Week 3: Buttercrunch lettuce and more!

Buttercrunch lettuce

~Please make sure to bring back your empty boxes so we can reuse them

~Veggie tips: 

·         Store your greens and head lettuce in plastic bags in your crisper drawer to keep them hydrated and fresh.  

·         Place herb stems in a little glass of water to keep them hydrated and fresh.

·         Remember to wash and swirl veggies in a bowl of cool water to clean the field dirt before eating.  

·         We like to store a washed head of lettuce in a salad spinner in the fresh for easy access to washed lettuce.

Swiss chard in the field

The new vegetable that all shares get this week is Swiss chard.  Chard comes in a rainbow of colors.  It’s leaves are more tender and delicate that other greens like collards and kale.  The patch of chard is about 30 feet by 100 feet big, but even with so many plants, it has taken a while to get enough leaves for all of the CSA members to have a bunch.

When you are ready to cook your chard, swirl the leaves in a large tub of cold water.  I usually let the leaves sit and soak in the water for a few minutes, and then give the leaves another swirl.  After the grit and sand has settled to the bottom of the tub, gently lift the leaves from the water.  More rounds of rinsing may be necessary.

~Currently, the Swish chard is very gritty from the ricocheting effects that the hard rains have had on us in the past weeks.  Make sure to rinse and soak the chard well.

Did anyone stay dry while picking up your vegetable box in Morganton last Wednesday? No one at Bluebird Farm stayed dry! We were all soaked little ducklings out here.  Between 4-8pm we receive about 4 inches of rain.  The driveway washed out in a few places where the ditch overflowed, but our vegetable field did not flood the way that it did with the big 24 hour rains a few weeks ago.

On Thursday morning, we had 5 people, all in rain boots, squishing through 3 inches of mud in the pathways of empty garden beds in our bottomland vegetable field at Silver Creek.  The bottomland (name used to describe flat land by a river or creek) is very sandy, so the raised beds had drained enough to slip 400 bell peppers, 400 cucumbers, and 400 squash plants into the ground!  Here comes summer veggie salads!

Speaking of summer vegetables, we do have a few baby squash fruits and many squash flowers in the vegetable field. Just a few more weeks til squash and zucchinis are ready to eat.

Okra helps Marie write the newsletter.

In your box

Arugula ~Mix into lettuce or enjoy it on its own.  Try an arugula salad with fresh dill and goat cheese.  Add something sweet like grated carrots to an arugula salad.  Add some sliced strawberries.  I love a sweet white balsamic vinegar with arugula.

Baby Lettuce mix- We grow a mix of different delicate and tender baby lettuce varieties.

        ~Add to sandwiches. Make a baby salad and hummus wrap.

Radishes, Baby “French Breakfast” This variety is easy to slice or grate. It is more mild than other types. (The radishes are a little spicier this week since the weather has warmed up.)

        ~Do you think radishes are spicy? Much of the spiciness is a volatile, aromatic flavor that will dissipate once you slice or grate the radish.  I make sure to dress the sliced or grated radishes with a bit of salt, olive oil, and sweet white balsamic vinegar and let them marinate for at least 5 minutes before serving.

-Head lettuce- Green or Red Buttercrunch (Small or Baby size) The best lettuce! Try using the leaves as a fun wrap for sandwiches or egg salad.

Dill- Adds a lively, fresh flavor to your creations.

~ Add to any potato dish, really.  Great with eggs: Add to lentils, greens/lettuce salads, egg salads, frittatas, fried egg sandwiches. Add to any salad. See a salad idea in the arugula section.

Cilantro- chopped cilantro over any Mexican or Brazilian fusion style meal.  We love cilantro with black beans and our chorizo sausage.

Curly Kale

Curly Kale

Kale chips, anyone? This variety of kale is the best for kale chips. Recipe below

Very good with canned diced tomatoes or add to spaghetti sauces.  I strip the leaves of their stems, dice about ½ of the stems, and chop the leaves into 1 inch pieces.  Saute the diced stems with onions in olive oil for about 4 minutes before adding the chopped leaves. You can add a few tablespoons of water or chicken broth and steam in the pan with a lid.      

