More variety is added to the 2016 Redfearn Farm CSA Season! The items available for Week 4 of the CSA season are: Farm Selected Items (shown in the top row of the photo):Broccoli, Spring Salad Mix, and Sugar Snap Peas and for the Choice Items (bottom row, L to R): Basil, Tomatoes, Kale, Bok Choy (limited quantity), Beets (limited quantity), Kohlrabi and Garlic Scapes. In addition, extra broccoli may also be available as a choice item in addition to being a farm selected item.
Broccoli (Farm selected Item, and also available as a choice item): Store in a loose plastic bag in the refrigerator. Peeling the stems with a pairing knife is a great way to make the stems more tender. My go-to method of cooking broccoli is to quickly peel the main stem and then separate the head of broccoli into “trees” and cook (blanch) in salted- boiling water for 1 minute, then drain well, pat dry and roast on a cookie sheet with olive oil salt and pepper (and I often add a little savory BBQ rub seasoning) at 425F, for 10 to 15 minutes until broccoli is cooked to the desired doneness. Here’s a couple of recipe ideas: Broccoli Salad, Roasted Broccoli and Sweet Potatoes Miso Bowl, Beef and Broccoli stir-fry, and Roasted Broccoli. Broccoli can be paired with leeks as in this Potato, Leek and Broccoli Soup.
Salad mix (Farm selected Item): Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Wash before eating, and dry well. For salad inspiration, look at this: Mesclun Salad with goat cheese, or Chart of Salad Toppings Combinations.
Sugar Snap Peas (Farm selected Item): Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Peel off the strings on the sugar snap peas before eating or cooking. Sugar snap peas are great raw or barely cooked. Try Stir-fried Sugar Snap Peas or Sugar Snap Peas with orange-ginger dressing.
CHOICES:
Basil: Basil (Choice Item): To keep basil fresh, trim the stems and place them in a glass or jar of water, just like cut flowers. Loosely cover it with a plastic bag and leave it on the counter. Do not refrigerate or basil will darken.Here are some ways to use basil: top sliced tomatoes with chopped basil and olive oil, make Pesto, or use to season italian dishes. If you need to preserve basil leaves; it can be pureed with olive oil and frozen (in ice cube trays or small plastic bags. For more detailed instructions for preserving basil, click here. If you need more ideas for how to use basil, check out this link: 34 Basil recipes to carry you through summer.
Tomatoes (Choice Item): store at room temperature.
Kale (Choice Item): store in plastic bag in refrigerator. Kale can be eaten raw as in Kale Salad and in green smoothies or cooked (sautéed in olive oil or coconut oil), Kale Pesto (Pesto can be frozen). Try this Zuppa Tuscana soup (I usually add a can of tomatoes to this soup and sometimes kidney beans).
Bok Choy (Choice Item): Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Here is a basic bok choy recipe with great instructions: Stir-fried Bok Choy. Cooked (leftover) Bok Choy can be added to fried rice. Bok Choy can also be cooked and used inside egg rolls (I just followed the instructions on the back of the package of egg roll wrappers). Bok choy can be sliced and added to soups during the last few minutes of cooking.If you would rather eat bok choy raw; it can be chopped and dressed with an asian- style dressing: Bok Choy Salad
Beets: Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Both the roots and leaves are great, and can be eaten raw or cooked. Here is a compilation of recipes: Huffington Post Beet Recipes (we have enjoyed recipe #4, French Peasant Beets). Beets make a great addition to salad, as in this Roasted Beet Salad with Pea Shoots and Beet salad with Goat Cheese and in Raw Beet Salad.
Kohlrabi: Both the leaves and the bulbous stem (the round part) are edible. The bulbous part can last for a couple weeks in the fridge, but the greens should be use within a couple days, both should be stored in plastic bags in the refrigerator . The bulb should be peeled by cutting off a thin slice on the top and bottom of the bulb and using a paring knife to cut the skin off the kohlrabi bulb.Here is a link with recipes using the kohlrabi bulb and greens, including one of our favorites, the kohlrabi patties: Kohlrabi Recipes. A simple preparation of kohlrabi is Butter- braised Kohlrabi: Peel kohlrabi, and thinly slice (1/8 to 1/4 inch thick) and cook in a skillet with butter and olive oil and salt and pepper, add about 1/2 cup of chicken broth, cover the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender. Optional: Cream can be added at the end. Eaten raw, kohlrabi is fresh, crisp, and the ideal ingredient for a summer slaw, such as this Kohlrabi and Carrot slaw.
Garlic Scapes (Choice Item): Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Garlic Scapes are the flower bud of the garlic plant. The bud is removed to encourage the bulbs to thicken up. Scapes taste just like garlic. They can be used the same way as garlic in nearly any recipe. On thicker scapes, snap off the woody end (in the same way you would snap asparagus). Try them in a sauté, roasted, pickled, added to soups, and more. The most tender tops of the stem and the buds are delicious chopped up raw. To preserve: Chop the scapes in a food processor, add to jars and cover with olive oil. Save this in the fridge for up to a year, sometimes add more oil to keep it covered. Use on salads, baste on meats and vegetables for grilling, garlic bread, anything your imagination can think of. You can also freeze cubes of this in a ice cube tray then put in a zip lock bag and keep frozen.
A site highlighting many ways to serve garlic scapes; including a garlic scape pesto recipe: What to do with Garlic Scapes (Note: my family made the Garlic Scape Pesto from this link, using sunflower seeds instead of pine nuts, and it was wonderful (and very garlicky!).
Garlic Scape and White Bean Hummus
1/3 cup sliced scapes
1 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp sea salt
ground black pepper
1 can (15 oz.) cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup olive oil
In a food processor, process scapes with lemon juice, salt and pepper until finely chopped. Add beans and process to a rough puree. With motor running, slowly drizzle olive oil through feed tube and process until fairly smooth. Pulse in 2 or 3 T water, or more, until mixture is the consistency of a dip.