Greetings all!
We barely escaped the storm that came through this morning during harvest! Heather and I were frantically bunching the last of the kale as the grey morning turned black from the looming storm that I imagine struck most of you a little earlier. All was safe and cozy under the shelter of the pack shed, pulling the back of the truck under the overhang, unloading, washing and packing.
Despite Peter telling us we were going to get rain, we spent the better part of yesterday morning victoriously finishing the construction of our sprinkler system for the field, as it had been dry, 60% chance rain days passing us by with 0% rain on a 100% basis. There was even a scattered shower the other night that literally parted around us. It’s amazing how quick farmers can go from complaining about it being too wet to complaining about it being too dry…
any-hoo, the box for this week:
Head Lettuce Spring Greens Spring Onions Salad Turnips Kale: Redbor, Lacinato, Beedy’s Campden, Rainbow, or Red Russian Crinkly Cress (medium and full) Cauliflower or Broccoli (medium and full) Parsley and thyme posy (medium and full) Radish: french breakfast (full)We are starting to see the effects of the late spring on the boxes. Normally at this time we’d be rolling out the green beans and the summer squash. Too make up for later plantings of items that take some real heat to grow, like green beans and summer squash, we made sure to have extra plantings of cooling season items like lettuce, radish, and turnips. The result is a little repetition, but full boxes none the less! If you’re looking for something else to do with your turnips besides eating raw in a salad, try caramelizing by cooking in some broth and butter in a skillet and adding a little sugar for a side dish or salad topping.
Kale makes its first appearance this week! I absolutely love this green. I find that its mild flavor and its ability to hold up well when cooked lends itself to be put in almost any dish that I make. If I was subscribing to a CSA, I would hunt down one that puts kale in every box and gives copious amounts of tomatoes. We do give copious amounts of tomatoes, but show restraint when it comes to kale at the relief of probably half our CSA members. Eating it brings about a mild euphoria that tastes of goodness and health. We are growing 6 different kinds of kale on the farm this year–I’m partial to the redbor (mostly because it’s crinkly and purple) and red russian (which in an unofficial taste test one day in the field won first place for best raw kale) but love all my green children, each with their unique strengths.
Medium and Full shares have quite the interesting item this week: crinkly cress. This small green has an intense spicy yet sweet flavor that is hardly matched anywhere else in the edible kingdom. Use as a garnish, toss in your lettuce salad, or match with sweet fruits and turnips for a unique side dish. Can be used both raw and cooked.
Recipes:
Kale Salad with toasted coconut and sesame oil
1/3 cup olive oil 1 tsp toasted sesame oil 2 Tbs tamari or soy sauce 3 1/2 cups chopped kale, stems and ribs removed 1 1/2 cups unsweetened large flaked coconut 2 cups cooked farro or other whole grain (barley works well) Cook farro or barley before-hand, can be fresh or done days in advance and kept in fridge, reheat when served. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl whisk together olive oil, sesame oil and soy sauce. Put the kale and coconut in a large bowl and toss well with about 2/3 of the olive oil mixture. Spread kale evenly across two baking sheets. Bake for 12-18 minutes, until the coconut is deeply golden brown, tossing once or twice along the way. Remove from the oven and transfer kale mixture to a medium bowl. Taste and add more dressing if desired. Place farro on a serving platter and top with tossed kale, serve warm.Little Spring Onion Omelettes
8 oz Ricotta cheese 4 Eggs 1-2 Spring Onions 1 1/2 Tbs Butter Herb of choice, in the amount of choice Mash the ricotta with a fork. Lightly beat the eggs and stir into the ricotta. Finely chop spring onions, then mix with some chopped herbs. Mix into the ricotta/egg mixture along with salt and pepper to taste. Melt butter in a frying pan on medium high heat. When butter starts to sizzle gently, pour a spoonful of the mixture in and let settle into a small pancake, about 2-3 inches in diameter. Add as many others as you can comfortably fit in pan. Let cook for a couple of minutes until lightly colored on the underside, flip gently over and cook other side for one minute.
sleepy root farm 