Good Eats Weekly Newsletter - May 24, 2017

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Localvore Members  & Full Veggie Only Share Members take a LIGHT GREEN BAG This week your bag contains: Mesclun Mix, Lettuce head, Basil, Broccoli raab, Rhubarb, Orange Carrots, Red Cabbage, And OUT of the Bag: Frozen Stir Fry Mix OR Sweet Peppers  Half Veggie Members take a YELLOW BAG containing: Mesclun Mix, Rhubarb, Radish, Orange Carrots (some share members will receive a cucumber), And OUT of the Bag: Frozen Cauliflower Localvore / Pantry Offerings Full Sun Canola Oil Pete's Greens Pesto Pete's Greens Zesty Dill Pickles Only TWO weeks of the Spring Share left! Sign up today for the Summer CSA Season! June 14 - October 4 Same great produce, different season! Enjoy all the best summer delights! Can you help us spread the word? We've found that neighbors, coworkers, friends, and family members are all encouraged to join our CSA when they hear from current members - you! Help us spread the word through Front Porch Forum - contact me and I'll help you craft a message!

Around the farm... Last week the crew spent a lot of time planting cover crops and spreading manure. Not glamorous farm work, but important nevertheless. We had a group of students from Burke Mountain Academy visit us and they got to help out around the farm.  Another important farm worker is our populations of bees that live in greenhouses. These bumblebees live in these little boxes and every day they fly out to eat, thus pollinating our crops. They always return because of the sweet nectar inside the boxes. Pollination is vital to getting some crops to flower, like tomatoes and zucchini. These bees have the right kind of "buzzing" the flowers need for  optimal pollination. We use these bee kits because in greenhouses, wind and natural pollinators are almost entirely absent, so we need to bring in insects to ensure pollination happens - that's how we end up with such delicious tomatoes!  We're signing up for the Summer Share, which starts in just TWO WEEKS! Sign up today so you don't forget! ~ Taylar   Mike (closest to the machine) works with a couple of Burke Moutnain Academy students to show them how the big barrel washer works! This is where we wash and sort root crops like carrots. Storage and Use Tips  Mesclun: Both shares are receiving a large bag of greens this week. This is a mix of fresh greens harvested this morning from the field. It's a larger bag than normal! Rhubarb: A sure sign of spring and summer is rhubarb! Many years we have to buy this item from other farmers, but after a few years of bulking up our rhubarb plants, we have enough to include rhubarb for all CSA members! Rhubarb is a very old plant, and has been harvested by people for over 4000 years. Only the stalks of rhubarb are eaten, the leaves of the rhubarb plant are not edible. Rhubarb is perfect for pie or a crisp! Store in your fridge in the crisper drawer until ready to use. Broccoli raab (full shares): Though its name might suggest otherwise, broccoli raab is not actually a broccoli. It belongs to the brassica family, along with mustard greens, turnips, and cousin broccoli. Like mustard greens it has a strong peppery bite, milder when the plant is young, stronger as it gets older. And like broccoli it grows florets but they remain small tucked between the large leaves, with taller flower stalks protruding from the plant. All of these parts of broccoli raab are edible, either raw or cooked. In Asia and Italy the plant grows wild and is popular, and it is cultivated in the rest of the world. It is very high in calcium, potassium, iron, vitamin A, and vitamin C. Store broccoli rabe in your refrigerator crisper unwashed, either wrapped in a wet towel or in a plastic bag. It will keep two or three days. For longer storage, blanch and freeze. Lettuce Head (full shares): We're into greens season at the farm! Here are the first of our lettuce heads. We have a mix of lettuces so you may receive a tender butterhead lettuce, a hearty Romaine, or a delicate red head. Radishes (half shares): These fresh French and Easter radishes are delightfully crisp and their flavor ranges from mildly peppery to a bit sweet. Easter egg radishes are petite and round with thin, wiry taproots. Colors of their skin range from white to pink to crimson to purple and are wonderful raw or equally as good cooked. French breakfast radishes can be round in root shape but most are oblong and two - four inches in length. They're known for their vibrant coloring and crisp, midly spicy flavor. Heating removes both the radishes' crunch and their peppery bite; to avoid that you can add them at the end of the cooking process. Try glazed radishes made by placing a 2:2:1 ratio of butter, sugar, white vinegar in a pan and gently cooking until diced or quartered radishes are tender and the liquid evaporates. Season with salt and pepper. The tops are edible!  Euro Cucumber (half shares; some sites only): Share members who did not receive cucumbers last week will get them this week. The Euro cukes are seedless and distinguishable by their long, skinny share. They are nice for making into dressings, relishes, and sauces or for eating plain. Veggie Storage and Use Tips are on our website too, so please bookmark the recipe and storage tip section. I am sure you will find it useful. Need to Skip a Week? If you're ever not able to pick up your share, please let us know at least one week in advance. We can either skip your share and give you credit, send it the next week, or donate it to the food pantry. It's up to you! Sorry, we cannot skip a share or change pick-up sites after noon on Monday. Localvore Lore This week's localvore / pantry items are: This week we’re sending out Full Sun Canola Oil, a VT-grown and pressed canola oil that is certified GMO free. This oil is a fresh and delicious craft oil to use every day for cooking, sautéing, in marinades or dressings.  