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Week of July 20 2008
The Weekly Harvest
Green Beans Broccoli Cabbage Onions Summer Squash Kale Collards Kohlrabi
Herbs:
Thai Basil Lemon Basi Winter Savory (good with green beans!) Lovage Garlic Chives
Eggplants and summer squash are just beginning to produce so the quantities are limited, just enough to add to a stir fry or try using small amounts and leftover veggies in my version of Stacked Vegetable Quesadillas from Simply in Season. (Recipe Below)
NEWS FROM THE FARM
Simone, her daughter and grandson stopped by for a visit on Sunday and being that she is experienced in the growing and harvesting of shallots I had her take a look at my shallot crop and Simone says they are ready for harvest! Harvesting garlic was already in our weekly plan so now we have added shallots to the list. This is my second shallot growing season and last year™s crop became our seed crop but this year™s harvest looks good so each of you will get a sample in the next few weeks. Over the years I have discovered that saving the best of my garlic for planting in the fall results in a superior crop. My intention is to do the same with the shallots which are also fall planted. Other news: If you are wondering where the greens beans are….our first planting germinated poorly so the yield is terrible. Planting two looks better but has not started blooming yet and planting number three is only marginally better than number one. The pounding rains like the rain we received Saturday night combined with heat and my clay soil create a substance that may be dream material for a potter but is a nightmare for a farmer with emerging seedlings. The good news around here is that David seems to have recovered from his concussion and all the members of my farm crew have returned from their various trips!!
vEGGIE INFO AND COOKING TIPS:
Lovage is probably one of the oldest known cultivated ‘salad herbs™ and has been used since Greek and Roman times as a seasoning in food. It is a native of the mountainous areas of the Mediterranean. The French call it caleri bacard, or false celery.
Lovage looks and smells like celery but grows much larger, at times more than 6 feet tall. Lovage has bright green hand-shaped leaves and ridged hollow stems. The plant's seeds are flat, oval and ridged and are commonly called celery seed. In the mid- to late summer, the small, yellow flowers bloom.
If you want fresh lovage, you are going to have a hard time finding it in any store. (Unless you are a member of Local Harvest CSA and you have Jean Donohue growing it for you!!)
"It is one of those things you either grow or you don't have," says Michael Weishan, publisher of Traditional Gardening Magazine…The easiest way to grow it is from seed, available at any specialty herb nursery, but it can be divided off another plant. It sprouts up quite readily…Because it is tall and flowers late it looks good in a garden's perennial border. It is a plant that should be enjoyed for its size and shape."
Lovage not only tastes good, but is good for you as well. It is high in vitamin C and has been used as a diuretic and as treatment for rheumatism, jaundice, sore throats and stomach ailments. Lovage has been thought to clear up skin problems and the leaves were once placed in travelers™ shoes to soothe weary feet.
Cooking Tips:
Lovage can be used in any dish that calls for celery or parsley, just use less, as lovage is stronger in flavor. It gives an extra kick to green salads, potato dishes, rice and tomato dishes, as well as soups and stews. Herb pastas can also benefit from the addition of lovage. All parts of the plant can be used. The hollow stalks have even been used as straws in Bloody Mary drinks. Fresh leaves are used in cheeses, eggs, salads, stews and with chicken. A small amount can be added to Bechamel-based sauces, such as Mornay, for use on baked fish. Dry leaves and stalks can be chopped and used in soups, stews and sauces, and seeds can be used in breads, pickling brines, cheeses and spreads.
Though there are recipes with lovage, a recipe isn't necessary to use it. Lovage can just be added to dishes. Weishan says anything with a carbohydrate base or that is bland is better with a little lovage.
One of the best uses for lovage is as a substitute for salt. Its strong flavor heightens the taste without adding sodium to your diet. In Turkey, a kind of meatloaf is made using Allspice, Garlic and Lovage in the forcemeat. It is served with yogurt and Mint.
