Tag Archives: Arugula

Summer CSA Week 18, 2022

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The last share of the 2022 summer season!

Last week the leaves along the road were golden (pictured left) and this week there are more leaves on the ground than in the trees (pictured right). It is time for us to wrap up our 2022 delivery season. Winter shares will start November 14th. See below what to do with your Summer Share boxes. In your email inbox soon you will find a link to an online survey about how the Summer Share worked for you this season–thanks for taking the time to help us improve!

It has been a pleasure having you as part of the Food Farm family!

In your share this week:

Arugula – Beets – Brussels Sprouts – Red Cabbage – Carrots – Celery – Greens Mix – Onion – Sweet Red Peppers (not hot) – Yellow Potatoes – Rutabaga – Spinach – Winter Squash – Tomato – Thyme

What should I do with my CSA box now that the season is over?

I’m so glad you asked! You have two options:

  1. Bring your own bag or box to your CSA pick-up location. Take your produce and leave the CSA box for us.
  2.  Bring your empty Food Farm CSA share box back at your Please have your box back to your pickup site by next Thursday, October 20th, or bring bags with you to take your veggies home.

Returning your box helps us avoid buying more plastic. 

Beet Arugula Salad

Ingredients

  • 6 medium (2 lbs) beets
  • 5 oz (6 cups) baby arugula, rinsed and spun dry
  • 4 oz or 1/2 cup feta cheese or blue cheese, diced or crumbled
  • 1/2 cup pecans or walnuts, toasted
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries

Balsamic Vinaigrette

  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp dijon mustard (we love Grey Poupon brand)
  • 1 garlic clove, pressed or finely minced
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp black pepper
  • Try adding minced rosemary and/or thyme

InstructionS

How to Cook Beets in an Instant Pot:

1. Wash and trim the beets so that the stems are about ½-inch long and the roots are no more than about 2 inches long.

2. Place basket insert into instant pot and add 1 cup water. Arrange the beets in a single layer over the insert.

3. Lock the lid and make sure the valve on the lid is pointed at the “Sealing” position. Press the “Pressure Cook” button and cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. (If you have smaller beets, it might take just 10 min to cook. Larger beets, however, will take 20 to 30 minutes to cook.)

Or without an Instant Pot:

1. If you don’t have an instant pot yet: Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line the bottom of a medium rimmed baking sheet with foil. Wrap each beat in a sheet of foil, wrapping tightly to seal and arrange the beets on the lined baking sheet. Bake in a preheated oven for 1 hour or until largest beet is easily pierced. Remove from oven, unwrap and allow them to cool to room temperature then peel the skins (see Pro Tip Below) and slice into halves and then wedges.

2. Toast 1/2 cup pecans on a dry skillet, tossing frequently until golden and fragrant. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

3. Transfer the arugula to a large mixing bowl then add remaining salad ingredients: sliced beets, 1/2 cup feta cheese, 1/2 cup toasted pecans and 1/2 cup dried cranberries.

4. To make balsamic vinagreate, combine all dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake well to combine. Drizzle over salad to taste. If not serving salad right away, shake the dressing again just before drizzling over salad.

Recipe based off Natasha’s Kitchen.

Harvesting cabbages. We love throwing our food!
And there’s lots more harvesting to be done before snow comes!

For the farm crew,

Starr

January Winter Share

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As we round the year, and pull out the next calendar, I am reminded of the push-pull of this time of year in my own mind: is it still this farm season or is it the next farm season? The answer must always be “this farm season”… but you get what I mean. The winter crew spends our few work days packing food grown this past year, but we look forward in planning to the next growing season. There is much to be grateful for from this past growing season- even though it was also very challenging. There is reason to hope too, for good in the coming season on the farm.

The end of one season, and the beginning of another on a farm is evocative of the cyclical nature of so many aspects in life. Winter gives way to spring, which lends itself to warmth and melting creeks. Fallen leaves of a season become next summer’s worm food. Pallet boxes full of potatoes and carrots are emptied, which leads to fields again full of the same.

Of course, the cyclical nature in most things around us isn’t a guarantee of anything particularly. Some things appear to go on and on no matter what, but behind the scenes much has to align for farm seasons to come and go, for seasonal changes to go on without interruption, for insect and bird and whale migration to continue unimpeded.

