What's in the box?

red fingerling potatoes
onions
carrots
rainbow chard
braising mix (bagged)
bell peppers
thyme
broccoli
cauliflower (medium and large)
butternut squash (medium and large)
delicata squash (small)

Notes on the box.

Remove tops from carrots before storing. They store best in a plastic bag in our crisper.

Rainbow Chard should be stored in a plastic bag in your crisper.

Braising Mix is good quickly cooked down in a little butter with a bit of broth or water until it's good and wilted. You can then add it to pizzas, quiche, or make a hot sandwich with the braised greens, some roasted bell peppers, some herbed quark or cream cheese, and smoked meat or bacon on a sturdy roll.

These potatoes are a new variety for us this season. They are a red fingerling and we really like them! They are great for roasting. They will store best in a paper bag outside of your fridge. Ideal storage temp is around 45 degrees, so a cool basement or garage is a perfect place to store potatoes, onions, squash, and garlic.

Broccoli and Cauliflower will store best in a plastic bag in your fridge crisper.

Thyme is so great! The leaves can be removed from the stems and added to vinaigrette. It is also really wonderful with roasted meats or vegetables. IT loves to be with potatoes or squash. If you are braising meat or making a soup or stew, tie the thyme sprigs together with some twine and put the little bunch into the stew as it cooks. This way you won't have thyme stems in your finished dinner. It can be kept in a plastic baggie in your fridge. If you leave it on your counter, it will dry over several days.

Cheese Shares.

This week we have quarkagain! Yay!
And also a tomme. I was trying to get to a tomme similar to the first one that I sent out this season, but I didn't have much luck getting the thick layer of mold on the outside of the cheese. So instead it's more similar to the others from the later spring. This one is 3 months old. Not the prettiest wheels on the outside, and it's not exactly what I was hoping for, it's still a tasty cheese.

Recipes.

Black Bean Pumpkin Soup from Smitten Kitchen
the recipe calls for canned pumpkin, but roasted and pureed butternut, pumpkin, or even acorn squash will work

Broccoli Parmesan Fritters from Smitten Kitchen

Roasted Red Fingerlings with Thyme and Whole Grain Mustard

1 lb. fingerling, small red or Yukon Gold potatoes, 1 to 2 inches in diameter, unpeeled
1 Tbs. thyme leaves, removed from stem
1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil (or other fat of your choice)
1 Tbs. whole-grain Dijon mustard
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheatoven to 400°F. If the potatoes are larger than 1 1/2 inches in diameter, cut them in half lengthwise. Place them on a rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle with thyme leaves. In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil and mustard. Drizzle the mixture evenly over the potatoes, then season generously with salt and pepper. Toss to coat the potatoes evenly, then spread them out in a single layer. Roast the potatoes, turning them 2 or 3 times, until the skins are golden and the flesh is tender when pierced with a fork, 40 to 45 minutes. Eat 'em up!

Turkey Meatballs over Greens (for your braising greens and/or chard)

MEAT!

We have 6 pigs unsold that are going to the butcher on the 19th of Oct. prices are as follows and includes all processing and delivery to home or drop site.

whole hog 4$ lb. hanging weightapproximately 160# = 640$

half hog 4.50$ lb. approximately 80# = 360$

quarter hog 5.50 $ lb. approximately 40#= 220$

All pigs are heritage red wattle and Hereford cross breeds, fed 100% organic grain, and whey from the creamery. Raised in the sunlight, so a fantastic source of soluble Vit D for the winter months.

If you are interested in any of these options let us know by email. delivery will be approximately last week of Oct or 1st week November.

On the Farm.

As a farmers we are constantly thinking about the future, days, months, and years ahead. This isn't an affliction of not living in the present moment but rather a very practical and daunting task to attempt to stem off the bleeding that is not being prepared. Do we have the money to buy compost now in the fall so we have it for spring when road bans are on? Do we take the plastic off the greenhouses so we can let the ground freeze and catch snow or do we try to plant some crops and try for an early succession? We are at that point where we look back on the season with a fresh memory and decide what worked, and what didn't this year. Where can we improve? We will be sending out a survey soon we really hope you respond to the questions. You are a big part of our decision making! We are growing food for YOU. We need you to tell us where we can improve, and what we did well. But before I give you a false sense of control, let's temper that statement with this fact; much of what we both might want is out of our control. For example, we wanted spinach in these last four boxes, but it rained a LOT and drown it all. The idea of a true CSA is that we have a community of committed eaters who support the farm financially and sometimes physically so we can grow your food and not worry about where we are going to sell it and for how much. To put it another way that means members don't jump ship because they didn't get enough lettuce or the brussel sprouts didn't size up. This is the shared risk that is part of the true CSA model. A CSA membership means much more than just the right selection of Organic produce at a rock bottom price. We are a family farm in a time when there are few of us, and we are working to keep small family farms alive and viable. Community Supported Agriculture is about rural revitalization, it means we live and farm here in Clear Lake WI. We show this community that it is possible to have a small diverse farm and make a living and we provide meaningful, fun and safe employment for people that live here. We become a magnet for more like minded people and then this community grows and the community of eaters benefit from the security that provides. I've said this before, but Turnip Rock Farm wouldn't exist without our dedicated members. Some of our 8-10 year members will remember some of our first years with low fertility fields, still working out systems, still LEARNING how to farm (and we are still learning now and always). If those members would have given up on us, we wouldn't be here now. The weather isn't always going to cooperate, the cards won't always fall in our favor. I'll remind you at the end of a FANTASTIC growing season that farmers take tremendous risk and the margins of this business, even with a dedicated CSA membership, is razor thin. Your support means everything to us. Thank you for a great season and allowing us to stay here and care for this piece of earth.

Many of you may not know this, but we have been renting this farm for the past two and three quarter years and building up infrastructure. Although we hoped to have more time to get our financial feet back under us after our move from New Auburn, next week we will be signing a mortgage on this farm. This is a big deal! So here is to the future of good eating and good stewardship for the long haul. ! We look forward to putting in some perennials and planting some trees. More roots!

Enjoy the second to last box of the main season. The colors, textures, and flavors of fall are at peak right now. Next week is the last week of the summer season, week 18. We have a few season extension shares left (that's 4 weeks added on to the end of the season). Email us if you want to sign up. And if you'd like to keep eating wonderful local food all Winter long, we really encourage you to check out the true Winter Share from our friends and mentors at Foxtail Farm. We are partnering with them to add the option of cheese to their deliveries! Have a wonderful week and happy eating!