NEWSLETTER FOR W/C 21/08/2006

The new school term is just starting so our delivery numbers are back to where they were a couple of months ago. We always have a real dip in the number of deliveries over the school holidays, and it’s a bit of a relief to see them returning to normal. We are always looking for new customers, so keep spreading the word about, to anyone you think may be interested.

Brian has an appointment on Wednesday this week, so is delivering on Tuesday for one week only. Pleas accept our apologies if this is an inconvenience. We’ll be back to normal next week.

The rain is making harvesting a little more difficult, but I think we should still have our own tatties in the bag this week. I am also hopeful of harvesting some carrots too for the first time this year.

We had a couple of problems with the delivery last week. The first was when one of the local organic farmers phoned me to say he had a load of cauliflower all ready at once. He asked if I would take some and I jumped at the chance since we hadn’t had caulis for ages. Unfortunately, he sent them all in net bags, which caused the curds to get bruised, hence, the marks on the top of the cauliflower on a lot of them last week. Sorry about this, they should have been fine to eat, just not so good cosmetically. The other problem was the fault of the dairy. They sent the wrong batch of full cream milk, so we only had two days shelf life left on them. They have apologised and are not charging us for the milk so please amend payments accordingly this week if you have already paid for last weeks full-cream milk.

Here’s a run-down of what we put in the standard bag this week:
Potatoes Solanum tuberosum (approx 1.5Kg) The varieties this week are: Remarka (large, oval shaped, white skins) or Red Duke of York (red skinned), or Colleen (small round with white skins). Potatoes are the only commonly available source of B3 and Iodine. They are an excellent source of Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Potassium and fibre.
Onion Allium cepa ( approx 450g). Used in stews, pasta dishes, soups – in almost any type of cooking. Source of Vitamins A and C as well as Iron, Calcium and Potassium.
Carrot Daucus carota (approx 450g). You may get a bit of a variety in sizes this week as we are starting to lift our own carrots. Carrots are eaten fresh in salads or cooked in just about any way you like. They are an excellent source of Vitamin A and also contain significant amounts of Vitamins B, C, D, E and K. and Potassium..
Kale Brassica oleracea Acephala Group (250g approx) – Excellent source of Vitamin C and A and also a decent source of calcium, copper, potassium and fibre. To prepare, wash thoroughly in clean cold water. Young leaves can be added to salads while more mature leaves can be stripped from their stem and cooked like spinach or added to soup.
Courgette Cucurbita pepo .(250g) Good for Vitamins A and C, calcium, fibre and iron. The courgettes may be green or yellow this week. Courgettes can be eaten raw or cooked in butter or stirfried or even roasted, so very versatile. Just give the skin a good wash first and drain it off then prepare.
Broccoli Brassica oleracea Italica Group (1 head) Excellent source of Vitamin C, folic acid and phytochemicals and good for Vitamn.B6. Also contains Vitamins A, B2, B6 and phosphorus, fibre, calcium and iron. It is best eaten raw or quickly blanched in boiling , lightly salted water. Broccoli is also good in stir-fries as it has a lovely crunch to it if you don’t cook it for too long.
Pepper Capsicum sp. (1 head) Contains Vitamins A and C, potassium and iron. Trim off the top and scoop out the seeds and membrane from inside and discard them. Peppers can be eaten fresh in salads or cooked in various ways as an accompanying veg or in sauces. Can also be stuffed and roasted.

