News & Reviews
News and blog
It is hard to believe, but we are nearing the end of the CSA season. The last days of CSA pickup will be Tuesday Oct. 28th and Friday Oct. 31st. Every year we give our members a chance to "stock up" on the wonderful foods from our local suppliers including grass-fed beef, local honey, wholesome dairy yogurts, Hillacres Pride cheeses, and Klein Farms yogurts and cheeses. In my experience the storage quality of these items is as follows: beef will keep frozen for several months, yogurts will keep for up to a month in the fridge, fresh cheeses such as mozzarella, ricotta, and spreads will keep frozen for several months, vac-sealed hard cheeses from Hillacres Pride will keep for several months in the fridge; these cheeses are aged at least 6 months prior to being packaged and sold.
To place an order, please click on the link for the 2014 "Stocking Up" Order Form. Fill it out and return by email or to the barn by Tuesday October 14th. Orders will be available for pickup the last week of CSA, Tues. Oct. 28 and Fri. Oct. 31. Payment is due at pickup.
OTHER GOODS: Wild for Salmon will be coming to the farm for stock-up sales on Oct. 21 and 24th. More info to come shortly. Ledamete Grass Farm will be sending out their own stocking up order form shortly as well. As I hear from any other producers, such as the pizza, bread, and fruit folks, I will let you know!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farm News: The lovely rainbow of fall color has begun. And the change in weather is bringing some new vegetables into the harvest. A new variety of spinach which we trialed this year called Red Kitten is in the harvest this week. It has a lovely red-vein and very tender leaves. We have the first fall cabbages in the share, as well as the fall beets. The hakurei turnips which you will remember from the spring are back, with lovely tender greens.
You may notice that some of the crops, such as turnips, cabbage, and broccoli, which are grown in both spring and fall, are more beautiful in the fall. There are less flea beetle pests in cool weather to put holes in the leaves. Also, as they are reaching maturity, the weather is becoming cooler, which is more favorable for their continued growth. The spring cool season crops are planted in cool weather, but the summer is approaching as they are nearing harvest time. They are sometimes forced to ripen prematurely by a heat wave, or damaged by the increasing populations of insect pests arriving with the summer heat.
THE HARVEST
Mix N' Match Greens: Asian greens, Red-veined Spinach
Kale
Salad Mix
Radishes
Hakurei turnips
Cabbage
Beets
Sweet peppers
Eggplant
Onions
Garlic
Potatoes
CHOICE: Tomatoes, Leeks, Broccoli,Delicata Squash
COMING SOON: Butternut squash, sweet potatoes, Bok choy
UPICK: Hot peppers, fresh herbs, flowers, raspberries
COOPERATIVE SHARES this week: chicken, fruit and bread
RECIPES & STORAGE TIPS
A CSA member suggested we include this delicious recipe for Baked Delicata Squash with cream and parmigiano on the website. Thank you! Also, here is a lovely Beet dip made with greek yogurt.
Reminder: winter squash prefer to be stored at room temperature, 50-65 degrees is perfect for them. They can get chilling injuries if stored in the fridge. Delicata squash are unique in that their skins are very tender. Farm assistant manager Michelle inspired me to experiment with chopping the delicata in small cubes (after de-seeding) and sauteing. I made a burrito mixture with black beans and corn seasoned with cumin, chili powder and cilantro for dinner, as well as a breakfast hash with onion, potato, delicata, and orange pepper. Have fun experimenting in your kitchen. Pass on your good results!
-Aimee
Enjoy!
As always, if you need an idea for the produce in your share, check our Recipe Page! You can search by vegetable!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farm News: A Note about the Potatoes
Even though we had amazing yields from the potato planting last season, we did increase our planting this year, to accommodate for the increase in shares. We planted almost an acre of potatoes. However, right after we planted the seed in the spring, we received about 4 inches of rain in one week. The fields, which were still wet with the late snow melt from the winter, were saturated. A few weeks later, as the potato plants were beginning to emerge from the soil, we noticed that they were only coming up on the two ends of the field, which are higher than the middle. We thought perhaps that they were planted deeper in the middle, and so we waited one more week. Unfortunately, nothing happened. After digging in the middle of the field we discovered that those seed potatoes had rotted in the ground in the heavy rains. This equated to a loss of over half of the crop.
