Week 6 CSA Veggie Haul
The Hot Potato
It continues to rain at night and be bright and sunny during the day. This has made for ideal growing conditions. It also means that I need to make fewer trips to the garden to water. Which makes me and the plants happy.
This rain is a thousand times better than just watering from a well. Well water is usually kind of hard and has a bit more iron in it. The rain is soft water that has loads of trace minerals in it that the plants love and respond to.
With the amount of rain we have had I do need to worry about vegetables getting too much moisture. When cabbages start to get larger, they could split and crack from the excess water. This has prompted us to go out mid week and pick the larger cabbages before they crack. (Cracked cabbages are still edible they just don’t look picture perfect).
*back of the vehicle filled with cabbage *cabbage the size of my torso Bolting & Bugs
We have had our share of heat this July.The romaine has held up to the heat pretty well so far but we have noticed it is starting to bolt (flower). Bolting means bitter lettuce and none of us want that. So before the lettuce was too far gone I went out and harvested two big totes of the best romaine. This weeks lettuce will be in bags and not in the head form.
Like everyone we battle with insect pressure and this year is no exception. We are sad to say that there will not be a second round of broccoli. Something has eaten the young plants and they are done for the year. We think it is grasshoppers but can’t be certain. One bug we are seeing a lot of is crickets. I have never seen so many crickets and spiders in a garden in my whole life. Crickets eat the grasshopper larvae and the spiders eat the crickets. They are thriving due to the fact that we don’t spray any insecticides. The garden is part of the eco system. Having crickets in our garden is very beneficial because like spiders they eat the bugs that cause damage to our crops. Like the nematodes we introduced to the soil back in the late spring. They are working to keep our plants safe.
What’s In The Haul
Romaine Lettuce
Cabbage
Peas
Potatoes
Summer squash (zucchini Or Sunburst)
Carrots
Green Onions
Kale
Sage
Fresh Garlic
Cucumber
Week Six Recipes
ROMAINE LETTUCE
Caesar Salad
Blue Cheese Dressing
Lettuce Storage Tips:
In a resealable container or bag, line the bottom with a paper towel. Place the lid back on or reseal the bag and store in your fridge for up to 7 days. A container works great because it prevents the lettuce from getting bruised.
Caesar salad
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup mayo
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 tsp anchovy paste
Salt and Pepper
-Mix the ingredients in a bowl and pour over your Caesar salad.
*anchovy paste in the tube stores well in the fridge and is way more convenient than a tin of anchovies.
1 large head or 2 medium heads of Romaine
1 cup of croutons
1/4 cup parmesan
Roughly chop Romaine into bite size pieces. Add croutons, parmesan cheese, and Caesar salad dressing. Mix together and enjoy.
Blue Cheese Dressing
1/4 cup mayo
2 tbsp sour cream
2 tbsp vinegar of your choice
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1/4 cup blue cheese, crumbled
Salt and Pepper
In a medium bowl combine all the ingredients together and mix well. Spoon over crisp romaine and garden veggies.
CABBAGE
Classic Coleslaw
Bacon and Onion Fried Cabbage
About Cabbage:
We are growing 2 different types this year. The white cabbage variety is called Copenhagen Market. It is an early and very versatile cabbage, great for fresh eating but it is also sturdy enough to make great cabbage roles.
Cabbage Storage Tips:
Store cabbage in the fridge, whole and uncut. It will stay good in the fridge for up to 2 months. When ready to use just peel off a couple outer leaves.
When freezing cabbage you can cut into 1/4 wedges or shred the cabbage. Blanch the wedge cabbage for 4 minutes and the shredded cabbage for 1 and half minutes. Next strain the cabbage and shock it in ice cold water. Place the cabbage on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze for 3 hours and then place into freezer bags.
Classic Coleslaw
4 cups cabbage, shredded
1 Bunch of Green Onions
1/2 cup mayo
3 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar
Salt and Pepper
In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients and mix well. Let the coleslaw sit in the fridge for a couple hours before serving.
Bacon and Onion Fried Cabbage
4 strips of bacon
1 onion, diced
2 cups cabbage, diced
1 tbsp vinegar
Salt and Pepper
In a sauté pan over medium high heat, cook the bacon to desired doneness. Once cooked remove the bacon from the pan, but leave all the bacon fat still in the pan. Add in the diced onion and cabbage. Cook the veggies until the cabbage becomes soft. Add in the vinegar, salt and pepper and cook for another minute. Serve.
