The “Cabin Fever Edition”

From the Farmer’s Wife

Hello friends of the farm! You all are constantly on our thoughts. It is funny how our shareholders are now “family” to us. We even have a Christmas picture on our refrigerator from one family that sent us a Christmas card! This is a great way for us to remember to pray for you during the winter. Our boys (Adam and Caleb) keep telling humorous stories about delivery times…some of the stories about folks splitting shares are hilarious! We share memories of your children harvesting vegetables from our fields for the first time on a farm day, letters we received from you all and prayer requests from you keep you constantly in our thoughts.

We have had 5 or 6 snows this winter with very cold temperatures down in the single digits…We had around 14 inches of snow and ice with the last "doozy" of a storm. We have been blessed to be able to stay at home after 34 years of public work without the pressure of traveling down the mountain in hazardous weather. We even had church at home 6 times this winter! When it snows the 18 rows of strawberries look like snow tunnels with the snow, covering the row covers on hoops. It makes a pretty sight. The children have enjoyed playing in the snow more this year than in many a year in the past. They have sledded, built forts, had rowdy snowball fights, (with snowballs hitting the front door as one ran inside for protection) and hiked in its freshness. What can bring more thoughts of our loving Saviour, Jesus Christ than a fresh covering of deep fluffy snow? The pureness of our Lord along with His promise to make our hearts “white as snow” when we accept His cleansing is always an encouragement to me!

The men (Farmer Steve, Adam, and Caleb) have spent the winter organizing the paperwork from the last growing season, tax preparation, PLANNING, ordering, and the latest and GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT is our new website. I am so proud of Adam (20) who designed it for us. IT TOOK A LOT OF WORK…weeks of square eyes and frustrating moments, but he has taught himself how to design a better web page. We pray you enjoy it and it is easier and more pleasurable to use. You will see some changes this year. The Farmer’s Wife will have a blog instead of a weekly letter. There is a separate page for recipes. Now you will not have to wade through all my “jabber” to find the recipe you need quickly. Over 100 pictures will bring the beauty of our farm right into your home! Customers kept saying, “Please, more pictures!” Well, now you have them! Once the snow melts…if it ever does, there is a long list of outdoor projects to complete. So their warm and cozy indoor days are numbered!

Our family school is chugging away. We are studying the basics of writing, math, Bible, italic handwriting and spelling along with our unit study on world geography and missions. We move slowly, and are done with North America/Central America, and are now “basking in the balmy weather of Central America” while there is snow on the ground outdoors! We are finishing a 5 X 5’ mural of the Amazon Jungle this week that has been fun to create! I have learned so much! Ha ha! I did not really begin to learn until I began home schooling, and enjoy learning right along with my children these past 23 years. We are really praying that our children will see God’s heart for people all over the world during our studies, and get a burden for their souls themselves. We read aloud biographies of great missionaries along with our studies…Cameron Townsend and Nate Saint being our favorites. We plan to be done in time for planting season. We believe that life is school…so actual life experiences are far more important to us than bookwork. We concentrate on bookwork and our unit studies in the winter, and then move our classroom outdoors for biology/botany, and the work experience that is so important for our young men. After mid-April, we all work full time outdoors.

The farm kitchen is in the process of being finished for state inspection. Faith Anne and I will prayerfully be busy in the kitchen baking breads, granola, and other products for you! We are excited about this new expansion of our farm. I hope to begin using our fruits and vegetables in our baked goods for added wholesomeness. Lord willing, one of the first products will be using our Certified Naturally Grown strawberries in making strawberry jam!

I prefer to bake and cook with naturally grown/organic raw ingredients…Whole wheat berries are ground into flour MINUTES before mixing, raw honey, sea salt, cane juice crystals, (raw sugar) extra virgin olive oil, fresh nuts, and more. I even enjoy using the grains we grow ourselves after they are harvested, near the middle of the season. We LOVE the taste of our own rolled oats and ground wheat. With our new website’s capabilities, you can reserve a loaf of bread each week to be packed with your share! Bread will be less than 24 hours old with freshly ground wheat! Reserve yours when you sign up for your share.

The raised bed garden will be back in my hands this season. I am looking forward to having a kitchen garden once again! Faith Anne, Charity, and I will grow for our family and will test new varieties for future sales. There are 1025 square feet of growing space, not counting the herb garden that is not divided into square feet. Many of you are experimenting with container or raised bed gardening. When we talk, you have lots of questions. To meet this need, we are considering hosting a Square Foot Gardening workshop if there is enough interest. Please contact us soon if you MIGHT be interested in spending a day on the farm learning, picking your own salad lunch, and fellowshipping. There would be a small fee for this workshop.

We are enjoying soups and homemade bread on these cold, snowy days. One of our favorite soups is 9+ Bean Soup. It used to be called 9 Bean Soup, but I kept adding leftover beans, and a few grains like barley to it, so we renamed it. The bucket full I am using right now is around 15-bean soup! I use our home canned tomatoes, and the hocks or bones from our hogs to season it. Use what you have, and then if you use many tomatoes during the winter, learn to freeze, dry, or can them next summer. (That is another idea we had…preserving workshops where you learn the basics of freezing, drying, and canning fruits and vegetables. If you are interested in this idea, please write and vote “YES!”  This does not commit you, but lets us see the interest level for these workshops.) Make your favorite quick or yeast bread to compliment your steamy pot of soup and you will have your family coming back for seconds!

9+ Bean Soup

To make the bean mixture, mix 1 lb. of Black, Pinto, Navy, Kidney, Split Pea, Lima, Lentils, Barley, Cranberry, Jacob’s Cattle, or other beans you have available. This should last most of the winter. I store mine in large canning jars on the shelves in my kitchen.

2 Cups of your Pre-mixed bean assortment

1 qt. water

2 qt. canned tomatoes

1 large onion

Ham bone, soup bones, smoked sausage, or as the lady who gave the recipe to me makes it…with a whole roast of your choice.

   Take 2 cups of your bean mixture and soak “overnight”. (The quickie method is great if you, like me, do not think ahead. Boil beans in water to cover for 3 minutes. Cover and let sit for 1 hour. Rinse, then proceed.) Drain and rinse beans. Cover with water, onion, and seasoning meat. Cook until beans are tender. Remove meat to a tray. Add tomatoes and heat through. Remove meat from bones and cut into small pieces. Add to soup mixture. Salt and pepper to taste.  Serves 8

Well, this is my first blog/letter for the season. I hope to write weekly as the season starts gearing up. Have you signed up for our CSA yet? Guarantee you get a share by signing up soon! Also, do not forget to contact us about your interest in the farm day workshops I described so we can plan our 2011 season. We are here to serve you!

