It was a bit of an anxious pre-dawn this morning. I stepped outside at 5AM and the thermometer read 28 degrees which was even colder that the weather forecasters had warned me. As I set off on a walk around the farm, I saw that my ever vigilant father had already turned on the overhead irrigation on our one patch of strawberries that was not under a cover. As it was still dark, it was hard to see whether the plants were frozen or not, but touching the crispy leaves of chard, and ice encrusted strawberries confirmed that it was indeed cold. Needless to say, we were very happy to see that warming sun emerge over the crest of the hill. It is difficult to know for sure at this point whether the covers and irrigation were able to protect everything entirely, but it does look like most plants will make it, even if they have some frost damage on the top leaves. This morning was a reminder that farming is truly risky business, but the rewards of observing first hand day in and day out the wonders of the natural world make it perhaps the most satisfying business for me.
This distribution is the last distribution for our Winter/Spring Season. Thanks to all of you for supporting us, and sharing in the risk and satisfaction of growing and eating from our own back yard (so to speak). We look forward to having many of you in our Summer CSA or hope to see many of you again in the fall.
With gratitude, Deb

IN THE BOX:
Red Russian Kale, Collards, Asparagus, Tatsoi, Rhubarb, Kohlrabi, Carrots, Herbs (Cilantro, Thyme, Parsley)

1st Saturday Breakfast June 1st: 8-11AM: Come by the first Saturday of every month from May through November for Delicious Breakfast/Brunch featuring farm produced food. While you’re here spend some time walking around the farm too!

Winter Share Survey!- We’d love more feedback on our Winter CSA. To complete the survey visit this link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dDVzNDhjeXExMTRQZEhrTjI2LXRXcUE6MA

Recipe:

Savory Rhubarb Lentil Curry with Spinach and Red Peppers Recipe (vegan)
serves 2 as an entree or 4 as a side

Ingredients

1 large sweet potato
1 cup French lentils
3 cups of water
1 bay leaf
1 stalk (or 2) of rhubarb (diced into small pieces)
1/2 of 1 red bell pepper (diced into small pieces)
2 cups frozen spinach or 2 cups cooked spinach, chopped finely
1 TB olive oil
1/2 TB of mustard seeds
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp fennel seeds
1 TB minced ginger
1 TB cumin powder
1 TB brown sugar
salt to taste

Directions
Pour 3 cups of water in a saucepan. Add lentils and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 30 minutes or until lentils are soft, but not falling apart. Drain excess water.
Cook sweet potato. My favorite method is baking: Wrap sweet potato in foil and bake at 425 for about 20 minutes or until the skin pulls away from the flesh and the potato is soft. Baking caramelizes the sugar and brings a nice deep flavor to the potato. You can also just peel and cube the sweet potato and steam it.
While lentils are simmering, cut your vegetables.
In a large sauté pan, heat oil and then stir in mustard seeds. Once they start popping, add red pepper flakes and fennel. Add ginger (careful here, this may lead to a minor explosion. Have a lid handy just in case or you will have mustard seeds all over your floor.) Add cumin.
Add red peppers and rhubarb to the pan. Sauté for a few minutes. Add spinach and sautée until fully cooked. Add cooked lentils, cooked sweet potato and brown sugar and stir. Add salt to taste.
Serve alone or with a grain like rice or quinoa.

IN THE BOX:
Red Russian Kale, Collards, Romaine Lettuce, Spinach, Potatoes*, Rhubarb, Red Beets, Spring Radishes, Herbs (Cilantro, Oregano, Thyme, Chives, and Basil!)
*not certified but no spray/synthetic fertilizers

Recipe: Rhubarb Chutney
Bon Appétit | April 2003

Yield: Makes about 4 cups

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 cinnamon sticks
1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon (scant) ground cardamom
4 1/2 cups coarsely chopped rhubarb (from 1 3/4 pounds rhubarb)
3/4 cup dried currants
4 green onions, chopped

Stir first 6 ingredients in heavy large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture boils. Add rhubarb, currants, and green onions; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until rhubarb is tender but not falling apart, about 4 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Discard cinnamon. Cover and refrigerate chutney until cold, at least 1 hour. (Can be made up to 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.) Bring to room temperature before serving.

1st Saturday Breakfast Resume May 4th (this Saturday)- 8-11AM: Come by the first Saturday of every month from May through November for Delicious Breakfast/Brunch featuring farm produced food. While you’re here spend some time walking around the farm too!

