9.20.2013

Fall Recipe

I realize it's been a while since I posted a recipe and last night I made a dinner that used so many fall farm fresh ingredients that I had to make a point to take pictures and share it with you. I made squash soup and I made up the recipe so will try to recount it for you. There are so many variations of squash soup and I wanted one that wasn't too sweet and had bright flavors so I added ginger and cardamom and fenugreek.  I had some leftover chorizo in the freezer and took it out of the casing and cooked it up so it was crispy and crumbly.  The spice really balanced the sweetness of the squash and I always love topping this soup off with some caramelized apples which were windfalls from a neighbor.  If I didn't have chorizo I would have also added bacon and/or blue cheese. I feel that squash soup always deserves some toppings to spice it up a little bit.


Although the soup could have been a meal on it's own, I also made a meatloaf and tomato salad. Maybe the combination of the meatloaf and the squash soup is a bit heavy but it was a great meal to eat out on the porch on a cool fall night!



Squash Soup

2 butternut squash
1 large onion, roughly chopped
1/4 cup minced fresh ginger
2 carrots, roughly chopped
1 potato, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup plain greek yogurt
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 tsp fenugreek
1/4 tsp cardamom

Peel, seed, and cube the squash into rough pieces and roast in the oven at 400 for about 30 minutes or until soft. Sautee onions and carrots and potato in your soup pot on the stove top in some olive oil until just starting to brown. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for a few minutes. Add the squash and the chicken stock. You can add as much stock as you like depending on how big your squash are and how thick you like the soup. Add enough stock to cover the vegetables and let simmer for a few minutes. Once everything seems soft, immersion blend the soup. I like to leave it with some texture so that it's not a smooth puree. Add salt and pepper and the spices and the greek yogurt at the end. Top with your choice of toppings: apple, bacon, chorizo, blue cheese, or croutons.

9.09.2013

Fall

I have really been enjoying these cooler mornings and evenings and we are beginning to smell fall in the air. Some leaves are falling and with the cooler weather, our crops are evolving too. We are able to have beautiful heads of lettuce again and the cilantro and parsley love the lower temperatures.


Below is the kraut cabbage and I'm hoping it does well because it's been a while since I've had a batch of kraut fermenting in my house! 


The napa cabbage is coming along beautifully and we just hope the slugs stay away. In the past we've had great luck with this and I think it makes a great slaw. It is more delicate than regular green cabbage and I enjoy how tender the leaves are when you finely chop them. It is great to throw in a stirfry at the end for a little more crunch and texture.


Although the leaves of the kale have been smaller this year, it has been consistent and we've managed to keep the bugs away. The leaves are virtually hole-less and this is a great crop that can keep producing through the much cooler temperatures. 


The garlic is now finally cured and it has been selling great at the market. Now I just hope we have enough leftover to get us through the winter! Terry always pulls the best heads for seed garlic for next year first so that we can grow our crop from our own heads. Garlic is so cool in that way that it keeps on giving because we don't have to buy seed each year. 


The flowers are just beginning to slow down. Some of the zinnias are looking like they're on their way out and we are having fewer sunflowers each week. We'll still have enough to make arrangements through the market, but their colors might be more uniform. This week it was apparent that the bouquets were generally more red and a lot of the yellows and greens are done flowering. 


Bev's Angel Trumpet has finally flowered which was later than it was last year due to the wet and cool summer. We can enjoy it just long enough before Terry has to dig it up and put it in a pot in the basement for winter storage. 

8.29.2013

Addendum

Last week I showed the pictures of the pears ripening in the basement and I didn't exactly explain that and some of you may have wondered why. If you did or even if you didn't, hear is the skinny on canning pears!


 You can't let pears ripen on the tree or else the will ripen and brown from the inside out and not be edible. So, you harvest them when they are hard and put them in a cool, dry place in one layer and check them until they give a little when you press your thumb near the stem. These pears turn from green to yellow and you want to catch them when they still have a hint of green. Terry and Bev have 2 pear trees and the last time they produced fruit was 4 years ago and they have been eating canned pears from those trees for that entire 4 years! If you want to try it yourself, here is the recipe!

Yield: 2-3 lbs of pears per quart 

Prepare a bowl with about 5 cups water and 3 tbsp lemon juice (doesn't need to be fresh lemon). After you have the ripened pears, peel, core, and quarter them, and be sure to remove all brown spots. Immediately after slicing, place them in the lemon juice water to prevent browning. There should be enough water to cover the pears so just add more according to how much you need. 


