearance for "late blight" - and we are doing our best to be proactive and save our crop. Oh yeah...tomatoes and potatoes are from the same family and that is why they are both affected by this blight.

In your share this week......

Beans - yum. Wet weather also affects the beans. We wait for the plants to dry before picking to prevent the spread of fungus that can make the beans look "rusty". There may be a few tips that have a little rust on them anyway from where they touch the ground - just snap it off.

Zucchini - to some of us this is a real sign that summer is here. When Adrienne was a baby I used to steam and mash it for her - she couldn't get enough of it. As adults, we like it grilled, in soups, cakes.......

Purple carrots - these are "purple haze" carrots. Very pretty to look at and delicious to eat. They will lose some color if you cook them.

Broccoli - good in soup - try some cheesy potato broccoli soup this week.

Mini cabbage - we love cole slaw, but also love it cut in wedges, steamed and drizzled with a little butter.

Onion - they are really sizing up beautifully. Perfect right now for raw eating on burgers and in salads. They will keep great in the fridge - if the tops start to look "iffy", just cut them off. If you have more than you can handle, chop it up and freeze it to use later in cooked dishes.

Red Gold Potatoes - a pretty light red potato with a lovely golden flesh. The catalog says "excellent steamed, boiled, baked, fried, mashed, roasted or scalloped". Take your pick!

Whole shares also include..... Swiss Chard, Fresh Garlic and Sweet Thai Basil. Jessica chopped up some chard and added it to our omlet on Monday - it was great! Basil is best stored NOT in the refrigerator. Just keep it loosely wrapped in the bag on your counter and try to use it within a few days. Use your basil to spice up tomato sauces, or serve with fresh mozzarella and a little olive oil. Use fresh garlic just like dried garlic. If you are going to use it in the next week, cut off the stem and store in a bag in the fridge. If you'd like to dry it, just hang it up in a well ventilated spot out of direct sunlight. This can take 2-3 weeks depending on humidity levels.

Have a great week!

Here is a recipe for carrot cake from cooks.com

BEST EVER CARROT CAKE

2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil

Cream these together well. Add

4 eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Add:

2 cups grated carrots

Combine:

2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup of ground walnuts
Add to the egg mixture and mix well.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan or a 13x9-inch baking pan.

Pour batter into pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean.

CREAM CHEESE ICING:

4 ounces of cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cup icing sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt

Cream butter and cheese; add icing sugar, vanilla and salt.

Here is a new twist on Broccoli

Herbed Broccoli Sandwich - from the cook book Simply in Season

2 cups broccoli - finely chopped

1/2 cup onion - finely chopped

Saute broccoli and onion in a large frypan with 2 Tbsp. oil until the broccoli is bright green.

Mix in: a few dashes each of dried basil, thyme, pepper, and 1/2 tsp. salt

4-6 slices of French bread - top with the veggies.

3/4 cup shredded cheese. Sprinkle on top and broil until melted. Serve immediately.

Wednesday June 30 Already!

2010-07-01T14:37:00.000-07:00

It seems like time goes faster and faster! We missed updating this Tuesday evening. Thank you everyone for picking up your subscription.

Pretty standard stuff this past week. Red Norland potatoes, the earliest outdoor red potatoe! Next we will have a different variety for you and likely a different color. Carrots, Green Beans, the first of the year, Kohlrabi, lettuce, broccoli and onion.

The weather is very nice this week.

Sunshine after the rain feels good!

2010-06-23T19:14:00.000-07:00

Good Evening,

We have been blessed with timely rains. This afternoon the propane tank got filled up and the driver quipped that we must not have irrigated much yet. He was so correct. We have not watered outdoor crops much at all. We watered carrots and onions early on to get them established and while that was finishing up it began to rain. The rains have come regularly since then, we just need to be thankful that nothing too severe has come our way.

We have been watching the potatoes carefully, and I have a suspicion that you will see potatoes next week. The CPB has not been a threat recently, the plants really look good. Last week almost all of them were flowering. I always like flowering potato plants.

We spent some time staking or caging the outside tomatoes this week, we have 6 rows to go. The tunnel tomatoes have been staked for several weeks and have green tomatoes on them.

We were on top of the weeds at the end of last week. Some sections are now looking like they need a real through weeding again....

We have little cucumbers appearing on cucumber plants in tunnel #1. Janna ate one the other day. It wasn't very big, put that means they are not far off. We are watching for flowers on the green beans. The first beans always taste so good!

This week in the subscriptions were some of the following...

broccoli

peas ( some sugar snaps, some have shelling peas)

carrots

mini cabbage

green kale

kohlrabi

We hope everyone has a good week.

John and Janna

Happy for Sunshine!

2010-06-16T20:35:00.000-07:00

It has been a beautiful day and we enjoyed the sunshine as we scurried to catch up on hoeing, and mowing. We started picking strawberries this week and it may very well be the end. With 5-6 inches of rain in the past week, the berries have suffered. First, you may notice that they are a little "gritty" with dirt that has "splashed" up. Second, you may want to eat them ASAP as with all the uptake of water, they are also much more perishable. But, don't wash them until you are ready to eat them - they get mushy much faster after you wash them. You may ask "why does the extra rain cause problems?" Well, the biggest problem is that with so much rain, rot and deterioriation set in very quickly. On an happier note - many other crops are developing nicely and with a little added sunshine, should really begin to "take off".

In your shares this week.....

Beets

Carrots

Broccoli

Strawberries - I think someone may have forgotten to pick theirs up - let us know.

Lettuce

Green Onion - white or purple pearl variety - lovely to mix in with your peas.

Peas - two kinds - Large shares have "Sugar Snaps" -edible pod - just remove the strings. Small shares have "Shelling Peas" - remove the shells and just eat the peas inside.

Large shares also have Swiss Chard and Spinach this week.

Enjoy!

It has rained!

2010-06-09T20:03:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

It has rained often enough this spring that we have been slow to lay out irrigation pipe and drip line. Once in a while I figure if I water it will rain and if I don't it won't rain. I like to get an average of 1 inch of water on the vegetables each week. We like drip tape because it takes water right to the plant and doesn't water the pathways. In April we watered one garden with overhead sprinkler because it was quick to set up and we got good coverage to make the ground workable but we sure noticed the difference between drip and overhead on the water bill.

What beautiful weather this morning for the Sioux Center Farmers Market or Sioux City Farmers Market. Just enough breeze to keep from sweating and not enough to blow things away! Thank you for coming to picking up your subscription from the Market stand. It is good to see you all each week. Thank you for your kind words about the vegetables and words of encouragement.

In your share this week...

Baby Carrots - the real deal - snap off the root end and enjoy

Lettuce -

Garlic Scapes - the top shoot of hard neck garlic. Use it like a green onion - chop it up or snap it in pieces. Pungent when raw and milder when cooked.

Radish

Spinach

Yukon Gold Potatoes

Full shares will also include Kale and Shelling Peas (string those pods and pop out the tender peas). These are great raw, added to salads, steamed lightly with a little butter, creamed with your potatoes.........

Garlic Scape information - check out this site for some fun information and recipes for scapes.

http://www.moscowfood.coop/archive/scape.html

This is another site with great pictures and even more ideas for what to do with your scapes.

http://notwithoutsalt.com/2009/06/18/garlic-scapes/

And finally, a great garlic article from the New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/dining/18appe.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Kale Chips - there are a lot of recipes out there for kale chips. They usually call for larger leaf kale, but it should work just fine with the baby leaf kale also - just adjust your roasting time. Also, with baby kale you shouldn't need to remove any stems in the prep step. Here is a recipe to try.

Pic: ChowMama

"Sure, you know Dana posted a Kale Chip recipe in November." But this is a man who likes to do things by the book and said he wanted to make the exact chips he'd just had. "Trust me," he said.

After about five minutes of prep and fifteen in the oven, we had a bowl full of crispy kale chips. The three of us (the two and a half year old included) sat down and had the bowl licked clean of kale chips in less time than it took to prepare them.

The difference between this recipe and the previous is the vinegar. I like the extra bite the vinegar lends to the chips and would encourage you to try it both ways. I might even try it with a heavier vinegar like balsamic, or even rice vinegar and add a sprinkling of sesame seeds along with the salt. There are a lot of possibilities.

We have Stacie Billis to thank for the inspiration. Stacie is an owner of Chow Baby, an organic baby food company based in NYC and the recipes on her blog are all catered toward cooking for children.

Kale Chips
adapted from Stacie Billis at ChowMama.com

1 bunch organic kale, torn into 1/2″ pieces
3 tablespoons organic olive oil
1 tablespoon organic apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons sea salt

Preheat oven to 400° F. Whisk oil and vinegar and toss kale in the dressing until thoroughly coated.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Place kale on sheet in a single layer and sprinkle with salt.

Bake for 15 minutes or so, until crispy. With baby leaf kale, be sure to watch closely so you don't burn your chips.

Visit the Farm

2010-06-02T18:55:00.000-07:00

You are invited to visit our farm this Saturday, June 5 from 3 until 5 pm. Practical Farmers of Iowa is hosting a field day at our farm to talk about improving the energy efficiency of walk-in coolers. Even if you don't care to look at the cooler, come and see how things are doing here at The Cornucopia.

Can you say "new potatoes"? This is a new record for us, with potatoes ready in the tunnel even before we have peas. Things are rapidly transitioning as we finish harvesting beds and start new summer crops or simply harvest to make room for things like tomatoes that have been growing between an early crop. The theme of the week has been "plant, plant, plant". Timely rains and some partly cloudy weather make for good transplanting conditions - getting transplants in the ground with some moisture and not getting baked by hot sun. I was pleased to see how well most of the tomatoes did after all of the wind last week - better than I expected. We also planted some sweet corn this year (my idea, not John's) and it's up along with the squash and cucumbers.

Chickens - our first batch of the season is processed and back from the butcher. Pasture raised with no hormones or antibiotics, these birds are plump, juicy and delicious the way chicken should be. Call or email to place your order.

In your share this week........

Yukon Gold Potatoes - put them in a foil packet on the grill, boil them, make a potato salad, eat them with the thin skin on, or rub it off under running water - the sky's the limit!

