In the CSA Share this Week:

• Hakurei Turnips
• Acorn Winter Squash - Starry Night and Night Shift
• Sweet Peppers
• Fennel
• Red Onions
• Eggplant

On Rotation:

• Chard
• Collards
• Romanesco
• Purple Cauliflower

Winter Squash, Pumpkins, Gourds, Oh My!

The first of our winter squash varieties are landing in the Harvest Basket this week: two diferent kinds of Acorn squash called Starry Night (the stripey one) and Night Shift (the green/black one). We had actually planned to send them your way last week, but there's been so much other fresh food coming out of the field of late (broccoli, cauliflower, turnips, fennel, peppers!), we decided to hold off so as not to overwhelm the share. From here on out, however, you can count on seeing some sort of squash in your tote each week, including different varieties of Delicata, Kabocha, Spaghetti, Butternut, and pie pumpkins. ALL of the squash you are going to receive are edible and delicious, so while they will make for a festive seasonal centerpiece, we encourage you to eat them eventually (most of them will store for months on the countertop). I always like to remind our CSA members about knife safety with winter squash: it can be hard to hack through those tough shells. Chainsaw? Hatchet? Bandsaw? Nah, you'll be fine with a sharp and pointed kitchen knife and some common sense. Watch this little video on how to cut winter squash without an ER visit if you want to brush up on some practical knife skills. And remember, if you don't want to wrestle with cutting them up, you can always bake squash whole or pre-soften them in a microwave before going on the attack. Just be sure to poke a few holes in them first before you toss them in the oven/microwave.

Squash are lovely in that they give you permission to keep it simple: cut in half, bake at 375 until soft, eat with a little butter (and maple syrup, if you wannna go for full indulgence). Or, you can dress them up, like this Savory Herb Roasted Acorn Squash with Parmesan, or this recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks (gifted to me by a longtime CSA member many years ago), Six Seasons: Roasted Squash with Yogurt, Walnuts and Spiced Green Sauce. Depending on what you're doing with them, many of the squash varieties are interchangeable in recipes. Most of them will roast up wonderfully (Acorn, Delicata, Kabocha, Butternut), so feel free to substitute if you don't have whichever variety is called for in a recipe. Your Kabocha and Butternut are your soup-making superstars. Your old friend Spaghetti squash is really the only one with a slightly more limited repertoire, but it does its own thing well (and I promise to share some recipes with you when it's spaghetti squash time). And next week, on the eve of Halloween, we'll be sending you a pie pumpkin that is a multi-tasker like none other: edible hull-less seeds, sweet meat for pie-making or savory dishes (feel free to hang onto it until Thanksgiving for that homemade pumpkin pie), or carve it into a mini jack-o-lantern (but save the seeds for roasting!).

But why go mini when you could go MAXI with one of Pippin's carving pumpkins, now available at the farmstand while supplies last! You can also find Cleo's wacky gourds at the farmstand (and I give you full permission to use those for centerpiece decor so that your edible winter squash can be put to work in the kitchen instead). The farmstand is open every Wednesday from 11:30 to 2:30. Come by for some produce, or place an order online between Thursday and Sunday and have your goodies waiting for you on the following Wednesday (pre-order offerings include Farmstead Bread, Aguirre Farms Eggs and Wild Coast Brew Tea, in addition to Valley Flora hot sauce and produce). The farmstand will continue to be open every Wednesday until December 11th, with the exception of Wednesday, November 27th (the farm will be closed the week of Thanksgiving). And while you're here, you might try some pumpkin rolling, Uma's new seasonal sport (just kidding, and please don't sue us if you try it and break something). :)