Keeping up the local content in the boxes has been difficult these past few weeks. The overwintering greens are just about done and the spring greens not quite in full production. Garlic greens are in the box next week. Cured bulb garlic from last year is finished and these local greens will take us through to the garlic scapes (tops) season – early June – and finally fresh garlic bulbs in late June early July. No garlic from China for us!
Fresh Garlic Greens
Garlic Scape
We are expecting radishes in the next few weeks. More spinach and salad mix in larger quantities are on the horizon. And the first of the local chard is showing up this week in the local boxes!
It’s warming up today which is a good sign as the cool weather has slowed crops down these past few weeks.
At Share Organics we use as little plastic packaging as possible. Initially for environmental reasons… and now we’re learning more:
“In a study published last year in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, researchers put five San Francisco families on a three-day diet of food that hadn’t been in contact with plastic. When they compared urine samples before and after the diet, the scientists were stunned to see what a difference a few days could make: The participants’ levels of bisphenol A (BPA), which is used to harden polycarbonate plastic, plunged – by two-thirds, on average – while those of the phthalate DEHP, which imparts flexibility to plastics, dropped by more than half.”
One Foodie’s Journey
We’re always surprised and darn right delighted by the odd unsolicited love emails we get…
“… when I first signed up for the box, I was pretty hopeless in the kitchen and always thought I didn’t like cooking. But when I started getting all of these veggies that I had never seen before, it forced me to figure out what the heck to do with them. And it became really fun! Fast forward a few years and now I’m a total foodie, and actually a very good vegetarian cook. So it made a big difference for me! (and my son is also now very knowledgeable about produce and helping farmers – he’s actually very interested in becoming a farmer). I’m already looking for a similar service in our new city. Thanks!”
- Sonia
Thank you, Sonia!! Good luck in your new city.
Yam Chickpea Patties
Pre-heat oven to 425 F
Mash in food processor using pulse action. Do not puree. Transfer to medium mixing bowl:
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
Add the following and mix thoroughly:
2 cup yams, grated
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp green onion, chopped
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
1 tsp Pepper
1/2 tsp Cumin
1/4 tsp Cayenne
To form patties, line a wide mouth jar lid with clear wrap and pack mixture until it is level with top of lid. Empty patty onto an oiled cookie sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes, turn and continue baking for another 5 to 10 minutes.
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
The weather remains cold (have you noticed?) and the salad greens are growing very. slowly. We love having the cold-friendly braising greens again this week.
This week’s braising mix… glamourous, n’est pas?
Looking into the future, using our crystal ball:
We hope to see nettle greens in the boxes the first three weeks of April. We will also offer nettles in 1/2 LB bulk bags. Try drying it for a winter tea!
Nettles are an important source of beta-carotene, vitamin A, C and E, iron, calcium, phosphates and minerals. I just finishing the last of my nettle rose mint tea. Eric at Untamed Feast who is picking the nettles for us from his own wild patch says to “boil fresh nettles for a bit (just to take the sting out…), drain, and freeze for adding to cleansing/building spring smoothies, tastes great in a banana smoothie.”
We also might see some overwintering cauliflower in mid-April. Island garlic is all done for the season but we can expect garlic greens soon.
Crop planning continues. We’ve begun working with Ian King from Seabluff Farm in Metchosin. Ian is interested in extending the growing seasons with us. Perhaps you met Ian at the Downtown Winter Markets?
Meet Dave Chambers
Dave of Madrona Farm gives an interview on the joys of Winter Farmering.
It explains all the mud on delivery days…
Join our Team!
We are looking for a back-up production person to assist with packing our beautiful veggie boxes. Production days are:
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
We can offer one regular shift a week plus backup. Must love veggies and be available on our production days!
Being able to drive standard transmission is an asset and a reason to boast… a little.
Email a resume!
susan(at)shareorganics.bc.ca
Italian Pear Pie with Hazelnut Crust
For crust, grease a pie plate with:
1 Tbsp butter
Grind in a processor or coffee mill:
2 cups hazelnuts
Combine with:
1/2 cup pastry flour
3 Tbsp Cane sugar
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
3 TBS water
Mix all crust ingredients together with a fork and press into 9 inch pie plate.
