Welcome to your first share of the A Rocha winter CSA! Many of you are continuing with us from the summer shares and we are so thankful to have you continuing on in the journey of seasonal eating as we lean into our hearty greens and storage crops like onions, squash, beets, rutabaga and more!
On the farm we are enjoying a welcome change of pace as we move into 'clean up mode' on the farm. There is a fun (sometimes chaotic) energy to the endless harvest of summer, but we can only last so long at that pace! And so now on the farm we are enjoying the less urgent tasks of cleaning up. We are tilling and cover cropping and putting away irrigation and taking down tunnels. We are also working on a project that we are very excited about of moving part of our farm into no-till beds (more on the why and how of this exciting process to come soon!)
There is a fun and slightly more restful energy among our team as we find ourselves with a little more time to play in our work and delight in the little things like watching salmon spawn in the river after work and finding frogs and salamanders hiding out in our tarps! Featured above is one of our keen fall interns, Phillipa, who has mastered her leek trimming skills using the 'fruit ninja' technique.
This week we are sending something new that I wanted to tell you a little bit about - Brussel sprout 'Collard' Greens. These leaves from the Brussel sprout plant are fantastic and can be cooked just like collard greens. Below is a recipe I found and am eager to try out from the New York Times. And if you are looking for a more traditional collard green recipe I would say you can't go wrong with anything bacon-ey and braised :)
We hope you have a lovely weekend and enjoy the sunshine - and we'll be back again with your next newsletter and share selection in two weeks!
Coconut-Braised Collard Greens from NYT
(https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020087-coconut-braised-collard-greens)
INGREDIENTS
- 1 large bunch collard greens (1 1/2 to 2 pounds)
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 bunch (6 to 8) scallions, white and pale green parts only, thinly sliced
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
PREPARATION
- Cut off and discard any dry or wilted bits from the collard greens and wash the remaining collards in cold water. Transfer to a colander to drain, then coarsely chop the stems and leaves into 2- to 3-inch pieces.
- In a large wok or skillet, heat butter and oil over medium-high until rippling. Add scallions and cook, stirring, until softened, about 1 minute. Add collards and cook, stirring, just until wilted, about 1 minute.
- Add coconut milk and soy sauce and bring to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, until collards are cooked to your taste, about 7 minutes for bright and crisp greens or 10 minutes for darker, softer greens.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.
