Market News - June 23, 2009
One of the things that makes a farmers’ market so special, is the opportunity to try varieties of produce that you might not otherwise find in grocery stores. One of the vegetables that looks funny, but tastes delicious is kohlrabi. Kohlrabi is a member of the cabbage family. The texture is similar to broccoli stems, and the taste is somewhere between cabbage and turnip. is a mild vegetable. It is prized in Europe; I read that Hungarians often have it several times a week. It is either purple or light green, but the purple is only skin deep. The leaves are also edible; they can be cooked similar to any green. You have to peel the bulb, and the top can be woody, so make sure you cut the top off. It can be served uncooked in a salad or as a dipper for a dip. A very simple way to cook them is to slice them thinly (after peeling) and put them in a pan with some butter. Cover the pan and stir the kohlrabi every so often until tender. A little salt and pepper and it’s ready to serve.
Here are some recipes—
Kohlrabi & bok choy
1 kohlrabi stem, peeled & sliced
1 bunch bok choy, washed & chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 T. vegetable oil
dash red pepper flakes
salt/pepper/2 lemons
Sauté garlic and red pepper flakes in oil until garlic is soft. Add kohlrabi and cook until tender. Add bok choy and cook until wilted. Remove from heat. Put in bowl and add juice from 2 lemons and salt and pepper.
Cream of kohlrabi soup
1 medium onion
2 T. butter
1# kohlrabi, peeled & chopped
2 ½ Cups vegetable or chicken broth
2-½ Cups milk
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
Sauté onion in butter ‘til soft. Add bay leaf, kohlrabi and broth and cook ‘til kohlrabi is soft. Remove bay leaf. Puree with immersion blender or blender. Add milk and salt and pepper and heat, but don’t boil.
You may have noticed that it is increasingly difficult to buy broccoli with stems in the store. That’s because the stems are being shredded and packaged for broccoli slaw. You can do the same thing with kohlrabi. Always peel it first. If you peel broccoli stems also, it will be more tender when you cook it. I learned that from Julia Child years ago.
I have read that children who work in a vegetable garden eat more vegetables. I would think that having children help you choose what to buy at a farmers’ market would do the same. Also, have them help you prepare the food at home. The younger a child is when they learn how to cook, the better. They won’t have to resort to take-out when older, and they’ll be able to control what they eat, and they will most likely enjoy more types of food.
Vote for our Market
There are two places where you can vote for your favorite farmers’ market with cash prizes being given to the winners. Go to FARMLANDTRUST.ORG, and put in 01108 and that will take you to the page. The other one is CARE2.COM/FARMERSMARKET.
Missing Vendors
Riverbend Farm hopes to return to the market by next week. They are between crops and the weather we’ve been having hasn’t helped. Cozy Eats won’t be here this week, but hopes to return by next week. Paul is having some medical issues and is in the hospital.
Welcome!
Another Recipe
Potato-carrot soup
Saute 2 medium, or one half of a very large onion in butter in pot. Add cut up celery and carrots, as much as you like, more carrots than celery. Peel and cut up several potatoes. Put those in the pot also. Cover with chicken broth. Put a boneless chicken breast in also. Add some salt and pepper. Cover. Cook until potatoes are soft. Take chicken out and cut into small pieces. Give to the dog, or after you puree the soup, put it back in the pot. Cool the soup without the chicken then puree with hand blender or regular blender. You can add some cream to this, or not. It’s a pretty color and tasty too. Might be good with curry added as seasoning.
Too Many Farmers’ Markets?
There are now over 4,000 farmers’ markets in the U.S. In our area alone, we have 5 in Springfield, one in Wilbraham, and one in Hampden. Just the other day someone who lives in Agawam said that they’re thinking of having one there. I told her that I didn’t think that one was needed in Agawam because they have several farm stands in their town. Part of the reason for having a farmers’ market is to bring farm products to areas where it is difficult for residents to find fresh farm products. There was an article about this recently in the NY Times.
Goats
I visited Susan Park’s Rich Valley Farm on Saturday, and held a couple of baby goats and met the moms. One of the big goats is no longer being milked, but she gets to stay on the farm and enjoy being alive. I saw Susan’s workshop where she makes her marvelous soap and lotion, and enjoyed several varieties of goat cheese that Susan’s partner Jane makes from surplus goat milk. They are not set up to sell cheese commercially, but can do so for their own use. Delicious. The hard cheese was aged 9 months.
