Henry’s Farm CSA

 

In Your Share This Week

Garlic

Potatoes

Your choice of a number of greens from:  Sorrel, Dandelion, New Zealand Spinach, Mustard Greens, Tatsoi, Stir-fry mix of baby chois

 

Plus, from Bill Davison’s Blue Schoolhouse Farm:

Swiss Chard

Roseheart Radish

Japanese Turnips

 

 

Remember this is the first week that the Bloomington-Normal pick-up is at Vitesse Cycle Shop, 206 S. Linden St., Normal.  DO NOT come to the Unitarian Church because no one will be there.  And when you come to Vitesse, please park in the city lot opposite the store, across Linden.  Do NOT park in the Liquor Store lot next door, as they are fond of towing.

 

And before I forget, Henry would like me to thank all of you for your many email and verbal expressions of sympathy and support following the flood.  We heard many affirmations of your commitment to partake of the “for better or for worse” nature of the CSA relationship – sharing in bountiful years as well as in times of scarcity.  Although many people told us not to worry about supplementing to ensure the usual 7 to 9 different vegetables each week, Henry wants to assure you that he is happy to offer you some of Bill Davison’s wonderful produce until the field is up and running again. (As those of you who were at the Tour on Saturday saw, the new greens are glowing with health and will be ready to harvest in just a week or two.)  Henry sees this interim phase of supplementing as a win-win situation, in that Bill has more than he can sell of a number of items, and we are happy to see the lovely food go to your kitchens rather than to the compost pile.  One of the wonderful things about the sustainable farming community right here in central Illinois is the old-fashioned neighborliness and support.  When one farm is having a patch of bad luck, others pitch in to help, and the mutual support makes everyone’s life better.  

 

Finally, before we get to those vegetables, a big thank you to everyone who drove out for our Tour and Potluck.  It was a perfect day, and everyone brought terrific food.  We hope you have an even greater appreciation of the food in your share each week, having seen the Edenic valley in which it grows.

 

FOOD NOTES

 

The Roseheart Radish is a gorgeous fuscia-colored root that’s so sweet you’ll have a hard time believing it’s a radish.  One of my favorite things to do with it is simply to peel it, slice it into rounds, and place on a piece of toast or bagel, with butter or cream cheese.  It’s great as a quick breakfast, lunch, or snack.  (You can do this with the Japanese Turnips too.)

For a few hundred years radishes were a crucial part of the American diet, appearing on the table morning, noon, and night.   But vegetables, like everything else, have their cycles, and now radishes in the U.S. are most often relegated to the status of garnish, a fact the British cookbook writer Jane Grigson laments: “It insults radishes, the most ancient of appetizers, to chop them up and bury them in a salad.”   So instead, try them as a salad all by themselves, as in the recipe below, or chunk them into soups or stir-fries.

Marinated Radish Salad 

1 pound radishes 

1 Tb chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

3-4 TB extra virgin olive oil

Fresh cracked black pepper

Kosher or sea salt

1 TB lemon juice

 

Slice the radishes as thinly as possible. In a bowl, mix the sliced radish with the parsley, olive oil, and pepper. Let marinate from 2 to 24 hours. Season with salt, add the lemon juice, stir again, and transfer to a serving bowl. (Don’t add the salt until just before serving, or it will cause the water to osmose from the radishes, making a watery salad and limp radishes.)

 

Sorrel is one of those vegetables that most people shy away from, mostly because of its unfamiliarity.  But try a simple sorrel and potato soup and I think you’ll become a radical convert.

 

SORREL-POTATO SOUP
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 large russet potato, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch dice, reserved in cold water
3 or more Tb unsalted butter
1 large shallot, finely diced
1 pound sorrel, washed well
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock (bullion cubes and water are fine)
Pepper
1 cup heavy cream (optional)

Add kosher salt to one cup of water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Add potato and cook until water begins to return to a boil (pieces should be neither crunchy nor mushy and should hold their shape). Drain and reserve water. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a soup pot over medium-low heat, and sweat shallots until translucent.  Chop sorrel and add to shallots. Cook briefly, until sorrel changes color from bright to drab green. Add stock, potato cooking water, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to boil and shut off. Carefully blend in batches while hot. For extra richness, add a chunk of butter to each batch, until silky smooth. Return blended soup to pot.  Add cream, and adjust seasoning. To serve, place potatoes into empty soup bowls and pour soup over them.

 

 Dandelion Greens

True dandelions like the ones in your lawn (Taraxacum officinale) are stronger tasting than the cultivated variety that Henry grows, which is actually a chicory (Cichorium intybus), not a true dandelion. Its bite is not as bitter or earthy as the true dandelion, but it still has an edge.  To tame the edge, try a heated dressing or cream sauce.  Or balance the bitterness with roasted nut oils, balsamic vinegar, or goat cheese.  For the mildest taste, blanch the leaves and then use as in the recipe below. 

 

Anastasia's Greek-Style Greens

Wash the greens carefully.  Bring about 2 quarts of water to a boil in a 4-quart pan. Drop in the greens.  When water returns to a boil, cook for 3 to 5 minutes.  Scoop cooked greens into a salad bowl and chop up a little. Add fresh squeezed lemon, salt to taste, and good olive oil to taste. Toss together and serve.  Feta cheese and crusty bread makes it a meal.

 

Creamed Dandelion Greens

4 cups dandelion greens

1 cup Bechamel sauce (see Julia Child's cookbooks, or the internet, for a good recipe)

fresh-grated nutmeg

1 egg yolk

1/4 cup cream

 

Blanch greens in boiling water until just tender, about 2 minutes. Beat the yolk and cream into the Bechamel sauce. Stir in nutmeg to taste.  Drain the greens and squeeze out excess liquid.  Mix the sauce into the greens, stirring all the time. Reheat without boiling. Serve with toast or croutons.

 

 

Dandelion Salad with Bacon

3/4 lb dandelion leaves

2 Tb vinaigrette

salt, pepper, hint of sugar

4 oz smoked bacon

1 slice good French or Italian bread, cubed

Olive oil

2 Tb wine vinegar

1 hard boiled egg, crumbled

 

Tear the greens into pieces and put into a warmed salad bowl with the vinaigrette. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, sugar.  Fry bacon until half cooked. Add bread cubes and fry until golden and the bacon is completely cooked.  Tip contents of the pan (fat and all if you want to be completely French about it) onto the greens. Toss quickly.  Put the vinegar into the pan and heat rapidly.  When it is bubbling fiercely, pour onto the greens and toss.  Serve immediately with a sprinkling of the crumbled egg on top.

 

 

Cooking greens – New Zealand Spinach and Mustard Greens -- are a great source of beta-carotene, vitamin C, calcium, and potassium. 

 

New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonioides) is a hot-weather succulent green with small arrow-shaped leaves that are thicker than regular spinach leaves,but similar in taste. Blanch or boil them as you would spinach, then dry the cooked greens well and toss them with butter or olive oil. Or mix them into omelets, casseroles, or cream sauces.  One of our guests at the Potluck on Saturday brought a delicious Croatian spinach pie made with Egyptian spinach.

Braised Mustard Greens

• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
• 1 pound bacon, chopped
• 2 bunches mustard greens, chopped
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• Salt and freshly ground black peppe

On medium heat, saute garlic and bacon in a large saute pan. While bacon is cooking, boil water in a large pot. Blanch mustard greens in boiling water until bright green.

Add the blanched greens to the saute pan with the bacon. Stir together, then add chicken stock and raisins.  Add salt and pepper, for taste, and let simmer for 5 minutes or until tender.

ENJOY!