Kretschmann Farm Sept. 7, 2010
don@kretschmannfarm.com www.kretschmannfarm.com
Greetings from the Kretschmanns,
We're surely
on the cusp of the fall harvest season now.
Friday, when the front blew through we were so glad to get the quarter
inch of rain but ecstatic to lose 20 degrees.
The starkly cooler mornings and evenings have occasioned hunts for
sweatshirts and jackets which haven't been used since May. Like everyone, we're making mental lists of
all those projects which have been hanging, but need to be started soon to
complete before it turns cold. We've got
perhaps a week to get some of the early bearing apple trees topped--the best
way to control their height is this "summer pruning". Hopefully, we'll be getting the edges of the
barn roof reinforced and re-slated.
This job has lingered for two years after an Amish crew nearly finished
it, saying, "We'll be back when we're in the area.."
Now which Andy Byler was that? And so it
goes on until snow.
The tomatoes continue to produce at a pace
we're finally able to keep up with.
We're getting good quantities of many heirloom and paste varieties. And the cherry toms just keep on
rolling. These little gems seem to be
the most flavorful and favorites in a salad.
Our bunching onions are finally over--hurrah! Don't know how we got so many of those in the
ground, but I think it was that we planted both the regular crop and the batch
we seeded as insurance. We'll have the
sweet bulb onions from now on.
We're ready to
head into our major fruit crop--apples.
We'll also make cider occasionally.
We also get apples from another organic grower in central PA--Bill and
MaryAnn Oyler.
We'll try to keep you informed as to what the many varieties are, but
it's pretty daunting. I'll be taking pictures
and posting them on our website. Quality
might vary throughout the season and by variety. We had a severe freeze the morning of May 10
which damaged
a lot of our apples. The visiting
We've been
watching as the cole crops reached waist height. Because they were near heading, they desparately needed water.
Immediately after our spritz from the sky on
Friday afternoon, we set up the sprinklers
to give them the rest of the water needed.
By Monday, we were starting to see good sized heads of broccoli. Cabbage is there already, and cauliflower
soon too.
Thanks to all
who have been getting back the blueberry pints. It's nice to avoid paying the "packaging
tax".
We've posted
calendars on our website listing the various special monthly order weeks. It's been a little confusing to some when we
say the first or second week of the month because it always depends on which
day of the week you count. Eg. is Thursday July 1, the first week of July? You can also look under the specific item, eg. mushrooms or chickens.
Enjoying the seasonal changes, we are,
sincerely,
Don, Becky, & The Kretschmann Crew
Communication: When leaving a message or sending a check,
please indicate the name under which we have you listed, and the stop
letter(s). It's sometimes quite a hunt
to find the account. And it's so easy to
pick up the barn list and mark off an away week, when we know which list to
pick up.
Carrot Squash Muffins: Grate 1 c. carrots, 1 c.
zucchini or other summer squash. Sift together 3/4 c. whole wheat flour, 1/4 c.
flax flour, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp salt. Mix vigorously 1 egg, 1/4 c. vegetable oil,
1/2 c. sugar; then add the carrots,
zucchini, 1/4 c. chopped nuts, 1/4 c. raisins or other dried fruit. Drop into 6 oiled muffin tins. Bake @375 deg. approx. 20 min.
Easy Eggplant Parmesan:Brush a cookie sheet with olive oil. Lay out eggplant
slices (1/2 " thick) and brush top with more olive oil. Spinkle
with garlic powder and bake in oven until a little tender.
Then spoon on a little tomato sauce and sprinkle with parmesan or romano cheese and a little
oregano. (or use fresh cheeses) Bake until just
tender.
Waldorf Salad:
Cut up 3-4
apples into chunks. Add several grated
carrots & raisins to taste. Dress with mayonaise,
or yogurt and mayo 2:1. Or get
creative...add grated pepper, orange sections, nuts, a little lemon rind,
orange juice...
Red Potatoes and Green Beans- Boil 8-10 med. quartered potatoes until just
tender. Steam ½ # green beans until
bright green. Combine potatoes, beans, 2/3 can smaller black olives, 1 chopped
med onion (red are pretty). Whisk or blend 2-3 tbs. horseradish mustard, 2-3
cloves minced garlic, ½ c. olive oil, ¼ c. wine or balsamic vinegar, salt and
pepper to taste. Pour dressing over vegetables and toss well.
Apple Cake: Combine 2#
tart, cut up apples with 1 1/2 c. sugar and set aside 15 min. Meanwhile sift 2 1/2 c. flour, 1 1/2 tsp
baking soda, 1 Tbs. baking powder, 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp each ginger,
nutmeg and mace. Mix 2 eggs, 1/4 c. oil,
1/2 c. buttermilk, 2 tsp. vanilla, and 1/2 c. raisins or currents. (option-1/2 c
chopped walnuts) Add apples to the dry ingredients, then
stir in the liquid mixture. Pour into
oiled 9x13 baking pan. Bake @ 350 deg.
45-50 min until toothpick comes out clean.
Special Orders: Basil--$14
1/2 bu. box. It's easy to freeze a batch of pesto for the winter. Half bushel is winter pesto
security..
