A Life-Changing Problem

In my first year of business school, we were presented with the following problem (slightly modified):

A farmer in Iowa owns 45 acres of land. She is going to plant each acre with corn or potato. Each acre planted with potato will yield $200 profit; each with corn yields $300 profit. Each acre of potato requires 3 workers and 2 tons of fertilizer. Each acre of corn requires 2 works and 4 tons of fertilizer. One hundred works are available and 120 tons of fertilizer are available. What is the optimal mix of potato and corn that the farmer should plant to maximize profits?

I plugged all the numbers into an excel spreadsheet, opened the solver box, and clicked “solve”. The computer spit out the answer, 20 acres of each.

The computer modeling fascinated me. The following week, during spring break, I headed down to Even’ Star Farm. I wanted to utilize this new tool to see if I could help Brett maximize his profits. During the week, we calculated all the costs to get crops into the ground, out of the ground and to market. We then calculated the annual yields (based on previous years) and the profit. I wrote up the “case study” and submitted it to my professors.

They liked it! So much so, that they paid me retro-actively for my work; got the paper presented at the “American Accounting Association-Management Accounting Section International Case and Research Conference”; and now use the case-study in the MBA curriculum.

It was through this case-study project, that I was offered the opportunity to teach accounting at Babson, and begin the transition from chef to accountant/consultant.

A few weeks ago, I was in a Chinatown market, stocking up on pantry supplies. Looking for corn starch, I grabbed a bag and threw it in my shopping cart. I wonder if this came from that fabled farmer in Iowa??

Frost Bitten (Recipe: Savory Greens and Potatoes)

photo credit: Christine Bergmark, Even' Star Organic Farm

The process of breeding greens for winter-tolerance takes many years. Each spring, after the grueling winter winds have dissipated and the snow has melted, Farmer Brett inspects his fields for survivors. In a field of thousands of plants, maybe 10 have withstood the elements. Before the plants begin to flower, he transplants them within 50 feet of each other. When the plants flower, several weeks later, the bees can pollinate them. And after the plants flower, they generate seeds for subsequent years’ plantings. After several years of breeding out weak plants, Brett has robust and flavorful plants.

Last week, Brett came north to the New England Fruit and Vegetable Conference to talk about cold hardy greens and how New England farmers can adapt this process to the more severe winters.

He brought with him several varieties of greens for sampling and also for cooking dinners at the end of the meetings. The greens are spicy and full of flavor and texture. The overnight frosts that Maryland experienced (before the two feet of snow from two days ago), causes a chemical reaction in the plants which makes them sweeter.

The recipe for Savory Potatoes and Greens comes from his Winter CSA cookbook. I used basil from my garden (that I froze in August) to season the dish.

SAVORY VEGETARIAN GREENS AND POTATOES
3 average sized russet potatoes, washed but with skins on
salted water to cover
1 bag (gallon) any of our cooking greens
3 – 6 T mix of olive and neutral oils
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 t black pepper
½ to 1 t salt
½ bunch scallions
fresh herbs, or 1 t dried oregano, basil, or rosemary

1. Gently boil potatoes until just cooked (skins aren’t all coming off, and a sharp knife inserted into spud encounters a teeny resistance). Remove from pot with a slotted spoon. Let cool, then chop into bite-sized pieces. Use same water to barely blanch greens, and be sure to shock in an ice bath. Drain in colander, and push out all extra water. Chop coarsely. Set aside. In a heavy skillet (works best in seasoned cast iron), sauté onion and garlic ‘til barely soft. Add potatoes and fry, scraping pan bottom often and adding more oil if needed. When potatoes have started to brown, add greens, herbs, and chopped scallion. Cook two minutes more. If needed, season further before serving: this should be hearty, not bland.
2. Can nicely be served with a dollop of sour cream, or of home-made guacamole, or with grated cheddar or Monterey jack, on top. Also really good with 1 teaspoon whole cumin seed (added to skillet right before spuds go in) in lieu of or in addition to other herbs. Hot peppers complement the latter approach well.

My Happy Place (Recipe: Gumbo)

My friends refer to Even’ Star Organic Farm as my happy place. When I need an escape or simply reconnect with the land, I retreat to the farm. And if I’m feeling particularly stressed (as I was when I had a corporate job), Brett will send me immediately to the fields to pick okra: my sanctuary within my happy place.

How could you not love a vegetable that looks this beautiful when it’s growing?

Life is peaceful in the okra patch and I can hear myself think.
It’s quiet because no one else likes picking okra. At the first hint that I’m willing to take over this job, the crew runs as fast as they can to other chores. To them, picking okra is only one step better than cleaning the chicken coop. The stalks are fuzzy like a peach with enough prickle to make the skin itch. To add insult to injury, the harvester must don a long sleeve shirt and nitrile gloves. With temperatures reaching into the 90s, the last thing the crew wants is to put on more clothes.

I still love it.

The okra has a cult following at the farmers market, and Brett must ration how much he gives away to the crew. My reward for picking is that I can take as much as I want!

Recipes come courtesy of Even' Star Organic Farm's Summer Cookbook.

REFRESHING CHILLED OKRA
An excellent light appetizer to serve guests or yourself, especially when the heat of summer makes heavier foods less appealing.

1 heaping pint fresh tender okra
ice water bath in a medium bowl
2 or 3 t of any good vinaigrette

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Steam or boil the okra until the color just changes from bright green to darker green, about 3 minutes. Immediately drain the okra and as fast shock them, by dumping into the ice water bath. Swirl okra in bath until cold, then drain again. Place onto a serving platter or into a pretty bowl. Chill. Drizzle vinaigrette onto the okra about 5 to 20 minutes before serving.


EVEN’ STAR GUMBO
A deeply flavored stew of summer vegetables that mandates okra, one of whose African names is “gumbo” and the seed of which was carried to this continent by the slaves. Once made, the thick base can be frozen, to be thawed in deep winter, and simmered with poultry, seafood, sausage, or with only vegetables.

3 T oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
½ onion, chopped
2 mild green peppers, chopped
2 c ripe or overripe tomatoes, puréed
4 c water or chicken or vegetable stock
I pint fresh okra, sliced into 1/4” rounds
1 to 1 ½ qt. water or stock (chicken, vegetarian, or seafood)
2 t dried thyme or 1 ½ t fresh thyme or oregano
2 t gumbo file powder (optional but very good)
2 T flour
Salt, pepper, and hot pepper to taste
Chopped green onion or parsley as final garnish


The omnivore options: Shrimp, chicken, game, scallops, crab, oysters, andouille or other sausage, or pork chunks
The vegetarian options: sweet corn kernels, tempeh, vegetarian sausage, and/or fresh mushrooms


1. In 1 T of the oil and in a large stainless or cast iron pot, sauté the garlic, onion, and peppers until soft.

2. Add the puréed tomatoes and water or stock; simmer 10 more minutes.

3. Add the okra, herbs, salt, and pepper. Simmer 2 more minutes, then taste and adjust seasonings to taste.

4. If you want a thicker gumbo, make a roux by cooking the remaining two T oil with 2 T flour in a separate pan on moderate heat. One minute after it starts bubbling, add into the larger pot of gumbo, beating vigorously with a whip to prevent lumps. Simmer another 5 minutes, and again adjust seasonings to taste. This base may be frozen or used immediately.

