2018 Week 3 Newsletter
Farm Fresh Family Fun
We had family visit this week on the farm and it was great to show them a little of what we are doing here. Most of us have some kind of farming in our family history so it felt nostalgic to do a bit of farming together. I don't want to idealize or romaniticize it too much - there was plenty of hardship and poverty on the historical family farm - but there was also a sense of togetherness that was fun to experience with my extended family this week. It was a good reminder for me on the value of creating and working on a project with the people in your life.
“The small family farm is one of the last places - they are getting rarer every day - where men and women (and girls and boys, too) can answer that call to be an artist, to learn to give love to the work of their hands.”
— Wendell Berry
CSA Basket - Week 3
Here is what you can expect to find in a large share basket this week (asterisk for small share items):
Head Lettuce* - make a salad and enjoy with a homemade honey mustard vinaigrette
Kohlrabi* - from the cabbage family - peel and enjoy raw or roasted - leaves are tasty, too
Zucchini* - try grilling and topping with arugula pesto
Peas* - tasty as a snack or sauté with sesame oil and top with sesame seeds for a side dish
Garlic Scapes* - these only come once a year! See recipe below
Fennel - use like an onion in your favorite recipe, or dice and use raw in a quinoa salad - use the stems and fronds, too!
Arugula -add a few leaves to your salad for a little spice - use the rest in a arugula/garlic scape pesto
Strawberries - this everbearing variety - called Seascape - just keeps on producing!
Kale - chop and enjoy with farm fresh eggs for breakfast
French Breakfast Radish - gorgeous color and spice on a salad or chop and mix into cream cheese for a sandwich spread
Vegetable of the Week - Garlic Scapes
Historical Origins - Garlic is one of the oldest-known cultivated plants. It is believed to have originated in Syria. The earliest references to garlic can be found in ancient Sanskrit, Babylonian, and Chinese writings. In Ancient Greece and Rome, garlic wa thought to offer protection, strength, and vitality.
Botanical Facts - Garlic is a member of the allium family which includes onions, shallots, and leeks. Alliums produce a central flower stalk which is called the scape. The scape is edible to include the flower, but most people discard the flower and just use the stalk.
Culinary Uses - Garlic scapes can be used in any recipe that call for garlic. They are milder than fully developed garlic bulbs and are very tender.
Another Bite - From the Chef:
Garlic scapes can be chopped and sautéed in olive oil or added to pesto in place of garlic cloves. They’re lovely in a quiche or omelette. Because their season is so short, preserve them in olive oil and freeze for use whenever you want to add some garlic flavor and green color.
Garlic Scapes in Oil: Sautee 2 cups of chopped scapes in ¼ cup of olive oil until softened. Freeze in ice cube trays for up to 6 months. The mixture will also keep in the refrigerator for several days.
More ideas from Bon Appetit magazine: https://www.bonappetit.com/test-kitchen/ingredients/article/garlic-scapes?mbid=social_twitter
CSA Tip of the Week:
Think beyond basil for pesto. Greens like kale or beet or turnip tops can be blended with garlic, nuts, olive oil and parmesan and tossed with pasta or spread on toasted bread or pizza. You can also toss it on top of scrambled eggs or in quinoa for a quick salad. In this week's basket - the arugula and garlic scapes make a delicious pesto.
One of my cousin's boys fell in love with the lambs - especially the little one.
The calendula is blooming in the fields. They are a beautiful bright orange-yellow. A bit of sunshine on a cloudy day.
We will continue to be at the Harstine Island Farmer's Market and Shelton Farmers Markets on Saturdays through the summer. Come see us at the market!
Your SVF Farm Team