Turtle Times
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Vol. 14, No. 6, June 23, ‘09 7260 NW 58th St., Johnston 50131 278-4522 (577-9208)
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Rain: 6/16, 0.2”; 6/18, 0.3”; 6/19, 0.2”; 6/19, 0.2”; 6/20, 0.2”; 6/21, 0.2” (est.)
In the Box . . .
Braising Greens
Broccoli ‘Nutribud’, ‘Blue Wind’, ‘Green King’
Peas ‘Sugar snap’(edible pods)
Arugula
Garlic Scapes
Lettuce ‘Green Deer Tongue’, ‘Jericho’, or ‘Cardinale’
Scallions ‘Evergreen Hardy’
Pansies, edible flowers
Strawberries ‘Jewel’ (Tuesday only)
Ala carte options: Strawberries ($5/qt), Asparagus ($5/lb), lemon basil, thai basil, oregano, mint, chocolate mint, rosemary, parsley, tarragon, thyme ($1 ea.)
Free to anyone requesting it: kohlrabi, marjoram, sage
Email (info@turtle-farm.com) if you want any of these free or ala carte items
Farm Update
Several years ago John and I were invited to travel with an ISU group to visit farms in Costa Rica. It is a wonderful agricultural country. We visited one small organic farm. The innovative organic farmer there was a carrot grower (among other crops) and bled orange like my colleague Gary Guthrie, who grows our carrots, and was also on the trip. We also visited citrus farms—flocks of parrots were pests for the farmers there as they would eat the oranges. We saw banana, pineapple, coffee, sugar cane and melon farms, all conventional farms and some of them suffering from diseases that can occur from growing monocrops. We also visited a flower farm where I observed some of the farm crew planting a new succession of chrysanthemums. They were using a piece of mesh trellising laid over the plot and planting one plant in each of the squares. The result was a very evenly spaced and attractive planting that could be planted quickly without measuring each spacing. This idea came back to Turtle Farm to be used in our intensive lettuce beds. We use 8-inch trellising that we lay over our plots, and then we can space 6 nicely aligned rows that can be put under hoops and bird netting. Voila! Beautiful lettuce beds. However . . . the last two springs have been very wet as I probably don’t need to tell you. Last year some of the lettuces started to eventually develop some rot. This year, we had this reoccur this past week. We ditched that week’s planting and moved ahead to the next week’s to find some plants that were okay. However, they weren’t very large. So that’s why your lettuces last week were small, perhaps single heads, and a few not looking too hot. We hope the rest of the season’s crop is okay, but perhaps for next year I will look for a larger size trellising so that there can be more room between plants for better air movement in case we have another wet spring.
After Tuesday everyone should have gotten their 4 quarts of strawberries. We are open for U-pick Mondays 9-3, Wednesday 12-6, and Saturdays 9-12 most likely until July 4th.
Save the date if you can help us celebrate the digging of the garlic Saturday July 11, 9 am to?
Wish list for the farm if you know of any available used: Rolling kitchen cart(s), t-posts
Recipes
Several weeks ago Lisa Croyle and one of her daughters
came to pick up their box and we got into a fun discussion of food rules at
their house. Maybe it will work with people at your house. "You're only allowed to have one food that you
don't eat."
"Liking your food is optional, eating it isn't."
This week several of you sent in recipes, so that makes my work here easier. Becky De Roo has a turnip recipe and Kristi Myers sent a broccoli recipe.
Mashed Turnips (Five in a Row Cookbook)
2 lbs. turnips, peeled and cut into 2" chinks
2 Tbs. unsalted butter
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp. sugar
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
4 slices bacon, cooked crisp and drained
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x9 casserole dish. Place turnips in a pot and add water to cover; heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until very
tender, 25-30 minutes. Drain turnips well and place in a mixing bowl. Beat turnips with
an electric mixer. Add the butter and sour cream and continue beating until the mixture is fluffy but still retains some texture. Beat in the sugar, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to the prepared dish. Chop the bacon into small pieces and sprinkle over the top of the casserole. Bake the casserole until heated through,
about twenty minutes. Serve hot. Serves 4-6.
Broccoli-Tofu Stir Fry with Cashews
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1 1/2 tsp bottled minced garlic
2 tsp fresh or bottled chopped ginger
1 (1-pound) package firm tofu, drained and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tbsp dark sesame oil, divided
5 cups fresh broccoli florets
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 tbsp seeded minced jalapeno pepper
1/3 cup cashews
5 cups hot cooked somen (wheat noodles) or angel hair pasta
Combine first 4 ingredients in a shallow dish, and stir well. Add tofu
cubes,
stirring gently to coat. Let stand 15 minutes. Remove tofu from
dish, reserving
marinade. Heat 2 tsp oil in a wok or nonstick skillet over high heat.
Add tofu;
cook 2 minutes or until browned. Remove tofu; set aside, and keep warm.
Add
remaining 1 tsp oil and next 3 ingredients to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Stir
in
reserved marinade, tofu, and cashews; serve over noodles.