CSA Week 16

Welcome friends! This is the 2nd to last week of CSA shares!! The final share week is October 25-27. So be sure to collect all your bags and put them in your car so you don’t forget them when you pick up your shares!

Full Shares
Carrots
Zucchini
Broccoli

Both Shares
Squash
Onions
Peppers
Beets
Chicory
Salad mix

Today we took the tractor to the back field and loaded it up with squash. We harvested pie pumpkins and acorn squash, and we still have the other half of the field to finish. Carolina is surprised with how long the season has stretched as some of the crops were expected to be expired by now. The dry weather and warm days have kept things going longer than usual! We still have some harvesting left to do.

Chicory is included in both shares, and I’d like to highlight this unique leafy green as it is not a commonly used vegetable. Chicory is the long lettuce-looking item in your shares this week and this variety is called Sugarloaf Chicory. It’s popular in Italy where it’s bitter and sweet flavors are added to salads and pasta dishes. This is a good choice for a Caesar salad, braised, sautéed, or stir-fried. The flavor or chicory may not blend well with the salad mix so use your taste buds to build a dish that’s right for you.

The beets are looking beautiful, and again, are the biggest beets I have ever seen. I like to boil my beets or even add it to a gyro with tahini sauce. Don’t forget the peppers. Everyone got 3 peppers in their shares. You can cook and flavor some quinoa and stuff your peppers or sauté the peppers and add them to a burger or portobello mushroom panini. I hope those give you some good ideas! If you’re not getting to all the peppers, they freeze well. Just freeze them whole in a ziploc bag and pull them out after the CSA ends.

Lastly, let talk about squash! The acorn squash everyone received is great for roasting, stuffing, baking, and soups. I personally always bake squash like this, and if I fancy soup I just put it in the blender after cooking and have myself a creamy soup with warm bread. Squash will sweeten the longer it sits, but it won’t last forever. Best to use it within the next few months.

Once more, being the second to last week of CSA, I’d like to remind you all to check around the house and collect any CSA bags that you may still have laying around, and bring them on back when you pick up your shares. Don’t worry if they’re dirty, we’d rather have them back dirty than not at all. Thanks in advance! And as always it’s a pleasure to serve the community and provide local, fresh produce that will benefit your health for many years to come!

-Corvus Landing Team

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I found this recipe on OneGreenPlanet.org. Since chicory is an Italian green, I found an Italian recipe with polenta. I’ll eat polenta for breakfast or dinner. It’s a great way to start the morning or a warm dish to wrap up the a busy day! (I also really liked the sound of this other recipe, Spelt, chicory and mushroom one pot. I’ll leave the link here in case there’s any mushroom lovers. https://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/spelt-chicory-mushroom-one-pot/ )

Creamy Polenta with Caramelized Chicory

INGREDIENTS

Polenta:
3 cups water (or more if necessary)
2 cups of non-dairy milk, unsweetened (almond, light coconut …)
1 tsp Himalayan salt or sea salt
1 tsp vegetable broth powder (or extra salt)
1 cup of cornmeal
2 TBSP of nutritional yeast flakes (for a ‘cheesy’ taste)
1 TBSP of olive oil
1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
Black pepper

Caramelized chicory:
Coconut oil (or olive oil)
4 to 6 leaves of chicory, cut in quarters lengthwise
Black pepper and Himalayan salt or sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS

Polenta:
Bring the water to the boil together with the milk, the salt and the vegetable broth powder.

Lower the heat and add the cornmeal bit by bit. Stir well for several minutes so that the cornmeal does not clump.

Let the polenta simmer for a while. The cooking time depends on the type of cornmeal you use (stated on the package). Most types of polenta need 20 minutes or longer until they are ready. If your polenta is too thick, you can stir in some extra water.

Remove the cooking pot from the fire once the polenta is ready. You will notice that the result is nice and creamy and contains almost no grains. Add the noble yeast flakes, olive oil, turmeric and black pepper. Mix well.

Caramelized chicory:
Cut the chicory lengthwise into quarters or even finer.

Heat some coconut oil in a large pan and then add the pieces of chicory. Reduce the heat from high to medium, and season with salt and black pepper. After a few minutes, I cover the pan with a lid so that the chicory cooks faster. Do not stir too much in the pan until the chicory is baked golden brown.

When all the pieces are well baked, turn them over so that the top can also caramelise. Add some coconut blossom sugar or maple syrup for a deeper caramelised taste. If necessary, season with extra salt and pepper.

Serve the polenta with the caramelized chicory, fresh herbs and possibly a little olive oil.

Enjoy!

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Stuffed Acorn Squash

There’s a lot of stuffed acorn squash recipes out there so I encourage you to look around because you might find one you like more, but I’m a simple gal, and this recipe is the perfect after a long work day out in the field. Adjust recipe size as needed.

INGREDIENTS

For the acorn squash:
2 acorn squash, halved and seeds scooped out
1 TBSP olive oil

For the stuffing:
1 TBSP olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup quinoa
2 cups vegetable squash
½ cup chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, or sunflower seeds
½ cup dried cranberries
1 ½ tsp fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped (or ½ tsp dried thyme leaves)
¾ tsp fresh sage, finely chopped (or ¼ tsp dried sage)
¼ tsp black pepper
⅛ tsp cinnamon
salt to taste as needed

INSTRUCTIONS

To cook the acorn squash:
Preheat your oven to 400F (200C).
Divide the oil over the 4 squash halves and use your fingers or a brush to spread the oil over the squash flesh. Bake cut side facing down on a baking pan for 25 – 35 minutes until the squash is fork-tender.
To make the quinoa filling:
Heat the oil in a large high sided pan or pot over medium-high heat. When hot add the onions and garlic and sauté until the onions turn translucent and just begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the quinoa and vegetable broth and cover with a lid. Bring to a simmer and continue to simmer for 10 – 15 minutes until the vegetable broth is absorbed and the quinoa is cooked.
Once the quinoa is cooked, stir in all of the remaining ingredients, the nuts or seeds, cranberries, thyme, sage, pepper, cinnamon, and add salt if needed. Remove from heat.
To stuff the acorn squash:
Divide the quinoa mixture evenly among the acorn squash halves, packing it into the well of the squash. You may have extra quinoa leftover. Serve hot, and garnish with more fresh thyme or sage as desired.
Enjoy!