May God bless each of you as you head into 2011. He has been our SALVATION, OUR PROVIDER, our Wisdom, our Shield, our Light, our Hope, our High Strong Tower of Refuge, our Peace, our Assurance, our EVERYTHING in 2010, and I KNOW He will be there in 2011. Praise Jesus’ Holy Name!

                          Abundant Blessings,

                          The Farmer’s Wife,

                               Val Colvin

“Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.”  Psalms 17:5

CSA Week 24

From the Farmer’s Wife

Week 24

   Greetings from the whole family at Colvin Family Farm.  We are alllllllllllllllllll heading out to pack your shares and enjoy a beautiful fall day together! I’ll pop in and out of the farm house to check on a big country dinner that is simmering and write a bit to you today.

   We finally got more rain yesterday!! We appreciate God’s good and perfect gift of rain more than most folks when it comes…The crops in the field are taking off once again; this will allow us to continue selling at Market Square, Lord willing, after we have finished our 2010 CSA year!

   I’ve popped in to change a wet two year old and thought I’d warm up a bit and write ya’ll. I’ve been delegated to bagging Nappa Cabbage…123 heads of it. J When you work with one vegetable for a long stretch of time, you get to know it well. Some of the heads are soo big that I am having a hard time fitting them into those persnickety grocery store plastic bags…you know the kind. They keep us all humble trying to rip them off the roll and find the right end to open. Some of these beautiful heads could easily fit in a shopping bag instead. I think of them as a type of flower the way they form a rosette. There will be a few bugs as they enjoy them also. The dark outer leaves have the most chlorophyll so I have purposefully left them on unlike most grocery stores. I hate waste…and the farming industry is full of it. Napa Cabbage is fullll of fiber and more vitamins than normal cabbage; here are 8 ideas on how to use what you’ll find in your share….

1. Napa Cabbage Rolls

Instead of using green cabbage, try some of the larger outer leaves of napa cabbage. Cut them in half and steam or boil them until they just turn soft and then fill with a mixture of cooked white rice and browned mild sausage or hamburger. Top with tomato sauce and bake until bubbly.

2. Quick Kimchi

Kimchi is a spicy Korean side-dish, sort of like the hottest cole slaw you’ve ever eaten. Traditional kimchi can take several days to make. However, for a quick at-home version, combine a few cups of chopped napa cabbage, a tablespoon of sambal olek (an Eastern hot sauce), 3 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar, 4 sliced cloves of garlic, and a healthy pinch of salt. Stir well, chill overnight and then eat right out of the bowl!

3. Napa Cabbage Stir-Fry

If you have eaten a Chinese dish with vegetables, you have probably eaten napa cabbage. Typically, they are white squares that look like they should be onions, but have not turned clear. To do your own napa cabbage stir-fry, peel off 20 to 25 leaves and cut off the leafy green sections until all you have is the firmer white stems. Cut the white stems into two-inch pieces. Heat some peanut oil in a wok, cook the napa cabbage for 3 to 4 minutes until it starts to soften, and then add your favorite stir-fry sauce. Cook until the sauce starts to bubble. Serve hot over rice.

4. Napa Cabbage Slaw

Got a favorite cole slaw recipe? Try it with shredded napa cabbage. Napa cabbage slaw has a subtly different flavor and texture than classic cole slaw and is particularly tasty if you add fruit. For your next slaw, combine 2 cups diced mango, a finely diced jalapeno, 1 cup mayonnaise, 2 cups shredded napa cabbage, and 4 tablespoons rice or red wine vinegar. Refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight and serve.

5. Braised Napa Cabbage

For a quick and easy side-dish, add the cut up white stems of the napa cabbage to a skillet and cover them half way with vegetable broth, ground ginger, garlic powder, and a few teaspoons of soy sauce. Cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until the napa cabbage becomes soft.

6. Napa Cabbage Spring Rolls

Napa cabbage has a great crunch that’s perfect for spring rolls. Simply slice napa cabbage into thin strips and roll with cooked shrimp, rice noodles, and fresh basil in a spring roll wrapper. Serve with a dipping sauce of soy sauce, chilies and fish sauce.

7. Napa Cabbage Taco Topping

Traditionally, tacos are topped with a healthy handful of lettuce. A better choice is napa cabbage, which is more flavorful and totes a crisper texture, which contrasts nicely with the taco fillings.

8. Napa Cabbage Soup

Warm up with a hearty bowl of napa cabbage soup. Add a few cups of chopped napa cabbage to your favorite vegetable, chicken or beef soup; it will give your soup a lot of body and for fewer calories than most other ingredients.

Napa Cabbage Salad

1 head napa cabbage
1 bunch minced green onions
1/3 cup butter
1 (3 ounce) package ramen noodles, broken
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 cup slivered almonds
1/4cup cider vinegar
¾ cup canola oil
½ cup sugar (can crystals or natural sugar)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
 1.  Finely shred the head of cabbage; do not chop. Combine the green onions and cabbage in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
3. Make the crunchies. Melt the butter in a pot. Mis the ramen noodles, sesame seeds and almonds into the pot with the melted butter. Spoon the mixture onto a baking sheet and bake the crunchies in the preheated 350 degree oven, turning them often to make sure they do not burn. When they are browned remove from oven.
4. Make the dressing: In a small saucepan, heat vinegar, oil, sugar, and soy sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil, let boil 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool.
5. Combine dressing, crunchies, and cabbage immediately before serving. Serve right away or the crunchies wil get soggy.
Serves about 6 and takes about ½ hour to make.