We decided to plant more at that time, which was late May, in hopes that they would mature for a late crop. We ordered 500 lbs of seed potatoes and re-planted. These late potatoes germinated well and were off to a good start when late blight arrived early. Since these potatoes were so young, we had to spray them with copper every week and after every rain to prevent them from succumbing to the disease. Thankfully, they have survived and we hope they have yielded well. We will be digging this late crop shortly, and we hope it will provide for several weeks of potatoes in October. The potatoes which you received earlier in the season were the yields from the spring crop.
We are of course disappointed that we were not able to provide potatoes throughout the fall, but please know that we worked very hard to produce that potatoes that are in the share! It is the nature of farming. Sometimes our hard work yields amazing results, and sometimes it does not. We thank you for understanding and enjoying the bounty that the farm provides, different as it is each season!
THE HARVEST
Mix N' Match Greens: Kale, Asian greens, Spinach
Surrey Arugula (a wild-type variety)
Salad Mix
Radishes
Delicata Squash
Broccoli
Sweet peppers
Eggplant
Onions
Garlic
CHOICE: Tomatoes, Zucchini & Squash, Carrots Leeks
COMING SOON: Cabbage, winter squash, sweet potatoes, potatoes
UPICK: Hot peppers, fresh herbs, flowers, raspberries
COOPERATIVE SHARES this week: cheese, fruit and bread
RECIPES
Thanks to a CSA member for sharing this delicious Chicken and Kale Casserole recipe. Also, here is a recipe for Arugula, Avocado, and Radish Salad with Poached Egg, which I cannot wait to try for lunch.
Enjoy!
As always, if you need an idea for the produce in your share, check our Recipe Page! You can search by vegetable!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Of interest in our CSA community:
CSA Member Christine Storch is a certfied Music Together Teacher and is offering classes for young children and a parent/caregiver. My son Lyle and I have taken her classes and thoroughly enjoyed them. Click on this link for her flyer for more information.
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farm News:
It truly feels like autumn has arrived this week. The fall crops have benefited greatly from the cool summer and consistent rains. These broccoli heads are as big as dinner plates! The cabbages are also sizing up well. The fall roots are coming along nicely. So far, this has been a wonderful season for carrots and beets, and we hope it will continue with the fall plantings.
STORAGE TIPS:
1) All roots need a high level of moisture to maintain their crispness. Be sure to store your carrots and other roots (except potatoes) in a plastic bag or other sealed container. Do not leave them loose in the crisper drawer or they will dry out and become rubbery.
2) Greens keep very well in the plastic grocery store-type containers, or in plastic bags. Be sure to leave them loosely packed to avoid crushing. Also be sure to keep them away from the back of the fridge to prevent freezing.
3) Sweet corn is best used as soon as possible, preferably within 1-2 days of getting your share, for the best flavor. The sugars in the corn will slowly turn to starches in storage, so it is at its best and sweetest when eaten right away! It should be refrigerated in storage, to slow the sugar-to-starch conversion.
4) Garlic and onions will keep for a long time - even over the winter, if stored in a cool, dry place. So if you are not using your share each week, you can stock up and store them for your winter use. A dry cool basement shelf will work, otherwise a pantry cupboard. If you want to refrigerate, do not store in a plastic bag because they want to be dry, not damp. You can store garlic loosely in a sealed glass or plastic tupperware and onions loose in the crisper drawer in the fridge if you want, but this type of cold storage is not necessary.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
RODALE INSTITUTE ORGANIC APPLE FESTIVAL
Saturday, September 20, 2014
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
THE HARVEST
Greens: Kale, Asian greens, and/or Arugula
Salad Mix
Spinach
Broccoli
Carrots
Sweet peppers
Red Onions
Garlic
Sweet Corn
CHOICE: Tomatoes. Cukes, Zucchini & Squash, Eggplant, Radishes, Leeks
COMING SOON: Cabbage, winter squash, sweet potatoes
UPICK: Hot peppers, fresh herbs, flowers, raspberries
COOPERATIVE SHARES this week: fruit and bread
RECIPES
Since the broccoli is bountiful, here are two recipe ideas for you. Carmelized Broccoli with Garlic, and Broccoli Chowder with Corn and Bacon.
Enjoy!
As always, if you need an idea for the produce in your share, check our Recipe Page! You can search by vegetable!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farmer John will be part of a panel discussion tomorrow evening at 7 pm at Northampton Community College titled Agriculture & the American Identity: Past & Present Panel Discussion.
