This is Ian showing off some of the beautiful Joi Choi that will be in your share again this week! I know it’s an unfamiliar vegetable for some folks, so there are recipes in your packet and some more ideas below. It can also be confusing to figure out what exactly is the difference between joi, pak, and bok choi or is it choy?  In this case, Joi Choi is actually the variety name. It’s part of a larger class of Brassica rapa Chinensis group which includes similar leafy veggies. The group varies considerably in size, thickness of stem, color and also how spicy they are. Many can be used interchangeably in recipes. Joi Choi is one of our favorites because it grows quickly in the spring and  makes a nice tasty large head. The bright white stems are sweet & crunchy and the dark green leaves have good flavor without being too spicy.

Lots of great ideas & recipes for the choi, other veggies and beans are in this week’s recipe packet which you can download HERE. I had hoped there would kohlrabi in the share this week. It won’t be ready until next week so save the kohlrabi recipes from this packet for next time!

This week your share may include…

• Dry Beans: We’ve ‘ll have some different varieties to choose from including several Borlotti types and  a pretty gold & white bean called called Kenearly Yellow which is popular for baked beans.
• Cilantro: Check out the yummy cilantro-yogurt sauce in your packet this week.
• Choi: Nice big heads of Choi have sweet crunchy wihite ribs and tender leaves. This soba noodle salad is one of my favorites – made it for the crew lunch last week and it was a big hit!
• Garlic: We’re passing out some of our newly harvested Early Chinese Pink this week. The heads look like storage garlic, but they’re much more succulent. They’re not completely cured yet so you should use them sooner rather than later.
• Spinach: The cooler weather keep the spinach happy. The leaves are great in salad or lightly sautéed.
• Spring Onions: Bunches of small onions that are just starting to bulb. Use that bottom like you would a storage onions, and the green tops like scallions.
• Sugar Snap Peas: What can we say about these peas except yum!
• Cayenne Peppers: Dried peppers can be cooked whole with the beans to add a git of spice or grind them to make a bit of homemade chile pepper flakes.
• Hakuri Turnips: I heard folks at the pickup last week were asking for more of these turnips so here you go. The roots make great snacks just raw and are very sweet when roasted. And don’t forget to cook up the greens too!

Coming soon… purple kohlrabi!

Shazam! One of our new Grand Island greenhouses transforms before your very eyes from bare bones to bring-on-the-bounty! (Click the image to see a larger version.) Thanks to Eric Contey for the images, as well as much of the muscle behind this miraculous transformation…

 The Grand Island garlic harvest has begun! This week the crew brought in over 4000 heads of our first variety, Early Chinese Pink. It’s laid out in the loft of the big white barn at Luscher farm to dry for the next few weeks, then you’ll start seeing those big beautiful heads in the share.

Several salads and recipes using some of the new asian greens ie. choi & mizuna are in this week’s recipe packet which you can download HERE.

This week your share may include…

• Dry Beans: We’ve been experimenting with different varieties of dry beans the last few years and this is one of our great success stories! One of my favorite beans are the Gigante’s, but they are difficult to grow here. We started with a strain that was much smaller and could barely get it to ripen most summers. Over the years we have selected for larger beans and obviously only picked the ones that mature in our relatively short summer season. The result is a bean we’ve started calling Laura’s Big White – enjoy!
• Carrots: Sweet baby carrots – featured on the farm Facebook page!
• Choi: Nice big heads of Joi Choi have sweet crunchy wihite ribs and tender leaves. This soba noodle salad is one of my favorites and there are several recipes in your packet too.
• Garlic Scapes or Whistles: The variety we’re picking from this week is Music. Put them on the grill whole or cut them up and saute them with the bulbs from the green garlic. The flavor is sharp when raw, but mellows when you cook them. It makes a great pesto too.
• Lettuce Heads: Nice big heads of green leaf lettuce will make a fabulous salad. The variety is Tropicana.
• Mizuna: The frilly leaves are mild – great in salad or lightly sautéed.
• Sugar Snap Peas: What can we say about these peas except yum!
• French Breakfast Radish: We’re having a variations on the radish theme this week – these are elongated with white on the bottom and red on top. I dream about them with fresh butter on a baguette from Little T Baker – dangerously good!
• Spring Raab: This is the traditional Italian raab aka Sessantina Grossa. It has a wide leaf, peppery flavor and small bud.

