Farm News November 14, 2023
Please note our Fall Farmstand Hours:
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Tuesday & Thursday: 2 - 5:30 PM (closing an hour earlier)
Saturday: 9 am - 12:30 pm (opening 1 hour later)
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*Our Last Farmstand day is November 21 *
Stay tuned for online ordering and on-farm pickup information!
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Fort Hill Farm Winter Schedule:
FARMERS' MARKETS:
New Milford Farmers' Market
Saturdays from 9 - Noon
-through Nov. 18
Westport Farmers' Market
Thursdays from 10 AM - 2 PM
-Now indoors at Gilbertie's!
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This week’s Farm News is brought to you by Elliott McGann. As Farm Operations Manager, Elliott can be seen flitting about the farm, setting up tasks, leading crews, and working hard to keep the Fort Hill terrace well watered. It’s a big job, and Elliott keeps a cool head and a humorous tongue. Elliott writes:
Our big project the last 10 days has been getting the garlic crop planted. In another sign of our warming climate here in New Milford, we delayed planting about a week from the traditional time (the very beginning of November). This was in order to prevent early emergence and potential damage from cold weather over the winter.
We give these many, many cloves the royal treatment after planting.
This year we planted around 18,000 cloves of garlic, each one coming from a bulb of 5-7 cloves that we crack by hand (“popping” in farm parlance). This is one of the few jobs on the farm that the crew can do sitting down in a heated space, and it is an activity that is looked forward to each year. Planting garlic is kind of like baking a cake. First we spread compost and fertilizer and mix it in, then we plant the garlic cloves and finally we put down a layer of leaves and straw to protect the garlic from winter cold and to prevent the emergence of spring weeds. Bake for 8 months and voila! Garlic!
Hopeful little spinach seedlings sitting pretty in an unheated greenhouse.
The other preoccupation we had this week was preparing for the extremely cold nights we had this weekend. For some reason the low temperatures at the farm can sometimes be up to 8 degrees lower than forecasted. So while the National Weather Service predicted a low of 24 for Saturday night and 22 for Sunday we ended up hitting 18 and 16 degrees respectively. But we had plenty of time to plan ahead so we were able to finish harvesting crops that needed to come in and were able to put down extra layers of protective row cover on crops that needed to stay in the field. For example, the air temperature under the protected lettuce crop was 35 degrees, almost 20 degrees warmer than outside!
The aftermath of frost irrigation on the flower on the night that wiped them out.
As we come to the conclusion of this season and near Thanksgiving I would like to give thanks to the wonderful staff here at Fort Hill Farm who work very hard to grow the produce that you all have been enjoying. Whether it’s hot, cold, raining, sleeting, dusty or muddy they have been getting the job done and it is an honor to work with them.
Also a huge thanks to all the customers who come out every week to support the farm. This is my 10th season at Fort Hill Farm and it has been a pleasure getting to know many of you over the years and to see new faces become regular visitors to the farm stand or markets. Your enjoyment of the farm and kind words are very much appreciated by myself and the crew.
Elliott McGann, for the Fort Hill Farm crew
Featured veg:
Salad Mix: While it’s easy to overlook that which is right in front of us (as salad mix has been since early May), we must not forget that the season (mid-November) makes this crop a precious commodity! We lean on these hand cut, bite-size greens when a no-fuss salad is preferred. Our salad mix requires just a bit of care on your part: To prepare, wash the greens and then spin dry in a salad spinner, and either store them in the spinner or move to a clean, dry, covered bowl in the fridge for up to 6 days. Do not store salad or spinach for more than three days in the vented greens bag.
Escarole: This underrated green gets better with the cold temps. If you like bitters, it’s there for you in the form of a fresh salad, textured and layered with pears, nuts and a strong cheese like blue cheese or Pecorino. If it’s comfort food you seek, let it mellow and deepen in flavor in a pot of escarole and beans or, alternatively, sauté it with herbs for a real treat. Give escarole a try!
Also available:
Head lettuce; salad mix; pea shoots; curly and lacinato kale; collards; baby bok choy; red and French Breakfast radish; leeks; celeriac; parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme; fennel; escarole; German Extra Hardy garlic; red, gold, and Chioggia beets; carrots; jalapeño, poblano, and shishito peppers; Dark Red Norland potatoes; La Ratte gold fingerlings; Pinto Gold fingerlings, Kennebec all-purpose potatoes; Satina Gold potatoes; fresh, young ginger, sweet potatoes, Butternut squash, Koginut squash; Brussels sprouts; parsnips; sweet winter spinach
Coming Soon:
After Thanksgiving: weekly order and pickup at the farm! Westport continues indoors at Gilberties.
Pick Your Own:
PERENNIAL HERBS:
chives, oregano, sage, and thyme
Recipes
Suggested by Rebecca Batchie
For more recipes, check out the Fort Hill Farm Recipe Database
BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND BRUSSELS SPROUTS PANZANELLA
By Lidia Bastianich
Ingredients
1 POUND BRUSSELS SPROUTS, TRIMMED AND HALVED
1 SMALL BUTTERNUT SQUASH, QUARTERED, SEEDED, AND CUT INTO 1-INCH CHUNKS (ABOUT 1 1/4 POUNDS)
3/4 CUP EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
2 TEASPOONS CHOPPED FRESH THYME
KOSHER SALT AND FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER
1/2 CUP DRIED CRANBERRIES
10 OUNCES DAY-OLD WHOLE-GRAIN BREAD, TOUGH CRUSTS REMOVED, CUT INTO 1-INCH CUBES (ABOUT 6 CUPS)
1/2 CUP TOASTED CHOPPED WALNUTS
1/4 CUP BALSAMIC OR CIDER VINEGAR
6 CUPS LOOSELY PACKED BABY KALE, *OPTIONAL
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees with a baking sheet on the bottom rack. Toss the Brussels sprouts, and squash in a large bowl. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil. Sprinkle with the thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and several grinds of pepper. Spread on the baking sheet, roast until tender, tossing halfway through, about 25 to 30 minutes. Let the vegetables cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
While the vegetables are roasting, put the cranberries in a small bowl, and add hot water to cover. Let soak until reconstituted, about 10 minutes. Drain, reserve soaking water.
Put the warm vegetables in a large bowl with the bread, walnuts, and cranberries. Drizzle with the vinegar and the remaining 6 tablespoons olive oil. (If the bread is dry, sprinkle with a little of the soaking water). Let the bread soak up the juices, about 10 minutes. If using, add the kale, season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Toss and serve.
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