5. To complete the gumbo, add whatever omnivore or vegetarian options you want, but be sure to add long-cooking items like chicken or sausage way before foods like shrimp or scallops that need only the briefest of cooking. Simmer all together until the brief-cookers are just tender.

6. Gumbo is nearly always served with cooked white rice, a spoonful in the center of each diner’s bowl. This may be the best and only use for a converted rice like Uncle Ben’s. Alternately, a crusty French or Italian bread does well. Sprinkle each bowl with the chopped parsley or scallion at tableside. Excellent with a chilled white wine, any beer except stout or porter, or even a red wine (Portuguese or Spanish) or a moderately chilled Pinot Noir.

Tales from the Farm (Recipe: Crab Scallion Pancakes)

Last week's New York Times featured a terrific article about Brett and his winter-hardy greens. For those of you who received seeds from me from the give-away several months back, these are them!
Thursday was the big canning day!

While Brett drove into DC to deliver the weekly CSA boxes, I got myself organized. Brett had set aside 60 pounds of tomatoes for me. Early in the week, I trimmed, cut and then smoked 30 pounds, and diced another 30 pounds. The outdoor kitchen was set up: a steam kettle to fit all 72 jars, a propane cook-top to sterilize the tomatoes and a 6 foot work table.

The steam-kettle was wood-powered. We built a fire in the furnace below, and waited patiently for the water to boil. I put all the jars in the water, and set aside the lids. The smoked tomatoes fit perfectly into the 3-gallon rondeau pot I brought down with me from Boston.
After the water boiled (with the jars) for 10 minutes, the jars were sterilized. I carefully pulled out each jar, poured out the water and laid them out on the table. One by one, I filled the jars with tomatoes, then wiped clean the rims, put a lid on and screwed the top on. Back into the water they went.

Next up, the diced tomatoes. Again, I boiled the tomatoes for 10 minutes, boiled the jars for 10 minutes, and then filled them just as I did for the smoked tomatoes.

With all the jars were filled, and back in the kettle, I covered the pot, refueled the fire, and let them pressure cook over-night. This final stage serves two purposes. First, it kills any remaining bacteria or live spores remaining inside the jars. Second, it creates a vacuum seal which prevents any future aerobic bacteria from developing.
For more details about canning you can read about last year's canning.

When Brett returned from his delivery, we were both exhausted. He from waking at 2 am to load the truck with the 300 boxes (each weighing about 15 – 20 pounds), driving to DC to deliver (and unload) to 7 different sites and then returning back to the farm. It feels lame to put my exhaustion in the same category as Brett, but I was tired from working in the hot, 90+ degree sun over an open fire stove.

Needless to say, we both needed a restorative. With cocktails in hand, we headed back to the Chesapeake Bay to check on the crab pots and take a swim. We had 6 keepers.

For the past several evenings, we had enjoyed the crabs as a little snacking, picking the meat from the shell. On this night, I shelled all the meat and made Korean style scallion pancakes with Crab and a Soy Dipping Sauce (Pa Jon or Pa Jeon). I generated about 2 cups of meat

PaJeon with Crab
These pancakes are thicker and doughier than the Chinese counterpart

1 cups rice flour
2 cup A/P flour
2 cups water
2 eggs
1 bunch scallions, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 tsp. salt
1 pound crab meat
1 tbs. cooking oil (canola or peanut)

Dipping Sauce
½ cup soy sauce
2 – 4 tbs. rice vinegar (depending on taste)
1 tbs. sesame oil
1 tsp. fresh sesame seeds
2 tbs. scallion rings
1 tsp. chili paste (more or less to taste)

1. In a bowl, whisk together the rice and A/P flour. Stir in the water and eggs to combine. Finally, gently mix in the salt, crab and scallions. Let rest.

2. In a separate (serving) bowl, combine the sauce ingredients. Adjust to your taste with vinegar, sugar and chili paste.

3. Heat a large, cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Pour in a scant cup of batter and smooth out to 6 inches around. Cook until the edges crsip up. Flip over, and cook for 2 minutes more. Drain on a paper towel. Repeat this process, replenishing the oil in the pan as necessary, until all the batter is used.

4. Just before serving, you can spread out the pancakes into a single layer cookie sheet and reheat in a 450 oven for 10 minutes.

5. Cut into pie wedges and serve with dipping sauce.
 

Down on the Farm (recipe: sun-dried tomato pesto)

Every year I make a pilgrimage to Southern Maryland to can tomatoes. Perhaps it seems silly (and environmentally unfriendly) to drive 500 miles each way, but I treasure the time I spend with my friend Brett – harvesting, cooking, fishing, eating and drinking. And we always have much to chat about – whether it’s the tomato blight or the antics of his work-crew.

When Brett started Even’ Star Organic Farm twelve years ago, he wanted to be known as the “Tomato Man.” He pledged to only sell tomatoes that had truly ripened on the vine, unlike the commercially graded “vine ripens” which need only show the slightest blush of pink to garner that label. Unfortunately, after the first year, he discovered that the fully ripened tomatoes were too fragile, and his customers wanted a product with a longer shelf life – 2 days instead of 2 hours. Now he picks them two days from perfection, still more ripe than his commercial counterparts.

Over the years, and through some research I did for him, he realized that the tomatoes were a loss leader – he only makes about $1 per case profit. This is not a get-rich-quick scheme, and he uses the tomatoes to lure customers and relies on other crops to make his money.

This year, Brett is up to his eyeballs in tomatoes. And coming from New England, where entire tomato crops have been wiped out, this is a welcome sight! Hundreds of cases of tomatoes fill the storage room. His CSA subscribers are getting seven pounds a week.

He will not be able to sell all the tomatoes, so he will preserve them to sell with his winter CSA subscription. In addition to canning for his home-use, some tomatoes will be truly sun-dried. The tomatoes are sliced thickly and laid out on trays in the greenhouse (where temperatures can exceed 150F) to sun-dry.

If you are in the DC area, you can purchase his tomatoes at the Chevy Chase Farmers' market on Saturday mornings from 9am - 1pm, at the corner of Broad Branch and Northampton Sts., NW, DC.

Sun-dried Tomato Pesto

1 cup sun-dried tomatoes
½ cup olive oil
2 tbs. pine nuts or almonds
1 tbs. chopped garlic.
2 tbs. parmiggiano reggiano
¼ cup basil leaves
Salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste

1. Rehydrate tomatoes in olive oil: Combine in skillet over medium-low heat and cook until the tomatoes plump and are pliable, about 5 minutes.

2. To the tomatoes, add the garlic and nuts, and continue cooking for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until garlic is lightly golden and nuts are slightly toasted. Immediately remove from heat.

3. Strain oil and reserve. Put tomato/garlic/nut mix in a food processor. Coarsely chop. Then slowly drizzle in reserved oil and process for 1 minute more. Add parmesan and basil and pulse until incorporated.

4. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Gratitude: Coq au Vin

Last week, when I arrived on Brett’s farm for a visit, he announced I was just in time for a chicken matanza. Brett had decided to reduce his flock of egg-layers to a few dozen instead of a few hundred. The labor involved in raising chickens had become too burdensome, and he preferred to focus his energies on growing organic vegetables and selling them through his CSA. The few dozen remaining hens would continue to provide eggs for the family’s consumption and a repository for the non-salable produce.

Let’s be honest, killing, feathering and gutting chickens are not most people’s idea of a good time – including mine and Brett’s. But we accept this ugly truth as part of eating meat. We comfort ourselves knowing that the chickens had a good life, living in expansive coops with easy access to outdoor space – and maintaining good health from eating well, drinking clean water and breathing fresh air. And Brett shows a modicum of pride in taking the good with the bad – if he wants to enjoy humanely raised meat, then there’s a price to pay. In his case, it’s killing animals. While most people try to gloss over this fact, he accepts it as part of the process and shows gratitude to his animals for what they provide.

In Brett’s words:

All of our birds range freely on large pastures, fenced to keep the birds out of the vegetables and most predators out of the birds. Throughout their lives our animals are treated with compassion, dignity, and humanity. Our chickens eat grasses, clovers, bugs, and bushels of greens, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, melons, and other veggies that are too blemished to sell. As we cannot get organic corn in our area, we give the birds a very high-quality vegetarian grain mix (never with hormones, medications, or animal byproducts) specially formulated by us in partnership with our local Mennonite feed mill. Our birds are therefore not classed as organic—just very free range, very happy, very active, and very healthy.

Free-roaming animals, like the chickens on the farm, develop more muscles and stronger bones. This yields more flavorful meat, but also tougher. Fryer chickens typically meet their maker chef at 6 weeks, so even a free-roaming bird will still be reasonably tender. By contrast, the chickens from last week’s matanza are extra tough because they’re much older than the traditional fryer chicken: averaging 3 years.

With meat this tough, they demand a long braise to tenderize the meat. This weekend I cooked a coq au vin with one of the hens from last week’s matanza. It simmered for 5 hours, far longer than a conventional chicken recipe would suggest – or as Madeleine Kamman recommends in her recipe: 45 minutes.

Coq au Vin
(serves 4 guests)

1 old stewing hen, cut into quarters
1/4 cup flour
3 slices smoked bacon
3 tablespoons butter
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
1 onion, peeled and diced
1 large shallot, peeled and chopped.
1 celery rib, chopped
1/4 cup garlic cloves
1/4 lb. mushrooms, quartered
1 cup chicken broth
1 - 10 oz. can tomatoes
1 bottle red wine
1/2 cup brandy
2 sprigs thyme
2 sprigs parsley
salt and pepper to taste

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dust with flour. Dice bacon, and put in a large skillet with high sides. Brown bacon over high heat. Remove bacon and set aside

2. Add butter to bacon fat pan and brown the chicken (on high heat) for about 4 minutes on each side. Add onions, shallots, carrot, celery, and cook for about 5 minutes more.

3. Turn heat off, and deglaze pan with brandy and red wine. Scrap all of the browned bits off the bottom, this is good stuff. Add chicken stock, thyme and parsley. Turn heat back to high, and bring liquid to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, [if using commercial chicken add mushrooms here]. Cover pot and put in 325 oven. After about 1 1/2 hours, add mushrooms. Cook covered for another hour or three or until meat is tender. My chicken took 5 hours.

4. Serve chicken over potato puree or with grilled bread.

Gratitude

I recall a visit to Even’ Star organic farm many years ago to visit my friends Brett, Chris and their daughter. We sat down for dinner, a beautiful plate of beef rib- eye before us. We all bowed our heads slightly as if to say grace and 5-year old Allesandra summed it up in three words: “Thank You, Lemo.”

Lemo was the name of the limousine cow that Allesandra, along with her dad Brett, raised on their farm. Brett didn’t need to read The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan to know that commercial cattle industry has strayed from sustainable practices. Many commercially raised cattle no longer eat a grass-based diet as they were biologically designed, and they are housed in tight quarters that harbor disease, requiring many animals to be injected with antibiotics. By raising his own cow, Brett would know the animal’s diet was appropriate to its heritage and roamed freely within a clean stable with access to the outside. He chose the limousine breed for its “growth efficiency,” lean meat, and flavor comparable to the prized-Angus.

While many of us have no qualms about eating meat, most people get squeamish when they’ve seen the animals in the live state before cooking or eating it. Some won’t even purchase whole chickens at the supermarket because of the visual recognition that the meat they’re about to cook was once a live animal. I was quite impressed with Allesandra’s maturity to accept that the meat we eat comes from a once living being. And she expressed her gratitude to the animal for giving us a wonderful meal.

_____________________
Speaking of gratitude, many thanks to Giz of Equal Opportunity Kitchen for sisterhood award
And to Heather of Diary of a Fanatic Foodie for the butterfly award.

I've really enjoyed making new blogging friends, reading about your culinary adventures (whether it's a wedding cake made of towels or a drink called loneliness). And I'm delighted to know that you've enjoyed reading mine.

Planning Your Spring and Summer Garden (and Give-Away)

Last week’s article in the Boston Globe reminded me that I need to begin my spring and summer garden plans. It’s hard to believe with temperatures hovering around 30F that spring will ever come, but I remain optimistic. In fact, I can start seeds indoors on March 15th so that when the ground begins to thaw in April, I’m ready!

I’m fortunate to have a decent sized backyard (especially for Cambridge). But you don’t need a large backyard to reap benefits from fresh herbs and vegetables. Whether you have a balcony or even a window sill, options abound. Your specific needs and constraints will dictate what you plant. Here are some things to consider.


Limited space
When I lived in an apartment in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, I grew herbs in a window box outside the kitchen and cherry tomatoes on the fire escape. The yield was just enough to enliven much of my summer-time cooking. In one box, I fit four herbs: my favorites: basil, thyme, tarragon and chives.


Bang for your buck
If you have limited financial resources (and who doesn't these days), you want to get the most out of your gardening dollars. Many components go into this. First on my list is avoiding waste. Second, is getting high yields for low square footage, and finally the cost of the seeds vs. seedlings.

Too often, herbs at the supermarket are packaged in quantities greater than what I need. Further, if I have a recipe that calls for 2-3 varieties, I can spend $10 on herbs alone, and half will end up in the compost bin. For $10, I can buy seedlings of 4 or 5 varieties. And as I cook with herbs throughout the summer, I just snip off what I need, and the plant keeps growing. Better yet, some herbs, like sage, tarragon and thyme, are perennial. I bought two plants each several years ago, and the herbs just keep coming back year after year with no financial reinvestment.

Celery is another example of the package size being larger than my need. I buy two or three plants ($5 total) and break off a single stalk as I need it – usually for chicken, tuna or egg salad. Unfortunately, celery does not regrow after the stalk has been harvested. So if I cook a recipe that requires a full head, then I’ll buy it at the market, saving the garden variety for when I need a small amount for a recipe.

