CSA For September 26th!

A touch of frost on the Buttercup squash!

Not the kind of day we'd prefer for getting ready for our CSA families!  Raining when I got up, we got a little window-of-opportunity mid-morning, then rain again, then stopping early afternoon.  Fortunately, we had winter squash already harvested; cucumbers, carrots and tomatillos may be mucky! Fall is so apparent in the garden - a touch of frost on the leaves, cucumbers are starting to grow in odd shapes and hardly any flowers are apparent so it's probably the last taste of cucumber this season.  The summer squash are finally slowing down, but they are not done until hard frost, which is not in the forecast.  We're also seeing more 'nibbling' by wee creatures, admittedly some by our free-ranging chickens but also mice, raccoons and others are stocking up for winter!

Today is the second-to-last share for Thursday's families!  At the final share next week we hope to stock you up with some winter squash - so it will be a heavy one!  Today has some weight to it, too!  We'll also share tomatoes with everyone next week - ripe or not!  You can ripen them on your counters - just turn them everyday so that they don't get soft spots where they sit!

It drives me absolutely crazy, this time of year, when recipes are posted online that call for a can of pumpkin puree!  This is the time of year to use fresh....and CSA members should definitely be roasting some of their Winter Squash and freezing one cup portions for yummy baking all winter!  We freeze them in the small, zip-top bags - they stack so nicely in the freezer and don't take up much room.  Nonetheless, this recipe for Pumpkin oatmeal cookies sound delish!  We'll be using regular whole wheat flour, regular brown sugar and they should still be awesome!  This Pumpkin Sheet Cake with cream cheese icing also sounds good - and easy!  Both these recipes would be awesome with Kabocha squash, a little more nutty flavor with Buttercup or Hubbard!

Here's one to bookmark: a link of links to a myriad of winter squash recipes!  The Pumpkin Fritters with salted caramel sauce sound divine - Kabocha squash would be awesome in that one!  The pumpkin pretzels sound fun, too!  There's just a ton of great links for everything from appetizers to soup to dessert!  And if you love a hot breakfast, try this Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal!  For dinner, here's a Chicken Pot Pie with Squash and Bacon!  Also found this recipe for Hummus made with Winter Squash - perfect for Sunday football games!  The recipe is using Delicata, and I'm not sure we'll have enough to share but you can, as always, substitute another winter squash.  Hopefully next week we'll have at least a few Delicata on the trading table!

If you've got tomatillos to deal with here's an easy and yummy recipe for Roast Tomatillo Salsa!  Tuesday member Reta did a version of this and is a big fan.  Jes got to sample it and is now a big fan, too!

So, in the boxes today:

FULL SHARES:  Winter squash Hubbard (the pointy orange one), Kabocha (the round orange one), spaghetti and acorn, summer squash either Patty Pan or Crookneck and zucchini, cucumber, apples, peppers including jalapeno, Hungarian hot wax and Thai chili, carrots.

PART SHARES:  Winter squash including Hubbard, Kabocha and spaghetti, summer squash Moroccan and zucchini, cucumber, apples, peppers including jalapeno and Hungarian hot wax, carrots, tomatoes.

SINGLE SHARES:  Winter squash Hubbard and spaghetti, zucchini, apples, jalapeno and Hungarian hot wax peppers, carrots, tomatillos.

CSA for September 24th!

This is the second last pick-up! This will be the one of the latest seasons, with the final box in early October, but we did start later than ever this year what with a cool, moist Spring!

