This week your basket contains: summer squash, cucumber, rainbow carrots, LEEKS, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, sweet peppers, beans, kale (half shares),  RED CABBAGE (full shares), parsley, beets, and sweet corn.

It is almost October which means it is almost time for our annual Pumpkin Pick-up Weekend!  We’ve set aside October 23^rd and 24^th for you to come to the farm and select your carving pumpkin (and gourds and corn stalks etc.).  While we will have to scale back some of the activities we’ve enjoyed in the past we will be cooking pizzas for you (as we did at our subscriber day earlier this summer) including PUMPKIN PIE PIZZA.  As we get closer to the date we’ll have more details in your basket note.

Being on the cusp between summer and fall, now is the time for one of my favorite dishes.  It combines the sunshine of summer (tomatoes) with the richness of winter (leeks).  You can add to the listed ingredients with chopped carrot, parsley, or other veggies you have on hand.  We like to serve this on linguini or spaghetti squash.

LEEK & TOMATO SAUCE

2 leeks

2 Tbs butter

2 Tbs olive oil

1 zucchini

1 sweet pepper

4 medium tomatoes

2 cloves garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Chop all vegetables (approx. ¼ inch).  Peel tomatoes, if desired.  Saute leeks in butter and olive oil until translucent.  Add zucchini, sweet pepper and garlic and saute five minutes longer.  Add tomatoes, cover and cook twenty minutes.  Taste and add salt and pepper.  Serve over any pasta or firm white fish.  This recipe can be expanded with carrots, celery, beans or just about any other vegetable you like.

MAYE’S RED CABBAGE SALAD

2 lbs. red cabbage

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 ½ lbs. tart green apples, peeled, quartered, and sliced

½ c. butter (I use less)

1 t. salt

2 T. brown sugar

2 T. cider vinegar

¼ t. cloves

pinch cinnamon

pinch nutmeg

black pepper to taste

¾ c. beer

Sauté the cabbage, onions and apples in the butter for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well. Cover, lower the heat, and let simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. The cabbage can be served at this point but improves if allowed to cool and reheated several hours later or the next day.  From The Vegetarian Epicure Book Two by Anna Thomas

We first encountered Sukuma wiki on a trip to Kenya and have made a point of making it as often as we can when we have kale and tomatoes.

SUKUMA WIKI

1 – 1 ½ Lbs greens

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1 – 2 lbs tomatoes

2- 3 Tbs. Olive oil

Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil until onions are translucent.  Add diced tomatoes and cook until they have released their moisture.  Add chopped greens and continue cooking until the greens are fully wilted and tender.  Serve over polenta.