Most lettuces are “cut and come again.” That means that if you harvest the lettuce properly (at least 2 inches above the roots) it will continue to sprout leaves. I can cut a mixed lettuce salad throughout the spring and summer with an investment of $6 in seeds (3 packets – arugula, romaine and mizuna).

Cucumbers proliferate in my garden, and can grow upwards on stakes offering economy of space. The fruit can be used in salads or pickled. Last summer, my three plants produced cucumbers well into September and yielded many snacks, salads and pickles. Last year I bought a packet of seeds for $2 and still have enough left over for this year’s planting.

Radishes sprout early. They offer an early fix for locavores craving garden fresh vegetables. Better yet, their season is quick and short, opening up the garden space to other summer vegetables.

A final, but very important consideration is the greenness of your thumb. Do you buy seeds or seedlings? For sure, seeds are cheaper – two dollars, for example will buy you dozens of seed or one seedling. However, some vegetables, like tomatoes, require careful attention to get them from seed to seedling into the ground producing fruit. I have attempted for several years to start tomatoes indoors to transplant them in the late spring. I have never had success, and end up buying the seedlings anyway.

I only buy seeds when I can direct-sow: that is, I can directly plant the seeds into the ground. Seeds that work well in this fashion include: lettuces, cucumbers, zucchini and peas. If you are unsure if a seed can be direct-sowed, check the back of the packages, the information is usually printed there.

Can’t Beat Homegrown
Perhaps the most enticing reason to grow your own vegetables is that nothing beats home-grown – especially when it comes to tomatoes! Supermarket tomatoes and even farmers’ market tomatoes will never compare to homegrown, because they are always harvested before they’re ripe. When growing at home, the tomatoes can absorb sugar producing sunshine until the very second you pluck it from the vine. Better yet, you can grow the most flavorful heirloom varieties such as Cherokee Purple.

Some years, I’ve grown zucchini for the squash blossoms because I never see them in the markets. I enjoy their floraly soft texture that’s perfect for stuffing or just using in a quiche or omelet.

Lettuces taste spicier and crisper home-grown. Potatoes are sweeter and less starchy. And Brussels sprouts can stay on the stalk in my garden until after the first frost so I get sweet, tender sprouts instead of earthy, stringy baby cabbages.

And now for the giveaway…. To help you plan your spring garden, I'll be giving a packet of Even’ Star Organic Farm Seeds. Seeds from Even' Star Farm are cultivated to yield the most flavorful, hardiest plants. They are organic and heirloom and can also be purchased at FedCo Seeds. To give you a sense of their quality, they retail for 10 times the price of similar varieties. I have several varieties of seeds suitable for spring planting and harvesting, so the winner can select his or her favorite. All you need to do is leave a comment on my blog between now and Friday, February 27th at 5pm EST, telling me about your favorite fruit or vegetable to grow.

Sweet Potato Vichyssoise

While we think of sweet potatoes as a winter vegetable, they are actually grown in the summer. Shooting up green vines from the earth, each plant will yield up to 5 pounds of this sweet tuber. They last for months if stored properly in a root cellar. Two months after harvest, I'm still enjoying my stash that I brought back with me to Cambridge.

An interesting factoid about sweet potatoes: they actually get sweeter after they've been harvested. Once the plant is cut away, a chemical reaction occurs turning the starches into sugars. As such,the sweet potatoes need to cure for at least one week after harvesting before eating or cooking.

There are dozens of varieties of sweet potatoes -- both white and orange. Typically, in New England, you'll find jewel. To hear Brett describe them, they are pure sugar. His favorite varieties are white hamon and beauregard. These offer sweet, nuanced and balanced flavor.

Here are some more thoughts from Brett about sweet potatoes:

Very large sweet potatoes are unjustly scorned by novices, but old-time Southern cooks treasure the mammoths for ease of use. They also know that a slowly grown but big sweet potato is more flavorful than a typical conventionally grown, smaller sweet potato whose growth was rushed and babied with agricultural chemicals.

Different sweet potato cultivars have markedly different flesh colors and flavors. The white types (actually beige, to my eye) usually have a nuttier, nuanced suite of flavors, and often a less creamy and more stringy texture, than the orange types. White Hamon is an exception, being both very sweet and creamy and with a unique beige-pale green flesh when cooked in certain ways. We will let you know the names of the types you are receiving. I personally prefer the white kinds for savory roasted uses and the orange types for pies, but there is naught more subjective than palate opinions.

Sweet Potato Vichyssoise is a fantastic summer-time chilled soup, but can also be served hot on a cold winter evening.

3 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk
4 garlic clove
1/4 cup white wine
2 medium large sweet potatoes
4 cups water
2 leek -- washed
1/4 cup cream

1. Heat pot over medium heat. Add 2 tbs. butter. Add onions, garlic, leeks and celery. Sweat for about 5 minutes. Deglaze with white wine

2. Add potatoes and water. Simmer for about 30 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

3. Puree soup. Add cream. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice

4. Chill soup.

5. While soup is chillin', heat a large sauté pan over high heat. Add remaining butter, corn, shallots and garlic. Sauté without shaking the pan, for 3 minutes, or until the corn becomes sweetly aromatic. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

6. Puree chipotle peppers with 1/4 cup water and 1 tbs. red wine vinegar

7. When soup is chilled, garnish with
a- corn and a drizzle of the chipotle puree, or
b- spicy sausage and scallions

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay

This visit to the farm was under the guise of picking up my lamb. Last spring, I had done a lot of office work for Brett and my compensation was a half a lamb – raised by friends Donna and Cameron down the road. Two weeks ago, the lamb was slaughtered. After two-week of aging in the walk-in refrigerator, the meat is tenderized and ready for butchery. The prime cuts - the rack and loin chops are set aside. The stewing meat, from the shoulder and ham, are ground for sausages -- chipotle and peachy mama flavored. The leg of lamb is left on the bone and makes for a generous roast. The long bones from the rack still have meat and are destined for barbecued ribs.

I arrived late Wednesday afternoon, and Brett and I promptly trotted over to the Chesapeake Bay, just yards away from the farm (actually we took the tractor, but that’s a another story). The neighbor had built a dock on the edge of his property, which creates a perfect landing for fishing and crabbing. The crab traps dangle from the base of the dock, and the bluefish and perch swim about, striped bass sometimes makes an appearance, but not often. The night before Brett had been fishing with his friend Bob so we used the skin and bones from that catch as bait for our fishing adventure. The left-over bait was put in the crab-traps… drifting on the floor of the bay, crabs meander in, eat the bait and get trapped. We set free the females and take the males. With the dwindling crab population, we want to minimize any long-term damage of harvesting sea creatures.


What did we catch, you ask? Let me put it this way: they call it “fishing,” not “catching”…. We did catch some warm breezes, mesmerizing bay views and a lone male crab – which made a delightful snack.

