This past week was one of those character builders you look back on and hope they come but once a season or maybe not at all. Brian fell to the flu on Wednesday, one of the pigs went lame, and the delivery truck wouldn’t start 20 minutes before loading for the Friday Naperville delivery. Brian and I are half and half on the farm work and when one of us is down, it makes it rough for the one who is left standing.
So how did it all work out? The pig showed signs of lameness last Monday and the vet said it was probably permanent and I agreed after observing him for 3 days and seeing the condition only decline. He was eating, drinking, and limping to the new grass we gave them but his back legs were failing him.
But while watering the chickens on Saturday, I looked over and saw the pig standing, then walking. Miracle! The pig could walk! We are not sure what changed but the back legs just kept getting better.
The delivery truck that wouldn’t start was pull started with our pick up (it’s a stick shift) with a chain and we sent a weak but functioning Brian to Naperville. He started it again when the CSA drop was completed because he was parked on a hill and could roll the truck, pop the clutch and it started.
But upon leaving the CSA drop, the truck stalled and Brian was left stranded on the road backing up traffic. But another stroke of good luck: he was on another hill, waited for traffic to clear, rolled backwards this time, popped the clutch and the truck started. A very tired farmer made his way to his parents’ house where he was able to finally rest.
I was home with the lame but soon to recover pig, 1100 chickens, feeding, watering, and collecting eggs. What a week.
That is how it goes when you have many irons in the fire and they all need to stay hot at the same time. We are maxed out right now with the garden to maintain, the livestock and more. But the food is very nice today with beautiful beans. Enjoy.
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| 'Nadia' Eggplant |
In Your Box This Week
Tomatoes – Lots of wonderful tomatoes today! If you have tomatoes hitting you from all sides, know that you can slice and freeze them. There is no need to blanch, peel or stew if you don’t have time. They will be preserved for later use – a warm bowl of stewed garden tomatoes is a wonderful thing when it is cold outside. Also, see below for our recipe for an easy and fast tomato sauce that works well for everything from pizza to pasta.
Garlic - Two gorgeous bulbs of garlic today.
Green Beans – Very nice beans today and a full pound of them. We snack on them raw and enjoy them lightly steamed and tossed with balsamic vinegar, olive oil and fresh garlic. Chill slightly and serve over your salad – delicious
Eggplant – Full size eggplant or the mini ‘Fairy Tale’ variety. Our eggplant supper recently was slices of eggplant prepared with the 3-step breading method, fried until browned and served over pasta with our homemade pasta sauce (see Recipe below) and a creamy French goat cheese. Very good.
Fresh Basil – Basil is the herb right now – it goes with everything summer. It tastes good but just the aroma is enough to soften your mood and bring and smile to your face. If you decide to freeze or can tomatoes, add a few basil leaves to each container.
Escarole – Harvesting this green yesterday was very exciting as the leaves are so very nice and the white tender ribs are so mild. Escarole is a salad or cooking green. The leaves are sturdy enough to withstand a quick wilt in olive oil and garlic without turning to mush. We enjoyed an escarole salad last night with asimple vinaigrette consisting of olive oil, red wine vinegar, little Dijon mustard, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. Allow the greens to sit a few minutes before serving as the leaves become more tender as they absorb dressing. Top with feta cheese, sliced tomatoes and steamed green beans and you have a fantastic salad.
Kohlrabi – The last of the second crop of kohlrabi. Make kohlrabi chips for an after school snack. Peel and thinly slice the kohlrabi bulb. Cold slices of kohlrabi hit the spot on these hot days.
Recipe
Poeppel Family Pasta Sauce
We don’t really have time to peel and seed tomatoes and I do like the idea of using the whole tomato – seeds, skin, juice, everything but the core. Here is our solution for a very quick, whole tomato pasta sauce that passes the taste test of even the pickiest eaters. I do not have quantities for this recipe – you must go by taste and adjust as you see fit. I strongly recommend you do not omit the sweetener. There are just a few ingredients for the sauce and they all work in unison to bring the sauce together. It is not over sweetened by any means.
Fresh Tomatoes – cored, cut in half or quartered
Tomato Paste – we like the Bio-Nature organic tomato paste
Sugar, Sucanat, Agave, sweetener of your choice
Olive Oil
Homemade basil pesto or fresh basil chopped
Garlic – if you using homemade pesto, you can omit the extra garlic, or not
Salt
Pepper
Stew the tomatoes until heated through and broken down. Allow to cool a bit and then with your trusty stick blender (much easier than a standing blender), whirl up the skins, seeds, pulp until skin is not recognizable – it will take a minute or two. Add one can/jar of tomato paste – it doesn’t take as much as you might think to thicken the sauce. Add salt and taste – start slow so you don’t over salt, do the same with the sweetener. Add a swirl of olive oil and a good dollop of homemade pesto. If not using pesto, add freshly chopped basil and garlic. Heat gently so you don’t scorch and taste. Adjust seasonings and you’re done. Use this as the base for your pasta or pizza sauce. It also works well with a seasoned saucy rice dish with sautéed onions, peppers, protein of choice and the sauce mixed in to give it good flavor and moisture. The sauce holds in the refrigerator for several days or can be frozen for later use.
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