Newsletter w/c 3rd January 2011
Happy New Year everybody. Let’s hope for a good one. My main New Year resolution is to be better prepared for the inclement weather that is bound to come. I have to act to ensure the quality of the veg is good, when it reaches your doorstep. We need better-insulated storage. This is a priority now and I have to get on with this task early in the New Year. The storage we had just couldn’t cope with the minus 15-20 degree temperatures.
The other major change for the New Year is that Andy has left for pastures new. So, I’ll be carrying out all the deliveries myself for the next wee while. It’ll be good to see all the old faces again. I may change a few delivery days to tweak the run efficiency, but if your affected I’ll let you know in advance.
Auchterhouse farm can’t get egg deliveries to us til the end of the week> Clyde organics can help us out for most of the week but are a bit short for Tuesday. I have a few boxes left from before the year end with a few days left on the sell-buy date so if you get one of these boxes let me know if it’s going to be a problem to use it and we’ll sort something out.
The Balerno Farmers market is not on this month so it’ll be Juniper Green next on the 22nd January. The next Balerno market will be the 2nd Saturday in February.
The boys have had a really good Christmas and New Year holiday. Pat and Finlay hosted Christmas this year with help from the Mavors from Redhall and the food was terrific. We decided to stay at home for New year. My brother Brian and Alison and Scott came over for a dinner and a wee karaoke session later on.
We’ve spent the start of the week clearing out the shed for the New Year. Out with the old and in with the new. Lets hope its going to be a year to look back on, for all the right reasons.
Here’s a list of the veg that should appear in the standard bags this week id substitutions haven’t been required:
Potato Solanum tuberosum. Tatties this week are either Robinta (red skins) or Valor (large, white skins), both are good general purpose potatoes. It’s so good to have our own tatties again. We’re bagging them straight from the field at the moment so the sizes will vary. They are very easy to prepare when they’re as fresh as this and really only need a wash and a scrub. Potatoes are the only commonly available source of B3 and Iodine. Excellent source of Vitamin C and also Vitamin B6, Potassium and fibre.
Onion Allium cepa. You may receive some of our own onions this week. They are the best onions I’ve ever grown. I have red and white varieites so could be either or a mixture. They haven’t been dried yet so they’re full of flavour. Used in stews, pasta dishes, soups. Source of Vitamins A and C, Iron, Calcium and Potassium .
Carrot Daucus carota 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.
Pumpkin Cucurbita sp. (1head). Sorce of Vitamins A and C. Here is a recipe I have given before for Pumpkin Soup. It seems to be a favourite of many of you. Pumpkin Soup:- Take a chopped onion and 50g of chopped leek and soften them in 2 tablespoons of chicken stock. Dice 500g of pumpkin flesh and 250g of potatoes and add this to the leek and onion with a little salt and plenty freshly ground black pepper. Add 1 pint of chicken stock and 1 pint of milk. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes stirring frequently. Blend the soup in a liquidiser then return to the pan and add 125g of cooked rice and most of a 150ml tub of natural yoghurt. Reheat gently and serve topped with a little of the remaining yoghurt and a sprinkling of parsley.
Garlic Allium sativum..(1 head) Excellent source of Vitamins A and C. The peeled cloves add flavour to almost any savoury dish. Ususally crushed.
Leek Allium porrum Leeks can be used in many ways, however, with just one leek, they are best used in soups to give a creamy texture. Leeks are also good in quiches.
Jerusalem Artichoke Helianthus tuberosus Source of Vitamin B1, B2, B3, calcium, potassium, iron and fibre. To cook scrub off the worst of any dirt on the root, then boil for a couple of minutes without cutting off the root or the top. This loosens the skin and allows you to rub it off quite easily. Then boil in slightly salted water for a further 15-20 minutes or until tender. Add lemon juice to the water before boiling to keep the roots white. Can also be roasted after parboiling, and makes very good soup. All you really need are the artichokes, some onion, simmered together until soft, add a stock, boil for 30 minutes maybe a little nutmeg. Puree it then reheat with a little milk added and bob’s your uncle. Delicious soup.
