spring csa

Spring CSA 2024: Bag Five

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Bag 5 of the Spring CSA should include the following: Ramps! fiddleheads, Mizuna, potatoes, cabbage, leeks, turnip, bok choi, lettuce or mesclun mix, pink onions, carrots…and we are trying really hard to get our hydroponic strawberries in the bag too!!! Please note that the weekly photo is not an exact depiction of what is in your share, but rather a reference image.

This looks like a phenomenal soup and stir fry bag!

The weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

If you cannot recycle or reuse them, we are accepting returned CSA bags.  Please be sure that returned bags are clean and in good condition.

Spring CSA schedule:  We will see you in TWO WEEKS for your next bounty of Spring bag. The schedule is also on our website calendar.

Saturdays:  March 9, March 23, April 6, April 20, May 4, May 18, June 1

  • Jamaica Plain, 12-3pm

Sundays:  March 10, March 24, April 7, April 21, May 5, May 19, June 2

  • Lunenburg, 12-1pm

Thursdays:  March 14, March 28, April 11, April 25, May 9, May 23, June 6

  • Boston (Boston Public Market) 12-5pm
  • Brookline (Beals Street) 1-6pm
  • Watertown (City Hall) 12:30-1pm
  • Natick (Princeton Rd) 1:30-6pm
  • Worcester (Deadhorse Hill Restaurant) 5-9pm
  • Hardwick (Still Life Farm) 4-6pm
  • New Braintree (Stillman’s Farm) 12-6pm
Ramps on toast
Spring Ramps

Weekly Featured Item: Ramps

Sometimes called Wild Leeks, Ramps are our native wild allium. They are related to garlic and onions and can be enjoyed in anything you wanted that flavor profile in. I think of them more like leeks because I love them sautéed in butter and served up with scrambled eggs. Simply trim off the roots, rinse carefully, and use the entire stem and leaf. Sautee whole or chop them up, it’s all good. Ramps are high in vitamins A and C.  Our ramps have been sourced from a partner farm in the Connecticut Valley (that’s still in MA) that sustainably harvests these delightful alliums.

Wild Ramp and Swiss Chard Pesto from Domestic Dreamboat

With a rich, garlicky flavor and thick, spreadable texture, this Wild Ramp and Swiss Chard Pesto is a great springtime addition to all your favorite foods.

  • ½ cup walnuts
  • 4 ounces Swiss chard, washed
  • 2 ounces wild ramps, cleaned, root ends trimmed
  • ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  • tap here
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Toast walnuts in a small, dry skillet over medium heat until they are lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from heat and cool.

Coarsely chop the Swiss chard leaves and stems and the ramps. Add them both to the bowl of a food processor with the walnuts, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Process until everything is finely chopped, about 10-15 seconds. Slowly stream in the olive oil until the mixture forms a thick paste, using a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Serve with pasta, as a sandwich spread, as a raw vegetable dip, or in any other way you think might be delicious. One of my favorite ways to eat it is spread on crusty toast with a fried egg on top. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a week, or freeze.

Fiddleheads

Second featured item 🙂  Fiddleheads

As Spring is fully upon us we don’t want to miss the short season for fiddleheads either.

This local delicacy is best described as the “tightly coiled tips of early spring ostrich ferns with a tender texture and mild nutty flavor”.  Stillman’s Farm has sustainably foraged for some of your fiddleheads, and the rest are coming from our partner farm in the CT valley.  Fiddleheads are best simply eaten as a spring side, sautéed with EVOO/butter and lemon.

Preparation and cooking are important when dealing with this spring treat.  To prepare, remove any papery brown skin and trim away any brown stem ends.  Soak thoroughly in water to remove any dirt or grit.  Fiddleheads contain a toxin that can cause mild stomach discomfort, so they must be cooked thoroughly.  To cook, boil or steam for 10-15 minutes.  Then blanch in cold water to avoid overcooking.  After that you can do whatever you like with them, but a simple sauté with EVOO/butter and lemon will really allow their mild spring flavor to shine.

For more information and recipes check out “The Spruce Eats”.

Hardy cold crops being transplanted into the field.
Farmer Glenn seeing flats of vegetables.
The SLF crew picking Hakurei turnips out of the cold frame greenhouse.

Farm Dirt

Stillman’s Farm. Seed! Till! Plant!  Rinse and repeat. We are still doing loads of transplanting in the greenhouses AND we are transplanting outside now too. The most exciting time (and stressful for weather reasons) is the actual planting. When those plants go in the ground, they not only free up space for new plants in the greenhouse, but they have also made it to their final growing destination, which is the exciting part – PLUS it is very rewarding to see the beautifully grown plants we have been fussing over all Spring get into the ground. Any of you who garden know how satisfying planting is on a number of levels.  We have plants at the JP and BPM markets, but a drive out to the New Braintree farm is worth the trip.  Looks like we will have plenty of baskets ready for Mother’s Day and for those who aren’t into hanging baskets, we have loads of herbs, veggies, and colorful annuals.

The other exciting and stressful event on the farm is the peaches are blooming! We had a couple nights that were in the danger zone for causing damage, but I think we are mostly okay. Now we need to focus on it warming up and not dropping into sub freezing weather 😉

Still Life Farm.  The first of our H2A labor, has arrived back at the farm and our farm crew is busier than ever with spring projects, picking, planting, pruning, and more. Our new greenhouses have been delivered and are waiting to be erected. The NRCS archeologist visited the proposed greenhouse site to ensure that we were not building on anything particularly special. We’re rocking and rolling with spring crops in our already existing greenhouses, including zucchini, cucumbers, beets, scallions, herbs, greens, and more. The orchards and berries are in full bloom and the bees are out in numbers. I saw a beautiful orange oriole flying out of the fully blooming cherry orchard this morning – very vibrant!

And…Winter CSA 2024-25 Membership Drive.  Sign up by June 1, 2024 and save money with our Early Bird Discount!  Still Life Farm CSA

Eat well & love your food,

Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) & Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) 

Spring landscape at Still Life Farm.

Spring CSA 2024: Bag Three

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Spring CSA Bag Three is headed to you!

This week’s bag should include the following:

  • shredded savoy cabbage
  • micro greens
  • basil (or some other herb)
  • swiss chard
  • “farmer’s choice” greens: either spinach, red mustard, wasabi mustard, bok choi)
  • red onion
  • parsnips
  • carrots
  • celeriac
  • potatoes – French fingerlings
  • eggs (from our friends in New Braintree, MA)

Correct storage of the items in your CSA share is the key to successfully eating seasonally.  Here is a Storage Cheat Sheet that I hand out with Winter CSA that also applies to Spring CSA.  Check it out if you need storage tips.

This weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

If you cannot recycle or reuse them, we are accepting returned CSA bags.  Please be sure that returned bags are clean and in good condition.

We will see you in TWO WEEKS for your next bounty of Spring bag. The spring CSA schedule is also on our website calendar.

Saturdays:

March 9, March 23, April 6, April 20, May 4, May 18, June 1
Jamaica Plain, 12-3pm

Sundays:

March 10, March 24, April 7, April 21, May 5, May 19, June 2
Lunenburg, 12-1pm

Thursdays:

March 14, March 28, April 11, April 25, May 9, May 23, June 6
Boston (Boston Public Market) 12-5pm
Brookline (Beals Street) 1-6pm
Watertown (City Hall) 12:30-1pm
Natick (Princeton Rd) 1:30-6pm
Worcester (Deadhorse Hill Restaurant) 5-9pm
Hardwick (Still Life Farm) 4-6pm
New Braintree (Stillman’s Farm) 12-6pm

Stir fry made with shredded cabbage, carrots, and daikon radish
Stir fry – the raw ingredients

Spinach Basil Frittata (you can also substitute mustard or bok choi)

  • 6 large eggs beaten with S&P
  • Spinach
  • Basil
  • onions/shallot/scallions
  • Garlic
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Olive oil
  • grated/shredded cheese(optional)


Pre-heat your oven to 350℃
Sauté garlic and whatever form of onions you are using in oil in a large oven-proof pan until golden. Turn heat to low, sauté spinach gently until wilted.
Distribute the veg evenly around the pan, and slowly pour the egg over it. Top it with your fresh basil, turn the heat to medium, this is where I move the veg around in the pan a little to make sure the egg is settling in around everything. After the egg begins to set up, sprinkle optional cheese over the top and put the pan in the oven. It should be set up completely in 5-10 minutes, egg cooked in the middle. Enjoy with a salad!

Running the below again because you have shredded cabbage this week! If you are not feeling the slaw, then whip up a stirfry?

Genevieve’s Go-to Slaw Dressing

Simple, simple, simple: To 1/3 cup cider vinegar add 1/2 tsp kosher salt (sea salt would be good too), a bunch of black pepper, a fat TB of Dijon or spicy brown mustard, 1/2 tsp celery seed (if you like); slowly whisk in 1/2 cup oil (something light, I use canola or safflower), Toss over anything shredded: kohlrabi, radish, cabbage, carrot, apple…

Baked Risotto with Greens

  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 small onion, minced
  • 1 cup arborio rice
  • 1 3/4 cups low-salt vegetable or chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup tomato sauce (jarred pasta sauce will do)
  • 3/4 cup grated parmesan or pecorino cheese
  • 1 bunch greens such as kale, beet greens, or chard, stems removed, washed and coarsely chopped (about 4 cups)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400. In 1-quart baking dish, combine oil and onion over moderate heat. Cook until onion is soft, 3-4 minutes. Add rice, stir to coat with oil, and cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken stock, tomato sauce, and greens, and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Turn off heat. Add half the cheese and smooth out the top with the back of a spoon. Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover and bake for 30-35 minutes, until rice is cooked through and has absorbed most of the liquid. Should be moist but not soupy.
Erica Fletcher (adapted from Patricia Wells’ Trattoria cookbook)

Sautéed Mustard Greens
Rinse leaves, let them stay wet, chop loosely. Add a splash of olive oil to skillet over medium-high heat, toss in a couple crushed garlic cloves and pinch of red pepper flakes, cook until garlic starts to brown, to infuse with flavor, then discard the garlic. Add in the mustard and sprinkle with salt. Cover and cook until tender (a couple of minutes), drizzle with balsamic and enjoy!

Yummy Dressing for Kale Salad

  • ¼ cup EVOO
  • 3 Tb apple cider vinegar
  • 1 Tb Dijon mustard
  • 1 Tb maple syrup
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 Tb white wine vinegar
  • 1Tb white wine
  • S&P to taste

Pour this over your chopped kale and massage in. Add some sliced red onion, slivered almonds, shaved carrot…

Greens Sauteed with Garlic, Raisins and Pine Nuts

Crocuses opening
Farmer Curt seeding spring radish
Transplanting tomato seedlings

Farm Dirt:

Well, the crocus and tête a têtes and phlox WERE pretty on Easter…covered with ice and snow at the moment. Looks like the weather will warm next week (today is the 5th) and we can get to plowing fields.

Stillman’s Farm.  The seed potatoes have arrived! We are looking forward to plowing something besides snow and putting down the first plastic. Then we can actually start planting the potatoes and getting peas in the ground! We depend on the plastic mulch to prevent weed seeds in the soil from germinating and competing with the actual planted crop. Weeds not only take up the nutrients in the soil, but take extra water (hmmm, maybe could be useful!!!!), light and aeration away from the desired plant. The alternative to plastic is mechanical or chemical weed control. The creation of genetically modified or engineered organisms is partially a response to effective and more economical weed control. Just to recap what you already know, we do not grow any GMO anything here and we use, at much higher expense, plastic and/or manpower to keep the weeds at bay; this is why we could never compete with big ag and why, back to potatoes, we cannot compete with price. It is important to us to continue to conscientiously grow with integrity and offer not only safe produce, BUT THE MOST DELICIOUS!…that goes for SLF farm too.

Fun fact: we get a lot of questions about whether we spray our crops with gramoxone (Roundup is a popular brand).  No, we don’t. One would have to be growing GMO, gramoxone-ready crops to be able to spray over them with gramoxone. We don’t have a crop on the farm that would not die if we sprayed it with a non-selective herbicide/plant killer.

Still Life Farm: Busy pruning orchards, seeding in the greenhouse, transplanting crops into the greenhouse for Spring CSA and transplanting seedlings into the grow house. General farm cleanup activities like pulling plastic, burning brush, garden cleanup and of course, shoveling and snow plowing this week, sigh.