If we had more crabs, we would have made crab cakes:

Crab Cakes with Warm Frisee and Spinach Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette and Bacon Lardons

Crab Cakes

1 lb. crab meat
2 tbs. chopped celery
2 tbs. chopped scallion
1 tbs. chopped fresh tarragon
1 tbs. chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp. mustard
2 tbs. mayonnaise
2 tbs. bread crumbs
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
plain oil


1. Mix everything together except the oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper
2. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil
3. Form mix into 2” crab cakes. Pan fry until crispy on each side. Serve with salad.

Vinaigrette

2 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
2 ½ tbs. extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp. fresh thyme
salt and pepper to taste


Combine mustard and vinegar in a bowl. Whisk in olive oil. Season with thyme, salt and pepper.

Salad

1 pound hardy mesclun or other salad greens such as frisee or spinach
3 slices slab bacon
1 red onion, julienned


1. Cut bacon into cubes. Cook in skillet over medium flame until it is just start to brown (but not fully crispy)
2. Add onions, turn heat to high and continue cooking for 3 minutes or until bacon and onions are crisp.
3. Drain excess fat from bacon, and toss warm bacon over greens. Dress salad with the vinaigrette. Season to taste with salt and pepper.


Next week: Lambapalooza!

Training Cucumbers

On my last visit to DC I visited Ed Bruske’s garden. I was particularly keen to meet him since we’d shared so many similar experiences at Even’ Star Farm, though not at the same time. You can read about the pig matanza… part 1 and part 2. I participated too, two years prior. One of these days, I’ll post my story too.

In any case, I was fascinated to see another urban garden. His is impressive in its size but also it’s structure. He has tomato cages that are seven feet high. I could have used those too. And my favorite was how he trained the cucumbers up a trellis. I decided to take this home with me. It worked great to clear up the ground space for my fall plantings, and it also makes it easier to see the cucumbers, and pick them when they’re ready.

Seed Management

There are three big reasons why Even’ Star Farm’s produce is superior to its competitors. Since it’s organic, we know that it has not been grown with synthetic pesticides or artificial fertilizers. This does not necessarily enhance the flavor, but it protects the environment and our natural resources. More importantly, because they sell only to local markets, the produce is able to ripen on the vine instead of in the back of a truck. The produce develops sweeter flavors and better texture. Most importantly, though, is how farmer Brett protects his gene line of seeds.

When I start my garden in the summer, I purchase seeds and seedlings from random suppliers. I still have the advantage of growing all-natural and fully ripening on the vine, but am beholden to their quality control.

Seed management is a rather straightforward process. For every crop, you save the most flavorful, hearty plants and harvest the seeds for the following year’s crop. The sheer volume of seeds necessary for production farm like Even’ Star means that one person could work solely on this project, and work full time. Further, the seeds are harvested when the farm is in peak production – essentially doubling an already full workload. In the midst of harvesting tomatoes, okra, eggplant and watermelon, the crew generates hundreds of pounds of seed!


Each crop has different criteria for ideal. For the ancho chilies, it’s the size, shape (perfect conical) and color (evenly red ripe). Meredith, who was charged this week with harvesting the breeders, had to taste each pepper to make sure the heat level was appropriate. Brett wanted just the slightest hint of spice. For the arugula, the seeds are saved from the hardiest plants that survive cold, frost and wind. The peachy mama’s which have an obscenely long maturation time, are bred to shorten that span. The tomato seeds are selected from the healthiest, disease-resistant plants. After several years of picking the best seeds, the gene lines get better and better. So good in fact, that Brett sells his seeds to Fedco in Waterville, ME – a national, highly regarded seed supplier. Even’ Star seeds sell for 4 times more than the equivalent “generic” variety.

You may recall that earlier this season, I harvested some of my broccoli raab seed for Brett. Because the raab had “wintered-over”, that is, it re-grew after being buried for 5 months under a blanket of snow and ice. Should Brett be able to grow raab from this seed, the plants will be more tolerant of cold weather.

To keep the workers/crew happy through all this work, I usually make them special lunches when I visit. One of their perennial favorites is arepas. The corn comes from Alan Sivak, whose farm is just 2 miles down the road.

Arepas with Tomatillo Salsa

1 – 1 lb. bag hominy
4 ears corn
1 tbs. chopped garlic
4 scallions, chopped
2 tbs. chopped cilantro *or more
1 – 2 cups grated jack cheese
3 tbs. butter
salt and pepper
plain oil


3 green tomatoes or tomatillos, finely diced
1 red pepper, finely diced
1 onion, finely diced
1 tsp. Tabasco (or more to taste)
1 smoked tomatoes, chopped
1 tbs. lime juice
3 scallions, thinly sliced
2 tbs. chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook hominy according to package directions.
2. Heat a large skillet. Melt butter. Add the corn, then the garlic. Cook over medium heat until the corn begins to roast and brown.
3. Drain hominy. Grind with a medium hole. Grind corn and garlic mixture as well.
4. Mix in by hand the jack cheese, scallion and cilantro. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Form patties with dough. Pan fry in plain oil until crispy on both sides.

Preserving Summer: Tomatoes

All year, I wait with anticipation for the August tomato – firm and sweet, and slightly acidic, with juice that drips down your chin with the first bite. The varieties of heirlooms available at a “commercial” level are astonishing – satisfying every palate and culinary need. For the sandwiches, there’s Brandywine or Pruden’s purple, for salads, Cherokee or cherry tomatoes. If you prefer an acidic tomato there’s black krim and a sweet tomato, gold turtle egg.
After that first bite, I swear I will never eat a mealy, bland, rock-hard winter tomato again. Of course, come winter, I’m craving a rich osso buco to take the chill off winter. My favorite recipe calls for… you guessed it… tomatoes. It’s a vicious cycle.

The only solution is to preserve the peak summer tomatoes and then store them for winter. It’s a win-win situation – the tomatoes are the most flavorful and cheapest in August. And as a bonus, I can sneak in a visit to Even’ Star Organic Farm in Southern Maryland, where farmer Brett grows an abundance of heirloom, organic, truly vine-ripe tomatoes.

There are two basic options for preserving: freezing or canning. Freezing has one obvious (and big) advantage: it’s a hassle-free process. The primary disadvantage is that you need excess freezer space. And if there’s a power outage, you risk losing your entire stash. Canning has an obvious disadvantage in that it’s a hot, laborious, time-consuming process. But in the end, you don’t need to worry about storage space – the jars can be buried in the basement or in the back of a closet. Climate control is unimportant. Either way, you need to first process the tomatoes.

Plum tomatoes are the classic stewing tomatoes because they have a drier, firmer texture. Alas, their flavor doesn’t compete with other varieties such as Brandywine or Pineapple. Optimally, you can use a 50-50 mix of the two to get the right balance of flavor and texture.

When I can tomatoes for the winter, I usually process 50 pounds or more. For this reason, I take short-cuts on skinning and seeding the tomatoes. I would rather remove the skins as I use the tomatoes (one jar at a time) if at all.

Stewed Tomatoes
This can be as basic or complex as you like. Either way, start with cleaned tomatoes. Take out the core, cut out any bruises or blemishes and cut into chunks. If you’d like, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil. When the onions are soft, add the tomatoes and cook for about 10 minutes. You can also add basil sprigs, and season with salt and pepper. When the tomatoes are cooked you can freeze them in one pint containers or can them (see below).


