Week 12 Farm Share News
Hello Farm Share members. For those of you with children school we hope you are enjoying the last week of summer vacation and hope you had a good few months of sun and good food. For everyone out there, we still have a lot of warm weather and sun left and a lot more summer food to eat. This past week we have had the very first of the Padron peppers at market and our first pickling cucumbers. This week’s share will include more cucumber varieties like pickling cukes, with more kinds and quantities to come. If you are a serious pickler and would like larger quantities of pickling cucumbers, please let us know and we can arrange it. We will have higher volumes and more consistent sizes in the next few weeks. Until then, using small amounts for fermented pickles and eating them fresh is a good way to use up what is in the share.
Aside from cucumbers, this week you will find squash, tomatoes, potatoes, chard, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, and cabbage. Cherry tomatoes, though great on their own, are really wonderful roasted. To do this, remove tops, place in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast at 500 degrees. Though ovens vary quite a bit, I find myself checking them at about twenty minutes and taking them out around twenty five minutes.
They should be well browned, almost blackened on top but not burned. This is a good way to preserve them as well, a pint of roasted tomatoes fits perfectly into a sandwich bag and freezes well for winter use. They will keep several days in the fridge as well. Try them in this simple salad as well, made with broccoli and chickpeas or lentils.
Roasted Cherry Tomato and Broccoli Salad
1 pint cherry tomatoes, roasted as in directions above
2 cups chopped broccoli and stems
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup fresh herbs, optional
2 cups cooked chickpeas or brown lentils
2 tbs. sherry or red wine vinegar
2 tbs. Olive oil
1 tbs. dijon mustard
One clove garlic, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
Cook lentils or chickpeas as directed on packaging. Canned chickpeas make this come together really fast. Roast cherry tomatoes as directed above. Chop broccoli and stems into bite sized pieces and steam for five minutes, till slightly tender but still crunchy. Add to a mixing bowl with roasted tomatoes, onion, lentils or chickpeas and herbs if using. Basil and oregano work well in this. In a separate bowl, whisk together vinegar, oil, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour over salad and mix to coat vegetables. This salad is great served warm with a sprinkling of feta cheese or chilled and served cold. And, like many dishes posted in this blog, it packs well for picnics or lunches at school or work. It pairs well with grilled meats or fish for a very fast and easy dinner.
Aside from harvesting and eating great food at the farm, we are planting and seeding crops each week for fall. We have radishes, turnips, tender greens and carrots coming up in some hoop houses and more salad in the ground than ever, along with cabbages, broccoli, brussel’s sprouts, rutabaga, kohlrabi and cauliflower.
This is our largest salad planting to date to expect some good dressing recipes to come in the near future. If you have a favorite, let us know. Or if you have any other ideas or things you would like to hear about in the blog, please email us at laurasfarmstuff@gmail.com
Thanks to everyone reading and supporting the farm and we hope you enjoy another great week of eating.
-The Simington Gardens Team
