THIS WEEK YOUR BASKET CONTAINS: lettuce, Swiss chard, new potatoes, snow peas, snap peas, kohlrabi, turnips, onions, Asian broccoli OR European broccoli, zucchini (half shares) and GARLIC SCAPES (full shares).

SUMMER SQUASH is just starting to produce (thank you hot weather!).  The first ones are almost always small and need to be harvested at that size to encourage more fruiting.  It won’t be long before we are harvesting good numbers of tasty zukes for you!  In the meantime, these will be a nice addition to a stir fry or mixed veggie sauté.

Garlic has a number of reproduction strategies.  In addition to the cloves in a head of garlic,  some types (so called hardneck varieties) put up a flower stalk at the same time the cloves start to form in the head.  By taking the flower buds (called scapes) off  when they are young and tender, we force the plant to put more energy into making larger cloves and heads.  We also get to eat these lovely treats.  While they can be used any way you would use scallions or regular garlic, the easiest way to use them is to sauté them in butter and then scramble eggs into them. 

We love this recipe.  Not just because it is delicious, but because it is so flexible and always comes out great.  For example, we often use both kohlrabi and turnips, any greens (turnip greens, chard, or even the leaves of kohlrabi, if you remove the thick stem) can be substituted for the cabbage.  You can also vary the other veggies you include to make use of what you have on hand.  Adding some chopped summer squash near the end of the cooking time (so it doesn’t get mushy) would work well.  Experiment and enjoy!

KOHLRABI AND CHICKEN STEW

3-4 lb. Chicken

2 lb. kohlrabi/broccoli stems

3/4 lb. Carrots

4 Tb butter

4 cups sliced onions

1 cup peeled, chopped tomatoes

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

pinch saffron threads

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp ground coriander

1 quart chicken broth or water

4 sprigs parsley

1/2 small cabbage

Cut chicken into serving pieces. Peel kohlrabis and/or broccoli stems; cut larger ones into 1-inch chunks. Cut cabbage into 1/4-inch strips. Peel carrots and slice diagonally into 1/2-inch thick pieces.  In a large saucepan, heat the butter and sauté the onions, tomatoes, salt and spices for 4-5 minutes. Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes. Add the broth or water and parsley. Bring the broth to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the kohlrabis and carrots, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Finally, add the cabbage and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes longer or until all the vegetables are completely tender.  Adapted from The Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash

The recipe below is one we make a lot at this time of  year.  This is another recipe that you can improvise with depending on what you have available and/or your whims.

SALAD NICOISE

Steam the new potatoes until you are just able to penetrate them with a fork (this will be quite quick) and let cool.  Make a regular vinaigrette (see the recipe on our web site), but add 1-2 Tbs. of soy sauce.  Add chopped onion, 1 tsp. dill weed and any other herbs you might like.  Drain one can of tuna and mix into the vinaigrette.  Add snap peas, capers, shredded carrots or kohlrabi, chopped black olives and/or hard-boiled eggs and stir.  Add the potatoes, along with lettuce and/or spinach, toss well and serve.

STRAWBERRIES ARE NEARING THE END!  While we may be able to fill your complete order, as production drops off we may need to cut back the numer of pints you get.  They are  $5 per pint;  $27.50 for 6 pints; $55 for 12 pints.  Email to order by noon the day before your delivery. 

We have set the date for our first SUBSCRIBER DAY OF THE YEAR.  It will be on Sunday, June 22^nd   from 11:00 to 3:00.  We will contribute pizzas, lead farm tours and host the potluck lunch.  

 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) are ready!  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.