Purple Kohlrabi - a great raw snack. Peel the bulb part and slice or cut in wedges and enjoy plain or with your favorite dip. Here is a link to some healthy ideas for using the bulb and leaves. http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-to-use-kohlrabi.html#

French Breakfast Radish - long with white tips

Carrots -

New Beets -either Golden Beets or Red Ace - the tops are wonderful and can be cooked just like spinach and served alongside the cooked root - check out this link for a discussion on cooking beets and beet tops. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/475133

Lettuce - try a lettuce wrap for something different. Mix up your favorite sandwich filling and instead of bread, wrap it up in a lettuce leaf. Check out the recipe below.

Green Onion - perfect chopped into a salad or a stir-fry

Lettuce Wrap from zestycook.com

Ingredients:

Boneless Skinless Chicken (2 Cups)
Leaves of Romaine or Butterhead Lettuce
1 Tbsp Curry Powder
2 Tbsp Light Mayonaisse
1/2 Cup Chopped Pecans
1/2 Cup Diced Apple
Cracked Black Pepper

Method:

Add the first three ingredients together in a bowl and gently mix together.
Once the curry and mayonaisse are mixed well add pecans and apple and mix again.
Top with a generous amount of fresh cracked pepper
Wash and dry Lettuce leaves, being careful not to tear the leaves
Spoon chicken mixture on top of lettuce – wrap – and enjoy!

The wrap has a great flavor and texture with the crunch of the apples and the pecans as well as the freshness of the lettuce. As a variation try adding some cheese for another layer of both flavor and texture.

Have a Great Week!

Meet us at the Market!

2010-05-25T19:18:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy week....where have I heard that before? It is hard to believe that it is already the end of May. It feels as though we have jumped right into Summer, but with those strong Spring winds still following us. We are constantly amazed by the power of the wind and while we cringe as we watch new transplants take a beating, we are also suprised at how many of them manage to make it through (yes, we do lose a few). This week all of the "outside" tomatoes and peppers were planted with help from our college crew. In addition, all of the potatoes and onions and most of the other gardens were weeded as well and we put in squash cucumber and bean seed. This amounts to almost half of our land in production and was a lot of work - Great job girls!

Daughter Jessica has left us for a few weeks of study in France (she visited a market in Caen on the weekend and assured her dad that his veggies are still the best :) Thanks Jessica! and thanks to all of you for your words of appreciation and encouragement as you share your enjoyment of our vegetables.

This week in your share.... Carrots!! - These slender, tender gems are a sweet treat that you won't feel guilty about. I'm going to try the carrot top soup (below) this week - the greens are wonderfully tender - or make a nice salad if they last that long! Spinach Red Russian Kale - picked at the baby leaf stage - great for salads or add it to soups or stir-fry. Kale is a nutritional powerhouse. Check out this link for more info http://vegpeace.org/kale.html

Lettuce - Red or green butterhead - I like to chop/rinse/spin and keep it in a bowl in the fridge ready for a quick salad. Hakurai Turnips - Yes, those things that look like white radishes - perfect for snacking, chopped in a salad or light steaming. Chop and throw those tops in with your kale in the stir-fry.

As always, there is an abundance of recipes available through a google search, but here are a few to get you started.

Have a Great Week!

Carrot Almond Salad
If you don't like cilantro, you might try substituting something like basil, or parsley in place of it. Also, I included a few tips in relation to making this salad in the main entry up above, so have a glance before you jump in here. Also, my friend Nikki in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania did a roasted version of this salad with the produce from her CSA box, it's posted here.
extra virgin olive oil
1 cup / 3 oz / 85g sliced almonds
a small handful cilantro, about 1/2 cup
1 medium clove garlic, peeled
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and de-veined
1/4+ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/3 cup / 80 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 bunch / 8 oz / 225 g baby carrots, scrubbed and sliced in half lengthwise
1 bunch / 16 oz / 450 g pencil-thin asparagus, stalks trimmed, cut into 2-inch segments
squeeze of lemon, optional
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. In the meantime, toast the almonds in a large skillet over medium heat in a splash of olive oil along with a big pinch of salt. Let them get deeply golden, remove from heat, and set aside.
Make the dressing by combining the cilantro, garlic, jalapeno, and salt in a food processor - or alternately, in a blender or with a hand blender. Drizzle the olive oil in while pulsing, continuing until the dressing is a creamy, vibrant green. Taste, and adjust to your liking with more salt, garlic, jalapeno, etc.
Salt the boiling water generously, then add the carrots, wait 15 seconds and add the asparagus. Depending on the actual thickness of your carrots/asparagus, cook for about 30 - 60 more seconds, you want the vegetables to retain some structure and bite. Drain and immediately run under cold water to stop the cooking. Spin dry in a salad spinner.
In a large bowl toss the vegetables with a generous splash of the dressing. Toss well, add 2/3 of the toasted almonds and gently toss again. Taste and adjust for seasoning. You might want to add a quick squeeze of lemon juice at this point, but it's optional. Serve family-style topped with the remaining almonds.
Serves 4-6 as a side.
101 Cookbooks http://www.101cookbooks.com/
Tuscan Carrot Top And Rice Soup
1
Posted by jeanne on August 14, 2009
Tagged with: carrot tops, carrots, celery, onion, soup
By Salem Depot Member Perry McIntosh
This year I am on a quest to use “everything but the squeal,” so I poked around for ideas for carrot greens. I found this recipe online, from Lela Davidson on Hubpages.com, which I used as a base to make a white bean soup. Note: remember to cut the greens off before you store the carrots, because they will continue to draw moisture out of the root.
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
2 small carrots, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
6 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup short grain rice or 2 lbs. cubed potatoes
1 1/2 cups chopped carrot tops
4 tbsp. fresh grated parmesan cheese
1. Heat the oil in a large pot. Sauté onion, carrots, celery and garlic for 5 minutes over low heat until translucent. Add salt and pepper, and pour in broth. Bring to a boil.
2. Add rice and cook for 15 minutes or until the rice is almost tender. Add the carrot tops and cook for 5 more minutes, mixing well.
3. When rice is tender, pour soup into four bowls. Sprinkle with cheese.
www.blog.farmdirectcoop.org

Energy Audit

2010-05-15T13:24:00.000-07:00

Just about forgot. I was reminded yesterday that PFI ( Practical Farmers of Iowa) and The Cornucopia are doing a field day June 5. We had a energy evaluation done and made some small adjustments to our coolers. Mid American is going to come and present on Energy.

The first Sioux Center Subscription 2010 is delivered!

2010-05-14T17:43:00.000-07:00

Greetings,

After a long snowy winter we are eagerly looking forward to
bringing you the first tastes of spring. We will be
delivering the first two shares in the evening on May 12 &
19. Starting on May 26, we will be at the Sioux Center
Farmer's Market on Wednesday mornings from 8 - noon where
you may pick up your share during that time. The market
will be located in the parking lot of the Centre Mall.

Get out your salad spinner as this week you may look forward
to the following items in your share.....

Spinach
Leaf Lettuce
Radish
Leek - a wonderful mild substitute for onions in soups and
egg dishes. saute them in a little butter or olive oil to
soften them first
Asian Salad Greens
Scarlet Queen salad turnips - chop up the root and eat it
raw, but don't throw out those leafy tops - they can also be
chopped into your salad or cooked and tossed in with your
potatoes, pasta or rice

We are looking forward to another great season!

John and Janna
Wesselius

2010-04-29T20:05:00.000-07:00

There is a nice gentle rain falling right now. We have some things seeded outside, are tunnels are full and ready for some picking for saturday's market in Sioux Falls. We have 3600 plants ready to be planted as soon as the ground is dry enough for soil preparation, and then 100's more as soon as we get mulch down. Looks like next week is all sunshine, and we are so ready for a week of sunshine!

Potatoes are Planted!

2010-04-05T06:36:00.000-07:00

I just needed to tell everyone that this past Saturday with help from some amazing kids/young adults we got all our potatoes for the main season planted. I'll have to look in notebooks but I think it is the earliest ever. Now today we tackle the seeds for carrots and spinach I hope we get done before the rain so they get a good moist start.

2010-01-11T07:09:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year

The sun is shining brightly and after the past week of very cold days, winds and snow we could use some warming! Janna and I spent 3 days at the Great Plains Vegetable Growers conference in St. Joesph MO learning to serve you better. We did have a good learning experience picking up suggestions from presenters and other market gardeners. It is time to place the seed order and ready the equipment we will be using shortly!

John

December 2 2009

2009-12-03T15:58:00.000-08:00

Greetings Everyone!

It's cold out there! Tonight as we made deliveries it even
snowed a little! Not quite ready for snow yet, like a lot
of conventional farmers, we are probably also a month behind
with our winter preparations. But......we got one of our
first seed catalogues today and that means spring is not far
away :) I also spent a good part of the day today putting
together "cut sheets" for pork orders for our hogs that we
brought to the butcher this week. If you would still like
to get in on some great tasting Berkshire pork, please let
us know ASAP. We need to bring our cutting instructions to
the butcher tomorrow.

Today in your box.......

Cabbage - Green and tender - we really enjoy this just cut
up in wedges, steamed and served with butter and some herbs
sprinkled on top.

Brussels Sprouts - even if you think you don't like these -
just try them! Trim off the stem end, wash them
and.....steam, grill (try a little olive oil and balsamic
vinegar) etc. These would be great paired with your baby
carrots.

Lettuce

Spinach

Kale - Either Red (with kind of a purple stem) or Green.
You shouldn't need to stem the kale, but if you have a few
larger leaves in your bag, you may want to just tear out
that stem. Cook it with your potatoes and mash them all
together, or try adding it to some beef soup with a tomato
base. This frost sweetened baby kale is also great added to
salads.

Swiss Chard - great cooked or raw

Butternut Squash

Garlic

Baby Carrots

Finger Leek - This mild member of the onion family is a
fall/winter favorite at our house. Great sauteed with other
vegetables or meat. We love it in potato-leek soup. Leek
tends to collect dirt, so be sure to chop it up and then
throw it in a sink of water to wash it thoroughly before
cooking.

Have a great week!

2009-10-21T19:50:00.000-07:00

In the box for this delivery you should find;

spinach

salad mix

lettuce with arugula

kale

radish

red potato

red cabbage

celeriac

green peppers

turnips

cauliflower or broccoli

carrots

It has been too long. We did our last summer CSA distribution and then had a 2 week break before we began our fall CSA deliveries. For the first delivery we didn't do a newsletter because we didn't make time to do it ahead of time and then afterwards we felt tired, combined with thinking that everything in the box was routine, standard and needed no explanation etc. We failed. We should have sent a note saying the round white things were red meat radishes. The turnips are in this weeks box!

