In Your Boxes
Having taken a week off from harvesting Spinach last week, we are doubling down on it this week.  Of all the leafy greens we grow, it turns out that spinach is actually the most cold hardy -- more so than its cousins chard and beet greens as well as greens like Kale and Collards.  Not only does the cold we've been having this winter not damage the spinach, it makes it incredibly sweet and tender.
We grow spinach primarily for baby leaves that we cut loose, wash, and bag.  Grown this way, spinach is ready to harvest in 30-60 days, so we can plant it in between two other crops.  There is a bag of spinach in your boxes today from a field that was planted in mid-November.  While the spinach is washed at the farm, it should always be washed again before eating.    
             When the conditions are favorable, cut spinach will regrow its leaves.  The second growth leaves are not as pretty and round as the baby ones, but they are still useable are quick-cooked or wilted spinach.  We call this stage "teenage spinach".
If we don't pick the spinach at the teenage stage, it keeps growing.  It it doesn't get ruined by wind, rain or bugs, it will sometimes grow to a size where it can be cut at the root and bunched.  We currently have two or three fields that have grown to this size, and they are mostly beautiful.  We started harvesting bunched spinach from these fields today and are sending a bunch in the Medium and Large boxes.
We wash the bunched spinach, but it is difficult for us to get all the dirt out.  To do this, you need to separate the plants into separate leaves and soak them several times in a water bath.
Bunched spinach is most often used for cooking, as the leaves are fairly large and have a stronger grassy flavor.  However, the flavor of ours is so sweet right now that it can certainly be chopped and tossed in salad, especially a warm salad (wilted).

We have some great news this week:  the majority of our winter citrus appears to have escaped damage from the multiple freezes we had in December and January.  Navel oranges, Minneola Tangelos, Meyer Lemons, as well as the specialty varieties are all important components of our CSA boxes this year, and we were quite worried that we might have lost them.  Medium and Large boxes get Blood Oranges this week in addition to Navels.

Everyone tells us how great our Carrots are.  Well, we are actually just a little short this winter, and we are trying not to harvest them before they are big enough, lest we run through them too quickly.  Small boxes didn't get them last week, so they get some this week.  Everyone else will have to wait a week for their next bunch.  We apologize for any disappointment this causes and are working to avoid this problem in the future.
 

Recipe -- Bok Choy with Gourmet Spinach Dip
Real fresh spinach, leeks and goat chevre make a healthy and flavorful filling or dip.

Trim 1 medium or 2 small leeks and cut an X down into the shank.  Run the leek under water, separating the layers to wash out any dirt.  Cut the leek crosswise, then chop the rounds into small pieces.

Separate the leaves from the bases of 1 bunch of spinach.  Soak in water 3 times and rinse, then spin dry.  Chop roughly or tear larger leaves in half. (You can also use baby spinach).

Separate 1 head of Baby Bok Choy and rinse the stems carefully.  Cut off the leaves and then chop roughly.

Saute the leeks in 3 T. olive oil over medium heat until tender.  Raise the heat and add the spinach and bok choy leaves.  Saute until tender.

Empty the pan into a food processor and add 4 oz. plain goat chevre.  Puree until smooth.  Season with salt and pepper.

Fill the bok choy stems with the puree.  At this point, you can serve them raw, or top them with grated parmesan cheese, bread crumbs or some other tasty topping and broil for 2-3 minutes.