Autumn Broccoli and Sweet Potatoes

Hello!

This will be a quick one because it’s early in the morning and I need to get the boys ready for school. This week’s big news is BROCCOLI! Have you been missing it? It’s back, and it will be delicious. This is the first year EVER that Bill has had fall broccoli. It is so sweet and crisp – be sure to get some!
Also, you should know that the squash is getting PROGRESSIVELY BETTER every week. It really needs to cure for a few weeks before the flavor fully develops. We ate acorn squash last night and were amazed at how much better it was than last week (when we also liked it).

We’ll also have SWEET POTATOES! Whoo-hoo! Like squash, sweet potatoes really need time to cure but we can’t wait that long to sell them. If you want to be really diligent, you could buy sweet potatoes and put them in a space heated to 80-90 degrees with 90% humidity for 7 days without burning your house down. (They are really a southern plant, so they like the heat.) We do this by putting them in our little space under the staircase, running a space heater and a humidifier, and covering the crates with wet towels. We just can’t do that for 1000 pounds of potatoes!

Here are two funny things from Noah this week. Yesterday in the car, Noah was reading a book out loud. I heard him read the phrase “a little black male.” I gasped and asked him to read it again. He said the same thing. My sensitivity meter going bananas, I asked for a spelling and it turned out to be “a little blackmail.” He was just sounding it out. Thank goodness. I thought Captain Underpants (the book) was going to have to be confiscated. The second funny thing was at the prayer before supper last night. We all went around the table to say one thing we’re thankful for. Noah said (and I’m not exaggerating), “Thank you God for the world being just like it is and not any worse.” (He’s been watching the Planet Earth series and the most recent episode was filled with some of the bad news, like animal extinctions and climate change.) Noah is already preparing for the worst. We try to reassure him, but he’s pretty smart and opinionated!

Here’s what we’ll have on Saturday …

Sweet Potatoes
Broccoli
Squash – butternut, acorn, spaghetti
Parsnips
Eggplant
Leeks
Poblano Peppers
Sweet Peppers
Green Bell Peppers
Green beans
Summer squash
Potatoes
Carrots
Shallots
Fennel
Swiss chard
Head Lettuce
Beets
Onions
Garlic

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email us at blueschoolhouse@yahoo.com, although during the farm season we can’t guarantee that we’ll be checking the email as often as usual. Our phone service is dead for the next few weeks until the house is moved back onto the new basement!

Best,
Mercy