CSA Basket #6

The herbs this week are mature dill, thyme (with purple flowers), and summer savory.

In addition & still to come (barring unforseen weather):
- cucumbers
- corn
- zucchini
- spaghetti squash
- other squashes
- pumpkins
- parsnips
- beets

Please pray for timely rains ... the gardens are wilting here. We're trying to water, but it's just not the same as when God does that job ... and we can't do everything.

We are VERY thankful for the 1/4 inch rain we did get last night. So refreshing! So needed!

CSA Basket #6

Summer bounty:
- potatoes
- green beans
- yellow beans
- dill
- summer savory
- thyme
- romaine head
- red sail lettuce
- beets with greens
- onions
- carrots
- swiss & rainbow chard
- kale
- radishes
- cucumber

Kale Krisps

So easy ... so yummy ... so healthy!

Two ingredients:
1 - kale
2 - cheddar

Remove stems from a bunch of kale -- a big bunch! These will disappear fast!

How to de-stem kale? Hold a leaf by the stem in left hand with the leaf facing up. Using your right hand, pinch it lightly around the stem & slide it quickly from the bottom of the leafy part to the top. You'll be left with just the stem in your left hand. Toss out the stem, I tried putting it into a stir-fry this evening -- that was not good, the stems were too woody and we ended up discarding them in our plates.

Tear the greens into bite size pieces. Place a parchment on a cookie sheet. Spread the kale greens evenly on the cookie sheet. Then sprinkle grated cheddar over the greens and bake -- I baked mine @ 400 degrees today for about 15 minutes. I will try a slower oven -- that may give the crispy effect, but it would also maintain the integrity of the kale because of the lower heat.

Serve warm. These were gone in a flash and my boys were asking for more! I didn't even get a picture -- I will post one here though first chance I get.

Try it. You'll love it too, I'm pretty sure.

Kohl Rabi

That's the name of the funny looking thing you got in the basket this week...just in case you did not know. Not everyone does, and that's ok!

What do do with it? Eat it raw ... after you've peeled it. Cut it into sticks for dipping with a Dill Dip or your favorite veggie dip.

It can also be cubed and tossed into a salad or a stir-fry. Or just simply dice it and steam it. Serve it like you would steamed broccoli -- it actually tastes a bit like steamed broccoli. Or toss it into a casserole or quiche that calls for broccoli ... the ideas are myriad, really.

Oh, and before you toss out the leaves think again -- those you can throw into a green smoothie, or snip them and toss into a green salad or a stir-fry ... they're good to the last leaf!

For your health!

Garden Basket #5

Wow, we're going into the home stretch of July 2010 ... amazing.

The garden goodies are great again this week. Even we're wishing the trugs would expand so we could fit everything into them better.

What's in it this week?
- herbs: mature dill
basil
summer savory
- potatoes: reds
whites - "Sheperdees" are great for cooking and/or baking (they're not dry when cooked)
- green peas - for shelling
- carrots
- onions
- kohl rabi
- green leafy: kale
romaine
red sail lettuce
- rhubarb

Adding Beauty

Our little princess couldn't resist ... she picked a blossom off it's plant. Instead of letting it wither & die, we made a bright spot in a little corner of our home,

Add a little water and a couple carrot-top tips, voila!

CSA Basket #4

Another full basket today! Enjoy!:

- red potatoes
- white potatoes
- snap peas
- shell peas
- onions
- carrots
- romaine lettuce
- chard
- kale
- oregano -- the long stemmed herbs
- thyme -- the shorter stemmed herbs

If you cannot use all the herbs fresh this week, just label & freeze them or dry them for use later in winter. I'm just discovering the difference that fresh herbs makes in cooking -- I encourage you to try the venture too!

Now That's a Garden Salad!

We had a bright garden salad for lunch today ... bright in color. Bright in Taste. In fact, I'm sure I've never had a better salad!

All twelve greens, 12 -- yes, you read that correctly -- were fresh from our garden:

- romaine lettuce
- beet greens
- red curly leaf lettuce
- spinach
- chard
- sorrel
- broccoli leaves
- kale
- purslane
- onion greens
- dill
- oregano

Along with fresh eggs from the chicken run, cooked & chopped as well as, homemade whole wheat croutons and our favorite cesaer dressing.

Green Smoothie

This smoothie is a new version of my breakfast smoothie ... I like smoothies for breakfast. It works for me!

My base is a handful of soaked/sprouted almonds with a cup of water (or I use the water used in soaking the almonds, but you can also use green tea, almond milk, yogurt, aloe vera juice ... most any liquid you prefer).

To the base I add some greens:
- a handful of spinach
- a couple leaves of kale
- a carrot top (less if they are large as the taste gets too strong if there is too much carrot tops in the smoothie)
- a plant or two of purslane/portulaca

1/2 apple quartered, frozen - complete with core (pear is nice instead of apple)
1 slice raw, frozen pineapple
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1-2 Tbsp raw cacao nibs
1/16 tsp.stevina powder for added sweetness, optional
4-5 ice cubes

Blend until smooth & enjoy!

Any combination works. Experiment with it to find your favorite mix.

CSA Basket #3, July 6

- new potatoes
- new carrots with tops
- new beets and greens
- onions
- snap peas
- summer savory
- baby dill
- lettuce
- spinach
- kale

Carrots & Tops

Fresh garden carrots ... YUMMMMMM! The taste is just hard to beat.

The carrots are coming to you with the tops still on. They're edible too ... and very nutritious!

">" ... highly nutritive, rich in protein, minerals and vitamins. The tops of the carrots are loaded with potassium which can make them bitter, so the use of them in food is limited, but there some ideas and recipes below.

The tops are antiseptic and can be juiced and used as a mouthwash.

... Carrot greens are high in vitamin K, which is lacking in the carrot itself.

... tops are an outstanding source of chlorophyll, the green pigment that studies have shown to combat the growth of tumours. Chlorophyll contains cleansing properties that purify the blood, lymph nodes, and adrenal glands."

I've been adding them to my morning smoothie. Getting greens in a smoothie is the easiest way to eat greens ... aside from a nice salad. Somehow a smoothie seems more like breakfast food than a salad,lol!

Some other things you can do with carrot tops:

- use them for greenery in a flower arrangement from your own flower garden

- use them to garnish a dish ... cooking is an art!

- add them to soups

- add them to salads

- add them to casseroles

- toss them in the freezer to use later in winter when greens are scarce.


Some recipes to try:

Carrot-Top Soup

Carrot-Top Tea

Carrot-Tops with Hazelnuts in Pesto for Pasta

Happy Hens

Happy Hens lay healthy eggs.

Lots of fresh air, sunshine, greens, fresh water and organic grains in their feed mix supplemented with certified organic kelp meal for their vitamins & minerals ... all of that ensures healthy eggs. Just what I like to feed my family. With the extra we have to sell, you can feed your family healthy food too.

The bright yellow yolks attest to the fact that our layers have free-run of their range. We have noticed though that the yolks in the white eggs do not seem to be as bright yellow, yet they are in the same range & getting the same feed as the brown egg layers, so they're just as healthy -- perhaps they're just not as suited for real farm living??

We have found it difficult to get brown layers, thus the whites. Perhaps we'll need to consider raising our own brown layers from day 1?? Now that would be a whole new venture for which we're not really set-up ... we'll see.