   Isaac just filled my sink with kale (his favorite) so I’ll be back in a while to wash and chop them…and chat with you…napa cabbage; here I come!
   I’m in the warm again…a northerly wind along with cool temperatures is reminding me of the changing season all around me. I’ve packed dikon radishes, green beans, and have been teased A LOT by my boys. (Feel sorry for me? Really I am thankful for their playful ways.)
   Adam wants me to give directions again for basic steaming of greens. That is how we eat our greens (basically any kind)…no extra time and calories are needed.
   Bring a large kettle “2/3 full” (I’m a big believer in using as little water or broth as possible. Think of all the vitamins you waste in the water! Steam them instead of boil them. We have “waterless” cookware, so I use about 1 cup in the bottom of my LARGE canning kettle.)  of salted water, bouillon  or broth to a boil. Add greens. Star timing when you put the greens in. Boil. (I steam as I said.)
Beet Greens 3-4 minutes
Broccoli Raab 3 minutes
Collards 10-20 minutes
Dandelion 1-3 minutes
Kale 5-10 minutes
Mustard Greens 2-5 minutes
Swiss Chard 1-2 minutes
Turnip Greens 4 minutes

These times are for the leafy parts, but I include as much as the stems as possible…Kale is about the only one I feed the stems to the hogs. Some people keep the larger stems separate and put them into the kettle before the chopped leaves. (I have far too many to take the time to do this.)
  Those of you that are struggling to keep your refrigerator organized may want to start freezing a part of your weekly share of greens. When ya’ll come out for our fall shareholders day on November 13^th may want to glean greens to freeze. Here are the instructions for doing this:

Freezing Greens

Cut off lare, tough stems; discard all damaged leaves (to save on waste, just pinch off the yellow or otherwise damaged leaves). Wash thoroughly several times if extra dirty. Blanch 1 lb. greens in 2 gallons of water. Blanching times don’t vary too much. All greens except collards (3 minutes) and spinach (1 ½ minutes) are blanched for 2 minutes. Blanch – to emerse in boiling water, begin the above timing when the water returns to a boil. Cool all blanched greens in cold water, drain, package and freeze. (When I’m blanching a quanity of vegetables I use a gallon milk jug that is filled with water and frozen to keep the water cold. I sure beats cracking ice!)  I find that freezing in quart or pint freezer bags are more space efficient. Lay bags flat on a cookie sheet, stacking the bags carefully. When they are frozen solid, transfer to freezer compartment.
   While we’re speaking of freezing vegetables for the wintry days ahead, I’d like to mention freezing peppers. My family is not big on cooked peppers, but I always freeze diced peppers in a very convenient way…by following the directions I give, you’ll be able to reach into a freezer bag and pull out only the amount you need for a particular dish.

Freezing Diced Peppers

Wash, core, and dice peppers (You can freeze any type of peppers in this fashion.). Place the cubed peppers on a cookie sheet and place in your freezer. When the peppers are frozen, place into a freezer bag and store where you can easily “grab a handful” when needed. I use these on pizzas, spaghetti sauce, in omelets, and many more dishes.
    I’m back in again…today has been filled with many outdoor tasks since I am not finishing and packing sprouts or baking. There are soo many things that need to be done…I’ve bunched kale for table sales, packed ½ pound bags of the yummiest looking mixed greens for shares, I’ve bunched the cheeriest looking red radishes, green beans and more. At times I worry that you’ll get enough as it would take 4-6 shares worth to feed my crew! If you are funning short, just ask for more!
   It is now 6 p.m. and the family is now focused on cleaning black beans. Don’t take that too literally! YOU WILL HAVE TO CLEAN AND SORT YOUR OWN BEANS ONCE THEY ARE BROUGHT HOME! I have broken a tooth on a rock before from using dried beans. I stress the importance of sorting beans with my little ones who do this job for me. We have pulled the plants, threshed them, and are winnowing them. Next a team sifts them through hardware cloth removing MOST of the rocks, sticks, and morning glory seeds. The rest will be up to you. We will not be held responsible if someone bites down on a rock…we are doing our best.

   Now that I’m said that, let’s get on with one of our favorite dry beans. We got through about 100 or more quarts of canned dry beans in a year. I put them in tacos, in my salsa dip, in chili, and whenever the “spirit moves” when I’m cooking. When combined with a grain (rice, homemade bread, etc.) it becomes a complete protein that rivals meat in protein. I’ll share a few of the above recipes with you….understand I don’t have concrete recipes, just do what looks right. J

  The first recipe is one of our lunch favorites when combined with fruit. When you home school your children, they do outgrow peanut butter and jelly…try this!

Chips and Cheese with Black Bean Salsa

Tortilla Chips (These become a “cheap” lunch when you buy them in bulk at Sams)
1 quart salsa
1 pint black beans, canned
1 bag of shredded cheese
   Lay a single layer of tortilla chips out on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle cheese liberally over the chips. Place in 350 degree oven until the cheese melts.
   In a saucepan, empty a jar of salsa and black beans (pintos work good also) in and heat thoroughly.
   Serve a small bowl of salsa dip on a plate of “Chips ‘N Cheese” to please your family!
   I just inherited a crockpot from my Daddy…it’s a fabulous one with three bowls that are 2,4, and 6 quarts! I’m going to be able to make our favorite black bean chowder in it this winter! Here is the recipe:

Hearty Black Bean Chowder

1 medium onion, diced
1 (25 oz. or two quarts of home canned) can black beans
1 (15 oz. or 1 quart home canned) diced tomatoes (for extra zing use tomatoes with jalapenos in them)
1 cup frozen corn (or a small can of store bought)
1 (25 oz.) cans fat-free refried beans (the hot ones if you like spicey. If you have a grain mill, ask me for my recipe for instant refried beans that we make!)
1 cupt fat free chicken broth (or vegetable broth…save the water when steam vegetables in the freezer and add to it until you have 1 cup portions)
3 tablespoons taco seasoning
½ -1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
sour cream to garnish
Very Optional:
1 ½  cup chopped chicken, leftover roast, or browned hamburger/ground turkey
   Combine everything EXCEPT cilantro and sour cream in a crock-pot or on the stove top in a large saucepan. Cook in crock-pot 8-9 hours. I like to turn the crock –pot to high the last half hour to allow soup to thicken. On stove top, cook on medium heat until slightly thickened, about one hour. If using, top each serving with a dollop of sour cream. We like to serve this chowder with tortilla chips for fun scooping to eat!
   I know that you’ll not get enough dry beans in your share for the following recipe, but with dry beans so economical, I’d like to share one idea I’ve found to save time and money!

Thrifty Home Canned Beans

Wash quart canning jars thoroughly. Sort beans carefully. (I’ve trained my little ones to do this job…they love it!)  Line up your jars onto a sturdy cookie sheet or baking dish. Using a funnel, fill your jars 1/3 of the way full with dry beans.  Do not add salt to the jars until serving. It makes the beans tough. Add seasonings.
Seasonings: (I like to use dry seasonings to make the process quick and EASY!)
Mexican Black Beans – onion (dry is quick) garlic, cumin and ham
Pintos – onion, country ham or bacon ends and pieces – these make quick refried beans
Red Beans ‘N Rice  - garlic, onion, bay leaf, ham or sausage (serve over rice)
Black Eye Peas – onion and seasoning meat
   Pressure can for 90 minutes at 10 pounds pressure. This is a fun family project that the preparation is done and over with quickly…the time consuming part is the processing which can easily be done in the coarse of the day.  If you don’t have a full canner of beans you can can meat, cubed potatoes, or water at the same time and pressure.
 Today at dinner (2 p.m.) I made a “clean out the fridg” vegetable mixture….daikon radishes (which are new to us this fall), carrots, leeks, onions, and tiny red radish for more color. It was okay…but there has to be a better way to enjoy my growing collection of diakon radish. I did an Internet search and came up with a few ideas. I’ll share them with you.