Smoked Tomatoes
This is a personal favorite. A little smoked tomato adds an unexpected depth to almost any recipe. You don’t need a smoker – a regular ole charcoal grill works fine. Wood chips are available at Whole Foods or at a hardware store.

For a Charcoal Grill:
You will need 2 cups wood chips (hickory or apple is great, mesquite is okay) soaked in 4 cups of water or cheap white wine. Drain just before smoking. And, of course, plenty of San Marzano Plum tomatoes, cut in half.

Prepare a fire as you normally would. When the fire is on its last legs (there are still some red embers) get ready to move quickly. Toss the wood chips on the fire. Put the grate on top, and place the tomatoes on the grate, ideally skin side down (should the skins burn, you can remove them, if the flesh burns…). Cover the grill with the lid, open the vents only ½ way. Let the tomatoes smoke for 1 hour.

Puree them for a sauce for lamb or steak, or add them to your favorite recipe for a little zip.

For a gas grill:
Follow the directions as above. Except: Put the drained wood chips in a disposable aluminum tray, and place it directly on top of the gas flame.

Canning Tomatoes
The one thing to remember when canning tomatoes is that you need to boil everything. Boil the jars, boil the tomatoes, boil the tomatoes in the jar. The first two boil are necessary to sterilize the jars and the tomatoes, the third boil is to create a vacuum seal in the jar.

So to be clear, the process goes like this:
1. Purchase canning jars. I prefer the wide mouth because they are easier to fill. Consider buying a variety of sizes. Even if you are only canning one kind of sauce, the variety will enable you to maximize your tomatoes – if a recipe calls for a small amount of tomato, you open a small jar, instead of opening a large jar that may not be completely used. Also, buy a pair of “canning tongs”. These tongs are specially designed to lift the jars out of the water.
2. Wash the jars. Put the lids in one pot and the jars in another pot. The pot for the jars should be deep enough that the jars can be covered by at least on inch of water.
3. Cover the lids completely with water and put them on the stove. Bring to a boil, and turn off the heat. Let them sit in the water until you’re ready to use them.
4. Cover the jars completely with water and bring htem to a boil. Continue boiling them for 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, bring the tomatoes to a boil, and continue cooking them for at least 10 minutes. Even if you smoked the tomatoes, you still need to boil them.
6. Remove the jars from the water, draining the water out. Fill each jar with tomatoes, leaving about ½ inch at the top. With a clean towel, wipe the lip of each jar clean.
7. Drain the water from the lids and cover each jar. Seal with the metal band.
8. Return the jars to the boiling water and let boil for 10 minutes. Remove from the water and let stand for 20 minutes. Remove the band and test the lids – if it comes off easily, then the seal did not work and you must repeat the process. If the lid is tight, then you are all set!

This year, I canned 12 pints of stewed tomatoes and 12 pints of smoked tomatoes. Alas, I processed more tomatoes than I had jars. I bought more jars and made ketchup with the remaining tomatoes.

Homemade Ketchup
8 cups stewed tomatoes
1 onion
½ cup brown sugar
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons salt

Puree onions and tomato. Combine in a stainless steel pot. Cook over medium heat for 2 hours, stirring occasionally to keep tomatoes from sticking to the bottom.

This will keep for 2 weeks in the refrigerator or you can jar the tomatoes.

Tales from the Farm - Early August

Brett called two weeks ago to let me know that the plum tomatoes were in full production! He knows I plan an annual visit to the farm with the sole goal of canning tomatoes to last me through the winter. He suggested I come for a visit soon, lest I suffer the same fate as last year: my timing was off and the varieties available, though more flavorful than the plums, were too juicy for preserving. By the time I arrived this week, he had set aside 50 pounds of #1 plum tomatoes, plus another 20 pounds of #2 Cherokee purples which would add depth of flavor to my sauces.

The guise of my trip was to can tomatoes, but in truth, I cherish every opportunity to visit. In an era of high fuel costs and rising food prices, where the average food travels 1,500 miles from the field to the plate, I take a special pleasure in harvesting my food just hours before eating it. A typical meal on the farm has less than 10 food miles. Lamb comes from Donna and Cameron, just a few miles down the road in Lexington Park. Friend Bob fishes in the Chesapeake Bay, 1,500 feet from the farm – sharing his catch of Cobia, Bluefish or Striper. Vegetables, chicken and eggs come from the fields less than ½ mile from the house. The Mennonites raise livestock for milk and cheeses about 15 miles north in Leonardtown. Deer prance in the fields surrounding the farm, occasionally venturing into the fields and eating the watermelon. “Crop management” means we occasionally eat venison, too!

The farm is at peak production now – harvesting several varieties each of tomatoes, okra, red peppers, cucumbers squashes, eggplant, watermelon and okra. Meals are abundant, but so is the work.

The watermelon and okra coexist nicely on the south fields, neither encroaching on the others space. Unlike some of the other crops, the watermelon doesn’t mind the shade that the okra creates from its talk stalks. And in fact, it’s a good thing… when the crew harvests the watermelon, they leave them in the shade of the okra until they come with a truck to gather them all.


Neither is fun to harvest. The obvious challenge in watermelon is the weight. The crew will harvest one ton each week – 5 pounds at a time. After passing through the patch, snipping the ripe ones from the vine, the crew will pass through a second time with a tractor – one person driving the tractor off to the side and two others gingerly setting each watermelon in its hopper. The okra’s spiny stalks prickle as you harvest. To make the task palatable, the crew wears long sleeves and gloves – necessitating an early morning harvest before it gets too hot in the fields, making the protection as unbearable as the spiny stalks. With proper protection, I love picking okra. The abundant flowers are beautiful white with a purple center; they smile at me. Brett usually hoards the okra for market, but my reward for harvesting is as much okra as I can eat. I usually make a succotash for one meal and deep fry some for a second. In fact, market demand is so strong, Brett doesn’t eat okra until September.


On the north side, with all the tomatoes, is my favorite chili – affectionately named “Peachy Mama.” Typically, it’s a sweet pepper with floral undertones. But since they are planted so close to the spicy chilies, they sometimes get cross-pollinated and develop a little kick. Unlike other chilies that are equally delicious red-ripe or green, the peachy mama is only good when it’s fully ripe -- a pale orange. Harvesting is tricky… the brittle branches lose their flowers (the predecessor to the chili) easily. Each pepper must be carefully inspected for ripeness, but a clumsy touch means fewer chilis in subsequent weeks.

SAUTEED OKRA WITH TOMATO AND CORN

1/2 pound fresh okra
1 medium vine-ripened tomato – Cherokee Purple or San Marzano
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1 peachy mama pepper or ½ small red bell pepper
1 ear corn, kernels cut from cob
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
1 tbs. fresh Genoa or lemon basil
salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste

Cut okra into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Chop tomato. Dice onion, chop garlic and cut corn from cob. In a heavy skillet heat butter over medium-high heat. Add the corn in a single layer and sprinkle the onions and garlic on top. Do not stir for a few minutes until the corn develops a sweet, roasted aroma. Stir, and continue cooking for 1 minute. Add the okra and pepper, stirring occasionally, until the okra is bright green, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomato and basil and simmer, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes, until everything is heated through. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste.

