TOMTEN FARM

Collard Greens
Nelson Carrots
Savoy Cabbage
Nicola or Desiree Potatoes
Green Tomatoes
Salad Mix
Leeks
Dill

Our annual garlic planting happened today. For the last three years our work share members come out on the Sunday when daylight savings time ends and we plant garlic. It is always a relief to get it planted as it usually means this season is winding down while it also marks the first large planting for the coming season. It reminds us that our growing cycles are never complete but keep rolling along year after year. Today was a beautiful day and we had a great group out on the farm.

This is our second to last share of the season and there is still so much produce happening on the farm. We are being fooled with this warm weather, but soon enough a hard frost will come and with our shortening day lengths, the crop growth is slowing significantly everyday. We have had a wonderful season feeding you all, your families, and friends. We look forward to the coming season and fingers crossed delicious garlic too. Please check out some of the recipes below that come from cuisines from around the world. Enjoy the share….Autumn and Brian

(Atakilt Wat) Ethiopian Spiced Cabbage, Carrot, And Potatoes

Thakali Masiyal (Green Tomato and Lentil Stew)

Middle Eastern Leeks With Yogurt, Dill and Sumac

Tuna Noodle Casserole with Leeks and Fresh Dill

Carolina Chicken And Collard Green Stew

Boiled Cabbage with Butter and Dill

Lusia or Brenta Precoce Radicchio
Canary Tongue or Panisse Lettuce
Broccoli Raab or Tuscan Kale
Fennel
Parsley
Beets & Turnips
Heirloom Tomatoes
Italian & Middle Eastern Eggplant
Pepper Mix (Friariello, Topepo, Cubanelle, Peppino, Corno, etc.)

Radicchio, Fennel, and 
Olive Panzanella

Beet And Turnip Gratin (Make ½ the recipe in a 8” cast-iron pan)

Penne with Grilled Eggplant and Radicchio Sauce 

Penne with Broccoli Rabe, Sweet Peppers and White Beans

Caponata with Fennel, Olives, & Raisins (adapted from Epicurious)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pounds unpeeled eggplant, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 cups coarsely chopped red bell peppers
2/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh fennel bulb (about 1 small)
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
3 tablespoons pitted Kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons golden raisins
½ cup tomato sauce
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add eggplant, bell peppers, fennel, and garlic; sauté until eggplant is tender, about 10 minutes. Add olives and raisins, then mix in tomato sauce and vinegar. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover and simmer until caponata is thick and vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes longer. Mix in parsley. Season caponata to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Serve at room temperature.

Spicy Asian Salad Mix
Broccoli or Yu Choy Sum
Scallions
Cilantro
Napa Cabbage
Daikon Radish
Red & Green Mustards
Bok Choy or Thai Eggplant
Misato Rose & Red Meat Winter Radishes
Chiles: Aji Dulce, Khmer Thai, & Cuban Hat

We are scrambiling around getting ready for our Fall Farm dinner; which is exploring Indian food. It has been a very rewarding process creating the menu and working through the vegetable centered dishes for this meal. We have been introduced to different techniques, making us work outside our comfort zone so to speak. The results have been inspiring and we are very excited to share the meal with a group of hungry people. The farm dinners give inspiration to coming years crop list, as we always discover herbs, peppers, or crops that we want to work with. These dinners are created around what we are growing; perimeters that create a great framework for exploration and research when working with a particular cuisine. It also is a reminder of how marginalized our access to most cuisines has become. With Indian food for example almost all restaurants in the US serve Punjabi style food, a cuisine influenced by the Moghul food, a group of people whom settled in northern India, bringing influence from Persian culture. Punjabi food only represents one type of cuisine and most of these restaurants have more or less the same menu, even though Northern Indian cooking is rich and diverse in style. If you think about it, most ethnic cuisines in the US have been whittled down to a small set of dishes; which it can be assumed is not representative of a large country’s diverse food culture. It is always inspiring to learn more and to taste more.

