TOMTEN FARM

Red Pear & Pozzano Sauce Tomatoes
Italian & Middle Eastern Eggplant
Seyrek or Cubanelle Peppers
Red Ace or Chioggia Beets
Mountain Rose Potatoes
Escarole or Purslane
German White Garlic
Flat-Leaf Parsley

We are currently finishing up on a few weeks of heavy harvesting. The tomatoes have been putting out like crazy and even though we have some definite blight on our early crops, the volume of tomatoes is pretty wonderful, with over 500lbs harvested last week and close to 700 this week. Our latter successions are also looking happy and healthy. This year we have been maintaining a good schedule for suckering, pruning dead leaves, and trellising. Perhaps it is paying off. The pepper crop is just beginning to put off, with a few of the early varieties being harvested such as the shishitos, cubanelles, anaheims, and seyreks; but the overall crop is insane looking. Our chiles are more abundant than we have seen in years, with hundreds of fruit per plant and the poblano, Serrano, guajillo, and paprika plants are almost 5 feet tall. It is a force to behold. There is always this point in the Summer when the sheer growth of everything is pretty overwhelming and when a crop is super healthy and loving the weather conditions its magnified 10 times. Last week we finished harvesting all the potatoes, over 3100 lbs this year, and have them stored away to cure so we can have them available into the winter. It is definitely a Summer crop season, the spring was a real challenge but the Summer is strong as ever.
Even though summer is in full effect, our focus is drawn into the Fall season. We currently have a full greenhouse and might even be seeding carrots this coming week, what with the cooling temperatures and potential precipitation in the forecast. Over half of our cropland is being prepped for fall and winter crops and in two weeks we will begin heavy planting weeks; which continue into early September. This is the busiest season on our farm. Between Brian’s birthday (this week) and Autumn’s birthday (last week of August) we experience our busiest season. Although we are already fatigued, this year things are coming together better than ever thanks to better infrastructure and a great group of employees and volunteers getting the work done. As always thanks to you, our share members, for committing to us through the seasons, we couldn’t do it without you.

This week’s share includes a medley of crops well suited for Mediterranean fare; sauce tomatoes, eggplant, parsley, green peppers, and garlic. Our favorite tomatoes are the sauce varieties we grow, red pear and pozzano. The Red Pear are well suited for any application, a salad, salsa, cooking, or even a tomato sandwich. They are complex in flavor both sweet and savory, a truly versatile tomato. The Pozzano, is a San Marzano style tomato; which makes delicious sauce or is perfect when braising other veggies, such as peppers, eggplant, or beans. Our parsley crop is finally making itself more abundant. Today we actually finally got the weeds under control too, hopefully giving it a leg up. The garlic will be abundant over the next month and also a bit ugly, as we are sorting through our cured garlic and using the ugly stuff now, since it has less layers of dried skin it will not be able to store as long as the prettier, more sealed heads. Check out these recipes and enjoy the share…..Brian and Autumn

Purslane and beet salad

Escarole, Beet, & Tomato Salad with Warm Shallot Vinaigrette

Roasted Eggplant, Green Pepper & Tomato Dip

Hot Sardine Sandwich On Country Wheat Bread With Roasted Tomatoes And Cubanelle Peppers

Baked Eggplant And Potatoes With Tomato Sauce

Zaalouk (Spicy Eggplant Salad) The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
1 ½ lb eggplant, peeled and cubed
5 cloves garlic, peeled
salt
3 large tomatoes (about 1 ½ lbs)
4 Tbls argan oil or mild extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbls wine vinegar
½ tsp harissa or a mixture paprika &ground chili pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Boil the eggplants with the garlic in plenty of salted water, in a pan covered with a lid, for about 30 minutes or until they are very soft. Drain and chop the eggplants and garlic in a colander, then mash them with a fork, pressing all the water out.
Put the tomatoes in the emptied pan and cook over low heat for about 20 minutes, or until reduced to a thick sauce, stirring occasionally. Mix with the mashed eggplants and the rest of the ingredients and add salt.
Variation: Add the juice of 1 lemon (instead of the vinegar) and 1 tsp ground caraway or coriander

