Farm News – November 22, 2023
Hi Everyone, I wanted to give you the rundown on what you will encounter in your stock up shares. If not, I will soon be receiving emails and texts with photos of strange, unknown vegetables. What is it, and what the heck do I do with it? I can help with what it is and how it should be stored. As for how to prepare it -that’s what Google is for, right?
The share consists of a box and a bag. The box contains a few winter squash, bags with fingerling potato, redskin potatoes, orange and Japanese sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, shallots, celery root, and rutabaga. All the items in the box should be stored in a cool dry place.
The bag consists of various bags of root vegetables, most with two types per bag. This may help you identify one item if you know what the other is: Parsnips with turnip, daikon with radishes, watermelon radish with Yacon, carrots with beets, sunchokes, Napa and red or green cabbage, Brussel’s sprouts, spinach, lettuce, arugula, kale, baby carrots, cilantro, leeks, scallions and fennel. The Yacon is a member of the sunflower family native to South America. It is brown and looks like a sweet potato, which is why we put it in the bag and not the box- so you would not confuse it with one. It is juicy and sweet and has a slight orange tint and carroty flavor. The sugar it contains is a fructo-polysaccharide which cannot be metabolized and hence is good for dieters and diabetics. It can be cooked but I like it best chopped or grated raw into salads. It oxidizes and turns black quickly after peeling, so prepare it immediately before consumption or spritz it with some lemon juice. If you research it online, you will find that it has an extensive list of health benefits. It will keep for quite a few weeks in the fridge.
All the vegetables in the bag should be stored in the refrigerator in bags. If you are not going to use the baby carrots immediately, you should remove the tops, as they will draw the moisture out of the roots and make them rubbery.
Thank you all for your support. I wish you all Happy Holidays and a safe and healthy winter.
Bon Appetit! Farmer John
