We had one of our farmers try some purple and orange cauliflower to see how they would do (and how they'd look!)  Take a look.... we took these photos on Monday and gave the Millers the go-ahead to purchase and sow seeds so hopefully we'll have a nice crop in the fall.  Isn't it beautiful? 

Have you heard?  Scientists have now finally been able to breed a chicken with 3 legs!  They’ve been working on this for years in response to people who really love dark meat.  Well, we raised a few this year…people have been asking us, “Do they really taste better?”  We’ll let you know as soon as we catch one.  (ha-ha)

A few cooking tips and recipes for cooking chicken leg quarters.  The leg quarter includes the thigh and drumstick; you can either separate the two or leave them intact.  To separate the drumstick from the leg quarter, place the leg quarter on a cutting board skin side down.  Locate knee joint by bending thigh and leg together.  Cut down firmly through the joint between the drumstick and the thigh.

Chicken thighs are very easy to bone. They only have one big bone in the middle. To remove it, you just pry it out of the flesh with strong fingers. It takes almost no work. Boneless chicken thighs can be used in any recipe for boneless chicken breasts, and at less than a quarter of the cost.

Basil-Ricotta Stuffed Chicken Legs with Bacon
Makes 4 servings

1 small garlic clove, minced
1 cup (8 oz) ricotta cheese
1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp minced fresh basil
1/4 tsp minced fresh thyme or 1/8 tsp dried
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
4 whole chicken legs (2 pounds)
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
4 oz bacon (4 slices)

Mix the cheeses, egg yolk, basil, thyme, garlic and half the salt and pepper in a small bowl.

Loosen skin at thigh and stuff about 1/4 cup of the filling under the skin of each leg. Tuck skin under leg to secure filling. Sprinkle with lemon juice and the remaining salt and pepper.

Cut bacon strips in half and crisscross 2 halves over each thigh. Transfer legs to a large baking pan.

Preheat oven to 450F. Adjust oven rack to the middle position.

Bake the chicken legs until their juices run clear when pierced with a fork, about 25 minutes. Transfer to warmed dinner plates and serve immediately.

Chicken Fricassee

Makes 4 Servings

3 Chicken Leg Quarters

1/3 C Flour

Salt and Pepper

2 T Butter

1 Med Onion, Quartered and Sliced

1 ½ C Chicken Gravy

4 Potatoes, Diced

1 lb Cooked Green Beans

Those would be called Garlic Scapes. 

When most people think of garlic, they picture the white, misshapen bulbs that spend their entire life below ground before being plucked for use in almost every cuisine. But during the spring until early June sometime, the hardneck garlic plant offers another rare and fleeting find: the garlic scape.

This is the sprout of the garlic plant, a thin, green stalk that curls above the ground and is more tender and sweeter than the cloves that lie below. But there’s a reason the scape is not widely known, and that is because it must be picked within the first two weeks that it breaks the surface of the soil. If you wait too long and the stalk straightens out, the scapes become tough and unappetizing. These early spring gems have long been a part of Eastern European cooking. American farmers, however, have long cut these stalks off and discarded them, but some are just now starting to offer them up for sale in farmer’s markets.          

Scapes will store well, for a couple of weeks.  Naturally they are best when fresh and are very versatile, able to replace garlic, scallions, ramps or onions in most recipes.

If you’re daring, try a bite raw… you’ll notice the strong garlicky flavor. 

Some garlic scape recipes:

Garlic Scape Pesto

1 Bunch of Garlic Scapes (chopped into 1" sections)
¼ C Olive Oil
1 C Grated Parmesan Cheese

In a blender, combine the scapes and olive oil. Pour mixture into bowl and blend the cheese in by hand.