Eat well & love your food,

Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) & Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm)

Spring CSA 2024: Bag Two

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Spring CSA Bag Two should include the following:

  • Onions 
  • Sweet Potatoes
  • Fingerling Potatoes – great roasted
  • Purple-top Turnips – roasted, soups, au gratin recipes
  • Hakurei Turnips – sliced fresh in salads or lightly cooked in stir fry
  • Beets – my favorite way to prepare is wrapped in foil and roasted
  • Swiss Chard
  • Curly Green Kale
  • Spinach
  • Mesclun Salad Greens
  • Apples (Cortland and Macoun)
  • Fresh Greens (cilantro or Italian parsley)

If you are eating with us for Spring CSA, you are really getting to the nitty-gritty of farm food and seasonal eating.  Eating local and seasonal during the early spring means lots of overwintered roots, apples, and squashes.  We have the additional luxury of greens coming out of our high tunnels and greenhouses!

Correct storage of the items in your CSA share is the key to successfully eating seasonally.  Here is a Storage Cheat Sheet that I hand out with Winter CSA that also applies to Spring CSA.  Check it out if you need storage tips.

This weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

We will see you in TWO WEEKS for your next bounty of Spring bag. The schedule is also on our website calendar.

Saturdays:

March 9, March 23, April 6, April 20, May 4, May 18, June 1
Jamaica Plain, 12-3pm

Sundays:

March 10, March 24, April 7, April 21, May 5, May 19, June 2
Lunenburg, 12-1pm

Thursdays:

March 14, March 28, April 11, April 25, May 9, May 23, June 6
Boston (Boston Public Market) 12-5pm
Brookline (Beals Street) 1-6pm
Watertown (City Hall) 12:30-1pm
Natick (Princeton Rd) 1:30-6pm
Worcester (Deadhorse Hill Restaurant) 5-9pm
Hardwick (Still Life Farm) 4-6pm
New Braintree (Stillman’s Farm) 12-6pm

Sweet potato harvest at Still Life Farm – October 2023.
Swiss chard harvest in our unheated high tunnel.

Sweet Potatoes and Greens!

We’re at the strange time of year when we are still eating “storage” produce BUT we have lots of spring greens coming from the greenhouses.  How lucky are we that it’s March in New England and we have access to BOTH?!?

Pictured above you can see Still Life Farm’s sweet potato harvest from October 2023 – those are the same sweet potatoes that you have in Spring CSA Bag Two!  Sweet potatoes are a wonderful storage crop and are good for you – these high fiber roots are packed with antioxidants and vitamin A.

At our farms we have invested a lot of resources into greenhouses and high tunnels for season extension. This is really paying off.  We are now able to supply our customers with fresh greens year-round, even in the deep winter and the early cool months of spring.  And the greens are coming in hot, so get eating – Spring CSA Bag Two contains salad mix, spinach, Swiss chard, kale, AND fresh herbs – ALL these are coming from the greenhouses. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you the numerous benefits of eating your dark leafy greens, they are many.  Eating like kings – even in March!

Sweet Potato & Black Bean Burritos from Flourish Farm.

  • 1 lb. ground meat
  • 3 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp EVOO
  • 2 cups cooked black beans (or one can)
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 8 flour tortillas (or corn, as you choose)
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Heat oil in a large fry pan and sauté onions and sweet potatoes until tender.  Add water as needed to keep from sticking.  Add black beans, cumin, cinnamon, and salt, then cook until heated through.  Spoon this mixture evenly into tortillas, top with cheese and roll up.  Place in a lightly oiled 9×13-inch baking dish.  Cover with foil and back at 350 degrees F for about 25 minutes until warmed through.  Serve with your favorite garnish: salsa, fresh cilantro, sour cream.

Hearty Lentil Soup from Edible Pioneer Valley, Winter 2016.

  • 3/4 cup lentils
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 3 Tablespoons EVOO
  • 2 medium onions, diced
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 3/4 teaspoon coriander
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons flour
  • 1 large bunch collards, stemmed and thinly sliced crosswise (I used Swiss chard, but you could literally substitute any type of cooking green)
  • 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
  • 3/4 pounds potatoes, quartered
  • juice of one lemon

Place the lentils, 1 tsp of salt, and 6 cups of water (I substituted chicken stock) in a large pot.  Bring to boil, reduce heat, simmer for 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, in a large pan over medium heat, warm the EVOO.  Add onions, remaining salt, pepper, and coriander (I also added some chopped carrots). Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are well-browned and caramelized, about 15 minutes.  Add garlic and cook 1 minute, then add flour, collards, and cilantro (I chopped the whole bunch, stems and all), and cook, stirring occasionally, until the greens have wilted, about two minutes.  Stir the onion mixture into the pot with the lentils.  Spoon a bit of broth from the soup into the empty pan and use to deglaze pan, scraping up any brown bits.  Add the mixture to the soup.  Stir in the potatoes and lemon juice and return the soup to a simmer.  Continue to cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Stillman’s Farm – Reid and Kirsten seeding heirloom tomatoes.
Still Life Farm – Kip checking out the spring radishes Curt direct seeded into the high tunnel.

Farm Dirt:

Stillman’s Farm.  Seeding is in full swing.  Glenn has been working away all week, seeding over 1,000 trays of tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers.  Reid and Kirsten were able to get the extensive heirloom tomato collection organized and seeded.  The first group of H2A Jamaican labor – Merrick, Melbourne, and Ali – have returned to the farm.  The forward motion of spring is upon us!

If you are planning your gardens, Stillman’s Farm has lots in store for you later this Spring. Genevieve has many available seedlings listed online, be sure to check out what’s available.  For the best selection be sure to schedule a trip to the New Braintree farm to pick out all your seedling needs!

Still Life Farm. We have just wrapped up our winter farmers markets, we were absolutely delighted to be vendors at both the Wayland Winter Farmers Market AND the West Brookfield Winter Farmers Market – it was a fabulous winter season!  Now it’s on to spring planning.  With such a busy winter, we have gotten a bit behind on farm projects, so we are working hard to knock those out while we have some “down time” in March and April.  We’ve seeded quite a few flats of early crops, including all the alliums, tomatoes, peppers, hardy herbs, and special crops just for the Spring CSA.

Our town of Hardwick is being put through the wringer yet again (remember the Racetrack issue???).  Now Casella Waste is proposing to put a 45-acre regional landfill in town.  If approved, the landfill will be just over a mile from the Quabbin Reservoir – the water supply for the greater Boston area and an increasing number of other towns in MA.  The horror of hosting a regional landfill in our right-to-farm town is unimaginable and risks damaging our town of Hardwick and the many surrounding farming communities.  Curt and I have been spending ample time on this new development.  Please stay tuned, it is likely that we will need help from you our customers one more time in order to keep Hardwick farming.  More to come on this…

So, that’s some “farm dirt” from two of your two favorite farms.

