Sapsucker Farms

Here is what CSA members found in their August CSA bag:

VINE-RIPENED HEIRLOOM TOMATOES – a bulging bag of tomatoes, ranging from large to small and a variety of colors and flavors. SPECIAL NOTE: heirloom tomatoes are very fragile. That is the reason you don’t see them in most grocery stores. Characteristically, heirloom tomatoes are prone to crack, the skins are easy broken, and they can be quite gnarly looking. Don’t let the cracks, odd shape, or scars scare you, it’s all normal in the life of heirloom tomatoes.
GRAPE LEAVES – for those of you who have been a CSA member throughout the years, you will recognize the grape leaves. For those of you who are new, you are probably thinking “what tha… huh??” We absolutely love making stuffed grape leaves, and nothing is better than freshly harvested grape leaves for supper. Technically, the dish is called “Domas” which is a Mediterranean treat. There are a number of really simple recipes, which you can just google to find. But the way we prepare it is to use a ground meat… we’ve made it using hamburger, lamb, venison, turkey, chicken, pork, and moose… Just blend the raw meat with rice, your favorite herbs and spices, salt and pepper, roll them up in the grape leaves, place in a pan with water, add some lemons on the top and boil about 45 minutes until it is done. Super simple, and you’ll feel like a Mediterranean foodie 🙂 
PEPPERS – a handful of a combination of sweet and hot peppers. Of course, they are the perfect ingredient along with the tomatoes for fresh salsa.
GNARLY CARROTS – I confess that I’ve never been a very good carrot farmer, in that my carrots are never perfectly straight, consistent size and shape. But if you just close your eyes, you’ll still get a nice bite of sweet, crunchy carrots… no matter what they look like.
CABBAGE  You’ll find either one large, or two small cabbages in your bag. I have a couple of different varieties I’m growing, one is a large variety and another is a small variety. But both varieties are tasty.
CUCUMBERS – There will be a couple of these in your bag this month. If you’re a cucumber lover, you can also grab extras in the grab bag bin (see below)
PARSLEY – A handful of this popular, and well-loved herb.
ARUGULA – A nice bunch of this spicy, peppery herb, which can be made into pesto, added as a pizza topping, added to a salad, or sautéed as a side dish.
KALE – Two varieties, Russian (wide leaf with blueish color), Dino (long, dark green). I know that kale is one of those things that folks either LOVE or HATE. If you don’t like kale, you can exchange it for something else in the grab bag bin (see below).
GRAB BAG – You get to grab one extra item from the grab bag (yellow bin). You can also use this to exchange something in your bag that you know you don’t like (kale haters and lovers take note). There are a variety of different items from which to choose such as extra cucumbers, beets, Swiss chard, arugula, or other items. 
ONE DOZEN EGGS – grab one dozen eggs
THREE FOUR PACKS OF BEVERAGES – Mix and match as you please among all of the beverages available (hard cider, kombucha, root beer), Sorry, but we are temporarily out of stock of Ginger Ale. We hope to get some more bottled by next month.

Here is what members will find in the CSA harvest this month:

VINE-RIPENED HEIRLOOM TOMATOES – I’m so excited to have tomatoes in July! The tomatoes are just beginning to ripen up, so you’ll find a few fully ripened and some that are close to ripe. You can look forward to more tomatoes as the season progresses.
BEANS – a nice bag of a mix of green, purple, yellow, and dragon’s tongue beans.
CUCUMBER– One cucumber for each of you.
BEET GREENS – So I have a dilemma with the beets this year…. They were progressing so nicely, but now a chipmunk has decided that beets are his favorite snack GRRRRRR….. so most of the beet roots have been munch by this little monster. The greens, however, are still quite nice. They can be enjoyed raw in your favorite salad, or cooked for your favorite side dish. You’ll find a nice big bag of greens in your bag.
OPTIONAL – TOPLESS CRITTER-MUNCHED BEET ROOTS – Even though the chipmunk munched on the beet roots, for those of you who are not bothered by critter-munched veggies, you will find a bin inside the cooler, along with some bags, so if you want some of the munched beet roots, help yourself… while supplies last.
ARUGULA – If you’re not familiar with this, it is a spicy, peppery green that can be made into pesto, added to a pizza, or combine with your beet greens for a pretty terrific salad.
PEPPER – The peppers are also starting to ripen up. You will find at least one large pepper in your bag, and randomly there will be a couple of additional smaller peppers.
CABBAGE – You’ll find either a Napa cabbage or a cute little pointy headed cabbage.

