Weekly Share august 21st – 27th

Posted on August 21, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Long Bean
Cucumber
Eggplant Mix
Anaheim or Poblano Peppers
Russet Potatoes
Yellow Onion
Tomatoes
Serranos

As we wrap up the Spring/Summer portion of our 2023 CSA, we want to thank you all, our members, for committing to our farm. So far 2023 has been a strong growing season with lots of diversity. Some standouts have been our early spring escarole, a large garlic harvest, an epic tomato year in terms of quality and yield, and some really strong bean crops. It seeming like an excellent pepper year, but it’s still early in the season and all the fall diversity is yet to come. Enjoy this best of summer and check out the recipes below. Enjoy the share….Autumn & Brian

Spicy Stir-fried Long Beans

Long Bean Salad

Tam Taeng Kwaa (Thai Cucumber Salad) –Pok Pok by Andy Ricker

Easy Eggplant Poblano Pepper Curry

Potatoes with Roasted Poblano Chiles and Mexican Sour Cream

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Weekly Share August 14th – 20th

Posted on August 12, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Nevada Lettuce
Crimson Sweet Watermelon
Romano Beans or Tomatillos
Italian Sauce Tomatoes
Mild & Sweet Peppers
Summer Squash
Basil

Two more weeks of the Spring/Summer CSA share. It has been a good season so far and overall quite mild, even though we have had some very hot bouts with lots of humidity. Although the heat is not over, August always seems less intense than July and as it comes to an end, we usually take 3 days away from the farm for a little much needed break. So, two more weeks and then a little break; but there is a lot to do over the next couple of weeks. A huge block of fall brassicas transplants are in the ground plus the 1st fall successions of beets, salad turnips, mustards, carrots, and raab. All these rainy storms has brought a ton of weeds alongside our intended crop, so everything is literally germinating and must be hoed this week. We also have our fall fennel, swiss chard, kohlrabi and the first huge radicchio, lettuce, and chicory  plantings to get into the ground over the next few weeks. Some Winter squash varieties are ready to harvest and we are still plugging away at trimming our garlic and onions and getting them into refrigeration. Lots to do that is very timely, so we hope for nice temperatures and easy rain.
Last week we harvested 200 watermelon and they have really been delicious. This week you will get your 2nd one for the season.  We have some great salad and other recipes below; but as always, if your feeling overwhelmed juice ½ in a blender right away. Add  lime and soda water and it is a perfect refreshment for a hot day. Enjoy these midsummer crops while they are thriving. Tomatoes have been delicious, this week you will get a mix of heirloom Italian types, most great for cooking but also delicious raw. Definitely stew the romano beans with tomatoes, or make salsa, or saute peppers and summer squash with the tomatoes, and a lot of basil, delicious. So many options. Check the recipes below and enjoy the share…..Brian and Autumn

Fried Green Tomatillos with Burrata, Cumin, & Basil

Tomatillo And Tomato Salad

Watermelon, Feta, & Basil Salad

Watermelon Gazpacho

Charred Romano Bean Salad With Zucchini, Aioli And Pecans

Green Beans in Tomato Sauce – The New Book of Middle Eastern Cooking by Claudia Roden
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
2 Tbls olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ lb ripe tomatoes, chopped
½ lb green beans, topped and talied and cut into 2-3 pieces
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
juice of ¼ lemon
Fry the onion in oil till soft and golden. Add the garlic, and when the aroma arises, add the tomatoes and beans. Season with salt, pepper, and sugar, add water as necessary to cover the beans, and lemon juice, simmering 15-20 minutes, or until the beans are tender and the sauce reduced a little.

Salata Horiatiki (Greek Country Salad) –The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
1 head summer crisp lettuce, cut into ribbons
2 large firm ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 cucumber, peeled, split in half through its length, and cut into thick slices
1 green pepper, cut into thin rings
1 large mild onion, thinly slices, the rings separated
8 oz feta cheese, cut into small squares or broken into coarse pieces
1 dozen or more black Kalamata olives
For the dressing
A good bunch flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
6 Tbls extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt & pepper
Put all the ingredients together in a large bowl. Just before serving, mix the dressing, pour over the salad, and toss.