Heirloom Slicing Tomatoes
Sungold Cherry Tomatoes
Seyrek or Cubanelle Peppers
Zephyr & Magda Squash
Tendersweet Cabbage
Bunched Carrots
Candy Onions
Dill

Ethiopian Cabbage 

Cabbage with Green Peppers and Onions

Summer Grain Salad With Rainbow Carrots, Heirloom Tomatoes And Herbs 

Sautéed Zucchini with Ginger and Dill

Tomato, Summer Squash, and Caramelized Onion Gratin

Red Gold or Mountain Rose Potatoes
Red & Orange Slicing Tomatoes
Marketmore Cucumbers
Shishito Peppers
Tomatillos
Swiss Chard
Genovese Basil
Summer Crisp Lettuce

Pesto – Marcella Hazan

Sautéed Chard With Pesto

Blistered Shishito Peppers & Cherry Tomatoes

Potato ‘Salad’ and Tomatillo Tacos

Creamy Cucumber and Grilled Potato Salad

Salsa De Tomate Verde, Cocida (Cooked Green Tomato Sauce) by Diana Kennedy The Art of Mexican Cooking
This recipe makes about 2 ¼ cups. Sometimes I will use jalapenos instead of serranos, or use a little onion to replace the garlic and if I have a little extra time, I will broil the tomatillos and chiles for 10 minutes instead of simmering in water, for added flavor.
1 pound Tomatillos , rinsed, husks removed
4 Serranos
2 Tbls Rough Chopped Cilantro
1 Garlic Clove
1 ½ Tbls safflower oil
Salt to taste
Put the tomate verde and chiles into a pan, cover with water, and bring to a simmer; continue cooking until the tomate verde is soft but not falling apart – about 10 minutes, depending on size. Remove from the heat. Strain, reserving 1/3 cup of the cooking water. Put the reserved cooking water into a blender, add the chiles, cilantro and garlic, and blend until almost smooth. Add the tomate verde and blend for 10 seconds, no more, to make a fairly smooth sauce. Heat the oil in a frying pan. Add the sauce and reduce over high heat until it thickens and seasons – about 8 minutes. Add salt to taste.

Salata Arabieh (Arab Salad) – The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
Serves 4 – In this most common of Arab salads, all the ingredients are cut very small. Do not prepare it too long before serving, and dress it just before serving.
1 small head romaine lettuce
1 small red Italian or mild white onion or 5 scallions
1 small-med cucumber
2 tomatoes
4 radishes, thinly sliced
2 Tbls chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tsp chopped fresh dill or chervil
1 Tbls chopped fresh mint
3 Tbls extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1/3 lemon
salt and pepper
1 small clove garlic, crushed
Shred the lettuce, chop the onions finely, and cut the vegetables into tiny dice, using a sharp knife. Put them in a bowl with the radishes and herbs. Make a dressing with oil and lemon juice, slat and pepper, and garlic if you like. Pour over the salad and mix well.

Romano Beans
Napa Cabbage
Frisee or Purslane
Sungold Cherry Tomatoes
Red & Orange Slicing Tomatoes
Jalapeno Pepper
Candy Onion
Cilantro
Garlic

Happy 4th of July everyone. We hope you have wonderful festivities and lots of good eating. This week the tomatoes really begin and we are adding the first of peppers so you can make a little pico de gallo to usher in the Summertime. We are giving some shares wild purslane, the stuff that grows in many areas on our farm and amongst our crops. This green is widely used throughout the Middle East. The leaves and tender stems (not main stem parts) can be eaten simply dressed with salt, lemon, and olive oil or used in a multitude of ways. Please check out the recipes below and enjoy the share…..Brian and Autumn

Napa Cabbage Salad

Farfalle with Wilted Frisee and Burst Tomatoes

Salade Khorfeh – Shirazi Style Purslane Salad

Purslane and Yogurt Salad – The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
1 lb purslane (4 cups well packed)
1 cup plain whole milk yogurt
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 Tbls extra-virgin olive oil
salt and white pepper
If using purslane, pull the leaves off the stem but do include the stem if very tender. Wash the purslane , then dry it. Beat the yogurt with garlic, oil, and a little salt and pepper, and mix with the leaves.

