PIckup #17

Fall is here! Apples and greens and roots are coming in. Peppers are slowing down their ripening but the roots are putting on growth. Winter radishes, rutabaga and carrots are almost ready for their October debut.

Here’s a note about broccoli raab: if you’ve gotten broccoli raab in your share and wondered why it looks a little different than what you get in the store - there is a reason for that! We grow what we call “spring raab” or “young raab”. You may be used to getting stalks with sprouts on them but the problem is that when the plant starts to sprout you have a very small harvest window before it flowers and turns tough. In warmer weather maybe a week and in cooler weather maybe a couple weeks. We start to harvest the raab early so we have a much longer harvest window and don’t waste any of the crop. I would imagine on a big farm in California or Italy, they would plant acres of broccoli raab and then harvest it all at once for export. On our little farm, we try to get as much out of one bed as possible to maximize our space. We will continue to harvest the plants until the stalks get woody, so you may start to see more sprouts in the bunches, or you may not. The leaves and stalks all taste like broccoli raab and you can cook them the same way!

Another note: About apples: We have apples from our own little orchard available in the share this week. These are NO SPRAY apples. Because of that, they are fairly ugly and on the smaller side but they are so delicious. We prune the trees but otherwise do not treat them at all. So, please don’t judge them by their appearance and enjoy them raw or cooked.

Scenes from the farm: the fall brassica field looking great, digging potatoes, oats and peas cover crop coming up great, and fennel the size of my head!

Veggies:

garlic (2 bulb)

scallion (1 bunch) (limit 1)

specialty greens (red and green baby mustard and baby kale) (bag)

swiss chard (bunch)

beets (1 pint)

onion (3)

Sweet peppers (4 peppers)

Italian Eggplant (2)

Shishito peppers (1 quart)

Mixed herb bunch

White potatoes (1 quart)

Red Potatoes (1 quart)

Fingerling potatoes (1 pint )

Hot peppers: 1 pint jalapeno, 1 quart mixed hot chilis

jimmy nardello frying peppers (1 quart)

broccoli raab (1 bunch)

arugula (1 bag) Limit 1

radish (1 bunch)

hakurei turnip (1 bunch)

Unripe green tomatoes (2 lbs) limit 1

Escarole (1 head)

Radicchio (1 head)

Tatsoi (1 head)

Fennel (1 large bulb)

Kale: curly and toscano (1 Bunch)

Purple Kohlrabi with greens (3 bulbs)

Celery, Fennel and Apple Salad with Pecorino and Walnuts

https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/celery-fennel-and-apple-salad-pecorino-and-walnuts

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup walnuts

  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

  • Kosher salt

  • Pepper

  • 3 celery ribs, sliced diagonally 1/4-inch thick

  • 2 fennel bulbs—trimmed, halved, cored and thinly sliced on a mandoline

  • 2 Honeycrisp apples—halved, cored and sliced

  • 1/2 cup basil leaves, torn if large

  • Pecorino cheese shavings, for garnish

How to Make It

Step 1    

Preheat the oven to 375°. Spread the walnuts in a pie plate and toast for 7 to 8 minutes, until golden. Coarsely chop the nuts.

Step 2    

In a large bowl, whisk the 3 tablespoons of olive oil with the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Add the celery, fennel, apples and basil and toss to evenly coat. Transfer the salad to a serving platter. Season with pepper and drizzle with olive oil, then top with the walnuts and garnish with cheese shavings.

Malaika SpencerComment