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This Week's Vegetable Share Contains: Mesclun and Shoots Salad Mix; Ruby Streaks Mustard Greens; Redbor Curly Kale; Napa Cabbage; Yellow Onions; Mixed Potatoes; Purple Top Turnips; Mixed Radishes ....
1 bag Frozen Sweet Corn
1 Butternut Squash
Localvore Offerings Include: Butterworks Farm Black Turtle Beans
Pete's Pantry Salsa Verde
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Vermont Butter & Cheese Creme Fraiche |
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| Veggie/Localvore Bulk Orders
Our Bulk Order Form is up to date. Order by the end of this week for next week's delivery.
Either download the PDF Order Form here or pleasevisit our home page to download the order form as an Excel spreadsheet. Under the Good Eats CSA updates, on the home page, you will find the link to the Excel spreadsheet order form that you can download. |
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| Around the Farm 
The new mural in our wash-house by Tara Goreau
Washing carrots in the wash-house
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Pete's Greens Open House - Saturday, December 3rd, 9:30am to 1:00pm
Come on out to the farm for tours and refreshments!
We are looking forward to visiting with those of you who are able to join us on Saturday! We welcome the opportunity to celebrate and thank all that helped us get back on our feet. We have come a long way since the fire and would love to show everyone what we have accomplished with the help we received. Come visit us on Saturday, December 3rd from 9:30am to 1:00pm! There will be tours throughout the day hosted by Pete Johnson, Amy Skelton, Tim Fishburne and Isaac Jacobs taking you through our facility including the washhouse, coolers, freezer, storage and on-farm kitchen. A tour will leave every half hour starting at 9:30am. Snacks and beverages will be provided, and kids will have a good time running around the cavernous space and eating!
Some of you may have received a different invitation.... Some of you may have received an invitation to an evening event and we realize that might be confusing. We are also holding an invitation only dinner that night for those that helped directly with the rebuild - contractors, funders, family, employees etc. If you have been invited to this dinner, please come, and please RSVP! We are hoping to get a head count for dinner. Thanks!
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Delivery Issues
If there is a shortage at your pick up site and you go home without one of the items you should have received, please email us! We want to know, and we want to fix it for you. Please don't just write it on the check off sheets. Those sheets may not make it back to us and we may miss your note.
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Changes to Your Delivery?
If you will be away some upcoming week, and need to make changes to your share delivery, let us know at least 1 week before the change. You can have your share donated to the Food Pantry, or we can stop your share delivery and you will retain a credit on your account toward the purchase of your next share.
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Local Author's Reading Benefit - Friday, December 2nd at 6:30pm
This benefit for the Hardwick Area Food Pantry and the CAE's Food Access Fund, brings together local authors and farmers, who will read their individual works in celebration of food and agriculture. This year authors Bethany Dunbar, Ben Hewitt and Julia Shipley will be joined by farmer Pete Johnson of Pete's Greens and a young, up and coming writer, Annie Myers, originally from Brooklyn, NY and now living in Craftsbury. Find out more on The Center's blog or by contacting Elena Gustavson at elena@hardwickagriculture.org or 802-472-5840.
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The Common Place Fundraiser - Saturday, December 3rd 10:30am - 7:45pm
 From the Common Place who are hosting an event on Saturday, just down the road from the farm...
The Common Place would like to thank all the local farms, artists, and businesses who donated items to our annual fundraising silent auction to be held on Saturday December 3 from 12:00 -7:00 pm. Located on Craftsbury Common at Stardust Books and The Art House, The Common Place cultivates creativity in our community and supports the local economy. Bonnie View Sheep Farm, Pete's Greens, the Cellars at Jasper Hill, High Fields Center for Composting, and High Mowing Seeds have all contributed to our silent auction, and you can read more about the donations these agricultural centers have made as well as bid on their donations, at www.commonplacevt.org. We hope that you will stop in to view these and the forty-five other hand-made items up for auction. All money raised will support the programs in art and literacy, and the free community events that Stardust Books and The Art House host monthly. To learn more about the programs we off, please visit ww.vermontarthouse.com.
The auction will be held in the Common Room at Craftsbury Academy on Craftsbury Common. Bidding opens at noon, followed by refreshments at 5:00 pm, a re-cap of the year at 6:15 by Executive Director Sarah Mutrux, and a special presentation by guest speaker write, director, and producer Jay Craven on the making of the film Disappearances. Whether you just stop in to bid, or you come for refreshments and to hear Jay Craven speak, we hope to see you on Saturday, December 3! For more information, please email Sarah Mutrux at vtarthouse@gmail.com.
