“But clouds bellied out in the sultry heat, the sky cracked open with a crimson gash, spewed flame-and the ancient forest began to smoke. By morning there was a mass of booming, fiery tongues, a hissing, crashing, howling all around, half the sky black with smoke, and the bloodied sun just barely visible.” Yevgeny Zamgatin
We had fires burning on both sides of our farm this week. This one looked like a nuclear bomb when it started, so frightening!
What’s in the Bucket? Get back to your roots this week!! carrots, beets, turnip roots, fennel root, rutabagas and heirloom sweet potato. Also, a little kale and/or collards to round out the bucket.
What’s at market: turnip root, kale, collard, rutabaga, broccoli florets. Circle S Beef: ground beef, steaks, roasts. Turnip truck special: buy one quart turnip root get one free!!
If you are not a fan of turnips and rutabagas, try the following soup. You can use the fennel in place of the celery. Taste it before you puree it – I actually prefer it with the chunky veggies in it, so I don’t puree the soup.
Any root vegetable soup
Ingredients
- 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 1/2 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
- 1/2 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
Method
- 1. Melt butter in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Stir in onion and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, rosemary and bay leaves; cook 1 minute more. Add root vegetables, 8 cups water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium and simmer, covered, until vegetables are tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
- 2. Remove and discard rosemary branches and bay leaves. Using an immersion blender, purée soup until smooth. (Alternatively, you can purée the soup in batches in a blender or food processor.) If the soup is too thick, add a little water. Season with lemon juice and more salt to taste.
- 3. To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top with a drizzle of olive oil, a few drops of lemon juice, flaky salt and crushed chile or grated cheese, if desired.
Happy Eating and thanks for buying local food from Circle S Farm!
Letty