It's Winter Squash season now...and you'll be getting a bit of a 'stash' in these last two weeks.  We always say that they are somewhat interchangeable in recipes...except spaghetti squash, although if mashed up or blended well enough it's very good in all the recipes!  The recipes will taste differently, depending on the squash you use, but all good!  Everyone is getting a spaghetti squash today, so here's a brief review on roasting spaghetti squash!  So, here's a pumpkin custard that's dairy and gluten-free!  Awesome dessert for Thanksgiving dinner!  This would be awesome with pumpkin, Kabocha, Hubbard or Boston Marrow.  A bit more nutty and textured with Buttercup or Acorn.  Do you like a breakfast smoothie?  Here's a super healthy Pumpkin Pie Smoothie!  This includes kefir, a healthy probiotic, which you can purchase at local health food stores or substitute yogurt!  This is a somewhat simpler Pumpkin Smoothie with bananas and milk or yogurt!  Just 'cause it is 'the season', here's a recipe for Pumpkin Pie Spice.   Make it up ahead then you're ready for all those muffins, pies, loaves, smoothies and custards!  For us, we're going to probably quadruple a recipe like this...it's not going to go bad, right?  How about starting your day with Winter Squash Baked Oatmeal?  And then, if you want to be slightly more decadent...how about Butternut Swirl Cheesecake?  Or Pumpkin Gingerbread, although ignore the part that calls for a can of pumpkin puree and use your fresh baked!

Winter squash are not just for dessert!  How about Squash and Bean Tacos, with Tomatillo Salsa?  This S'ghetti-Q Squash with BBQ beef and loads of cheese sounds yummy but pretty simple!  Start the morning with Pumpkin Pancakes made with coconut flour!  Here's more traditional Pumpkin Spice Pancakes; we've made these and they were fluffy and tasty!  And soup...you've got to make soup with some of your winter squash!  They all freeze well, for make-ahead-meals!  Here's a Buttercup Soup recipe.  Here's one that we've made: Curried Squash and Apple Soup!

And just because there has been some nice tarragon of late, courtesy of Tammy and Mike, how about a Grapefruit Tarragon Gin and Tonic after a hard day?

So, in the boxes today:

FULL SHARES:  Winter squash including Hubbard (the pointy orange one), Kabocha (the round orange one) and spaghetti, Summer squash including zucchini, and Patty Pans, cucumbers, tomatillos, mixed peppers, apples carrots.

PART SHARES:  Winter squash including Hubbard, Kabocha and spaghetti, Summer squash including zucchini and Patty Pans, beets, pepper mix, apples, carrots, tomatoes.

SINGLE SHARES:  Winter squash Hubbard and spaghetti, Summer squash zucchini and Romanesque, mixed peppers, apples, carrots, tomatoes.

CSA on September 19th!

Rather a mucky, squishy, damp, cool day preparing for CSA!  All the veggies will be damp and probably still a little dirty!  We highly recommend that you get the potatoes and tomatillos out of the plastic bags and let them air out and dry out!

Yes, everyone got some tomatillos today!  They are a tomato relative, but tart and dry.  They are what Mexicans and Central Americans make their awesome Salsa Verde from!  If you didn't see Tuesday's blog - check out this great link with a ton of great things to make with tomatillos!  We're going to try the tomatillo sauce on chicken this weekend!  Lots of people like them fried like green tomatoes, sometimes coated, sometimes not!

Yes, the summer squash keeps coming!  Love this simple appetizer with zucchini roulade: thins strips of zucchini wrapped around ricotta cheese and other goodies!  Also love this dessert recipe from Fruit Share Manitoba: zucchini crabapple crisp!  That uses up a bit of local food: perhaps you've got a crabapple or apple tree in your yard?  Here's a nice recipe for a zucchini apple muffin!  This dessert cake sounds delicious:  Patty Pan Bar - with cinnamon frosting!  Of course, any of the summer squash can be substituted!  CSA member Terra found this scrumptious looking recipe for Patty Pan Quesadillas!

As the Winter squash comes along - here's some other great uses!  We roast up large squash and freeze one cup portions of the meat.  We use the small freezer bags so they stack beautifully in a corner of the freezer.  Grab one, that and whip up these fabulous muffins - they are a go-to breakfast for us in the winter!  We've made these muffins with virtually all winter squash and they're all great, but Hubbard is definitely one of our favorites!  We've also replaced some of the flour with whole wheat and spelt, and just upped the oil a titch!  If you save just 3 tbsp. of that pumpkin meat you can make your own Pumpkin Chai Latte.  Or how about this Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake, which uses applesauce instead of oil and is lower in sugar!  How about a Pumpkin Spice Almond Butter - paleo and vegan! Easy and would be great on pancakes, toast or fresh biscuits!

