Hell Town...

Our farm is located in Boston Township, also known as Hell Town. And although careful research shows that many of the odd things that are reported started when the federal government started buying up land for the park in 1974 and the place started to feel abandoned with No Trespassing signs everywhere, I have to say that weird and creepy things do happen.

When we were doing research before we applied for the house we went to the local historical society where we read stories of a "mysterious" death in the barn of one of the farms in the program. There was also something about an entire family being killed, although we never did find a collaborating newspaper article on that.

Beyond that my husband, who is NOT into supernatural phenomena and had never even heard the stories at the time was bicycling on a certain "road to no-where" in Peninsula a few years ago. He claims as he went further and further up the road he started to get more and more freaked out. Now, mind you, he is a six foot four guy who at the time was used to mountain biking alone on some pretty hairy trails, pretty isolated in nowhere. So what would freak him out about a paved road in a small town? I don't know, but at one point he swears it got to much and he turned around and rode down that hill as fast as he could. It was a seriously bad vibe. As he went around a curve near the bottom of the hill, he said it was like someone flipped a switch and the feelings went away!

Then this morning on my way into work I was driving through Peninsula, and right near the police station I thought I saw a person standing by the side of the street. I turned my head and no one was there! No one at all...

Do a goggle search your self or check out these links if you doubt what I have said...

Ghosts of Ohio

Weird USA

Creepy Cleveland

Wikipedia!

Happy Halloween from Hell Town, Ohio...

Cold frames in....

We managed to get 40 feet of 32" hoops done today. Combine that with the 24 feet of 30" hoops we already had and we were able to put plastic over about 60 feet of rows, given that we are averaging 4 rows in a bed that is 240 feet protected! Even if it does not work this fall it will be nice to have these in the spring...


We did discover in the garden today that we defiantly had our first frost last night. October 27 was the day for us this year. Our poor eggplant looked great this morning, but by afternoon the damage was obvious! There is still a little growing time left, so we ask our members to stick with us for a little longer!

Fall Day...

Cool and rainy, dreary and overcast. A day that kept us out of the garden.

This morning we had a chance to visit Crocker Park Farmer's Market and see all the wonderful goodies that the vendors had! Lots of potatoes, and winter greens, a handful of treats like eggplant and broccoli! OH! The broccoli was beautiful, next year a focus for sure. It was so fun to go to market it has been weeks since we have been able to make one!

Then we went to Home Depot to buy some supplies for hoops to keep our still growing plants, lettuce, turnips, beets, pac choi, radishes, arugula, and more protected from the frosts which will soon turn to real Ohio winter. We built a rig for bending tubes, and tomorrow will build a series of 30 inch x 10 foot long tunnels!

It was nice to be in the barn and not outside in the drizzle today, but it was nicer to come inside and have some nice warm fall supper, chicken and dumplings! So much potential still this fall, the latest weather check shows severe weather at least another 10 days out!

Grow, garden! Grow!

Blogging basics & not so basics...

So as you have all probably figured out I am new to the whole blogging world. My husband claims I am techno-phobic and I was one of the last people he knew to get a cell phone. But once I get into something I research it! The same goes with my blog.

I have been having trouble keeping up with all the farm and other blogs I love to read, you check them and they may or may not have new posts and it clutters up your favorite list, so what is one to do?

Subscribe to the blogs of course! Blogs usually host a RSS feed (and although I don't really know what that means the blog sites do it for you so I don't have to.) But the long and short of it is it is very easy to subscribe to tons of blogs and have one place compile them for you.

I recommend Bloglines, just because I use them. I actually added a link to them so under the archive on the left side of the screen you will see a little pad of yellow paper, just click on that and you can set up an account and add blogs to your list.

Then you will never miss another post from your favorite blogger! Good luck!

More Kale...

Today's pickup will feature green tomatoes, squash, and more Kale!

More Kale?!?! OK, so my last attempt at posting Kale recipes was a flop because I am still new to this blog thing, I have since learned the trick, so try some of these!

