September, October, and November are our farm’s most abundant three months of the whole year. (And, not coincidentally, our favorite.) There are leafy greens and colorful roots and the brightly colored summer crops still around. It’s the best mix of all the year.
So this post is to encourage our community to take advantage of this amazing food, even though there is school during the weekdays, fall festivals on the weekends, and sports events all the time. We have the biggest selection of vegetables at the Saturday farmers markets (Brandermill and St. Stephens) but also have vegetables reliably in our self-serve farm stand as well as available to order through the online farmers’ market: Fall Line Farms. (Use code “Summer2016” to waive the subscription fee, and choose your pick up location from the many convenient options.)
On Wednesday and Thursday mornings we bake bread and have it for sale in our Farm Stand. The stand opens by 9 am. You get to choose your loaf from a shelf directly in front of the mouth of the phenomenal oven that bakes our bread.
In the fields crops are growing well, despite the fact that we are officially now on the drought conditions map.
Perhaps the one good thing about a drought is that it forces us to improve our irrigation systems – in order to not be tied to watering duties for many hours, 7 days per week. We grow from our challenges, yes?
Despite the hot and dry weather, we’re awfully proud of how delicious our Farm Shares have been. Last week’s Farm Share pictured below:
Share this post with your friends! We thank you in advance for making it a priority to get to the farmers market (on Saturdays or online) each week this fall. Each year we harvest more in November than we do in August, but there is a strange suburban myth that farmers’ markets are the best in the height of summertime. Our Virginia climate makes local, organic vegetables best in the mildest months.
With the abundance and diversity of our vegetables right now, we encourage everyone to try our “Just cook yummy food without a recipe each night for dinner” approach to eating. Bon Appetit mag wins again with two posts with very helpful ideas for this type of dinner preparation. Thus, this week’s Recipe Suggestions comes in the form of saying this:
This week, more than any other week, we want to invite all of you into our kitchen and show you how to prepare simple, easy, and delicious meals all week using the vegetables in the Farm Share. But, our kitchen is pretty small. So, the best we can do is steer you toward the guidance and wisdom of Bon Appetit:
40 Salads for People Who Hate Salads – And we would add that these recipes are also great for people who already love salads (like us).
25 Weeknight Dinners – Recipe Not Required – This is a treasure trove of staple dinner ideas that don’t require following a recipe. We make a lot of meals similar to ones featured here. Best general rules: Almost always include greens (cooked or just mixed in raw). Combine with a delicious protein. Add a whole grain. Use an interesting sauce/spices.
If anyone wants a group cooking demo, we’ll be happy to host as many of you as our kitchen can hold.
Just let us know.
This weekend’s Farm Share will most likely include:
Salad Mix, Arugula, Kale, Green Beans, Sweet Peppers, Summer Squash, Hearty Greens Mix, and Tomatoes.
This is for our Farm Share CSA members who pick up:
~ on Saturday @ the Farmers Market @ St. Stephen’s
~ on Saturday @ the Brandermill Green Market
This week’s harvest includes:
Arugula, Chard, Cilantro, Cukes, Eggplant, Garlic, Green Beans, Hearty Greens Mix, Kale, Lettuce Mix, Okra, Parsley, Orange Bell Peppers, Sweet Red Carmen Peppers, Jalapeno Peppers, Radishes, Shishito Peppers, Summer Squash, Tomatoes, Turnips…and our Organic Hearth Baked Bread (Sunny Greens loaves return this weekend!)
2016 Market Share CSA Members: Reserve your selection online to pick up Saturday, September 17th at our farm, at the Brandermill Green Market, or at the Farmers Market @ St. Stephens. (Everything remaining after pre-orders will be available for purchase at the Brandermill Green Market and the Farmers Market @ St. Stephens.
In case you are wondering what harvest sometimes looks like:
Enjoy ~
Janet, Dan, & the whole Broadfork crew
Want to follow along during the week, including Farm Stand updates? Visit us on Facebook or Instagram.