         Swiss chard recipe below

       

       

Braised Swiss Chard with Asiago

This is a yummy Swiss Chard idea for quick and easy garden fresh cooking.    Try playing around with the favors however you may imagine it!

Ingredients:

·         1 clove garlic, minced

·         1 medium onion, diced

·         1 bunch Swiss Chard, stems and leaves separated.

·         Lemon juice

·         Asiago, Parmesan, or Romano cheese

1.     Dice upper half of stems (you may also dice the entire length of the stem for stronger flavor).  Roughly chop the leaves into 1-2 inch pieces. 

2.    Sauté 1 clove garlic, 1 diced onion, and diced chard stems over medium low heat in 3 tablespoons olive oil for 5 minutes.

3.    Add ¼ cup of water and chopped chard leaves. Cover and lightly steam in the pan until the leaves are tender and still bright green, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4.    Uncover, add a dash of lemon juice.  Grate your aged cheese of choice and toss over your favorite carb like fettuccine, cous cous, quinoa etc…

Tip: Feel free to run wild with the flavors based on what is in season in the garden! Add some dice zucchini or summer squash,  more garlic, fresh oregano, and perhaps little cherry tomatoes cut in half. 

Swiss Chard with Sweet and Sour Ginger Sauce

From Farmer John’s Cookbook, The Real Dirt on Vegetables by Farmer John Peterson and Angelic Organics. Everyone who has a vegetable share should get this cookbook! This delightful book has plenty of sassy attitudes about growing and eating organic vegetables with love and dedication.  Sections include identification, storage, preparation, and recipes.  Here is one of the many great recipes…

“In this recipe, the natural salty tang of chard is intensified by cooking the chard in stock; the same stock is then used as a base for the wonderful sauce, thus ensuring that none of the precious nutrients from the leaves are lost.  For a unique touch, try adding a handful of raisins or currants to the boiling stock, allowing them to plump and soften for a minute or so before adding the chard; then cook, stain, and serve them right along with the greens.  Lisa, shareholder and recipe-tester, say she created a terrific variation on the recipe by substituting honey for brown sugar and balsamic vinegar and cooking sherry for white vinegar. Angelic Organics Kitchen.

Serves 4.

1 cup vegetable, chicken or beef stock or water

½ pound       chard, stems chopped, leaves torn into bite sized pieces

4                     scallions, thinly sliced, (about 1/3 cup) (you can substitute 1/3 cup finely diced and sautéed sweet onions)

            Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tblsp          white vinegar

1 tblsp          light brown sugar           

1 tblsp          finely chopped or grated fresh ginger

1 teasp          red pepper flakes

1.     Bring stock or water to a boil in large skillet (not cast iron- turns chard an off color).  Add the chard and cook stirring until it is wilted, about 1 minute.

2.      Drain the chard, saving the cooking liquid. Transfer the chard to plate and garnish with scallions or sautéed sweet onions.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and cover to keep warm.

3.     Pour the reserved cooking liquid back into the skillet or pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil until it is reduced to 1/3 cup, about 8 minutes.  Add the vinegar and brown sugar.  Stir in the ginger and red pepper flakes.  Boil for 30 seconds. Remove from heat and spoon the mixture over the chard. Serve immediately. 

Kale chips

INGREDIENTS:

1 bunch kale 1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt A drizzle of balsamic vinegar (about ½ tablespoon)

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (175 degrees C)
2.	With a knife or kitchen shears carefully remove the leaves from the thick stems and tear into bite size pieces. (I like to use my hands to strip the leaves from the stem.)Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner. Place kale in a plastic bag. Drizzle kale with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and sprinkle with sea salt. Thoroughly massage the bag to mix the oil and vinegar into the leaves.
3.	Using several baking sheets spread the kale pieces out so that they are not touching; I use 3 or 4 sheets.  Bake until the edges brown but are not burnt, about 7 to 12 minutes. Make sure to check the chips almost every minute after 7 minutes have passed.  Every oven is a little different…Adjust this recipe’s time to your oven! Serve immediately!  Does not keep well, usually won't stay crisp. ~Marie

Week 2

Hello, hello,

Welcome back to week 2 of fresh seasonal eating.  Any questions about your veggies? Let us know!

