Doorstep Harvest Newsletter 4-6-2013
All produce this week is organically grown in my winter high tunnel.
Carrot: Obviously great eaten whole, or grated into salad. I added some delicious purple carrot to the mix. (Wiki-fact: The city of Holtville, California, promotes itself as “Carrot Capital of the World”, and holds an annual festival devoted entirely to the carrot.)
Braising mix: Contains Red Russian Kale, Dinosaur Kale, Mustard Greens, Chard, and Beet Greens, and sorrel. Just stir-fry them. One tablespoon of Mirin, and a teaspoon of brown rice vinegar, added near the end, adds to the flavor. Adding sesame seeds also makes it taste great to me.
Salad mix: Contains arugula, encore salad mix, sorrel, (looks like clover), baby beet greens, cress, and a few parsley leaves. The extra salad mix we planted is coming to fruition, so the salad is mostly encore salad mix. (WikiFact: (for sorrel) Wood sorrel is an edible wild plant that has been consumed by humans around the world for millennia. In Dr. James Duke’s “Handbook of Edible Weeds,” he notes that the Kiowa Indian tribe chewed wood sorrel to alleviate thirst on long trips, that the Potawatomi Indians cooked it with sugar to make a dessert,)
Spinach: The spinach is loving the weather in the hoops! It is truly flourishing. (Wiki-fact: During World War I, wine fortified with spinach juice was given to French soldiers weakened by hemorrhage.)
Herbs: Oregano, lemon balm, thyme, parsley, and wild garlic leaves. Chop garlic leaves and add to salads. They’re rather bland, so you can be rather generous. Put lemon balm with hot water to make a relaxing tea. (WikiFact: (for thyme) The spread of thyme throughout Europe was thought to be due to the Romans, as they used it to purify their rooms and to “give an aromatic flavour to cheese and liqueurs”.)
Flowers: forsythia (yellow), quince (pink, will force bloom), and Euonymus (no flower, but pretty)
Recipe for Lemon Balm Cheese Spread:
2 oz Unsalted butter, softened.
8 oz Cream cheese, softened.
2 T Orange marmalade
1 t Orange zest
1 T Fresh orange juice
3 T Fresh chopped Lemon Balm
Directions:
Blend the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Mix in the other ingredients. Chill overnight and serve at room temperature.