Week #5; Irrigation = grit

Top: Overhead irrigation with a traveling gun.
Bottom: Drip irrigation of melon plants growing in plastic mulch.  This shows the inlet of a long plastic tube that extends 600 feet down the field. We can pump about 3 gallons per minute through the tube.

We continue to irrigate. It’s been five or six weeks since the last substantial rain.  Recent rains totaled 1/4 inch for us, essentially nothing.

We use a mix of overhead and drip irrigation.  The first is great for plantings on bare grounds of quick crops like lettuce.  Longer-season crops planted into a thin layer of plastic mulch  (to protect from weeds) can be irrigated via plastic drip tape tubing under the plastic.  It’s a good water-efficient system for crops like melons, tomatoes and peppers but not suitable for every situation.  See second photo.

There will be grit in your lettuce and napa this week, a side effect of overhead irrigation. When the weather is this dry, we need to lay down a lot of water when irrigating each field, which splashes grit onto the produce.  We do not like that side effect but it’s what we need to do right now.  The baby bok choy and everything else is clean.

Thoughts:
– Cut your lettuce one and a half inches above the base and you’ll leave a lot of dirt behind.
– Expect to spend extra time cleaning this week’s greens.  Therefore, let’s talk about how to do that efficiently.

Cut your lettuce heads at one and a half inches above the base and you’ll leave a lot of dirt behind.

How to wash greens efficiently and to maximize storage life

Washing and drying your lettuce, spinach, and other greens prolongs their storage life.  It also means they are ready to use on busy weeknights!  Here’s our approach.  It works.
1.  Fill your sink or a basin halfway with cold tap water.  If you have two sinks, fill one sink partway with cold water.
2.  Chop your lettuce, spinach, escarole or other green to the size you wish.
3.  Dump it into the water and swish around gently but thoroughly.
4.  Working in two batches (for average lettuce head) or more batches (big spinach bunches, Romaine), pull handfuls out of the water and drain in the basket of a salad spinner.
5.  After all the greens have been rinsed one time, dump the water.  Rinse the sink/basin and refill with cold tap water.
6.  Repeat the process.
7.  Spin your greens dry and store in a dry container.  They store much longer when spun dry.

This works because …
– pre-chopping the greens frees soil trapped in the head.
– the large amount of water washes and dilutes away the grit.
– By pulling the greens out of the water, you take advantage of the draining action to pull the grit with it.
– Drying (spinning) the greens before storage reduces spoilage.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #5, June 15/16, 2023

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ purple
– Sampler/ A group

Strawberries, 1 pint
Napa cabbage
Baby bok choy, 1 bundle
Zucchini or yellow squash, ~2 squash
Lettuce, green leaf
Lettuce, red Romaine
Kohlrabi, 2 with leaves
Salad radishes, 1 bunch
Scallions, 1 bunch
Oregano, 1 small bunch

Next week’s box will probably contain strawberries, zucchini, lacinato kale, lettuce, endive or escarole, scallions and more.

Strawberries – Refrigerate and eat soon.  

Napa cabbage (large, pale green cabbage with crinkled leaves) – Napa cabbage is an interesting vegetable, useful for both fresh, raw salads and for cooking.  Its most famous use is fermented kimchi.  I like to prepare a fresh, unfermented kimchi.  Same seasonings, but it’s ready to eat right away.  You will be amazed at how much shredded napa cabbage shrinks when prepared this way.  See here for an example, but cut the salt in half (or even further): Grilled Flank Steak with Kimchi-style Coleslaw.
Storage:  Napa stores very well.  When refrigerated, it will keep for several weeks.  Peel off the outer layer and it will be ready to use.  Here are a few preparation ideas from the ‘Asparagus to Zucchini’ cookbook.
– Chop raw napa into green salads.
– Substitute napa in traditional coleslaw.
– Chinese cabbage cooks quickly.  Steam 3-5 minutes, or until leaves are wilted down but remain slightly crisp.
– Substitute napa cabbage for common cabbage in recipes, but reduce the cooking time by 2 minutes.
– Napa cabbage is the main ingredient in egg rolls.  Try making an egg roll mixture to eat as a cooked side dish instead of preparing time-consuming egg rolls.

Baby bok choy – This was a fun experiment this spring. This is much more tender than full-size choy and cooks quicker.
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

Lettuce – The lettuce are small so we are sending two in mixed colors, for pretty salads.
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

Kohlrabi (pale green, round vegetable with thick skin and attached leaves) – Crunchy and sweet, kohlrabi is a great addition to salads.
Storage: Kohlrabi bulbs will store for a month in the refrigerator. Remove the leaves if you plan to store for more than a few days.
Uses: Kohlrabi are good peeled and eaten out of hand, or added to sandwiches, or added to salads. It makes a nice salad on it’s own. You can grate it, slice it, or cut it into matchsticks. It’s also good cooked.

Oregano (small bundle of fragrant leaves) – Useful in salad dressing or if paired with this week’s zucchini. You can always wash well, pat dry and hang to dry out of direct sunlight.

RECIPES by DEB

Pork & Cabbage Rice Bowls with Peanut Sauce

This recipe includes all the ingredients for fried egg rolls, arranged as tasty layers in a rice bowl. The crispy wonton strips are easy to do, even if you typically avoid deep frying.  They’re also optional and you can top your bowls with chopped peanuts or extra scallions or toasted sesame seeds. Or used purchased crispy chow mein noodles! This recipe is designed to help you address the large Napa cabbage that’s in your box this week. You’ll also find a Napa slaw recipe a bit further down. Another great way to prepare Napa cabbage is to make it into kimchi, and you’ll find a recipe adapted for US kitchens in one of the June 2021 newsletters. There are more kimchi recipes at the Korean food blog Maangchi. Try a search there on Napa to get recipes for not only kimchi but other cabbage dishes as well.
Serves: 4
Takes: about 30 minutes active time; the brown rice takes about 45 minutes

Optional Crispy wonton strips
2-3 tablespoons oil
6-7 wonton wrappers
Salt, to taste

Pork:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
One pound of ground pork – or turkey or chicken or a 14-oz box of tofu, crumbled
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced or put through a press
one-inch piece of fresh ginger, minced or grated – or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
6-7 cups of thinly sliced Napa cabbage – probably about half the head
Drizzle of toasted sesame oil – 1 tablespoon or less
3 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal, white and green – set aside most of the sliced green part for topping
salt & ground black pepper to taste

Sauce:
1/4 cup chunky or creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
4 teaspoons (heaping tablespoon) maple syrup or honey or brown sugar
2-3 tablespoons soy sauce
2-3 teaspoons of Sriracha

For serving:
2-3 cups warm cooked rice, white or brown
scallion greens
Optional additional toppings:
additional scallions, thinly sliced
toasted sesame seeds – 1-2 tablespoons
chopped peanuts – about 1/4 cup

1. Cook the rice – do this first if using brown rice; if using white, do this after you make the wonton strips, while the pork is cooking. Start with about one cup brown or white rice to yield 2-3 cups.
2. Make the crispy wonton strips, if using: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a deep soup pot or skillet – the deeper pot will protect your stove from splatters. Have a paper towel-lined plate ready next to the stove. Cut the wonton wrappers into narrow strips, and drop just enough to cover the bottom of the pan into the hot oil – I find I do about 1/3 at a time. Fry till puffed and brown, and remove with a slotted spoon to the paper towel. Continue frying batches until all the strips are crisped. Sprinkle with salt and set aside.
3. Cook the pork: Heat the 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet with a lid, and add the pork. Stir and cook the pork and break it into crumbles with a wooden spoon. When there is almost no pink left, add the garlic and ginger. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 5 minutes, then add the cabbage, and cover the pan for a few minutes to wilt the cabbage. Remove the cover, drizzle in the sesame oil, and stir to evaporate excess moisture.
4. Make the sauce: whisk together the peanut butter, vinegar, maple syrup, soy sauce and Siracha. Pour over the pork, add the scallions, and cook a few more minutes until bubbly.
5. Assemble the bowls: divide the rice between 4 individual bowls (or mound the rice in a serving bowl) and layer the pork mixture on top. Add any toppings you are using and serve warm.

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Photo by DebsLunch

Deconstructed Wedge Salad | DebsLunch

From DebsLunch
Probably the best part of this recipe is it includes two simple salad dressing recipes, Red French, and Creamy Herb, kind of a homemade Ranch. The Creamy Herb dressing is usually made with fresh thyme and dill, but the fresh oregano in this week’s box will also taste good.
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Photo by Taste of Home

Creamed Kohlrabi | Taste of Home

From Taste of Home
This is one of two recipes for kohlrabi this week; also check out the kohlrabi fries from last week. This creamy preparation of kohlrabi is one of the most common ways to eat it in Germany, where it is called Rahmkohlrabi.
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Photo by Joe Lingeman

Crunchy Peanut Slaw | Kitchn

From The Kitchn
This recipe calls for thinly-sliced green cabbage, but Napa will work perfectly and the non-mayonnaise-based dressing is great on Napa.
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Roasted Radish & Kohlrabi Salad with Apple, Pine Nuts & Puffed Rice | VegKit

From VegKit
In this recipe, all the way from Australia, most of the radishes are roasted, leaving one to slice up for garnish, and the radish greens are blended into the dressing. You also have the option of added puffed rice cereal for a little extra crunch, but I recommend only doing that if the salad will be all consumed at one sitting!
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Chicken and Bok Choy Stir Fry | Barefeet in the Kitchen

From Barefeet in the Kitchen
Barefeet in the Kitchen adapted this quick stir fry from Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food, using skinless boneless chicken thighs instead of the chicken breasts in the original recipe. Whatever cut of chicken you use, this is a tasty way to prepare bok choy.
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Kohlrabi Slaw | A Couple Cooks

From A Couple of Cooks
Here’s another kohlrabi preparation from A Couple of Cooks. If you don’t have an apple to cut into matchsticks to add to the slaw, a few of the radishes from this week’s box would add a pop of color and a little heat to your dish. You could also sub fresh oregano for the parsley.

Week #4; Berry season begins

Hey folks, we just picked your first strawberries.  We waited until this afternoon, to allow more to ripen.  There’s a paper cup of berries for everyone, with more to come.

These berries survived a light frost two weeks ago.  Their color is much more russet than usual but the flavor is intensely good.  It looks like the next berries either missed or are outgrowing the frost exposure.  Wow, that was a squeaker.