For filling, combine the following:
4 to 6 juicy pears, peeled and sliced
3/4 tsp Cinnamon
2 Tbsp cane sugar
Rind and juice of 1 lemon (optional)
Bake for 35 minutes at 375 degrees. Serve warm topped with whipped cream or ice cream.
What to Make with This Week’s
Bio-Regional Box
Roasted Rutabaga and Beets
Braised Greens with Balsamic Vinegar
Pear Pie
Blueberry Smoothie
Baby Carrots for a snack
Salad Greens with Apple and Hazelnuts
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
We tried a new variety of apple San Rose from Washington last week and loved it. They are the pink-er ones in the box this week next to the red Empires.
Apples are coming out of controlled atmosphere storage now. These special sealed coolers that control humidity and temperature. BC and Washington apples are released from storage in batches between February and June. They have that fresh-off-the-tree taste and crispness but do not keep as long as the fresh fall crops.
Update from Dave of Madrona Farm
“Our Braising Mix is a beautiful medley of new shoots and greens from our winter Brassicas. Over the next eight weeks we get a bonus crop for having a diverse range of brassicas in the winter gardens. The mix includes red, savoy and green cabbage shoots and baby leaves, Russian and Lacinato kale and shoots, rutabaga and turnip green tips, Brussels sprouts shoots and various Asian greens. It braises well with garlic and a little Szechuan sauce.
P.S. Yesterday we got 1,000lb of Warba seed into beautifully prepared sandy soil to be ready for harvest the beginning of June.”
(Warbas are tasty tasty potatoes!!)
New Video Coming Soon:
Growing in the Winter with Farmer Dave
Braised Winter Greens with Beans
Stem rinse and drain:
1 bag greens OR bunch of chard
Heat skillet or wok to medium heat and add:
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup kidney or pinto beans
Sauté until garlic is golden. Then add:
1/4 tsp red chili flakes
Add the greens and cover to cook for 2 minutes. Uncover and toss until wilted.
Add:
1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
Serve over quinoa or rice.
What to make with this week’s Best of the Bio-Region Box
Potato and Leek Soup
Braised Greens with Beans
Blackberry Apple Crumble
Omelet with Oyster Mushrooms
Parsnip and Potato or Carrot Latkes
Poached Pears
Leeks are coming from Seabluff Farm in Metchosin thanks to Farmer Ian King!
Introduction to Home-Scale Permaculture
With Elaine Codling
Saturday, March 24th
12:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Whatever size yard or garden you have to work with, applying basic permaculture principles will reduce the maintenance and increase the productivity. Learn practical strategies and techniques for creating a productive ecological yard and garden.
Permaculture design can give you more variety, more beauty, and more time to enjoy it. There will be hands-on activity at Spring Ridge Commons to apply techniques learned in class.
To register, please contact Pooyan Najafi at pnajafi@gmail.com or (250)858-5256.
Where: Fernwood Community Centre, 1240 Gladstone Avenue
Crop planning with our farmers is almost done! Just spoke with Wendy at West Wind Farm and she is excited about growing tomatoes and eggplant for us. We can also expect some of her Italian parsley and more grilling peppers.
She is going to experiment with red bell peppers this year. They are heat lovers and need a long growing season. Did you know that red bell peppers are ripe green bell peppers? Wendy is going to try growing them in the greenhouse.
West Wind Farms is one of the hottest spots on the Island in a little ecosystem northwest of Duncan in the Cowichan Valley. Wendy also reports that the garlic planted last October is looking great! If you remember her whole crop was lost last year so this is very good news!!
Wendy has also committed to grow a smaller variety of spaghetti squash this year
Wendy’s Lettuce Row – September 2011
What to do with this week’s Bio-Regional Box
We changed the name of this box from LOCAL ONLY as we have a few items from away – that is, Washington State and the BC interior. Still 50% Island Grown! The name will revert back once we have 100% local offerings again.
Carrot Quiche
Apple Blueberry Crisp with Hazelnut Topping
Raw Hazelnut Snack (Taste the difference between raw and roasted!)
Blueberry Muffins
Roasted Rutabaga and Shallots
Borscht
Sautéed Garlic, Mushroom & Braising Greens
Introduction to Home-Scale Permaculture
With Elaine Codling
Saturday, March 24th
12:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Whatever size yard or garden you have to work with, applying basic permaculture principles will reduce the maintenance and increase the productivity. Learn practical strategies and techniques for creating a productive ecological yard and garden.
