Week Four

It has been a busy week here on the farm. And it feels more and more like a farm all the time. The reason for that is we are caring for three more goats while our friends are out of town and are really enjoying that fresh, delicious milk. I never knew milk could taste so good. We are enjoying it so much that, anticipating our friends’ return on June 22, we have found a doe in milk to add to our herd next week. Also this week, we added two Shetland lambs - Jack-in-the-Pulpit and Gloria - to our growing menagerie. They will provide us with wonderful wool to spin, dye, and knit.

As if all that weren’t enough, Ben’s father and brother were here working to do some much needed improvements on the house. Ben planted sweet potatoes this week and is working to finish getting our fence up that will house our main crop of winter squashes in a huge variety, along with weeding and succession planting - we have had a full week. We said a sad goodbye to the last of the strawberries and lettuces. Lettuces will be back in a few months, and the strawberries will reappear in jam all fall and winter. We tried some new ones (strawberry and mint? strawberry and vanilla? strawberry and balsamic vinegar?) but mostly are just making plain, delicious, taste-of-spring strawberry jam. And goodbye to strawberries means hello to blueberries (which you will get a taste of from our neighbors at Blueberry Hill Farm).

We were so happy to be awakened in the wee hours this morning by thunder and rain. Our crops really needed it. I think they have grown more just since last night. What a relief. We don’t have an irrigation system so watering means endless trips with our two watering cans.

So much food is coming on now and we are so happy. The more food we can produce for ourselves and others feels like a triumph. We live in a world where so many items we buy and use come from places we don’t know, from people who might have been mistreated in the production of them. It feels empowering for us to eat food that was grown and produced in the soil of Henry County. One place in our lives that we don’t wrestle with what is faithful, what is least harmful to our planet. We know. And if we can provide that to others, we feel overjoyed. We welcome your feedback and your thoughts.

Now for the food! Here is what you will find in your basket this week:

green cabbage

beets

new potatoes

shelling peas

kale

green onions

mint

baby carrots

We keep thinking that it will be the last week for kale and yet it keeps truckin’ on. And even though kale is sweeter in the fall, we are enjoying it plenty now so we will keep sending it out as long as it keeps growing. But I really think this is the last week. We’ll see.

It is definitely the last week for peas. They are so sweet, aren’t they? How many of you aren’t even managing to get them cooked? So often we end up just eating them from the pod and forgetting about cooking them.

This hot weather has made me think of mint. We made some mint tea last week and I’m planning some mint ice cream for this week. Mint lemonade, mint in peas, mint with carrots - so many possibilities. My favorite recipe that uses mint is from Deborah Madison’s cookbook - Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. Although we are not vegetarians, we eat a veggie centered diet and this book is wonderful. It is a simple recipe - especially if you have either leftover lentils, rice, or pasta. When Ben and I interned at Three Springs CSA Farm in Nicholas County, we ate this every spring and I think I will make it this week.

Lentils with Pasta, Rice, and Buttery Mint Sauce

adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

1 cup farfalle or any dried pasta (2 cups cooked)

1 onion, diced (green onions would work fine)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 can or jar of diced tomatoes

Salt and pepper

2 cups cooked lentils

1 1/2 cups cooked long grain white rice (we use brown)

4 to 6 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons chopped mint leaves

Cook the pasta, drain, and rinse.

Saute the onion in the oil in a skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and season with plenty of salt and pepper. Add the lentils, rice, and pasta. Cook until warmed through, stirring frequently, thin with water if needed.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small skillet. When it is sizzling, add the mint leaves and fry for 30 seconds. Grind in plenty of pepper. Pour the butter over the lentil mixture and serve immediately.

Note: I like to play around with recipes and so I might try replacing the pasta with potatoes since I have them. Or stirring in some kale or beet greens. Oh, or the carrots, It will be good no matter what.

See you Friday. Remember to let us know if you want eggs and please bring your baskets!