Mashed Potatoes with Garlic Scapes

2 1/2 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces.
2 Tablespoons butter (can omit this if on a restricted fat diet/lifestyle)
1-2 Tbsp, olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped scapes
1/4 cup hot milk (or more)

Cook potatoes until very tender. Drain and return to pot. Over medium high heat, melt butter with olive oil in a small skillet. Add scapes and saute about 5 minutes. Add to potatoes and mash. Gradually add milk while stirring. Season with salt and pepper.

Garlic Scape Ideas:

Add sliced scapes to any stir fry recipe.
Slice and sprinkle over any pasta, or slice and cook them in almost any sauce recipe.
Add to guacamole and fresh salsa, too.
Chop & add to softened cream cheese.
Add chopped fresh scapes when serving a light garlic soup; can also add them to buttered, french bread floated on the soup. -Use them as you would green onions, they're just better.
Good in salads, on bruschetta, pizza.
Excellent addition to stocks....and much Asian cuisine.
Put in Thai chicken/basil/coconut soup.

Free-Range Heirloom Pork is best when it has just reached well done, but not overcooked.  Overcooking your pork will result in meat that is too dry and too tough.  The easiest way to prevent overcooking is to use a good chef’s (with a small dial used periodically) thermometer-not a meat thermometer.  Since free-range pork cooks so quickly, your pork can go from perfectly cooked to overcooked in less than a minute.  Meat continues to cook even after it has been removed from the heat source, therefore, you want to stop cooking the meat just before it has reached the desired temperature; it will finish cooking from the residual heat.  This generally applies to chops and ham or blade steaks.

Remove from the heat source 5-10 degrees prior to achieving the desired temperature and allow them to finish cooking via residual heat.  Food scientists tell us now that pork is safe to eat after it reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees.  At that temperature, pork can be juicy, tender, and flavorful.  

Stovetop cooking is great for chops! You have more control over the temperature than on the grill.  They key to good pork chops is high and fast or low and slow.

Cooking a pork roast, ribs or backbone is best accomplished by slow cooking.  Either braising, slow grilling or crock potting is the best means of cooking these cuts of meat.

When roasting pork, reduce the temperature of your grain-fed pork recipes by 50 degrees. This usually means around 275 degrees for roasting, or at the lowest heat setting in a crock-pot. The cooking time will still be the same or slightly shorter, even at the lower temperature. Again, watch your meat thermometer and don't overcook your meat. Use moisture from sauces to add to the moisture when cooking your roast.

Never use a microwave to thaw your free-range pork.   If time allows, bring your free-range meat to room temperature before cooking.  Always pre-heat your oven, pan or grill before cooking. 

TIP:  When roasting, sear the pork to lock in the juices: You can do this by pan searing on top of the stove or by placing the roast in a HOT oven (450 degrees), then drop the dial to your baking temp as soon as the oven door is closed. Save your leftovers... roasted free-range pork slices make good, healthy, luncheon meats instead of the hyper processed "lunch-meats" from the grocery store.

Remember that sausage is also free-range! It is going to cook very quickly with little shrinkage and little excess fat. If you want to make gravy, you may need to add some oil to the skillet in order to have enough drippings.  Bacon is best cooked slowly over medium heat, turning often.

Recipe BBQ Pork Ribs 

Rub ribs with coarse salt, pepper, a little five spice and a lot of thyme. mix with a few bay leaves, lots of sliced ginger and whole garlic cloves in their skins.  Refrigerate overnight.   The next day, bake the ribs in a foil-covered dish at 325 F for about 3 hours, or until very tender.  Remove from oven and turn on broiler.   Score fatty side of ribs in a crosshatch pattern, spread honey over the ribs and broil 8-12 inches from heat in single layer, in batches if necessary, fat side up til very crisp-- careful, don't burn them!   Cut into individual ribs and serve... sooo good! 

Jenny’s Suggestions for Pork:

Pork Chops:  Season chops (I like Canadian (Montreal) Steak Seasoning), garlic is also great on chops, then Hot and Fast in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop with just a couple drops of olive oil.  High heat 2 minutes each side.  Cook with some sliced apples for a nice flavor.  Great served with sauerkraut or applesauce.