So, in the baskets today:

FULL SHARES:  Buttercup (green) and Hubbard (orange) winter squash, zucchini, cucumber, tomatillos, Chioggia beets, carrots, a mix of Warba and Sangre potatoes, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers, tomatoes, corn, apples.

PART SHARES:  Buttercup winter squash, cucumber, tomatillos, carrots, mix of Warba and Sangre potatoes, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers, corn, apples, zucchini.

SINGLE SHARES:  Buttercup winter squash, cucumber, tomatillos, carrots, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers, corn, apples, zucchini.

CSA For September 17th!

So much potential!

We're quite lucky being up here on the North Hill.  There's a touch of frost on some of our plants, in more exposed, open areas from the cold, cold evenings of the weekend.  We've gotten nothing like friends lower down in the valley!  But still worrisome: we look around at the potential of green tomatoes and green butternut squash.  Will we, or you, ever enjoy them?

The cool weather seems to have kick-started the tomatillos!  They've ripened like crazy, so we're able to share them this week.  Tomatillos are a staple in Mexico and Central America.  They're used most commonly for true green salsa: Salsa Verde!  They are related to tomatoes, but are tart and dry, with a papery covering.  They are awesome fried:  check out this recipe for coated and pan-fried tomatillos!  Here's a great link with a number of different recipes: we're liking the looks of Shrimp and Tomatillo baked stew or chicken with tomatillo sauce.  And the tomatillo and pineapple salsa sounds fine, as well!

The deer got into the chard, again!

The deer got into the chard again, just as it was looking good!  They've also been nibbling at the foliage of the carrots, we see.  They ate down the chard and the beets early on; the chard bounced back a little bit better than the beets.  But, we've dug beets today - what the heck!  We want to get some to everybody before CSA is over.  There is just enough for the Full Shares today - and that took a bit of digging!  I think they're a nice, small size - Farmer Man thinks they're a waste of time!  It's mostly Chioggio beets, with a bit of regular Detroit Red and the occasional white beet!  We don't, unfortunately, find the greens of Chioggia as good for eating, but the candy cane striped beet is delicious!  Amanda and Ed provided some Armenian and English cucumbers today.  CSA member Tammy and Mike donated the tarragon in the Full Shares.

Spaghetti squash is one of our most requested, and best known, winter squashes at The Global Market.  Most people eat it in a pretty standard manner: roast or bake, scrape out the stringy flesh and serve.  Here's a great idea for a healthy pizza with spaghetti squash crust!  Or how about spaghetti squash as the crust for a snazzy quiche?  It can also make a delicious sweet treat, here with cinnamon!

So, in the boxes today:

FULL SHARES:  Tomatillos, cucumbers, carrots, Sangre potatoes, Crookneck summer squash and golden zucchini, beets, spaghetti and Delicata (sweet potato) winter squash, corn, peppers including jalapeno, Thai and Hungarian Hot wax, tarragon.

PART SHARES:  Tomatillos, cucumbers, carrots, Sangre potatoes, Crookneck, golden and Papaya Pear summer squash, Spaghetti winter squash, corn, jalapeno and Hungarian Hot Wax peppers.

SINGLE SHARES:  Tomatillos, cucumbers, carrots, Sangre potatoes, Crookneck and Golden zucchini, Spaghetti and Delicata winter squash, corn, and Jalapeno and Hungarian Hot wax peppers.

CSA For September 12th!

Hungarian Hot Wax Pepper! So many are
so close, but not quite ripe!

For Thursday's families we've got an awesome hit of heirloom tomatoes courtesy of Angela at Mouse River!  She's had a bumper crop this year!  We've got largely Black Krim and Cherokee Purple for you today!  She's got other varieties available for sale....a deal if you're willing to go to Wawanesa for pick up!  Check out her blog post here.  If anyone is interested in getting some for preserving or just for eating, maybe we can get a delivery to CSA at the deal price!  Email Angela from the link on her blog page!

