Pumpkin Harvest Ale now on tap at Upstream Brewery!

We are really excited to announce that our punkin's are being featured in a delicious brew at Upstream Brewery... and it just went on tap yesterday!

Two growlers of this delicious, peppy brew with pumpkin undertones have already been consumed by yours truly. Stop in today to enjoy and/or join us on October 30th for its official release party at Upstream's West Omaha location (yeah, it's kind of a drive for us "in-city" folk, but worth it).

Nebraska Beer - Release Party: Big Muddy Urban Farms Pumpkin Harvest Ale

Also, stay tuned for our 2012 season recap. Wowie, we learned SO MUCH! We can't believe the CSA & markets are all over. Now we can hang out with friends on Friday evenings again and stay in our pajamas and eat pumpkin pancakes on Saturday mornings. Woah, weird.

We really enjoyed participating in Food Day at Aksarben this last Sunday. It was a great finale to a crazy growing season. Now it's time to rest, eat greens, store the squashes, can our remaining abundance, and savor everything until frost finally comes (we heard tonight's temps might be a killer).


love & growlers,
cait & BMUF

CSA weeks 19 & 20: sweet potatoes & frost

Greetings CSA Members! We decided to transition our newsletter over to our blog. We have been neglecting this site and it is such a great avenue for sharing. It is also much easier because we don't need extra computer programs to create our newsletter, just the internet. :)

We have entered the final three weeks of our CSA (week 19, week 20, and the BONUS week 21). This is week 20. We are anticipating the first (well, second actually) frost and thinking of all our little baby plants. Our first frost was about a week ago at our McKinley Plot, none of our other plots were hit. Our sweet potatoes frosted so we quickly dug them up. They are so beautiful. So far our fall crops are surviving the cold temps.

Both markets ended last week. We enjoyed the celebration potlucks at both Gifford & Benson markets and look forward to being back next year.

After the CSA ends we will have plenty of greens, so if you'd like please come visit us outside of Jane's Health Market every Saturday morning from 10:00AM to noon. We are also growing fall and winter crops (kale, collards, brussels) in our hoop house. This is its trial run, we are interested to see how things grow in there.

We look forward to seeing you for our very last pick-up next Friday & Saturday! Stay warm.

love BMUF crew,
Ali, Caitie, Matt, James, Tyler, Dan, and Brent


Here's what was in your box this week --

week 20

sweet potatoes

apples

pears

1 pint tomatoes

1 quart peppers

1 quart bintje potatoes

1 eggplant

1 bag mixed greens

recipes:

sweet potato, ginger & carrot soup

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 C low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 5 large carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 tbsp jarred ginger, chopped
• Plain nonfat Greek-style yogurt (optional)

1.

Heat oil in large saucepan. Add onion and cook until soft, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add stock plus 2 cups water, then add sweet potato, carrot, and ginger. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

2.

Strain out vegetables and put them in a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth, adding a bit of broth if needed. (If you're using a standard blender, allow the mixture to cool first; hot liquid may cause the blender to squirt out contents. Depending on the size of your blender, you may have to do this in batches.)

3.

Pour vegetable puree back into the saucepan and stir until well blended and smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a dollop of yogurt on top, if desired.

 

sweet potato cheesecake

• 12 ounces sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
• 1 cup dried apricots, chopped
• 15 gingersnap cookies
• 3/4 cup fiber one cereal
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 8 ounces fat-free cream cheese, softened
• 8 ounces Neufchatel cheese, softened
• 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt
• 3 egg whites
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger
• 1 tablespoon whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

1.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 9" springform pan with cooking spray.

2.

Combine the potatoes in a large saucepan over high heat with enough cold water to cover by 2". Bring to a boil; cook until the potatoes are tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain and mash; cool. Meanwhile, bring 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Remove from the heat, add the apricots and let stand for 10 minutes; drain.

3.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the cookies and cereal; process until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and add the butter; mix well. Firmly press the mixture into the bottom and 1" up the sides of the prepared pan. Bake for 10 minutes; cool on a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

4.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, place the mashed sweet potatoes, cream cheese, and Neufchatel cheese and beat on high speed until smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the yogurt, egg whites, sugar, ginger, flour, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, and salt and beat well. Sprinkle the apricots over the bottom of the prepared crust. Pour the potato mixture over the apricots. Bake until the cheesecake is almost set, about 42 to 45 minutes. Turn the oven off and let stand for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 3 hours before serving.

 

curried sweet potatoes

• 4 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, (8 or 9 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1 cup dried apricots, (3 ounces), cut into 1/4-inch slivers
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

1. Place sweet potatoes in a large pot and add enough cold water to cover by 1 inch. Add 1 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered, until tender but not mushy, 8 to 12 minutes. Drain well.
2. Meanwhile, combine apricots, raisins and boiling water in a small bowl; let sit until plumped, about 10 minutes.
3. Heat oil in a large wide pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add curry powder and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the cooked sweet potatoes, apricots, raisins and the fruit-soaking liquid. Season with salt and pepper. Stir gently over medium-low heat until warmed through.

