Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Proof Positive

Spent the afternoon at the organic farm. This year she added strawberry plants.  

As we were picking the luscious beauties I decided that strawberries might very well be evidence that there is a Creator God Who loves us very much. 

organic Iowan grown strawberries and sugar snap peas

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Veggietalk

Things you might overhear at an organic CSA pack.

"Don't forget to grab all the discards you want from the pile."

"The white ones are thin-skinned." 

"Uh oh, we have an extra bag. Who didn't get one?" This is a favorite, it is followed by the sound of several people going through 42+ boxes until either a) the box with the missing produce is found or b) we determine the count was over by one. It is a standard statement. When there are six women packing about a dozen or more items into 40+ boxes, you can bet your bippy that it is blurted almost every week.

"So, then what did you put on it?  How long did you cook it?" 

"My spiralizer is on it's way."   Yes. We talk about food. Quite a bit. And how we like to prepare it. And sales of spiralizers have spiked in the past few weeks.

"That one's weeping. Get rid of it!"
"If it's crying, clearly it's upset, getting rid of it just seems cruel." 

"And this one is thin-skinned. Chuck it." 
"So there is no room for weak tomatoes, is that what you are saying?"   Many, many sarcastic and goofy comments are made and we are usually tired, dirty and punchy enough we laugh hysterically.

"How many half share boxes again?" 

"Who's box is missing? Someone read the list again." 

"Those cucumber beetles are a scourge this year. No more sweet corn, they ate the silk." 

"The basil got burnt!"

"Snack time?" "When is Costco going to get the Ghiradelli chocolate chips back?" Farmer number two packs each helper a baggie of dried fruit and almonds (and the above mentioned chocolate when available.) After a few hours of intense and sometimes dirty, nasty work, these baggies almost bring us back to life. There may even have been tears of gratitude during some packs. She also brings tea which we manage to guzzle with gusto, too.

"Look at this __________fill in the blank, radish, tomato, etc. __________________? Isn't it beautiful?"

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Farm-a-Ling-a-Ding-Dong

The farm was pretty low key yesterday. We brought home fragrant basil, five pounds of heirloom tomatoes and a t-shirt kangaroo pocket full of too-ripe, too-ugly or too-oops tomatoes that needed to be used right away. Which we did. Everyone got a 2 pound sweet potato or a few that added up to that. Zucchini, cucumbers, eggplant, onions, garlic, beans, peppers, a few apples and a pear. Another week of heavy, heavy boxes and a time consuming pack. But, as always, satisfying on so many levels. 

On the home front, tomatoes. And those crazy tree pumpkins. The volunteer pumpkin vines have wound themselves through our 8 foot yew bushes in front of our house. One big guy holds firm at 4 feet off the ground and is oranging nicely. Others have not fared so well. One big one was lying in the ditch, still wrapped in her speckled green black immature robe. However, as she sits on the front porch she, too, is developing an orange glow. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Muffaletta Stroganoff

Warning do not let the color put you off. It's tasty stuff, this, and if you use mushrooms you won't even have to suffer the scornful looks and furrowed brows like I did. Rob forewarned me that he couldn't eat it. I asked him to please try it. And then he did and he said that it was delicious.

Muffaletta Stroganoff

Serves 4-6

Zucchini noodles or pasta of choice. (if you are uninitiated in zucchini noodles here's the scoop. Use a spiralizer a julienne blade or veggie peeler and cut zucchini into pasta-ish strips. Sprinkle the zucchini with salt and let sit for several minutes if you plan to use it raw. If you want it heated pour boiling water over it, cover and steep for several minutes then drain.)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1/2 medium onion (small dice)

2 cups mushrooms or corn smut (mexican truffles) (chopped)

1 TBSP Earth Balance

3 TBSP flour

1 tsp powdered vegetable broth or bouillon

1/4 cup kalamata olives (diced)

1/4 cup green olives (diced)

2 cups non dairy unsweetened milk

1/2 TBSP lemon juice

1 tsp spicy mustard

1/2 tsp salt (heavy)

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

Sauté onions and garlic in the Earth Balance. Add mushrooms when onions are translucent. When veggies soften and brown add flour and stir until veggies are pasty. Add milk stir until the sauce begins to thicken and bubble. Add the remaining ingredients . Serve over noodles when sauce reaches the consistency you want.

Scribbles and Scrambles . Farmerly Known As...

