Welcome to the 5th week of the Pitchfork & Crow Summer CSA! Here’s what’s in the share:

• Salad Mix
  
• Chard
  
• Peas –  The last of the season’s peas!  These are big sugar snaps.  You get to decide to eat the pods or treat them like shelling peas and only eat the peas inside.  We think at this point they’re best sautéed.
  
• Overwintered Onions – Remember back last week when I mentioned that most of our overwintered onions bolted?  Well, here we have some fine specimens to share with you.  Plenty of tasty onion, just know that the center core might be a little different.
  
• Broccoli
  
• Carrots
• Flowering Pea Tendrils
  
• Yukon Gold Potatoes – Some of the last of last season’s potatoes.  They’re sweetened up after time in our very cold cooler.  Often potatoes are sprayed to keep them from sprouting, but not these guys! 
  
• Garlic – Our garlic crop has been decimated by the awful Rust fungus.  It’s a sad sight, but it has us appreciating last year’s garlic harvest.  This garlic is indeed from last season.  Some cloves are a little sprouty, but it’s tasty yet.  We’ll see what comes of this year’s garlic soon.
  
• Summer Squash
• Strawberries
  
• Leek Flowers – Beautiful in a vase, but the flowers are tasty too!  Sauté with the peas, or sprinkle them on your salads.

*Are you a P&C CSA member?  If so, are you getting our weekly member emails?  Let us know if you need to be added to the list.  Also, check your Spam folders for past emails from us.  These emails are our best way to communicate to the whole group and we’d love to know you’re hearing from us.*

Summer has officially arrived with the passing of the Summer Solstice on Sunday, and it’s not messing around.  We’re facing some serious heat this next week.  Be safe out there in the world.

Over the past couple of months we’ve filled up the farm with succession after succession of crops.  First in the field houses and then in the fields we planted and planted and planted.  Big plantings of winter squash and onions and potatoes, many successions of lettuce and carrots, hopeful plantings of rhubrarb and artichokes for harvest in future years.  And now we’re in maintenance mode.  There’s less to plant at the moment, but lots to weed and trellis and water and fertilize and harvest and prune and…

… somehow it’s time to begin sowing overwintering crops.  It starts with the cabbage in June for transplanting in July and continues until we’ve got the garlic and favas in the ground in October.  Each year around this time I consult the Big Willamette Winter Gardening Chart put together by our friends over at the Seed Ambassadors project.  The Chart includes details about winter hardy crops including when to start the seed, when to plant, and just how cold they’re likely to survive.  We’re lucky to have such an fantastic resource for our region!

This year -round farming gig is truly year-round.  Plans need to be made and seeds need to be sown months in advance of an expected harvest.  With the goal of beginning the winter CSA season with our storage crops in abundance and fields full of winter hardy greens, we must begin to prepare now.  Just as the summer crops are beginning to produce, winter is already lurking around the corner.

Enjoy the vegetables and we’ll see you next week!

Your farmers,
Jeff Bramlett and Carri Heisler

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Here are a few recipes to get you inspired:

Salmon with Sweet Chili Glaze, Sugar Snap Peas, and Pea Tendrils

• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 1/4 cup Asian sweet chili sauce*
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
• 2 tablespoons finely grated peeled fresh ginger, divided
• 6 6-ounce salmon fillets with skin
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 8 ounces sugar snap peas, trimmed
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry
• 3 cups pea tendrils** or pea sprouts** (about 6 ounces)
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

Line rimmed baking sheet with foil. Coat with nonstick spray. Whisk chili sauce, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon ginger in small bowl. Place salmon fillets, skin side down, on prepared sheet. Spoon chili sauce marinade over and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Preheat broiler. Spoon any marinade remaining on baking sheet over salmon fillets. Broil salmon without turning until browned in spots and almost opaque in center, 6 to 10 minutes, depending on thickness of fillet.

Meanwhile, heat vegetable oil in wok or heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon ginger and minced garlic; stir until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add sugar snap peas and stir until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce, rice wine, and pea tendrils and stir just until wilted, about 1 minute. Drizzle with sesame oil.

Place 1 salmon fillet on each plate. Spoon warm pea mixture over salmon fillets and serve.

From Epicurious via Bon Appétit by Ivy Manning, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/salmon-with-sweet-chili-glaze-sugar-snap-peas-and-pea-tendrils-358190

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Summer Vegetable Frittata

• 6 large eggs
• 6 large fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 oz prosciutto, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 lb medium zucchini (about 3), halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 5 medium Swiss chard leaves, stems discarded and leaves finely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
• 12 scallions, trimmed and finely chopped
• 5 zucchini blossoms*
• 2 ozfinely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1 cup)

Preheat broiler.

Whisk together eggs, basil, parsley, salt, and pepper in a bowl.

Cook prosciutto in oil in a 12-inch ovenproof nonstick skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until edges begin to crisp, about 2 minutes. Add zucchini and chard and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are just tender, about 8 minutes. Add scallions and zucchini blossoms and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until just wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour egg mixture into skillet and cook, lifting up cooked egg around edge using a spatula to let as much raw egg as possible flow underneath, until edge is set, about 2 minutes (top and center will still be very loose). Sprinkle cheese evenly over top.

Broil frittata about 6 inches from heat until set, slightly puffed, and golden, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes.

Cool frittata 5 minutes, then loosen edge with a clean spatula and slide onto a large plate. Cut into wedges.

*Available at many farmers markets and specialty produce markets.

From Epicurious via Gourmet by Angelo Pellegrini, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/summer-vegetable-frittata-109668

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Rava Dosas with Potato Chickpea Masala

For masala filling:

• 1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1/3 cup dried grated unsweetened coconut
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 1 (3-inch) fresh jalapeño, coarsely chopped, including seeds
• 1 (2 1/2-inch) piece peeled ginger, coarsely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 3/4 cups water, divided
• 1 large onion, chopped (about 3 cups)
• 1 (15-to 19-ounces) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup frozen peas (do not thaw)
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro

For rava dosas:

• 1/2 cup semolina flour
• 1/2 cup rice flour
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups water
• Vegetable oil for brushing

Make Masala filling:
Peel potatoes and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Transfer to a bowl and cover with cold water.

Toast coconut in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and wipe out skillet. Toast cumin seeds in skillet over medium heat, shaking skillet frequently, until fragrant and just a shade darker, about 30 seconds. Transfer to another small bowl. Reserve skillet.

Purée jalapeño, ginger, and garlic in a blender with curry powder, cinnamon, turmeric, oil, 1/4 cup water, and 1 teaspoon salt until smooth. Transfer purée to skillet and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until thickened slightly, about 1 minute. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften, about 8 minutes.

Drain potatoes, then add to onion mixture with cumin seeds and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are barely tender, about 10 minutes.

Add chickpeas and remaining 1 1/2 cups water, scraping up any brown bits, then briskly simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender, 16 to 20 minutes more. Add peas and cook, covered, until just tender, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in toasted coconut and cilantro.

Make dosas while potatoes cook:
Whisk flours, cumin seeds, salt, and water in a bowl.

Generously brush a 12-inch nonstick skillet with oil and heat over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Pour 1/2 cup batter into skillet, swirling until bottom is coated. Cook, undisturbed, until dosa is set and edges are golden, about 2 minutes. Flip using a rubber spatula and cook dosa until underside is golden in spots, about 1 minute more. Transfer to a plate. Make more dosas with remaining batter, stacking and covering loosely with foil to keep warm. To serve, spoon masala filling into dosas.

From Epicurious via Gourmet by Melissa Roberts, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/rava-dosas-with-potato-chickpea-masala-356035

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