RADICCHIO or KOHLRABI – Not enough of both for everyone, so it’s a random drop in the bags of either one or the other.
EGGS – one dozen eggs
BEVERAGES – three four-packs of any combination (mix and match) of any of the flavors of cider, kombucha, ginger ale or rootbeer.
Stay cool and enjoy!

Here is what CSA members will find in their June 2021 CSA harvest:

SUNFLOWER SHOOTS – a handful of these tender, nutty, sprouts of sunflower seeds. They are delightful to add to a sandwich, salad, or just munch as a snack.
ROMAINE LETTUCE (slightly bolted) – I had such a beautiful crop of romaine growing…. until the super-early, super-hot spell. Lettuce doesn’t like heat, so the hot spell caused it to start bolting much early than predicted. However, I did harvest the crop JUST as it started to bolt. The good news is that it is still very tasty, even though it has a pointy top. I don’t want to toss out good food just because it looks a little funny, so I hope you too will enjoy it as we have.
NAPA CABBAGE – also known and Chinese Cabbage…. Or in Australia… Womboks. This is a hearty cabbage with frilly, curly leaves that can be prepared in any of your favorite cabbage recipes.
HAKUREI TURNIPS WITH GREENS – These are cute, little white turnips, which are kind of a cross between radishes and turnips. The greens are also delightful and can be added to salads, as well as prepared as a side dish.
RADICCHIO – this is a leafy salad vegetable with a spicy flair that adds a colorful and sharp flavor. It can also be saute’ and added to pasta, stews, or grilled as a tasty side dish.

KOHLRABI – Think of them as a gigantic radish. The best way to enjoy them is to peel, slice thin, add a little salt and enjoy as a snack. Or add them to a salad for a crunchy complement. The leaves are also delish, and can be prepared just like collard greens.
BASIL – a handful of fresh basil – you can make a lovely tea, add to your favorite pasta dish, or make into pesto. Be sure to pick it up in the sugarhouse (the big room next to the cooler) since basil cannot be put in the cooler.
EGGS – 1 dozen fresh eggs from the happy ladies in the hen spa.
BEVERAGES – 3 four packs of beverages of your choice: cider, root beer, ginger ale, or kombucha – OR – if you choose to substitute the beverages for honey or maple syrup, let me know ahead of time and I’ll have it ready for you in the sugarhouse.
This is what is planned, but if I find some new discoveries as I’m harvesting, there might be more. Meanwhile, if the dates for pick-up don’t work for you, just let me know and we will easily set up a time that does work for you.

The first harvest of the 2021 CSA is ready. Here is what is included in the May CSA