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Weekly Share August 7th – 13th

Posted on August 6, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Mix Tomatoes
Asian Eggplant
Shishito Peppers
Romano Beans or Tomatillos
Khmer Thai or Serrano Chilies
Thai Basil
Arugula
Garlic

Thai-Inspired Tomato Salad

Lemony Arugula Salad with Couscous, Cucumbers and Feta

Blistered Shishito Peppers with Soy Garlic Dressing

Quick Miso-Butter Flat Bean Stir-Fry

Garlic Green Beans

Tomatillo and Eggplant Curry

Japanese Eggplant With Chicken & Thai Basil

Eggplant with Thai Basil
1 lb eggplant, cut into ½-inch slices
4-5 cloves garlic
1-2 medium sized fresh red or green chilies (or sweet bell pepper for the meek)
1 Tbsp light soy sauce or tamari
2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
2 Tbsp palm sugar or dark brown sugar
1 bunch Thai basil
Slice the eggplant into ½ inch rounds and fry them over medium high in a wide skillet with ¼ inch of canola or other frying oil. When things get going, the eggplant slices will absorb the oil and you will gradually see it penetrate through to the top.  Make sure that they don’t get too brown on the bottom before this happens.  If the eggplant slices absorb all the oil and still don’t look wet, you must add more—but don’t worry, because they will release much of it as they cook.  When they look like they have absorbed enough oil and they start to get nice and brown on the bottom, flip them over and brown them on the other side.  If the pan is dry at this point, don’t add more oil because the slices have absorbed enough to fry themselves.  When they’re done, drain the slices on paper towels
Meanwhile, cut the garlic into slices and the chilies into diagonal rings.  When the eggplant is ready, remove it and add 2 Tbsp of fresh oil to the pan, add the garlic and half the chilies, and stir-fry until the garlic is golden.  Add the soy sauces and sugar, stir for about 30 seconds until the sugar starts to bubble, and return the eggplant to the pan.  Add torn basil leaves, stir and serve, garnished with the rest of the chilies (if you dare!)

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Weekly Share July 31st – August 6th

Posted on July 30, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Sugar Baby Watermelon
Heirloom Tomatoes
Red Candy Onion
Nicola Potatoes
Cucumber
Jalapeno
Carrots

This past week was a heavy one. After a very mild June, July brought all the summer temperatures with a ton of humidity. It seemed to culminate over the past week, with temperatures in the upper 90’s mixed with heavy, stagnant air that brought the heat index above 105. This past week was also our heavy tomato week (happens every July) in which we harvested 870 lbs of tomatoes, a record for us. We knew with the cool May and June that likely when it got hot, our first two successions of tomatoes would pop off all at once and indeed it happened very quickly. We will continue to have a lot; but hopefully it will slow down a bit. The tomato deluge coincided with beginning to harvest watermelon and okra as well as a big uptick in our early peppers such as poblanos, serranos, and anaheims. So there is a lot out in the fields needing continual harvests. With the cooling temperatures this week, looking like low to mid 80’s, we are going to be able to get some initial seeding and transplanting in the ground, right on time. This is good as our greenhouse is overflowing and the transplants are looking just about ready. Around our farm has been missing the summer showers as of late that most people in this region have been getting and we are in need of some moisture, especially when we plant out tender new seedlings,. Over the past week when a storm has passed through, the amount of rain has been negligible, so we are looking for some windows to plant when it is cooler and perhaps we will get some rain. Although we irrigate all the crops regularly, the rain does a much better job and really cools the soil in a way that our irrigation cannot.
This week’s share has our first watermelon. So far what we have tasted has been delicious. If watermelon seems big and overwhelming to you, we encourage making watermelon juice, as easy thing if you have a blender and a sieve. We remove the rind, put huge chunks, seeds and all, into a blender with some lime juice and blend. Then we strain out the seeds and any thick pulp, add more lime to taste and chill our drink over ice. Fabulous made into ice cubes or added to a cocktail. This is an easy way to use it up fast. This items in this week’s share are all perfect for summer salads. The jalapenos have a wonderful crisp texture with a concentrated flavor and a little heat. Our Nicola potatoes are a floury, creamy golden potato. Delicious boiled and then pan fried or roasted in the oven for a crisp salty potato treat. The carrots, grown through this heat still have some sweetness and are great on their own or as an accent with other veggies. The heirloom tomatoes have hit their stride and they are really delicious this year. Maybe because of the huge temperature swings? Who knows. Check out all the recipes and enjoy the share….Autumn & Brian

Persian Tomato Cucumber Salad

Watermelon Tomato Salad

Minty Watermelon, Cucumber Salad

Crispy Potato salad with Heirloom Tomatoes

Chez Panisse’s Potatoes and Onions Roasted with Vinegar and Thyme

Japanese Potato Salad with Cucumbers, Carrots, & Red Onion

Sesame Carrot and Cucumber Slaw

Late-summer tomato & carrot salad

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Weekly Share July 24th – 30th

Posted on July 24, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Mild Green Peppers
Celebrity Red Tomatoes
Italian & Dancer Eggplant
Chioggia & Red Beets
Summer Squash
Genovese Basil
Garlic

Layered Eggplant, Zucchini and Tomato Casserole

Zucchini Salad

Crispy Smashed Beets With Garlic, Scallions, & Chile

Heirloom Tomato, Beet Salad

Lebanese Baba Ghanoush

Alice Waters’ Ratatouille

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.

