In your last shares of the season you will receive:

Brussel sprouts, spinach or arugula, russet potatoes, red fingerling potatoes, yellow acorn squash (winter squash), butternut squash (winter squash), carving pumpkin, pie pumpkins, carrots, beets, rutabagas, yellow onion, red onion, garlic, herb bundle (sage, thyme and oregano), tomatoes (paste, green and red slicing), bag of hot peppers (matchbox, Hungarian hot wax and jalapeno), decorative white pumpkin and gourds.  

Please check the bottom of this post for important information on CSA pickup this week and recipes for this week’s produce.

News from the farm

The global pandemic changed the way we live, and many of us have decided not to go back to the lives we had before. 

As much has COVID-19 has taken from us, the crisis has reminded us what matters; what’s important.

In a surreal way, we have to acknowledge that we would not be where we are today if the pandemic hadn’t forced us back to the United States from Vietnam in the spring of 2020, prompting us to begin the search that led us to this farm and our new home. 

The end of the farming season gives us an opportunity to pause and reflect on this new life of ours. 

On Friday, we had our last farm stand of the season. Heather-Marie went all out for this festive fall event. She created a photo booth, complete with hay bale, pumpkins, decorative gourds and farm tools, all set up in front of our silo. We served complimentary hot cider to our customers, most of whom were repeat customers.

We had our best day of sales as people came to buy pumpkins, potatoes, winter squash and, strangely, slicing tomatoes (in October?). 

It was dark by the time we had put everything away. We brought in our “Farm Stand Friday” sign that’s been sitting on the roadside for most of the growing season.

The farm stand has been a success on every measure. It has allowed us to find a market for surplus vegetables. But more importantly, it’s been a great opportunity to meet many of our neighbors and to slowly feel like we’re becoming part of this community.

We felt both sentimental about its end and relieved to have one less thing to prepare for each week.

That relief wasn’t coupled with any downtime. The next day, we were out in the field with our walk-behind tractor, mowing down beds of spent crops, transforming them into “green manure,” before we turned our attention to preparing beds for planting more than 90 pounds of garlic that will go in the ground this weekend.

On Monday, it was time to prepare for our last CSA delivery.

As Heather-Marie wrote out the list of items to be harvested on the whiteboard in the barn, she got teary eyed. 

She deserved to. 

After 12 years of farming, this year she completed her first CSA season at her farm. At her home.

We started the season with no infrastructure in place and no idea what to expect. The peak of summer brought excessive heat, air quality warnings and drought conditions. Hundreds of transplants did not survive. Many of our brassicas — cauliflower, cabbage and collards, to name a few — were only moderately successful. 

Adding to our challenges, the much-anticipated walk-behind tractor that we ordered at the beginning of the season did not arrive until well into the summer. This meant that we were left to use an old tiller and shovels to build up the raised beds we planted in. 

While brassicas may have hated the summer weather, tomatoes, cucumbers and summer squash thrived. Rutabagas grew as large as a human head.

One of the more exciting things that happened this season was that we sold a CSA share to the CHUM Food Shelf as part of a program set up by our local CSA Guild.

This meant that each week, we also brought much of our surplus vegetables to CHUM where they were often delivered to families living at the Steve O’Neil Apartments.

For John, these deliveries meant that he’d often have a chance to catch up with Scott Van Daele, CHUM’s distributive services director, who spent the season teaching John about the challenges of finding locally produced, healthy food for families in need of assistance.

We are also grateful for all the help we’ve received from experts with local and federal government agencies, including the Carlton Soil and Water Conservation District, the Extension at the University of Minnesota and the USDA Farm Services Agency.

There are days when we still cannot believe we get to live this life. We own 40 acres of gorgeous farmland with rolling hills surrounded by beautiful woods. We have a growing list of the birds and wildlife that we’ve seen in our time here. We have a gregarious cat named Eleanor Roosevelt the Cat. We have wonderful neighbors and friends.

And, we get to work side by side as partners both in business and in life.

It would be easy to romanticize it all. 

There are many young people in our region who have decided not to follow traditional career paths and have, instead, opted to try their hands at farming. Peruse their social media channels and you’ll see pictures of gorgeous vegetables, happy livestock and the smiling faces of people working outside on stunning Minnesota days.

Their passion is inspiring, but the commitment this takes is substantial.

There have been plenty of days where one of us is depleted, both emotionally and physically.

In May and June, there were no days off. We worked with a sense that we were constantly behind and would never catch up. 

On top of that is the reality that this farm will likely never earn enough for us to be financially secure. Like most small-scale farms, we will always need off-farm income to pay the bills — something that was true for the generations of one farming family who worked this land before us.

We’ve had a good year both in productivity and in sales. Maybe even a great one. But, when Heather-Marie sits down with her accountant next year, the numbers will likely show that the cost of the business, especially with the investment in the new farm, will far exceed the revenue we brought in.