I would like to show how the greens in your box got there today. Here are some pictures beginning outside, going into the tunnel to gather the greens and then to the barn for the packing.

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 20!

2009-09-21T17:43:00.000-07:00

Wow, it is September 21 and we are at the end of another summer of vegetables. It is hard to believe and yet, today, we commented to each other that the weather has changed and fall is in the air.

As we have mentioned (hopefully to all of you) we are preparing to do a Fall Share CSA. If you aren't sure what you will do without fresh vegetables from The Cornucopia, then this is your answer. A Fall Share will consist of six (6) bi-weekly deliveries starting on October 7 with the last delivery December 16. You can expect things like beans and peppers (until a hard frost) and more cold tolerant items like brassicas, carrots, celery, and many greens like spinach and lettuce (we have the tunnel planted full). Also included will be storage crops like onion, garlic, squash, potatoes and leek. You might wonder how it is possible to have things like greens available until December, but remember that many of these crops are actually improved by cold temperatures both in vibrant color and flavor. Price for the Fall Share will be $180 - that is just $15 per week delivered to Sioux Center and Orange City. Please let us know by October 2 if you plan to participate. You may send us an email and we will accept your payment with the first delivery or you may send us a check in the mail. If you have friends or family that would be interested, please pass this information along to them as well.

There are some great movies/documentaries out there right now about local food and knowing where your food comes from. Tomorrow evening, we are heading for Sioux Falls to "Food, Inc." and recently we viewed a trailer about a new documentary called "Fresh". Tomorrow and Wednesday we are participating in "Green Week" at Mercy Hospital in Sioux City

When you come to pick up your share tomorrow, please remember to return all of your boxes. It will be helpful if you bring along a bag or box of your own to put your share in, but if you forget, John will have some bags available for you. Thanks again for your patronage this year and we look forward to serving you in the coming season.

In your share this week.....

Carrots - This is a new crop with the tops on. We kept planting them throughout the year for a continuous supply.

Broccoli - loves this cool weather.

Beans - as long as the weather holds, so will the beans. Keep enjoying them while you can.

Yellow Onions

Butternut Squash - Yum! this is one of my favorite signs of fall. If you can resist, these squash will actually improve in flavor and sweetness if you cure them for about a week. Place them in a sunny window or better yet, out on your porch in direct sun. However, if frost threatens, take them inside. You can cook this squash by peeling, cubing and steaming it until tender, or you can simply cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, and then place cut side down in a baking dish with at least 1/2" of water and bake at 350 degrees until tender and then scoop the meat out of the shell. I like to eat it with some butter and a little salt and pepper.

Peppers - Red Beauties! I picked over 100 this afternoon and didn't get finished. Did you know that red pepper has more vitamin C than an orange? Pack one in your lunch and eat it like an apple. Chop it up and throw it in a salad or stir fry or add some to your chicken soup for extra color and nutrition.

Leaf Lettuce - time for a salad

Green Cabbage - cabbage rolls, cole slaw, steam or grill a wedge and drizzle some herbed butter or balsamic vinegar over the top.......

German Butterball Potato - cool weather just makes me think of potato soup and looking at the list of items above I see a lot of things that would go well in it, like broccoli, carrots, peppers, onions.......

Whole shares will also have a bunch of Crunchy Royale Radish

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 19

2009-09-14T20:55:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends

You have your boxes because Janna delivered them this evening. We are anticipating a week of sunshine! and look forward to getting things done outdoors.

In you box you will find;

spinach

broccoli

kale

kohlrabi

yellow crookneck squash-this is an excellent summer squash that you can use like Zucchini in stir fry's etc.

german butterball potatoes

green beans

garlic

yellow onion

red peppers

tomatoes

Sometimes life is a blur! Too often I work outdoors doing chores till just before a meeting in town and need to eat my supper in the van/truck on the way to town. This evening I had a meeting at church and my food tasted so good. I had green beans done just right soaked in butter, Sunday's leftover mashed potatoes heated up with butter and chunks of chicken. I had to tell Janna when I got home that it was the best supper I had in long time. Just basic homegrown home cooked food being eaten in the old pickup. I hope you all enjoy a meal or two this week just I like did.

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 18

2009-09-07T19:44:00.000-07:00

Hello!

We have seeded one of our tunnels to cold tolerant crops like salad mix, arugula, spinach, lettuce, carrots and some others. The challenge is knowing when to seed to get a plant large enough so that when it is cold outside that it is almost mature and ready to harvest yet will stay in very good condition because the tunnel acts like a large fridge keeping the crop good and we should be able to harvest as we need it in October, November and December. In your box this week there is a package of salad mix that was grown outdoors in the last 4 weeks. We have another planting outdoors just coming up now for 4-5 weeks from now before we anticipate harvesting in the tunnel. The other tunnel still has tomatoes in it and will have for several more weeks.

If you would like to participate in a "fall subscription" or purchase some of these cold tolerant crops please send us an email.

In the boxes this week:

Asian Greens-Greens like this are one reason why spring and fall are our favorite seasons.

Arugula

Acorn Squash-Janna made one for lunch late last week, we each had a half, Janna likes to put butter on the squash on her plate, I like it plain. Great flavor and texture.

Green Beans

Peppers- We are so happy we have peppers. The plants looked so poor in May and didn't grow much in June. It was so cool and wet early in the season just when the plants needed heat.

Cherry Tomatoes-The little tomatoes are a favorite snack. We had a visitor Friday that really didn't think much of tomatoes till he helped himself to little orange ones, he kept picking and eating!

Austrian Crescent Potatoes- We had some for lunch today. This potato turns green very quickly. Please store them in a dark place. For some reason the sun penetrates the soil near the top of the tubers or at bottom of the plant and a lot of the tuber tips turn green. We tried to leave them in the field or sort them out but if you have a tip that is green please slice it off before you prepare your potatoes. We like them boiled or steamed. They have a very firm texture which is great for potato salad. They roast very well too.

Carrots

Full shares also have Cauliflower.

Please watch for an email near the weekend about next week. John is a delegate to a classis meeting next Tuesday in Platte and Janna may come along to visit family friends near Platte so we may make other arrangements for the box distribution.

Enjoy your food!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 17

2009-08-31T19:59:00.000-07:00

Cool nights, heavy dew, mild days and slight breezes. Does it feel like August? Tomorrow it will be September. Where has the summer gone?

We would like to thank all of you for your compliments, kind words and encouragement. We do like continuous improvement so please give us suggestions on what we could do better in future.

We have free tickets to a movie! Food Inc. is being shown in Sioux Falls and our chiropractor friend Dr. Ben Rall has given us 12 tickets to give away. Many people have read Michael Pollan's book The Omnivores Dilemma or have heard about a farmer named Joel Salatin, both are featured in this film about food production. Check out the link for more information or google Food Inc. and there is alot of information online including trailers and clips at youtube.com.

http://www.foodincmovie.com/about-the-film.php

Food Safety bills continue to work their way through the legislative system in Washington D.C.. Part of me is alarmed and concerned to the point that I wonder if we will be able to do this in future. On the other hand some of the proposed rules are so beyond common sense they will not have enough agents to inspect or enforce all their rules. Please watch for them and ask our representatives to keep in mind the small producers, the little farms like the Cornucopia.

In your box this week;

Celery

Garlic

Carrots

Cucumber (last time)

Carola Potato

Peppers ( colored)

Cherry Tomatoes

Tomatoes

Daikon Radish

The full shares will also have beans and the half shares have a melon.

We have 3 weeks left in this season!

John and Janna

2009-08-24T20:16:00.000-07:00

Greetings!

School has started again. Elizabeth is back teaching, Jessica moved into her dorm and Madeline, Adrienne and Rachel have returned to their studies as well. This, of course, means that our work schedule really changes. I love the approach of Fall. Days are shorter, but cooler night temperatures and cool mornings with warm dry afternoons are a pleasure. We hope that your transition to more fall-like weather is pleasant. The changing of seasons also helps us look forward to a change in types of produce. While some items will remain staples, such as carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, etc., we can still look forward t0 things like winter squash, leek and more broccoli, cabbage, beets and fall greens.

This week in your share.....

Cucumbers -

Summer Squash - this will include a variety of regular zucchini, yellow crookneck, and some little rounds called "Light Green of Tuscany". The small round would be nice quartered and the larger rounds might be nice with the tops sliced off, seed pocket hollowed out and then stuffed and baked.

Carola Potatoes - very similar in appearance to German Butterball, these are also of German origin and are a nice all purpose potato.

Cherry Tomatoes -

Tomatoes -

Sweet Peppers -

Beets - mostly the sweet chioggia and golden variety. Wonderful cooked and served with a little butter.

Kohlrabi - a great raw snack to pack into your lunch box.

Have a great week!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 15

2009-08-17T19:53:00.000-07:00

Greetings,

It has been another pleasant week. Rain showers over the weekend are helping to germinate the seeds we planted last week - greens, lettuce, spinach, carrots........ Today, after picking your produce, we spent time cleaning up spent crop residue and weeding. It is always a challenge later in the season to keep up with weeding, but it is still important as weeds let go at this time of year will go to seed and leave many years worth of seed for us to tackle later.

This week we will also bring another group of chickens to the butcher. We have had a great response this year and as a result have been completely sold out for the last two weeks. If you are interested in a freezer order later this fall, please get your request in soon so that we will be able to fill it. Thanks!

In your basket this week.....

Carrots -

Tomatoes -

Cherry Tomatoes -

Cucumbers -

Lemon Basil -

Austrian Crescent Fingerling Potatoes - These are known as the "king of the fingerlings" and are a great salad potato. Also delicious simply boiled, steamed or roasted.

Zucchini -

Peppers - Sweet and Hot -

Swiss Chard -

I have once again found a great looking recipe on www.101cookbooks.com that I think you will enjoy. Please refer to the website for pictures and comments on this recipe. It was also suggested that you might use quinoa in place of the couscous.

Cherry Tomato Couscous

Keep your eyes peeled for whole wheat or barley couscous - either would work great here. You can easily make this vegan by leaving out the feta - maybe do some sort of harissa drizzle instead?