Permaculture design can give you more variety, more beauty, and more time to enjoy it. There will be hands-on activity at Spring Ridge Commons to apply techniques learned in class.
To register, please contact Pooyan Najafi at pnajafi@gmail.com or (250)858-5256.
Where: Fernwood Community Centre, 1240 Gladstone Avenue
Share Organics is involved in the Climate Smart program sponsored by Saanich and the City of Victoria. We are mapping and tracking our C02 emissions. This involves tracking our vehicle fuel consumption, paper use, refrigerant use for coolers, energy use and garbage. We will estimate using records for the last fiscal year. After crunching numbers we will work to determine areas where we can improve and more accurately track our emissions! We were surprised to find that when we were asked to weigh our garbage each week that we produce as little as 1 – 3 LBS! We do a lot of recycling!
Other things are harder to track. We can see how much it costs in fuel to deliver to your door but not quite how to factor in the fuel we save because you folks do not have to drive to the store. Similarly we cannot track how much we save by choosing local over BC produce or produce shipped by tanker versus trucked. We know these things matter and make our choices accordingly but putting numbers to it is a different story. We can tell you that the bike delivery mileage was 2769 km last year and we hope to be able to report what is referred to as “avoided emissions” soon.
Who’s Your Farmer
Join Heather Stretch, Robin Tunnicliffe, Rachel Fisher, Saanich MLA Lana Popham, and Mary Alice Johnson for an evening discussion on local organic farming and learn more about the growers in your neighbourhood.
Tuesday, February 28 – 7:00pm
Cadboro Bay Books
3840 Cadboro Bay Road
Victoria, BC
Shiitake Mushrooms from Salt Spring Exotic Mushrooms
Shiitake is touted as Asia’s most famous mushroom: the tastiest, healthiest and most popular cultivated variety. On the Salt Spring farm it is grown on BC Red Alder. These mushrooms are harvested bi-weekly so they have higher moisture and flavor content than other sources. They are high in protein, anti-oxidants and Vitamins B, C & D. Shiitakes have a more robust flavor than the standard button mushrooms, which makes them go a little farther: by using only half the amount of mushrooms the recipe requires, they can be used in most any recipe!
Since Shiitakes are a nutritional powerhouse, they make a great meat substitute. They are a healthy alternative to meat for people trying to cut back on fat.
Here is a short video Susan did with Adam Gold of Salt Spring Exotic Mushrooms last March. Perhaps some of you recognize him from the markets?
Shiitake and Wild Rice Pilaf
Shiitake and Wild Rice Pilaf
4 oz. Shiitake Mushrooms, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp. minced onion or leeks
1 cup snow peas or thinly sliced kale
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 cups cooked wild rice
1/2 cup toasted hazelnut pieces
1 dash of Tamari
In broad skillet, saute shiitake mushrooms, onions and garlic in oil until tender, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add rice, walnuts, onions and Tamari, mixing to blend. Heat to warm through.
Makes 4 servings
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
It is always interesting to see our food in the global perspective. Here is the latest from our mainland supplier on the veggie scene:
“There is little change on the veg front with continuing tight supply across the board, with the occasional window of good supply and more seasonal pricing opening and closing. Unfortunately, after a week of warmer weather, cold nights and frost are now looming for the desert growing areas again this weekend, which isn’t going to help. … Slicer cuke pricing continues to be out of this world, but tomato pricing is crumbling across the board affecting all growers in Sinnaloa – a nice stretch of hot weather has helped there. It was about this time a couple of years ago when we had that deadly freeze and temps of -9 C there – totally the opposite this year.”
- Discovery Organics, January 25
All the cooking greens are at very high prices this week especially the kales!! The California crop is dwindling and the Mexican crop is still at least a week away.
On the home front
We have small savoy cabbage and cauliflower in the fields at Madrona Farm. Dave is also planting a few beds of oriental greens which will fill in the gaps in the early spring for fresh local greens. Potatoes are almost sold out but rutabaga and turnips remain strong. The Brussels Sprout patch continues to produce!
