It's Salsa Time!

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Tonight's task was turning our mountain of cherry tomatoes into fresh salsa! 

Nothing better.....

Those eyes....

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She has wrapped me right around her hoof... 

Chocolate, our dairy goat manages to get exactly what she wants most of the time. In the evening after milking that's a handful of apple nuggets. 

She looks at me with those eyes and invariably I reach in the bag for just a few more.... #goatmagic

Nightly routine...

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At this time of year, putting away the harvest is a nightly routine... 

Canning, dehydrating, or freezing are all methods we use to extend our harvest into the winter months. 

Tonight its canning tomato sauce...

What are you doing to put away summer goodies for the winter?

Week #8 - 2015 FFF CSA - What's in the Box!

This week our shareholders will discover three new treats in their boxes. Ground cherries, tomatillos and eggplants join their usual fare during Week #8 of our CSA veggie box share. 

These three items may or may not be familiar to you... But here is a bit about each one, just in case!

Tomatillos, otherwise known as the Mexican tomato are indeed part of the same nightshade family as tomatoes but have a very distinct taste and look. They grow within a papery husk that should be removed before eating. 

Tomatillos are delicious added to your regular tomato salsa or guacamole. They are the main ingredient in salsa verde (essentially green salsa) used in many recipes for Mexican food. Tomatillos are particularly good paired with pork. 

The best way to store tomatillos are in a brown paper bag in the refrigerator (leave husks on).

Ground cherries as you may guess from the look of them, are related to tomatillos (same papery husk) but have a very different taste. Often mistaken for gooseberries, these little gems taste both sweet and sour at the same time! They are quite indescribable! To eat, remove paper husk and pop them in your mouth. This week we've given everyone a little sample bag to try! As the season moves forward you will get more with which you could make jam or chutney... if they last that long! 

Ground cherries are called thus as you harvest them once they fall to the ground from low bushes. 

Finally, we have beautiful eggplants ready to go. Eggplants or aubergine are also a member of the nightshade family and is related to both the tomato and the potato! 

Besides being a beautiful colour, it is lovely roasted with some garlic and olive oil, and is the main ingredient in such dishes as baba ghanouj, moussaka and ratatouille! We discovered a great recipe to use up our eggplant and zucchini last year called Eggplant & Zucchini Parmesan. 

So ... What's in the Box this week?

• Lettuce (mixed greens in bag)
• Zucchini
• Peas or Beans (half shares only)
• Broccoli or Cauliflower (full shares only)
• Potatoes
• Peppers (sweet and spicy)
• Beets
• Onions
• Tomatoes
• Ground Cherries New this week!
• Tomatillos New this week!
•  Pattypan squash
• Cucumber
• Swiss Chard
• Kale
• Eggplant New this week!

Notes to our CSA Share holders: 

We pick the vegetables within 24 hours of the box being delivered. We do rinse the produce but it would be important to wash all vegetables before you eat them. Keeping the herbs (ends) in a cup of clean water will keep them fresh longer.

Please return your empty box along with all re-usable containers (pails, cups, bags etc) so that we can reuse them all over again. 

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They are taking over...

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Harvesting is becoming more and more a challenge as the squash plants take over. Wading through prickly curcubita (aka squash plants) is uncomfortable and challenging. 

This year these plants (butternut, pumpkin, pattypan, and spaghetti squash) are happy and thriving, making their way into rows of other vegetables. 

Time to get the machete out! 

If you give a pig one apple....

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If you give a pig one apple... they inevitably want more... and as I learned... they are fine settling for an Apple product (such as an iPhone) when you run out of the real thing! 

Barrow of Sun!

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Looks like we captured a wheelbarrow of sunshine with our pattypan squash. 

All our squash are really enjoying this weather and we will soon have spaghetti & butternut squash ready to go to! 

What's your favorite squash & how do you cook it?