3 cups cooked couscous*
1/2 a basket of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 medium cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup cooked chickpeas
1 lemon, cut in half
1 lime, cut in half
about 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
fine grain sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup basil or cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Combine the couscous, tomatoes, cucumber, and chickpeas in a large bowl. Lori - squeezes the lemon and lime juice directly into the bowl, so start by giving a good squeeze of lemon and lime juice into the bowl, add the olive oil, and some salt and pepper. Toss well, taste, and adjust with more of the above until it tastes just right. Lori notes - this really needs a generous amount of salt, and the lemon and lime juices might need to be adjusted depending on how juicy the fruit is.

Add the basil and feta and toss gently until it is evenly dispersed.

Serves 4 - 6.

*To cook the couscous: Either follow the package instructions or bring 3 1/2 cups of water to a boil, stir in a scant 2 teaspoons fine grain sea salt and 2 cups of couscous. Cover and remove from heat. Steam for 5 to 10 minutes and then use a fork to fluff up the couscous.

101 Cookbooks http://www.101cookbooks.com/

Over the weekend we enjoyed some homemade pizza. Simple and delicious with fresh ingredients. Here is the crust recipe from my friend Glenda Bos. I whipped it up in my KitchenAid in no time at all and we went grocery shopping while the dough was rising.

Pizza Dough

1 1/2 cups warm water (110F)

1 (1/4 oz.) pkg active dry yeast (or 2 1/2 tsp.)

1 tsp. sugar

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup semolina flour

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. salt

Combine water, yeast, sugar and stir.

Let sit until foamy (5 minutes or so)

Add 1 1/2 cups of flour, the semolina, oil, and salt and mix until smooth. (I didn't have semolina, so I substituted some whole wheat)

Keep adding flour - 1/4 cup at a time with the mixer running until all the flour is incorporated but the dough is still a little sticky.

Knead until smooth, but still slightly tacky, 3-5 minutes, adding little bits of flour if needed.

Oil a large bowl and place dough in the bowl, turning it to oil all sides of the dough. Cover the bowl and set in a warm place until nearly doubled in size (1 - 1 1/2 hours).

Divide the dough and roll into 2 round crusts (or whatever shape you need to fit your pan).

Bake in a 475F oven

We brushed the crust with olive oil and prebaked it for about 10 minutes and then added toppings and finished baking. Toppings included, halved cherry tomatoes or thinly sliced regular tomatoes, cheese, basil (add this after you take it out of the oven), green peppers - use your imagination! You could probably experiment with this and try prebaking and wrapping and freezing the crust to use later.

Have a great week!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 14

2009-08-10T19:51:00.000-07:00

Hello,

Sunshine seems to be the order for this week. Tomatoes are ripening! Last Tuesday we hosted a tour for a creation care camp for kids.

John and Janna,

Thank you, thank you, thank you for letting us come by on Tuesday morning. I know that I really enjoyed seeing your gardens and all of the animals. Sally and I were discussing how most adults - even in our creation tenders group - have probably never seen anything like that. The kids were quite taken with the chickens. And they loved the garlic! (My car still smells of it!) They played with it and nibbled it all afternoon. One boy even took a dare from Laremy De Vries and ate a whole clove - his eyes watered, his face turned red, and he felt quite sick afterwards (And he still smells like garlic today!) Laremy gave him $5 instead of $1 as he felt bad for his suffering: :)

We roasted the 3 chickens and carrots and potatoes yesterday. The smells drove the kids wild all morning. And they devoured every last bite. One boy raved that the potatoes were the best he had ever had in his life! And most kids had never had a roasted chicken before - they kept commenting on how tender it was.

And then I made some soup with the bones and carrots for lunch today which disappeared quickly. The boys, especially, were impressed as it fit in with the 3 R's we talked about yesterday (reduce, reuse, recycle).

So thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to show us around. We loved all of the information and seeing the chicken chores. Your hard work is evident - and delicious!

Blessings to you all,

Becky

Tomorrow we have another group coming and will tell you about it next week. This past week we did a lot of planting......more beans, radishes, peas, zucchini, beets, greens.......it is amazing what can still be produced even late in the season. We are also beginning to watch for the first ripening melons as they are sizing up nicely.

This week in your share......

Tomatoes

Cherry Tomatoes

Cucumber - An even simpler twist on cucumber salad. Peel and chunk or slice your cucumbers, add some very thinly sliced onion and/or diced green pepper (optional), add 1/4 to 1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, chopped fresh dill - about 1 Tbsp (or to taste). Toss it all together and refrigerate 1-2 hours, then serve.

Red Thumb Fingerling Potatoes - with a pretty pink swirl inside. These are perfect for roasting. Slice in wedges lengthwise, toss in olive oil, spread on a baking sheet, sprinkle with salt, pepper and any of your favorite herbs. Bake at 350 - 400F until tender and browned. Try pressing some garlic and adding it to the olive oil for a nice variation.

Filet Beans - these tender little beans are a gourmet delight. Prepare them just as you would regular beans.

Green peppers

Carrots - how about some carrot cake!

Lettuce

Below is a recipe for Carrot Cake from www.101cookbooks.com I really enjoy this website because there is a stress on using healthy fresh ingredients and there are always great pictures of the prepared recipes. I would encourage you to check it out. I used regular plain yogurt in the recipe and substituted chopped pumpkin seeds for the walnuts (John has a nut allergy). Without added sugar, this makes a really nice breakfast loaf or a hearty snack. We didn't bother to frost it, but just buttered our slices to serve. Enjoy!

Carrot Cake Recipe

If you have a hard time finding whole wheat pastry flour, feel free to substitute unbleached all-purpose flour. Reader Nicole mentions that she made a wheat-free version with good results - substituting one cup oat flour and one cup gluten-free baking mix. Thanks Nicole!

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
4 ounces unsalted butter, heated until just melted
1/2 cup dried dates, seeded and finely chopped into a paste
3 ripe bananas (1 1/4 cups), mashed well
1 1/2 cups grated carrots (about 3 medium)
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (2% or lowfat is ok)
2 eggs, lightly whisked
6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
3 tablespoons agave nectar or maple syrup (or to taste)

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a 9x5x3 / 8-cup loaf pan (or 8x8 cake pan) and line it with parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the walnuts and set aside.

Stir the dates into the melted butter, breaking up the dates a bit.

In a separate bowl combine the bananas and carrots. Stir in the date-butter mixture, breaking up any date clumps as you go. Whisk in the yogurt and the eggs. Add the flour mixture and stir until everything just comes together. Spoon into the prepared pan. Bake for about 50 - 60 minutes or until a toothpick tests clean in the center of the cake - it'll be less if you are using a standard cake pan. Remove from oven and let cool.

While the cake is baking whip together the cream cheese and agave nectar. Taste. If you like your frosting sweeter adjust to your liking. When the cake has completely cooled frost the top of the cake with an offset spatula.

Makes one carrot cake.

101 Cookbooks http://www.101cookbooks.com/

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 13

2009-08-03T19:15:00.000-07:00

August Greetings to you all!

It is hard to believe that we are already into our 13th week of CSA. The weeks just seem to fly by when we are so busy.

Allison informed us yesterday that July 2009 has been the coldest July on record in over 100 years. Wow! No wonder the tomatoes and other heat loving crops are taking their time. However, when I went out to pick cucumbers today I was almost overwhelmed by the abundance hiding under the vines. I also planted a variety of gourds this year just for fun and the vines are crawling all over the place. Fortunately, they are able to spill over into a grassy ditch so I can guide them away from a new group of carrots.

As we anticipate fall, we also keep planting cooler weather crops for later. These include some of the same crops we enjoyed in the spring like salad greens, and brassica crops such as broccoli and cabbage as well as root crops like carrots and beets. Many of these crops don't do as well in the summer heat, but are able to tolerate quite a bit of cold.

But for now we will continue to enjoy the summer warmth and the bounty of the garden.

In your basket this week.....

Cherry Tomatoes -

Cucumber - crispy and sweet these are begging to be eaten raw or tossed with a light vinaigrette in a salad. (see the recipe below)

Bintje Potatoes -

Zucchini -

Tomatoes - just some regular red ones for slicing

Onions -

Lettuce - Just in time for some BLT's - YUM!!

Carrots -

As always, if you have any recipe suggestions that you would be willing to share we would be happy to pass them along. Thank you!

Have a great week!

Chilled Cucumber Salad
CDKitchen http://www.cdkitchen.com

Category: Cucumber Salad
Serves/Makes: 6 | Difficulty Level: 2 | Ready In: 30-60 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups thinly-sliced chilled cucumbers
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup thinly-sliced fresh onions
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 dash cayenne

Directions:
Place cucumber slices in medium-size glass bowl and sprinkle with salt. Stir in onions.

Place remaining ingredients in 2-cup glass measure and beat with fork to combine. Pour over cucumbers and onions and toss lightly. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes. Stir before serving.

Recipe Location: http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/133/ChilledCucumberSalad69769.shtml
Recipe ID: 40550
Don't forget to stop back at CDKitchen and write a review or upload a picture of this recipe!

This recipe is from CDKitchen http://www.cdkitchen.com
© 1995-2009 CDKitchen, Inc.

2009-07-27T21:06:00.000-07:00

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol. 3, Issue 12

2009-07-27T20:13:00.000-07:00

Greetings to you all,

It has been a beautiful week of warmer temperatures and sunshine. It almost seems odd to have to think about watering again - most vegetables need at least 1" of rain per week. We have been busy harvesting, but also doing a lot of planting seeds and transplants for fall.

Our biggest job this past week was harvesting the garlic. We are happy to report that it is all hanging and drying nicely. John and I were both amazed at the rate of drying over the weekend. This weekend we rushed home from market and set off for Kanawha, Iowa - about 150 miles - to a tour (sponsored by Practical Farmers of Iowa) at the farm of our mentors. We had an enjoyable evening visiting.

In your basket this week....

Zucchini - nice standard green zukes great for cooking and baking. If you have extra, you can always grate it up and freeze it to save for soups later on.

Cucumbers - Yummy! crispy and delicious

Cherry Tomatoes

Potatoes - Kerr's Pink

Green Beans -

Green Peppers - first of the season!

Garlic -

Whole shares will also include Red Cabbage this week.

