Salamander Springs Farm/Permaculture Organics

and a note from Jacob, Happy Happenings Here at the Farm, below!

Austrian Crescent, Elba, or French Fingerlings Potatoes – Choose a quart of either variety. This season we planted both of these varieties in the orchard for trial to save space in the gardens, and it worked pretty well. These guys also dodged the frost the rest of the potatoes received earlier on in the Spring by being back in the orchard. Both of these varieties are creamy and good for storage.

Tomatoes – Another week of survival has come! Enjoy these tasty tomatoes to the fullest. Choose one pound of our heirlooms, slicers, or a pint of our cherry tomatoes.

Storage Onions (4) – Let the crying begin! Or store them for a rainy day, both of these varieties, Copra and Australian brown can store up to 6 months.

Pac Choi Head – This amazing Asian green is great for you and tasty too! Raw in a salad or stir fried in a skillet; stem to leaf is edible! Look back at past blogs for nutritional value of these beautiful greens. Lemongrass is a great Thai/ Asian companion.

Sweet Peppers or Banana Peppers – Your box will include a mixture of a few different varieties of sweet peppers and also banana peppers. Check out last weeks blog entry for a description of the different varieties and the sautéed pepper recipe!

Hot Peppers - These hot peppers sure are hot! Which may be nice to warm up with on these chilly fall evenings, we have an abundance of Límon, Thai, and Habanero for you to choose from. We also have some Paprika, Jalapeno, and Cayenne if you would like to try some of those as well. If you are not into hot peppers, let us know and we can give you some extra sweet peppers!

Green Beans – They’re still hanging in there! This week the beans are less abundant but the varieties are still available. Choose a pound of Elkins, Greasy, Preacher, or Half-runner pole beans or a pound of snap beans.

Oregano & Basil – Two herbs that flourish here at Salamander Springs Farm.

Oregano has a history dating back to the Romans and Greeks, there have been many medicinal uses in the past. Some still used today in the United States are as a stimulant and carminative; use as a tea for chronic coughs and asthma.

Lemongrass or St. Johns Wort– Lemongrass is a distinctive ingredient in Thai/ Asian cuisines, is a source of citronella ( a natural bug repellent) a makes a refreshing herbal tea or cold drink in summer. It is used medicinally as a cold and flu remedy and a safe, effective fever reducer for children. A 1996 study published in the medical journal, Microbios, found lemongrass effective against 22 strains of bacteria and 12 types of fungi. Lemongrass oil has also been found effective for lowering cholesterol and is used in shampoos, soaps and cosmetics as and antiseptic, fragrance, and an astringent treatment for oily skin and hair.

Check out last week's post for St. Johns Wort medicinal properties.

Old Timey Heirloom Apples- These apples sure are sweet, crisp, and delicious! If you let the more green apples ripen in the sun, they will turn red and sweeten in no time!

Winter Squash – The start of our winter squash crop is finally ready to be harvested! Today in your box you will receive a Delicata or Butternut squash which are great in many different ways. Check out Susana’s famous Curry recipe below!

Susana’s “wingin it” Thai Red Curry

2 onions (chopped)

6 cloves of garlic

Minced ginger

Thai peppers

Winter squash,sweet peppers, zucchini, summer squash, green beans, carrots

Coconut milk

Olive oil

2 T Thai red curry paste

Salt, pepper, and Bragg’s Soy Sauce

Fresh basil

Lemon Juice

Cilantro

Lemongrass

Corriander

Sauté onions and garlic on medium-high for 5 minutes. Cut winter squash and remove seeds. Roast veggies at 400° in pan with 4 T olive oil, salt, and pepper until moderately soft. Mash or Puree winter squash with potato masher. Throw roasted veggies, mashed winter squash, corriander, lemongrass, Bragg’s, minced thai peppers, and chicken broth or veggie broth in pot and turn on medium- low for 30 minutes.

Combine for sauce: 1 cup of veggies, coconut milk, Red curry paste, ginger and sautéed garlic & onions.

Garnish with chopped basil, cilantro and lemon juice for great flavor!

Happy Happenings here at the Farm

Howdy folks Jacob Mudd here at Salamander Springs letting you know that your CSA goodies are coming from one of the most inspiring places I’ve ever been.Since my arrival last Monday we have been harvesting the last of the pole beans, potatoes, bunches of squash, tomatoes, and tons of other stuff I’m not familiar with (yet!). Everyone here is amazing, there stories wide and tall, and kindness unmatched. Our friend Richard left this past Friday with his Dad to go to a Pawpaw festival and soon to be journeying to the west coast, super exciting! It’s also Kayla’s last week here and she is going to be missed dearly. We first met in Louisville last year in a class about Sustainable agriculture, one of the field trips was going to Salamander Springs and it seems like ever since then she has been involved living, learning and building community here at the farm.My how she has grown seeing her then and now is like two different people! Wish her good vibes on her journey to Spain to learn and teach in the ways of nourishing folks with good food.

There was also a permaculture workshop this weekend with tons of new people getting to see the Farm, one even from Florida. Strangers at first but by the afternoon we were working together, nothing like shoveling horse manure with strangers, talk about breaking the ice! We learned new skills for food producing, ate wonderful food and enjoyed a night of sweet music from Susan, a singer songwriter from Nashville. Good, tunes, good food, and good vibes the stuff of Salamander springs.

Just wanted to say thanks for helping make this place happen by contributing to the CSA and supporting Salamander Springs I’m learning so much and making lots of new friends. I hope to bring the spirit of community I feel here at the farm and also at the farmers market with me to my own home in Western Kentucky to the town of Caneyville. My relationship with Salamander Springs is just beginning and I’m excited for its development along with my relationship with the lovely folks who make it happen, thank you so much and grub on!