Overnight Chinese Daikon Radish Pickles

Recipe:
1 1/2 c cubed daikon radish
 ¾ t. kosher salt
1 tbs rice wine vinegar
1 tbs water
2 heaping tsp sugar
drizzle of sesame oil
In a mixing bowl, toss daikon radish with a bit of kosher salt and set aside for about 30 minutes, until the liquid from the radish is released. Drain. Rinse the salt off the radish and pat dry. Add the rice wine vinegar, water, sugar and a bit of sesame oil and stick it in the fridge for about 8 hours. This keeps for about 2 weeks in an air-tight container.
“You can make variations of this with Napa cabbage and carrots. I recommend eating this as an palate-cleanser with heavy Asian dishes such as duck, Chinese 5-spice beef or broiled chicken.”
   Another site had a surprisingly easy variation…

Overnight Chinese Daikon Radish Pickles

1 ½ cups chopped daikon
¾ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
¼ teasopoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon sesame oil (optional)
   Ina mixing bowl, toss daikon with salt. Cover, and refrigerate until 1 to t2 tablespoons of water is released, about 30 minutes.
   Drain and rinse daikon, removing as much salt as possible. Pat dry. Return to bowl. Stir in rice vinegar, black pepper and, if desired, sesame oil. Cover, and refrigerate at least 8 hours.
   This week I’ll make my first fall beef stew. In my mind, stews are for cool weather and served with yummy muffins! I’m going to try diakon radish in it for the first time. I like to play with the ingredients…sweet potatoes, cubed butternut squash, turnips, and now diakons are my extra additions to fool around with. J

Val’s Beef Stew

1 lb. cubed beef stew meat or cubed venison
flour
salt
¼ cup lard, or your choice of oil
water
beef bouillon
garlic powder (start with 1 teaspoon, then adjust)
carrots, sliced rather thick
onions, cut in wedges and separted
Cornstarch
Optional ingredients: cubed sweet potatoes, cubed butternut squash, sliced diakon radishes, or even a sprinkle of cinnamon
Dredge meat in flour seasoned with salt. Place in a dutch oven or stock pot and fry in oil (there is a term for this, but I’m tired and it won’t come to me) until the meat looses its color. Cover with water. Let simmer about 1 hour. Add vegetables and seasonings to meat and cover with water. Let the vegetables simmer slowly until tender.
   If you like a thick broth like I do, thicken with a few tablespoons of cornstarch mixed in a SMALL amount of water in a small cup and added when the broth is boiling. Stir constantly while adding. Serve.
   I’m going to end this now and bag black beans. It’s now 7:30 p.m. and the boys have been working around the kitchen table cleaning and sorting them some more…these are added to your shares with lots of love and tender care!
   Now the conversation among the boys is ping pong…our newest past time. Our packing table this season was an old homemade ping-pong table…it collapsed leaving us with a top that can be put on saw horses for fun play. We ALL have joined in for rowdy games after a long day in the fields. How fun!
      I do want to thank all the share holders that send their cards of sympathy, e-mails assuring us of their prayers and MORE during our time of bereavement over my mother’s sudden death. God has been MORE THAN FAITHFUL to meet all our needs… physical, emotional and mostly spiritually. Praise His name! Thank you!
   With my mother’s sudden passing still ever-fresh on my mind, I feel an urgency to share the good news of Jesus Christ with you. We love meeting your physical needs with our fresh, naturally grown vegetables, but we’d love to share with you something far more important, eternal life!  Feel free to call, write us, or corner us when you visit with your questions. Without Jesus’ strength these past few weeks I would be totally without hope and peace. He gives me complete forgiveness of my sins, hope for eternity in heaven, wisdom to guide, and strength for each day. I don’t deserve it, but it was a free gift!

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

Acts 16:31

Abundant Blessings,

Your Farmer’s Wife,

Val Colvin

CSA Week 23

From the Farmer’s Wife

Week 23

   Greetings Shareholders! Fall has come to the farm with gusto…we’ve had temperatures in the 30’s, cool winds, falling leaves, and the most beautiful sunsets….time is swiftly passing by!

   First off I’d like to thank everyone for the kind words of encouragement in our time of shock and sorrow…My mother went to be with the Lord suddenly on September 25, 2010. This was a shock as my Momma was in great health, and was even swimming laps (a favorite pastime) at a YMCA pool to keep in shape when she had a brain aneurism. It took us all by surprise to say the least! We made a grueling 26 hour car trip in the tropical storm rains to reach my parent’s home on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. One thing I KNOW now by experience (always the best way I learn) is that life IS unpredictable…we do not know the Lord’s timetable for our lives, or the lives of our loved ones…time IS precious! I am sooo blessed to be able to know with confidence my mother had a saving relationship with Jesus Christ and went directly to be with Him. One day we will all be together.

   I will make this letter short, as I have a long way to go until I can think half way straight….so please be forgiving.

   It’s hard to picture the end of the 2010 produce season, but it’s only 3 weeks away! The main part of the field is still full of many kinds of vegetables, greens, onions, leeks, and even the unfortunate, late tomatoes. We’ve learned a lot this year, and made many great new friends in you our shareholders. I can’t wait for our shareholders day here on November 13^th. Please try to keep that day free. You’ll even be able to pick produce from the fields while you are here as we will be cleaning the field out and getting it ready for a cover crop!

      We’ve begun to pick the tomatoes…green though they may be. We can’t wait to plant in GOOD QUALITY STARTING MEDIA next spring and get it right from the start. This particular recipe came from a sweet lady from our church and is Isaac’s is one of Isaac’s (can any 16 year-old boy narrow it down to one) favorite recipe.  It’s spicy “yumminess” tastes like fall…

Green Tomato Cake

2 sticks softened butter or margarine (1 cup)

2 ½ cups sugar

Beat together until creamy

Add:

3 Eggs (1 at a time)

Beat

Blend:

3 cups self rising flour

½ T. cinnamon

½ T. nutmeg

Add to butter, sugar & egg mixture slowly; it will be stiff

Add:

2 ½ cups diced green tomatoes

1 cup raisins

1 cup nuts

Put in a well greased or sprayed Bundt pan. Bake at 325 degres for 1 ½ hours. Let cool or 10 minutes and put on a cake plate. Top with Carmel Glaze.