Dried Kale Chips and more
Freezing Kale
Kale Pesto
Simpler Kale Pesto
Roasted Kale
Kale Soups

Oh, and one of our members (Thanks Kari and William) sent these recipies to try it too! I tried this first one and very yummy! I used some of our good balsamic vinegar (which we got in Italy) but I'm sure it will be good with whatever you have...

Braised Greens with Balsamic Vinegar

This method works exceptionally well with beets, chard, and similarly-flavored greens, as well as with bitter greens like radicchio and endive. The amounts are entirely variable, but by way of comparison, these are the approximate ratios I use:

mess o’ greens (1 largish bunch)
generous splash of olive oil (4 T. or so)
Garlic (3-4 cloves, though lots more would be just fine)
Onions (1 large)
Balsamic vinegar (2 T.)
Sugar (1 T.)
Crushed red pepper flakes (1/2 t.?)

Wash the greens well to get rid of all that grit. Stack leaves and chiffonade – slice once lengthwise and then roll tightly into a bundle, then slice the bundles cross-wise in ¼ ” strips. Cut stalks in ½” chunks.

Dice onions and crush or mince or sliver the garlic.

Heat oil over medium heat. Toss in the onions, garlic, and pepper flakes until the onions have browned a little, but don’t let the garlic scorch or it will turn the whole affair acrid. Throw in the greens and toss until evenly wilted, then cook until desired degree of doneness, maybe 10-15 minutes or so.

Stir the sugar into the vinegar, and toss with the greens. The liquid in the vinegar will evaporate quickly, but in the process will deglaze some of the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.

Remove from heat and serve. It’s fine as is, but also works well mixed with eggs for a frittata or tossed over pasta. It pairs well with winter squash, and if you want to add cheese, a tangy, salty feta is the way to go. If you want to add meat, something along the crumbled bacon or bits of pancetta line would do nicely. And if you happen to have access to a smoked paprika, it’s really lovely in place of the crushed red pepper flakes.

They also sent this one... William advices "As always, heavy on the garlic, and even heavier on the parmesan make this even better. " I agree, and why not try it with kale instead of spinach?


PASTA WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND SPINACH

6 ounces cavatappi or other spiral-shaped pasta1 small butternut squash (about 1 pound)5 cups packed spinach leaves (about 1 bunch)2 garlic cloves1 tablespoon olive oil2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 ounces)
Fill a 4-quart kettle three fourths full with salted water and bring to a boil for cooking pasta.
Quarter, seed, and peel squash. Cut squash into 1/2-inch cubes. Coarsely chop spinach and mince garlic.
In a large heavy skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté squash with salt to taste, stirring occasionally, until almost tender, about 7 minutes.
While squash is cooking, cook pasta in boiling water until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water and drain pasta in a colander. Add spinach and garlic to skillet with squash and cook over moderately high heat, stirring, until any liquid is evaporated. Add pasta and reserved cooking water and bring to a boil. Season pasta with lemon juice and salt and pepper. Remove skillet from heat and toss pasta with Parmesan.

If you have a recipie please send it to me, and I will try to post it...

Honey - learned something new...

We do NOT sell filtered honey, so if your bottle says that I am sorry. We sell raw STRAINED honey, which means we just pass it through a mesh which is not fine enough to remove pollen and since we do not heat it at all it remains a bit cloudy and has tiny air bubbles.

Perfectly clear honey and filtered honey is (usually) dead honey, heated so it flows and can pass through VERY fine filters, is pretty and perfectly clear, but the good and healthy enzymes are dead and none of the native pollen remains with all of it's benefits...

Sorry for the mislabeling, as we do run it through 3 different strainers (ending with a fine bag) I always thought we filtered it... You learn something new every day!

((I will be relabeling our honey this weekend.))

Last Regular Pickup...

This week is our last week for normal pickups, although we hope to see our members for the next few weeks for the ala' carte Sunday pickups.

In the mean time, this week we have Green Tomatoes or unripe tomatoes. These are a fun little splurge at the end of the season, so why not try them out?

• Lots of Yummy recipies
  Rosted Squash and Green Tomatoes
• Green Tomatoe Soup
• Green Tomatoe Pie
• Green Tomatoe Pickles
• Other Green Toms Canning - Always be careful with canning recipies! I do not know this source.
  How to ripen them indoors