Maplewood Organics

Friday, October 8th - Garlic Planting - 1pm-5pm

This is the best root day this fall to plant our garlic. Lots of hands will make it go quickly. We'd LOVE your help. We'll make our rows, plant the cloves and mulch the whole area with loose hay. Please call or send an email if you would like to help us on this day.

Garden Progress and Farm News

Mud! Mud! Mud! Harvest was interesting this weekend. Our new plantings in the big field are in the wettest area out there. Fortunately, when Eric made those rows, he hilled them. So the crops weren't under water, but boy were the walkways mucky! I harvested lettuce, Swiss chard and yellow squash by standing on two small wooden planks that I moved one after another down each lane (260 feet long). At least I wasn't ankle deep in the mud like I was Wednesday. That was the worst area. The rest was soft but could be walked on. Harvesting parsnips, sweet potatoes and Yukon Golds was a messy job too! I wore rubber gloves and was just coated in mud (as were the fork and shovel) by the time I was done. I didn't get a good look at the crops until I hosed them down.

The sweet potatoes aren't pretty, but they sure taste good. I'm not sure what gets them all pocked and grooved up like they are. I'll look into it for next season. I'm pleased with the yield so far though. I plan to plant at least double next season and pull them up a bit earlier. Eric's mom just found out that sweet potato leaves are edible too! If any of them survive the frost, I'm going to try them out! So everyone just gets a bit of this new crop to try out. I had anticipated not having enough to offer our members, so am particularly pleased to have enough for you all to taste!

After I finished up in the milk room this evening, I headed out to the field to harvest the rest of the winter squash and pie pumpkins for our winter share members. I had the best crew: Madeleine, Calvin, Eric, Sarah (Eric's sister), and Addy (our 2-year-old niece). We filled two 70-gallon stock tanks to overflowing full in an hour! Great team work and a heck of a lot more fun!

Recipes of the Week

Sweet Potato and Beet Chips with Garlic Rosemary Salt Adapted from foodnetwork.com

•2 sweet potatoes

•2 beets

•1 garlic clove, minced

•1 teaspoon very finely minced fresh rosemary leaves

•2 tablespoons salt

•Olive or sunflower oil

Special Equipment: V-slicer or mandoline

Wash the vegetables and dry very well. Set aside.

In a small bowl combine the garlic, rosemary and salt. Set aside.

Meanwhile, trim 1-inch off the end of each sweet potato. Using the V-slicer or mandoline, slice the sweet potatoes into very thin slices, about 1/8-inch thick. Trim 1-inch off the root end of the beets. Using the V-slicer or mandoline slice the beets into very thin slices, about 1/8-inch thick. Toss vegetable slices in olive oil or sunflower oil. Arrange on a cookie sheet (or two) bake until golden and edges start to curl. Carefully toss with salt mixture in a large bowl and serve.

Creamy Tomatillo Sauce

1/2 pound fresh tomatillos

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup water

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/4 teaspoon chicken-flavored bouillon granules

2 tablespoons canned chopped green chiles, drained

2 tablespoons low-fat sour cream

Remove and discard husks from tomatillos; cut tomatillos into quarters, and place in a small saucepan. Add onion and next 3 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 7 minutes or until tomatillos are tender. Pour tomatillo mixture into container of an electric blender or food processor; top with cover, and process until smooth. Press puree through a sieve to remove seeds. Stir in green chiles and sour cream.

Beet Soup from allrecipes.com

"A gorgeous, healthy, and very tasty beet soup that's so simple to make. Beets and sauteed onions and garlic simmer in beef broth before being finished with a swirl of cream."

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

6 medium beets, peeled and chopped 2 cups beef stock

salt and freshly ground pepper

heavy cream

1. Warm olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onions and garlic; cook until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in beets, and cook for 1 minute.

2. Stir in stock, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil; cover, and simmer until the beets are tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow to cool slightly.

3. In batches, add soup to a food processor, and pulse until liquefied. Return soup to saucepan, and gently heat through. Ladle into bowls, and garnish with a swirl of cream.

Friday, October 8th - Garlic Planting - 1pm-5pm

This is the best root day this fall to plant our garlic. Lots of hands will make it go quickly. We'd LOVE your help. We'll make our rows, plant the cloves and mulch the whole area with loose hay. Please call or send an email if you would like to help us on this day.

Garden Progress and Farm News (some repeats here...)

We do have some melons ripening...not a great yield. We are picking what's ready each week now and offering them as extra choices. If you have already taken one as an extra choice, please consider leaving them so that someone else who hasn't had one can get one. Next year they will be more abundant. The area behind the house is designated for melons and garlic next year.

Madeleine and Calvin helped in the milk room for a while Sunday washing carrots. They each had a bucket going for their clean roots. When they were finished, we counted the results by 5 to see how much money they earned. (I pay them a nickel per carrot washed, beet picked etc.) Calvin washed 37 carrots and Maddy washed 83! Pretty good for little ones! And boy were they proud! "Come look at how much I did, Mom!!!" For most helping, they get the satisfaction of being helpful to the family. But I started paying them for some tasks so we can start teaching them early about money management. By the way, if you haven't read The Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker, it is well worth the time! It's very interesting and eye opening.

We are working bit by bit at pulling out spent plants to get the gardens ready for winter. It's hard to believe that it's that time again already. The season went by so quickly. Soon it will be time to start making Christmas presents. Then it'll be time to start planning next year's garden. We are hopeful that we'll have two interns lined up early leaving only one spot to fill. If you know of anyone who may be interested in working with us next season to learn about organic farming, please pass their information on to us so we can get it touch.

Recipes of the Week

Amish Cole Slaw

1 head cabbage

1 onion

1 carrot

1 green pepper

Shred and place in layers. Store in refrigerator overnight covered tightly. One cup sugar over top of combination.

1 cup vinegar (Apple cider vinegar tastes great!)

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon dry mustard

3/4 cup oil

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon celery seed

The next day boil the vinegar, sugar, mustard, oil, salt and celery seed together. Pour over cabbage mixture. Don't stir. Return to refrigerator. Stir when ready to serve. Will keep several weeks.

Carrot Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

1 cup rolled oats

2/3 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup real maple syrup, room temperature

1/2 cup unrefined (fragrant) coconut oil, warmed until just melted

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

Preheat oven to 375F degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and oats. Add the nuts and carrots. In a separate smaller bowl use a whisk to combine the maple syrup, coconut oil, and ginger. Add this to the flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Drop onto prepared baking sheets, one level tablespoonful at a time, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie. Bake in the top 1/3 of the oven for 10 - 12 minutes or until the cookies are golden on top and bottom.

Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.