~Please make sure to bring back your empty boxes so we can reuse them

~Why does the bok choy have tiny holes in it? We haven’t sprayed the bok choy!  These holes from little tiny beetle, but don’t worry, you can still eat it!  Once you’ve cooked the bok choy, you can’t tell that the little holes are there.   The beetles don’t cause a big enough problem to make using an organic spray necessary.

~Veggie tips: Store your greens and head lettuce in plastic bags in your crisper drawer to keep them hydrated and fresh.   Place herb stems in a little glass of water to keep them hydrated and fresh.  Remember to wash and swirl veggies in a bowl  of cool water to clean the field dirt before eating.  We like to store a washed head of lettuce in a salad spinner in the fresh for easy access to lettuce.

~Remember, it is chicken pickup day at the farm for all of you Morganton and Bluebird Farm chicken share holders.

Farm News:
All of a sudden it’s warm!  We’ve been so involved dealing with the here and now of floods and frost that we have fallen behind on even preparing for summer.  Frosts and floods, oh my!  So we find ourselves in the odd position of not being ready for summer even though summer is two weeks late!  Our planting plan had tomato and pepper transplanting scheduled for two weeks ago, but we are just starting to transplant tomato and peppers now.  So now we are preparing beds and trying to get the plants in their summer home.  Wet weather has kept us and the tractor out of the fields for quite a long time.

May flood 2013

   Picking up the transplants was quite an adventure.  We have outgrown our small greenhouse and can no longer physically fit all the transplants we need.  This year we purchased tomato, eggplant, and pepper from a great local greenhouse that uses all organic methods called Sunny Hill Greenhouse.  Marie, Marie’s younger sister, and I took our two trucks over the greenhouse.  We filled them both to the brim with plants and there were still more!  So the greenhouse owner offered to fit the rest in his truck. Then we all drove slowly back to our farm so that the wind wouldn’t damage the plants too much.  We were quite the plant parade! 

As we loaded the plants we got our first good smell of summer.  The tomatoes were right at nose height as we carried trays from the greenhouse to the trucks.  As the leaves jostled and brushed each other great wafts of tomato plant smell floated through the air.  The smell of tomato plants and basil are two of the strongest summer scents.  They always remind me of hot days in the field and delicious juicy salads at lunch.

This past Saturday we were able to take the afternoon to go to a field trip to another farm.  After Farmers’ Market, we quickly checked on the animals and did our afternoon feeding chores and jumped into the car for a 1 hour and twenty minute drive north of Asheville.  We are part of a group that takes monthly visits to each other’s farms to exchange information and enjoy the company of other hardworking farmers.  It is amazing to hear from all the other farmers in the group with similar organic vegetable farms in the Asheville region.  They have all faced a tough spring-primarily wet ground and cool weather.   Some have even skipped a week of their CSA and added that week onto the end of the season because not enough food is ready in the field now.  It served as a reminder of the many challenges the weather can present each season from too hot to too cold, too wet to too dry, too windy, etc.  We are very thankful that through all of these weather challenges we have not had to face hail or tornados.

Silver Creek May flood

In your box

Arugula ~Mix into lettuce or enjoy it on its own.  Try an arugula salad with fresh dill and goat cheese.  Add something sweet like grated carrots to an arugula salad.  Add some sliced strawberries.  I love a sweet white balsamic vinegar with arugula.

Baby Lettuce mix- We grow a mix of different delicate and tender baby lettuce varieties.

        ~Add to sandwiches. Make a baby salad and hummus wrap.

Radishes, Baby “French Breakfast” This variety is easy to slice or grate. It is more mild than other types. (The radishes are a little spicier this week since the weather has warmed up.)

        ~Do you think radishes are spicy? Much of the spiciness is a volatile, aromatic flavor that will dissipate once you slice or grate the radish.  I make sure to dress the sliced or grated radishes with a bit of salt, olive oil, and sweet white balsamic vinegar and let them marinate for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Hakurei turnips- These smooth white salad turnips are sweet! Slice and eat raw in a salad. They taste like a mix between a carrot and a radish.