Too close for comfort

Would you like to see a close-up of Steve flame-weeding an asparagus field?  It’s a good technique to kill annual weeds without damaging our deep-rooted asparagus.  I set up a trail camera to watch a badger den and caught Steve instead.  I would never have stood that close to photograph.  No trail cameras were harmed in the making of this video.  View below or on YouTube at youtu.be/3x04c8bgW1c 

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #3, June 8/9, 2023 (Thurs/Fri sites)

Beth’s box logic:  We are sending cilantro and scallions together again this week.  They are a terrific pairing for stir-fries but also for almost any dish.  It’s a nice combination in salad dressing or added to any pasta dish.  If not everyone in your household likes cilantro (those crazy people), consider making a minced chutney to serve on the side, with cilantro, a few scallions, lime juice, olive oil, chili flakes, and salt and pepper to taste.  Sort of like a simple chimichurri with fewer herbs and lime juice instead of red wine vinegar.  

We have two “crunchy white things” for you this week, kohlrabi and white salad turnips.  You nearly received three “crunchy white things” but the radishes have not sized up yet.  I asked Deb to come up with ideas for these two less-common vegetables and she did!  However, I will be making her kale casserole recipe in the next few days, while the night temperatures are cool.  I am intrigued by the batter-based crust.  

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ green
– Sampler/ D group

Strawberries, 1 cup
Asparagus, 1/2 lb
Spinach, 1 bunch
Kale, 1 bunch
Lettuce, red or green leaf
White salad turnips, 1 bunch
Kohlrabi, 1
Scallions, 1 bunch
Cilantro, 1 bunch

Next week’s box will probably contain strawberries, greens, lettuce, radishes, and more.

See last week’s Veggie List & Veggie Notes for information on white salad turnips, scallions and cilantro.

Strawberries – It’s just a cup so there’s not much I can tell you!  Eat now or refrigerate.

Asparagus – This is the final asparagus delivery.  It’s time to weed the field and let the plants grow strong for next year.

Kohlrabi (pale green, round vegetable with thick skin and attached leaves) – Crunchy and sweet, kohlrabi is a great addition to salads.
Storage:  Kohlrabi bulbs will store for a month in the refrigerator.  Remove the leaves if you plan to store for more than a few days.
Uses:  Kohlrabi are good peeled and eaten out of hand, or added to sandwiches, or added to salads.  It makes a nice salad on it’s own.  You can grate it, slice it, or cut it into matchsticks.  It’s also good cooked.  

RECIPES by DEB

Greens, Onion, and Cheese Pie

This recipe is based on a Mark Bittman recipe called Kale or Chard Pie, from his book How to Cook Everything Vegetarian (and you’ll also find it online). The fun thing about it is that it’s an easy crust that doesn’t requires any rolling out – it’s a batter that you simply pour and spread into the pan. Bittman’s original recipe calls for six eggs, three that go into the batter, and three hard boiled and chopped into the filling. I wanted the pie to have more greens, and added cheese, but I’m sure the filling with hard boiled egg would be delicious. The pie can be served warm or at room temperature, and a little tomato sauce spooned on top, if you have some around, is a nice accompaniment.
Serves: 4-6
Takes: 60 minutes, 15 minutes active time; 45 minutes baking

Filling:
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup of chopped onion
1 pound of greens, try a mixture of kale & spinach from this week’s box, turnip greens can be used as well, rinsed, stems removed, and chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch of scallions, thinly sliced, whites and some of the green parts
optional: 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs such as cilantro, parsley, or dill
1 cup crumbled or grated cheese – your choice! I used a combination of feta and pepper jack

Batter:
3 large eggs
1 cup sour cream or whole-milk yogurt
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/4 cups flour; option: replace the 1/4 cup flour with yellow cornmeal

1. Heat oven to 375°. Butter a 2-quart gratin dish or deep 9-inch pie dish.
2. Filling: Melt the butter in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the greens, kale first if using, stir well, and cover for a few minutes to wilt. Reduce the heat and cook covered for about 10 minutes until the greens are tender. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Remove the lid and cook a few more minutes to evaporate any excess moisture. Stir in the scallions and herbs if using, and remove from the heat to cool.
5. Batter: Beat the eggs in a large bowl, and whisk in the mayonnaise and sour cream (or yogurt).  Add the baking powder, salt, and flour, and whisk until smooth.
6. Spread a thin layer of batter in your buttered baking dish. Mix the cheese into the filling and layer over the batter. Pour the rest of the batter over the filling, and smooth gently.
7. Place the baking dish in the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes until puffed and golden. Serve warm or at room temperature, with or without tomato sauce.

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Photo by by Tieghan

Parmesan Tahini Kale Salad with Breadcrumbs and Crunchy Chickpeas | Half Baked Harvest

From Half Baked Harvest
The best thing about this salad is the tahini-lemon Parmesan dressing … well, and the toasted bread crumbs and crunchy chickpeas. I omitted the avocados, and enjoyed the leftover dressing on a lettuce salad another day.
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Kohlrabi Fries (Baked or Air Fryer) | Kara Lydon

From Kara Lydon, the Foodie Dietician
Most recipes for kohlrabi are for using it raw, like shredded in slaw, sliced and eaten in sandwiches, pickled. Here’s a fun way to turn your kohlrabi into fries. The recipe calls for about 1.25 pounds of kohlrabi – if you get a bit less kohlrabi in your box, you can scale back the recipe. I’d suggest using a little less olive oil plus all the spices for one pound of kohlrabi.
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Photo by Alyona

Extra Creamy Spinach Dip | Alyona’s Cooking

From Alonya’s Cooking
This version of creamy and cheesy warm spinach dip can be served with bread or crackers, but the salad turnips, kohlrabi, and asparagus in this week’s box are all great dippers as well. I suggested lightly steaming the asparagus and cooling before serving as a dip accompaniment.
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Pan Fried Turnips Recipe with Onions and Spinach | Low Carb Maven

From Low Carb Maven
My family are all carb lovers, so how much carbs are in a dish is usually not a concern at my house. This recipe stresses that these pan-fried turnips are low-carb, but that doesn’t have to be te only reason to eat them because they also taste great.
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Easy Scallion Pancakes (Only 4 Ingredients!) | The Woks of Life

From The Woks of Life
I’ve made scallion pancakes from scratch quite a few times, and have enjoyed rolling out the dough, filling it with scallions, twisting it into a spiral, and rolling flat and frying. But it takes a good bit if time! This short cut provides a quick way to make scallion pancake by layering the scallions in round dumpling wrappers, and the recipe provides a link to an ingredients glossary to make sure you purchase the right kind.
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Crustless Spinach & Asparagus Quiche with Gruyère | Eating Well

From Eating Well
We’re starting and ending this week with recipes for “pies” featuring greens, but while the first recipe features a batter-based, no-roll crust, this recipe from Eating Well is crustless. The 3/4 pound of asparagus we got in the box will work fine in the quiche, and feel free to sub a small pinch of dried thyme for the fresh, or omit. A few grates of fresh nutmeg would also be tasty here.

Week #3; Making it rain

We are irrigating full time but this year we started in May!  It’s been three weeks without rain and there’s none in the forecast.  That’s a little crazy.  The photos above show our heroic traveling gun irrigator.  We park the big reel at one end of the field, then unspool a heavy hose and the traveling gun to the other end.  Hook it up to our irrigation well and turn it on.  The water pressure slowly rewinds the hose onto the reel, pulling the traveling gun down the field and irrigating fields on either side.  

In the top photo, you can see the water’s maximum spread.  We can water up to two fields on either side.  The bright white field in the top photo is melons covered with floating row cover, in theory to gather extra heat but that was unnecessary this week!  The center field is sweet corn and the one to the left is next year’s strawberries.

Right now, we are setting up the farm for the rest of the season. For example, we chopped the overwintered cover crop in this photo one week ago.  Now we wait for rain so the straw and residue break down, so we can plant carrots in July, to harvest in fall, pack in your Thanksgiving boxes and send to Willy Street Coop all winter.  If no rain comes, then we will have to irrigate the chopped cover crops so they break down.  That’s a lot of extra work.  

Rain would be good, so we don’t run into a bottle neck, and to make life a little easier.  
Thanks for reading.
Beth and Steve.

The salad turnips grew explosively this week but are very nice quality.  Unlike radishes (which decline when too big), turnips stay sweet and tender.  Both the roots and the greens are edible.  Enjoy this spring treat this week and next.  It’s the only time of year that we grow them.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #3, June 1/2, 2023 (Thurs/Fri sites)

These members receive produce this week:
– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/purple
– Sampler/ C group

Beth’s box logic:  Everything in this box is suitable for stir-fries.  All the vegetables and greens, plus scallions, cilantro and shiitakes to enliven.  Well, maybe skip the Romaine.

Asparagus, 3/4 lb
Shiitake mushrooms, 8 oz
Spinach, 1 medium bunch
Bok choy, 1 head
Komatsuna greens, 1 medium bundle
Romaine lettuce
White salad turnips & greens, 1 bunch
Scallions OR green garlic, 1 bunch
Cilantro, 1 bunch

Next week’s box will probably contain asparagus, spinach, lettuce, white salad turnips, cooking greens, scallions, an herb and more.

Go to last week’s newsletter for prep and storage information for these crops:
Asparagus (spears in a paper bag)
Spinach (leafy green bundle)
Komatsuna greens (another leafy green bundle, but darker leaves)
Romaine lettuce 

Shiitake mushrooms – These are from Hidden Valley Mushrooms, the same people who grow button mushrooms for us.  I love shiitakes cooked with spinach or other greens.  Shiitakes must be cooked.  A small subset of people can have a toxic reaction to raw or undercooked shiitakes.  Once cooked, they are harmless.  And tasty!  Lightly sauté in butter and add to any dish.  We use ours in frittatas, as well as sautéed and mixed into pasta salad or any dish.  Sautéed shiitakes and spinach are a great topping for pizza or rice bowls, e.g. bibimbap.
Storage, general: Refrigerate in a dry paper bag, but not in your crisper drawer with other vegetables, especially brassicas.  It’s OK to put a loose plastic bag over the paper bag but don’t close.  Mushrooms are perishable so use soon.

Bok choy (rosette with thick white stems and green leaves) – This Asian green is good for stir-frying or sautéing or in soup. You can think of the stems and leaves as two separate vegetables. The stems require longer cooking. The leaves will cook almost as quickly as spinach. Bok choy stores well, so feel free to pull off leaves as you need them, or use the whole head at once.
Storage: Refrigerate in a plastic bag or other container.

White salad turnips (see photo) – I know that returning members look forward to these sweet and delicious turnips, which taste nothing like the turnips that are harvested in fall.
– Storage: Cover and refrigerate.
– Uses: Both the turnip roots and tops are edible.  The roots are excellent raw; Slice and add to salads.  They can be cooked and are especially good when lightly sauteed in butter.  Stir as little as possible so they brown on at least one side.  The turnips greens are excellent cooked.  Treat them like mustard greens.
– Our favorite use:  Slice the roots very thinly and combine with a mixture of rice vinegar, mirin, soy sauce, sesame oil.  Eat immediately or marinate.

Scallions (bundle of green onions) – These are useful raw or cooked.  Thinly-sliced raw scallions can be folded into biscuit dough or sprinkled on top of soups or salads.  Terrific garnish for pasta dishes.  Think pad thai. 

Cilantro (small bunch, fragrant leaves) – Used in both Mexican and some Asian cuisines.  Good to season stir-fries, salad dressing, salsa, etc.
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

RECIPES by DEB

Photo by debslunch

Spicy Tofu over Noodles & Greens

Takes about 45 minutes
Serves 4
This dish is a vegetarian version of Szechuan Dan Dan noodles that are usually made with ground pork. It is probably the only tofu preparation all members of my family will eat! The traditional topping is quick pickled cucumbers; thinly sliced cucumber marinated briefly in rice vinegar and salt and maybe a pinch of sugar. For this time of the year, try Love and Lemons pickled asparagus, thinly sliced, scattered on top of your bowlfuls of noodles.

Sauce:
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon tahini or peanut butter
1 tablespoon roasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons rice or balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chili crisp
i inch piece of fresh ginger, grated or finely chopped

Tofu:
1 14 oz. block of firm tofu
2 tablespoons cornstarch
a few pinches of kosher salt, or a teaspoon of fine salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Noodles and greens:
One bunch komatsuna greens or bok choy, rinsed, stems and leaves sliced separately
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced or put through a press
1 tablespoon soy sauce
salt
8-9 ounces ramen noodles or vermicelli
2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon roasted sesame oil

Dish:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 oz. shiitake mushrooms, stems pulled off and sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced or put through a press

Optional toppings:
Pickled asparagus,thinly sliced on the diagonal
3-4 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
a handful of fresh cilantro leaves and some of the tender stems

1. To make the sauce, combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, tahini, sesame oil, vinegar, chili crisp, and fresh ginger in a small bowl or spouted glass measuring cup.
2. To prepare the tofu, remove it from the box and squeeze it with your hands over the sink to extract as much liquid as possible. Don’t worry if the tofu breaks apart – it’s going to get crumbled up anyway. Wrap it in a clean kitchen towel or paper towel and set aside for 10 minutes to continue draining.
3. After it has drained, crumble the tofu into a large bowl. Sprinkle the cornstarch and salt over it, and toss with your hands until well coated.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet that will hold the tofu in one layer. Add the crumbled tofu and fry until golden brown on one side, then turn and continue until it’s all golden brown, about 5 minutes per side.
5. Transfer the tofu back into the bowl, and wipe out the skillet.
6. Heat 3-4 quarts of water in a large pot, salt it, and then cook the ramen noodles according to package directions – usually about 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
7. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in another skillet, and add the greens stems. Fry for a few minutes over high heat, then add the leaves, garlic, soy sauce, and salt to taste. Stir until the greens are wilted and tender. Add the drained noodles, drizzle with the sesame oil (use the larger amount if you cooked the larger amount of noodles) and toss, then cover to keep warm while you finish the tofu sauce.
8. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in the wiped out skillet and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until they start to soften, then add the garlic. Cook a few more minutes until the garlic is fragrant, then add the tofu and toss all together. Finally give the sauce a good stir and pour in, mix and cook 5-10 more minutes until bubbling.
9. Spoon the tofu mixture over the noodles and greens in bowls, garnish with your choice of toppings, and serve.

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Pickled Asparagus | Love and Lemons

From Love and Lemons
Here’s fun way to turn your asparagus into a snack, appetizer, or stir fry topping, as above. I admit I did not have cute jars to pickle my asparagus in – I used a shallow baking dish instead.
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By Tieghan Gerard

Crispy Italian Chicken and Bacon Salad with Tahini Pesto Dressing and Sourdough Croutons | Half Baked Harvest

From Half Baked Harvest
This recipe from Half Baked Harvest includes a couple of items we did not get in this week’s box, like basil & cherry tomatoes, and some we never get in the box because they don’t really grow in Wisconsin, like avocados. (TBH I think all of the Half Baked Harvest recipes include avocado …) I’ve included it because it’s such a delicious and indulgent dinner salad that you can make with all of our greens and a quick trip to the grocery store – or simply omit the ingredients you don’t have, it will still be tasty!
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Sesame Roasted Turnip Salad with Quinoa | Naturally Ella

From Naturally Ella
This salad of roasted salad turnips uses quinoa, but other grains, such as bulghur, would also work. You can use a mix of romaine, spinach, and a few turnip greens for the base of the salad. Watch the turnips carefully when roasting so they don’t get too soft. The recipe says 25-30 mins – check after 10-15!
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Fresh Creamed Spinach Recipe | Cookie and Kate

From Cookie and Kate
Here’s an easy way to make creamed spinach using cream cheese instead of a roux. You can serve it as a side dish; it makes a nice omelette filling as well; or bake it with an egg on top and serve it for brunch or dinner. To get to the 16 oz. baby spinach called for, supplement the spinach we got with turnip greens and/or Komatsuna. I recommend wilting the greens in a dry skillet with the water clinging to the leaves after washing, then draining and chopping. I also omitted the Parmesan and added an extra couple of tablespoons of cream cheese for ultra-creaminess.
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Garlicky Sautéed Greens | Minimalist Baker Recipes

From Minimalist Baker
Here’s a kind of master recipe to prepare any and all greens, good on their own or as an accompaniment to other dishes. If you have some firm bread, you can cube it and fry it in the same skillet you used for the greens (after removing the greens!) for a crunchy topping.
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Vegetable pancake (Yachaejeon) | Maangchi

From Maangchi
I learned about the Maangchi website when reading Michelle Zauner’s (Japanese Breakfast) memoir, Crying in H Mart, and it’s a great source for Korean recipes, demystified, and with lots of explanatory videos. Korean vegetable pancakes, Yachaejeon, are similar to the Japanese vegetable pancakes, okonomiyaki, savory pancakes with lots of vegetables. I think okonomiyaki has to have cabbage, but these Yachaejeon can be madee with a variety of vegetables. Asparagus, Shiitake mushrooms, salad turnips, scallions or green garlic, and any of the greens, can all be added to these pancakes. You need 2 1/2 to 3 cups of vegetables for one big 12-inch pancake to serve two.

Week #2; BiWeekly/ green and Sampler/ B group

Spinach (left) and komatsuna greens (right).  Both are bundled with a rubber band but you can tell them apart by the stems.  The komatsuna stems are thicker and resemble bok choy stems, which they are related to.  

Beth’s box logic

I picked mint for you this week so you can make spring rolls, a favorite for our kids when they were young.  We prepped them with spinach and lettuce plus other leftovers from the fridge.  Maybe a few cooked asparagus spears or sliced tofu or a few shrimp.  We never figured out the noodles but it didn’t matter.  The kids would help prepare them, then we’d pack them in lunches with a jelly jar of simple dipping sauce.  It made them so happy!  See Deb’s recipe below to learn how to fashion spring rolls.

If you don’t want to fuss with spring rolls, enjoy the fresh mint as mojitos or mint tea.
Beth

The new vacation rescheduling system is almost ready.

Watch for an email from me tomorrow or Friday, with instructions.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #2, May 25/26, 2023 (Thurs/Fri sites)

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ green
– Sampler/ B group

Asparagus, 1 lb
Button mushrooms, 12 oz
Spinach, 1 small bunch
Komatsuna greens, 1 medium bunch
Lettuce, Romaine
Lettuce, green leaf
Radishes, 1 bunch
Green garlic, 1 bunch
Mint, 2 stems
Rhubarb, 1.75 lb

Next week’s box will probably contain asparagus, shiitake mushrooms, spinach, bok choy, lettuce and more.  

Asparagus – This is my favorite spring treat!  
Prep: Wash your asparagus thoroughly to remove hidden grit.  Submerge in water with the tips pointing down, soak briefly, then swish vigorously and pull out of the water.  The draining action helps pull the grit out of the asparagus tips.  Repeat several times.
Storage: Asparagus is perishable, so eat it as soon as possible.  Store in a paper towel, cloth or paper bag, then wrap loosely in a plastic bag.  The paper bag protects the asparagus tips from direct contact with the plastic bag.  The plastic bag keeps the asparagus from wilting.
Preparation: We snap our asparagus at harvest, rather than cutting.  Therefore, there is no need to snap the stalks to remove fibrous ends.  For the same reason, it is not necessary to peel the asparagus stalks.  It’s OK to trim the cut end a bit.
Cooking:  If your asparagus stalks vary greatly in size, you will want to cook the thicker ones longer.  Put an empty steamer pot over water, and bring the water to a boil.  Add the asparagus.  Cover and steam over medium heat until just tender.  Use two forks or a spatula to turn the asparagus during cooking, rotating the bottom spears to the top.  Drain and serve.  Alternatively, you can lay spears flat in the bottom of a broad pan, with ½ inch of water.  Also excellent broiled or grilled.  Good dressed with vinaigrette, or with lime juice, salt and pepper.

Button mushrooms – These organic mushrooms are from Hidden Valley Mushrooms from Wisconsin Dells.  We bring in mushrooms from Mary and Ed every spring because they combine so perfectly with our spring vegetables, for salads, quiches, etc.  
Storage: Here are Mary’s suggestions for storing the mushrooms:
– Store separate from leafy greens, which hasten mushroom aging.  
– If storing for more than a few days, remove from the box and refrigerate in a paper bag with holes punched in the side.  Keep dry.  
– Don’t wash to clean, just wipe with a damp cloth.

Green garlic (looks like scallions, tastes like garlic) – Last fall, we planted garlic cloves that grew into the stalks we harvested this week.  If left to grow until mid-summer, the slim white bulb on this week’s garlic will divide and form the usual cluster of cloves in a garlic bulb.
Preparation: Green garlic is more pungent than scallions, so slice thinly and use sparingly when raw.  It mellows when cooked.  Chop and add to any cooked dish that would benefit from garlic.  Use the white bulbs and pale green stems.  Avoid the dark green stems and leaves, as these are fibrous.

Komatsuna greens (bundle of dark green leafy heads.  See photo) – This is our new favorite spring cooking green.  They are similar to mustard greens but with great flavor and are more mild than mustard greens.  We’ve enjoyed learning to grow them over the past three seasons.  In spring, they are quite resilient to temperature swings.  We’ve certainly seen that kind of weather this year!
Preparation: Use in any recipe that calls for mustard greens or bok choy.  Use both leaves and stems.
Storage:  Cover and refrigerate.

Lettuce, Romaine –
Lettuce, green leaf – The lettuce are still small so we are sending two heads. The larger one is Romaine and the smaller is red leaf.  Neither lettuce is bound with a rubber band, an easy way to distinguish from this week’s spinach and komatsuna greens.
Storage:  Refrigerate in a bag or other container.

