CSA Week 15 and Farm Stand Updates

Thank you to everyone who came out for Concord Ag Day, the Concord Agriculture Committee’s annual farmers’ market on Saturday! It was great to be back on Main Street with our fellow Concord farmers and non-profit organizations in town celebrating local agriculture. The farm was bustling on Saturday as well, with CSA and farm store customers enjoying the beautiful September day. The CSA continues to be very busy on Saturdays (this week more members came on Saturday than Tuesday and Thursday combined!), so if you are able to come earlier in the week, you will be rewarded with a quieter experience and the gratitude of our Shopkeepers!

Somehow we pulled off our busy Saturday without a truck (see below for the image of the truck exiting the fields with assistance)! Our 1998 Chevy truck has served us well for the past 7 years since being gifted to us by Gaining Ground (when they got a grant for a new farm truck). However, now it seems like it might be down and out for good, so we have returned to our days of walking in the harvest, trading off bringing in vegetables 3 buckets at a time in our garden cart. Fortunately, Nigel lent us his van for Ag Day and Lise shuttled back and forth from the farm to Main Street with additional veggies and supplies in her tiny car. We were hoping to encourage the truck to limp along until electric trucks became widely available but we will likely need to come up with an interim solution. We are looking into electric golf cart options, but in the meantime we are all getting plenty of exercise bringing in the harvest!

In the CSA this week:

CSA pick up hours are Tues/Thurs 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. Face masks are required under the CSA tent during the first hour of each day. Please note we do our best to predict what will be available each week, but conditions change and there may be slight variations in what’s available!

• Scallions

• Garlic

• Broccoli- The first of 5 varieties we planted for this fall!

• Mixed Winter Squash- Choices will include acorn, orange cutie (a mini red kabocha) as well as some butternut squash. We will have storage butternut squash later - the butternut we are distributing this week have some minor damage and will not hold for very long, so we encourage using them in the next week or two.

• Fennel

• Tomatoes - production is dwindling, but we’re going to eek out one more week for the CSA!

• Eggplant

• Peppers

• Carrots

• Beets

• Kale

• Lettuce

CSA PYO:

Handwashing sinks are provided at the entrance to each PYO field. For the sake of food safety, please wash hands before picking. The barn bathroom and wash area sinks in the barn are for employees only (we do now have a green porta-potty restroom by the tree behind the red barn for customer use with a portable handwashing sink just beside it).

*Please note that we close down the PYO fields for lightning storms.

• Green Beans

• Cherry tomatoes

• Tomatillos or husk cherries

• Hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Hungarian hot wax, fresno and aji rico varieties are all producing. Signs in the field indicate what to look for in terms of ripeness, as well as how spicy varieties are.

• Herbs- parsley, cilantro, basil, sage, thyme, oregano

PYO Flower CSA:

Picking is available for Flower CSA members as well as to the public for purchase by the bouquet. We will offer picking until our first frost (sometimes as early as mid September). Picking is available any time the farm store is open (Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm). Varieties blooming now include: zinnias, marigolds, statice, gomphrena, celosia, decorative basil, frosted explosion, cosmos, ageratum, rudbeckia, ammi, scabiosa and more! There is also a bed of many varieties of branching sunflowers blooming that you are welcome to use to fill your jars. Please pick stems above the first branching of all flowers to encourage future growth.

In the farm store:

In addition to the items listed in the CSA we will also have tendersweet cabbage and salanova lettuce mix in the farm store this week. We will have mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm, honey from Double B, and eggs from Codman Farm. We will not have corn (from Verrill Farm) this week. We also have raspberry jam and raspberry vinegar infusion from Silferleaf Farm again, as well as fresh berries as available! If you miss getting berries in the store, head over to their farm on Strawberry Hill Road - they are open for PYO Tuesday - Sunday. It’s especially nice and plentiful on weekdays!

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. Masks are required during the first hour of each day and are encouraged the remainder of the day. Staff will continue to wear masks inside the farm stand all day. We are keeping a chalkboard list of items available outside the store and our Shopkeepers would be happy to shop for anyone who is uncomfortable entering the store. 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.

Spicy Sesame Carrot Salad -shared with us by a CSA member years ago, still a favorite!

by Nicole Perry at https://www.popsugar.com/food/Spicy-Sesame-Carrot-Salad-30421461

INGREDIENTS

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 2 tablespoons white vinegar

• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

• 1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted

• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

• Kosher salt

• 1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled lengthwise into thin ribbons

• 1 cup tightly packed cilantro leaves

DIRECTIONS

In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, vinegars, honey, sesame oil, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, and 1 teaspoon salt. Pour the dressing over the carrots, add the cilantro, and toss well. Season to taste with salt, and serve.

