Week 6 Newsletter

Week #6 January 19, 2011
 With two days of glorious sunshine, it’s easy to smile. With evening temperatures breaking above freezing, stress on plants and farmers is relaxed a bit. With the increasing few minutes of light each day, spring’s fast-paced fury lurks. Today, we ordered all of the seasonal start-up hardgood supplies. Over the weekend, all of the seeds were ordered. More intern visits are scheduled for late February. All of this plus the daily routines of receiving orders, harvesting, packing, and delivering are keeping us ‘plenty busy’. And we wouldn’t have it any other way. We are so grateful to be able to provide this bounty for the community. Thanks for all you do for us.
  We emailed the “You Have a Reservation” letters on Monday, and thanks to all of you who have responded so far! If you did not receive one, please let us know so we can send it to you pronto! If you will be re-joining us or not, we really appreciate that you let us know your intentions. Thanks, thanks, and thanks. On Thursday this week, Julia is going to revive the Facebook postings. Many of you were happy when we started this last summer. In the hustle and bustle, I’m embarrassed to say that I forgot about it. But we were reminded, and want to make it as easy as possible for you to access all of the information, so look for us there as well as on the blog. And don’t forget to make us your ‘friend.’
 One recipe this week is from our friends at Casa Nueva Restaurant. We sell them lots of greens! At this year’s Producer Appreciation Night, they served Creamed Greens and those were a hit with lots of folks. Alex graciously shared the recipe with us. (Any green will work with this recipe.) Thanks to Alex and all the terrific folks at the Casa! It was once again a fun event filled with wonderful Casa food – this is an annual dinner they host to say thank you to the many local producers that sell to them.                                             Having just heard the weather forecast, it looks like we will be ‘battening-down the hatches’ again at the end of the week. Be safe, stay warm, and eat your veggies!
From all of us at Green Edge,
Becky (Kip, Dan, John, , Rob, Cale, Julia, Penny, Guinevere and Morgan

THIS WEEK’S VEGGIES
Salad Mix – In the mix this week are 5 varieties of lettuce, mizuna, and pe-tsai. The last two are mild Asian greens. This mix is best stored in an air-tight container with some paper towel or cloth to absorb any extra drops of water that can form.
Mushrooms - Shiitakes this week. We hope you aren’t getting too bored with these yet. We are arranging the schedule to bring you oyster mushrooms soon.
MicroMix Microgreens – Wow! We are so pleased to bring you the other microgreens that we grow. Unlike the sunflower ones, these are more delicate, don’t store as long, and have the tangy flavor of cabbage and radish.
Sweet Potatoes - We weren’t joking when we said there was a bumper crop of sweet potatoes. We’re pleased to offer these savory spuds again.
Turnips – New to the shares this week, this is a variety called Purple Top White Globe. They are crunchy and flavorful raw, grated into salad or marinated for a raw veggie plate. Also tasty mashed like potatoes or roasted like other root veggies.
Tatsoi - This mild Asian beauty has returned to the shares throughout January. After that, the increased day length causes it to bolt. Enjoy!
Spinach - We increase these plantings each year, but we just never seem to have enough! A new item this week, and it’s loaded with Vitamin A & flavor! Storage tips and recipes below.

The Combo Corner
The apple selections from Cherry Orchard this week are: Yellow (Golden) Delicious, Cameo, and Fuji. Neil writes that they have been busy pruning as weather permits. They are looking forward to spring.
This week’s bread from The Village Bakery and Café is Honey Oat Wheat.

About Spinach –
If you have removed the stems (which can be tough), then you are ready to begin your preparation. Spinach is easily overcooked. Briefly steam or sauté spinach just to wilt it and reduce its volume.
Here are some general cooking times:
Steam - 3-5 minutes
Blanch - 2-4 minutes
Sauté or Stir-fry - 3-5 minutes


Recipes
SPINACH NOODLES
Spinach noodles take an hour to make, including the ½-hour resting time for the dough.
Squeeze all the water out of ½ cup steamed spinach, condensing it to 1/3 cup. In a food processor, combine the spinach, 2 eggs, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and ½ teaspoon salt. Process to blend.
Add 2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour and process to blend. Using the pulsing action, process just enough to form a ball. Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes before rolling out.
On a well-floured board (or counter), roll out the dough to a thickness of no more than 1/8 inch. Slice to make lasagna, fettuccine, or linguine.
To cook immediately, boil the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water for 2 minutes, until the pasta is just tender.
To store, hang the pasta on a drying rack for 3-4 hours. Store in a moisture-proof jar in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or in the freezer for longer storage. To cook dried pasta, boil for 3-5 minutes in plenty of boiling salted water.
This information is from a wonderful resource called Joy of Gardening Cookbook. This is an ‘easy to read and understand’ cookbook that organizes the vegetables alphabetically. It was published in 1984 by Garden Way with many references to the author’s (Janet Ballantyne) experiences in her garden.

Secretly Delicious Spinach Pie - from food.com by Rose’s Granddaughter
5 jumbo eggs (or 7 large eggs)
2 tablespoons milk
3 roasted garlic cloves, crushed ¼ teaspoon lemon pepper
1 dash salt
3 slices cooked bacon, chopped
1 large flour tortilla
1 ½ cups shredded cheese
3 cups fresh spinach
DIRECTIONS
1. Mix the first six ingredients (eggs, bacon, milk, garlic, lemon pepper, and salt) in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Lay the flour tortilla in a glass pie dish, press gently – does not need to lay perfectly flat against dish.
3. Sprinkle only ½ cup cheese on tortilla.
4. Sprinkle remaining cheese and the spinach onto tortilla in layers, and press firmly
5. Pour egg mixture evenly over spinach, be careful not to pour any outside of tortilla.
6. Bake in oven at 365 degrees for 35-45 minutes. Insert fork in center and it should come out clean.
7. Use sharp knife to cut into pie slices and serve hot.
8. Other options: Instead of garlic, you can use ¼ cup onions. For added flavor, serve with homemade salsa.

ALEX’S CREAMED GREENS
4 servings
In 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil/Bacon Grease, sweat out:
-¼ cup of minced onion until translucent
 - ½-1 whole clove minced garlic until it starts to brown
Sprinkle: -Garlic Powder, 1 pinch.  Cook until it starts to stick to pan. Add:
-1 tablespoon White Wine Cook, until almost evaporated.  Add:
-1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream Cook, re-ducing by 1/3.   Add:
-1 heaping tablespoon Chevre
-1 heaping tablespoon shredded Parmesan
-Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste (Remember, you can always add more later, but you can’t take it out!
In a separate pan, cook:
-1 tablespoon Butter until it starts to darken and releases a nutty aroma; Don’t Burn! Stir it into your Cream Sauce; keep it warm, but don’t continue to reduce.
Have ready: -2 qts. Choice of Greens, thinly sliced (or how you like them)
In another pot/pan, cook greens in about 1/3 cup water until tender; drain.
 Stir into Cream Sauce. Can be prepared a day in advance and reheated gently.