Mint – I am sending mint so you can make spring rolls with your lettuce and spinach, plus whatever other ingredients you enjoy.
Storage: Refrigerate.

Rhubarb – Storage: Refrigerate in a plastic bag. FYI, 1.75 lb of rhubarb yields 5 – 5.5 cups when chopped.
Stewed rhubarb: This is the simplest way to prepare rhubarb. Chop rhubarb into one inch chunks. Stir over medium heat with a small amount of water in the bottom of the pan. The rhubarb will release moisture as it cooks. Stew until it softens and falls apart. Sweeten to taste with honey or sugar. Eat warm on its own, over vanilla ice cream, on pancakes, etc.
Storage:  Refrigerate.
Preserve: Rhubarb is extremely easy to freeze. Wash, chop and pop it in a freezer bag. That’s it; no need for blanching. When baking muffins or cakes, add the frozen rhubarb directly to the batter.

Salad radishes – These are so good right now; tender, crisp and not too spicy.  They are great in salads or thinly sliced on sandwiches.  A few years ago, I was served open-faced radish and butter sandwiches on toast and was impressed with how tasty they were.  Use good quality butter.
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

Spinach – These small bunches are best used in salads. 
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

RECIPES by DEB

Asparagus Salad with Crispy Coconut & Almond Topping

This crunchy asparagus salad can be served over greens as a side salad or a meal. I’ve given directions for cooking the asparagus in water, but you could roast it instead: Reserve one tablespoon of vegetable oil for the dressing, and drizzle the other tablespoon over the asparagus spears on a cookie sheet and roast in a 425° oven for about 10 minutes until just tender. Proceed with the recipe from step 2.

Takes about half an hour
Serves 2 as a main course, 4 as a side dish

1 pound asparagus stalks
one lime to yield 1 teaspoon lime zest plus 2 tablespoons juice
2 tablespoons neutral vegetable oil, like safflower or canola
one heaping tablespoon light miso
one tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup unsweetened shredded or flaked coconut
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons Aleppo chile flakes or 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
6-7 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced
Kosher salt
Optional: a handful of fresh cilantro leaves with tender stems

1. Fill a large skillet with a few inches of water, bring to a boil, and salt it. Add the asparagus spears and cook for 4-5 minutes until just tender. Transfer the asparagus to a colander set in the sink, run some cold water over to stop the cooking, and set aside to drain well.
2. For the dressing, whisk the lime zest and juice, oil, miso, and maple syrup in a bowl large enough to hold the finished salad.
3. For the coconut almond topping: Heat the oven to 350° and place the almonds in a pie plate or other metal pan. Toast in the oven until starting to brown, 5 minutes. Add the coconut flakes, and toast another 5 minutes watching carefully, until the coconut turns golden brown. Remove from the oven and stir in the sugar, chile flakes and a few pinches of kosher salt Set aside to cool.
4. Cut the asparagus into 2-3 inch lengths. Stir all but 1 tablespoon of the coconut topping into the dressing. Add the asparagus and radishes and toss well. Transfer to a shallow serving platter and sprinkle with the remaining coconut topping and cilantro if using. Best right away, but still tasty the next day.

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One-Pot Garlic Parmesan Pasta Recipe with Spinach and Mushrooms | Eatwell 101

From Eatwell 101
This pasta is called “Spinach and Mushrooms” but I recommend making it with the longer cooking Komatsuna greens from this weeks box instead of the tender spinach. Rinse and use leaves only from about half the bunch – save the stems to eat with the rest in another dish. Blanch the greens in a large pot of salted boiling water – if you dip out the greens with tongs or a slotted spoon, you can use the same water to boil the pasta – then drain and cool. Squeeze the water out by handfuls, chop the Komatsuna, and add it to the pasta as directed for spinach.
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Arugula, Green Garlic & Walnut Pesto | Dishing Up the Dirt

From Dishing Up the Dirt
This pesto is the recipe where I suggest using the spinach from this week’s box. Sub in an equal amount of spinach for the arugula called for and you’ll have a brilliant green pesto. Unless you have arugula left from last week – then by all means feel free to use it here! Easily doubled. For an alternative to serving the pesto on pasta, try this Grilled Pesto-Marinated Chicken recipe.
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Photo by DebsLunch
From DebsLunch

100% Rhubarb Pie

Here’s an all-rhubarb, all the time, pie, perfect for this time of year, and vanilla ice cream.
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Photo by Peden + Munk

Chopped Salad with Shallot Vinaigrette, Feta, and Dill Recipe | Samin Nosrat

From Epicurious
The headnote for this Samin Nosrat recipe suggests flexibility in making this spring-y chopped salad, “Make this salad with whatever produce you’d like”. To use what we’ve got in the box, try 2 stalks of green garlic in the dressing in place of shallots, chopped cooked asparagus, sliced radishes, a mixture of lettuce and spinach for the greens, and cooked edamame or thawed frozen peas.
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Lettuce Wrap Burgers | All She Cooks

From All She Cooks
Here’s a change from salad to use all the nice lettuces we are getting – use your lettuce to wrap a burger! This recipe provides instructions for making beef burgers, but you can sub in turkey or even purchased veggie burgers, and the Siracha mayo is great with any choice – although plain mayo is also good if you don’t care for heat.
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photo by Kristina Todini

Radish Greens Salad | Fork in the Road

From Fork in the Road
The recipe, developed by a registered dietician, helps us fight food waste by using radish greens in a salad. Radish greens are kind of peppery – if you decide you don’t want a whole salad of them, mix in some of the tender spinach from this week’s box.
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Photo by Stephanie

The Ultimate Guide to Spring Rolls | i am a food blog

From i am a food blog
Spring rolls are a great way to eat up all the greens, crunchy vegetables, and herbs that we get in our boxes this time of year. This Ultimate Guide from i am a food blog gives you LOTS of options! The only essential ingredients are leafy and crunchy vegetables and preferably some herbs; protein and noodles are optional. And there’s also a variety of dipping sauces for your rolls.

Week #1, Let’s get started!

Deliveries begin this week May 18/19 (Thurs/Fri sites) for these groups:

– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ purple shares
– Sampler/ A group

Check recent emails from us if you are uncertain about your share assignment.  Or get in touch with the farm.

Surprise!

We never send carrots or celeriac in the spring CSA boxes!  We have beautiful ones for you, stored from bumper crops harvested in late fall.  We washed roots all winter for sale to Willy Street Coop, but held nice ones for this first CSA box.  As we watched our spring crops grow slowly during the cold April weather, it was a comfort to know we had these for you.

I think they will be an excellent addition to your spring meals.  Here are my ideas for using them:
– Celeriac is easily roasted in combination with potatoes.  Or prepare cream of celeriac soup and serve with a salad or steam asparagus.  Deb has given us an appealing recipes for Celeriac Gratin, and Creamy Celeriac Potato soup.  See below.
– Carrots are also excellent roasted; check out Deb’s Gochujang Roasted Carrots below.   Of course, carrots can be added to a salad or eaten as a snack.  You might want to peel these stored carrots.  The skins are edible but a little dry.
Beth

Things you need to know.

♦  On Thursday, we deliver CSA boxes to Evansville, Fitchburg, Madison, McFarland, Middleton, Oregon and Verona.
♦  On Friday, we deliver CSA boxes to Janesville. 
♦  We post this newsletter/blog each Wednesday night, with a list of veggies for the week, quantities, information about storage and preparation, news of the farm, recipes, and a forecast for the next week’s box.  I’ll send an email on Wednesday night once the newsletter is posted and ready to read.  I send the Wednesday email to everyone, not just the people receiving a box that week.
♦  BiWeekly, Sampler and Weekly members, we assume you read all the newsletters, even on your “off” weeks.  This newsletter (and our emails to you) are our means to communicate with you.
♦  Want earlier notice of what will be in the box?  Check the sidebar on our website homepage around 8 p.m. on Wednesday night.  I’ll post the list under “Box Contents.”  Also, the Veggie List section of this newsletter each week contains a forecast for the following week.  The list is rarely complete but the items listed are ones we feel confident about.  
♦  The first few boxes of the season are often the lightest.  BiWeekly members, do not worry that you have signed up for the wrong share!   Our deliveries get heavier and more abundant as the season progresses.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #1, May 18, 2023
– Weekly shares
– BiWeekly/ purple
– Sampler/ A group

Asparagus, 1 lb
Lettuce, 2 medium heads
Arugula, 1 small bunch
Salad radishes, 1 bunch
Green garlic, 1 bunch
‘Goldrush’ potatoes, ~3.25 lb
Carrots, 2 lb
Celeriac, 1 large
Rhubarb, ~1.75  lb

Next week’s box will PROBABLY contain asparagus, lettuce, spinach or other greens, salad radishes, green garlic, rhubarb, and button mushrooms.  This is our working list, but it could easily change.  Check next week’s newsletter.

Arugula – (bunch of green leaves with pungent scent) – This is a spring treat!  Arugula is good mixed with lettuce or spinach in salads, or added to cooked dishes such as lasagne or quiche.  I love it on sandwiches.  
Storage:  Refrigerate.  This arugula is extremely tender and delicious.  Handle gently and eat soon.

Asparagus – This is my favorite spring treat!  
Prep: Wash your asparagus thoroughly to remove hidden grit.  Submerge in water with the tips pointing down, soak briefly, then swish vigorously and pull out of the water.  The draining action helps pull the grit out of the asparagus tips.  Repeat several times.
Storage: Asparagus is perishable, so eat it as soon as possible.  Store in a paper towel, cloth or paper bag, then wrap loosely in a plastic bag.  The paper bag protects the asparagus tips from direct contact with the plastic bag.  The plastic bag keeps the asparagus from wilting.
Preparation: We snap our asparagus at harvest, rather than cutting.  Therefore, there is no need to snap the stalks to remove fibrous ends.  For the same reason, it is not necessary to peel the asparagus stalks.  It’s OK to trim the cut end a bit.
Cooking:  If your asparagus stalks vary greatly in size, you will want to cook the thicker ones longer.  Put an empty steamer pot over water, and bring the water to a boil.  Add the asparagus.  Cover and steam over medium heat until just tender.  Use two forks or a spatula to turn the asparagus during cooking, rotating the bottom spears to the top.  Drain and serve.  Alternatively, you can lay spears flat in the bottom of a broad pan, with ½ inch of water.  Also excellent broiled or grilled.  Good dressed with vinaigrette, or with lime juice, salt and pepper.

Carrots – Eat within two weeks.  Consider peeling these stored carrots.
Storage: Refrigerate.

Celeriac – Cut off chunks as needed.  Peel before using.  I find it easiest to cut the celeriac into flat slices, then peel.
Favorite uses: Oven roasted, cream of celeriac soup, grated celeriac salad.
Storage: Refrigerate.

