This week your basket contains: broccoli, red cabbage, Florence fennel, red onions, elephant garlic, CELERIAC, spinach, parsley, and sweet peppers.THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CAME TO THE PUMPKIN PICK UP WEEKEND. We had a great time getting to spend time with the people we grow food for.  Congratulations go to our giant pumpkin winners: Saturday’s 61.9 pound pumpkin went to Elise & Nick and Sunday’s 77.5 pounder went to Tricia.  Good work, guys!  IF YOU TOOK PICTURES THIS WEEKEND and woul be willing to share them with us please either post them to our Facebook page or email them to us for our web site.  In all the excitement this weekend, some utensils brought to the pot luck were left behind.  If you are missing an item or 2, please let us know and we will get it/them back to you. 

Celeriac, or celery root as it is also known, is a wonderful combination of celery flavor and potato texture.  The leaves, which are very similar to the herb lovage, can be used in soup stock or stews to add a celery flavor. To use the root, it must be peeled first. This is a great soup that brings out the best of celeriac

VINAIGRETTE

1 clove garlic

1 tsp salt

3 Tbs red wine vinegar

1 tsp wet mustard

5 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

black pepper

Press garlic into the bottom of  your salad bowl.  With a fork, mix well with salt until it forms a paste.  Mix in vinegar and mustard until salt is dissolved.  Whisk in olive oil to make an emulsion.  Add black pepper to taste.  These proportions are not set in stone.  You should experiment to find the proportions you prefer.  Also, other spices, herbs and vinegars can be used to vary the dressing.

CREAMY CELERY ROOT AND BARLEY SOUP

1/4 cup pearl Barley

1 large celeriac

4 cups water

3 cups vegetable broth

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup half-and-half

2 Tbs butter

1/2 cup milk

1 leek or onion

Cook barley with 3 cups of water and salt until tender.  Drain and set aside.  Peel celeriac and dice into 1-inch cubes.  Mince leek including tender portion of greens.  Melt butter in heavy saucepan, add leek and celeriac.  Sauté until color changes slightly (3-4 min.).  Add broth and remaining cup of water, bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered until celeriac is tender (15-20 min.).  Remove from heat.   Roughly puree half of the celeriac/leek mixture, return it to the pot.  Add the barley, milk and half-and-half, stir well and heat to serving temperature. Do not allow the soup to boil.

WARM RED CABBAGE SALAD

¾ cup walnuts

2 tsp. walnut oil

salt

pepper

1 small red cabbage

1 crisp red apple

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

2 ½ Tbsp. olive oil

1 red onion, thinly sliced

3-4 oz. goat cheese, broken into large pieces

1 Tbsp. parsley, chopped

½ tsp. marjoram, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix walnut pieces with walnut oil, some salt and freshly-ground pepper,  Toast them in oven for 5-7 minutes, or until they begin to smell nutty.  Let them cool.  Quarter the cabbage, core, and slice thinly crosswise.  Cut the apple into sixths, core, then slice thinly crosswise.  Put the garlic, vinegar, and oil in a wide saute pan over medium-high heat.  As soon as they are hot, add onion and saute for 30 seconds.  Add cabbage and continue to cook, stirring, for approximately 2 minutes, until just wilted.  Season with salt, plenty of pepper, and more vinegar, if necessary, to sharpen the flavors.  Add the goat cheese, apple, herbs, and walnuts.  Toss briefly and serve.  Serves four to six.  From The Greens Cookbook by Deborah Madison with Edward Espe Brown.  We’ve made a variation on this salad by eliminating the apple and starting the whole process by cooking a few strips of bacon in the pan before sautéing the onion.  We add the vinegar at the end.

FENNEL, ORANGE AND PARSLEY SALAD

2 medium fennel bulbs

5 medium oranges

2/3 cup parsley leaves

2 Tbs. slivered black olives

1 tsp. olive oil

salt and pepper

Quarter, core and thinly slice fennel bulbs crosswise.  Separate oranges into segments over a large bowl (to catch the juices), then add segments to bowl.  Add fennel, parsley leaves, olives and olive oil.  Season with coarse salt and ground pepper.  Gently toss and serve.  Serves 4. From Everyday Food  October 2003.

EGG CARTONS have become a storage problem for us.  Because of this, as of next week we will no longer pick up used egg cartons with your empty baskets.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you.