Westfield Area CSA Blog

Lettuce

Lettuce

It is true, eating all that salad is good for you!  While the nutritional value of lettuce varies with the variety, the following excerpt from the University of Illinois website sets the record straight:  Lettuce in general provides small amounts of dietary fiber, some carbohydrates, a little protein and a trace of fat. Its most important nutrients are vitamin A and potassium.   (more…)

Best Cobb Salad

Best Cobb Salad

Try this classic Cobb salad made with a quick homemade dressing, courtesy of delish.com.  If you want to make this ahead of time, we recommend storing the lettuce, eggs, chicken, bacon, and chives in one container.  Then you can peel the avocado and chop it along with the tomatoes before adding to the salad and tossing with dressing. Everything will keep in the fridge like that for up to 3 days.  Serves 4-6. (more…)

Circle Brook Farm

Farm News – May 20, 2026

Hello everyone, I apologize for not having written an update sooner. The first of my workers finally arrived on April 20th and a few more the next day. Since then, we have been working diligently to get caught up with the planting. My crew has been working 70 hour weeks, and I have been putting in even more hours, which is my excuse for not having written sooner. We are now mostly back on track, although there will still be some consequences to the late start. (more…)

Circle Brook Farm

2026 Registration

Happy winter everyone! It is time to register for the 2026 CSA season!   Know your farmer. Know your food.

Our season is 24 weeks long, June-November.

Click here to register online!

(more…)

Circle Brook Farm

Farm News – November 17, 2025

Hello Folks! So, we have come to the end of the line, for this season at least. Farming is never easy, but this year was a bit more challenging than most. It is the weather, of course, that primarily determines the extent and the nature of the challenges. This year, ten days straight of drizzle and overcast skies followed by a near 100-degree heat wave in June caused the premature demise of our pea crop. Fortunately, we did not have another scorcher of such intensity for the rest of the season. But we did have consistently dry conditions through the summer and into the fall, which kept us (and the well pumps) busy trying to keep the crops hydrated. The upside is that a dry season is better than an overly wet one. (more…)

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are native to Central and South America and are one of the oldest vegetables known to man.  They have been consumed since prehistoric times as evidenced by sweet potato relics dating back 10,000 years that have been discovered in Peruvian caves. (more…)

Sweet Potato Chocolate Brownies

Sweet Potato Chocolate Brownies

This recipe was adapted by www.thekitchn.com from a Dan Lepard recipe published in The Guardian.  Mr. Lepard explains that the sweet potatoes maintain the brownie’s sweetness and texture while allowing for a little less butter and sugar.  He also says that you can further eliminate some sugar and fat by using less chocolate and adding in dried blueberries or sour cherries.  If your kids are not veggie fans, this may convert them! (more…)