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Storage & Use Tips
Purple Top Turnips - These turnips are an heirloom variety originating in Asia in the late nineteenth century. Still today they are a mainstay for winter storage vegetables. They are very nutritious being high in vitamins, minerals and fiber. Before they became the brunt of off-season localvore humor they were highly prized by the Romans, even Pliney the Elder loved a good turnip. They have been a regular guest in root cellars for over a century, being able to keep well into late winter months. They have a delicate flavor, being slightly bitter and earthy. Turnips can be grated for salads, stir fries, gratin potatoes or try them steamed with salt, pepper and a creamy cheese sauce, roast in the oven with your other favorite roots or mash with potatoes for gourmet mashers.
Butternut Squash - Most of the squashes you have gotten in the share have all been acorn types of squashes that are known for their nutty, subtle flavor. This weeks Butternut is in a class of squash all its own, known for being both nutty, sweet and because the flesh is so smooth and silky on the inside. It is great for mashing, soups, roasting and probably most loved because it is easy to peel and boil making is perfect for quick dinners with the kids.
Frozen Corn - We froze a lot of our beautiful organic corn this year. Once we had frozen some and sampled the end product, we decided our farm corn tasted so much better than frozen corn any of us had bought in stores that we resolved not to let any of our corn go to waste. We have put away enough so that you can expect it once a month over the winter. To reheat, just bring some water to a boil in a pot (salted if you wish) and throw in a handful of corn. Heat for 2-4 minutes and then drain and serve, with a bit of butter. If you have kids they will be especially pleased!
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Localvore Lore
This week brings you Butterworks Farm Black Turtle Beans, the result of prevailing over the elements here in Vermont where dry beans can be extremely hard to grow in our wet summers. This heirloom bean originates from Southern Mexico and Central America. Its history can be traced to over 7,000 years ago. The black turtle bean has a dense, meaty texture and is very high in protein, which makes it popular in vegetarian dishes. It is an excellent choice for making into soups and chilis as it broth cooks down to a paste like consistency. You can also cook and add to salads, rice or use in my favorite dish huevos rancheros (see recipe below). It is common to keep the boiled water of these beans and consume it as a soup with other ingredients for seasoning (known as sopa negra, black soup), as a broth (caldo de frijol, bean broth) or to season or color other dishes.
Here are some of my tricks and instructions for cooking these little black nuggets. Number one, some sort of pre-soak is required to cook beans and will significantly reduce cooking time. Cover with 2 inches of water and soak overnight or for 6-8 hours. Drain and cover with fresh water and simmer until beans are soft, about an hour. In warm conditions, refrigerate black beans while they soak to prevent fermentation. A quick-soak method involves covering beans with water, bring to a boil for 2 minutes and then remove from heat and let sit for 2 hours. Drain, cover with fresh water and simmer until soft, about an hour. The beans may prematurely break up with a quick-soak method. Use the overnight method for dishes where it is essential the beans stay whole, such as salads and relishes. Do not add salt or acidic ingredients such as lemon, vinegar, wine, and tomatoes until the beans are finished or nearly done cooking. Adding earlier can cause the beans to toughen. If additional water is needed during the cooking process, use boiling water rather than cold water. Addition of the herbs known as summer savory and epazote can help reduce the flatulence suffered by many who eat beans.
Pete's Pantry Salsa Verde is one of our summer salsas was made in our on-farm kitchen using organic vegetables from our farm. We made our salsa verde with roasted tomatillos, roasted red and white onions, roasted jalapenos, roasted garlic, salt, dried cayennes, cilantro and citric acid. We hope to be able to offer more items like salsa from the farm and will need your feedback as we go along. Please let us know what you think of the salsa!
We have eggs again this week from Pa Pa Doodles Farm.
And to complete the theme this week, we are psyched to be able to include Creme Fraiche from Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery. Here's some history on how this VT product came into being. "After you milk the cows, set the fresh cream aside. Let the natural lactic bacteria take over — creating a thick, smooth, tart result known as crème fraîche. That was how they made it on the dairy farm in Brittany, France, where Allison Hooper worked more than twenty years ago. At that time in the United States, domestic crème fraîche was virtually unheard of, and even imported brands were scarce. When Bob Reese and Allison co-founded Vermont Butter & Cheese Creamery in 1984, their first product was Vermont Chèvre, the company’s signature goats’ milk cheese. Vermont Crème Fraîche, their first cows’ milk creation — and another perfect combination of modern technology and time-honored European methods — followed close on its heels. Vermont Crème Fraîche is exquisitely rich, with the cultured, nutty flavor and creamy texture that characterizes the best crème fraîche, a staple of French cuisine and many of the world’s finest culinary traditions."
