Last Winter CSA Week!

This is our last delivery week for the Winter CSA. We’re extremely grateful to have you with us this winter and look forward to making another go at winter again in 2010. Please feel free to keep or otherwise recycle any remaining boxes you have.

The Spring/Summer CSA begins on May 17th and runs through November 8th. For those continuing on to the Spring CSA, please look for more details in your email inbox in the coming weeks. This e-newsletter will continue on every few weeks before the CSA begins, then we’ll switch to a weekly format. Stay tuned!

Winter CSA Harvest List Week of 3/1

Red Loose Leaf Lettuce
Italian Kale
Arugula
Flat Leaf Italian Parsley
Easter Egg Radishes
Escarole
Dandelion Greens
Broccolini
Eggs
Alsea Acres Cheese (basil-hazelnut flavor)
Eggs

Attention Herbalists: Fresh Comfrey Available

Comfrey leaf is used in herbal pastes, ointments, tinctures, decoctions, poultices and in cosmetics. It is a popular addition to herbal salves and ointments, which can be used for bruises, sprains, eczema, swellings and burns. We are currently swimming in comfrey leaf and have more than we could possibly use. If you’d like some certified organic comfrey leaf, please let me know and I’ll load you up in your box this week.

This Week’s Recipes and Ingredients

Bitter Greens

The little signals that spring is here are popping up all over the place. Cherry blossoms, daffodils, the first bright green tiny leaves on trees, ferns unfurling and of course, rain. Felt like I was going to grow gills today. The warm temps and rain are bringing the first wave of late winter bitter greens.

There are some new greens in this week’s box, maybe some things you have never tried before. I always look forward to the first round of bitter greens when the weather warms up. After a winter of root crops and heavy comfort food, I’m always in the mood for something light and green. Doesn’t always have to be a salad…

Bitter greens include varieties in chicory and endive family: Belgian endive (also called French endive and witloof), curly endive (sometimes called chicory or frisee), aruguala, escarole and several varieties of radicchio. Then there are dandelion greens, mustard greens and turnip greens (yes, keep the tops of your turnips).

This week, we are bringing the arugula (not really that bitter), escarole, and dandelion greens. To tame their bitter bite and bring out their amazing flavors, toss greens in vinaigrette, give them a quick sauté, or blanch them in salted boiling water.

Winter Greens with Cranberry-Port Vinaigrette

1 cup tawny Port
1/3 cup packed thinly sliced shallots
1 cup fresh cranberries
1/3 cup safflower oil
3 tablespoons raspberry vinegar or red wine vinegar
8 cups assorted greens (such as escarole, arugula, red leaf lettuce and  dandelion greens), torn
2/3 cup crumbled Stilton cheese
1/4 cup crumbled pistachios

Combine Port and shallots in heavy small saucepan. Boil until liquid is reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 10 minutes. Add cranberries, oil and vinegar. Boil 3 minutes. Season vinaigrette with salt and pepper. Let cool slightly.

Combine greens in large bowl. Pour vinaigrette over greens and toss. Sprinkle with cheese and nuts. Toss lightly and serve warm.

Escarole and Beans

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 head of escarole
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (16 ounce) can cannellini beans, undrained
3 sprigs fresh Italian parsley, chopped

Directions

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Toss in escarole, turning to coat with oil. Season with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes, or until tender.

In a separate skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Stir in garlic. Pour in beans with juices, and simmer until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in escarole and parsley; simmer 10 minutes more.

Tuscan Oven Grains and Greens

2 tablespoons olive oil
8 ounces sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
4 ounces fresh arugula, coarsely shredded
4 ounces escarole, coarsely shredded
1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
3 cups fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons dried oregano
4 ounces medium-sized shell-shaped pasta, uncooked
1/2 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1/2 cup dried quick-cooking barley
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (for serving), optional

Place oil in a 10- or 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and cook, breaking up clumps, until no longer pink. Add arugula, escarole and garlic. Cook, stirring, until greens are wilted, 2 to 3 minutes; reserve.

Place the broth and oregano in a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil; reserve.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place pasta in the bottom of a 10- to 12-cup covered casserole. Spoon reserved sausage and greens over pasta. Scatter rice and barley over greens. Stir in reserved broth; bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover and bake until pasta and grains are tender and most of the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven, add parsley and stir well. Serve immediately with cheese, if desired.

Dandelion Greens with Hot Olive-Oil Dressing

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced lengthwise
1/3 cup sliced almonds (1 ounce)
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound tender young dandelion greens, any tough stems discarded

Heat oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then cook garlic and almonds, stirring frequently, until pale golden, about 2 minutes. Add raisins and cook, stirring, until garlic is golden and raisins are plumped, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and add vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper, stirring until combined.

Pour hot dressing over dandelion greens in a bowl, tossing with tongs to coat.

Pasta w/ Dandelion Greens, Toasted Garlic and Avocado

1/2 lb fusilli — or other short pasta
1 bunch dandelion greens
4 cloves of garlic
1 avocado
1/3 cup pine nuts
a handful of olives
enough olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to instructions
Cut dandelion greens in small pieces
Bring water to boil with enough salt so it tastes pretty salty and add the dandelion. Blanch for anywhere between 2 to 7 min., according to your tolerance for bitterness. Transfer to a colander and wash with very cold water.
Bring olive oil to medium heat in a saute pan, and add the crushed garlic cloves. Lower the temperature and toast the garlic gently
Add pine nuts and olives. Season with salt and pepper
Add pasta and dandelion greens and mix
Dice the avocado and add right before serving. Mix gently.