This week’s share is full of spicy vegetables; from sweet and spicy winter radishes, to warm spicy mustard greens, and hot chiles; but it also includes subtle vegetables as well, such as meaty thai eggplant or crisp and fresh bok choy or napa cabbage. This might be a great week to make pickles or kim chi for the Winter or enjoy a fresh raw salad with scallions, cilantro, and grated radishes. Check out some of the recipes below and enjoy the share…..Autumn and Brian

Pickled Mustard Greens

Stir-Fried Bok Choy and Daikon with Crisp Tofu

Lanzhou Beef Noodle Soup

Northern Thai Eggplant Salad Recipe

Jaw Phak Kat: Northern Thai Mustard Green Soup With Tamarind and Pork Ribs – Pok Pok by Andy Ricker

Asian Cabbage Slaw from The Kitchen Garden
This recipe is an adaptation for cabbage of Thai green papaya salad (som tam) and makes a refreshing and fat-free alternative to mayonnaise-based salads (not that there’s anything wrong with mayonnaise!).
1/2 to 1 head cabbage, shredded
1 carrot, grated
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small hot red or green chili, minced
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
Thai basil, spearmint (optional)
1-2 scallions, chopped
¼ cup roasted shelled peanuts, ground or chopped fine
Juice of 1 lime
2 Tbsp light colored vinegar
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp fish sauce (optional)

Mixed thinly sliced cabbage and grated carrot in a large bowl with the garlic, chili, cilantro and other herbs if using.  Add the lime juice, salt, sugar, vinegar and fish sauce and stir well (the volume of salad should decrease within minutes as the cabbage sheds its liquid).  Refrigerate until needed.  Just before serving garnish with the ground peanuts and chopped scallion.

Escarole
Tuscan Kale
Beets (Chioggia or Red Ace)
Broccoli or Romano Beans
Sweet & Cubanelle Peppers
Jonathon Cushaw Squash
Parsley
Garlic

Green Striped Cushaw 

Food Snob Chronicles — Cushaw: The best pumpkin you’ve never heard of 

Pappardelle With Butternut Squash, Walnuts, And Baby Kale http://www.saveur.com/article/recipes/pappardelle-with-butternut-squash-walnuts-and-baby-kale

Rich Squash Pie – The Fannie Farmer Cookbook
Basic Pastry Dough for a 9” pie shell
1 cup pureed cooked winter squash
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, slightly beaten
3 Tbls brandy
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
½ tsp powdered ginger
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp mace
Preheat the oven to 425. Line a 9” pie pan with pastry dough. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and beat until smooth and well blended. Pour into the lined pie pan. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 300 and bake for 45-60 minutes more or until the filling is firm.

Escarole and Bell Peppers With Olive Oil 

Moroccan Beet Salad

Fettuccine with Gorgonzola and Broccoli

Creamy Garlic Parmesan Green Beans 

Dubuisson Frisee
Nicola or Russet Potatoes
Lettuce Head or Arugula
Swiss Chard or Collard Greens
Poblano & Anaheim Peppers
Lemon Drop & Serrano Chiles
Red Creole Onions
Tomatoes
Cilantro

This week is the mid-point of our Fall CSA; which is a bit strange, as it seems we are only now beginning to get into our fall crops. The hot and dry August and September put off our fall crop growth and now in last two weeks things have really taken off. We are unfortunately going to keep waiting a bit for cabbage, carrots, and fennel; but the greens are officially ready and for the first time since late Spring we have a substantial amount of cilantro. With the tomatoes almost done, we are giving you all the makings for a pico di gallo or fresh salsa. We are also excited to give you some potatoes after a long hiatus. This has been one of our worst potato crops, as you might have noticed they have been scarce in the shares. We have been waiting for the fall weather to give you more. Please enjoy the greens, potatoes, and Mexican chiles all together. In our opinion these vegetables make great combinations. Try some spicy home fries, a delicious omelet or frittata, some tasty vegetarian enchiladas, or greens and potato stuffed peppers. There are so many menu ideas when pairing these crops together. The lemondrop and serrano chiles freeze very well, in case you do not want to use them all in the next few weeks. The frisee is back and looking luscious. One of our favorite ways to use this is in a big salad with potato, hard boiled or poached egg, bacon, red onion, maybe a little tomato or olives and some anchovy in the dressing. Delicious. Enjoy the share……Autumn and Brian

