Monday, July 12, 2010

Week 8, July 13th and 16th


Full double rainbow at our house Saturday : )
ZUCCHINI and SUMMER SQUASH!!!
If I could have one wish, it would be that every growing season was like this one. Yes there have been a few glitches, but in comparison to most, this is dreamy. The gardens are just busting at the seems, check out the sugar snap peas this week and you'll see what I mean!


This week we have zucchini and summer squash! 2 weeks earlier than I have ever had it here in Maine. I am trying a few new varieties this year, so let me introduce them to you...

Zucchini: From left to right...
Raven, Cocozelle, Sebring, Costata Romanesca
Raven is your typical zucchini, but darker skin, lots of antioxidants
Cocozelle is rich flavored Italian zucchini
Sebring just like a green zuc, but yellow
Costata Romanesca has a "distinctively sweet nutty flavor"
(they say I can win a blue ribbon for the biggest zuc with this one...maybe I will try.)


Summer Squash: from left to right
Zephyr, Sunburst (A Patty Pan)
Zephyr "delicious nutty taste and firm texture"
Sunburst a 1985 All-American Selections Winner

Ice Cream! Ice Cream! We all Scream for Ice Cream!!!
(Ice Cream for sale this week at pick up, $3 a scoop!)
As you may know the biggest even in Maine happened this past weekend--Moxie Fest--and unfortunately, it was a wash out. I serve on the board for the county extension office--an extension of the university of Maine where folks, like you, can receive a myriad of services such as gardening expertise, 4-H clubs, energy questions answered, food preservation skills and much much more. I have used extension over the years to answer many of my pest control and disease questions and I find them to be a great community asset, building roots in both agriculture and healthy eating/lifestyles.
My point...we tried to sell ice cream at the Moxie Fest to raise money for the extension office and well since most people were running for their cars in the deluge, we didn't sell much ice cream. Sooooo I am going to sell cones at pick up this week!!! (okay so it's not really "healthy" eating, but the ice cream was hand made locally).
This is a good segway into the "Ice Cream Theory" book you may see sitting on the table in the barn. An award winning book written by one of our shareholders!

RASPBERRIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
are DRIPPING off the canes. get them while you can! they show their ruby faces only once a year!!!

This week's loot: lettuce, lettuce, lettuce, hakurei turnips, carrots, shell peas, snap peas, red onions, kale, sage, tarragon, cilantro, and zucchini!

Next week's loot: lettuce, zucs, summer sq, potatoes and green beans?


Recipes:

Tarragon-Spiked Lady Grey Iced Tea
Zest of 1 lime, removed in strips with a vegetable peeler
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cold water
1/2 cup packed fresh tarragon leaves
4 Lady Grey tea bags
8 cups boiling-hot water
cut off any white pith from zest. Bring zest, juice, sugar, and cold water to a boil, stirring, then let stand, uncovered, off heat 15 minutes.Discard zest. Blend syrup with tarragon in a blender 30 seconds. Strain through a sieve lined with a dampened paper towel into a glass measure and cool completely.Pour boiling-hot water over tea in a heatproof pitcher and let steep 6 minutes, then discard tea bags. Cool tea completely.Stir syrup into tea and chill at least 1 hour and up to 6 (cover tightly). Serve over ice.

Greens on GreensKendallScottWellness.com
Holistic Health Coaching
This recipe is a super easy side dish. The leafy green vegetable used in this recipe is kale,
but any green can be substituted. The tahini dressing can sit covered in the refrigerator for
several days for use on veggie dishes, salads, chicken, fish and rice dishes throughout the
week. Delicious!

Greens
1 inch of water
steamer basket or stainless steel steamer
1 bunch of kale cut into bite-size pieces (can use collards, bok choy, cabbage, etc.)

Put water and steamer into a pot. Add kale and steam for 5-7 minutes or until bright
green. Top with Tahini Dressing. Serves 4.
Tahini Dressing1/3 cup sesame tahini (sesame seed paste)
3 tablespoons tamari soy sauce
1 tablespoon umeboshi vinegar (use regular vinegar if can’t find umeboshi)
½ bunch fresh parsley, chopped
½ bunch scallions, chopped
1 cup water (more or less)
Put tahini, shoyu, vinegar, parsley and scallions in a food processor or blender. Blend and
add water slowly to achieve desired consistency.