Amanda and Ed came up with some more Armenian cucumbers; the Singles got them this time and a few Part Shares.  Everyone else has regular slicing cukes.  Amanda and Ed also supplied dill and basil and Tuesday CSA members Tammy and Mike donated some of their 'enthusiastic' tarragon!

Zucchini as pizza crust? Check out this quick and easy recipe here.  For an excellent and easy side-dish, how about this Summer Squash Gratin?  Do you like sushi?  How about thinly sliced zucchini instead of the seaweed paper for Zucchini Sushi?  Those little rolls would be awesome at your next football party, as a healthy alternative!  We've made these zucchini fritters and they're pretty yummy and easy!  The included recipe for a dip with Greek yogurt and cucumber is pretty good, too - lots of uses for it!  Just made this zucchini chocolate cake - we've made a number of different recipes and I still think this is the best!  The link for icing has a number of great selections; we used the chocolate fudge icing!

Winter squash is ripening now!  As we mentioned on Tuesday, in most recipes winter squash is interchangeable.  Different with each different winter squash, but just as good!  The exception is spaghetti squash - the only one that doesn't cook up with a fairly smooth texture.  The noodle-like consistency of spaghetti squash can easily be 'mushed' up to be used in many a recipe.  It might not be the best choice for this enticing recipe for Goat Cheese and Squash pasta!  Here's a grain-free paleo pasta recipe where, like summer squash, the winter squash becomes the noodle!  Kabocha would be a good choice, buttercup, acorn, Hubbard, all would work!  Here's also a great link for making easy crackers and chips with your produce, in the oven, including zucchini and winter squash.  The link mentions zucchini and butternut squash, but as you know now and summer squash can be subbed for zucchini and any winter squash can be subbed for the butternut!

On our Facebook page last night we shared a number of fairly fast and easy bread recipes!  Mostly because we're thinking Winter Squash soup!  Here's a pretty simple recipe for Kabocha Cream Soup.  You can make a big batch and it will freeze nicely!  Here's a Roasted Winter Squash and Apple soup; we've done a version of this many times - sometimes with a mild curry - and it's lovely!  Winter squash also make fabulous fries - here's a link for baked Kabocha fries!

So in the baskets this Thursday:

FULL SHARES:  Kabocha and spaghetti winter squash, Patty Pan summer squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, Sangre potatoes, carrots, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers, herbs either tarragon or basil, corn, apples.

PART SHARES:  Winter squash Kabocha and spaghetti, Patty Pan summer squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, Sangre potatoes, carrots, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers, Herbs basil or dill, corn, apples.

SINGLE SHARES:  Kabocha winter squash, Patty Pan summer squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, Sangre potatoes, carrots, Hungarian Hot Wax peppers, corn, apples.

CSA For September 10th!

Heirloom tomatoes! Yummy!

Oh, have we a treat for you today!  Our friend Angela of Mouse River has had a bumper crop of heirloom tomatoes and we've managed to obtain some for you!  These are heirlooms; Black Krim and Cherokee Purple - awesome flavour, juicy and delicious!  Angela has tomatoes for sale - if you're still looking to preserve or simply want to feast!  Check out her blog post here.  These are all grown organically; she's looking for $3/lb. (the going rate at the farmers market) and she'll do $2/lb. with pick up at her place in Wawanesa!  If enough of us are interested, we may get a nice rate delivered to CSA.....maybe.... just sayin'.  Email her at the link on the blog page!

Amanda and Ed have come up with a nice round of Armenian cucumbers - the long, ridged, pale green ones.  The Single Shares and some of the Part Shares get them this week!  Everyone else has a nice hit of slicing cucumbers.  Amanda also sent some herbs, including basil and we'll finally cut some of ours to go with all those lovely tomatoes!  The classic tomato basil Caprese salad may be on the menu in the next few days!  I find this version of Caprese salad interesting because she's reducing the balsamic vinegar - something we've never done!

