Strawberries from Springdell

We had our first CSA pick-up from Springdell Farm! Talia was a big fan of the strawberries. Here she is, polishing off the last two. She picked up the basket and didn't put it down until it was empty. Luckily, I was able to get her to share a few with me before they were gone. Yum!

Gibbet Hill Farm, Groton MA

Gibbet Hill Farm

6 Lowell Road, Groton MA 01450

www.gibbethill.com

I received an email last week about Gibbet Hill's new vegetable CSA. Wow--it seems like CSAs are popping up all over the place! When I first moved back to this area from my beloved Happy Valley, I was unable to find a vegetable CSA nearby (well, one that I wanted to join, anyway, but we won't go into that at the moment). Now it seems that there are three within biking distance of my house--I love it!

The deal with this new one is that last year, Gibbet Hill started growing produce to use in their restaurants. Apparently, it was a success, so now they are offering a 50-member vegetable CSA, starting this year. Here's a link to some information from their website. A cool thing about this CSA is that, since it's grown in conjunction with their restaurant, you may find some prepared items made with produce from the farm in your weekly share (think pickles).

Even if you don't join their CSA, definitely stop in for dinner, or at least drinks and appetizers. Two thumbs-up from me on this place.

Drumlin Farm, Lincoln MA

Drumlin Farm

208 South Great Road, Lincoln MA 01773

http://www.massaudubon.org/drumlin

Today was the last pick up for Drumlin Farm's winter vegetable CSA. So sad. This is the first time I've belonged to a winter CSA and it's been nice having fresh local vegetables all winter. I don't know if I can wait until June when Springdell Farm's summer vegetable CSA begins.

How can they grow vegetables in the winter in New England? Well, they don't. At least for this one--Drumlin Farm also has winter greens CSA (which was full, so I couldn't join this year) and I believe that they grow them in a greenhouse. At least, I wandered into the greenhouse a few weeks ago and noticed some salad greens ready for picking so I figure that's probably where they come from.

Anyway, the winter vegetable CSA is mainly root vegetables and squash, with some kale, onions, and garlic thrown in at the beginning of the season (it started in December). These are grown during the summer/fall growing season and they store them under optimal conditions, doling out two weeks' worth at a time for those of us without root cellars. You only pick up every other week, which is convenient, as opposed to every week like during the summer/fall. We ate a lot of root vegetable soups and stews this year. And yesterday, another shareholder donated her daikon to me (lucky for me she doesn't like it). I've been craving Korean food lately, so I'm going to make a big batch of radish kimchi. Yum!

Next month Drumlin Farm will hold its annual Sap-to-Syrup Farmer's Breakfast (Saturday, March 13 and Sunday, March 14, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm--contact the farm to reserve your spot). It's a pancake breakfast featuring their own potatoes, sausage, and maple syrup. This is the third year in a row that I've gone to this breakfast and it's been delicious and fun every time. You can go on tours of the farm and learn the origins of maple sugaring, and you can also visit the sugar house to learn about and watch the maple syrup being made. And, of course, you can buy some maple syrup to bring home with you.

Just as a heads-up, starting in a couple of weeks, maple sugar houses all around New England will open their doors for pancake breakfasts for the few shorts weeks they're producing maple syrup. Try to check at least one of them out this year--in my book, there are few things finer than New England sugaring season. If you're interested, you can find information from the Massachusetts Maple Producer's Association, the New Hampshire Maple Producers, the Vermont Maple Foundation/Vermont Maple Sugar Makers Association, the Maple Syrup Producers Association of Connecticut, and the Maine Maple Producers Association. Sorry Rhode Island, I couldn't find information about your maple syrup.

Chestnut Farms, Hardwick MA

Chestnut Farms

P.O. Box 545; 404 Turkey Street

Hardwick MA 01037

www.chestnutfarms.org

My freezer doth floweth over... with meat from Chestnut Farms! Since last May, my family has belonged to a meat CSA--how great is that? As an omnivore, I appreciate that now most of the meat I eat is humanely-raised. Twice each year, they host an open barn where you get to see just how the animals live before they end up in your freezer: Meet Your Meat, as they say. We went to the one they had last October and were pretty impressed! The farmers, Kim and Rich, really work hard and take wonderful care of all the animals. And, they are pretty tasty, too. How it works is that once a month we pick up a cooler of frozen assorted meat from a pick-up spot (there are several--ours is in Harvard center). It's a mystery cooler full of surprise cuts. In the summer months, there were many cuts suited for grilling; now that it's winter, we've gotten a lot of cuts good for stewing. We've gotten all types of meat: ground beef/pork/lamb, bacon, sausage, filet mignon (only once but, man, was it delicious!), ribs, rack of lamb, ham steak, chicken breast, pork loin, etc., etc. We also ordered a Thanksgiving turkey (not included in the monthly share) which was fantastic. Everything has been absolutely top notch. I would highly recommend this farm if you are looking to join a meat CSA.

I am under the impression that this is the only meat CSA in the state, but don't quote me on that. However, there is a new one at Springdell Farm, in Littleton, MA, starting this year. So, now that makes two. Springdell Farm started a vegetable CSA last year and we signed up for this coming season. Once the crops are ready for eating, I'll post an update on that.