 

 

when fall rolls in

together we thrive

Midsummer night's dream

It's been a while since our last update, so we thought you might be curious to see how we are doing:

We had some volunteers come do a farm tour, at the end of July. Together we prepared some of our raised beds at our 33rd and California site to get ready for fall planting (which we have been up to for the past couple weeks), we watered our beds of kale (surely you remember it was super hot and dry in July!) and we saved seeds from some radishes we let bolt (here is Tyler explaining the process of seed saving to our volunteers). 

Despite the hot conditions in July, when the temperatures shot above 100 most days and we had less than 0.01 inches of rain, our plants continue to grow and produce! Thank you Mother Earth for your abundance! Here are some of our veggies: thai hot peppers, baby bells, Japanese eggplants, zucchini, crookneck squash and edelrot tomatoes! 

These days, we are busy planting fall crops, including beets, carrots, peas, radishes, turnips, and the like. We are excited to improve our techniques from our spring harvests of these things. Also, we have been busy picking fruits from various trees throughout the city: plums, peaches, pears and apples! Thanks to all of our friends who have shared their bounty with us. We have also been canning and preserving a lot of tasty things: pickles, jams, preserves, and sauces. Yum! 

Thanks for supporting us through the journey of this season-- more to come soon! 

xo

the Big Muddy Urban Farm kids

how's it growin?

 Edelrot and Juliet tomatoes, fresh from the vine

Onions, potatoes, crookneck squashes, eggplants, tomatoes, beets and more! 

 Peruvian purple potatoes (say that ten times fast...)

 Blooms and herb bouquets

A  CSA harvest from a few weeks back :) 

Despite the hot, dry (very, very dry) weather, we are still growing. A bountiful harvest this weekend, which we were happy to share with Gifford Park market-goers on Friday, Benson market-goers today, our CSA members and also with the locally-minded chefs at V.Mertz and La Buvette! Thanks for your continued support.

xoxo,
Brent, Caitie, Tyler, Matt, James, Dan, Ali, and of course Catalpa!
Big Muddy Urban Farm

summer eats: day lily blossoms

One of my favorite books on foraging, is Euell Gibbon's Stalking the Wild Asparagus. If you are unfamiliar with Gibbons, he is essentially the founding father of modern-day foraging. Though he wasn't the first to forage (obviously there were many before him, prior to the advent of agriculture) but he was one of the first to write about it in the 20th century. In doing so, he shared the art and joy of foraging with the general public.


I love the chapter on the daylily. Most of you are probably familiar with the daylily, as it is often used in landscaping, as it is a relatively low-maintenance plant. The daylily is unique in that it produces new flowers every day. The golden blossoms open in the morning and close at dusk. Luckily for us, their delightfulness does not end at dusk.

The blossoms of the daylily can be harvested in all three stages of bloom: as a bud, as a flower blossom and as a closed blossom. There are many recipes for each stage, but today I thought that it would be best to focus on the initial stage of the blossom's life cycle; the bud. One of my favorite ways to prepare day-lily buds is to bread them and skillet fry them! 

Sauteed Daylily Buds1 egg1/4 cup of flour (or more or less depending on how many little buds you foraged!)Chili powderSaltGarlic Powder1/2 tablespoon of butter

1. Beat egg in a small dish. In another dish, mix flour with other seasonings to taste. Surely you can experiment with different spices and levels of spices. (Just a heads up, the final product tastes similar to a fried zucchini; perhaps this might guide you in the right spice direction!)
2. Dip each bud in the egg, and then in the flour mixture and set aside. In a fry pan, heat butter over medium heat. When all the butter is melted, place the coated buds in the pan and cook for about 1 minute on each side, or until the batter is browning.
I've enjoyed buds along side of some "fajita-tacos". With the remaining flour and egg, we blended them together and cooked them in the same pan we used for the buds. Then, we put the eggs in our tortillas with cooked corn, onions, peppers, avocado, cheese and salsa. Delicious!

Because daylilies blossom for most of the summer, I am hoping to experiment with this delightful flower for many dinners to come. Also, in my research of the daylily, I learned that there is food below the surface as well. In fact, the roots of the daylily produce edible portions as well. I will save for another foraging adventure!

Happy eating (and foraging!)
Ali

7 Young Farmers Get Down & Dirty, Establish Big Muddy Urban Farm to Supply Sustainable Produce to Omahans

Our first interview, check it out!

                                                   ----- Cross posted from seedstock.com -----

In just under three months, seven young farmers have taken the germ of an idea to create a sustainable urban farm to supply a community in Omaha, Nebraska with fresh vegetables and herbs and made into a reality in the guise of Big Muddy Urban Farm. Big Muddy Urban Farm consists of five decentralized plots situated in North Omaha. The urban farm’s founders, who collectively brought Big Muddy to life and work its urban fields, aspire to create a new source of sustainably grown produce and herbs for their city, to become a self-sustaining farm operation and inspire other area residents through educational and volunteer opportunities to grow their own food.

I recently spoke to Tyler Magnuson and Ali Clark, two of the founders of Big Muddy Urban Farm, to learn more about the story behind the farm, how it operates, the farming practices that it embraces, the challenges that it faces and more.