Crop List: Green Tomatoes, Carrots, Rose Finn Fingerling Potatoes, Blackberry Potatoes, Julika Potatoes, Tomatoes, Basil, Red Onion, Spaghetti Squash, Cabbage, Beets, Maybe Daikon Radish, and/or Broccoli

The last share!! We are so grateful to have been able to grow for you this season. None of knew what this year was going to look like and the trepidation could really be felt at some moments. We are so relieved to make it through with healthy employees and a healthy farm family. We thank you for helping us keep the distributions safe. This season felt like it required more community support then ever, and WOW!!! You all came through and we sincerely appreciate it!
Looking back at the 2020 CSA we are really happy with the Tomatoes! Yay! We are so glad that 3rd tomato greenhouse was up and running, it made a huge difference. The cucumbers and summer squash did good and so did the peas. The Sunflowers were consistently larger in size this year thanks to the weeding skills of our employees! The carrot and potato crops have been coming in exceptionally well this year too.
The crops that we hope to do better with in 2021 are beets, arugula, spinach, radish and turnips. Even though we dream of a year when every crop yields perfectly we know that is an unattainable goal. It is part of the beauty of farming. Crops take turns being the star based on weather, timing, labor and other forces the garden is susceptible too. 
We are eager to hear your feedback about the veggies, the CSA program and the whole experience in general. I will send out a survey next week and we would really appreciate you letting us know your perspective!

Free T-shirt or Hat for a 2021 CSA sign up!
We are kicking off our 2021 CSA membership drive! If you sign up for next year's CSA at a pick up location before the season ends, you will receive a free organic cotton t-shirt or hat! Your site host will have sign-up sheets, one is attached to your email or you can get one here: ​http://www.cosmicapple.com/uploads/1/7/9/9/17994337/2021_sign_up.pdf
We sold out last year. Sign up early to get the best prices and to choose the pick up location/day you really want...and did I mention the free shirt or hat?!

If you read Share #6's newsletter, you may remember I told you we agreed, as a farm to find 6 concrete things we could do to help end systemic racism in food. I was waiting to present more finalized plans and I always want these thing to happen quicker then they do so I never finished the list of commitments. Even though I don't have all the details,  I wanted to be accountable for my promises, so for those of you looking for the last 3, here they are!
#4. We understand that we are farming on Shoshone Bannock ancestral land. We have a letter out to the tribe asking what we can do to honor them in this place while we farm here. We don't take lightly the history of this valley and we want to do our best to move forward with the utmost respect for the Shoshone Bannock people. (My contact person has been really busy and I am waiting to hear back from her)
#5. We are exploring getting our website translated into Spanish. We know diet related illnesses affect Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) more then white people. We also know Cosmic Apple's food is one of the answers to diet related illnesses. The CSA model is different then going to the store and it needs to be explained so consumers understand it. We need to make our food accessible to Latinx people and we think the website is a great way to introduce it. (We are unclear if we need to translate our webpage or if there are useful apps that will do this for folks, definitely a winter project!)
#6. Digging deeper into the need to get nutritious food to BIPOC, we are coming up with a plan and hoping to work with One22 in Jackson. We want to raise money to get shares into the homes of Latinx families in our community. (This plan will also take some time because Covid is hindering many things, but I had one phone call of idea sharing and I hope to get further this winter with a proposal.)

Fare thee well!
So I guess this is goodbye for the season. We cannot emphasize how grateful we are to be your farmers. We truly love growing food in the Tetons and suppling it people who live here. We feel supported by our community and we hope you feel nourished by the food we grow.
As always..."May this food give you the energy to make the world a better place."
With gratitude,
​Dale and Jed

Lunch this week: Vegan Pot Pie by the amazing Chef Aspen
Recipe Ideas: Fermented Green Tomato Ketchup; Quinoa, Carrot, & Leek Patties; Carrots, Potatoes Roasted with Onions & Garlic; Dale’s Oven Fries​

Crop List: Orange and Purple Carrots, Julika Potatoes, Huckleberry Potatoes, Basil, Kale, Spaghetti Squash, Garlic, Tomatoes and Cauliflower

​I am typing on the last day of summer. Tuesday welcomes fall. Fall helps me relocate my equilibrium! Day and night are equal, this always reminds me of the balance required in natural relationships. A constant giving and receiving. The plants give us oxygen, we give them CO2. The garden gives us veggies, we give it compost. Grass gives cows energy, cows give grass manure to replenish the soil they grow in. Bees receive pollen from plants and plants receive pollination from bees. 
We are still incredibly busy, but the garden's pace has changed. The summer squash is not bearing down threatening to get bigger overnight. Tomatoes are not cracking from overripening. We are not concerned about frost, been there, done that! Things are winding down on the farm and we are in countdown mode. 5 more markets, 4 more CSA deliveries, 3 more beds of carrots, 6 more rows of potatoes, 3 greenhouses to empty, 1 crop of garlic to plant.
Fall always brings the season of letting go and being grateful for what we have. (Planning for more is on hold until after the Winter Solstice!) The harvest is almost in and any crisis that came up we weathered and survived, success! I am always humbled by what the garden provides each year. Fall is the time to give thanks and celebrate! It is the time of year I savor the sun on my skin and drink in all the gorgeous colors before the snow starts to fall.
The Earth is pulling itself inward and beginning to rest. After we harvest everything and the garlic is planted, Jed will begin to spread compost for next year's garden. Our compost is generated on farm by our cows. We spread in the fall and it always feels like an offering to the garden. An offering of gratitude for feeding us all year. The compost is a way to help the garden replenish itself as it sleeps. I picture the Earth energies pulling inward and bringing all the nutrients needed from the compost with it. All winter as the garden rests these nutrients are being absorbed and amalgamated before the reawakening of spring.
I can feel myself shifting inward. The coming darkness, pulling me inside in the evenings. The change of diet to heavier root crops that take longer to cook and digest, require me to slow down. I look for my slippers in the morning and await the sun's warmth instead of being greeted by brightness when I open my eyes. The shift is subtle, especially because I still feel the warmth of summer mid-day! September weather has been dreamy! I am grateful we still have the sun on our backs as we finish the harvest.
As the garden rests we continue to delight in the treasures provided. Roots and squash will last a long time! Please see individual recipe pages for storing techniques.

