From the Garden this Week…
From the Garden this Week…
Spaghetti Squash, Garlic, Hot Peppers, Mixed Lettuces, Collard and Broccoli Greens, Baby Carrots, Parsley, Braising Greens Mix, Bok Choy, and Coriander Seed
Coming Soon… Sprouting Broccoli, Curly Kale, Celery
Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno
This week I am sending coriander seeds in the baskets. These are the seeds of the cilantro plant. We can let the cilantro continue to grow after harvesting and then when the plant dries in the summer we cut the stems and separate the seeds from the dried plant. Even though they are the same plant, coriander and cilantro have completely different flavors. Coriander is used in Indian curries, pickling spice mix and is also good in a marinade for meats. Because of its nutty quality, it is often used for baking and I use it to make chai tea, with cinnamon, cloves, star anise and black pepper. I simmer the dry spices in water for about 20 minutes then turn off the heat and add black tea. You can sweeten the tea and serve with milk if desired. The oils in the coriander are released when heated, so in the recipe below, I toasted the spices in a dry pan for a minute. Coriander also goes well with cauliflower and potatoes.
Coriander Roasted Carrots
1 pound carrots
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
½ teaspoon black peppercorns
2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 garlic cloves
½ teaspoon salt
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Slice the carrots into 1-2 inch pieces. Put the carrot pieces into a large mixing bowl. Toast coriander seeds and black pepper in a dry skillet until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Coarsely grind the toasted spices with a mortar and pestle add in the garlic cloves and olive oil. Mix the spice-oil-garlic mixture with the carrots and pour the carrots into an ovenproof dish, or a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 30-40 minutes until the carrots are soft and slightly browned. Mix in the chopped parsley and serve.
Thank You to Julie Moreno who has been our Wellspring
Charitable Gardens Coordinator for the last year. Julie has worn a variety of hats including the CSA administrator, newsletter and recipe producer and manager of field planning, cultivation, planting and harvest. Julie has excelled in all aspects but is quite happy to delegate field production back Anna Hazen beginning in January 2020! Welcome Back Anna!! We are thanking God for bringing us this dynamic duo along with all our faithful volunteers!
Lots of Green Leaves…
In the winter we are lucky to live in a location where we can grow greens all year long and they thrive in the cold. This week we will have Broccoli and Collard Greens and Braising mix. I enjoy them all with a light sauté. You can cook them together, but they all have slightly different cooking times. Start with the Collards, then a minute later add in the Braising mix.
Sautéed Greens
6 cups chopped greens
1-2 cloves garlic
sprinkle of red chili flakes
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
salt and pepper
lemon juice
Wash the chopped greens in a bowl of water, let any dirt settle to the bottom and pull the greens out of the water and let drain, they do not need to be dry. Then you can use the water for a nearby plant. In a large sauté pan with a lid, heat the garlic, chili flakes and butter over high heat, until the garlic starts to brown slightly. Add the wet greens, salt and pepper. Cover with the lid and cook for about 2 minutes. Remove the lid and stir the greens and cook until any liquid has evaporated. Sprinkle with a squeeze of fresh lemon or balsamic vinegar.
Metaphors of Soil and Soul
The Beauty of Desolation… by Ronda May Melendez
We are coming into Christmas this next week. It is a time for reflecting on those items that we are grateful for. I am grateful for life, seeds, soil, growth, sun and rain and I am grateful for darkness.
On Sunday, a dear friend taught me a new concept…the reflection upon our consolations and desolations. I have marveled at the utility of this tool just in these few short days! And as I have rested my heart on the birth of Christ, I have lingered around the fact that Christ’s coming into this world (a consolation to us all), guaranteed and sealed His own momentary desolation.
I have also marveled that His initial physical presence in this world began as a seed, housed in darkness;
the darkness of his mother’s womb. And yet, from that darkness came a forming, a knitting together of human identity with the Divine in a way that had not occurred before. It was no longer just humanity receiving life through the breath of the Spirit, but God becoming flesh in order to be forsaken, deserted, lonely, his body in later years laid waste to take upon Himself sins that were not His own…in short, from a human perspective…He came in order to be devastated: to be desolate.
Was it the end? Praise God…it was not! It was only the beginning of freedom for us and the redemption of all that holds us captive. Out of desolation came consolation. If you feel desolate these holidays, my friends, rest assured…it is not the end. It may be the end to your bondage, which will feel strange, maybe even frightening, but it is not the end of you. He has gone before us and made a way through the path of desolation, so that we may know in full, the consolation of Him as a Person, as a trustworthy Friend. He is faithful. He does not fail. The Christ child formed in the darkness of a human womb overcame desolation and darkness that we might live and have life to the full; and for that, we have much to rejoice over. Our desolation ends in the consolation of Jesus, if we will but draw close to Him. I wish you many joys this holiday season. My heart rejoices over you all.
