Pennypack Pickings

November 18, 2013

Volume 11, Issue 32

2014 CSA Shares

On Sale Now!

All current members have until Thanksgiving to reserve their share.

Horsham Application

The Highlands Application

Current members have their pick of sites and pickup days...

Horsham - Mon, Wed, Fri

The Highlands - Mon, Thur

Non-members and waitlist members will be notified about shares on December 1.

Summer Share

Lunch with Santa at The Highlands

December 8, 2013

12:30 - 2:30 p.m.

Have lunch with Santa then listen to a reading of the Night Before Christmas with Mrs. Claus.

Make holiday crafts.

$15-members / $18-non-members

Reservations required

Click here for flyer & details

Notes from the Edible Classroom Diane Diffenderfer

by Diane Diffenderfer, Education Director

The Highlands' Friday Work Share crew celebrated the end of the 2013 Summer CSA Season with, what else, sweets from Ambler Donuts! I love that harvest day activities are often fueled by glazed, chocolate-covered, maple and Boston Cream donuts! As a life-long donut lover, this perk suits me fine.

The Highlands As I arrived at the farm on Friday morning, I was struck by the similarities between the mid-November morning and those early Spring mornings. The overnight frost was quickly melting away and I notice immediately that unmistakable, earthly fragrance as I walked across the field. The air was filled with bird calls and the trees virtually leafless. I love the sense of calm that envelops the fields.

The farmers and work share crews have been preparing for the shift from Fall to Winter for the past month or so. Floating row covers, low tunnels and sandbags line the rows of mixed greens, chard and strawberries. carrots Winter Work Share folks and farmers will start harvesting a wonderful selection of root veggies and greens in the next week or so as we shift from Summer to Winter at the farm. In just a few short months, trays of seedlings will take over the greenhouse!

On Friday, Kirsten and I laid out the beds at The Highlands EC. If the weather holds, I'll get them tilled and cover the bare ground with leaves and mulch before the cold weather arrives in earnest. The Fall bed prep will allow early Spring planting without too much additional preparation. I'll be planting peas in 4 months.

Over the course of the next few months, I'll be working on educational programs for next year. I've also started meeting with local school representatives to explore how we can position ourselves as a living/breathing agricultural educational resource for students.

On a final note, if you know anyone who might be interested in learning about our 14-week Summer Intern Program, please ask them to contact me. We had a terrific group this summer and I'm already looking ahead to Summer 2014!

Have a good week.

Buckingham 5th Graders Learn Composting Basics

by Diane Diffenderfer, Education Director

It was cold and windy morning at Buckingham Elementary School, but the kids were running around the playground, waiting for their turn to visit the school compost pile and brush up on a few composting basics. In groups of about 10, the kids gathered around as we surveyed the food scraps saved by one of the school cafeteria folks. Bacon? nope. Carrots and cilantro? you bet! What about tater tots... mmm, some say yes, some say no. The yeses - they're potatoes and should go into the pile. The nos - true, but they're cooked with oil, so they go into the trash.

The kids had read the 2 page primer I'd sent earlier in the week and were pretty comfortable talking about what goes into the pile and what does not. We talked about browns and greens, layering the pile and all the micro-organisms that we can't see, but play a crucial role in decomposition. We talked about the difference between soil and dirt and at the end, knelt down and had a look directly into their compost pile. We pulled back vines, leaves, ears of corn and some hay. We found worms, roly-polies and centipedes - all good indicators that the microbes are hard at work, making compost. Come spring, I'll return to Buckingham and we'll spread the compost on their school garden plots, plants peas and greens and check on the garlic the 4th graders planted last month.

Buckingham Elementary applied for and received a grant to help fund their school garden program, including visits from me. A local young man built the garden, complete with 6 cobblestone-edged beds and a deer fence as his Eagle Scout Project. I've visited the garden a few times over the course of the last year to help plant veggie transplants from PFEC and another local farm as well as seeds purchased with grant money. School gardens are becoming more common and we're delighted to lend a hand to any local school that could use one getting their gardens up and running. Please contact me at education@pennypackfarm.org if you know of a school looking for some assistance.

Recipe - Turnip, Carrot & Onion Kinpira

by Traci Opdahl - Amazing Healthful Foods

Kinpira is a classic macrobiotic dish. The combination of good quality oil, sea salt and shoyu is thought to make the nutrition from the vegetables more bioavailable. Shoyu is a high-quality soy sauce that is naturally fermented and without chemicals. When buying Soy Sauce, Shoyu or Tamari - read the label and buy the best quality that you can find. Makes About 3 cups.

1 t. Organic (Toasted) Sesame Oil

1 large Organic Yellow Onion (about 6oz.), cut into fine half moons

3 Organic Salad Turnips (about 6 oz.), cut into fine matchsticks

2 Organic Scarlet Turnips (about 6 oz.) peeled, fine matchsticks

1 large Organic Carrots, cut into fine matchsticks

Sea Salt

Spring Water

2 t. Shoyu

1" Fresh Organic Ginger, Juiced (made by squeezing grated ginger over pot)

Place the oil in a 1-2 quart heavy pot over medium heat (not high heat!) When hot, add the onions. Saute for about two minutes and the add a pinch of sea sal (about 1/16th t.) Add water if the pan gets too dry. Add the salad turnips and continue to saute for a few minutes. Add a pinch of sea salt. Add the Scarlet Turnips and then the carrots, repeating the sauteeing process and salting process. Add about 1/4 cup of water and bring it to a boil. Cover and simmer until the vegetables are soft (about 7-10 minutes). Add the Shoyu, cover and simmer for 5 more minutes. Grate the ginger and squeeze the ginger juice into the pot (a little goes a long way so add a little at a time.) Simmer uncovered until most of the water has evaporated. You know that you have cooked it well if it is sweet. The saute and simmer method with the salt and oil will bring out the natural sweetness in the vegetables.

Fall Calendar

Click here for details and registration for all classes

Learn How to Make Your Own Sauerkraut with Linda Stern and Amy Steffen

Tuesday, November 19, 2013 from 7 - 8:30pm

Class is $20 and includes all food costs

Resurrection Lutheran Church, 620 Welsh Road, Horsham, PA 19044

Fermented food is more nutritious than fresh food, it is full of beneficial pro-biotics and it tastes good! What else are you going to do with all that cabbage this winter? Prepare your own sauerkraut and ginger carrots to take home. Farm-fresh cabbage and carrots will be provided.

Participants should bring:
Two, wide mouth quart jars with lids (or purchase them at the class)
One large mixing bowl
8" or 10" chefs knife
Apron, and dishtowel
Box grater & peeler

Horsham Site is hosted by the College Settlement of Philadelphia