CSA Share: Week 19

Want to know a sure sign of autumn? I bet you’re thinking about that cute little pumpkin right? Well, kind of. But I was thinking more along the lines of my skin going crazy. Seriously, every time the season turns from summer to fall and winter to spring my skin harkens back to my teenage youth, breaking out uncontrollably. I’d be searching for acne cures if I didn’t know it was so short-lived. Hopefully it will all balance out soon.

But on to more exciting fall happenings, like yesterday’s farm share. Yes! We got another pie pumpkin. It is almost too cute to eat, but eat it we will, especially since I still have last week’s. I borrowed a Shaker cookbook from the library and it has an interesting recipe for baked pumpkin. I think I might try that. I also got a head of lettuce, carrots, fennel, zucchini (last of the season… sniff!), radishes, a delicata squash (so yummy), Japanese eggplant, garlic, broccoli, cabbage (which I chose over beans), turnips (which I chose over beets), peppers, tomatoes, onions, and PYO flowers and herbs. I just took a bit of basil and a bit of cilantro.

All in all, this will be a really easy share to use up. While I was hoping there’d be butternut squash for the choosing this week (I know they picked some!), I’m still happy with the delicata. That variety is so delicious and buttery! I had no idea how much I loved squash until I met this guy. The funniest part is, I remember one night when I was a kid (maybe I was nine or ten?), and I had this blob of mashed squash on my plate and I thought it was just the grossest thing ever. Mom didn’t usually give us veggies that we hated, but I think I was being especially nasty that day 😉 At any rate, I do love squash now. I still have the daikon radish from last week. Maybe I’ll slice it up along with radishes, the last zucchini, broccoli, and some carrot sticks this weekend and serve it with a yogurt dip to nibble on one afternoon. I think I’ll be playing it mostly by ear.

It was a little sad to wear my wool sweater to the farm yesterday, see the leaves falling from the trees, and to see the crops turning and realize that harvest season is winding down. I learned so much about storage and preservation this summer, though. And I also tried quite a few veggies I was unfamiliar with, but discovered that I love (kohlrabi, for example). But it’s not over quite yet, so I’ll enjoy the next couple weeks.