Coming up at the Farm
Felted Slipper Workshop, October 10th, 10am-4pm Get a jump on your holiday gift planning this year by learning the technique of turning wool into unique felted creations.
Our Children's Learning Garden Fall After School Program has filled up! But, we'd love to have you with us next season.
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| Recipes |
We love getting recipes from our shareholders!
Do you have a recipe you'd like to share? Don't be shy -- let us know!
For more information, see our Recipe pages. |
| Fun for the Kids |
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Story Time on Tuesdays, 4-4:45
Boudicca Hawke (age 9) will once again do Story Time on the farm for children of all ages. It will be held each Tuesday from 4:00 to 4:45 at the meeting shelter. She will have a selection of books that are related to farms and the creatures that live on farms, however if anyone has a favorite book they'd love to share, please bring it as she will be happy to read that too.
Fun on the Farm, Tuesdays, 3:30 - 5:00 pm
Kids, please join us for free play, old-fashioned games, story hour (see above), nature drawing (bring supplies!) and a nut-free snack. About once a month, we'll do a special activity such as tour bee hives and chicken coops, inventory birds and insects, make cornhusk dolls and our famous Silly Olympics. Parents, nut free snack contributions would be great! Look for Anastacia near the distribution shed at 3:30. |
Apple Shares
If you've signed up for Apple shares from Autumn Hills Orchard in Groton please remember to pick yours up when you come to the farm.
To see what's in the fruit share this week, click here.
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| CSA pickup schedule for the week
Tuesday, September
29 from 3-7 PM
Thursday, October 1 from 3-7 PM
Saturday, October 3 from 8 AM to 12 noon
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What's in the share this week...
 Please note: this list is prepared the week before you receive your share. Some guesswork is involved! We do our best to predict which crops will be ready to harvest, but sometimes crops are on the list that are not in the share, and sometimes crops will be in the share even though they're not on the list.
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A Note on Farm Pickup Times
Finding the farm a little busy when you arrive? We have more shareholders pick up Saturdays between 11 AM and noon than we do during the entire four-hour Tuesday distribution! We know that for some people, that hour may be the only time they can make it to the farm; and some people enjoy the bustling atmosphere of that busiest hour of the week. However, if you'd like a more serene farm experience and you are able to, consider an alternative pickup time: Tuesdays from 3-7 PM, Thursdays from 3-7 PM, or Saturdays from 8-11 AM are lovely times to be on the farm!
Please also keep in mind that while PYO stays open all day Saturday, our distribution shelter closes at noon, so we don't restock any of the vegetables after 12 noon on Saturdays in order to get our farm staff home after a long week's work. Please plan to arrive with plenty of time to pick up your veggies from the shelter before noon. Thank you!
As always, no matter when you arrive, we look forward to seeing you on the farm. | |
Pick-Your-Own Crops
 Shareholders are welcome to pick-your-own anytime during daylight hours. Please remember to always check the white board on the red kiosk for updated PYO information.
Why limits? We've heard several people say "it can't hurt if we pick more than what it says on the board -- there's so much here!" While this probably looks true for some crops at certain times of the year (and certain times of the week), it's important to remember that we have 350 shares on the farm, and that each of these shares is entitled to the same amount of PYO crops. As the farmers, we do our best to judge the total of what's available and to spread it out over all three pickup days and all 350 shareholders. That's where the limits come in -- if we feel like there are not enough beans for everyone to pick what they'll use, we put a limit on the board. Please feel free to ask us at any distribution if you'd like more information about PYO!
PYO hint: weekend pickup times are busy on the farm. If you can do your PYO at another time during the week, you may find that crops are easier to find!
- Perennial herbs and flowers (including mint and thyme)
- Flat and curly parsley
- Hot peppers
- Husk cherries
- A few tomatilloes
- Raspberries may still be around, but please check the white board for more information on how many to pick, since quantities may be limited.
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WFCF CSA Share Renewals for 2010 Begin October 1
On October 1, we will send an email letter to all 2009 primary CSA shareholders with information about how to renew your share for 2010. You'll have two weeks to return the letter with a $50 non-refundable deposit to hold your place for next season. If space allows and there is interest, we will offer shares to secondary shareholders (split share partners) who might want their own shares in 2010 beginning on October 15. In January of 2010, we will offer remaining CSA shares to all members of our nonprofit organization by lottery.
If you are sure that you want a CSA share in 2010, we strongly encourage you to take advantage of this advance signup period to renew your share, since there is no guarantee that you will receive a share if you wait until January. Please ask our staff at any CSA pickup this week if you have questions about CSA share renewals. |
Eggplant alla Norma
A shareholder writes: this was a big hit at our house the other week, now that it's cool enough to actually cook INSIDE.
2 pounds any kind of eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 cup olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups marinara sauce (homemade or use 24 to 26 oz. bottled sauce)
1 pound dried rigatoni
1 pound cold mozzarella (preferably salted fresh), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Toss eggplant with 2 teaspoon salt in a colander. Drain 30 minutes. Rinse, then squeeze out excess liquid and pat dry.
