Helsing Junction Farm Newsletter Archive

Greetings from Helsing Junction Farm!

We had a busy weekend here on the farm, trying to get everything done before the rain sets in this week. We harvested all of the winter squash and picked up the last of the onions and shallots. Oly was out there first thing Monday morning disking in the remaining plants in order to prepare the ground so that we can plant our cover crop. This year we are planting Austrian field peas along with the oats we always plant, as it fixes nitrogen in the soil and will improve the tilth of the soil too.

The last days of CSA delivery are October 13th-15th. There are lots of new vegetables in your boxes this week and a lot of fall produce to come in the next 2 weeks. Please make sure your payments are up to date; our budget gets tight in fall as CSA payments lessen and labor and expenses mount. If you are unsure whether or not you are paid up for the year, please contact us via phone or e-mail and we can send you an updated payment schedule. Thanks so much to all of you who have paid promptly!

Well hopefully this year will be something other then the year Helsing Junction Farm grew way too many potatoes and carrots and not enough garlic and onions. Why did you grow so many potatoes and carrots you may be wondering? The truth is we didn’t really mean to, we just did a better job this year than last and the weather cooperated as well which made everything we had planted out there grow to epic proportions, which increased our yields significantly, which meant we harvested it and put it in your box. Last year the cool wet weather slowed things down and at the same created the perfect habitat for Symphylan, a centipede that lives in the soil and eats the roots of young plants. Normally the weather gets too hot for them and they go deep into the ground by June or July, but last year they stayed near the surface all summer. This year, they were gone by May, there was actual sunshine with which plants could grow and ripen and we began religiously spraying worm tea.

Carrots did poorly last summer, so this year we vowed to do better. We planted more seeds per bed, more rows per plantings which we then sprayed liberally with worm tea all summer. As you may have noticed (!), there have been a lot of huge and lovely carrots this summer! What to do with the abundance is something we never have quite resolved after all of these years. We are happy to pass it on to you but at the same time, we have been packing a lot of food into those boxes and that can be overwhelming too. No one likes to throw food away, though it happens to all of us from time to time. Also let’s face it, too much repetition is boring and we don’t want to do that to you either.

CSAs were originally intended to be a share in a farm’s harvest in both good and bad times. Most CSAs no longer live by this model as they no longer grow everything in their boxes or sell exclusively to their CSA. We have experimented over the years with all types of marketing, from selling to restaurants, to farmer’s markets to wholesaling and our experience is that we prefer the CSA program to all other types of marketing. There is no longer a price tag on individual vegetables and there is almost no waste; we can harvest produce with small imperfections and you get a good value for your money. Anything that we have already inundated you with or that is cosmetically too imperfect gets donated to the food bank or left for the Gleaners. In the last 5 years we have reduced the amount of waste on the farm to almost nil, as well as contributed hundreds of thousands of pounds of produce to food banks and shelters all over the Northwest.

What happened with the garlic and onions and why hasn’t there been any lettuce in your boxes? Growing organic garlic on a large scale is extremely difficult. Garlic is susceptible to all kinds of molds and there is not much you can do about it. We have culled out roughly 1/3 of the garlic we planted last fall. We had intended to plant more onions this year, but they germinated badly in the greenhouse this spring and by then it was too late to plant more. We plan to do better with both garlic and onions next year (prepare to be inundated!). Lettuce appears in your boxes again this week, after going missing for a whole month (so sorry about that!). The last 2 plantings we put in were 6 weeks apart instead of 3 and then the heat hit. The lettuce that was growing bolted quickly and the lettuce that hadn’t germinated yet took forever to sprout due to the heat, which further emphasized the gap between the 2 plantings. At least absence makes the heart grow fonder!

Storage Shares are being delivered this week:
Tuesday September 29th: To the Farm, Tacoma, Bellevue, Kirkland, Shoreline and Crown Hill.
Thursday October 1st: To West Olympia, East Olympia, Seward Park and Beacon Hill.
Storage Shares are being delivered next week:
Tuesday October 6th: To Ballard, Phinney Ridge, Fremont, Wallingford and Green Lake.
Wednesday October 7th: To Alberta, MLK/Fremont, Hawthorne and Centralia.
Thursday October 8th: To Capitol Hill, Ravenna, Queen Anne, Belltown, Allrecipes, West Seattle, WSNMC and Georgetown.