Green garlic (looks like scallions, tastes like garlic) – Last fall, we planted garlic cloves that grew into the stalks we harvested this week.  If left to grow until mid-summer, the slim white bulb on this week’s garlic will divide and form the usual cluster of cloves in a garlic bulb.
Preparation: Green garlic is more pungent than scallions, so slice thinly and use sparingly when raw.  It mellows when cooked.  Chop and add to any cooked dish that would benefit from garlic.  Use the white bulbs and pale green stems.  Avoid the dark green stems and leaves, as these are fibrous.

Lettuce – These are pretty small so we are sending two heads.  Handle more gently than usual because they are quite tender.  
Storage:  Refrigerate in a bag or other container.

Potatoes, ‘Goldrush’ russets – Please refrigerate these potatoes.  They are in great shape now but will sprout within days if stored at room temperature!  They’ve been stored all winter and want to grow.  Store in a paper bag to protect from light, even in the fridge.  We grow everything we send in our CSA boxes except potatoes, mushrooms and some asparagus, all of which we buy from organic growers that we trust.  We purchased these potatoes from Jesse & Jonnah Perkins at Mythic Farm (formerly Vermont Valley Farm.)  Jesse says the potatoes have a higher sugar content because of starch to sugar conversion during cold storage.  That means the potatoes taste a bit sweet, and will darken slightly when fried. 

Rhubarb – Storage: Refrigerate in a plastic bag. FYI, 1.75 lb of rhubarb yields 5 – 5.5 cups when chopped.
Stewed rhubarb: This is the simplest way to prepare rhubarb. Chop rhubarb into one inch chunks. Stir over medium heat with a small amount of water in the bottom of the pan. The rhubarb will release moisture as it cooks. Stew until it softens and falls apart. Sweeten to taste with honey or sugar. Eat warm on its own, over vanilla ice cream, on pancakes, etc.
Storage:  Refrigerate.
Preserve: Rhubarb is extremely easy to freeze. Wash, chop and pop it in a freezer bag. That’s it; no need for blanching. When baking muffins or cakes, add the frozen rhubarb directly to the batter.

Salad radishes – These are so good right now; tender, crisp and not too spicy.  They are great in salads or thinly sliced on sandwiches.  A few years ago, I was served open-faced radish and butter sandwiches on toast and was impressed with how tasty they were.  Use good quality butter.
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

RECIPES by DEB

Carrot Risotto with Gochujang Roasted Carrots

This dish is based on a recipe from the New York Times, where the carrots are roasted with chile crisp. I thought roasting the carrots with a sauce made from sweeter and slightly less hot gochujang (Korean red chili paste) might taste even better. You can see what you think! I think the carrots are good enough to enjoy all on their own, too. Be sure to roast them in a pan that holds the carrots and sauce snugly – in a larger pan the sauce may spread out and burn. If you have leftover risotto, try arancini. These cheese-stuffed rice balls are traditionally fried but can be baked as in this easy recipe, Risotto Balls (Baked Arancini) from Healthy Little Foodies.

Serves: 4 generously
Takes: about an hour

2 pounds carrots, peeled or scrubbed, divided
1 tablespoon mild tasting vegetable oil or olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon gochujang
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1-inch piece of fresh ginger, minced or grated
5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 large shallot, minced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups/10 ounces Arborio or other short grain rice
2 1/2 ounces finely grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 cups), plus more for serving (optional)
Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
sesame seeds for garnish (Optional)

1. Heat the oven the 375°. Cut 1 pound of the carrots into rough chunks and drop into a food processor. Pulse to finely chop. You should have about 2 cups. Alternatively, the carrots can be grated if you don’t have a food processor. Cut the remaining pound of carrots on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces, and place in a small baking dish. Drizzle the oil over, toss well, and place in the oven. Roast for 10-15 minutes until just tender.
2. Mix the soy sauce, gochujang, honey, rice vinegar, and ginger in a small bowl or spouted measuring cup. When the carrots are almost tender, pour the sauce over, toss, and roast for another 10 minutes until tender and glazed. Set aside.
3. Heat the stock in a saucepan and keep warm.
4. Melt two tablespoons of the butter in a heavy bottomed pot that holds at least 4 quarts. Add the shallots, chopped carrots, garlic, and ground coriander and cook over medium high heat until fragrant and the vegetables are beginning to soften.
5. Add the wine and cook until the liquid is mostly boiled off.
6. Add the rice and stir until the grains of rice are well-coated with oil. Ladle in about 1 cup of warm broth and stir until it’s absorbed, about 15 minutes. Continue adding cupfuls of broth and stirring. If the rice is not tender by the time all but the last cup of broth has been added, pour in the last of the broth, stir well, and cover and simmer for 10 minutes – this is not strictly risotto technique, but should get the rice tender.
7. Mix in the remaining two tablespoons of butter and the cheese and stir until the risotto is creamy. Serve in shallow bowls topped with the carrots and garnished with sesame seeds, and pass extra cheese if desired.

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Sylvia Fountaine | Feasting At Home

Baked Salmon with Rhubarb

From Feasting at Home
Here rhubarb is a savory accompaniment to salmon. The recipe suggests serving the fish with greens sauteed with a bit of lemon, but a lemon vinaigrette dressed salad made with the arugula and lettuces from this week’s box would also be a great side. And if you don’t have fresh thyme sub a small pinch of dried.
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Photo by Gentl and Hyers

Spring Potato Salad With Green Garlic Dressing Recipe | Los Angeles Times

From the LA Times
This recipe calls for small spring potatoes but the larger potatoes in this week’s box cut into right-size pieces can be subbed perfectly. The vinaigrette is made with green garlic and the salad is served over arugula both in our box this week – a mix of lettuce and arugula will work, too.
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Creamy Celeriac Potato Soup | Farm To People

From Farm To People
This quick recipe for a creamy soup calls for making toasted croutons from an onion batard roll, not something I typically have on hand at my house! If you’re the same, the point is simply to make a crunchy topping for the soup, so you can use any type of bread that you like, toasted and cut up, or consider other crunchy toppings like toasted sunflower seeds or other nuts, or crackers. Use one pound of celeriac; probably half of the large root we got in the box.
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Photo by Debra Shapiro

Outrageous Rhubarb Coffee Cake | DebsLunch Recipes

From DebsLunch Recipes
This recipe is based on a 1980s cookbook, From the Farmers’ Market. When I was first introduced to the recipe I liked it so much I had to head to the library and track down the original. It goes together quickly, tastes luxurious, and since it’s made with melted butter, you don’t have to plan ahead to bake it.
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Asparagus Grilled Cheese with Brown Butter and Dijon | How Sweet Eats

From How Sweet Eats
Here’s a fun recipe using asparagus – in a grilled cheese sandwich. The browned butter really amps up the flavor. This recipe for a grilled cream cheese and asparagus sandwich on Parmesan-coated bread also sounds tasty, and has a nice story, but it calls for a whole pound of cream cheese for four sandwiches, which sounds way over the top to me. I’d suggest 8 ounces of cream cheese for four sandwiches.
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by Daniela Apostol

Celeriac Gratin | My Gorgeous Recipes

From My Gorgeous Recipes
Our celeriac might seem like more of an autumn vegetable, but while the nights are still cool this gratin will taste seasonal. Leave the bacon out if you don’t eat meat, and sub onions for the leeks, sauteed in butter. You can also use carrots in place of some of the celeriac to add a little color. The measurements are given in metric with a converter that’s not always correct – note that the 200 g bacon called for is not 7.14 cups! it’s actually 7.14 ounces – just under half a pound.
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Radish Toasts with Herb Cream Cheese | Giant Food Store

From Savory Giant
I love radishes with cream cheese and these toasts feature that combination. A teaspoon of freeze dried chives or other dried herbs can be subbed for the fresh herbs.
 

Spring 2023

We are back in action!

Storage Share, 2022

You each get one full Brussels sprouts stalk.  It took the entire season to grow these amazing stalks.  This field was planted in June.  We had to cut the stalks in half to fit them in the boxes.

On Saturday, Bekah helped us harvest your cauliflower in the snow.  We rarely ask crew members to work on the weekend but couldn’t risk the cauliflower on cold nights.  What a trooper!

Storage Share this week

Your produce is in one box labelled “A” and one box labelled “B”.  Bring lots of bags and containers.

Things you need to know about your winter share

* Your delivery will consist of two different boxes, labeled “A” and “B”.  Take produce from one “A” box and one “B” box.  The boxes contain different vegetables.  The stacks may be covered with blankets.  Look around.
* Please pick up your boxes on the day of delivery, during the normal hours for your site.
* Bring extra bags or containers this time.  Leave the Tipi boxes at your site, take the produce home in your own bags/containers.
* If you send someone to pick up your produce, make sure they know what to do.

Strategy

We hope you enjoy this shipment of veggies.  Strategize to use them well, as some will last longer than others. 
* These are the most perishable vegetables:  Broccoli, cauliflower.
* These are the next-most perishable: Brussels sprouts, fennel.  Keep an eye on your butternut, onions, potatoes and sweet potatoes.  The last two are susceptible to drying out.  Expect the largest butternuts to last the longest.
* Onions are next in line.  We sent you our best long-storing onions but you should still store them cool if possible (but don’t let freeze).  If you don’t have room in your fridge, find a cool spot in your house.
* These will last the longest: beets, cabbage, carrots, celeriac, daikon, garlic, parsnips and shallots.

Veggie List
Storage Share, Nov. 17/18, 2022 (Th/Fri sites)

Box “A”
Refrigerate everything in this box.

Broccoli, 2.25 – 2.5 lb
Brussels sprouts, on the stalk
Cabbage, 1 head
Carrots, 6 lb mixed orange, red, yellow & purple
Cauliflower, 1 medium head
Celeriac, 1 large
Daikon radishes, white & purple
Fennel, 2 bulbs
Parsnips, ~2 lb

Box “B”
Everything in this box (except the beets) can be stored cool or at room temperature.  See notes below for more detail.

‘Autumn Frost’ winter squash
Butternut squash, several
Sweet potatoes, ~8 lb
Beets, 3 lb
Onions, red & yellow, 5 lb total
Russet potatoes, 5 lb
Yellow potatoes, 5 lb
Shallots, ~1/2 lb
Garlic, 3 or 4 bulbs, some bulbs will be split into cloves (in shallot bag)

Shallots.  Yours are packed in a paper bag with the garlic.

Beets – Refrigerate in a bag or container.  Beets will store for two months or longer.

Broccoli – Refrigerate and eat soon.

Brussels sprouts – Eat within 2 to 3 weeks.

Cabbage – Refrigerate.  You can cut off sections as needed.  Once cut, use within two weeks.

Carrots –  Refrigerate in a plastic bag.  Will keep for several weeks.

