Kale seeds are tiny and my fingers are big. Getting a single kale seed planted and spaced several inches apart, as all the guides suggest, is a particular challenge for me. I try scattering the seeds along neat rows. In past years, I’ll follow up the initial over-planting with a pass with scissors – cutting out seedlings so that the remaining plants are several inches apart.
As I’ve learned, the more space each plant has, the bigger it grows. The plants don’t have to work as hard to spread their roots to grab nutrients and water from the soil. This is a classic example of “less is more.” The less I crowd the plants the more vegetables I harvest.
This year, I tried a new experiment. Instead of cutting out seedlings, I let the plants grow half a dozen leaves. At this point, the hardy plants have already announced themselves, and the runts are starting to whither. I still have to thin, but instead of cutting out healthy plants, I dug them up and replanted them several inches away.
I worried that the kale plants would still be too fragile and would not survive the disruption. Though they did wilt briefly, within several hours and a gentle rainfall, they perked up quite nicely.
Later on Wednesday, I headed over to EVOO Restaurant where I was guest-chef for the night. I prepared a special menu featuring lots of recipes from our cookbook. The turnout was great and the food well received. More on that in a minute.
I love EVOO Restaurant for many reasons… They are strong supports of local farmers, and their menu reflects that commitment – featuring meats and produce from dozens of local farms: Verrill Farms in Concord, Eva’s Herbs in Dartmouth, Drumlin Farm in Sudbury, Pete and Jen’s Backyard Birds in Concord, and so on.
And I really connect with Chef/Owner Peter McCarthy’s style of cooking. People have often asked what type of food I cook, and I tell them that if I had a restaurant, the food would be just like EVOO. So it goes without saying that one of the big reasons I love EVOO is indeed the food. The Smoked Rabbit Confit salad is one of my top 10 favorite restaurant dishes in Boston.
It’s been about 3 years since I worked in a professional kitchen, and at least 10 years since I worked in a kitchen in the style of EVOO. To say I was a little nervous would be an understatement. Would I work fast enough to get everything done? Could I create refined restaurant presentations? How would the straightforward recipes from the book translate into fine-dining dishes?
When I get nervous like this, I make lists and do everything I can to be super-organized. I write the menu weeks in advance, write prep-lists in 5 different formats – by which day I would prepare each component, from where I will order all the ingredients, how long each item will take to prepare, what quantities I need of every dish, and a master-list of all the lists.
But because the menu was based on what was in season, I couldn’t write the menu (or my lists) until three days before – I was pretty sure strawberries would be available, but what if the weather was cold and wet. Would the beets be available? Would the asparagus season have ended? Given the uncertainty of the menu, I could not make all the lists that would have calmed my nerves until just two short days before I had to get to work.
On Tuesday, I headed into the restaurant to start my preparation. I made crepe batter, and kohlrabi salad. I sautéed mushrooms and wilted greens. I peeled asparagus and julienned radishes. I marinated the chicken and blended vinaigrettes. I worked at a somewhat leisurely pace because I knew I could prep late into the night and still have Wednesday to finish things up.
Wednesday’s pace was a bit more frenetic. I had a hard-deadline of 5 pm to finish everything. Thankfully, Peter and his staff pitched in to make sure I was ready. And indeed, by 5.00 pm, I was. We made sample dishes so the cooks would know how they were prepared, and the wait staff could taste.
Yes, the regular line-cooks at EVOO would be putting the finishing touches on my food. Peter and I agreed that having me cook “on the line” would be a disaster for so many reasons. Instead, I made sure all the food tasted and looked as I wanted, and then his cooks would actually prepare the dishes to order when the diners came in.
I was humbled by how many friends and clients came in to support me. And so grateful that the food was well received. We sold out of my two favorite dishes – The Kohlrabi Salad with Grilled Bun Cha (which is also the most popular recipe on this blog) and The Chick Pea Crepe filled with Wilted Greens, Spinach Flan and Smoked Tomato Coulis.
Here's the menu. Page numbers refer to where the recipes are in the cookbook.
