This week your basket contains: celeriac, potatoes, leeks, cabbage, and cooking greens (Swiss chard, mustard greens, and kale).

HAPPY NEW YEAR!  This is the time of year when we spend hours pouring over the numerous seed catalogs we get each year dreaming of the perfect gardens we will be growing for you in 2020 & 2021.  We are also working on crop rotation plans for all our gardens.  I have to say, right now everything (on paper) looks PERFECT! Next comes the hard part; bringing those plans to reality.

One of the frustrating parts of having had unseasonably cold weather a couple of times this winter has been having to cover (and un-cover) crops with frost protection fabric.  When the crops are covered, critters like voles are protected from hawks, owls, and cats and they just go to town munching away at things like celeriac, often leaving us with nothing but hollow shells.  Some of the celeriac we harvested yesterday show some signs of this “share cropping” in that they look a bit lopsided.  We only gave ones that could be easily trimmed and leave plenty of untouched root for you.  The recipe below was passed along by a subscriber as a perfect way to use any celeriac that may have been accumulating in your fridge.  You could also substitute some potatoes or other roots (like rutabaga) too.  The recipe calls for parsley, which could be replaced by celeriac tops. 

CREAMY CELERY ROOT SOUP WITH TAHINI

2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

6-7 cups celeriac, diced

4 cups broth

1 cup canned white beans

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 cup tahini

1 Tbs. lemon juice

1/4 cup parsley

1/2 cup crushed pita chips 

In a large pot over medium heat, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook, stirring, for an additional 30 seconds. Add the celery root, broth, beans and the salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and cook, covered, until the celery root is very tender, about 20 minutes.

Add the tahini and the lemon juice and, using an immersion (stick) blender, puree until smooth. (Alternatively, allow the soup to cool, then puree in batches in a blender, then reheat.) Add water or additional broth as needed to achieve desired thickness. Taste and season with more salt and/or lemon juice, if desired. Garnish with the parsley and pita chips and serve hot. Adapted from washingtonpost.com 

At this time of year, not many plants are growing leaves.  Fortunately, some crops in the hoop houses and others outside, like kale, went into the winter with good growth that lets us continue to harvest lightly until the longer days trigger new growth.  This recipe is perfect for this week’s greens mix.

SPICED LENTILS WITH MUSHROOMS AND GREENS

½ cup brown or green lentils

3 Tbs. olive oil

½ pound shiitake mushrooms, sliced

salt

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ tsp. ground cumin

¼ tsp. ground coriander

¼ tsp. ground black pepper

1/8 tsp. turmeric

½ Lb. coarsely chopped greens

In a small saucepan, cover the lentils with 2 ½ cups water or broth and bring to a boil.  Cover and cook over low heat until lentils are tender, approx. 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, in a sauté pan, heat 2 Tbs. of the olive oil, add mushrooms and season with salt.  Cover and cook over moderate heat stirring, until the mushrooms are tender and starting to brown, approx. 5 minutes.  Add the remaining olive oil along with the garlic, cumin, coriander, pepper and turmeric and cook stirring until fragrant, approx. 1 minute.  Add the greens and cook until wilted, approx. 5 minutes.  Add the lentils and their cooking liquid to the mushrooms and greens and cook for 3 minutes.  Add more liquid if the lentils are too dry.  Season with salt and ladle into bowls.  Adapted from Food and Wine February 2011.

SESAME GINGER STIR-FRY SAUCE

4 Tbs toasted sesame seeds

2 Tbs lemon juice

1 Tbs grated ginger

4 Tbs soy sauce

3 Tbs rice vinegar

1/4 cup veg. or sesame oil

hot pepper oil (optional)

2 cloves garlic, minced

Whisk together oil, lemon juice, ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, sesame seeds, and hot pepper to taste.  Pour over stir-fry when all ingredients are cooked and mix well.