This event is free and open to the public. Click on this link for the informational flyer.
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farm News:
The first winter squash of the season will be in the share this week. The Delicata squash, shown on the right curing in the greenhouse, is an early-ripening winter squash, more of a fall squash really. The farm crew harvested all the Delicatas about 2 weeks ago. First they cut them from the vines in the field. Then they were gathered and brought to the greenhouse for curing. We like to give them at least 1 week to dry and sweeten off the vine. Like all winter squash, these are excellent keepers, but as an earlier variety, their flavor is best when eaten within a few months of harvest. However, they are so delicious, I am sure they will be eaten sooner! Delicata have a sweet, dry flesh, and thin skins. They take well to roasting, stuffing, etc. Check out the recipes below for ideas. Enjoy this beautiful fall weather and the first treats of the fall harvest this week!
Quiet Creek Farm in the News: Avant Garden Decor's blog featured a story called "Pennsylvania CSAs We Love", and Quiet Creek Farm is listed. Check it out here . . . http://www.avantgardendecor.com/blog/fresh-local-produce/pennsylvania-csas-love/
UPCOMING EVENTS:
RODALE INSTITUTE ORGANIC APPLE FESTIVAL
Saturday, September 20, 2014
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
THE HARVEST
Arugula &/or Salad Mix
Delicata Squash
Potatoes
Kale
Carrots
Sweet peppers
Red Onions
Garlic
Tomatoes
CHOICE: Cukes, Zucchini & Squash, Eggplant, Radishes, Leeks
COMING SOON: Broccoli, spinach, winter squash, sweet potatoes
UPICK: Green beans, hot peppers, fresh herbs, flowers, paste tomatoes
POTATO STORAGE NOTE: The potato storage quality has been affected by the presence of late blight on the farm this year.We do wash and sort the potatoes just prior to each pickup. However, some potatoes will turn in storage and so we advise you to please check your potatoes frequently and remove any soft or rotten potatoes. They should keep longer in the fridge, if you have room for them. If not, store in a dry and dark place, such as a cupboard. Either way, check them frequently.
COOPERATIVE SHARES this week: Pizza (Tuesday only), cheese, fruit, and bread
RECIPES
My favorite simple way to prepare Delicata Squash is sliced and baked: and I call it Baked Delicata Squash Moons. (You will have to search for this one - its an old favorite.) And to enjoy those tasty seeds, check out the Roasted Squash Seeds recipe. You can roast any squash seed, and my favorites are actually Delicata and Butternut seeds, rather than pumpkin.
Two new recipes for Delicata squash can be found here:
Baked Delicata squash with cream & parmigiano
Roasted Delicata squash with Quinoa Salad
Enjoy!
As always, if you need an idea for the produce in your share, check our Recipe Page! You can search by vegetable!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farm News: Although fall is almost here, planting season is not over yet. On Friday the farm crew planted 3500 strawberry plants, which we hope will bear a fruitful harvest next June. They are in the long field just past the raspberries.
It is time to prepare for the garlic planting as well. The garlic will be planted mid-October, but we must first sort out the biggest, best heads from the harvest to be the seed garlic, enough to plant about 6 beds. Rainy days throughout the next month will be spent breaking up the garlic heads into their individual cloves to prepare for planting.
Both the strawberry patch and garlic beds will be mulched with a thick layer of straw before the winter comes, to protect the soil and also to prevent the plants from heaving out of the ground through freeze/thaw cycles.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
RODALE INSTITUTE ORGANIC APPLE FESTIVAL
Saturday, September 20, 2014
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
THE HARVEST
Potatoes
Kale
Carrots
Sweet peppers
Red Onions
Garlic
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Sweet Corn
CHOICE: Melons, Zucchini & Squash, Eggplant
COMING SOON: arugula, salad mix, french breakfast radishes, spinach, winter squash, sweet potatoes
UPICK: Green beans, edamame, hot peppers, fresh herbs, flowers, paste tomatoes (pick as needed again)
PLEASE NOTE: Paste tomatoes can be picked in larger quantities for making sauce. However, if making extra for freezing, use only lesion-free fruits, not those where you have to cut off part of the tomato. The paste tomatoes should not be canned. The blight infection can raise the acidity of the tomatoes to a level which is unsafe for canning.