Cauliflower – Refrigerate.  These should store for two weeks.  

Celeriac – Will store for months in your fridge.  Cut off chunks as needed.  Peel before using.  I find it easiest to cut the celeriac into flat slices, then peel.

Daikon radishes (white and purple) – Cover and refrigerate.  They are susceptible to drying out in your fridge so put them in a container or bag.  If the skins look dry, a quick peel freshens them up.

Fennel – Cover and refrigerate. 

Garlic –  Store at room temperature.  Some of your bulbs might be in halves, leftover from when we cracked nice bulbs for planting. 

Onions: Refrigerate or store in a cool, dark spot and protect from light.  Exposure to light stimulates sprouting.  

Parsnips (These look like large white carrots.) – Refrigerate in a plastic bag.  Parsnips will store for several months but will darken in color.  That is a harmless change.

Potatoes – Can be stored at room temperature or in a cool spot, but must be kept in the dark so they do not turn green.  A cloth or loose plastic bag draped over the paper bag will slow moisture loss, but do not close the plastic bag.  Potatoes store longer if kept cool.  Around 40 – 50 F is ideal.  These organic potatoes were grown by the Igl family near Antigo.
Russets – We got the big ‘baking’ grade so you have nice bakers for Thanksgiving.  Excellent for baked or mashed potatoes.
Yellows – These are good all-purpose potatoes.

Shallots (look like small red onions) – Good for salad dressing.  We’re still learning how to grow shallots and are thrilled to have a small bag for everyone!

Sweet potatoes – We’re sending a mix of three indistinguishable varieties, Beauregard, Covington and Orleans.  All have excellent flavor and sweetness.  Store at room temperature, no lower than 55 F, but 60+ F is better.  Keep them on your kitchen counter where it’s easy to keep an eye on them.  I like to keep ours in a paper bag so they don’t dehydrate.  Cook promptly if they start to soften.  The roots come in a wide ranges of sizes and all are good.

WINTER SQUASH – Store all winter squash cool and dry.  60 F is ideal.  Do not put in a plastic bag.  Check your squash regularly and eat promptly if flaws develop.
Autumn Frost (frosted pumpkin) – This beautiful frosted squash has both pumpkin and butternut squash breeding.  It cooks and tastes like an unusually good butternut, with rich, smooth texture.  The skin is edible.
Butternut winter squash (All sites; tan, oblong) – We’ve sent several varieties, some of which store better than others. Expect the largest butternuts to store the longest.  If your butternuts show signs of drying or wrinkling, use them promptly.  They will still taste great, but it’s a sign that they are nearing the end of their storage life.  Remember, you can cook, mash and freeze the squash for future use.  I find that you can refrigerate cut raw squash for up to one week.  This runs counter to the accepted way to store squash, but is useful if you want to cook just half a squash.  Some of them are big!
Safety tip:  Microwave your squash for one to two minutes before cutting or peeling.  This softens the squash and makes a squash easier and safer to cut.

Thanksgiving Menus

It’s time for our annual Thanksgiving menu round-up!  Right now, websites are loaded with great recipes suited to your Storage Share vegetables.  Peruse and bookmark soon.  The Thanksgiving collections are taken down quickly after the holiday but individual recipes are not. This is a good chance to gather recipes to try this winter.  With one exception, no new dishes will make it to our Thanksgiving table – we already have too many competing favorites!  See below for the exception.

Smitten Kitchen
You could begin and end your Thanksgiving planning with Deb Perelman.  She’s an amazing cook who publishes workable recipes.  She has an extensive list of Thanksgiving dishes collected over the years.  I really trust her recipes.

Food52.com
I recommend one corner of the Food52 Thanksgiving spread.  Honestly, the rest of their Thanksgiving offerings are over-commercialized this year but this one section is great: “Our 76 Best Thanksgiving Side Dishes to Complete the Feast, The greatest hits plus new classics”, curated by Eric Kim.
I’m intrigued by the interesting sauces offered.
eg, Blistered Green Beans & Sweet Potatoes With Tahini.  I’ve never thought to top roasted sweet potatoes with a lemony tahini sauce!
eg, Roasted Potato Salad With Mustard-Walnut Vinaigrette .

Love & Lemons 
They have a beautiful collection of “50 Thanksgiving Side Dishes”. 

Maple Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Our daughter Sophie announced that she is taking over Brussels sprouts this Thanksgiving, booting our treasured Brussels Sprouts in Mustard & White Wine Vinaigrette dish.  She tells me that I should “just stop steaming Brussels sprouts.”  She prefers roasted.  Such strong opinions!  This is a ‘non-recipe’ recipe.  She tells me that it gets devoured by twenty-somethings at potlucks.  What a great recommendation.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cut Brussels in half and put on a baking sheet.
Toss with maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder until the glaze tastes how you want it.
Roast at 425.
Taste halfway through cooking to see if it needs more glaze or seasoning.

Extension Share, 2022

This week’s delivery is a stand-alone Extension Share, for those who registered.  

The light has been amazing this week.  
Top, Steve and Maggie harvest a field of carrots, against a backdrop of lush green cover crops.
Bottom, red cabbage harvest.  Cabbages in this field are smaller than we would like but we cannot wait any longer for them to grow.  Time is up.

This week’s red napa is lovely.  It’s a fine batch this year.  Look how it harmonizes with Maggie’s hand-knit hat.  Actually, it’s not just hand-knit.  She starts with a wool fleece, spins the yarn, dyes it, then knits.  Some day I’ll do a montage of all the hats she’s knitted for co-workers and for herself.  She often includes purplish tones like the red napa.

We are in a hurry to bring all our remaining crops by the end of Saturday.  Temperatures drop dramatically at the end of the week, with no warm-up in the forecast.  Most falls are more gradual, allowing us time to harvest crops calmly and in sequence.  This year is a rush.  Anyway, we are almost certain we can pull it off.  Wish us luck!

Beth & Steve

Veggie List & Veggie Notes

Red napa cabbage
Brussels sprouts, 1 stalk
Red potatoes, 3 1/3 lb
Green broccoli, 2 to 2.5 lb
Sweet potatoes, ~2 lb
Winter squash, Autumn Frost or Metro butternut
Carrots, 2 lb
Red onion
Yellow onion

Red napa cabbage (purplish cabbage with crinkled leaves) – 
This red/purple cabbage will hold it’s color if it’s prepared with a little acid.  See photos below.  Otherwise, it turns a blue/purple hue.  Also pretty, but different.  Napa cabbage is an interesting vegetable, useful for both fresh, raw salads and for cooking. 
Storage:  Napa stores very well.  When refrigerated, it will keep for several weeks.  Peel off the outer layer and it will be ready to use.  Here are a few preparation ideas from the ‘Asparagus to Zucchini’ cookbook.
– Chop raw napa into green salads.
– Substitute napa in traditional coleslaw.
– Napa cabbage cooks quickly.  Steam 3-5 minutes, or until leaves are wilted down but remain slightly crisp.
– Substitute napa cabbage for common cabbage in recipes, but reduce the cooking time by 2 minutes.
– Napa cabbage is the main ingredient in egg rolls.  Try making an egg roll mixture to eat as a cooked side dish instead of preparing time-consuming egg rolls.

Brussels sprouts – We are sending your Brussels still on the stalk.  You get to pluck them!  Twist off and store in a bag or container.  Discard the stalk. 

Red potatoes – These organic potatoes are from Brad and Brian Igl of Igl Farms in Antigo.

Sweet potatoes – Variety is Beauregard or Orleans.  Storage at room temperature.

Brussels sprouts on the stalk.

RECIPES by PHOEBE

Sheet Pan Chicken and Cabbage Wraps

When you chop the cabbage for this recipe, it’s going to seem like way too much to roast on a single sheet pan. But trust me on this one–it’ll wilt down in the oven, becoming caramelized and silky. It’s really good on its own (I often roast it this way to serve as a side dish), but these turmeric chicken wraps with creamy yogurt sauce are a delicious way to turn it into a complete meal.

Serves 4
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus wedges for serving
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1½ teaspoons sea salt, plus more for sprinkling
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for sprinkling
1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into ½-inch-thick strips
1 pound cabbage, shredded (about 8 cups)
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
4 pita or lavash breads, warmed

Garlic Yogurt Sauce

1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, grated
½ teaspoon sea salt

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, turmeric, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken and mix well to coat. Set aside to marinate while you preheat the oven and prepare the cabbage.
2. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Arrange one oven rack in the upper third of the oven and one oven rack in the lower third. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. Place the cabbage and onion on one of the baking sheets, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with the cumin, smoked paprika, and pinches of salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Spread evenly on the baking sheet and roast on the lower oven rack until the vegetables are soft, wilted, and browned in places, 25 to 30 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes.
4. Arrange the chicken in an even layer on the second baking sheet, leaving any excess liquid behind in the bowl. Roast on the upper oven rack until cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, make the yogurt sauce: In a medium bowl, stir together the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, and salt.
6. Assemble wraps in the pita with the yogurt sauce, roasted cabbage, and chicken. Serve with lemon wedges for squeezing.

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Cumin-Spiced Couscous & Carrot Salad

I love the crunch of the pistachios against the chewy dried apricots, tender couscous, and crisp carrots in this quick side salad. Toasted, crushed cumin seeds infuse it all with warm, earthy flavor.

Serves 4
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes

1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 garlic clove, grated
½ teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup dry Israeli couscous
2 medium carrots, grated on the small holes of a box grater
10 dried apricots, diced
½ cup toasted pistachios, chopped

1. Toast the cumin seeds in a dry skillet over medium-low heat until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and roughly crush.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice and zest, garlic, salt, and several grinds of pepper. Add the cumin and mix to combine.
3. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the couscous according to the package instructions, cooking until al dente (I typically cook mine for about 5 minutes). Drain and transfer to the bowl with the dressing. Toss to coat.
4. Stir in the carrots, apricots, and pistachios. Season to taste and serve.

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Photo by Eva Kolenko

Acorn Squash Soup

From Love & Lemons
I developed this recipe for Love & Lemons earlier this fall. It calls for two acorn squash, but the one butternut in your share this week would work just as well. The blended, roasted squash gives the soup a wonderful creamy texture and a slight sweetness that I balance with warming nutmeg, woodsy thyme, and a kick of cayenne pepper. Use 1 teaspoon dried thyme if you don’t have fresh.
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Photo by Minimalist Baker

Crunchy Cabbage Slaw with Shredded Chicken & Sesame Ginger Dressing

From Minimalist Baker
This gingery chicken and cabbage slaw would be a great side dish or make-ahead lunch. To make it with the produce in your share, use all napa cabbage instead of a mix of cabbages (5 cups total), and substitute 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion for the scallions.
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Photo by Kathryne Tyler

Greek Broccoli Salad

From Cookie + Kate
This salad is super simple, but it still packs a huge punch of nutty, zingy flavor. It’s been one of my favorites for years. Here are two tips for making it:

1. Make it at least 30 minutes, and up to 2 days, ahead. The raw veggies only get better as they marinate in the lemon dressing!
2. Cut the broccoli florets small. That way, they’ll really soak up the dressing’s flavor, and they’ll have less of a raw bite.

