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Tuesday June 14, 2011
Greetings CSA Members,
This week I am very fortunate to have both my daughter Maggie and a CSA member contribute to the newsletter. Maggie researched the recipes and Leah Wolff-Pellingra, a CSA member with an amazing blog called Noshing Confessions (www.noshingconfessions.com) has created the solution to the tragedy of “CSA Box Overload”. One of the many things that wakes me at 3:00 AM is the fear that too many members are overwhelmed upon receiving their weekly box.
Well, Leah has the answer - Enjoy!
Remember we have beautiful organic cotton Denison Farm canvas market bags(designed by Larry Winchester, a Troy CSA member) for sale this year. For you CSA members, the cost is $12 and for non-members, the cost is $16. If you would like to purchase a bag, please email me to let me know and send a check by June 20th for a June 29th delivery. We will deliver them one time only to your pick-up site with your name pinned to the bag. After that one time delivery, you will be able to purchase the bag at any time by sending me a check and then picking it up at either the Troy or Saratoga Farmers’ Market or at the farm (anytime!).
This week in your box, you will most likely find:
Kale, Lettuce, Sugar Snap Peas or Broccoli, Bok Choi or Chinese Cabbage, Spinach or Mesclun,
Hopefully Summer Squash/Zucchini or Cucumbers, and Basil
Enjoy your share and have a great week– Justine
“Meals are about to arrive at my house. Do I know the ingredients that will be in my box tomorrow? Not really. The weather has taken a beating on Upstate New York this year, so I'm sure even the Denisons are just finding out today what produce can make the harvest. Do I have a general plan, a modus operandi, if you will? You betcha.
Step 1: Triage
What needs to get eaten right now? What will not last the week, cannot be frozen, will spoil first? Usually, this involves mesculin mix, heads of lettuce, and perhaps bok choy. My friend Dani from Moderate Oven washes the mesculin in her salad spinner first thing, then places it back in her crisper, wrapped in paper towels (plastic bags are guaranteed to rot your mesculin, especially whichever poor leaves are squished into the bottom).
As to the rest, some will freeze beautifully and some have a long refrigerator life. An example of the later is your root veg. Your root veg tops, however, are another story. Which brings us to...
Step 2: Divide and Conquer
Eat your turnip tops. And your radish tops. And your beet greens. Serve them up with their crunchy root counter parts or separately.
My favorite method: cover them in water, swish, drain and rinse thoroughly. Chop, then, saute quickly in olive oil, with garlic, salt and a bit of red pepper flakes. Serve as is or place in the bottom of a quiche aka frozen parve pie shell. Alternatively, add them raw 5 minutes before you want to serve a soup or serve them judiciously mixed into your mesculin, tossed through with olive oil, salt and sugar, with their roots finely julienned or shaved on top.
Step 3: Everything In Its Place
The key to cooking a CSA share is to not add bok choy to your macaroni and cheese. The key is to take a given ingredient, and use it where it naturally belongs in your family's food culture. In our family, bok choy belongs in a stir fry. Cilantro belongs in salsa or in a tortilla. Swiss chard belongs in a soup or a frittata. Young turnips belong in our bellies, be they raw, mashed or roasted.
What if you've never cooked with or even seen an ingredient before? Look it up on a site you trust, be it here on Noshing Confessions, or over at America's Test Kitchen or Food Network. All of the vegetables from last year's Denison Farm's harvest can be found tagged here on Noshing Confessions. If there's an odd ingredient in the weekly box, I'll get a new recipe up that I enjoy it in as soon as possible (do I have a celeriac soup recipe for you :).
Bottom line: Trust yourself. You will make mistakes. You can always try again. If it doesn't work out? Order pizza and be done.
Step 4: Wrap Up and Store
Remember triage, when we figured out what would keep? This is because there will come a time when your family will not be able to eat all that arrives at your door. Then, you will blanch, brine, pickle, freeze, can or just donate a food at your drop off site, knowing another family will have better use for it than yours.
I know how to blanch, chill and freeze well. I love stocking up on berries, green beans, zucchini and corn to take us through the winter. I'm learning how to can, preserve and pickle this year. I'll keep you posted.
Final Step: Don't take it too seriously. It is food, it is delicious. You will get it right, or you won't. Your 4 year old will eat it or she won't. Have fun. It's worth it. “
Braised Bok Choi www.marthastewart.com
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
* 8 heads baby bok choy, trimmed, and halved lengthwise if large
* 1/4 cup homemade or low-sodium store-bought chicken stock, or water
* 3 tablespoons soy sauce
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add bok choy, and cook, turning once, until just beginning to turn golden, about 2 minutes. Add stock and soy sauce. Cover; reduce heat to medium, and simmer until bok choy is tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer bok choy to a serving platter, reserving cooking liquid in skillet.
Cook liquid over medium-high heat until it is reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour over bok choy, and serve.
Sugar Snaps With Toasted Almonds www.marthastewart.com
* 1/2 cup whole almonds, (2 1/2 ounces)
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 1 pound fresh sugar snap peas, ends trimmed
* 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, (1 lemon)
* 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spread almonds on a baking sheet; place in oven. Toast until almonds are golden and fragrant, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven; let cool completely. Transfer half the almonds to a cutting board, and chop coarsely. Place remaining half in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade; process until almonds are finely chopped, 15 to 20 seconds. Add coarsely chopped almonds, and stir to combine.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add peas, lemon juice, salt, and pepper; stir until all ingredients are well combined and heated through, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with almonds, and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving bowl, and serve.
Spring Salad with Mozzarella Adapted from www.marthastewart.com
* 2 1/2 cups baby lettuce leaves
* 1 ball (10 ounces) fresh mozzarella, halved lengthwise, sliced 1/2-inch thick crosswise
* 2 scallions, white and pale-green parts only, trimmed and thinly sliced
* 4 radishes, trimmed and sliced into rounds
* Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Place lettuce on a platter, and arrange mozzarella and radishes on top. Sprinkle with scallions. Just before serving, season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with the oil.
Kale Chips
8-12 large kale leaves, rinsed, dried, cut lengthwise in half, center ribs and stems removed
1 Tablespoon olive oil
Preheat oven to 250°F. Toss kale with oil in large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange leaves in single layer on 2 large baking sheets. Bake until crisp, about 30 minutes for flat leaves and up to 33 minutes for wrinkled leaves. Transfer leaves to rack to cool.
Relevant Recipes from the website:
Kale and Mashed Potato
Chinese Cabbage (Asian Chicken Salad)
Basil Broccoli Penne
Spinach Broccoli Enchiladas and Spanish Rice
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