Kretschmann Farm
July 1, 2008
don@kretschmannfarm.com www.kretschmannfarm.com
Greetings from the Kretschmanns,
When my neighbor, Tom Brenkle, borrowed our transplanter last Wednesday, he said he wanted to hurry to
get his squash planted across the creek because it was going to rain all
weekend. It sounded alarmist, but after
3.1 inches of rain since Friday, one would have to say he was right on the
money. That’s about a month of rain in
three days! This week we’ve been ever
so gingerly trekking through the fields always trying to minimize the damage
caused by vehicles, taking different paths so as not to create ruts, and
attempting to work around the intermittent rain. The bucolic
life-always a challenge.
We
should be planning a culinary tour-de-Burgh, judging by just a few random notes
from veggie subscribers. Get these
household menus: “The arrowhead cabbage
was great in our wonton soup and the zucchini and caulifower
was great in a shrimp and coconut stir fry I made! The lettuce makes a great
shredded Chicken wrap!” “Beet and
Goat/Feta/Chevre Cheese Salad”(Remove
beets from stems, wrap in foil and cook in the oven or grill at 350 for 20 mins. Peel and slice. Separate leaves from stems. Chop
leaves and saute in olive oil with chopped garlic
until wilted. Caramelize 1 sliced onion. Arrange on a
platter the greens, onions and beets. Add salt and pepper and crumbled cheese
on top. Drizzle about 1/8 c of balsamic vinegar glaze. Yum!)” and “Pan-seared
salmon, steamed beets and cabbage with green onions and noodles.
Everything is so delicious.” Have you
seen the wine list, madame….?
We should be starting to dig the first new potatoes as soon as it dries
out. And cucumbers are next as well.
Enjoy it all & Happy 4th of July.
Don, Becky, & The
Kretschmann Crew
ID: The big flat
bunched leaves are collards. It’s been many years since we last planted
collard greens. Not only are they
delicious, but also one of the most nutrient dense of
foods. Lots of
calcium, vitamins C, and the B’s.
They are quite easy to prepare. After removing the thicker parts of the
stems, just steam, boil, or sauté the coarsely chopped leaves until tender.
They take a little longer to cook than kale or swiss chard.
Some variations: Toss with garlic sauted in
olive oil or butter. Boil with some
smoked meat—ham or ham hock, bacon, or smoked sausage. Cook in a béchamel sauce. Add a few red
pepper flakes. Anchovies.
The leaves also are ideal to use for stuffing—like stuffed cabbage or grape
leaves. (and a bit tastier too) Or just simply serve
with a little salt , pepper and vinegar.
Easy to make without
a lot of bother. The secret is: don’t cook the pasta.
Zucchini Lasagna: Preheat your favorite tomato sauce. Slice zucchinis 1/4” thick in rounds or
lengthwise. Mix 1# ricotta cheese with
1/2c minced parsley. Brush bottom of
baking dish with olive oil. (9x13” is our favorite size) Spread layer of tomato sauce on bottom of
pan, then add first layer of uncooked lasagna. Spread layer of zucchini, then layer of
ricotta, and then a more tomato sauce.
Repeat the process until the pan is full and top with grated
mozzarella. Bake covered at 325 deg.
until pasta is cooked, then remove cover and bake another 10 min.
Coleslaw: At home as a
child, we used to make coleslaw by putting cabbage, carrots, and a little onion
through a meat/nut grinder. The dressing
was mayonaise, vinegar, sugar and salt. Now we just slice with a knife or grater,
about as thick as a nickel. If you add
the salt when slicing the cabbage, one draws out the natural juice of the
cabbage. This then mixes with the other
dressing ingredients to marinate the slaw.
Low-cal dressing is simple--just vinegar, salt, and honey. (Or if you're
out of mayo) Approximate proportions for
a dressing are 1/2 c. mayonaise, 2 tbs. vinegar or
lemon juice, 2 tbs. honey, and 1/2 tsp salt.
Or make an Asian type dressing: 1T soy sauce, 1 T
vinegar, 2 T sesame oil, 2 t. minced ginger, ½ c creamy peanut butter, 1
t. honey, dash hot pepper. Add a little
chopped parsley, and green onion rings.
Mix it up, taste, and adjust as you like.
Cheese
Orders: Next week and every second week of the month
we’ll have cheeses. All cheeses are
@$6.00/half pound except Camebert which is $10/half
pound wheel. If you’ve ordered cheese, rather than sending a small check, just
add this to the next payment in August.
You must order Camebert now for
delivery in Sept. as it requires 60 da. aging. No order, no Camebert.
Billing Note: You should
have sent in the June payment by now. (S-$225, M-$275,L-$325,
1/2S--$75) Attention to this would be appreciated.