Newsletter w/c 30th January 2012

Today,we woke to a lovely crisp frosty morning, which is great encouragement to get outside sharp and get plenty of work done. Bright weather makes all the usual chores that bit easier to get through. I even attempted to get the tattie lifting machine to help with the Jerusalem artichoke harvest – but the soil is just too heavy and wet for it to cope with. I had to revert to digging with the fork as usual. They looked so good I had to take a few in the house and make some Jerusalem artichoke and carrot soup – delicious!

The boys and I joined my Mum and Dad, Brian, Alison and Scott at Hampden on Saturday to watch Kilmarnock eventually win the Ayrshire Derby to reach the Final of the League Cup. That’ll take place in the middle of March against Celtic. The boys had a great day at their first match and we all met Lynda and went for dinner in Kilmarnock before we came back home. It’s a big thing for a team like to Kilmarnock to reach a final – it doesn’t happen very often. Next weekend is a big sporting weekend too with Kilmarnock playing Hibs, in the Scottish Cup this time, and, the start of the 6 Nations rugby with England the visitors to Murrayfield. I’d promised Finn ages ago that I’d take him into Edinburgh to try busking with his bagpipes for some pocket-money and he still seems to be keen to give it a go, so we’ll try to work that in and have a day in Edinburgh, soaking up the atmosphere. It’d be great to see Scotland doing well in the 6 nations for a change.

I’ve got some Seville oranges for sale if anyone is interested in making some marmalade. Get in touch and let me know how many kilos you need and I’ll let you know the price. They are always really popular so don’t hang around or you may miss them.

As I said earlier, the artichokes were looking really good when I lifted them today. They are a reasonable size, so far less foutery to work with. It’s a real mid-winter bag this week, with sprouts, swede and leek accompanying the artichokes. The days are starting to lengthen now though! Roll on the Spring!

This is a list of the vegetables included in the standard bags this week. Substitutions may occur.

Potato Solanum tuberosum. We’re onto our own new potatoes now. The variety for the most part is Pentland Javelin. 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.

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.

Leek Allium porrum Excellent source of Vitamin C. Particularly used to give soups a lovely creamy texture. As leeks grow they tend to lock soil into their leaf axils, so be sure to rinse them well after slicing them up. A nice idea for cooking leeks is to sweat finely sliced leeks in butter for 5 minutes, pour in a glass of red wine and simmer until reduced. Season and serve as an accompaniment to grilled fish or roast meat.

Brussels Sprouts Brassica oleracea Gemmifera Group.. Excellent source of Vitamin C and phytochemicals and also contains Vitamins A and B6, potassium, fibre and calcium. Wash the sprouts in cold water and peel off any ragged or marked leaves then cut an X into the base of the sprout. Cook in a minimum of boiling salted water for 8 – 10 minutes, NO LONGER, or they’ll go soggy.

swede Brassica napa. (1head). Swedes are one of Scotlands Winter staple veggies. It is completely frost resistant so needs only to harvested as required rather than having to be stored. The only problem is lifting when the ground is frozen I’ve seen us lifting them with pick axes in frosty weather. Cut off the top and bottom of the swede then peel thickly. Cut into cubes or big chunks and boil for 30-40 minutes or alternatively, parboil then set around a roast in the oven for the last 30 minutes of cooking time. Excellent boiled, then mashed with butter and cream.

Newsletter w/c 23rd January 2012

I feel like I’m starting to make some inroads into the list of jobs I’d written at the New Year. I managed to re-patch the shed roof last week but before I could get the time to put battens on it, the strong gusts at the weekend ripped the felt off again. I was up on the roof again this morning and the felt is on and there is so much battening on the roof there appears to be more wood than felt. The remains of the poly-tunnel have been bent back into a shape that resembles what it once was. I’ll leave the polythene off until I need it and then I’ll start to remove the sheet in the autumn to avoid the same thing happening again.

Finn and I took his new bike and my old one, to Glentress last Saturday and had a great day, despite wintry weather conditions, with my friend Charles and his son Alistair. We had about 2 hours of climbing up the hillside, then about an hour skelping back down through the trees. It’s a fantastic day out if you’re into cycling, and the facilities couldn’t be better with hot showers for you to get cleaned up, a jetwash to clean up your bike and a cool café to relax in and relive the high points.

There are jeruslem artichokes in the large bags this week and everyone will get them next week. I think we should have them for another couple of months yet. We obviously didn’t grow the red peppers that are included this week, I just like to give you a bit of a treat out-of-season once in a while.

This weekend is going to be huge for a lot of Ayrshire people. Not only is it Burns Supper time, but Kilmarnock are playing Ayr United in the Semi-Final of the Scottish League Cup, (it’s got a sponsors name now, but I can never remember it, so it always the League cup to me). The two Ayrshire teams have a huge rivalry but due to the fact that Ayr can’t match Kilmarnock in league results they have been in a lower league for years, so the clubs hardly ever meet. So, there’ll be thousands of football fans trecking up the M77 to Hampden stadium on Saturday all hoping to be making the trip back up in a couple of months for the final. It’s extra special for Finn and Keir as it’s going to be their first experience of being at a football match. We’re hoping for a Killie win, but the last time I mentioned a match in the newsletter we lost 5-1, I hope I’m not jinxing the team.