First Course Options
Grilled Asparagus and Greens Salad with Dreamy Green Goddess (page 246) and Easter Radishes
Kohlrabi Salad (page 155) with Grilled Bun Cha – Vietnamese Pork Meatballs
Second Course Options
Chick Pea Crepe Stuffed with Wilted Greens (page 136), Spinach – Flan and a Drizzle of Smoked Tomatoes (page 226)
Grilled Korean Style Free Range Chicken with Spinach Salad (page 147), Fresh Kim Chi (page 73) and Scallion Pancakes
Sautéed Sea Scallops with Sautéed Mushrooms and Greens (page 135) and Beet Vinaigrette (page 247)
Dessert Options
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie (page 268) with Sour Cream Ice Cream
Chocolate Molten Cake with Minted Berries (page 276)
Thanks again to Peter and Colleen for hosting me in the restaurant. And to all the good wishes.
Mat Schaffer wrote a lovely review of my book, The Farmer's Kitchen, in today's Boston Herald. You can read it here.
In other promotional news:
I will be guest-chef at EVOO Restaurant on Wednesday, June 8th. Menu has yet to be written as I'm waiting to see what's available at the farmers' market; but you can be sure I will cook recipes from the book. Three-course, prix-fixe dinner is $38 ($55 with wine and $70 with wine and an autographed copy of the book). For reservations, click here.
Boston-based food writer, Annie B. Copps enthused about the book on her radio show.
My second attempt at composting is faring much better than my first. When I checked on it, 6 weeks after I started, I was thrilled to see only a banana sticker remained. All the food scrapes, newspaper shreds and coffee filters were finely ground into rich soil.
The next step is to separate the worms from the soil so that I can use it in my garden. I will leave the lid off the bin for a bit – the worms don't like light so they will burrow into the soil. As I harvest off the top layer into a separate bin, the worms will dig deeper and deeper.
I will harvest the soil into a plastic bag and seal it for a few days. This will kill off any remaining worms before I add the compost to my garden.
It’s hard to believe that I’ve been blogging for three years. When I started, I had just quit my job working for “the man” to start a consulting practice. The blog was a way to give my days focus until the consulting practice took off.
As you may have surmised by the drop in post-frequency, business is going well. I haven’t marked a blogiversary before, but it’s been such an exciting year, filled with lots of fun, interesting and diverse projects, that I wanted to take the opportunity to reflect. Some of the things I’ve worked on include:
- Writing business plans for farms and restaurants around Massachusetts - Conducting operational audits for cafes, bakeries, taverns and markets. - Writing and self publishing cookbooks for small farms, including one for Potomac Vegetable Farms in Vienna, VA. - Writing and self-publishing my own cookbook - Recipe Development for several restaurants. I was especially pleased with the success of the gluten-free bread rolls recipe I created for The Elephant Walk Restaurant. - Feasibility Studies, including one for B Street Restaurant and Bar.
So what does the bottle of 1982 Lafite Rothschild have to do with anniversaries? I recently shared another anniversary with some friends, and we indulged in this fine bottle along with a truffle roasted chicken, celery root puree, seared foie gras and roast carrots.
“If you were cooped up in a bottle for twenty years, you’d need to breathe a little too.”
I first heard this adage in culinary school during a wine affinity class, and lived by these words for many years. When opening up an old wine, let it breathe for a few hours – the astringent tannins that help to preserve the wine, need a little softening. And aerating the wine also lets the flavors develop.
My uncle Janusz similarly follows this rule on his impressive collection of first growth Bordeauxs. Whenever I visit him, we plan our day so that we are home at the right moment to open the evening’s wine. He insists that some wines, such as the 1982 Chateau Cos d’Estrournel, needs several hours. So at 2pm we open the wine we will serve at 7pm.
On one visit we experimented with wine aerators – the gadget that funnels wine into a glass or decanter through a special tube that amplifies the breathing process. After pouring many bottles of wine through the aerator many times, tasting and taking copious notes, we were a little giddy. Not just from the buzz of alcohol (I’m not very good at spitting), but from the discovery that each pass through the aerator simulated about 1 hour of breathing.
Most of our experiments involved $10 – $20 bottles of red wine and not the more expensive ($200+ per bottle) Bordeauxs. We did experiment with one of the more refined bottles and this killed the wine, sending it downhill faster than Lindsey Vonn.