In these insane times we find ourselves in, I am often reminded, with the clarity of lemon juice in a cut, that very little is guaranteed. Even things set in stone can be shaken. I don’t know if the pain of what we are facing is the pain of birth, or the pain of death. Where are we in the cycle, and is there room for us after the turn? It feels imperative to acknowledge that much of what is good in life, and in the world, is very delicate, and in need of defending. Tearing down, ripping, breaking trust, poisoning land is all so easy. It can be done in a moment. The work of building back up, or reaching for a better stronger future for everyone, and all the living things sharing this planet, is slow hard work. Work that may feel almost undoable.

My hope for you this month is that the slow food from your share be a starting point of health and healing. In the setting of your table, the roasting of vegetables, the breaking of bread and sharing of drink may we all find ways to gather our strength together. Though the strength may feel as illusive as vapor rising from the lake, it can grow, rise, gather slowly, return to cloud and gain enough of itself together to become a healing deluge in time.

With care and love to you all in this time, and for the Farm crew whom you support,

Karin

In your share this month:
Chioggia Beets, Green Cabbage, Carrots, Red and Yellow Potatoes, Onions, Rutabaga, Winter Sweet and Delicata Squash

Raw rutabaga and purple carrot salad

Ingredients
1 rutabaga
3 purple carrots (any carrots work – these are just pretty in the salad if you have any left over)
1 large apple
1/2 cup walnuts chopped (optional)

For the dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp honey
2 tsp dijon mustard

Instructions
Shred the rutabaga, carrots and apple in a food processer, spiralizer, or grater (or do small matchsticks). Add the walnuts (optional).

In a separate bowl, combine the ingredients for the dressing and whisk until smooth. Pour over the salad ingredients and toss until coated. 

Enjoy chilled or at room temperature!

Spicy Squash Salad with Lentils

Adapted from The Smitten Kitchen

3/4 cup black or green lentils
6 cups peeled, seeded and cubed winter squash (1-inch cubes) (from about a 2-pound squash)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon hot smoked Spanish paprika*
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup soft crumbled goat cheese
4 cups arugula (optional)
1/4 cup thinly sliced mint leaves (optional)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, plus additional to taste
Roasted seeds (about 1/2 cup) from your butternut squash

Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss squash cubes with 2 tablespoons oil, cumin, paprika and salt. Arrange in a single layer on baking sheet and roast 20 minutes. Flip pieces and roast for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until tender. Cool.

Meanwhile, soak lentils for 10 minutes in a small bowl, then drain. Cook lentils in boiling salted water until tender but firm, about 30 minutes. Rinse with cold water, then drain and cool.

Combine lentils, pumpkin, any oil you can scrape from the baking sheet with arugula, if using, half of goat cheese, mint, vinegar, and 1 tablespoon oil. Season with salt and pepper and extra vinegar, if desired. Divide among plates and pass with remaining goat cheese to sprinkle.

Tiny swing snow man!

Summer CSA Week 14

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The extra hurry-hurry of fall on the farm is starting now. We have had a new crew member join our ranks as we’ve had to fill holes in the schedule, and still there is not enough time in the day, most days. We are starting to harvest almost all the time now: keeping the root-cellar stocked for the CSA and our wholesale customers with carrots, beets, potatoes and cabbage. We hope you’ll enjoy the baby carrots in your share today–we had to begin harvesting the second planting before they have completely sized up, so you’ll be getting a bunch of snack sized ones this week and next. Zucchini and cucumbers have had a tough time this year and are starting to fade already, even though frost has not showed up yet. With more produce coming out of the field each week, we’re also working to keep up with pallet box washing, knowing that soon instead of needing one or two at a time, we’ll need 6, 12, 20 in a day.

I love this time of year on the farm. I love when it’s cooler, I love looking over beds and seeing them full of produce early afternoon, and empty by evening. I love getting into a rhythm of harvest-wash-store, repeat, almost every day. Sometimes it can feel like the harvesting takes up an awful lot of time, and couldn’t we just get something done if it weren’t for all these veggies… but then I remember that the harvest is the whole reason we do what we do. Harvest happens, so that your breakfast, lunch and dinner can happen.

