For the week of June 10 . . .

This week!

Head lettuce by Field Day Family Farm, Jefferson Co.
Kale by Vital Foods, Oldham Co.
and Valerie and Pavel at Fox Hollow Farm, Oldham Co.
Scapes by A Place On Earth Farm, Henry Co.
Kohlrabi by O’Daniels Farm, Warren Co.
New potatoes by O’Daniel Farm, Warren Co.
Strawberries by Berries On Bryant Station, Fayette Co.
Collard greens by Vital Foods, Oldham Co.
and River Farm Organics, Oldham Co.
Cucumbers by O’Daniel Farm, Warren Co.

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I hope you are all enjoying your first few weeks as CSA members. Green is the
vegetable theme this time of year in Kentucky, but more and more variety will come in the next few weeks. I have heard talk blueberries in the next couple of weeks. (yay!) This week's produce share features a lot of nutritious greens from The Vital Foods Program out at the Fox Hollow Farm Center. You can feel good when you buy produce from the Vital Foods program. You are doing something good for your body, your earth, and your community! Their produce is always free of any chemical fertilizers or pesticides. It is also nutrient rich, because they care for the soil and the life in it. You are also helping to support them as they work to educate others about the benefits of home gardening, buying local, caring for the earth, and cooking more in the home. They are a not-for-profit farming and education organization located on Foxhollow Farm, just minutes from Louisville.

Here is an invitation from the Fox Hollow Farm Center:

Canning and Food Preservation*
June 11th 9am-noon

Join us in welcoming our Oldham County extension agent to the farm! In this three hour class, participants will help prepare a variety of food to be canned. Pressure canning and water bath canning will be demonstrated. All safety concerns will be addressed, a short informational video on food preservation will be viewed, and the latest guidelines on safe home canning will be distributed. Participants will take home two canned items that they helped to prepare. $30

* Class size is limited. Pre-registration is required to reserve a spot and ensure that we have enough supplies.

For more information on any of these programs contact Derek or Christina at:
502-241-6869
vitalfoodsprogram@gmail.com

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Turkeys!

Grasshoppers will have sign up sheets at the drop off next week for CSA members wishing to order vegetables and fruit in bulk quantity for canning and preserving. We will also start taking orders for turkeys! The holidays may seem far away, but turkeys have a very short window for laying eggs. We have to have our order in to Mr. King by the first week in July. I will post a price list on the CSA blog this week.

Lindsey Gibbs
Grasshoppers CSA Coordinator

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Kohlrabi Gratin

Ingredients

• 1 clove garlic, crushed
  
• 1 tablespoon butter
  
• 1 lb kohlrabi, trimmed and peeled (I use a serrated knife to remove the peel)
  
• Coarse salt
  
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  
• 2/3 cup grated cheese ( I use parmesan or crumbled goat cheese)
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Rub the inside of a small, shallow ceramic casserole with the garlic. Grease it with the butter. Meanwhile, slice the kohlrabi very thinly. You may want to first cut it in half from end to end.
   
2. Lay the kohlrabi slices in the casserole overlapping like shingles, seasoning them with salt as you go. You may make two or three layers. Cover with the cream and shake the casserole a little to distribute the salt.
   
3. Lay the casserole on a baking sheet and place in the oven. As the cream browns, break it up and push it under the cream underneath, scraping any brown bits from the side of the casserole and incorporating those as well. Continue doing this for about 1 1/2 hours, or until the kohlrabi is perfectly tender and the cream has been almost completely absorbed.
   
4. Sprinkle the cheese over the gratin and continue baking until the cheese is completely melted and lightly browned. Serve hot.
   
   This recipe is great served with a simple green and strawberry salad and crusty Blue Dog Bread!
   

Kale

Although the kale is roasted, not fried, it becomes crispy and salty, almost like french fries. (Although far superior!) This kale recipe is incredibly healthy, too. It boasts a whopping 309% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A, 201% vitamin C, 14% calcium, 10% iron, 3 grams of protein, 2 grams of fiber, and it only has 112 calories and 1 gram of saturated fat per serving!

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 6-8 cups chopped fresh kale, hard stems removed
  
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  
• 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
  
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt or sea salt
  

Preparation:

1. Place a rack on the lowest shelf of your oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
   
2. Spread kale out on a sturdy baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and apple cider vinegar. Toss to coat completely.
   
3. Place on the lowest rack of the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
   
4. Remove from oven and stir so that kale can get crispy all over.
   
5. Bake another 8 to 12 minutes or until kale is crispy. It should be just lightly browned and crispy to the touch. If kale still bends, rather than crackles, when you touch it, it isn’t done yet. Return it to the oven. Turn down the heat if it is getting too brown. Continue cooking until crispy.
   
6. Remove from oven, and sprinkle with sea salt and serve immediately.
   

Kohlrabi

For those unfamiliar with this jewel of a vegetable, its appearance somewhat resembles a hot air balloon. Picture the turnip-shaped globe as the passenger section; its multiple stems that sprout from all parts of its globular form resemble the many vertical ropes, and the deep green leaves at the top represent the parachute. Kohlrabi is often mistakenly referred to as a root vegetable, but in fact it grows just above ground, forming a unique, turnip-shaped swelling at the base of the stem. You can cook Kohlrabi or use it raw like you would cabbage for slaw.

Kohlrabi possesses many attributes worth notice:
- Low in calories, only 19 for a half cup raw, sliced
- High in dietary fiber, 2.5 grams for one-half cup
- Potassium content peaks at 245 grams for one-half cup
- Vitamin content for that same one-half cup includes 25 I.U. vitamin A, 43.4 mg. vitamin C, 11.3 mg folic acid, and 16.8 mg. calcium.