The other major change for the New Year is that Andy has left for pastures new. So, I’ll be carrying out all the deliveries myself for the next wee while. It’ll be good to see all the old faces again. I may change a few delivery days to tweak the run efficiency, but if your affected I’ll let you know in advance.
Auchterhouse farm can’t get egg deliveries to us til the end of the week> Clyde organics can help us out for most of the week but are a bit short for Tuesday. I have a few boxes left from before the year end with a few days left on the sell-buy date so if you get one of these boxes let me know if it’s going to be a problem to use it and we’ll sort something out.
The Balerno Farmers market is not on this month so it’ll be Juniper Green next on the 22nd January. The next Balerno market will be the 2nd Saturday in February.
The boys have had a really good Christmas and New Year holiday. Pat and Finlay hosted Christmas this year with help from the Mavors from Redhall and the food was terrific. We decided to stay at home for New year. My brother Brian and Alison and Scott came over for a dinner and a wee karaoke session later on.
We’ve spent the start of the week clearing out the shed for the New Year. Out with the old and in with the new. Lets hope its going to be a year to look back on, for all the right reasons.
Here’s a list of the veg that should appear in the standard bags this week id substitutions haven’t been required:
Potato Solanum tuberosum. Tatties this week are either Robinta (red skins) or Valor (large, white skins), both are good general purpose potatoes. It’s so good to have our own tatties again. We’re bagging them straight from the field at the moment so the sizes will vary. They are very easy to prepare when they’re as fresh as this and really only need a wash and a scrub. Potatoes are the only commonly available source of B3 and Iodine. Excellent source of Vitamin C and also Vitamin B6, Potassium and fibre.
Onion Allium cepa. You may receive some of our own onions this week. They are the best onions I’ve ever grown. I have red and white varieites so could be either or a mixture. They haven’t been dried yet so they’re full of flavour. Used in stews, pasta dishes, soups. Source of Vitamins A and C, Iron, Calcium and Potassium .
Carrot Daucus carota 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.
Pumpkin Cucurbita sp. (1head). Sorce of Vitamins A and C. Here is a recipe I have given before for Pumpkin Soup. It seems to be a favourite of many of you. Pumpkin Soup:- Take a chopped onion and 50g of chopped leek and soften them in 2 tablespoons of chicken stock. Dice 500g of pumpkin flesh and 250g of potatoes and add this to the leek and onion with a little salt and plenty freshly ground black pepper. Add 1 pint of chicken stock and 1 pint of milk. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes stirring frequently. Blend the soup in a liquidiser then return to the pan and add 125g of cooked rice and most of a 150ml tub of natural yoghurt. Reheat gently and serve topped with a little of the remaining yoghurt and a sprinkling of parsley.
Garlic Allium sativum..(1 head) Excellent source of Vitamins A and C. The peeled cloves add flavour to almost any savoury dish. Ususally crushed.
Leek Allium porrum Leeks can be used in many ways, however, with just one leek, they are best used in soups to give a creamy texture. Leeks are also good in quiches.
Jerusalem Artichoke Helianthus tuberosus Source of Vitamin B1, B2, B3, calcium, potassium, iron and fibre. To cook scrub off the worst of any dirt on the root, then boil for a couple of minutes without cutting off the root or the top. This loosens the skin and allows you to rub it off quite easily. Then boil in slightly salted water for a further 15-20 minutes or until tender. Add lemon juice to the water before boiling to keep the roots white. Can also be roasted after parboiling, and makes very good soup. All you really need are the artichokes, some onion, simmered together until soft, add a stock, boil for 30 minutes maybe a little nutmeg. Puree it then reheat with a little milk added and bob’s your uncle. Delicious soup.
posted by thewholeshebag at 12:11 AM
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