Caponata from The Kitchen Garden
Lots and lots of olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 head garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp chili flakes or fresh hot peppers, to taste
1 pound peppers, cut into large chunks
1 pound eggplant, cut into large chunks
1 or 2 ripe plum tomatoes, chopped
salt & pepper
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp capers
3 Tbsp chopped Kalamata olives
Few sprigs chopped basil and parsley
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat about 4 Tbsp olive oil in a heavy pot or Dutch oven with a lid that can go in the oven. Sauté the onion and garlic until soft.  Add the pepper flakes and peppers and sauté over medium heat 5-10 minutes.  Add eggplant and sauté another several minutes. You may want to add more oil to make sure everything is generously anointed.  Add the tomatoes.  Cover the pot and put it in the oven to bake for 20-30 minutes.  Everything should be very, very soft.  Season with salt, pepper and the other seasonings.  Adjust sweetness, salt and acidity to taste.  Serve it warm on fresh crusty bread or at room temperature the next day.  Makes a great pasta sauce, too. (The original version contains chunks of celery, too.  If you like celery, you can add it when you add the tomatoes.)

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Weekly Share July 17th – 23rd

Posted on July 16, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Cucumbers
Assorted Tomatoes
Eggplant or Shishito Peppers
Thia Basil & Kkaennip (Perilla)
Serrano Chilies
Scallions

Being that it is already mid-July, seems like time is flying, we are deep into the summer heat and humidity, as we begin our 11th CSA week of the season. We keep hoping that like most seasons, we have only about 4 more weeks of this intensity; but because it stayed cool and temperate into June this year, who knows what to expect. Even though it stays warm into September, usually it becomes less heavy with humidity and hence feels less oppressive, less like a steam room, during the 2nd half of August. With slightly cooler nighttime temperatures, more wind, and low 80’s temperatures we can successfully germinate direct seeded crops such as carrots, beets, rutabaga, and broccoli raab. We look to weather patterns so we can schedule our plantings accordingly and in late summer and fall the timing of these seedings is crucial to getting a good stand. Wait too long and they will not have long enough days to mature properly. All this is to say that we hope this is indeed the middle of the hot period and that a month from now we will have some respite, so the peppers want to ripen, the fall crops can adjust during transplanting, and we can get some properly seeded fall beds. As our greenhouse gets close to full and the cabbage and cauliflower starts grow big, we hope that we don’t have to wait too long. As for summer crops, they are thriving at the moment; but we are a little nervous with all these rain storms and heavy humid conditions about disease; but we can only hope our continued efforts at better crop ventilation is working and that there are some health benefits to sweating every ounce of water out of your body every hour of the day. We feel exceedingly lucky that we have not had any devastating effects from this unstable weather, like our friends and fellow farmers in Vermont this week. What people all over Vermont are facing from these monumental floods: with the loss of their livelihoods or a whole season of farm income or for some their homes is absolutely horrific. As we put our heads down, our thoughts are with those struggling up north.
In the share this week we have a few more peppers, more tomatoes, more cucumbers, and delicious summer herbs. Feeling hot, salt some cucumbers, add some rice vinegar, and chopped perilla and thai basil, voila a delicious dish. Or try the Dai Mint and Tomato Salad recipe below, so refreshing. Take care in this heat and enjoy the share…..Autumn & Brian

Blistered Shishito Peppers with Miso

Stir-Fried Szechuan Eggplant

Cucumbers with Scallions and Chili Oil

Pan-Fried Cucumber with Perilla (Tia To)

