Journal Post for the week of August 23, 2010

SO WHAT’S HAPPENING ON THE FARM THIS WEEK?
********************** FRESH - THE MOVIE - COMING SOON TO SOUTH HERO *******
THIS TUESDAY, AUGUST 24 AT 6PM
COURTESY OF BLUE HERON FARM AND FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Come see a public screening of Fresh - a film about the farmers, thinkers, and business people re-inventing our food system in America! As seen at the the Roxy theater in Burlington! Featuring urban farmer Will Allen, world famous sustainable farmer Joel Salatin, and food journalist Michael Pollan. Tuesday, August 24th @ South Hero Congregational Church 6:00 Heirloom Tomato, Local Apple, Cheese and Bread Tasting followed by movie screening with a discussion with local farmers and producer following. Donations are welcome for the Food For Thought program.
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Hello Everyone :) It has been a whirlwind of activity these last few weeks here. The summer has flown by - we cannot believe it is already the end of August. Last week Adam seeded down more fall greens and herbs, the watermelons are starting to ripen (we are hoping to have some for you today), the sweet corn is almost ready (not sure how much we will have for all of you - we had to plow under about 3/4 of the field earlier - over 4000 plants - so this year's corn just might be just a taste. We are not selling any at market, just grew it for CSA members - next year it will be better). The farmers markets in the islands have been very, very busy - the best we have ever seen them in the last 7 years. I hope the rush of people goes through the fall, but it may have been the tourist bubble that comes onto our little island. Once school starts, attendance of people at the markets goes down - hopefully that won't happen this year. Folks have been loving the melons (our best year ever - they are almost done but we have been picking 200+ lbs of melon every few days for the last two - three weeks. The peppers are turning their fine red sweet color. Grand Isle School will be purchasing veggies from us once a week starting the first day of school - look for our colorful heirloom tomatoes on your child's or your plate:)

Thanks for all the well wishes over the last week. Christine and the "little baby" are good. We are at week 26 and the baby is very healthy, we passed the glucose test and the small bout of Christine having tiny kidney stones has passed. We appreciate all the extra help that came out to help us get ready for CSA and market. Christine is back to work (after a very short rest because she cannot sit still for long) trying not to lift too many heavy crates of veggies:)

The last few weeks and probably the next couple are/were quite heavy on the food end - definitely more than Individual share and full share monetary value of $25 and $40 worth. We want you all to get everything at the peak of freshness and so in the middle of the summer - lots of things come ready at once. So instead of picking and choosing what you may or may not get - we try to give you a taste of everything. This time makes up for the leaner times of early summer and later in the fall. This summer has been full of bounty for us and we are happy to share it all with you - especially the infamous truckload of tomatoes:) that was sorely missed last year.

The new pullets are starting to lay. They like living in their travel trailer which will soon be coming up to the veggie part of the farm to graze. Adam, Emily and Eric moved the older birds up to the farm, right behind the pines - so you can visit the pretty girls. I am thankful to be raising our own eggs and have healthy organic eggs to sell and share with our community - I was reading in the newspaper - over 1/2 billion eggs have been recalled from a factory farm in the midwest dating all the way back to May due to over 1000 people getting sick with salmonella! Wow....Eggs from May?! Our eggs last maybe 3 days tops before getting sold/eaten - big difference between small farm vs mega farm. Okay stepping off soapbox now..

We will have Certified Organic Pasture raised French Heritage Chickens for sale. They will be ready September 23. We are taking order now and expect to sell out quickly. They will be between 3.5lbs -6lbs each. We are taking deposits of $50. They will be $6.00lb and you can get them fresh or frozen - after September 25th they will all be frozen. Also, Rob Rousseau in North Hero will have grass-fed beef for sale by the 1/4, 1/2 or whole - cut wrapped and frozen - available this fall. If you are interested please let us know - we will have order forms soon.
Enjoy the veggies, and see you next week! Peace, Adam, Christine, Sadie, Eric, Emily, and Joe

WHAT’S IN THE SHARE THIS WEEK: SLICING CUKES, SWEET MELONS (SUN JEWEL OR CANTALOUPES),SUGARBABY WATERMELON, ZUCCHINI, SQUASH, SWEET PEPPERS, RED POTATOES, SUNGOLD CHERRY TOMATOES, SLICING HEIRLOOM TOMATOES, ROMA TOMATOES, LETTUCE, GARLIC, BASIL, PYO GROUND CHERRIES, MAYBE: SWEET CORN,
Our blog is at: www.blueheronfarmvt.com - check us out and/or leave a comment

Pictures of our farm can be seen and shared on the following website: http://blueheronfarmvt.shutterfly.com/

EGGS FOR SALE
We have the pretty girls’ eggs for sale – these are free-range, certified organic chicken eggs that are brown, green and blue – with the brightest yellow/orange yolks you ever seen. The eggs are $5.00 a dozen.

