If you drive down Lowell Road, you may have noticed a sign saying Barretts Mill Road will be closed Tuesday the 26th until 3pm. While it will be closed to thru traffic during this window due to road work, it will still be possible to get to the farm. We are told that there will be a police officer directing traffic at the intersection with Lowell Rd and with Strawberry Hill Road who will let through drivers heading to the farm stand. Coming from the Route 2 rotary there will be single lane traffic up to College Rd. Please plan for a little extra travel time on Tuesday before 3pm.
After two years of intermittently working, our farm truck has finally ceased to function. We had been hoping to extend it’s life until we could buy an electric truck, but wait lists are long and it isn’t an optimal time to take out a loan. Plan B was to buy a cheap used truck to get us through a couple more years, but that is proving difficult to do in the height of the season! Our days are quite full, so all of the truck searching goes on after hours and during break times (as does most of our office work at this time of year!). Melissa has been diligently hunting down trucks within our budget, but so far nothing has worked out. We’ll keep forging ahead and hope for better luck this week. In the meantime, we will continue to bring in harvests and move around supplies in our garden carts, using our tractor bucket loader for the really heavy items.
Last week’s extreme heat was probably the most sustained we’ve ever experienced on the farm. To try to avoid spending too long in the sun during the hottest part of the day, many of the crew started an hour earlier and left an hour earlier than usual. Afternoon popsicle breaks were also a key component of our plans! Anything under 90 degrees this time of year feels very manageable, so this week is looking better. Now let’s hope for a little rain relief too!
In the CSA this week:
Baby leeks - We tried 3 different varieties of leeks this year as our old favorite variety is no longer available. This variety didn’t size up very well and then got out-competed by some perennial weeds, so we decided to clear them small rather than continuing to irrigate and devote energy to them. These leek bunches will look closer to scallion bunches, but you can use them the same as you would regular leeks. The other 2 varieties appear to have much fared better, so expect to see larger leeks later in the season!
Tomatoes - Mostly from our high tunnels but we are starting to see more field tomatoes ripening as well. There will likely be a mix of slicing tomatoes (red, orange and pink), heirlooms and some hybrids that look and taste like heirlooms.
Peppers - green and purple varieties.
Potatoes - Dark Red Norlands or yellow potatoes
Fresh onions - We’ll continue to have a mix of Red Long of Tropea and Ailsa Craig fresh onions.
Carrots
Summer squash
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Lettuce - a mix of summer crisp varieties
Mini Cabbage
CSA Pick-Your-Own:
Cherry Tomatoes - Varieties that are currently ripening include Sungold (orange), Citrine (orange), Cherry Bomb (red), Red Pearl (red grape), Valentine (red grape), Apple Yellow (new variety for us this year, and aptly named as it is an apple shaped yellow tomato!), Black Cherry (smoky purple) and Midnight Pear (smoky purple pear shaped cherry).
Snap beans - green beans as well as purple snap beans.
Herbs - choice of basil, dill, oregano, mint, sage or thyme.
In the farm store:
In addition to the items listed in the CSA, we will also have escarole, frisee and mixed flower bouquets. We will also have sweet corn from Verril Farm, eggs from Codman Farm and certified organic mushrooms from Fat Moon.
We accept credit card, cash, check and EBT in the farm store. The farm store is open Tuesday - Friday 11am - 6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. We also continue to take online pre-orders for Wednesday, Friday and Saturday pick-up. The link for online orders is https://openfoodnetwork.net/barrett-s-mill-farm/shop#/shop. Online ordering opens at 6pm the day before pick-up.
Pick-Your-Own Flower CSA:
The PYO Flower garden is now open to both Flower CSA members and to the general public. Varieties available include snapdragons, zinnias, marigolds, gomphrena, strawflower, celosia, statice, ammi, ageratum, rudbeckia, scabiosa, cosmos and amaranth. Please pick flowers above branching points so that we can enjoy the plants for the next 2 months. Picking hours are during any farm store hours: Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm. We recommend bringing your own pruners or scissors as well as water for transporting your flowers home.
ZUCCHINI GRIDDLECAKES
By Adam Ried from The Boston Globe, August 19, 2007
MAKES ABOUT 24
2 1/2- TO 3-INCH CAKES
See below for several variations!
2 1/2 pounds (about 8) small to medium zucchini
1 medium onion
1 tablespoon plus
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
1/2 cup milk or half-and-half
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper, or to taste
1 cup minus 2 tablespoons flour
Corn, vegetable, or canola oil (for cooking)
Using the shredding disk in a food processor or the large holes on a box grater, shred or grate the zucchini (you should have about 8 cups) and the onion. Place the vegetables in a colander, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon salt, and mix. Place the colander over a bowl and let stand 30 minutes until mixture exudes about 1 cup of liquid. Rinse under cold water. Spread a clean dish towel on a work surface, place the mixture in the center, gather the corners of the towel, and twist to wring out as much liquid as possible. Transfer to a large bowl, and break up clumps with a wooden spoon.
Stir parsley, eggs, milk or half-and-half, baking powder, 2 teaspoons salt, and the pepper into the zucchini and blend. Add the flour, and, using a rubber spatula, fold it into the zucchini mixture.
Set the oven rack to the center position and heat to 250 degrees. In a large, nonstick skillet, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Measure 2 or 3 tablespoons zucchini batter and pour into the pan to form a disk 2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter. Repeat until the pan is filled, leaving about 1 inch between cakes. Cook cakes without moving (adjusting heat if pan becomes too hot) until the bottoms are golden brown, about 3 1/2 minutes. Using a spatula, flip the cakes and cook until the second side is golden brown, about 3 1/2 minutes more. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels and set in the warm oven. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve warm.
VARIATIONS
Herb and Parmesan Substitute 6 tablespoons mixed chopped fresh herbs such as parsley, mint, chives, tarragon, basil, and chervil for the parsley and add 3/4 cup grated Parmesan with the flour.
Mint and feta Substitute 6 tablespoons chopped fresh mint for the parsley and add 3/4 cup of crumbled feta with the flour.
Thyme and corn Remove kernels from 2 ears of corn, about 2 cups. (See Fresh Corn Griddlecakes for instructions.) Follow the Zucchini Griddlecakes recipe using 4 zucchini instead of 8. Add the corn and 3/4 teaspoon of chopped fresh thyme to the squeezed zucchini along with the parsley, eggs, milk or half-and-half, baking powder, 2 teaspoons salt, and the pepper.