CSA Fall Harvest Week Two

"The scent is that of wood-smoke, of fruit and of some fallen leaves. This is the beginning of the pageant of autumn, of that gradual pompous dying which has no parallel in human life, yet draws us to it with sure bonds. It is a dying of the flesh, and we see it pass through a kind of beauty which we can only call spiritual, of so high and inaccessible a strangeness is it. The sight of such perfection as is many times achieved before the end awakens the never more than lightly sleeping human desire of permanence. Now, now is the hour; let things be thus; thus for ever; there is nothing further to be thought of; let these remain. And yet we have a premonition that remain they must not for more than a little while."

Edward Thomas

We fend off that premonition for a bit under the plastic of the hoophouses, where summer lingers a bit longer, but everywhere else...well, Mr. Thomas, an English poet who died too young in World War I, could have been walking through our fields and woods before writing in his journal of the autumnal truths we cannot long avoid.

In this week's share:

1) half pint of Connecticut maple syrup: produced by Brookside Farm in Litchfield. Maple syrup has many important vitamins - get the farm's handout when you pick up! Brookside Farm II, located in Litchfield CT, is a relatively small and very high quality maple syrup operation. Mark Harran and Kay Carroll, owners of the farm since 1999, make about 150 gallons of maple syrup per year, depending on weather conditions, which dictate the flow and sugar content of the sap. The owners both had careers in the food industry prior to buying the farm. They have applied all their collective knowledge and experience, along with Mark’s childhood experiences on his family’s large sugar bush in upstate New York, to their operation in Connecticut. Brookside Farm’s production process yields 100% pure and basically 100% organic maple syrup. Unlike some older sugaring operations, they do not use equipment that contains lead, solder or galvanized metal. Most of the sap is collected in aluminum buckets and processed in an evaporator and canning equipment that are 100% stainless steel with tig welds.Mark and Kay welcome visitors, just call ahead. They like teaching folks of all ages where maple syrup comes from, how it is made and the differences in the four grades of maple syrup. A tour includes a tasting and recipe suggestions.
2) Three pears--your choice of Yali (a juicy Asian pear), Seckel, or Bosc, grown sustainably by Red Jacket Orchards in Geneva, NY.
3) half pound of ground cherries: also known as physalis. Great eaten raw, in a salad, sauce, dipped in chocolate. Read more here.
4) one bag red bok choy: a showy red-leaved type. Bok choy recipes here.
5) One bunch leeks: Please use almost all of the green part--tender all the way up!
6) One head cauliflower: grown by Pedersen Farms in upstate NY. certified organic.

Enjoy!