PEAS
Garden veggie Sauté
Pea Storage Tips:
Peas can be stored in a bag in the fridge for a week. Any longer the peas should be frozen.
Freezing peas, put the shelled peas into a pot of boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes. Remove and place the peas into a bowl of ice water. Strain the peas, putting the peas on a clean dish towel on a baking tray and freeze for 1 hour. Next put the peas into a zip lock bag and put into the freezer. They will last up to 6 months.
Garden Veggie Sauté
1 zucchini, diced
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup peas
6 small carrots, cut into coins
5 small potatoes, cut into quarters
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2 tbsp fresh herbs
4 tbsp butter
In a large pot cook the potatoes for 4 minutes over medium heat. Then add the carrots that are cut into coins, cook for 3 more minutes. Last add the peas to the pot and cook for another minute. Strain the vegetables. In a large saute pan over medium high heat, heat 3 tbsp butter. Once the butter is hot and sizzling add the chopped onion, zucchini, and garlic. Let it cook for 2 minutes. Next add in the potatoes, carrots and peas, toss together in the hot pan for another 2 minutes. Add in the fresh herbs and season with salt and pepper. Dump into a dish and finish with the left over tbsp of butter.
See Potato section down below for another pea recipe.
POTATOES
Potato Gnocchi
Potato Storage Tips:
Store potatoes in a cool, dry, dark and well ventilated place. Typically in a cardboard box in the pantry or garage. Do not store them in the fridge. The humidity in the fridge will make them sprout over time and the cold air will make the potato convert its starch to sugar. Making the potato sweet.
Gnocchi
1 cup potatoes, boiled and mashed
2 cups flour
1 egg
Boil and mash the potatoes. In a large bowl add the mashed potatoes, flour and egg, mix together until the dough forms a ball. Divide the dough into 1/4’s and form into a little ball. Take each small ball of dough and roll out into long snakes. On a floured surface cut the snakes into half inch pieces.
In a large pot of lightly salted water cook the gnocchi for 3-5 minutes. Drain and serve with sauce of your choice.
Or try this sauce to go with your gnocchi, you can find most of the ingredients in your IGFresh hauls.
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
6 leaves of sage
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup cooked peas
Salt and Pepper
In a saute pan over medium heat, warm up the olive oil. Once the olive oil is warm add the sage leaves and let them fry for 1 minute. Next add in the chopped garlic and cooked peas. Let everything gently fry for another minute. Add cooked gnocchi to the pan and toss everything together. Add salt and pepper together to taste.
SUMMER SQUASH
Zucchini Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Summer Squash Storage Tips:
Store in your crisper as is, or place in a plastic bag leaving the bag open to allow ventilation.
If freezing the squash, first start by slicing the squash into half inch coins, next blanching it in boiling water for 2 minutes. Strain the squash in a colander, and transfer to an ice bath to stop the cooking process. Next on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a clean dish towel, lay out the sliced squash in an even layer and freeze for 2 hours. Then move the veggies to a freezer bag, these will store in the freezer up to 6 months.
You can also shred the squash, squeeze the excess water out and put directly into freezer bags and place into the freezer.
Sunburst squash are very similar in texture and flavour to zucchini and are cooked in the same manner. Switch out zucchini for Sunburst in any of these recipes.
Zucchini Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
1 1/2 cups flour or gluten free flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup canola or coconut oil
2/3 cup white sugar or coconut sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup zucchini, grated
1 cup ripe banana, mashed
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Take the shredded zucchini and place it in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze the excess water out. In a large bowl combine all of the dry ingredients, mixing together. In another bowl mix together all the wet ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl and mix well. Dump in the chocolate chips and fold everything together.
In a greased 9 by 13 baking pan, pour the batter in. Tap the baking pan a couple times to release any air bubbles in the batter. Add more chocolate chips to the top before baking. Bake the cake for 50-55 minutes. Allow bread to cool before cutting into it.
CARROTS
Turmeric Carrot Fries
Carrot Storage Tips:
When you get your carrots, cut the tops off. The carrot tops will literally suck the life out of the carrot. Place the carrots into a zip lock bag with a dry piece of paper towel. The paper towel will soak up any extra moisture the carrot gives off. The Carrots will stay crisp in the fridge up to 7 days.
