Clagett Farm

Fall Festival and Potluck wrap-up

(Photo from CSA member Krossbow on Flickr)

We had our fall festival October 1st, and it took me until now to sit down and give you a tally of the results.

Due to the morning drizzle, we had to move everything into the barns. Though the rain stopped, it was still a pretty cool afternoon. Attendance was about half of what we would expect on a sunnier, warmer day. 

Thank goodness those 60 or so people came, or we would have had a lot to eat by ourselves! It was a terrific pot luck. As it was, we were left with most of a keg, which we shared afterwards with the party-goers celebrating our co-worker's new baby. Thank you, Carole Grunberg, for donating the beer! 

We auctioned a lot of goodies. The most popular items were 10 tickets to dance performances at the Kennedy Center, donated by Janet Cochran.  We also sold eggs, homemade preserves (donated by Susan Sanders), homemade hot sauce (donated by Ray Steiner), fig trees (donated by Judy Kosovich), and canvas Clagett Farm tote bags.  All told, we made $569!  Not bad for a cold day. That pays for two low-income shares, and we had a great time doing it. 

Throughout all of it, we were treated to the Clagett Farm String Band (Bill Humm, Sue Straney and Stan Haley).  They made the whole barn feel cozy and festive. 

Lesson for next year?  Hope for a warmer day.  And if we don't get it, serve warm mulled wine instead of beer. 

Below you can see some photos of the event that were taken by CSA member Krossbow on Flickr.

Your farmer, Carrie.

Reminder: No Shares This Week

(Photo from Flickr user Virginia Lin Photography, via Creative Commons license)

Hi all!  

Just a quick note to remind everyone that there are no share pick-ups this week.

See you next week for the final harvest of the 2011 season!

 

 

This Week's Share: Last Sweet Potatoes + A Big Scheduling Change

Photo from CSA member Krossbow on Flickr

Hello, all!

Before we get to the details of this week's share, we have a big scheduling announcement: There will be no shares next week. Then, the following week will be our final share of the season. (Why do it this way? Why not just do next week as the final share? Waiting an extra week will give us more time to harvest all the remaining vegetables for you, and it will give the greens that much more time to produce. This way, you'll get the maximum amount of food in your share.)

So, to reiterate:

• Oct. 18 -- Tuesday pick-up
• Oct. 22 -- Saturday pick-up
• Oct. 25 -- No shares
• Oct. 29 -- No shares
• Nov. 1 -- Final Tuesday pick-up
• Nov. 5 -- Final Saturday pick-up

Now here are the details of this week's share:

• 2 heads garlic
• 4 pounds sweet potatoes
• 1/4 pound total combination of greens and mushrooms
• 1 1/2 pounds total combination of the following: eggplant, peppers, turnips, okra, chiles

On U-Pick this week:

• Tomatillos. They're there if you know what to look for. (If not, you'll probably miss them.)
• Swiss Chard. It’s available for picking as well, but it is small. 
• Basil. Still lots and lots of basil.
• Chile Peppers. Lots of them still available. 
• Flowers. Any flowers on the farm are yours for picking.
• Herbs. There is a large variety of herbs available. 

A preview of what's to come IN TWO WEEKS:

• This week is the end for the sweet potatoes, so you won't be getting any more.
• For our final share, you should get a fair amount of salad greens.
• You can expect more garlic than usual, since we'll be stripping the fields of everything that's left.
• Similarly, we will probably have lots of pepper and eggplant.
• Carrie and the other farmers will dig up Jerusalem artichokes (aka sunchokes) for the final share. No telling how many are buried under the ground, but hopefully there will be enough to show up in your share. Also, Carrie may be purchasing a vegetable (like spinach or carrots) from a nearby organic farm, to augment the final share as a special treat.

That's it! If you have any questions, let me know!

--Clay

Recipe Ideas: Sweet Potatoes

(This photo via TheBittenWord.com)

With sweet potatoes being prominent in the shares right now, we thought it might be useful for you to get some new ideas for how to use them. 