Greek-Style Green Beans – Bean by Bean: A Cookbook by Crescent Dragonwagon
The traditional Greek recipes in which this method is rooted use as much as three quarters of a cup of olive oil — too much for me. The few tablespoons here give flavor and allow the green beans to caramelize. Pretty they are not, but with one bite that is moot. Back in my restaurant days, I once received a proposal of marriage from a guest on the basis of these green beans. Pay careful attention to the details here. Technique is all.
1 pound fresh green beans, tipped and tailed
Vegetable oil cooking spray
3 tablespoons olive oil
About 1 tablespoon medium to finely chopped garlic (5 or 6 cloves)
1 large fresh tomato, chopped (I go ahead and leave the skin on and seeds in; if you are fussier than me, remove both and use only the chopped pulp of 2 tomatoes)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A few dashes of cayenne
1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried dill
1. Blanch the green beans: Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. When the water is boiling, add the green beans and cook for 2 minutes. Drain them well, then rinse with cold water, and drain them again.
2. Spray a large, heavy (preferably cast iron) skillet with a tight-fitting cover with oil, and set it over very low heat. Add the olive oil, scatter the garlic over it, and add the blanched green beans (in contrast to most sautés, the green beans are added when neither pan, nor oil, nor garlic, is yet hot). Scatter the tomato over the beans. Don’t stir.
3. Still keeping the heat as low as possible, cover the beans and let them just barely cook, without stirring, for about 40 minutes. I know it’s hard, but keep on not stirring; leave the heat low enough so that nothing burns. If you like, you can push a few beans back to check on the garlic at the bottom of the skillet. It should not be browning, merely cooking very, very slowly. Some of the beans will be browned on one side, which is good. If this hasn’t happened yet, cover again and cook for 10, even 15, minutes more.
4. When the beans are soft, lift the lid and stir gently. It is unlikely, but if there’s a noticeable amount of liquid in the skillet, turn the heat up and, stirring gently but constantly, evaporate the liquid off. You want soft, barely-holding-together green beans. They should be slightly shriveled-looking and browned lightly here and there, with a bit of the garlic-tomato jam sticking to them.
5. Turn off the heat. Salt and pepper the beans, sprinkle them with the cayenne and dill, stir one more time, and serve. No, no, you don’t have to thank me.

Arugula
Fennel
Parsley
Swiss Chard
Escarole or Frisee
Chioggia & Red Ace Beets
Red Creole & Candy Onions
Cucumber or New Potatoes
Magda, Flaminio, & Zephyr Squash

We began our annual garlic harvest this past Thursday and will continue this coming week, hoping to avoid the rains on Wednesday and Thursday. This year’s crop looks really nice, with a limited amount of rot or fungal issues, a majority of good-sized heads, and an appropriate amount of drying back. There is always a very small window when the crop is ready to harvest, being fully formed, but not overly so or dried back too far. When it is dried back to far we get a lot of ripping of the skins around the bulb when we pull it from the soil, hence damaging the neck and compromising the curing of the bulb, ultimately making it less storeable. When it is under mature, we have a difficult time getting the skins to dry back quickly enough in the curing process, as our weather this time of year is almost always very humid. Curing of both onions and garlic necessitates very warm weather with lots of air circulation around the bulb so the neck will dry back quickly protecting the bulb and head from any damage and keeping it intact, juicy, and delicious for months to come. We cure garlic in the top part of our large barn, hanging bundles of garlic from nails along the rafters. Please check out some pictures taken last year by Alexis Courtney of our garlic harvest.

