Late Fall Share

They say "all good things must come to an end". This is very true in New England farming. Gone are the bright red juicy tomatoes that I would devour on a daily basis. Gone are the sweet berries and mouth watering melons. Gone are the long, sunny summer days. Though the good summer is gone and winter will soon arrive, we do not need to allow the good food from the good earth to come to an end just yet. If we can extend these good things that we harvest from the fields and eat in our homes, then we should. And we are. Because we can. As we begin the late fall share, we know the end of the season is just around the corner. But until the end arrives we will continue to eat as well as the good earth will provide us.

Enjoy,
Farmer Dave

Important Information about your Late Fall Share! Dracut

The late fall share differs from the regular season in a few ways, so there are some things you need to know:

The pickup for the Late Fall Share is in a different location than the regular season shares. Pickup will take place at the Brox Farm Stand at 1276 Broadway Road from 3:00 - 7:00 p.m. and not at the barn on Parker Road. Now that it's getting dark earlier and the temperature is dropping, the Brox Farm Stand will be much more comfortable for everyone. And it's only 4 minutes away from Farmer Daves!
All late fall shares come pre-boxed in the "regular size" yellow bins. You will need to bring the bin back each week to receive a share. If you'd like, you can also transfer your share into bags at the pick-up location.
As we get deeper into fall, the odds of bad weather will increase. While we generally have a "rain or shine" policy for pick-up, if ice or snow or the odd hurricane makes traveling unsafe, we will make alternate plans. Please keep an eye on your newsletter and email each week!

Your first pick-up in Dracut will take place on Tuesday, October 30th.

Hurricane Prep on the Farm

We are lucky that in these modern times we usually have ample warning before a hurricane arrives. Many of the fields have already been "put to bed" for the season and require little attention before the storm. Manny of the crops will be picked a day or two early this week before anything has a chance to get torn up by strong winds. We have taken the plastic off of the one acre high tunnel we constructed last December. This structure will not take the weight of snow and so would not have survived last October's early snow fall. Winds over 50 mph could damage the high tunnel and so the risk is too great to leave the plastic on for the sake of the few green tomatoes on the already frosted plants. So this hurricane means we will be enjoying fried green tomatoes! If there had been no hurricane some of the tomatoes would have ripened but their flavor would be nothing like what a red tomato should be.

Elsewhere on the farm we will ensure that everything is battened down and no empty boxes or crates are hanging around in the open. A wind blown crate across the field can do significant damage to the crops. On the other side of the storm the sun will shine and we will continue our fall harvesting!

In Your Share- Late Fall Week 1

The following items may make an appearance in your share this week. As always, the contents of your share are ultimately determined by Mother Nature's harvest conditions.

Collards
Kale
Radishes
Broccoli
Aji Dulce Peppers
Habanero Peppers
Husk Tomatoes
Cabbage
Leeks
Potatoes
Green Tomatoes (and maybe a ripe one if we're lucky!)
Apples
and possibly more depending on harvest conditions!

Recipe of the Week

Broccoli & Cheese Tart with Potato Crust

Adapted by Farmer Dave's from

Guilty Kitchen

Ingredients:

2 lb. Potatoes
1 Large Onion
2 Large eggs, slightly beaten
salt & pepper
1/2 pound Broccoli or Cauliflower or Romanesco (cut into small florets)
2 baby leeks or 1 large leek (white part only), sliced
1 large garlic clove, grated or minced
1 Tbsp canola oil
1/2 cup dark beer or water
more salt & pepper
1/4 cup fresh basil, minced fine
1 cup Cheddar, grated
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs

Directions:

1. Grease a 9" glass pie pan and preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Grate onion and potatoes and drain them of most of their liquid in a colander. (The less liquid, the more crisp your crust will become).

3. Mix grated potatoes and onions with salt, pepper and 2 eggs.

4. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven, brush crust with a small amount of oil, and return to oven for another 15 minutes to become crispy.

5. In large, deep saucepan, heat oil. Add broccoli, leeks and garlic. Allow to sauté for about 5 minutes, then add in beer to deglaze pan. Continue to cook until broccoli just begins to soften. Remove from heat, stir in basil. Allow to cool for a few minutes.

6. In large bowl, mix remaining eggs, salt, pepper and buttermilk. Stir broccoli mix into eggs.

7. Time to finish this thing! Take your crust, layer on half your cheese, then pour the broccoli/egg mix in, then sprinkle on remaining cheese.

8. Bake in 375°F oven for 35-40 minutes.

Groundwork Share A Share Update

Thanks to generous donations by you (CSA members) to the Groundwork Share-A-Share™ fund, we were able to subsidize the cost of shares in 2012 for over thirty individuals and families, as well as shares for local food pantries.

We'd love to be able to subsidize late fall shares as well. Please consider helping us in our efforts to make the CSA accessible to more families by donating to Groundwork Share-A-Share.

To learn more about the program, click here.

Thank you all for helping us keep this program going in 2012!

Contact us:

Farmer Dave's

437 Parker Road

Dracut, MA 01826

farm@farmerdaves.net

www.farmerdaves.net

(978) 349-1952