Winter Share Survey Coming Soon!- Today is the second to last winter distribution. We are in the process of putting together our end of season survey and will be emailing it out shortly. Your feedback is appreciated as we hope to continue to improve our CSA.

The excitement of spring is coursing through the farm. There is a battle over the greenhouse vent controls between the lettuces, spinach, and other cool loving plants and the recently planted tomatoes and cucumbers. We farmers have been trying as best as possible to keep them all coexisting as long as possible. When temperature reached the upper 70’s outside last week and greenhouse temperatures were in the 90’s, we accepted that the greens had to go. Hence, we have a very green box for you this week. We still have some head lettuce in the greenhouse which we hope to harvest for next distribution and we are eagerly watching the soil surface for the first emerging asparagus of the season (normally arriving around the 20th of April here). We are working tirelessly to get carrots, beets, potatoes, herbs, lettuces, and other greens planted on a regular schedule to ensure good supply over the course of the spring and summer. We also have our first batches of broilers moving across our pastures and will be restocked with chicken to sell (beyond our chicken shares) by next distribution! We hope you all are enjoying the change of season as well. If you ever get the urge for an afternoon drive, come visit us! It’s a beautiful time of year on the farm! ~Deb

IN THE BOX:
Lettuce Mix, Spinach, Potatoes*, Carrots, Kale, Bok Choi, Spring Radishes, Chives, and Thyme
*not certied but grown according to organic practices.

1st Saturday Breakfasts Resume May 4th- 8-11AM: Come by the first Saturday of every month from May through November for Delicious Breakfast/Brunch featuring farm produced food. While you’re here spend some time walking around the farm too!

Village Acres Farm and FoodShed in the News: Village Acres Farm’s succession process was featured in Philadelphia’s GRID magazines Farmbook edition this spring. Just visit http://www.gridphilly.com/magazine/ for the whole article. Cover is page 25.

Recipe:

Roasted Radishes with Brown Butter, Lemon, and Radish Tops
Bon Appétit | April 2011

Brief high-heat roasting mellows a radish's peppery flavor and turns it into a whole new root vegetable. Using the green radish tops adds color and amps up the radish flavor. Be sure to rinse the green tops thoroughly before using them. This would be a great side dish for roasted pork loin or leg of lamb.
Yield: Makes 2 side-dish servings
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes

1 bunches medium radishes (such as red, pink, and purple; about 10)
¾-1 tablespoon olive oil
Coarse kosher salt
1 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 450°F. Brush large heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. Cut off all but 1/2 inch of green radish tops; reserve trimmed tops and rinse them well, checking for grit. Coarsely chop radish tops and set aside. Cut radishes lengthwise in half and place in medium bowl. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil and toss thoroughly to coat. Place radishes, cut side down, on prepared baking sheet; sprinkle lightly with coarse salt. Roast until radishes are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally, about 18 minutes. Season to taste with more coarse kosher salt, if desired.
medium-high heat. Add pinch of coarse kosher salt to skillet and cook until butter browns, swirling skillet frequently to keep butter solids from burning, about 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and stir in fresh lemon juice.
Transfer roasted radishes to warmed shallow serving bowl and drizzle brown butter over. Sprinkle with chopped radish tops and serve

Last month I attended the annual convention of the Pennsylvania Farmer’s Union, a member organization that works to provide a voice for small family farms. Part of the day was devoted to learning about the recent FDA’s Proposed Food Safety Rules that were released in January and are currently open for comment. These rules are a response to the Food Safety Modernization Act that Congress and President Obama passed as a result to the increasing numbers of food related illness outbreaks over the recent years. These serious cases warranted evaluation of our food handling practices and regulations surrounding them, but as a small farmer the potential of more regulation and costly inspections were anxiety causing. What would be expected of us if some blanket rule was made for all food producers? Could we afford to stay in business if we had more inspection costs? Fortunately, as a small farm, we had folks speaking for us at the rule making table (Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture and The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition to name a few). The proposed rule rejects a “one size fits all” approach to food safety regulation and ensures that scale-appropriate regulations include the option for small, mid, and direct-market agricultural operations to comply with equivalent state regulations or modified, scale-appropriate federal regulation. Of course these allowances are very comforting to us here at Village Acres. If adopted as proposed, these rules will not require us to have more inspections or practices beyond our current practices to ensure that the food we deliver to your tables in not only safe, but also healthy and our farming practices contribute to the health of the environment as well.
Of course, the reason I’m writing about this in the newsletter is that we are not guaranteed that these rules will be implemented as written. There will most definitely be folks from the agribusiness community that oppose the protections for small and medium sized operations and the power of these groups is intimidating. So I’m asking all of you to add your voice to the discussion and work alongside our farm and farms like ours to work for rules that both protect the safety of our consumers as well as the viability of many of our nation’s small and medium sized farms and processors. For more information on the evolution of the Food Safety Modernization Act, and the proposed rule, please visit and follow Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture’s (PASA) executive director’s Write to Farm blog.

