Does Ripley Farm have vegetables available for purchase this fall and winter? We’ve been getting this question a number of times lately so we want to answer it and provide the JUICY details. Yes! The fall is the time of great abundance and we are in the middle of collecting and squirreling away lots of organic produce much of which is available for you to buy now through the fall and into the winter. Here’s some details about the great fall options that Ripley Farm has available starting RIGHT NOW and until supplies run out…

What produce do we have available in the fall/winter?

• Beets: Loose, topped and sold by the pound these sweet, dark red roots will last all winter in your refrigerator or root cellar.
  
   
• Cabbage: Cabbages, both green and red, are great storage vegetables and are available for purchases by the pound. Great made into sauerkraut or stored fresh right in your root cellar all winter long.
  
   
• Carrots: Topped carrots will last a very long time in your root cellar or refrigerator. Choose from our many different varieties that we grow in rainbow colors. Sold by the pound our red, orange, and purple carrots should please everyone’s tastes!
  
   
• Celeriac:  Probably not the cutest vegetable on the block, but packs a celery flavor punch inside with its gorgeous smooth white flesh!  Sold by the pound and a great storer.  I love them for winter soups, stews, and stocks.
  

   

• Garlic: Sold by the bulb or by the pound depending on how much you want, Ripley Farm’s garlic is delicious, organic and stores well. We’ve got a Red Russian type available for purchase from now through at least January.
  

   

• Kohlrabi: Large and in charge! Our kohlrabi is a giant winter variety that will store a long time and makes a tasty salad in the middle of winter. Sold by the pound and some individuals are as large as 5+ pounds!
  
   
• Onions:  Red and golden, round and smooth, get your Ripley Farm onions for your winter stir-fries, soups, salads and much more.  Sold by the pound and available until we run out of ’em.
  
   
• Parsnips: These long white roots get sweeter with frost and we like to leave them in the ground until the last minute! These are topped and sold by the pound and are simply delicious roasted with other veggies or sauteed or pureed on their own.
  
   
• Potatoes:  We’ve got four awesome types this year: Satina, Kennebec, Chieftan, and Superior.  All are available for ordering by the pound through the winter except Superior which is grown exclusively for our Winter CSA members.  Satina is yellow fleshed and yellow skinned and round with all purpose uses.  Kennebec sports a buff exterior concealing a creamy white interior and also has great all purpose eating qualities.  Our red-skinned, white fleshed option is called Chieftan and it is great for steaming and boiling and is usually smaller in size.  Check out the photos below.
  
   
• Winter Radishes: These are larger versions of what you see bunched in the summer markets and are topped and sold by the pound. We’ve got two interesting varieties this year. Green Meat is a minature daikon radish with a green skin and a light green interior about 1 inch wide and 6 inches long. Misato Rose is a beautiful round radish with either pink or green skin and a light pink interior and can grow as big as a beet! These should keep ’til May in your refrigerator.
  
   
• Rutabaga: I love rutabaga as much or more as I love potatoes! Rutabaga is an underappreciated fall and winter vegetable that is wonderful mashed, roasted, boiled, grated and much more! We’ve got a literal ton of these so order them up if you like ’em! Sold by the pound and these are generally large often above two pounds each.
  
   
• Winter Squash: Winter squash is a very lovely treat in the middle of winter and I especially like to make soups out of leftover roasted squashes. This year we’ve got four kinds available. Butternuts are large (3-5 pounds) tan skinned and orange fleshed squashes with excellent storage and eating qualities. Buttercups are round green squash with dry, orange flesh and are very deliciuos but do not store as well, ranging between 2-4 pounds. Delicatas are torpedo shaped and tan with stripes often weighing in the 1-2 pound range. Sweet Dumpling squash look somewhat like a round version of a Delicata but are smaller averaging between 3/4 and 1+ pounds. Delicata and Sweet Dumpling squashes have smooth orange flesh and are great if you’re looking for smaller portions. Try cutting them in half, roasting them at 400 and serving as a side dish. All squash are sold by the pound.
  
   
• Turnips: We’ve got purple top turnips available for sale this fall and winter. These are the classic turnips that are grown in the fall and should not be confused with the summer salad turnips that we have put in our summer CSA boxes and bring bunched to farmers market. Our beautiful purple top turnips are topped and sold by the pound.
  
   

How and when do I order?

Ordering is very easy!  Place your order by phone, email, or even snail mail BY the Monday before the Wednesday you want to pick up.  The first date is Wednesday, October 23.  From then, we’ll have twice monthly on farm pick-ups from October through March.  Just download our 2013-2014 Winter Order form here to get the details and the dates!

How do I store the stuff?

If you’ve got lots of fridge space or a nice cold root cellar you can make a bulk order for carrots, other roots, or onions etc. and store them all winter long!  The one exception to the cool storage space requirement is winter squash.  They can be stored at cool room temperature! 

If your cold storage space is more limited, try placing regular orders with Ripley Farm and let us be your  “Winter Root Seller”!  Need info on storage requirements of veggies?  Never fear!  Check out our previous blog post on this very subject.  Scroll down to #4 and there’s a great link to how to store each and every winter veggie available.

Ready, Set, Squirrel! 

Here’s a picture of an apple that a squirrel has “put away” for the winter in the crook of a sapling in our farm’s hedgerow…  Guess we’re all doing the same thing this time of year!