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Recipes
Smashed Turnips With Horseradish If you are not a fan of turnips yet this recipe will be the one to change your mind. Pleasingly chunky, slightly sweet with a nice horseradish bite.
2 large turnips 1/2c red onion, minced 2 Tbs horseradish, freshly grated 1/2 c sour cream 2 tsp salt
Trim the ends off the turnips, peel and cut into quarters. Place them in a pot, and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until turnips are fork-tender, about 25 minutes. Strain until completely dry. Place the turnips in a large bowl while they’re still hot, and add the remaining ingredients. Mash with a whisk or a potato masher until well combined but still chunky.
Braised Butternut Squash with Indian Spices Since I am sure everyone has had their fill of regular Butternut squash over Thanksgiving I thought this would be a good way to spice up your squash and give it some flare.
3lb Butternut squash, peeled and cubed 1/4 c oil 1 onion, diced 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 inch piece fresh ginger, minced 1 tsp each cumin, coriander 1/2 tsp turmeric 1 Tbsp black mustard seeds 1 tsp red pepper flakes 1 tsp salt, to taste 1 c water 1 tomato, diced (frozen works great) 3 tbsp maple syrup 1 tsp garam masala (cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, cloves, black pepper blend) Chopped cilantro for garnish, optional
Heat oil in a dutch oven and saute onion, garlic, ginger, spices and mustard seeds. Cook until the seeds start to pop around. Add the salt, water, tomato maple syrup and squash. Simmer until squash is tender, covered for the first 15 minutes. Stir in the garam masala and cilantro, mashing the squash a bit if you'd like.
Huevos Rancheros A classic Mexican breakfast, huevos rancheros are technically fried eggs served on hot corn tortillas and smothered in cooked salsa. But in my house the "huevos" can mean eggs either scrambled or fried. When they're fried the runny yolk mixes in with everything. Another staple of my version of huevos rancheros has black beans and creme fraiche or sour cream. So when this share combo came together I knew this would be a great recipe for the CSA.
2 eggs per person, fried or scrambled 1 corn tortilla per portion Black beans, cooked with some sauce Salsa Creme Fraiche Cooking oil
Warm the beans and salsa on the stove top separately. Heat oven to 200F. In a skillet heat a tsp of cooking oil in the bottom of pan on medium and place tortillas in pan for a minute or so on each side to just heat up. Keep warm in oven. Cook eggs desired way. To assemble the dish put the corn tortilla on the plate first, then the eggs and cover with warm beans and salsa, top with creme fraiche. Yum.... Be creative and add pickled jalapenos, some sweet corn kernels or your favorite braised greens. Anything goes.
Black Bean & Butternut Squash Chili Black beans and winter squash, who would have thought they would make such a great pair. This is a mild version of the recipe. If you like a spicy chili feel free to add some red chili pepper or go ahead and throw some sweet corn in for a sweeter version. Adapted from epicurious.com.
2 cups dried black beans (about 6 cups cooked)
3 Tbs cooking oil 2 yellow onions, chopped 3 garlic cloves 1 ½ tsp salt (plus more to taste) 1 Tbs chili powder 2 tsp ground cumin ½ tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp ground coriander 3 c butternut squash, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces (1 small butternut squash) 1 bay leaf 2 ½ c broth (combination water and bean cooking liquid, chicken or veggie stock) 2 medium, fresh tomatoes (or one 15-oz can, diced) 3 cups coarsely chopped mustard or kale greens
Soak black turtle beans in 3x the amount of water overnight, or for 8 hours. (Or, do a quick-soak: Bring beans and 3x the amount of water to a boil, turn off heat, and soak, covered, for 1-2 hours.) Rinse beans and place in a large pot with 3x the amount of fresh water. Bring to a boil and cook, partially covered, for 1 hour or until beans are tender.
Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until tender and golden. Add garlic, salt, and spices and sauté 1-2 minutes more. Add butternut squash, bay leaf, broth, tomatoes with juices, and black beans and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until the squash is tender, about 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt as necessary. Stir in greens and simmer until chard is tender but still bright green, about 2 minutes. Ladle into bowls and serve with optional chili accompaniments like sour cream, fresh cilantro or scallions, etc.
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