Newsletter w/c 13th August 2012

It’s eerily quiet here this week. Lynda and the boys are away to Guingamp in Brittany for a music festival with the 6 SCOTS Association Pipe band. It’s very strange without them but they seem to be having a great time and will be playing performances every day for the week. I’ve given myself a list of tasks to get out of the way before they come back. These include a repair on a large section of dyke that’s come down in the field – really time-consuming, the long awaited log store, getting the polytunnel to a state where I can get the sheet over it as early as I want next Spring and just a general tidy up around the garden area. It’s already looking like a forlorn dream that I can get half of it done. Still, no point in being negative, lets see where we are next Monday.

I’ve my first competitive race, since my running comeback, on Tuesday night. The Kilmarnock Harriers are having a club race and then on Sunday there is the Club Championship where we all have to take part in 4 events, a sort of quadathlon I suppose, and this year its 200m sprint, javelin, long jump and 5000m. It’ll be fun competing. I’ve also entered for a half marathon on the 2^nd September - The Great Scottish Run is being held in Glasgow. By the time I’ve run all these, I’ll know exactly how much I need to improve to run in London next April.

It’s been a great couple of weeks for getting stuff done outside and the veg that is in the field seems quite slow, although the artichokes are growing as well as I’ve ever seen them. Hopefully we’ll get a load of flowering from them which usually is a sign of plenty of big tubers. We’ve had two or three years in a row now where the tubers have been too small for my liking, and very difficult to prepare.

During the school holidays I’ve been delivering the Friday bags on Thursdays due to the fact that so many customers were on holiday themselves and also the fact that it gave me an extra day to spend some time with the boys. I think I’ll keep this going for the time being. If it’s been causing any problems or inconvenience please let me know and I’ll sort a better delivery time for you.

Here’s a list of whats in the Standard bags this week. Substitutions may occur.

Potato Solanum tuberosum. We’re onto our own new potatoes now. The variety is Valor. 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.

Broad Beans Vicia faba As well as be3ing an excellent source of phytochemicals, beans are also a good source of Vitamins A, B1, B8 and C. They are also good for phosphorus and iron. Basically, all you need to do with them is shell the pods and mix the beans into salads or cook them into any sauces or soups.

Mixed salad various –Excellent source of phytochemicals and a good source of Vitamins A, B and C, calcium, fibre and potassium. The ground was pretty wet when we picked the salad so some grit may be mixed in. Rinse it well. 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

Radish They’re excellent cut into salads. They add a hot spicy crunch to a salad and the vivid red skins add an eye-catching burst of colour. Just scrub and cut to desired size.

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.