This week’s share will have the last of our Spring fennel. This crazy weather led to quick bolting of many of our more temperate crops, such as fennel, so it is making a quick appearance. We are glad to get you a few more greens and the first good crop of arugula for the season. Those who got cucumbers last week will get potatoes this week and vice versa. Check out he recipes below and enjoy the share…..Autumn & Brian

Beet, Orange and Arugula Salad

Smashed Potato Salad with Escarole

Fennel and Cucumber Salad

Halibut with Spring Onion and Summer Squash Sauté

Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte with Parmesan

Roasted Beets, Avocado, and Sunflower Seeds from Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden
1 lb beets
kosher salt & black pepper
extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tbls red wine vinegar
¼ cup salted roasted sunflower seeds
½ cup lightly packed roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
4 scallions, trimmed, (including ½” off the green tops), sliced on a sharp angle, soaked in ice water for 20 minutes, and drained well
½ cup lightly packed, seeded, chopped pickled peppers
2 firm-ripe avocadoes
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Trim the tops and bottoms of the beets. Wash the greens and spin dry in a salad spinner. Rinse and scrub the beets to remove any mud and grit. Cut up any larger beets so that they are all about the same size.
Put the beets in a baking dish that’s large enough to accommodate all of them in a single layer. Season with salt, then pour ¼ cup water into the dish. Cover tightly with foil and steam roast until the beets are tender when pierced with a knife. Depending on the size, density, and age of the beets, this could take between 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Meanwhile, if you have beet greens to cook, heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add a glug of olive oil, add the beet greens, and toss them until they are wilted and a bit stewed, about 5 minutes. Set aside until cool, then chop through them a few times.
When the beets are tender, let them cool until you can handle them, then rub or pare away the skins. Cut into ½-inch wedges or chunks and pile into a bowl. Add the greens.
While the beets are still warm, sprinkle with the vinegar, ½ tsp salt, and many twists of pepper. Toss to distribute the seasonings and let the beets absorb the vinegar for a few minutes. Add a healthy glug of olive oil and toss again. Let the beets sit at room temperature until you are ready to serve.
To assemble for serving, add the sunflower seeds, parsley, scallions, and pickled peppers and toss gently. Peel the avocadoes and cut them into neat chunks that are about the same size as the beet wedges, and add them to the beets too. Toss thoroughly but very gently, so you don’t mash the avocado too much. Taste and adjust with more salt, black pepper, vinegar, or oil. Serve right away.

Bok Choy
Napa Cabbage
Daikon Radish
Mustard Greens
Hakurei Salad Turnip
Cucumber or New Potatoes
Broccoli or Yu Choy
Fresh Garlic

Easy to make Kimchi

Spicy Mustard Greens and Daikon Radish with Crispy Sizzling Beef

Ginger Soy Yu Choy

DASHI — MAKING IT, AND A COUPLE OF SIMPLE USES

Bitter Greens with Dashi – Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
2 small bunches (1 1/3lb) Bitter Greens: mustard, turnip, or komatsuna
1/3 cup Dashi
2 Tbls Soy Sauce
2 Tbls freshly shaved katsuobushi or 3 Tbls hanakatsuo
Bring a large pot of hot water to a boil and place a large bowl of cold water on the kitchen sink. Hold the bunches of greens by their tops and lower the stems into the boiling water. Count to ten or twenty, then drop the greens into the pot and cook an additional 1-3 minutes. Scoop out the greens with a strainer and dump them immediately into the cold water. Turn on the tap and plunge your hands into the water, lifting the greens up directly into the stream of cold running tap water to cool them. Pull out a few connected strands and squeeze down the length of the greens to express the excess water. Ley the greens on the cutting board, cut off the end tips, and slice into 2” lengths.
Squeeze the greens one more time and arrange the clumps attractively on a medium-sized saucer with the cut sides face up. Season the dashi with soy sauce, pour over the greens, and sprinkle with shaved katsuobushi right before serving.
Variation: Also nice with some slivered citrus peel, such as yuzu or meyer lemon. Although in this case I would cut back, or omit the katsuobushi.

