NEWSLETTER

Volume 4, Issue 19

Community Supported Garden at La Vista

September 19, 2006

Field Walk…
     The tomato plants in the East Field are absolutely gorgeous.  Lush green, tall, thick, full of green fruit… too bad it's the middle of September and not the end of June, but that's the way it goes. I'll take it as a sign of the bountiful autumn to come.
     The end of summer has simply been gorgeous. For a while there towards of the end of July, the heat was really getting bad, but August turned right around and gave us relief when we needed it.  You'll see it soon in the greens, carrots, cilantro, radishes, and … yes, tomatoes, among all the other crops of fall.
     Autumn is the time of evening things out, of bringing all the elements into balance.  It's the time when farming is as close as it gets to a normal job. It makes up for the intensity of summer, when changes are fast, furious, and constantly making a fool of any farmer.  In summer, you can weed a bed of squash only to find the same bed choked with new weeds four days later. You can fulfill the dream of growing great cantaloupe only to find it devoured by raccoons the day before harvest.  Summer is brutal. Summer is pure energy, hardly contained and scattered to every corner of every nook and cranny.
     Autumn is our reward for the ride.  Autumn also displays the bounty of summer in the best light. You know the light.  You know the breeze.  You know the smells.  Take extra time in the garden picking green beans, and it's almost guaranteed that you'll come out feeling that little bounce in your step. That's what autumn does.  
     Farming is getting close to a normal job these days because the changes are more subtle than in spring and summer.  I'm almost done planting and sowing.  The weed pressure is much less intense.  The to-do list is finally manageable, to the point that I can almost finish everything when it needs to be finished.  I spend more time walking around the fields because I finally have the time to do so. 
     I'm also furiously collecting my thoughts for next year.  This is the time of year when I can get a solid jump on next spring when all the challenges, successes, and problems of this season are still very fresh in memory.
     In the meantime, I look forward to early fall tomato harvests and more to come!

What's in Your Share

Winter squash
Carrots
Swiss Chard
Cucumbers
Sweet Peppers
Radishes
Garlic
Potatoes
Fresh Onion
Salad Mix
Basil (see Pesto recipe in the June 13 newsletter)
Pick-your-own Cherry Tomatoes

What's For Dinner:
WINTER SQUASH SOUP
1 Acorn or delicata squash
2  c Chicken or vegetable broth
¼ ts Ground ginger
1/8  ts Salt
1/8  ts Pepper
1 ds           Ground cinnamon
1 c Half and half
1/4  c Sour cream -- optional
Fresh chives -- optional
   Halve squash; Remove seeds. Cut each piece in half.
   Place a steamer basket in a large saucepan or Dutch oven; add broth tovsaucepan. Bring to boiling; place squash in steamer basket.
   Cover and steam for 25 to 30 minutes or till squash can be pierced easily with a fork.  Carefully remove steamer basket from saucepan. Reserve steaming liquid in saucepan. Using a spoon, scoop squash pulp out of the peel; discard peel.
  Place squash pulp in a blender or food processor. Cover and process till mixture is smooth, adding as much of the reserved liquid as necessary.
   Stir pureed squash into remaining reserved liquid in the saucepan; stir in ginger, salt, pepper, and cinnamon.  Bring mixture to boiling, Reduce heat and stir in half-and-half. Heat through, If desired, garnish each serving with a dollop of sour cream and chives.