RECIPE ROUNDUP: 5 CLASSICS TO WELCOME THE NEW VEGGIES
05/28/21 — Ada Broussard
Summer produces seems to announce itself so suddenly. Squash! Okra! Cucumbers! Tomatoes and eggplant are still lagging in the fields, but after some sunny weeks, they’ll come a knockin. Of course, we don’t want you to miss out on the final moments of broccoli, lettuce, and cabbage… you’ll miss them dearly…. But we’re rolling out the carpet for the veggies on the scene. This week, we’re sharing some of the most classic summer recipes to get you ready for the bounty to come. Need to secure your tomato fix? Don't forget to pre-order through our bulk sale.
Ratatouille
A summer pattern of zucchini, squash, tomatoes, and eggplant. A humble dish, simple in its ingredients list, but stunning in its presentation.Pickled Cucumbers
This week’s featured recipe by Sheena’s Pickles couldn’t be more timely. Cucumbers are just starting to roll in, and this simple sour pickle is a great place to start. But don’t let your pickle adventure stop with cucumbers…okra, squash, and zucchini deserve their time in brine, too.Homemade Roasted Salsa
Tomatoes, peppers, onions, and cilantro. Salsa recipe run the spectrum, but this simple recipe is a reminder that making salsa at home is incredibly easy. And the end product will be better than something from a jar.Tomato and Peach Salad
Hill country peaches are just starting to become available, and tomatoes are trailing right behind, making this tomato and peach salad, served over a swirl of labne with a tomato vinaigrette, an ideal summer plate.Smashed Eggplants with Chili
The eggplant wave is coming, and this spicy Chinese dip will help you wade through the bounty.LEE'S CLASSIC SOURS
05/27/21 — Ada Broussard
This week's recipe was provided by pickle expert, Sheena's Pickles. Sheena often uses JBG produce for her pickled delights, and we were thrilled when she agreed to share her classic sour recipe with us.. with you! It's pickling season, y'all!
This recipe is my sister Alisha’s (Lee’s) favorite pickle flavor. It is a classic, clean, and simple sour pickle.
Prep time: 20 minutes Water bath time: 10 minutes Ready to eat in about four weeks Shelf life: 1 year (or more)
Ingredients: Yields 5 pint-size jars
Homework:
If this is your first time canning pickles, please read about the water canning method. This method allows you to have a safe, repeatable, shelf-stable product.
What to buy:
Prep:
Packing jars:
Canning
Note: You don't want to have any resistance from the lids, meaning that when you press the lid center, it should not make a cling-clang sound. If it does, this means that your product did not seal properly. Remove the lid and toss away. Any unsealed jars should be refrigerated and used promptly.
This recipe is my sister Alisha’s (Lee’s) favorite pickle flavor. It is a classic, clean, and simple sour pickle.
Prep time: 20 minutes Water bath time: 10 minutes Ready to eat in about four weeks Shelf life: 1 year (or more)
Ingredients: Yields 5 pint-size jars
- 8 cups white vinegar (5% acidity)
- ½ cup of pickling salt
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup dry mustard
- 3 lbs of pickling cucumbers
Homework:
If this is your first time canning pickles, please read about the water canning method. This method allows you to have a safe, repeatable, shelf-stable product.
What to buy:
- Pickling cucumbers: Do not use the waxy, shiny salad cucumbers. These cucumbers will make your pickles mushy. Find pickling cucumbers at your local Farmer's Market.
- Pickling salt: Can be purchased at your local grocery store. You can find it on the same aisle with the ice cream salt. Do not use table salt for this recipe.
- Extra canning lids: Canning lids are designed for one-time use. Rings can be used multiple times. Wash and rinse them before use.
Prep:
- Wash pickling cucumbers, remove the ends, and slice. *Note: The ends of cucumbers contain enzymes that can cause the cucumber to go soft. Remove at least 1/16th of an inch from the ends before you cut cucumbers into rounds or spears.
- Wash and rinse your jars well.
- Prepare a boiling water bath with enough water to cover your pint-size jars.
- Sterilize jars---your jars need to be submerged in boiling water for 10 minutes.
- Remove the sterilized jars from the boiling water.
Packing jars:
- In a saucepot, heat the vinegar, sugar, pickling salt, and dry mustard until the mixture comes to a simmer and the salt and sugar dissolve. This brine will be cloudy and yellow due to the dry mustard.
- Pack a sterilized pint-size jar with pickling cucumbers. Leave 1/2 inch of space at the top of the jar for liquid.
- Cool the brine down to warm, and fill the jars so that everything is covered with brine.
- Remove air bubbles by placing a nonmetallic spatula or plastic knife inside the jar between the food and the side of the jar. Gently press the spatula against the food to create a path for trapped air to escape. If this step is not done, air bubbles can cause pressure to build during water bath canning and it can break your jar.
- Recheck the headspace and add more brine if necessary.
- Wipe the jar rims and apply lids and rings. Screw the rings on firmly, but do not overtighten.
Canning
- Process in a boiling hot water bath for 10 minutes.