Coming soon… more sugar snap peas!

The sugar snap peas are here! We’ve been watching them bloom for several weeks waiting (im)patiently for the pods to form. There were enough last week for everyone to have a taste at pickup, and now they’re in full production.

We plant peas as early as the ground can be worked in the spring. This year, that was mid-February and we seeded several varieties which mature at different times to make the pea harvest last as long as possible. We’re picking Sugar Ann this week, there should be some Super Sugar Snap ready next week and Sapphire has just started flowering. We trellis peas by attaching a plastic mesh to t-posts down the row. Super Sugar Snap is a really tall variety that needs support for sure. Sapphire and Sugar Ann are smaller in stature, but putting them on the trellis helps keep the peas off the ground so they’re cleaner and don’t get nibbled on. Like green beans, some varieties of peas have a string and others are stringless. Sapphire is the only stringless variety we grow. I don’t mind snapping off the string and as Jules from Osborn Seed wrote a few  years ago in this article, there are other advantages that seem genetically linked to the string like seed vigor and the ability to germinate better in cold soil. We really appreciate the work our local seed companies are doing to make great varieties of tasty peas available for us to grow!

The sugar snap peas don’t really need a recipe, but if you’re looking for inspiration with the other veggies you’ll find it in this week’s recipe packet which you can download HERE.

And by the way, we still have a few summer shares left for sale!! Follow the links above to sign up. We’ve also posted some fun photos of the farm crew and the veggies on our Facebook page.

This week your share may include…

• Arugula: I have really been enjoying simple arugula salads usually with balsamic or lemon vinagrette. In your packet is a great recipe for arugula frittata that also includes the green garlic.
• Carrots: Sweet baby carrots!
• Garlic Scapes or Whistles: The variety we’re picking from this week is Music. Put them on the grill whole or cut them up and saute them with the bulbs from the green garlic. The flavor is sharp when raw, but mellows when you cook them. It makes a great pesto too.
• Green Garlic: In the fall when we plant our regular garlic field, we always save a few cloves just for green garlic. These are planted on a much closer spacing – just a few inches apart – and harvested early in the spring. The bulb end is most tender and can be used raw or sauteed. The tops are flavorful too they just take a few minutes longer to cook.
• Lettuce Heads: Cute little baby lettuce heads will make a fabulous salad. The variety is Tropicana.
• Sugar Snap Peas: What can we say about these peas except yum!
• Spinach: This is our best spinach crop in years so enjoy the beautiful bunches.
• Hakuri Turnips: I’ve just been snacking on these raw – they’re sweet and crunchy and mild. They’re also quick & tasty when roasted under the broiler – cut into bite sized chunks, coat with a little olive oil & salt, and take them out as soon as they start to turn golden on the edges. The greens are pretty great too.
• Spring Onions: These onions tend to be juicy and mild. The green tops are completely edible too – use them as you would a scallion – either raw or lightly cooked.

Coming soon… and more sugar snap peas!

We’ve got garlic!  The green garlic is coming on strong and the Early Chinese Pink and Music are both sending up tasty tender twirling flower stalks aka scapes. Thanks to Tayne (& Lucy) for picking it all at our Grand Island farm, packing the little car full and bringing it up to town for us. There are some great recipes for garlic and the rest of the veggies in this week’s recipe packet which you can download HERE.

And by the way, we still have a few summer shares left for sale!! Follow the links above to sign up. We’ve also posted some fun photos of the farm crew and the veggies on our Facebook page.

