This Week: 1 bunch of kale, 1 pound of spinach, 1 bunch of beets, 2 heads of lettuce, 1 kohlrabi, 1 bunch of garlic scapes, 1 bunch of scallions.

We’ve been enjoying beet and kohlrabi slaw almost daily. Give it a try! Just shred the beets and julienne the kohlrabi and make a vinaigrette dressing. Add any kind of fresh herb you have sitting around.

Spinach Pie

You can make this with or without a crust. If you use crust, you can make a standard pie crust or crumble up all the stale leftover bits of tortilla chips in your pantry and spread them in the pie pan.

For the filling:

saute 1 pound of washed and chopped spinach in a skillet with an onion, add salt and pepper and oregano or basil

in a bowl, mix 1 pound of ricotta cheese, 3 beaten eggs, 1/2 cup of shredded sharp cheese and a pinch of nutmeg

add the cooked spinach to the cheese mixture, stir to combine and spread into the pie pan; sprinkle with paprika or crushed red pepper

bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes

(this can be frozen while unbaked and then when you want to eat it, let it thaw and bake)

Contents: 1 pint sugar snap peas, 2 heads of lettuce, 1 bunch lacinato kale, 1 bunch of garlic scapes, 1 pound of spinach, 1 kohlrabi, 1 bunch of dill

Kohlrabi Slaw

remove the leaves and stalks from the kohlrabi bulb, wash well, cut into ribbons, place in a bowl and sprinkle lightly with salt and massage lightly to bruise the leaves a bit; set aside

chop 3-5 of the garlic scapes into thin rounds, put in a jar or bowl and cover with red wine vinegar; let sit while you prepare the other vegetables

peel the kohlrabi bulb and cut into matchsticks or shred and put with the greens

cut several or all of the sugar snap peas into chunks and add to the bowl

chop about half the bunch of dill and add to the other things

finish making the dressing by adding into the jar of vinegar and scapes: olive oil, black pepper, a teaspoon or so of dijon mustard, a couple tablespoons of buttermilk (optional). shake well and pour over the veggies and toss. let sit 15 minutes and enjoy!

The strawberries are barely making any berries this year I think because of that intense cold at Christmas and so there aren’t any this week. We will hope for a blueberry crop (they are looking great right now) and put those in for your berry fix.

Share contents: 1 pint strawberries, 1 pint sugar snap peas, 3/4 pound curly kale, 1/2 pound spinach, 1 small bunch french grey shallots (they look like scallions), 1 green garlic, 1 bunch flowering thyme, 1 bunch beets.

Flowering thyme can be hung and dried for later use if it’s more than you can use this week.

The green garlic can still be used without peeling individual bulbs. I chop the roots off and the green stalk and use those for broth to make rice or soup. I chop and saute the bulb and the scape (curly flower stalk coming out of the middle of the top) and use in anything I’m cooking that wants garlic.

My favorite dish of this Spring has been beet greens prepared thus:

Cut the greens away from the beet root and wash well. Wash the beet roots and cut into 1/4 thick slices. Chop 2 or 3 of the shallot scallions into thin rounds and let sit in red wine vinegar for 30 minutes. Cut the beet greens and stalks into ribbons. In a large skillet saute some garlic; add the cut beets, reduce heat a bit and let cook with lid on for 3-5 minutes. Remove lid and add greens and stalks to skillet and saute until wilted to your liking. Add the shallot vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook a few minutes to meld the flavors. Enjoy

This week: 1 pound of heirloom pickling cucumbers, 1 and 1/2 pounds of broccoli, iceberg/romaine lettuce (some of you got 2 small and some 1 medium head), 1 bunch of beets, 1 chard bunch, 1 bunch of Nabechan scallions, 1 bunch of dill, 1 head of cabbage.

The cucumbers are great for raw eating as well as quick pickling.

Quick Beet and Cucumber Salad

Shred 2-3 beets, slice several cucumbers in thin rounds, thinly slice 1 scallion, chop or tear a stalk of dill. Combine in a bowl. Make a dressing of 1 part red wine vinegar to 4 parts olive oil, salt and pepper, 1/2 part dijon mustard. Toss the veggies with the dressing and let sit 5 minutes. This is great as a side salad, a taco topping, or over cooked wheat berries (or another whole grain) with feta cheese.

This week: 1 pint of summer squashes, 2 pounds new potatoes, 2 heads of lettuce, 1/2 pound spinach, 1 bunch beets, 1 &1/2 pounds of broccoli, 1 head of cauliflower.

This is the last spinach until fall…and the first lovely squashes.

Our favorite way to eat the first new potatoes is to quarter them and boil until fork tender, strain off the water, and add some butter and plain yogurt along with any fresh herbs laying around and salt and pepper.

The farm is getting really busy and I am having a hard time keeping up with inside jobs and so I apologize for being late getting this out. Summer crops are mostly planted and I’m seeding fall crops in the greenhouse this week. Its a funny balance of being in the present and needing to look toward the future at the same time. I guess we’re all doing that all the time in one way or another. Anyway, green beans are coming soon and cucumbers and onions.