Carmel Glaze

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

2/3 cup butter

½ cup chopped nuts

2 T. milk

   Combine all ingredients in small saucepan. Bring to boil over medium heat. Cook until temperature reaches 234 degrees on candy thermometer (or about 4 minutes). Stir constantly. Put on cooled cake. Put the glaze on the top and let it drizzle down over the sides.

Fried Green Tomatoes

3 medium green tomatoes

1 egg

1/8 c. milk (2 T.)

½ c. corn meal, bread crumbs, flour, or mixture of corn meal and flour

¼ t.salt

¼ t. oregano

¼ t. garlic powder

pinch of pepper

1 T. butter

½ T. oil

Slice tomatoes into ¼ to 1/2- inch slices. Beat together eggs and milk. Combine corn meal, salt, oregano and pepper. Heat butter and oil in a skillet. Dip tomato slices in egg mixture then in corn meal mixture. Fry tomato slices, turning once, until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels or on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet. Taste the first one and adjust the seasonings if needed. Keep warm in a 150 degree oven until serving.

   Enjoy the bounty of fall…I’ve tried six times to write a witty ending to this letter but I can’t think straight this late at night…so goodbye.

Abundant Blessings,

Your Farmers’ Wife,

Val Colvin

P.S. Adam helped me write the ending paragraph…I think we make a great team!

(editors note: the reason I helped was she had literally written it six times and wasn’t making any sense with it—I was waiting for the computer and so I helped!)

 
”Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God.”

Psalm 146:5

“He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.”

Psalm 147: 3

CSA Week 21

From the Farmer’s Wife

Week 21

   Greetings from Colvin Family Farm! I’m sorry that I haven’t kept up with my commitment to write this weekly letter. I have no excuse. My time is full, but so is yours. Please pray for me/us as we ease into our new fall schedule…it starts at 5:45 and ends when our minds say, “Enough is enough.”

   Welcome to our 27 new fall share holders! You are probably wondering who in the world is writing you…I’m your farmer’s wife! Longtime shareholders will bare with me as we introduce ourselves a bit.

   We are the Colvin family….all 15 of us. Your farmer is Steve, and I’m (Val) his blessed help meet of 29 years. Our oldest son is Matthew (27) and he is in the Air Force. He is in the process of being deployed for the fourth time overseas to Qatar.  Qatar is a TINY country on the Persian Gulf where the Air Force does their Middle East surveillance. This is his fourth deployment there and he loves it…except this time he has a lady friend in the states…that will change the love to….Please pray for him. Melissa is our oldest daughter at 24 ¾. She has been married to a loving husband now for 6 months.  Hannah Grace is 23 and a chef and student at UTK majoring in English Secondary Education. Hope (21) is a Pastor’s wife and she and her husband plant churches in the Midwest besides pasturing a little church on Mt. Eagle Mountain outside Chattanooga. Adam is our birthday boy. (today 9/21/10)  He is now 20, the age the Bible states that a boy is a man of full responsibility. He is our computer man, designing our web page, handling our mail and is learning a lot about finances this summer. He graduated from our home school and Bible College and the Lord has given him a vision to work alongside his Dad to develop Colvin Family Farm into a working family farm that prayerfully will one day support our family and several small families. (He and his brothers.) There are many ideas running through his head…he is learning all about timing. He is a great asset to our family. Caleb is next…just turned 18, he is the second son to follow his father’s footsteps in Bible College. Where Adam is the mind behind the operation, Caleb is the muscle. (Adam works too…) I find it amazing that God enables in many needed areas to complete His plans. He is a great worker and example needed to his little brothers. He too has great ideas for growth, and it’s sweet to this Momma to sit at the dinner table and hear the family discuss…sometimes it’s a lively discussion on what SHOULD be the priority this season or next. Isaac is our budding farmer at 16. He is our water man this year and without his dedication our plants would have dried up. We have been in drought conditions most of the summer, and he is the one that is out in the field at 7:30 a.m. running the last of the water out of the tank on the gasping plants before getting someone to drive him to the lake in the woods to pump the tank full again. He is learning the gentle art of dealing pleasantly with the public…so be patient with him if you are served by him. J Titus is our 14 year old young man. He is bent more like our oldest…technology. When he approaches a manual labor job (that’s our specialty around here) he schemes for a “better” more automated plan. He is the one that will be an inventor one day. He has ALLLLLLLL kinds of plans for new gadgets to invent!  Noah is 12 and has a heart for the farm also. He loves his new sling shot and he and Titus have been doing a lot of target practicing lately. He has a soft spot (as all my boys do to some extent) for little ones. Charity (2) is his “pet”. Faith Anne is our 9 year old little lady. 

CSA Week 19

From the Farmer’s Wife

Week 19

   Greetings! It really feels like fall this morning as we package your shares! I have a light jacket on and anticipation is building for a good shower to come today! We are now classified as being in drought conditions here, and see the signs all around us.  Grass crunches as we walk on it and it looks like fall because of the lack of rain. On my daily walk with my little ones we see red maple leaves, yellow Green Brier, red Sumac leaves and more…the landscape is giving us hints of what is soon to come.

   My little ones are learning about assembly lines this morning as we package the lentils sprouts. Faith Anne (9) weighs and packages, Levi (now 5) removes the bag from the scales and keeps the scales cleared of dropped lentils, Luke (7) removes the air from the bags and seals them. Faith and Luke are practicing counting by 5s as they keep count of the bags…we end up with 78, ½ pound bags! We are experimenting with other varieties that we will prayerfully provide next year, Lord willing. Our favorite new sprout is Broccoli. It is reported to be very helpful in the treatment of cancer, so the price is expensive on a large scale. All health benefits aside, we just like the taste! Try it yourself if you sprout.

    At lunch today we had some mustard micro-greens on our sandwiches and wraps. Micro-greens are another experiment we’d like to explore this winter. We hear the term, “this winter” a lot lately. When someone has an idea for a new project that will take research and time, it gets put in the mental file for “this winter”.

   We are trying to switch gears a bit and include school in our busy days. This is a challenge as there is always something to be planted, something to be watered, or something picked! The school aged boys work in the field with the men during the morning; then after lunch and read aloud time, they settle in for their studies. It is amazing how much can be done in a few hours that takes the public school all day to accomplish! By working all morning, the children welcome the relaxing change of pace of school. The farm crosses over often into our school…Isaac is earning Distriubuitve Education and Agri Science credit in high school, and the little assembly line this morning taught about industry, how to read scales, and cooperation. Often a new bug is found on a plant and someone comes running in for the field guides. The children have been taught how to answer their own questions, and then they teach US what they learn. J Learning really never ends, even after we earn our diplomas.

