What a winter

The hoar frost this January has been beautiful! The farm has been a white winter wonderland, even without any snow.

This week marks the official end of our “Winter Break” here on the farm. And what a “break” it has been! We’ve updated the blog a few times since the final Veggie CSA pick-up in 2012. Check it out for some good stories and fun photos.

If you’ve kept up, you’ll know that we did start our Full Diet CSA two weeks ago — our head first leap into adventurous farming (and eating). We first hatched the idea in late summer 2011, and I cannot even begin to describe how much work went into making that first pick-up possible. There were so many new things to learn, challenges to overcome, bills to be paid — the day of the first pick-up, I just kept remarking to Casey, “I really didn’t think this day would come! I really didn’t think we’d make it!”

But, we did! And, we have done so twice now! And, people seem to be enjoying the results! Hoorah!

Of course, a big component of the Full Diet are vegetables! And, this week our vegetable-only CSA begins again. Hoorah! The veggies available are true to the winter season — we’ve eaten many a meals of Brussels sprouts while marveling at the beautiful hoar frost outside our dining room window.

More news will come in future newsletters. (Catch up by reading our Winter Update and another recent blog post.) Aside from the Full Diet activity, it’s been quiet around here lately (a welcome state of affairs!). So, this week I just wanted to welcome you all back and thank you for continuing to be CSA members. Our holiday season was filled with gratitude for everyone in our life, including all of you!

Your farmers,
Katie & Casey Kulla

~ ~ ~

Meet this week’s vegetables:

  • Kohlrabi
  • Brussels sprouts — A new discovery for us this winter: we’ve been trimming and then chopping our Brussels sprouts and cooking them like kale or collards. It’s wonderful to have more versatile ways of eating this classic winter food! They also brown up nicely on the edges if you sauté/fry on a higher heat. Very tasty.
  • Celery root — We’ve been really enjoying celery root purees this winter. Coarsely peel and chop the celery root. Put in a pot with just enough good broth to cover. Once the pieces are very soft, puree with a little extra cream and/or butter. We use a stick blender, which makes it super easy. A little extra broth, and this same preparation makes a lovely simple soup.
  • Carrots
  • Beets
  • Pie pumpkins — These are “long” pie pumpkins, so named because … well, they are long. That means there’s more meat for you to cook with. You can prepare these the same way as normal pie pumpkins, but it might be useful to cook in chunks rather than whole. Or, you can chop and roast just like any other winter squash.
  • Potatoes
  • Onions
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