admine9519, Author at Morning Song Farm - Page 6 of 44

Wow, trucks on the road this Monday at 7:45 a.m., as we aren’t harvesting or delivering on Christmas Day or Christmas Eve….so all three county deliveries: Riverside, San Diego and OC are being done today. We were up really late finishing up the macadamia packs for all Gardens n’ Groves boxes, and were back in the barn at 4:00 a.m. to get everything finished up. Here’s an image of the Large Garden and Grove Box at right:

And here’s an image of our Salad Fixins’ boxes for the week. I took the shot while we were still harvesting green onions and arugula, so they’re not in the photo.

Results of my latest veggie trial are in! Pea sprouts are awesome! My thoughts: the are best eaten raw with a little dash of garlic infused olive oil and a splash of lime juice…but I tried them today, stir fried with coconut oil and sea salt and they were tasty that way, too. Great for picky kids (and adults) who aren’t huge veggie fans, as these crunchy gems are very mild flavored for the nutritional punch they provide.

 Although not seen often in restaurants or farmers’ markets in the United States, pea shoots have a lot to offer!They provide foliate, antioxidants and carotene..reported to be cancer preventatives. They have 7 times as much vitamin C as blueberries, and a lot more vitamin A, compared to tomatoes. The anti-inflammatory properties of certain foods are now in the media more and more, and pea shoots are among those foods cited. Because pea shoots offer such a satisfying crunch coupled with high nutrient/low calorie content…they’re a good choice for an effective weight loss program.

We’re excited to have our baby carrots back in Large Garden n’ Grove Boxes this week, and are including our raw macadamia nuts in all Garden n’ Grove Boxes as well. More than enough Satsuma mandarins for all, including our Salad Fixins’ boxes, which don’t usually receive fruit from the groves. Satsumas are our first mandarin to harvest, after which we start on the Sun Golds.

Click here to view our Harvest Ticket this week:

To view an image of our Garden n’ Grove Harvest this week, click here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/2pmw3jdu6z7gtp6/2nd%20week%20%282%29.jpg

To view an image of our Salad Fixins box this week, click here:https://www.dropbox.com/s/v7vw586iaioyv63/2nd%20week.jpg

Come on out to Morning Song Farm and get your hands dirty! Projects abound, and we’ve got a laundry list of “to do’s” that we’d like to tackle and sure could use some help. Let us know you’re coming: csa@morningsongfarm.com so we can be prepared in every way….parking is always a bit of an issue, and of course we’ll want to have all supplies needed for chosen projects! Hopefully we will have enough participants to divide into teams so that you can choose what you’d like to do. We’ll have coffee/tea and macadamia muffins to get you started!

Date: Dec. 7th
Time: 9-1:00

We continue to enjoy and trail sprout seeds for our CSA boxes. Many may not be aware that it is not safe to purchase generic seeds, whether organic or otherwise, at the grocery store, farmers’ market or on-line and use them for sprouts. The seeds we use here are certified organic, grown in North America, and were grown specifically for commercial sprout applications. Each and every lot is labeled and tested for bacteria contamination. Seeds that are sold for gardeners to plant in the soil or for consumers to grind and use as flour or add to smoothies do not need to have the same level of safe handling practices.

We’re excited about our newest trial: our Ancient Grain Mix: lentils, fenugreek, kamut, and adzuki beans. A few years’ back I recall a concern in New York City of a mysterious maple syrup scent that would present itself from time to time. The source turned out to be an international importer of fenugreek seeds. True enough, the seeds do smell heavenly sweet; more like a spice for dessert than a source for a salad sprout.

Adzuki beans are ancient, and sweet, too. The little bean is recognized by its sweet, nutty flavor and is often used in Japanese cooking for desserts.

Kamut is an ancient member of the wheat family and contains  40% more protein than a typical wheat used today. While our modern breeding programs have left it behind; it continues to offer its ancient nutrition, flavor and goodness to all who will give it a try.

What’s coming up soon:

I wish we could rename the common yam, or at least my recipe below, to something with a better marketing zing. This pie is really rich and tasty, even for professed yam-haters…and doesn’t take a lot of work. I actually made it last night without a crust, (which makes it not a pie, actually)… pouring it into a glass brownie pan and then serving in squares with freshly whipped cream. I had meant to cool overnight and serve for dinner tonight, but I see my teenager has eaten most of it for breakfast…rendering any planned photo op somewhat useless, except as proof of its tastiness. 🙂
(see empty dish….draw conclusion.)

Bake 4 or so yams in the microwave or oven until soft. Cool so you don’t burn yourself scooping out.

You need:
2 cups of mashed yams
1 and a half cups of rich cream.(and extra if you want whipped topping)  I’m sorry to say that I’ve discovered for the first time that I can’t buy cream, either organic or conventional, that isn’t ultra-pasteurized. More on that later.
1/4 cup of dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons of black strap molasses
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon (I prefer to grind my own from cinnamon bark)
1/2 teaspoon allspice
2 eggs

I didn’t bother to do a two step process. I just threw everything into my counter top mixer and mixed until smooth; and then poured into my glass brownie pan that I had buttered and floured to prevent sticking. (May not have been necessary)

Bake at 425 until a fork comes up clean when poked in the center.

I whipped a half cup of whipping cream with sugar and vanilla and had planned to use that as the topping. Since that’s missing too, I will assume it was used as intended.

 Click HERE to view this week’s complete Harvest Ticket

This week’s Large Box shot. A few random boxes received spaghetti squash, and all Wednesday boxes received sprouts. (sprouts weren’t quite ready for Tuesday’s boxes as we are trying to adjust start times as the weather has cooled.) Wednesday Large Boxes received two clamshells of sprouts: one of our Daikon Radish Sprouts, and one of our Brassica Mix Sprouts. All Wednesday Small Shares received one or the other. I know I’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating: radish sprouts (and today’s clamshells both have radish; either as a single seed or in the Brassica mix) will have tiny, white fibrous roots on the radishes. This is sometimes mistaken for mold, but is just our healthy, just -harvested radish sprouts–fibrous roots and all.

Click here to view this week’s harvest.