“And he gave it for his opinion…that whoever could make two ears of corn or two blades of grass, to grow upon a spot where only one grew before, would deserve better of mankind, and do more essential service to his country, than the whole race of politicians put together.” -Jonathon Swift, Gulliver’s Travels
Farm News: Wylie Coyote spotted in the back pasture – two of them in fact. Our chickens have been wandering over there quite a bit lately, and I’m sure Wylie has his eye on them.
44 degrees this A.M. The tomatoes were shivering – but the cabbage and broccoli plants look promising. There is hope for something other than greens in the near future!!
What’s in the bucket? Strawberries, sugar snap peas, arugula, lettuce mix with beet greens and spinach, bibb lettuce, kale, turnip or purple mustard greens, radishes or young onions, oregano.
EAT YOUR STRAWBERRIES!! This will be the last week of strawberries. Like other berries, they are known to fight cervical and breast cancer. Research also shows they protect your brain and memory. Animals that consumed an extract of strawberries, blueberries and spinach every day had significant improvements in short-term memory. (How do you tell an animal’s short term memory is improving ?).
I made a salad the other night with mixed lettuce, strawberries, blue cheese, walnuts and young onions. I dressed it with a blackberry balsamic and olive oil – a little cracked pepper…delish!!!
Last night we had kale and white bean stew. I cooked about 2 cups of great northern beans in vegetable broth (or you could use chicken broth). Cover the beans generously with the broth, add a bay leaf and add water if it cooks down. I don’t soak my beans – just simmer them for a few hours. However, if you think ahead, soaking them is always a good thing to do.
You could also short cut and use canned beans. If you do this – cook the kale first and add the beans to them.
I cooked the beans until they were a little crunchy but close to done. Add salt to taste.
I ribbed and chopped one bunch of kale. I added these to the pot and let them wilt down and stirred them in. Then added one young onion, chopped fine, and 2 cloves of garlic minced. Cook all of this until the greens and onions are tender. I then added one fresh chopped tomato (although you could probably skip this, it does add a good flavor) and about two tablespoons of chopped oregano leaves. Keep cooking until the beans are creamy tasting and the flavors evolve. Serve with hot corn bread.
Great meal for a chilly night!!
Happy Eating and thanks for buying local food from our farm!!
Letty