Tomato and Eggplant Stir-Fry

Dai Mint and Tomato Salad – Hot Sour Salty Sweet by Jeffery Alford and Naomi Duguid
The Dai, like the Chinese, prefer their tomatoes a little green, just before their fullest sweet ripeness. Perhaps it’s an aesthetic question: The mix of green and red is more interesting to the eye than the uniform red of ripe tomatoes. Or perhaps it’s beacuase tomatoes enter the regional cuisine as a slightly sour vegetable, rather than with the sweetness and ripeness as their prime characteristic. All of which is to say that you should, as we do, use the tomatoes that please you. This salad is simple to make and delicious. It’s like a half-pounded Mexican salsa, ideal for scooping up with Thai-Lao Crispy rice crackers or sticky rice or pork cracklings.
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
a little minced chile, jalapeno (optional)
1 cup tender mint leaves or Thai basil, coarsely torn
2-3 scallion, trimmed, sliced lengthwise into ribbons and then cut crosswise into 1-inch lengths
5 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 Tbls hot chile oil
Place the garlic and salt in a large mortar and pound together. Or place them in a large bowl and use the back of a flat spoon to mash them against the side of the bowl. Add the fresh chile, the mint, and the scallions and continue to pound or mash to soften and blend. Add the
tomatoes and gently pound or mash until broken up a little. Add the chile oil and toss well.
Serve the salad mounded in a shallow bowl, with the juices poured over.
Note: If the mint is coarse or rough, finely chop the leaves; or substitute Asian basil leaves.

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Weekly Share July 10th – 16th

Posted on July 9, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Sungold Cherry or Early Tomatoes
Summer Squash
Eggplant or Shishito Peppers
Romano Green Beans
Tendersweet Cabbage
Red Candy Onions
Herbs

Braised Romano Beans

Quick Cabbage with Tomatoes

Cabbage & Zucchini Okonomiyaki

Layered Eggplant, Zucchini and Tomato Casserole

Blistered Shishito Peppers & Cherry Tomatoes

Blistered Shishito Peppers with Olive-and-Basil Salt

Romano Beans with Red Onion, Oil & Vinegar
–recipe from Kitchen Garden Farm
1 lb or so beans
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
salt & pepper
This is a very simple, delicious way to prepare any type of string bean, and it makes a great summer salad or cold vegetable side dish. When Tim was working at a farm in Tuscany, this dish was on the table every single day, and everyone would add the oil and vinegar to their own liking. Simply wash and trim the beans (cut into bite sized pieces if you wish) and boil in heavily salted water for 5-10 minutes. They should be fully cooked but not disintegrating. Drain the beans and immediately plunge into cold water to arrest the cooking. Drain and toss with the red onion, salt & pepper, oil and vinegar. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

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Weekly Share July 3rd – 9th

Posted on July 2, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Fennel
Sangre Potatoes
Marketmore Cucumbers
Summer Crisp Lettuce
German White Garlic
Cilantro or Dill
Tomatoes (a smidge)

To commemorate our collective red, white, & blue holiday, this week’s share will include the first of our tomatoes for the season. It will be a very small amount as we are having incredibly slow ripening on our first succession of tomatoes. We have been harvesting them for about three weeks and usually by two weeks the sungold’s take off; but not this year. Not only are they ripening slowly, they are ripening unevenly. This may have to do with some nutrient imbalance; but it also seems connected to the incredibly erratic weather shift a few weeks back. After temperate, rather dry temperatures for most of May and early June, we shifted into unseasonably cool weather with a ton of rain and no sun for about 4 days followed by an extreme 20-30 degree shift into the normal for this time of year, intense heat and humidity. In addition, we have had two multi-day stretches of haze from wildfire smoke which we can only imagine must have some effect, exactly what, we are not sure. The current one isn’t over, so perhaps this is the newest form of climate shifts we need to learn to expect and work with. Overall, we have been very lucky that we ended up on this piece of land in an area that gets sufficient amounts of rain throughout the year, seems far enough from the coast line to avoid some extreme weather, and is in a strange micro rain shadow that gets missed by some massive storms coming from the south or southwest of us. When we moved here, we did not think of any of this, it was not on our radar and in many ways as we have stated before, our soil was not the best for intensive annual vegetable production; but none the less we have found some positives about this central Virginia locale, in the heart of Prince Edward County. Regardless of where our farm is located, we are now seeing and feeling in real time how interconnected we are as an ecosystem to everything on this planet and especially on this continent. We constantly have our heads down and are often hyper focused on our very small piece of soil right in front of us; but we cannot and should not avoid the reality that extreme weather effects all over the globe will affect us here; from the annual basil downy mildew that travels north from Florida each summer (among a multitude of other bacterial diseases) to monsoon like conditions coming from the south, to days of wildfire smoke and unhealthy air conditions in the summer, to increased pest populations due to warming winters and erratic temperatures. This is all said not to be gloomy; but to bring light to the fact that in an occupation such as ours it is impossible to hide from the fact that things are changing and with every year more rapidly. This year we enjoyed the temperate Spring but with a slight sense of dread about what was to come and now we are there. The vegetables like us are having a hard time adjusting, things are taking a breather, and this means for smaller harvests and hence smaller shares for each of you. So even though small, there is a multitude of wonderful options for delicious recipes. This will be the last of the fennel till fall and yet the first of the tomatoes which are likely to be in more abundance in the next few weeks. Enjoy the share… Autumn & Brian

Creamy Cucumber and Grilled Potato Salad

Cucumber & Fennel Salad

Braised Fennel and Potatoes

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.