Tales from the Farm – The Composting Cycle: From Food to Chicken to Eggs and Back Again

A few years ago, I was driving through the Eastern Shore of Maryland and drove past a Perdue truck. If you have ever seen this, I can assure you, you will never eat commercially processed chicken again. The flat-bed truck transported the chickens, each in an individual cage, 20 cages high. The top chicken is, literally, living high on the hog. The poor chickens on the bottom were coated in droppings from the 19 layers on top. And the birds in the middle are breathing in a toxic fume. It’s no wonder we have to worry about salmonella and other diseases in commercial chicken. Farmer Brett also raises chickens. By contrast, these chickens are truly free-range. In fact, these chickens have more roaming room than most urban dwellers. And they eat better than most of us too – feasting on a rich diet of organic produce (the non-salable produce), weeds, grain and left-over food from the house. The chickens never receive antibiotics because they are not exposed to disease. Nor do they need growth hormones – they grow the old-fashioned way – with a healthy diet and plenty of exercise. The chickens serve an important function for the farm. In addition to the obvious eggs and eventual meat, the chickens also help prepare the soil by weeding and creating "natural" compost. The chicken coops are strategically positioned around the barn with adjustable fencing that allows Brett to move the chickens. The chickens happily peck away at the weeds leaving a barren plot. To supplement their diet of weeds and grains, they act as a repository for non-salable produce and left-over food scraps from the house (all the things the rest of us would compost). In exchange, they enrich the soil with nitrogen generated from their, ahem, droppings. Further soil amendments are not required.

Let’s be honest, though, Brett raises chickens for the eggs and the meat. The soil enhancement is a bonus. Once the hens reach menopause, and stop laying eggs, they are “converted” into stewing chickens. As one might expect, the meat has more flavor -- the result of all that exercise. The “meat”, the primary portion we eat from animals, is muscle – and they’ve developed just like ours when we go to the gym. The meat is darker (from all the blood flow) and with more texture (a euphemism for tougher). The eggs have a firmer texture too. They cook more quickly and fluffy than eggs purchased at the supermarket. The yolks are deep yellow, almost orange.

Over the years, I have taught many aspiring chefs and home cooks how to butcher a chicken. It’s pretty straightforward, I tell them, as long as you cut in the right place: the ligaments are soft and the bones thin. My first attempt at cutting up a chicken from the farm was surprisingly difficult. After a few struggled attempts of redefining butchery, I realized that all the exercise that makes the meat more flavorful, also makes the ligaments and bones stronger.

A fryer chicken, even in the free-range environment, still has some tenderness, because they’re only 6 weeks old. As such, they don’t require as much special attention when cooking. These menopausal hens, at 8 months, need a slow cooking to tenderize and soften the meat.

Here’s my favorite recipe for stewing chicken. I love the simplicity of it, and I usually have everything in my pantry so I can make it on a whim.

Harrira Stew
(serve 4)
serve with raisin cous cous
1 1/2 pound boneless chicken meat, cubed (preferably dark meat)
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tomatoes, diced, or 10 oz. canned tomatoes
2 1/2 pts. chicken stock or canned broth
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
8 oz. canned chick peas
chopped cilantro
red chili flakes or harissa (opt)

Put chicken, onion, garlic, and stock in a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add spices, tomatoes and chick peas. Reduce heat to simmer, and continue cooking until chicken is done, approximately 30 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and red chili flakes or harissa.

Raisin Cous Cous
2 cups cous cous
2 1/4 cup water or chicken broth
1 tsp. salt
1 shallot, chopped
1/3 cup raisin

Put raisins, shallots, water and salt in a pot. Bring to a boil. Pour in cous-cous. Stir to mix and cover the pot. Remove pot from heat, let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff cous cous with a fork.

Harissa
2 tsp. chili flakes
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 tbs. olive oil
2 tsp. ground cumin.

Put everything in a pan. Heat over low heat for about 5 minutes, or until garlic starts to brown. Remove from heat immediately so the garlic does not burn.

Farmer's Markets - Chevy Chase DC

This week’s market report comes from the Chevy Chase Farmer’s Market in Washington, DC.

This farmer’s market was founded just 4 years ago in the side yard of an elementary school. The look and feel is far different than the more urban markets in Boston, Cambridge and even Dupont Circle in downtown DC. The school and the market are in the middle of a shaded, residential neighborhood at the northern point of the city. Only 3 farmers sell produce. To round out the offerings, there’s a meat stand, bakery, cheese stand and a woman selling fresh pasta. The market has a decidedly mellow feel to it… as the neighbors meander from one stall to the next. And because the market is so small they only allow organic farmers that sell their own products (Shockingly, some farmers sell produce from other farms and call it their own).

My friend Brett was one of the original farmers at this market. This week, his crops capture the essence of the shoulder season – the last of the spring greens and a glimmer of the summer harvest. The tomatoes he planted in the fields the first week of April are yielding its first ripe fruit. Corn that started in the greenhouse in March, and transplanted to the fields in May, now is so sweet and crisp you can eat it raw. Four kinds of basil sit next to parsley and squash blossoms. The last of the spring greens and fennel fill out the table. In Boston, the tomatoes we’re seeing at the market are still from the greenhouses. If Brett, 450 miles south of Boston, is just starting to harvest, we can expect to wait another 4 weeks in New England.

Haroon, is still selling spring crops – bushy heads of lettuce and plump walla walla onions. Susan the orchardist has bushels of fresh white cherries and gooseberries. At $6/pound, this is less expensive than what’s being sold in the “supermarkets.” The large stone-fruits – peaches, plums and nectarines – won’t be ripe for another month. In the meantime, the raspberries are just coming into full force. This lets me know that the raspberries in my garden – are right on time with a few weeks to go until ripeness.

My Garden's Going to Seed & My Secret Source

Much of what I’ve learned through gardening has come from my friend Brett (who hams it up for the camera). I met Brett 15 years ago, in my native Washington, DC, when he was working as a chef at Restaurant Nora and I was a grill cook in my first job out of culinary school. When we met, he lived in Arlington, VA with his wife Christine. In his backyard he grew big heads of romaine lettuce, chilies and tomatillos along a chain-link fence and tomatoes in a sunny bed in the middle.

We both left Nora’s at the same time – he moved to Southern Maryland and bought an organic farm and I moved to Boston to work as a cook at Biba’s under the tutelage of Lydia Shire and Susan Regis. I visit Brett and Chris (and Allesandra who is now 9!) at least twice a year.

