Week 6: 10/8-10/11
Thursday 3pm - till Sunday Night | SELF SERVE 13197 10TH St. South. Afton, MN. 55001 | 612.770.7194
What we're up to:
Moving forward we are all about clean up. This is the time of year when we get the tarps out to cover empty fields rather than replant them; harvest our summer kale and chard till there is nothing left and start to think about row cover inside our high tunnels for when temps really drop. For me, this is a time to put field tools away clean and sharpened and dream of what the winter will bring.
In Your Bag This Week
Radish: beautiful round red radishes are bright in color and flavor. The tops are perfect and edible too! Store in a bag in your fridge. Carrots: small pencils carrots have great sweet and earthy flavor! Store in a bag in your fridge. Spinach: Our spinach only gets better from here! This is tender and perfect for salads or sautéing. As we move into freezing whether the spinach plants add sugars to keep itself alive; this results in the best tasting spinach ever! Store in a bag in the fridge. Kale: Curly or dino, easy to add to any cooked dish as well as lightly massaging it and eating as a salad. Store in a bag in your fridge. Sweet Potatoes: These are a bit funny looking but taste amazing. They are on the small side due to a little too much nitrogen in the soil early on bit the whole thing is edible-skin included. Store in a dark, dry place and eat soon. Red Onions: these are small but flavorful. Store in a dry dark place. Farm Mix Microgreens: Mild and tasty, its a great base for any salad or make it a simple side by adding olive oil, salt and pepper. Store in your fridge. Winter Squash: You pick! We have laid out a selection of our squash for you to choose your favorite! Store in a dry, dark place for up to 3 months. (this is on the side table labeled 'CSA Only Table'
Winter Squash soup with Gruyere Croutons | Serves: 8 | total time: 60 mins Ingredients 1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) butter 1 large onion, finely chopped 4 large garlic cloves, chopped 3 14 1/2-ounce cans low-salt chicken broth 4 cups 1-inch pieces peeled butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds) 4 cups 1-inch pieces peeled acorn squash (about 1 1/2 pounds) 1 1/4 teaspoons minced fresh thyme 1 1/4 teaspoons minced fresh sage 1/4 cup whipping cream 2 teaspoons sugar
Croutons
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter 24 1/4-inch-thick baguette bread slices 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme 1 teaspoon minced fresh sage Instructions
For soup:
Melt butter in large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Add broth, all squash and herbs; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until squash is very tender, about 20 minutes.
Working in batches, puree soup in blender. Return soup to same pot. Stir in cream and sugar; bring to simmer. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Chill. Rewarm over medium heat before serving.)
For croutons:
Preheat broiler. Butter 1 side of each bread slice. Arrange bread, buttered side up, on baking sheet. Broil until golden, about 1 minute. Turn over. Sprinkle cheese, then thyme and sage over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil until cheese melts, about 1 minute. Ladle soup into bowls. Top each with croutons and serve.
Roasted Radishes, Potatoes & Crispy Lentils | Serves: 4 | total time: 45 mins
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups dried French green lentils (du Puy; may substitute black beluga lentils), picked over and rinsed
4 cups water
1 pound radishes (no greens), trimmed
1 pound new potatoes, scrubbed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest and 3 tablespoons juice (from 1 large lemon)
1 tablespoon honey (may substitute agave nectar)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, or more as needed
1/4 cup buttermilk (may substitute thin plain yogurt)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups lightly packed sorrel or spinach leaves
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Combine the lentils and water in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat until the liquid is gently bubbling and cook until the lentils are barely tender, 20 to 25 minutes. If you're cooking the lentils in advance, reserve the cooking liquid for storage. When ready to use, drain the lentils, spread them out on a clean dish towel and pat them dry.
Cut the radishes and potatoes into halves, if small, or quarters, if larger (to get them roughly the same size). Toss them on a large, rimmed baking sheet with 1 tablespoon of the oil, half the lemon juice, the honey and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Roast for 15 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice to move them around.
While the radish mixture is roasting, on a separate baking sheet, mix the cooked lentils with another 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, 1 teaspoon of the oil and all the lemon zest. Transfer the sheet to the oven with the radish mixture, and cook both until the lentils are crisped and starting to blister in places, and the radishes and potatoes are soft and starting to brown at the edges, 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, whisk together the buttermilk, the remaining lemon juice and the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in a liquid measuring cup. Season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and the pepper. Taste, and add more salt as needed.
Toss the lentil, potato and radish mixture with the sorrel or spinach leaves on a large platter. Drizzle the buttermilk dressing over the top, and serve warm.
We wash everything in your bag but we wash them in bulk so some things may need an extra rinse at home.
Please bring your bag back next week so we can re-use them!
thanks!
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