Spoutwood Farm CSA Harvest Guide: Week 9: August 7, 2008
To return to the 2008 Harvest Guide page, click here
Greetings, Spoutwood Farm friends!
Welcome to the ninth week of the 2008 Community Supported Agriculture season, here at Spoutwood Farm! We are proud to present another bumper harvest of “vegetables so fresh, they almost dance” from our well-tended gardens. As always, we are grateful for the excellent work of our apprentices, Dana Hunting, Derek McGeehan, and Zach Trimble, as well as the working and regular shareholders who have helped them. If you have not yet begun to work your hours – working shareholders in particular – please contact Dana at (717) 235-9272, or at our CSA e-mail address, spoutwood_csa@yahoo.com. She will be glad to help work you into the schedule.
We’re nearing the end of the “Dog Days” of Summer, and in fact, a cool breeze from the northwest tempers the August heat and humidity as I write this. I (Tom) sometimes think that these days between Lammas and my birthday on the Autumnal Equinox (September 21st) are among the finest days of the year! Certainly of the Summer (Autumn is still my favorite season): never is there a wider range of produce available, or in greater quantity, and though the days can be hot and humid, the shorter days and longer nights means the atmosphere has less time to heat up and more to cool down with each passing day. Besides, Canadian cold fronts like the current one come through on a regular basis, providing relief.
And as I say, produce is available in great quantity and variety. Today for the first time this season we have sweet corn! Courtesy of our friend Benjamin Stoltzfuss, an organic Amish farmer who lives over near Lancaster, we bring you these delectable summer treats. Also worthy of note is the large number of green peppers: 5 for medium shares, 10 for large. Many will welcome this bounty, but if you find you have more peppers than you can use, they can easily be preserved by slicing them into strips and freezing them (freeze in a single layer, then combine as many as you like in zip-lock bags). If you have a food dehydrator, they can also be dried and reconstituted later for use in soups, casseroles, etc.
Please feel free to drop us a line if you discover a new recipe, have any cooking tips, or would like to share your favorite way to eat the veggies from our harvest - email us and we’ll share with everyone else! Again, that address is: spoutwood_csa@yahoo.com. As the old commercial used to say, “please make a note of it.” Thanks!
Tomatoes: Another fine tomato harvest this week. Rich with flavor and health benefits, tomatoes are one of the true joys of summer. Dana asks me to remind our shareholders that if your tomatoes are slightly under-ripe, just letting them sit on the counter or windowsill for a few days will take care of the situation. But watch them, because some (like the large Brandywines) can ripen unevenly. Don’t let them rot! Also please note, Green Zebras (striped) and orange Valencias will not turn red, not matter how ripe you let ’em get…
Eggplant: Still another classic summer vegetable, similarly associated with summer cooking. Rata¬touille (no, not the movie…), eggplant parmesan, and baba ganoush are among the many possible uses for this popular veggie. Select from Italian-style (“bell”), Oriental (long and thin), and “Beatrice” – an Italian type also, with a pink-violet complection.
Lettuce: Choose from a variety of different lettuces to delight your taste-buds! Lettuce will require some sorting and washing, although we’ve made an effort to remove the most blatant weeds and clumps of compost-rich Spoutwood soil. Excellent for salads, sandwiches, and more.
Kale: Curly Kale is a nutrious green leafy vegetable in the brassica (cruci¬ferous) family. Kale is excel¬lent in soups or cooked as a pot-herb; smaller and more tender leaves can be enjoyed in salads. Particu¬larly good in potato-kale soup! Please note that Harlequin bugs continue to be a problem. A good soak in salt water, coupled with careful examination of leaves for eggs, should take care of them.
Green Onions: Enjoy our robust green onions raw with (or without) a little salt, or slice them up and add them to salads, soups, omelets, quiche, or anything you like.
Potatoes: Not technically a root vegetable, potatoes are actually tubers. Call ’em roots or call ’em tubers, however, I call ’em delicious! A mix of several varieties of these delicious below-ground dwellers. Delicious roasted, boiled, steamed, fried, hashed, mashed, in salads, soups, and casseroles, and just about any other way you can imagine! Store in a dark place, and cook before eating.
Green Peppers: A plethora of green bell peppers today! One of the classic Summer vegetables, green peppers find their way into all sorts of salads, stir fries, soups, casseroles, and many other dishes, or may just be eaten out of hand. Also great for stuffing!
Cucumbers: Another classic summer vegetable, cucumbers are lovely in salads, fresh or marinated; and of course pickled. Mix with yogurt and mint (one of this week’s herbs) for a classic Indian raita. Select from green or “blonde” cucumbers, depending on availability.
