There is always something about the last day of this CSA season – the way it starts with cucumbers and tomatoes and ends with potatoes and roots – that really just makes sixteen weeks seem like forever. Perhaps because as I sit here writing this blog, waiting for the snow to come, trying to anticipate what our harvest and deliveries will be for the rest of the week, summer seems so far away, but in reality, it was a mere 8 weeks ago that we were still bringing in summer crops.  

Winter is typically a time of self reflection, planning and looking forward for most–on the farm it is that to the nth degree.  The farmers (and farm as a whole) are continuing our daily operations while trying to also plan for the coming year: working on our crop plan, figuring out what does and doesn't work in the soil and trying to pick the best varieties we could grow for our customers while also planning farm dinners, farm camps and class schedules.  We look at our sucesses (fantastic berry year, bangin' potato crop, greens on lock-down, no deer damage) and failures (gopherssssssss, garlic fails, low winter squash yields, unexpected staff changes) as a whole, trying to learn as much as possible so that we can go into this coming year as prepared as ever for the unique challenges that we will face.  Our Table hasn't had the best year but we have the best people (customers, farmers, coop members and producers), who are that much stronger together, and are determined to make this farm better than ever.  

​A small reminder that Winter CSA has a couple of spots left and begins January 11!  Also gift baskets from the farm, kitchen and our producer memebers are on sale and can be shipped up until this Saturday!  Oh! we have gift cards too that can be used for pretty much anything on the farm: farm dinners, brunches, pizza night, store, beef shares, add-ons, CSA and more – give the gift of good food and support your local farm and farmers!  Last but not least we have holiday sides straight from our farm and kitchen to your table, available for pick-up Dec 23 and 24!

I want to say a final THANK YOU for joining us for CSA.  Whether you've been with us for years, the three seasons this year, or just this past one, we wouldn't be a farm without you guys.  We started an entirely new CSA program this year and are still trying to hone in on certain parts of it (like how can we replace those boxes with something better!?! or what crops we'd still like to see in the boxes) and any feedback you have would be SO appreciated!  

All the love,
Farmer Jen

PS. thanks so much for following along with me through the seasons – I know that I'm not super gifted when it comes to prose (maybe why I'm first and foremost a farmer) but I always enjoy sitting down and writing about our farm and what we are up to!

SUGARLOAF CHICORY:  Also known as pan di Zucchero in Italian, this chicory is more mild than a radicchio–a bit like an escarole and after that nice snow we recieved it is sweet, crisp and delicious!  There are many ways you can prepare these guys but most often I recommend either a Sugarloaf Caesar Salad or just roasting, grill or broil the pan di Zucchero in large wedges, brushed lightly with olive oil and sprinkled with salt, until browning around the edges and tender.  Here is a great Caesar recipe that I sub sugarloaf in for the romaine!  

MIXED POTATOES:  Since it is the end of the year we decided to just send out a grab bag of potatoes!  In the share is an assortment of sangre (red skin white flesh), amarosa (pink fingerling), yukon gold, russet and purple majesty. Remember that because of the storage of the box and outdoor temps it is best to wait a couple days before you use these guys - just leave them out at room temperature!  If you do use them right away expect them to be a bit on the sweeter side and that they will burn in a pan a little faster because of all the sugars that haven't converted back to starches.

SHALLOTS:  A nice little allium addition to the share.

BRUSSELS SPROUTS: When you get these guys just give them a nice little wash and they'll be perfect!  They are super tasty and after this last frost/snow event they are even better!  

LUTZ BEET (Mini Only):  A big gorgeous red winter beet.  Lutz is our winterkeeper and boy–what a beat!  As you know you can use the greens as well!  You can store this guy in your cooler for quite a while, and they get sweeter in storage also (just make sure you remove the greens).

PARSLEY ROOT (Large Only):
Break out the champagne!  This is one of my FAVORITE winter crops and after the gophers ate 75% of the crop I was not very hopeful that we'd be able to put some in CSA, but it was a harvest day miracle when voila, there were some gorgeous parsley roots out there.  These guys look like parsnips but range in size from large to small and taste a little less earthy and a little more like parsley (go figure!)  I love that you can use the tops (if they are there, some had them, some didn't) and the root. I like to prepare them much like a parsnip,  though pureed and sauted are my favorite dishes.  You can also shred and put raw on a salad, add to a soup or roast with other roots.  If you want to store them make sure to pull the tops off!  Try this Parsley Root and Apple soup or if you got a large parsley root you could use some other roots and try this Root Ribbon recipe. 
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BLAUER WINTER RADISH (Large Only):
Blauer Winter is a storage radish with freakin gorgeous bright violet skin & white flesh. Its  mild radish flavor is good raw or cooked. Uncommon in the US but a favorite winter staple in Germany. Great for kimchi, salads and pretty much anything you want.  Fun little note: the seed was collected by The Seed Ambassadors Project from the Swiss biodynamic seed company, Sativa