We are involved in the crop planning stage of the cycle speaking with farmers about what they want to grow for Share next year. This gives them a better idea of what to plant when. Farming is a chancy business and so farmers are glad we are here and ready to eat what they grow!
Baby Cauliflower photographed at Madrona Farm, Oct 2011
The Islands’ largest agricultural event of the year! Featuring a trade show with more than sixty exhibitors:
February 3-4, 2012
Cowichan Exhibition Park
District of North Cowichan
(5 kilometers North of Duncan)
The Islands Agriculture Show provides a unique opportunity to showcase, celebrate and grow the agriculture industry on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.
Visitors to the trade show can expect to see the latest and most innovative equipment and technology for the agriculture industry. http://iashow.ca/
Ginger Rutabaga Vegetable Soup
Melt in a soup pot:
1 Tbsp. butter or olive oil
Add and sauté over low heat for 7 minutes:
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
3 Tbsp. minced ginger
Peel and dice and then stir in the following and sauté another 10 minutes:
1 LB Rutabaga
1 medium sweet potato or parsnip
2 medium potatoes
2 large carrots
Add and bring to boil:
6 cups water
1 stick cinnamon
Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Remove cinnamon stick and continue simmering until tender. Remove 1/4 of the vegetables to your blender and puree. Return to soup pot.
Serves 6 to 8.
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
Everywhere I turn health researchers and professionals are saying we can cure our ills and insure good health by eating more fruits and vegetables. Friends who are researching Parkinson’s and MS have found information that encourages this nutritional approach. The website, “Forks Over Knives,” has a link to some research regarding Diabetes and Heart Disease: http://www.forksoverknives.com/about/the-fok-diet/
Two doctors researching these two different health issues came up with the same answer – we would benefit from more fruit and veg in our diet! They are talking about making 80% of what we consume to be fruit and vegetables.
Rather than post more and bigger boxes we have bulked up our Fresh Weekly Produce listing to include at least two leafy cooking greens. Add them on to your box or substitute them in. We always offer one salad green – lettuce at the moment – but will offer salad mix as well when it is back in season. Let us know if you are interested in larger amounts of greens and we will consider creating a small greens box or a raw foods box.
Buying a box saves you 10% over buying a la carte. Buying from our Bulk Produce List saves you even more.
So work the system…
Order a bag of potatoes or carrots from Bulk Produce and remove these veg from your Box and add more greens or fruit!
Local Veggie of the Week:
Daikon
Umi Nami Farms in Metchosin has just delivered freshly harvested daikon and packed it into 500g packages. Daikon is a root vegetable that grows in our region and has a mild radish flavour. It can be enjoyed raw as a part of veggies-and-dip or grated onto salads.
Yoshiko was telling me she also uses it in stir fries and makes it into Japanese pickle by layering daikon with a sprinkling of salt and vinegar. Then let it sit for a few hours.
Or try this:
Daikon Dipping Sauce
Finely grate:
1/2 LB Daikon (1 cup)
Combine with the following:
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp. Tamari
1 tsp. grated ginger
1 tsp. rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. (or more!) Wasabi (green horseradish powder found in Asian markets)
Serve at room temperature over strong-flavoured fish or over rice.
Another Farmer Recipe:
Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Dave at Madrona Farms recommends roasting brussels sprouts with a little oil and salt in a 400 degree oven until they are done!
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
We are starting 2012 out well with 3 local items in most of the boxes. This time last year we struggled to have two items in every box all year. The year prior we were only able to offer 1 item in all boxes. Progress! We have more root crops available this January – potatoes, rutabaga, beets and sunchokes. The brussels sprouts are still coming on. Leafy greens – arugula salad greens, mizuna and kale – will take their time coming back due to the short days this time of year. Our local organic hothouse, Suntrio Farms, will be gearing up to produce some early tomatoes and cukes in March or April. I’ll try to get a report from them for next week.
If you have not yet tried our Local Island Box consider getting one once a month to keep in touch with the local food scene. Right now it is packed with Island produce and three items from BC (pears, onions and mushrooms).
Add a Local Island Box to your Standing Order.
Then choose to have it “Every Monthly.”
