Zoes Garden

Spring 2013 Week 8 (May 14th)

admin — Thu, 16 May 2013 01:51:09 +0000

End of the school year, almost end of the spring season, almost start of the summer. Busy times! I didn’t get a broken out list of the small vs medium shares this week, but the way it was packed leads me to believe that the medium is just extras of several things. Here’s what we have.

spinach
chard
shallots
onions
sorrel*
kale
radishes
collards
asparagus (purple and green)

* The sorrel looks different from before because it is starting to bolt in the warm weather. The stalks are getting woody, the tops are getting flowery. Pick off the leaves, and I recommend using them for a cooked recipe such as vegetable soup. The leaves will virtually disappear while giving it a bright flavor.

TOP: spinach, chard, shallots, onions, sorrel BOT: kale, radishes, asparagus, collards

Spring 2013 Week 7

admin — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:31:05 +0000

Clockwise from the Bag of Spinach: collards, kohlrabi, mustard, purple asparagus, chard, asparagus, shallots, onion. Middle: microgreen mix

Share the love. Tell your friends, family, and neighbors. We have a lot of capacity left in the CSA shares, and more members means a more viable farm. Also, you should consider signing up for the summer shares now. We have the rest of May to finish out the spring shares, and then we start heading towards warmer weather crops.

Speaking of, we’ve seen a lot of the same things the last few weeks. That is the story of the spring shares, so I hope people are enjoying it knowing it won’t last forever. Come July, we’ll miss the crisp greens when we’re swamped with squash. Below is the share list for this week, followed by things we can look forward to in the next weeks and months.

SMALL
Swiss Chard
Collard Greens
Mustard Greens
Spinach
Kohlrabi
Onions
Shallots
Microgreens Mix
Purple Asparagus
Green Asparagus

MEDIUM
Baby Rutabaga
Baby Turnips
Corn Shoots
Blue Kale
extra Spinach
extra Onions
extra Shallots

Things in the next few weeks….
lettuce mix
maybe some more sunchokes
water cress
more sorrel
spring garlic

Things to look forward to at the beginning of the summer shares….
leeks
young beets
young carrots
radishes

Spring 2013 Week 6 (April 30th)

admin — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:29:51 +0000

David and I were too busy to talk yesterday, so while I have the medium share list (on account of receiving it), I’m not sure what the breakdown is on medium vs small. Here is a picture of what I received with labels so you can identify yours.

mustard greens
kale
kohlrabi
green asparagus
purple asparagus (probably just medium)
spinach
chard
collard greens
fingerling potatoes
shallots
onions

TOP: mustard greens, kale MIDDLE: kohlrabi, green and purple asparagus, spinach, chard, collards BOTTOM: potatoes, shallots, onions

As a for instance on using the share, last night I cooked: roasted potatoes, onions, and asparagus (and diced bacon); boiled chard with a sesame-soy dressing; cube steaks; and a spinach salad. All of these will just be small side dishes through the week.

No pictures

admin — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 18:34:24 +0000

Apologies. I’ve been down with a cold since Tuesday morning. It was all I could do to get the veg into the fridge, much less take pictures. New members, please see the last couple of weeks’ posts to ID any foreign vegetables and handling instructions. In the meantime, email me if you have any specific questions. produce@zoegarden.com

Spring 2013 Week 5 (April 23rd)

admin — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 18:39:21 +0000

Here is the week’s share. Pictures will follow this evening.

A quick note on sunchokes: These are the roots of a flower similar to sunflowers or black eyed Susans. They’re healthy, tasty, and quite dirty. The team ran out of time to wash them thoroughly, and it is a time consuming task regardless. They’ll keep better in the fridge if you leave them dirty, but when you’re ready to eat them, fill your sink with water and float them there, stirring and changing the water occasionally. Once the bulk of the dirt is gone, scrub as a potato. I have made quite a few posts on sunchokes in the last two seasons.

