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Friday November 11, 2011
Greetings Farmers' Market CSA Members,
"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is a symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of the birds, the ebb and flow of the tides, the folded bud ready for the spring. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature--the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter. The lasting pleasures of contact with the natural world...are available to anyone who will place himself under the influence of earth, sea and sky and their amazing life."
Rachel Carson (1907-1964)
Here we are - our last distribution of the 2011 season. This has been indeed one of the most challenging years ever in our farming experience, yet the ground is still soft and the fields are still a glorious green. I must remember to always be grateful for these small wonders. We are indeed fortunate people to have farming as our life and livelihood and people such as you as enthusiastic supporters and friends. I know without a doubt that we would not be standing on our feet today without the prayers, good thoughts, support, contributions of time, energy and donations from all of you all season long and for some of you for many years. Your kindness and support have been invaluable during the past two months since Tropical Storm Irene. We appreciate you all so much and send to you our heartfelt thanks.
As I have said before, you enrich our lives and make possible the existence of small, organic farming. Community Supported Agriculture is thriving here in the Capital area because of you.
Thank you!
We look forward to next Spring - a time for beginning again and providing you with another 22-week season of vegetables. Until then, stay warm and take good care.
We wish you the very best - Justine and Brian
This week in your share, you will most likely receive:
A Bag of Rutabaga/Kohlrabi/Carrots/Beets, Butternut Squash, Scallions, Leeks, Fingerling Potatoes, Garlic, Bunch of baby Bok Choi, Celeriac, Onions, and Sweet Potatoes
Root vegetables in the brassica family — like turnips, kohlrabi and rutabaga — contain many of the same antioxidants as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and kale. Kohlrabi and rutabaga also are excellent sources of potassium and good sources of vitamin C. Parsnips provide folate, calcium, potassium and fiber, while carrots offer beta carotene. All of these vegetables are high in fiber.
Polenta With Braised Root Vegetables
Martha Rose Shulman
Start the polenta before you begin the braised vegetables. By the time the polenta is ready, you’ll have a wonderful topping and a comforting winter meal.
1 cup polenta
1 scant teaspoon salt
4 cups water
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 to 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan (optional)
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 pound kohlrabi or Rutabaga, peeled and cut into small cubes
1/2 pound carrots, peeled and cut into small cubes
2 medium beets, peeled and cut into small cubes
1 medium parsnip, peeled, cored and cut into small cubes
1 large or 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice or crushed tomatoes
Pinch of sugar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter or oil a 2-quart baking dish. Combine the polenta, salt and water in the baking dish. Place in the oven on a baking sheet. Bake 50 minutes. Stir in the butter, and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes until the polenta is soft and all of the liquid has been absorbed. Stir in the cheese, if using.
While the polenta is baking, cook the vegetables. Heat the oil in a large, heavy nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until it begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the carrots, beets, rutabaga or kohlrabi and parsnip, and then season with salt. Cook, stirring often, until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, and stir together for about a minute until fragrant. Stir in the tomatoes with their liquid, a pinch of sugar and salt to taste. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 15 minutes until the tomatoes are cooked down and fragrant. Add lots of freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt, and remove from the heat.
Serve the polenta with the vegetables spooned on top. Serves four.
French Onion Soup with Celeriac
(allrecipes.com)
1 head garlic
1 teaspoon olive oil
Salt to taste
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3 large sweet onions, chopped
1 celeriac, peeled and chopped
2 cups beef broth
1 cup dry red wine
2 cups vegetable broth
1 head garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons paprika
2 tablespoons dried parsley
Cajun seasoning to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 loaf French bread, toasted and sliced
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Slice the top off the whole head of garlic, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon olive oil, and season with salt. Wrap loosely in foil, and bake 45 minutes, or until the cloves are very soft. Squeeze the cloves into a small bowl, and mix with the 1/2 cup softened butter.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the pot, and blend with the oil. Stir in the onions and celery root, and sauté until the onions are lightly browned. Reduce heat to medium low, and mix in the beef broth, wine, and vegetable broth. Mix in the chopped garlic, and season with paprika, parsley, Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven broiler.
Spread the toasted bread slices with the garlic butter. Ladle the soup into oven safe bowls, and place the bowls on a baking sheet. Reserving remaining bread, place one slice of toasted bread on top of the soup in each bowl, and sprinkle with Swiss cheese.
Broil soup 5 minutes in the preheated oven, until the Swiss cheese is melted. Cool for about 2 minutes before serving warm with remaining garlic bread.
Beet & Carrot Latkes (makes 8)
(From Edible Finger Lakes Magazine, Winter 2008)
2 medium beets, coarsely grated
2 medium carrots, coarsely grated
1 medium onion, coarsely grated
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
Coarse salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream or creme fraiche, plus chopped chives, for serving
Combine the grated vegetables in a bowl. Add the beaten eggs, stir to combine, then stir in the flour and salt and pepper to taste.
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F, and set a cooling rack on a sheet pan. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, scoop 1/3 cup of the latke mixture into the skillet, and flatten to 1/4 inch thick. Scoop 3 more latkes into the skillet. Cook the 4 latkes until golden brown, about 4-6 minutes per side. Remove the latkes to the cooling rack on the sheet pan, and place them in the oven to keep the latkes warm while you cook the remaining four.
Add another 1 1/2 tablespoons oil to the skillet and cook the remaining latkes. When all the latkes are done, serve them warm with a dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche and a sprinkling of chives.
Curried Celeriac Slaw
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large (1-pound] celeriac, peeled and cut into matchstick-thin strips
2 tart apples, chopped
3/4 cup golden raisins
2 scallions, chopped
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
To make the dressing, whisk together the sour cream, lemon juice, honey, curry powder, and salt in a small bowl.
Combine the celeriac, apples, raisins, and scallions in a medium bowl. Add the dressing and pepper; toss to combine.
Butternut Squash Biscuits
(Adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything)
2 cups all-purpose flour (You can mix half white with whole-wheat flour)
1 scant teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 to 5 tablespoons cold butter (…but may use about 4), cut into bits
1 cup cooked pureed butternut squash (or other winter squash)
yogurt, between 1/2 and 3/4 cup depending on stickiness of dough (see directions below)
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl or food processor. If you’re using a food processor, pulse the pieces of butter in until the mixture resembles coarse meal (or, if mixing by hand, rub the butter with the flour mixture between your fingers.) The butter should be thoroughly blended in before continuing.
Pulse the pureed winter squash (or mix it) into the flour-butter mixture. Pulse or stir in only as much yogurt as it takes to form the dough into a ball. Usually for me this is a scant half cup, but it will depend on how moist your squash puree is. The dough should stick slightly to your hands.
Pat the dough out on a lightly floured work surface until it’s about 3/4-inch thick. Cut 2-inch rounds with a glass or biscuit cutter, then gently reshape the dough and cut again. I usually get about 10 biscuits.
Bake 7-9 minutes, or until the biscuits are nice and golden brown. These are best served warm!
Glazed Rutabaga and Carrots
(Gourmet)
1 medium rutabaga
3/4 pound carrots
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Trim peel rutabaga and carrots. Cut into 1-inch pieces. In a steamer set over boiling water steam turnips and carrots separately, covered, until just tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Vegetables may be prepared up to this point 1 day in advance and kept covered and chilled.
In a large heavy skillet cook vegetables in butter with sugar and salt and pepper to taste over moderately low heat, stirring, until heated through and glazed, about 4 minutes.
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