CSA week 3

2 Heads Lettuce

2 Bunches Greens

1 Bunch Salad Turnips

1 Bunch Herbs

Summer Squash

Garlic Scapes

Summer certainly kicked the barn door in here at Black Kettle Farm!  Last week will no doubt go down in the “season in review” session as a real and true rocker.  Every one on the farm, from staff, to plants, to pigs, had to do some major soul searching to power through the extreme sun and insane temps that ushered in the official kick off of the summer season.  After major standing water in the field and water logged plants all too recently, the theme of last week was irrigation.  The field well was fired up and then trouble shot, the drip tape was untangled, patched, repurchased, cut, cursed at, trouble shot some more and laid on the plants that were the absolute and most, most thirsty.  Everything survived, most notably  the crew, due to lunch time swim breaks, early wake up calls for harvest to beat the heat, extra skimpy tank tops and hardcore dedication to the cause. 

Now that is all behind us, we are deeply giving thanks for the gorgeous soaking rains, gray, subdued harvest mornings and much, much mellower vibration on the farm.  The greens are loving it, fall crops are starting to get in the ground, tomatoes are fruiting, pigs are fat and freaky, potatoes are flowering and the bugs are straight up FIERCE.

The rhythm of the farm is shifting from total newness and creation to familiarity.  At this stage of the game, Apprentice Samantha Rocray has probably made close to 500 bunches of salad turnips, Assistant Manager Shannon Gilpatrick has most likely seeded at least that many lettuce trays, I have lost, re-found, driven over and spoken both harshly and lovingly to my favorite adjustable wrench way, way more times then that and Steve, cosmic feline, can’t find enough hours in the day to clean his trusty space thumb. 

Last week seriously broke us in, but we are stronger for it, having gotten our farming feet under us, we are in full force summer mood.  With that in mind as we cruise into July and settle into the swing of things it is a full on battle against bugs and weeds, weeds and/or bugs!  Be that as it may, newsflash dear friends,  lots of sun plus lots of rain equals lots of Kettle veggies!!!!  Dive into this big ol’ bounty!  Eat well and enjoy!  

All greens are interchangeable, chard, collards, kale, mustard, try them all and find your favorite!  Garlic scapes are the absolute best, keep them in your fridge and use them just like garlic.  Best seasonal salad dressing ever is olive oil, red wine vinegar, a squeeze of lemon juice, a squirt of mustard, a dash of salt and a ridiculous amount of finely diced garlic scapes.  

****Reminder Portland Pick-Up Crew, next week your veggies are available on TUESDAY July 3rd from 4:00-6:30 in the Park.  Please make a note of it.******

Lemony Chickpea Stir-fry with Greens and Tofu

www.101cookbooks.com, September 4, 2008

2 tablespoon ghee or extra-virgin olive oil
fine grain sea salt
1 small onion or a couple shallots, sliced (or a few garlic scapes)
1 cup cooked chickpeas
8 ounces extra-firm tofu
1 cup of chopped kale (or collards or chard)
2 small zucchini, (or summer squash) chopped
zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon

Heat 1 tablespoon of the ghee/olive oil In a large skillet over medium-high heat and stir in a big pinch of salt, the onion, and chickpeas. Saute until the chickpeas are deeply golden and crusty. Stir in the tofu and cook just until the tofu is heated through, just a minute or so. Stir in the kale and cook for one minute more. Remove everything from the skillet onto a large plate and set aside. In the same skillet heat the remaining tablespoon of ghee/olive oil, add the zucchini and saute until it starts to take on a bit of color, two or three minutes. Add the chickpea mixture back to the skillet, and remove from heat. Stir in the lemon juice and zest, taste, and season with a bit more salt if needed. Turn out onto a platter and serve family style.

Garlic Scape Hummus

1-2 cups of garlic scapes, cut into 1” pieces

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 can chickpeas, drained

2-3 Tbsp. lemon juice

2-3 Tbsp. sesame tahini

1-2 tsp. salt

Blend scapes with olive oil in food processor for 2-3 minutes,  until finely chopped. Add drained chickpeas. Add lemon juice and tahini and 2-3 Tbsp. parsley (optional) and blend. Add salt to taste. Blend until chickpeas are finely ground and mixture is smooth. If the consistency is too thick, add olive oil or water. 

Pasta With Kale and Walnut Pesto

www.realsimple.com/recipes

1/3  cup  plus 2 tablespoons walnuts

1  bunch kale, thick stems discarded and leaves torn (about 12 cups)

1  cup grated pecorino (2 ounces), plus more for serving

1  small clove garlic - or scapes

kosher salt and black pepper

1/2  cup  olive oil

3/4  pound  fusilli, penne, or some other short pasta

Heat oven to 350° F. Spread the walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast, tossing occasionally, until fragrant, 6 to 8 minutes; let cool. Chop 2 tablespoons of the walnuts and set aside.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the kale and cook until bright green, 30 seconds. Transfer the kale to a colander (reserve the cooking water); squeeze dry when cool enough to handle.

In a food processor, combine the kale, pecorino, garlic, the remaining ⅓ cup of unchopped walnuts, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Process until finely chopped. With the machine running, add the oil through the feed tube in a steady stream.

Bring the reserved cooking water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water; drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Add the pesto and ¼ cup of the reserved cooking water and toss to coat (add more cooking water if the pasta seems dry). Serve the pasta sprinkled with the pecorino and chopped walnuts.