SMALL
spinach
kale
collards
shallots
fingerling potatoes
onion
asparagus
sunchokes

MEDIUM
garlic
extra spinach
mixed greens
sorrel
swiss chard
mustard
baby kale

MEAT steak

Kohlrabi and Apple Saute

admin — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 21:52:51 +0000

I mention this recipe in passing pretty often, so I think I should put up an official version of it to link to. This is dead simple while bringing a very pleasant and different flavor to the table. The sweet and mild flavor makes a good foil for strong flavor like greens and sausage. It can also be scaled because it is so loosey-goosey. Keep the ratio of kohlrabi to apples at about 2:1, add more oil and seasoning as needed.

Kohlrabi and Apple Saute

2 kohlrabi
1 apple
oil (butter is best, olive or coconut are close seconds)
a bit of salt and pepper

Peel the kohlrabi and apple. Slice them into the shapes that you find pleasing. I tend to half them, (core the apples), then slice into 1/4″ slices. Melt the butter in the skillet on medium heat. Toss in the slices, season lightly, and stir occasionally until tender (about 10 minutes tops).

Week 4 Followup

admin — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:29:14 +0000

Sorry for the delay. It took me a while to get the camera and the computer in the same place.

TOP: collards, chard, parsnips, kohlrabi, asparagus, potatoes; BOT: salad greens, spinach, sorrel, rutabaga, turnips, onions

Left is spinach (rounder), right is sorrel (pointier)… but taste them if you are confused.

Spring 2013 Week 4 (April 16th) PLUS recipes

admin — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 19:19:21 +0000

Pictures will follow later tonight, but here are the share lists (and a few recipes) for today:

SMALL
kohlrabi
baby turnips
baby rutabaga
collard greens
chard
asparagus
fingerling potatoes
parsnip
onion
spinach
roasted peppers (frozen)

MEDIUM
sorrel (aka lemon spinach)
mixed salad greens
extra chard
extra collards
extra baby turnips
extra baby rutabaga

A note on sorrel: This very “bright” green looks like pointy spinach, but it doesn’t taste like it. It is quite sour, but adds a nice flavor to salads, soups, and pestos. Store as you would spinach, loosely wrapped in a plastic bag with a paper towel added to keep it from wilting. Also see here for recommendations.

Root Veg Mash with caramelized onions
This will use four or five ingredients from the share today. Peel and cube the rutabaga and parsnips, and just cube the potatoes (unless you aren’t a fan of skins). You could add the turnips if you’d like. Boil the roots in salted water until tender enough to mash. In the meantime, saute a sliced onion and some minced garlic until the onions begin to brown. Drain the root cubes and mash with a bit of stock or cream, seasoned with thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir in the onions and serve.

Places to put collards, chard, and spinach
There are a lot of ideas for using up our greens here, from simply boiling them and serving, to sauteeing with garlic and putting over pasta. Sometimes I serve them as a side dish by themselves, but at least half the time I just slip them into other dishes. They pair well with eggs, so put ribbons of them into quiche, omelets, or frittata. I put one whole bunch of collards into a savory bread pudding with sausage this week (think stuffing as a main dish). I put them into soups quite a bit, especially chicken, vegetable, and minestrone style soups. Potato soups are good with crunchier kale and collards.

Spring 2013 Week 3 (April 9th)

admin — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 15:41:08 +0000

Here’s the share list. If I don’t get pictures up today (one of the kiddos has a birthday), I’ll at least get a few recipes up tomorrow. The best thing to do with fresh cut asparagus is to eat it right away — saving it just turns it into the grocery store stuff that’s been sitting around on ice for days. If you can’t get to it today or tomorrow, stand it upright in a little water in the fridge — it will keep crisp far longer that way.

SMALL
Asparagus
Turnips
Beets
Parsnips
Kohlrabi
Fingerling potatoes
Onion
Spinach
Salad mix
Peaches (frozen)

MEDIUM
Rutabaga
Swiss chard
extra asparagus
extra salad mix

Zoe’s at the Pop-Up Farmer’s Market

admin — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 20:32:57 +0000

The final pop-up farmer’s market of the season will be held on Saturday, April 13th, 10:00-3:00, at the Hardware Building in Salt Lake (155 North 400 West). David will be there with all of his lovely produce, along with 50+ other vendors. If you’re not getting enough of anything, stop by and be sure to mention that you’re a member.

More information here and here.