Newsletter w/c 27th June 2011

As you’ll have seen from the notes in your bag we’re going on holiday next week and there will be no delivery for one week only. We’ll commence deliveries from the 11^th of July again. Whether you are due your next bag that week or the next everyones bag will be one week later than expected. This keeps everyone on the same scheduled delivery day.

Many of you are on holiday as well. The best time to let me know of any break in deliveries is a note when I leave the delivery previous to the holiday date, or by e-mail. By the time we all get back from holiday, the veg situation should have eased a bit. We’ll have dirty carrots again, which means all the staples will be new season. We also have the first of our own produce for this year, with spinach and radish in all the bags. I’m really pleased with the spinach, which has really benefitted from the wet weather and cool temperatures. It has produced the best crop I’ve ever had at this time of year. Hopefully the successive sowings will fare just as well.

There’s been a lot happening at home over the last week or so and it’s kept me away from the field, but work has still been carried out by the group of youngsters who are carrying on a fine battle against weeds and rogue tatties, in all weathers, so I have to give them a big thank you.

We should also be starting to make up mixed salad bags when we come back from holiday and Milan turnips shouldn’t be too far away. A week or two after that I hope to have the first of our new potatoes ready to lift too.

I hope you don’t miss the bags too much while we’re away.

Here’s a list of the veg that should appear in the standard bags this week, if substitutions haven’t been required:

Potato Solanum tuberosum. We’re onto new potatoes now. Colleen is the variety. It’s such a nice change when we move to new potatoes from the previous season’s stored ones. 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. 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.

Red Cabbage Brassica oleracea Capitata Group..(1 head) Excellent source of Vitamin C and phytochemicals and also contains Vitamin B6, potassium, fibre and calcium. Here’s a recipe for Braised red cabbage which uses apples rather than the orange based gravy I gave you last time. Braised Red Cabbage: Remove the outer coarse leaves and cut the cabbage into quarters. Remove the tough cores and shred the cabbage finely. Peel core and grate 2 cooking apples and mix with the cabbage. Melt 2oz. (50g) of butter in a pan, add 5fl.oz.(150ml) white wine vinegar and mix in the cabbage; coat thoroughly; then cover with a tight fitting lid and simmer over a gentle heat for 1 hour. Add a little more vinegar or water if the cabbage threatens to stick. Stir in 5fl.oz. (150ml) of red wine or blackcurrant juice, season to taste with sugar. The cabbage will have a fairly sharp flavour. Cover with a lid and simmer until tender.

the flesh. Boil in lightly salted water for 30 minutes and mash with cream and butter.

Spinach Spinacia oleracea Good source of vitamin C, B2, B6 and A, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, protein and phytochemicals. No wonder Popeye did so well on it. This size of leaf will be best used as a salad item though could be cooked if you really want. Rinse it well, as the rain last week was heavy enough to spatter soil onto the lower leaves.

Radish – The radishes have done well this year, and, as usual, are all ready at once. The wet weather kept the beetles off of them while they were tiny seedlings, but have helped other little pests into having a nibble at some of the skins. You may need to trim them up a little before they reach the salad bowl.

Spring Onion They’re excellent cut into salads or cut into stir-fries. Often used in Chinese recipes.