COOPERATIVE SHARES this week: Pizza, fruit, and bread
RECIPES
Please note that there is an updated and improved version of the Yellow Squash Carrot Muffins on the website.
This simple Foccacia recipe is very delicious, and the topping can be varied to suit your tastes and the harvest! The sweet pepper-feta topping is perfect for this time of year.
Mashed Potato and Kale cakes are simple to make, yummy and kid-friendly too. This recipe includes a link to Martha Stewart's 28 Healthy Kale recipes, as I have adapted this recipe from her online produce guide.
Enjoy!
As always, if you need an idea for the produce in your share, check our Recipe Page! You can search by vegetable!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
Farm News:
We are coming to the end of the summer season and the beginning of the fall season on the farm. The eggplant, cucumbers and zucchini are waning, but the sweet peppers should keep coming in well into September. The fall greens and roots will return. The bulk harvest of the sweet potatoes and winter squash will happen soon. The storage onions, which were harvested at the beginning of August, are drying down nicely in the greenhouse. 
PLEASE NOTE: The potato storage quality has been affected by the presence of late blight on the farm this year.We do wash and sort the potatoes just prior to each pickup. However, some potatoes will turn in storage and so we advise you to please check your potatoes frequently and remove any soft or rotten potatoes. They may keep longer in the fridge, if you have room for them. If not, store in a dry and dark place, such as a cupboard.
BAG REMINDER: We have run out of extra bags.As you may recall from the introductory email, we ask that all members bring their own bags, baskets, boxes, or coolers to bring their share of vegetables home with them. We keep the wooden boxes of extra bags on hand for those who forget. So, please stock your car with your re-usable bags and check your cupboards for a stash of plastic handle bags. Bring both, if you have them, when you come to the farm this week. THANKS!
UPCOMING EVENTS:
RODALE INSTITUTE ORGANIC APPLE FESTIVAL
Saturday, September 20, 2014
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Bring the whole family to pick apples from our orchards, enjoy lots of delicious organic treats, dance to great music and have a fun day on our organic farm! Experts will be on hand to answer your questions about growing fruit trees organically. Fall is the season for picking apples! Rodale Institute is proud to offer the option for families to pick their own apples in one of the few organic orchards in the surrounding area! Our farm boasts many varieties, including some that are not commercially available! For Apple Festival, we expect to have some Liberty and Empire apples available, in addition to a few unnamed varieties. All are good for eating fresh and for baking. Apples are first come, first serve.
Admission to the festival is free; parking is $5.00 per vehicle. (From www.rodaleinstitute.org)
THE HARVEST
Potatoes
Kale
Carrots
Eggplant and Asian eggplant
Sweet peppers
Sweet Onions
Garlic
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Summer Squash & Zucchini
Sweet Corn
Melons
COMING SOON: Red onions, more edamame, arugula, salad mix, french breakfast radishes
UPICK: Dragon Tongue beans (pictured above), hot peppers, fresh herbs, flowers, paste tomatoes (pick as needed again)
PLEASE NOTE: Paste tomatoes can be picked in larger quantities for making sauce. However, if making extra for freezing, use only lesion-free fruits, not those where you have to cut off part of the tomato. The paste tomatoes should not be canned. The blight infection can raise the acidity of the tomatoes to a level which is unsafe for canning.
COOPERATIVE SHARES this week: Chicken, cheese, fruit, and bread
RECIPES
One of my favorite recipes for sweet peppers is the Red Pepper Bisque (with optional scallops). It is an older recipe and you will have to use the search box to find it.
This recipe for Picnic Orzo Salad would be wonderful for upcoming Labor Day picnics. It feature carrots, tomatoes, red onions (could substitute sweet white), feta cheese, chickpeas and avocado. I think cucumber or sweet pepper would be a welcome addition.
Eggplant Tomato Bake is a layered dish with angel hair pasta, sauteed eggplant, tomatoes, and mozzarella and/or parmesan cheese, a simple one-dish supper.
Enjoy!
As always, if you need an idea for the produce in your share, check our Recipe Page! You can search by vegetable!
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm
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-- April & Rob FixLedamete Grass Farm5471 Sell RoadSchnecksville, PA 18078610-767-4984
ledametegrass@gmail.com
ledametegrassfarm.com
Your farmers,
John and Aimee Good
Quiet Creek Farm