First things first.... I'm going to practice blogging from my phone. Why? Good reasons... one of which is my computer's current mood swing. And the thrill of adventure that surges within when I ponder what auto-correct might do in a blog post.

Now farm report. Everyone and I mean every single CSA recipient is the proud owner of a 25 + pound watermelon. 

Note pictorial proof.

I especially love Rob snapping a picture of Big Bertha with visuals and a tape measure. And check out the entire ear of corn smut!!! Guess who that went home with? Yep.

Recipe tomorrow, using corn smut. For reals. Now let's see how phone posting went shall we...Okay. Now on the real blogger. I can't change the font or move pictures on my phone. I can't change the size of pictures or change the post time or date.  Auto correct let THREE screw-ups pass, it didn't even bother to embarrassingly correct the words I thumb-tripped over. But, it also didn't make me say something really weird. (I guess I don't need help in that department.) I also can't type horizontally on my phone so I'm more likely to trip over my stupid thumbs. BUT. I must say, phone blogging could be great when I can't post from my computer for some reason. I can always edit later.

Oooooh Pretty!

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Farm Funs

Teeny, tiny, teensy tomatoes...fingernail sized.

Iowa's largest zucchini and tiniest pickling cucumber

Fresh picked, bee-yo-ti-ful pears

Planted by aliens overnight. It's what they do now instead of crop circles.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Fresh, Farm Art...

Nothing crazy happened at the farm. No creepie-crawlie, shuddery encounters. 

The vegetables were picked and ready to pack. The day was beautiful, almost autumn-like. And after weeks of heat, heat, heat, so welcome. The hundred degree dry wave has taken a toll on the veggies. The tomatoes are beginning to rebound from the heat and will probably continue as there are lots of sets and plenty of time for ripening. With the cooler temperatures there should be some decent picks left. The lettuces will be appearing again, soon. The potatoes are a different story. After some research, the farmer has decided that the uppermost potatoes were nearly cooked in the ground so they were quick to rot. They pulled out a decent yield. Just decent, though, and barely equivalent to what they planted. Then, over the following days potatoes began to turn. The yield shrunk to nominal. But. There hasn't been hail like last year.

The pack was quick and full of delicious items like eggplant, zucchini, cucumbers, onions, garlic, tomatoes, kale and basil.

Picmonkey helped me turn the pictures of the fabulous piles of eggplant into art. Something about the well-used plastic table and the harsh daylight shining on the eggplant, though beautiful, was a little bit stark. 

And, yes, I'm enjoying Picmonkey experimentation. 

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Farming, Farming, Look at That Nasty Thing...

The weather cooperated enough that we were able to harvest sweet corn on Farm day. Yay. The tomatoes have gone slightly dormant with the heat. And for literally two minutes we got a rain storm. A two minute downpour that soaked the parking lots and teased everything else desperate for rain.

But those are just the little details. Here's the big adventure we had at the farm. While checking the organically grown, you know it's organically grown if there is evidence of pests having nibbled, but I digress, corn, & found something.

When I say she found something, I don't mean something innocent, or cute, or ordinary. I mean she found SOMETHING. As you have already correctly judged from the pictures she found something nasty ugly. I've seen this stuff call corn smut. And I've shunned it like the plague that it appears to be. I believe my childhood dreams were haunted by this corn monstrosity many, many nights.

But, get this, the farmer begins educating us on what corn smut is, and actually tells us she's eaten it before and it's tasty. Okay. I'm a major mushroom fan and this kind of piqued my interest. It's edible? Oh, yes, it's a delicacy in many parts of the world. She pulled one off the corn and showed us that it indeed looked like a mushroom under the black, oozy looking covering. So. I tasted it. I took a bite right out of it. And it's good. Tasty, mushroomy. And I am able to, 36 hours later, type this without hallucinating or stumbling around any more than usual in my words. I looked it up on wikepedia...why do I always go there? Anyhoo, I did. And here's the link to Mexican Truffles i.e. corn smut.

I wouldn't try this with non-organically grown corn. But, hey, how often do you get a chance to break off a hunk of ugliness and take a big bite? You only go around once.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Farm Days and Back From Vacay...

Last week was beastly hot. We didn't have the farm experience because we were headed up north for the fourth. And given the 100 temps that were reported to me, I'm not complaining about our choice. 

However, we did miss the produce. Rumor has it the first tomatoes were given to the CSA members. 

