Tuesday, June 16, 2009

What's Fresh at WWF?

Hello from the fields of your local, chemical-free farm! We've been busy, fighting with the weeds that have been enjoying our daily doses of rain, and picking piles and piles of fabulous vegetables and fruits.

This week we're picking:
- Strawberries!! Strawberries!! I have been repeatedly told that my berries are the most delicious, the most sweet berries at the market. They are not as gorgeous as the ones who've been sprayed multiple times, but they are fabulous.
- Broccoli!! This is the first picking of our perfect heads of broccoli. This broccoli is so sweet that my kids eat it raw, right in the field. It is so dark green it's almost blue, and packed full of wonderful nutrients. Buy enough to freeze for winter enjoyment.
- Lettuce!! We are picking the most gorgeous heads of lettuce - Buttercrunch, Red Buttercrunch, Romaine and Tropicana green leaf (you know, that frilly, huge head of bright green lettuce). They are big and tender and sweet and I have tons of them ripening right now.
- Swiss Chard! My gorgeous rainbow stalks of Swiss Chard are coming on strong. My favorite thing about cooking with Swiss Chard is that the stalks retain their beautiful colors and that you use the entire stalk, nothing is thrown out. My favorite pasta recipe with Swiss Chard is a huge crowd pleaser. My customers tell me I'm so brilliant to get their kids eating Swiss Chard with this recipe.
- Spinach! My dark green, velvety leaves of spinach are going strong. We pick them by hand, not with our greens cutter, so each leaf is perfect.
- Salad greens! A gorgeous mix of green and red lettuces mixed generously with arugula, tatsoi, mizuna, mustards and red Russian kale.
- Turnips! I've been checking the turnips every week, and finally yesterday I see that they've bulbed. These are the mild, purple top, white globe variety and they are beautiful. I'll be bringing stacks of them to my markets.
- Garlic Scapes! These are just starting to make their presence known in the garden, and must be pulled so that the garlic bulb can make a nice fat head. We use them just like garlic or onions, and are excellent ground up into cream cheese for a refreshing spread.
-Radishes! The crimson bulbs on these babies are so gorgeous, I had customers fighting about them at one market last week! They just flew off the table. These are great sliced in a salad, sauteed or dipped in salt (according to several customers. I'll have to try it this week.)

Please come and visit us at our local farmers' markets:

Thursdays: Ballston Spa, Wiswell Park, 3-6 pm
Saturdays: Gloversville, Pavillion west of Main St, 8-12 pm
Sundays: Schenectady, Jay Street, 10-2pm

I'll be looking for you!