-Head lettuce- Green or Red Buttercrunch (Small or Baby size) The best lettuce! Try using the leaves as a fun wrap for sandwiches or egg salad.

Dill- Adds a lively, fresh flavor to your creations.

~ Add to any potato dish, really.  Great with eggs: Add to lentils, greens/lettuce salads, egg salads, frittatas, fried egg sandwiches. Add to any salad. See a salad idea in the arugula section.

Cilantro- chopped cilantro over any Mexican or Brazilian fusion style meal.  We love cilantro with black beans and our chorizo sausage.

Bok Choy- Crunchy and mild Asian veggie that is great diced up raw in salads or cooked in a stir-fry.  See recipe below.

Laccinato Kale- flat leaves, a Italian heirloom variety. Great flavor, very tender and mild!  Kale is a staple cooking green that is more mild than mustard or collard greens. 

~ It is very tender, so it requires very little cooking. I just “wilt it down” in a sauté.  Very good with canned diced tomatoes or add to spaghetti sauces.  I strip the leaves of their stems, dice about ½ of the stems, and chop the leaves into 1 inch pieces.  Saute the diced stems with onions in olive oil for about 4 minutes before adding the chopped leaves. You can add a few tablespoons of water or chicken broth and steam in the pan with a lid.      

Large shares only- Swiss chard (the chard is not big enough to harvest enough for everyone from it)

       

       

Beans 'n Greens Burritos w/ Chorizo

From http://www.girlichef.com/2010/12/little-donkeys-stuffed-with-beans-kale.html
slightly adapted from the Food Matters Cookbook by Mark Bittman
yield: ~8-10 burritos (depending on size of tortilla)

8-10 homemade whole wheat tortillas *see recipe below, or store bought
2 Tbs. olive oil
½ lb. fresh, chorizo
~1 Tbs. minced garlic
~1 Tbs. chipotle chile powder or chile powder
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
~1 lb. kale, roughly chopped
2 c. cooked or canned black beans, drained, liquid reserved
½ c. crumbled queso fresco (we just use chedder or Monterey jack)
Pico de Gallo, for serving

Heat the oven to 350° F. Stack tortillas and roll them up in a sheet of foil.  Place them in the oven to warm while you cook the filling.

Place oil in a large, cast-iron skillet over medium heat.  When it's hot, add the chorizo and cook, stirring and breaking up the meat, until it is cooked through.  If the pan is very dry (which is more likely with homemade chorizo than storebought), add a bit more oil.  Add garlic and onion and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until they are soft.  Sprinkle in chile powder, a bit of salt and pepper, and then add kale.  Cook, stirring from time to time until it wilts and releases liquid, ~5 minutes.  Stir in the black beans, mashing a bit with a fork or potato masher, adding a bit of the reserved bean liquid if mixture seems too dry.

To roll each burrito, lay a tortilla on a flat surface and divide the filling mixture evenly among the tortillas (amount you get will depend on size of tortilla) on the third closest to you.  Sprinkle on cheese.  Fold tortilla over from bottom to cover filling, then fold in the sides to fully enclose them; finish rolling and put burrito seam side down on  a plate.  Serve with pico de gallo on side.

Crunchy Bok Choy Ginger Salad

1 medium bok choy

1 cup shredded daikon radish (Marie used regular radishes)

1 tablespoon salt (make sure you follow the recipe and rinse the salted bok choy and radishes)

½ cup slivered sweet pepper (a colorful pepper is beautiful! We leave out the pepper since they are out of season)

¼ cup finely chopped green onions

1 inch knob of gingerroot, grated

2 tablespoons of each chopped mint and cilantro (fresh…used 1 tablespoon of mint if it is dried)

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 teaspoons honey

Pepper to taste

Marie’s tips- Washing bok choy:  I like to chop the very bottom of the head off and then wash and quickly scrub each leaf.  