This is a list of the vegetables included in the standard bags this week. Substitutions may occur.

Potato Solanum tuberosum. We’re onto our own new potatoes now. The variety for the most part is Pentland Javelin. 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.

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.

Calabrese Brassica oleracea Italica Group (1 head). Calabrese is and excellent source of Vitamin C and phytochemicals and also contains Vitamins A, B2 and B6, Phosphorus, fibre Iron and calcium. Here’s a recipe for Roast Calabrese with Chilli and Soy that I gave a couple of weeks ago as a romanesco recipe. It is fairly versatile. :

Toss 350g of Calabrese, broken into florets, in a tablespoon of olive oil. Cut the stalks into thick batons. Spread them all out on a baking tray and roast in a preheated oven for 10 mins at 200oC/Gas Mark 6 for 10 mins.Add 2 thinly sliced cloves of the garlic, ½ a red chilli, finely chopped and ½ a tablespoon of sesame seeds and mix through. Return to the oven for 5 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven, sprinkle with soy sauce and serve. I haven’t tried this one yet but I hope to this week.

Kale Brassica oleracea Acephela Group..(1 bag) Excellent source of Vitamins A and C. Also a source of Calcium and copper. One of cooking is to rinse the kale in cold water, drain well and cut off and discard the tough stems. Cut the leaves into ¼ inch strips. In a well seasoned wok or frying pan, heat a tablespoon of olive oil over a moderatley high heat, add a crushed clove of garlic and cook, stirring for 30 seconds. Add half of the kale and cook, stirring for 1 minute, until they begin to wilt. Add the remaining kale and cook stirring for 6 – 8 minutes until the greens darken slightly and are fairly tender. Season with salt pepper and lemon juice.

Pepper Capsicum sp. (1 head) Good source of vitamin C. Wash the pepper, then slice off the top. Scoop out the seeds and membranes. Can be eaten cooked or fresh in various dishes including pasta sauces, pizza, salads. Peppers can also be stuffed with various fillings.

Newsletter w/c 16th January 2012

I’m glad we didn’t have the frost last week, that we woke up to this morning. There would have been no chance of lifting enough Jerusalem artichokes for everyone. The first delivery week of the New Year went reasonably well, so we’re all back into the routine again. Ioni, our niece, is joining the packing team from Wednesday and the extra pair of hands will be welcome. She’ll be 13 next month but she’s already as tall as me so I’m sure she’ll be working as hard as everyone else in no time.

I had hoped to get some work done in the field today, but had to go for non-digging jobs, which meant I got some wood cut for the boiler and repaired the felt on the roof of the small shed. The old felt disappeared in the stormy weather while we were in Crail. I think I better batten it down securely in case this stormy weather is to become a regular thing.

Finn’s been saving up for ages to buy a new bike and eventually got it this week, so this weekend we’re going to Glentress by Peebles to enjoy the cycle routes through the wooded hillsides with some friends. Keir’s not quite ready for Glentress yet, but he’s announced he’d like to climb Ben Nevis this summer. I think I’ll maybe test his enthusiasm with something a bit smaller and closer to hand, like Tinto, and see how he feels then. I’ve never been up Ben Nevis, so if he is still keen after a few smaller trials, we’ll get it organized.

I’ll be in touch with everyone over the next few weeks as I still have a lot of gaps in contact details for my list. We are also going to have to change our bank account details to take into account the fact that we became a limited company last year. The bank wants us to open new accounts, which will mean new account numbers for direct debits and bank transfers. I’ll get in touch with each of you when it all gets sorted out.

This is a list of the vegetables included in the standard bags this week. Substitutions may occur.

Potato Solanum tuberosum. We’re onto our own new potatoes now. The variety for the most part is Pentland Javelin. 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.

Leek Allium porrum. Leeks give a lovely creamy consistency to soups and are great in flans or quiches. Leeks are a great source of Vitamin C. Be sure to wash them very carefully though, as soil gets caught in the leaf axils as it is growing. Cut up the leek then rinse in cold running water in a colander.

Parsnip. Pastinaca sativa Good for Vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and fibre. Peel, then cut into chunks for boiling or roasting, also can be grated into soups or kept in chunks for soups or stews. Here’s a recipe for: Curried parsnip couscous. Prepare your parsnips and cut them into batons about 7cm (3inches) long, the thicker sections will need to be quartered. Mix together 1 teaspoon each of sea salt, paprika and ground cumin, a tablespoon each of sunflower oil and honey and a dash of tabasco sauce. Pour this over the parsnips and leave to marinate for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200oC/400oF/Gas 6. Cover the parsnips tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour. Turn them regularly, making sure they are tightly wrapped before returning them to the oven. Sprinkle them with water from time to time to stop sticking. Towards the end of the cooking time prepare some couscous. Serve the couscous with the parsnips, sprinkled with coriander leaves. Have mango chutney on hand, just to finish it off.

