CSA Summer Newsletter: July 18th, 2022 (Week 8/23)

Howdy Folks,

I’m certain you all are celebrating with me this incredible rain that we just had.  I’m not sure it was enough to charge the groundwater, but it was certainly enough to bring up the fall beets and carrots, which makes me sooooo happy.  BTW carrots will likely be harvested and packed into boxes next week.

I approach cooking vegetables in a very “can do'' sort of way.  It’s an unspecified process that usually involves very little glamor, heat, a skillet, fat and salt.  Call me old fashioned but I find vegetables can taste really good if just cooked thinking of texture and sprinkled with salt.  

At the farmers markets, I do my best to empower some adventurous cooks that are unsure if they want to try something new and unfamiliar.  The general cooking rule is don’t make new rules.  Greens are to be used like greens, as in try different greens in dishes that include greens and that you enjoy.  Things like garlic scapes that are just a seasonal variant of garlic until we start selling heads.  Cut up scapes and add the whole bunch to any dish that asks for garlic.  Until strong onions come in, we’re using a whole bunch of scallions sauteed with garlic scapes as a base for most dishes we cook.

Just looking at this week's share, I can see a nice combination of garlic scapes, scallions, and potatoes.  Steam potatoes on the side while you saute the scapes and the scallions.  We love smashed potatoes so we’ll slightly flatten the steamed potatoes and brown them in some fat.  Serve them topped with the cooked scallions and scapes (if you have any basil left from last week throw that in there, too).  Or subtract the potatoes and sauteed the swiss chard with the scallions and scapes.  

Your Farmers, 

Chris, Aeros and the Who Gang