Category Archives: CSADist

2016 CSA Winter March 5th

  • Kale
  • Baby Salad Mix 8×8
  • Baby Arugula 8×8
  • Baby Green Sorrel
  • Flat Parsley
  • Dill
  • Cilantro
  • Mint
  • Lemongrass
  • Butternut Squash
  • Chickweed Pesto

2016 CSA Winter March 5th

For this CSA Winter March 5th,  we take a different view of the benefits of kale this week: not only is it good for our bodies but also for helping to suppress soil borne diseases and infestations by pests like nematodes, which can devastate crops we grow such as potatoes and tomatoes. Rapeseed kale like ‘Dwarf Essex’ contain sulfur containing chemicals (glucosinolates) that break down in decomposing into compounds that are toxic to nematodes. These natural compounds are released from the roots of living plants or by plants incorporated into the soil as green manure. (See Alabama Cooperative Extension, Hagan, Gazaway, and Sikora for a more in-depth view into plants explored for this property.) Thusly, growing this kale in rotation helps us with pest control naturally and produces healthier soils.

Kale in Greenhouse

Kale in Greenhouse

Kale as Soil Builder

Kale as Soil Builder

We love the combination of lemongrass, cilantro and mint. These lend themselves nicely to Thai noodle soup or a curry. We enjoy curry with a variety of vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, onion, peas, eggplant…we keep a can of coconut milk in the cabinet for just the occasion. With a bit of sauté that includes your lemongrass, you can have an exotic and spiced experience to help keep away these chillier nights. I use the back end of a knife and the knife handle to bruise the base and leaves of the lemongrass and plop them in the pot, pulling them out upon serving, as they have a tough consistency and are not pleasant to eat. The perfume lingers as the leaves have served their purpose of infusing the flavor. We like to use a curry stew as a base recipe in a crock pot, too, or as a way to repurpose leftover veggies. Lemongrass can be added to your dishes for a nice pick-me-up, just be sure to remove the sharp leaves before eating. Again, the lemongrass pairs nicely with the cilantro and mint in Asian noodle soups: just scissor cut the fresh cilantro and mint on top as a garnish.
To your health & pleasure, always, love, leslie.

Baby Arugula box

2016 CSA Winter February 27

CSA  February 27

CSA List:
• Kale
• Baby Salad Mix
• Baby Arugula
• Baby Green Sorrel
• Flat Parsley
• Dill
• Cilantro
• Mint
• Lemongrass
• Butternut Squash
• Basil Pesto

Planet Earth Div hydro house

Planet Earth Div hydro house

It is a pleasure to share with our CSA members some of the best tasting greens on the planet: Baby Arugula and our Micro Mix. The tender and velvety leaves make it easy to just grab a pinch and nestle them onto any plated meal. And for a treat this week, included with some kale for you this week, is a copy of a kale chip recipe:

– jelly roll pan
-leaves of kale, prepped
-1-3 tablespoons oil
-salt and pepper, spices to liking
-oven 300-325F

(a jelly roll pan is a double bottom cookie sheet with sides)
To prep your kale, just give it a check for any natural debris or water, dry where necessary and remove any of the greater sized ribs or veins of fibrous tissue that run thru the middle of the leaf.
Rip by hand or cut with scissors your pieces into large sections. Toss these pieces with your oil and seasoning, being sure that your greens are evenly coated with the oil. Spread the prepped pieces out on your pan…i like to use a sheet of parchment paper between the baking sheet and the greens. Besides salt or pepper, we like to use spices like garlic, cumin and smoked paprika. We have even had chips that were curry flavored..use your imagination and your favorites for these greens. We love to use the pesto here, adding to the oil then tossing the oil with the greens… Bake your chips up for about 10 to 15 minutes, checking for doneness along edges and turning the chips over, if you like. Bake for another 7-9 minutes or until the leaves are cooked all the way through. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a bit while prepping a presentation plate with paper. Use tongs to move the chips from pan to plate and serve with a side of nutritional gourmet salt to taste. These chips have turned even the most biased into rabid kale eaters!

 

Baby Arugula box

Baby Arugula box

We hope you are enjoying the best the land can offer each week in your CSA share! Please don’t hesitate to lend us your feedback by giving us a call on the order line: either 877-ARUGULA or 434-985-3570, then press extension 1 for the office desk. Also, we are interested in your recipes and will feature them in the weekly column to share with everyone.
To your health & pleasure, always, love, leslie.

Clean Water Farm Award 2002

Clean Water Award

Chickweed

2016 CSA Winter February 20

 2016  CSA Winter February 20  -Chickweed Pesto

  • Rainbow Chard
  • Baby Salad Mix 8×8
  • Baby Arugula 8×8
  • Baby Green Sorrel
  • Flat Parsley
  • Dill
  • Cilantro
  • Mint
  • Poultry Herb Blend
  • Butternut Squash
  • Chickweed Pesto

Im so grateful that my Dad would take us camping and my Mom would teach us about picking the right kind of berries…this budded a fascination with what was edible out in the “wild”. And the wild was everywhere, even the city. My favorite plant drawing of my Dad’s is of a dandelion, coming up out of New Orleans’ pavement. Noticing the wild in the yard or sitting on electric lines wasn’t too hard in such a lush city as ours, but this backyard connection to the environment stayed with me throughout all my journeys. One plant epitomizes a thread in the tapestry of those experiences: Chickweed. Once i started studying plants with handbooks, Chickweed was a plant that seemed to thrive just about anywhere in my world, and i would find it hiking high in the mountains or strolling along a valley stream. Noticing it is still important to me as i regularly chomp on this stuff while working and use it for skin irritations or injury. Stellaria Media is the scientific name of this useful ally and crisp low-lying green. It has a demure white flower in the shape of a small bursting star. It is rich in vitamins and nutrients and carried some of the surviving Native peoples on the Trail of Tears being that it grows up twice a year, even under the snow! This strong plant is considered a weed by many, but maybe these folks don’t know how useful it is. Stellaria is the plant that healed our Sunny Girl when she was a kitten, having an abscess from a sting or a bite to the neck. This precious herb gives so much; i like to use it from the inside out. So this week, from our garden in the middle of winter, we bring you fresh ground Chickweed Pesto! Try this with a white fish or chicken and your sorrel for a yummy meal. The pesto can be used to turn your butternut squash into a savory treat by cubing the peeled flesh and rolling the squash in dobs of pesto, then roasting it.
The Chard, beautiful colorful and nutritious! Try this as a quick pan fry with walnuts. i like to use my cast iron skillet for just about everything…a little olive oil, adding nuts to roast a bit and then the greens at the end.

 

 Chickweed

Chickweed

Chickweed

Chickweed

Chickweed

To your health & pleasure, always, love, leslie.