From the Garden This Week

From the Garden this Week…

Toscana Kale, Bok Choi, Napa Cabbage, Salanova Lettuce, Ruby Sky Lettuce (leafy red lettuce), Arugula, Spring Mix, Radishes, Rutabagas, Carrots, Broccoli, White Salad Turnips

Coming Soon…

Sprouting Purple Broccoli, Savoy Cabbage, Celery, Brussels Sprouts

Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno

This week we will have a lot of greens and we are sharing this fun recipe called Spinach Balls from one of our members, Ronda Melendez. This is a little like a quiche without a crust, and by forming it into balls, it becomes a little like a spinach “meat”ball. I would try making different size balls. You could make small ones and serve this as an appetizer or make larger fist-sized balls which are recommended in the recipe and serve them as a main dish. I would also recommend any similar spinach quiche recipe or spinach dip recipe to use up the greens. Feel free to combine arugula, spring mix (yes, you can cook lettuce), kale, spinach or Asian greens. If you have a favorite recipe for any of our vegetables, please feel free to share. I love to hear what works best for you.

Spinach Balls

This dish is a little like a quiche without a crust.

3 pounds spring mix , spinach, arugula or greens

6 eggs

1 cup of bread crumbs,

1 cup of pecorino, Parmesan or Romano cheese

salt to taste (optional)

1 Tbsp. Herbes de Provence* (or to taste).

OR

1 Tbsp. Dried Italian Herbs

OR

1/4 cup Fresh Herbs of your choice

Chop and cook the greens by steaming or sautéing, drain any residual liquid. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and butter a large casserole dish. Combine the greens with all of the remaining ingredients and form into small fist-sized balls. Bake until it has puffed and a knife inserted comes out clean…about 20 minutes. Serve with marinara sauce.

A Friendly Reminder…

We will not be harvesting or delivering produce the week of Christmas (Thursday, December 27) or during the week of New Years (Thursday, January 3). We will resume our harvest and deliveries on Thursday, January 10, 2019.

Thank you for your amazing support during 2018. We look forward to doubling our subscribers in 2019! Remember, 100% of your produce purchases are donated to serve the counseling needs of our community.

Napa Cabbage…

Napa Cabbage can be eaten raw or cooked. You can lightly sauté it with some grated carrots and Daikon radishes (large white radish), then garnish it with sesame seeds and a light drizzle of toasted sesame oil. I included a recipe this week to serve it cold in a salad with oranges and almonds. Make this a meal topped with sliced grilled chicken or tofu. I will also attempt to make Chicken Chow Mein at home with a head of Napa cabbage. I call it the great disappearing vegetable. You can make this with cooked spaghetti noodles, if you don’t have rice noodles or anything more Asian on hand. Start by sautéing a thinly sliced onion and a whole head of thinly sliced Napa cabbage, then toss with the cooked noodles, cooked chicken and soy sauce.

Napa Cabbage Salad with Orange and Almonds

½ cup slivered almonds

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon soy sauce

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon honey or sugar

zest from one orange

1 pound Napa cabbage, chopped

2 scallions, thinly sliced

1 orange, peeled and sliced

¼ cup chopped cilantro

Freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a pie plate, toast the almonds for 5 minutes, until they are light brown. Let cool. In a large mixing bowl, mix the oil, vinegar, soy sauce sugar and orange zest. Add the cabbage, scallions, orange slices and cilantro and toss. Add the almonds and season with pepper. Toss again and serve.

A Note from Cindi…Are the bugs, bugging you?

One of the consequences of farming without harsh herbicides and pesticides is the delivery of occasional bugs. We try to rinse our produce in such a way that most of the bugs scurry away before they are bagged and packed for delivery. However, remember to always wash your produce well as the greens in particular will need more washing to eliminate sand and dirt. You may also still find bugs tucked in the leaves deep in a head of lettuce or chicory. This weekend, I actually didn’t see any bugs in the beautiful head of cauliflower I cut and blanched until some little black specks surfaced in the boiling water. Little gnats had hidden away in the cauliflower florets. The sight of bugs in produce bought at the grocery store is very rare. Farm to table produce that comes to you the very day it is delivered, however, may also deliver a bug or two. I have decided that bugs are proof that our produce is extremely fresh and our garden soil is very much alive! Let us know if we can replace any produce that you had to discard due to insects.