Then choose to have it delivered the First week of Month, Second week, etc…
Winter Local Box
Kind words from one of our farmers…
“Thank you so much for all your support this year. It really kept us alive. I like selling bulk orders (to Share) because we see more volume move steadily. You are a pleasure to deal with and I feel you do all possible to pay a fair price. Keep up the good work! Have you ever thought of opening a branch up island? You have a lot of knowledge and experience in running this distribution system?”
- Isabelle Morris
Growing carrots, potatoes, beets and more at Wyndlow Farms, Ladysmith.
What to Make from the Local Box
Blueberry Muffins
Pear Smoothie
Roasted Beet and Arugula Salad
Scalloped Potatoes
Sautee Garlic Sunchokes with Portobello Mushrooms
Naked Carrots – they don’t need any dressing or cooking!
Blueberry Muffins
A warm treat in the morning before heading out into the wet…
Mix together:
2 beaten eggs
1 cup milk or yoghurt
1/4 cup safflower oil
1/4 cup honey
Sift together:
2 cups organic pastry flour
1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 Tbsp. baking soda
1 dash nutmeg
Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and blend well. Then Add:
1 cup blueberries
Pour into greased muffin tin and bake at 425 for 15 minutes.
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
Did you know it cost $5 to purchase a turkey chick, $25 to feed him with organic grains, $10 to process at our local processing plant and then another $10 if over 20 lbs. And then add in the cost of housing them and looking after them for 6 months. Are they worth it? Absolutely! Organic turkeys are moist and very delicious. And they take less time to cook. If we want to keep local processors and growers we need to support them!
Call Evelyn to see if she has turkeys left. Fresh or frozen for pick up in town Dec 23. 250.743.7484
Add our Harvest Box on to your order to make sure you have enough local produce for the holiday season.
Did You Know??
You can order today for Dec 20-22 by clicking on a future date in the calendar on your order window and adding Eggnog
(a yummy example).
If you are away for holidays you can cancel on the website. Click on Skip a Week and choose your away dates OR send us an email and we will do it for you.
Terra Nossa is now taking pre-orders for their organic turkeys. They will be freshly processed December 22nd and available fresh for pick up in Victoria on the 23rd.
Deer will always go under a fence rather than over so mind the gaps as small as 8 inches and block them!
Deer can be rerouted so plant something like rutabaga outside and away from the garden fence.
Dave farms at Madrona Farm on Blenkinsop Rd. He was telling me this morning that the rutabagas are extra large this year and that he used seed he had saved from last year’s crop! Studies on seed saving in Cuba have indicated that seeds harvested from small micro climates do better in that same micro climate. Makes sense to me! If your rutabaga is bigger than expected this week, now you know why. Don’t worry! It keeps well.
Dave has saved seeds from about 16 crops this year. Not as easy as you might think as they have to be segregated from crops they might cross pollinate with so the process requires a good deal of land and some savvy planning ahead!
We will be rotating rutabaga and brussels sprouts into our different box types over the next month – just like we did with collards these past few weeks. The rutabaga and the Brussels sprouts are available every week… just sub it into your box if you’d like them more often!
Good for you and good for the farmer.
Making the Most of your Box
When customizing your box make sure you check our Bulk Produce Section. Add the value-priced bags of organic carrots, potatoes, apples etc. to your order. Then remove these items from your box and increase or substitute some of the other offerings!
South Carolina Collards!
Chop and pop into boiling water:
1 bunch collards
Add a touch of:
Salt, sugar, oil
Serve with a splash of vinegar and garnish with crumbled bacon and/or wedges of boiled egg.
From the kitchen of Charlesanna Leatherman
Rutabaga Casserole
Peel and cut into cubes:
1 medium rutabaga
Put in pot, cover with water and bring to boil. Simmer until soft (about 25 minutes).
Mash the rutabaga in the pot (with a beater) and add:
3 eggs, beaten
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp Ecosweet sugar
Beat together and sprinkle in slowly:
3 Tbsp flour
Season with salt and pepper.
Pour rutabaga mixture into a buttered baking pan.
Grate leftover bread finely into:
3/4 cups crumbs
1 1/2 Tbsp melted butter
Mix together and sprinkle over the casserole
Bake at 350 for one hour.
