Wild Hare Organic Farm

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Starting the year with the salad that started it all

In the CSA shares this week: 

  • Turnips
  • Parsnips
  • Kale
  • Carrots
  • Onions
  • Garlic
  • Cameo and/or Melrose Apples
  • Frozen Blueberries

EXTRAS TO PICK THIS WEEK (FREE TO ALL SHARE MEMBERS):
UPICK for Herbs only from here on until Spring.  

A little over a week ago, Mark passed an article from the Times my way entitled "Seeing Kale With New Eyes."  Mind you, we're in the throes of envisioning twelve months of crops in succession for the year ahead, and Kale is one of those greens that we're constantly trying to decide how much more we bump up our numbers, or if (gasp) 2018 is the year that folks will decide they're over it.  It diminishes in popularity over the Summer; however, in January, I always wish I had more, so it'll probably win us over on those grounds alone.  I happen to love Kale, and I fell for it in 2007.  That was technically the first year that vegetables paid my bills, and I spent hours calling around to kitchens all over the boroughs to catch chefs between the hours of lunch and dinner services each day.  In all of my years of schooling, that year I confronted the steepest of learning curves and some pretty tough customers (and some incredibly kind ones too).  But, in hindsight, it was a thrill--one that I have been chasing ever since. In talking to chefs about their menus, I gleaned some great ideas for how to use vegetables that Mark and I would valiantly try to replicate at home with varying success.  In particular, I loved to learn that the dark narrow leaves of Cavalo Nero (and all of its names Black Cabbage, Italian, Toscano, Lacinato, or most charmingly, Dinosaur) made an awesome raw salad green, thanks to the chefs at Il Buco who introduced me to the Kale Caesar and Joshua McFadden who is said to have brought Kale salads into our national consciousness.  And when there was a gap, crop failure, or bout of insect damage, I learned the more difficult way just how much people could love Kale.   Last year, McFadden published a really great book entitled Six Seasons:  a New Way with Vegetableswhich has claimed a high rank among the stack of books that Mark and I turn to as we prepare for year four.  And while we're planning to bump up our Kale numbers so that there is a bit more for us to enjoy this time next year, I'm super thankful that our friends Amy and Agustin from Four Elements Farm had bunches of Kale to share with our CSA this week while what remains of ours is teeny tiny.  Kale Salad Kismet!

Best,
Katie

WHAT'S IN STOCK AT THE FARMSTAND
CSA Members receive a 10% discount on most items at our farmstand

HARE-RAISED:  

  • Salad Mix (limited)
  • Celeriac 
  • Carrots
  • Parsnips
  • Eggs 
  • Winter Squash

FROM BEYOND THE FARM:

  • WA Organic Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Opal, Fuji, Gala, Melrose & Winesap Apples
  • Organic Broccoli, Fennel, Roots & Cabbage 
  • NW Organic Roots, Potatoes & Onions 
  • Organic Fruit: Blood Oranges, Cara Cara Navel Oranges, Meyer Lemons, Bananas, Limes, & Lemons.
  • Olykraut, Essential Baking Co. Artisan Breads, Grounds for Change Coffee
  • Jody's Honey--in stock!
  • Dates, Ginger, Nuts, Sweet Potatoes and Dried Fruit

SEASONAL RECIPES

TURNIPS WITH YOGURT AND TOMATOES
Excerpted from Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian by Saveur

1 1⁄2 cups plain yogurt
Salt
6 medium turnips, trimmed, peeled, and cut into 1⁄2" cubes
3 tbsp. peanut or canola oil
2 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
1⁄2 tsp. cumin seeds
2 tomatoes, peeled, cored, and chopped (Katie's note--canned perfectly acceptable when fresh are out of season for this recipe)
1⁄4 tsp. cayenne

CONTINUE TO RECIPE

KALE AND PARSNIP QUINOA BOWLS
Dishing up the Dirt

2-4 medium sized parsnips, cut into 1/4 inch pieces, 
1 bunch of curly kale (or any type of kale/green) tough stems removed and cut into bite size pieces
1 yellow onion, diced
1 cup quinoa (uncooked)
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped and toasted
1/4 cup dried cranberries
Oil of choice for cooking (I used grapeseed oil)
Salt and pepper

For the dressing:

1/4 cup tahini
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 TBS pure maple syrup
1 TBS low sodium tamari
2 TBS rice wine vinegar
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 cup water

CONTINUE TO RECIPE

ROOT VEGETABLE SOUP
Melissa Clark, NYT Food

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion or 2 leeks (white and light green part only), chopped
2 to 3 celery stalks, diced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 rosemary or thyme branches
2 bay leaves
3 ½ pounds mixed root vegetables (carrot, parsnip, celery root, turnip, rutabaga, sweet or regular potato), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
2 teaspoons fine sea salt, more as needed
½ teaspoon black pepper, more as needed
 Juice of 1/2 lemon, more for serving
 Extra-virgin olive oil
 Flaky sea salt
 Crushed Aleppo, Urfa or other chile flakes, optional
 Grated Parmesan or pecorino, optional

CONTINUE TO RECIPE

BLUEBERRY DUTCH BABY PANCAKE
Averie Cooks

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/4 cups frozen blueberries (add them frozen, do not thaw first; fresh may be substituted, possibly reducing baking time by a few minutes)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 to 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch salt, optional and to taste
confectioners’ sugar for dusting or jam for serving, optional

CONTINUE TO RECIPE

VEGAN DUTCH BABY
WITH CARAMELIZED APPLES & PEARS

Heart of a Baker

tablespoon coconut oil
⅓ cup almond milk
7 ounces silken tofu
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅔ cup all purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Topping:
1 apple, sliced
1 pear, sliced
3 tablespoons brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons coconut oil
Powdered sugar, for dusting

CONTINUE TO RECIPE

SKILLET ROAST CHICKEN
WITH PARSNIPS, FENNEL & SCALLIONS

Bon Appetit

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 3½–4-lb. chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 fennel bulb, sliced lengthwise ½” thick
2 large parsnips, peeled, sliced ½” thick on the diagonal
1 bunch scallions
3 wide strips lemon zest
Lemon wedges (for serving)

CONTINUE TO RECIPE