Siren Song Farm CSA Newsletter
Vol. 2
This weeks the bags have a bunch of kale, cabbage greens, baby french breakfast radishes, asparagus and rhubarb!
The greens will be best cooked and if you like, the radish greens can be cooked as well. The cabbage greens should absolutely be cooked to fully appreciate the flavor. Anywhere in the recipes below where it says kale, swiss chard or cabbage greens any or all of the greens can be used and substituted.
The asparagus tastes fantastic. We are so lucky to have gotten some this season. We thought there wouldn’t be enough until next year. The asparagus would be great tossed into a stir-fry or sliced on salads (we ate ours raw).
The radishes are very young so the flavor is at its best, without being too strong.
As for the rhubarb we were lucky enough to meet some local farmers who were willing to trade produce so we could offer rhubarb to the CSA! The young farmer community in Portland is wonderful. They say they will be willing to trade again later in the season so hopefully we will be able to get more fantastic fruit for you. We have all of our strawberry, blueberry, raspberry and blackberry plants ready to go but they won’t be producing a lot until next year. This season we will be getting you fruit by trading with other farmers.
We are still waiting on the bags to be printed so we are using grocery bags this week. Don’t worry about returning them; they can go straight into the recycling.
Thanks!
Siren Song Farm
Recipes:
Cabbage and Farro Soup
This rustic soup tastes like it originated in an Italian farm kitchen. It would make a satisfying Sunday supper in cold weather, served with crusty bread and a hearty red wine. Look for faro – an ancient variety of whole wheat- in well stocked supermarkets, Italian markets and specialty food stores.
Ingredients:
3 tbl. Olive oil
¼ pound pancetta or bacon, chopped
1 small yellow onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbl parsley, minced
2 tsp rosemary minced
1 cup farro or barley
5 - 10 cabbage leaves, coarsely chopped
1 large or 2 small carrots, coarsely chopped
2 quarts chicken or veggie broth
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese, grated
Directions:
1) Heat the olive oil and pancetta in a large pot over moderately low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes to render some of the fat from the pancetta, but do not let the pancetta crisp. Add the onion, garlic, parsley, and rosemary and cook, stirring often, until the onion softens and just begins to color, 5 to 10 minutes.
2) Add the farro, cabbage, carrot and broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer then adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the farro is tender, about 40 minutes. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes.
3) Taste and adjust the seasoning. Divide the soup among warmed bowls. Garnish each portion with some grated cheese and a sprinkle of parsley. Serve immediately.
Flatbread with Radishes, Feta and Spring Herbs
When late spring brings the first flush of tender herbs, edible flowers and mild radishes this Persian hors d’oeuvre should be in your repertoire. The concept is simple: you spread a little feta cheese on warm pita bread, then wrap it around green onions, radishes, herbs and edible flowers, toasted nuts or any combination of these crisp and fragrant foods. The recipe is intentionally vague because the precise amount of each ingredient is unimportant.
Ingredients:
Pita bread, warmed
Feta cheese
Toasted Walnuts
Radishes, cleaned and topped
Green Onions or Green Garlic, halved and cut into 3 inch lengths
Spring Herbs (such as basil, dill, tarragon, mint parsley, cilantro…)
Edible Flowers (optional)
1) Preheat oven to 350 and wrap pita bread in aluminum foil and bake until hot. About 10 minutes.
2) Lay out ingredients for guest to combine as desired.
3) Serve the warm bread with the platter of cheese and herbs.
4) Spread feta on bread with desired topping wrap bread taco style around the radish and enjoy!
Radishes Sauteed in Butter with Parsley
You’ll need:
First, trim the radishes of any rough wisps of root as well as any leaves. Heat the butter in a pan over medium until it is melted. Add radishes and stir until they’re tender and begin to brown a bit. Remove from heat and garnish with fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste.
That’s it. Simple. Easy. Delicious.
