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Dear Common Thread Winter CSA Share Members, 

 

The last winter share box is ready tomorrow, Tuesday, January 21. The vegetable list is on our website on the what's in page. 
 
Please remember to return your waxed boxes from last time tomorrow, and to bring this week's box back to your pick up site within 2 weeks.  If it isn't convenient to bring this week's box back later, you might want to bring bags or boxes to transfer your vegetables so you don't need to come back to return it. 
 
Thank you to all those who completed our winter share survey.  If you haven't had a chance to fill it out but would like to you can get to the link here.   We have learned a lot from this experience and from the surveys.  The big lessons have been to keep working on the challenge of producing winter greens, to make sure to cover and/or pre-harvest the brussel sprouts and leeks even though they are supposed to be very hardy, and not to go too crazy on the kohlrabi and cabbage.  Thank you for your many positive and appreciative messages!  It's nice to hear that you have been enjoying eating in season.  Winter storage produce isn't all the most universally popular vegetables so we commend you for making this commitment!  If you have discovered any new recipes you would like to share for us to pass on in the future, that would be very welcome.
 

This last box includes primarily storage crops that will keep months longer if they are stored properly, so you don't need to be in a hurry to eat them all right away. The squash is probably the most perishable.  Butternut squash keep longer than the other varieties but February is usually the end of squash, although cooked squash freezes well.  A reminder of other storage tips:

  • Roots should be stored in plastic bags in a refrigerator or other cold/non-freezing place.
  • Potatoes should be kept in a cool, dark, dry place, 50 degrees or cooler but not freezing
  • Onions do well between 32 degrees and 50 degrees and should be kept dry.
  • Cabbage and Kohlrabi can be stored whole in the refrigerator, or if you just need part of it for a meal, you can store the rest in a plastic bag for weeks and just trim the exposed ends before using again
Someone mentioned a cabbage and onion tart in the survey, which sounds great.  I don't have their recipe, but here is one from the New York Times that looks good.

Another idea that sounds good about now is a shepherds pie with potatoes and roots, with or without meat.  Here's a recipe adapted from marthastewart.com:

Shepherd's Pie with Rutabaga Topping
  • Serves10
Ingredients
  • 1 rib celery, coarsely chopped
  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary, plus 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1 sprig fresh thyme
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons unsalted butter, plus more for rutabagas and potatoes
  • 2 pounds boneless beef chuck or leg of lamb for stew, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups dry red wine
  • 1 cup homemade or store-bought low-sodium canned beef stock
  • 4 carrots, cut crosswise into 3-inch pieces
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 rutabagas (about 3 pounds), peeled and cut into large pieces
  • 4 russet or Yukon gold potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into large pieces
  • 1/2 cup hot milk, or more if needed
Directions
  1. Tie celery, rosemary sprig, thyme, bay leaves, and garlic in a small piece of cheesecloth to make a bouquet garni; set aside. Heat a wide, heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat until hot. Melt butter, and brown meat in two batches, taking care not to crowd the pieces or they will steam and not brown; transfer meat to a bowl using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add onions; cook until slightly softened, about 8 minutes. Return meat to pan and sprinkle flour over the meat and onions, cook about 1 minute, stirring often.
  2. Add wine, and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the brown bits. Add the stock and bouquet garni, bring to a boil, cover, and cook on low heat until meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid after 1 hour; add carrots, and cook, uncovered, for the last 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Place rutabagas and potatoes in separate saucepans; cover with cold, salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender, 30 to 40 minutes for the rutabagas and 25 minutes for the potatoes. Drain; return to the saucepans to dry out any moisture from the vegetables for a few minutes.
  4. Put the rutabagas and potatoes through a food mill fitted with a fine disk, or ricer, or mash by hand. Add butter, as desired, and enough hot milk to make a creamy puree. Season with salt and pepper; stir in chopped rosemary.
  5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove bouquet garni; transfer stew into a deep 2-quart baking dish. Top with puree; dot lightly with butter. Bake 1 hour, or until top is brown and crusty. Serve hot.
Thanks for your support this fall/winter.  We hope you join us for the CSA in 2014!

Yours in the field, Wendy and Asher