   I just took the children for our walk…they rode their bikes and I jogged and walked. I nipped a few sugar snap peas along the way and enjoyed the cool breeze that may be blowing in a storm. Some of the men are under a big trees by the packing shed cleaning green onions, one is cutting Swiss chard, another is sorting cucumbers after picking them, and of course there are still potatoes to dig. You couldn’t buy fresher vegetables at the store! As I finished my “walk”, Farmer Steve loaded all the little ones up in the water truck to go pump more water out at the lake in the woods. With thousands of seedlings planted we can’t wait on the rain that might come. Noah (12) is hand watering with a 350’ hose. He really has to lean into it to drag it the last 100’ of the row! I’ve been sent into the house to make lunch. With 8 men in the house, their minds often turn to food! I have 5 loaves of homemade bread ready for sandwiches with lots of fresh vegetables and sprouts.

   In your shares this week is a surprise! Muscadines!! We like the old fashion simplicity of muscadines. They are native to this part of the country, and are less fussy to grow than the Concord grapes we grow. There are many health benefits also, from being high in fiber, to being a powerful antitoxin. We don’t go after the fad health foods, but just try to eat a well rounded healthful diet and enjoy the benefits God designed for each food He created.

   There is a lot you can do with muscadines…start by enjoying a hardy taste of them. They taste a lot like the old fashioned grapes my Grampy used to raise with a thick skin. Be careful, there are seeds. I usually make jelly from muscadines each year, but there is more to experiment with. Here are a few ideas!

    

Muscadine Ice

Ingredients:

·         muscadines

·         water

·         sugar

·         lemon juice

Preparation:

Stem, wash, and mash muscadines. Strain and reserve juice. Put hulls and pulp in a kettle with a little water; bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes, adding a little more water if necessary to prevent scorching. Remove from heat and strain through a strainer or jelly bag. Add juice to the reserved juice. Sweeten with sugar to your taste and add a little lemon juice. Put in an ice cream freezer and freeze as you would ice cream. If you don’t have an ice cream freezer, put the pitcher or bowl of your muscadine mixture in the freezer. Set your kitchen timer for 10-15 minutes. When the timer goes off, stir and scrape. Reset the timer and repeat as often as necessary. It is worth the extra effort.

Iknow you don’t have enough muscadines in your share to make as large a muscadine pie as this recipe calls for, but you can adapt it to a smaller dish you may have. If not, just file this idea away for another, more bountiful year. It’s always fun to experiment.

Muscadine Pie

Ingredients:

• pastry for 2-crust 9-inch pie
• 2 quarts ripe muscadines
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter, cut in small pieces

Preparation:

Line pie plate with half of the rolled out pastry. Refrigerate pie shell and remaining pastry until ready to fill pie. Mash muscadines. Separate hulls from pulp. Strain so as to get juice, leaving pulp and seed. Cook hulls in juice until tender, adding a little water if needed. Let cool, then add lemon juice, flour, and sugar. Put fruit mixture in prepared bottom crust. Carefully arrange top crust over fruit, lattice style, if desired. Flute edge. Cut several slits in top if top crust is left whole. Bake in a 400° oven for approximately 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 375° and bake 30 minutes longer.
Serve with whipped cream or whipped topping, if desired.

Muscadine "Dump Cake"   

1 cup prepared muscadines
1/2 stick butter
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
To prepare muscadines, remove pulp; cook pulp until seeds loosen, then press through sieve to remove seeds. Add pulp to skins and cook until tender. Add sugar to taste, some grated lemon peel and a sprinkle of apple pie spice.
Melt butter in glass pie plate. Mix flour, sugar and milk in another bowl. Pour flour mixture over butter. Carefully pour prepared grapes over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Do not open oven until baking time is up. Cake should be brown on top. Yield: 8 serving 

   Last Saturday while you were picking up your shares at the market I spent the morning in the field training cucumbers up strings for support. I had my children at my side on different rows. As we worked our way up the rows I showed them how to take the sometimes longer vines and carefully thread them up between the strings…if they took too sharp a turn with the vine it would snap! Then from that point upward, the vine was useless. How much like training children I thought…each child is different like the vines. Some almost trained themselves as the little green tendrils reached for the next string. I have children like that…the ones with teachable spirits that are eager to please and mature. Then there were the long unruly ones that laid over on the other vines, wrapping their tendrils around other plants. They took more attention, and care to tenderly separate them, and then guide the vine up between the strings without snapping the vine in two. I have a few of these type of children also. They are the children the Lord uses to show me my total dependence on His wisdom, love, and patience. They need the extra care and understanding that the unruly vines did. They grew fast outwardly, but more slowly inwardly. I probably fell into the last category. I praise God for His faithful patience with me over the years to bring me gently to maturity.  
            There is always someone wanting the Cold Pack Pickle recipe that we made together here on our share holders day. So, the boys said to republish it. Now that the cucumbers are coming in better, keep a batch always working in your refrigerator if you like them. Don’t throw the brine out; just keep adding cucumbers and onions to it. (When adding a new batch of vegetables always salt the cucumbers and drain before adding them to the brine.) Today I threw out my first batch of brine of the summer, and am making a new round. I even experimented to see if lentils and green peppers did well in it. They did! I’ve adjusted the recipe for a smaller batch then I usually make. Double the size if you have enough cucumbers. J

Colvin Family Farm’s Cold Pack Pickles

 5 medium cucumbers

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

¼ cup sugar

Up to ¾ cup apple cider vinegar (to taste)

Add Black Pepper to taste,

Optionally add water to weaken to taste

Slice cucumbers in a large bowl and sprinkle with salt. Let sit 15 minutes. Pour off liquid. Add onion and mix well. Combine sugar and vinegar until sugar dissolves. Pour over cucumbers and onions. Add pepper to taste. Refrigerate at least one hour. Mix well before serving. Best made the day before needed. Don’t throw the brine out, but simply add cucumbers and onions each week. Keep your refrigerator stocked during cucumber season!

