STANDARD REMINDER

Please be sure to wash your weekly share thoroughly before serving. To preserve freshness, it is NOT ‘table ready’ (i.e., pre-washed). We deliver your Olin-Fox Farms’ produce right from the fields to ensure highest quality.

Welcome to Olin-Fox Farms Fall Produce Program. We are off to an exciting start with nice mix of late summer vegetables accompanied a selection of early fall veggies.

For those of you who pick up at distribution points, please make a point of picking up your share during scheduled time or contact your coordinator to make other arrangements. Your cooperation is appreciated.

Along with the other members of the Family of Fine Farms, we have been busy preparing and planting for the Fall Program as well as gearing up for the 2008 CSA Program. Stay tuned for more details!

The on and off drought continues, but thanks to a number of strategically placed watering systems, the harvests have been phenomenal and tasty, too. In fact, our Shitake mushroom logs are beginning to set small numbers of harvestable mushrooms and, with Mother Nature's cooperation, we hope to include some in the Fall Program.

Our new resident Kit (young fox) has been making regular appearances just after daybreak and just after dusk, sitting or laying nearby while we work. He seems to have evicted (and perhaps dined upon!) our groundhog and made his home in the burrow by the pond. This is also a popular gathering place for the turkeys to relax and hang out, because there’s generally plenty of cool shade and currently a steady supply of ripe apples falling to the ground for a sweet, juicy afternoon snack.

Don't miss Locusville's 5th Annual Music Festival Saturday September 15th from 1 to 8 pm. Although the festival is free, all donations are appreciated. Directions are: From Lively, turn left on Route 201, drive until to come to the T junction at St. Mary’s Whitechapel Church, there take another left onto Rt. 354, and after a few miles, hang a final left onto Slabtown Rd. Continue approximately 1/2 mile and you’ll see the farm on the left. For more details, call 804-462-0002.

Planning is underway for the Olin-Fox Farms 1st Annual Garlic Roast, to be held on Saturday October 13th from 1 to 5 pm. Plans include samples of roasted garlic and Canning Farm hormone- & antibiotic-free beef that will be available for sale. Garden tours and entertainment will add to the festive mood.

For out-of-town visitors, inexpensive overnight accommodations are available at either the nearby Bay Motel in Reedville [804.453-5171], or the Holiday Inn Express in Kilmarnock [804.436-1500], about a 25 min drive away. Reservations are suggested. Or, if you’re coming from Northern Virginia, you might consider treating yourself to a mini-vacation weekend by staying in one of the charming up-scale bed & breakfast establishments here in the lower end of the Northern Neck. Closest to the farm is Fleeton Fields B&B [800.497-8215, www.fleetonfields.com]. Also close at hand, in historic Reedville, there’s The Gables Victorian Mansion B& B [804.453-5209, www.thegablesbb.com].

One of the few benefits brought of this summer’s unusually dry weather we can all be grateful for is that our produce over the past several months has been especially flavorful, as you will have noticed. While quantities have been lower than normal, due to the lack of rainfall, nonetheless, the shares have been plentiful with good variety. Each year, there is a crop or two that does particularly well. This year, conditions were ideal for eggplant. Crops showing good promise for the fall are radishes, Arugula, winter squash, potatoes, salad greens, collards, kale, and Olin-Fox Farms custom blend of Redbor/Winterbor kale, to name a few.

Please Note: With elements beyond our control such as the start or the end of a harvest, or extreme weather conditions that may limit the quantity of produce coming in, we systematically address each delivery and pick up group each week and do our very best to see that everyone receives some of everything.

Eggplant Skin Crisps

Sometimes, a recipe calls for peeled eggplants, leaving you with a pile of eggplant peels. One easy way to put to good use what would otherwise go to waste is to make eggplant crisps. They are delicious eaten as is or used as garnish, for the stunning crispy darkness these crisps can provide to almost any dish.

The process is very simple:
1) Cut the peels in fine strips ( slices don’t look as good)
2) Add a little olive oil
3) Bake in the oven until crispy, but not burnt (time varies according to the thickness of the peels).

This can be done at different oven temperatures, which allows you to make them while something else is cooking. It generally takes only a few minutes, but you should always keep an eye on them, since thin vegetables tend to burn quite quickly.

If you like eggplant caviar or baba gannouj, preserve the skin for making these crisps. They are also great with fish.

Alice and Stevie’s Easy Eggplant Crisps

(Farmer John conveyed this kitchen-tested recipe to me over the phone)

After washing the eggplants thoroughly and patting them dry (no need to peel them), slice thinly, crosswise, into ¼” slices. Salt both sides of each slice lightly, add your seasonings* of choice, then arrange the slices on greased baking sheets and cook slowly in the oven heated to only about 250 degrees, to evaporate all the moisture in the eggplant as you roast them, checking often to make sure you it doesn’t burn.

*Seasonings suggestions: toasted whole wheat or pumpernickel bread crumbs, splashes of soy sauce, a dusting of red pepper, chopped garlic / garlic salt, thyme, rosemary, crushed or powdered bay leaves, minced crystallized ginger, Parmesan cheese, Old Bay Seasoning, or your favorite barbecue sauce, etc. Let your palate and creative imagination be your guide. Enjoy!

Goat Cheese and-Eggplant Crisps

2 medium Asian eggplants salt
freshly ground black pepper 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 ounces goat cheese 2 Tbs. finely chopped Greek olives
1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup fresh bread crumbs 3 cups vegetable oil, for frying

1.Trim ends from eggplants and cut lengthwise into 24 1/4-inch-thick slices. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add eggplant in single layer and cook until tender and golden, 2 to 4 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining olive oil and eggplant.

2. Blend goat cheese and olives in small bowl. Place 1 heaping teaspoon in center of each eggplant strip. Wrap eggplant around cheese to enclose it completely.

3. Heat 3 inches vegetable oil in a heavy, deep saucepan over medium-high heat until it registers 375 degrees F on a frying thermometer.

4. Meanwhile, place flour in shallow bowl, egg in another shallow bowl, and bread crumbs in a third. Dip each eggplant package in flour, shaking off excess, then in egg and bread crumbs.

5. Fry eggplant packages a few at a time, turning, until golden on all sides, about 30 seconds. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot. Makes 1 dozen crisps.

6. Make-Ahead Tip: Prepare and fry eggplant crisps. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Reheat on cookie sheet in 375 degrees F oven 10 minutes.

Stuffed Grilled Acorn Squash

Stuffed acorn squash recipe for the grill, with peanuts, apples, and brown sugar.

INGREDIENTS:

1 medium acorn squash
2 Tbs. melted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
pepper
3/4 cups unpeeled diced apples
1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
1 Tbs. chopped peanuts
Dash ground nutmeg

PREPARATION:

Halve squash lengthwise; remove seeds and membranes. Brush inside and outside edge of squash with melted butter, using about 2 tablespoons of butter. Sprinkle each squash with salt and pepper. Place squash cut side down on a greased baking pan.

Bake at 350° until almost tender, about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine apples, brown sugar, peanuts, nutmeg, and remaining butter. Loosely fill the squash cavities with apple mixture. Grill squash on a preheated grill, apple side up, about 5 inches above the coals until squash is tender and apples are heated through, about 20 minutes.

Written by Ethan Brent, Official Newsletter Focalizer.

Bon Appetit!