Part of the reason for this is that as a society, we have gotten accustomed to prioritizing how much food costs over how it is grown.

We’ve received inquiries from people asking about buying vegetables from us who appear to shy away from purchasing when we talk about price — even though we know we are offering them a price that is well below what we should be asking. Some potential customers have bragged to us about how cheaply they can buy potatoes or cucumbers elsewhere, listing prices that we simply could never afford to match.

However, interactions like this are offset by many customers happily paying more than our asking price for vegetables they know are harvested from a field just a couple of hundred feet away from where they are buying it.

Earlier this year, the Duluth News Tribune ran a followup article on Heather-Marie’s story with the headline, “Former landless farmer plants Barnum roots.” It was a thoughtfully written story with a happy ending about Heather-Marie’s search for a farm of her own.

Heather-Marie leased land for more than a decade, hoping she’d find a permanent place of her own. But the hard reality is that she likely never would have qualified for the financing to do that on her own. 

For many independent female farmers and others who come from historically marginalized communities, such as Indigenous farmers, the dream of owning land of their own remains out of reach.

If you’ve read this far, you must be wondering why anyone would choose a life of farming.

On our last harvest day of the season, our friends Kristina and Clinton, who are also CSA members, came out to lend us a hand. It was a cool day. The sky was steel grey. The leaves on the trees were slightly past their peak, but the maple trees were aglow. As we dug buckets of potatoes, we heard migrating geese overhead and watched the warblers and sparrows dart back and forth between the waning sunflowers. 

We sat outside and enjoyed a lunch of roasted vegetables from the field.

As we finished our day, our friends cut fresh flowers from the field to take home and left, tired but satisfied.

As we wrap up our first growing season at the farm, we can confirm that we aren’t going back to the life we had before.

Tips for the last delivery

The thing about this last delivery is that it won’t all fit in the CSA boxes.  So, we just wanted to give you a heads up about how things will work.  

Amount of produce: Even though I will be at the Folk School to help guide you, you need to look around at all of the plastic harvest totes to make sure you’ve got everything. Once you think you’re done, please look at the large white board to make sure you got everything.  In the weeks that we had watermelon, I was left with melons because people did not grab them.  I don’t want to go home with produce!  So, please look around.  There will be winter squash, carving and pie pumpkins, and more, all in bins with labels on them.

Also, you may find yourself needing to do a couple trips to your car.  Between the pumpkins and the winter squash, everything will be heavy and awkward.  

*Those of you that split a share with another person/household, will get two carving pumpkins.  That way, all households will get one pumpkin this year.  

Boxes.  This is the last delivery for most of our members (unless you are buying a Fall Share).  Please consider bringing another box or bags to take your share home in.  We will have one last delivery on October 26 and all boxes need to be returned by then.  

Recipes

Winter Squash

Squash That’s Stuffed and Nutty

from Northern Harvest Farm

Heather-Marie got this recipe from the farm where she did her internship.  

2 winter squash, halved

Juice of 1 lemon

1/4 c walnuts, chopped

dash of ground cinnamon

2 medium apples, chopped

1 c cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 c onion, chopped

2 tsp canola oil

2 c cottage cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake squash face down on a greased baking sheet for 30 minutes or until tender.  Sauté walnuts, apples, and onions in canola oil until onion is clear.  Combine with cottage cheese, lemon juice, cinnamon and cheddar cheese; stuff squash halves with mixture.  Bake for 15-20 minutes.  Makes 4 servings.

Kale Salad with Butternut Squash, Chickpeas and Tahini Dressing

From foodiecrush.com

Oh man, do we love this salad!  And the tahini dressing is good for so many other things.

For the Salad

1 bunch of kale

1/2 cup chopped cilantro plus more for garnish

2 cups large diced butternut squash

1 15 ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon curry powder

pinch of cayenne pepper

Kosher salt

1/2 cup candied pecans

For the Dressing

2 tablespoons tahini

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions

1. Prepare the kale by cutting out the tough ribs of the kale and discard. Thinly slice the kale into ribbons and add to a large bowl. Add the chopped cilantro and toss to combine.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Add the diced butternut squash and rinsed chickpeas to a baking sheet lined with foil. Drizzle with the extra virgin olive oil, curry powder and cayenne. Mix with your hands until the squash and chickpeas are well coated. Sprinkle with kosher salt and bake for 15-20 minutes or until squash is tender and chickpeas are lightly browned.

3. Meanwhile add the dressing ingredients to a small mason jar. Shake to mix and taste for more seasoning if desired.

4. Transfer the butternut squash and chickpeas to the bowl of kale. Add the candied pecans and drizzle with the tahini dressing. Toss to coat. Allow to rest for 10 to 30 minutes before serving so kale softens and flavors meld. 

