THIS WEEK YOUR BASKET CONTAINS: Purple Sprouting Broccoli or Asian broccoli or raab, green elephant garlic. radishes, turnips, Swiss chard, cilantro or dill, and salad mix (lettuce, spinach, arugula, and endive)

IT IS TIME TO ORDER GARDENS STARTS!  You can order from our full lineup of vegetable, herb and flower starts  from our website PUMPKINRIDGEGARDENS.SQUARE.SITE.

MIXED FLOWER BOUQUETS ($12) will be ready soon.  Email to order (either standing order or one time) RHUBARB is also ready!  We can add a bunch (approximately 1 Lb.) to your basket for $4.  Email to order.  STINGING NETTLES, a springtime treat (IYKYK), is ready  .  We will send along a full bag (our plastic produce bags we use) for $4.50 just email to order (and be prepared to handle your prickly package!)

If you have been subscribing to our farm for a few years (or if you have been eating seasonally) you are aware of the ebb and flow of the harvests.  Items come on slowly, reach a peak and slow ly decline as other items come on and appear in your baskets.  One of the beautiful things about this is that we are aware of a certain kind of community this creates.  As we harvest and deliver your veggies along with the recipes we send we like to think about the fact that over the week many families will be eating the very same meal, often on the same night.  This is especially true for the recipe below.  Over the years we’ve heard from many people that this dish has become almost a “rite of spring” for their family as they always make it with the early turnips we send along.  If you’ve never tried it, please join us this week in our “communal meal”.

MORROCAN TURNIP AND CHICKEN STEW

2 cups cooked chickpeas

2 small (2 1/2 lb) chickens

3 Tb butter

1 Tb oil

2 onions

5 cups chicken stock

1/2 tsp white pepper

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp powdered saffron

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 lb small  turnips

2 cups chopped turnip leaves and stems

1/4 cup lemon juice

salt and freshly ground pepper

Rinse chickpeas in water and rub lightly to remove skins; drain and set aside. Cut chickens into quarters, removing wing tips and backbones; put them aside for stock. Melt butter and oil in a casserole and lightly brown chicken on all sides, cooking in two batches if necessary. Slice onions and stir into butter and oil to color. Then add the chickpeas, stock, pepper, ginger, saffron, and turmeric. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add turnips and greens and simmer 20 minutes more. Remove chicken and turnips to a covered warm dish. Boil sauce to reduce, mashing some of the chickpeas against the side of the pan to thicken the sauce; it may take 10-15 minutes to produce a nice thick sauce. Add lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Reheat the chicken and turnips in the sauce and serve.   Serves 6 to 8.  From The Victory Garden Cookbook.

In the same vein, the purple sprouting broccoli harvest is fading, and the sprouts are more stemmy.  As luck would have it, our copy of Food & Wine magazine arrived this week with the recipe below which is perfect for the late season PSB or raab.   We tried it and loved it.  I think you will, too.

RAPINI RIPASSATI

1/3 cup olive oil

6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced (about 2 tablespoons)

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 cup unsalted chicken stock

1 pound broccoli rabe, woody ends trimmed

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, combine oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium, and cook, swirling skillet often, until garlic turns light golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in crushed red pepper; cook, swirling skillet constantly, until red pepper blooms, about 15 seconds. Remove from heat, and stir in chicken stock. Add broccoli rabe to boiling water in pot; cook, stirring occasionally, until a paring knife easily pierces the thickest portion of stems, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove broccoli rabe from water using a slotted spoon or a spider, and hold over pot for a few seconds to drain as much water as possible. Transfer broccoli rabe to oil mixture in skillet; return to heat over medium-high. Add salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced and broccoli rabe is very tender and coated in oil mixture, 4 to 8 minutes. Season to taste with additional salt. Transfer broccoli rabe to a platter; drizzle with oil in skillet. From Food & Wine magazine, May 2025