Ham Steaks:  These are already fully cooked and only need to be warmed in a skillet on the stovetop.  You can add a little water (or apple juice, pineapple juice or orange juice) and cover to keep the ham from drying, otherwise heat it quickly.  It’s also great to eat cold as an appetizer or for lunch.

Pork Roast (including Backbone):  Crock pot!  This is a quick, down and dirty recipe.  1 Can (jar) of Beef Broth, 1 Packet of brown gravy mix, whisk and add pork roast, cover and set crock pot on low for the day.  Meat should be falling off the bones.  Pork backbone is the most flavorful part in my humble opinion.  Great over rice, with egg noodles, over open-faced texas toast type bread or with mashed potatoes.

Pork Ribs: Crock pot!  J  Either make your own BBQ sauce or use a store bought brand and set it on low for the day.  Add onions about 30min-1hr prior to serving, great over rice or on sandwiches.  Slow cooking over indirect heat on the grill is good too, but I’m not much of a griller (that’s Tim’s area).

Pork Blade Steaks: Great on the grill, slow-cooked also good in the oven, braised.  Use can braise in water, broth or juice.  Blade steaks are flavorful like roasts because they are rich in marbling, which keeps them tender during cooking. Blade steak is a popular, quick-cooking cut for grilling.  Best way I like to cook these is using indirect grilling for about 2-2 ½ hours.

I hope that these suggestions help you make better use of the meat you’re receiving from us.  If you come across a great recipe, please post a comment here and/or add it to the yahoo group for all to enjoy.

Remember…. Eating seasonally and locally will take some effort and pre-planning.  However the rewards you reap will be appreciated by your family and your taste buds!

Alvin Mast is the son of Eli and he loves his bees.  He’s the gentleman who raises the Sourwood Honey that we’ve been offering (and selling out of) as of late.  We visited him again today to get some more honey and he’s a little distressed because he took his last couple of cases.  He’ll have more in about a month.

In any case, he approached me today and asked me if our customers would be interested in Bee Pollen.  I was a bit taken aback as he showed me the pollen and explained the amazing method that is used to gather the pollen.  His honeybees are industrious little creatures; they will forage to collect pollen from a certain preferred flower, sometimes traveling quite far in search for it. The pollen grains are caught in the little branched hairs they have in their hind legs. The bee moistens the pollen with nectar and some honey, which has been regurgitated specially for this purpose, and proceeds to compact the whole thing into a tiny pollen pellet. This pellet (which is usually yellow but can be red, orange or purplish depending on the color of the flower it came from), will be carried off to the hive.   Using a special contraption placed at the entrance of the hive, about 50% of the pollen pellets will be collected at "pollen harvest time". What does get in will be stored exclusively to feed honeybee larvae and for the worker bees. 

Bee collected pollen contains 8 flavoniods, at least 11 carotenoids, vitamins C, E, all the Bs, all free amino acids, minerals, more than 100 enzymes and several growth regulators.

Bee Pollen is a natural material produced by the anthers of flowering plants and gathered by bees. It has a high content of protein and other nutrients.

Start with a small amount (1/4 tsp.) and gradually increase to 1 tsp. 1 or more times daily. Add to cereal, blender drinks, or simply eat it and enjoy the nutty, sweet/sour, taste.

So please give us some feedback.  Are you interested? 

Jenny

Well, I’ve had a few customers email me wanting to cook their lettuce.  I wouldn’t recommend doing that, although I can get pretty creative in the kitchen...

Cabbage has waxy light green leaves in a tight, dense head (minus the toes).   The cabbage in the photo below is from Jonas Miller's farm.

Ok, a little bit of factoid information.  Did you know, green and red cabbage, collards, kohlrabi, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and kale are all considered members of the cabbage family? 

Cabbage is very good for you, they're loaded (excellent source) with vitamin C, dietary fiber, and possibly cancer-fighting compounds to boot.  Cabbage also has a significant amount of glutamine (which is an amino-acid that has anti-inflammatory properties). 