As always, thanks for choosing to eat local with us – our customers are the best!

Eat well & love your food,

Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) & Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) 

Spring flowers bursting into color at Still Life Farm.

Spring CSA 2023 – Bag 5

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Bag 5/Week 9 of the Spring CSA should include the following: Ramps! Spinach, Swiss Chard, Mesclun Mix OR Bok Choi, Fresh Herbs (Cilantro, Dill, OR Chives), Sweet Potato, Parsnips, Carrots, Beets OR Spring Radishes, Apples (Gala?), Potatoes (Magic Molly OR Purple Peru), Onions, and Pinto Beans. Please note that the weekly photo is not an exact depiction of what is in your share, but rather a reference image.

The weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

If you cannot recycle or reuse them, we are accepting returned CSA bags.  Please be sure that returned bags are clean and in good condition.

We will see you in TWO WEEKS for your next bounty of Spring bag. The schedule is also on our website calendar.

Saturdays:

 April 15, April 29, May 13, May 27
Jamaica Plain, 12-3pm

Sundays:

April 30, May 14, May 28
Lunenburg, 12-1pm

Thursdays:

May 4, May 18, June 1
Boston (Boston Public Market) 12-6pm
Brookline (Beals Street) 1-6pm
Watertown (City Hall) 12:30-1pm
Natick (Princeton Rd) 1:30-6pm
Worcester (Deadhorse Hill Restaurant) 5-9pm
Hardwick (Still Life Farm) 4-6pm
New Braintree (Stillman’s Farm) 12-6pm

Spring Ramps – an allium.

Weekly Featured Item: Ramps

Sometimes called Wild Leeks, Ramps are our native wild allium. They are related to garlic and onions and can be enjoyed in anything you wanted that flavor profile in. I think of them more like leeks because I love them sautéed in butter and served up with scrambled eggs. Simply trim off the roots, rinse carefully, and use the entire stem and leaf. Sautee whole or chop them up, it’s all good. Ramps are high in vitamins A and C.  Our ramps have been sourced from a partner farm in the Connecticut Valley (that’s still in MA) that sustainably harvests these delightful alliums.

Wild Ramp and Swiss Chard Pesto from Domestic Dreamboat

With a rich, garlicky flavor and thick, spreadable texture, this Wild Ramp and Swiss Chard Pesto is a great springtime addition to all your favorite foods.

  • ½ cup walnuts
  • 4 ounces Swiss chard, washed
  • 2 ounces wild ramps, cleaned, root ends trimmed
  • ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  • tap here
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Toast walnuts in a small, dry skillet over medium heat until they are lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from heat and cool.

Coarsely chop the Swiss chard leaves and stems and the ramps. Add them both to the bowl of a food processor with the walnuts, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Process until everything is finely chopped, about 10-15 seconds. Slowly stream in the olive oil until the mixture forms a thick paste, using a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Serve with pasta, as a sandwich spread, as a raw vegetable dip, or in any other way you think might be delicious. One of my favorite ways to eat it is spread on crusty toast with a fried egg on top. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a week, or freeze.

Potato Crust Quiche

  • ~ 1lb potatoes, sliced very thin (break out your mandoline or food processor for this)
  • 1 TB EVOO
  • S & P

Preheat oven to 350. Toss potatoes with oil, S & P to coat. Grease 9 inch pie plate and arrange slices, overlapping, covering bottom and up the sides , extending over rim a little because not only will they will shrink a little, they will get super crispy and extra yummy. Bake until potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes. While it is baking, prep your filling. After crust is baked, fill, but don’t over fill the crust and bake until egg is set.

And I just came across this that I am going to try out: https://www.sweetashoney.co/healthy-sweet-potato-crust-spinach-quiche/

Stillman’s Farm – spring crops being transplanted into the field.
Still Life Farm – flipping the greenhouse from winter to summer crops.

Farm Dirt.

Stillman’s Farm. Go! Go! Go! This time of year we find ourselves moving plants from one place to the next: out of the headhouse into a greenhouse, from a greenhouse into a coldframe or to benches outside, from outside into a field for planting… LOTS of touches these plants get. The most exciting time (and stressful for weather reasons) is the actual planting. When those plants go in the ground, they not only free up space for new plants in the greenhouse, but they have also made it to their final growing destination, which is the exciting part – PLUS it is very rewarding to see the beautifully grown plants we have been fussing over all Spring get into the ground. Any of you who garden know how satisfying planting is on a number of levels. Speaking of gardening, we have been faithfully picking tomato and pepper orders, some staying local and others headed to FL, TX, NJ, IL, etc – that’s fun.  We have plants at the JP and BPM markets, but a drive out to the New Braintree farm is a worthwhile venture.  Looks like we will have plenty of baskets ready for Mother’s Day and for those who aren’t into hanging baskets, we have loads of herbs, veggies, and colorful annuals. Ditto about the stone fruit Halley writes about below, it’s very disappointing, and we too are focusing on the apples and berries to keep you all in fruit this summer. Tomatoes are fruit right? LOL. What’s that saying? Intelligence is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.

Still Life Farm.  Curt, Halley, and Kip escaped for a week to TX to soak up the sun and spend some time at the beach – it was lovely!  Lots to do as soon as we returned home.  Our first greenhouse has been flipped from winter greens crops to early squash and zucchini crops, so that’s exciting!  Baby layer chicks have arrived at the farm, so we have 30 new souls peeping about.  Tony was able to weed and mulch a good portion of our perennial berry crop and they are looking marvelous.  We’re trying to put extra love into the berries this year because it looks like we will have very little to no stone fruit crop.  Remember that night about a month back where nighttime temps dropped to 17 degrees?  Pretty much devastated the stone fruit crop.  The cherry orchard has just a couple blooms in it, but nothing compared to what it should look like.  I have also noticed that we have almost not forsythia bloom in our area of Central Mass, and I am wondering if it is due to the same cold temperatures.  An excellent example of why you should never put all your eggs in one basket.

Eat well & love your food,

Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) & Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) 

Still Life Farm – Kip and his new layer chicks.

Spring CSA 2023 – Bag 2

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Spring CSA Bag Two is headed to you!

In classic New England fashion, March decided to dump a bunch of snow on all of us, just when we thought spring was arriving…. hopefully we are back on track now, and that was the final snowstorm of the year (fingers crossed).