Summer squash is a tender, warm-season vegetable that can be grown throughout the United States anytime during the warm, frost-free season. Summer squash differs from fall and winter squash in that it is selected to be harvested before the rind hardens and the fruit matures. It grows on bush-type plants that do not spread like the plants of fall and winter squash and pumpkin.
Summer squash appears in many different fruit shapes and colors:
Scallop or Patty Pan is round and flattened like a plate with scalloped edges, usually white but sometimes yellow or green.
Constricted neck is thinner at the stem end than the blossom end, classified as either "crookneck" or "straightneck" depending on if the stem end is straight or bent, and is usually yellow.
Cylindrical to club-shaped Italian marrows, such as zucchini, cocozelle and cousa, are usually shades of green, but may be yellow or nearly white.
KATES KORNER
Kate and family are on vacation…Happy travels, Kate!!
NOTES FROM SIMONE
Simone has been busy juggling dinners and family and will have words of wisdom for us next week!!
RECIPES
Pasta with Greens and Anchovies
Jennifer wrote, “I made this last night with some of my greens and broccoli.”
Boil pot of water for 1 lb of pasta. I used penne. A textured shape that will hold sauce is good.
Dice 6-8 cloves of garlic. Pour in as much olive oil as you can stand – I probably used about a half a cup – and saut© garlic until it just releases aroma. Add one tin of anchovies, diced, and a good pinch or two of red pepper flakes. Sautee quickly, ~1 minute, then add coarsely chopped broccoli and greens, such as kale. Stir every other minute or so, adding dashes of cooking water from the pasta as needed. When the pasta is done, the greens should be very tender and tasty. Mix the pasta into the greens' cooking pot and stir so that the greens can get the olive oil and other bits that have accumulated in the pot. Serve with parmesan cheese.
From CSA member Jennifer New
Stacked Vegetable Quesadillas
Ingredients:
Onion, garlic and leftover vegetables
12 corn tortillas
1 ½ cups cheese
Saut© chopped onions and garlic. Then I added chopped kohlrabi, cabbage, eggplant, summer squash, steamed and chopped kale, pepper and tomato. I saut©ed this until all the vegetables were tender. I added salt and Mexican seasonings to taste.
Assemble 3 stacks simultaneously on a baking sheet. Start with a tortilla, top with a large spoonful of vegetables, some grated cheese and another tortilla. Repeat layers ending with a tortilla.
Bake at 400F for 10-15 minutes until cheese is melted and stacks are hot. Cut into quarters and serve warm with salsa, sour cream, etc.
Summer Squash with Toasted Garlic and Lime
1 pound zucchini or yellow squash, cut into 1/2 inch cubes ( I prefer yellow squash)
1 scant tsp salt, plus more to season finished dish
2 tablespoons vegetable broth for sauteing
5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice (can sub fresh lemon juice)
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper or to taste
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or 2 tsp freshly chopped oregano
2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
1. Toss the squash with the salt and let stand in a colander for 30
minutes over a dish or in the sink. Rinse and pat dry.
2. In a large skillet, saute the garlic in the vegetable broth until
soft, about 3 minutes. Remove garlic and set aside. Raise heat to
medium-high.
3. Add squash to pan and saute for 8-10 minutes, until tender but a little crunchy.
4. Stir in lime juice, oregano, parsley, pepper, roasted garlic, and
salt to taste. Mix well.
Serves 2-4.
Go to www.mariquita.com/recipes for more great recipes for just about every vegetable we grow!! This summer squash recipe is from the Mariquita Farms website.
Kale Pesto
½ pound or 6 leaves of kale, strip leaves from stem and chop finely
8-10 garlic scapes, trim off tough end and green end above the bulb part or 3-4 garlic cloves
¼ to ½ cup olive oil
Handful of basil
¼ cup grated fresh parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste
Steam chopped kale and trimmed scapes briefly (approx 3 min)
Combine ingredients in food processor or blender and blend until smooth.
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