Full Sun is based out of Middlebury. ​From the Full Sun website: "Our oils come to you fresh from seeds grown on family farms. We can even tell you who grew the oil in each bottle. And as New England's first Non-GMO Project verified oil mill, we're committed to increasing the amount of non-GMO crop production in the Northeast ~ providing opportunities for farmers and producers to move forward into new, more sustainable markets."  Canola growing in Alburgh, VT  These Zesty Dill Freezer Pickles were made right here at the farm. Last summer when our cucumbers were going crazy, we got busy in the kitchen making our special freezer pickles. These pickles are sweet and sour and are great eaten right out of the container or added to a sandwich.  They are a freezer pickle and we are sending them out frozen so you may need to thaw a bit more in order to enjoy, or you can put right back in the freezer for a later date (use within 6 months).  Once open keep refrigerated and eat within 3 weeks. Our Basil Pesto contains our organic basil to which we add lots of garlic, parmesan and romano cheeses, lemon, and olive oil. Some of our pesto may be slightly oxidized on the top (which darkens it), but mix it up and it will regain its vibrant green color. My current favorite way to use pesto is to toss cubed potatoes with a liberal scoop, and roast in a 450 degree oven for 25-30 minutes. Recipes You can find more recipes by searching our website and/or our blog.  Beet Salad with Canola Oil dressing Serves: 2, Prep time: 25 mins (excluding the time for cooking the beets) 3-4 medium sized beets 2-3 thinly sliced red radishes 1/2 cup arugula 1/2 cup julienned carrots Dressing: 1/4 cup Full Sun extra virgin canola oil 1/4 cup Full Sun extra virgin sunflower oil 1 tsp. maple syrup 1 tsp. grated ginger root (or pickled ginger if preferred) 1 finely minced clove of garlic 1 tsp. tamari sauce Pinch of salt 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar Steam or boil beets until tender, blanch in cold water and/or peel the skins. Using a whisk or blender, combine dressing ingredients and use half to marinate the cooked peeled beets and reserve half to use for dressing the finished salad. Optional: sprinkle fresh goat cheese over salad. Easy Basil Garlic Aioli 1 cup Full Sun extra virgin sunflower oil 2 eggs 4 cloves garlic, peeled Juice of 1/2 lemon 1 cup fresh basil leaves Salt & pepper to taste Pour oil and eggs into wide mouth Mason Jar. Add peeled garlic cloves, lemon juice, & basil. Put the immersion blender all the way to the bottom of the jar and turn it on and draw blender up and down at least 2 or 3 times to draw air into sauce. Add salt & pepper to taste. Refrigerate and enjoy with meats, sandwiches, chips, fries, etc. Rhubarb Dream Bars  1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar 1/2 cup cold butter or margarine 1 1/4 cups sugar 2 eggs 2 cups finely chopped rhubarb 1/2 cup chopped walnuts 1/2 cup flaked coconut In a bowl, combine 1 cup flour and confectioners' sugar. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Pat into a lightly greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for 13-15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. In a bowl, combine the sugar and remaining flour. Add eggs; mix well. Stir in rhubarb, walnuts and coconut; pour over crust. Bake 30-35 minutes longer or until set. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Glazed Radishes 1 bunch radishes 1 tbsp butter 1 tbsp sugar 1/2 tbsp white vinegar Coarse salt and ground pepper Cut radishes in half.  Combine all ingredients in a saucepan heated over medium-high heat.  Cook until the liquid evaporates and radishes are tender. Rhubarb-Lemon Squares An amazing recipe, especially with Butterworks cornmeal. Recipe from spring 2015 Edible Green Mountains. Shortbread ¾ cup butter, diced 1¼ cups all-purpose flour ¼ cup cornmeal ⅓ cup sugar Rhubarb-Lemon Filling ¾ pound rhubarb, washed and diced ¼ cup maple syrup 4 egg yolks ½ cup sugar 1 teaspoon lemon zest 2 teaspoons lemon juice 3 tablespoons butter, diced For the shortbread: Preheat oven to 350° and butter a small gratin dish (any variation on the 8- by 8-inch size will do). Place all of the ingredients for the shortbread in a bowl and knead the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers. When it has the consistency of moist breadcrumbs and all the butter is incorporated, pour into the gratin dish and press down into the bottom. Put in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until it just begins to brown. Remove from the oven. For the filling: Put the rhubarb in a saucepan with the maple syrup and place over medium heat. Let the mixture simmer and break down until the rhubarb has “melted” into a purée and most of the liquid is boiled off. Set aside. In a medium-sized pot put the yolks, sugar, zest, juice and butter. Stir with a whisk over medium-low heat until the sugar has dissolved and it starts to thicken (about 5 minutes). Add the rhubarb purée and cook an additional 3 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly, being careful not to let it scorch. Pour the mixture over the shortbread and return to the oven for 8 minutes. Remove when the rhubarb purée has just begun to set. Let cool, cut into squares and dust with some confectioner’s sugar if you wish. Broccoli Raab with Sausage 1 pound broccoli rabe 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 4 ounces hot Italian sausage—casings removed, meat crumbled 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced Pinch of crushed red pepper Salt 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1/4 cup grated pecorino cheese In a pot of salted boiling water, cook the broccoli rabe until nearly tender, 4 minutes. Drain and cool under cold water. Squeeze and pat dry, then chop. In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the sausage and cook over moderately high heat, breaking it up into small pieces, until browned. Add 3 more tablespoons of oil, the garlic and red pepper to the skillet and cook for 1 minute. Add the broccoli rabe and cook, stirring, until tender, 3 minutes. Season with salt. Add the lemon juice and toss. Serve with pecorino.