Docs Prescribe VEGGIES!

here's a great (albeit it still small) program in Massachusetts wherein doctors are prescribing vegetables to their patients.  as part of the program, low-income families receive vouchers to their local farmers' markets where they can shop for farm-fresh produce for their families.  read more about it here!

citys growing produce!

I was listening to Colorado Public Radio the other day and heard an interview with a man who worked with the city of Colorado Springs (who are experiencing a budget crisis and are cutting programs, including decorative plantings) to plant the city parks and decorative spaces with veggies as a form of expanding community gardens in spaces the city can't care for.  Today i read this article in GRIST about other cities around the US that are planting gardens in these previously-decorative-only spaces, and anyone can zip by and harvest the veggies for free.  What a win-win!

one way to use all of that kale!

KALESLAW 

 

Serves 8-10   
 

1 head of kale 

2 large lemons 

1 quart filtered water 

1 Tbs. olive oil  

2 carrots 

1 cup Veganaise 

2 tsp. fresh black pepper 

1 tsp. sugar 

1 tsp. kosher salt 

quarter of a red cabbage (garnish) 

 

1. Prepare the kale for its rub-down: take each leaf and remove the stem by either slicing a "V" shape and separating the two green sides from its spine, or simply pulling off the leafy green in chunks. Discard the stem. Throw the large kale leaves into a strainer. Rinse and let sit.  

 

2. Zest both your lemons into a large mixing bowl, making sure to get every last inch of yellow goodness. Save zest for the dressing. When complete, slice and juice lemons into a separate container. Fill a large bowl with water, and add only half the fresh lemon juice to the water.  

 

3. Submerge kale in lemon-water and let sit for 1-2 minutes. Take a small bunch at a time and massage the kale by scrunching as hard as you can, releasing and taking a new handful of kale. Repeat for several minutes. 

 

4. Remove kale and let dry in a colander, or spin dry. On a cutting board, slice each large chunk or leaf like you might chiffonade basil. If the leaves are not big enough to get long, coleslaw like slices don't fret. Place kale in a container with a lid to store overnight. Combine the rest of the lemon juice (should be close to 2 Tbs., if not juice another lemon) with a Tbs. of olive oil. Let sit in fridge overnight, but before you clean up make dressing for tomorrow. 

 

5. Combine Veganaise with black pepper, sugar, salt and lemon zest and whisk to make dressing. Add a half-teaspoon of lemon juice if needed to whisk, but no more. Save for service. 

 

6. After kale has sat all night, drain liquid and spin dry. Grate carrot and shred cabbage. Toss together with dressing and serve cold.  
pairing recommendations: 

Beverage: Craftsman Brewing's Heavenly Hefe 

Soundtrack: Talking Heads' "This Must be the Place"   

CONTINUAL HARVEST  

We are getting into that sweet spot in the growing season now where pretty much everything is ready and needs to be continually harvested. (With the exception of some of the recently seeded or transplanted items such as the onions, radishes, new cilantro, new beets, new carrots, and new lettuce.) Continual harvest encourages more prolific development and growth on the plants. 

 

We welcome the Main Street Community Garden members to come to the garden throughout the week as you prepare for your meals, even on a daily basis if that is how you would like to do it. We want for everyone to be able to enjoy and use the veggies as they are becoming available. Keep in mind that there are other gardeners coming out to harvest as well. So please try to be fair when harvesting. 

  

As an example of a general rule of thumb, if there are 10 eggplants available, just take one so that others can partake. Trust me, there will be many more this season. The tomatoes are an item that would be good to harvest more sparingly, at this early point as they are just beginning to ripen, in order to share the wealth. In a few weeks, we will have no limits on Toms because they should be just bursting! The kale, chard, herbs, broccoli, jalapeños are all ready to give give give NOW! So please go ahead and harvest those items for yourselves throughout the week. 

  

I have taken a suggestion from one of our members and I am attaching a veggie by veggie list of guidelines of how to harvest each one. Please have a look at it. And ask away if you need further clarification. 

  

GROUP HARVEST 

You are also quite welcome to harvest for yourselves on Thursdays. Last week we tried a new method of harvesting where we set out boxes and harvested each veggie en masse and placed them into boxes. Then gardeners who were working together on harvesting the different veggies could take a fair amount from each box for themselves and the remainder at the end of the evening was given to Grow Another Row. 

 

One of the main goals voiced by members at the beginning of the season was to give to charities. We are so fortunate to have this charitable outlet where we are easily able to share this bounty with those in need. Thursdays are the day that we have arranged for the pick ups for Grow Another Row. We will plan to harvest during our community work session and then the donation will be made around 7pm at the end of the session. If you have in mind a certain amount of vegetables that you need or want to harvest for yourself, feel free to do so. And you are of course welcome, to harvest for yourself into your own bag or box and do not need to place items into the communal harvest boxes. But do keep in mind that a portion of the garden's bounty is intended to be donated.  