I’ve been seeding many many flats of veggies for the spring/summer CSA while continuing to tend our winter crops. It’s a delicate balance between seasons working on closing out winter and moving into spring. I cannot believe how fast winter has gone by.

The weather has been wonderful for the greens as well as the mushrooms. I’m really excited about a grove of trees we’ve expanded into at Malinowski farm – I’m setting up many oak logs that I will grow oyster and shiitake mushrooms on in the shade of these trees.

I’ve also got 1,000 strawberry plants coming from Seeds of Change that we are just waiting to get into the ground. To prepare for that we’ve been digging the beds by hand with shovels and adding chicken manure compost. We’re working by hand because it is entirely too wet for rototillers or other machines and it is definitely warm enough to start getting some things for spring and summer in the ground. Also going in this week are all the onion transplants. Exciting!  I have a ton of photos I’ll be uploading to the flickr account over the next few days.

Winter CSA Harvest List Week of 2/15

Shiitake Mushrooms
15 Miles Salad Mix
Collards – champion variety
Spinach
Carrots – little golfball shaped
Baby Bok Choy
Broccolini – Italian type
Eggs
Alsea Acres Cheese, Garlic and Chives

This Week’s Recipes

Broccolini with Lemon Oil

1 large lemon
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 Broccoli bunches trimmed and thick stalks halved lengthwise

Remove zest from lemon in 1-inch-wide strips with a vegetable peeler. Cut off any white pith from zest with a small sharp knife. Halve lemon and set aside.

Heat oil and zest in a 5-quart wide heavy pot over moderate heat until zest is golden, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and discard zest, reserving oil in pot.

Cook Broccolini in an 8- to 10-quart pot two-thirds full of boiling salted water , uncovered, until crisp-tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain well in a large colander.

Reheat lemon oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Add Broccolini and cook, tossing, until coated well and heated through, about 1 minute. Add salt and pepper to taste, then squeeze half of lemon over Broccolini. (Reserve remaining lemon half for another use.)

Chicken, Mushroom, and Bok Choy Kebabs

3 large garlic cloves
1/2 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup dry Sherry
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated peeled ginger
2 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
1 1/2 pound skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound baby bok choy (5 to 6 heads)
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems trimmed flush with caps
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Marinate chicken:
Mince and mash garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt.

Boil soy sauce, Sherry, and brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced to about 2/3 cup, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic paste, ginger, and sesame oil, then cool to room temperature.

Pour half of marinade into a large sealable bag and chill remainder for basting. Add chicken to bag and marinate, chilled, turning bag occasionally, at least 3 hours.

Make kebabs:
Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-hot charcoal (medium-high heat for gas).

Meanwhile, halve bok choy lengthwise and blanch in a large pot of boiling salted water (2 Tbsp salt for 5 qt water) until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Immediately transfer with tongs to an ice bath to stop cooking. Pat bok choy very dry, then, bending leaves, thread 3 or 4 halves (through bulb and leaves) onto each of 3 or 4 skewers. Put on a tray.

Toss mushrooms with vegetable oil. Thread mushrooms (through sides) and chicken (discard marinade) onto remaining skewers, alternating them. Put on another tray.

Oil grill rack, then grill chicken-and-mushroom skewers, covered only if using a gas grill, 6 minutes. Turn over and baste with some of remaining marinade, then grill, turning and basting occasionally (but not during last 3 minutes), until chicken is just cooked through and mushrooms are tender, 6 to 8 minutes more.

Lightly brush bok choy with oil and grill, covered only if using a gas grill, turning once, until grill marks appear, about 2 minutes total.

Citrus Collards with Raisins Redux

2 large bunches collard greens, ribs removed, cut into ribbons
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup raisins
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

In a large pot over high heat, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil and add 1 tablespoon salt. Add the collards and cook, uncovered, for 8 to 10 minutes, until softened. Meanwhile, prepare a large bowl of ice water to cool the collards.

Remove the collards from the heat, drain, and plunge them into the bowl of cold water to stop cooking and set the color of the greens. Drain by gently pressing the greens against a colander.

In a medium-size sauté pan, combine the olive oil and the garlic and raise the heat to medium. Sauté for 1 minute. Add the collards, raisins, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Sauté for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add orange juice and cook for an additional 15 seconds. Do not overcook (collards should be bright green). Season with additional salt to taste if needed and serve immediately. (This also makes a tasty filling for quesadillas.)

Shiitake Mushroom Bundles

8 large collard leaves, stems and thick portion of center ribs removed
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 teaspoon minced garlic
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1/2 pound shiitake trimmed and cut into wedges (3 cups)

Cook collards in a large pot of boiling water with 1 tablespoon salt until just tender, 6 to 8 minutes, then drain. Transfer to a bowl of cold water, then spread leaves, undersides up, on paper towels, overlapping cut edges slightly, and pat dry.

Bring wine to a boil with shallot, garlic, 4 tablespoons butter, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a heavy medium saucepan. Add mushrooms and cook, covered, over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 12 minutes. Butter a 2-quart shallow baking dish, then strain mushroom juices into baking dish, reserving mushrooms.

Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in lower third.

Mound about 1/4 cup mushrooms in center of each collard leaf. Fold leaves to enclose filling and arrange bundles, seam sides down, in 1 layer in baking dish. Dot with remaining tablespoon butter and cover with foil.