Thank you.
Thank you for caring about our farm and its farmers.
Thank you for making our livelihoods all the more meaningful (not to mention, possible).
Thank you, in advance, for volunteering to be in charge of that stellar side dish or delectable dessert. (Bonus points for serving up roots and winter squash:)

The days and weeks leading up to Thanksgiving are a very big deal for farmers like us, and when you choose to serve up local seasonal foods this time of year, it makes a meaningful difference in more ways than one. And with that in mind, the crew is gathering a stunning mix of Braising Greens as we get ready for what might be our favorite Fall tradition at Wild Hare—Pie Squash Week! First thing tomorrow morning, we will haul out several varieties of Pie Pumpkins and Squashes, great and small, round and oblong, orange, striped, pink, green or otherwise for folks to prep, puree, stash in the freezer (or share with a friends and loved ones—some of these babies are biggies). It is our preferred custom to break up the pre-Thanksgiving harvest into two parts, this week and next, in hopes that it makes things a bit more manageable all around. This week, every CSA household will take home a pie squash or pumpkin of their choosing so that they can get a head start on those desserts and sides, along with fresh NW Organic Cranberries and our first round of frost-sweetened Parsnips for the year. Our processing barn smelled amazing for days after the crew dug, washed, trimmed and packed up hundreds of pounds of them before the weekend, so it is a great week whip up a batch of Ina Garten’s Parsnip Puree, or a quick pan of Parsnip Fries to replicate the aromatic delight in your own home.

This week’s harvest haul is worth smiling about, even if it is going to be a little darker a little sooner for a while. The crew kicked of Monday’s harvest by topping the Brussels Sprouts, which means that we’re in for a real seasonal treat—leafy Brussels Sprout Tops! Out in the field, atop each Brussels Sprout stalk, you will find an open cluster of leaves. And each Fall, we remove those leaves to encourage the plants to divert their energy into producing good-sized sprouts down along the stalks. And guess what? These would-be by-products are a delicacy in their own right. They’ve got all of the frost-sweetened brassica flavor of a Brussels Sprout but in open, big-leaf form.  I've taken a liking to raw Brussels Sprout dishes over the years, and while I love the way they taste, I don't necessarily like the fussiness that goes into shredding or shaving tiny little sprouts.  The tops on the other hand give us all of the sprout flavor in a larger flat leaf that one can roll up, slice, shred, chiffonade or what have you. If raw isn't your thing, you can cook them up like collards, cabbage or any other hardy green you might like.