Kale and White Bean Soup
I’d post the steps to this recipe, but there’s so few it’s almost not worth posting at all. It’s less a recipe than a “dump it in the pot and eat” ingredient list. This recipe for Kale and White Bean Soup saves me in every way it can: when I’m tired and can’t cook, when we have even less money to spend on food, when I want something warming and nourishing.
Swiss Chard, Kale & Potato Frittata
Ingredients
TIME: about twenty minutes.
Parmesan Roasted Asparagus
Serves: 6 servings
Ingredients
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
If the stalks of the asparagus are thick, peel the bottom 1/2 of each. Lay them in a single layer on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until tender. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and return to the oven for another minute. Serve with lemon wedges.
Kale and Cabbage Greens Salad
about 6 servings
Rinse kale ans cabbage greens. Tear leaves into bite size pieces, discarding any tough ribs and veins.
In a 5 to 6 quart pan over high heat, bring about 1 quart water to boil. Add kale, cover, and cook until slightly wilted-3-5 minutes. Drain.
When cool, squeeze excess liquid from kale and place in a bowl. Mix with 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce and 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, then sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve at room temperature
Vol. 2
This weeks the bags have a bunch of kale, cabbage greens, baby french breakfast radishes, asparagus and rhubarb!
The greens will be best cooked and if you like, the radish greens can be cooked as well. The cabbage greens should absolutely be cooked to fully appreciate the flavor. Anywhere in the recipes below where it says kale, swiss chard or cabbage greens any or all of the greens can be used and substituted.
The asparagus tastes fantastic. We are so lucky to have gotten some this season. We thought there wouldn’t be enough until next year. The asparagus would be great tossed into a stir-fry or sliced on salads (we ate ours raw).
The radishes are very young so the flavor is at its best, without being too strong.
As for the rhubarb we were lucky enough to meet some local farmers who were willing to trade produce so we could offer rhubarb to the CSA! The young farmer community in Portland is wonderful. They say they will be willing to trade again later in the season so hopefully we will be able to get more fantastic fruit for you. We have all of our strawberry, blueberry, raspberry and blackberry plants ready to go but they won’t be producing a lot until next year. This season we will be getting you fruit by trading with other farmers.
We are still waiting on the bags to be printed so we are using grocery bags this week. Don’t worry about returning them; they can go straight into the recycling.
Thanks!
Siren Song Farm
Recipes:
Cabbage and Farro Soup
This rustic soup tastes like it originated in an Italian farm kitchen. It would make a satisfying Sunday supper in cold weather, served with crusty bread and a hearty red wine. Look for faro – an ancient variety of whole wheat- in well stocked supermarkets, Italian markets and specialty food stores.
Ingredients:
3 tbl. Olive oil
¼ pound pancetta or bacon, chopped
1 small yellow onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbl parsley, minced
2 tsp rosemary minced
1 cup farro or barley
5 - 10 cabbage leaves, coarsely chopped
1 large or 2 small carrots, coarsely chopped
2 quarts chicken or veggie broth
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese, grated
Directions:
1) Heat the olive oil and pancetta in a large pot over moderately low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes to render some of the fat from the pancetta, but do not let the pancetta crisp. Add the onion, garlic, parsley, and rosemary and cook, stirring often, until the onion softens and just begins to color, 5 to 10 minutes.
2) Add the farro, cabbage, carrot and broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer then adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the farro is tender, about 40 minutes. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes.
3) Taste and adjust the seasoning. Divide the soup among warmed bowls. Garnish each portion with some grated cheese and a sprinkle of parsley. Serve immediately.
Flatbread with Radishes, Feta and Spring Herbs
When late spring brings the first flush of tender herbs, edible flowers and mild radishes this Persian hors d’oeuvre should be in your repertoire. The concept is simple: you spread a little feta cheese on warm pita bread, then wrap it around green onions, radishes, herbs and edible flowers, toasted nuts or any combination of these crisp and fragrant foods. The recipe is intentionally vague because the precise amount of each ingredient is unimportant.