Pushing our broken down truck out of the field. We are not as happy as we look about the truck being out of commission!

CSA Week 14, Farm Stand updates, and Ag Day this Saturday!

After a hiatus last year, the annual Ag Day Farmers’ Market is back! Come visit us in Concord Center on Saturday, September 11th, 10am - 2pm. If you’ve never been before, Concord Ag Day is a once a year farmers’ market celebrating local agriculture organized by the Concord Agriculture Committee to showcase Concord farms and local produce. We’ll have a booth with a more limited selection than our in our farm stand, but we do plan to have cherry tomatoes, salanova lettuce mix, carrots, kale, flowers and a few other items to be determined later this week. There will be seven other Concord Farms at the market, as well games, veggie car races and local non-profits will have tables at the event. While the event is outdoors, we ask that all individuals who are not fully vaccinated (including children under 12) wear a mask.

With school back in session, Saturdays have become a very busy CSA pick-up day, especially before lunch. If you’re able to come pick up your CSA earlier in the week (Tuesdays are especially quiet), we encourage you to do so to help spread out the traffic on the farm. Spreading out CSA traffic on Tuesday and Thursday would be especially helpful this week, as our staff will be split between the farm and Concord Center for Ag Day on Saturday!

In the CSA this week:

CSA pick up hours are Tues/Thurs 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. Face masks are required under the CSA tent during the first hour of each day. Please note we do our best to predict what will be available each week, but conditions change and there may be slight variations in what’s available!

• Delicata squash - These small, sweet squash have edible skins. Our favorite way to prepare them is to cut in half length-wise, scoop out the seeds, then slice into 1/4” thick half moons to roast on a baking sheet.

• Spaghetti squash

• Scallions

• Garlic

• Tendersweet cabbage - This variety is very sweet for a cabbage, and has a softer texture than later storage varieties.

• Fennel

• Tomatoes

• Eggplant

• Carrots

• Beets

• Kale

• Lettuce

*We still have watermelon from our final harvest of the season last week. It is not enough to make it through the end of the week, but we will definitely have it available in the CSA Tuesday and hopefully Thursday as well.

CSA PYO:

Handwashing sinks are provided at the entrance to each PYO field. For the sake of food safety, please wash hands before picking. The barn bathroom and wash area sinks in the barn are for employees only (we do now have a green porta-potty restroom by the tree behind the red barn for customer use with a portable handwashing sink just beside it).

*Please note that we close down the PYO fields for lightning storms.

• Green Beans

• Sunflowers

• Cherry tomatoes

• Tomatillos or husk cherries

• Shishito peppers

• Hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Hungarian hot wax, fresno and aji rico varieties are all producing. Signs in the field indicate what to look for in terms of ripeness, as well as how spicy varieties are.

• Herbs- parsley, cilantro, basil, sage, thyme, oregano
  

PYO Flower CSA:

Picking is available for Flower CSA members as well as to the public for purchase by the bouquet. We will offer picking until our first frost (sometimes as early as mid September). Picking is available any time the farm store is open (Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm). Varieties blooming now include: zinnias, marigolds, statice, gomphrena, celosia, decorative basil, frosted explosion, cosmos, ageratum, rudbeckia, ammi, scabiosa and more! There is also a bed of many varieties of branching sunflowers blooming that you are welcome to use to fill your jars. Please pick stems above the first branching of all flowers to encourage future growth.

In the farm store:

In addition to the items listed in the CSA the farm store this week we will also have salanova, peppers and leeks. We will have mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm, sweet corn from Verrill Farm and honey from Double B. We are currently out of eggs from Codman Farm, but hope to have more soon.

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. Masks are required during the first hour of each day and are encouraged the remainder of the day. Staff will continue to wear masks inside the farm stand all day. We are keeping a chalkboard list of items available outside the store and our Shopkeepers would be happy to shop for anyone who is uncomfortable entering the store. 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.

Big Batch Chicken Thighs with Fennel and Scallions

By Kat Boytsova, from Bon Apetit, March 2019

This is intended to make enough for leftovers later in the week!