Papas Con Rajas (Sauteed Potatoes and Chiles)

Swiss Chard With Potatoes (Blitva)

Frisee Salad with Blue Cheese, Bacon and Hazelnuts

Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce

Lemon Drop Hot Sauce Recipe

Essential Chopped Tomato-Serrano Salsa (Salsa Mexicana Classica)

Mesclun Salad Mix
Mustard Greens or Broccoli Raab
Biscayne Cubanelle Peppers
Romano Beans or Okra
Hakurei Salad Turnips
Bok Choy
Basil
Garlic
Extra: Asian Eggplant

Due to the extremely dry weather we have had this season, our basil has thrived for four long months, but now it is coming to an end. Two weeks ago when we finally got some rain, 3” in 12 hours, it was from a storm coming from the south and it brought with it the pathogen, Peronospora belbahrii, also known as basil downy mildew. This disease has only been in the US since 2006, so it is relatively new. There are many efforts being made to find basil varieties that are resistant and since our 2^nd year here in Prince Edward, we have had to adopt many measures to lengthen our basil season, such as wider plant spacing, growing a succession under cover, and using drip irrigation. The pathogen spreads quickly in humid and warm (70-80 degree) temperatures, so we were pretty resistant this Summer what with high temperatures and little moisture. Alas though the past two weeks has been mild wet, and gray, never seeming to dry up and so this coming week will be our last harvests as the plants are becoming riddles with the disease. We are sending everyone basil, it may show some signs of yellowing or mold spores on the under sides of the leaves. This does not affect the flavor at all, but this basil will not hold as long as usual. We highly suggest taking a little time this week to preserve what you have by making pesto, basil oil, or drying leaves for later use. There will be a small handlful of garlic in your share too so why not preserve a bit of Summer for a cold Winter day.
The rest of this share has an unusual mix of items. You might notice the greens and quick root crops are beginning to pour in. The hakurei turnips make an amazing stir fry with bok choy, cubanelle peppers, and a few greens, or add a few thinly sliced turnips to the bok choy with oyster sauce and pepper recipe below. Always a favorite is the broccoli raab paired with sausage and pasta as well as a few Japanese recipes that could make up a delicious simple meal, especially if paired with a simple soy sauce dressing green salad. Enjoy the share….Brian and Autumn

Bok Choy with Oyster Sauce and Bell Peppers

Orecchiette With Sweet Sausage and Broccoli Rabe Pesto

Pesto – Marcella Hazan

Deep Fried Okra and Eggplant in Broth Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
2 cups rapeseed or cold-pressed sesame oil
6 small to medium Okra
6 small Japanese Eggplant
1 2/3 cups Noodle Dipping sauce
1 Tbls slivered ginger
Line a cookie sheet with several sheets of folded newspaper and top with a layer of paper towels. Set next to the stove. Heat oil in a deep, round frying pan (such as a wok) over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking.
Make a small lengthwise slit near the tip of each okra with a sharp knife so the steam can escape, or they may pop open in the hot oil. Cut ¼” deep lengthwise slices into the eggplant skin at ¼” intervals following the natural curve of the eggplant to create a wavy pattern from top to bottom. Fry the okra quickly until no longer raw but not wilted, then drain on the paper towel-lined cookie tray. Slip the eggplants into the oil and fry gently for several minutes, turning occasionally, until the eggplant has softened. Remove the eggplant and drain.
Arrange each eggplant in a small bowl so the bottom is fanned out and rest and okra pod attractively against the golden- and purple -ribboned flesh. Ladle in a scoop of noodle dipping sauce, sprinkle with the slivered ginger, and serve immediately. Variation: Substitute green beans instead of okra if the season coincides with eggplant in your region.