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
Share Organics – info@shareorganics.bc.ca, 250-595-6729, www.shareorganics.bc.ca
The purple globe turnips from Madrona are fabulous right now! Their green tops have been useable so far, but the cold weather is starting to take its toll. Bunch carrots are just finishing as the tops are dying off. We’ll need to sub some local loose carrots this week.
Crops like pak choy and leeks love this cold weather but late season crops experience more insect damage so you can expect a few holes in the leaves.
The squash is rolling right along — Red Kuri has a shorter storage life so we are using it up first. We like to support different varieties to increase genetic diversity! We’re looking forward to upcoming Fairy squash that tastes like a butternut!
Our brussels sprouts in their early childhood days on Madrona Farm
(image taken October 2011 during the Chef Survival Challenge).
Greens like kale and chard are growing at a snail’s pace… Salad greens will continue through December and then slow down as the day length shortens. We will look forward to a lot more root crops, hazelnuts, leeks, sprouts, salad mix, apples, brussels sprouts and cauliflower in the next month.
**All this bounty from our Island!**
Climate Change and Food Security
in British Columbia – continued…
Dr. Aleck Ostry, UVic; Dr. Christiana Miewald, SFU; and Rachelle Beveridge, UVic
Meat Production is the highest source of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions!
“Sourcing from local farms decreases food miles but food miles are in fact not the most important source of GHG emissions. The agriculture GHG emission associated with meat production are huge! The main sources of GHG’s from agriculture arise from decomposition of organic matter (i.e. plant litter, soils, manure). Carbon dioxide is released primarily from microbial decay or burning of plant litter and soil organic matter. The largest sources of CH4 in agriculture are from fermentative digestion of ruminant animals, stored manure and rice grown under flooded conditions.”
“According to Environment Canada (2009), animal production is responsible for about 60% of Canada’s agricultural GHG emissions.”
Since much of our current food supply is grown in California this study looks at how climate change will affect that area. Water is already in short supply in California and the farmers there have had their water supply cut. The Mexican government is learning from the problems in California and has set a limit on the amount of water that can be taken from the aquifer under the Sonora Desert. Mexican farmers are also used to growing with less water.
Transportation is another GHG issue but is closer always better? Here at Share our bananas come from Peru – one of the few items we source from off the continent. Most bananas are shipped by container to Los Angeles and then trucked up to Canada. Our bananas come directly from Peru to the port of Vancouver. This way they use 1/17th the fuel than that of a banana that comes via LA!
Maple Glazed Turnips and Carrots
Cut into match sticks or 1/2 coins, quartered:
1 bunch Turnips (save greens for a soup or saute!)
Cut into 1/2 inch coins:
3 medium carrots
Put the vegetables and stock (or water) in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover and cook until the turnips are barely tender, about 10 minutes. Pour most of the liquid off, return pan to stove, and reduce the heat to medium.
Add:
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp maple syrup
Stir to coat the vegetables and continue to cook uncovered until the vegetables are glazed and beginning to caramelize around the edges, about 2 minutes.
Introducing… Us!
Did you check out our new Introduction Video in last week’s newsletter?
Missed it, did you?
Well, have another crack at it…
Darin Steinkey produced this lovely video for us and the music is from Compassion Gorilla.
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
Jon and Katy of Alderlea Farm are a source of zucchini, cabbage and cucumbers for us. They are also a source of fun family things to do on their farm!
They are hosting a series of daytime shin-digs that include tractor rides and picking out next season’s Christmas tree. These are the first trees I’ve heard of that are lovely, LOCAL and sustainably grown.
For details please contact Jon and Katy at Alderlea Farm:
3390 Glenora Rd, Duncan
250-715-0799
jonkaty@shaw.ca
It looks like you need to reserve a spot for this fun event!
It was an excellent obstacle course for the chefs this year. They had to jump mounds of compost and hay bales, shimmy under irrigation pipes, scale a wall, paddle (in questionable boats) to an Island to retrieve their condiment bags and finally finished up on the Zip Line!
We all ate a fabulous lunch while each Chef picked their own vegetables from the fields and with a protein of choice they each began to prepare a fabulous meal! One Chef caught some lake trout in Prospect Lake the day before, another choose local dog fish – a very underrated fish in this part of the world. A fellow from The Whole Beast showed us how to make sausage!