Yesterday, the temperature was perfect. Absolutely, perfect. A wee bit warm. But in July we gotta have some serious warm, otherwise it wouldn't even feel like summer, ya know.

The most interesting topic of conversation was bugs. Now, I'm sure most of you are very aware that GMO and pesticide laden produce are not the best items to consume. However, organic has a certain ick factor you just don't see a lot in a grocery store setting. We sat in the sun and partially shucked ears of corn, looking for some ick. And we found some. Corn Borers had visited every other ear. Most were at the top and a simple whack with a butcher knife took care of the problem. Others were buried deep. The farmer summed it up like this. "Let's consider that the occasional creature or evidence of them is like the canary in the mine. Absolute proof that all is well." Meaning that if you see a bug in your CSA box, proof positive that the produce has not been sprayed with poison. And, well, pick your poison. I choose the creepy crawlie poison. I can at least do a Mexican hat dance on them and chop of the evidence of their existence. Pesticides are doing damage within me that I can't see but may have to deal with the evidence of later. 
 

Our farm box contained:

Kohlrabi. (Delicious, snappy and almost the texture of raw potatoes or jicama.)  Sweet corn and TOMATOES. Dinner was pomodoro (tomatoes, garlic, basil) over pasta and with a glorious side of sweet corn. Yummo.

(and not so yummo, other organic product of the bug variety)

And the bunnies. Well. They are stinking cute. See. 

By the way. The stay at the cabin was heavenly. The lake breeze took the edge off the higher than normal temperatures. Other than the 4th of July fireworks mosquito attack, it was fabulous. In Minnesota, mosquitoes are wicked big, band together in swarms, relentless, and come out as the sun goes sets. Bodies pelted us as we tried to get a gander of the fireworks over the water. Note to self: Take a beekeeper suit or mosquito netting to the lake if I want to be out after dark.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Veggie Drawer Mix and Match

Our bounty from the farm gives up plenty of guilt if we don't use it. And plenty of creativity when we need to use it... to avoid the guilt. 

We have discovered that a mix or mish-mash of veggies, a few seeds or nuts, and a few splashes of vinegar make for some very satisfying stir fry meals. 

Garden Veggie Medley

Serves 3 or 4

Chop the veggies you have on hand. 

Night one we used 

five going soft potatoes.

A handful of mushrooms

1/2 an onion (I'm actually humming 12 Days of Christmas as I type this. Just thought I should share that.)

1 Clove of garlic

1 small beet

Five leaves of swiss chard

a handful of peas

2 teaspoons of sesame oil

2TBSP rice vinegar

2 TBSP sesame seeds

Chop all the veggies

Heat up the oil. When the pan is nice and hot, toss in the garlic, onion and potatoes. Get em nice and crispy. Then add the mushrooms, broccoli and cook til tender to your taste buds. Toss in 2 TBSP of vinegar and the swiss chard bits. Finally add the sesame seeds and serve it up.

Veggie Drawer Serendipity

A golden turnip

1/2 a head of cauliflower

The rest of the peas, shelled

1/2 cup of chopped almonds

And broccoli

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 TBSP rice vinegar

2 TBSP sesame seeds

Follow the same instructions. Caramelize the turnips and cauliflower, then add the rest and heat til the veggies are the tenderness level you want. 

Good eats.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Farm Report, Not by Les Nessman

Farm day was a scorcher. 

So, imagine how glad we were when we were assigned "just the pack, ma'am, just the pack."

The farmer and interns were sitting around the packing area, looking at a pile of kohlrabi when we arrived. At 1:30 they all looked like they had used up one of their nine lives. Have I mentioned that the farmer is in her early 60's? Important note. They had been working since 8:30. The temperature was low 90's and there was some pre-hoped-for-rain-humidity in the air. They'd killed beetles and removed damaged leaves. They'd picked, they'd weeded. The farmer made an organic veggie lunch for them and they'd just recharged.

We exchanged niceties and the details of the pack and the washing and box wrangling commenced.  The farmer grabbed her hat and gloves and the twenty-something interns sighed, stood up and grabbed theirs. "Off to pick more kohlrabi." The farmer chirped on her way out. 

An hour later the door opened letting in the blazing sun and bringing women bearing armloads of octopus like veggies. They dumped them, soaked up a little cool air in the cold room, came out into our area wiping their faces on their arms. 

"Ready girls?" The farmer said. In her hand rested two packets of seeds. "It's going to rain tomorrow. I want to get these seeds in." 