- When the timer goes off, remove jars using a jar lifter and place them on a kitchen towel.
- Let jars cool before handling.
Note: You don't want to have any resistance from the lids, meaning that when you press the lid center, it should not make a cling-clang sound. If it does, this means that your product did not seal properly. Remove the lid and toss away. Any unsealed jars should be refrigerated and used promptly.
CSA BOX CONTENTS WEEK OF MAY 24TH
05/21/21 — Farm
Individual: Potato, Beet, Green Beans, Fennel, Collard Greens, Cabbage
Small: Potato, Green Beans, Radish, Spinach, Carrot, Squash
Medium: Potato, Cabbage, Green Beans, Squash, Cucumber, Radish, Harvest Highlight, Bok Choy
Large: Potato, Cabbage, Beet, Green Beans, Squash, Cucumber, Spinach, Radish, Harvest Highlight, Onion, Bok Choy, Fennel
PHOTOS FROM THE FARM: 5.21.21
05/21/21 — Ada Broussard
It's been a wet few weeks at the farm, and we find all the dry moments to get things done. This week, we made a big push to get our beets out of the ground and into storage. Left in the ground, they would be in danger of rot and pest destruction. Stored safely in our cooler, and we've got beets for weeks.
BULK TOMATO SALE IS HERE
05/21/21 — Ada Broussard
Whelp, we don't have a lot to say this week except one very anticipated announcement: Tomatoes are here. If you've been a farm patron for many years, you know how wild we go about tomatoes. If you're new to the JBG community, here's the gist: Every year we grow thousands of tomato plants of our very favorite, tried, and true tomato varieties. Tomatoes are a very labor-intensive crop to grow and harvest, but they are truly one of our favorite vegetables to offer. We get so much joy (and usually a few grey hairs) from our tomato season each summer. If you've ever had a homegrown tomato, you know just how superior they taste. We want you to enjoy this, too! Every year we run a Tomato Bulk Sale... this is our 13th annual! Through this online sale, you can reserve your portion of our tomato harvest... in bulk. Many of you have made sweet family traditions centered around our bulk sale - canning tomato sauce or making ginormous batches of salsa to get you throughout the year. Can 'em, freeze 'em, sauce 'em... whatever your tomato dreams may be, we're here to make them a reality. The Bulk Sale webpage is up as of Today!
Reserve your tomatoes through this link. As always, shoot us an email if you have any questions - farm@jbgorganic.com.
Happy tomato season, y'all! It's begun! Scroll to see a few of the tomato varieties offered in this year's sale.
KOHLRABI CURRY
05/20/21 — Ada Broussard
Recipe & Photo by Megan Russell.
Kohlrabi. One of those weird and wonderful vegetables that make you do a double-take with its lovely green or purple color and many arms. Though it seems otherworldly, this bulbous brassica is quite versatile and can stand on its own as the star of your dish. I learned recently that kohlrabi is a common ingredient in curry, so I did a little research and used this recipe as a guide. It came out so delicious, I know I'll be making versions of it for years to come and am seriously considering planting kohlrabi in our own backyard garden.
Kohlrabi Curry Ingredients:
- 3 large or 6 small purple or green kohlrabi, thick sliced
- 2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- 1/2 can coconut milk
- 1 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 1 tomato, rough chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, diced
- 2 tbs. coconut oil
Curry spice mix:
- 1 tbs. curry powder
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. chili powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
Roasted chickpeas:
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 tbs. coconut oil
- 1 tbs. smoked paprika
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne
Coconut Jasmine rice:
- 1 cup jasmine rice
- The other 1/2 can of coconut milk + water to equal 2 cups
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. sugar
Preheat oven to 350. Toss the chickpeas in oil and spices then spread out evenly on a baking sheet lined in parchment paper. Roast 45 minutes or until crispy but not dry on the inside. Taste as they roast!
Be sure to peel the thick skin off the kohlrabi before slicing. Have spice mix and other chopped ingredients ready.
Heat the coconut oil in a skillet over medium-high, add the mustard seeds and fry until they begin to pop. Add the onion, garlic, and spices and fry for another minute while stirring. Next add the kohlrabi, tomatoes, and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cover and cook for about 30 minutes. Add the spinach for the last ten minutes.
While the curry simmers, make the rice according to package instructions.
When everything is happily cooked, spoon the curry over the rice and top with crispy chickpeas. I added some sliced pork and a smear of gochujang.
Makes great leftovers!
CSA BOX CONTENTS WEEK OF MAY 17TH
05/17/21 — Farm
Individual: Squash, Chard, Cabbage, Potato, Carrot, Red Leaf Lettuce
Small: Beet, Squash, Chard, Cauliflower, Fennel, Onion, Red Leaf Lettuce
Medium: Squash, Cabbage, Potato, Carrot, Leeks, Harvest Highlight, Collard, Onion
Large: Squash, Chard, Cauliflower, Potato, Carrot, Leek, Herb, Harvest Highlight, Kale, Cucumbers, Onion, Red Leaf Lettuce