A blog post gave me a big giggle this week: 'Ten things to do with zucchini when you're past all hope!'  It's an interesting collection of links from zucchini butter to boats to, well, check it out here!  Here's a great tutorial for making a grain-free zucchini lasagna - the zucchini becomes the noodle!  This link takes you step-by-step through the process!  In this recipe, zucchini becomes spaghetti, with roasted tomatoes!  A 'spiralizer' is probably necessary for this second recipe - a little gadget that slices zucchini and other veggies in special ways!  I'm also loving the look of this zucchini and tomato tart, kind of a pizza, kind of a pie!  Everyone is getting Patty Pan today....as they get larger they are awesome for stuffing as a side-dish; you can serve out little pie-shaped wedges to each diner!  Single Shares have a smaller one - awesome for stuffing for a single serving!  Here's a vegetarian stuffed Patty Pan.  Here's a sausage stuffed Patty Pan; this recipe would also be great for vegetable marrow or Moroccan squash!  Here's the recipe for quinoa-stuffed Patty Pans that we shared on our Facebook page a couple of weeks ago!  Of course, you could use rice instead of quinoa!

As the Winter Squash ripens, you'll be seeing more in your baskets!  Remember that Winter Squash is largely interchangeable in recipes...except for Spaghetti Squash.  It's a little different, but just as viable as long as you mash it or accept a different 'texture' to finished food.  Winter squash are awesome both as savoury and sweet dishes. Everyone is getting buttercup squash today; here's a great link for simple baked buttercup it as a side-dish.  Here's a nifty recipe for pumpkin fudge, dairy-free!

So, in the baskets today:

FULL SHARES:  Heirloom tomatoes, Buttercup winter squash, cucumbers, Patty Pan and Moroccan summer squash, Hungarian hot wax peppers, herbs, garlic, 4 lbs. Sangre potatoes, carrots including Purple Haze and Nantes, apples, corn.

PART SHARES:  Heirloom tomatoes, Buttercup winter squash, cucumbers, Patty Pan and Moroccan summer squash, Hungarian hot wax peppers, herbs, garlic, 2 lbs. Sangre potatoes, carrots including Purple Haze and Nantes, apples, corn.

SINGLE SHARES:  Heirloom tomatoes, Buttercup winter squash, cucumbers, Patty Pan and Moroccan summer squash, Hungarian hot wax peppers, herbs, 2 lbs. Sangre potatoes, carrots including Purple Haze and Nantes, corn.

CSA for September 5th!

It still seems odd to write 'September'...where did summer go?  Except for the heat of last week, it hasn't seemed super 'summery' this year!  Because I put the chickens to bed most nights, I've certainly noticed that it's getting darker much earlier in the evenings!

It seems odd, too, that the Winter Squash is starting to come on strong...and we've hardly had any ripe tomatoes, yet.  However, we soooo love Winter Squash that we're still excited!  Forget canned pumpkin - bake the squash you'll be getting and use it for pies, muffins and cookies, as well as side dishes and entrees.  As a matter of fact, here's a nice recipe for Pumpkin Molasses Cookies!  Today everyone is getting a spaghetti squash...quite unique in the Winter Squash world in that, when baked, the flesh comes out like spaghetti.  You can serve it with pasta sauce or salsa, or I like it with lots of butter and a touch of maple syrup!  Full and Part Shares are getting a buttercup squash - a lovely version with a nutty flavor!  Would be as good in that cookie recipe as pumpkin, giving a bit more, hmmm, almond flavor!

Amanda and Ed have brought the last pick of their corn.  Small cobs, but still good; they've got a pale outside!  We're adding the first pick of our corn, bright green wrapping!  Amanda and Ed also brought a few more Armenian cucumbers as well as herbs and onions!

With back-to-school and back-to-work foremost on people's minds here's a great link for healthy lunches!  Please note the zucchini sticks....Here's a great recipe for a spinach-stuffed crookneck - sounds yummy!

