Part of the charm for me is the pure pleasure of creating something beautiful to look at. Whilst I love plants,  the joy I really get is in their placement with other plants and the ‘view’ one gets when you stand back and admire a garden or garden bed as a whole.

In the past two days I took apart and redesigned the two entry beds of the garden.  Changing, creating allowing yourself to explore and be excited about plants, planting and even weeding.  I do love my garden/farm that feed us all in body and soul!

As our Farm Share has wound to a close for the season this year I can say that we had a fun and productive summer.  We had kinks to work out but we managed to work out most of them.  In the garden we still have lots of vegetables and will coninue to have all through the winter.  This weeks harvest included eggplants.  So I thought I might share one of my favorite recipes for eggplants with you.

TUNA TONNATO WITH EGGPLANT SALAD served in wide mouth canning jars!

12 ounces of tuna drained

1 large anchovy fillet

1/4 cup mayonnaise

2 TBSP olive oil

2 tsp capers

 2 tsp fresh lemon juice

3 cups roasted eggplant

2 heads garlic chopped

1/3 Cup chopped parsley

1 tsp lemon zest

 1 tsp red wine vinegar

2 cups cherry tomatoes cut in half

1/3 cup chopped mint

2 cups croutons or toasted bread cubes

4 wide mouth pint jars

*Blend 1/4 cup tuna, anchovy, mayo, oil, capers, and lemon juice in a blender until smooth to make tonnato sauce.

*pulse eggplant, garlic, parsley,lemon zest, vinegar, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper in a food processor until combined but not smooth.

*Toss tomatoes with mint, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper.

*Divide eggplant mixture amoung jars and layer remaining tuna (broken into large chunks), tonnato sauce, croutons, and tomatoes (including the juices) on top. drizzle with a little extra olive oil.  Serve at room temperature.

This recipe has gotten rave reviews every time I make it.  Even if you don't like anchovy you will like it in this recipe I promise.  Serving it in a jar just adds to the fun and allows you to see all the layers.  Beautiful taste and beautiful to look at!!

I love canning tuna.  With the help of Andy Hough I canned 300 pounds of tuna this summer!  The taste of home canned tuna or home canned anything for that matter is well worth the effort.  Try it sometime you will not want to go back to factory processed food.

At The Raven and the Spade, we believe that our customers are more than just “customers.”  They are partners, supporting our farm in a process of land stewardship. By signing up to receive the food we produce at The Raven and The Spade, you are keeping the farm working. The small-scale, organic family farm is more than just a food vendor; we do our best to take care of the earth that feeds all of us.

When you join our Farm share, you join The Raven and The Spade Farm community and you join the creative and conscientious effort to make farming about relationships and not about transactions. You become shareholders in a vision for sustainable agriculture and social renewal. We are blessed to live and work here, and honored to share the fruits of our labor with you.

Farm Shares

How It Works

The Farm Shares For the 2011 season are pickup only.  We have had a slow season due to Camille having surgery not to mention our beautiful Pacific NW weather.......  We are focused on the fall season and will be having the fall and winter Farms shares this year.  Thank you for your continued support.

WHAT IS UNIQUE ABOUT OUR FARM SHARE?

The Raven and The Spade lets you choose the produce in your box each week. Each week our customers fill their boxes with the fresh vegetable, fruits and herbs they want.  Taste the difference that fresh local organic produce makes!  The majority of our produce comes from our farm in Freeland, Washington.  Other things we can't grow, mostly perennial fruits, come from other organic growers in the state.

CHOOSE YOUR BOX OPTIONS

You have several options to choose from;

Small Vegetable Box Containing 4 items each week at a cost of $14/week for a total of $295/20 week season

Large Vegetable Box containing 8 items each week at a cost of $28/week for a total of $575/20 week season

Both will include avaiable local fruit in addition to the vegetables.

BUY EGGS

$5/week for a Dozen - $50

$10/week for 2 Dozen - $100

HOW DO I SIGN UP?
Go to the sign up page

HOW DO I PAY?

Please send a check titled to The Raven and The Spade Farm. You can either mail it to us at:

The Raven and The Spade Farm
4785 East Harbor Rd
Freeland, WA 98249

Or Just Drop it off. We love to talk to our customers.

CAN I PAY IN INSTALLMENTS?

Yes you can. We offer a two payment installment program. You can opt to pay half on May 1st and half on July 1st. If you want to talk about other options please email us at ravenspade@whidbey.com.

WHERE DO I PICK UP MY FOOD?
Pick it up at our Farm. Wednesday is pick up and delivery day.

Delivery to you home or private pickup spot is an additional $50 for the season

DO I NEED TO RETURN MY BAG?

Yes. Please reuse and recycle . Customers who would like to purchase a bag can do so for $15

CAN I GET ADDITIONAL ITEMS?

Let's say you want to make salsa and you want more than two orders of tomatoes, or you have your in-laws in town and you really want them to finally like you, so you are concocting an extravagant dinner of a myriad of local, organic fruits and vegetables. Call or e-mail us and we will gladly bring you your extra food.  Just pay when you pick up your food for the week.

CAN I GET MORE THAN ONE OF THE SAME ITEM?
Yes, you can. We do ask that you request no more than two of any item.

WHAT IF I DON'T WANT TO CHOOSE MY OWN FOOD EACH WEEK?
If you like surprises, are intimidated by making decisions, or want to fully test your culinary ability, we are happy to build a box for you each week of the best, freshest food on the farm. We call it the Farmers Choice box and it is the stuff we will be taking home to our families.

WHAT IF I FORGET TO ORDER?
We will send you a weekly e-mail reminding you to order your food. However, if you should forget, we will pack you a Farmers Choice box full of the best food on the farm that week. It might not be exactly the food you wanted, but you know it will be great food.

WHAT IF I FORGET TO PICK UP?
Should your forget to or be prevented from picking up your box, you can call and see if arrangements can be made for pick up at another drop-off location or at the farm the following day. You can pay a $10 fee to have the food delivered to your house the following day provided we have the time to make that delivery. In the event that none of these arrangements can be made, your food will be donated to a needy family in the Freeland area.

WHAT IF I NEED TO SKIP A WEEK?
If you will be out of town or need to suspend your service for a week for any reason, please send us an e mail. Please feel free to have a friend or neighbor enjoy your box. If you are going to have them pick it up, let us know so we don't think some scoundrel is trying to eat your food.

WHAT IF SOMETHING I ORDERED IS MISSING FROM MY BOX?

If something you ordered is missing or does not meet your standards, we will replace it the next week. 

WHAT IF SOMETHING IN MY ORDER DOES NOT MEET MY STANDARD FOR QUALITY OR FRESHNESS?
We constantly strive to bring you the best food possible. All of the food we harvest is at the height of freshness. However, if you receive something that does not meet your standards, please let us know, and we will replace the item the following week.

Your feedback will help us provide better service to all of our customers in the future.

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