CSA-Week of July 31st
This weeks CSA!
Full Share: Daikon Radish, Cucumber, Carrots, Napa Cabbage, Broccoli, Snow Peas, Fennel, Asian Greens, Garlic, Basil
Half Share: Daikon Radish, Carrots, Napa Cabbage, Broccoli, Snow Peas, Garlic, Basil, Cherry Tomatoes
Flower Bouquets: Bells of Ireland, Forget-Me-Nots, Purple Nigella, Blue Nigella, Lisianthus, Larkspur
Lauren hanging with camp kids during lunch
Hey Guys,
I hope everyone is off to a good start this week! I’m definitely looking forward to the cool rainy forecast for later this week.
We’ve got a bountiful harvest for CSA this week! Our fields are flush with veggies and flowers!
Raspberries are just starting to come in, we’re hoping to get out there and do some weeding to make them more accessible. We are expecting to butcher another round of chickens on Thursday, and are also looking forward to some new chicks soon!
I love seeing what the farm camp kids are up to. A week or two ago they made bandanas using our flowers to print patterns and dye them, and their garden out back is looking awesome. Lauren and I have had the pleasure of teaching them all about our flower operations and helping them build their own bouquets.
The third installment of our summer farm dinner series is coming up on August 9th. Chef Jordan Atwood is working hard to prepare another beautiful evening, with a 5-course menu and wine pairing by local sommelier Olivia Stoehr. Head to our website for more info and tickets!
A stunning rainbow bouquet designed by Jacy!
Lots of new goodies in CSA this week. I’m going to include a couple tips and recipes for using some of these veggies.
A few months ago, I tried out a new kimchi recipe and absolutely loved it! Kimchi uses a number of veggies in CSA this week—napa cabbage, daikon radishes, garlic, and carrots. This recipe makes a lot of kimchi—which I love because I have it with everything—but you can of course reduce it to accommodate for smaller portions.
Kimchi:
Makes about 8 pounds (3.6 kg) of Kimchi
6 pounds (about 2.7 kg) napa cabbage
½ cup Kosher salt (2.5 ounces: 72 grams)
2 cups water
2 tablespoons sweet rice flour (glutinous rice flour)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 cups daikon radish matchsticks
1 cup carrot matchsticks
7 to 8 green onions (scallions), chopped
1 cup chopped Asian chives (buchu), optional (substitute with 3 green onions, chopped)
1 cup water dropwort (minari), optional
Seasonings and Spices:
½ cup garlic cloves (24 garlic cloves), minced
2 teaspoon ginger, minced
1 medium onion, minced
½ cup fish sauce
¼ cup fermented salted shrimp (saeujeot) with salty brine, chopped (optional as it can be hard to find)
2 cups red pepper flakes (gochugaru)—sometimes along with this I like to add a little chili crisp!
Instructions:
Prepare and Salt the Cabbage
If the cabbage cores stick out too much, trim them off with your knife over your cutting board.
To split a cabbage in half without shredding the densely packed leaves inside, first cut a short slit in the base of the cabbage, enough to get a grip on either half, and then gently pull the halves apart so the cabbage splits open.
Cut a slit through the core of each half, 2 inches above the stem. You want the cabbage leaves to be loose but still attached to the core.
Dunk the halves in a large basin of water to get them wet. Sprinkle salt between the leaves by lifting up every leaf and getting salt in there. Use more salt closer to the stems, where the leaves are thicker.
Let the cabbages rest for 2 hours. Turn over every 30 minutes, so they get well salted. From time to time you can ladle some of the salty water from the bottom of the basin over top of the cabbages if you want to.
After 2 hours, wash the cabbage halves a few times under cold running water. Giving them a good washing, to remove the salt and any dirt. As you wash, split the halves into quarters along the slits you cut into earlier. Cut off the cores, give them a final rinse, and put them in a strainer over a basin so they can drain well.
Making the Marinade
While the cabbage is salting for 2 hours, and in between the times you’re turning it over, you can make the porridge:
Combine the water and the sweet rice flour in a small pot. Mix well with a wooden spoon and let it cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes until it starts to bubble. Add the sugar and cook 1 more minute, stirring. Remove from the heat and let it cool off completely.
Pour cooled marinade into a large mixing bowl. Add garlic, ginger, onion, fish sauce, fermented salted shrimp, and hot pepper flakes. Mix well with the wooden spoon until the mixture turns into a thin paste.
Add the radish, carrot, and green onion, plus the Asian chives (or more green onions) and the water dropwort if you’re using them. Mix well.
Bringing it all together:
In a large bowl, spread some kimchi paste on each cabbage leaf. When every leaf is covered with paste, wrap it around itself into a small packet, and put into your jar, plastic container, or onggi.
Eat right away, or let it sit for a few days to ferment.
Fermentation:
The kimchi will start fermenting after a day or two at room temperature, depending on the temperature and humidity of your room. The warmer and more humid it is, the faster the kimchi will ferment. Once it starts to ferment it will smell and taste sour, and by pressing on the top of the kimchi with a spoon you will release bubbles from beneath. If you’re using a sealed jar with a lid, be sure to open it once a while, let it breathe, and press down on the top of the kimchi.
Once it starts to ferment, store in the refrigerator to use as needed. This slows down the fermentation process, which will make the kimchi more and more sour as time goes on.
Kimchi might seem like a long and strenuous process, but trust me, it can be very fun! Once you’ve eaten your first batch, you can use the last bits to start a new round of kimchi, almost like sourdough starter. It could be a fun family project for one of the rainy afternoons predicted for this week.
If you find yourself in need of unique recipes Jacy suggests checking out Andy Baraghani’s website: https://www.andybaraghani.com
It is a goldmine of simple, mouthwatering recipes that can elevate any dinner table.
As always, let me know if you have any questions about veggies, flowers, recipes, or any other farm things!
Lots of love,
Emma