Turtle Times

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Vol. 12, No. 2, May 15, ‘07     7260 NW 58th  St., Johnston 50131  278-4522 (577-9208)

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Rain: 2.0”, 5/07/07

In the Box . . .

Lettuces ‘Black seeded Simpson’, ‘Cracoviensis’

Green garlic

Asparagus

Herb share: Rosemary, marjoram, mint, chives

Farm Update

Wow! Here we go on another growing and eating adventure.  Weather is always the biggest challenge in farming.  How happy we are that most of the garden is on high ground this year.  There are still some parts not yet tilled because of wet ground, even on the hill!  The cold and wet extremes have made a few variances in what will or will not be available.  The asparagus, although delayed two weeks in being ready for harvest---has been making up for lost time with great production.  Believe it or not, that has been a problem.  Since asparagus harvest starts before box deliveries, it has been hard to get that bounty to you.  It has backed up a bit in the cooler.  The lettuces which are started in the greenhouse are “on time”, but some of the additions for your salad, such as arugula, and cress, were delayed in planting because of all the early moisture.  The spinach has had poor germination this year, and will not be available in the quantities we had last year.  The strawberry blossoms appear to be mostly “unfrosted” by the low temps last month, so we have our hopes up for a good berry harvest.

            For those who signed up for herb shares and want to choose your own herbs, watch for the listings at the beginning of the newsletters to know what to make for your requests.  Those who asked for farmer’s choice will be receiving one of these options weekly for each share purchased.

            This week all the farm crew will have arrived to work.  I want to thank Sue Forrester, Ben Saunders, and Tanya Ferguson for working the past three-day weekend (including Mother’s Day) so that John and I could fly to North Carolina to see our nephew graduate from med school there.  I plan to introduce you to all the farm crew in the next two newsletters.

Trees Forever Planting Day

            Our Trees Forever planting day in April had great weather and great help.  We planted approximately 75 Norway spruce and 40 peach trees, and about 150 elderberry, redosier dogwood, and hazelnut bushes.  The drumming group Tubabu initiated a great rain to water them in—although one or two inches would have been sufficient rather than almost five inches.  Many thanks to members Rebecca Howe, Gopal and Amadu Krisnan and boys, Noreen and Victor Nsereko and boys, Kim Gunnes and Dan Kopatich and his drumming group,  the Environment Club from Cowles Montessori School, and Brad Riphagen from Trees Forever for their help in making the day a success.

Recipes

            I welcome your recipes again this year for the newsletter.  At the end of asparagus season last year, Mark McAndrews concocted this recipe, and he saved it over the winter to put in the newsletter this spring .

Mark’s Asparagus on Pasta

This is a quick and easy dish when asparagus is in season. The toughest part is waiting for the pasta water to boil.

Cut asparagus into 1" pieces. Sauté in olive oil until just starting to brown on one side, about 5 minutes. Toss a handful of walnut pieces into the skillet and continue cooking for another 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, add arugula and blue cheese (the heat remaining in the pan will wilt the arugula and melt the cheese). Toss with cooked, drained penne pasta.

These are all strong flavors that tend to compliment and compete with each other in this dish (which is why I give no amounts). The bitterness of the arugula and the funk of the blue cheese can dominate easily, so use a light hand with those two ingredients -- adjust the amounts you use to fit your own tastes.