The interns followed. I may have seen one mouth "Help Me!" over her shoulder as she exited the protected cocoon. 

This was a long pack. We didn't get home til after 7:00. We packed the last bits of broccoli and early harvest of beans, the last of the snap peas, lettuce, kale, chard, beets, garlic, a kohlrabi or turnip, and some cabbage found it's way into a few boxes. Oh, rhubarb, can't forget that little addition. As I've sung the praises of volunteers benefiting from the less-than-perfect produce extras I took the discarded ends and not so beautiful chunks, and so far I've gotten 8 cups of chopped fruit and I expect to get another pie's worth out of the rest. Three pies for a little elbow grease...Hmmm I think that's a deal. But, as per usual, I digress.

Our box was full. And we worked hard. But we didn't do diddly compared to the farmer and her interns. They came back two more times for seeds. If it was going to rain, by golly, those seeds were going into the ground. They'd gulp water or green tea and scarfed their snacks.  Each time I saw them, they seemed a little more wilted. But not the farmer.

I've mentioned the nibbling that goes on in the garden? The farmer grazes, and we follow her example. I can't back this claim,but I'm pretty sure organic vegetables are super juice and that doing what you love is 220 voltage energy. Gotta be. Because if she didn't love this, the farmer would be insane. 

And the farmer got her beautiful rain. And we will all benefit from her diligent work in a few short weeks. And it's awesome to see tough Iowa stock in action. When I'm 60 I want to make 20-somethings sweat and grow weak in the knees, too. Gotta eat more organic veggies.  

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Well, Mr. Darcy, I Nevah...

Farm day was perfect. 78 degrees, sun, breeze and lots of help. 

Toad Boy was at our house building a bunnie palace and & and I got to the farm a bit later than usual. All the lettuce was done. I can't tell you how nice that was. I've been the chief lettuce washer for the past couple of weeks and that is a job that is tedious. 

We have two interns who are now helping. One has been with us for a couple of weeks and she brought a friend along. They are both in the horticulture program at a local community college. And they seem to love what they are learning and doing. 

More hands makes quicker work and for fun conversations. We ended up getting home in record time. Toad Boy was still hard at work on the palace. We had our delicious Kale and sesame/onion/rice vinegar warm salad and a farm fresh lettuce salad. 

A good day was had by all. Except a few deceased-by-force worms. (Oh, and Elizabeth Bennett Bunny was violated a bit. Seems Mr. Darcy's cuteness fooled & into thinking he'd be a gentleman if she removed the divider between them. Uh. Not so much. He was no gentleman. I even suggested that she change his name to Mr. Wickham. We will cut a hole and add a mesh so they can communicate. I'm pretty sure Elizabeth Bennett Bunny prefers her communication to be longing glances and nose rubs verses the reception she received upon her last visit with Mr. Darcy.)

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Organic Farm Fun... Bless Your Little Pea Picking Heart...

Well, I thought I could fill your minds and thoughts with some rich "root" of meaning for a phrase I have become close with of late. 

Turns out, I can't. So I'll just have to ramble enough that this is worthy of posting, or at least makes you get off the computer and do something of value with your time. You can thank me later. 

Food has wormed (excuse the organic farm pun....) it's way into our very language. In medicine, well, it's pretty cotton pickin disgusting. Coffee ground or cottage cheese are not something you want to see in your medical record. Nor do you really want watermelon flesh. Anyhoo, if you're still hanging onto your cookies, I'll move forward. 

Food phrases... how about bean counter. Hmmm. Bet you've heard that term. Egg on your face.

The phrase that I thought might be rich with deep meaning is Pea pickin... as in the famous and possibly only use "Bless your little pea pickin heart." Ala Tennessee Ernie Ford.

So what the heck does that mean? 

At the farm yesterday I picked some peas. So the recipe for picking peas... Apparently it takes intense 95 degree directly overhead sun. Why? I'm not sure, but I do know that the cool breeze we felt before and after the pea picking was non-existent during. Also, many hands are required. And those many hands can pick 66 pounds (66.4 - says my inner bean counter. Every pea counts. Trust me.) in about 12 hours of woman time. Yup. That's a lot of peas. 

Pea picking also really should require a gymnast or yoga master. Pea plants grow way low as in "how low can you go" low. Peas like to hide in their swirly, viney foliage. So I think I can say that it is painstaking and back painstaking work. 