Make a light syrup of 5 1/4 cups water and 2 1/4 cups sugar. Heat syrup so that the sugar is dissolved and ladle the pears out of the lemon water into the light syrup and heat until they are hot throughout (a light simmer). Pack the hot pears into sterilized jars and ladle the hot syrup over the pears leaving 1/2" headspace. Adjust with 2 piece lids. Hot water process quart jars for 25 minutes and pints for 20 minutes. 


Good luck! You can buy pears from the store and I am sure it would be less work cutting out brown and buggy spots, but the good thing is that we know our trees are not sprayed and are 100% organic. 


This Saturday, August 31st, we will have at the market:

 - swiss chard
- beets
- carrots
-  lettuce
- green beans
- grape jelly
- red currant jelly
- black currant jam
- cherry tomatoes
- flowers
- sunflowers
- red cabbage
- tuscan kale
- curly kale
 - green onions
- assorted peppers (green, jalapeno, hungarian wax)
- cilantro
- parsley

8.23.2013

Happy Friday!

It's Friday which is harvest day for us at Endeavor Farm. Terry is always up early and we try to pick whatever we can before it gets too hot. He is picking beans as we speak! We usually have to wait until late afternoon or after dinner to pick some of the more delicate things like cilantro and parsley.


Our sunflowers really took off this year and people love seeing them and buying them at the market.
Our tallest plant is 9' - 6"!


The garlic has been drying and is almost done. It is certainly edible and we have been selling it but for winter storage, we will keep them hanging for a few more weeks to make sure they are all dried out. We used all of the Leningrad variety for green garlic this year, so are just selling Music, German Porcelain, and Italian Purple Stripe. Please let me know if you aren't in the area and would like some shipped to you!


Canning season is far from over and this week Hannah and Bev made 40 jars of salsa! They both now have pears ripening in their basements to can once they're ready. Canned pears are not to be underestimated! The sweetness in the winter is so delicious and they are beautiful as well. 




The final product!

Please come see us at the market tomorrow on Saturday, August 24th. We will be selling:

 - swiss chard
- beets
- carrots
-  lettuce
- arugula
- green beans
- cucumbers
- grape jelly
- red currant jelly
- black currant jam
- cherry tomatoes
- flowers
- sunflowers
- red cabbage
- tuscan kale
- curly kale
 - green onions
- assorted peppers (green, jalapeno, hungarian wax)
- cilantro
- parsley

8.15.2013

Market

This Saturday at the market is the annual Corn Celebration. There are great activities for kids where they can paint an ear of corn and there will be grilling and samples available. It's always a great event that draws a lot of people so please come enjoy some corn and come get any of the following from Endeavor Farm!

Saturday, August 17th
- kale (tuscan & curly)
- swiss chard
- beets 
- carrots
- green beans
- parsley
- basil
- green onions
- arugula 
- salad mix 
- spinach
- garlic
- flower arrangements
- sunflower stems
- grape jelly 
- red currant jelly
- black currant jam

Above are the results of my pickling the other day!


8.13.2013

Farm Update

Between the recipes and jam and pickling season I haven't given you a good update on what's actually happening in the garden theses days! The garlic has been harvested and hung and is almost finished curing.  Most of the work in the garden is weeding and it never seems like the job is done. Thanks to Hannah's help this year, the weeds are under control a bit better. She is great to have around this year to help out and make sure we are on top of it.


The flowers are huge and doing great and have been selling really well at the market this year. We sell arrangements for $5 and sunflowers for $2/stem. Sometimes the bees even come with us to the market!


Cucumbers are ending, and tomatoes are starting. Eating the first tomato out of the garden is always one of my favorite moments. This time of year I eat tomatoes for breakfast lunch and dinner because I know the season is always shorter than I want it to be.



Our leftover tomato plants that we composted are taking over the pile and producing some fruit! 


As fall approaches it's also time to plant some of the cool weather crops. We are able to plant lettuce, radishes, spinach, cilantro, and parsley. 

 Radishes

Spinach

Check back later this week for what we'll have at the market. I'm off to make pickled carrots, dilly beans, and bread and butter pickles!

8.02.2013

Market

Please forgive me for the short post this week, but here is what we'll have at the market tomorrow. The weather looks like it will be perfect. Hope to see you there!!


Saturday, August 3rd:

- kale (tuscan & curly)
- swiss chard
- beets 
- carrots
- cucumbers
- green beans
- parsley
- basil
- green onions
- arugula 
- salad mix 
- garlic!
- flower arrangements
- sunflower stems
- grape jelly 
- red currant jelly
- black currant jam