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Fry eggplant in 3 batches, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 5 minutes per batch. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.
Discard all but 2 tablespoons oil from skillet, then sauté onion with 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper until golden, about 8 minutes. Stir in sauce and eggplant and simmer 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook rigatoni in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 6 quart water) until al dente, then drain. Stir together pasta, sauce, and half of mozzarella in pot. Transfer to a 3-quart baking dish and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake until cheese is melted and golden in spots, about 45 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
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Cape Ann Fresh Catch pickups start Thursday October 1st
Pick ups for the fish share are going to be on Thursdays 4:30PM to 6:30PM starting October 1st (this Thursday).
It's going to be a run of 5 weeks long this time around for the fish (fish and shrimp available in late fall/early winter). The cost is $75. for the 5 weeks for a half share (that's 4 - 6 pounds of fresh fish each week). Double that for a full share.
Interested in signing up? There are flyers at the farm to sign up. Send your checks to:
Gloucester Fishermen's Wives Association
Cape Ann Fresh Catch
PO Box 831
Gloucester, MA 01930
When you send in your check, please be sure to indicate that you are interested in the Waltham Farm drop location (it's not actually on the flyer yet it's so new).
For more information, contact Cape Ann Fresh Catch by email or by phone at (978) 283-2504. ----- Local veggies, apples, meat, wine, syrup, honey, cheese... and fish? Many of you have probably already heard about Cape Ann Fresh Catch (CAFC), a collaborative project of the  Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance and the Gloucester Fishermen's Wives' Association, which are offering shares in the haul of Cape Ann fishermen all over the Boston area, including distributions at several local farms, including ours! |
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Frost
The weather predictions were for a low of 43 degrees. The thermometer on the side of the walk-in said 41 when I arrived in the morning. But there was no mistaking it: over the grass and all the way down the farm road, glittering spangles of frost covered the ground and led the way into the fields. Even before I had the chance to put on my rubber field boots, I was out of the truck and out to the eggplant and peppers to check on the plants loaded with fruit that might have been impacted by a hard frost.  But, though the sweet potato vines and basil plants showed the results of the chilly night, the eggplant and peppers were fine. The black plastic covering the ground underneath them definitely holds in some heat, radiating it back to the plants during the night, and the soil temperature at the sweet potatoes, not covered with plastic, was just a degree or two below sixty. All was well, but a light frost like that one signals the start of the season when a clear nights and a full moon can mean all-out harvest madness in vulnerable crops.
Our farm, though still ten degrees warmer than those of our friends in Dover and Framingham, sits on a plateau of once-extended riverbanks where the cool air from the hills around us pools as it falls away towards Beaver and Clematis Brooks. We already know that it's a little cooler here than a few miles away, at my house on the south side of town, but it seems like we have to re-learn it every year. We'll be keeping a closer -- and more skeptical -- eye on those forecasts from now on!
In the meantime, our harvests of eggplant and peppers and sweet potatoes will continue, though the basil may be finished unless more warm weather follows this weekend's rain. The farmers are continuing to harvest, clear fields and sow cover crop, plant strawberries, prepare fields for garlic, and celebrate the autumn harvest with delicious meals that reflect the ingredients that really get us excited this time of year. Once the weather turns and we have a little more cooking time in the evenings, we all plunge into more elaborate recipes that make our mouths water all day as we plan them. A sampling of last week's meals from the farm crew included pasta with caramelized fennel and ricotta; mushroom risotto with parsley gremolata and roasted turnips; white pizza with broccoli raab and sweet red peppers; eggplant and green pepper ratatouille with polenta made with Smith's smoked cheddar cheese; ground nut stew with the last of our okra and the first of the sweet potatoes; kale and leek sandwiches with homemade hot sauce and smoked gouda cheese; arugula, pear and walnut salad, mashed potatoes and shallots, and grilled Chestnut Farms steak; and homemade hummus and eggplant relish with pita bread, broccoli, carrots, turnips and radishes to dip.  We love tomatoes, cucumbers and melons as much as the next farmers, but it's these cooler fall days and slightly more unusual ingredients that really get us excited about cooking. We'll keep you updated with other fall food ideas as the season progresses, particularly if an oncoming frost means we have to fill our fridges with eggplant -- please send us your ideas too!
Eat well!
-- Amanda, for the farm crew | |
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Warmly,
The Staff of Waltham Fields Community Farm |
Jericho Bicknell, Education and Outreach Coordinator
Amanda Cather, Farm Manager
Debra Guttormsen, Administrative and Finance Coordinator
Paula Jordan, Spring & Fall Children's Learning Garden Assistant
Jonathan Martinez, Assistant Grower
Blake Roberts, Outreach Market Intern
Dan Roberts, Assistant Grower Erinn Roberts, Assistant Grower Nina Rogowsky, Children's Learning Garden Teacher Andy Scherer, Assistant Farm Manager |
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