This week your share may include…

• Arugula: Cute little bunches make a great salad or can be lightly sauteed.
• Beets: The last of our winter beets – they have served us in good stead through spring. Here are some of my favorite classic beet recipes.
• Cilantro: This is not just for salsa anymore! I have a new appreciation of cilantro thanks to the recipes that Katherine had included in the packets over the years. This week is no exception – she has several interesting innovative ideas this time too.
• Garlic Scapes or Whistles: These are the tender tangled flower stalks from Early Chinese Pink garlic. True to it’s name, this is our earliest variety – it flowers first and the bulbs mature early too. Scapes are easy to use and tasty raw or sauteed. This variety is on the spicy side when raw so it’ll add a nice kick to a salad. The flavor mellows when you cook them. It makes a great pesto too!
• Green Garlic: In the fall when we plant our regular garlic field, we always save a few cloves just for green garlic. These are planted on a much closer spacing – just a few inches apart – and harvested early in the spring. The bulb end is most tender and can be used raw or sauteed. The tops are flavorful too they just take a few minutes longer to cook.
• Spinach: This is our best spinach crop in years so enjoy the beautiful bunches!
• Radish: These are such a nice peppery snack – I love them just plain. Or try this radish butter spread on fresh bread.
• Hakuri Turnips: Hope everyone has been enjoying these mild japanese salad turnips. The greens are pretty great too.
• Cherry Tomato Plant: Each year we give these out near the beginning of the summer CSA. It is one of the few veggies that almost anyone can grow – in your garden, in a pot on the deck – if you have any sunshine you should be able to get some tomatoes. And we all know how tasty cherry tomatoes are just eaten straight off the vine!

Coming soon… sugar snap peas!

This week was our first CSA pickup and it was a beautiful start to the summer share!! In addition to LOTS of harvesting, the crew was also busy planting our late season storage potatoes and another field of brassicas…

Always with the first CSA share of the season we’re celebrating the greens – arugula, fava greens, mustard greens, and don’t forget to use those turnip greens too! The recipe packet has some great greens recipes – everything from fresh salads to heartier stews. Much of the share hardly needs to be cooked this time of year – snack on radishes & turnips raw, make arugula and fava greens into a quick spicy salad, or put the garlic scapes on the grill for just a minute or two. The spring veggies are so tender and flavorful I think they shine with a lighter touch so the bright color and flavors come through. Enjoy!

You can download Recipe Packet for this week’s share HERE.

And by the way, we still have a few summer shares left for sale!! Follow the links above to sign up. We’ve also posted some fun photos of the farm crew and the veggies on our Facebook page.

This week your share may include…

• Arugula: I learned one of my favorite arugula dishes at the Busy Corner, a quirky neighborhood restaurant now sadly long since gone. They served up 2 perfectly poached eggs on a lightly dressed arugula salad that was sprinkled with pimentón de la Vera and served with toasted baguettes. So simple and so good!
• Beets: The last of our winter beets – they have served us in good stead through spring.
• Fava Greens: I think these are a very interesting and tasty greens. They have some of the heft of spinach with a mild but complex flavor. I can taste the fava bean in there, but they’re also slightly nutty with a hint of artichoke. I love adding them to salad, but they’re great sauteed too. Whatever you do, use them fast as they don’t last long.
• Garlic Scapes or Whistles: These are the tender tangled flower stalks from Early Chinese Pink garlic. True to it’s name, this is our earliest variety – it flowers first and the bulbs mature early too. Scapes are easy to use and tasty raw or sauteed. This variety is on the spicy side when raw so it’ll add a nice kick to a salad. The flavor mellows when you cook them.
• Green Garlic: In the fall when we plant our regular garlic field, we always save a few cloves just for green garlic. These are planted on a much closer spacing – just a few inches apart – and harvested early in the spring. The bulb end is most tender and can be used raw or sauteed. The tops are flavorful too they just take a few minutes longer to cook.
• Lettuce Mix: I love my winter greens, but I also look forward to the return of the simple lettuce salad.
• Mustard Greens: These are spicy when raw and add a nice kick to salads. When cooked they lose the kick, but happily keep the good flavor.
• Radish: These are such a nice peppery snack – I love them just plain. Or try this radish butter spread on fresh bread.  
  
• Turnips: These are not your grandmothers turnip – they are pure white, crunchy, mild japanese salad turnips. The variety is Hakuri and the greens are tasty too!

Coming soon… cherry tomato plants for your garden!