Pumpkin

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

From New York Times

INGREDIENTS

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 medium yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary (or 2 teaspoons dried rosemary)

2 tablespoons maple syrup

4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

½ cup fresh apple cider (or 3/4 cup apple juice)

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth, plus more as needed

2 (15-ounce) cans pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling), or 3 cups homemade pumpkin purée (see Tip below)

1 teaspoon mild curry powder

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, plus more for serving

 Pinch of ground cloves

1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed

½ teaspoon black pepper, plus more as needed

⅓ cup heavy cream, plus more for serving

PREPARATION

In a large Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions and rosemary and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly caramelized, about 15 to 20 minutes. If the onions begin browning too quickly, turn the heat to low.

Add the maple syrup and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have darkened in color, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the cider and cook, scraping up any bits from the bottom of the pan, until the liquid is reduced by about half.

Add the broth, pumpkin purée, curry powder, nutmeg, cloves, salt and pepper, stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook at a full simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pot to prevent scorching.

Working in batches, purée the soup in a blender or food processor and return to the pot (or use an immersion blender). Bring back to a simmer over medium heat, then turn off the heat and stir in the cream. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add more broth if the soup is too thick.

To make the optional fried sage topping, melt the butter in a small or medium skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the sage leaves and fry until just crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or a fork, transfer the sage leaves to a paper towel-lined plate, reserving the butter left behind in the pan.

To serve, spoon the soup into individual bowls. Top each serving with 2 fried sage leaves and a drizzle of the reserved butter (if using), or a swirl of cream and pinch of nutmeg. Serve hot.

Tip

To make your own pumpkin purée, heat oven to 425 degrees. Trim the stem from a 4- to 5-pound sugar or “pie” pumpkin, then cut the pumpkin in half through the stem. Scoop out the pulp and seeds and discard. (Or rinse and dry the seeds, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast on a sheet pan in 375-degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes.) Carefully slice the pumpkin into 1 1/2-inch-thick wedges. Place the wedges on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, flipping halfway through, until the pumpkin flesh is very tender when pierced with a fork. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then spoon the flesh into a large bowl, discarding the skins. Mash with a fork until mostly smooth.

Brussel Sprouts

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries

From Taste of Home

We have also added almonds and a little balsamic vinegar

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 15 min. Bake: 20 min.YIELD:12 servings

3 pounds fresh Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 425°. Divide Brussels sprouts between two greased 15x10x1-in. baking pans. Drizzle with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Roast 20-25 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a large bowl; stir in cranberries. Yield: 12 servings (1/2 cup each).

Potatoes and tomatoes

Potatoes and Tomatoes Cooked With Coconut

From “Madhur Jaffrey’s World-of-the-East Vegetarian Cooking”

A-mazing!  Can be served over rice.

3 medium-sized boiling potatoes (about 1 ¼ pounds)

4 T vegetable oil (could use less)

6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 whole dried hot red pepper

1 tsp whole cumin seeds

1 ½ cups freshly grated coconut

½ tsp ground turmeric

2 tsp ground cumin seeds

1 ¼ pounds fresh, red-ripe tomatoes, peeled and diced into ½-inch pieces, or a 16 to 20 oz can of tomatoes

2 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp red wine vinegar

Peel the potatoes, then cut into ¾ inch diced and put into a bowl of cold water.

Heat the oil in a heavy, 3-quart pot over a medium-high flame.  When hot, put in the minced garlic.  Stir for about 5 seconds.  Now put in the red pepper and the cumin seeds.  Stir for another 3 seconds.  The garlic should brown lightly, the red pepper should darken, and the cumin seeds should sizzle.  Lower the heat to medium, put in the grated coconut and stir it around for 10 to 15 seconds.

Drain the potatoes.  Add them as well as the turmeric, ground cumin, tomatoes (including any juice that may have accumulated or the juice in the can), the salt, and 1 ½ cups of water.  Bring to a boil.  Cover, turn heat to low, and simmer for about 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  Stir gently every 7 to 8 minutes during this cooking period.

Put in the sugar and vinegar.  Stir again and cook, uncovered, for 1 minute.

Rutabagas

Rutabaga Honey Cake

Adapted from Marina Stein

This cake is so yummy and can be easily made into muffins instead.

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp sea salt
3/4 cup milk
¼ cup melted butter
1/3 cup honey
1 cup grated raw rutabaga
1/2 cup finely chopped apple
1-2 Tbsp maple syrup

Preheat oven to 350º F and butter a 9”x9” cake pan.

Whisk together flour, spices, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl until light. Using a hand mixer beat the honey and melted butter until smooth. Mix dry ingredients into wet on medium speed until just moistened, then add rutabaga and apple and gently fold in by hand until evenly combined. Batter will be thick. Spread mixture into prepared pan, smoothing surface with damp fingers or a silicon spatula.

Bake in pre-heated oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven, place pan on a wire cooling rack, and drizzle maple syrup evenly over the surface of the warm cake. Let cool 20-30 minutes before slicing.