Your Storage Share will be packed in a cardboard box that you can keep for the winter. The boxes will be labeled “Storage Share” but will not have individual names on them. Please check the list of names at the drop site to determine if you have a storage share or not. (If you are not receiving the flowers with your CSA share you should receive BOTH the Bulk and the Storage Share.) If you would like to purchase a Storage Share, they are $50 each, just let us know via e-mail or phone or you can purchase one on line. Storage Shares will contain 5# shallots (20-25 shallots), 5# yellow onions (15-18 onions), 2# red onions, 1# garlic, 5# winter squash (3-4 squash) and 1 pie pumpkin.

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This Week's Shares

Tuesday’s small boxes contain:
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch broccoli
1 bunch golden beets
1 bunch red Russian kale
3 ears sweet corn
1 pint Sungold cherry tomatoes
1# slicing tomatoes
2# German butterball potatoes
2 shallots
1 red oak leaf lettuce
2 jalapenos
1 bunch dill
1 bunch cilantro
1# Asian pears

Wednesday’s small boxes may contain:
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch broccoli
1 bunch golden beets
1 bunch red Russian kale
3 ears sweet corn
1 pint Sungold cherry tomatoes
1# slicing tomatoes
2# German butterball potatoes
2 shallots
1 red oak leaf lettuce
2 jalapenos
1 bunch cilantro
1# Asian pears

Thursday’s small boxes may contain:
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch broccoli
1 bunch red beets
1 bunch red Russian kale
1 pint Sungold cherry tomatoes
1# slicing tomatoes
2# German butterball potatoes
2 shallots
1 red oak leaf lettuce
2 jalapenos
1 bunch cilantro or parsley
1# Liberty apples
1# Asian pears


Tuesday’s large boxes contain:
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch broccoli
1 bunch golden beets
1 bunch red Russian kale
4 ears sweet corn
1 pint Sungold cherry tomatoes
1# slicing tomatoes
1-2 peppers
2# German butterball potatoes
2 shallots
3 jalapenos
1 bunch pink beauty radishes
1 red oak leaf lettuce
1 bunch dill
1 bunch cilantro
1# Asian pears

Wednesday’s large boxes may contain:
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch broccoli
1 bunch golden beets
1 bunch red Russian kale
4 ears sweet corn
1 pint Sungold cherry tomatoes
1# slicing tomatoes
1-2 peppers
2# German butterball potatoes
2 shallots
3 jalapenos
1 bunch pink beauty radishes
1 red oak leaf lettuce
1 bunch cilantro
1# Asian pears

Thursday’s large boxes may contain:
1 head cauliflower
1 bunch golden beets
1 bunch red Russian kale
3-4 ears sweet corn
1# slicing tomatoes
1-2 peppers
1-2 jalapenos
2# German butterball potatoes
1-2 fennel bulbs
2 shallots
1-2 jalapenos
1 lettuce? (it's still pretty small)
1 bunch parsley or cilantro
1# Liberty apples
1.5# Asian pears


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Recipes

Kale Chips:
-Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Oil a large baking pan with some olive oil.
-Stem 1 bunch of kale and cut into thin ribbons.
-Mix together 2 TBS apple cider, 1 TBS olive oil and a pinch of sea salt and toss the kale with the mixture.
-Take the kale out of the marinade and spread the kale out on the baking pan.
-Bake the kale for 7 minutes and then stir it and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese if desired.
-Bake for 5-7 minutes longer watch the leaves closely towards the end to make sure they don’t burn. Let cool a little and serve.

