Welcome to the 7th share of the Pitchfork & Crow 2025/2026 Winter CSA! Here’s what’s in the share this week:

• Lettuce Mix
• Spinach
• Purple Cape Cauliflower – A rare winter treat that’s falls somewhere between cauliflower and broccoli. It heads up like cauliflower but has the texture of purple sprouting broccoli.
• Lacinato Kale Rapini
• Purple Sprouting Broccoli – We know we’ve turned the corner on winter when the PSB shows up. If you’re new to this one, just treat it like broccoli but eat the stems and leaves too.
• Kalettes – These are a cross between kale and Brussels sprouts. Pop the kale sprouts off the stalk and enjoy them in your favorite kale/Brussels recipes. We usually just cut the sprouts in half, toss with a little oil/salt/pepper, and roast at 400 degrees for ~20 minutes, just like Brussels. Note that some of these stalks have bonus kalette rapini too! Delicious! And yes, they do resemble shrubbery.
• Parsley
• Red Maria Potatoes
• Sweet Potatoes – It’s been a good run this season, but these appear to be the last of the sweet potatoes until next fall. In an effort to prolong their storage life we’re giving these out unwashed. Also, we don’t suggest refrigerating sweet potatoes as their ideal storage temp is between 55 & 60 degrees F.
• Mixed Onions – We ask a lot of our storage crops. We harvest them in early fall and then let them sit and wait and wait until they make an appearance in the share. That’s to say, eat your alliums before they sprout because spring is just around the corner.
• Garlic – This is the last of our storage garlic. Enjoy!
• Mixed Kabocha Squash – These are sweet and flaky on the inside, great in pie, curries, soups, or just on their own.
• Amish Butter Popcorn – You can knock the kernels off the cob and into a paper bag and pop them in the microwave. Most often we’ll use these directions and pop it on the stove top.
• Dried Apples – Wanting to extend the dried apple train we purchased some apples from Washington through the 4 Seasons Farmers Market store just down the highway. They are certified organic Fujis and dried by us.

Here we are, on the cusp of spring. Where did the winter go? We’re seeing the first fruit blossoms in the plums, the cover crops are taking off, and the purple sprouting broccoli has joined the lineup. Other than the time change, we’re feeling pretty good about March on the farm so far. The wider world feels awfully unpredictable at the moment and I think we’re both glad to have the necessary and timely work here on the farm to focus on.

Things are starting to pick up around here. The weekly propagation schedule has kicked in and the propagation house is starting to fill up with baby plants. We’ve got peas and tomatoes and onions and all the brassicas and celery and fennel all getting a little bigger every day plus peppers and leeks in the germ chamber. Before we know it we’ll be pushing to get into the field to be ready for transplanting.

It’s been another one of those winter weeks when I’m not sure exactly what we accomplished. We got through our annual organic inspection just after we last met. The day of reviewing all of our paperwork and systems with the inspector is always a helpful reminder of the whole picture of the farm.

Last week we tackled the most unruly of the apple trees, pruning them roughly to get them at least shorter. This was made easier with the purchase of an electric pole saw, which was a surprisingly quiet and pleasant tool to work with. Pruning season feels like it’s quickly coming to a close but we may try to make some more progress later this week before more trees begin to bud out. Winter feels like it’s wrapping up and it’s time to get through some winter projects before winter is done for good.

Enjoy the vegetables and we’ll see you here again in two weeks!

Your farmers,
Carri Heisler & Jeff Bramlett

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Here are a few recipes to get you inspired:

Persian Eggs

• 4 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup red onion, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 5 cup baby spinach, roughly chopped
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (more if needed)

Step 1 Heat extra virgin olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.

Step 2 Once the olive oil in shimmery, saute red onion until it’s translucent and golden.

Step 3 Add in minced garlic and chopped baby spinach. Stir and cook until they’re wilted half way.

Step 4 Add the eggs into the pan, one by one but don’t stir.

Step 5 Sprinkle turmeric, cayenne and salt on the spinach and eggs, cover and let it cook for about five to seven minutes, until the egg whites are fully cooked and the yolk is runny.

