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Anything But Slowing Down
Hello from your friendly neighborhood earth-loving farmers!
A common question I get asked this time of year is if the farm is ‘slowing down’ yet. If you find your way out here in October, you might discover quite the opposite! These days often look like maintaining summer harvests, planting Fall and Winter crops, fulfilling CSA subscriptions, and hosting packed pizza nights. It is this time of year we find ourselves full of gratitude for the strength we have to work with the land, and the community we get to serve through it.
Other farm updates involve seeding our long-awaited Millsap-y carrots, sending the pigs to the butcher (don’t worry, we’ll have more oinking compost-makers this Spring), a Pizza Night benefit for Abide in Love ministry, making bets on the first frost, and free kittens!
One challenge we have faced this past season has been pests. The enduring heat and sun brought a barrage of pests on our brassicas, squashes, greenhouse seedlings—even our radishes and arugula. This is one of the greatest challenges of organic farming. Through strategic crop placement and routine organic sprays we try and get out ahead of the pest cycle—in some cases more successfully than others.
One question we have encountered recently has been about our produce supplementing. If you have come by the farmstand, the farmer’s market, or received a CSA grocery box this year, you have probably noticed that there is at least one item that was not grown by our farm. This could be apples, squash, red peppers, or russet potatoes. Ideally, we would like to grow every item we provide for our farm community; that way, we can know everything about the way in which the produce going into your home is grown. However, our land, resources, and crew size limits our capacity as a farm, so we take this opportunity to support other local farms by purchasing their produce to add to our farmstand, take to market, and put in CSA boxes. Not only does this support other local farmers, but it also gives you variety in your veggie-filled diet.
So all this talk of produce supplementing begs an important question—
Is it organic?
It is our desire to seek out other local farms that grow not only organic food, but who utilize land management practices that align with our own purpose and vision. However, not all of the produce we supplement is organic. This has to do with many factors such as the type of produce and the demand from our farm customers. You will find that particular supplemented produce, such as apples, peaches, or winter squash (butternut, acorn, spaghetti) are not organically grown. We do our very best to mark whatever produce we sell that isn’t organically grown as such. If you ever have questions about where a specific item we have comes from or how it is grown—please ask! We desire to support all farm visitors as enlightened consumer-participants in the farming process.
As a reminder for our members who receive produce deliveries, please set out your Millsap Farm tote from your previous order on your porch for our delivery drivers to pick up. Secondly, if you have any kind of meat product coming in your order—it is advisable to set out a cooler for your meat if you will not be home to take it into a freezer. And as always, tell your neighbors about our grocery subscription—we always love having new members join the farm community.
Thank you for your support of our work to connect community and creation. We look forward to seeing you on the farm this fall and sharing in the harvest.
We have three new kittens in need of a home! If you are interested in adopting one of the kittens on the farm, please text or call (916) 803-0604.
—Millsap Farm Crew
Pizza Club #22: October 8th, 2026
This purchase is good for Pizza Night on October 8th, 2026 at 5pm. Please select a regular or gluten-free ticket.
Live music by Thomas Good Lunas
Our delicious wood-fired pizzas are cooked in our handmade New Mexico style Horno wood-fired earthen oven at ~800 degrees, taking less than 3 minutes to cook. The pizzas are served buffet style where we offer 4 pizzas topped with our seasonal produce, one of which is a cheese option. Each week we harvest our seasonal, fresh, organically raised produce and create different kinds of pizzas that also feature other local meats, cheeses, sauces and vegetables.
Cancellations will have a 7% charge deducted from their refund to cover processing and software fees.
Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
Prep time: 10 mins | Cook time: 30 mins | Servings: 6 people
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp. curry powder
2 1/2 lb. diced butternut squash
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
2 1/2 c. vegetable broth
1 c. coconut milk, plus more for serving
Chopped cilantro and sliced jalapeños, for serving
Instructions
Sauté the aromatics: Set a 6- or 8-quart Instant Pot to SAUTÉ and heat the oil. Cook the onion until tender, about 6 minutes, then stir in the garlic and curry powder for 1 more minute.
Pressure cook: Add the squash, salt, and broth. Lock the lid, seal the steam release, and cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 15 minutes. Let it rest 10 minutes, then release the remaining pressure manually and carefully remove the lid.
Blend the coconut milk: While the soup cooks, blend the coconut milk until smooth and set it aside.
Purée and finish: Blend the soup in two batches until smooth, about 30 seconds each, venting the blender lid under a kitchen towel. Return it to the pot and stir in 1 cup of the coconut milk. Serve warm with a swirl of the remaining coconut milk, cilantro, and sliced jalapeños if you like.
Recipe from The Pioneer Woman.