Rice vinegar: If you don’t have this item, try using a sweet white vinegar, a white balsamic vinegar, or melt some sugar in hot water and add to white vinegar….or you can make up your own fun vinaigrette!

Steps: Thin- slice the bok choy leaves.  Thinly slice the stems on the diagonal.  Toss bok choy leaves and stems, and the shredded radishes, with salt in colander.  Let stand to wilt vegetables, about ½ hour. Rinse, drain, and squeeze out excess liquid from mixture. Place in paper or cotton towel and squeeze again. Toss with remaining ingredients in bowl and chill before serving.  Makes 6 servings.

From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce (written by the Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition)

Braised Swiss Chard with Asiago

This is a yummy Swiss Chard idea for quick and easy garden fresh cooking.    Try playing around with the favors however you may imagine it!

Ingredients:

·         1 clove garlic, minced

·         1 medium onion, diced

·         1 bunch Swiss Chard, stems and leaves separated.

·         Lemon juice

·         Asiago, Parmesan, or Romano cheese

1.     Dice upper half of stems (you may also dice the entire length of the stem for stronger flavor).  Roughly chop the leaves into 1-2 inch pieces. 

2.    Sauté 1 clove garlic, 1 diced onion, and diced chard stems over medium low heat in 3 tablespoons olive oil for 5 minutes.

3.    Add ¼ cup of water and chopped chard leaves. Cover and lightly steam in the pan until the leaves are tender and still bright green, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4.    Uncover, add a dash of lemon juice.  Grate your aged cheese of choice and toss over your favorite carb like fettuccine, cous cous, quinoa etc…

Tip: Feel free to run wild with the flavors based on what is in season in the garden! Add some dice zucchini or summer squash,  more garlic, fresh oregano, and perhaps little cherry tomatoes cut in half.  

Week 1: a seasonal journey through the garden

Hello Community Supported Agriculture members,

Are you ready for a seasonal journey through the garden? 

Our vegetables are grown with love using organic methods.  No synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, fungicides, or pesticides.  We want to send out a big “fresh” hello to you, our farm members, for the 2013 Community Supported Agriculture program!  As a Bluebird Farm CSA member, you are a steward of local farmland and you are actively investing in a local source of food that is outside of the industrial food chain.  We’re growing for you!  We couldn’t farm without you.

At the farm

Layer hens on pasture

Your shares of the farm’s bounty have prepared for several months now.  Even though we are just now harvesting your kale, lettuce, radishes, and other delicious vegetables the vegetable season here at Bluebird Farm has been busy since January.  We raise layer hens starting as day old chicks through the fall, winter, and spring, and mother the meat chicks in March.  When the chickens develop their adult feathers and can withstand variable temperatures and rain, we carefully introduce the chickens to their respective chicken coops and the pasture exploration begins.  In January, we started with a vegetable plan-choosing seeds, figuring out how much of each type of vegetable, mapping out the vegetable field, and setting out planting calendar.  Then the “big” work started.  Big work is what I call all the projects that we do to the entire field-often with the help of a tractor or other equipment.  Things like spreading compost, disc plowing weeds, and forming beds.  From there it’s right into the planting and harvesting and all of a sudden it’s May!

And what a May it’s been.  It’s a good thing we made raised beds because last Sunday we got almost 12 inches of rain.  The paper said up to 7 inches fell in Burke County.  But I definitely emptied the rain gauge 4 times with 3 inches each.  Silver Creek left its banks at the big vegetable field in the creek bottom.   The majority stayed behind a berm built for flood control.  But with 12 inches of rain everything was soaked.  The beds were half submerged, but they were high enough to keep the seedlings and plants up out of the water.  The layer hens were high and dry in that field- they spent most of their rainy days perched up in their hen wagon coop.  During the spells that were less wet, hens would squish through the field and excitedly find earthworms brought to the surface. The field was flooded to within 6 feet of the hens and pigs.

