- Nov 6, 2017

Braving The Cold

With last weekend's record low temperatures, there was nothing left to do after all our work protecting our crops but to cross our fingers and hope for the best. Luckily, most of our storage crops were out of the field, and our tender greens, covered with many layers of protection, survived two 20 degree nights, looking as beautiful as ever, and sweetened tremendously by the frost. I've taken to grabbing bits of greens, kale, chard, parsley, and lettuce, among others, and eating them raw while I'm out in the field, they are that sweet. Farmer's markets this weekend and last were absolutely frigid but we felt blessed by the number of people still out supporting local farms. Last Saturday the high did't get above freezing until noon and my lettuce froze out on display. After a night before of checking the coolers every few hours to make sure they didn't freeze, or get too hot from the heaters (we have to keep them between 34 and 40 degrees), I passed out at about 6 pm on Saturday night. One benefit to shorter days, going to bed at 6 pm seems perfectly okay as it's already dark out. As farmers, our bodies function with the sunlight. In the Summer we sleep less and find we have much more energy to do work outside as it's dark until almost 9 pm. These days, with the sun starting to set at 3:30, I find my body is ready to hibernate after a long farming season. We move a bit slower, eat more warming meals, and are getting more (much needed) sleep. Quite the blustery weekend. We bid adieu to Savannah this week and are so sad to see her go. Luckily for us she's coming back next year so it's just a few short months away before we're seeding together in the greenhouse come March. She kicked butt this week and last helping me run around with sandbags, remay, and hundreds of pounds of low tunnel coverings. Much of our conversation was filled with what tea we were excited to drink and how epic of a bath was going to be had. Nothing like talking about warmth to make you feel warm. She has become family to us and I'll miss having unending days of talking to her about anything from politics, to the dream I had last night, to my thoughts on food waste (did you know it takes 25 years for a head of lettuce to break down in a landfill? That one's for you Liz ;)). So glad to see so many of our late Fall members have been enjoying our 'extra' bin. While we can't operate on our full choice point based system for the late Fall share, we're thrilled that any extra produce is being gobbled up by you all! We're focusing a bit more on storage crops this week as we know many of you will be Thanksgiving'd out. This week includes a mix of root vegetables, here's a great recipe to roast them up!

Roasted Root Vegetables with Cider Glaze

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds root vegetables, chopped
1 pound medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 pound kohlrabi, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable cooking spray
3 cups apple cider
1 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar (or honey/maple syrup)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, cilantro, or chives
goat cheese (optional but we love it)

How to Make It

Step 1

Preheat oven to 425°. Toss together first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Add thyme and next 3 ingredients; toss. Arrange vegetable mixture in a single layer on 2 lightly greased (with cooking spray) jelly-roll pans.

Step 2

Bake at 425° for 35 to 40 minutes or until vegetables are tender and browned, stirring after 20 minutes.

Step 3

Meanwhile, bring apple cider and next 2 ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Boil, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes or until reduced to 1/3 cup.

Step 4

Transfer roasted vegetables to a large bowl, and toss with apple cider mixture. Sprinkle with fresh parsley. Sprinkle with goat cheese if you'd like!

Farm sunrises