Freezing carrots, cut into uniform pieces and blanch in boiling water for 3 minutes. This will slightly cook the carrot, but not completely through. With a slotted spoon remove the carrots, or strain with a colander. Dump out the carrots on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Put into the freezer for 2 hours. Remove the tray and put the frozen carrots into a zip lock bag, and store it in the freezer.
Turmeric Carrot Fries
TURMERIC CARROT FRIES
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
10 medium carrots cut in half length wise, tops cut off
2 tbsp olive oil
Dip
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup mayo
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp dill
4 green onions
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 Degrees F. In a roasting pan mix together all the ingredients and roast in the oven for 25 minutes.
In a food processor add all the dip ingredients and blend together.
GREEN ONIONS
Put that shit on everything
Green Onion Storage Tips
Cut off the roots of the green onion, then cut the onions in half. Pat dry with a piece of paper towel removing any extra moisture. Sandwich the dried green onions between two lays of paper towel and put in a zip lock bag and put in the fridge. They will store in the fridge for up to a week.
KALE
I want you to try blanching and freezing
Start to Prepare for Winter
Blanching is the process par cooking (cooking something half way). It starts with boiling water and adding the vegetable to the water and cooking for a certain amount of time depending on the vegetable density. Then removed from the water, strained, and put into an ice bath. The ice bath shocks the vegetable and stops the cooking process.
I am giving you a massive bundle of Kale I want to challenge you to freeze and store this batch of kale. This gives you a great taste of summer in the dead of winter.
SAGE
Brown Butter Sage Sauce
About Sage:
Sage is such a distinct smell and flavour and can be overwhelming for some people to use. Fear not, sage is versatile and easy to use it holds up great to cooking, it can be used in simple syrups or even dried and added to tea tincture. I have great recipe using fresh sage and fresh garlic in a potato gnocchi recipe. See potato category for info.
Herb Storage Tips:
Break up herbs into to categories, tender herbs and Harty herbs.
Tender herbs are as follows basil, cilantro, mint, dill, and tarragon. These herbs spoil quickly and should be used 5 days after getting. The best way to store them is in a mason jar or glass of water with the stock sitting in the water. Much like fresh cut flowers.
Harty herbs such as thyme, rosemary, sweet marjoram and sage are much more forgiving. Tie the bundle of herbs into a boutique and store in the fridge for 7-10 days.
Brown Butter Sage Sauce
1/4 cup Butter
6 leaves of sage
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup cooked peas
Salt and Pepper
In a sauté pan over medium heat, warm up the butter. Once the butter is warm add the sage leaves and let them fry for 1 minute. Next add in the chopped garlic and cooked peas. Let everything gently fry for another minute. Add cooked gnocchi to the pan and toss everything together. Add salt and pepper to taste.
FRESH GARLIC
About Fresh Garlic:
Garlic is typically cured (hung to dry) for a couple weeks. This produces that paper outer layer you will see on most garlic, also the cloves slightly release from the bulb.
I am giving fresh garlic, this has been picked and not cured. You will notice two things that the cloves are stuck in the bulb and need some pressuasion to come out. Also the there is a light skin covering the clove. Make sure to remove that skin before eating (this outer layer is what protects the clove once it is cured.
Storage tips:
Store your fresh garlic in the fridge. It will not store on the counter because it has not been cured. Other wise use it like you would use any other garlic. I gave a recipe at the potato section using fresh garlic, sage and garden fresh peas. Enjoy!
CUCUMBER
Dill and Onion Cucumber Salad
Cucumber Storage Tips:
Storing cucumbers is easy as wrapping them in dry paper towel and placing them in an open plastic bag. Make sure the bag is left open to allow air flow. Cucumbers will store in the fridge like this for a 10 days.
The alternative method is to just store the cucumbers on the counter. They will delicious and crisp like this for 7 days.
We are giving two types of cucumbers this week. Pickling and a slicing cucumber. The pickling might need to be peeled if it is larger. The slicing cucumber doesn’t need to be peeled it can be eaten right away.
Dill & Onion Cucumber Salad
1 cucumber, cut into ribbons
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
Salt and Pepper
With a vegetable peeler, slice the cucumber into strips length wise. In a bowl combine all the ingredients and let it sit for half hour in the fridge before eating.
