Tickets for Farm Day are still available at the webstore.  Availability is limited due to space for parking, so get your tickets early to avoid disappointment.

Activities will include pumpkins, berry picking, hayrides, a farm tour, and bouncy houses for the kids.  You can bring a picnic but we will also have brick oven pizza for sale, made with TFF produce.  There will be live music all day.  As always, we will have a farmers market for anyone who wants to stock up on extra goodies from the farm.

The raindate will be the following Saturday, October 27th.

Tickets for the event are $5, and are exchangeable for pumpkins or produce.  Kids under 12 get in free, but if you register them in advance they also get a free pumpkin.

The event is not open to the public, but subscribers can buy tickets for friends and extended family.

Lastly, we can always use extra help at the event.  Anyone who is interested in volunteering in exchange for a ticket, email us to let us know.

Summer is mostly over at Terra Firma, as evidenced by the prominent absence of tomatoes in your boxes today.  The fruit that remains in the field is cracked and rotting from last week's rain.  This is the earliest date in our memory for our tomato season to be over.

What to do with Cilantro when you have no tomatoes for salsa?  There are lots of other yummy ways to use the aromatic herb.  Check the recipe below, or make yourself a Thai or Indian curry.

Watermelons did have one last hurrah though, and we are sending it along to you.  You may get either a red or a yellow watermelon, as we didn't have enough of either color to put in all the boxes.

Fuyu Persimmons are a reliable indicator of fall:  they don't start ripening until the nights drop below 60 degrees here.  Many years we don't see them starting to change color until Halloween; this year they are almost a month early.

If you're not familiar with them, they are sweet and crunchy like an apple, but purely sweet.  Fuyus are never bitter.  The skin is a little tougher, and some people peel if off before eating.  Store at room temperature until used; the fridge will make them soft.

Gold Beets are two great vegetables in one:  the roots are sweet, mild and don't bleed.  And the tops are identical to bunched spinach, tasty and nutritious when cooked or even eaten raw.

In the coming weeks, you will see the complete shift in your boxes to our cool season crops:  leafy greens, broccoli, cabbage and carrots.  In the meantime, enjoy the transition from one to the other.

Recipe:  Potato & Green Bean Empanadas with Aji
Aji is a South American pesto made with cilantro.  It's true that this is a carb-heavy dish, if you like you can omit the dough and just eat the filling with the Aji on top.  You can also modify the filling as you like.


To make the dough:  Use your favorite pie dough, or beat together 1 egg, 1/3 C. water and 1 T. white vinegar in a dish.  Sift 2 1/2 C. flour and 1 t. salt together.  Cut 1 stick of cold butter into small pieces.

Using your fingers, blend the butter and flour together until they are crumbly.  Add the liquid and stir with a fork.

Knead the dough briefly to combine.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

To make filling:  Heat 3 T. olive oil in a large skillet.  Add 1 diced onion and cook until soft, then add 1 diced sweet pepper and 1 minced clove of garlic. 

Dice 1 lb. of potatoes and add to the pan along with 1/2 C. of water.  When the potatoes begin to soften, add 2 C. trimmed, chopped green beans.  Continue cooking until the beans are cooked through and the potatoes are tender.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.

To assemble Empanadas:  Roll the dough out into 4 inch circles and spoon filling onto it.  Fold the circles into half moons and brush with melted butter.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes, until the dough is nicely browned.

To make the Aji:  Trim the roots and tough stems from 1 bunch of cilantro. 
In a pan, roast 3 jalapeno peppers (or 1 sweet pepper, if you prefer) until blistered on all sides.  Allow to cool, then remove the cores, stem and seeds. 
Puree the peppers and cilantro with the juice of 1 lime and 3 T. diced green onions.  Season with salt to taste.