So, in today's boxes:

FULL SHARES:  Spaghetti squash, Buttercup winter squash, zucchini, crookneck squash, Moroccan squash, onions, corn, garlic, cucumbers, Sangre potatoes, carrots, herb either savory or dill.

PART SHARES:  Spaghetti squash, Buttercup winter squash, zucchini, crookneck squash, onions, corn, garlic, cucumbers, Sangre potatoes, carrots, herbs either basil or dill.

SINGLE SHARES:  Spaghetti squash, Buttercup squash, zucchini, crooked neck squash, onion, corn, garlic, cucumbers, Sangre potatoes, carrots.

CSA The First Tuesday of September!

We're calling this Mondo Tuesday - 'cause everyone is getting some summer squash that is mondo!  The weather seems to be making the zucchini and other members of the group very happy and they're growing like crazy.  Hard to believe that we harvested them thoroughly for Friday and Saturday's Global Market and, a few days later, can find armfuls of large ones again!

As the season marches on, the first of the Winter Squash appears in the boxes this week!  Winter squash, as apposed to summer squash, has an inedible skin.  They are best roasted or baked, although we sometimes steam chunks as a side vegetables and the seeds can be roasted.  Many are as good as pumpkin in pies, muffins and cookies and, of course, they make awesome soup.  We're sharing the first of the garlic today - if you haven't had freshly harvested, local garlic before be prepared for a bit of a flavour surprise!  Way more 'punch' than what you may be used to from the stores.  This garlic is not at all considered cured and ready for storage, but you're all going to use it promptly anyway, right?  Tomatillos are available on the trading table, they're coming but not sure if we'll ever have enough to put them into a share.

Cucumbers are doing quite well.  Amanda and Ed have come up with a few Armenian cucumbers, long, thin pale green cucumbers with distinct ridges.  These are quite different and delightful, with nice cucumber flavour and a dense texture. We closed our eyes and just dropped them in some boxes - don't know how else to split them up! Everyone has some good old slicing cucumbers!  This Thai cucumber salad sounds lovely!  Evelyn and Menno will be making a stop today, too - with some tomatoes!

And...what we all need:  a Zucchini recipe round-up!  Yee Haw!  Tons of great ideas and links!

Everyone is getting the very popular Winter squash spaghetti squash: some have the classic, oval greenish beige version.  Some of you have a round version, with a green and gold 'netted' skin, a variety called 'Little Wonder'.  They taste and cook up the same!  Bake and then pull out the flesh - it's like spaghetti!  It's a very unique winter squash for having flesh that comes out like pasta!  Some people like it with a pasta sauce or salsa, some like it with butter and maple syrup or brown sugar!

The FULL SHARES have a vegetable marrow - which looks rather like the common spaghetti squash.  Marrows have a 'V' carved in them.  This is a classic English vegetable but not well known in other cultures.  On it's own, it's a rather bland, mild green flavour.  It's claim to fame is the way it takes on flavours fantastically: in a stew or saute it will pick up the flavour of your spicing and herbs!  The way I'm accustomed to it is stuffed and baked:  my Grandmother's (and Mother's) recipe involved stuffing marrow with sausage meat.  This is the entree for dinner: just serve slices out!  It reheats beautifully if there is leftovers!  You can stuff them with anything you might use to stuff a pepper, tomato or even a turkey.  PART SHARES have a Japanese Kabocha - a sweet, fine-textured winter squash excellent as a vegetable but also very good in pies and other desserts.

So, in the boxes this week:

FULL SHARES:  3 lbs. Sangre potatoes, garlic, onions, spaghetti squash, vegetable marrow, cucumbers, small bunch of herb, Romanesque summer squash, zucchini, carrots, tomatoes.

PART SHARES:  3 lbs. Sangre potatoes, garlic, spaghetti squash, Kabocha squash, cucumbers, bunch of herb, Romanesque summer squash, zucchini, carrots, tomatoes.

SINGLE SHARES:  2 lbs. Sangre potatoes, garlic, carrots, spaghetti squash, cucumbers, Romanesque summer squash, zucchini, Swiss chard.