Noodle Dipping Sauce Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
This sauce can be served hot or cold, depending on the season. Good for dunking udon, soba, and somen noodles.
11/3 cup Dashi
6 Tbls Kaeshi
Flavor the dashi with the kaeshi and use at room temperature, cold, or slightly warm, depending on your mood or the season.
Kaeshi
½ cup hon mirin
11/8 cup organic sugar
2 cups organic soy
Bring the hon mirin to a simmer over high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until you no longer smell alcohol (3-5 minutes). Stir in the sugar and continue cooking (and stirring) until the sugar granules have dissolved. Add the soy sauce and watch as the kaeshi heats up and comes almost to a boil. You will see tiny bubbles form on the perimeter-remove the pan from the heat as soon as the entire surface of the kaeshi becomes a creamy tan from minute bubbles. Store for up to a year in the fridge.
Dashi
1 (6”) length of Konbu
Handful of dried bonito shavings
Place the konbu in a medium saucepan containing 2 cups of cold water. Bring almost to a boil (you will see minute bubbles form on the edges of the konbu) and remove the konbu. Throw in the dried bonito shavings and simmer friskly, but not crazily, for 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand 8 minutes. Set a small fine-mesh strainer over a 1-quart measuring cup and pour the dashi through the strainer to remove the dried bonito shavings. You should have 1 1/3 cup dashi. If you do not, add water (pouring through the strainer holding the strained katsuobushi) to make the amount of liquid needed. Use within a day or so, if kept chilled in the fridge.

Bitter Greens with Dashi
  Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
2 small bunches (1 1/3lb) Bitter Greens: mustard, turnip, or komatsuna
1/3 cup Dashi
2 Tbls Soy Sauce
2 Tbls freshly shaved katsuobushi or 3 Tbls hanakatsuo
Bring a large pot of hot water to a boil and place a large bowl of cold water on the kitchen sink. Hold the bunches of greens by their tops and lower the stems into the boiling water. Count to ten or twenty, then drop the greens into the pot and cook an additional 1-3 minutes. Scoop out the greens with a strainer and dump them immediately into the cold water. Turn on the tap and plunge your hands into the water, lifting the greens up directly into the stream of cold running tap water to cool them. Pull out a few connected strands and squeeze down the length of the greens to express the excess water. Ley the greens on the cutting board, cut off the end tips, and slice into 2” lengths.
Squeeze the greens one more time and arrange the clumps attractively on a medium-sized saucer with the cut sides face up. Season the dashi with soy sauce, pour over the greens, and sprinkle with shaved katsuobushi right before serving.
Variation: Also nice with some slivered citrus peel, such as yuzu or meyer lemon. Although in this case I would cut back, or omit the katsuobushi.

Arugula or Mesclun
Radish or Salad Turnip
Turnip Greens
Tomatoes
Eggplant or Okra
Padron or Sweet Peppers
Storage Onions

Spicy Sauteed Okra with Collard and Turnip Greens

Grilled Eggplant and Greens with Spiced Yogurt

Chicken and Roast Eggplant-Tomato Tacos with Turnip Salsa

Roasted Radishes with Brown Butter, Lemon, and Radish Tops

Duck Breast With Mustard Greens, Turnips, And Radishes

THE BEST EGGPLANT SHAKSHUKA, OR HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS WITH BREAKFAST

Lettuce (Red Leaf, Canary Tongue, or Bibb Romaine)
Eggplant (Thai, Asian long, or Middle Eastern)
Daikon Radish
Nelson Carrots
Romano Green Beans
Anaheim & Cubanelle Peppers
Khmer Thai or Aji Dulce Chiles
Thai & Paneng Basil
Garlic