Ingredients

• 8 garlic cloves, finely grated

• 1½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

• 2 Tbsp. honey

• 5 Tbsp. grapeseed or vegetable oil, divided

• 8 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs

• 2½ tsp. kosher salt, plus more

• 3 large fennel bulbs sliced into ¾"-thick wedges (reserve stems and fronds for another use)

• 8 scallions, trimmed

• 1 lemon, halved

• Toasted sesame oil (for drizzling)

Preparation

1. Place racks in upper third and middle of oven; preheat to 425°. Whisk garlic, red pepper flakes, honey, and 2 Tbsp. grapeseed oil in a large bowl. Season chicken thighs with 2½ tsp. salt and toss to coat in marinade. Arrange, skin side up, on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet; let sit at room temperature while you prepare the vegetables.

2. Toss fennel wedges and scallions with remaining 3 Tbsp. grapeseed oil on another rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt, then arrange in a single layer. Roast vegetables on top rack and chicken on middle rack, tossing vegetables halfway through, until vegetables are softened and chicken is browned and cooked through, 35–45 minutes.

3. Divide scallions, two-thirds of the fennel, and 4 chicken thighs between plates. Drizzle with sesame oil and squeeze a lemon half over. Transfer remaining chicken thighs along with any juices from baking sheet to an airtight container; let cool, then cover and chill. Place remaining fennel and lemon half in a separate airtight container; let cool, then cover and chill.

Do Ahead: Chicken and vegetables can be roasted 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

CSA Week 13 and Farm Stand Updates

We are beginning Week 13 of the CSA which means we are halfway through the Extended Season and Flex CSA and more than halfway into the Main Season CSA already! The Main Season (20 week) CSA runs until October 23rd and the farm store will be open until October 30th. The Extended Season and Flex CSA go until November 20th (there will be no Tuesday pick-ups after October 19th). 2021 Barrett’s Bucks expire on October 30th and current Barrett’s Bucks members should have received an email from Melissa last week with their balance. Feel free to email Melissa or inquire at the farm stand to review your season’s purchases and find out your most updated balance. We are planning to open CSA renewals in mid-September and will likely open 2022 Barrett’s Bucks memberships in January. In the meantime, we hope you enjoy all the late summer and early fall veggies! September is the underrated month on the farm with summer cherry tomatoes still plentiful at the start, but the first of the fall favorites like cured garlic and spaghetti squash are also coming in. It is our favorite month for cooking!

In the CSA this week:

CSA pick up hours are Tues/Thurs 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. Face masks are required under the CSA tent during the first hour of each day. Please note we do our best to predict what will be available each week, but conditions change and there may be slight variations in what’s available!

• Watermelon - A variety called Blacktail Mountain which is an heirloom variety that has won awards for it’s sweet taste!

• Garlic - This garlic has been cured and should be kept in a cool and dry place (not in the refrigerator)

• Baby bok choy or Swiss chard

• Radishes - Round red radish bunches

• Spaghetti squash

• Leeks

• Green and Purple Peppers

• Tomatoes

• Eggplant

• Carrots

• Beets

• Kale

• Lettuce - A mix of red and green summer crisp varieties

• Salanova lettuce mix

CSA PYO:

Handwashing sinks are provided at the entrance to each PYO field. For the sake of food safety, please wash hands before picking. The barn bathroom and wash area sinks in the barn are for employees only (we do now have a green porta-potty restroom by the tree behind the red barn for customer use with a portable handwashing sink just beside it).

*Please note that we close down the PYO fields for lightning storms.

• Cherry tomatoes

• Husk cherries - These are ripe when the husk has turned brown and fallen off the plant. Peel off the brown husk and enjoy this yellow fruit’s sweet, almost tropical, flavor!

• Shishito peppers

• Tomatillos

• Hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Hungarian hot wax, fresno and aji rico varieties are all producing. Signs in the field indicate what to look for in terms of ripeness, as well as how spicy varieties are.

• Herbs- parsley, cilantro, basil, sage, and dill seed
  

PYO Flower CSA:

Picking is available for Flower CSA members as well as to the public for purchase by the bouquet. We will offer picking until our first frost (often mid September). Picking is available any time the farm store is open (Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm). Varieties blooming now include: zinnias, marigolds, statice, gomphrena, celosia, decorative basil, frosted explosion, cosmos, ageratum, rudbeckia, bachelors button, ammi, scabiosa and more! There is also a bed of many varieties of branching sunflowers blooming that you are welcome to use to fill your jars. Please pick stems above the first branching of all flowers to encourage future growth.

