We're extra busy planting fall crops both outside and in the hoops, we're finishing harvesting summer crops, and we're processing tomatoes in our farm kitchen--along the lines of 5,000 pounds a week. For those of you who don't know, we make salsa, soups, bloody mary mix, juice, and whole roasted tomatoes. This last product is the one most connected to our CSA as it is included in our Fall/Winter/Spring CSA boxes. This is the time of the year we're most out of gas, but

A mid-November box last year

there's still lots to do and just about every crop on the farm is either being harvested or is in the ground growing. While warm summer crops are finishing, we've got fall turnips, radishes, carrots, beets, kale, chard, lettuce, cabbage and more fall crops growing in the wings. I'm trying to hold off on putting potatoes in the box because we have so many perishable and popular crops like tomatoes, but we just had to put onions in the box because they're such a staple.

While working in the farm processing kitchen this week I cut up quite a few of the same white onions that are in this week's box, and I noticed that a few of them, though firm and appearing to be fine, had a slightly darker interior color and weren't good. Never seen this before, there weren't many, but they are in there, so as always be on the lookout and be aware that there may be a bad onion here and there. We are more than 40% over value again this week--that has been the average for about the last month--so in the event there is something not up to quality, overall value is still very favorable.

For the last couple weeks, I've been getting up at 3 or 4 every morning to label jars in our processing kitchen so that the jars can be put away to clear the way for another day of cooking. We can't label at the end of the cooking day as the jars are hot, and I'm usually tired by the time they cool down at night (I'd rather get up at 4 than stay up until 10:30). Bottom line is I'm dead tired and can't think of anything else to write. Why don't you guys think up some questions or ideas or something you'd like to hear/read about, and I'll do what I can to address those in the weeks to come. After a few years of these newsletters, it's hard to know what to repeat, what should be new, so I'm open to ideas or suggestions. Either way, my brain dead condition should be over soon, and I usually have no problem thinking of what to say.

Just thought of something. Our summer share ends in a few weeks. The way we do our CSA--breaking it into seasons--goes against the classic CSA model. By doing it this way, we've spoiled you. Typically, the summer boxes should be bigger and make up for weaker spring, and slightly weaker fall, boxes, and it would all come out over the course of the full farming season. Instead, we make sure that spring and fall are at least adequate, and then pile it on in summer, or at least we do when we have extra produce. So, we're hoping some of you might express appreciation by signing up for fall now. Many thanks to those of you who have already done so! If history is any guide, 4 out of 5 of you who are not currently signed up for our fall share will do so in the next few weeks. I'm hoping you'll do it sooner rather than later as our crew size at its seasonal maximum, thus our largest expense-labor/payroll-- is very high this time of year. Thanks!

 

                                                                        -- Chris 

Unlike some other items that appear several weeks in a row, cabbage is a relatively rare treat. This Pepper-Cabbage Slaw recipe uses two items from this week's box--and little else--but there's room for you to add to it and make it your own.