I just picked up our second vegetable share of the season (Nick and I do a half share, which means we only pick up every other week). As usual, we have some exciting vegetables to work with over the next two weeks. Starting in the top left is rhubarb, our first of the year! My favorite thing to do with rhubarb is infuse vodka for fun springtime cocktails. This way I can enjoy the delicately sweet-tart flavor without being turned off by rhubarb's annoying texture (stringy when raw, mushy when cooked...I just can't do it).
Next we have some nettles, which are an interesting green, and one that can cause some unpleasant dermatological symptoms if not handled with care. I found an interesting recipe involving nettles here.* More chives, and, another member of the onion family, a bonus round of ramps are next! I just pickled the remainder of our last batch over the past weekend, so I may be gluttonous and enjoy these raw, or perhaps another round of pickling is in store. I'll keep you posted.
On the bottom left we have burdock root, which is really good roasted or fried in thin coins, flavored with your favorite seasonings. They make for a great homemade version of potato chips. With the ramp greens, which are withheld when pickling, I might take Harmony Valley Farm's suggestion and make a pesto. See a fun recipe here.*
The last two pictures are of our garden herb pack, which is one of my favorite things about this farm share. Every year we get a nine-pack of baby herb plants that we can transplant at home for a continuous supply of fresh herbs throughout the summer. It's such a great idea, and many of these herbs are perennials, even here in zone 3. This means that I have some giant herb plants in my yard from CSA years past and so I can share this year's plants with friends who need some. Of course I keep the basil and rosemary for myself since these guys do not like our Minnesota winters.
Above is a shot of my very freshly planted rosemary, basil, and parsley plants. Parsley is a perennial, but the rabbits in our back yard will not leave it alone, so I'm keeping these as reinforcements. Hopefully in a few weeks, things will look almost as good as Jaime's garden.
Vegetables not pictured include a bag of saute mix greens, overwintered spinach, and parsnips.
A big thank you to Harmony Valley Farm for these beautiful herbs and vegetables!
*Okay, so if you checked the recipe links above, you will have found yourself on my favorite new food blog, the Perennial Plate. I was told about the blog by my co-worker, Walter (Thank you Walter!). Daniel and his significant other, Mirra, spent all of last year eating locally here in Minnesota, with occasional forays into Wisconsin, documenting all of their adventures in videos that you can watch. I blew through all 52 original episodes in a weekend...yes, I was late to the party and had to play catch up. They are currently driving across the country seeking out more local food in new places and continuing to blog and post video episodes as they go. Perhaps they will be visiting your town, Dinner Clubbers. Be on the lookout, and check out their fantastic blog!
1 comment:
So jealous of the rhubarb! My mom has always grown rhubarb so I always had ready access it in Wisconsin and had no idea how much I would miss it. Last year I actually bought some at our local grocery store and it was ridiculously expensive and didn't taste nearly as good as the free stuff from home.
We got our first CSA delivery yesterday... I'll post about it soon!
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