In the farm store:

In addition to the items listed in the CSA the farm store this week we will also have flower bouquets, summer squash, zucchini and cucumbers. We also have eggs from Codman Farm and honey from Double B. We will have mushrooms from Fat Moon Farm again starting Thursday afternoon and we will hopefully have sweet corn most of the week as well.

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. Masks are required during the first hour of each day and are encouraged the remainder of the day. Staff will continue to wear masks inside the farm stand all day. We are keeping a chalkboard list of items available outside the store and our Shopkeepers would be happy to shop for anyone who is uncomfortable entering the store. 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.

Sheet Pan Spaghetti Squash with Roasted Tomatoes

By Life is Strawberry

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large spaghetti squash

• 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided

• 3 cups cherry tomatoes

• 1/2 large yellow onion, sliced into quarter-inch slices

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled

• 1 cup dry white wine

• salt and pepper to taste

• Fresh basil, sliced, for garnish (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

PREPARE THE SQUASH & BEGIN ROASTING

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise (see our recipe notes for tips on how to do this safely as spaghetti squash can be tough to cut!) Scrape out the seeds and discard or save for roasting.

3. Drizzle the cut sides of the spaghetti squash with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

4. Place squash cut-side down on a rimmed baking sheet. Use a sharp paring knife to pierce the skin of the squash 3-4 times on each half. Place in the oven and roast for 30 minutes. Prep the rest of your ingredients while the squash roasts! Note: If your squash is on the smaller side, you may want to reduce the cook time here to 20 minutes to prevent overcooking.

ADD THE TOMATOES & ONIONS

1. After 30 minutes, remove the squash from the oven. Use tongs to scoot the spaghetti squash to one side of the sheet pan to make room for everything else.

2. Add tomatoes, onion, and garlic to sheet pan. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and add a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Use tongs to toss the new veggies together to evenly coat everything with olive oil, then spread them out in an even layer across the sheet pan.

3. Use oven mitts to return sheet pan to oven. Cook an additional 20-25 minutes until squash is easily pierced with a fork and tomato skins have just begun to burst. Note: If your spaghetti squash needs more time, or if your onions are looking a little dry, give the tomato and onion mixture a toss with a pair of tongs to redistribute some liquid and prevent the onions from burning.

COOL THE SQUASH & MAKE THE PAN SAUCE

1. When squash is easily pierced with a fork, pull sheet pan out of the oven. Use tongs or a large spatula to carefully transfer spaghetti squash to a separate plate. Leave the cut side facing up to help the squash cool: it needs to rest for 15 minutes or so until it’s cool enough to handle!

2. Now, let’s make the pan sauce! Pour white wine directly onto your rimmed baking sheet with the tomatoes and onions. Use tongs to move the wine around and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. When the pan is mostly deglazed, return it to the oven for an additional 10-15 minutes until the sauce has reduced by about half.

ASSEMBLE & SERVE

1. When the sauce is ready, pull the sheet pan out of the oven.

2. Lightly drag a fork over the surface of the spaghetti squash to shred it into long strands. Transfer spaghetti squash “noodles” to a serving bowl. Note: If the spaghetti squash is still too hot to handle comfortably, use a tea towel or oven mitt to hold it in place or let it cool for a few more minutes.

3. Top spaghetti squash with roasted tomato and onion mixture and drizzle with your white wine pan sauce. Top with fresh basil (optional) and serve immediately!

CSA Week 12 and Farm Stand updates

The weather forecast this week doesn’t trigger images of winter squash, but late August is actually prime harvesting season. With the uncertainty surrounding the storm this past weekend, we rushed to get as much winter squash inside the barn as possible. Once in the barn, squash and pumpkins go through a curing period during which they gain sweetness and improve in storage qualities. So far we’ve harvested all of our spaghetti squash, red kuri and pie pumpkins, as well as most of our acorn squash. In the coming weeks we will also harvest butternut, Tetsukabuto (a hybrid variety with excellent taste and storing qualities), Black Futsu (a small specialty pumpkin variety) and Autumn Frost (a specialty butternut). Most of the squash will be available in the store and CSA later in the season, but spaghetti squash will begin to be available this week! You may be looking at the weather forecast and thinking that you do not want to turn on your oven. Don’t worry - when stored properly the squash will keep for several weeks until better weather conditions for turning on your oven arise!