William in the garden

In addition to the flood we’ve had one cool spell after the next.  Even though our planting calendar said to put out the tomatoes and peppers a week ago they still aren’t in the ground.  Good thing too because they would not have appreciated the wet feet of the flood.  Or, even more extreme two nights of mid-May FROST!  That’s right-we spent last Sunday evening covering the squash and cucumbers we do have planted because frost was predicted.  Sure enough, both Monday the 11^th and Tuesday the 12th morning we woke up to a light brush of frost that would have killed tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, and squash plants.  For comparison there is a 90% chance that there will be no frost after April 12^th.  All the water and cool will slow us down significantly on hot summer crops.  So we will all have to be patient with the summer crops like cucumber, peppers, and tomatoes this summer.

In your veggie box

Bok Choy or Bok Choi 

Washing veggies: We’ve got wonderfully fresh vegetables for you.  Just remember to rinse or soak your veggies before preparing or cooking.  I have a large bowl that I fill with cold water to soak and swish veggies around it before cutting them up or spinning the salad greens dry. I also have an awesome little salad spinner stays full in the fridge with my washed baby lettuce and arugula mix.

This week’s harvest and cooking ideas and tips:

Arugula

        ~Mix into lettuce or enjoy it on its own.  Try an arugula salad with fresh dill and goat cheese.  Add something sweet like grated carrots to an arugula salad.  Add some strawberries if you can find them.  I love a sweet white balsamic vinegar with arugula.

Salanova, lettuce mix- We grow a mix of different delicate and tender baby lettuce varieties. This mix, Salanova, is a gourmet mix with great texture, leaf shape, and color.

        ~Add to sandwiches. Make a baby salad and hummus wrap.

Radishes “French Breakfast” This variety is easy to slice or grate. It is more mild than other types. (Of course it does get spicier when the weather warms up.)

        ~Do you think radishes are spicy? Much of the spiciness is a volatile, aromatic flavor that will dissipate once you slice or grate the radish.  I make sure to dress the sliced or grated radishes with a bit of salt, olive oil, and sweet white balsamic vinegar and let them marinate for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Hakurei turnips- These smooth white salad turnips are sweet! Slice and eat raw in a salad.They taste like a mix between a carrot and a radish.

-Head lettuce- Green or Red Buttercrunch or Boston Bibb - (Small or Baby size) The best lettuce!

Dill- Adds a lively, fresh flavor to your creations.

~ Add to any potato dish, really.  Great with eggs: Add to lentils, greens/lettuce salads, egg salads, frittatas, fried egg sandwiches. Add to any salad. See a salad idea in the arugula section.

Cilantro- Add to a homemade vinaigrette.  See recipe below. Sprinkle chopped cilantro over any Mexican or Brazilian fusion style meal.  We love cilantro with black beans and our chorizo sausage.

Bok Choy- Crunchy and mild Asian veggie that is great diced up raw in salads or cooked in a stir-fry.  See recipe below.

Kale “Red Russian”- a wavy, tender kale with a mild kale flavor. This a staple cooking green that is more mild than mustard or collard greens. 

Red Russian kale

~ It is very tender, so it requires very little cooking. I just “wilt it down” in a sauté.  See recipe below. Very good with canned diced tomatoes or add to spaghetti sauces.  I strip the leaves of their stems, dice about ½ of the stems, and chop the leaves into 1 inch pieces.  Saute the diced stems with onions in olive oil for about 4 minutes before adding the chopped leaves. Try making kale chips.        Recipe below

       

Laccinato Kale- Large shares only: flat leaves, a Italian heirloom variety. Great flavor, very tender and mild!

        ~See above cooking tips.  This variety has a highly desired heirloom flavor that is a bit like broccoli.

Recipes:

Many of my personal recipes are kitchen ideas that I try to capture before cooking dinner myself.  My ideas are sometimes typed on the fly, so if a recipe seems a little incomplete, just go for it and innovate!  Use your judgment and your wonderful fresh veggies and it will taste wonderful!

Vintage Horsepower

Bok Choy:     Asian Stir Fry with Peanut Sauce

Peanut Sauce-

Sauté 4 garlic cloves and 1 chili (or 1 teaspoon chili powder) over medium heat in a medium pot for 4 minutes.  Then add 1 cup water, ¼ cup soy sauce,  1/3 cup peanut butter (crunchy or creamy), and 2 teaspoons brown sugar.  Stir vigorously to combine.  Thicken sauce over medium heat, stirring occasionally.     Makes about 1 ¼ cups of sauce

Stir Fry Vegetables: Add any veggie that you’d like. The possibilities are endless.

