Kitchen Gardeners

This is another cool organization devoted to eating locally - check them out here:

kitchengardeners.org

What is KGI?

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
-Margaret Mead (1901 - 1978) US anthropologist

MISSION:
Kitchen Gardeners International is a 501c3 nonprofit founded in Maine, USA with friends from around the world. Our mission is to empower individuals, families, and communities to achieve greater levels of food self-reliance through the promotion of kitchen gardening, home-cooking, and sustainable local food systems. In doing so, KGI seeks to connect, serve, and expand the global community of people who grow some of their own food.

Eat the View: The White House Organic Garden Campaign

This is pretty cool - a movement to have the White House plant an organic garden.

Learn about it here at : eattheview.org

White House Farmer Update

Web site sows support for White House farmer

"Support growing for Carrie Little, manager of Mother Earth Farm in Puyallup, Wash. Run by the Emergency Food Network, the farm supplies local food banks and hot meal programs."

Veggie Tips

Passing these on from my favorite local farm near Puyallup - Terry's Berries:

Veggie tips

Root Vegetables are the mainstay of winter eating. Make roasted roots several times throughout the month; it's an easy way to prepare a variety of veggies that takes relatively little hands on time, freeing you up to prepare the rest of a meal. And it's a great way to use up those loose roots rolling around in the bottom drawer of your frig. Simply chop your roots uniformly in size and coat with olive oil, dried thyme, chopped garlic, and a little salt. Roast in a baking dish uncovered for about an hour at 350 degrees although I think covering with foil hastens cooking and keeps them moister.

Veggie Coleslaw: A note from Jamie Oliver from his book Jamie at home: "Coleslaw is something most of us have grown up eating, yet a lot of the time it must have been made so badly! With this in mind, I want to bring it back with a vengeance. I've used yogurt instead of mayonnaise to bind the vegetables because it not only tastes better, in my opionion, but it's also healthier. If your are struggling to find radishes or fennel, don't worry. Just do what you can, but remember that the more interesting crunchy vegetables you can get shredded, the better!! Time to get a food processor if you don't have one!" See winter beg coleslaw recipe below.

Beets, one of the 10 best foods you are not eating!! (from Men's Health) Think of beets as red spinach, they are an excellent source of folate and betaine. These two nutrients work together to lower your blood levels of homocysteine, a compound that can damage your arteries and increase your risk of heat disease. Best to eat them fresh and raw. Wash and peel one beet and grate it on the widest blade of a box grater. Toss with 1 tbsp olive oil and the juice of half a lemon.

Other veggies on the 10 best foods list are cabbage, swiss chard, dried plums(prunes) and pumpkin seeds, pomegranate juice, cinnamon, and purslane. Purslane can be a big weed problem for some farmers but it is a good addition to salads and our employees from Mexico harvest it to take home. You can actually buy seeds to grow it in your garden!

Recipes

Here's some more great recipes:

Beet and Apple Salad

From Rolling Prairie Cookbook

4 to 5 medium-sized beets, cooked, cut into large cubes

1 large firm apples, unpeeled, cut into large cubes

1 /4 cup slivered red onion

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar

1 /4 tsp salt

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp minced shallots

1 /4 tsp sugar or honey

Toss beets, apples, and red onions together in a medium-sized bowl. Mix remaining ingredients for dressing. Pour over vegetables and toss well to mix. Chill. Serves 4.

Another easy way to fix beets.

Quick Grated Beets

3 -4 beets, about 1 pound

1 tbsp butter or olive oil

1 to 3 tbsp lemon juice to taste

3 to 6 tbsp water or stock

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Chopped parsley

1. Coarsely grate scrubbed beets. (Peel if desired)

2. Heat butter or oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium-low heat. Add beets, and stir to coat well. Toss with salt and pepper. Add 1 /4 cup water, then cover the pan and cook over medium heat until the beets are tender. (5 to 10 minutes)

3. Remove the lid and raise the heat to boil off any excess water. Taste for salt, seaon with lemon juice or vinegar and toss with an herb.

Variation: Cook the beets in orange juice

Honeyed Beet Quinoa Salad, with variations
from Fresh from the Farm and Garden by The Friends of the UCSC Farm and
Garden

6 beets, roasted
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 cups orange juice
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup fruity olive oil
3 cups cooked quinoa, or another grain such as brown rice or couscous or??
1 cup crumbled feta cheese, or shredded parmesan, or??, optional
1 cup toasted walnuts or almonds, roughly chopped
1/2 cup chopped basil OR cilantro
1/2 cup chopped parsley
6 minced green onions or 3 shallots or other mild allium
lettuce greens, ready for eating as salad

Dice roasted beets and marinate in orange and lemon juice and honey at least
one hour. (Julia's note: I warm up my honey a bit before mixing it in the
juices/oil... but don't make it too hot or it will 'cook' the juice and
fruity oil!) Combine with other ingredients except salad greens. Chill at
least one hour to allow flavors to blend. Serve on bed of salad greens or lettuce.