NEWSLETTER FOR W/C 14/08/2006

Brian and I had our TV debut, last week, as the game show that the BBC had recorded earlier in the year, was screened at last. Embarrassing as it was, it wasn’t quite as bad as I imagined it would be, although we still ended up last. Neither of us have exactly been mobbed in the street since it was on, as 3.15pm on BBC2 is not exactly prime time, but it was a worthwhile exercise, even just for the look behind the scenes at the BBC.
Finn and Keir were over visiting their Gran and Grandpa last week for a couple of days and when my parents brought them back I thought I’d show my dad how well the tattie digger was working. So, of course, I started it up and it broke down. Then while trying to get it going again, another bit broke. I have now spent two days trying to get it fixed. I should manage it today, so hopefully you will receive my own potatoes this week. Again, let me know if you were let down by the quality of the Marfona potatoes over the last two or three deliveries. I had several complaints of brown centres to the tattie, even though they looked fine on the outside.
Balerno market was as good as it’s been in a long time on Saturday. We’re manageing , so far, to stock the stall well enough, that we haven’t run out of the major items at all. Hopefully we can keep this going right through the winter. Next farmers market for us will be Queens Park on the first Saturday in September.
We’ve got a bit of a glut of cabbages at the moment, so I’m sorry they’ve been in the bag two weeks running. They are quite a small cabbage and quite easy to use, but let me know if they are becoming a problem.
Brian is back from holiday now, so everything is back top normal as far as the west coast deliveries are concerned. Thanks for bearing with us while he was away.
Here’s a run-down of what we put in the standard bag this week:
Potatoes Solanum tuberosum (approx 1.5Kg) The varieties this week are: Remarka (oval shaped, white skins) or Raja (red skinned), or Arran Victory (blue skins). I haven’t tried raja yet, so don’t know it’s properties, however, Arran Victory is a floury tattie, so better steamed than boiled, and excellent for frying, roasting or crisping. Nicola is a more waxy potato, so an excellent boiler. Potatoes are the only commonly available source of B3 and Iodine. They are an excellent source of Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Potassium and fibre.
Onion Allium cepa ( approx 450g). Used in stews, pasta dishes, soups – in almost any type of cooking. Source of Vitamins A and C as well as Iron, Calcium and Potassium.
Carrot Daucus carota (approx 450g). Carrots are eaten fresh in salads or cooked in just about any way you like. They are an excellent source of Vitamin A and also contain significant amounts of Vitamins B, C, D, E and K. and Potassium..
Cauliflower Brassica oleracea Botrytis Group (1 head) – Excellent source of Vitamin C and also a decent source of Vitamin B6, folic acid, pantothenic acid, fibre and potassium. To prepare, cut off the outer leaves. There is no need to remove the inner, tender leaves and the pale green base leaves. Trim the end of the stalk flush with the base of the cauliflower and cut a cross in it with a sharp knife. Boil the cauli in lightly salted boiling water for 12-15 minutes if whole or 8-10 minutes if the florets are split up.
Tomato Lycopersicon esculentum.(250g) Good for Vitamins A and C, potassium and iron. To cook tomatoes are used for many peoples favourite soup, they are added to casseroles, folded into omelettes and served grilled with a little butter and salt and pepper on top. Obviously, the most common usage at this time of year is fresh in salads.
Pointed Cabbage Brassica oleracea Capitata Group (1 head) Excellent source of Vitamin C and phytochemicals and good for Vitamn.B6. Also contains Vitamins A, B2, B6 and phosphorus, fibre, calcium and iron. It is best eaten raw or quickly blanched in boiling , lightly salted water. Also good in stir-fries as it has a lovely crunch to it if you don’t boil it for too long.
Milan Turnip Brassica rapa Rapifera Groups (300g) Contains Vitamins A and C, folic acid and calcium. Trim off the top and the root, then peel thinly. Boil in lightly salted water for 20-30 minutes. Drain thoroughly, toss them in butter and chopped parsley and serve immediately. An alternative is to prepare as above, but cut into small chunks, then do the same with an equal amount of carrots. Melt 3oz (75g) butter in a pan, add 2fl.oz.(50ml) white wine and add the turnip and carrot, a little salt and pepper, cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes. Spoon the buttered vegetables with the juices into a dish and serve hot.

NEWSLETTER FOR Week Commencing 24/07/06

NEWSLETTER FOR Week Commencing 24/07/06

News

We had another family break last weekend, with a visit to the Braemar Junior Highland Games. It’s only the games’ second year, but it seems to be set up to be an annual fixture. There was plenty for all the family to do, whether athletic, keen to expend a little excess energy, or spectator. It’s run over two days with a great list of events for kids and adults, and loads of interesting side-shows and demonstrations for interested bystanders. Finn and Keir both competed in the kids’ races and Finn helped us to runners-up spot in the family tug-of-war. There’s a childrens’ceileidh on the Saturday night and an adult hill race on the Saturday and a longer all-terrain run on the Sunday. I think the dates for next year are the 14^th/15^th of July, so keep it in mind if it’s of interest.

In the field this week I’ll still be trying to get rid of chickweed and couch grass, but I also need to find time to thin out the swedes. I think I will start lifting tatties next week, so I will definetly be at the farmers market in Queens Park in Glasgow, a week on Saturday and at Balerno, the week after.

You’ll also be glad to hear that I have managed to source some British carrots again, (dirty, thank goodness), so hopefully, the carrots will keep a bit better. This should mean that we have seen the last of washed carrots for the time after this week. My own carrots are just not quite big enough yet.

I’m writing this for Wednesday customers only. The delivery of carrots, that I was promised, have not arrived, so, there will be a substitute in all the bags for carrots. I’m very sorry about this and will try to ensure things run more smoothly from now on.

This is always a bit of a slow time for us, due to holidays and the like, so if you know of anyone who may be interested in our service please give them some encouragement to give us a call.

What we put in the standard bag this week:

Potatoes Solanum tuberosum (approx 1.0Kg) The variety this week is Orla (white skins). Potatoes are the only commonly available source of B3 and Iodine. Potatoes are an excellent source of Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Potassium and fibre.

Onion Allium cepa ( approx 450g). Used in stews, pasta dishes, soups – in almost any type of cooking. Source of Vitamins A and C as well as Iron, Calcium and Potassium.

Carrot Daucus carota (approx 450g).I’ve never been a fan of washed carrots, but it is all that is available at the moment. See above for storage details. Carrots are eaten fresh in salads or cooked in just about any way you like. They are an excellent source of Vitamin A and also contain significant amounts of Vitamins B, C, D, E and K. and Potassium..

Lettuce Lactuca sativa (1 head) – Excellent source of phytochemicals and a good source of Vitamins A, B and C, calcium, fibre and potassium. Obviously, good for salads, either shredded or in whole leaves. To store, it is best to rehydrate the lettuce. Rinse well, two or three times, renewing the water with each rinse, then drain thoroughly in a colander or salad spinner. Store in the fridge and you should get it to last all week

Courgette Cucurbita sp.( 1 head) Wash them then slice into 10mm thick slices and fry in butter for 10 minutes turning once and giving seasoning well with salt and pepper.

Brocolli Brassica oleracea Italica Group (450g approx) Excellent source of Vitamin C and folic acid. Also contains Vitamins A, B2, B6 and phosphorus, fibre, calcium and iron. It is best eaten raw or quickly blanched in boiling , lightly salted water. Also good in stir-fries. Please use as quickly as possible as it does not like this hot humid weather at all.

Tomato Lycopersicon esculentum (250g) Used fresh in salads or juices, or cooed into sauces, stews and soups