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March Roars into the Farm

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March Roars into the Farm
Reminders & Announcements
  • We are delivering to Winter Produce and Egg Share members today (Tuesday) and Thursday. We are also delivering eggs purchased through our Egg Sale.
  • Winter Produce Shares are packed into wax boxes for protection from the winter weather. Please return any CSA boxes you may have so we can continue to reuse, thank you! 
  • Important Dates:
    • Upcoming Winter Share Deliveries: 
      • Tuesday, March 19 and Thursday, March 21
      • Tuesday, April 2 and Thursday, April 4
    • Spring Vegetable and Egg Shares - Begin April 29th
    • Spring Plant Sale and Farm Open House - Saturday, May 11th, 10am-2pm, Prairie Crossing Farm
This Week's Produce Harvest:
  • Winter Spinach 
  • Russet Potatoes - from Igl Farms, Antigo, WI
  • Carrots
  • Rutabaga
  • Yellow Onions
  • Fresh Ginger (frozen)
  • Bell Peppers (frozen)
  • Tart Cherries (frozen, pitted) - from Mick Klug Farm, St. Joseph, MI
*All items are grown / produced by us unless otherwise indicated.
Farm Photo Journal
Good morning from the farm!
Long days of sunshine have returned to the farm. We've hit 12 hour day lengths, and there's a noticeably higher sun in the sky. We think about March in the same way that we think about October. We're filled with appreciation for the season at hand and with anticipation for the next season to come. In October, we're ready to slow down after the hot, long days of summer. In March, we're filled with excitement to "spring" into a higher speed in the mild, muddy fields.
While we wait for fields to thaw, we work mostly indoors. Last week, Jeff seeded radishes and salad turnips into the hoophouse. These are our first spring crops we plan to have ready in late April for spring CSA members!
Tyler and Mark don short sleeves as they seed flat after flat in the sunny greenhouse. In the past two weeks alone, they've seeded thousands swiss chard, tomatoes, bok choy and lettuce seeds.
Jen visits partner farms to source farm products for our CSA members and deliver Prairie Wind farm produce to partners. Our bountiful rutabaga crop made it to chefs in Chicago through a partnership with Frillman Farms, who helps to deliver our produce to chefs interested in both of our farms' organic, local products.
Outside, the beauty and art that is created in winter ice and snow remind us to be patient. We captured a picture of the ice slowly slipping off of the chicken wire, holding a hexagonal shape in the process.
The remains of field crops slowly become "green manure" for our fields, providing organic matter that will give nutrients back to the soil.
Sunshine slowly melts snow from the tops of hoophouses as the sunlight and warmth are welcomed by the spring spinach and onion crops beneath.
We also take time for a winter walk along the quiet, icy beach. We listen as our boys chatter on about the traditional spring activities around the farm like welcoming our new crew, catching frogs and playing in rain puddles. We're all ready to get muddy again.

Have a great week!

Your farmers,

Jeff, Jen, Owen, Gavin and the farm crew
Notes from the Farm Kitchen
Ginger is a tropical plant that we grow in our hoophouses throughout the summer and its one of the first crops we seed in the greenhouse. The seed ginger comes from the Hawaii and will arrive in the next week or two. As soon as it arrives, we will plant the ginger pieces into flats in our greenhouse. Throughout the summer, we tend to the crop by weeding, adding compost, watering, and we hill the beds to keep the ginger bulbs protected and allow them to continue to grow taller. When the plants are nearly waist-high, we dig an experimental patch to see the size of the treasure beneath. Members will receive frozen fresh ginger this week, which is simple to use as you needn't peel or wash. Simply remove frozen ginger from the package, microplane or grate the ginger to whatever portion you need and then, reseal and freeze the remaining portion for later use. I add ginger to everything from baked goods to hot tea to stir-fries to my morning oatmeal. Enjoy the taste of summer!
Farm Kitchen Recipes

Tart Cherry Clafoutis
1 cup milk
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups tart cherries
Handful of sliced almonds
 
Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and butter until the sugar is dissolved. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into a cast iron skillet. Add tart cherries. Bake until the clafoutis is beautifully puffed and golden, 35–40 minutes. Sprinkle almonds on top. Serve immediately.
(adapted from epicurious.com)
 
Rutabaga Noodles Cacio e Pepe - Rutabaga is has less starch than many root vegetables making it a great choice for a vegetable-noodle.
1 large rutabaga
9 tbsp. cold butter, divided
¼ cup finely minced shallot
10 whole black peppercorns
¼ cup dry white wine
¼ cup heavy cream
½ tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste
Grated pecorino or parmigiano cheese, to taste
Fresh-ground black pepper
Minced chives, for garnish
 
Prepare the rutabaga noodles: Remove the thick, brown outer layer of the rutabaga with a paring knife or a sturdy vegetable peeler. Shave the rutabaga into thin ribbons using a mandoline or a vegetable peeler. (It may be necessary to cut the rutabaga into halves or quarters to do this more easily.) Cut the rutabaga ribbons lengthwise into half-inch strips, and, if you like, square off the ends.
 
Make the beurre blanc: Cut 8 tablespoons of the butter into chunks and set aside in a cool place. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a medium saucepan and stir in the shallots and peppercorns. Cook, stirring, for about one minute, until the shallots are aromatic but not beginning to brown. Add the wine and cook until almost entirely reduced, with about two tablespoons remaining. Add the cream and salt and reduce again. (If the pan looks too dry, stir in a tablespoon or two of water.) Add the remaining chilled butter, one piece at a time, stirring briskly with a wire whisk with each addition, continuing to whisk until the sauce is shiny and thick. Strain out the solids (or keep the shallots and just fish out the whole peppercorns). Taste and add more salt, if necessary. Cover and keep the beurre blanc warm over low heat until the rutabaga pasta is ready.

Bring a pot of unsalted water to a boil. Add the rutabaga noodles and blanch for 3 minutes, until just barely softened. Strain the noodles and add them to the pot with the warm beurre blanc. Raise the heat to medium and gently toss the tagliatelle in the butter sauce until the noodles are softened and the sauce clings to each strand, about 4-5 minutes. Serve topped with grated cheese, freshly ground black pepper, and a sprinkle of chives.
(from NewYorker.com)
 
Carrot, Ginger and Apple Muffins
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 eggs
1 tablespoon finely minced ginger
½ cup grapeseed oil
½ cup maple syrup + 1 1/2 tablespoon
1 cup Greek yogurt
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup diced apple (I used honeycrisp)
2 handfuls pepitas

Pre-heat oven to 350F, and set rack to the center of the over. Whisk together all dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. In another bowl, combine oil, eggs, vanilla, ginger, and greek yogurt and mix until smooth, then add in the diced apples and shredded carrots. Be sure to squeeze out excess water from carrots if needed. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a spoon or spatula until just combined. Be sure to not over mix the batter. Then, divide batter evenly amongst 12 cupcake liners. Sprinkle with pepitas to decorate. Leave in tray for a few minutes, and then transfer to a cooling rack
(adapted from Food52.com)
Next Share's Harvest (our best guess)...frozen tomatoes, carrots, cornmeal, winter spinach, tart cherries and more!

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