Daikon and Daikon Leaf Salad – Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
1 medium-small daikon
1 TB Sea Salt
2 small or 1 medium Yuzu (or substitute Meyer Lemon)
2 TB Organic Miso
2 TB Organic Rice Vinegar
4 TB Organic Rapeseed Oil
2 TB Slivered Scallions
Slice the daikon into manageable lengths.  Cut those pieces in half vertically and slice lengthwise into fine slabs.  Lay those slabs flat on the cutting board and slice into fine julienned strands about 1.5 inches long.  Put the julienned daikon into a medium-sized bowl as you go.  Chop a large handful of the most tender leaves medium -fine and add to the julienned daikon.  Sprinkle with the salt and massage in gently.  Let sit for 10 minutes.  Pare off the yellow zest of a yuzu or meyer lemon with a sharp knife, avoiding the white pith.  Stack roughly and slice into fine slivers.  Muddle the miso with the vinegar and whisk in the oil until emulsified.  Squeeze the daikon and daikon leaves in handfuls and drop into a clean bowl.  Toss with the yuzu peel and onion greens.  Give the dressing a quick whisk and fold into the daikon right before serving.  Ratio: miso:rice vinegar:oil – 1:1:2 

Napa Cabbage Salad with Sesame Seeds – Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
half a napa cabbage
½ Tbls fine sea salt
2 Tbls mild citrus juice (yuzu, Seville orange, Meyer lemon)
2 Tbls rapeseed oil
1 Tbls unhulled sesame seeds
Slice the cabbage crosswise into fine strands and toss lightly in a large bowl with the salt. Measure the citrus juice into a small bowl and slowly whisk in the oil to emulsify. Pour over the cabbage, mix gently to distribute the dressing. Toast the sesame seeds over medium-high heat in a dry frying pan until they are fragrant and start to pop. Toss into the salad and serve immediately.

New Potato Tempura – Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
½ lb medium-sized potatoes
Best quality rapeseed or peanut oil
½ cup unbleached cake flour
½ cup cold sparkling water1
8 tsp fine white sea salt
3 ice cubes
organic soy sauce for dipping
Cut the potatoes into ½” wedges (measured on the thick side). Drop the potato pieces into a small pot of salted cold water. The potatoes should be covered by about 1”. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the centers still have some give but the outsides are soft. Drain and cool.
Line a cookie sheet with a thick layer of newspaper and top with a layer of paper towels. Set next to the stove. Over low heat, warm 4” of oil in a medium-sized heavy, stainless steel saucepan. Whisk the flour with the sparkling water and salt in a medium-sized bowl. Take out two pairs of long cooking chopsticks or tongs. Use one pair to dip in the batter and one pair to remove the tempura from the oil. Increase the heat on the oil to about medium-high; the oil should not be smoking. Test the oil with a drop of batter before starting. It should sizzle and immediately form a small ball as it hits the oil; but should not brown. Adjust the oil temperature as needed.
When the oil is hot, drop the ice cubes into the batter and stir once. Add 5 or 6 pieces of potatoes at a time to the batter. Pick up one piece at a time, let the excess batter drip off, and slip into the hot oil. Roll the tempura pieces gently as the batter turns a pale (slightly) golden color. When all sides are cooked, remove to the prepared cookie sheet. Continue cooking until all pieces have been fried, but (if possible) serve each batch immediately. Dip in fine white sea salt or soy sauce before eating.

Fennel
Summer Squash
Mesclun Salad Mix
Red Round Radishes
Russian or Broadleaf Kale
Scallions
Dill/Mint