So here are a few recipes we've stumbled upon recently for new ways to use sweet potatoes:

As a Carroty Soup or a Mash: Cooking Light has two recipes that look intriguing: a Creamy Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup and Mashed Sweet Potatoes spiced with Curry.

As Roasted Discs: Gourmet has a recipe for Roasted Sweet Potato Rounds with Garlic Oil and Fried Sage.  

As a Southwestern Soup: And the Food Network features a well-rated recipe for a Sweet Potato Soup with Blue Corn Tortillas. 

Fajita Spiced: At home, we like tossing cubed sweet potatoes with fajita season and then roasting them. You can read our entry about Fajita Sweet Potatoes on my blog. 

As Home Fries: Previously here on the Clagett blog, we've featured a recipe for Sweet Potato Homefries. 

Hopefully these ideas will help you find some new ways to use sweet potatoes.

Do you have a favorite sweet potato recipe? If so, please share it!

This Week's Share: More Sweet Potatoes, Mushrooms and More

 
Photo from CSA member Krossbow on Flickr

Hello! 

We're hitting the home stretch of this year's growing season. Several people have been asking how much longer the season will last. Right now, it's looking like the final shares will happen November 8 and 12. We'll be re-examining that in the next few weeks to confirm.

One other heads-up before we get to this week's share: The cooler weather seems to be perfect for the basil on the farm. It's back in a big way, and there's lots and lots of it. Come and pick as much as you want!

And now, here's what you'll find in this week's CSA Share:

• 4 pounds sweet potatoes
• 2 heads garlic
• 1 1/2 pounds total combination of the following: eggplant, peppers, turnips, radishes, okra
• 1/4 pound total combination of the following: mushrooms, greens (mostly bok choy), chile peppers

On U-Pick this week:

• Beans: The beans are starting to get a little tough but still available. 
• Okra. It's still available.  We suggest that people pick it the day before the harvest days (Fridays and Mondays).  
• Swiss Chard. It’s available for picking as well, but it is small. 
• Basil. Still lots and lots of basil.
• Chile Peppers. Still available. 
• Flowers. Any flowers on the farm are yours for picking.
• Herbs. There is a large variety of herbs available. 

A preview of what's to come: 

• Looks like next week may be the end of the sweet potatoes, but we'll see. 

If you have any questions, let me know!

-- Clay

 

This Week's Share: Sweet Potatoes, Eggplant & More

(This photo from the Fall Festival is from CSA Member Krossbow on Flickr. You can see more photos from the festival on his Flickr page.) 

 

Good afternoon!

Thank you to everyone who has been providing ideas for new Dupont pick-up locations for the 2012 season. We have some good leads but are still accepting ideas. If you have one, send it to Clay. 

And thanks to everyone who came out to the Fall Festival. We'd love to share your photos from the Festival here on the blog. If you have some to share, you can also send them to Clay and we'll showcase them here!

And now, here's what you'll find in this week's CSA Share:

• 3 3/4 pound sweet potatoes
• 1 pound combination total eggplant + okra + peppers
• Choice of one of the following:
  • 1/2 pound combination of lettuce + spicy mix + kale + beans
  • 1/2 pound combination of turnips + radishes + chiles + garlic
  • 1 1/2 pounds sweet potato greens 

 

On U-Pick this week:

• Beans: The beans are starting to get a little tough but still available. 
• Sweet Potato Greens:  Don't pick the potatoes, but the greens are available for u-pick. 
• Okra. It's still available.  We suggest that people pick it the day before the harvest days (Fridays and Mondays).  
• Swiss Chard. It’s available for picking as well, but it is small. 
• Basil. Still lots of basil.
• Chile Peppers. Still available. 
• Flowers. Any flowers on the farm are yours for picking.
• Herbs. There is a large variety of herbs available. 

 

A preview of what's to come: 

• We'll have bok choy in an upcoming week, so we can look forward to that. 

If you have any questions, let me know!

-- Clay