It was a great chance to see these amazing chefs in action and to learn a thing or two. I saw a chef use the pulp from a squash in his soup base and also sauté the squash seeds to use as a garnish. At the end of the day each meal was auctioned off to the highest bidder. All this was in support of the TLC. This was A LOT OF FUN!
Don’t miss it next year.
Just don’t.
budding Brussels Sprouts
Madrona’s Farmer Dave was overseeing the festivities. Dave has been working with Share Organics to extend the growing seasons into late fall and early spring. I saw some of the crops that will fill our boxes later in the year: brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage and kale as well as braising greens and arugula.
Baby Cauliflower
Green Apple and Buttercup Squash Casserole
This can be prepared the night before and baked at the last minute – when the turkey comes out!
2 Jonagold apples, peeled and cored
3 TB organic butter, divided
2 TB extra virgin olive oil
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 large stalk celery, chopped
2 cups mushrooms, cleaned and cut into quarters
Sea salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Fresh thyme to taste, optional
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans/walnuts, optional
Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut apples into quarters and then each quarter into quarters again.
Melt one tablespoon butter with the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté squash, onion, celery and mushrooms with a pinch of sea salt for 10 minutes, stirring often. Cover the pan and cook for 5 to 10 minutes over medium-low, stirring occasionally, until squash is just tender.
Meanwhile, melt the remaining two tablespoons of butter in a saucepan. Add the breadcrumbs, stirring to coat well and set aside. To the pan add the squash mixture, and the apples, thyme, salt and pepper to taste. Continue to sauté for 5 to 10 more minutes, or until apples are just tender. Transfer vegetables and any pan juices to a buttered medium baking pan. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the top.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until breadcrumbs are golden-brown. For extra crunch, garnish with toasted pecans before serving.
Thanks to Nancy at Sungold Meadows Farm for this recipe and this week’s squash!
If you would like to view or add to your order please click here!
Jon Steinman of Deconstructing Dinner spoke about the myths surrounding GMO foods. One of the best ways to promote GMO awareness (and a GE-Free Vancouver Island, perhaps) is to be able to set the record straight.
Myth Number 1 – GMO food can feed the world.
In fact, as Dr. Huber pointed out, the yield on GMO crops are low compared to conventional and organic crops.
Myth Number 2 – GMO are safe. Research has not been done to prove GMO products are safe. GMO plants have been unleashed on to the world.
Myth Number 3 – GMO plants cannot reproduce. This misconception might have come about because of terminator seeds slated to be introduced into the marketplace but never sanctioned. Most GMO plants can and do reproduce thus becoming weeds (GMO canola) that cannot be controlled. Right now GMO alfalfa has been okayed in the USA. Genetically modified (GM) alfalfa is only a step away from approval in Canada. For Canadian Organic Growers and its members, GM alfalfa is the last straw. “In March, we signed onto a legal action against Monsanto.”
This week we have local Prima and Liberty apples. Ian of Isabella Orchard on Saltspring Island reports that there are very few Liberty this year. The different types of apple trees blossom at different times so yield is dependent on weather and bee pollination at blossom time. The rainy cold spring and the wet July will likely led to more scaring on the apples this year (25% scab-free is the acceptable standard).
Ian, as an organic farmer, is careful to rake up all the diseased leaves. He is planning to pick the scarred apples off the trees and take them in for juice pressing. We will have the first batch of his wonderful fresh frozen apple juice next week – a gravenstein mix with a hint of pear!
Red Free Apples at Isabella Orchards
We are also expecting our first order from Saltspring Island’s Foxglove Farm! They will be sending us some Sweet Peppers and for our lucky Local Box customers a pint of strawberries. Don’t worry – they are being grown under hoop houses and so we’ll have them rain or shine!
From the Cowichan Valley Wendy at Westwind Farms has had a bumper crop of Eggplant.
Below is her favourite eggplant recipe.
Roasted Eggplant and Peppers
Preheat oven to 425 F.
Slice diagonally into long “rounds”:
1/2 LB Eggplant
Halve, seed and cut into long thick slices:
2 green peppers
(Optionally add 2 cloves peeled garlic)
Drizzle and toss everything in a few glugs of Olive oil.
Bake for 10 minutes, turn over and bake for another five minute or so until soft. Serve warm (over rice) topped with the secret ingredient…
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