Sept 7th Dining in the Fields, Proliferation of Peppers, Tomato Tornado

Hello from the farm!

Does being a farmer mean that you are never content with the weather? It's funny (sort of) how we can be complaining about it being too wet one week and only a week later the soil is dry and we are again pining for rain! :-) 
This week we are reveling in the tomato harvest, which according to our highly calibrated memories, is one of the best, if not the best tomato seasons ever in fifteen seasons of growing them.  The sweet peppers are also coming along really well and there will be a dazzling display of colored peppers this week.  They are all sweet, whatever their shape and color may be :-)
This week is about the midpoint of our growing season and as the days are noticeably shorter, our minds turn to thinking about fall crops.  This week we seeded an assortment of lettuce, Asian salad greens, scallions, Asian cabbages, chard, and funky black and watermelon radishes for fall. Next week we'll be planting another round of broccoli, kale, cabbage and cauliflower for October harvest.  

 
 a palette of purple peppers and other colors 

September 7th  is Approaching:   Dining in the Fields, 2014

 Homefields, the organization that founded and owns the farm and land, is putting together the 2nd annual Dining in the Fields event for September.  The meal will showcase the food grown here at the farm as presented by chefs Steve and Barb. 
 Stay connected as they fine-tune the menu, seeing what seasonal organic crops rise to the occasion as we approach the date. Facebook, email , and check out past sponsors, menu, and more here.  Proceeds go to Homefields for the adjoining farm land that they secured for future vegetable growing.
Purchase tickets at:  www.homefields.org

 

 The tomatoes have hit their stride--this is probably the peak week for them. They will continue to bear up until frost, typically around Oct 15th


Goodwill at Homefields Farm is on Facebook: 
Check out our antics, glamour veggie photos, quips, goofy fun and more at: 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Goodwill-at-Homefields-Farm/121147947971207?ref_type=bookmark

Bread Baker Stephanie is baking Sun-dried Tomato Bagels at $4/half dozen and $8/dozen.   

Monthly Farm Tour: 
Want to get a behind the scenes look at the workings of the farm? There is a monthly farm tour on the 1st Tuesday of the month at 9am.  If you are planning to attend, please email sbreneman@yourgoodwill.org.  Tour lasts approximately 30 minutes. 
No tours during Dec/Jan/Feb due to Volcanic winter, ok, just joking about the Volcanic part) 


Serving Suggestions for the harvest this week:

Red River Onions: cooking up some burgers or making a mean sandwich or salad? This red variety is both beautiful and delicious.  It stores very well, for months and months, something that the Walla Wallas are not capable of doing. 
Sweet Peppers:  whether green, yellow, orange, red, or purple. bell shaped or horn shaped, we'll have a sweet pepper for you. Our perennial favorite is Carmen, a lipstick red bull's horn type sweet pepper. 
Tomatoes: the tomato plants are going gangbusters.   Look for the harvest to slowly decrease as fall approaches.  Mmm, tomato and cheese sandwich anyone?  
 French Fingerling Potato:  we are harvesting the diminutive French Fingerling potatoes this week. These cute little guys are a gourmet delight and posh places love to feature them.  Hmm, does that mean we are posh too...? ;-)
--see recipe below for fingerlings
Garlic: it is so nice to have fresh garlic. We're not sure why, but our garlic did extremely well for us this year. Our neighbor planted the same type garlic and it didn't fair so well. We're not sure why it did exceptionally well, so we'll just be glad.
For maximum health benefit, cut and let stand for about 10 minutes to oxidize and thereby form the beneficial compounds. Not just super tasty, garlic also is known for reducing blood pressure, heart disease and cholesterol.

Eggplants:  We really like the long slender Asian type eggplants! They are user friendly, mild and great for grilling with soy sauce, miso etc on the grill or use in any recipe that calls for eggplant--in short, treat them the same as the Italian "bell-type" eggplants.  

Scallions: These mild-mannered onion family folks give an easy onion flavor to salads, sandwiches, stir fries and more.  Or you could do the old classic buttered bread and sliced scallion treat: my grandparents talked a lot about enjoying them in spring. Probably the last harvest for these--may return in the fall. 
  
Goodbyes: 
Watermelons and cantaloupe: it was nice melon run, but sooner or later, we knew they'd be done.  We hope you enjoyed them as much as we did.  

Cucumbers:  these are finished for this season, we're sad to see them go. 
Carrots: carrots are really good roasted in the oven with some coconut, olive or peanut oil. Of course they are also good as carrot sticks or in salads. We will miss the fresh taste of farm carrots, it's just not the same getting them from the store. 
Summer Squash:  add raw to salads, steam lightly, or stir-fry. Don't overcook unless you like soft consistency. 

Kohlrabi: sort of a mini-broccoli little crunchy dude, these are tasty raw and taste kind of like mild sweet broccoli. Usually eaten raw.  Some people peel away the outer layer.  May return in autumn. 
Greens: these succumbed to the heat, with the exception of chard which continue to grow through the summer heat. We like to fry these in a skillet with butter or coconut oil until crisp, add some onions and saute them as well--a superb topping for rice, fried eggs or stand alone too.

Broccoli: Broccoli is dicey as a spring crop and the heat has made it flower and diminished its quality--look for a new crop in fall. 
Garlic scapes: we hope you enjoyed the delightful flavor of these. 
Lettuce heads: these have run their course and are stretching skyward--a precursor to bolting--flowering to make seed. 
Lettuce mix--the leaves have given it their all and are now finished.  

Green garlic: this is garlic harvested before the base swells and becomes a bulb. It has a milder flavor than bulb garlic and can be used anywhere garlic is called for. Keep refrigerated as you would green onions/scallions. 

Cilantro: this herb has run its life cycle and is "bolting" or going to seed.  
Easy Recipe for Oven Roasted Fingerlings with Fresh Herbs and Parmesan Cheese  from http://www.thegardenerseden.com/?tag=fingerling-potatoes

Oven Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Parmesan and Fresh Herbs
Ingredients:
(serves 4, double recipe to increase quantities as you like)
2 lb           Fingerling potatoes, washed and cut in half lengthwise
1/4 c         Olive oil
1/4 c         All purpose flour
1/4 c         Reggiano parmesan cheese, grated
1 tsp         Sea salt, fresh ground or regular table salt
1 tsp         Black pepper, fresh ground
sprigs       Fresh rosemary and thyme, a few sprigs to taste
(try this with a clove of garlic and other herbs if you like)
Directions:
Preheat oven, (rack toward the top), to 475 degrees fahrenheit.
In a small glass bowl, (or in a large plastic bag), measure in olive oil, flour and parmesan. Add salt and pepper. Stir or shake to mix well.
In a large bowl, toss cut fingerlings with 1 tbs olive oil to lightly coat. Add dry mix to the large bowl, (or add potatoes to the large plastic bag), and toss with hands, (or shake bag). Be sure the potatoes are thoroughly and evenly coated.
Coat an oven-to-table baking dish with the remaining olive oil and arrange the potatoes cut -side up. Sprinkle with fresh rosemary and thyme.
Roast for approximately 15 minutes, Turn the potatoes and roast for approximately 15 more minutes more. Turn one last time and roast until crisp and golden brown, (approximately 10-15 more minutes).
Cool dish for a few minutes, garnish with a few more sprigs of herbs and serve hot with a tablespoon of sour cream if you like.

Thank you 
Thank you for being a part of the farm and appreciating the harvests that we do.  Thank you farm crew for outstanding work each week to make the harvest happen.  Elizabeth, Law Reh, and Kim, thank you for being outstanding in your respective fields. :-)  

Farmer Scott