Garlic Allium sativum. (1 head) Adds another dimension of flavour to all sorts of savoury dishes. Don’t overdo it unless you like that sort of thing

Savoy Cabbage Brassica oleracea Capitata Group..(1 head) Excellent source of Vitamins B6 and C and also a source of potassium and fibre and phytochemicals. To cook, cut into quarters, cut out the hard core shred and wash under running cold water, then boil or steam for 7-10 minutes. This recipe is quite close to the traditional bubble and squeak:- Prepare the cabbage as above and put in a pan of lightly saltd boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain thoroughly. Remove the rind and gristle from 6oz ( 175g) of bacon, chop crossways into narrow strips and put in a heavy based pan. Fry the bacon until crisp, and the fat begin to run then add a finely chopped onion and cook until soft. Add the drained cabbage, stirring continuously until well coated. Season to taste with salt, pepper and cook through.

Newsletter w/c 9th January 2012

Happy New Year. We’ve had an eventful festive season, and have just got back from a week away in Crail. It’s always the ideal place to relax, for us, and there’s plenty to do, whatever the time of year, or the weather conditions throw at us. We came back to a bit of damage at Cobbinshaw – the polytunnel succumbed to the elements and will need a new cover and a lot of tweaking of poles if it’s ever going to resemble it’s former self. Part of the ridge of the house roof blew off as well, but nothing really serious.
I have to apologise for the lack of a newsletter for the last week of the year. My Gran had been ill for a while before Christmas and passed away quite peacefully in hospital on Christmas Evening. We spent Christmas with my parents this year and had visited my Gran in the afternoon and we were all together when the news came through from the hospital. I have really happy memories of her – she was always there when we needed her and Brian and I spent a lot of time with her and Grandpa. She was always doing crosswords and had the Herald crossword done every day – even to the point where she could recognize the separate styles of the different individuals who set them each day. I could do with a bit of that intellect! We’ll all miss her.
There was no newsletter, so some of you will have wondered why you didn’t receive a bag last week. Hopefully this explains it. We’ll be back to normal from now. I’ve got the last of the sprouts in the bag this week and have just cut the stalks. The sprouts will vary in size and a few may need to be discarded but there should be a good enough portion left for you. It’s also the start of the Jerusalem artichoke season and we seem to have a fair crop of them this year and a better size than previous year too.
This is a list of the vegetables included in the standard bags this week. Substitutions may occur.

Potato Solanum tuberosum. We’re onto our own new potatoes now. The variety for the most part is Pentland Javelin. 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.

Jerusalem Artichoke Helianthus tuberosus Good source of Vitamin B1, B2, B3, iron, calcium, potassium and fibre. This member of the sunflower family has been my windbreak for the veg patch for the second half of 2008. The stems grow to a height of about 10ft. For the second year running they didn’t flower, due to the weather, so the tubers won’t be massive. Peel the tubers, then roast or boil, much like potatoes. They also make great soup. When boiling, add a little lemon juice as the peeled flesh tends to darken in the water if you don’t.

Brussels Sprouts Brassica oleracea Gemmifera Group.. Excellent source of Vitamin C and phytochemicals and also contains Vitamins A and B6, potassium, fibre and calcium. Wash the sprouts in cold water and peel off any ragged or marked leaves then cut an X into the base of the sprout. Cook in a minimum of boiling salted water for 8 – 10 minutes, NO LONGER, or they’ll go soggy.

Swede Brassica napa (1 head) You’ve had about a months rest from swede and you’re probably going to need the same again, as some of these swedes are whoppers. They’ll last you for ages. It’s obviously the veg of choice to have with haggis, but is also a superb veg to puree for babies. To prepare it just peel it thickly and chop off the top and base of the root. Cut it up or dice it and boil for about half an hour in slightly salted water, ort until tender. Mash it with cream and a little butter.

Tomato Lycopersicon esculentum. Can be eaten fresh in salads or cooked into sauces, the famous soup, or for the unhealthy option fried for breakfast. A good way to store them is to go along the sun-dried tomato line. Put a tablespoon of oil in a baking tray. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthways and scoop out the seeds and pulp. Lay them on the baking tray, sprinkle over another tablespoon of oil and put in an oven at 150oC and cook for 45 minutes. Take out of oven and leave to cool. You can either eat them like this in salads or pasta, or store them in a jar filled with good quality olive oil. They can be stored like this, unrefrigerated, for up to 6 months.

Leek Allium porrum ( 1 head) Leeks can be used in many ways, however, with just one leek, they are best used in soups to give a creamy texture. Also good in qiches.