Have a Great Week!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 11

2009-07-20T20:53:00.000-07:00

Good evening!

Another rainy afternoon brought us inside, but not before we accomplished a lot of work outdoors. It is time for garlic harvest and I am estimating that about 1/3 of it is pulled and stacked in the barn waiting to be trimmed and hung to cure. The girls think it looks really "cool" hanging in long strings from the rafters to the floor. Adrienne took some pictures before supper and we will get those posted soon. It is actually a fairly messy job due to the rains. Ideally we would have a few weeks of drying weather before garlic harvest, but it looks like that is not to be, so we must forge ahead and hope that it dries well without any fungal problems. We cannot wait too much longer, or the bulbs wrappers will start to deteriorate or worse, the bulbs will "shatter" as they get overripe.

Our helpers did a great job of prepping your veggies today and John also had some help clearing out old plants. We rented a big mower for the tractor to even out the pasture and mow off the old strawberry plants in preparation for plowing. While all of this was going on, I managed to transplant about 800 Kohlrabi which will benefit from the cloudy damp conditions, and plant a row of late basil. The girls donned rain gear and hosed each other off along with the potatoes and carrots :0)

Our little piggies continue to thrive and are a good source of entertainment. The turkeys also continue to grow and do well. If you are interested in a turkey for Thanksgiving be sure to reserve one now - thank you to those of you that have already ordered. We ordered the turkeys a little later than usual so that they would be ready just before the holiday and we are hoping to offer them as a fresh (not frozen) bird.

In your basket this week......

Kerr's Pink Potato - this is a wonderful tasting Irish masher.

Tomatoes - either cherry or regular

Carrots - crispy and sweet

Daikon Radish - wonderful in salads or sliced up on a sandwich

Onions - these are really getting "huge", but are wonderfully sweet and delicious - red or white. If you find yourself getting ahead on onions, just chop them up and put them in the freezer - ready to pull out and add to a cooked dish when you are in a hurry.

Green Beans - we are amazed at how the cool weather has affected the rate of growth of the beans. We really could use some warm days of sunshine

Broccoli - we had really hoped to bring you some zucchini this week, but once again the cool weather........., anyway, zukes for sure next week!

Whole shares will also have a cucumber this week.

Some Recipe ideas that I tried this week that you may also enjoy.....

Root Veggie Slaw

I heard the idea for this on my way home from market last week while listening to the public radio show "The Splendid Table". The great thing about it is that you can use just about any veggies you have on hand, and the dressing is a nice light change from traditional creamy slaw dressings. (from The Improvisational Cook by Sally Schneider)

1 small celery root (@12oz)

4 med. parsnips (8oz)

2 parsley roots (8 oz)

1 tsp lemon or orange zest

8 oz yellow or red beets

Dressing: whisk all ingredients together and pour over vegetables and stir - taste and adjust seasonings.

2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

Kosher salt - to taste

Pinch of sugar

2 1/2 Tbsp. Extra virgin olive oil or roasted hazelnut or walnut oil

1 tsp. warm water

Freshly ground black pepper - to taste

I used the dressing recipe above, but my veggie mix consisted of:

chopped cabbage

peeled, finely chopped raw beets (these add nice color)

minced onion

grated carrots

grated daikon radish

You could also use small chunks of broccoli or cauliflower - use your imagination!

Listed below is another root veggie salad recipe. I think this would also be nice with equal parts daikon and carrot.

http://www.grouprecipes.com/sr/22257/japanese-daikon-carrot-salad/recipe/

Japanese Daikon Carrot Salad Recipe

Ingredients

3 1/3 c peeled & finely shredded daikon radishes .
1 tsp sesame seeds, toasted .
1/3 c finely shredded carrots .
3 tbsps granulated sugar .
1/4 c rice vinegar or white vinegar .
1 1/2 tsps salt

Directions

Step #1 Toss radish, carrot & salt together in large bowl.
Step #2 Let stand for 10 mins.
Step #3 Knead until soft.
Step #4 Squeeze dry. (or let drain in a colander)
Step #5 Combine rice vinegar & sugar in small c.
Step #6 Stir until sugar is dissolved.
Step #7 Pour over radish mixture.
Step #8 Toss until well coated.
Step #9 Sprinkle top with sesame seeds.
Step #10 Makes 2 c.
Step #11 Company�s Coming.
Enjoy the Japanese Daikon Carrot Salad recipe

Have a great week!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol. 3 Issue 10

2009-07-13T20:37:00.000-07:00

Good Evening Folks!

I hope it is dry tomorrow morning at the park for your subscription pick up. I was assured by friends this evening that it will dry up.

What can I tell you about this past week? It rained and rained, digging carrots and potatoes meant washing off mud. The onions and beets took more rinsing than usual.

In preparing today for tomorrow morning we sure miss the energy and skills of our youngest daughter. Adrienne is off to music camp at USD-Vermillion for the week.

A highlight this past week was being the "featured vendor" at the Falls Park Farmers Market. Chef Jonathan from the Sanford Hospital comes and prepares a treat for visitors to the market based on produce from the "featured vendor". Madeline liked it so much she made it for supper tonight.

California Blend Salad

1 head Broccoli (cleaned and destemed)
1 head Cauliflower (cleaned and destemed)
6 carrots (cleaned and sliced)
½ C. Favorite Dressing

1. Blanch all vegetables in steamer or olive oil
In boiling water for 4-8 min.
2. Chill veggies and toss in your favorite dressing.

Roasted 4 Potato Salad

Ingredients:
Potato Mix of Yukon Gold, Bintje, Rio Colorado & Kerr's Pink (cleaned & diced)
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, diced
olive oil
1. Mix all ingredients
2. Spread out on sheet pan
3. Bake at 350 for 25 min, or until tender
4. Serve hot or chill and serve.

In your box this week....

Cherry Tomatoes!!! - Yes! they are finally ripe in a quantity that you could all have some. John calls this a "teaser" - they may not make it home - a nice little assortment of colors, shapes and sizes. Enjoy!

Garlic - this is uncured garlic, but I couldn't resist sharing these bulbs of plump cloves with you. Peel off the outer layers and store cloves, wrapped in a "baggie", in the fridge.

Onion - Red or Yellow - we can't get enough of these sweet summer onions.

Beans - Green or Yellow - always good steamed, but also nice pickled in a bean salad.

Carrots - with all the rain we've had, these are super crispy

Potatoes - this week we are featuring a Dutch heirloom called "Bintje" a really nice white potato.

Beets - scrub these up and try roasting some in the oven to go along with your potatoes.
Due to wet conditions, these are coming to you this week without tops.

Cauliflower -

This week, the full shares will also be receiving green cabbage

Have a wonderful week!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 9

2009-07-06T19:54:00.000-07:00

Well, you would think that someone that majored in history at college and continued to read books about the past till recently, would have learned not to repeat the error of the past. Every time John picked green beans in the past it led to back trouble. About a year ago he was treated in Sioux Falls several times and has felt much better this winter/spring compared to the previous three years. This afternoon while Janna, Jessica and Adrienne were picking beans he thought he would help! Big mistake, a few minutes later while digging carrots something in the lower back said it quit. Bottom line for our customers is that the carrot digging stopped.

It was very beautiful outside this morning and most mornings lately. The rain was just wonderful over the weekend taking off the pressure to irrigate. We had watered pretty steady last week and were feeling on top of the moisture situation and on top of the weeds. To be blessed with a such timely rain is great. Now when it dries a bit (today) we will get on the weeds and clean up of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage plant remains and feed them to the pigs.

If you have been following our posts since January you may recall we purchased some purebred Berkshire glits which were bred and gave us 19 wonderful little feeders! They were farrowed at a friends farm and were brought here about a week ago. Janna and Madeline put broccoli in the freezer today and we fed them the stumps and rejected pieces. They cleaned it up! We like taking care of our compost that way!

This wednesday our second batch of pastured broilers will go to the butcher and get packaged. We continue to hear wonderful remarks about the flavor of meat from people that have purchased them. Now last thursday the third batch of broiler chicks arrived and with them the turkeys. We bring it to your attention now because they are heritage breeds, at 6 weeks they will be on grass till butchering, which this year will be just before Thanksgiving. They will be ready just it time so it will be a "fresh" bird! Again there will be a limited number so please reserve one early.

This week in your shares you will find some of the following;

Broccoli

Cauliflower

Beans

Potatoes-Red Norland

Lettuce-Summer Crisp, a heat tolerant variety!

Cabbage

Onion

Carrots

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 8

2009-06-29T19:48:00.000-07:00

"Warm" Greetings to all of you!

It has been a very hot week! While we welcomed the drying that the warmth brought so that we could get at the weeds, it was also a challenge to work in such heat. Most of our days started early so that we could take a break during the day when the sun was hottest. We also recruited some extra helpers to help us with the weeding. Tuesday my cousin and her daughter, in town visiting from Ohio, dropped by and volunteered their services as well - which we did not refuse :) Thank you Rachelle and Elaine!

On top of all this, it was a week of strawberry picking. The strawberry season has been rather short-lived this year due to the heat that seemed to make everything ripen at once. We probably could have picked every day last week, but in order to stay sane and save our backs, we managed to keep it to every other day. The berries in your share this week will be the last this season. I think that eleven days is a really short season, but I noticed that the beans are coming on, so it is a good thing that they are finished.

Recycle your green strawberry boxes back to us if you still have them - we would really appreciate it - as we have many uses for them throughout the season. Thanks!

This is a week of standard vegetable favorites that we hope you will enjoy.

In your share this week......

Peas - Super Sugar Snax

Carrots - crisp and flavorful

Potatoes - Purple Viking - these have purple skin and white flesh. We have enjoyed them this week mashed with skins on and also as "oven roasted fries". Scrub your potatoes and cut in wedges. Pat dry. Toss in olive oil to coat. Arrange on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt or seasoning salt. Bake in oven 425F for about 45 minutes, or until tender. The time may vary depending on how thick you cut your wedges. Serve with ketchup or mayo. We also like to roast carrots with the potatoes.

Broccoli -

Onions - Super Star white onions are mild and sweet and the greens are still great to use too!

Strawberries - get out the ice cream or whip up some cream and enjoy this seasonal treat!

Full share will also include Garlic Scapes this week. Try coating these with a little olive oil and grilling them. Yum! or... add these to your potatoes like chives.

Have a great week!

