THIS WEEK YOUR BASKET CONTAINS: Tetsukabuto winter squash, carrots, bok choy, onions, celery, and FRENCH SORREL OR FENUGREK

TULIPS ARE ALMOST READY!  Polly can send along a gorgeous bouquet of 10- 12 blossoms plus filler for only $12.  You can order one time or as a standing order.  Just  email to order (with flowers as the subject) and we’ll add them to your veggie basket. Now that it is finally feeling like spring will actually happen this year, IT IS TIME TO ORDER GARDENS STARTS!  You can order from our full lineup of vegetable, herb and flower starts (including varieties we don’t grow on our farm) from our website PUMPKINRIDGEGARDENS.SQUARE.SITE.  We update the site regularly so that plants are available at the best time for planting in your garden.  You can also visit our farmers’ market stand at the Beaverton Farmers’ Market any Saturday starting April 5^th!

French sorrel is one of the first greens to start growing in the spring.  It has an amazing lemony flavor that mellows when cooked.  We like to use it raw in salads as well.  It can be combined with other herbs and used in chimichurri or, as in the recipe below, on its own as a pesto for pasta or added to soup.

SORREL PESTO

2 cups coarsely chopped fresh sorrel, ribs removed

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan

1/4 cup pine nuts or pumpkin seeds

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup olive oil

In a food processor or blender puree the sorrel, garlic, parmesan, pine nuts and olive oil.  If you are not going to use the pesto right away, transfer the pesto to a jar with a tight fitting lid and refrigerate it, for up to 2 weeks. Makes about 1 cup.  When you are ready to use the pesto simply stir together in a heated serving bowl the pesto and 2/3 cup of the hot cooking water. When the pasta is al dente, drain it in a colander, add it to the pesto mixture, and toss the mixture until the pasta is coated well.

SORREL SOUP

3 cups chopped de-ribbed sorrel leaves

1 onion, chopped

3 cups stale bread, cubed

3-4 Tbs olive oil

1-2 cloves garlic

2-3 quarts chicken or vegetable stock

salt to taste

In a large heavy bottomed pot, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent.  Add stock and cover. Add the bread chunks and allow the soup to simmer until the bread is thoroughly soaked.  Add the sorrel and simmer for 1 minute.  Place the soup in a food processor and blend until smooth.  More stock can be added at this time if the soup is too thick.  Add salt and pepper to taste and reheat if necessary.

TETSUKABUTO is a Japanese winter squash variety that was originally used as root stock for grafting other fruiting squash varieties onto (sounds like a crazy lot of work to me!).  At some point, people realized that its fruit was very flavorful in and of itself and started planting it without grafting.  Its name translates as “iron helmet”, and it is a well-deserved name.  Its hard skin helps it store very well over a long period.  If you find it too difficult to cut up raw, simply bake it whole.  It will be much easier to cut after cooking. 

SQUASH AND BLACK-EYED PEA COCONUT CURRY

2 ½ lb. winter squash, cut into ¾ in. wedges

2 Tbsp avocado oil

1 Tbsp. garam masala

1 tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste

½ tsp. ground black pepper

2 Tbsp coconut oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced

1 serrano chile, halved

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 15 oz can of black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained

2 plum tomatoes, cut into wedges

½ tsp ground turmeric

1 15 oz can coconut milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine squash, avocado oil, garam masala, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper. Toss to coat; arrange in a single layer on a foil lined baking tray. Roast until tender, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat coconut oil in a large high-sided skillet over medium heat. Add mustard seeds. When seeds begin to pop, add onion and serrano (or 1/8 tsp cayenne). Cook, stirring, until onion is softened and golden. Add garlic and cook about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in black-eyed peas and tomatoes. Cook until tomatoes are jammy around the edges, about 3 minutes. Stir in turmeric, then coconut milk, and season with salt and pepper. Add roasted squash and fold to coat with curry. Cover and let simmer 5 minutes before serving. Serves 4-6. From Food and Wine March 2018.