THE BEET : VOLUME 12, ISSUE 16--10.3.13
THE BEET : VOLUME 12, ISSUE 16
CSA pickup times are, as always, Thursday, 5pm-7:30pm at PS 56 at Lewis and Gates
In this week’s BEET:
1. CSA Updates
2. Windflower Farm News
3. Recipes: Apple Upside Down Cake, Apple sauce with Caramel
CSA Updates
- Last October delivery changed to TUESDAY, October 29th In order to avoid any conflict with Halloween activities on Thursday, the 31st, distribution has been moved that week to Tuesday, October 29th. The time and location will be the same. We will also be hosting our annual Halloween potluck. Would you like to fulfill your volunteer hours by planning the Halloween potluck? We need a CSA member to help plan the Halloween potluck on October 29th. If you are interested, please contact information@clintonhillcsa.org.
- October Milk Without Jails a la carte order deadline THIS SUNDAY at 8pm
You can order their regular products as well as a variety of cheeses, flavored yogurt cups and drinks, fresh goat milk, cream, and more! This month try 1 lb. french butter rolls, a great way to guarantee you'll make delicious baked goods this month! There are limited quantities of some products, so check out the online store today.
October deadline: October 6th for deliveries the week of October 14th
Order through their online form, HERE.
Enjoy amazing products and support criminal justice reform at the same time. Learn more about Milk Not Jails at www.milknotjails.org
Questions? Contact them directly at milknotjails@gmail.com or (
917) 719-6455
- Lewis Waite Meat Share order deadline this Sunday Please place your meat share orders through their online order form by this October 6th for delivery Thursday, October 10th.
- Would you like to be a part of the Clinton Hill CSA next year? The first step is to complete your volunteer hours. Those members who do not complete their 4 required volunteer hours per household will not be able to sign up for the CSA next year. There are a number of shifts coming up that desperately need volunteers, especially in the 4pm-6pm shift. Please sign up for your hours here.
- Volunteer cancellation If you need to cancel your volunteer shift, please email the distribution manager directly if the cancellation is within 24 hours of your shift so that she can try to replace you: information@clintonhillcsa.org
- Late deliveries: For an update on late deliveries, please read Farmer Ted’s letter, below.
WINDFLOWER FARM NEWS
Delivery #17, Week of October 1, 2013
Our delivery truck leaves the farm at 6:00 a.m., which means the farm crew has begun the work of loading by 5:00. Today, Sunday, we harvested the tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplants, chiles, potatoes and radishes that will go into Tuesday’s shares. On Monday, we’ll harvest the herbs, lettuces and greens, and we’ll count out the onions that will go into Tuesday’s shares, and we’ll wash and pack everything into the tubs in which we’ll deliver them. By day’s end we’ll have everything in the cooler in order of the distribution site to which they’ve been assigned. And early on Tuesday morning we’ll load the truck and head for New York City, a 175 mile one-way trip that normally takes me three hours by car. On our way to New York, we’ll stop at Yonder Farm, near Kinderhook, to pick up the fruit of the week. If all goes well, we’ll arrive in the City by 11:00 or 11:30 a.m. and begin making our deliveries.
There are all kinds of things that can go wrong during the trip. Don might get a late start (which does not happen often). The fruit won’t be ready (as happened two weeks ago), or it might be ready, but the fruit farmer might be missing (as happens fairly often). Or the load might shift inside the truck (as happened last week, for what I think was the first time) and require repacking. Or there might be a slow-down in traffic (which occurs weekly, and frequently in new places) or a truck break-down (which happens, but rarely). Or there might be a slow-down at a distribution site (which happens at one early Thursday location with increasing regularity). Some of these result in five-minute delays, others can add an hour or more. Because of a number of recent Thursday delays we took two important steps last week that should help: first, we have moved Don’s departure up by an hour, and, second, we have decided to pick up fruit the day before our delivery and place it in our own cooler. I am sorry for our delays. I know they can be highly inconvenient. I thank you for your patience with us as we work to address their causes.
This afternoon a small flock of Canadian geese meandered throughout our neighborhood, gathering numbers for their southern migration, honking their purpose. The field across the road has lost its color, the papery bleached leaves of cow-corn plants hanging to their sides. Nearby hayfields have become a bright, kelly green and wooded hillsides are becoming yellow and orange. The afternoon light casts its long shadows across entire fields of salad greens. It’s fall, my favorite time of year. This week you’ll be getting your last sweet corn and perhaps the last of our tomatoes for the year. You’ll also get potatoes, eggplants, sweet peppers, yellow onions, assorted chiles, radishes, lettuce and parsley. And you’ll choose two bunches of greens from a list that includes kales, collard greens, Swiss chard and Yukina Savoy. Your fruit will be apples and pears. Next week you’ll get leeks, red onions and carrots, among other vegetables.
I hope you have a great week, Ted
Recipes
Apple Upside-Down Cake Recipe created by Stephanie Alexander, Pastry Chef at Seersucker & Smith Canteen
This is my favorite dessert to bake. Not too sweet, and despite the length of the recipe itself, very quick and easy to make.
Ingredients
For the Apple Upside-Down Portion:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
4 Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples
For the cake:
1 cup all-purpose Flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon cornmeal
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup sour cream
Directions:
For the Apple Upside-Down apples:
1. Preheat the overn to 350 degrees
2. Butter an entire 9-inch round or 8-inch square pan
3. Peel and core all of the apples
4. Halve three of the apples and cut them into 1/4 inch slices
5. Halve the other three apples and cut them into 1/4-inch slices
6. In a large skillet, melt the 5 tablespoons of butter. Contine heating until the foaming stops.
7. Cook the 1/2 inch sliced apples in the butter until they begin to caremelize, about 5 minutes
8. Add the brown sugar and mix until incorporated
9. Stir in the 1/4-inch sliced apples
10. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice
11. Pour this into the buttered pan and press them into an even layer
For the cake:
1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, spices and cornmeal
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, both sugars, oil, sour cream and vanilla extract
3. Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until just combined
4. Pour the batter over the apples and spread evenly
5. Bake for about 40 minutes until the cake bounces back in the center.
6. Allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes
7. Place a large plate over the cake and invert. Remove Pan.
Voila!
Apple Sauce (via allrecipes.com)
A quick and easy apple sauce recipe--make it a little less wholesome with the caramel recipe that follows!
Directions
In a saucepan, combine apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon. Cover, and cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, or until apples are soft. Allow to cool, then mash with a fork or potato masher.
Easy Caramel Sauce (recipe by Ree Drummond, Food network)
1 packed cup brown sugar
1/2 cup half-and-half
4 tablespoons butter
Pinch salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extractDirections
Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker. Add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat, cool slightly and pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold.