Thursday, November 29, 2012

Tasty and Healthy - November 29, 2012

Greetings! We hope your Thanksgiving celebrations were enjoyable, relaxing, and full of thankfulness!

With unseasonably cool temperatures, our bean and squash crop has stopped producing. However, the Greens and other Winter Crops are thriving.

To see what we are growing, and what is being harvested, please see the highlighted areas below.

Now that the holiday season is upon us, it's nice to enjoy easily "rustled up" meals. Prepare sauces, chilis, stews, and soups in large quantities. Freeze some for future meals, or refrigerate leftovers to use 3 or 4 nights into the future. Use all the fresh vegetables in your produce drawer, and even the opened bags of frozen veggies which were not completely used at a previous meal.

Another time saver:

Place seasonings and meat in the crock pot for slow cooking all day. Prepare vegetables like carrots, sweet potatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, eggplant, or regular potatoes into bite sizes or shaped like french fries. Place in sealed baggie. For dinner, turn the oven to 400F, line cookie sheet with parchment paper, and roast the veggies for 30 minutes (give or take). In this way, you have time to kick of your shoes, set the table, get the meat out of the crock pot, and the veggies will be ready just in time. This insures that the vegetables are not overcooked, and that they retain their nutrients and flavor.

Our Greens are in!

Because Mustards and Collards belong to the Cruciferous Family, they are extremely healthy and versatile, full of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Please click here for full details.

Currently planted on the farm, but not yet ready for harvest:

Red and White Swiss Chard (another specialty)

Kale
Broccoli
Spinach
Baby Bok Choy
Beets

If interested in SHELLED black-eye peas please phone the farm to place an order. Peas are in our standard two pound bag. $8 per bag.

As always, please feel free to phone the farm for special requests or special orders. We'll do everything we can to accommodate you. If you need something from the Farmers Market in Plant City, it is best to phone by Wednesday afternoon.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services visits to our farm regularly to test our soil and plants. For more information about our farming techniques, and the testing we undergo, please click here.

A big thanks from Gran'ma Angie for recycling your shopping bags with us. Please keep them coming!

Being Harvested on the Farm:

Pesticide-Free White Radish

Pesticide-Free Turnips
Pesticide-Free Mustard Greens
Pesticide-Free Collard Greens

Phone for fresh-frozen Black Eye Peas

From the Farmers Market:

Florida Tomatoes

Florida Grape Tomatoes

Florida Green Tomatoes

Eggplant

Cucumbers

Pickling Cukes

Green and Red Bell Peppers
Cubanella Sweet Peppers (BEAUTIFUL!)

Jalapenos (be sure to remove the seeds!)

Carrots

Sweet Potatoes

Baking Potatoes

Red Skin Potatoes

White Skin Potatoes

Acorn Squash

Spaghetti Squash

Yellow Onions

Scallion Onions

Purple Onions

Red Radish

Beets

Celery

Cabbage

Romaine

Head Lettuce
Baby Bok Choy

Florida BiColor corn on the cob!

Lemons

Limes (recipe below)

Bananas

Red Navel Oranges (Extra Large!)

Red Grapefruit

Red Delicious Apples

Florida Avocados

Where we will be this week:

Everyday - until 6PM Gran'ma Angie, Nana Phyllis, Joann and Rolo will man the Produce Barn.

Monday - 9AM - 2PM We will now be serving our north Brooksville customers in the Cloverleaf Farm Mobile Home Park - just off Hwy 41, across from the Hernando County School Compound and south of Croom Road in North Brooksville. Turn into Cloverleaf Farm's main entrance, on the right side by the golf driving range.

Friday - 7:30AM - 5PM Rolo will be at our Spring Hill Drive location next to the Chevron location. Be sure to phone the farm for any special orders!

Saturday - 10AM-3PM Joann and Rolo will be at the Hernando County Farmers Market on Hwy 19 with 40 other vendors! Come and browse, shop, and visit with your neighbors - it's an all 'round enjoyable time. You'll also be supporting local businesses by visiting their booths. Be sure to phone the farm for any special orders!

Sunday - 9AM-2PM Rolo will be at The Tarpon Sunday Morning Farmers Market in downtown Tarpon Springs (7 Pinellas Avenue, South Corner of Alt 19 and Tarpon Ave) Their phone is 727-485-4920.