Next week look forward to green beans and cauliflower

The Carrot Vol 3, Issue 7

2009-06-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

This is one of those weeks when we are very thankful for air conditioning. We are planning on an early start to our outside work tomorrow so that we can retreat indoors for the hottest part of the day. If you are able, it will be a good idea to pick up your box as early as possible to keep your things from getting overheated. We are excited to have our main cooler up and running. This allows us to bring the produce in and store it at 38 degrees, keeping it fresh for you.
Strawberries are ready. We will also have them available for sale at the farmstand. Let your friends know - they are delicious and with this heat they may not last long.

Some information to pass along that may be of interest to you....
1) We are including a flyer in your box about the upcoming NISO tour of gardens.
2)This evening we visited with the organizers of the Eat Well Food Tour. They are leading discussions on the connection between faith and food. They will be in Sioux Center at Children's Park Tuesday evening for a pot-luck. Check their web site for more details
www.eatwellfoodtour.com

In your basket this week.......

STRAWBERRIES!! - the rain of the past two weeks has produced some large, very nice tasty berries

Green Cabbage - make some cole slaw!

Head Lettuce -

Garlic Scapes - We are popping the tops from our garlic so that the plant will concentrate on developing the bulb. These scapes can be used the same way you use the bulb.....in stir fry, salads, make it into some pesto, soups, etc. Keep these loosely wrapped in the bag they come in, in your fridge and they will keep for several weeks, but I think you'll have them eaten in no time.

Half share will also have Beets this week

Whole share will also include...

Carrots

Swiss Chard

Kale

Garlic Scape Pesto - Your share this week has about 1/2 # of scapes, so you will need to adjust the recipe accordingly. Also, the amount of olive oil you use will depend on whether or not you choose to use the nuts. Walnuts will also work well in place of the pine nuts.

My favorite thing to do with them is to make garlic scape pesto. It is super easy to make and refrigerates well for several weeks in a well sealed jar. I also plan on popping some into the freezer to top off my winter soups. I use this pesto on brushetta, pasta, eggs, foccacia, and just about anything I grill like shrimp, salmon, chicken. It’s also fabulous added to mayonnaise and smeared on a big roast beef sandwich. Now I’m hungry!!!

Garlic scape pesto
1 pound garlic scapes
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
Olive oil (about 1/2 to 1 cup)
Pine nuts if available
Chop the garlic scapes into 3 inch lengths. Put it int he food processor and process until pureed. Add the parmesan and pine nuts and process until smooth. Slowly add the olive oil as the food processor runs and continue until all the oil is combined into the garlic. Store in an air-tight jar in the refrigerator.

I copied the post above from this site....
http://www.whatgeekseat.com/wordpress/2007/06/16/garlic-scape-pesto/

Have a great week !

The Carrot Vol 3 Issue 6

2009-06-15T19:53:00.000-07:00

Hi,

The day began with a few clouds but by mid morning the harvesters had these yellow suits on! They were so easy to spot from a distance, I even used a rhyme, a yellow fruit that goes with Janna..., she turned the hose on me! Jessica generally wears shorts and flip flops. I have tried for 4 years to get her into a solid pair of socks and boots but she doesn't get it, even Jessica put on a yellow suit and rubber boots! Despite the rain we got a nice selection for your subscription.

kohlrabi - green this time. This is a great dipping veggie, but is also nice chopped and steamed with its leaves

broccoli

radish-shunkyo semi long - with a wonderful crisp texture - try them sliced on a sandwich, mixed into some tuna, or with cream cheese on some crackers -the possibilities are endless....
Guess what.....you can also eat radish greens :) no kidding.

peas - still the variety with those great juicy edible pods.

onions - slice them, dice them, they are great with everything

lettuce - speckled - also called "flashy trout back"

Full shares may also include......

beets - Madeline made a wonderful lunch with the chopped green tops and some onions thrown in - all sauteed in some butter and tossed with angel hair pasta and topped with parmesan cheese.

napa cabbage - wonderful for some coleslaw with onions and radish chopped in or try it in a stir-fry with peas thrown in at the very end.

cilantro/parsley - your choice

We are very thankful for the rains of the past week. We talked to a college friend this morning. He farms near Platte, SD and said that this is the "weirdest spring weather" that he can remember. We have had to do some re-planting due to dry weather(seed didn't germinate) and hot wind that killed newly emerged seedlings leaving very uneven stands of some crops. The recent moisture is a real blessing - allowing seed to germinate and cloud cover gives new transplants the chance to get established without wilting in the hot sun. With the promise of warmer weather this weekend things should really "take off".

We hope that you have a wonderful week!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 5

2009-06-08T15:19:00.000-07:00

Welcome to another week at the farm!

Rain this weekend has brought much needed moisture for which we are thankful. We also welcome Elizabeth VanMaanen as a new employee. She will be helping out several days each week and we are enjoying getting to know her better. We feel like things are really moving forward and having extra help really makes a big difference. We got a lot of weeding, mulching and transplanting done this week.

Tomorrow you can expect to see one of our girls at the farm stand as we will be heading up to Minneapolis to pick up our oldest daughter, Allison, who is returning from choir tour in Europe.

A Reminder: please remember to return your box each week so that we don't run out. Thanks!

In your basket this week.......a number of firsts of the season....

Peas - We can never get enough of these delicious treats - once again, these are the variety with the sweet edible pod - string them and eat the whole thing!

Potatoes - First new potatoes of the season. Either Yukon or Rose Gold varieties. I like them best steamed until tender and served with a pat of butter.

Leaf Lettuce - try this light dressing for a change... 4 Tbsp. olive oil, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp. honey, 1/2 Tbsp brown mustard. Whisk together or shake it up in a small jar. You may adjust the honey and mustard to your taste. Also tastes good with some balsamic vinegar in place of some of the lemon juice.

Carrots! - www.carrotmuseum.com check out this site for some great ideas and information about this year round favorite. You might even want to try some of the suggestions on using the greens of the carrot in soups, salads, etc.

Broccoli - (or trees as my kids used to call it :)

Whole shares this week also include the following.....

Salad Turnips - white, crunchy and mild. You'll like them raw for snacking or chopped up in your salad. These are also tasty lightly steamed - and nothing goes to waste with the turnip - start the root part cooking and then toss in the green tops toward the end. These will make a nice medley with the peas and carrots.

2009-06-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

The tomato garden tomatoes are caged and mulched with chopped bean straw in the walk ways.

2009-06-04T20:31:00.000-07:00

Garlic

Super Sweet Sugar Snax Peas

Tunnel # 1 The lettuce is almost all gone, the tomatoes are staked and pruned to a leader and up the pole they grow!

2009-06-04T20:15:00.000-07:00

Leaf Lettuce in the "center garden."

Onions in "pasture garden". The Sweet Peppers are in the five mulch rows to the right of the onions. We planted the pepper plants in the plastic mulch and then put bean straw mulch down between the plastic mulch rows after the picture was taken. By now you have noticed the drip tape for irrigating. We have used over 10,000 feet of 5/8's inch drip line so far this year and have more on order. We have watered more this last two weeks then most of last growing season. A one or two inch rain would actually be very good. In places where we haven't watered seed hasn't germinated because its too dry.

Garlic, stiff neck Garlic. Some have been harvested as garlic greens.

2009-06-04T20:03:00.000-07:00

Green Beans in the front garden, only 22 rows about 50' long. We use chopped bean straw as a mulch to suppress weeds, hold in moisture but mostly to prevent dirt splash up againest the beans when we have those July thunder storms with big rain drops.

Cabbage in Tunnel # 2. It seems a little later than last year but making steady progress.

All the potatoes have been hilled. These are in the "pasture garden". The variety on the right are Red Norlands, an early red potato. We have a variety called Rose Gold in Tunnel # 2 that flowered two weeks ago and will be dug tomorrow and Monday. There is also a row of Yukon Gold in Tunnel #2 but they haven't flowered yet.

2009-06-04T19:59:00.000-07:00

Beets in the "center garden" taken June 3.

2009-06-04T19:46:00.000-07:00

This is Rowdie, Rosie's calf born back in late March. He is doing very well. Had a close call last week when got a halter on by himself, typical toddler, and it was stuck on a post. He pulled and pulled and nearly choked himself to death, I heard the commotion from elsewhere and got in the shed and cut him free but he still had the halter around his neck tight enough to prevent him from drinking. I had nieghbor Luke come over and rope him and he wrestled with him till he got the halter off.

This is Mindy, about 3 weeks younger than Rowdie, one of the nicest heifers I have had. Maxine has done a wonderful job with her and she has been trouble free!

2009-06-04T19:39:00.000-07:00

These broilers are 2.5 weeks old, this is their second day on grass/pasture right next to the cows. I move the pens to fresh grass twice each day.

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 4

2009-06-01T20:12:00.000-07:00

Greetings!

It has been a busy, busy, busy day! We did our picking in the cool of the morning and then spent most of the afternoon and early evening weeding and planting. Last Wednesday we brought our first group of chickens for the season to the butcher and they needed to be picked up today. Before he left for Hospers to pick them up, John, with Adrienne's help, moved the next group of chicks out of the brooder pen and into the chicken tractors. These birds came back with an average size of 4.4# and look great! Please contact us if you would like to place an order.

This afternoon we also had a visit from some of the members of the sustainable ag board from the Leopold Center at Iowa State. We were also pleased to be able to supply the produce for their dinner on Tuesday at Dordt College. On top of that all, it was a beautiful day for being outside and I even managed to get a walk in this evening.

Once again we thank you for your vote for local food by being a member of our CSA. We thought that you might find the movie trailer at the link below interesting.

http://www.foodincmovie.com/

In your basket this week...........

PEAS!!! Yes, peas are here and we are excited. These are the Super Sugar Snax that everyone loves so much. They have a juicy succulent pod that is edible, so all you need to do is string them and steam them....or you can just enjoy them raw.

Red Romaine - a twist on the standard romaine with a deep red color - very pretty.

Leaf Lettuce - This is a new stand of lettuce and a very nice mix of colors and shapes.

Radish - I've listed a recipe from allrecipes.com below for a new way to prepare radishes. A friend from market told me about it and said that her children even asked for it again. I'll be trying it this week too. You could use those garlic greens - if you still have some, or I'm sure that green onions would substitute nicely too. If you don't want to heat up the grill, you could also saute these.

