Sharing the CSA love

We're spending the off-season dreaming and scheming, and today, we're looking at our CSA member survey comments. It may be cold outside, but you all warmed our hearts!

  • "Thank you all for your hard work. Really enjoyed it."
  • We loved the CSA, and want to get more involved next year.
  • "Veggies are awesome!"
  • "it was a great experience this year. i was always impressed by the amount or quality of the food."
  • "You guys rock!!"
  • CSA pickups were "easy, friendly, and a highlight of the week!"
  • "Looking forward to next year!"
  • Can't wait to start back up again next year!

What I'm making for Thanksgiving from my Owl's Nest Farm CSA haul

by Owl's Nest Farm Market CSA member Denise Graveline

I just finished my Thanksgiving shopping at Whole Foods, where I got my local turkey; lots of fruit; baking ingredients; dairy; and a loaf of bread. What I didn't get: Vegetables. That's because I have a fridge, freezer, and countertop loaded with vegetables from Owl's Nest Farm CSA, and I'm going to be using up some of my CSA vegetables for Thanksgiving. I'm especially thankful this year that we have a big feast scheduled right after the last farmers market.

Here's what I'm using from the CSA and the recipes I'm using:

  • Rosemary: I'm tempted to toss aside my normal orange-bourbon turkey recipe, tried and true, for this orange rosemary roasted turkey, because Owl's Nest rosemary is one of my favorite purchases--and this recipe has it right, the house will smell amazing. I'm also going to make ice cream, and this recipe for strawberry-rosemary-balsamic vinegar ice cream also benefits from the farm rosemary, which is infused in the cream to add flavor.
  • Sweet potatoes: New on my holiday table this year will be Bobby Flay's maple-chipotle sweet potatoes. Overnight guests also will get sweet potatoes in this spicy hash, made with sweet potatoes, black beans, and eggs, all on a sheet pan.
  • Potatoes and turnips: A simple potato gratin was on my list, because I have a pile of potatoes from the farm, but I may get fancier and make scalloped potatoes, and layer in some purple-top turnips and caramelized onions.
  • Spinach and greens: I never liked creamed spinach until I tried Laurie Colwin's recipe for creamed spinach, which has a kick from a small amount of jalapeno. Guests ask for seconds and thirds, so I'm making a bigger batch this year. (Colwin got the recipe from a woman in Texas, and wrote, "It was so good it made me want to sit up and beg like a dog.") You can use any kind of tender cooked greens in this, so it works if you've got farm tatsoi, chard, spinach, and more. Spinach can be difficult to grow, but the farm's late-harvest spinach did well and is perfect for this dish.
  • Green tomatoes: I love the green tomatoes, so I've made this Indian-inspired green tomato and apple chutney, which will be part of the spread of cheeses, meats, breads, and fruit we'll be snacking on while the turkey cooks.
  • Squash: For an easy lunch during the holiday weekend, I'm looking to these squash toasts with ricotta and cider vinegar. I've already roasted some of the great winter squash from the farm and set it aside for this purpose.

Here's hoping your Thanksgiving is filled with farm bounty, family, and friends.

recipes from our open house for CSA members

Our wonderful friend and chef Katie Aldworth shared these delicious recipes at our Open House for CSA members in May.

SALSA VERDE
1 bunch/packed cup basil leaves
1 bunch/packed cup parsley leaves
⅛ to ¼ cup red wine vinegar
½ to 1 ½ cups extra virgin olive oil (EVO)
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
4 cornichon (small cucumber pickles)
3 Tbsp capers
1 to 3 garlic cloves
2 anchovy filet
Salt and pepper to taste

Put leaves in a blender, chop. Add vinegar and olive oil and blend. Add other ingredients and blend until smooth.

This is a sauce that is so healthy and delicious on pretty much everything. Raw or blanched vegetables, sandwiches, eggs, nicoise salad, any fish or chicken. The quantities can be adjusted liberally for preference or availability. For instance, if you don’t have cornichons it will still be great. It will keep in the fridge for about a week (longer if you have fermented garlic to use).

KIMCHI PASTE

20 garlic cloves
2 inches ginger
½ cup korean chili powder (http://www.hmart.com/red-pepper-powder-fine-3-lbs-23270/)
¼ cup fish sauce (http://www.hmart.com/fish-sauce/) or vegan fish sauce
⅛ to ¼ cup soy sauce (preferably light)
2 tsp salted shrimp, optional (http://www.hmart.com/salted-shrimp/)

There are tons of recipes for kimchi. This one is based off of one of the momofuku recipes and is great for quick kimchi (like cucumbers delicious minutes after mixing) or longer ferments of napa cabbage, carrots, daikons, or whatever! The paste will keep just about forever in your fridge, so if you like kimchi you could make a big batch.

First take your vegetables. Think about the size of an average Napa cabbage--for that many vegetables cut to your preference (thinner will allow the paste to penetrate more quickly), toss with about 2 Tbsp salt. Let sit for a few hours or overnight. This pulls the water out of the vegetables. It is an essential step for making room for the paste to penetrate the vegetables, and also for making a crisp kimchi. Drain off the salt water.

Mix in as much paste as you like. You don’t need much for the fermentation process to happen (maybe ¼ to ½ cup) but can put as much as you like. I like to use my hands for this mixing, it is by far the easiest way to spread the paste. Cover, and at this point you can put it in the fridge and eat after 24 hours, it will be better after two weeks. Or, you can leave it on the counter for a couple days. If you leave it on the counter it is important that you gas it off every day or so, or your container top may pop off, aggressively.

VEGAN FISH SAUCE http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-vegan-fish-sauce-130535

If you don’t have the mushroom soy sauce that is called for in this recipe you can use tamari or soy (preferably light) and mushroom stems (preferably shiitake)