This week’s bag should include the following: Swiss chard, Spinach, Bok Choi, Cortland apples, Onions, Gold Potatoes, Parsnips OR Beets, Tetsukabuto Winter Squash, Daikon Radish Slaw, Garlic OR Shallots, and Popcorn.  If you are eating with us for Spring CSA, you are really getting to the nitty-gritty of farm food and seasonal eating.  Eating local and seasonal during the early spring means lots of overwintered roots, apples, and squashes.  We have the additional luxury of greens coming out of our high tunnels and greenhouses, to be cherished!

Correct storage of the items in your CSA share is the key to successfully eating seasonally.  Here is a Storage Cheat Sheet that I hand out with Winter CSA that also applies to Spring CSA.  Check it out if you need storage tips.

This weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

We will see you in TWO WEEKS for your next bounty of Spring bag. The schedule is also on our website calendar.

Saturdays:

March 4, March 18, April 1, April 15, April 29, May 13, May 27
Jamaica Plain, 12-3pm

Sundays:

March 5, March 19, April 2, April 16, April 30, May 14, May 28
Lunenburg, 12-1pm

Thursdays:

March 9, March 23, April 6, April 20, May 4, May 18, June 1
Boston (Boston Public Market) 12-6pm
Brookline (Beals Street) 1-6pm
Watertown (City Hall) 12:30-1pm
Natick (Princeton Rd) 1:30-6pm
Worcester (Deadhorse Hill Restaurant) 5-9pm
Hardwick (Still Life Farm) 4-6pm
New Braintree (Stillman’s Farm) 12-6pm

Parsnips!

This week’s featured item is the parsnip.

Now, honestly, I know that many love the parsnip, but it’s really not my favorite…give me a carrot any day.  But it does have its place in a great many wonderful winter and spring dishes.  My Vegetable Illustrated cookbook claims that parsnips are “simultaneously sweeter and earthier than carrots, with more complex and subtle floral notes but they are just as versatile in the kitchen.”

The only preparation a parsnip needs is maybe a quick peel and to core out the tough inner center.  Then they are wonderful roasted and thrown on a hearty winter salad, in stews, boiled with butter…or, try something new with this recipe for Parsnip Hummus.

Parsnip Hummus, from Vegetables Illustrated

  • 1 pound parsnip, peeled, cut into 1-inch lengths
  • 1/4 cup tahini
  • 3 T EVOO
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 2 T lemon juice
  • S&P
  • 1 garlic minced
  • 1 t paprika
  • 1/2 t coriander
  • 1/4 t cumin
  • 1/4 t chipotle chili powder
  • 1 T toasted sesame seeds

Microwave parsnips in covered bowl until tender, about 10 minutes.  Combine tahini and oil in a small bowl.  Process parsnips, water, lemon juice, 3/4 t salt, garlic, paprika, coriander, cumin, and chili powder in food processor until completely smooth, about 1 minute, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.  With processor running, add tahini mixture in a steady stream and process until hummus is smooth and creamy, about 15 seconds.  Season with S&P.  Transfer hummus to serving bowl, cover and let rest for 30 minutes to allow flavors to mingle. Drizzle with extra EVOO and sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Serve.

Notes on a few other items in your share.

Tetsukabuto winter squash is a Japanese squash who’s name literally translates to “Iron Helmet”. It’s a wonderful late storage crop and easily carries into the spring.  You can cook it any way you would traditionally use winter squash.

Locally grown popcorn is exactly the same as the popcorn you would buy in the grocery.  Except, we grew it this past season at Still Life Farm, and you need to remove it from the cob before cooking.  Then you can cook it “old school” in a hot pan with oil, in the popcorn maker, or in a paper bag ends loosely rolled in the microwave on the popcorn setting.

Garlic.  It’s getting to be the end of garlic season.  To increase shelf life at this point, store it in the fridge and use it as you need it.

Radish Slaw – use it first. It is wetter than the cabbage slaw and doesn’t keep as well…we were all pleasantly surprised to use red cabbage slaw from week 1 just yesterday, it was perfect! Just whip up the below ingredients in a large enough, lidded container to hold the slaw, then dump in the bag’s contents, cover and shake it up.

Genevieve’s go-to Slaw Dressing:

Simple, simple, simple: To 1/3 cup cider vinegar add 1/2 tsp kosher salt (sea salt would be good too), a bunch of black pepper, a fat TB of Dijon or spicy brown mustard, 1/2 tsp celery seed; slowly whisk in 1/2 cup oil (something light, I use canola or safflower), Toss over anything shredded: kohlrabi, radish, cabbage, carrot, apple…

Kip checking on the greens in the high tunnel with his head lamp.
The H2A Jamaican labor moving the flat-filler into the barn.
Kirsten and Reid seeding heirloom tomatoes.

Farm Dirt:

Despite the late season snowstorm, work on the farms continues to move in the direction of spring.

Stillman’s Farm.  Seeding is in full swing.  Glenn has been working away all week, seeding over 1,000 trays of tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers.  Reid and Kirsten were able to get the extensive heirloom tomato collection organized and seeded.  Annual flower baskets (including those reserved for Reid and Kirsten’s upcoming wedding!!!) have been designed and planted.  The first group of H2A Jamaican labor has returned from their winter at home.  I don’t think they were too pleased about this past snowstorm.  Merrick, Ali, and Melbourne have been busting through farm projects, including getting the flat-filler back into operational status (a machine that automatically puts soil into the seeding flats, saving lots of labor hours).

If you are planning your gardens, we have lots in store for you later this Spring. I have the tomatoes updated online and will get to the peppers and eggplants next week. I will also try to update the actual lists of flowers, herbs, and other veggie transplants we will have available.

Still Life Farm.  We wrapped up our final Wayland winter market last week and it was a huge success.  Curt and I have been delighted to see many CSA members faces popping up at winter markets this past season!  We’re trying to stay on top of our spring seeding schedule, and so far have seeded all the alliums, celery, hearty herbs, cherry tomatoes, zucchini and summer squash, and a few other items.  A couple days ago the farm team transplanted a fresh batch of mesclun salad greens into the high tunnel.  Halley finished applying for the 2023 Infrastructure Grant.  If SLF is awarded, we intend to put up another high tunnel for more winter greens production and install a stand-alone generator as backup power for our winter (and spring) vegetable storage.  Fingers crossed…

Eat well & love your food,

Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) & Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) 

Spring CSA 2022: Week 14

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Week Fourteen, the LAST WEEK, of the Spring CSA will include the following: Spinach, Lettuce, Zucchini and/or Summer Squash, Bok Choy, Cortland Apples, Purple Daikon Radish and/or Kohlrabi. Please note that the weekly photo is not an exact depiction of what is in your share, but rather a reference image.