Thank you for participating in our farming with us by providing purpose for our veggies! What a change in the bounty from early June to now- so much variety, and so many options of what to make, or store for later. We hope you enjoy the share, and find some (warm and cozy?) ways to enjoy the food.

For the farm crew,

Karin

In your share this week:

Basil – Beets – Carrots – Cucumbers – Garlic – Greens Mix – Leeks – Onions – Red Pepper – Red Potatoes – Tomatoes – Zucchini

Sheetpan Chicken with Cabbage and Leeks

From The Leek and the Carrot

Serves 6-8
Takes 1 hour

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup olive oil + more for drizzling
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sriracha, optional
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
6-8 bone-in, skin-on drumsticks
1 head cabbage
1 head garlic, separated and peeled
3 leeks, white and pale green parts only, cut int 1-inch thick slices

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl combine oils, soy sauce, vinegar and sriracha. Place chicken in a second bowl. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and then pour 1/4 cup of the oil mixture over the chicken. Let it sit while you prep the veggies.
  3. Cut the cabbage in half through it’s core. Keep halving and slicing the whole head of cabbage until you wind up with lots and lots of wedges (all no thicker than 1-inch). Some pieces of cabbage will shred and fall apart as you cut the cabbage, but it will be fine. Add cabbage to first large bowl (the one with the remaining sauce not the chicken) along with peeled garlic cloves and sliced leeks. Toss to coat veggies with sauce and season with a bit of salt and pepper.
  4. Add chicken to large baking sheet and roast in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and nestle chicken with vegetables. It will feel like a lot and you’ll need to nestle the vegetables under the chicken a bit. That’s fine! Roast for 35-40 minutes longer until juices have reduced, veggies begin to caramelize and the skin on the chicken begins to crisp.
  5. Serve veggies and chicken together (atop mashed potatoes) with any residual sauce. Season with salt and pepper as desired.

Potatoes Anna

From The Smitten Kitchen

1/2 cup finely grated aged Pecorino Romano
1 tablespoon potato starch or cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon fine sea or table salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper, or a larger amount coarsely ground
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, or olive oil
2 pounds potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/8-inch-thick, ideally on a mandolin
8 cups loosely packed arugula
1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
2 teaspoons (10 ml) white wine vinegar

Assemble the potatoes: Heat your oven to 375°F. Combine the cheese, potato starch or cornstarch, salt, and pepper in a small dish. Taste a pinch; you want it to have a strong salty-peppery kick, because it’s going to be distributed all over the galette.

Pour 1 tablespoon butter or oil into the bottom of a 9-inch-diameter cast-iron or ovenproof skillet, and swirl it up the sides. Arrange the potatoes in overlapping concentric circles in a single layer at the bottom of the pan. (This will use approximately a quarter of your sliced potatoes.) Drizzle with 1 teaspoon butter or oil, and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of the cheese-pepper mixture. You’ll need to repeat this three or four times to use up your potatoes (depending on their size). At the end, you should have about 1 tablespoon cheese-pepper mixture left over; reserve this. Drizzle any remaining melted butter over the top.

To bake: Lightly coat a piece of foil with nonstick spray and cover the skillet tightly with it. Put in heated oven for 35 minutes, at which point the potatoes will be almost tender. Use potholdered hands to press firmly on the foil to compact the potatoes a bit. Remove and reserve the foil and bake for 25 to 30 minutes more, until lightly brown all over. Press again with the foil, remove, then briefly run under the broiler for an even golden-brown finish.

To finish and serve: While the galette bakes, toss the arugula with the olive oil and vinegar, keeping the dressing very light.

Once the galette is out of the oven, let it rest in the skillet for a few minutes before running a knife around to ensure that it is loose. Gently tip the skillet over your sink to drain any excess butter or oil. Invert it onto a plate or cutting board, then flip right side up. Cut the galette into wedges, then top with the dressed greens, and sprinkle with the reserved cheese-pepper mixture.

Do ahead: This galette can be made up to 3 days in advance. Rewarm at 350 degrees for 15 minutes with foil on top.