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Photo by Deb Perelman

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

From Smitten Kitchen
It’s dipping down into the 30s this weekend, so it could be the perfect time to make a comforting pot of broccoli cheddar soup. This creamy, cheesy classic is loaded with fresh broccoli and carrots.
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Photo by Jeanine Donofrio & Jack Mathews

Oven Roasted Potatoes

From Love & Lemons
Crispy roasted potatoes are always tasty, but if you toss them with the lemon-rosemary dressing in this recipe, they become completely irresistible. Substitute 1 teaspoon dried rosemary if you don’t have fresh on hand.
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Photo by Laura Wright

Sweet Potato Muffins with Pecan Streusel

From The First Mess
Soft roasted sweet potato flesh adds delicious moisture to these warmly spiced autumn muffins. I recommend using this method to cook the sweet potatoes before you make the muffins; you can roast them up to 3 days in advance and store them in an airtight container in the fridge.

Week #24; final delivery of summer CSA

This is the final delivery of our 24-week summer CSA.  The season has sped by!  Thank you for being members of our farm this year.  We could not farm without your support.

Our hard-working crew deserves a round of applause.  What a great crew!  We feel lucky to have worked with all of these wonderful people.  It takes multiple photos to capture everyone.

Here’s the crew in August, before college students returned to school.  From left, Raul, Abby, Owin, Madalyn, Ari, Chelsea, Steve, Karen, Maggie, Beth, Ben and Mat.

From left, Bekah, Carrot, Ken, Simone and John.  
Bekah and Carrot were new hires this fall.  Ken returned in September.   Simone is finishing her 23rd season with us, and John his fourth.

Clockwise from top left; Mike on a tractor (as usual!), Sarg joined us in fall, Heather and Rebecca help us pack CSA boxes each Thursday.  MIA: Charlotte and Ava.

Mellow fall

Top; Prepping garlic in the barn loft.
Middle; Planting garlic cloves.  In spring, we’ll harvest some as green garlic but most will mature to garlic bulbs for next year’s CSA.
Bottom; Celeriac harvest is easier and more pleasant in warm dry weather

We are enjoying and making good use of the mild fall weather!  How often do we get to work in short sleeves in November?  Most of our garlic is planted and we are racing through other fall harvests, stashing away carrots, beets, celeriac, parsnips, cabbage, etc to sell through the winter to Willy Street Coop, Basics Coop and Outpost Natural Foods.  We’ll be busy right up to Thanksgiving this year, weather permitting.

Thank you so much for joining us this year.
Beth & Steve & crew

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #24, November 3/4, 2022
– Weekly shares
– EOW/ purple
– Sampler/ moon

Brussels sprouts, 1 lb
Leeks, 1 lb
Fennel, 1 or 2 bulbs
Sweet potatoes, 2 to 2.5 lb
‘Autumn Frost’ winter squash
Celeriac, 1 large
Parsnips, ~1.5 lb
Green bell pepper, 1 or 2
Red onion
Shallots, a few
By site: purple broccoli OR Koji greens

Leeks (look like big scallions) – These alliums have a milder flavor than onions.  Nonetheless, they can be used in recipes that call for onions.  To wash, split the leek lengthwise, from the green tops about halfway to the base, leaving the base intact.  Rinse well under running water, separating the layers to flush.  If necessary, split the leek further if soil has penetrated more than halfway down the leek.  Shake dry.  Leeks are generally eaten cooked.  They can be sauteed, steamed or roasted.  Intact leeks will store 2 to 3 weeks if covered loosely and refrigerated.  The outer leaves will yellow.  Just peel them off and discard.  The inner leek layers will be fine.

Fennel (bulbs with a tuft of lacy fronds) – Fennel is a ‘swing vegetable’; it can be used raw or cooked.  Clean well and slice as thinly as possible for use in raw salads.  It is good simply prepared with olive oil, lime or lemon juice, salt and shaved parmesan cheese.  Cooking softens and sweetens fennel, and mellows its anise flavor.  Both the bulb and leaves are edible.  Here are ideas from Alice Water of Chez Panisse about how to use fennel:  ‘It’s strong anise characteristic seems to suit fish particularly well.  … We use fennel all the time.  We add the feathery leaves to marinades for fish and to numerous salads, sauces and soups and we use them as a garnish, too. … The bulbs are sliced and served raw in salads in various combinations with other vegetables, parboiled for pastas; caramelized and served as a side dish; braised whole; or cooked in vegetable broths & fish stocks.”
Storage: Cover and refrigerate.

‘Autumn Frost’ squash – Store cool and dry.  60 F is ideal.
This beautiful frosted squash has both pumpkin and butternut squash breeding.  They cook and taste like an unusually good butternut, with rich, smooth texture.  They are quite nice.  The skin is edible.  They store very well but you have to keep an eye on them.  If  you see flaws developing, eat promptly.

Celeriac (knobby, round, bizarre-looking vegetable which smells like celery) – Refrigerate. Celeriac will store in your refrigerator for months.  Cut off chunks as you need them.  Peel before using.  Flavorful celeriac is good raw or cooked.  It is excellent in mixed roasted veggies or in soup.  It’s especially good in cream soups, alone or mixed with potatoes.  Grated raw celeriac is a great starting point for winter salads.

Parsnips (These look like large white carrots) – Those long, white roots are not carrots, they are parsnips. The two vegetables are related.  When cooked, parsnips are sweet and starchy.  For the best flavor, brown them to caramelize the sugars.  Here are a few ideas for parsnip preparation:
– Caramelize the parsnips by roasting them in a vegetable medley.
– Parsnip fries are delicious: cut like French fries, oil lightly, place on a cookie sheet and roast in a hot oven until brown and cooked through.
– Try substituting grated parsnips in a potato pancake recipe. They brown beautifully and are very tasty.
– Steve loves pan-fried parsnips with onions and garlic.

Green bell peppers – Use soon!  These were exposed to cold temperatures under row cover, then harvested and held in our cooler.  We’ve examined them carefully so they are in good shape now but will not store for long.  It’s a last gasp of summer and we’re having trouble letting go.

Shallots (look like small red onions) –  Store at room temperature.   Shallots store for a long time.  Excellent minced for salad dressing.  They will sweeten considerably when fried and can be used in Thai or Vietnamese dishes, to top burgers, etc.  

Pretty, pretty ‘Autumn Frost’ squash

Everyone gets a few shallots.

RECIPES by PHOEBE

Cheesy White Pizza with Roasted Fennel & Brussels Sprouts

If you’re stumped by how to use fennel, you can’t go wrong with putting it on a pizza. I roast the fennel first, which brings out its natural sweetness and gives it a tender, silky texture. I love the way it plays off the salty pecorino and crispy shredded Brussels sprouts here.

Serves 2 to 3
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

1 pound pizza dough, store-bought or homemade (I like this recipe or this one.)
1 medium fennel bulb (5 ounces), cut into thin wedges
½ small red onion, cut into thin wedges
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
Sea salt
Cornmeal, for the pan
5 ounces low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded on the large holes of a box grater (2 scant cups)
Heaping ½ cup thinly sliced Brussels sprouts
1 ounce pecorino or Parmesan cheese, shredded on the small holes of a box grater (⅓ cup)
Red pepper flakes

1. If using store-bought pizza dough, let it sit at room temperature for 1 hour before assembling the pizza.
2. Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the fennel and onion wedges on the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and use your hands to coat. Arrange in a single layer on the baking sheet and roast until tender and browned, 20 to 30 minutes. When the roasted vegetables are cool enough to handle, transfer to a cutting board and roughly chop.
3. Raise the oven temperature to 500°F.
4. Dust a pizza pan or another large baking sheet with cornmeal and place the dough on the pan. Stretch the dough into a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Evenly sprinkle with the mozzarella, leaving a ½-inch border around the edges. Top with the roasted fennel and onions, then sprinkle on the Brussels sprouts. Top with the pecorino cheese, scattering some cheese over the bare edges of the crust.
5. Bake until the crust is golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the bake time. 
6. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes, slice, and serve.

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Chipotle, Sweet Potato & Lentil Stew

Sweet potatoes and chipotles in adobo sauce create a delicious sweet and spicy pairing in this hearty stew. This recipe has a bit of a kick, so if you’re sensitive to spice, I recommend starting with just 1 chipotle pepper and adding more to taste. Recipe inspired by Martha Rose Shulman’s Spicy Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew with Chipotles.

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup French green lentils, rinsed
1 pound sweet potatoes (about 2 medium), peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks
2 chipotle peppers from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce, minced
½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
Bay leaf
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste, and cumin and cook, stirring, for 1 more minute.
2. Add the broth, lentils, sweet potatoes, chipotles, salt, bay leaf, and several grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the lentils and sweet potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the vinegar, season to taste, and serve.

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Photo by Minimalist Baker

Curry Roasted Parsnip Fries

From Minimalist Baker
Parsnips crisp up surprisingly well in the oven, so they’re perfect for making unconventional baked fries like these. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce!
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Photo by Erin Alderson

Sweet Potato Celeriac Pasta with Tarragon Butter Sauce

From Naturally Ella
In this simple pasta, a tarragon butter sauce coats chewy whole wheat noodles, crunchy hazelnuts, and tender roasted root veggies. If you don’t have fresh tarragon handy, you can skip it (garlic and lemon still give the sauce plenty of flavor) or substitute another herb such as parsley or thyme.
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Photo by Cookie + Kate

Honey Mustard Brussels Sprout Slaw

From Cookie + Kate
This sweet and tangy slaw couldn’t be simpler to toss together! It calls for 4 main ingredients–Brussels sprouts, dried cranberries, toasted almonds, and Parm–plus a quick homemade honey mustard dressing.
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Photo by Deb Perelman

Root Vegetable Gratin

From Smitten Kitchen
This comforting side dish was made for this week’s box! The recipe calls for fennel, sweet potatoes, and celeriac (check, check, and check) in addition to Yukon gold potato. You can replace the potato with extra sweet potato and/or celeriac, or add parsnips for a unique twist.
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Photo by Laura Wright

Ginger Sweet Potato Dal with Coconut Leeks

From The First Mess
Laura uses sautéed leeks as a topping for this dal. Cooked with coconut and lime, they offer a bright, fresh contrast to the creamy lentil and sweet potato stew.
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Photo by Andrea Bemis

Cardamom Spiced Parsnip & Date Muffins

From Dishing Up The Dirt
Parsnips’ sweet, nutty flavor makes them a great candidate for use in baking recipes like this one. The idea might seem unconventional, but we’re all on board with the veggies in zucchini bread and carrot cake. Why not parsnip muffins, too? Enjoy these ultra-moist muffins on their own, or top them with honey cream cheese frosting for a more decadent treat.