QUAKER ROAD RASPBERRIES ARE BACK! - A NOTE FROM MEG
Good greetings to some of our family and friends - Our fall raspberries are "in"! They are magnificent, quite large and firm in structure, and sweet and delicious. This year we have expanded our operation to include Pick Your Own, in addition to our picking and selling for the two local farmer's markets. If you have any interest in picking, and would like to know if the berries are ready to be picked (they do not like to be wet when picked), then please call us at either 343-5497 or 343-5975. Please come and pick, or tell your friends about our berries. $3.50 a pint for the PYO berries.

RECIPES
Zucchini Latkes - smittenkitchen.com
Makes about 4 dozen 1 1/2-inch latkes

1 pound medium zucchini
1 large baking potato (3/4 pound), peeled
1 small onion (4 ounces), peeled
1/2 cup matzo meal
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Vegetable oil, for frying

Halve the zucchini crosswise. Cut the zucchini flesh off the seedy center and coarsely grate it in a food processor. Or grate it on a box grater until you reach the seedy center. Discard the center. In a food processor or on a box grater, coarsely grate the potato and onion. Transfer the grated zucchini, potato and onion to a colander and squeeze dry. Let stand for 2 minutes, then squeeze again. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a large bowl. Add the matzo meal, egg, lemon juice, salt and pepper and stir to combine. In a medium skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until shimmering. Drop packed teaspoons of the zucchini mixture into the skillet and flatten them with the back of a spoon. Cook the latkes over moderately high heat until the edges are golden, about 1 1/2 minutes; flip and cook until golden on the bottom, about 1 minute. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining zucchini mixture, adding more oil to the skillet as needed.Do ahead: The fried latkes can be kept at room temperature for up to 4 hours. Reheat them on a dark baking sheet in a 375°F oven for about 5 minutes, or until warmed through and crisp.

Heirloom Tomato Tart in a Parmesan Crust - www.101cookbooks.com
This recipe will make one 9 or 10-inch tart OR five 4 1/2-inch tarts.
Preheat the oven to 350˚F.

6 heirloom tomatoes - washed and sliced 1/6-inch thick
1 t. fine-grain sea salt
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unsalted organic butter, well chilled + cut into 1/4-inch cubes
2 cups loosely packed parm. grated cheese. 2 T. ice cold water
2T extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup slivered basil

Prep the tomatoes: To avoid a soggy crust later on, you need to rid the tomatoes of some of their liquid. Clear a space on your counter and put down a double layer of absorbent paper towels. Place the tomatoes in a single layer on the paper towels and sprinkle them with about 1 teaspoon fine-grained sea salt. Top the tomatoes with another layer of paper towels and press gently. Let the tomatoes sit here until you are ready to use them. Make the tart crust(s): Place both flours, butter, and Parmesan in a food processor and pulse quickly about 25 times. You are looking for a sandy textured blend, punctuated with pea-sized pieces of butter. With a few more pulses, blend in the 2T of ice water. The dough should stick together when your pinch it between two fingers. Pour the dough into the tart pan. Working quickly, press the dough uniformly into the pan by pressing across the bottom and working towards the sides and up to form a rim. Place in the refrigerator and chill for 15 minutes. Bake the tart crust: Pull the tarts out of the refrigerator and poke each a few times with the tongs of a fork. Cover the tart with a square of aluminum foil and fill generously with pie weights. Place on a baking sheet and slide the tart onto the middle rack in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, pull the shell out of the oven and very gently peel back and remove the tinfoil containing the pie weights. Place the uncovered tart back in the oven, weight free, and allow to cook for another 10 minutes, or until it is a deep golden brown in color. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with a little shredded Parmesan (this will act as another barrier to the tomato liquid). Let cool to room temperature before filling. Assembling the tart: Just before serving, arrange tomato slices in a concentric pattern inside the tart shell. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, and sprinkle with the slivered basil. Serve at room temperature.