Kale and Ricotta Salata Salad:
From the January 2007 issue of Gourmet Magazine.
-Cut out and discard center ribs and stems of 1 bunch of kale. Cut the kale into very thin slices.
-Whisk together 1½ TBS fresh lemon juice, ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp black pepper.
-Then whisk in 4½ TBS of extra virgin olive oil in a thin steady stream.
-Place the kale in a salad bowl along with 1 cup coarsely grated ricotta salata cheese.
-Toss with dressing to coat and season with salt and pepper.

Red Russian Kale with Cannellini Beans:
-Stem and chop 1 bunch of kale into thin slivers.
-Put the kale into a large pan with a little water on the bottom, drizzle with olive oil and cook for 5-7 minutes until tender, stirring occasionally. Set aside.
-In a large skillet, sauté 1 finely chopped onion in some olive oil.
-Add 2 cloves minced garlic, a pinch of dried rosemary and some red pepper flakes and cook for about 3 minutes.
-Add ½ cup dry white wine and cook until the mixture is a syrupy sauce, about 5-10 minutes.
-Add 1 can of well rinsed and drained cannellini beans, the kale and a little water.
-Heat through and add a little salt and pepper. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Easy Peanut Sauce with Sautéed Greens or Steamed Broccoli:
Serve over steamed broccoli or sautéed kale and beet greens.
To make the peanut sauce: Put 3 heaping TBS of unsweetened peanut butter into a small saucepan over medium heat.
-Add 1 tsp red or green Thai curry or chili paste.
-Open a can of coconut milk and add a splash to the peanut butter/chili mixture. Stir over low hear until incorporated.
-Then add the rest of the can of coconut milk, 3 cloves of chopped garlic, some chopped cilantro (optional), 2 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp rice wine vinegar and stir until smooth. Serve this sauce over top of the cooked greens.
To make the greens: Heat 2 TBS olive oil in a large pan. Add half a chopped onion and let cook on medium for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
-Add 1 bunch chopped beet greens and/or 1 bunch chopped kale.
-When the greens are wilted, about 5-7 minutes, taste for salt and add a tiny pinch of red pepper flakes.

Cheddar, Corn and Potato Soup:
-Dice up 2-3 carrots, 2 cups of cauliflower or broccoli or fennel (optional) and 1 onion.
-Seed 1-2 jalapenos (optional) then dice up.
-Take the kernels off of 2-3 ears of sweet corn (optional).
-Heat 2 TBS olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat.
-Add carrots, onion, cauliflower/broccoli/fennel, jalapeno, corn and ½ tsp dried thyme and sauté until vegetables begin to soften, about 5-7 minutes.
-Sprinkle 3 TBS flour over the vegetables and stir 2 minutes.
-Gradually whisk in ½ cup white wine and cook for 2-3 minutes. T hen add 2 cups broth, then 1 cup milk and then ½ cup half and half.
-Peel 3-5 potatoes and dice into ½ inch cubes.
-Add potato and bring soup to boil. Reduce heat and simmer soup until potato is tender, about 20 minutes.
-Add 1 cup shredded good quality sharp cheddar cheese 1/3 cup at a time, stirring until melted and smooth after each addition.
-Mix in ½ chopped ham (optional), 2 TBS finely chopped dill and 4 TBS finely chopped cilantro (optional).
-Season soup to taste with hot pepper sauce, salt and pepper. Sprinkle with some more finely chopped dill and serve.

Cauliflower Soup with Pecorino Romano and Truffle Oil:
-Chop up and then sauté 4 slices of thick cut bacon over medium heat until some fat renders.
-Add 1 chopped onion and 3 cloves of chopped garlic.
-Cover and cook until vegetables are soft, stirring occasionally, about 4-5 minutes.
-Chop up 1 head of cauliflower into small florets and add.
-Then add 3½ cups low-salt chicken broth and a one-inch cube of Pecorino Romano cheese.
-Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low then cover and simmer until cauliflower is tender, about 20 minutes.
-Puree soup in batches in food processor. Return to the same pan.
-Add ½ cup heavy whipping cream and bring soup to a simmer.
-Thin with more broth if desired. Season with salt and pepper.
-Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with shavings of Pecorino Romano and drizzle with truffle oil.

