Serving the Bedford-Stuyvesant, Clinton Hill, and Fort Greene Communities
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Photo by pcarpen
I can’t wait for Ted’s patty pan squash again this year. They look like the gourds you see around Halloween, but edible! I stuck to the basics last year and treated them like any summer squash by substituting them for zucchini or yellow squash, but this year I’m going to be more adventurous. I may even try to take advantage of their unique shape by stuffing them!
Related Recipe: Patty Pan Squash Stuffed with Cajun White Beans
Photo by danamantium
Ted included the prettiest bunch of collard greens in our share a few weeks ago; they looked like a Victorian-era fan. In the hopes that they will be a regular part of our farm share, I did a little research on this delicious green.
Background: Long a staple of the Southern United States, collard greens, unlike their cousins kale and mustard greens, have a very mild, almost smoky flavor. Although they are available year-round they are at their best from January through April.
Photo by niznoz
Remember all those legendary Russian centenarians? Beets, frequently consumed either pickled or in borscht, the traditional Russian soup, may be one reason behind their long and healthy lives. These colorful root vegetables contain powerful nutrient compounds that help protect against heart disease, birth defects and certain cancers.
From NYT Magazine, adapted from epicurious.com
In a 3 quart heavy saucepan, over medium heat, melt the butter until foamy. Add the fennel slices and cook, stirring until soft. Add the carrots and garlic and cook another minute. Pour in 6 cups of water and season with salt. Simmer, covered, until the carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes.
Remove soup from the heat and stir in the orange juice, sour cream (if using) and reserved fennel fronts. Use the back of a spoon to mash some of the carrots and fennel, but leave the soup chunky. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 6.
Photo by cafenut
Dear Kale Lady:
What’s all this I hear about dehydrating? It sounds really hardcore, like something someone with a huge kitchen and canning jars would do. I have a tiny apartment with a galley kitchen, but I need to find some way to get through all my CSA produce. Can you help me?
– Dry Shy
Photo by S@Z
“Cool as a cucumber” isn’t just a catchy phrase. The inner temperature of a cucumber can be up to 20 degrees cooler than the outside air. No wonder these are such a summertime favorite!
Cucumbers were believed to have originated in India and spread through Greece and Italy. They made their way into North America agriculture by the mid-16 century. Cool and moist due to their high water content. “Cukes” belong to the same family as pumpkins, zucchini, watermelon and other squashes.
Varieties: There are several varieties of cucumber; the most popular are English, Persian, and Pickling cucumbers. All these varieties are available year round. Persian cucumbers are also known as regular cucumbers with soft, edible seeds. The skin is often waxed to seal in moisture. English cucumbers are sometimes known as gourmet cucumbers, “burpless”, or seedless cucumbers. This variety has seeds that are very small but do not need to be removed. Longer and thinner than regular cucumbers this variety is usually shrink-wrapped to seal in moisture because they are not waxed.
Selection: It’s important to look for firm cucumbers with rich green color and no soft spots. Cucumbers that bulge in the middle, usually most likely means its filled with large watery seeds and tasteless flesh. Storage: Whole cucumbers should be refrigerated in a crisper for up to a week. Unwaxed cucumbers will easily lose moisture so keep them wrapped tightly in plastic.
Storage: Whole cucumbers should be refrigerated in a crisper for up to a week. Unwaxed cucumbers will easily lose moisture so keep them wrapped tightly in plastic.
Photo by fo.ol
Friends, I hear from your intrepid Beet editor that there is much concern about the root vegetables that you receive from the CSA. Kohlrabi!” you say, “turnips! Radishes! What can I do with these?” Well, my root-averse comrades, I have a word for you, and that word is SLAW.
Grate a kohlrabi bulb, a turnip, and a carrot, dress with some cider vinegar and a light oil (canola, corn, soy), salt, and pepper, and maybe a little sherry vinegar if you have it and voila (or “splat!” as we say in my home country), a simple and delicious slaw. Or dress like a regular coleslaw, or with yogurt and mint (perhaps mint leaves you dried from last season?). Try sliced radishes with cucumber, some salt and vinegar and a little Asian sesame oil, or grated turnip and the slice stems of vitamin greens or bok choy. The possibilities (or should I say “posSLAWbilities”?) are endless!