     As I walk down our long driveway that curves around the vegetable field I get to watch the growth of the plants. The fall crops are looking more promising now that we are using drip tape irrigation. We keep the truck busy pumping water on the green beans, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, lettuce, sugar snap peas, collards, mustards, Chinese cabbage and much more. Please continue to pray that Farmer Steve would have the wisdom needed to produce for each family’s needs. God has been faithful in the past and we trust Him to provide in the future.
   People have often asked how we can provide for our large family on one income. (When Steve was a consultant for La-Z-Boy) And we would always reply, “God has always provided.”  When we made out our budget it always looked impossible on paper, BUT God made the ends meet, and met every need. How can we be assured of this? We have seen His faithfulness time and time again over the years, and simply have faith that He will always be who He says He is… “Faithful and True” Revelation 19:11
    We have committed our whole life to Jesus Christ, what more could we do after He gave His life for our sin? As we seek to show our love to Him by obeying His Word (the King James Bible) He showers His love and blessing on us. Now that Steve is home farming fulltime we get to depend more fully on Jesus’ open hand of provision. He has proved Himself faithful in the past, and He will be today. Praise His name! “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Philippians 4:19,20
    As you and your family move into a new week, seek Jesus Christ with all your heart…either for salvation, or in total commitment to His will. I encourage you to read your Bible faithfully to know that will, and seek a good Bible believing church to further teach you. I pray you too will see God’s hand of provision…not only through your weekly share, but in the many areas of life you face.

Abundant Blessings in Christ Jesus,

Your Farmer’s Wife,

Val Colvin

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.”   John 15:4-6

CSA Week 17

From the Farmer’s Wife

August 27,2010

Week 17      

   Hello! Greetings from all the farmers at Colvin Family Farm…there is Steve, Val, Adam (19 &11/12), Caleb (18), Isaac (16), Titus (14), Noah (12 on market day), Faith Anne (9), Luke (7), Levi (5), & Charity Rose (2 ½). We have all been VERY busy here on the farm this week…I guess I say that a lot, but it’s the truth. Farming keeps you busy from sunup until after dark most days during growing season. We enjoy the challenge God gives us as He uses us to serve you.

   The pigs have doubled their weight all ready! They love all the apples and tomatoes we give them from a nearby orchard. They should have the sweetest meat come late fall! We will prayerfully be selling sausage so everyone can stock up for the winter.

   Faith Anne and I have spent the week organizing for school. We are doing a major shift to create a school area and office area to our home. These areas will eventually be in our last addition to our home. We have the walls up for that addition, but we are still constructing at this time. Soooo, we’re moving the computer station, bookshelves, Steve’s desk and much more. The big boys have heard about women having a need to rearrange the furniture often, and have been teasing me…in reality I don’t do it often as my men folks (and there are a lot of them around here!) don’t like change at all. So at this time I am surrounded by books, crates of school supplies, bus tubs with lids that hold each child’s school books, musical instruments, and more books! Prayerfully by nightfall there will be some semblance to my mess. With seven children in school and the men needing to recreate the website and plan the growing season this winter we need separate work areas, after the “dust settles”  I pray we’ll have this! J Most children are already in school, but since we home school, we are blessed to have the freedom to plan our school year around our family’s needs. We’ll be studying geography and missions as a family this year. We like the unit study approach to teaching. I can teach Language Arts, History, Science, Art, and Music through our topic of Geography and Missions. We’ll have 7 children in grades eleven down to preschool this year. Please pray for our need for wisdom in raising our children to honor our Lord and Savior.

   We remember your family’s needs also in prayer. How do I know what to pray for? Do you have a 2 year old that needs constant attention? I do too! Do you have a 5 year old that asks lots of questions? I do too. Do you have a 9 year old that thinks they can handle just about anything and doesn’t need your permission or help? I have one of those also! Do you have a 13 or 14 year old that thinks they have life alllllllll figured out and its YOU that doesn’t? Well, I have one of those also! Do you have a young adult learning about business and how to deal with people? I am blessed with two of them! Do you have grown children out in the world and struggling to “find themselves” or making a new home? Well, I have several of those also. “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful…”  1 Corinthians 10:13a  I will continue to pray for you as I do myself.

   There hasn’t been much creativity in the farm kitchen this week. Frankly I’m a bit weary of cooking LARGE meals for crowds. I’ve fed 35 one evening, 27 on another, baked for you our shareholders on the two weeks during this time, and then our usual three large meals a day here on the farm. So, I’ve been meeting my family’s needs by using the meals I froze in June. It is a great relief to have several meals in the freezer for times like this. Then I redirected my creativity to turning the house upside down to organize it! J

   On Wednesdays we eat a big dinner instead of a big supper.  Getting ready for church is much easier when I don’t try to squeeze a big meal into the picture. So Wednesday morning I took out a large gallon freezer bag filled with taco meat with pinto beans. I cut the bag open and dumped it, still frozen, into my largest cast iron frying pan, and slipped it into the oven right after breakfast.  By lunchtime it was bubbling and ready to make soft tacos with! Give it a try, and soon the daily, “What are we going to eat tonight?” question will be easier to answer.

   The crops are doing better now that we’re prayerfully solving the irrigation dilemma. I’ve described our efforts weekly to provide the needed water to our growing field…We started the season out by handing EVERYONE a watering can and filling them with 55-gallon drums of water from our pond.  When the June drought hit, we lost the use of our small pond. We began hauling water the second week of June from the lake a mile out in the woods. Again, we watered by hand. With a 6 acre field to water this approach is near impossible. We watched our crops struggle for survival and prayed for affordable wisdom. We bought a small 1-horsepowered pump that pumps the water from the tank on the truck into a LONG hose. With this we hand water the 350’ rows. This worked pretty well, but we were unable to keep up with everything! Again we haven’t had rain for over two weeks and our truck is running almost nonstop daily. Sooo, the next logical step was to invest once again…this time into drip irrigation. We now drive the truck 10 minutes into the woods, pump 275 gallons of water into the tank, and chug home. We hook the pump to “lay flat” collapsible irrigation pipe that feeds several rows of small black drip irrigation that lay alongside the long rows of tomatoes, corn, collards, Chinese cabbage, yellow squash, green onions, Swiss Chard, and many more fall crops. We are doing our best to provide you, our share holders with a bounty of God’s harvest. Irrigation keeps our crops alive, but to produce bountifully, we need rain at regular intervals. Please help us pray for rain!      

    Fall can’t be too far away. We’ve had some chilly nights lately. One night this week it got down to 58 degrees! That will sound silly in the dead of the winter, but after days near 100 degrees, it is cool!  The Black Walnut tree’s leaves are now yellow, and blow off when (and if) a storm approaches. Iron Weed (a beautiful purple wildflower) is blooming alongside Goldenrod along our country roads. Sumac is all ready bright red in some places on the mountain…and we’ll soon be turning the page on our calendar once again.