Why is it that some wines benefit from the aerator but others do not? Is that some wines need to breathe, where as others need to age?
I’m not a scientist, and my head spins a little trying to wrap my mind around the difference between aging and breathing, between softening tannins and flavors blooming. And this time, it’s not the wine causing the spin.
I just returned from another visit… we drank amazingly well: 1982 Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou 1978 Chateau Montrose 1971 Chateau Latour 1982 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 1986 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande
This time, we didn’t rearrange our schedules for the wines… we went out on hikes and horseback riding. When we returned to the house around 5pm, we opened wines for dinner. Amazingly, the wines drank beautifully straight from the bottle. Especially, the 1982 Pichon and the 1971 Latour. The tannins were soft, the fruit flavors were full and the leathery oak and spice were perfectly balanced.
So it would seem, perfectly aged wines require no breathing to soften tannins, just a few swirls in the glass to let the flavors envelop the palate.
As many of you know, I have been creating custom cookbooks for CSA-centric farms so that they can share their recipes and cooking tips with CSA members, friends and neighbors more easily. Helping small farms succeed and having their customers appreciate what they grow is something I am very passionate about.
Farmers' markets and CSAs have become the new best place to find cutting edge foods. From professional chefs to home cooks to food writers, farmers' markets are now the destination to find the most high-quality, diverse, and exciting vegetables, fruits, meats and cheeses. But this diversity can be confusing. This cookbook is designed to help consumers navigate through newly discovered foods.
What readers are saying:
Even though I've been cooking all my life and have a collection of literally hundreds of cookbooks, using this cookbook has gotten our whole family even more invested in participating in the CSA program…it's like a "how to" manual for being a CSA member…what to do when it's just me and that box in the kitchen at dinnertime.
— Ruth K.
I highly recommend this [cookbook] to help CSA members make the best use of the seasonal vegetables available from their farmers. Thanks for providing the cookbook for us!
— Kathryn P.
For more information, or to purchase the book, click here.
Even before the crocuses poke their noses out of the ground, farmers’ are planning for summer – planning crops and starting seedlings in their greenhouses. And they are selling subscriptions to CSAs.
CSA – Community Supported Agriculture – is a relatively new agricultural model built upon the relationship between farmer and consumer. CSA farms are partially or entirely supported by members who pay in advance for weekly distributions of fresh produce. By accepting the possibility that certain crops may do poorly or even fail, members share in the inherent risks of farming. This model demonstrates a commitment to the farmer, and it allows small farms to thrive in otherwise unfavorable conditions. Given the alarming disappearance of farmland across the nation, more and more people are abandoning the supermarket and joining CSAs.
A farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.
There are at least 60,000 farms in the US that sell CSA subscriptions. Each farm manages their CSA’s differently, so it’s important to understand the fundamentals before signing up.
Most summer CSAs run for approximately 15 weeks in the summer, starting in May or June and continuing through October (there are also plenty of winter and year-round CSAs).
Pricing and Payments Customers sign up and pay in the late winter months – typically from January through April. Rates vary from $425 – $625 for a full share, depending on the farm and where you live. A full share contains enough produce each week to feed a family of four. Some farms also offer half-shares and quarter-shares for discounted prices.
Distribution Each week during the season, the farmer will distribute the produce to his subscribers. Some farmers will drive to a central location to meet the subscribers; others require subscribers to drive to the farm to pick up the produce. Some farmers pre-box the produce; others let the subscribers pack up their shares themselves.
When exploring a CSA you will want to consider (in addition to the variety of crops offered and growing practices) what day of the week the produce is distributed, during what hours and where it is picked up. Find one that’s convenient for you and fits your schedule.
My friend Brett of Even’ Star Farm delivers his shares on Thursdays and leaves boxes of produce at designated subscriber homes. His subscribers can pick up their boxes at anytime on Thursday. Steve Parker, on the other hand, will park his truck at central location between 6pm and 8pm on Wednesdays. His subscribers must pick up their share during that window. And other farms require you to drive to the farm to pick up the produce.
Finding a Farm There are several approaches to finding a farm-share.
For Massachusetts residents, visit the Federation of Massachusetts Farmers’ Markets. Find a farmers’ market close to you, and then explore the farmers that sell at those markets. Likely, you’ll find a farm with a convenient distribution model.