Summer Squash: A variety of varieties for your munching pleasure: Zephyr, yellow and green zucchi¬ni, and yellow crook-neck. Enjoy lightly steamed, broiled or grilled, etc. With tomatoes, eggplant, squash, and green peppers all available this week, this might be a good time for ratatouille…
Sage: Typically associated with poultry (especially turkey and dressing on Thanksgiving), but many other uses are possible as well. Even has medicinal value: sage vinegar, applied topically, can be used to reduce inflammation from sprains and strains.
Apple Mint: Use as you would any mint: excellent in tea, or with couscous in tabouli salad. A few sprigs in a water glass freshen the palate, making the water seem even more thirst-quenching. Mint sauce (English) or jelly (American – actually mint-flavored apple jelly) goes excellently with lamb!
Flowers: Our bouquet this week includes a variety of cultivated and wild blossoms, including Joe Pye, zinnias, African marigolds, mint flowers, and tansy.
Bread: For those who purchased bread shares, today’s selection from Atwaters is their highly acclaimed Sunflower Flaxseed. Rich with Omega-3s!
Boiled Corn on the Cob
This is my dad’s tried and true recipe for the perfect corn on the cob.
Heat water on high until it hits a roiling boil
Carefully drop corn in the water using tongs
Time exactly three minutes and drain corn.
Serve with butter or salt
Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweetcorn
http://www.campsilos.org/mod3/students/c_history5.shtml
Polenta and Black Leaf Kale - Polenta e Cavolo Nero
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Ingredients:
• Polenta made with a half pound (225 g) of corn meal (instructions below)
• 1/2 pound (225 g) dried white beans, soaked overnight in abundant water
• A slice of cured lard or pancetta, minced
• 1 1/2 pounds (650 g) black leaf kale
• Simmering meat broth (have a quart, or liter, handy, though you won't need it all-
• -- unsalted bouillon will work if need be)
• Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
Begin by boiling the beans in abundant water for 2 hours or until soft, salting them when they are just about done.
While they are cooking, make the polenta: Heat a quart (1 l) of water in a pot, and when it begins to boil lightly salt it and add the corn meal in a thin stream, stirring briskly. Continue stirring for 40 minutes, adding a hot water if it looks to be thickening too much -- it should be fairly soft. It will be done when it is creamy, and comes away easily from the sides of the pot.
And see to the rest of the dish: wash the kale and strip the ribs from the leaves. Cut them into thin strips and simmer them in broth to cover until cooked, about 40 minutes. When the kale is done, drain the beans and add them to it.
Turn the polenta out onto a polenta board and serve it with the kale and bean mixture, together with a tossed salad and a lively red wine, for example Sassella Superiore from the Valtellina, a Valcalepio Rosso, or a Garda Classico Groppello.
Grandmother's Buttermilk Cornbread
INGREDIENTS
• 1/4 pound butter
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch square pan.
2. Melt butter in large skillet. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Quickly add eggs and beat until well blended. Combine buttermilk with baking soda and stir into mixture in pan. Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Corn Pone Recipe
Ingredients:
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt
boiling water
1 tablespoon salad oil
Directions:
Add the boiling water to the cornmeal and salt to make a firm mixture.
Shape into cakes and place on baking sheet greased with bacon fat or salad oil.
Bake at 375° for 10-20 minutes.
Corn Cakes Recipe
Ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh corn (or frozen corn, thawed)
3 cups frozen hash browns, thawed (or make your own from fresh Spoutwood potatoes!)
2 tablespoons scallions, chopped
3 eggs
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon course ground black pepper
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Separate mixture into six 1/2 cup portions and form into patties, roughly 3 1/2 inches across. Saute in an oil-coated skillet at medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown. Serve as side dish or appetizer, with a dollop of sour cream on top.
Garlic Cheese Grits
Ingredients:
• 6 cups water
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 cups grits
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3 eggs, well beaten
• 16 ounces shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• cayenne pepper to taste
Preparation:
Bring water and salt to a rolling boil; gradually stir in grits with fork. Cook, stirring constantly, until all water is absorbed. Stir in butter a tablespoon at a time; stir in the beaten eggs, working quickly so eggs will not cook before thoroughly blended into the grits, then stir in the shredded cheese, garlic and a little cayenne pepper. Put into a greased 2 1/2-quart casserole. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 to 20 minutes.
