Sweet Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes,
SWEET POTATOES! If you’ve stopped at the farm lately, you know what we are talking about because you saw the HUGE pile of potatoes in the garage. Cleaning and sorting seems to be taking forever, but like other jobs at the farm, it is a peaceful one. Did you know Sweet Potatoes are one of the healthiest foods for you to eat, and can be prepared MANY different ways?
LIST OF ALL THE WAYS TO MAKE SWEET POTATOES:Baked - warm or cold sweet baked potatoes make a great snack for young and old. Kids like nature’s “push-up” - a sweet potato cut in half, grasped in the hand and gently squeezed. As that yummy part of the sweet potato emerges upward, one simply gnaws away at it. This can also be done with a spoon, and instead of pushing the potato insides up, one digs down with a spoon. Even little ones can master both of these techniques and will have fun trying.
Steamed
Grilled
Pancakes
Breads
Fries
Roasted
Soup
Pies and puddings
Casseroles
Baby Food!!!
If you have a great sweet potato recipe, please share!!! Not everyone likes sweet potatoes, but with all the different ways to cook them, you are sure to find something you like.
LIST OF ALL HEALTH BENEFITS OF SWEET POTATOES:This starchy vegetable has bulk to keep your tummy full for hours. Yet its nutritional profile makes the calories worth it, especially since they are fat-free. Its fiber alone is enough to make a sweet potato worth eating. If a beta-carotene contest were held, sweet potatoes would tie carrots for first place. That may make them top-notch for fighting chronic diseases like cancer and heart disease, as well as disease related to inflammation, such as asthma and rheumatoid arthritis.
Sweet potatoes are also rich in potassium and vitamin C; a small potato provides almost half the daily allowance.
Sweet potato is rich in Vitamin A (beta carotene) and Vitamin C. Both Vitamins A and C are powerful antioxidants that work in the body to remove free radicals, this free radicals are chemicals that damage cells.
Sweet potato is good for stomach ulcers and inflamed conditions of the colon.
It is beneficial for low blood pressure.
May be helpful for hemorrhoid because of its high fiber content.
Sweet potato is a good food for people involved in heavy muscular work, since this food is high in vitamins and minerals.
Sweet potato may help prevent cancer in glands and organs with epithelial tissue due to its high Vitamin A content.
Sweet potato is a good food for diabetics, because it helped stabilize blood sugar levels.
OK, enough about sweet potatoes. Let’s talk animals! The goats have been moved to their winter home. You can visit them whenever you like, but please be aware that the wire fence that runs across the top of the pen IS ELECTRIC and WILL SHOCK YOU. We hope they like their home. It will be a little warmer for them during the cold winter months and a little closer to the other animals to make the feeding trip a little easier when it’s 20 degrees below zero.
The Spring Laying Hens have still not started laying eggs yet. Chickens naturally slow down with productions when the weather changes and as they age, so our “old” layers are just keeping up with demand. If you stop at the farm for fresh eggs, PLEASE only take 1 dozen at a time. Once the other layers start laying we should have plenty again to add new egg share members and have whatever you need on demand, but until then we are at the will of the chickens.
As for what’s left for veggies: We were a little disappointed when we didn’t have enough time to weed a few of our peppers and eggplant. Now were are happy to STILL have both because the weeds have helped protect them from frost. We have SOME Kale, Spinach, Turnips and Kohlrabi. Brussels Sprouts, Rutabaga and Sweet Potatoes A PLENTY.
BOX MEMBERS:As a member, we’d like to invite you to come to the farm on Wednesday, or Thursday this week and grab a few veggies off our produce shelf to take home for the winter. Now that we’ve harvested almost everything we have a few things for you, but not enough to FILL boxes for everyone. If you had a small share - fill ¼ of a paper bag, if a standard share - fill ½ paper bag, and a large share fills 1 paper bag full. It is best to cut the spinach and kale fresh for you, so if you know when you are coming send me a text or give a call so I can cut them for you. If we get a hard frost again, everything may be done, but until than we will bring in what is still surviving out there.
