Friday, July 13, 2012

Week 4: July 3



Red Butter Lettuce, Salad Turnips, Snow Peas, Early Italian Turnips, Broccoli,
Sugar Snap Peas or Rainbow Chard, Bok Choi & Dill

            This morning I went out to the garden with great hopes of picking gallons and gallons of sugar snap peas to give out to everyone. As it happens, there was only one gallon, which is not nearly enough to go around; so this week the four large shares get sugar snaps, and the small shares get rainbow chard.   If we get all the sunshine that the weather man is predicting there will be sugar snaps for everyone next Tuesday.        
            On Canada Day our cat Amber had four kittens. We have been watching her belly grow to the point it looked like she swallowed a football, with no idea how much bigger she would get or when she would give birth.  Mom has been strategically placing boxes full of old wool and towels all over the house, in the basement under the stairs, under the bed in the spare room, anywhere she thought the cat might go to have her babies.  Amber took no interest in these boxes.  Mom would put her in a box and pet her, encouraging her to use one of these appropriate homes but Amber just jumped out as soon as Mom stopped petting her and went back to sleeping wherever she pleased.  Sunday night, right before we went to the fireworks, she started having her babies on the couch.  Mom managed to relocate her to one of the boxes, but had to leave it on the couch for the night to keep her in it.  Now we have two orange and white kittens, and two smoky beige kittens to play with for the rest of the summer. 

Italian Summer Turnips:  white with a purple top, these flattened early turnips are good cooked or raw.  Cut them into thick slices and grill on the BBQ until tender then drizzle with a balsamic dressing and serve.  I just learned at market this weekend, that these are the turnips used to make the pink pickle served at kebab shops.    

Snow Peas: flat, tender, edible pea pods common in Asia.  They are excellent raw, stir fried, or lightly steamed. Just remember to remove the stem end and string first. 

Sugar Snap Peas: juicy, edible pods that are filled with delicious baby peas.  Cut off the stem and eat the whole thing pod and all.  They are excellent raw, or lightly steamed. 

Turkish Turnip Salad
2 lbs Early Italian Turnips, coarsely grated
2 carrots, grated
4 garlic cloves minced
3 Tbsp olive oil
¼ c white vinegar
2 Tbsp coarsely chopped parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Place all the ingredients in a bowl, mix well and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.  Serve chilled or at room temperature.  “The Sultans Kitchen” Ozcan Ozan

Dill Poppy Seed Dressing
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise (optional, you can use all yogurt)
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
½ tsp lemon zest
1 /4 cup chopped dill fronds
1 Tbsp poppy seeds
Salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  “Rebar Modern Food Cookbook” Audrey Alsterberg & Wanda Urbanowicz

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