Green onions - the flavor of these is, in our opinion, outstanding. Try some cooked or in a salad.

Spinach - the green that just keeps on giving :) We keep picking and it keeps producing - until it gets too hot outdoors of course.

Kohlrabi - full share will also receive purple kohlrabi this week.

Have a great week!

Grilled Radishes

SUBMITTED BY: librarylady PHOTO BY: LINDA MCLEAN

"These are great matched with a simple grilled chicken breast. Use more or less garlic to taste."

RECIPE RATING:

Read Reviews (18)

Review/Rate This Recipe

PREP TIME	15 Min
COOK TIME	20 Min
READY IN	35 Min

SERVINGS

(Help)

Servings

METRIC

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

20 ounces radishes, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
1 cube ice
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the grill for high heat.
Place the radishes, garlic, butter, and ice cube on a double layer of aluminum foil large enough to wrap contents. Season with salt and pepper. Tightly seal foil around contents.
Place foil packet on the grill, and cook 20 minutes, or until radishes are tender.

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol. 3 Issue 3

2009-05-25T20:27:00.000-07:00

We are exhausted. Janna is half asleep in the chair and I am trying to coach words out of her mouth to tell you what we did this week, what Jessica and Janna harvested this morning for our subscribers and what to expect in the next couple of weeks.

Today we got a lot done. Nothing seeded or planted but we got a lot of weeding done in three gardens. We got the biggest potato garden weeded and hilled. We got some watering done and all in sunshine and consistent wind.

This past week my parents have been here because Adrienne graduated from 8th grade. My father is 81 and not so strong any more but loves to hoe, or should I say he hates weeds. He has been a big help again this year.

We got the peppers planted this week too, I noticed Janna mentioned that she was hoping to get that done in the last post. This week we will also bring our first group of chickens to the butcher. If you would like some fresh frozen pasture raised chickens for your freezer please let us know.

This week you will receive your share in a reusable box. Please return your box each week when you pick up your share. You may also choose to bring your own sack and empty your box when you are picking up your share so that you don't have to remember to bring your box back each week.

This week in your basket.......

Greens continue to flourish in the cool moist weather of spring.

Cilantro - use this tasty herb in your favorite recipes or add it to your salad for great flavor.

Leaf Lettuce - a nice mix of red and green

Butterhead Lettuce - either red or green - crisp and juicy

Radish - pink or red

Kohlrabi - looks like a baseball with leaves sticking out of it :) The first time I saw it I thought it resembled a Martian space ship. Peel, slice and steam it or enjoy the crisp sweet flavor raw with some dip.

Garlic Greens - a spring treat. These are actually the immature garlic plant before it forms a bulb of cloves. Rather than a strong garlic flavor, you will be surprised at the pleasant mild taste. To use, cut off the roots and use the white part and tender green parts in almost the same way you would use green onions. Keep them wrapped in the fridge, and try to use them up within a week.

Swiss Chard - use last week's recipe for kale and substitute chard for the kale. We also enjoy it in salads. You can use swiss chard almost any way that you would use spinach. By the way, chard looks a lot like beet tops, b/c it is from the same family. It has a green leaf with brightly colored stems ranging from creamy white to yellow, pink and red.

Recipe......

Pasta With Green Garlic
1 pound fresh pasta
2 tablespoons butter
several stalks green garlic, finely sliced
salt (to taste)
black pepper, freshly ground (to taste)
Parmesan cheese, grated (to taste)
1. Boil water for the pasta.
2. Melt butter in a sauté pan, being careful not to let it brown, and add the green garlic.
3. Saute on medium to medium-low heat until the green garlic has softened (but don’t let it brown). Remove from heat.
4. Cook the pasta.
5. When the pasta is cooked, drain it (reserve cooking liquid), and set pasta aside.
6. Return the saute pan to the range, set to medium to medium-high. When the butter starts to bubble, add about 1/4 cup of the water the pasta cooked in and whisk until the butter and water forms an emulsion. Keep whisking while the butter/water reduces slightly (around a minute).
7. Add pasta to the pan and toss, adding more water if too dry, and seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
8. Plate and serve the pasta with grated parmesan on top.

recipe from www.thefoodsection.com

Have a good week,

John and Janna

2009-05-18T21:49:00.000-07:00

2009-05-18T19:55:00.000-07:00

The Cornucopia Carrot: Vol. 3, Issue 2

Greetings and welcome to a week of summer-like weather.

After near freezing temperatures on the weekend we are hoping that the weather is finally settled enough to plant peppers. The tomatoes outside made it through and so did some beans that were up and about 2" tall. Some of the potatoes have a few black leaves and also some radishes have a few "yellowed" leaves, but they should not have any trouble recovering. The biggest challenge this week will probably be the wind. I kept some tomato plants aside to replace plants that get cracked off in the wind. So far we have only lost about 5 and none yet to the rabbits which is usually a bigger problem.

John spent some time this afternoon releasing the sides on our tunnels that we had boarded down earlier this spring because of wind. We needed to get them rolled up for more air flow due to the higher temps. Overall we are pleased with how things are looking and with the kids help we have been able to keep on top of weeding, harvesting and planting. Thursday evening we finished planting the last group of onions for fall storage - 30 bunches (about 3000) - in about 1 hour with four of us - Not bad!

But now on to the good stuff.....what is in your basket this week.

Crunchy Royale Radish - timing is everything. We had them ready earlier, but they would have been overdone for you so we took them to market and had to wait until the next group was ready to offer them to you. These are nice mild beauties.

Parsley - Some flat leaf, some curly. Use it as a garnish or with the kale recipe below.

Lettuce - wonderful heads of butterhead or romaine. This is a great year for lettuce, so get out your salad spinner! I find it easiest to just chop up the head and toss it in a sink of cold water to rinse and crisp. Then spin it out and eat. If you have too much for one meal, bag it and your salad is ready for the next meal.

Elegance Greens - add texture, color and flavor to your salads.

Kale - if you are looking for a "super food", kale is "it". Enjoy it cooked or raw. We enjoyed the stewed kale (recipe below) on Sunday noon.

Green Onions - another first of the season.

Full share will also include Arugula this week - a delightful, mild, slightly peppery green that is a wonderful addition to your salad, as a late addition topping on pizza, etc.

Have a great week!

Stewed Kale

1 bag of Kale

1 small bunch green onions, chopped (green and white parts)

1 small bunch parsley, chopped

3-4 slices of bacon, chopped

Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Cook bacon in soup pot for 5 minutes until partially cooked.

2. Add onions and parsley sauté for 2 min.

3. add Kale and constantly stir until wilted

4. add 1/3 to 1/2 cup of water and simmer for 20-25 min covered, uncover the last 5 min

5. salt and pepper to taste and serve

If you still have some parsnips you could chop them up and add them with the water. You might want to increase the water slightly.

Adapted from a recipe by Chef Jonathan A. Ricks

2009-05-12T10:07:00.000-07:00

Greetings and welcome to another season of fresh locally grown vegetables from The Cornucopia. We are glad to have you back if you are a returning member and excited to welcome you if you are new to our CSA! Just a reminder: pick-up of your CSA share will be every Tuesday between 9am and noon at Central Park in Sioux Center (just north of the Fire Station) It has been a relatively cool wet spring, making it a bit tricky at times to get into the field. Once again, we are enjoying the convenience of going into the high tunnel to harvest many early crops and plant early tomatoes. The tomatoes inside are growing nicely and some even have blossoms appearing. Potatoes are up, onions and garlic are thriving outside and this week we will also plant the outdoor tomatoes. Be sure to visit the blogspot to see pictures of things here on the farm. http://www.thecornucopiacarrot.blogspot.com The blogspot will also be our means of communication - this newsletter will be posted at the blog from now on and not sent out as an email every week. We look forward to serving you - please let us know if you have any suggestions or questions. Thanks, and have a great week! Spring greens are here and we are excited to share them with you. In your share this week you will find a variety. All-Star Lettuce Mix - a colorful leaf lettuce blend. This lettuce calls out for that simple dressing our moms and grandmas used to make. Start with some mayonnaise (maybe 1/3 to 1/2 cup), add a little milk to thin it, then a dash of wine vinegar and a teaspoon or so of sugar - play with it a little until you get a consistency and flavor you like. Drizzle this dressing over individual salads and serve. This is also good with chopped boiled eggs and crumbled bacon. Spinach - this might be good tossed in with your salad or wilted with some pasta and cheese. Elegance Greens - these baby greens have wonderful texture, shape and color. They make a great slightly spicy salad on their own, or add them to your lettuce mix to jazz it up a bit. Also a great addition to many cooked dishes when you'd like some extra flavor and color. Garlic Chives - nothing says spring like chives. Today's variety has a flat leaf and a mild garlicky flavor. Chop them up and add them to your potatoes, salad, stir-fry........ Parsnips - an old fashioned root vegetable that looks like a white carrot, but with celery undertones. Peel and chop, and brown in butter or bacon drippings. Serve with a salad. These are also great roasted, or in a stew with other root vegetables. Their flavor would also be a nice addition grated into salads. They keep well in the refrigerator as long as you keep them wrapped

2009-05-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

I had parsnips the other day for lunch. I had bacon for breakfast and I left the fat in the pan. Janna washed and cut up the parsnips and fried them in the bacon fat. That was good. Some might not think healthy but I love my bacon! The parsnips tasted sweet like sweet potato or a good cooked carrot. One of our CSA members sent me this document which I'll share.