Three 4-packs of beverages* – Mix and match any combination of all of the beverages:  several flavors of Yellow Belly cider, root beer, ginger ale, and several flavors of kombucha. Just fill up THREE four-pack carries (total of 12 cans or bottles) with the beverages of your choice. *substitute honey or maple syrup – If you would prefer, you have the option to substitute the beverages for either maple syrup or honey. Just let me know in advance so I can have it ready for you when you pick up.
One dozen eggs – the ladies in the hen spa have been busy and have one dozen of their prized possessions for you.
Pea shoots – a handful of these tender, sweet tendrils of pea shoots that can be added to salads, stir fries, or just as a delicious snack.
Heirloom lettuce – A nice bunch of small heads of heirloom baby oak leaf lettuce. These are compact heads of lettuce with tender, frilly leaves.
Beet Greens – a bag of colorful greens from red and gold beets.
Radishes with greens:  No doubt you are already familiar with radishes. But what you may not know is that the radish greens are also a treat. They are a peppery flavored green, much like arugula, and can be made into pesto, added to salads, and is great as a pizza topping. 
Bok Choi – This was originally supposed to be included in the June harvest, so I was quite surprised to see it is already ripe. You’ll find two different varieties, an heirloom purple, and a traditional green. These are tender Asian greens that are popularly used in stir fries, grilled, or added raw to a salad.
Turnip micro greens – Can’t let these tasty, tender, little turnip sprouts go to waste after thinning out the turnip patch. They add a little crunchy spice to sandwiches, and salads.
Kimchi – You Betcha. We are proud to say that the ginger we grow here on the farm is one of the ingredients in this Minneapolis-based company, You Betcha Kimchi. Your CSA includes one jar of kimchi of your choice: hot (uffda) medium (a bit nippy) or Mild (Mn Nice)

The Grand Finale of the Season

Hello all,First I want to thank you all for your support of our farm and for participating in our 2020 CSA. We really appreciate it and I hope you enjoyed the CSA  as much as I did. And since it’s 2020, we shouldn’t be surprised that we have several inches of snow on the ground and it’s only mid-October. I guess we should be thankful that we haven’t had a meteor strike or alien invasion… yet…

So… here is what you will find in the last harvest of the season
GINGER – This is definitely one of my favorite crops to grow, and I’m one of only a few farmers in Minnesota who grows it. I’m also the (self-proclaimed) largest ginger grower in the state. It’s not a difficult crop to grow, but it is time-and-space intensive, taking 10 months to grow during the season. The pieces of ginger you’ll get in your bag are field cleaned, so you’ll need to spend a little time getting the grit out of the crevices, but I know a few of you are interested in growing ginger too, so if that is what you’d like to do, you can just put this ginger in a pot right away, put it in a sunny window, keep it watered and watch it grow. It should sprout in about 6 to 8 weeks. For the rest of you, grind or slice it up in your favorite dish, or even better, make some candied ginger for the holidays.

SQUASH – I hope you like squash because there is a lot of it. In your bag you will find a small yellow, striped Delicata squash. Then you will need to proceed to inside the sugarhouse where you will find on the floor two more varieties – Butternut (large tan) and Buttercup (round green). You will grab FOUR squash of your choosing. There will be some green cloth bags there that you can use to tote them out of the sugarhouse (keep the bag). These too will need to be cleaned. My back was too sore after harvesting to clean them all. Sorry about that.

RED CABBAGE – The particular variety of cabbage, the heads are kind of small, but they are tender and tasty.

GREEN (some ripe) HEIRLOOM TOMATOES – You’ll find a combination of green, slightly ripened, and ripe tomatoes.Try out a  fried green tomato recipe, or you can just let them ripen on your counter.

CUCUMBERS – one or two cucumbers

PEPPERS – I pulled out all of the pepper plants so you’ll find a random combination of sweet and hot peppers.

SCALLIONS – among the weeds, I discovered a small plat of scallions. Rather than letting them go to waste, you’ll find a tiny handful in your bag. Some of them are kind of small, but they’re pretty cute.

KALE and SWISS CHARD – you’ll find both greens combined together. The colorful leaves (red, white, or yellow) are the chard, and the dark green or blueish green leaves are the kale.

EGGS – the ladies in the henhouse have been busy, so you’ll get one, 18-count carton

APPLE JUICE – one frozen gallon of apple juice which is in the freezer next to the cooler

BEVERAGES – three four-packs of your choice, any combination, mix-and-match as you please

