Hello
I've been trying not to think too much about the coming winter. It's inevitable, and in this business one must always be thinking ahead. The peaches need canned, we need to start cooking and freezing pumpkin puree for Thanksgiving, the cover crops need planted, oh, and I need to book kill dates for 2022 for animals net yet conceived! And that doesn't include the dream projects on my list - fencing improvements, a new beef barn, changes to the hog farrowing facility, and so much more.
And just as I had cleared my head and was about to have a peaceful Sunday morning, the dogs started going crazy. That's not too unusual on a Sunday. Their arch nemesis is a horse; and in Amish country, Sundays are high traffic days with the Old Order traveling to and from church gatherings - all horse drawn. Sundays can test your patience with these two!
But this Sunday it was something different. Literally, a figure of winter-to-come was practically knocking on my front door. One of our heritage turkeys - the Standard Bronze - had flown over the fence, navigated its way through 3 acres of waste deep potato plants, across the flower patch, and strolled through the yard and up the front steps of the house. He perched calmly on the porch railing completely ignoring the ferocious bark of two 100 lb fluff ball dogs.
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So, my peace of mind was disrupted and my mind came back in focus. I asked myself, "When did we announce Winter Season last year." I scoured through emails and found the announcement - August 26th. My mind panicked, "That's this week."
So, here we are. Summer is waning despite the hot humid days. David already claims he has heard the katydids chirping - a country omen that frost is just 6 weeks away - and I had a Thanksgiving turkey frolicking on my porch.
This will be our 11th Winter Season. For those who have not joined us before for winter, it is similar but different from summer:
Similar in that:
- it's only local foods, which means we start out the winter with cold hardy crops like cauliflower and sprouts, transition to storage crops like potatoes, carrots, and hard squashes, and end the winter with items we put up like frozen beans, corn, and canned goods
- the pickup locations are still outside regardless of the weather
- we offer Omnivore and Vegetarian configurations
It is different from summer in that:
- There is no vegan plan and we discourage anyone with gluten or dairy allergies as our selection of items available in the winter is more restricted
- the pickup schedule is slightly different - 3 weeks in a row in November then every-other-week throughout the rest of the winter for 15 total pickups (Nov 1 thru May 8)
- Only 1 size package available - $45 per package - available in Omnivore or Vegetarian
- Our number of shares is more restricted to match the capacity of our kitchen and farmers in preparing valuable offerings for you
Our Winter Season is currently being offered only to current subscribers (you). For full details, visit our information page (although it does need some updating with this year's dates) at Fresh Fork Winter Season. There, you can find what was in winter bags of the past and get an idea of how the season goes.
Thank you again for your support this summer!
Sincerely,
Trevor
(below: Winter deliveries happen regardless. Lauren sets a new standard for bundling up...so many layers she can hardly move. And sometimes a blanket of snow gives us a pretty backdrop for our displays.
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This week the kitchen at the farm is overwhelmed with preservation projects, including freezing sweet corn, canning tomato sauce and salsa, peeling peaches, and so much more. To help get caught up, we will not be offering any special baked goods this week.
Next week however....stay tuned for peachy goodness!
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One of my favorite parts of my job is getting to play matchmaker with the farmers and other artisans to produce a really unique local product.
This week's feature item started months ago in early June. Several farmers were harvesting garlic scapes - more than we could sell fresh. The local goat farmers were all freshening and had more milk than they could sell fresh. And Monroe at Stutzman Farms still had a good supply of his golden pastry flour.
So I called Gary at Ohio City Pasta and we started kicking around an idea for a custom made Fresh Fork ravioli. He gave us the specs for what a filling would need to feel like to work in this ravioli machine, and Chef Derek in the farm kitchen took it from there.
Over the course of the last few months we have been able to process all the garlic scapes by blanching them in salted water, chilling them rapidly in ice water, then grinding them through a meat grinder before spinning in the food processor with oil to make a garlic scape pesto.
Derek then whipped the garlic scape pesto into some fresh goat chevre, seasoned with salt and a little onion powder, and added a hint of lemon juice to make the texture right and bring the flavors together.
He then passed the filling off to Gary at Ohio City Pasta. His team rolled out the dough using Stutzman Golden Pastry Flour and passed it through their ravioli machine. This week, each bag will have a dozen of the garlic scape and chevre filled raviolis!
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Small Omnivore
Garlic Scape Chevre Ravioli
Heirloom Tomatoes
Cherry Tomatoes
Garlic
Green Peppers
Sweet Corn
Eggplant
Kohlrabi
Peaches
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Small Vegetarian
Garlic Scape Chevre Ravioli
Heirloom Tomatoes
Cherry Tomatoes
Garlic
Green Peppers
Sweet Corn
Eggplant
Kohlrabi
Peaches
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Mini
Garlic
Kohlrabi
Peaches
Sweet Corn
Heirloom Tomatoes
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Large Omnivore
Garlic Scape Chevre Ravioli
Heirloom Tomatoes
Cherry Tomatoes
Garlic
Green Peppers
Sweet Corn
Eggplant
Kohlrabi
Peaches
Lacinato Kale
Spaghetti Squash
Basil
Chicken Italian Links
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Large Vegetarian
Garlic Scape Chevre Ravioli
Heirloom Tomatoes
Cherry Tomatoes
Garlic
Green Peppers
Sweet Corn
Eggplant
Kohlrabi
Peaches
Lacinato Kale
Spaghetti Squash
Basil
Red Potatoes
Blackberries
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Small Vegan
Heirloom Tomatoes
Cherry Tomatoes
Garlic
Green Peppers
Sweet Corn
Eggplant
Kohlrabi
Peaches
Spaghetti Squash
Red Potatoes
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Reminder: Carnivore Share bags are every-other-week based on pick-up location. You will be randomly assigned to a group (A, B, C). Check for the assignment in your last name. By the end of the season, all groups will have received the same amount of all products.
Week 13 Carnivore Schedule
Akron, Beachwood, Bratenahl, Chagrin Falls, Cleveland Heights, Copley, Hudson, Mayfield, Mentor, Shaker Heights, Solon
**Carnivore share bags are only available at the first "dropoff location" listed on the location tab of your account as of 6/1. Carnivore shares cannot be transferred. We pack for the exact number based on location.**
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SPECIAL ORDER
Location Details
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Your special order will only be delivered only to your primary location as selected in your profile (see below). Please review this BEFORE placing your order (adjust + save as needed). Please do not email or call to change the location of your special order. It sounds easier said than done. Our software prints a pick list per location for what products we must take along. If we attempt to move it manually there is a high probability that we'll mess it up and no one will be happy.
Please leave the "new" location set in your profile until after you pick up your special order. You will have to log back into your account to change it back to your usual stop BEFORE you place your next order the following week.
When you get to your check-in, please let the greeter know you also have a special order to pick-up. The order is packed separate from the regular share.
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