Dusk…Fall…Frost… Winter

By Chef Andrea

Kohlrabi harvest from Saturday, complete with snow.

Last weekend we had our first hard frost with temperatures dropping down into the twenties.  We also saw snow flying and on Saturday we were pelted with snow, rain and sleet as we unloaded the harvest wagons when the crews came in for lunch!  Needless to say, now that the chill is on it’s time to truly acknowledge we’re shifting seasons.  While some may scowl at the thought of winter weather, the changing of seasons is one of the beauties of living…and eating in the midwest.  As CSA members, you are probably some of the most seasonally informed eaters as we follow the cues nature gives us as we harvest and plant across the wide range of seasons we experience from spring to summer and then fall and into winter.  Nature gives us what we need, when we need it and now we’re entering into the season of the year where the daylight hours are dwindling, the temperatures are dropping, and it’s time for us to slow down and keep warm.  In The Birchwood Café Cookbook, they call the transition from summer to fall the season of “Dusk” and mark the transition to winter with the onset of the first frost.  I like the description they use: “…out in our fields, ghosts of the harvest—stalks and vines, a few errant squash—are coated with silver and glisten in the morning sun.  The sudden cold snaps our appetites into action.  Hungers surge, and we start roasting roots and cooking whole grains and working with farmstead meats.”  This description is what we woke up to Sunday morning and those “ghosts of the harvest” were evident.  Stalks and stems once vibrant and alive now with frosted, wilted leaves frozen and motionless.  Our field work is dwindling, but we’re well-stocked with plenty of delicious vegetables to sustain us through the winter.

Escarole Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette, Pears,
and Almonds

“Bittersweet.  That’s fall in a nutshell.  Leaves are dropping, along with the temperatures, and the lush plants bursting with life such a short time ago look all used up.  Yet after summer’s frenetic growth, I can’t help but welcome fall’s slower pace.  I’m ready to be indoors, spending a little longer by the warm stove…Vegetables that love the cold—like Brussels sprouts and braising greens—are coming into their prime, sweetened by the cold nights and occasional fall frosts that encourage sugar development.  Roots are sweeter now as well.  I do still serve some fall vegetables raw, especially those first Brussels spouts and kale leaves.  But I’m more likely now than in early months to turn up the stove and transform the vegetables with heat.”  This is an excerpt from Joshua McFadden’s book Six Seasons in which he introduces the changing of seasons and cooking in the fall.  He’s right, the slower pace of winter can be a welcomed relief.  We replace quick vegetable sautes and grilled vegetables with roasted vegetables, baked sweet potatoes and squash and slowly simmered soups and stews.  While there are still some quick preparations for roots and the like, many of these vegetables need some time to become soft, tender and for their flavors to develop.  That being said, I do encourage you to continue to enjoy some things raw.  Even though we don’t have spinach, lettuce and salad greens anymore, we can still enjoy fresh, crunchy vegetable salads.  Now is the time to get creative with cabbage slaws, shredded carrot salads, Kohlrabi and celeriac slaws and even beet salads.  We also have some hearty fall greens that are frost-tolerant, such as escarole and tat soi.  There are so many interesting ways to prepare these vegetables in their raw form.  Combine them with different flavorful oils such as hazelnut or walnut oil.  Mix them with winter fruit like apples, pears, and citrus.  Add some additional crunch with toasted squash seeds, roasted nuts, croutons or crispy shallots. 

One Pot Kabocha Squash and Chickpea Curry

With the holidays upon us, it’s also a time of the year to come together to celebrate and enjoy the company of friends and family.  Spend some time cooking and eating together.  It’s good for the soul and remember, part of this whole CSA concept is community!  I’m reminded of the beauty of community every year when we receive an invitation to the annual Verona Root Party.  This is a party hosted at the beginning of December every year for…well I’m not sure how many years but I’d guess it could be as many as 20 or more!  This is a group of CSA members who have “grown up” together, sharing in the beauty of friendships and community as they’ve helped each other raise their children, watched them grow up and move out to go to college and find their place in this world.  Every year they take the time to celebrate not only their community, but the food and relationship they have to our farm.  Their meals are delicious, creative and beautiful. 

Brussels Sprouts in the field covered in snow.

So as we move into yet another season, I hope you’ll pause to consider how fortunate we are to be able to eat through the different seasons, experiencing the best that nature has to offer us.  Our own experienced Farmer Richard has learned a lot of farming “tricks” over the years that allow us to extend the perimeters of our farming season by working with nature and being willing to try different vegetables that may not be so common.  We started off the season with ramps, sorrel and nettles and we’ll end it with Brussels sprouts, cabbage, storage kohlrabi, sweet potatoes, winter squash and a plethora of hearty roots.  These vegetables will sustain us as we move through winter and welcome the arrival of another spring….and then we’ll start the cycle all over again.  Thank you for choosing to eat seasonally.  As we finish out the final two months of CSA deliveries, we’ll be stocking your refrigerators and pantries to prepare you for the winter.  We hope you enjoy this season of fall and winter culinary creativity as you prepare delicious, hearty, nourishing meals.