Crispy Roasted Cauliflower:
-Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
-Mix together ½ cup powdery Parmesan cheese and ½ cup bread crumbs and set aside.
-Wash and dry 1 whole head of cauliflower. Leaving the head whole, slice it into 1/8 to ¼ inch thick slices.
-Take 3-4 TBS mayonnaise and add 2 cloves of garlic put through a press. Stir together.
-Dip/rub the mayo onto the cauliflower slices and then dip them in to the bread crumb/parmesan mixture.
-Lay the slices on an oiled baking sheet. Bake until cauliflower is crispy and brown, about 35-45 minutes.
-Serve with cilantro dill chutney if desired.

Cilantro Dill Chutney:
-Take the skins off 2 large cloves of garlic then add them to the bowl of a blender along with 2 seeded jalapenos and process.
-Zest 1 lime then juice it. Add to the blender along with 3 TBS canola oil, ½ tsp salt and ¼ cup cold water.
-Wash and shake dry 1 bunch of dill and 1 bunch of cilantro.
-Leaving the rubber band on the herbs, chop them up stems and all until you get to the very end of the bunch.
-Add the herbs to the blender in handfuls, processing in between until all are incorporated. Blend well and serve fresh.

A Fall Salad with Asian pears, Gorgonzola, Toasted Pecans and Dried Cranberries:
-Wash and dry 1 head of lettuce. Tear the lettuce into bite size pieces and put them in a salad bowl.
-In a jar with a tight fitting lid, add 3 TBS extra virgin olive oil, 2-3 TBS Balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp Dijon or stone ground mustard and a pinch of salt. Shake well.
-Carefully toast a big handful of pecans in butter over low heat for 2 minutes.
-Pour all but a bit of the salad dressing on the salad, and toss to evenly coat.
-Sprinkle the pecans over the greens, along with 2-3 Asian pears chopped into bite size pieces, a handful of dried cranberries, and about 1/8 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese. Top with the remaining salad dressing and serve.

Golden Beet Salad:
-Steam 1 bunch of topped beets for 35-45 minutes, or until tender but not mushy.
-Let cool a little then slip the skins under cold water and dice the beets into large bite size and place in a medium-large bowl.
-Add a handful of chopped fresh cilantro and dill to the bowl.
-Mix in 4 TBS olive oil, 2-3 TBS rice vinegar and some toasted sesame seeds.
-Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Mixed Greens with Herbs:
-Stem 2-3 bunches of greens (any combination of chard, kale or beet greens will do).
-Set the greens in a steamer, with the tougher ones on the bottom and the most tender on top.
-Steam for about 7-10 minutes until well done, then drain and chop.
-Finely chop 4 large cloves of garlic, 1 cup cilantro and 3 TBS dill.
-Warm 3 TBS olive oil, 2 tsp paprika and 2 tsp ground cumin in a wide skillet for a few minutes.
-Stir in the garlic, the greens and the herbs and cook until any moisture has evaporated and the herbs are wilted.
-Taste for salt and then garnish with oil-cured black olives, chopped tomatoes and lemon wedges.

Chocolate Beet Brownies:
-Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
-Steam 1 bunch of topped beets for 35-45 minutes until tender.
-Slip the skins under running water and then puree a few beets until you have 1 cup.
-Melt 1 stick of butter and 4 oz unsweetened chocolate over low heat, stirring often. Set aside to cool.
-In a separate bowl, beat 4 eggs.
-Add 1 cup packed brown sugar and 1 tsp vanilla and continue beating until well creamed.
-Stir in chocolate mixture, followed by 1 cup applesauce and the 1 cup pureed beets.
-Mix together well, 1½ cups of flour, ½ tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp nutmeg and 1 tsp baking powder and then stir into creamed mixture.
-Fold in ½ cup wheat germ and ½ cup finely chopped almonds.
-Turn into greased 9x13-inch pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Cool before cutting into squares.


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Helsing Junction Farm
12013 Independence Road, Rochester, WA 98579 | (360)273-2033
helsingfarm@msn.com | www.helsingfarmcsa.com

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