One head of green cabbage yields about 8 cups shredded  cabbage.  It is quite versatile.  You can cut it into chunks, boil it, make soup out of it, and serve it with corned beef or other fatty meats.  You can also use cooked leaves as wrappers for meat fillings, or shred raw ones for coleslaw.  You can use cabbage in place of lettuce on sandwiches as well!

Another factoid, cabbage comes in two waves here in Tennessee.  We plant it in the spring and the fall because it grows well in the cool weather and they take approximately 45 days to mature (see the picture, can you believe just 45 days??). 

Storage: Keep it dry and unwashed, preferably in the vegetable bin.  The outer leaves may eventually get floppy or turn a little yellowish, but you can simply remove the outer leaves and cabbage can keep for more than a month!

Oh, one other interesting piece of information… China is the largest producer of cabbage in the world.  It’s such an amazingly versatile vegetable.  It’s wonderful raw and terrific cooked, I prefer not to over cook it though.

On to some recipes!

Easy Coleslaw

4-6 Servings 

5 C Shredded Cabbage

2 Large Carrots, grated

¾ C Mayonnaise

1/3 C Apple Cider Vinegar

2 T Honey

1 tsp Caraway Seeds

¾ tsp Salt to taste

1.  Toss the cabbage and carrots in a large bowl.

2.  Mix the mayo, vinegar, honey and caraway seeds in a small bowl.  Pour the dressing over the cabbage; toss to combine.  Stir in salt to taste and chill.  Variations:  Can add ¼ C minced cilantro, and ¼ C Chopped Chives and 2 T Sugar

p.s. Caraway seeds help in digestion of raw cabbage…

Sauerkraut (Lacto-fermented)

2 Quarts

1 lb Cabbage (about 1 small head, shredded)

2 T Sea Salt

1 T Caraway Seeds

1.  Put all ingredients in a large wooden or stainless bowl.  Using a pounder (or a can from the pantry) pound the cabbage in the bowl for a full 10 minutes until the cabbage begins to release its juices.

2.  Transfer the cabbage to 2 clean 1-quart jars, leaving 1” headspace below the rim of the jar.  Screw on the lids.  Let stand on counter for 3 days.  By the 2^nd day you’ll notice the lacto-fermentation process taking place – you’ll see bubbles in the jars and it’s look like your child’s science experiment (this is a good thing).

3.  The sauerkraut will be ready and will have a wonderful sour, tangy taste after 3 days.  This flavor will only get better with age.  After the first 3 days, store the jars in a cool, dark cellar or in the refrigerator.  Will keep for at least 6 months.

Cooking Times:

Steam:  5-8 minutes

Saute or Stir-Fry:  4-5 minutes

Braising: 15 minutes

Off to the kitchen…

Ok, so are you beginning to stress a little?  Are you delving into the creative recesses of your mind, figuring out what to do with all these radishes?

I’m here to help! 

First, as part of your CSA experience Tim and I strongly encourage each of you to do a couple things. 

#1  Accept the fact that you’ll come out of your comfort zones as you explore and try new foods.  Once you accept this fact, you’ll be able to be there for your family members (especially the little ones) as they explore and taste the wonders of our creator’s bounty.

I love this picture.  We took this while harvesting produce at Sam Beachy's farm.  His farm is just gorgeous, I love photography and what better place or subject matter is there?

#2  Don’t be afraid to try every fresh vegetable raw.  If you get a beet, wash it off and chomp into it.  This is part of the experience.  The first time I bit into a raw fresh beet, just plucked out of the ground—I was simply amazed.  Wow, earthly, sweet… crisp… like nothing I had had before.  Green beans… go ahead… take a bite.  Raw…you say??  Absolutely.  I actually had a customer say, “You can’t do that… can you?”  The photo below was taken at Lew Beachy's farm on Friday while we were gathering and washing lettuce and radishes (and a few cabbage).  Isn't the lettuce beautiful?