This week’s Share: Lettuce Mix, Spinach, Potatoes, Carrots, Turnips, Celeriac, Onions, and Thyme

Recipe:

White Root Vegetable Soup with Thyme Butter (Serves 4)
Bon Apetit, Dec 2001

1/3 stick butter, room temperature
1 tablespoons minced fresh thyme
2 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), sliced
1 garlic cloves, minced
3 1/2 cups (or more) canned low-salt chicken broth
2/3 pounds celery root (celeriac), peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pounds turnips, peeled, each cut into 8 wedges
1 pound parsnips, peeled, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1/2 cup whipping cream

Mix 6 tablespoons butter and thyme in small bowl to blend well. Season thyme butter to taste with salt and pepper.

Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add leeks and garlic and sauté until leeks are tender but not brown, about 10 minutes. Add 10 cups broth, celery root, turnips, and parsnips; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 50 minutes. Cool slightly. Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return soup to pot. Stir in cream. Season with salt and pepper. (Thyme butter and soup can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap butter in plastic wrap. Cool soup slightly. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled. Rewarm soup over medium heat, adding more broth, if desired, to thin.)
Ladle soup into 12 bowls. Top each with small piece of thyme butter; swirl into soup and serve

Well we have been rather suddenly reminded that we in the middle of mercurial month of March this week. After a couple of weeks of feeling like spring was taking off, the numb hands syndrome returned yesterday as we harvested spinach. We have a good blanket of snow this morning. The one person who seems to be enjoying the snow this morning is my father, who is happily riding around on the tractor clearing all the neighborhood driveways-perhaps he knows it will be the last of the season. While my dad is on his joy ride, my mother, newly retired from her nursing career, has shown up to work in the packing to help pack CSA shares today. It’s a new age here at Village Acres, and I’m very happy to be working alongside my mother again on a daily basis on this farm. It brings back vivid memories of transplanting tomatoes with her in the basement of our house (before the time of our propagation greenhouse.) I’m looking forward to creating many more memories and am grateful to have her back on the farm full time as she has a way of making this farm a more beautiful place- through her stunning flower beds and her ever gracious spirit ~Deb

Vegetable Notes:
This week’s box reflects a transition week. You will likely notice that there is no mesclun mix for the first time this winter. Up until last distribution we have been harvesting from plants seeded before the winter solstice, and with the lengthening day, these plants have now decided it is time to set seed (bolt) so they are no longer of harvestable quality. We do have a new planting that will be ready in a few weeks. Also next distribution will include the first lettuce mix which will add some variety to your salads.

This week in your box, you will have the final harvest of our winter chard/beet plantings and also Kohlrabi which was also planted last November into the greenhouse. For those of you not familiar with Kohlrabi (cabbage turnip), it is a beautiful vegetable that is in the same family as broccoli and cabbage. The bulb can be sliced and eaten raw, or chopped and cooked. It tastes very similar to the stem of broccoli, and can be used similarly. The leaves can also be used like other greens. Unfortunately the voles (small rodents) seem to love the sweet stem of the kohlrabi and ate about half our planting as a winter snack, so each share will only get a small sampling of this crop.

With these crops now out of the greenhouse, we are busily adding compost to beds, and planning the best design of the greenhouse to inter crop one more spring planting of lettuce heads, other greens, or summer herbs, with our early tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and eggplant. It’s exciting and makes for an exciting patchwork design in the greenhouses. I will try to keep you updated with photos.

Don’t forget to sign up for our Summer/Fall CSA-
Asparagus, Rhubarb, and Strawberries are just around the corner!
www.villageacresfarm.com/2013-summer-csa

In the Box this week…
Potatoes*
Spinach
Carrots
Butternut Squash
Onions
Red Beets
Kohlrabi
Rainbow Chard
*from neighbor farmer- no spray/but non-certified

In addition to renovating greenhouse beds, we have been working on an infrastructure project- running an underground waterline and electricity to our newest greenhouse. After a fall of stringing out 400 feet of water hoses every time we needed to water, having a water line inside this greenhouse will feel like a real luxury.