As a CSA member, you share in the bounty and failure of our farm’s crops. Even though I usually plant the same crops every year, each year the crops perform differently and 2020 was no exception. Here are a few behind-the-scene highlights of this year’s season.
Crops lost to predators – those beastly rabbits gobbled up the entire edamame crop, and our own chickens cleaned up most of the grapes. 
Chickens – We did lose a few chickens to a hawk, but the majority were safe and happy. They just went on strike during the hot summer months while they were molting producing very few eggs from June – August. And since they’re free-range, we found random egg clutches in interesting places such as on the seat of the skid steer, on the flatbed trailer, under the bunkhouse, and under a picnic table. Thankfully they rebounded to laying an abundance of eggs which I gladly share with you.
Befuddled – a few crops are quite puzzling. The cantaloupe crop was abundant, but it was not what I planted. It appears that it cross pollinated with something, producing some very strange looking thing that had a bitter taste. Since all of the fruit was exactly the same, I believe that the seeds I got were faulty, so I’ll be following up with the seed company. Another head-scratcher was the beets. I usually have an abundance of beets, but this year, they only grew to a point then just got stuck right there. They never fully developed, just a lot of pretty leaves.
Farmer fail – I completely messed up on the carrots. I didn’t thin them out on a timely basis, and they also got choked out by the weeds. Oops. I also didn’t get the eggplant planted early enough, so right now the plants are still growing, and have lots of flowers on them, but it’s too late for them to produce. Darn.
Abundant – I absolutely love growing tomatoes, and this years crop was abundant. The ginger crop is also abundant as was the leeks, squash, kale, Swiss chard and cucumbers.
With full hearts, we thank you for joining the CSA and we hope it brought you some happiness during this wildly crazy year. We greatly appreciate your support of Sapsucker Farms and we hope to see you around the cider barn.
With bountiful blessings to you all,
Debbie

What a beautiful autumn we are having.

The maple trees on the farm are showing off their spectacular colors, and the weather has been gentle and pleasant. As always, the farm is open on the weekends to hike the trails, take photos, and enjoy the natural surroundings. Here is what’s in your harvest this month:
APPLES – a bulging bag of multiple varieties of apples. Some are big, some are small, some are beautiful, some are ugly, some are crunchy and tart, some are soft and sweet, some are red, orange, or yellow, and all of them are delicious in their own way – for baking, eating, or juicing. Some of the varieties include: Zestar, Haralson, Striped Harvey, Regent, Spartan, Prairie Spy, Minnesota 1734, Wolf River, Beacon, Jonagold, and more (sorry, lost track of all of the varieties picked). You can google the names to learn more about each variety.
LEEKS – They look like giant scallions and are a famous ingredient for potato leek soup. But there are many more ways to prepare them. Here are 34 recipes including potato leek soup, so have fun experimenting with them.
GRAPES – I was really excited about the grape crop this year, it was looking so nice. But…. since it’s 2020 …. for the first time ever…. just as the grapes were at their peak ripeness…. our free-range chickens found them and ate most of the crop. ARGH!! I was, however, able to rescue a small amount that was out of their reach. So I opted to include a very small portion, just a small handful, in your harvest so you can at least taste these delightful little wonders. I debated whether or not to do this, fearing you would think that I’m being stingy. But they are so different than anything you get in the store, so I decided to include just a tiny portion. Think of it as the cherry on top, or an aperitif to your meal.
TWO DOZEN EGGS – Our grape-eating chickens have also been busy laying a lot of eggs. So at least there’s that…. 
VINE-RIPENED HEIRLOOM TOMATOES – a wide variety of sizes and colors
SAGE – This savory herb is perfect for fall recipes, especially with poultry and pork.
GRAB BAG – grab one bag of your choice from the yellow bin, options include: more leeks, more apples, cucumbers, kale, or chard.
BEVERAGES – Three four-packs of your choice, mix and match as you please. Or if you choose to substitute maple syrup or honey, you will find that in the sugar house.

Be sure to take some time to just enjoy this gorgeous autumn season. We all get so busy and forget to take a moment to enjoy the beauty around us. I know I am guilty of that as well, so right now I am looking out my window and admiring the colors.

Here is what you will find in your CSA this month.