So, let’s talk about radishes.  You will receive a plethora of different varieties.  Your standard variety of radish is a Cherry Belle.  Red on the outside, white on the inside.  So far this season, we’ve also harvested French Breakfast (long red toward the greens and white toward the roots), Easter Eggs (multi hued pastel colors) and White Icycles (long white radishes). 

A bowl of these raw pink, white, purple and red gems left of the counter will gradually disappear (really!).  Sliced or grated, radishes add a wonderful fresh-peppery flavor to many different dishes and salads. 

Storage:  Remove radish leave if still attached.  Store the unwashed green in a loosely wrapped plastic bag in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator.  Store your radishes dry and unwashed in a plastic bag and they should keep for a week.  When you’re ready to use them, wash and trim the stems and roots.

Well, aside from eating whole, raw and salted, and thinly sliced atop salads, let’s look at cooking radishes.  YES!  Indeed you can cook radishes!

Sauteed Radishes with Radishes Greens

Serves 4

¼ C Butter

1 lb Radishes (quartered)

4 C Radish Greens

2 T Lemon Juice (about 1 small lemon)

Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the radishes; cook, stirring constantly, until tender but still crisp, about 5 minutes depending on the size.  Transfer to a bowl to cool.  Return the skillet to stove.
2. Put the greens in the skillet with the wash water still clinging to the leaves.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, just until wilting, about 2-3 minutes.
3. Turn off heat.  Add lemon juice and radishes to the skillet; stir until well combined.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve immediately as a side dish.

Another idea to try!  

We are so excited about this blogging tool.  Imagine… last year people had to GUESS at what was in their boxes… we would get these e-mails like “What’s the slightly round thing with bumps and purple specs on it?”  Then we’d write back and go “Big bumps or small bumps?”  Well… you get the idea.

No more!  Now we have this great tool and we can post PICTURES of all things.  Ain’t tekology wunderfool!? 

Now a few ground rules.  First off, I will not post every single thing in the box every week.  If I have covered it already, I may just mention it (or may not) and it will be found in previous posts.  Also, I may not mention really common things… like broccoli… pretty much everyone knows what that is and what it looks like.  I will try to tell you varieties of things so you can become familiar with them and learn, for example, all the different types of tomatos. 

Also, just because an item is pictured here does not necessarilly mean you were supposed to get it in your box.  Sometimes we don't have enough of one thing to give it to every group or share type.  So... as a result... we mix it up.  Even within the same group, your friend's box might be different than yours.  For example, not everyone will get all the four types of lettuce pictured below.  We expect that by serendipity, you will eventually get some of everything.  We have to have the ability to remain flexible, othewise the system won't work.  Please do not flood us with e-mails saying "I didn't get cauliflower" because your friend may not have gotten brocolli.  Ask them... maybe they'll want to trade!!

We hope this really enhances your food experience.

Tim

Speckled ButterCrunch Lettuce

Easy Roasted Herb Chicken
1 Whole Avalon Acres Farms Chicken
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon dried (or 2T Fresh) Herbs (equal parts thyme, rosemary or sage)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Rinse chicken under cold water and pat dry. Rub with olive oil and generously sprinkle with herbs, salt and pepper on all sides and inside. Place on a roasting rack in a roasting pan, breast side up. Quarter the onion and stuff inside chicken for added flavor. Your chicken is already trussed, this helps the chicken keep its shape and cook more evenly.

Place the chicken breast side up in a very hot oven (450 degrees) uncovered for 20-25 minutes. This will sear the outside of the chicken, giving it a nice color and locking in juices. Paprika also helps with a nice browning color. Remove the chicken and reduce heat to 350 degrees. Turn the chicken over so the breast side is down and finish cooking at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until juices run clear or meat thermometer reaches 170 degrees. Let rest for 5 minutes before carving.

Enjoy!