This week your basket contains:  tomatoes,  zucchini, cucumber, lettuce, sweet peppers, carrots, leeks, FLORENCE FENNEL, TOMATILLOS OR CAULIFLOWER (full shares only), and eggplant.

Polly & I went to Hood River on Sunday and picked up the pears that were ordered by Saturday.  If you would like to see pictures of Jen and her farm (Big Barn Organics), check out our Instagram page.  As we work out the details of ordering and delivery, it looks like we will be able to do another pick up in two weeks.  Jen has let us know that there are several other types of pears coming on (European and  Asian) that we can order (more details to come.  ONE OPTION JEN FLOATED IS SAMPLER BOXES that would have two or three pieces of three or four varieties.  These would be great as gifts or as a way for you to learn more about a wide variety of pears.  For now, Jen still has Bartletts and Hosui Asian pears available. The cost for either type is  2 lbs $4: 4 lbs $7.50 25 lbs $30.  As always, please email to order and we will deliver them with your veggies when they are available.

OCTOBER MEANS IT IS TIME FOR OUR PUMPKIN PICK UP WEEKEND for you to choose your carving pumpkin (included as part of your subscription)!  As always, there will be a potluck lunch, wood-fired pizzas (including the ever-popular pumpkin pie pizza!), farm tours, gleaning opportunities as well as cider pressing and the “Guess the weight & win the pumpkin” contest.  There will also be gourds, odd squash, and corn stalks for decorating your home for Halloween.  We’ve set aside the weekend of October 21^st & 22^nd from 11:00 to 3:00 for you to come enjoy what we consider to be the most fun weekend of our year.

FENNEL TIPS

Here is how you prepare Florence fennel: wash and trim fennel stalks to the point where they meet the top and sides of bulbs.  Save the stalks and leaves for flavoring and garnishes. Fennel can be eaten raw, but our favorite way to prepare it simply is to slice it in half through the root end so that the resulting halves are wider than they are thick.  We then throw it on the grill or under the broiler with a brushing of olive oil. Cook until crisp-tender and slightly browned.   It is great with fish, very low-calorie, and has an anise flavor.  Florence fennel has a mild Annise flavor that I really like.  The salad below is the very first dish we make with our first fennels of the year.  If you don’t have parsley leaves left over from last week, you can use chopped fennel leaves.

FENNEL, ORANGE AND PARSLEY SALAD

1 medium fennel bulb

2 medium oranges

1/3 cup parsley leaves

2 Tbs. slivered black olives

1 tsp. olive oil

salt and pepper

Quarter, core and thinly slice fennel bulbs crosswise.  Separate oranges into segments over a large bowl (to catch the juices), then add segments to bowl.  Add fennel, parsley leaves, olives and olive oil.  Season with coarse salt and ground pepper.  Gently toss and serve.  From Everyday Food  October 2003.

CAPONATA

2 Eggplants

6 stalks celery

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic

2 cups tomato sauce

½ cup basil leaves

1 ¼ cups piteed green olives, halved

½ cup capers

Black pepper

Salt

1 cup wine vinegar

2 Tbs. sugar

Oil for frying

Olive oil

Peel the eggplant and cut into 1-inch cubes.  Place in a colander, sprinkle with salt and let drain for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, cut the celery into pieces the same size as the eggplant.  Drop the celery into boiling watere and cook for 6 to 7 minutes.  Drain and set aside. Pour ¾ inch of oil into a large skillet and bring to heat (I recommend 400 degrees).  Blot the eggplant dry then fry in the oil, stirring from time to time until it is browned on all sides).  Drain on paper towel and set aside.  Sauté the onion and garlic in enough olive oil to cover them until golden brown.  Stir in the tomato sauce, basil, celery, olives capers, and salt & pepper to taste. Stir together  and bring to a boil.  Stir in the vinegar and sugar then simmer over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes.  Remove from heat and carefully stir in the eggplant.  Taste and adjust seasoning to taste.  Draining off as much of the liquid as possible, transfer the mixture to a flat serving dish forming a pyramid.  Pat it with a wooden spoon to help it hold the shape keeping in mind that it will thicken as it cools.  Let stand until cool.  Just before serving you can garnish the pyramid with halved hard boiled eggs, thin slices of orange, basil leaves, or even canned small whole octopuses!  Adapted from The Flavors of Sicily by Anna Tasca Lanza