Week 4: Snow Peas and Green Lace (wings)

It's snow pea season!

The snow peas are coming on strong. Everyone can expect a
generous quantity of them this week and, if the weather
cooperates, the next two or three weeks to come.

It's also green lacewing season.

These are green lacewing eggs, next to our front doorknob. I have no idea why
a mama green lacewing would decide to lay eggs here, but I think it's awesome.

Normally green lacewings lay their eggs on plants, especially those likely to become infested with aphids, because aphids are what their nymphs - which are sometimes referred to as aphid lions - like to eat. There are green lacewing eggs all over the place this year. I saw a gazillion of them on the snow peas during harvest. I only saw one aphid though. Last year was a really bad aphid year, and this year we are seeing somewhat fewer than average. In the insect balance of the vegetable farm universe, lots of aphids last year means a big year for green lacewings this year, though many of the nymphs that hatch from these eggs won't make it to maturity for lack of prey. Especially the ones on my front door. Next year the green lacewing population will likely be back to normal. 

Just thought I'd mention them. Now you'll know what they are if you happen to get some green lacewing eggs along with your share this season.

In addition to green lacewing eggs and snow peas, members can expect to receive: Braising Mix, Endive, Kale, Basil, Scallions, and Parsley or Sorrel.

Some of you may have noticed the article about grain salads that I linked to on the facebook page the other day. It encourages a lot of improvising in the kitchen, which I know not everyone is comfortable with. So, I came up with a grain salad that uses share items and stuff I had on hand in my kitchen. If bulgar isn't something that you tend to have on hand, you should. It's handy.

Bulgar Salad with Snow Peas and More

As with the example in the article I mentioned above, this recipe is meant to be experimented with. You can follow it exactly or change it as much as your comfort level allows. Consider soaking the bulgar well ahead of time. We keep a jar of soaked bulgar in the fridge (when we remember to) for spur of the moment salads. This quantity would make a light lunch for two or a side dish for four. Feel free to multiply it.

• 1 cup soaked bulgar (a generous 1/2 cup dried bulgar, soaked for at least an hour)
• 2 oz (a large handful) snow peas, stems removed and chopped.
• 1 or 2 scallions, sliced
• 1 kale leaf, sliced into narrow ribbons
• 2 or 3 sprigs of parsley, minced
• 1/4 cup peanuts, I used raw but roasted would work too, chopped roughly
• 1 small apple, chopped and sliced into bite sized pieces
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 
• salt and pepper to taste

Stir together the bulgar and chopped vegetables, apple, and nuts. 

Use a fork to whisk the oil and vinegar together, add salt and pepper to taste. Stir the dressing onto the salad until everything is well coated with dressing. Eat immediately or refrigerate for up to 24 hours to allow the flavors to meld.

Week 10: Late Summer Life on the Farm

The hoophouse and brassicas in the late afternoon sun.

Ah...the last few weeks of August on a vegetable farm. The much anticipated crops - cucumbers, squash, tomatoes - are rolling in and the fall crops are sizing up and ripening without much effort on the farmers' part.

Onions currently curing in the hoophouse. Our work is nearly done here.

Um, right? Because that is what I planned for when I signed up for this farming gig....

Almost. 

We do have a lot of wonderful vegetables to harvest right now, so the week 10 share will include many lovely late summer items: Summer Squash/Zucchini, Potatoes, Cucumbers, Carrots, Tomatoes plus Eggplant/Pepper/Tomatillo OR Ground Cherries, Head Lettuce, Basil, and Kohlrabi.

But we still have a few challenges to contend with.

The cucumbers and squash are definitely rolling in, but the cool nights are slowing down the field tomatoes a lot. We still have hoophouse tomatoes for the shares, and I remain optimistic that we will see a lot of ripe tomatoes from the field this year, but only time will tell. The eggplants are certainly happy! 

And the fall crops are looking great too. We have, among other things, onions curing (see photo above), rutabaga getting bigger and more delicious every day, and lots of lovely winter squash and gourds sizing up on the vines.

Our biggest challenge this year remains pests. The amazing caterpillar pressure we started the season with fueled rodent pressure the likes of which we have never seen. I think mice have gotten as many ripe tomatoes out of the field as we have. 

Then there are the insects. Teeny, tiny, aphids and flea beetles, again at population levels we have never seen before. As I mentioned last week they are going after the greens in the field and, we just discovered yesterday, in our fall starts too.

Redbor kale fall starts look good, only a couple aphids to be seen.

But the Beedy's Camden kale starts are under massive attack.

We're going with the tried and true methods of squishing and dish soap as our first lines of defense (you can see a few bubbles if you look closely in this photo, I'd just sprayed), probably with some diatomaceous earth as a follow up if need be. Kale lovers cross your fingers.

In the meantime of course, you have all the vegetables in your share to enjoy. You are getting kohlrabi again this week, and I know that many of you take them home without much of an idea of what to do with them, so, though last week's recipe was a kohlrabi dish, I am featuring kohlrabi again in this week's recipe.

Kohlrabi are really simple to prepare in many different ways. They taste like mild broccoli stem and are wonderful cooked (as in the stew below) or raw (as in last week's slaw recipe).

Summer's end Kohlrabi Stew

This recipe uses several of the items in your share, but it makes a lot of food. This is easily two large meals worth of stew for us, and we are big eaters. Be sure to serve it with crusty bread or biscuits for sopping up the liquid.

• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 2 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalapeno (or none or more to taste), chopped. If you have any chipotle around you could use one or two of those instead.
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 1 pound stew beef, cubed (I actually used venison)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 large kohlrabi, peeled and chopped into one inch cubes
• 1 pound tomatoes (about what is in the share), roughly chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 2 or 3 medium summer squash or zucchini, chopped into one inch cubes

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, jalapeno, and onion. Stir until they are coated in oil.

Add the beef. Sprinkle in the salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Continue to stir frequently until the meat is brown on all sides, 5 to 10 minutes.

Stir in the kohlrabi. Add water to nearly cover the meat and vegetables. The squash and tomatoes will add a lot of liquid when you add them later, so be stingy with the water now.

Increase the heat to bring the water to a boil, then decrease the heat to simmer. Simmer uncovered for approximately 30 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes and squash and simmer, uncovered, for an additional 15 minutes.

Colorful stew is the best kind of stew.