My Ambivalent Relationship with Strawberries

I love strawberries.  We grow strawberries, but are limited by several factors such as time and space requirements, my physical condition, price, and uncertainty of production.  What do I mean? Strawberries take space that could grow crops with significantly more production and less labor.  Ken plants them, weeds strawberries several times, composts, pulls out some of the runner plants, transplants, and maintains the crop over multiple seasons.   Imagine transplanting cabbage or broccoli, weeding once and …

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Harvest Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden!  This week’s CSA box has lettuce, spinach, salad mix, asparagus tips, green onions, chives, radishes, and herbs- probably dill. Field Notes.    Ken has transplanted the tomatoes and peppers inside the mobile high tunnel.  He has also been busy transplanting in the garden – onions and brassica family. After the torrential rain – 2 1/2 inches in less than an hour (nearly 6 inches total), Ken had some places where soil was …

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Recipe Ideas for Braising Greens

Spring greens also include some stronger flavored greens.  In Asia and Europe cooks work to provide the bitter flavor as part of any meal.  In America we usually avoid it.  In Europe folks buy bitter tonics as a digestive and spring tonic.  In Japan every meal we were served had a sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami (savory or brothy).    Here we currently offer chicory and turnip greens.  we have offered dandelion greens.  Each …

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Harvest Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden!  This week’s CSA box has asparagus, spinach, lettuce, salad mix, beet thins, salad turnips, green onions, potatoes, and herbs Field Notes.  Ken got the poultry moved, the beds ready in the garden, planted there, and then got everything ready so I could help move the mobile high tunnel to its summer location.  It was downhill and went smoothly.  Then he anchored it.  Next I will need to help with the cucumber …

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Harvest Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden!  This week’s CSA box has lots of greens – spinach, lettuce, beet thins, etc. We also have green onions or chives, beets, celery root, potatoes, and herbs.       Field and Farm Notes.  Thank you to all who came out to our Spring Opener!  Ken has been moving poultry so he can get into the garden.  Oscar usually circles the coop so the chickens can’t “escape,” but with the vet’s …

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Harvest Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden!  This week’s box has greens – lettuce, salad mix, spinach, wild mustard, green onions, chives, potatoes, celery root, beets, and herbs. Field Notes.  Ken has been planting and transplanting:  his nursery inside the mobile high tunnel, his pepper and tomato plants in the germination cabinet, and the onion seedlings.  He has also been cleaning up the greenhouse in the field; perennial crops have perennial weeds.  And to avoid any possible boredom, …

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Thursday Morning in the Kitchen

After harvest Wednesdays, Ken and I regroup.  Today I found myself in the kitchen.  First I made some mayonnaise with some egg yolks,         and then some macaroons with the egg whites.           Then I made some custard with some cracked eggs.           Ken requested some macaroni and cheese.  Here is a skillet with baked ziti with cheese sauce, onion, peas, and frozen ripe …

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Harvest Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden!  This CSA box has spinach, lettuce, salad greens, potatoes, beets, celery root, gobo, green onions or chives, potato onions, and herbs.       Field Notes.  Ken is almost done with pruning fruit trees and vines.  He has been planting, and we have received our seed potatoes.  Soon we will set the late crop potato seed to chit in a sunny window.  Last week we had a big spinach harvest – …

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Harvest Newsletter

Greetings from the Garden!  This CSA box has fresh greens – braising and salad, parsnips, gobo, beets, carrots, onions, and fresh herb.       Field Notes.  Pepper plants are looking good.  Tomatoes have been planted.  Onion seedlings are hardening off in the greenhouse.  Ken set up a hoopette for early roots and has planted peas.    I am trying to get my loom warped before I move out doors.  I start cleaning and pricing …

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Egg Season – Ideas

Spring is egg season.  There is a reason the Easter Bunny is carrying a basket of eggs.  And it is the time of year when one has extra eggs to color or dye.       My birthday is in March.   Ken makes me a souffle.         Most years I start with omelettes as we also have fresh spinach this time of year.  Then when we have a social event I make …

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