However, there is a nice benefit. Okay, several. 

One, all the peas you can eat while you work. Okay. That's pretty good. So we probably picked 68 pounds between the five of us. 

And while working side by side the conversation flowed nicely. And not so nicely. Someone I picked with, who won't be named to protect her reputation, was sometimes inappropriate. There was a wee bit of laughter while we worked. A few stories, too. 

So we sweat(sweated, swat????) and laughed and whined and got thoroughly filthy. At one point the farmer got separated from the pack (I think it might have been by choice) and when she rejoined us she said. " You know, while I was over there by myself I was listening to you. I couldn't hear the words most of the time. But, the rhythm of your voices, the laughter, the buzz of conversation, it was just beautiful. I enjoyed my background music very much." 

Sigh. And to think. I never really liked peas very much. Seems like they've wound their little tentacles vines right around my pea picking little heart....which is indeed blessed.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Crittercized

Critters.

nothing to do with critters. a salad named fresh garden salad. ha. ha.

1st handful of raspberries. AMAZING

A few critter experiences of late.  Coincidence? I think not!

Chipmunks have been a problem in Wisconsin. I found a tip for making their homes less welcoming and sent it to our Wisconsin friends. Hopefully, the changes in their environment will mean they'll move to a better location soon. 

Soon to be moving chipmunk?

(The chipmunks, not the people.) 

Spicy front door.

I found a few friendly little critters while at the garden shop in Wisconsin. Mine is now sporting a nice blue stripe that wasn't there when I bought him. Someone, who broke his little neck, wondered why anyone would keep snakes on the floor. I wondered why anyone would walk without looking. But it's all good.

Snakes on the floor = broken necks, who knew.

The farm this week....the lettuce. Well, let's just say critter season is in full bloom. And if you buy organic lettuce at a decent price, you should probably find the farmer who picked it and give him/her a pat on the back, a huge hug, or a jumbo java. Because, if their experiences are anything like mine, they need hugs, pats and java. Let's just say, after I picked the green or white gutted vermin off the lettuce leaves and stomped them over and over again, I got a wee bit queasy. Not tomato worm weirded-out, but, it changed me. 

Not THE squirrel...a country cousin.

Finally, Mrs. Toad Boy (my daughter-in-law) and Toad Boy strolled to a local restaurant and had an encounter with a squirrel. Now, this girl LOVES squirrels. I've seen her stand statue still for a VERRRY long time to get some good pictures of rodents. So, no doubt, when she spied the squirrel she was probably giddy. 

But, then, it started chasing/stalking them. She said they'd stop and look at it and it would veer to one side and become all incognito and pretend that it wasn't following them. But peripherally she'd see it keeping pace and even creepier, gaining on them. She said they sped up and actually rushed the entrance. Heart pounding, feeling like they had escaped an awful fate, and the squirrel, seeing that they got away, went and hid behind a car and peeked at the door.  Was it waiting for them to come out? 

She said the walk home was a little tense, especially down the block where the incident occurred. They did arrive home unscathed but a little shaky. Methinks her squirrel picture taking days will include a catcher's mask and some leggings now. 

Watch your backs, people. That's all I'm going to say. 

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Sigh. Nuff Said...

Oh, perfect day at the farm. 

Sunny, glorious. And we got out of there at a decent time so I had evening left in my day. Rob joined us again. I'm thinking he's hooked. Especially since every time I turned around he was tasting something, or volunteering to be the one who tasted it. 

He and I got to take a little hike to the high tunnel to search for the farmer. She took the high road while we were on the low road and arrived right after we left.  (There are technically three roads that lead to the high tunnel, each challenging in it's own special way. ) But we didn't miss out by missing her, Rob got to eat a pea pod fresh off the vine and I was able to show him the blooming tomatoes we had planted just a few weeks ago. It was a gorgeous afternoon for a walk.

& and Aunt HarHarHar went out earlier and they got the pick done and the pack started and the farmer served lunch. Radish sandwiches. Bread. Thin sliced radishes and butter or Earth Balance. Apparently they are delicious. I'll no doubt rave when we try this at home. 

The side was kale, chopped carrots, a garlic clove minced a bit of oil and a healthy splash of rice vinegar sauteed into deliciousness. This was recreated at home for dinner. 

Look at the haul. A garlic scape (the curly growth from, wait for it, garlic.) Cauliflower, broccoli, plus lettuces, kales, chard, radishes. So, so tasty.