Campfires and Shooting Stars

We hope everyone had a fantastic Labor Day weekend, and that you've all fully recovered from any over indulgence in food and drink. We had a mini-vacation and our last hoorah for the summer with lots of guests from far and wide. Stef went vegan for a few days while Marley and Charlton ate way too much pork...but don't worry, it was pastured pork from our good friends at North Mountain pastures. There were campfires abound, drive-in movies, s'mores, melty trails, fireworks, picnics, kipona, atomic warehouse and yes...lots of shooting stars.
If we were grape growers this dry spell would be exactly what we hope for to make the grapes nice and sweet for the fall harvest. But alas, we are not, and the irrigation schedule has commenced once again. The newly planted and seeded crops require water everyday and even the established crops take their turns getting a drink.
Today we had our hands on a ton of winter squash. Another milestone as we find the fall creeping closer and closer. This weeks share will include acorn squash. Don't feed it to the squirrels. Please note that there may be soft spots on some of the acorns, due to the intense heat and sun last week. It's the squash version of sunburn. This is just cosmetic and the flesh inside will still be tasty as can be. For the unburned half, we give thanks to the shade provided by the weeds. You have just experienced a serious moment in Wooden Hill history, as this will probably be one of the only times you will ever hear us thank our weeds.

P.S. Remember to bring your jars and containers for the Food Bank!

CROP OF THE WEEK


ACORN SQUASH

You guessed it, acorn squash gets it's name from it's distinct acorn shape and ridges. Although acorn squash can also come in shades of white and yellow, the variety grown here is dark green when ripe. The flesh is a yellow-orange color and is high in vitamins A and C and potassium. Like other winter squash, acorn is also a good source of manganese and fiber. For those of you with a sweet tooth this is the ultimate winter squash as its most common preparation is to slice in half, scoop out the seeds, fill with butter and brown sugar, bake and serve as is in the shell. You can find a quick and easy recipe for this just by googling "acorn squash"

RECIPE OF THE WEEK

Roasted Squash, Pear and Ginger Soup
adapted from Deborah Madison's Vegetable Soups
1 acorn squash, rinsed
3 ripe but firm pears, quartered, seeds and stems removed
1, 2 inch chunk ginger, thinly sliced
olive oil
sea salt
2 TBSP butter
1 onion, thinly sliced


1. Preheat oven to 425. Cut the squash in half, scrape out seeds, and then cut each half in half again. Bake in oven with pears and all but a few slices of the ginger. Brush with oil, season with salt and bake for 1 hour. If squash is very dry add 1 cup water to pan and cover with foil to create steam. When the squash is tender, transfer everything from pan to cutting board. Add 1 cup water to pan, and scrape to dissolve the juices, reserving the liquid. Scrape the flesh of squash away from the skins
2. To make a stock, bring 6 cups water to a boil. Eventually add the squash skins, remaining ginger and 1/2 TSP salt. Lower the heat and simmer, covered for 25 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, melt butter in soup pot. Add onion and cook 10 minutes. Add the pears, ginger and squash, and the reserved deglazing water. Strain the stock into the pot. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Puree until smooth and serve.