Week 12: A Full Rich Weekend

We had a full rich weekend.

A flat tire came and went with barely a shrug, sandwiched--as it was--between a dead truck, a stuck ignition cylinder, and a birthday party.

Plus, we've harvested a bit of produce here and there ;)

It was tough, but once again we have learned what community support really means. We couldn't have gotten through the weekend without members, friends, and family lending us rides, patience, and even cars. And, of course, celebrating with us.

Because this little farmer turned five. Today!

Now that the weekend is done, I am pretty tired. So I'm just going to let a few pictures of the main events speak more or less for themselves and then get down to business.

There was cake.

And cake eating.

As well as gift trying.

Some good grandparent gifts.

This happened.

That hairy guy is my dad.

And now to business.

The week 12 share will include Kale or Chard, Spaghetti Squash, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Celery, Carrots, Basil, Parsley and Watermelon.

It's watermelon time. We grew our standby variety, goldflower. It's a small, oblong, yellow fleshed watermelon. With the cool season we have had this year, their flavor isn't make-you-cry stupendous (like it can be under ideal conditions), but it is far from disappointing.

And yes, I did come up with a spaghetti squash alfredo recipe. I hope you like it.

Baked Spaghetti Squash Alfredo

This isn't a true alfredo sauce. It's just a white sauce with Parmesan. For more authentic flavor add some minced garlic just before you add the milk. Seda has been on an anti garlic kick and I bent to her will on the matter, seeing as it is her birthday today.

• One medium spaghetti squash
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 cups milk
• 5 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese, seperated
• 1/2 bunch parsley, chopped roughly (I told you it's versatile)
• optional: chopped roma tomato

Preheat the Oven to 350 degrees

Halve the spaghetti squash and scoop out the seeds. Bake the squash in a 350 degree oven until it is tender, about 45 minutes to an hour.

While the squash is cooking, prepare the sauce.

Melt two tablespoons butter in a medium sauce pan. Carefully stir in the flour and nutmeg to make a smooth paste. A silicone spatula works nicely for this. Stir and cook until the mixture just begins to bubble. It should look something like this:

Add the milk, either in small batches, mixing each portion of milk in completely before adding the next, or--if you can enlist a second pair of hands--in a thin steady stream while stirring constantly.

Continue stirring over medium heat until the sauce has thickened and no longer tastes at all starchy. Stir in half of the grated Parmesan cheese and stir until it has melted (or mostly melted, a lot of Parmesan cheese doesn't actually melt completely). Stir in the chopped parsley and remove from the heat.

When the squash is tender remove it from the oven and loosen and fluff the flesh with a fork, but do not remove it from the skin of the squash. Be careful not to tear the skin as you do this. You will be using the squash skins as bowls to finish the dish. If you want to add tomato, mix it in with the squash now.

Pour half of the alfredo sauce over each squash half, being careful not to overflow the skins. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over top of the squash. Broil the squash halves until the sauce is boiling and the surface has begun to turn golden. For me this took about seven minutes.