Parsnip -Nutritionally, parsnips are low in calories, about 130 for a whole one 9" in length, and contain no saturated fat or cholesterol. That same 9" parsnip can boast a 6.4 grams of fiber, 93.1 mcg of folic acid (that's nothing to sneeze at), 59.2 mg of calcium, and 46.4 mg of potassium, and lesser amounts of vitamins B1, B2, B3, vitamin C, iron, and zinc. Store raw parsnips in the refrigerator, preferably in a perforated plastic bag. They will keep well up to three weeks. After cooking, refrigerate only a day or two.
www.vegparadise.com/highestperch21.html - 21k
Parsnips can be eaten raw (try grating them into a slaw-like salad tossed with lemon juice and olive oil) but cooking them brings out more of their fragrance and zip. Boiled parsnips mashed with cream and butter are downright unctuous, but for something a little different, simmer sliced parsnips in apple or pear cider with a tablespoon or two of butter, then raise heat and reduce the liquid to a glaze. Grated parsnips can replace carrots in carrot cake or zucchini in zucchini bread. www.organicvalley.coop/recipes

Baked Parsnips
4 cups diced cooked parsnips
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Place parsnips in a greased baking dish. Pour melted butter over parsnips. Combine sugar and mustard; sprinkle over parsnips. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes. Serves 6 to 8.
POTATO AND PARSNIP ROSTI8 oz potatoes, grated8 oz parsnips, grated1 onion, thinly sliced1 tbsp creamed horseradish2 tbsp chopped chives3 fl oz yogurtMix everything together and season to taste. Pour into a shallow baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes until becoming crisp and brown. SPICED PARSNIP SOUP1 1/2 lb parsnips, peeled and cubed2 onions, chopped2 garlic cloves, chopped1 tsp cumin seeds1 tsp cardamon seeds1 tsp coriander seeds1 tsp turmeric1 tsp ground ginger2 pints vegetable stockDry roast the seeds and grind together. Saute the onion and garlic. Add the spices and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the parsnips and stock and simmer gently until tender. Puree and serve.

Honey, It's Parsnips !
1 1/2 lb Parsnips -diagonally sliced into -1/2" pieces 3/4 c Water 1/2 ts Salt 2 tb Butter 1 tb Honey 1/4 c Orange Juice 1 t Orange Peel -- grated
In a saucepan, cook parsnips in water and salt over medium heat until fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and remove from pan.
In same pan heat butter, honey, juice and orange peel together.
Toss with parsnips and a little salt, if desired.
Honey-Roasted Parsnips with Sweet Potatoes and Apples
1 1/2 cup parsnips, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
2 firm apples, peeled, cored and cut into bite-size chunks
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, or to taste
1 dash each of salt and freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Coat a casserole dish with canola oil spray and set aside. Place the parsnips, sweet potatoes and apples in a large mixing bowl and set aside. Mix the canola oil, balsamic vinegar and honey together. Pour over vegetables and apples. Toss to coat well. Transfer to the casserole dish, cover and bake until tender, about 1 hour.

2009-04-24T20:46:00.001-07:00

I forgot the onions are almost all in, one variety to go and then we will be at 9,000 onions! The strawberries are planted all 500 plants in two hours, 3 years ago it took 2 days, the ground and weather have been very cooperative!

2009-04-24T20:38:00.000-07:00

Carrots are seeded in the Franken garden. Potatoes, early, mid season and almost late season are planted in the Pasture Garden and the far west West Garden. The tunnels are full now, real full and taking off. The peas are up in two places outdoors, radishes, spinach, salad greens and more. Adrienne has done a wonderful job transplanting tomatoes from the speedling trays into 3 inch pots. She doesn't know it but the sweet peppers are next. That should give them room to grow till we see we are frost free during the first two weeks of May. Janna is planting brassicas and as soon as the trays are empty we refill them with potting mix and seed some more. All the germinating shelves are full. Pictures again soon.

2009-04-24T20:30:00.000-07:00

2009-04-21T07:21:00.000-07:00

2009-04-19T20:50:00.000-07:00

We have been very busy. The key thing is that we feel good about yesterday. Janna and Madeline got 500 strawberry plants planted in 2 hours between 11 am and 1 pm! It rained the last half but not hard enough to make it muddy.

The tunnel crops are up and starting to good average to good. I will try get some pictures up soon. We also have outdoor peas in and up ( barely) and onions, radishes and other cool weather crops. Most of the big tiller tillage is done here.

The gilts are ready to go the Mike Hibmas to have their piglets, he is supposed to pick them up this week. They look like they will farrow soon.

Maxine had her calf the other day, I looked about 3 and looked like she had for 3 weeks, and then when I turned the tractor around in the field and look in her direction she was licking a calf about 5. The calf is a nice chocolate brown color, no white anywhere.

The first broiler chicks arrived two weeks ago and should be out on grass by Thursday!

John

2009-04-12T10:02:00.000-07:00

Rowdie, born March 31, 2008 from Rosie.

2009-04-12T09:59:00.000-07:00

2009-03-02T15:24:00.000-08:00

John, Janna, Madeline and Adrienne spent three days last week at the Organic Farming conference put on by MOSES in La Crosse WI. It was very good. Janna did some some seeding into trays/flats this morning and the lettuce germinated while we were gone. Our first mailing of CSA brochures are in the mail to potenital customers. We are so looking forward to spring!

2009-02-23T20:05:00.000-08:00

This cabbage that was seeded Monday, February 16 and up and looking good by February 21. Hopefully we will plant this in the high tunnel about March 15-20 so we use the tray and space for the second planting.

2009-02-23T19:57:00.000-08:00

Now she is doing the first of several trays of peppers. We are starting with 800 pepper plants! Red, Green, Yellow, Orange, Chocolate, Sweet, Mild, Medium, Hot and Very Hot! We need to plant so many because we have a daughter that eats one for every one she picks for sale! Great source of vitamins!

2009-02-23T19:55:00.000-08:00

A closer look. John is not allowed to help with this part! Details.

2009-02-23T19:51:00.000-08:00

Janna putting in the first lettuce seeds. Today she did four trays that will be the first 1000 heads of lettuce!

2009-02-07T19:46:00.000-08:00

This is where we will begin our transplants. The seeding will happen on the table on the right of the picture and the water on the left. I need to add the plastic yet. Once watered, the trays go under lights on one of four stacks of shelves. We currently have room for about 40 trays that hold anywhere from 72 (tomato trays) to 338 (onions, leek) plants. We are dreaming of putting up a heated greenhouse to move this out of our garage.

2009-02-07T19:38:00.000-08:00

I ordered a winter delivery of seed potatoes. I am going to green sprout them inside for the next 3-4 weeks and then plant the sprouted seed potatoes in high tunnel #2. The idea is to have new potatoes early at the markets. It has been done in Maine so I think it should work in NW Iowa! They came in a insulated box. It was a good week the delivery being the temperatures have been mild this week. There is 15 lbs of Yukon Gold and 15 lbs of Rose Gold.

2009-02-07T19:32:00.000-08:00

Janna is covering up Radish, Kale, Turnips, Mache in tunnel 1. We hope this is all harvested before it is time to plant tomatoes. She also put in two rows of peas. It was warm, I didn't have the therometer in the tunnel but it felt like t-shirt weather.

2009-02-04T22:21:00.000-08:00

Hooray!

2009-02-04T15:28:00.001-08:00

Janna and I have been accepted into a mentoring program with MOSES, we will get hooked up with an experienced farmer and Janna will participate in a program called Organic University!

2009-02-03T21:09:00.001-08:00

Today Janna is finishing her seed inventory. She hopes to place an order tomorrow. We are also working on our CSA brochure and an ad for the local shopper. The CSA will run for 20 weeks from May 12 to September 22. Today was a clear cold sunny day and it was "warm" in the tunnel. I am going to put in some poles and wire tomorrow so we can hang a row cover over the entire crop like a blanket. We hope to seed some greens and carrots before the end of the week! Spring is coming!

2009-01-18T12:57:00.000-08:00

This is the south end of tunnel # 1 to show the wall. Our strongest winds come from the south so that wall is reinforced with lumber in concrete. The pieces of wood leaning up againest the wall are tripods for our pole beans. We grew pole beans as a second crop last season.

2009-01-18T12:54:00.000-08:00

This is inside of high tunnel # 2 looking north. This tunnel will be planted to greens, brassicas and possibly potatoes in the next 45 days.

2009-01-18T12:33:00.000-08:00

2009-01-18T12:25:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of our high tunnels. Basically large cold frames. We do not heat these structures. In next two weeks will start seeding greens! Yes, the gardening season starts in January!

2009-01-18T12:23:00.000-08:00

I thought I would add a picture of the pigs. I water them at least twice a day in winter, they hear me fill the buckets and come outside and line up!

2009-01-18T12:18:00.000-08:00

2009-01-11T21:26:00.000-08:00

Realized that this past week was the Great Plains Vegetable Growers conference in St Joesph MO. We have gone there the past 3 years. This year we are going to St Cloud MN for a day to hear Elliot Coleman speak for an afternoon. He is the guru on season extension and the use of high tunnels. We have read several of his books so we thought we would do that this year. It is the day before workshop at the MN organic vegetables conference.

2009-01-10T18:51:00.000-08:00

A hot saturday at the Sioux City Market, we believe late June. Someone emailed us the picture this week as if to ask if we were getting ready for another season!

The Cornucopia

MOISTURE!!!

A new year, an new season!

Week 17 of 18!

Tomato season

August Already!

Cucumber Poetry?

Pulling carrots out in the rain...

Along with the Sunshine, You need a little Rain

Things are Heating Up!

days are too short

Last Wednesday Sioux Falls Argus Leader

Another rainy day...

Ribollita Recipe

Green fields

Even the Birds want to come Indoors

Bring on the Sunshine!

The 2011 Vegetable Season is Here!

New Season is underway!

Planning for Spring

Beautiful Fall Weather

2nd last

Feels like Fall

August 18 already!

Pull Those Weeds!!!

Rain or shine? not this time:'(

Rain, Rain.....

Sunflower Smiles

Pigs, Chicks and Skunks!

Got Bugs?........

Wednesday June 30 Already!

Sunshine after the rain feels good!

Happy for Sunshine!

It has rained!

Visit the Farm

Meet us at the Market!

Carrot Almond Salad

Tuscan Carrot Top And Rice Soup

1

Posted by jeanne on August 14, 2009

Tagged with: carrot tops, carrots, celery, onion, soup

Energy Audit

The first Sioux Center Subscription 2010 is delivered!

Potatoes are Planted!

December 2 2009

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 20!

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 19

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 18

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 17

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 15

Cherry Tomato Couscous

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 14

Carrot Cake Recipe

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 13

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol. 3, Issue 12

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 11

Japanese Daikon Carrot Salad Recipe

Ingredients

Directions

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol. 3 Issue 10

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 9

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 8

The Carrot Vol 3, Issue 7

The Carrot Vol 3 Issue 6

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 5

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol.3, Issue 4

Grilled Radishes

SERVINGS

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

DIRECTIONS

The Cornucopia Carrot Vol. 3 Issue 3

Hooray!