This Weeks Veggies
Reine des Glacies Lettuce –This French Lettuce, “Queen of the Ice”, is known for growing well in cool weather. Look for the frilly leaf edge which is supposed to give it the look of a crown.
Bok Choi – Last weeks featured vegetable appears again this week in a more mature head. I’ve included another recipe below so that you can experiment again.
Rainbow Chard - This is a full size head of chard. Add the smaller leaves to your salad and sauté the rest. It retains its pretty colors even after cooking.
Radishes – Choose between Cherry Belle or French Breakfast. Or, if you like it hot, try the pearly white ones. Akin to the Japanese Diakon radish, they will certainly add a little spice to your life.
Scallions – More of the Lisbon White bunching onions. You’ll receive these for several weeks in a row so that you can see how they mature.
Baby Kohlrabi – Our featured vegetable of the week.
Farm Tales
I had frustrating beginning to my week. On Sunday morning, after only ten minutes of use, my tractor overheated and blew the radiator cap, along with a portion of the radiator. I had finished mowing the worst of the thistle so the most important work was done. However, this is just the most recent of a series of problems with this tractor. And, I’ve had it less than six months.
Those of you that grew up around farms understand how important “field iron” is to a farmer. For example, yesterday I spent three hours preparing one bed to sow your bush beans. If the tractor had been operational, it would have taken 10 minutes. Hopefully, the dealer will be able to get the tractor repaired quickly and I’ll be back “in the saddle” mowing and tilling soon.
It has now been several weeks since there was measurable rain fall. That means irrigation has become a pressing issue. The land that I am renting has two irrigation sources, a shallow, hand dug well, and a lovely little pond at the back of the property. For a variety of reasons, I will be using the pond as my primary source of irrigation water.
I was disappointed to learn this week that there is no piping between the pond pump and the fields. Purchasing and installing the pipe will cost several thousand dollars and many hours of labor. Though this seems like a big hurdle now, when it is finished, I will have a reliable irrigation system designed specifically to meet the needs of this operation. Meanwhile, I have the well to fall back on so will still be able to water the crops.
July 4th Holiday
Next Friday is the 4th of July holiday. If you are going to be out of town, please remember to designate some one else to pick up your share. If you are unable to find someone, please let me know in advance and I will make arrangements to drop off your share at the food bank.
Veggie of the Week
Last week, one shareholder said she loved kohlrabi and couldn’t wait to see it in her share. This week, here it is. She loves to eat it raw. What’s your favorite?
For those of you unfamiliar with kohlrabi, it is a member of the brassicca family. The part most commonly eaten is the globe shaped stem, though I occasionally include the leaves in a stir fry.
Kohlrabi can be eaten raw or cooked. Either way, peel it then slice it thinly. If you want to cook it, sauté it briefly in a little butter. Be sure to set aside a few slices though, so that you can compare the flavors. Some people say that it tastes like a combination of broccoli and apples. What do you think it tastes like?
You can find nutrition information about kohlrabi at this web site http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2466/2.
I’ve included below a vegetarian recipe for Bok Choi with and a variety of mushrooms. Use it as a side dish, or add cubes of browned tofu, beef or pork to make a main dish.
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Market/7773/pokchoi.html
