- Lettuce (a salad a day keeps the doctor away or is that an apple?)
- Spinach (this bed seems thicker, use in soup or cook as opposed to eating raw)
- Scallions
- Sugar snap peas
- Chinese broccoli
- Zucchini
- Kale or chard or collards
- Kohlrabi (oh so sweet! If this is your first time enjoying this Brassica see recipes, we just enjoy it peeled and sliced raw, but there is a lot you can make with it if you so choose. It is like eating a really sweet broccoli stem )
- Herbs (sage, mint, dill or cilantro)
- Green Garlic (just pulled from the ground, eat fresh it will not keep for more than a few weeks as it is not “cured”)
- New potatoes
Well once again a great harvest crew! It has just been wonderful to have people sign up and also just drop in. We got over 80# of peas harvested with all the help plus all the items on the list. It was fun and quick and plentiful. Sorry that one member who signed up couldn’t make it due to injury, but others filled in just fine.
Interesting weather eh? A burst of nice warm weather helped the tomatoes and peppers grow but not quite enough to take the zucchini into overdrive. We have been poking along with 30-50 zucchini a harvest for over two weeks and they just can’t seem to get it together. We have over 200 plants in the ground they ought to be producing more. They make a ton of small fruit and it rots at the end and then drops off. I think it is poor male flower production leading to poor pollination and Juve thinks it is a disease or deficiency. More on the zucchini saga, this was supposed to be the year of the zucchini.
The tomatoes are mostly staked. Juve did a great job getting the stakes pounded in the ground now it is up to me to prune and string them up. It seems like a lot of tomatoes (>150 cherry tomatoes and >100 regular tomatoes plus 2 rows of 40 each in the hoop houses) The weeding is still ahead of us but this coming week help arrives. We have 2 summer interns who will be working on the farm for school or WOOFing projects. (one fellow from Clackamas community college (Juve’s almamater) and one fellow “working on organic farms” from Switzerland).The first line of duty is to get the thistle pulled and then burned and off our property. Someone mentioned they could make a bio-fuel from thistle anyone interested?
We did get the last of the winter squash in the ground and are hoping to seed corn this week. The composting of this new area takes a long time about an hour a bed and seems more trouble than it is worth. We hope once the fruit is on the vine we won’t remember the pain of the bed preparation. It is exciting to pull in new land and feel like maybe we can fallow an area next season.
Well enough babble, out to continue the pruning and training of the tomatoes. Check them out as you drive in they are just by the road below the barn. Enjoy your veggies this week.
Rosemary Sugar Snap Peas
2 pounds sugar snap peas
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup slivered almonds
Freshly ground pepper
- Trim peas, set aside.
- In large saucepan, bring water, rosemary and salt to a boil; add peas, cover, reduce heat and simmer 5 to 8 minutes, until tender. Drain.
- Melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat; add almonds and saute until golden, about 2 minute.
- Toss peas with butter mixture and pepper. Serve immediately.
Serves 8.
SCALLION GOAT CHEESE MUFFINS
1 cup whole milk
4 ounces soft mild goat cheese
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 large egg
1 bunch scallions
Preheat oven to 400¡F. and butter twelve 1/3-cup muffin cups.
In a small bowl stir together 2 tablespoons milk and goat cheese until combined. Into a bowl sift
together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Melt butter and in another small bowl whisk together
with remaining milk and egg. Finely chop enough scallions to measure 1 cup. Stir butter mixture and
scallions into flour mixture until just combined. Divide half of batter evenly among muffin cups and
top each with about 2 teaspoons goat cheese filling. Divide remaining batter over filling. Bake muffins
in middle of oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes.
Makes 12 muffins. Gourmet
Sugar Snap Pea Salad with Sweet Lemon and Mustard Dressing
Fresh From the Garden, Perla Meyers
Salt
1 ½ pound sugar snap peas, strings removed
juice of 1 large lemon
6 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
4 Tablespoons finely minced scallions
Freshly ground white pepper
- Bring salted water to a boil in a vegetable speamer. Add the peas and steam, covered for 5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Run under cold water to spot further cooking and drain on paper towels. Place in a serving bowl and set aside.
- In a small jar, combine the lemon juice, oil, mustar, and sugar. Cover tightly and shake until the mixrure is smooth and well blended. Add the scallions, serason with salt and pepper, and pour dresssing over the peas. Cover an d chill at least 2 hours before serving.
Kohlrabi with Parmesan
2 large or 3 medium kohlrabi, stalks and leaves removed
2 Tbs unsalted butter or olive oil, or combination
150 gms grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbs minced parsley
Peel kohlrabi to remove fibrous outer layer. Shred with grater or foodprocessor. Heat a medium skillet to medium heat. Add butter and/or oil. When fat is hot, add kohlrabi. Cook, stirrring frequently, until vegetable is tender, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stir. Toss with cheese. Cook until cheese melts, about 1 minute. Garnish with parsley. Serve hot. Serves 4.
ROASTED NEW POTATOES WITH SPRING HERB PESTO
3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 cup chopped fresh chives
3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 pounds red-skinned new potatoes, halved lengthwise
Blend parsley, chives, rosemary, 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, lemon peel, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in processor to coarse puree. (Pesto can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss potatoes and remaining 2 tablespoons oil in large bowl. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Arrange potatoes, cut side down, on rimmed baking sheet. Roast until potatoes are golden brown and tender, about 40 minutes. Using spatula, transfer potatoes to large bowl. Add pesto and toss to coat. Serve.