Week 18 Delivery

Week 18

Delicata Squash (Small, pale yellow and green)
Red Kuri Squash (Bright red)
Butternut Squash (Pale yellow, big)
Breakfast Radishes
Pac Choi
Heirloom Tomatoes
Japanese and Rosa Bianca Eggplant
Green to Red Bell Peppers
Sweet Mini Bell peppers (Red, orange, or yellow)
Jimmy Nordelo Sweet Frying Peppers (red long and red)
Serrano Peppers (Long, thin light green and VERY hot)
Jalapeño Peppers (Dark green and hot)
Thai Chili Peppers (Small very red and hot)
Hungarian Carrot Pepper (Small, orange, and VERY hot)
Melon
Carrots
Garlic
Onions
Cucumbers (Slicing and Pickling)
Green Beans
Rainbow Chard, Collard Greens or Dino Kale
Yukon Gold and Red Potatoes??
Beets??

Herbs:
Basil
Parsley
Sage
Thai Basil
Thyme
Rosemary
Oregano


Let’s start with the weather to get the bad news out of the way. We did not suffer as badly as SE MN, but bad enough to mean the possible end to some items. At the time of this post (Friday evening), we have a few inches of standing water over much of the garden and have heard estimates of 4-6 inches of rainfall in our area. Plants can and will survive in a few days of this, but we do not know how long it will take to drain away. Last week when digging potatoes, we hit standing water less than 8 inches under the soil. We are saturated. That said, our winter squash looks great and one way or another your final box next week will be loaded. All I can really say is what a season.

This week you will see some of our winter squash varieties. I will attach some recipes to help you decide how to use them. We love them in our house and hope you do too.

The heirloom tomatoes are nearly done. Thanks to our hoop house, we have some this week and should have a few for each of you next week. Take time to savor the end of their wonderful flavor and color as they will be gone until July or August of next year.

Peppers remain, but their fate is hard to determine as they are one crop completely soaked in standing water. We have separated hot peppers from sweet peppers using bags in your boxes. Please note that while our Jalapeño peppers are rather mild, the others have real kick. Taste test them first to make sure they agree with your palate.

As we stated before, we anticipate lettuce and spinach in the final boxes. They are coming up nicely and the weekly forecast looks decent to help them grow. Cross your fingers for one last round with the delicate leafy greens. Celery will also round out the last box. This is not your grocery stores celery. It is deep green, more leafy, and darned flavorful. Eat the stalk with nut butter and throw the rest into a stew. After posting this I will head to the field to attempt potatoes again. If all goes well, these will be in your last boxes too.

ROASTED VEGETABLES (From Allrecipes.com)
Ingredients
1 small butternut squash, cubed
2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced
1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed
3 Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed
1 red onion, quartered
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C).
In a large bowl, combine the squash, red bell peppers, sweet potato, and Yukon Gold potatoes. Separate the red onion quarters into pieces, and add them to the mixture.
In a small bowl, stir together thyme, rosemary, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Toss with vegetables until they are coated. Spread evenly on a large roasting pan.
Roast for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, stirring every 10 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked through and browned.

Garlicky Baked Butternut Squash (From Allrecipes.com)
Ingredients
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
In a large bowl, combine the parsley, oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Add squash and toss to coat.
Transfer to an ungreased shallow 2-qt. baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees F for 50-55 minutes or until squash is just tender.