Working Up Your Share
We thought we should share some tips on how to manage the
individual items that you will be receiving in your share over the course of
the season. Besides using them in your favorite recipe, you may choose to hold
them for later use or preserve them for much later use. Either way, you should
go through your share and handle each one individually in the best way
possible.
Most of the vegetables we share with you are washed at the
farm before cooling. We do not claim these to be “ready to eat” washed items.
The washing we do is to remove any dirt that has splashed on the crop from
heavy rains, but more importantly it removes the field heat and very quickly
gets the temperature of the product down into the mid-fifty degree range. The
additional moisture on the surface aids in evaporative cooling when it is
placed into the walk-in cooler at 38 degrees. We manage the harvest to be sure
this important step is fully executed so the produce will arrive at the pick-up
location in the best shape possible. You should always wash the items before
using them in your favorite recipe.
Once you
obtain your weekly share, you should get it home as quickly as possible to
preserve the freshness it left the farm with. Keep the sun off the share even
in an air-conditioned vehicle and do not leave it unattended in a locked car
while running other errands where the inside temperature can melt your items.
Some items need to be refrigerated, others not. Some should not be washed until
ready for use; others already have had their initial washing and may benefit
from more.
Many of you
have told us how much fun it is to unpack the items from your share and begin
dreaming up how you want to use each item and do some menu planning for the
week. Each one can be placed in its optimum environment until ready for use.
Undoubtedly, some get prepped and go straight into a pot or bowl for immediate
consumption.
Any of the leafy greens, kale, lettuce, spinach, is best kept
on a plastic sack or container loosely sealed. This will hold moisture but
allow for a little breathing. An airtight container may allow anaerobic
bacteria to thrive and cause an upset stomach later. Any of the head lettuces,
Chinese cabbage and the like will have additional soil in them and should be
washed more thoroughly. We recommend cutting the stem end off and running cold
water over each leaf where it adjoins the stem and then dunking in cold water.
This serves to further hydrate them from the ride to your house and gives you
the opportunity to sort or cut out any blemishes or stray leaves. A salad
spinner will do well to remove excess moisture or a good slinging over the sink
never hurt anything. Then when placing them in the semi-sealed container, they
will be ready for quick meal prep later in the week.
Berries, okra,
peas, and green beans should never be washed until ready for use. We cannot
even pick them with dew on or too soon after a rain. If they are kept in a container
wet, the berries will begin to rot very quickly, and the peas/beans will begin
to “rust”. Rusting is primarily an appearance issue and less of a food safety
issue, nonetheless, these items should be refrigerated to preserve freshness.
Peppers, potatoes, squash, and cucumbers should be stored
in the fridge as well and they really don’t care if you wash them now or later.
Tomatoes
should be kept at room temperature. Place them stem side down on the counter so
they can taunt you into deciding just how ripe they should be to be eaten. We
harvest them with the idea they should finish ripening at your house, otherwise
they will get bruised up in transport, much like bananas. We also try to send
variable states of ripeness so you can spread out their use throughout the
week. When we have a big flush of tomatoes due to planting dates and weather
patterns, we partner with a co-packer to make the salsa, marinara, ketchup, and
diced tomatoes for wintertime use. We schedule this a few weeks in advance of
when we see it coming so we can get on the list, and allow for preservation to occur
at the peak of ripeness and flavor. Thanks to your support in the past for purchasing
the BPA-Free jarred items, we are planting more tomatoes and such, to be sure
we do not run out next winter.
Onions, sweet
potatoes, fall squash, and garlic can stay in a dry dark space, room
temperature is fine. They may keep longer in the refrigerator if you are going
out of town for a trip, but people have been known to hold butternut squash in
a cabinet for an entire year, until the next crop comes in.
By all means,
dismantle your share as soon as you can after picking it up. Not only will it
make meal prep that much easier later in the week, but your mouth will begin to
water thinking of all the wonderful flavors you will be enjoying all week as
well. The fall share CSA folks who pick up every-other-week can confirm how
well our properly handled produce will keep for two weeks or more. Of course it
is no trouble to blanch and freeze most of these items if you are not going to
get to them for some reason. And there is no better feeling than serving your
friends and family a special holiday meal with local organic produce from
Elmwood Stock Farm.
