Hard to believe April is in its last week. The mild weather has allowed for a slow awakening for the plants with little damage from the elements. Every year is different, and this year is well paced so far.

Tender greens are a big part of the share this week, with butterhead lettuce at the top of the list. I look forward to the first one each season and have it with not much more than oil and vinegar. Coming out of the high tunnel they are quite tender.

The Asian greens fall into that category too, and are pretty perfect for a stir fry. If you have any greens from last week left make a big one and have it over a couple days. You have the vegetables, so now the question is, what type of sauce do I use?

Food.com has a good basic stir fry sauce recipe  and fortysomething.ca has a nice list of 15 different sauces. Lots of great options.

The pea shoots are a new item we are trying. They are a tender, sweet garnish. Use them on just about anything. Rinse, drain and chop, or put whole in salads.

Welcome to this year’s Fair Share Farm CSA. It is time to begin the 2015 harvest season. Fresh, local vegetables in late-April is something we are glad to be a part of. This year is starting out with lots of promise, and we are looking forward to what’s ahead.

The green’s choice this week allows for lots of options. One recipe that we think fits them all is the stinging nettle dish in our last blog. A healthy dose of fat/oil, vinegar/wine/citrus juice, salt, pepper, herbs, onions and garlic always make for a savory serving of greens. Leftovers are a great addition to omelets.

This week is the only week of the year we have eggs in the share, so it is the only week I have a recipe devoted to the egg. This dish is a part of my family heritage, the “egg in a basket.” Apparently created to make egg and toast eating easier on the high seas, I learned it from my father. It is a great breakfast option to have in your repertoire.

Egg in a Basket

Cut a hole in a slice of bread big enough to hold the yolk of an egg
Butter both sides of the bread
Add 1 teaspoon butter to hot pan, add bread

Crack egg into the hole in the bread
Once the bottom has cooked, about 2 minutes, flip the bread/egg
Cook on other side until golden brown
Serve hot with garlic chive garnish and hot sauce

Here is info and a recipe for the stinging nettles sold at the Kansas City Food Circle Eat Local and Organic Expo.

Stinging Nettles
Perhaps the earliest green of the season (before the invention of high tunnels), this European import grows wild on our farm. It is in perfect form right now, with this first shoots still in a tender stage. As a tea this medicinal vegetable is consumed as a spring tonic. Our recipe is for a delicious side-dish.

Foraging nettles

Do-it-Yourself Stinging Nettle Recipe
Be aware that handling stinging nettles without gloves can be aggravating to your skin. According to our Weeds of the Great Plains book, “the stinging hairs contain acetylcholine and histamine.” Despite this, it was used to treat rheumatism in the past, the sting serving to stimulate blood flow. Once cooked the potential for irritation is gone.

The are simple to cook, a steaming for 10 minutes is all that is needed. You can cook the nettles whole, right out of the bag or trim off the bottoms of the thicker stems first.

Fresh nettles are tender and can be cooked whole, or trimmed and chopped.

Enhancing this basic recipe is where the DIY aspect of the recipe comes into play. If you eat meat, bacon fat is a good compliment as the fat/oil to cook in. Olive, sesame, peanut and other flavorful oils are equally delicious.

A good braising liquid is another basic ingredient for cooking nettles. White wine, water, and stock are all good cooking liquids. I like to top it with some vinegar before serving.

1/5 lb stinging nettles
1 small red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp. lardo
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup beer
1/2 cup water

Lardo, garlic and red onion

Chop the lardo fine, heat in frying pan with the olive oil
Sautee the onion and garlic for 2 minutes, add the nettles
Cook for 2 minutes, stirring t blend the ingredients
Add beer and water, bring to boil, turn down heat and simmer for 10 minutes
Serve with garnish of fresh green onions and vinegar

This time of year is always the most anxious for us. The whole season is ahead of us…transplants to grow, an entire farm to plant, and projects galore to be completed. But they say that challenge is what helps keep a person healthy, so we are glad to have the opportunity to be in this position.

Transplants to put in the ground next week

We continue to start plants in the greenhouse. Summer crops like tomatoes, peppers and eggplant have been seeded, and the cabbage, broccoli, kale and other spring transplants have been moved outside to the cold frame to make room. They will be acclimated to the elements for about a week before being transplanted (weather permitting).

Uncovering the strawberries

Our 2015 apprentices Meghan McQueen and Semra Fetahovic start on Monday. We will ease them into the routine as their spring training begins. Welcome to the farm team and what should prove to be an exciting year.

Thanks also to the membership for attending the sign up meeting. This event is always an important part of the year; a way to reconnect, conduct some business, meet new members, and give all the opportunity to meet our partner vendors. As always the Core Group made it all happen without a hitch. Thanks to them and to St. James Church for hosting.

2015 Sign-up

New partner vendor, Companionship Bread

John and Mark dismantling the roof.

Loafing shed demolition, check.

We have cleaned out, shored up, used, upgraded, and otherwise spent a lot of time in this part of the barn. And now it is gone, ready for its next life. Yes, 2015 should prove to be unique.

And one last thing. It is always interesting to find an artifact. The men who built the loafing shed (apparently in the 1940’s) signed their work.



Signed by Keith Stein, Bill Stein and Paul ?   194?

Sorry for missing the blog last week. Vertigo took over for the second half of the day, and I learned the importance of a stable middle ear. An infection or inflammation came and went, and I am steady on my feet again.

Last week was Veteran’s Day and I had wanted to thank our vets, and my dad. He served in the Mediterranean and China theaters during WWII as part of the Navy’s “Scouts and Raiders.” Pre-SEALS they focused on reconnaissance and demolition. Life in his early 20’s.

Lt (jg) Frank “Rocky” Ruggieri

Here at the end of the season the fare is hearty. A chicken comes out of the freezer to help make a rich stock. Cooking them helps add humidity and warmth to the house. From there about any assortment of vegetables can be sautéed, before adding some of the homemade chicken broth. They say it cures the cold.

Our latest batch of sauerkraut is on sale now. Prepared and fermented at Bad Seed, it will be on sale to the general public at the Pre-Thanksgiving Market on Friday from 4-9 pm. We are looking forward to starting another batch next week for sale before the end of the year.

We have three go-to uses for kraut;

• on a grilled cheese sandwich
• with our Parker Farms brauts
• as a topping on salad

It is important to maintain a proper biology within our digestive systems, and the kraut helps. We are very symbiotic, and understanding that can help lead to healthier eating habits. We plan to offer more fermented vegetables that have been grown on the farm in the coming months and years.