THIS WEEK YOUR BASKET MAY CONTAIN: Florence fennel, onions, BROCCOLI, rainbow carrots, sweet peppers, basil, potatoes, and salad mix (lettuce & mustard greens)

Thank you to everyone who came to the Pumpkin Pick-up Weekend. We had a wonderful time seeing all of you and the potluck offerings were amazing!  Congratulations to the two winners of the Guess the Weight-Win the Pumpkin contests.  Saturday’s pumpkin was 59.7 pounds and Cheriti won in a coin toss as two people had the exact same guess!  Tammi won Sunday’s pumpkin that came in at 45.4 pounds.  As many of you saw when you toured the gardens over the weekend, our fall broccoli is going nuts!  For whatever reason the plants are late to produce and larger than usual.  We work to have a mix of varieties that have range of days to maturity.  That allows us to seed and transplant all of our broccoli at the same time yet have harvest spread out over a number of weeks.  Things have conspired this year to compress that timeline.  What this means for you is that there is going to be a lot of broccoli  in your near future!  One thing that can help you handle the bounty is FREEZING SOME OF YOUR  BROCCOLI.  Broccoli can be prepared for freezing very easily.  We cut the heads into florets and steam them for about 3-5 minutes.  At that point, they have turned dark green but are not fully cooked.  Then we rinse them with the coldest water possible and drain until dry.  We then put them in freezer bags and pop them in the freezer.  They will maintain their quality for several months and are quite welcome additions to winter soups and stews.

TUNA AND BROCCOLI PASTA

12 oz whole grain pasta spirals

8 cups broccoli florets

2-3 cans solid light tuna in olive oil

2 Tbsp. lemon juice or apple cider vinegar

1-2 tsp. crushed garlic

1 tsp. salt

1 tap. Ground pepper

1 cup grated Parmesan

Set a big pot of water to boil with 1 tsp. salt. Prepare broccoli florets by rinsing about 3 heads of broccoli and slice off the florets from each. Divide larger florets into bite-sized pieces. You can save the stems for another meal or slice them in 1/4 inch pieces and add to florets. Drain about 2 Tbsp. oil from each can and reserve oil. Break up tuna into bite-sized pieces with a fork. Don’t use chunk tuna! If you choose a solid tuna packed in water, drain thoroughly, then add 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil. In a large bowl, combine olive oil, lemon juice (or vinegar), garlic, salt, pepper and Parmesan. Mix vigorously. Cook pasta in boiling water and cook until just barely done. Crank the heat up to high and add broccoli to the boiling water and pasta. Watch for water to come back to a boil and then remove in about 30 seconds, while broccoli is still vibrant green and tender-crisp. Empty broccoli and pasta into a strainer. Tip drained pasta and broccoli into the large bowl with the dressing, add tuna, and mix thoroughly. Serve hot or warm. Serves 4-6. From Good Food, Great Medicine.

CREAM OF BROCCOLI SOUP

2 Tbs. butter

1 ½ cup chopped onion

1 sweet pepper

4 cups chopped broccoli

1 cup thinly sliced broccoli florets

1 tsp. salt

2 ½ cups stock

2 cups water

½ cup heavy or sour cream

Ground black &/or white pepper to taste

1 bay leaf

Pinch allspice

Dash of basil (optional)

Chopped scallion (optional)

½ cup buttermilk (optional)

Sauté the onions in butter with the bay leaf until the onions are translucent.  Add the chopped pepper, chopped broccoli, stock or water, and stock.  Cook about 10 minutes, covered until the broccoli is tender but not bright green.  Puree little by little with the milk until it is absolutely smooth (remember to remove the bay leaf first) .  Whisk in the sour or heavy cream and the remaining seasonings.  Steam the sliced florets until just tender then combine with the soup in a large pot.  Heat gently and serve, whisking in the optional buttermilk and topping with the optional scallions.  From The Moosewood Cookbook by Molly Katzen.

As the weather had definitely moved into fall, soups are very much called for.  As we have given you another fennel this week you might want to check out the fennel and chickpea recipe on our website’s recipe database.  That section of the website is password protected, but the password is always in the footer of  your printed note.

While we try to avoid politics in our notes, recent local developments pose an existential threat to our farm and others nearby. Governor Kotek has determined that 373 acres of farmland in Hillsboro should be re-zoned as industrial land. This process was granted to her temporarily and subverts the UGB review procedures that have been thoughtfully developed over several decades. 

You can read more details on the Friends of Smart Growth website. The Oregonian wrote an article about it a few weeks ago here.

Friends of Smart Growth has suggested the following ways to take action:

1. Sign-on letter: Sign on to the attached sign on letter.
2. Submit testimony in opposition to the Governor. You can submit as an organization and/or an individual by Wednesday, 10/30, toOregon.CHIPS@oregon.gov. Cc your state legislators, city council, and any others. Testimony guidance can be found here.
3. Farmland is hard enough to acquire — let’s not make it harder!