Week #23, Final EOW/green delivery

We are in the home stretch!

This is the final delivery for our EOW/green members.  Thank you so much for joining our farm this season.  We will be in touch again this fall with a year-end survey.  Watch in winter for our 2023 CSA announcement. Please do not unsubscribe from our emails once your deliveries are over – that will block all future emails from us including next year’s invitation.
– This week October 27/28 = final delivery for our EOW/ green members.
– Next week November 3/4 = final delivery for Weekly, EOW/purple and Sampler/moon members.
– For those who registered, our Extension Share will be delivered November 10/11.
– For those who registered, our Storage Share will be delivered November 17/18.

If you are not certain whether you registered for the Extension or Storage shares, go to your online CSA account and view the orders you placed:
Log in / Dashboard/ View Order History/ Click on each 2022 invoice. 
You are looking for “Name: 2022 Extension Share” or “Name: 2022 Storage Share”.
Or send me an email and I will look for you!
Beth

Badger on the farm!

Until this year, we thought of badgers as elusive.  We see distinctive tracks and claw scratches a few times each year.  I was lucky to see a badger in person twice in the last 20 years.  This year, a badger has lived on or near our farm all season.  It announced itself with fresh tunneling everywhere.  Most holes are from when it hunts ground squirrels.  The tunnels and dirt piles are enormous.  We are happy for the badger to eat all the ground squirrels but we are wary of the holes.  It’s a miracle no one has turned an ankle.  I’ve flagged as many holes as I can find but we miss some.  If you came to the gleaning u-pick, you’ll remember my warning about these holes.

Despite the frequent digging, we’ve only seen the badger two times this summer.  As the crew hurried to the pickup trucks before a storm hit, they saw a badger running across the adjacent field.  Presumably it was hurrying for cover too.  Raul saw it from the tractor another time.  We’re pretty sure it’s living amidst trees at the edge of the farm, although in summer badgers rotate among many burrows.  They’ll settle into one burrow in winter or when they birth young.

I set up a trail camera and was lucky to capture fabulous daytime footage during August and September.  My favorite bit is when they accidentally fall in a hole.  View below or on YouTube at youtu.be/ksQacRJLKt0 

Indian Summer

This week’s colorful vegetables are brought to you by the recent warm spell.  Cauliflower and purple broccoli growth was excruciatingly slow until the burst of warmth. Without it, they might have been ready in November.

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #23, Oct 27/28, 2022
– Weekly shares
– EOW/ green (final delivery for this group)

Red cabbage
Sweet potatoes, 2 – 2.5 lb
Brussels sprouts, 1 lb
Poblano chiles (NOT VERY HOT), 2 or 3
(Poblanos and Brussels sprouts are in one bag.)
Butternut squash, 1 medium
Carrots, 2 lb
Purple and red Korean radish, ~1.5 lb
(Carrots and daikon are in one bag.)
Green or suntan peppers, mixed types
Yellow or red onion
Garlic
By site: purple broccoli OR white cauliflower OR green cauliflower OR Koji greens

Next week’s box will probably contain Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, celeriac, parsnips, leeks, fennel and more.

‘Orleans’ sweet potatoes – Store your sweet potatoes at room temperature.  They suffer chilling injury below 50 F.
Here are a few things we’ve learned about sweet potatoes:
– For best flavor, cook your sweet potatoes so they brown and caramelize.  We have a simple, favorite way to roast sweet potatoes.  We used to prepare sweet potato fries in the oven.  Now we just quarter the potatoes, rub with olive oil, dust with salt and place cut-side-down on a cookie sheet.  Roast in a 450 F oven without turning until soft.  The flavors will caramelize (like sweet potato fries) but preparation is simpler and the cooking time less exacting.  Slender sweet potato fries go from undercooked to overcooked in the blink of an eye.  Larger slices are less exacting, and therefore are easier.  Small sweet potatoes can be cut just in half.  Jumbos will need to be chopped into pieces.  Otherwise, they take a long time to cook.
– This first batch of sweet potatoes will need slightly longer cooking than ones from the supermarket, perhaps because they contain higher moisture so soon after harvest.
– Sweet potatoes are good at any size. We have cooked everything from tiny to jumbo and consistently find that all sizes taste good.

Poblano chilies – These are not very hot anymore, maybe because of the cool weather.  We’re not sure.

Korean radishes – These are a favorite vegetable among our farm crew.  Crunchy Korean radishes are sweeter and milder than Japanese daikon radishes and come in a more manageable size.  They contain lots of water, which makes them easy to pickle or ferment.  You’ll receive about 1.5 lb radish this week.  Storage: Refrigerate.
Uses:  Maangchi rules for radish ideas! Head to her website for dozens of radish recipes.  She has the best website for Korean recipes.  Her Radish Kimchi recipe is close to foolproof and easy to scale.  I am eager to make a batch with the purple and pink radishes.  I hope it will be pretty.
More uses: Deb has a good recipe below for “Quick pickled carrots and daikon”.  That’s the pickled slaw served on bahn mi sandwiches.

Peppers – Each these soon.  They are perishable after being exposed to cold nights, even when protected with row cover.

Purple broccoli – Handle, cook and use like green broccoli.  Storage:  Refrigerate.

RECIPES by DEB

Photo by debslunch

Chicken and sweet potato traybake

I’ve used chicken thighs in this traybake, but you could sub 2 pounds of assorted cut up chicken, or boneless breasts or thighs, or other protein, like tofu or salmon. I peeled the sweet potatoes but leaving the skin on will result in crisper wedges.
Takes about one hour
Serves 4-6

1/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little extra for oiling the baking tray
Grated zest of one orange, orange quartered after zesting
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
a few grates of nutmeg or 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, about 2 to 2 1/4 pounds
2 pounds of sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 2-3 3-inch wedges, peeling optional
1 medium onion, any color, peeled and cut lengthwise into slices – 1 generous cup slices
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature

1. Heat the oven to 425° and lightly oil a large baking sheet. Combine the honey, 2 tablespoons olive oil, paprika, cinnamon, orange zest, and few pinches of salt in a small bowl or spouted measuring cup. Place the sweet potatoes and chicken on the oiled baking sheet and toss with your hands until well-coated. Place the chicken in the center and get everything into a single layer. Sprinkle on a bit more salt, and grind some pepper over the top. Cut the orange into quarters, removing any visible seeds, and place one quarter in each of the 4 corners of your tray.
2. Place in the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes until the chicken is browned and the sweet potatoes are done.
3. Remove the tray from the oven and transfer the chicken and vegetables to a platter. Juice the orange into the pan juices – you might need to hold onto the them with paper towel – and discard (or compost). Whisk the butter into the pan juices. Taste and season with more salt and pepper as needed. Drizzle the pan juices over the chicken and vegetables and serve.

 

Photo by debslunch

Harissa-roasted carrot salad

Happy Halloween! Our first two recipes this week are very orange – I promise more colors further down. This preparation of roasted carrots can be served over greens – I’ve used spinach here – or as a salad all on it’s own. If you don’t serve it on a bed of greens, a sprinkling of fresh herbs on top, especially cilantro, parsley, or mint would be tasty. Harissa, a spice paste, is available in jars in most grocery stores, or if you’d like to try making your own, here’s a recipe from Minimalist Baker. And other orange vegetables such as squash or sweet potatoes would work equally well in place of the carrots.
Takes about 30 minutes
Serves 5-6

2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 medium onion, peeled cut into slice pole to pole, 3/4 to 1 cup
1/4 cup olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons harissa paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar or a drizzle of honey

Optional, for serving:
5-6 cups salad greens or spinach leaves
3 ounces feta or goat cheese, crumbled
a few tablespoons dried cranberries or raisons
toasted pecans or pistachios
Handful of cilantro, parsley, or mint leaves

1. Heat oven to 400°. Place the carrots and onions on a baking pan, and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the harissa paste. Sprinkle on the cumin, a few good pinches of salt and a few grinds of pepper, and toss well, arranging in a single layer.
2. Roast for 10-15 minutes, then check and toss the vegetables to ensure even browning. Roast another 10 minutes or so until carrots are soft, but not mush. Increase the heat to 450° for the last few minutes of baking if things seem to need to be browner.
3. While the carrots are baking make the lime vinaigrette: in a small bowl, whisk the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lime juice, Dijon mustard, and sugar or honey. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. When the carrots are done remove from the oven and cool to only slightly warm or at room temperature. To serve, arrange the carrots on top of greens in individual serving bowls or on a platter (or omit the greens), drizzle with the lime vinaigrette, and add your choice the optional toppings.

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Photo by Traci

Quick pickled carrots and daikon

From Kitchen Girl
Carrot and daikon slaw is probably most often used as a condiment on Banh Mi sandwiches; see below for a recipe using the slaw in fish tacos.
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Photo by Stephanie

Fish tacos with quick pickled carrots and daikon

From i am a food blog
This fish taco recipe from i am a food blog calls for pickled daikon & carrot, but doesn’t provide a method – see the Kitchen Girl recipe for that. It also calls for small amounts of fresh herbs and chopped tomatoes – Use what you’ve got – and some thinly sliced bell or Poblano peppers from this week’s box would certainly be tasty in the tacos!
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Photo by Maxwell Cozzi

Simple Southern Mustard Greens With Bacon

From The Spruce Eats
For those with Koji greens in the box, try this typical – and delicious! – combination of greens and bacon.
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Photo by Tieghan

Easiest Coconut Cauliflower Adobo

From Half-Baked Harvest
For those with cauliflower in their box, or just happen to have some, maybe from a prior week! Here’s a spicy and warning way to cook up your cauliflower, where the cauliflower stands in for chicken in adobo.
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Photo by Food Network

German-Style Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage Soup

By Rachel Ray for Food Network
The soup takes a bit of time to prepare but can be done ahead, and flavor actually improves after cooking and reheating. Rachel Ray suggests serving with grilled cheese sandwiches for a complete meal.
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Photo by BBC Food

Hearty wholewheat pasta with Brussels sprouts, cheese and potato

From Nigella Lawson for BBC Food
If you have some white or yellow potatoes, go ahead and double carb-load; otherwise the dish will be just as tasty with pasta, Brussels sprouts and cheese.
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Fajita Vegetables

From Cooking Made Healthy
Fry up a mess of peppers and onions to make these fajita vegetables, that can of course be used in fajitas, or as a side dish, or as part of rice or grain bowl.