Garden fresh!

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Last night I had the first major harvest out of my garden.  “Major” is relative, of course.  I picked the very pretty bunch of turnips pictured here: a small bunch of Scarlett Queen and Hakurei turnips, as well as small handfuls of spinach, swiss chard, and lacinato kale.  It was pretty exciting!

You know what they say: easy come, easy go - and my harvest is no exception.  I cooked it all up immediately for a vegetarian dinner that qualifies for One Local Summer.  The turnips were cooked up in my usual way (the addition of more traditional tasting turnips was new), and I used up all that kale from the CSA share - along with the greens from my garden - in a casserole of cheese, greens, and spelt.  The casserole is a really excellent way to use up any greens you have:

1 c. spelt berries
2 lbs of assorted greens
6 large garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp olive oil
parmesan cheese
fresh mozzarella

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Boil a few cups of water and pour over spelt.  Put a plate or something over the bowl and steam for 20 minutes.

Tear up the greens into bite sized pieces, being sure to keep each variety separate.  Wash thoroughly and drain.  Put the tougher greens (kale, collards) in a large pan with about an inch of water.  Cook over medium heat for about four minutes.  Add in less tough greens (spinach, chard) and cook for a few minutes more.  Drain all greens very well.

Heat oil over medium heat and saute garlic for a few minutes.  Add greens and drained spelt; season with salt and pepper.  Grate some parmesan over the greens (how much depends on you - I like mine with a lot of cheese).

Butter a casserole dish.  Throw in about half the greens and top with a few slices of fresh mozzarella.  Throw in the rest of the greens and finish with more mozzarella.

Bake for 20 minutes.

It was pretty darn yummy, and the spelt made it really filling.

Where it all came from:
kale, Landisdale Farm - 100 miles
spinach, my garden - 0 miles
swiss chard, my garden - 0 miles
lacinato kale, my garden - 0 miles
garlic, my garden - 0 miles
mozzarella, handmade from local milk - 30 miles
parmesan, Hendricks Farm - 39 miles
spelt berries, Small Valley Milling - 120 miles
turnips, my garden - 0 miles
red onions, Landisdale Farm - 100 miles
butter, homemade from Dutch Way Dairy cream - 100 miles