Fall Into Thanksgiving: Local Farmers on Fall Foods

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FALL VEGETABLES at the Thanksgiving table usually come in few forms, mainly of the mashed or covered-in-marshmallow variety.

But picture this as an alternative: a kabocha squash, cut in half, baked until soft, then filled with chopped apples and walnuts, and drizzled liberally with real maple syrup and baked again.

"It makes a really good dessert," said Jim Huyett, owner of Sunnyside Farm in Charles Town, W.Va. Alternately, kabocha, a sweet, green-skinned Japanese squash, also works well when stuffed with sausage, peppers and rice. Huyett said that in the coming weeks, he'll also start selling one of his fall favorites: carnival squash.

"It tastes a lot like acorn squash -- a lot like how much butter and brown sugar you put into it," he said.

Summer might be the busiest time for the farmers markets in the area, but as fall rolls in, it brings roots and leafy vegetables that go beyond the usual mashed potatoes and salads. And, in many cases, they're a snap to prepare. At the Freshfarm Market at Foggy Bottom one recent Wedensday, a table at Quaker Valley Orchard's booth was covered with butternut squash and heirloom pumpkins with names such as Long Island Cheese and Cinderella.

"Pumpkin is one of those things that Americans do not eat enough of," said Sarah Haser of Quaker Valley. A small bin was full of grapefruit-sized, pale yellow spaghetti squash that, when cut in half, seeded and baked cut-side down at 350 degrees with a little bit of water in the pan, fluffs out with a fork like its namesake
noodles. With a bit of butter, salt, pepper and a little nutmeg or mixed herbs, it makes for an unusual and tasty side dish.

At the Blueberry Hill Vegetables booth, operator Michael James said he likes a simple approach when it comes to sweet potatoes; carrots; white and purple turnips; parsnips and other root vegetables.

"I think the best way to cook root vegetables is to roast them," he said. "You just chunk them into a cookie sheet, drizzle them with olive oil and add a little salt and cook them for about 45 minutes. They just get so sweet and chewy." But those vegetables do take some planning if you want them to make it to the table at the same time as the turkey. "You have to think about an hour ahead of time," he said. "That's the only downside."

For a season associated with browns and oranges, there was a remarkable amount of green on display at Huyett's and James' booths: kale; mustard and turnip greens; broccoli raab and rainbow chard with red and yellow stalks.

"People don't realize that you can garden and grow in the fall," James said. "All of this stuff is winter-hardy."

Huyett said that as long as they're not cut when frozen, greens can stay in the field all winter, along with leeks and green garlic, which his farm uses to make pesto. But James said that while braising greens may be traditional, he prefers a quicker preparation for fall meals: "You just cook them really fast -- a couple minutes. A lot of times, all you need is a little butter, or oil or vinegar just to coat them and they're great."

Written by Express contributor Robert Margetta