While the cold weather is lingering, we are able to observe that at least the chickens are responding to the subtle churn of the seasons. There are a few more eggs every day, and this week the Khaki Campbell ducks we bought off of Craigslist started to lay eggs. We are excited to use our new incubator to hatch out some ducklings to add to our poultry menagerie.

There’s all this and, yet, the biggest news of all doesn’t have to do with plants or animals! After 20 years of working off-farm (in addition to raising a family and doing farm work), my mom (Hope Brubaker) is finally retiring from her nursing job! In about 5 weeks, we can start assigning all sorts of things to her to-do list! No, seriously, we are so proud of everything she has done to make our life here possible and couldn’t be more excited to witness another 30 years of well-deserved retirement. We have not committed her to a flower share this summer, but those of you who were really looking forward to flowers should talk to us as we may offer them on a limited basis.

We have also opened our signups for our Summer CSA. We hope many of you will consider joining us for the coming season. Visit our website, the extra’s table (staffed distributions), or email CSA@villageacresfarm.com to get more information and sign up!

Eager for sun,
Deb

Upcoming Events at the FoodShed:
Live Music,Saturday March 2nd: Chicken Tractor!
Cafe opens at 6 PM, Music at 7:00PM

Perhaps you’ve hear this band at the Elk Creek, or at the Art’s Festival before. If so you will know why we are excited to have them perform in our space in a few weeks. We welcome you all to come on out and enjoy their great energy and musical talent! Chicken Tractor is an old time Country and Americana band based in the Penns Valley area. For more information about the band visit their website.

Special thanks to the Juniata County Cultural Arts Committee for making this event possible!

In the Box this week…
*Potatoes
Napa Cabbage
Carrots
Daikon Radish
Mesclun mix
Sweet Potatoes
Garlic
Beet/Chard Greens

*from neighbor farmer- no spray/ but non-certified

Whether you have been a member in the past, or are looking into our CSA for the first time, we would love to have you as part of our farm community this summer. We offer a variety of shares: Produce Shares, Egg Shares,and Chicken Shares, opportunities to purchase other local/sustainably raised products throughout the season, and a warm welcome to participate in the life of the farm- through workdays and celebrations.  

(Jump to: Schedule and Prices, Payment Details, Registration)

Our Summer/Fall Produce Share is composed of our own certified organic vegetables and fruits (primarily berries), supplemented occasionally by produce grown by farmer neighbors (not always certified organic, but definitely no-spray.)  Last year our summer CSA members received approximately 55 different types of produce throughout the season. Below is a sampling of what might compose a share throughout the season

Spring (May-June)

Asparagus, Rhubarb, Salad mix, spinach, lettuce, radishes, tender white turnips, peas, scallions, kale and other leafy greens, early beets and carrots, Strawberries, and early summer squash and cucumbers

Summer (July-September)

Tomatoes, green beans, potatoes, carrots, beets, zucchini, cucumbers, sweet bell peppers, hot peppers, eggplant, garlic, watermelon and cantaloupe, onions, swiss chard, sweet corn, lettuce, and herbs.

Fall (October-November)

Pumpkins and winter squash, sweet potatoes, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, beets, parsnips, kohlrabi, onions, turnips, rutabagas, potatoes, kale, leafy greens, lettuce, spinach, herbs.

Share Sizes:

We offer two share sizes: full and medium. Full shares aim to provide enough food for two vegetable-loving adults or a family that eats one or two vegetable side dishes a day. Medium shares are about 60% of the size of fulls (due to both smaller portions and fewer items) and are designed for one vegetable-loving adult or a couple that doesn't cook quite as much.

Our Egg Share consists of fresh brown eggs from our Pasture Raised hens.  These hens are on pasture nearly year round (in freezing temperatures they are moved to the barnyard so they have access to the barn).  Their diet consists of clover, grass, grubs and insects, grain from the local mill, and some select discarded produce throughout the season.

 

Every year we also raise broilers on pasture to sell through the CSA and this summer we are offering Chicken Shares for those who would like to receive chicken on a regular basis.  We process chickens on a monthly basis and will have fresh chicken available the week we process (Tuesday distributions only*), and frozen chicken in the off weeks.  You can choose to receive whole chicken, or chicken that has been pieced (Bone-in breast and thighs/drumsticks). You can also choose between fresh chicken (monthly delivery only) and a combination of fresh/frozen if you would like more frequent deliveries.  As we have supply, we will offer chicken for sale on an as needed basis for those who don't want to commit to a share, or who would like to buy even more chicken.

