This week your basket contains:  butternut squash, potatoes, parsnips, carrots, leeks, onions, cabbage, and cooking greens (Brussels sprouts tops, kale, & Swiss chard)

This is the first of two 2-week baskets.  Next week you will get another 2-week basket. We will not deliver Dec. 26 or January 2. We will resume normal deliveries on January 9.  Please email if you have questions or concerns.

Are you looking for a tasty gift for yourself or someone else? Our friends at Kenai Red Fish Company (you may have ordered salmon from them in the past) are offering Pumpkin Ridge Gardens subscribers a 15% discount on seasonal gift boxes of their products if you order from their online store by Dec. 19^th.  You can visit their web site at Kenairedfc.com to order.  There is also a fuller explanation of this offer and the gift boxes in the blog post section of our web site (see the footer of this note). 

The recipe below is a great way to use your cabbage and/or the mixed cooking greens in your basket. We made it recently after not having done so in a long while and it reminded us of just how good it is!

EASY STRUDEL QUICHE

2 Tbs vegetable oil

3 cups chopped onions

7-8 cups chopped cabbage

1 tsp caraway seeds

1 tsp dried dill

1tsp salt

black pepper

8 oz cream cheese, cubed

1 1/2 c. grated hard cheese

1 egg

1 9-inch pie crust

Saute onions in oil until translucent.  Add the cabbage, caraway, dill, salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring frequently until the cabbage is limp and both cabbage and onions are begining to brown.  Light browning gives a sweeter, richer flavor.  Remove from heat and drain any excess liquid.  In a large bowl, mix cream cheese and grated cheeses (we prefer smoked cheddar) with sautéed vegetables.  Add egg and mix well.  Put mixture into pie crust and bake in 350 degree oven for approx. 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Parsnips are similar to carrots in many ways and so, like carrots, can be used to make a tasty cake.  Try the recipe below.

PARSNIP CAKE

1 1/4 cups salad oil

1 1/4 cups sugar (or equivalent honey)

2 cups flour

1 Tb baking powder

1 Tb baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

3-4 eggs

3 cups grated raw parsnips

1 1/2 cups finely chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, or almonds)

Thoroughly combine oil and sugar.  Sift together dry ingredients.  Add to oil and sugar mixture, alternating with eggs and beating well after each addition.  Mix in parsnips, then nuts.  Pour into greased pans or spoon into muffin tin.  Bake in preheated 325 degree oven until cooked through (1 hr and 10 minutes for cake and approx. 20 minutes for muffins). From The Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash.

Winter squash and leeks are made for each other.  We love the soup below.

BUTTERNUT LEEK SOUP

Here is a wonderfully simple recipe that marries the flavors of leeks and squash. It makes a rich but low-calorie soup that warms you up on wet fall days.  Bake a winter squash (butternut, acorn or Delicata) when the flesh is tender, scoop it out and set aside.  Sauté one large or two small leeks in a little olive oil until translucent and tender.  At the same time bring four cups of stock (vegetable or chicken) or water to a boil.  Add the leeks and the flesh of the squash to the stock; season with herbs (salt, pepper, bay, thyme, dill or any combination) and bring to a boil again.  Take the soup off the heat and allow it to cool a bit.  Puree the soup in a blender and serve with sour cream or yogurt garnish.