Ingredients:
Pita bread, warmed
Feta cheese
Toasted Walnuts
Radishes, cleaned and topped
Green Onions or Green Garlic, halved and cut into 3 inch lengths
Spring Herbs (such as basil, dill, tarragon, mint parsley, cilantro…)
Edible Flowers (optional)
1) Preheat oven to 350 and wrap pita bread in aluminum foil and bake until hot. About 10 minutes.
2) Lay out ingredients for guest to combine as desired.
3) Serve the warm bread with the platter of cheese and herbs.
4) Spread feta on bread with desired topping wrap bread taco style around the radish and enjoy!
Radishes Sauteed in Butter with Parsley
You’ll need:
- 2 Bunches French Breakfast Radishes
- 2 Tablespoons Butter
- Fresh Parsley
- Real Salt and Pepper
First, trim the radishes of any rough wisps of root as well as any leaves. Heat the butter in a pan over medium until it is melted. Add radishes and stir until they’re tender and begin to brown a bit. Remove from heat and garnish with fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste.
That’s it. Simple. Easy. Delicious.
Kale and White Bean Soup
I’d post the steps to this recipe, but there’s so few it’s almost not worth posting at all. It’s less a recipe than a “dump it in the pot and eat” ingredient list. This recipe for Kale and White Bean Soup saves me in every way it can: when I’m tired and can’t cook, when we have even less money to spend on food, when I want something warming and nourishing.
- 2 Cups White Beans
- 4-5 Carrots, Peeled and Chopped
- 4-5 Celery Stalks, Chopped
- 1 Onion, Chopped
- 5 Cloves Garlic, Chopped
- 3 Tablespoons Butter
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 2 Quarts Chicken Stock
- 1 Bunch Kale
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
- Drain the beans and add all ingredients to your slow cooker except the kale which you’ll add at the last minute. Cook on low all day long.
- Return home from a hard day at work, add the kale to the pot and prepare a simple salad as an accompaniment to the meal. Serve when the kale is cooked, but still bright green.
Swiss Chard, Kale & Potato Frittata
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 shallots, peeled and sliced thin
- 1 bunch Swiss chard or kale stem removed and chopped coarsely
- 4 small potatoes (about 1 lb), sliced thin
- 1 dozen eggs
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- sea salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- Melt three tablespoons butter in a skillet over a medium flame. Toss peeled and thinly sliced shallots into the skillet and fry in butter until fragrant.
- Add coarsely chopped Swiss chard, kale and thinly sliced potatoes into the skillet and continue to cook until the Swiss chard wilts and the potatoes are tender when pierced by a fork.
- Beat one dozen pastured eggs with three tablespoons heavy cream until the mixture becomes uniform. Season the eggs to your liking with salt and black pepper.
- Reduce the flame to medium-low then pour the beaten eggs and cream into the skillet, over the vegetables. Cook over medium-low until barely set, about six minutes or so.
- Place the frittata in your oven, under the broiler for about six minutes until it is cooked through.
- Serve warm.
TIME: about twenty minutes.
Parmesan Roasted Asparagus
Serves: 6 servings
Ingredients
- fresh asparagus
- 2 tablespoons good olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 2 lemons cut in wedges, for serving
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
If the stalks of the asparagus are thick, peel the bottom 1/2 of each. Lay them in a single layer on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until tender. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and return to the oven for another minute. Serve with lemon wedges.
Kale and Cabbage Greens Salad
about 6 servings
Rinse kale ans cabbage greens. Tear leaves into bite size pieces, discarding any tough ribs and veins.
In a 5 to 6 quart pan over high heat, bring about 1 quart water to boil. Add kale, cover, and cook until slightly wilted-3-5 minutes. Drain.
When cool, squeeze excess liquid from kale and place in a bowl. Mix with 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce and 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, then sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve at room temperature