Kretschmann Farm Oct 31, 2006
don@kretschmannfarm.com www.kretschmannfarm.com
Greetings from the Kretschmanns,
Time to break
the news—two more weeks of veggies—the week of 11/13 to 11/17 will be
the last one of the regular ’06 season.
We are beginning to plan for the winter boxes for the weeks of Dec. 12, and Jan 2 (‘07). If you
are interested, let us know. We’ll put
together an e-mail list. If you’re on
that list, we’ll contact you with a specific
list of items and a price for the boxes.
You can opt in or out on a month by month basis. It is primarily things which will last well. We are always looking for frost proof
locations to drop off because most of the regular ones aren’t suitable for
wintertime.
After the
abysmal weather late last week, it was a real treat to take a walk around the
place on Sunday, and to pick on Monday.
The brilliant sunshine and deep blue sky perfectly complimented the last
of the autumn leaves and the greens and browns of the fields.
Last week we
were able to get four of the remaining 5 rows of carrots dug and washed. This was one of the last remaining “big jobs”
which was looming over our heads as it got wetter and wetter in the
fields.
To save on
work in bagging, we plan to give you a double sized bag of potatoes this week,
and one of carrots next week. Only the
half shares will get smaller bags of these.
We’ve been
watching all fall as the early planting of kale has rebounded beautifully.
Every year we till in and cover crop the broccoli and cabbage which is planted
at the same time in early April but we leave the kale to recover in late summer
from the dry summer weather and nasty flea beetles. This year it’s really nice! Frost causes dark leafy greens like kale to become
deliciously sweet. This is as good as it
gets. Enjoy.
Just finished
Pollan's new book Omnivore's Dilemma. It
has one of the most amazing ending paragraph's:
(Commenting
after several chapters describing a meal he prepared for friends in which he
hunted and foraged--killed a wild pig, foraged for wild mushrooms, picked wild
greens, ...) "This is not the way I want to eat every day. I like to be able to open a can of stock and
I like to talk about politics, or the movies, at the dinner table sometimes
instead of food. But imagine for a
moment if we once again knew, strictly as a matter of course, these few
unremarkable things: What it is we're eating. Where it came from. How it found
its way to our table. And what, in a true accounting, it really cost. We could then talk about some other things at
dinner. For we would no longer need any
reminding that however we choose to feed ourselves, we eat by the grace of
nature, not industry, and what we're eating is never anything more or less than
the body of the world."
Sincerely, ---Don, Becky, & The Kretschmann Crew
Note on
storage and handling: In the late fall season, there are many
vegetables which inherently store very well.
There are also many which could store well if handled properly. There are a number of websites which you can
refer to for the best practices. Here
are a few: http://muextension.missouri.edu/explore/miscpubs/mp0562.htm
http://www.angelicorganics.com/Vegetables/vegetablescontent.php?contentfile=vegstorage
Apple
Upside-Down Cake: Melt ½ c. butter in 9x13”
metal cake pan and brush sides. Add 1 c.
brown sugar and spread evenly on bottom.
Slice about 4 apples into ½” thick slices across the core perpendicular
to the stem. Remove the seed cavity with
a paring knife. Place apple slices on
top of the brown sugar and cook atop stovetop at medium heat until they are
slightly caramelized. Remove from
heat. Sift 1 ½ c. flour (I use 50-50
whole wheat) with 1 ½ tsp. baking powder, ¼ tsp salt. Separate 3 eggs. Stiffly beat whites. Beat yolks and add 1 c. sugar beating well
and then add ½ c. cider and beat until fluffy; add flour mixture. Then fold in egg whites and pour batter over
apples. Bake @ 375 deg. 30 min. Allow to cool very slightly and then turn
upside down on a cake plate or cookie sheet.
This kale can also be made
with sesame oil and sesame seeds. It’s
great stuffed into pita or other flat breads.
Kale Italiano: Break 1 bunch kale leaves
into bite sized pieces, removing the thick stems. Dice about 5 cloves garlic. Steam or boil kale about 5 min. until tender
but yet very green. While kale is
cooking sauté garlic in 2 tbs olive oil until golden; toss in 4 tbs sunflower
seeds to toast when nearly done. Set
aside. Drain kale in colander and toss
with garlic and sunflower seeds. Salt to
taste.
Don’s Easy
Potato Pancakes: Grate about 2# potatoes, add
one egg, ¼ c. flour, ¼ c. oil, salt. Mix
well. Oil cookie sheet well and place in
oven @ 375 deg. When hot, spread potato
mixture thinly over hot surface. Bake
about 30 min. until potato cake is set, then brush top with oil and bake about
10 min. longer. Cut into pieces.
Special Order
Items: Potatoes:
½ bu. $20. Butternut squash--$25/bu.
These will keep half the winter. Cider from Sally’s Cider Press (the custom cider mill where we get ours
pressed) It’s not organic, but it is fresh pressed and UV pasteurized, the same
as ours. 4 Gal.--$20