Week # 11, 2017
• Lettuce
• Parsley, dill or basil
• Kohlrabi
• Turnips or radishes
• Chinese broccoli or standard broccoli or spinach or chard
• Beets and their greens
• Small red onions or garlic
• Kale
• Zucchini or sugar snap peas
• Fennel
Happy Fathers day to all the fathers out there. We celebrated last night as the last night before Diego headed off on his travels. This week has raced by. Juvencio and Vincent did a stellar job at weeding and have the place looking much better. Of course with the rain over the last few days the next generation of weeds is already up and making progress. I have been inspired by my seed catalog to invest in some new weeding tools, maybe that will help?
This morning at 0500 we drove Diego to the airport. He is off to see 4 Asian countries in 4 weeks with his best friend Mohsen and his family. He will have a super time and get a small glimpse of many cultures. We look forward to seeing and hearing about all of his adventures. The trip started with a splash as they found out 12 hours before departure that the first leg of their trip from Portland to Seattle was cancelled. Sadaf (Mohsen’s sister) spent hours scrambling to get the family a change in flights to enable them to get to Seattle in time to depart at 1400 for Malaysia .
Jacob is enjoying Homer, Alaska. He spent the week at the mouth the bay surveying water tributaries. He saw over 10 bears and much more wildlife while enjoying being out in the wilderness. He was in a group of 5 with bear spray, luckily that was enough to keep them at a distance. We look forward to a family reunion in Honduras.
It is time for us to harvest the garlic. We will miss our boys that have helped with this task for years. We thought initially the garlic would hang out longer in the field but the wet weather sped the spread of rust like wildfire and most of the green part is dead. Juvencio and I will work today to get it up and out of the ground. He will prepare the beds for the Brussels sprouts and fall cabbage that is ready to take its place. As fast as we take out one crop we are planting the next. I plant lettuce every week and many other crops that keep a continuous flow of veggies coming. Later today I will seed the fall fennel, more beans, lettuce and some extra fall broccoli. The overwintering cauliflower and purple sprouting broccoli will be seeded later this week. Never a dull moment at the farm.
We look forward to the arrival of cucumbers , beans and tomatoes. They should be in full swing by early July. The zucchini is just getting going and hopefully will be a bumper crop. It is time to unveil the winter squash. It has spent almost three weeks under row cover and now that will be lifted. The cover helped bring them heat and keep the infamous cucumber beetles from demolishing them as they set their roots in the ground. I looked under the cover and saw small squash forming so it is time to let the pollinators do their job.
I will distract myself today with farm work. So much to get done. Luckily Juvencio, Luna, Mikaela and the Crabtree family did most of the harvest yesterday so it should be all ready for pick up early today.
Creamy Radish Green Soup
Makes 2 servings
2 T butter
2 – 3 cloves garlic, minced
2 green inions, trimmed and sliced ½ inch thick
1 heaping teaspoon, minced fresh ginger
1 bunch radish greens, chopped small (trim ends but use the rest of the stem)
1 medium yam or sweet potato, peeled and sliced ½ inch thick
2 cups veggie broth
¼ cup half and half
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Heat the butter in deep pan over medium heat. Add garlic, green onions and ginger and sauté for 2 minutes. Add radish greens and yam and stir to combine. Add broth and simmer covered for 10 to 15 minutes. Remover g=from heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Put soup in a blender and process for at least 30 seconds to make sure all the stems are pureed (otherwise the soup may be stringy). Return to pan, add half and half and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine and serve.
FENNEL VINAIGRETTE DRESSING
1/2 cup
1/2 cup
1/4 cup
1 clove
pinch
pinch olive oil
green leaf fennel leaves
lemon juice
garlic, peeled
salt
sugar
In a small saucepan, heat oil, fennel leaves, lemon juice, crushed garlic and salt and sugar. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.
