THIS WEEK YOUR BASKET CONTAINS: leeks, salad mix (radicchio, and endive), potatoes, cabbage, winter squash, elephant garlic and parsnips.

WE HAVE STARTED TAKING DEPOSITS FROM NEW SUBSCRIBERS FOR THE 2024-25 YEAR.  If you have friends or neighbors who may want to subscribe, please have them go to our website for the details.  The bills in your basket this week are the 9^th of ten installments (April & May are covered by the deposit you paid last spring).  We will be asking you your renewal plans in April.

Winter salads are generally made with hardier greens than summer salads and thus need a more robust dressing such as the one below.

BUTTERMILK DRESSED GREENS

1 cup mayonnaise

2/3 cup buttermilk

½ cup Parmesan or Asiago cheese

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 Tbs. red wine vinegar

½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper to taste

12 cups mixed salad greens

1 tart apple thinly sliced

¼ cup toasted pine nuts (optional)

¼ cup crumbled bacon (optional)

In a bowl, vigorously whisk together mayonnaise and buttermilk.  Add the cheese, garlic, vinegar, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper and mix well.  Transfer to a covered container and store in the refrigerator until needed.  It will keep up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.  When ready to serve, arrange the salad greens on plates, top with pine nuts and bacon (if desired) and spoon on a dollop of dressing.  From Glorious Greenery.

The recipe below is a great way to serve radicchio and can use a lot of it (in case you have been holding on to yours).

RADICCHIO RISOTTO

1 onion

1 clove of garlic

2 Tbsp. olive oil

4 oz arborio rice

1 large radicchio

¼ cup red wine

2 cups vegetable stock

3 oz. parmesan cheese

Salt

Red pepper flakes

A little cream (optional)

Sauté onion and garlic in a 1 Tbsp. olive oil, add the rice and let it brown slightly. Chop radicchio leaves finely, add to pot, reserving some for the top. Deglaze with red wine and add the veggie stock ½ a cup at a time. Add ½ tsp. of salt. Keep stirring and add more stock as the pot gets dry. The risotto is ready when the rice grains have no starchy center. Add chile. Grate cheese and add to risotto as well as the last tablespoon of olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning. If the risotto is too bitter for your taste, stir in a little cream. Serve risotto topped with reserved radicchio on top. Adapted from thomassixt.com

Every year some crops do poorly, and some do very well.  This year is definitely “The Year of the Parsnips”.  We’re not sure why, but everything really aligned just right to give us a bumper crop of parsnips (we aren’t even halfway through harvesting them yet!)  We will be giving more parsnips in the coming weeks along with more recipes to help you make use of them.  If you have a favorite parsnip recipe, send it along to us and we will share it with everyone.

SPICED PARSNIP SOUP

1 1/2 lb parsnips, peeled and cubed
2 onions, chopped
2 teaspoons garlic cloves, chopped
2 to 3 tablespoon oil
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cumin

1 /2 to 1 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 to 1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 to teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground ginger
4 to 5 cups vegetable or chicken stock

In a skillet, sauté the onion and garlic in the oil. Add the cumin, cardamom, coriander, turmeric and ginger and cook for 2 or 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the parsnips and stock and simmer gently until tender, about 1/2 hour to 45 minutes. Puree the soup in batches (or use your immersion blender) and serve hot. Serves 6 to 8.