This weekend we hopefully wait for the coming storm. For the first time in over a month it looks likely that we will get some rain sometime between tonight and Monday evening. We cannot begin to express how important even the smallest amount of rain would be for our crops and land right now. It has been over a month since we got any precipitation and that was only 1/10^th of an inch. Since mid June, we have had around 4 inches of rain total with 3 inches of that in a two-day period in late July. This lack of precipitation coupled with three very hot and sunny months have meant our land is currently very dry. So dry that we can run a hose in one spot for 3 minutes and it never saturates, rather the water disappears. One can imagine that these are not ideal conditions for beginning cool crops for the Fall and Winter season; but that is why adequate irrigation systems are a necessity for an efficient farming system. As we stated last month improving our own irrigation system is now top priority for our Winter projects, so we can more adequately care for our crops as well as minimize our labor in times of heavy irrigation. For us this feels like a drought; but ironically there are many places around the world that deal with these conditions most of the time. Virginia normally has lots of water, not always when we want it, with humid conditions and heavy soil, normally we retain good amounts of soil moisture. We are not used to thinking in terms of water conservation in order to survive drought conditions, a real luxury compared to so many farmers around the world. It has made us realize we must be smarter by implementing an efficient system both in terms of labor and water usage. We must be better prepared, thinking about methods for better soil moisture retention, looking for crop varieties that are tolerant to hot and dry conditions and saving seeds from plants that can withstand this current Summer. As painful as the last six weeks has been for us, struggling to get our Fall and Winter crops started, this is the part of farming that keeps us farmers present, focused, and thoughtful. Normally we struggle with wet or humid and warm Summers, where diseases thrive and so we are anticipating those effects; but the weather turned it all around on us this Summer and gave us a whole new set of conditions to react to. This is why we always look so exhausted and yet it keeps us on our toes and keeps us coming back for more.
We are excited to offer a few new elements to the share this week. This group of vegetables can inspire delicious southeast Asian dishes. We are adding a few sprigs of the Paneng Basil, which is a Thai Lemon basil, to your regular Thai Basil bunch. Use it for garnish on curry or to add to a salad. It has a distinct lemon aroma and is delicious, although slightly tannic. The daikon are young baby daikon; which will be delicious both raw and cooked. Please check out the recipes below, specifically the Eggplant with Thai Basil recipe, a favorite in our house especially when using the Thai round eggplants. Enjoy the share….Brian and Autumn

Thai Basil, Pepper and Green Bean Stir Fry

Shortcut Banh Mi With Pickled Carrots and Daikon

How to make those classic Pok Pok wings at home

Daikon Radish Greens Pasta with Seared Daikon, Chilies, Garlic and Lemon

Scrambled Peppers and Eggs

Roasted Eggplant With Fried Onion and Chopped Lemon

Eggplant with Thai Basil
1 lb eggplant, cut into ½-inch slices
4-5 cloves garlic
1-2 medium sized fresh red or green chilies (or sweet bell pepper for the meek)
1 Tbsp light soy sauce or tamari
2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
2 Tbsp palm sugar or dark brown sugar
1 bunch Thai basil

Slice the eggplant into ½ inch rounds and fry them over medium high in a wide skillet with ¼ inch of canola or other frying oil. When things get going, the eggplant slices will absorb the oil and you will gradually see it penetrate through to the top.  Make sure that they don’t get too brown on the bottom before this happens.  If the eggplant slices absorb all the oil and still don’t look wet, you must add more—but don’t worry, because they will release much of it as they cook.  When they look like they have absorbed enough oil and they start to get nice and brown on the bottom, flip them over and brown them on the other side.  If the pan is dry at this point, don’t add more oil because the slices have absorbed enough to fry themselves.  When they’re done, drain the slices on paper towels
Meanwhile, cut the garlic into slices and the chilies into diagonal rings.  When the eggplant is ready, remove it and add 2 Tbsp of fresh oil to the pan, add the garlic and half the chilies, and stir-fry until the garlic is golden.  Add the soy sauces and sugar, stir for about 30 seconds until the sugar starts to bubble, and return the eggplant to the pan.  Add torn basil leaves, stir and serve, garnished with the rest of the chilies (if you dare!)

