Hello from the farm,
Well...outstanding news this week! The adjoining farm on the Millersville side of us, has been slated for development several times over the past ten years. On Saturday, that property was sold at auction, and despite a few tense moments when it looked like a developer would prevail, Homefields was the successful bidder!! There are at least two large reasons to celebrate: one, that the farm as you now know it, will not be surrounded by houses, and two, that we will be able to farm those additional acres as part of a sustainable and healthy farm operation.
The Outcome: The first picture shows our fields surrounded by a development, the second shows us farming the land. Needless to say, we are rejoicing that development threat is gone.
The Potluck!
The potluck was a lot of fun, thanks to all of you who made it so. There were somewhere between 140 and 170 people in attendance and everyone had a great time. The day could not have been more beautiful . A huge thank you to Kim and Elizabeth for putting it all together. The band Grandma Shake, was an excellent addition. Thank you Kim for inviting them here.
Serving Suggestions for the Harvest:
Some of the fall crops may be somewhat new to you--here are some suggestions for using
Pumpkins: their flesh and seeds are edible when you are done decorating with them.
Squash: these are great keepers--an easy way to prepare is roast them whole in the oven to soften them so you don't have to hack at them wildly with a sharp instrument, then prepare as desired.
Arugula: this piquant green adds zing to salads or sandwiches.
Cilantro: this is excellent in a sandwich, Asian or Spanish cuisine, with black beans, etc.
Radish: slice thinly, eat on buttered bread, or with a salad, make refrigerator pickles. The big white radish is called "daikon" and hails from Japan where is pickled, grated and used as a side for fried fish, or chunked and cooked in soups and stews.
Beets: great roasted with olive oil and sea salt.
Mizuna: this Japanese mustard green adds complexity to your salad or sandwich.
Turnip: the "Hakurei" variety is a salad turnip--eat it raw--mild and sweet compared to purple type.
Pumpkin Bread--as made and sampled here by Kim Stoltzfus
3 c. sugar
1 c. oil
4 eggs, beaten
16 oz. pumpkin (2 c.) Kim used Long Island Cheese squash
3 1/2 c. flour
2 t. soda
1 t. salt
1 t. baking powder
1 t. nutmeg
1 t. allspice
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. cloves
2/3 c. water
Cream together sugar and oil. Add eggs and pumpkin. Sift together dry ingredients and add alternately with water. Grease and flour 2 regular or 2 miniature loaf pans. Pour batter into pans. Bake at 350 for 1.5 hours for larger pans, and 1 hour for small ones. Let stand 10 minutes and remove from pans.
The New Bander
As we go along with each successive season, little tweaks are needed to improve how we do things. Here is a picture of the bander we just made. To bunch radishes, carrots etc, place them on the center of the table and use the foot pedal to open a rubber band around the veggies, then release.
Thank you very much Bob M. for designing it and putting it together!
Well, before this turns into an epic, thank you for coming to the potluck, supporting what we do, and for celebrating this good news with us.
Scott
Scott Breneman
Farm Manager
Goodwill at Homefields Farm
871-3110
Well...outstanding news this week! The adjoining farm on the Millersville side of us, has been slated for development several times over the past ten years. On Saturday, that property was sold at auction, and despite a few tense moments when it looked like a developer would prevail, Homefields was the successful bidder!! There are at least two large reasons to celebrate: one, that the farm as you now know it, will not be surrounded by houses, and two, that we will be able to farm those additional acres as part of a sustainable and healthy farm operation.
The Outcome: The first picture shows our fields surrounded by a development, the second shows us farming the land. Needless to say, we are rejoicing that development threat is gone.
The Potluck!
The potluck was a lot of fun, thanks to all of you who made it so. There were somewhere between 140 and 170 people in attendance and everyone had a great time. The day could not have been more beautiful . A huge thank you to Kim and Elizabeth for putting it all together. The band Grandma Shake, was an excellent addition. Thank you Kim for inviting them here.
Serving Suggestions for the Harvest:
Some of the fall crops may be somewhat new to you--here are some suggestions for using
Pumpkins: their flesh and seeds are edible when you are done decorating with them.
Squash: these are great keepers--an easy way to prepare is roast them whole in the oven to soften them so you don't have to hack at them wildly with a sharp instrument, then prepare as desired.
Arugula: this piquant green adds zing to salads or sandwiches.
Cilantro: this is excellent in a sandwich, Asian or Spanish cuisine, with black beans, etc.
Radish: slice thinly, eat on buttered bread, or with a salad, make refrigerator pickles. The big white radish is called "daikon" and hails from Japan where is pickled, grated and used as a side for fried fish, or chunked and cooked in soups and stews.
Beets: great roasted with olive oil and sea salt.
Mizuna: this Japanese mustard green adds complexity to your salad or sandwich.
Turnip: the "Hakurei" variety is a salad turnip--eat it raw--mild and sweet compared to purple type.
Pumpkin Bread--as made and sampled here by Kim Stoltzfus
3 c. sugar
1 c. oil
4 eggs, beaten
16 oz. pumpkin (2 c.) Kim used Long Island Cheese squash
3 1/2 c. flour
2 t. soda
1 t. salt
1 t. baking powder
1 t. nutmeg
1 t. allspice
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. cloves
2/3 c. water
Cream together sugar and oil. Add eggs and pumpkin. Sift together dry ingredients and add alternately with water. Grease and flour 2 regular or 2 miniature loaf pans. Pour batter into pans. Bake at 350 for 1.5 hours for larger pans, and 1 hour for small ones. Let stand 10 minutes and remove from pans.
The New Bander
As we go along with each successive season, little tweaks are needed to improve how we do things. Here is a picture of the bander we just made. To bunch radishes, carrots etc, place them on the center of the table and use the foot pedal to open a rubber band around the veggies, then release.
Thank you very much Bob M. for designing it and putting it together!
Well, before this turns into an epic, thank you for coming to the potluck, supporting what we do, and for celebrating this good news with us.
Scott
Scott Breneman
Farm Manager
Goodwill at Homefields Farm
871-3110
1 comment:
That is such wonderful news; we had not heard that!!!
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