From the Garden this Week...

From the Garden this Week…

Kale, Broccoli Shoots or Broccoli Sprouts or Cauliflower, Spring Onions, Swiss Chard or Tatsoi, Oregano, Parsley, Dill, Fennel, Radishes, Mixed Lettuce, Arugula, Spinach and Oranges

Coming Soon… Beets, Snap Peas and Parsnips

Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno

We have lots of greens coming again this week. This recipe that I included here, uses the dill and spring onion as well. You can easily omit the dill if you want to use it in one of the recipes on the next page. Also, you can add in some of the other greens in this recipe as well. I do like to mention not to overcook the greens as the kale will start to have a strong sulfur odor, like overcooked broccoli. For the fennel, if you are unfamiliar, it is nice, shaved in a salad, but is also very nice cooked. I like to hide it in marinara sauce or other Italian dishes. The more you cook it the more the strong fennel flavor mellows.

Dill Creamed Kale

2 tablespoons butter

1 spring onion, white and light green parts, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon salt

7-8 cups chopped kale; stems removed

2 tablespoons dry vermouth or white wine

¼ cup heavy cream or cream cheese

1 tablespoon dill, chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat, when melted, add the onion, garlic and salt. Cook over medium heat, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the kale and continue to cook for a 2-3 more minutes until wilted. Increase the heat to medium high, add the vermouth and cook until it’s just evaporated, about 1 minute. Add the cream or cream cheese, stirring until completely incorporated. If using cream, reduce heat to medium and cook about 2 more minutes until the sauce reduces slightly. Taste for seasoning, add salt and pepper if you like.

Meet Volunteer David Berrens

How did you begin an interest in gardening? I have always been in awe of God’s creation where you can stick a dead seed in the dirt with water and sun and it comes to life to sustains more life. There is just something that feels natural about working with your hands that makes you want to care for the good earth.

Where were you born, go to school and or grow up? I was a baby boomer born in San Francisco but my dad was in the Air Force so we moved all over. My dad retired when I was in the 8th grade and moved us to Anchorage Alaska where I finished school and joined the Navy. I have also lived in Hawaii Bermuda, California, South Carolina, Washington.

What drew you to volunteer in our Charitable Garden? My wife Nancy started here first and I came along for the ride. When I retired, I was looking for things God might want me to get involved with and I was able to feel I could use my talent to meet the needs here. There is always something to do and they haven’t kicked me out so I just keep coming back. 

Who do you call family? I married my High School Sweetheart whom I’ve known now for 53 years

And we produced two incredible children who in turn gave us 7 grandchildren.

What is something interesting about you that others might not know? I once talked a couple of guys into sailing in a rubber raft from an Aleutian Island in the Bering Sea over to a neighboring island that had a volcano to roast marshmallows. Fortunately for us, an opposing wind came up and we didn’t make it. That wind saved our lives because the island looked only a mile away but was actually 17 miles away.

Something else to share? It feels good to volunteer so come! We would love to have you.

Fresh Herbs…

This week we have dill in the baskets. Dill goes well with chicken or seafood. I saw an idea to add it to your chicken salad which sounds great. Cindi provided the recipes here from her collection of family favorites. I had never heard of Beau Monde before this week, so I got to look up the ingredients listed. I found out that Spice Islands trademarked the name. The dill oil is another option or try drying the herbs to use later.

Dill Dip

1 teaspoon Beau Monde or

½ teaspoon celery salt, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder and

¼ teaspoon onion powder

2-3 tablespoons chopped dill

1 Tablespoon chopped parsley

1 cup sour cream

1 Tablespoon grated onion

1 cup mayonnaise

Mix everything thoroughly and let sit overnight.

Dill Oil

1 cup coarsely chopped dill

1.5 cups grapeseed or vegetable oil*

In the blender, puree the dill and oil until well blended. In a small saucepan heat the dill-oil over medium heat just until it starts to sizzle, about 3 minutes. While the oil is heating line a coffee filter inside of a sieve and set the sieve over a heatproof measuring cup or bowl. As the dill begins to sizzle, immediately pour it over the sieve capturing the oil below. (Do not press on the solids or the oil will be cloudy.) Let cool and store in the refrigerator.

*a neutral flavored olive oil can be used, but this recipe needs to be stored in the refrigerator, which will solidify at cold temperatures. Just remove from the fridge and let it warm up before using.

Metaphors of Soil and Soul . . . by Cindi J. Martin, LCSW

Wellspring Charitable Gardens is a place where we see regular death and resurrection. A vibrant plant dies but leaves its seeds to plant that become abundant harvest!!

As we move into Holy Week and look forward to Easter, I was struck by the poignancy of Psalm 22 both as it relates to our Savior as He faced the cross and our emotions as human beings when we are afraid. “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me? Why art Thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the daytime, but Thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent. But Thou art holy. O Thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel … (Psalm 22:1-3).

This Psalm belongs to one third of all Psalms in the Bible which are lament Psalms. There is only one book of the Bible dedicated to an emotion and that is of lament and complaint. God demonstrates how to walk through deep pain and despair and yet Western Christianity typically neglects these lament Psalms which can truly help us navigate through times such as these.

Trying to focus on the positive without acknowledging the negative is a denial of reality and leads to further pain and suffering. It actually increases anxiety because our body’s fight-flight system knows that we are not being emotionally honest. One of the things that I love about the Bible is its emotional integrity! The stories of people told within it are real and messy, and the intervention of God is powerful and hopeful. This Psalm demonstrates the depth of human suffering without excluding the hope and experience of deliverance. Death is swallowed up in life. The cross of Christ becomes the door to new life for all through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We wish you all a blessed Easter!