As we have mentioned a few times, this has been a strange spring; what with extreme weather patterns and temperature shifts. You may have noticed a lack of arugula and baby mustards or late arrivals of broccoli and carrots. Some of this is due to late, early Spring plantings, but more even are the effects of the late April into May weather. We are now hitting a period with very little lettuce, the heat swings and unending wet weather a few weeks back confused 3 successions into bolting, beginning to flower and although we have a little arugula in our mix, we are still waiting for a sufficient stand, maybe in mid-June it will happen, fingers crossed. When the heavy rains came our farm was spared in many ways, only a few inches of rain fell; but with our heavy soil it did create some breathability issues for certain crops and mostly it invigorated all the spring and summer weeds. The amount of growth on the farm over the past two weeks has been remarkable. Everything has enjoyed the rain, making it hard to catch up with weed management. This puts a bit of a strain on us, as May is a huge planting month. We plant all our indoor and outdoor peppers, 2 successions of tomatoes, eggplant, corn, beans, okra, 2 successions of squash and cucumbers, 3 successions of lettuce, chicories, cut greens, 2 successions of basil and more. So we are slowly cleaning up crop fields and trying to give the crops room to breathe. Slowly but surely they are coming to maturity and before you know it we will have roots, broccoli, cabbage, potatoes, cucumbers, and even tomatoes.
This week’s share includes our first fennel, sighting of the year. It is still very small; but pungent too. It is fabulous used both raw and cooked. Some people find fennel too strong or overbearing, in this case it is best to cook it, which will mellow the anise flavor while bringing out the sweetness. Braising or roasting are both great cooking methods. We particularly enjoy fennel sautéed with garlic scapes and spring onions, capers or olives, some anchovies and chile flakes, and even a few greens such as chard or kale. Then toss with your favorite pasta and a splash more of olive oil and you have a fabulous meal. We also encourage people to use some of the radish, scallion, and herbs in the share to make a fresh relish of sorts. All minced up with a bit of citrus, salt, and a touch of oil. This is a great addition to tacos, salads, fish, eggs, etc. Please check out some of the recipes below and enjoy the share….,Autumn and Brian

Black Barley, Fennel, and Radish Salad

Zucchini-and-Fennel Salad With Pecorino and Mint

Egg And Radish Salad

Polenta Bowl With Garlicky Summer Squash & Kale

Summer Squash
Sugar Snap Peas
Garlic Scapes
Swiss Chard
Escarole
Basil
Mesclun Salad Mix

It is garlic scape time again. We have this lovely delicacy for only 2-3 weeks each year and we look forward to them all Spring.  A longish scape will be equivalent to 1-2 cloves of garlic. You can mash them, mince them, or use bigger pieces for some garlic punch. The scape would eventually become the flower bud on each garlic plant. By pulling them out, more energy is put into growing the bulb, making for larger garlic in the end. The scape on its own is tender with a little crunch and a superb garlic flavor without a ton of heat. They will store in a plastic bag in your refrigerator for at least 3 weeks, but can also be pickled using the brine for a basic dilly bean recipe. Other options include making garlic butter (blend the scapes, mix with softened butter and a little salt, then using wax paper make the butter into a log roll, wrap in plastic wrap, freeze, and use as needed.) or garlic scape pesto (check out this website for recipes: http://www.saveur.com/article/-/Garlic-Scapes-Recipes). Feel free to use them as a substitute for garlic in recipes, just add more volume than recipe requires, as the scapes are definitely more subtle than a clove of garlic will be.
We have included some recipes from Joshua McFadden’s Six Seasons, A New Way With Vegetables, a wonderful cookbook that came out last year. Joshua McFadden, a chef based in Portland Oregon, has a wonderful culinary history which included working as a farmer in Maine for a few years. He is one of a small group of chefs that is connecting kitchens with farms by really using a bounty of produce in the dishes, not as side items to protein but as the star of the show. This is the perfect cookbook for us farmers to use. Have a great week and enjoy the share….Brian and Autumn

Hummus with Sugar Snap Peas and Basil

2Amys’ Escarole Salad, My Way

Mediterranean Rice-Stuffed Escarole

Sauteed Greens with Olives (Misticanza) from Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden
The key to this dish is to cook it quickly at high heat so that you can taste each green in your mix.
extra virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
¼ tsp dried chiles flakes
10 cups lightly packed torn mixed greens (such as kale, escarole, turnip greens, beet greens, chard)
kosher salt & black pepper
¼ cup Kalamata olives, pitted & halved
2 Tbls lemon juice
Heat a glug of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, until just beginning to brown, about 2 minutes – don’t let it burn! Add the chile flakes and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the greens a handful at a time, tossing until wilted between additions (if you can, start with the tougher greens such as kale or escarole). Season generously with salt and black pepper and cook until all greens are wilted and softened, about 3 minutes more after your last addition.
add the olives and 2 tablespoons lemon juice and toss to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more chile flakes, salt or lemon juice. Finish with a nice drizzle of olive oil.

