This week on the farm we’ve planted early squash in our greenhouse, picked our first crop of English Peas and stored our frost protection cloth away (hopefully for the rest of the season). The abundance and diversity of the Spring season is right around the corner and this week’s CSA share bridges the coming month with delicious staple crops from late fall and winter.
In your share this week will be:
Broccoli: I recently found an awesome oven-roasted broccoli recipe from one of my favorite food writers, Alton Brown. Our sweet, tender florets are a perfect match. Follow the recipe here.
English Peas: These shelling peas are incredibly sweet and open up a number of culinary opportunities. Here’s a great, simple recipe for sauteed peas.
Cilantro: Among the world’s most widely used annual herbs, All parts of the Cilantro planet are edible, but the fresh leaves and the dried seeds are the most commonly used in cooking. Coriander is commonly used in Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Indian, South Asian, Mexican, Latin American, Chinese, African and Southeast Asian cuisine. To store, keep in refrigerator with cut ends in a jar of water and leaves loosely covered with a plastic bag for several days
O’Henry Sweet Potatoes: Loaded with vitamin A, beta carotene, vitamins C, B6 and E, as well as potassium, O’ Henrys are incredibly sweet with a creamy texture. They also make for an excellent “mashing” potato.
Bok Choi: This Chinese cabbage is best friends with finely minced garlic and freshly grated ginger or turmeric. Combine with a cooking oil of choice (sesame oil or ghee butter work great) over medium-high heat and cook until stalks and leaves are tender.
Carrots: These slender, sweet bunches carry a high natural sugar content and impeccable crispness. Packed with fiber, Vitamin A and beta carotene, we hope you don’t get too thrown off trying to comprehend how something so sweet can be so healthy.
French Breakfast Radishes: Crisp with a mildly spicy flavor and stunning color display, these guys can be sauteed, pickled, steamed or sliced raw into a salad. I personally prefer roasting my radishes:
Toss halved trimmed radishes on a baking sheet with olive oil, kosher salt, and freshly ground pepper. Roast at 425° until crisp-tender, about 10 minutes. Toss with fresh lemon juice, room-temperature butter, and chopped fresh herbs; season with sea salt.
Red Leaf Lettuce: Our Red Leaf is nutrient dense, flavorful, and adds vibrant color to any salad mix. Try one of our favorite farm house salad dressings:
Olive Oil – 1/2 cup
Lemon Juice – 1/4 cup
Tahini (sesame seed paste) – 2 tbsp
Soy sauce – 2 tbsp
1 clove of fresh garlic (finely minced if you don’t have a blender)
Chopped cilantro or sesame seeds are optional additions
If you have a blender, puree all the ingredients until smooth. You can add water to thin it out if it gets too thick. If you don’t have a blender, put everything in a tightly lidded quart jar and shake vigorously until well combined. Check seasoning and enjoy on your salad.
Arugula: Also known as rocket and rucola, Arugula leaves are tender with a bit of a tangy and peppery flavor. Try these nine recipes for arugula, or just enjoy as a simple base for any salad.