Like most professions, there’s also something to be done when running a farm. And like cooking in a restaurant, the to-do list has a timing that cannot be altered. In a restaurant, for example, you must serve a guest his dinner within 30 minutes of the order, not the next day or even 2 hours later. Similarly, on a farm, the produce and weather dictate when certain chores need to be done. Fields can only be plowed within a certain window before or after a heavy rain, tomatoes must be picked two days before full ripeness, and eggs must be gathered within 12 hours to prevent the chicken from demolishing them. Since Brett’s to-do list is always full, the only way to spend time with him is to work the land along with him – planting seeds, harvesting greens, sorting eggs or staking tomatoes. Over the years, our friendship has grown as has my knowledge of farming, soil management and organic seed genetics.

Much of Brett’s produce is familiar – tomatoes, watermelons, sweet potatoes and lettuces. Often he has a varietal that is not found in American markets – for example, the Courge Long de Nice – a French squash that resembles zucchini in the summer and butternut squash in the fall. The flavor has more depth than either of its American counterparts. But my favorite is the Peachy-Mama chili. Native to Brazil, this mild chili looks like a habanero, but tastes like a florally, sweet bell pepper. Since no seed supplier carries this line, he is careful to protect the seeds and the gene line.

Peachy- mamas take about 5 months from seed to fruit. Last summer some plants ripened a solid 3 weeks early. Brett was careful to harvest and save these seeds. This year, he is planting them with the expectation that this gene line will have a shorter maturation time.

Last summer Brett also sent me home with some broccoli raab seeds. I planted them in the fall and barely had a chance to enjoy the plants before the first snow fall came. When the snow finally melted this spring, a few plants began to emerge from the soil – winter tolerant raab. I shared with Brett this exciting news and promised to save the seeds for him. In Cambridge, we get too much snow for a winter hardy plant to survive in the fields, but Brett’s land does not get the amount of snow we do, so he can harvest in the fields (as opposed to greenhouses) throughout the winter months. With a seed that can survive sub-freezing temperatures, he will be able to grow the more flavorful field variety rather than the milder greenhouse.

The broccoli raab has taken since April to go from plant to flower to seed. Once the seed pods develop they must dry and cure before they are ready to be harvested. If harvested too soon they are green and wet, and will mold. When properly cured, the seeds are black and last for several years in the freezer. See green (uncured seeds) in the pods and black (cured seeds) in the background

Tales from the Farm - Late April

The Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay converge in Southern Maryland’s St. Mary’s County, and is home to Even’ Star Organic Farm. Brett Grohsgal, a former chef and former boss of yours truly, owns the farm with his wife Christine. In the summer on this fertile 100-acre parcel, they raise 25 varieties of heirloom tomatoes, as well as chilies (including my favorite – peachy-mamas), cucumbers, four varieties of watermelon and okra. They sell their produce at farmer’s markets in DC and Virginia, and to restaurants in the DC metro area. I treasure my visits to the farm because of the nonpareil produce and meats. The cooking is simpler because we cook mainly with farm products and other local produce.

Now that I’ve left Sebastians, I finally have time to visit the farm, and reconnect with (of course, Brett, Chris and Allesandra, but also) where our food comes from. I’ve been visiting the farm for as long as they’ve lived here – over 10 years – but it seems I am always learning and discovering something new.

The farm is “working” three seasons – harvesting the last of the winter crops, coaxing the spring crops and getting the summer crops in the ground. In terms of salable produce, the winter crops trickled down – mostly lettuces and braising green. The spring crops have not yet reached peak – the strawberries are only yielding a pint or two a day. Instead of gleaning the crops for maximum yield, Brett and his crew are working feverishly to get the summer crops in the ground.

Timing the planting of the summer crops is crucial. Last year, the farm experienced the worst drought on record, with less than 1” of rain from April 15 to October 1st. The effects were severe at best, but would have been tolerable if the crops had been in the ground long enough to establish their root systems. This year, Brett’s not taking any chances.

With a soaking rain forecast for Sunday, the mad dash begins to prepare the land. The clover that grew through the winter – 3 feet tall with red flowers -- will now be turned into the soil nourishing it with nitrogen and other critical compounds. When the rain stops, the soil will be tilled and is now ready for planting the next day. First crop in: Sweet Potatoes.

The other trick in timing is the temperature. In Southern Maryland, the last frost can be relatively early, in March or April. And every year, Brett experiments with getting a crop of tomatoes in the ground by mid-April so that he can be the first to market with ripe, field tomatoes in June. This week, the temperature may drop to 38F at night, which is cutting it close: the tomatoes seedling were just transplanted 5 days ago – but should still be fine for the tomatoes. A second round of seedlings in the green-house will put Brett at the market at the same time as other farmers… and these are his fail-safe.

End of the Season Cannellonis

With a twinkle of summer on the horizon, I’m less abashed using up my canned tomatoes from last summer.

12 Pasta Sheets cut into 4” squares
3 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups homemade ricotta
¼ cup parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons sliced garlic
1 pound braising greens
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon chopped shallots
¼ cup white wine
2 cups home-canned (preferably smoked) tomatoes
Salt, pepper and lemon juice, to taste
Cream and extra parmesan if desired.

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta sheets for 3 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water, and drain well. Toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Set aside.

2. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add sliced garlic. When the garlic starts to brown, add the green. Cook, stirring often, until the greens have wilted but are still bright green. Remove from pan to cool. Coarsely chop.

3. Make the filling by combining the ricotta, parmesan and braised greens. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

4. In a sauce pot – melt butter over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add wine, and cook until evaporated. Add tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes. Puree. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice (and a touch of cream if desired).

5. Roll pasta sheets with about 2-3 tablespoons of the filling. Put sauce in the bottom of a 9” x 13” pyrex dish. Place rolled cannellonis top. Drizzle cream and/or parmesan on top if desired
Bake for 30 minutes at 350, or until bubbly delicious looking.

Pasta dough:
1 lb. semolina flour, plus extra for dusting
4-5 large eggs as needed
1 tbs. olive oil
1 tsp. salt

1. Make a well in the flour, and add 4 of the eggs, olive oil and the salt.

2. Beat the eggs with a fork, gradually bringing in the flour from the sides of the well, until the paste has thickened enough so the liquid will not run onto the counter. Switch from a fork to a pastry cutter. Bring all the flour into the already wet part and cut through the dough several times until it is evenly moistened. Start kneading with your hands until the dough forms a ball and looks homogenized, about 8 minutes.

3. If the dough becomes stiff, and refuses to bend, rub in a little of the remaining egg. If the dough becomes too moist, add a bit of the flour.

Work the dough by machine:
4. Divide the dough into 3 balls, and let rest under a damp towel for 20 minutes. Start working the dough through the pasta machine starting with the widest setting. After running it through the machine, fold it into thirds, and run it through again. When the dough is smooth, run the dough through the machine through successively smaller settings. The dough will stretch out, and be rolled very thin.

5. When you have achieved thin sheets, you can let the dough rest for a few minutes before filling or cutting

Ricotta
1 quart whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
4 lemons, juiced
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a non-reactive 2 quart saucepan heat milk and cream to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Add juice and salt, stir well and let sit for 20 minutes. Line a conical sieve with cheesecloth or coffee filters and pour through, allowing the whey to drain out. Let stand at room temperature for 2 hours.