In the CSA this week:

CSA pick up hours are Tues/Thurs 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. Face masks are required under the CSA tent during the first hour of each day. Please note we do our best to predict what will be available each week, but conditions change and there may be slight variations in what’s available!

• Spaghetti squash - Just like the name suggests, the innards of this squash are spaghetti-like. Cut them in half and roast face-down in about an inch of water. Once they’ve cooled off, use a fork to scrape out the insides, then prepare like you would your favorite pasta dish! I particularly like to eat it with sage butter and grated Parmesan! Spaghetti squash will keep for several weeks on your counter, but if you have a cool, dark dry place to keep it, that’s even better. Spaghetti squash, like all winter squash and pumpkins, should not go in the refrigerator.

• Leeks

• Peppers - both colored peppers and green and purple varieties will be available.

• Tomatoes

• Eggplant

• Carrots

• Beets - We are moving on to our fall beet plantings now. We will likely mostly have red beets, but there may be some golden ones in the mix as well!

• Cucumbers

• Kale

• Lettuce - A mix of red and green summer crisp varieties

• Salanova lettuce mix

• Arugula or mizuna

CSA PYO:

Handwashing sinks are provided at the entrance to each PYO field. For the sake of food safety, please wash hands before picking. The barn bathroom and wash area sinks in the barn are for employees only (we do now have a green porta-potty restroom by the tree behind the red barn for customer use with a portable handwashing sink just beside it).

*Please note that we close down the PYO fields for lightning storms.

• Husk cherries - Peel off the brown husk and enjoy this yellow fruit’s sweet, almost tropical, flavor!

• Choice of Shishito peppers or Tomatillos - Shishito peppers are small peppers that are great for sautéeing whole and snacking on with just a little bit of salt sprinkled on top. Most shishito are mild but there is the occasional one with a bit of hot pepper heat with no way to tell which one! Tomatillos are the key ingredient in salsa verde - a sauce that is not only a great sip for chips, but also goes well with burritos, eggs or grilled meat.

• Cherry tomatoes - All varieties are plentiful this week as it is now peak season!

• Edamame - Pick the plumpest pods.

• Hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Hungarian hot wax, fresno and aji rico varieties are all producing. Signs in the field indicate what to look for in terms of ripeness, as well as how spicy varieties are.

• Herbs- parsley, cilantro (new planting!), basil, sage
  

PYO Flower CSA:

The flower field is in full bloom! We will offer picking until our first frost (often mid September) however after another couple of weeks the selection will decrease. Picking is available any time the farm store is open (Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm). Varieties blooming now include: zinnias, marigolds, snapdragons , statice, gomphrena, celosia, decorative basil, frosted explosion, cosmos, ageratum, rudbeckia, bachelors button, ammi, scabiosa and more! There is also a bed of many varieties of branching sunflowers blooming that you are welcome to use to fill your jars. Please pick stems above the first branching of all flowers to encourage future growth. Picking is available for Flower CSA members as well as to the public for purchase by the bouquet.

In the farm store:

In addition to the items listed in the CSA the farm store this week we will also have flower bouquets, summer squash and zucchini. We also have eggs from Codman Farm and honey from Double B. There are no mushrooms available for the month of August, but we will have Fat Moon Mushrooms back in the stand again in September. We will have corn on Tuesday, but sourcing is unpredictable this season, so we cannot guarantee that we will have it other days.

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. Masks are required during the first hour of each day. Staff will continue to wear masks in the first hour of each day but will not be required to for the remainder of the day in keeping with our customer policy. We are keeping a chalkboard list of items available outside the store and our Shopkeepers would be happy to shop for anyone who is uncomfortable entering the store. 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.

Blistered Shishito Peppers

from Cookie + Kate

Ingredients

• 1 pint shishito peppers

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil or avocado oil

• Lemon wedge, optional

• Salt, preferably flaky sea salt or kosher salt, to taste

Preparation

1. Rinse and pat the peppers dry on a clean tea towel. Transfer the peppers to a medium bowl, drizzle in the oil, and toss until the peppers are evenly coated. Set aside.

2. Preheat a medium skillet over medium heat until it’s hot enough that a drop of water sizzles and evaporates quickly on contact. Add the peppers and let them cook, stirring every minute or so (not too often), until they are tender with charred spots, about 8 to 12 minutes.