Ellen Ecker Ogden, From: The Cook’s Garden catalog
Roasted Turnips and their greens
Ingredients
1. 1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives
2. 1 navel orange, plus 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3. 2 pounds young turnips and their greens—turnips halved, greens stemmed and chopped
4. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
5. 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
6. 1 garlic clove, minced
7. 1/2 cup water
8. Salt and freshly ground pepper
9. 2 ounces baby spinach (2 cups)
10. 2 tablespoons chopped hazelnuts
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400°. In a mini food processor, puree the olives; transfer to a bowl. Using a sharp knife, peel the orange, removing all of the bitter white pith. Working over another bowl, cut in between the membranes to release the sections.
2. On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle the turnips with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Roast for 20 minutes, until almost tender.
3. Meanwhile, in a large, deep skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 minutes. Add the water and turnip greens, cover and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the greens are just tender, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Pour the orange juice over the turnips. Roast for 5 minutes longer, until the turnips are tender and glazed; season with salt.
5. Add the spinach to the greens; toss until wilted. Drizzle the pureed olives onto a platter. Top with the turnips, greens, orange sections and hazelnuts. Serve hot or warm.
Chicken Salad with Fennel, Almonds, and lemon Mayo
Ingredients
¼ cup mayonnaise
~ Juice of 1 small lemon
2 cups cooked chicken (grilled, roasted, or poached), cut or torn into bite-size pieces
½ cup fennel bulb and fronds (not stalks), diced
1 medium shallot, diced
¾ cup almonds, toasted and sliced
~ Salt and pepper to taste
~ Mixed salad greens, washed and dried
Steps
1. Put the mayonnaise in a medium bowl, then whisk in the lemon juice to taste (I like it lemony, so I err on the side of more rather than less lemon juice). Stir in the chicken, fennel, shallot, and almonds, then season to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper
2. Toast 1 slice per sandwich of artisanal-style whole-wheat bread. Top toasted bread slices with chicken salad and mixed greens.
Fennel, Orange & Caper Salad
Note from Julia: I made this and it’s REALLY good. It’s pictured above. In the photo, I used kalamata olives instead of the capers.
2 bulbs fennel
1 Tablespoon cabers, drained
1 Tablespoon dill or chervil, fresh, chopped
Dressing
1/2 orange, seeded
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons sugar (I often omit this)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons olive oil
Trim the stalks from the fennel, cut the bulb in half lengthwise; then cut crosswise into very thin slices. Place in a large bowl with the capers and the dill.. Make the dressing. Cut the quarter orange in small pieces and place in the work bowl of a food processor with the vinegar, mustard, and sugar and salt. .Process until smooth. With the motor running slowly, pour in the olive oil. Pour over the fennel, toss well and serve
Middle Eastern Radish and Beet salad in Scallion Vinaigrette
Fresh From The Garden, Perla Meyers
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 T red wine vinegar
4 T finely minced scallions
1 ½ cup plain yogurt
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 ½ pounds cooked beets, peeled and cut into ¼ inch cubes
2 ½ cups thinly sliced radishes
1. In a large serving bowl, combine the oil, vinegar, scallions and yogurt. Season with salt and pepper and whisk until blended. Add the beets and radishes and fold gently. Cover and refrigerate over night.
2. The next day, bring the salad back to room temperature. Correct seasoning and serve as an accompaniment to grilled salmon or chicken or sautéed veal.
Zucchini bread with Quinoa
• ½ cup cooked quinoa
• 1 cup blanched almond flour
• 1½ teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• 3 eggs
• 3 Tablespoons raw honey, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 banana, mashed
• 1 Tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• 1 cup zucchini, shredded and drained
• ¼ cup lily’s mini chocolate chips (stevia-sweetened)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and generously grease a mini muffin tin with coconut oil.
2. Combine the quinoa, almond flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Combine the eggs, honey, vanilla, banana and oil in another bowl. Mix well and add the dry ingredients. Mix until fully combined.
4. Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips.
5. Pour 1 Tablespoon of batter into 24 mini muffin tins.
6. Bake for 18 minutes or until golden and set.
7. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
8. Transfer out of muffin pan and cool on wire rack. Enjoy!