In Your Share
Broccoli
Fennel
Green Leaf or Red Leaf Lettuce
Napa Cabbage
Spinach
Sugar Snap Peas
Kale Greens
Recipes
Stir Fry Cabbage, an Ellie
Krieger recipe
2 tsp canola oil
1 small onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced (garlic scapes)
1 tsp minced ginger
1 head napa cabbage, cleaned and sliced
2 T soy sauce
1 T rice vinegar
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 small onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced (garlic scapes)
1 tsp minced ginger
1 head napa cabbage, cleaned and sliced
2 T soy sauce
1 T rice vinegar
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
In a large saute pan over medium-high heat,
add the canola oil and heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and saute,
stirring, for 1 minute. Add the cabbage and cook until just starting to wilt,
about 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce and rice vinegar and stir well and cook just
until cabbage is wilted, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and drizzle with the
sesame oil. Optional: add in other favorite vegetables such as snap peas,
pepper strips, or mushrooms; for more spice add crushed red pepper.
Roasted Fennel with Parmesan, Ina
Garten’s The Barefoot Contessa.
2-4 large fennel bulbs
½ C good olive oil
1 tsp salt, kosher if available
½ tsp freshly ground pepper
2 to 3 T freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2-4 large fennel bulbs
½ C good olive oil
1 tsp salt, kosher if available
½ tsp freshly ground pepper
2 to 3 T freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400°F. Remove the stems of the fennel and slice the bulb in half lengthwise. With the cut side down, slice the bulb vertically into ½ inch thick slices, cutting right through the core. Spread the fennel slices on a baking sheet, coat with olive oil, salt and pepper and toss with your hands.
Roast the fennel slices for about an hour, turning them once after 30 minutes, until the edges are crisp and brown. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and roast for 5 more minutes. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve.
Beet, Orange and
Fennel Salad
2
large or 4 small red, gold, or striped beets, about 1/2 lb. total
2
tsp olive oil
2
oranges
1
fennel bulb
2
T orange-infused olive oil
1
tsp red wine vinegar
1
tsp balsamic vinegar
½
tsp salt
¼
tsp freshly ground pepper
8
to 12 red leaf or other delicate lettuce leaves
½
C grated pecorino cheese
¼
C slivered almonds, toasted
Preheat an oven to 350°F. If the beet greens
are still attached, cut them off, leaving ½ inch of the stems attached. Place
the beets in a single layer in a shallow baking dish. Drizzle with the olive
oil and turn to coat. Roast, turning the beets occasionally, until tender when
pierced with a fork, about 1¼ hours. When the beets are cool, remove the skins
and cut into quarters. Cut a thick slice off the top and bottom of each orange.
Stand the orange upright and, following the contour of the fruit, carefully
slice downward to remove the peel, pith and membrane. Holding the orange over a
bowl, cut along each section of the membrane, letting each freed section drop
into the bowl. Strain the oranges, reserving 2 tsp of the juice. Cut off the
stems and feathery leaves from the fennel bulb. Discard the outer layer of the
bulb if it is tough. Quarter the bulb lengthwise and cut away any tough base
portions. Cut the fennel into slices about ¼ inch thick. Add to the bowl. Add
the beets to the bowl along with the reserved orange juice, the orange-infused
olive oil, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Stir to coat. Place
2 lettuce leaves on each individual plate. Top with the beet mixture, dividing
it evenly, and spoon some of the juices from the bowl over the salad. Sprinkle
with the cheese and toasted almonds, dividing evenly. Serve immediately. Serves
4 to 6.
Simple
Green Salad
1-2
cloves fresh garlic
3
T good olive oil
2
T balsamic vinegar
salt
and pepper to taste
8-10
oz favorite salad greens: spinach,
arugula, lettuce
3-4
oz. goat cheese, sliced or crumbled
½
C dried cranberries
½
C nuts (candied, raw, walnut, pecan, cashew)
½
apple, diced