Free T-shirt or Hat for a 2021 CSA sign up!
We are kicking off our 2021 CSA membership drive! If you sign up for next year's CSA at a pick up location before the season ends, you will receive a free organic cotton t-shirt or hat! Your site host will have sign-up sheets, one is attached to your email or you can get one here: ​http://www.cosmicapple.com/uploads/1/7/9/9/17994337/2021_sign_up.pdf
We will definitely make it to share #16 this year! See you next week too!

Lunch this week: Merav's Carrot Soup, Sausage Kale Soup
Recipe Ideas: Carrots, Potatoes Roasted with Onions & Garlic, Scallop Potatoes and Carrots, Colcannon, Oven Roasted Carrots & Kale

Crop List: Fingerling Potatoes, Rainbow Carrots, Onions, Garlic, Tomatoes Sugar Dumpling Squash, Murdoc Cabbage or Red Cabbage

Last week's frost did more damage then we thought. The broccoli and the cauliflower are not very happy, but we are hoping they can dig deep and bounce back. The Cosmic Mix is taking a break and we are hoping for some more. I know I want at least one more salad! Until then, we will begin digging lots of potatoes and carrots!
Carrots of the rainbow! We hope you enjoy the different varieties we grow. It is fun to step outside the world of orange carrots. Most carrots grown when the carrot was first cultivated were purple, yellow and white. Around the 17th century the Dutch were known to be carrot farmers and the reason we now have orange carrots? Political. The Dutch Revolt against the Spanish was led by William the Orange. To celebrate the conqueror who brought them freedom from Spanish rule the Dutch began to grow orange carrots instead of yellow, purple and white carrots. Quite a tribute! I want to assure you we grow our multi colored carrots with no political figures in mind...past or present!
Mixing up the color of foods can make meals more interesting. Cook up an all purple carrot soup or a rainbow carrot salad. Do a taste test and see which color tastes the best to you. Kids love to be blindfolded for a really "serious" comparison and it is really fun to hear their reactions! Slip a store bought carrot into the mix also!
​
Lunch this week: Pad Bai
Recipe Ideas: Roasted Carrot & Sweet Dumpling Squash Bisque (How to bake any squash is on the Winter Squash page), Fermented Ginger Carrots; Carrots, Potatoes Roasted with Onions & Garlic

Crop List: Carrots, New Red Norland Potatoes, Tomatoes, Maybe: Cosmic Mix, Swiss Chard, Summer Squash, Cucumbers, Sunflowers and/or Beans

My mind can change so quickly sometimes I surprise even myself. One week ago I typed this newsletter feeling sad that the garden may freeze. Even though I made peace with it, we escaped it for one more week! Tonight (9/7) it sounds inevitable. The predicted temperature is 27 degrees with some snow. I am fine with it, I don't need to take deep breaths to accept it. I am ready to get the garden emptied out and begin the process of turning inward, embracing the darkness, settling in for the winter. The garden also needs rest and to rejuvenate. I don't know if the first cold snap prepared me for frost by touching some cellular knowing that it is time to shift.  Maybe it was the last variety of sunflowers blooming that convinced me my garden dreams had been achieved for the year. It could have been my head winning out with the knowledge we are further into September then many years without freezing. Whatever it was that convinced me a frost was okay, I'm grateful.
We realize the crop list is all over the place. The plants freezing in the beginning of the week will cause the end of the week share to look completely different. There are many "maybes" because of the transition.
On Monday we picked all the summer squash, cucumbers and beans for the last time. If you receive any of these in your share, savor them and give thanks to the garden. We had a great year most of these items.
We also pulled in all the winter squash to protect it from any frost damage. We will store these treats and start sharing them soon.
Our energies will now turn to emptying out the garden! The race is on to get all the carrots, onions, leeks and potatoes harvested and ready for you. We will still have lots of other veggies coming your way until the shares end. 
"When will the shares end?" starts to be a big question right now. We don't know. It is all weather dependent. If the weather stays sunny and glorious we are able to harvest faster. If we start getting a lot of moisture things get muddy, heavy and cold it just slows us down. I am fairly confident we will make it to at least Share #16, maybe more! We will keep you posted with information as soon as we have it.
May your transition to fall weather feel smooth and welcoming. May the crisp air invigorate you. May the fall produce provide you with the stamina to turn inward.

Lunch this week: Shish Kabobs with Lemon soy marinade over rice and greens. Peruvian Quinoa Stew (tomato page)
Recipe Ideas: Grilled Steak with Chard, Tomato and Balsamic Vinegar Reduction, Roasted Tomato Crostini​