A gigantic THANK YOU goes out to all of our amazing Spring CSA members who celebrated the Spring season with us.  Thanks for always making it a priority to eat local and seasonal, and to support small business and local economy.  You guys are the best!

Summer CSA.  Summer CSA kicks off in just a couple weeks.  If you haven’t signed up yet, be sure to grab a spot before they’re gone.  If a traditional summer CSA is not for you, be sure to check out a few of our other options, like our A-La-Carte CSA or our Fruit CSA.  Stillman’s Summer CSA Options.

Winter CSA.  Interested in eating local all year round?  Visit the Still Life Farm website to read more about Winter CSA .  Sign up for Winter CSA!

The weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

Spencer sitting in front of the squash greenhouse at Still Life Farm.

Weekly Featured Item: Zucchini and Summer Squash.

Early zucchini and summer squash – what a treat!

At Still Life Farm we always put in a greenhouse crop of early squash.  It’s a bit of a labor of love and often times involves setting up heat on chilly nights and extra care when it comes to pollination, but it’s totally worth it!  Having the early squash sets our farm apart at Farmer’s Markets at a point in the year when everyone has greens, greens, and more greens.  We were carefully to set aside enough squash to share with our spring CSA members because we love you guys so much!

Zucchini, also known as ‘zucca’ or ‘courgette’, is a squash that is harvested while immature, while the rind is still tender and edible. Originally native to the Americas, the squash was brought back to Italy when the Europeans colonized the Americas.  Most of the varietals of summer squash that we are familiar with now were developed in the 19th century in Italy.

As a vegetable, zucchini is high in folate, potassium, and vitamin A.  It can be eaten raw or cooked, and is most commonly used in savory dishes, but can also be added to sweet cakes and breads.  The flowers are also eaten as a delicacy in some cultures.

After a long and elegant history like that, it’s easy to see why people LOVE their zucchini and summer squashes.

Halley and Kip walking the “lane” at Stillman’s Farm.

Farm Dirt

Market season is reaching full swing, we started the Lexington Market this past Tuesday, and Brookline is starting on Thursday. Gearing up for Summer CSA, which is starting in just a couple weeks! Collectively, the farms continue to till, till, till, and plant, plant, plant. It is a super busy time of the year, which is why this letter is posting so late. Still Life Farm, and Stillman’s Farm are both cranking on planting our sweet potatoes today, ahead of this storm coming in. The temperatures and rain will give them the prefect time to acclimate.

Kip helped Grandma Geneviève plant the back garden yesterday – thanks Kip! Halley, Kip and Geneviève hiked the farm and you should too! The Rhododendrons are blooming everywhere and the birds are fantastic!

Halley and Kip check out the Belties

OMG Halley. that has to be the biggest kiddo backpack I have ever seen. Good show lady!

You may not consider it, but all out tractors run on diesel. AS of now, there is no electric or battery operated 135 horsepower tractor that we can use to pull our equipment. And, I guess if there was one, and it was comparable to an electric car, it would cost $270,000 for an electric tractor, if they had one. No need to worry about it, it is not an option right now, yet every single farmer across the country has to worry about how they will compensate for the increased cost in diesel, which is 3x more than 2 years ago. We buy products from our friends to resell at BPM or include in our CSA and they are all increasing their prices to reflect what it is costing them to produce what they do. Even the soap we sell went up 50 cents. Why am I sharing this? Not to worry you, or complain, but simply to explain that even we, your farmers, will have to make adjustments as expenses rise. I am looking to lock in wheat for our members now as well as olive oil and some other necessities. We will make these items available to our CSA members first.

Reid and Kirsten are back to making kale chips and kimchi. They have several batches of sauerkraut going and should be ready to jar up soon! We all love that they have taken this on as their new business and they are saving up for their wedding next Spring!!! So exciting! They have also been busy shipping tomato and pepper plants all over the country. It is pretty fun to know we have a selection of amazing plants that so many people want. If you have not made a trip out to Stillman’s Farm in New Braintree to select from our seedling options, please do so, you won’t be sorry.

Farmers Markets are starting all over the place now. If you are not continuing on with us for Summer CSA, We hope you will support the markets where both Stillman’s Farm and Still Life Farm sell their beautiful produce. You can always see where we are in the feed at the bottom of our website or by checking out https://stillmansfarm.com/marketlocations/  At almost all locations listed, you can find product from both farms –  also check out  https://stilllifefarm.com/farmers-markets.html for SLF markets.

If you have not signed up for our CSA programs, we recommend you do so quickly and lock yourself into reasonable pricing…. expenses and prices are going up and the farms are beginning to feel these increases.  

Still Life Farm’s WINTER CSA is now accepting members for 2022-23 Season.  Please visit the link to sign up: Still Life Farm Winter CSA. Email StillLifeFarm@aol.com with any questions.

Stillman’s Farm SUMMER CSA will be kicking off mid-June…with a weeklong gap at the end of the Spring CSA. If you were wondering about timing, the Summer CSA ends a week or two before Still Life Farm’s Winter CSA begins, so there’s no overlap and no need to go too long without fresh, local produce form your farmers! Sign up for Summer CSA here.

Again, we thank you for being part of the Stillman Farm Family. Your participation and support not only contributes to Still Life Farm and Stillman’s Farm, but supports all the people we employ and vendors we source from! Thank YOU!!

Eat well & love your food,

Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) & Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) 

Spring CSA 2022: Week 9

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Week Nine of the Spring CSA will include the following: Ramps, Bok Choi, Swiss Chard, Potatoes, Parsnips OR Spring Salad Radishes, Basil, and Microgreens OR Carrots. Please note that the weekly photo is not an exact depiction of what is in your share, but rather a reference image.

The weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

Still Life Farm’s WINTER CSA is now accepting members for 2022-23 Season.  Please visit the link to sign up: Still Life Farm Winter CSA. Email StillLifeFarm@aol.com with any questions.

Weekly Featured Item: Ramps

Sometimes called Wild Leeks, Ramps are our native wild allium. They are related to garlic and onions and can be enjoyed in anything you wanted that flavor profile in. I think of them more like leeks because I love them simply sautéed in butter and served up with some scrambled eggs. Simply trim off the roots, rinse carefully, and use the entire stem and leaf. Sautee whole or chop them up, it’s all good. Ramps are high in vitamins A and C.  Our ramps have been sourced from a partner farm in the Connecticut Valley (that’s still in MA) that sustainably harvests these delightful alliums.