TWO dozen eggs – Hooray! The henhouse ladies have finally started cooperating with me, so I’m happy to say that this month you get TWO dozen eggs, which makes up for the deficit over the past two months. Thank you for your understanding.

Grape leaves – Say what? Is that a typo? Nope. Did you know that grape leaves are quite delicious? It’s true. We’ve been eating them all summer, So I’m sharing the love. I’ve included them In previous years’ CSAs so I thought you might enjoy them. So what do you do with grape leaves? Make stuffed grape leaves, also known as dolmas. It’s very simple to make, and here is a simple recipe to try, and I’m sure that Google can help you fine some more.

Vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes – a bundle of many different colors, sizes, and varieties ranging from large beefsteak to cherry tomatoes

Peppers – mostly sweet peppers, but there are a few hot peppers here and there.

Onions – Perhaps you noticed now with tomatoes, peppers, and onions, it’s the makings for some garden-fresh salsa

Cucumber – Yup. You get another one this month.

Cabbage – a cute pointy-headed green cabbage or a red cabbage

Lemon basil – one of my all-time favorite herbs, and this is the herb used to make our lemon basil cider. You can use it to make a caprese salad with the heirloom tomatoes

Random Grab Bag – One item of your choice from the yellow bin. Options include: kale, Swiss chard, scallions, or a melon. It was my hope to have melons for everyone, but I had a very strange experience. The small watermelons did well, but I only had a couple of plants, so the quantity is very low. I did, however, plant many plants of my favorite cantaloupes, anticipating a plentiful crop. However, it appears that these melons cross pollinated with the squash, so I ended up with some very strange looking, and tasting melons. Sigh…

Three 4-packs of beverages of your choice – you can mix and match as you please, including ginger ale and root beer.

Enjoy your bounty, and I look forward to seeing you on the farm.

Here is what you will find in your CSA harvest for July:
Womboks  – Huh? I learned all about womboks from our WWOOFer  from Australia. The first time she entered the hoop house, she enthusiastically shouted “You have Womboks!!” At first, I was quite alarmed, as I had envisioned some toothy, venomous creature that had invaded my hoop house. But my fears were quickly relieved as she pointed to the Napa Cabbage and said “I love womboks!” Whew. Anyhoo…  This is a delicate, frilly cabbage that you can use just like any other cabbage. The leaves are a little fragile so you may not be able to roll them up for cabbage rolls but other than that, it is especially delicious for Asian salads.

Beans – Four different kinds: green, purple, yellow, and dragons tongue which is a large heirloom bean that is creamy colored with light purple stripes

Scallions – also known as green onions, along with a few purple ones too

Cucumbers – one cucumber this month, but the vines are full of little ones, so you can expect to see more of these throughout the season

Zucchini – dang they get so big so fast!

Kale – Russian kale is a pretty, large, blueish-green leaf with pinkish veins and leaves. My favorite way to enjoy kale is to make kale chips. But kale is one of those wonderful power foods that is also very versatile.

Basil – (in the sugarhouse) a nice bouquet of basil that you can use in your favorite recipes, make pesto, or just leave on your table to enjoy the wonderful aroma. Some of it got a little beat up in the recent wind and rain, but no worries, that will all disappear in the food processor.

Random grab bag – grab one bag of your choice from the yellow bin… it includes some extras of  the items included in this months CSA plus a few other items such as beets, kohlrabi, radicchio, Swiss chard, or other random goodies
1/2 dozen eggs – as the sweltering heat continues, the ladies in the henhouse have still been quite finicky this month, so egg production continues to be low. The good news is that the 50 babies are now starting to lay eggs, so I am hopeful that the production will begin to increase again soon. Meanwhile, if you know of any magic tricks, songs, dances, or spells you can perform on the chickens to get them to lay more eggs, please feel free to stop by the hen house and do so. And if I see you doing your jig in the chicken yard, don’t worry… I won’t think it is odd… although I may do a live broadcast of your performance on Facebook… 

Three four packs of beverages – Mix and match as you please between the Yellow Belly ciders, farm-made root beer, or ginger ale