*Note: If you are a Harrisburg or Selinsgrove/Winfield member we will not be able to offer fresh chicken- all chicken shares will come frozen.

Schedule and Pricing

Summer CSA distributions On Farm, in State College, and Lewistown are held every Tuesday from May 28, 2012 to November 26th, 2012.  Selinsgrove and Harrisburg distributions are every Friday from May 31st to November 22nd. 

 

Share Type	Amount
Produce Share Options:
Farm Pickup: Full Share	$625
Farm Pickup: Medium Share	$400
Off Farm Delivery Full Share	$680
Off Farm Delivery Medium Share	$450
Egg Share Options:
Egg Share (1 Doz/week)	$94
Egg Share (2 doz/week)	$188
Egg Share (1 doz biweekly)	$48
Chicken Share Options:
Monthly Fresh Chicken Share (Whole)	$100
Monthly Fresh Chicken Share (Pieced)	$110
Biweekly Chicken Share (Whole)	$200
Biweekly Chicken Share (Pieced)	$220

 

Our Community Fund exists to make sure that good, local, organic produce is available to everyone, regardless of economic means.  Our Community Fund provides reduced cost shares for those on limited budgets who want to be a part of the CSA.  If you would like to contribute to the Community Fund as part of your signup, you'll be given the opportunity to do so.  All donations made during registration are matched by the farm. If you are interested in receiving financial assistance from the Community Fund, please sign up online as usual, and then contact the farm with "Community Fund Request" in the subject line, or call us at (717) 436-9477.

Pickup Locations: 

Tuesday Distribution

- On-Farm: 229 Cuba Mills Rd., Mifflintown, PA 17059

- State College: Friends Meeting House, 611 E. Prospect Ave., State College, PA 16801

- Lewistown: Community Partnerships RC&D Office, 23 North Main St., Lewistown, PA 17044

Friday Distributions

- Harrisburg: Unitarian Church of Harrisburg, Clover Lane, Swatara Township

- Harrisburg: Member's home, Uptown 

- Selinsgrove- Basement level Emma's Food for Life Restaurant

- Winfield: In Winfield (at a member's house)  Emma's Food for Life in Selinsgrove

Payment Details

Payment is due by June 1st.  We appreciate payments up front, but a $100 deposit will hold your spot, and payments can be made incrementally until June 1st. Please send payment to the farm's address, payable to "Village Acres Farm and FoodShed."  In the memo field, please write "Summer/Fall Share '13" and your member #, which will be in your confirmation email.  Finally, if your name is not on the check, please write it in the memo field.  Please note that your deposit is the only way to hold your spot. 

If alternative payment options are needed, we can arrange these on a case by case basis.  Also, if the cost is prohibitive to signing up, inquire with us about Community Fund Support.   Email csa@villageacresfarm.com

Farm's Address:
Village Acres Farm
229 Cuba Mills Rd.
Mifflintown, PA 17059

Registration

If you have previously been a member of any Village Acres CSA, click here to sign up for the '13 Summer CSA.

If you're a new member, click here to sign up for the '13 Summer CSA.

Thank you for your interest and support.  If you have any questions/comments, please call (717-436-9477) or email us (CSA@villageacresfarm.com).

 

 

 

Note: We will not be serving breakfast the first Saturday in February.  

Live Music: Chicken Tractor @ the FoodShed

Saturday March 2nd.

Cafe opens at 6 PM, Music at 7:00PM 

Chicken Tractor is an old time Country and Americana band based in Central Pennsylvania. We are: Jimmy James Baughman (upright bass, vocals), Nell Hanssen (guitar, trumpet, vocals), Kai Schafft (vocals, clawhammer banjo, and guitar), Gary Gyekis (drums), and assorted others, as we desire, including frequent appearances by Dr. Dave Mudgett on the pedal steel and electric guitar. For more information about the band visit their website.

Special thanks to the Juniata County Cultural Arts Committee for making this event possible!

Summer CSA Signup Coming Soon...

The seeds are ordered and the greenhouse is being prepped for seeding to begin! We hope to have details about the 2013 season online by January 20. Check back soon or join our mailing list to be notified when signups are open!