January 29th Whole Farm and Winter CSA
Full Share: Carrots, Red Beets, Blush Onion, Sugar Dumping, Portuguese Kale, Salad Mix, Sunshoots or Peashoots, Parsley.
Full Share: Carrots, Red Beets, Blush Onion, Sugar Dumping, Portuguese Kale, Salad Mix, Sunshoots or Peashoots.
This is the last week of Winter and Whole Farm CSA. Next we start the 2025 Whole Farm CSA + Summer CSA will go on sale Feb 1. Thank you all for a great season!
As February approaches, the lengthening days become more noticeable. In the green houses plants take advantage of the increased sunlight while we work to keep temperatures warm enough for them to survive.
This week in your boxes are filled with greens from the green houses, squash and root veggies. You will receive Portuguese Kale, a hearty green, which is tasty sautéd or in a kale soup. Check out this Portuguese “Caldo Verde” recipe for inspiration. https://www.seriouseats.com/caldo-verde-portuguese-potato-kale-soup-recipe.
A Winter Ratatouille is a delicious way to turn your root veggies in a winter meal. This recipe is modified from Divyasha Ray: https://www.umamifromscratch.com/recipes-blog/winter-ratatouille. Mix it up and get creative with what ever vegetables you have on hand!
Ingredients (serves 4-6 as side)
2 tbsp Salted butter (substitute with Olive Oil to keep it Vegan)
3 Leeks or onions thinly chopped
3 Garlic Cloves, chopped
2 Tbsp Grated Ginger
1/2 tsp Ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
2-3 Sprigs of Thyme
2 sprigs of Sage
150ml Vegetable Stock (substitute with Water)
2 cups Crème Fraîche (substitute with Sour Cream or Vegan Cream Cheese)
1 cup Grated Gruyere or Cheddar Cheese (substitute with Vegan Cheddar)
Veggie Prep (everything should be thinly sliced into half moons)
2-3 Apples
2-3 Carrots or parsnips or sweet potato
3 Medium Beets
2-4 sugar dumping squash
Optional daikon radish
1 + 1/2 tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Salt
2 sprigs of Thyme
Glaze
1.5 tbsp Unsalted Butter (substitute with Vegan Butter)
1 tsp Maple Syrup or honey
1/2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 tsp pepper
Directions
Finish the Veggie Prep: Combine 1 tbsp Olive Oil (reserving 1/2 tbsp) with all veggie prep ingredients in a large bowl. Toss really well until everything is coated in oil, salt and thyme
Make the sauce: In a 10” oven proof skillet (if you don’t have one then use a regular skillet and use a 10” Round baking tin later) add butter, leeks/onions, ginger and garlic. On medium flame continue frying until they start sweating and smelling aromatic (about 4 mins or so). Then add dry spices and cook for 2 minutes; now add stock. Give it a good mix and increase the heat to bring to vigorous simmer - once simmering cook it for 5 mins and turn off the heat. Pre-heat oven to 375F. Once cool enough, transfer into blender, add crème fraîche and cheese. Whiz until it’s a smooth sauce like consistency
Arrange and bake: Transfer 3/4 sauce back to the oven-proof skillet or a round cake tin. Swirl the skillet/tin so that a layer is formed in the base then start arranging the seasoned slices of vegetables from the large bowl. I prefer to create a set of different colored slices (example: 1 slice of Apple, 1 slice of carrot, 1 slice of squash, 1 slice of Beet, and 1 slice of parsnip ), then repeat the pattern. Even if it’s haphazard it will still look fabulous due to the stunning natural colors of all vegetables. I try to stuff in a lot more vegetables as they shrink a lot while baking so don’t be afraid to squish and overlap. If there are leftover vegetables, then lay them over on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake them on a separate rack until golden and cooked. Those will be amazing for another dinner. Now, pour the remaining sauce on top of arranged vegetables finish with 1/2 tbsp Olive Oil and crushed white pepper. Cover with an aluminum foil and bake for 30 mins and uncover, increase the temperature to 400F and bake for another 20-25 mins or until the veggies look caramelized and when poked with a fork, they are tender
Serve: When ready to serve, heat up butter in a small pan. Once sizzling, add tarragon or sage leaves. Fry until crisp, fish out the leaves and let the butter cool a bit. Now whisk, maple syrup and the aromatic butter into a glaze. Brush the ratatouille with the glaze and decorate with crispy tarragon or sage leaves. Enjoy!
*Note: if you have a cast iron Dutch oven or braiser with a lid then it will be perfect to use here
Thirsty birds
