Sauerkraut

Sauerkraut is one of the oldest types of lacto fermentation. We decided to grow cabbages and make our own sauerkraut for the Winter CSA in following the ancient traditions of preserving food for the winter. It's an incredibly simple process. In the summer we seeded a special cabbage known for making good sauerkraut, planted it, weeded it and watched it grow until the end of fall. Our 'gunma' cabbages actually yielded the best at over 200 pounds of cabbage. We harvested them before frost and covered them in newspaper to preserve the heads until we were ready to make them into sauerkraut. With the help of the Farm Cooking School, we spent a day chopping and slicing our 200 pounds of cabbage, mixed them with salt and spices and left them to ferment in buckets in our walk in cooler (and then later in my house office). While I knew I should be more trusting of the process - people for centuries before me have been doing it with success, it was hard to trust that the moldy buckets of cabbage were really going to turn into anything edible. But once we scraped off the top layer of mold (the part exposed to air and therefore vulnerable to aerobic bacteria), the result was truly the most delicious sauerkraut I've ever had. The cool thing about fermentation is that it is truly a product of the life in the air around us. The bacteria that can live in the pH of the salt water and digest the sugars of the cabbage are the same ones that are found in our gut doing the hard work of digesting. That fermentation takes the already nutritious cabbage and makes those nutrients more available to us, with the added benefit of being more delicious. How cool is that?!

This week we have 2 types of sauerkraut to choose from.

One we're calling "Power Kraut" because it's flavor is truly powerful. For this recipe we combined bay leaf, coriander, mustard seed, black pepper, and celery seed in a grinder. We added the spice powder to the salt to fully integrate the spices into the cabbage. And it totally worked. If you're looking for some kraut with a serious kick, this is it.

The second is a "Kimchi" type. We added chopped garlic, fresh ginger and a whole bunch of chilies to this one. It's got a little spice and a lot of garlic and will truly heal what ails you.

We're looking forward to doing more sauerkraut in the future and we hope you enjoy being part of this ancient tradition- this is what we're supposed to eat in the winter.

The rest of the share:

Salad greens

head lettuce (a greenhouse bonus!)

onions

leeks

sauerkraut

cabbage (non fermented)

free choice roots:

carrots

potatoes

beets

SALSIFY

watermelon radish

hakurei turnips

parsnips

rutabaga

The farm before the storm.

The farm before the storm.

Oh so green.

Oh so green.

Winter time desk time.

Winter time desk time.

Spicy Kimchi Tofu Stew

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/spicy-kimchi-tofu-stew

Ingredients

Servings: 6

  • Kosher salt
  • 1 16-oz. package silken tofu, cut into 1” pieces
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 4 cups gently squeezed cabbage kimchi, chopped, plus 1 cup liquid
  • 2 tablespoons gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)
  • 8 scallions, cut into 1” pieces
  • 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Preparation

  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Reduce heat, carefully add tofu, and simmer gently until slightly puffed and firmed up, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer tofu to a medium bowl.

  • Heat vegetable oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add kimchi and gochujang and cook, stirring often, until beginning to brown, 5–8 minutes. Add kimchi liquid and 8 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until kimchi is softened and translucent, 35–40 minutes.

  • Add scallions, soy sauce, and tofu; simmer gently until tofu has absorbed flavors, 20–25 minutes (tofu will fall apart a little). Add sesame oil; season with salt and pepper. Ladle stew into bowls; top each with an egg yolk and sesame seeds.

  • Recipe by Alison Roman
  • Photograph by Gentl & Hyers

Rich and Creamy Salsify Gratin

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/rich-and-creamy-salsify-gratin

Contributed by Gabriel Kreuther

  • ACTIVE: 1 HR
  • TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 30 MIN
  • SERVINGS: 10
  • MAKE-AHEAD
  • STAFF-FAVORITE
  • VEGETARIAN

Salsify is a root vegetable that's shaped like a skinny parsnip and has blackish skin with white flesh. It tastes a little like artichoke hearts. It's available from June through February.

  1. 3 pounds salsify
  2. 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  3. 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  4. 1 quart half-and-half
  5. Salt and freshly ground pepper
  6. Freshly grated nutmeg
  7. 1/4 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (1 cup)
  8. 1/4 pound Gruyère cheese, shredded (1 cup)
  1. Fill a large bowl with water. Peel the salsify and trim the ends. Transfer the salsify to the water as you peel it. Using a mandoline or the slicing blade in a food processor, slice the salsify 1/4 inch thick. Return the salsify to the water to keep it white.
  2. In a large soup pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook over moderate heat for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Add the half-and-half and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking, for about 3 minutes, or until the half-and-half is slightly thickened. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Drain the salsify and pat it completely dry. Add the salsify to the pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
  3. Preheat the oven to 400° and position a rack in the upper third. Pour the salsify mixture into a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and sprinkle with the cheeses. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the gratin is bubbling. Preheat the broiler and broil the gratin for about 5 minutes, or just until the cheese is golden and crusty. Let the gratin stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Malaika SpencerComment