Saute 1 onion and 2 carrots over medium heat until onions are translucent. Add chopped bok choy stems and cook for about 3 minutes. Turn up heat to medium high heat and add a splash of water. Add roughly chopped bok choy leaves and stir. After about another minute of cooking, lower heat to medium and pour peanut sauce over veggies. Cook over medium heat until some sauce absorbs or vegetables are done to your liking.

Serve over soba noodles, basmati rice, or brown rice.

Cilantro:    Honey Cilantro Vinaigrette        

Adapted From Passionate Vegetarian

Makes about 1 ¾ cup

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 bunch cilantro

½ cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup honey

1 jalapeno pepper or 1 pinch cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce(optional)

1 ½ teaspoon salt

Black pepper to taste, freshly ground

1 cup olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor.  Process until smooth, scraping the sides when needed.  With the machine running, slowly pour olive oil into dressing.  Taste for salt and pepper.  Best if aged for at least one hour or overnight.

Kale:              Marie’s favorite Kale Chip Recipe

You can use any variety of kale.

INGREDIENTS:

1 bunch kale 1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt A drizzle of balsamic vinegar (about ½ tablespoon)

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (175 degrees C)
2.	With a knife or kitchen shears remove the leaves from the thick stems and tear into bite size pieces. (I like to use my hands to strip the leaves from the stem.)Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner. Place kale in a plastic bag. Drizzle kale with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and sprinkle with sea salt. Thoroughly massage the bag to mix the oil and vinegar into the leaves.
3.	Using several baking sheets spread the kale pieces out so that they are not touching; I use 3 or 4 sheets.  Bake until the edges brown but are not burnt, about 7 to 12 minutes. Make sure to check the chips almost every minute after 7 minutes have passed.  Every oven is a little different…Adjust this recipe’s time to your oven! Kale:          Fettuccine with sausage and kale Recipe from Shiloh at Tumbling Shoals Farm in Wilkesboro, NC.  We both have stands at the Hickory Farmers’ Market, and she sends her vegetable customers over for our ground Country or ground Italian sausage for this recipe!  She says this recipe is how she gets her farm customers “hooked” on kale!  It’s certainly an all-star vegetable in this awesome recipe! Makes  4 servings A quick hearty Italian dinner.  I prefer to use a whole wheat penne, but the fettuccine is always tasty!  With tender young kale, you may skip the blanching step and add the chopped leaves after partially cooking the sausage for 4-6 minutes and sauté the kale and sausage for 5 minutes while the pasta boils.     3 tablespoons olive oil                                             1 pound turkey or pork sausages, casings discarded and sausage crumbled     1/2 pound kale, tough stems and center ribs discarded and leaves coarsely chopped (about 1 bunch of kale)     1/2 pound or less of dried egg fettuccini pasta                        2/3 cup chicken broth                                               1 ounce finely grated pecorino Romano cheese plus additional for serving Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook sausage, chopping in quarter sized pieces with a spatula or spoon, 4-6 minutes.  Meanwhile, blanch kale in a 6-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, 5 minutes.  Remove kale with a large sieve and drain.  Return cooking water in pot to a boil, then cook pasta in boiling water, uncovered, until al dente.  While pasta cooks, add kale to sausage in skillet and saute, stirring frequently, until just tender, about 5 minutes.  Add broth, stirring and scraping up any brown bits from bottom of skillet.  When pasta is al dente, reserve 1 cup pasta-cooking water, then drain pasta in a colander. Add pasta and 1/2 cup reserved cooking water to skillet, tossing until combined.  Stir in cheese and thin with additional cooking water if desired.  Serve immediately with additional cheese on the side. Gourmet, March 2006 Your farmers, Marie and William Please don’t hesitate to email or call. BluebirdFarmNC@gmail.com or 584-7359