It’s been an other big farm week, friends. Some big hauling, some big building progress, some big thoughts and plans. And some big harvests, too! It was a week short on time for writing, but we thought we’d share some photos and meal ideas at least. Read on to catch up on the farm happenings, and maybe get some And good ideas for dinner, too.
Who scaled compost mountain? Mary’s field-biologist eye is still active, and she’s often the first to spot pest and disease problems in the greens, or interesting natural history like fox tracks in a trace of snow near the tunnels while closing. The analysis of this trace: not the fox, but probably Zukes racing up the almost-finished compost pile in the night, his tracks enlarged by each step breaking through the frozen crust.
Nothing motivates the final digging and cement pour of the season like thinking it might finally be ground freeze-up. Last Saturday night found us busting out all the party gear: shovels, rock bar and cement mixer, to pour small cement footers for what will someday be a welcoming shady porch to the entrance of the new farmstore, housed in the front of the new packshed. To make this big late night work shift before temperatures plummet a bit more fun, we nicknamed the new orange cement mixer next to the Kubota “The Party Machine.”
Doesn’t matter what the task is, Zukes is involved. Sometimes the best way to keep him safe is to just have him drive the tractor. He (and all the farm pets) are still riding high from the package of treats some farm fans delivered recently.
Ribs on the new nursery went up, and got tied together with the first purlin this week. The process required multiple people on ladders, and a lot of lifting of heavy steel. Some members of our team don’t love ladders, but Zukes says the higher the better. Hopefully by late winter, this space will be filled with starts, and he’ll probably still be finding the highest perch in the place.
Some radishes that were getting a bit wimpy in storage went to our least-picky customers, who had no complaints. Now that they are finally laying eggs again, they deserved a colorful treat.
Things we didn’t know we would want (didn’t even know existed) when we started a farm: macro bins. Pallet-sized foldable plastic crates strong enough to hold 800 lbs of onions or winter squash, and stackable—now that’s exciting! Especially when purchased used from an orchard in the Flathead that is scaling down. We got enough for us and a few for farmer friends down the road at MGVC, so we can all pile up the storage crops higher and higher next winter.
Sneak preview: the first-ever organic farm hoodies…..members who ordered these back in spring can now pick them up in the farmstore! Folks who might want to get one now, stay tuned for the next email, we’ll release the details.
We’ve been eating well….link to this curried squash bowl on the table blog, here.
For your tables, there is good news on the egg front: the girls are back on their game, a solid 22 dozen eggs and climbing each day, so the egg shelves have not been empty in days. We have been celebrating that by rekindling our egg-on-top habits with noodle bowls and soups, dusting of our omelette making skills (stuffed with greens, onions, and garlic of course), and even have a frittata planned; it’s been a while. We expect to be well stocked with eggs now all winter long and well into next season.
Other meal ideas: as days and nights get colder, we double down on roasted roots, roasted squashes of all sorts for side dishes, and of course all the soups. A customer at the farmstore this week reminded us of the classic "zoppa tuscano" with kale, potatoes, sausage, and a creamy broth. We dusted off a seasonal cookbook and found a host of simple squash soups ranging from fresh ginger to savory squash-based chilies (farm members who picked up a bag of dried Peublo chiies and coriander this week, try mixing those in to a squash and bean chili!)
And we are still in love with all the winter greens....the mild mix is going strong for fresh salads. We were tickled recently when, as we sat down at the Brewery, Chef Toby brought us each out a plate of the simplest salad, our greens with their grapefruit vinaigrette and a sprinkle of grated cheese. We agree that these light, crunchy, non-lettuce greens are great with a citrusy dressing. If you want to play up their Asian-green flavors, try a ginger-soy or shitake based dressing, and adding a pile of grated carrots, radishes, and salad turnips. Some smoked salmon, grilled fish, or diced chicken makes it almost a meal of its own. In addition to the baby greens, we are adding more and more heads and bunches of mild greens like baby boc choi, tatsoi, "vivid pac" and Tokyo Bekana leaf cabbage. All of them are great raw salad additions OR stir-fry ingredients.
And of course for those who love the spicy heat, remember that mustard greens love cold weather. The farmstore is loaded with both big spicy bunches of large greens, and bagged baby-mustard mixes (the spicy mix has a new addition this week, wrinkled crinkled cress, for a peppery-floral addition to the heat, which we just love).
We've also been doing up the warm grain bowls, layered with greens of course, and have a new recipe up for a curried squash version.
However you eat it, thank you for supporting it all.
Noah and Mary, SweetRoot Farm