News from Terra Firma Farm

Greetings!
This morning when I clicked on the weather forecast, a giant banner ad flashed on the screen entreating me to get angry about "government telling me what to eat" and urging me to join the group "No New Food Taxes".
Clearly these folks are not targeting their ads based on results of my web searches.
I clicked on the ad just to confirm what I already knew: the group sponsoring the ad and the lobbying effort behind it is comprised almost entirely of soda and snack food manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. They are trying to head off the effort by some politicians and health advocates to tax soda in order to reduce consumption and lower government deficits. And they are using a faux-populism that has worked pretty well for industry groups who underwrite causes that benefit their bottom line (i.e., Astroturf vs. grassroots).
There are so many levels of deceit here it's hard to know where to start. First of all, the use of the word "food" when what is primarily being discussed is beverages, many of which have zero nutritional value. Second, using an anti-government theme when most junk food and soda is made primarily from ingredients that are highly subsidized. Third, suggesting that taxing something unhealthy is impinging upon personal freedom, although so-called sin taxes for alcohol and cigarettes have been around for decades.
A similar protest was raised a few weeks ago when New York City floated the idea of tightening the rules on what items people could buy using food stamps.
Our nation's system of subsidies created to bolster national security by supporting farmers has also hugely distorted our food supply, by creating a surplus of a few crops and encouraging their use over others. Fast food, soda, and other junk food are inexpensive primarily because the ingredients are cheap.
Meanwhile, farmers who grow healthy foods like fruits and vegetables are not subsidized directly, and the prices of their crops have risen with inflation -- making them seem expensive in comparison.
Taxing soda and other "edible food like substances" won't necessarily reduce demand, but it might help level the playing field for healthier products and the crops used to make them. Ideally the tax would be aimed at the subsidy-boosted profits of the soda and junk companies, rather than at consumers who buy their products. An even better idea would be to reform agricultural subsidies in a way that provides security for all farmers without distorting the market for our crops. That is unlikely to happen any time soon.

Thanks,
Pablito

Wherever you go, there is Cabbage

In South Korea this year, a combination of a cold spring and a hot summer have caused a huge shortage of a staple of the national diet. It's not rice, beef or fish. It's Cabbage. Koreans eat pickled cabbage, kimchi, with almost everything. As the nation has been forced to import huge amounts of the vegetable, the price has spiked. This has been especially tough on restaurant owners, since Kimchi is usually served as a condiment -- free, like ketchup or mustard here.
Cabbage is one of the most widely consumed vegetables in the world, and it is adapted to a wide range of climates, from Scandanavia to the tropics. Both European and Asian type cabbages come in round and tall headed versions, some with smooth leaves and some savoyed. There are also hundreds of Asian cabbages with an open growing habit, including the baby Bok Choy we grow.
Per acre, cabbage produces more weight of nutrition than any other leafy green. This is probably what has made it such an important staple crop for so much of the world. It accomplishes this miracle by packing its leaves tightly together into a head that can end up weighing as much as 10 lbs. For example, it is planted at the same spacing as broccoli or cauliflower, yet can easily produce 4x the weight of edible vegetable. Headed varieties store well both in the field and in even primitive root cellars. Moreover, cabbage naturally produces lactic acid that allows it to be fermented without any cooking, chemicals or processing equipment. Throughout history and around the world, these traits have made cabbage a source of crucial vitamins and minerals during cold winters, droughts, floods, and other times when fresh greens were not available.
But that's not all there is to like about cabbage. No matter how useful and nutritious it is, billions of people would not keep eating it if it didn't taste good. When well grown and harvested at the right time, cabbage has a mild flavor. It is crisp and crunchy when eaten raw, pickled, or dressed with a vinagrette. When lightly cooked at high heat, it retains its texture while softening slightly. And when slow cooked for a long time, such as in a soup, it soaks up the flavors around it and releases them back without becoming too mushy.
In the end, it's all in the execution. In our country, the two primary ways of using cabbage are sauerkraut and coleslaw. Both can be wonderful but are usually not. All I will say about them is that if you grew up hating both of them and thus cabbage in general, please give it another try. Leave out the mayo and the strong industrial vinegar. Try olive oil and lemon juice. Another trick is to finely shred the cabbage leaves, whether making a salad or cooking it. Give the cabbage the same culinary respect you would give any other leafy green vegetable, and you won't be disappointed.

Butternut 101

Butternut Squash is a staple of our winter boxes, starting today. We think Butternut is the best all-around squash, for several reasons: it stores very well at room temperature; it has a nice rich texture, moist and mostly stringless; it is much easier to peel than other winter squash; and it provides the most yield for its size. In fact, butternut is used in most products and dishes with the name "pumpkin" or "winter squash" in them.
The easiest way to prepare Butternut is to cut it in half and bake in the oven , cut side down, until soft and bubbling. You don't have to eat it all at once; you can even eat half with dinner and the use other half to make dessert (pumpkin pie). To store cooked winter squash, scoop it out of the skin and discard the seeds, then pack into a plastic container and refrigerate.
The New York Times recently compiled a decade's worth of "pumpkin" recipes in one article, everything from salads to desserts. All of them can be made with butternut instead, and most will be better for it.

Quick Cooked Fall Veggies
-This is a very simple way of preparing cabbage that be augmented with other vegetables and flavors. As it is, it makes a great side dish or bed for grilled fish or meat. Toss in separately cooked tofu or chicken and it becomes a stir fry to serve over rice or noodles.
Thinly slice 1 large onion into half rounds.
Cut 1 head of cabbage in half crosswise. Place the cut side of 1 half down and slice it very thinly.
Trim the tops off 1 bunch Tokyo Turnips. Thinly slice the roots in rounds and chop the leaves.
In a wok or heavy skillet, saute the onion in 2 T. of oil on medium high heat for 10 minutes, until the onions are well-caramelized and quite soft. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the turnips and cook for 2 minutes.
Raise the heat to high and add the cabbage and the turnip leaves. Very quickly stir to coat all the cabbage with the oil/onion mixture and cook until the cabbage just begins to wilt but is still quite crisp -- 2 to 3 minutes.
Turn off the heat and drizzle with 1 T. balsamic vinegar, then stir a few more times and serve.