- Lettuce (bring it on, all the lettuce is coming on at the same time)
- Parsley or dill
- Scallions
- Spinach
- Sugar snap peas
- Broccoli or Chinese broccoli (tiny heads so silly, will never plant this variety again!)
- New potatoes
- Beets
- Zucchini (so many plants and so few zucchini!)
- Chard or kale or collards
There is so much work to get done on the farm we could work all day and still have a list a mile long. If I look back at past years letters I am sure that the sentiment will be the same. Plants start growing and so do the weeds. There are still so many items to get in the ground. This is one of the differences between the home garden and a farm that runs for 29 weeks of the year. We have to keep seeding and planting and weeding and also harvesting!
Please do check the list of desired items: brown paper bags, strawberry hallocks (green boxes) and plastic containers from yogurt, that is it for now. We do not want any plastic clam shell containers, egg cartons of any size or random plastic bags. Thank you for considering reusing and not bringing us extra items that we have to dispose of. Also please follow the list carefully as we ended up with very few peas even though we weighed out the amount everyone should receive. People who come later are not the late birds they have other schedule conflicts so please share for all.
We managed to get a lot planted this week and not so much weeded. We put in a lot of Brussels sprouts, winter kale (you’ll get it in the fall and spring next year) and about half of the winter squash. Planting means that the field has to be tilled, composted, new water lines placed and then the seedlings need to be planted along the water lines. All of us wish to have another day in the week!
It is time to stake and prune the tomatoes and cucumbers. This is a weekly job that will go on for the next 6 weeks, kind of fun and artistic, but loses its charm when it is on such a large scale. I am sure we will get a rhythm down.
Thank you to harvest helpers Deb, Liz and Marilyn. We got done in record time with a large harvest. A few good hands make light work for all. Other help from Mathew, Katherine and Stela has arrived to attack the weedy onions and get those beds in order.
We really appreciate and need everyone to lend a hand on the farm. We especially like help with harvest but are willing and happy to have weeders. We expect that every member will put in about 8 hours on the farm over the season. This is an opportunity for you to see first hand the work that goes into producing food in a sustainable organic fashion. We are a community where everyone pitches in. Last weekend was great we had a whole crew of workers. We also need those that can work during the week to help out with Wednesday harvest. Juvencio alone works over 8 hours straight to get the harvest done. Please sign-up in the barn for a time that we can count on your help on the farm. You can always drop in on harvest days and lend a hand, but we like to have at least 2 helpers a harvest. Harvest starts at 0700 with this heat come when you can. It takes 2-5 hours depending on help and crops being harvested. Bring water and work clothes and gloves. See you on the farm.
Beet with Sesame Vinaigrette
1 pound beets (after cooking there should be about 2 cups)
6 tablespoons mild olive oil
2 teaspoons Oriental sesame oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons sesame seeds, additional for garnish
salt and pepper to taste
Trim tops from beets, leaving about ½ inch from the beets, so that they don’t bleed too much. Put the beets in a pot and cover with cold water. Heat to boiling, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until tender. Pour off most of the hot water and add cold water to the pot. Peel the beets while they are still warm. Or you may rub the beets with a little oil and bake them in a covered pan at 350 until tender. If the beets are large, cut them into ¼ inch slices. If they are small, cut them into 4 – 8 wedges. Place the beets in a large mixing bowl.
Whisk the remaining ingredients together, pour over the still warm beets, and toss to coat. Sprinkle more sesame seeds if you like and serve.
SPAGHETTI WITH FRESH CLAMS, PARSLEY, AND LEMON
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3 pounds fresh Manila clams or small littleneck clams, scrubbed
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 pound spaghetti
Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add sliced garlic and sauté until light brown, about 1 minute. Add clams and 1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley; stir 2 minutes. Add wine; simmer 2 minutes. Add fresh lemon juice. Cover and simmer until clams open, about 6 minutes (discard any clams that do not open).
Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Add pasta to clam mixture and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to large bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons parsley and serve.
Bon Appétit
May 2002
Steve’s Cold Beet Borsht
1 bunch beets with tops
6 C water
1/3 C sugar (a little less)
½ t salt
Juice of 1 1/2 to 2 lemons
1 C fat free plain yogurt
Dill weed
Remove top of beets, cut up and boil separately. Cover beets with water
and boil having 6 cups of water remaining, boil till tender. Pour hot beet
water into bowl leaving the last table spoon or so in pot to avoid dirt.
Add sugar, lemon juice and salt to beet water mix and taste. It should have
a fairly strong taste of sweet and sour. Thoroughly mix yogurt with one
cup of beet water and then mix this with the remainder of the water. Grate
beets and add with the cooked tops to the beet water. Chill and serve with
additional yogurt in each bowl (2 table spoons or so) to taste. A sprinkle
of dried dill weed is also nice
A great salad can be made with beets and broccoli. We steam the broccoli and beets together with the sliced beets on bottom. Generally, when the broccoli is done (i.e. just turned dark green and starting to get tender) the beets are also done. We then toss them in a simple vinaigrette and can serve either warm or cold. This vinaigrette is the one we use:
VINAIGRETTE
1 clove garlic
1 tsp salt
3 Tbs red wine vinegar
1 tsp wet mustard
5 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
black pepper
Press garlic into the bottom of your salad bowl. With a fork, mix well with salt until it forms a paste. Mix in vinegar and mustard until salt is dissolved. Whisk in olive oil to make an emulsion. Add black pepper to taste. These proportions are in no way set in stone. You should experiment to find the proportions you prefer. Also, other spices, herbs and vinegars can be used to vary the dressing.
Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas
Chez Panisse Vegetables, Alice Waters
Top and tail the sugar snap peas, pulling off the threadlike strings. Slice on the diagonal into ½ inch thick pieces. Put into a sauté pan with ¼ inch of water, butter and a sprinkling of salt. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Cook until done, about 3 minutes. The water and butter should be emulsified and coat the snap peas, which should be bright green and just tender. Adjust the seasoning and serve. You can also cook fresh peas shoots with the snap peas.
Mediterranean-Style Marinated Red Beets
2 garlic cloves
1 shallot
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
¾ teaspoon cumin seed, toasted and ground
¼ teaspoon coriander, toasted and ground
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup chopped fresh tarragon
½ teaspoon ground pepper
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup extra virgin live oil
6 red beets, about 8 ounces each
Finely chop the garlic and shallot in a blender. Add the lemon juice, cumin, coriander, turmeric, tarragon, salt, pepper and honey. Process until well blended. With the motor running, start adding the olive oil very slowly. To keep the mixture from breaking add the oil slowly at first and wait until it is fully incorporated before adding more. This process is similar to making mayonnaise.) Once all the oil is incorporated, set the dressing side.
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Peel the beets and cut into ¼ to ½ inch slices, then into cubes. Add to the boiling water and cook for 10 minutes, or until beets are just tender. Drain and plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain well.
Transfer the beets to a bowl add the dressing and toss gently.
The beets may be served immediately, but the best flavor is obtained by letting them marinate covered for up to 24 hours. Refrigerate the beets if you plan to marinate them longer than 1 hour.
Serves 6