Photo by Abe Fawson
What’s In Your Basket This Week?
- Spring Onions
- Lettuce Mix
- Spinach
- Sorrel
- Shelling Peas
- Water Cress
- Garlic Scapes
- Cherries
Fruit Share:
- Cherries
- Apricots
Cheese Share:
- Jalepeno Cherve, Fresh goat cheese with a little kick.
Ideas for Eating, Cutting, Cooking, and Keeping:
Peas, One of my favorite reasons to love spring.We might only see these once this season because of the heat.
Melt some butter,and sliced spring onions,cook until soft add fresh cream or milk add peas cover with a lid and cook until soft.When adding the peas you can sliver your sorrel or spinach in and add the water cress if you like it spicy.
There are 3 types of peas: Shelling peas are meant to be shelled, since their pods are too fibrous to eat. Snow peas or sugar peas, on the other hand, barely have any peas at all inside. Eat them when their pods are still flat and tender. This is the kind found in Chinese stir-fry meals. Snap peas also have edible pods and they snap like green beans when ready to eat. The pod grows tight around the peas and should be picked when young and tender. Be sure to check for strings along the center vein, as some need to have the strings pulled before eating.
Water Cress, Different then the one that was in your basket last week.We have grown 2 kinds this is my favorite.In the East it is blanched, the moisture wrung out and then chopped and tossed with a light sesame oil dressing. Chinese often stir fry it with a little salt, sugar, and wine or use it in soups. Most Westerners eat watercress raw.It has always meant tea sandwiches to us. The genteel ladies’ tea, at which guests wore hats and white gloves and nibbled tiny sandwiches, was very much a part of home entertaining during the thirties. We love to have tea in our home . I must confess since becoming full time farmers that it does not happen except on a rare occasion when someone is visiting who knew us in California.
Water Cress Tea Sandwiches
Jack Rabbit soft fresh goat cheese, room temperature
chopped watercress leaves
thin slices of Sara’s artisan bread, or crusts trimmed is an option on sandwich bread
unsalted butter, room temperature
finely chopped toasted pecans Watercress sprigs (for garnish)Mix cheese and chopped watercress in medium bowl. Season with salt. Spread mixture evenly over bread slices. Or top with remaining bread if using sandwich bread. Butter edges of sandwiches. Cut sandwiches diagonally in half if using sandwich bread.Place pecans on plate. Dip buttered edges of sandwiches into pecans. Garnish with watercress sprigs. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover sandwiches tightly; chill.)
We have always used herbs for medicinal purposes but never water cress. It might mean tea sandwiches to me but 5 min on the internet and I discovered it is full of healing properties: as a tonic,cancer preventative,respiratory, skin problems, anti aging and is rich in iron, iodine, vitamins A, C and E, antioxidants and folate.
Garlic Scapes, They are beautiful in a vase displayed as flowers and the best way to keep them fresh. Saute and eat those little blossoms.Fresh and raw on a salad is good too.The entire stalk is excellent . We went to a Chinese restaurant ordered the “seasonal dish” These stalks were cut whole in 3 inch lengths stir fried or sautéed with chicken. It was the best dish we ordered.