Who Should NOT Join a CSA CSAs aren’t a great fit for everyone. Potomac Vegetable Farms offers these guidelines on who should consider other options for supporting local farms:
Anyone who is away on vacation many weeks. Farms do not give credit for vacation weeks, so it is your responsibility to have someone pickup your share if you are gone, or to cancel your share for the week.
Anyone who thinks this is a good way to save money. It isn’t. CSAs offer good value at a fair price.
People who don’t really like to cook or who often don’t eat at home.
People who don’t like vegetables or who don’t like trying new foods.
People who have to know on Sunday every item that will be on their menu for the week.
Due to the harsh winter, many folks are slow to sign up for CSAs so there is still time to find the perfect fit.
Here are some of my favorite farms that still have space in this year’s CSA:
My front yard gets full sun – and far more sun than my backyard where I grow all my vegetables. But I never plant vegetables in the front. I’m nervous about neighborhood dogs peeing in the garden, or passerbys taking a tomato. But I’m reminded of another very big reason:
After a snow storm, I shovel the snow into my front yard, as that’s the only place to put it. Mixed in with all the snow is sand and salt from all the plow trucks that go down my street. I can’t imagine the state of my soil after I winter like the one we’re having now.
Temperatures haven’t reached above freezing for several days, and I craved the warmth of a slowly simmered dish… I started pulling books off the shelf looking for a new take on braised short ribs, and came across Braised Short Ribs with a Duo of Celery from Daniel Boulud's Cafe Boulud Cookbook .
How many recipes do you cook from a book before you deem it worthwhile? I’ve heard that a mere two recipes is sufficient. Leafing through this book, I recalled I’ve made adapted the socca crepes many times, and a few others yet to be blogged about. This book would certainly qualify as a success by that standard.
Granted, I don’t follow his recipes very closely… but they offer a good starting point.
I winged (wong?) the short-ribs – pulling from various standard braising recipes. I added prunes to the braising liquid – I recall seeing that somewhere – for sweetness. I love celery root puree and followed my own method – omitting the potatoes, enriching it with cream instead of butter, and balancing the richness with lemon juice. I did follow his recipe for braised celery, sort of.
Braised Short Ribs with a Duo of Celery Inspired by Daniel Boulud.
4 short-ribs 2 – 3 tbs. plain oil ¼ cup flour 1 carrot, peeled and chopped 1 celery stack, chopped 1 small onion, peeled and chopped 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped 1 – 2 sprigs fresh thyme 1 cup red wine 5 prunes, pitted and cut in quarters 1 tsp. juniper berries, crushed 2 cups chicken broth 1 cup canned tomatoes Salt and pepper Truffle oil Celery root puree Braised Celery (recipe follows)
1. Season short ribs generously with salt and pepper. Let sit for 10 minutes while organizing the other ingredients. 2. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add the oil. Dust the short ribs in flour and add to the skillet. Brown on both sides, at least 5 minutes per side. 3. Remove short ribs from pan and place in an oven proof dish. Drain oil/grease from pan. 4. To the short rib pan, add the vegetables and cook for a minutes to take the raw edge off. Add the wine, prunes, juniper, chicken broth and tomatoes. Bring to a boil 5. Pour veggie/broth over beef. Put in 325F oven for 2 -3 hours, or until ribs are tender. Remove short ribs from braising liquid. Strain the braising liquid, being sure to squeeze out all the liquid from the veggies. Let the liquid settle so the fat rises to the top. Skim off and discard the fat. 6. Just before serving, reheat the short ribs in the strained liquid. 7. Serve with celery root and braised celery. 8. Drizzle with truffle oil
Braised Celery 1 head celery 2 tbs. olive oil 1 carrot, peeled and diced 1 turnip or rutabaga, peeled and diced 1 onion, peeled and diced 2 cups chicken broth Salt and pepper
1. Trim celery of leaves and tough outer stalks. Cut into 3 inch pieces. 2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil. Then add carrots, turnips and onions. Cook for 3 minutes, or until soft. 3. Add celery to the skillet and toss to coat in oil and veggies. Add chicken broth 4. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, or until celery is tender.
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