3. Transfer the peppers to a serving plate. Spritz with a lemon wedge, if desired. Sprinkle with salt, to taste (don’t skimp). Serve with a little bowl on the side for the pepper stems.

Homemade Salsa Verde

from Cookie + Kate

Ingredients

• 1 ½ pounds tomatillos (about 12 medium), husked and rinsed

• 1 to 2 medium jalapeños, stemmed (omit for mild salsa, use 1 jalapeño for medium salsa and 2 jalapeños for hot salsa, note that spiciness will depend on heat of actual peppers used)

• ½ cup chopped white onion (about ½ medium onion)

• ¼ cup packed fresh cilantro leaves (more if you love cilantro)

• 2 tablespoons to ¼ cup lime juice (1 to 2 medium limes, juiced), to taste

• ½ to 1 teaspoon salt, to taste

• Optional variation: 1 to 2 diced avocados, for creamy avocado salsa verde

Preparation

1. Preheat the broiler with a rack about 4 inches below the heat source. Place the tomatillos and jalapeño(s) on a rimmed baking sheet and broil until they’re blackened in spots, about 5 minutes.

2. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, carefully flip over the tomatillos and pepper(s) with tongs and broil for 4 to 6 more minutes, until the tomatillos are splotchy-black and blistered.

3. Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, combine the chopped onion, cilantro, 2 tablespoons lime juice and ½ teaspoon salt. Once the tomatillos are out of the oven, carefully transfer the hot tomatillos, pepper(s) and all of their juices into the food processor or blender.

4. Pulse until the mixture is mostly smooth and no big chunks of tomatillo remain, scraping down the sides as necessary. Season to taste with additional lime juice and salt, if desired.

5. The salsa will be thinner at first, but will thicken up after a few hours in the refrigerator, due to the naturally occurring pectin in the tomatillos. If you’d like to make creamy avocado salsa verde, let the salsa cool down before blending in 1 to 2 diced avocados (the more avocado, the creamier it gets).

CSA Week 11 and Farm Stand updates

Now that the rain has slowed we are back to weeding, hoeing, and tractor cultivation to control the weeds that flourished in the rain. The crew has been weeding and hoeing lettuce, fall carrots and beets, and fall brassicas. There is more to weed this week but the good news is weed growth slows with the shortening days so this is our last big weeding push. Last week we brought in our storage onions and began our winter squash harvest. We saw a lot of damage on the onions from the intense July rains, reducing yields and forcing us to set aside a large portion for fresh eating because many of the onions will not hold through the curing process. The spaghetti squash harvest was much better - we’ll be harvesting the rest of the squash varieties in another week or two, so we’ll find out soon if the others also held up to the challenging July conditions! We are still seeding fall crops that have a shorter growing season like spinach, radishes, and greens, and we still have a few lettuce successions left to transplant, ensuring a plentiful harvest to supplement storage crops after the frost (which is often mid September). Thinking ahead is the name of the game, but we are making sure to stop and enjoy some of these beautiful August days while they last. That means caprese salads, family cherry tomato picking, and this week’s addition, watermelon slices!

In the CSA this week:

CSA pick up hours are Tues/Thurs 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am - 3pm. Face masks are required under the CSA tent during the first hour of each day. Please note we do our best to predict what will be available each week, but conditions change and there may be slight variations in what’s available!

• Salanova lettuce mix - It’s back! Earlier than ever!

• Watermelon! We grow a small ice box variety called starlight. We pick them when they are ripe in the field so they are all ready for eating. They do have seeds, and are red with great flavor. Unfortunately the plants do have a disease that will mean a shorter season than usual this year, but the fruit is completely safe (and very tasty!) to eat.

• Fresh onions - There will be fresh onions this week because we have some yellow and red onions that were planted for storage but they are not possible to cure because they got too much water in the July rain. They should be stored in the fridge as they are not cured.

• Colored peppers

• Tomatoes

• Eggplant

• Lettuce

• Arugula

• Kale

• Carrots

• Cucumbers

• Summer squash/zucchini

CSA PYO:

Handwashing sinks are provided at the entrance to each PYO field. For the sake of food safety, please wash hands before picking. The barn bathroom and wash area sinks in the barn are for employees only (we do now have a green porta-potty restroom by the tree behind the red barn for customer use with a portable handwashing sink just beside it).

*Please note that we close down the PYO fields for lightning storms.

• Cherry tomatoes - All varieties are plentiful this week as it is now peak season!

• Edamame - Pick the plumpest pods.

• Hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Hungarian hot wax, fresno and aji rico varieties are all producing. Signs in the field indicate what to look for in terms of ripeness, as well as how spicy varieties are.

• Green and purple Beans - Please hold the plant while carefully picking the largest beans.

• Herbs- parsley, dill flowers, basil, sage, thyme.
  

PYO Flower CSA:

The flower field is in full bloom! We will offer picking until our first frost (often mid September) however after another 2-3 weeks the selection will decrease. Picking is available any time the farm store is open (Tuesday-Friday 11am-6pm and Saturday 9am-3pm). Varieties blooming now include: zinnias, marigolds, snapdragons , statice, gomphrena, celosia, decorative basil, frosted explosion, cosmos, ageratum, rudbeckia, bachelors button, ammi, scabiosa and more! Please pick stems above the first branching to encourage future growth. Picking is available for Flower CSA members as well as to the public for purchase by the bouquet.

In the farm store:

In addition to the items listed in the CSA the farm store this week we will also have flower bouquets, leeks, celery, green and purple peppers. We also have eggs from Codman Farm and honey from Double B. There are no mushrooms available for the month of August, but we will have Fat Moon Mushrooms back in the stand again in September. We might have sweet corn from Verrill Farm later this week - if so it would be here for Friday and Saturday. The heavy July rains and the birds have unfortunately been wreaking havoc on their harvest!

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. Masks are required during the first hour of each day. Staff will continue to wear masks in the first hour of each day but will not be required to for the remainder of the day in keeping with our customer policy. We are keeping a chalkboard list of items available outside the store and our Shopkeepers would be happy to shop for anyone who is uncomfortable entering the store. 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.

Ratatouille

by Cookie and Kate

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds ripe red tomatoes (6 medium or 4 large)

• 1 medium eggplant (1 pound), diced into ½-inch cubes

• 1 large red, orange, or yellow bell pepper (about 8 ounces), cut into ¾-inch squares

• 1 medium-to-large zucchini (about 8 ounces), diced into ½-inch cubes

• 1 large yellow squash (about 8 ounces), diced into ½-inch cubes

• 5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided

• ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, divided, more to taste

• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped

• 4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil

• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, more or less to taste

• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano

• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit with one rack in the middle of the oven and one in the upper third of the oven. Line two large, rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper for easy clean-up, if desired.

2. To prepare your tomatoes, remove any woody cores with a paring knife. Then, grate them on the large holes of a box grater into a bowl (this is easiest if you hold the tomato at a diagonal), and chop any remaining tomato skin. Or, blitz the tomatoes in a food processor until they are broken into a frothy pulp. Set aside.

3. On one baking sheet, toss the diced eggplant with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until lightly coated. Arrange the eggplant in a single layer across the pan, sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon of the salt, and set aside.

4. On the other baking sheet, toss the bell pepper, zucchini and yellow squash with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and ¼ teaspoon salt. Arrange the vegetables in a single layer. Place the eggplant pan on the middle rack and the other vegetables on the top rack. Set the timer for 15 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, warm 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is tender and caramelizing on the edges, about 8 to 10 minutes.

6. Add the garlic, stir, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, and use a wooden spoon or sturdy silicone spatula to stir any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan into the mixture. Reduce the heat to medium-low, or as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer.

7. Once 15 minutes are up, remove both pans from the oven, stir, and redistribute the contents of each evenly across the pans. This time, place the eggplant on the top rack and other vegetables on the middle rack.

8. Bake until the eggplant is nice and golden on the edges, about 10 more minutes (the eggplant will be done sooner than the rest). Remove the eggplant from the oven, and carefully stir the eggplant into the simmering tomato sauce.

9. Let the squash and bell pepper pan continue to bake until the peppers are caramelized, about 5 to 10 more minutes. Then, transfer the contents of the pan into the simmering sauce. Continue simmering for 5 more minutes to give the flavors time to meld.

10. Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in 1 teaspoon olive oil, the fresh basil and red pepper flakes. Crumble the dried oregano between your fingers as you drop it into the pot. Season to taste with additional salt (I usually add ¼ teaspoon more) and black pepper.

11. Serve in bowls, perhaps with a little drizzle of olive oil, additional chopped basil, or black pepper on top (all optional). Like all stews, this ratatouille’s flavor improves as it cools. It’s even better reheated the next day. Ratatouille keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for 4 days, or for several months in the freezer.