Serves 8.
http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/317/CornCakes64516.shtml
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Grandmothers-Buttermilk-Cornbread/Detail.aspx
Tom adds a final note on Sweet Corn…
“Corn on the cob” is a treasured summer memory – or ongoin tradition – for many of us, whether boiled or steamed and eaten with salt and butter, roasted in its husk with rosemary and olive oil, or maybe as part of a lobster roast or crawfish boil. But it’s not only us human-type creatures who love the stuff! Four-leggeds love it too, and most famously raccoons… omnivores like us, they’re adorable critters unless they’re competing with us for food! Here’s my favorite description of raccoons and sweet corn, from Sterling North’s book Rascal:
One serious mistake I made, however, was to give Rascal his first taste of sweet corn. I twisted a plump ear from a stalk in one of my rows, stripped back the husk, and handed the corn to my pet, who had carefully watched the whole performance. Rascal went slightly berserk. No other food he had ever tasted compared to this juicy new delicacy which he was sampling for the first time. He ate most of the first ear, then in a frenzy scrambled up another corn stalk, pulling it slowly to the ground. He wrestled and struggled with a fresh ear, tearing away every part of the husk and guzzling as greedily as before. Still unsatisfied, he left the second ear half-eaten to climb a third corn stalk. He was drunk and disorderly on the nectar and ambrosia called sweet corn.
Wishing you similar transports of enjoyment as you consume this week’s offering of sweet corn!
Just two months to our Fourth Annual Mother Earth Harvest Fair, October 5th!
It’s not too soon to start making plans for Spoutwood’s 4th annual Mother Earth Harvest Fair, to be held here on the Farm on Sunday, October 5th, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Combining the charm of an old-fashioned country fair, time¬less traditional arts and crafts, and cutting-edge ad¬vances in green building and renewable energy, the MEHF is a celebration and showcase of healthy, sustainable, and balanced living in the Chesapeake bioregion.
• Green Building, Alternative Energy, the Sustainable Household, Food and Farming, Nature and the Environment, Health and Healing, BALLEs, Sustainable Communities, Wisdom Traditions, and much more.
• Farmers Market with produce and products from local farms.
• A Children’s Village with crafts and fun for our younger guests.
• Farm animals and wildlife
• Food and drink vendors galore
• Music, storytelling, and dramatic presentations, including special appearances by Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter
Adrienne Young and her band, Little Sadie
http://www.adrienneyoung.com
Information: greenman@spoutwood.com 717-235-6610 http://www.motherearthharvestfair.com
Volunteers are still welcomed and encouraged!
BAGS: Requested, Recycling of Same (including paper bags)
As most of you will know, there are various share items which must be bagged even within your usual share bag. And frankly, we’re low on appropriate bags. Thus, we’re asking our shareholders to please bring in plastic bags that you might have at home. We are looking for both standard grocery-sized bags, and smaller plastic bags such as those used for produce in supermarkets, to keep news¬papers dry, etc. If at all possible, please help us by bringing them in pre-sorted as to size.
Also, please be aware (if you aren’t already) that your plastic share bags can be re-used the following week! Better yet, invest in a cloth “market bag” that can be used over and over again. We are in the process of investigating Spoutwood-themed practical items to offer for sale, including Market Bags -- stay tuned to this space! In the meantime, if you bring back your plastic ones, you’ll help us and Mother Earth alike. Many thanks, from us and the Home Planet.
Need your rubber bands? Fine… but if you don’t, we would be pleased if you could bring those (or any excess beyond your needs) back with you when you come. We’d be happy to reuse them to bundle your produce in the weeks to come.
If your small paper bags (used for potatoes, etc.) are in reasonably good shape, we’d be grateful if you’d bring those back, too, so we can reuse them. Help us save money and resources! Thanks.
Sweet Corn
Many thanks to my educational intern Maria “Rhie” Lantz for this week’s V.O.W.
Sweet corn, also known as Indian corn or pole corn, is a type of maize. It contains more sugar than any other kind of corn, and is the corn used for baking, boiling and popping rather used for feed or as part of a commercial product. Corn does not grow naturally, and has to be cultivated by humans. The first to do so were the Aztecs, 7000 years ago. In the 1692, when Columbus stumbled upon the New World and its inhabitants, he took many of their foodstuffs back with him – including corn. The Iroquois tribe is recorded to have traded sweet corn with settlers in 1779.
The antioxidants in corn can boost the body’s immune system and reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease. The researchers at Cornell University found that this benefit is enlarged when the corn is cooked.
Corn can be cooked in a variety of ways: it can boiled, grilled in foil, ground into meal, cooked into bread and so on.
Sweet corn, also known as Indian corn or pole corn, is a type of maize. It contains more sugar than any other kind of corn, and is the corn used for baking, boiling and popping rather used for feed or as part of a commercial product. Corn does not grow naturally, and has to be cultivated by humans. The first to do so were the Aztecs, 7000 years ago. In the 1692, when Columbus stumbled upon the New World and its inhabitants, he took many of their foodstuffs back with him – including corn. The Iroquois tribe is recorded to have traded sweet corn with settlers in 1779.
The antioxidants in corn can boost the body’s immune system and reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease. The researchers at Cornell University found that this benefit is enlarged when the corn is cooked.
Corn can be cooked in a variety of ways: it can boiled, grilled in foil, ground into meal, cooked into bread and so on.
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