This week your basket contains: Thelma Sanders squash, cipollini onions, rutabaga, Brussels sprouts, leeks, and cooking greens (bok choy, mustard greens, Swiss chard, and kale).

Happy New Year!  We hope your holidays were as pleasant and rejuvenating as ours.  We are happy to be back to deliveries and pleased with the way the gardens are looking (wet but still producing).  We are starting the process of signing up new subscribers for the 2021-22 subscription year that starts in June. COVID has upended the assumptions we have come to rely on regarding the number of people who will or will not continue with us.  IF YOU ARE CERTAIN YOU WILL RENEW YOUR SUBSCRITION OR CERTAIN YOU WILL NOT RENEW, please let us know right away so we can plan accordingly.  We will send out renewal forms starting next week.

While we would never claim rutabagas to be one of our favorite veggies, we do endeavor to find tasty ways to prepare it.  To that end (and to expand our understanding of the crops we grow) we recently participated in a Zoom conference on rutabagas.  If you’ve run out of Netflix to watch you can catch it on the Culinary Breeding Network’s YouTube channel (search for Rooting for Rutabagas).  Not only will you learn all about rutabaga taxonomy (who doesn’t need to know how to differentiate a rutabaga from a turnip?) you will also learn more about Rutabaga Curling (a sporting event that occurs every winter in Ithaca New York).  More seriously, we picked up this tip for serving rutabaga.

ROASTED RUTABAGA WITH LIME ZEST

1 rutabaga

Olive oil

Salt

Zest of 1 lime

Slice your rutabaga as thinly as possible.  In a large bowl, toss the rutabaga slices in olive oil and sprinkle with salt.  Spread the slices on a baking sheet and roast at 350⁰ oven until tender and starting to brown.  Sprinkle the rutabaga slices with the zest of one lime and serve.

Riverford Organic Vegetables is a very large, franchised CSA company in the UK where rutabagas are known as Swedes and are more popular than in the US.  This is one of their best recipes for rutabaga.

PUREED RUTABAGA WITH A CHEESY CRUST

1 rutabaga
2 Tbs. butter
pinch of salt
fresh herbs (e.g. thyme, parsley), chopped
4 oz. cheddar cheese, grated
1Tbs. sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds

Preheat the oven to 350⁰. Peel the rutabaga and chop into 2cm chunks. Boil in a large pan of water for 15-20 min. until soft.  Drain the rutabaga and mash with the butter. Add the herbs and season with salt. Transfer the rutabaga to an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with cheese. Sprinkle the seeds on top of the cheese. Bake for 20 min, until the cheese is bubbling.  From Veg Box Recipes website; Riverford Organic Vegetables – http://www.riverford.co.uk

Some of you got red Brussels sprouts today.  This variety, Redarling, is a relatively new addition to our lineup that appears to be somewhat more cold hardy.  Let us know what you think of their flavor.  This is a quick, easy, and tasty way to serve your Brussels sprouts.

FETTUCCINI WITH BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND PINE NUTS

1 stalk Brussels sprouts, trimmed
1/2 pound dried egg fettuccine
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons pine nuts

Slice Brussels sprouts in a food processor fitted with slicing disk.  Cook fettuccine in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (3 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until al dente.  Meanwhile, heat butter and oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat until foam subsides, then cook pine nuts, stirring, until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add Brussels sprouts, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, then sauté over medium-high heat until tender and lightly browned, about 4 minutes.  Reserve 1/2 cup pasta-cooking water, then drain pasta and add to skillet, tossing with enough reserved water to moisten.