We ended up with 19 continuous weeks of fresh produce boxes. A few boxes were a little small at the beginning of the season and when we transitioned to fall harvest, but most weeks the boxes were LOADED with awesome veggies and a few fruits. There were veggies we had way to many of and some veggies that didn’t make it at all. I have a lot of learning to do about herbs too. We’ve got lots of perennial herbs planted so hopefully next year you will have lots more herbs in your boxes. As our first official box members you will always mean something special to us at the farm. You give us the faith we need to continue because you’ve shown us the need and want for fresh, chemical free, local foods. You will see our box member prices for 2012 at the end of the newsletter. Please know that 2011 members will receive $10 off the total of a ½ share or $20 off a small or large share. This discount will be for 2011 MEMBERS ONLY, THAT ARE CONTINUING WITH US IN 2012. You will notice we have raised our prices a bit. This is due to what we learned in the 2011 season (our 1st box season at the farm). We learned that we need more support in the costs of products and EMPLOYMENT. As we grow we NEED more employees to help provide more food.
2012 Hillsong Ridge Farm Weekly Box Program:Hillsong Ridge Farm is focused on producing chemical free, fresh produce for our local communities. In our 3rd year we will continue to grow a wide selection of veggies, herbs, and fruits. We work hard as a family to bring you the best quality food we can provide as we learn how to build a sustainable farm for everyone to enjoy. We put lots of love into what we do at the farm. With your continued support we see a healthy future for all of us.
When you join our box program, you become an active member @ our farm. You will receive weekly or biweekly boxes filled with a variety of common veggies as well as other not so common varieties that are grown in Wisconsin Climate. As we continue to nurture our fruit production (it will be a few years yet before we have large quantities)you may also receive a variety of fruits in your box.
The Weekly Produce Box program is an 18-20 week season that was designed to help you save money on produce, teach to eat seasonally, and provide members with special product privileges. The deadline for WPB sign up is March 15th 2012. Payment is due before March 15th, in the form of cash or check. You may pay in full or pay ½ now and post date a check for the other half for July 15th 2012.
As a box member you agree to share in the RISKS as well as the BOUNTY with the farmer and other members. Understand that due to wildlife, mother nature, and/or other production factors, the quantities and varieties may vary seasonally from 1 year to the next. (There are NO REFUNDS with the box program).
2012 Weekly Produce Box Member Prices:½ Share = EVERY OTHER WEEK Box (9-10 weeks from Mid June - Mid October) = single person or veggie lite household = $250
Small Share = Every Week Box (18-20 weeks from Mid June - Mid October) = provides for a household that eats & cooks fresh veggies (family consumption may vary) = $450
Large Share = Every Week Box (18-20 weeks from Mid June - Mid October) = large family or household that eats LOTS of veggies and may want to can/dehydrate/freeze portions = $630
Add
EGG SHARES to your box membership:
½ share = 1 dozen, every other week, for 10 weeks = $30
Full Share = 1 dozen, every week, for 20 weeks = $60
WORKERS SHARE:We will be offering a workers share in 2012. Come to the farm and work 5 hours a week and receive a Small Share every week. You mush be 18 or older to participate in the workers share and have your own transportation to and from the farm. As a “worker” you will participate in multiple duties at the farm like; planting, WEEDING, harvesting, bundling and packaging produce for boxes, putting together boxes, and other light chores. Please note that if you commit to a workers share, we and other members expect 5 hours of your hard, concentrated work every week, rain or shine.
Chickens and Turkeys:We are SOLD OUT on our chickens. We will have fresh chickens sometime in June 2012. If you’d like to pre-order your chickens for next year please let me know (it will help us determine how many baby chicks to order in early spring).
The Turkeys are a little bigger than we expected. I will be contacting everyone that ordered a Thanksgiving Turkey this week to discuss details on butchering and price change (lowered). If you ordered a turkey and do not hear from me by the end of the week, please contact me ASAP.
The winter season is sneaking up on us pretty fast. We still have a few things left at the farm that are good for storage or freezing for the winter months. Stop in or give a call so we can put some produce together for you to pick up. Winter can be long and depressing for some, and having a good supply of nutrients in your freezer will only help with the health and energy for your body.
Please feel free to share this with you family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. If they do not have e-mail access, have them give me a call and I’d be happy to mail a copy.
Take care and stay healthy.
Jamie
