Blessing Falls Family Farm

Here’s our expected harvest for Week 8’s Fall CSA Farm shares:

Full Share
Kale (double portion), Mizuna (double portion), Sweet potatoes, Spaghetti squash, Pumpkin, 6 Summer squash, Beans, 6 cucumbers, Eggplant or Chard
(Update: Due to rain/flooding Saturday morning, Saturday’s Full shares have extra cucumbers instead of beans and extra sweet potatoes instead of eggplant/chard)

Half share
Kale, Mizuna, Sweet potatoes, 4 Summer squash, 2 cucumbers, Spaghetti squash, Mini Pumpkin

Mid-season share
Kale (double portion), Mizuna (double portion), Spaghetti squash, Sweet potatoes, 4 cucumbers, 5 Summer squash, Pumpkin

Blessing Falls Farm Weekly Share – Fall Season Week 8. (clockwise from top left) Winter luxury pie pumpkin, mixed yellow, purple and green beans, Portuguese kale, yellow squash, ping tung eggplant, dwarf Siberian kale, sweet potatoes, white scallop squash, cucumbers, spaghetti squash, Mizuna, zucchini

This week would be a great time to make some delicious pickles! You could also consider pickling your squash in addition to your cucumbers.  The summer squash are also great on the grill.  Slice in lengthwise, brush on some oil and season with garlic salt.  Grill over medium heat a few minutes on each side.  Tasted great last week with lemon squash.

This week we begin the second half of our Fall season.  Here’s the expected harvest for our farm shares:

Full Share: Large Long Island Cheese pumpkin, Black Futsu pumpkin, 4 Cucumbers, Mizuna,  Kale (double portion), Beans or tomatoes, 6 Summer squash, 3 butternut squash, Homemade hummus from Bernhardt’s fruit and veggie farm

Half Share: Large Long Island Cheese pumpkin, Cucumbers, Kale, Beans, 3 Summer squash, 2 butternut squash, Homemade Hummus from Bernhardt’s fruit and veggie farm

Blessing Falls, Week 7 Fall CSA Farm Share. Clockwise from top left: Portuguese kale, black Futsu pumpkin, Long Island cheese pumpkin, Mizuna, butternut squash, white scallop squash, hummus, cucumbers, zucchini, kale, lemon squash, purple beans

Our pumpkins are ready this week! We are so excited to have beautiful pumpkins for you this fall! We are giving these pumpkins to you right after harvest so that you can enjoy using them in your fall decor. Their flavor may be slightly better if you allow them to ‘cure’ for a week or so, but you can use them immediately if you so wish.

This week we’re giving two varieties in shares: Black Futsu and Long Island Cheese.  Black Futsu pumpkins are an heirloom, Japanese variety with their color ranging from dark green to chestnut. They are a great storage pumpkin, lasting several months. Their color will continue to change from green to orange/brown in storage. This is natural and does not mean the pumpkin is going bad so don’t be fooled and throw them out unnecessarily! You can make sweet or savory dishes with this versatile squash. Here are some ideas for using this pumpkin in cooking: roast and mash with cream, brown sugar and cinnamon, use in pies, soups, sauces and more!

Our Long Island Cheese pumpkins are absolutely gorgeous this year! These large pumpkins are great for canning, roasting, making pies, breads, jams and soups.

Don’t forget to roast your pumpkin seeds as well!

Earlier this season we added Bernhardt’s farm’s delicious, homemade hummus to our shares one week. Per request of our customers, we are happy to say we will again be adding it to this week’s shares!

Harvest for Week 6 of the Blessing Falls Farm CSA for Fall 2015 –

Full Share: Garlic, Mizuna (double portion), Kale (double portion), Pea shoots (double portion), Summer squash (triple portion),  winter squash (double portion), Eggplant, Cucumbers

Half Share: Garlic, Cucumbers, Pea shoots, Summer squash (double portion), Winter Squash, Mizuna (double portion), Kale

Blessing Falls Farm – Week 6 Fall CSA Full Farm Share. Clockwise from top left: cucumbers, kale, mizuna, pea shoots, Asian eggplant, scalloped squash, garlic, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, zucchini, yellow squash.

Here’s our expected harvest for week 5 of the Fall CSA season

Full Share: Mizuna or kale, Sweet potato leaves, 2 portions Summer Squash, 2 portions winter squash, Melon, Eggplant, 2 portions Pea shoots, Wheatgrass, Sunflower sprouts, Cucumbers, Basil, Garlic

Half Share: Mizuna or kale, Sweet potato leaves, 2 portions Summer squash, winter squash, 2 portions Pea shoots, Sunflower sprouts, Cucumbers, Basil, Garlic

Fall Season CSA Week 5 – Full Share from Blessing Falls Farm

You may receive Mizuna in your share this week. If you’re not familiar with this green here’s a bit of info for you.

Mizuna

One of the mildest mustard greens, mizuna—often found in mesclun mixes—is high in immune-boosting vitamin C, folate, and iron. It also contains powerful glucosinolates—antioxidants linked to decreased cancer risk, says Tanya Zuckerbrot, RD, author of The F-Factor Diet. Cultivated in Japan since ancient times, mizuna brings an exotic, slightly spicy flavor to the table. (source)

Mizuna is more mild than arugula and can be added to fresh salads, stir fried, or simply roasted with olive oil and salt.

Acorn squash has been my favorite squash since my childhood. I used to beg my mom to buy me one at the grocery store whenever they were in season. I’ve always thought that the delicious flavors of this squash were best enhanced with only a little butter and salt. After cutting the squash in half and removing the seeds you can steam them in the microwave or roast them in the oven. Half of a squash makes a wonderful lunch or side for dinner.  I always enjoyed having my own half squash to dress and eat right out of the skin. I hope you enjoy the beautiful heirloom variety that we’ve grown for you!

Here’s our expected harvest this week:

Half share:
Basil, Garlic, Lemon grass, Sweet potatoes, 2 portions Pea shoots, Sunflower sprouts, 3 portions Squash

Full share: Basil, Garlic, Lemon grass, 2 portions Sweet potatoes, 2 portions Pea shoots, Sunflower sprouts, 4 portions Squash, Eggplant, Tomatoes or peppers, Cucumber

Fall Season Week 4 CSA Share – Blessing Falls Farm

Our squash harvest is finally here! Last week you got just a taste of all of the great varieties and abundance that will be coming your way!
Here are the varieties you may receive this week. If you need help identifying a squash, don’t hesitate to ask!
White scallop squash: Summer squash, white, best peeled
Lemon squash: Summer squash, round, yellow, cook like yellow squash
Yellow squash: Summer squash
Zucchini: Summer squash
Acorn squash: winter squash, acorn shaped, green
Butternut squash: winter squash
Spaghetti squash: winter squash
Small ‘Jack be little’ pumpkin: winter squash

We have several more winter squash and pumpkin varieties coming soon! If you have trouble eating all of your squash in a week, here’s what I recommend doing:
1. Save your winter squash varieties as they will keep for several weeks or even months for many varieties. You’ll have a great store of squash to get through the winter months and beautiful decorations for fall and thanksgiving!
2. Freeze Summer squash using this method.

3. If you still feel overwhelmed, give some to family and friends.