Photo by photoplasia
I think Ted was just a little disappointed that the CHCSA membership resoundly voted—for a second year in a row no less—kohlrabi as their least favorite vegetable. Nevertheless, he is still trying to get us excited about this knobby root, albeit in more manageable quantities. from Susan Kilpatrick, Charlestown Cooperative Farm
This Japanese white “salad turnip” sets the standard for flavor. The flat-round, smooth white roots mature early, just after radishes, and are best harvested young, up to 2” diameter.
The flavor is great raw – sweet and fruity – and the texture is crisp and tender. The dark green hairless tops are useful raw or lightly cooked with the roots. Compared with other early white turnips, Hakurei tastes better and stays smoother as it sizes. These delicately flavored oriental turnips are great raw or cooked. Note that they cook very fast. And the tops are great steamed, sautéed, or stir-fried.
Their mild, sweet bite will be a delicious accompaniment to any salad (chopped or grated), and I grew to love them sliced thinly and packed into a sandwich. Of course, they also delight the taste buds when eaten raw just like an apple.
So your Hakurei turnips sliced in salads or for a departure from the ordinary sandwich, thin turnip slices are excellent with brie. And don’t forget the greens! They can be clipped and cooked with mustard greens.
Hakurei are Brassica rapa just like Purple Top White Globe or Scarlet Queen turnips. They are in the Brassicaceae family, and is a cousin to rutabaga, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower cabbage.
According to Paul Pritchford in “Healing With Whole Foods” Hakurei are a wonderful source of sulfur, while its greens contain a good bit of provitamin A. Raw, these turnips are a wonderful detoxifier and helpful in dispersing lung congestion so they are useful for coughs and colds as well as general digestive health.
The word “salad” comes from the Latin herba salta, meaning “salted herbs,” so called because such greens were usually seasoned with dressings containing a lot of salt.
Salad dressings date back to ancient times: the Chinese have been using soy sauce for 5,000 years; the Babylonians used oil and vinegar for dressings nearly 2,000 years ago; and Worcestershire was derived from a sauce used in the days of Caesar. Romans preferred their grass and herb salads dressed with salt, while Egyptians favored oil, vinegar and Oriental spices. Mayonnaise is said to have made its debut at a French nobleman’s table over 200 years ago.
In the 20th century, Americans made dressings a fine art by using basic ingredients (oil, vinegar or lemon juice, and spices) to create an infinite variety of dressings to make salads the best ever. “Store bought” dressings were largely unavailable until around 1920.
Storing The Salad Mix
Your best bet is to eat salad mix right away. Because it’s a fragile product, already washed and sorted, it will probably be one of the first of the share items to go. Plan accordingly. To store, make sure they are really dry by placing them in a salad spinner or blotting between hand towels. If you plan on eating them soon, you can store them in the salad spinner (after draining the water in the bottom of the bowl). Otherwise, spread the mix out over a length of paper towel or a clean dry hand towel. Roll up the towel at one end so the mix gets tucked in between the layers. Place the roll in a zip lock or plastic bag and seal.
Should the greens wilt slightly, toss them in a sink full of cold water to refresh. Should they wilt so much that some get brown (which may happen because it is a mix), you can pick out the spotted ones and re-rinse the rest.
Add Sparkle to Your Salad
Toast a handful of chopped nuts (cashews, pecans, hazelnuts) in a dry pan on medium heat and add them to your salad for both a protein and flavor boost.
Fruits are a great addition to salads. Chunks of pear are very popular in fancy restaurants, along with crumbled gorgonzola and perhaps some walnuts. But don’t forget about chopped oranges or sliced strawberries. They sweeten the salad and add extra nutrients. Wedges of fresh figs are magnificent.
All kinds of grated and crumbled cheeses are flavorful in salads. For a real extravagance, cut a firm cheese into chunks, dip them in beaten egg and roll in finely chopped nuts. Sauté them in a little oil until the nuts are brown and the cheese is soft. They’re a great substitute for croutons, if you’re watching carbs.
Tomatoes are a standard salad addition, but for a real treat, brush plum tomato wedges with a little olive oil and grill them until they start to soften. Add those to your salad!
Add crunch! Radishes are a start, but also consider jicama, pea pods, or carrot or zucchini slices.