Fresh from Wellspring Charitable Gardens this Week - May 16, 2024

Fresh Today… Red Radishes, Snap Peas, Romaine Lettuce, Summer Squash, Artichoke, New Potatoes, Yellow Cauliflower or Broccoli, Beets, Kohlrabi, Carrots, Spring Onions, Dill, & Cilantro
Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno.
The first of our summer squash is ready to pick. Cook these as soon as you can. Even though they appear to hold up in your fridge for a few days, the flavor will change quickly over time. I love to slice them up and sauté them for 4-5 minutes in olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, for a simple side dish. To enjoy our spring snap peas, I like to tear the ends off of each pea by hand. Peel each end towards the center of the pea to help remove the string that can grow along the edge of the pod. You can prepare them ahead and then wash when you are ready to eat. Enjoy raw as a snack or quickly sauté and enjoy right away.
Pea and Radish Salad with Hard Cooked Eggs
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil divided
1 cup sugar snap peas, stem removed,
washed and sliced in half
1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1
teaspoon lemon zest
¼ teaspoon salt
fresh ground pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
3-4 radishes, thinly sliced
2 eggs, hard cooked, peeled and sliced
* In a sauté pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over high heat and then quickly add in the snap peas and cook, stirring frequently for 2-3 minutes. Remove the peas from the pan and set aside. In a large mixing bowl whisk the lemon juice, zest, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh herbs. Add the cooked peas and radishes. Stir gently and turn out onto a serving platter or bowl, add the eggs to the top and season with salt and fresh ground pepper. Serve immediately.

“Be Still…” Day Retreat
The noise, clamor, or static of life can interfere with our ability to hear the still small voice of God, which is often revealed in a question: “Adam, where are you?”; To Cain, “Why are you angry?”; Jesus, “Who do you say I am?” Answering God’s probing questions requires us to reveal the condition of our heart.
So, He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD was passing by! And a great and powerful wind was tearing out the mountains and breaking the rocks in pieces before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire, a sound of a gentle blowing. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Then he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of armies; for the sons of Israel have abandoned Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they have sought to take my life.”
Join us in the garden on Saturday, May 25, 9 AM – 4 PM, for a day of quiet retreat from those distracting noises that prevent us from hearing the voice of the LORD.

Caesar Salad…
Caesar salad is a family favorite, with its rich creamy dressing combined with our crisp romaine lettuce. Whenever we have romaine, I will make this version of Caesar dressing and freshly made croutons.
Caesar Salad Dressing
2-3 cloves garlic
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1-2 anchovies or 1 tsp
anchovy paste
2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
* In a blender combine the garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, Dijon, anchovy, black pepper and Worcestershire sauce, blend well to chop the garlic. Add the cheese and mayonnaise, pulse, until it becomes fluid then add the olive oil while blending at the end. Refrigerate or use right away.

Metaphors of Soil and Soul… To Bolt, Or Not to Bolt… Ronda May Melendez & Keith F Martin
A beautiful, albeit painful, tension we see in the garden has its parallel in human lives. Last week our garden coordinators noticed some onions beginning to bolt. In other words, they are flowering! Yes, onions have flowers, and their emerging blooms are a certain sign they are preparing to reproduce. Bolting onions are quite beautiful, but their beauty is a certain sign that they are also preparing to die.
Early bolting means the plant is stressed. Frequent changes in temperature this spring have caused them to panic and push prematurely to seed. Though the gardeners have carefully tended to their growth, onions cannot restrain their natural response to adverse or variable conditions that indicate their survival is threatened. Bolting onions direct energy away from the bulb’s growth into the stalk to form a flower. When the onion flower begins to develop, the bulb that we easily recognize and happily eat cannot be stored after harvest. The same energy that produces the onion’s flower and seeds protects the bulb from decay in storage. Therein lies the tension: Do we harvest smaller shelf-stable bulbs now, or do we wait and harvest bigger bulbs and seeds later? We can’t store an onion and plant it seeds too.
Paradoxically, the flower both diminishes and empowers the fruit. What tension choice creates! We want onions as versatile as a Swiss Army knife; they should sweeten a summer salad or July 4th hamburger, should hold for a winter stew or supply seeds for a new crop. The tension between now and later forces us to clarify our purpose and direct our effort. Do we want the most desirable bulb or do we need the most fertile seed? Like onions – No, Donkey, not “layers” or “tears” – humans, when threatened, may also feel like bolting, but unlike onions, we can assess risk and determine the benefit of enduring adverse conditions. Should we direct our energy toward preserving life now or should we conserve our energy for developing something beautiful, satisfying, and meaningful later?
Bolting is necessary to ensure survival or escape harm, but when personal safety is not at risk, the relief from stress realized by bolting may come at the expense of lasting growth in character, insight, ability, or intimacy. May God grant us wisdom to discern which stressful situations truly threaten life and which provide opportunities for substantial growth. That discernment will help us answer this critical question - To bolt, or not to bolt?

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