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Weekly Share June 26th – July 2nd

Posted on June 25, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Baby Beets
Swiss Chard
Escarole or Frisee
Zucchini & Zephyr Squash
Candy Onions
Genovese Basil

Best Italian Zucchini Fritters

Zucchini Ribbon Salad

Provençal Zucchini and Swiss Chard Tart

Beet and Onion Salad

Escarole with Crisped Potatoes & Onions

Escarole & Golden Beet Salad with Toasted Hazelnuts

Summer Squash and Basil Pasta

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Weekly Share June 19th – 25th

Posted on June 17, 2023 by Tomten Farm

Napa Cabbage
Arugula or Bibb Lettuce
Cucumber Mix
Daikon Radish
Scallions
Cilantro
Kkaennip (Perilla)

On the farm, spring is winding down. Our garlic is all hanging in the barn. We have begun to harvest and cure our onion crop. Cabbages, daikon, and some of the chicories are harvested and stored in our walk-in. Bunching greens are looking tired and the bug population is beginning to take hold. We are harvesting the last of our spring radishes and trying to fend the deer off of the last successions of lettuces, beets, and carrots. We have one more succession of our salad mix and arugula, so before long we will be moving into cucumber and tomato salads till august. As usual we got behind on some of the Spring crop management, meaning now the weeds are out of control and we make choices about what to keep and what to mow down. That all being said the summer crops are beginning to pop. Our first succession of green beans is in full flower, we have three successions of tomatoes growing strong with our first succession loaded with tomatoes that will come soon. The peppers, eggplant, and okra are growing a bit slowly; but they look robust and healthy. Our potato crop was bombarded with Colorado potato beetle earlier in the spring and we had some concern about yields; but a few varieties look strong and are thriving in this slightly cooler spring weather.
The healthiest things on the farm right now might be our geneovese basil and kkaennip, known as perilla in English. We are excited to offer some kkaennip, a nutty, earthy, and slightly minty herb in this week’s CSA share. A close relative to shiso, we have included both kkaennip and shiso recipes, although shiso is often more intense in flavor, we think you can play around with any of these recipes. If you would like a thorough background on this crop and more recipes or uses go to the link HERE. Both our 1st and 2nd successions of cucumbers are in full swing, so you will get a hefty amount this week. We have been enjoying using them in salads, making a yogurt dip reminiscent of raita, and adding to bagels with cream cheese. This is one of the crops we miss the most, as we are truly without them for 7+ months; but it is always worth the wait because these early cucumbers are truly outstanding in flavor. Our early piccolino has a most intense cucumber taste and smell, like cucumber juice; the thin-skinned nokya has a creamy texture and slight sweetness, much more subtle; suyo long looks rough but has a thin skin, fabulous crunch, intense flavor, and small seeds; lastly marketmore, the American standard, may need peeling; but has a wonderful cucumber flavor and good texture. Anyhow we encourage you to love the cucumber. This week’s share can make many Asian inspired dishes, so get cooking and enjoy the share……Autumn & Brian

Spicy Shiso Smash

Marinated Perilla Leaves

Cucumber, Avocado, & Arugula Salad

Spicy Asian Cucumber Salad with Fresh Scallions & Cilantro

Shrimp Daikon Soup

Shiso, Cabbage, & Daikon Salad

Cabbage Fried Rice

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.

Shiso Granita – Japanese Farm Food by Nancy Singleton Hachisu
15 green shiso leaves
¼ cup granulated sugar
Place the shiso leaves in a medium-sized bowl or 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Heat the sugar and 3 cups water to boiling in a medium saucepan, stirring the sugar to dissolve. Pour the boiling sugar water over the leaves and steep until cool. Set a strainer over a plastic container large enough to hold 3 cups and strain out the leaves. Cover and transfer the shiso-flavored sugar water to a freezer shelf. Let sit, undisturbed, in the freezer for 1 hour. Remove to the countertop, open the lid, and gently stir in the crystals that have formed on the perimeter.  Repeat this operation every 30 minutes, breaking up any larger crystals as you go. The finished granita should be flaky.  Serve alone in a glass bowl or goblet. This is also wonderful served alongside Fig Ice Cream and Plum Sorbet. Keeps frozen for several weeks.

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