 

We are simply trying to make this process clear at this point in the season now that we are having plentiful harvests. Please do not hesitate to ask questions if you have them. And we are very open to input and truly encourage open dialogue about how to make all of this work as smoothly as possible. 

         

TOMATOES  

This week we need to continue to tame the tomatoes. We have run out of twine, so please bring twine to tie them with as well as scissors to continue to sucker them and pare them down. We also need additional poles to train some of them up onto. Tall, straight pruned shrub and tree branches can work for this if you have any lying around in your backyards. 

  

As you will notice, the tomato plants are just hitting their stride. We planted so many and with such density that we need to be on the aggressive side when we are pruning them so that as the season goes on (and bear in mind that we will be harvesting tomatoes straight on through September, and likely well into October before the first frost will snatch them away) they will continue to grow and fill out and we need to be able to get our bodies in between the rows to harvest them and hunt around for the ripe ones that might be hiding in the tomato jungle. So don't hold back! But only get aggressive if you absolutely KNOW what you are doing. If you do not know, please ask us! We are around each week to help. 

  

DOGGIES 

Please keep in mind one rule that needs to apply to all gardeners ------- please tie your dogs up OUTSIDE of the garden fence. Thank you! 

 

See you at this Thursday's 5:30pm work session.   

Fresh Summer Recipes

Here is a recipe to make use of all the tomatoes that will be exploding from the garden in the next week! Get your canning supplies ready to make some salsa!!!!

Deliciosa Tomato Salsa

-4 medium-small round or 6 or 7 plum ripe tomatoes
-Fresh serrano chiles to taste (roughly 3 to 5, or even more depending on your Scoville scale)
-A dozen or so large sprigs of cilantro
-1 large garlic clove, peeled and very finely chopped
-1 small (4-ounce) white onion
-1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
-Salt and pepper

Core the tomatoes, then cut in half widthwise and squeeze out the seeds if you wish (it will give the sauce a less rustic appearance). Finely dice the flesh by slicing it into roughly 1/4-inch thick pieces, then cutting each slice into small dice. Scoop into a bowl.
Cut the chiles in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds if you wish. Chop the chiles as finely as you can, then add them to the tomatoes. Carefully bunch up the cilantro sprigs, and, with a sharp knife, slice them 1/16-inch thick, stems and all, working your way down from the leafy end until you run out of leaves. Scoop the chopped cilantro into the tomato mixture along with the optional garlic. Next, finely dice the onion with a knife (a food processor will turn it into a sour mess), scoop it into a small strainer, then rinse it under cold water. Shake to remove the excess water and add to the tomato mixture. Taste and season with lime juice and salt, and let stand if you have a little time, for the flavors to meld before using or scooping into a salsa dish and serving.

Fresh Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Preheat broiler.

- 1 1/2 pounds fresh tomatillos
- 5 fresh serrano chiles
- 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
- 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt

If using fresh tomatillos, remove husks and rinse under warm water to remove stickiness. Broil chiles, garlic, and fresh tomatillos rack of a broiler pan 1 to 2 inches from heat, turning once, until tomatillos are softened and slightly charred, about 7 minutes.
Peel garlic and pull off tops of chiles. Purée all ingredients in a blender.

Cilantro Pesto Recipe

Ingredients
2 cups, packed, of cilantro, large stems removed
1/2 cup blanched almonds
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/2 teaspoon chopped and seeded serrano chile
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil

Method
In a food processor, pulse the cilantro, almonds, onion, chile, and salt until well blended. With the food processor running, slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream. Add more oil as needed for your use.
Makes about 1 cup.

Whatever you don't use, you can freeze. Line a ice cube tray with plastic wrap and fill in the individual cube spaces with the pesto. Freeze and remove from the ice tray, put in a sealed freezer bag for future use.

++++++++++++++++++
this goes extremely well atop of cheddar/scallion scones!


Ingredients
2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or Pastry Flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces
2 large eggs, beaten
1/3 cup cream or sour cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup (4 oz.) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
3 scallions, chopped

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375¡F. Sift together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Rub in the butter with your fingers. Mix together the eggs, cream, and mustard. Add this to the dry ingredients. Stir in the grated cheese and the scallions. Mix just until combined. This is the consistency of drop-cookie dough. Liberally flour the counter and your hands. Pat the dough into a 1-inch-thick rectangle. Cut into 10 triangular scones. Place on a well-greased cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, or until nicely browned and a cake tester inserted into a scone comes out dry.

How to Sucker Tomato Plants!

click on this post's title to check out this simple video link showing exactly how we will be suckering the tomatoes tomorrow evening!