BLACK FUTSU (Large Only):
A Japanese heirloom, this awesome looking squash once cut open,has bright orange flesh with a flavor crossed between a pumpkin and a chestnut — sweet, buttery, and slightly nutty. Unlike the thick skins on many other winter squash, the relatively thin skin remains edible.  I prepare much like you would a delicata: cut in half, slice, cover in olive oil, salt, pepper and toss in oven until tender!  YUM!

It is cold! And it has been snowing on us!  This is when you remember all your awesome cold weather gear combos and how to move around and harvest with so many layers on you feel like the michelin man.  Let me tell you -- there is definite skill involved.  We are down to the dream team here on the farm -- it is just your full-time crew: Jen (moi), Louis, Karen, Elise, Nick and Eric (Ricky) who's last day is Friday. It is crazy to be down to just the 6 (almost 5) of us but there is also something amazing about it.  We might have more work to do with fewer people, but there is also a beautiful, I might even say graceful, way that we all work together. We've put the seasons in, helped develop systems, and when it is just us we don't even have to explain to each other what we are thinking, it just happens.  When you put that together with the quite calm of early winter there seems to be nothing more beautiful. 

Lot's of other things going on at the farm besides farming too!   We still have a few spots open for our Winter CSA that starts Jan 11.  We also have some great gift basket options (custom and curated) that are available at the farm or can be shipped anywhere until December 17 as well as we are just now creating the menu for our farm fresh holiday sides (including pies) that can be picked up December 23 or 24.  What else...oh!  Kerri from the kitchen is teaching an edible gifts class this Saturday where she will lead hands-on demos for making bitters, flavored salts and more–this is a great class to get into making gifts for your loved ones.   As usual we have Friday Happy Hour (and this Friday is going to be especially happy as the whole farm is going to be there for our holiday party!)  

YUKON GOLD POTATOES:  It is winter–so you get potatoes!  But who doesn't need their supply of locally grown potatoes replenshed weekly? 

MISATO ROSE WATERMELON RADISHES:  These radishes look unassuming from the outside but cut them open and you'll get the most gorgeous winter surprise.  They are super tasty and can be served raw or cooked.  They can be sliced super thin for a gratin or thrown on a salad, and can be roasted or pickled also (bonus: these radishes don't need to be peeled)!  I like them raw because they do lose a bit of their beauty when cooked.  

FENNEL:  Baby fennel!  It is so sweet, tender and just plain adorable.  Shave into a salad or slice up and roast. Use the fronds as a garnish.  Add to celeriac or parsnip dish.

CELERIAC (Mini Only):  Mini gets celeriac this week!  So I'll say much of the same that I said last week.  I love celeriac.  I call it the pineapple of the north.  It may not be that popular, but it should be–in my opinion it is one of the most underrated vegetables.  It's gorgeous and can be used in so many different ways.  It is also known as turnip-rooted celery–if you try the stalks it most definitely tastes like celery with a hint of parsley.  Apparently it was referred to as selinon in Homer's Odyssey.  Karen is really obsessed with this Root Vegetable Gratin recipe from Smitten Kitchen right now (her recipes are always great because she includes how to deal with said vegetable also!)

PARSNIPS (Large Only):  Parsnips!! Hurray!  Parsnips are one of the hardest things to harvest (read: get out of the ground) but they are SOOOO worth it.  Up there in my top two roots, parsnips are very versatile and can be used much like all the other winter roots.  My absolute favorite thing to do with them is make a parsnip puree (much like mashed potatoes) but becasue they don't have as much starch as a potato the texture is more silky.  Here is a recipe on Bon Apetit from Portland's own Naomi Pomeroy. 

LUTZ BEET (Large Only):  A big gorgeous red winter beet.  Lutz is our winterkeeper and boy–what a beat!  As you know you can use the greens as well!  You can store this guy in your cooler for quite a while, and they get sweeter in storage also (just make sure you remove the greens).

BABY DELICATA (Large Only):  Two cutie-pie baby delicatas.  Great to just pop in the oven for a side-dish, or make some delicata boats.