Wild Ramp and Swiss Chard Pesto from Domestic Dreamboat

With a rich, garlicky flavor and thick, spreadable texture, this Wild Ramp and Swiss Chard Pesto is a great springtime addition to all your favorite foods.

  • ½ cup walnuts
  • 4 ounces Swiss chard, washed
  • 2 ounces wild ramps, cleaned, root ends trimmed
  • ½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  • tap here
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Toast walnuts in a small, dry skillet over medium heat until they are lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from heat and cool.

Coarsely chop the Swiss chard leaves and stems and the ramps. Add them both to the bowl of a food processor with the walnuts, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Process until everything is finely chopped, about 10-15 seconds. Slowly stream in the olive oil until the mixture forms a thick paste, using a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Serve with pasta, as a sandwich spread, as a raw vegetable dip, or in any other way you think might be delicious. One of my favorite ways to eat it is spread on crusty toast with a fried egg on top. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a week, or freeze.

A note on Bok Choi.  I have had a lot of questions on what to do with Bok Choi.  It’s one of my personal all-time favorite greens.  I love the fresh crunch it offers (especially during winter and spring).  Please look to the links below for some new ideas.

Gochujang-Sesame Noodles from Bon Appetit. Another greens recipe that I thought the Bok choi would be a perfect fit for (just sub out the broccoli raab).

16 Easy Bok Choi recipes from Parade.

Farm Dirt.

Stillman’s Farm. Baby pepper transplants.
Stillman’s Farm. Shorty, Friday, and Melbourn transplanting.
Still Life Farm. The kids helping with the new chicks.
Still Life Farm. The farm kittens stuck in the skunk trap.

Stillman’s Farm. This week has been a balancing act between field prep and greenhouse work.  Everything gets extremely crowded in the greenhouses this time of year, and it’s a struggle to find the time and good weather to get the fields ready to keep up with the ever-growing demand of happy plants ready to go into the ground.  Glenn was rarely seen this past week as he was out on the tractor every day working to prep fields for planting.  The guys spent the week transplanting pepper plants (yes, there are that many) into larger growing cells. In other news, Stillman’s is working to turn some of their packaging into biodegradable containers.  They just got in an order of herb packages made from corn – completely biodegradable!

Still Life Farm. This week Curt and Tony have been working away to turn one of our winter greens houses into early spring squash and zucchini…a lovely early treat. We partner with Autumn Morning Farm for our bees, and a trailer load of hives showed up this week to pollinate all the fruit trees that are about to break bud.  We had an excellent visit with our friends from KS last week!  A highlight was having the kids help with the brand-new layer chicks we received last Thursday.  And the fight to catch the barn skunk continues.  We set out a Have-A-Heart trap last week, but so far, the only thing we have caught is our two ridiculous farm kittens…lol…don’t worry, we let them out.

Eat well & love your food,

Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) & Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) 

Spring CSA 2022: Week 8

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Week Eight of the Spring CSA will include the following: Mesclun Salad Greens, Bok Choi, Spinach, Cortland Apples, Purple Daikon Radish, and fresh herbs (either Dill or Cilantro). Please note that the weekly photo is not an exact depiction of what is in your share, but rather a reference image.

The weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

Weekly Featured Item: Spinach

At this point of the season, we usually have TONS of spinach.  It has been overwintering in the greenhouses, and when we start having a little warmth and extra sun light it just grows like crazy.  Spinach is a great source of Vitamins A, C, and K1, Folic Acid, Iron, and Calcium.  The benefits of spinach include increased eye health, reduces oxidative stress, helps prevent cancer, and reduces blood pressure levels. So, get your “Popeye” on!

Baked Eggs with Spinach and Mushrooms
From Smitten Kitchen

This recipe can be adjusted to fit your family size.  The ingredient list below has been tripled from the original recipe.

2 pounds (32 ounces) ounces fresh baby spinach or regular spinach leaves
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
3 small garlic cloves, minced
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced (I use creminis)
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon table salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (optional; I skip this)
12 large eggs
6 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese

If you’ve just washed your spinach, no need to dry it before wilting it in the pan. If it’s already dry, bring 1/2 inch water to a boil in a very large ovenproof heavy skillet, then add half of spinach and cook, turning with tongs, until wilted, about 30 seconds. Add remaining spinach and wilt in same manner, then cook, covered, over moderately high heat until spinach is tender, about 1 to 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and cool under cold running water. Gently squeeze handfuls of spinach to remove as much liquid as possible, then coarsely chop. You will have about 2 cups fairly tightly packed cooked spinach.

Wipe skillet dry, then melt butter over medium-low heat. Cook onion and garlic until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and increase heat to medium-high, then cook, stirring, until mushrooms have softened, exuded liquid and that liquid has cooked off, about 5 minutes. Stir in cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg (if using), and chopped spinach and bring back a simmer. Remove skillet from heat.

If baking eggs in this skillet, make 12 large indentations in mixture, each large enough to fit an egg. Otherwise, you can transfer this mixture to a 9×13-inch baking dish and do the same there. I like to use 2 teaspoons to make the wells; I press the backs of them together to “pinch” up the spinach mixture to form taller walls so that the eggs will not merge together.

Do ahead: You can then set this aside for a few hours or up to one day in the fridge, covered.

When you’re ready to bake the dish, or about 30 minutes before serving, put oven rack in upper third of oven and heat oven to 450°F. Crack an egg into each well. Bake until whites are firm and yolks are still runny. You can check this by inserting a toothpick into various parts of the eggs and seeing whether they’re runny or set, which takes anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes. The range is long due to different ovens and baking vessels. It’s better to have to check more often than to let them overcook.

[Cooking note: It is nearly impossible to get all 12 eggs to cook evenly. The ones in the center will be more runny; at the edges, they’ll be more firm. But don’t fret. I’ve found that almost all people have an egg preference (more runny vs. more firm) and each egg manages to find the right home. Just ask people their preference as you serve them.]

Remove dish from oven, sprinkle with additional salt and pepper, plus grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Home-made dressing for all those salad greens. Mix together 1 tsp chopped shallots, S&P, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1 Tbsp maple syrup, 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, 3 Tbsp red wine vinegar, 3 Tbsp EVOO…you’ll have to taste and possible adjust some ingredients.  I love a hearty spring salad with the mesclun greens, storage radishes, and any roasted roots I have kicking around.