Serve warm with fresh bread.

From Food52.com by Shadi Hasanzadenemati, https://food52.com/recipes/77380-persian-spinach-eggs-nargesi

Rapini with Vincotto

For the vin cotto

• 1 cup Balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar

For the rapini

• 1 pound rapini (broccolini), washed
• 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled, left whole
• 2 peperoncino intero (about 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, fresh ones!), halved
• generous pinch kosher salt

Step 1 Pour the vinegar and sugar into a small saucepan set over medium heat. Let reduce by a half to a third, 25-30 minutes. Set aside.

Step 2 Set a 6-quart pot of water to boil. When boiling, add the washed rapini and blanch for about 2 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside.

Step 3 Set a cast iron skillet over high heat. Add the olive oil, garlic and peperoncino and let cook/season the oil for a minute or two. Add the blanched rapini (watch out, the oil might spit) and let it sear. After a minute or two, toss carefully. After 3-4 minutes more, remove from heat. The rapini should be tender yet retain a definite crunch.

Step 4 Transfer the rapini, garlic and pepper to a serving platter and pour any remaining oil from the skillet over the veggies. Drizzle generously with the vin cotto. Season with more salt and some pepper if needed and/or you like.

Step 5 Get out some good bread so none of the juices left on your serving platter or plate go to waste!

From Food52.com by em-i-lis, https://food52.com/recipes/21748-rapini-with-vin-cotto

Chicken Fingers with Sweet Potatoes, Broccolini, and Hot Honey

• 1/4 cup plain yogurt
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon Dijon
• Sea salt
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds)
• 2 medium pale-skinned sweet potatoes (about 1 pound)
• Avocado oil or vegetable oil
• 8 ounce broccolini
• Black pepper
• 2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1-2 teaspoon sambal oelek chile sauce
• 2 teaspoon lemon juice

Step 1 Whisk the yogurt, egg, dijon and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a mixing bowl until well blended. Slice each chicken breast at an angle into 1-inch-wide strips. Add them to the bowl and toss to coat them well. Let the chicken brine while you prepare the vegetables.

Step 2 Stab the sweet potatoes in 2 to 3 places with a paring knife and microwave for 6 minutes until you can just slip a paring knife easily into them. Trim the ends and slice into rounds 1-inch thick.

Step 3 Preheat the oven to 450°F with the rack in the upper third of the oven. Smear 1 tablespoon oil with your hands onto a large sheet pan. Space the sweet potato slices on one end of the sheet pan and turn once to coat them with oil, seasoning them with salt and pepper. Use the bottom of a cup to smash them lightly. Toss the broccolini very lightly with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and arrange on the other end of the baking sheet. Roast the sweet potato and broccolini for 15 minutes.

Step 4 Meanwhile, bread the chicken by placing the bread crumbs in a shallow bowl. Transfer 2 to 3 pieces of the chicken at a time into the bowl. Press to coat the breadcrumbs on all sides and transfer to a plate, then repeat with the remaining chicken pieces. Dispose of the yogurt mixture and any leftover breadcrumbs.

Step 5 When the broccolini is browned and crisp-tender and the sweet potatoes are golden on one side, remove the sheet pan from the oven. Transfer the broccolini to a serving platter and cover to keep warm. Flip the sweet potatoes and crowd them onto one end of the sheet pan.

Step 6 Spread about a tablespoon of oil onto the pan before arranging the breaded chicken on it. Drizzle with a little more oil on the chicken for the best browning. Bake the chicken until nicely browned underneath, 8 to 10 minutes.

Step 7 To make the hot honey, warm the honey in a small bowl near the heat of the stove. Stir in the chile sauce and lemon juice with a pinch of salt.

Step 8 Turn the chicken and check the potatoes. If they are well browned, transfer them to the serving plate and continue to bake the chicken until cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes more. Transfer the chicken and potatoes to the platter with the broccolini and serve the hot honey on the side or drizzled over the chicken and potatoes.

From Food52.com by Lynne Curry, https://food52.com/recipes/75230-chicken-fingers-with-sweet-potatoes-broccolini-and-hot-honey