CSA Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden! This box has lettuce, green onions, beets, Chinese Cabbage, celery, basil, parsley, tarragon, shell peas, cucumbers, kale,and turnips.

Field Notes. Just as Ken was about to irrigate, we got rain. He had hoped for 1 - 2inches, but we got 5 1/2! It was heavy and steady, but no downpour, so it all soaked in. And we are glad for it. HEAT. Heat takes its toll on the animals and even the farmers. Ken tends to divide his work so he is outside early and late; he finds shade or inside tasks during the heat of the day. Heat is tough on all the greens and cabbage family. Other crops like the heat - they are the nightshade family of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant; the curcurbit family of cucumbers and melons also enjoy heat, and the sweet potatoes thrive in hot weather.
From the Kitchen. This week we have Chinese cabbage and kale. We usually use the outer leaves in cooked dishes and save the tender hearts for salads. I cut leaf from stalk and cook stalk about a mint or two and leaf under a minute - just enough to wilt. The beets and cabbage would make great borscht. Saute some onion, add cooked slipped beets, stock and meat like cooked chicken. Simmer and add the Chinese cabbage before serving - it does not require long cooking time.

Turnips are in the cabbage family. They add zip to medleys and stir fry dishes. Ken loves them peeled, boiled and served with butter, salt, and pepper. Sometimes I peel, cube, blanch, and freeze the roots for a nice addition to winter dishes. The greens are packed with nutrition as well. I cut leaf from stem and add to braising greens or soups or stir fry.

Kale is a great quick cook ingredient. I saute an onion, add kale to wilt and dress with vinegar or lemon or salad dressing. It works in borscht or other soups. I also mad a "cooked salad" for the farm tour with cooked carrots, blanched kale and green onions and chilled with cold water, drained and dressed with a toasted pumpkin seed, cooking water and a dab of umeboshi paste that I pureed in the blender until smooth.

Shell peas need to be shelled. I tend to boil the shells in water with other vegetable peelings or carrot tops for soup stock. It is sweet like the peas.

Cucumbers are a cooling vegetable in this heat. I either run a fork through the skin or run a peeler down the cuke to break up the skin - makes it more digestible. I also slice and salt for about a half hour to bring out the sweetness. If you are concerned about salt drain and rinse. I usually drainand use the liquid where I need salt. Then I make a dressing with onion and yogurt or kefir, vinegar, honey and salt and pepper or an Saian dressing with sesame and toasted sesame oil, sesame seeds, mild vinegar, honey and tamari and pepper or hot pepper.