Gochujang-Sesame Noodles from Bon Appetit. Another greens recipe that I thought the Bok choi would be a perfect fit for (just sub out the broccoli raab).

Stillman’s Farm. 4500 tomatoes transplanted into high tunnels.
Still Life Farm. “Staycation” with our dear friends from KS.

Farm Dirt

Stillman’s Farm. The whole family enjoyed an absolutely beautiful Easter holiday at Stillman’s farm, complete with a farm fresh ham dinner and Kip’s first Easter egg hunt.  We hope that you all had a blessed holiday week as well.  In farm related news, the major achievement of the week was transplanting 4500 tomatoes into multiple high tunnels for early production. A big project and an important project so we can all enjoy local tomatoes as soon as possible!  The retail tomato and pepper seedlings have been transplanted from their tiny starter cells to larger grow cells and will be ready for your gardens soon. Glenn has a lot on his mind between greenhouse jobs and field prep jobs and is trying to keep everything moving forward.  It’s a busy time of year.

Still Life Farm. This week we are enjoying a visit from our very dear friends who have driven up from Wichita, KS.  In theory we are attempting to have a “staycation”, but that is easier said than done on the farm.  I think what is actually happening is our friends are having a “farm labor” vacation, but they are being good sports about it…lol.  Kip is absolutely thrilled to have two other kids to play with at the house!  On the farm side of things, we have been trying to pick and sell as many greenhouse greens as possible since they are growing out of control.  Curt and Tony have a dug an entire row of our orange raspberries and transplanted them to a new field in hopes that they have more space and sunlight to thrive at that new location.  There’s a skunk who has taken up residence under our chicken barn and it’s pretty annoying.

Eat well & love your food,

Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) & Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) 

Spring CSA 2022: Weeks 6&7

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Week Six (and 7) of the Spring CSA we have doubled up and will include a mix of the following: Giant bag o’ Spinach, double-stuff bunch Swiss Chard, Red Norland Potatoes, Onion, winter radish (green daikon), Cortland and/or Macoun Apples, parsnips, cabbage, popcorn and eggs. Please note that the weekly photo is not an exact depiction of what is in your share, but rather a reference image.

The weekly letter will be coming to your inbox the day before your pickup, and is also available at stillmansfarm.com/blog and stilllifefarm.wordpress.com.  

Reminder: There are no pick ups anywhere next week. We wish you a happy and blessed Pesach and Easter!

We know some of you were concerned about the idea of going bi-weekly for Spring CSA deliveries…this is our big experiment week for you all to see what it might look like. Please store the spinach in the bag it came in, in your fridge. I have to say, I kept a bag just fine on my kitchen counter for a week with zero issue, BUT, that’s not best practices. The Swiss chard needs to be wrapped in a plastic bag or moist toweling. With the frost free fridges, the greens transpire and dry out quickly. If your chard gets sad looking before you get to use it, soak the whole bunch in a large pot of water and you will be amazed how it will be resurrected. Store the apples in the fridge if you plan on eating them fresh, otherwise, they will be fine on the counter or pantry until you cook them. The roots should be stored in a bag in the produce drawer of your fridge. Potatoes and onions do not want to be in plastic, or the fridge, so let them hang out in your dark pantry/cupboard. The cabbage can be a counter dweller for a few days, any longer it would prefer to be kept cool/cold. Hope that helps!

Weekly Featured Item: Baking Apples
Yes, the autumn harvest of apples have seen us through the winter. This week we will be handing out a bulk amount of Cortlands and Macouns for you to get creative with.  Make up a big batch of applesauce, take a chance on that pie or galette that you have been wanting to make but haven’t done yet, or simply roast your apples with cinnamon on a cookie sheet and put them under your oatmeal for breakfast…yum!!!  Let’s tap that creative baking side and really take advantage of  cooking seasonally during the “hunger gap” that is early spring in New England!

Check out Genevieve’s’ favorite apple crisp recipe:Fruit Crisp (scroll down)

Simple Applesauce.
Applesauce is simple to make and it freezes beautifully too!
If you have a food mill, wash and quarter your apples (sometimes I cut out some of the core that has seeds in it because I imagine it makes the sauce bitter), proceed with the cooking and run through your mill after your sauce is done to rid it of the seeds and skin. If you don’t have a food mill, then go ahead and peel your apples and remove the core and anything you don’t want in your finished product.
Simply add enough water to your apples to prevent burning (very little) and they will start to juice themselves. Stir frequently until you are sure there is enough liquid to not scorch. If you would like your sauce spiced, add your cinnamon stick and cloves now so they can simmer with the apples. If you are not going the food mill route, then you can tie your spices in a bit of cheesecloth or sack. Cook with the lid on (low) once it is simmering and check back once and a while. It’s done once you have mush/sauce.
Pansies at Stillman’s Farm greenhouses.
Curt and Kip watering in Hakurei turnips, spring radishes, green garlic

Farm Dirt

Stillman’s Farm.  Field prep continues at the New Braintree farm.  We were plowing and harrowing at this time last year, but it’s been too wet thus far to do anything but pull plastic. The next few days of rain should help quite a bit – NOT! I asked Glenn to get me some grass seed to try to fix the side yard…I’m not kidding when I tell you every time I sow seed there, it does not rain for weeks. so, it’s a little sparse there, but we get the crops going for all of you. The greenhouses are bursting at the seams but we were able to move into the coldframes last Thursday and Friday, freeing up some space for new babies. The onions and peas were the first to move – they will get hardened off and can tolerate the cold, just not the teens we were experiencing last week. The pansies are gorgeous and the hanging baskets are filling out – looking great! The hardy veggie plants are sizing up and almost ready to plant out for our gardening friends.

Still Life Farm.  Everything is springing in the high tunnel! The radishes are up and looking great, the green garlic is shooting up, and the greens (choy, arugula, mizuna, etc) are getting established. Kip is almost ready to take over the watering and major tractor work, okay, maybe the watering, although it is pretty clear he is aiming for the tractor work.  The orchards are looking sharp and we just hope for nice, temperate spring weather so nothing blooms too early OR there is no bud or bloom damaging cold. There’s not an orchardist around who does not want that. This week the cherry tomatoes will get transplanted to grow on until they are ready to go into one of the high tunnels. Exciting stuff.

Eat well & love your food,

Genevieve Stillman (Stillman’s Farm) & Halley Stillman (Still Life Farm) 

Food for thought – “early spring salad”.