Red Round Radish
Arugula, Salad Mix, or Little Gem Heads
Sweet Peppers (Giallo di Asti, Corno di Toro Rossa, Carmagnola)
Poblano Peppers
Jalapeno or Serrano Peppers
Romano Green Beans
Zephyr Summer Squash
Okra (Clemson Spineless)
Verona Plum Tomato
Genovese Basil

Green Bean, Sweet Corn + Summer Squash Salad with Basil Dressing

Roasted Poblano Crema

Lady in red: a traditional African okra soup recipe

Orzo with Summer Squash and Pesto

Mediterranean Okra and Tomato Stew

Summer Bean and Radish Salad

Homemade Focaccia + Roasted Red Pepper & Arugula Sandwiches

Parsley
Eggplant
Summer Squash
Heirloom Tomatoes
Arugula or Salad Mix
German White Garlic
Padron, Cubanelle, or Sweet Peppers

We cannot believe how time flies. The end of August and the end of our Spring/Summer share season. Finally we are caught up with our fall and winter seeding and planting, thanks to the small group who has been helping out through the Summer. Our CSA workday last Sunday was also such a treat as we were able to open up some finished crop land for future planting and fall cover cropping, an essential step in our long-term soil improvement practices. In many ways we are more “caught up” than we have ever been this time of year, although there is always a long to-do list. It is a struggle when the Summer is so hot to get the Fall crops going strong. We cannot even begin to think about seeding spinach in these temperatures. So we patiently wait and try to get as many crops in the ground as possible. Nursing them along by irrigating and addressing pest issues. At this point we would appreciate some low 80’s temperatures and some rain just to get our fall seeding germinating sufficiently and our transplants thriving. This very hot and dry summer (out in Prince Edward county we have had little rain for the past 2 months) has made us realize how much we need to address our inefficient irrigation system. It is simply not adequate for our needs as during this current weather we have to irrigate 12-18 hours per day just to cover a minimum of crops. Every two-three hours this can take 5-15 minutes to change from one section to another, meaning an hour per day just to change irrigation lines. In addition we are not able to get our crops the water they need and if we have learned one thing over the past 4 years, it is that when we irrigate properly, crops produce significantly better. There are of course many other factors at hand, but if they are not getting the water they need, it can be difficult to get healthy plants. This has been a difficult bean season for us through a culmination of deer eating plants, Mexican bean beetle infestation, and the shear heat; but multiple successions of beans have not gotten enough water to thrive, enough to survive, but not thrive. So this winter we will spend energy creating and investing in a workable efficient system capable of watering much more cropland at one time.
This week’s share revisits summer squash, our last succession for the year, paired with green and sweet peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, and parsley. We love parsley; but it struggles through the very hot months. We are happy to see it finally growing back bushy and full as it goes wonderfully with the fruiting vegetables of this season. We are also including a small handful of garlic. It is fully cured and can be stored in a pantry or shaded location for many months. Enjoy the share…..Autumn and Brian

Zaalouk (Spicy Eggplant Salad) The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
1 ½ lb eggplant, peeled and cubed
5 cloves garlic, peeled
salt
3 large tomatoes (about 1 ½ lbs)
4 Tbls argan oil or mild extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbls wine vinegar
½ tsp harissa or a mixture paprika &ground chili pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Boil the eggplants with the garlic in plenty of salted water, in a pan covered with a lid, for about 30 minutes or until they are very soft. Drain and chop the eggplants and garlic in a colander, then mash them with a fork, pressing all the water out.
Put the tomatoes in the emptied pan and cook over low heat for about 20 minutes, or until reduced to a thick sauce, stirring occasionally. Mix with the mashed eggplants and the rest of the ingredients and add salt.
Variation: Add the juice of 1 lemon (instead of the vinegar) and 1 tsp ground caraway or coriander.

Golden Squash, Pepper, & Tomato Gratin from THE BEEKMAN

Roasted Eggplant, Green Pepper & Tomato Dip

Turkish eggplant and beef stew (musakka) recipe 

Sautéed Summer Squash with Parsley and Garlic

You Say Tomato, We Say Make These Recipes Immediately