   Another sign of fall is the harvest of the winter squash. We grow personal sized Butternuts that are so cute!  These will probably be in your shares for many weeks to come. They’ll keep all winter to be used when you desired. So store them in a cool, dark location in your garage, in a crate in your coat closet, or maybe even under a bed in a shallow box you can easily pull out. Be creative and you’ll enjoy Butternut squash until the early spring crops of 2011 come in.

     One of our favorite recipes for winter squash is to bake, and whip it. I often serve squash this way for Sunday dinner during the winter. I can do all the work on Saturday, and then pop the casserole dish in the oven or microwave on Sunday.

Whipped Butternut Squash

2 ½ lbs. butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed (see my alternative method)

3 c. water

¾ c. t. salt

2 T. butter

1 T. brown sugar

1/8 t. nutmeg

   In a saucepan over medium heat, bring squash, water and ½ t. salt, if desired, to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the squash is tender. Drain; transfer to a mixing bowl.  (I like to take an easier method of cooking the squash. I cut the squash in half lengthwise, lay it cut side down on a cookie sheet. I then place the cookie sheet in the oven with a rack pulled out slightly. I take a small pitcher of water and pour enough onto the cookie sheet to cover the bottom with about 1/4” of water. I then bake until a knife inserts easily into the outer shell, 45 minutes to 1 ½ hours depending on the size of the squash. I then can easily scoop out the seeds and membrane and discard. I use an ice cream scoop to scoop out the flesh of the squash into my mixing bowl. This same method can be used for baking pumpkin.) Add butter, brown sugar, and nutmeg and remaining salt if desired; whip until smooth. (If I am serving this immediately I treat it like I would mash potatoes by placing it into a deep serving bowl. But if I’m serving it at a later time, I put it into a casserole dish and cover. Place into the refrigerator. When ready to reheat, simply place into the oven or microwave to reheat.)

Variation: I have made this into a casserole by putting browned, seasoned ground pork or sausage into the whipped squash and placing it in a shallow baking dish. I’ve topped it two ways and once combined the two! Either top the casserole with buttered bread crumbs, or shredded cheese. Bake 20 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

  

   Winter squash takes some forethought, but is well worth the effort. I’ve even prepared several at one time and frozen Ziplocs with enough for one meal inside. That way you heat the oven once and make a mess of the kitchen one time. J

    Last weekend I had the privilege of making the Maryville CSA deliveries with Farmer Steve. I got to meet the shareholders there, and get to know two families that I had met here at the farm on our Shareholders day in June. One family has two little girls that have won our hearts. While visiting here on the farm they were eager to pull just about any root crop and eat them still in the field. Their eyes were shining when the wiggled their way through the buffet line when we had dinner. These little girls seem to be in love with life. When Farmer Steve handed their Daddy the plate of cinnamon rolls last weekend, their eyes got as big as the plate! They volunteered to hold it…picking out which one would be their breakfast once they reached home. Like adults tend to do, we chatted on and on. As little girls tend to do they were hopping on one foot with the plate in hand when Daddy rescued it. I hope they had a special breakfast. Here is a recipe for these little girls and their Mom to try….and everyone else of course!

Squash Pancake

2 eggs

1 c. mashed, dark yellow squash

1 ½ c. milk

2 T. vegetable or canola oil

1 t. vanilla

2 ½ c. biscuit mix

2 T. brown sugar

1 t. cinnamon

   Beat together eggs and squash. Add milk, oil and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and stir in. Fry on a hot, lightly oiled skillet.

 

    Here is one more recipe for the week, untried at the moment…but the first time they send me seconds for family use I’m making it. It just sounds too yummy to pass up one of these cool fall days…

Winter Squash Casserole   

(Come now, they could have come up with a better name than that! I’ll rename it! :)

2 c. mashed winter squash

4 slices of bacon

½ c. chopped onion

2/3 c. grated cheddar cheese

¼ t. salt

dash Tabasco or black pepper

¼ c. buttered bread crumbs

   Put squash into medium bowl. Fry bacon until crisp; crumble into squash. Leave about 1 T. drippings in skillet. Fry onion in drippings until transparent; add squash. Add cheese. Add salt and Tabasco sauce or pepper; mix well. Put in a buttered baking dish; top with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees until heated through and crumbs begin to brown –about 25 minutes.

Here is a recipe from one of our shareholders for leeks.

Leek and Cabbage Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 quarts chicken stock
• 2 lbs green cabbage (1/2 a medium head)
• 2 lbs leeks (two bunches)
• 1 yellow or sweet onion
• salt and fresh ground pepper

Place a large pot over medium heat and add the chicken stock. Cover while you prepare the vegetables for the soup.
Cut out the core of the cabbage and discard. Cut into 1/2″ pieces. Just place 1/2 the head, cut side down on the cutting board and cut length wise, then cross cut.  Don’t obsess over this, it doesn’t have to be perfect.
It’s vital to remove all the sandy grit from leeks. Cut away most of the dark green leaves, reserving the white & light green portion. Cut the leek in half and rinse under running water. Then chop the halves into 1/2″ pieces, discarding the root.
Slice the onion thinly.
Throw -or place carefully, your choice- the vegetables into the stock. Not all of the vegetables will be covered, with broth, this is fine. Add salt (start with 1 tsp, add more at the end only if you need to) and fresh ground pepper.
Stir, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes.
Grated cheddar adds a nice garnish, but is optional.

  

Well, my afternoon is winding down and it’s time to bundle green onions and help pack your shares. The men and children have been digging potatoes, picking a “peck of pickled peppers” (If only pickled peppers were that easy! I just couldn’t resist that saying; they are just ordinary, green Bell peppers) pulling lots of leeks and green onions, cutting lettuce and so much more today. Little ones are napping while I type in peace. (I trained Charity Rose (2 ½) more this morning how to sit still and be quiet in a chair by me as I typed…if I sound incoherent somewhere in this letter it’s because I had said, “Fold your hands and sit quietly.”  for the 15^th time. As I typed I also trained Faith Anne how to iron men’s dress shirts…she is improving!! Yeah!)  It shouldn’t take me most of the day to write you, but it always does…maybe one day I too will improve.

   God has been good to our family this week. We had a “roof up above us and a good place to sleep. Food on our table, and shoes on our feet. You gave us your love Lord, and a fine family…Thank You Lord for your blessings on me.”

God’s greatest blessing in our lives is God’s saving grace…so undeserved, but freely given. If Jesus Christ were to come back tonight, or if you were to die today, where would you spend eternity?

 “… if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9 (KJV)

“…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Acts 16:31 (KJV)

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”

Romans 3:23,24

Abundant Blessings,

Val Colvin

The Farmer’s Wife