Sugar Snap Peas with Mustard Seeds and Tarragon from Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden
I keep all the seasons in check here because what I really want to taste are the delicately sweet snap peas.
1 ½ tsp yellow mustard seeds
¼ tsp cumin seeds
extra-virgin olive oil
½ pound sugar snap peas, strings pulled off
kosher salt & black pepper
1 Tbls unsalted butter
½ tsp finely grated lemon zest
¼ lemon
1/8 cup lightly packed tarragon leaves
¼ cup lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
Put the mustard and cumin seeds in a small skillet over medium heat and toast until the spices become fragrant, shaking the pan so nothing burns, about 4 minutes. Be careful because the mustard seeds pop. Pour them onto a plate to cool.
Heat a small glug of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the snap peas, season lightly with slat and pepper, and sauté for a minute or two.
Add 1/8th cup water to the pan and quickly cover it. Steam the snap peas for a minute or so, then uncover. The peas should be approaching crisp-tender. Once the water has evaporated, add the butter and the toasted seeds and cook for another minute.
Remove the pan from the heat, add the lemon juice, the tarragon, and parsley. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt, pepper, or lemon juice. Serve warm.

Squash & “Tuna Melt” Casserole from Six Seasons by Joshua Mc Fadden
1 ½ pounds firm small summer squash
kosher salt & black pepper
extra-virgin olive oil
4 scallions, trimmed (including ½” off the green tops), thinly sliced
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
¼ tsp dried chile flakes
two 5-ounce cans oil-packed tuna
1 ½ cups shredded good-quality extra-sharp cheddar cheese
Trim off the end of the squash and halve lengthwise. Salt the squash on their cut faces with 2 teaspoons salt and leave to drain for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours (if more than 2 hours, transfer to the refrigerator).
Heat a big glug of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the scallions, thyme, chile flakes, ½ teaspoon of salt, and several twists of black pepper. Cook until the scallions are soft and fragrant but not actually browned, 3-4 minutes. Take them off the heat, and when cool enough to taste, adjust the seasoning with more of any of the spices or the thyme.
Heat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Spread the squash cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet (or two if needed, to avoid crowding). Roast until slightly shrunken and browned on the cut sides, on the way to tender, but not at all mushy. Cooking time will depend on the size and shape of your squash; but for a typical slender 6 “ zucchini, this should take about 15 minutes. (Leave the oven on).
Arrange the squash pieces in a baking dish that will fit them all snugly in one layer, this time cut side up. Distribute the scallions over the surfaces. Flake and crumble the tuna in an even layer over the scallions and then top evenly with chedder.
Return to the oven and bake until cheese is melted and beginning to bubble and brown, 10-15 minutes.
Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

Photos 2 & 3 by Alexis Courtney

Russian Kale
Red Ace Beets
Hakurei Salad Turnips
Mesclun Salad Mix
Red Leaf Lettuce
Frisee
Scallions
Cilantro

Rain, rain, rain; what a week this was. Within a week we have seen the weeds and pastures grow a foot and remembered what summer humidity feels like. As our fields begin to dry out we will see the effects of this monsoon on our crops and get to hoeing and hand weeding as rapidly as possible.
This weeks share has a mix of roots and greens plus our first scallions and cilantro of the season. These two can be paired to season fish or poultry; but also used in a vinaigrette or miso dressing for a fabulous green salad. Check out the recipes below and enjoy the share…….Autumn & Brian

7 Ways to Make a Classic Frisée Salad 

Roasted Beet Salad With Miso–Sesame Dressing, Pears, And Frisée Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps With Cilantro Lime Rice

Roasted Turnips With Buttered Greens

Kale, Onion and Gruyère Frittata

Scallion Fish with Sesame Kale