Roasted Beets with Walnuts and Blue Cheese

California Home Cooking by Michele Anna Jordan

1 pound small beets, golden, white or chioggia (or red!)
1 T olive oil
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
2 T extra virgin olive oil

preheat oven to 350 degrees
Wash and trim beets but do not peel them. Toss them with the olive oil in a
bowl, and transfer them to a baking sheet. Roast them until they are tender
when pierced with a fork, 40 to 90 minutes, depending on their size. Remove
the beets from the oven and set them aside until they are cool enough to
handle. Using your fingers, remove and discard the beet skins. Cut the beets
into wedges, and place the wedges in a small serving bowl. Add the walnuts
and extra virgin olive oil, toss ad several turns of pepper (from a pepper
mill), and toss again. Scatter the blue cheese over the beets, and serve.

Beet and Carrot Pancakes (yes, really!)

a great way to eat beets, especially if you use golden ones, with carrots, no one know they are beets!

1 1 /3 cups packed coarsely shredded peeled beets (from about 2 mediuim)

1 cup coarsely shredded peeled carrots (from 2 medium)

1 cup thinly sliced onion

1 large egg

1 /2 tsp salt

1 /4 tsp pepper or to taste

1 /4 cup all purpose flour

3 tbsp olive oil

Low-fat sour cream

Preheat oven to 300 F. Place baking sheet in oven. Combine beets, carrots and onion in large bowl. Mix in egg, salt and pepper. Add flour; stir to blend well.

Heat 1 1 /2 tbsp oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Using 1 /3 cup beet mixture for each pancake, drop 4 pancakes into skillet. Flatten each into 3-inch round. Cook until brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer pancakes to baking sheet in oven; keep warm. Repeat with remaining beet mixture, making 4 more pancakes.

Serve pancakes with sour cream.

The best winter veg coleslaw

from Jamie at Home: Cook your way to the Good Life, by Jamie Oliver

shared with us by share member Susan Scott, who says her family loves it. Other choices of root veg would be rutabaga and sunchokes (soon to be in the share). And how about a leaf or two of kale with that cabbage.

2 carrots, peeled (different colors if you can find them)

1 bulb of fennel, trimmed

Use at least 2 of the following:

3-4 radishes

1 light colored beet

1 turnip, peeled

` 1/2 a small celeriac, peeled (or 1/4 of the large)

14 ounces red and green cabbage, outer leaves removed

1 /2 a red onion, peeled

1 shallot, peeled

1 lemon

olive oil

a handful of fresh soft herbs, mint, fennel, dill parsley or chervil

1 cup plain yogurt

2 tbsp mustard

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Shred the carrots, fennel, and your choice of the other four veggies on a mandoline, or use the julienne slicer in your food processor. Put the veggies into a mixing bowl. Slice the cabbage, onion and shallot as finely as you can and add to the bowl.

In a separate bowl, mix half the lemon juice, a glug of extra virgin olive oil, the chopped harbs, yogurt and mustard. Pour this dressing over the veg and mix well to coast everything. Season to taste with salt and pepper and the rest of the lemon juice if you like.

Blueberry Sauce,

our favorite sauce to put on French Toast or cottage cheese pancakes

from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

3 cups blueberries

2 tsp molasses

1 /3 to 1 /2 cup sugar to taste

1 tsp cinnamon or ginger, or 1 /2 tsp nutmeg

Juice of one lime to taste

1. Rinse the berries, and put them in a saucepan with the water clinging to them. Add the molasses and sugar, starting with the lesser amount, and the spice. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. The berries should burst and fall apart. Taste, add the rest of the sugar if needed, and stir in the lime juice.

Roasted Root vegetables with Green onions

1 /4 cup olive oil

2 tbsp pure maple syrup

4 large beets, peeled, quartered

2 Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed, quartered

2 carrots, peeled, cut diagonally into 2 inch long pieces

2 parsnips, peeled, cut diagonally into 2 inch long pieces

1 large sweet potato, peeled, cut into 1 1 /2 inch pieces

1 rutabaga, peeled, cut into 1 1/ 2 inch pieces

1 large onion, peeled, quartered through root end

2 tbsp butter, melted

1 /3 cup chopped green onions( Frying up some thinly sliced leeks to frizzle them would be good and they are a winter veggie)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix oil, syrup and garlic in small bowl. Place all remaining ingredients except butter and green onions on heavy large rimmed baking sheet.. Pour oil mixture over; toss to coat.

3. Spread out vegetables in single layer. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast until tender and golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 1 1 /2 hours.

4. Transfer vegetables to platter. Drizzle vegetables with butter. Sprinkle with chopped onions and serve immediately. Serves 6

Apple, Sauerkraut & Cheddar Quesadillas

1 cup sauerkraut, rinsed

1 /2 cup water

2 9 to 10 inch flour tortillas

1 1 /3 cups grated cheddar cheese

1 small Granny Smith or other tart, juicy apples, peeled and very tinly sliced (I grated it)

1. Put rinsed sauerkraut and water in a medium skillet. Gently heat just until the liquid has evaporated but not so much tht the sauerkraut begins to stick to the pan. Remove from the heat.

2. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium to low heat. Put one tortilla in the pan and immediately sprinkle 2/3 cup cheese over half of it. Quickly arrange the apple over the cheese, then top with the sauerkraut. Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.

3. Top with the other tortilla and press gently. Heat the quesadilla until the bottom is golden, about 2 minutes, then carefully flip and lightly brown the other side. Slide the quesadilla onto a cutting board and cut it into halves or quarters. 2 main dish servings

Cabbage and White Bean soup with Sausage

from www.epicurious.com

4 tbsp olive oil, divided

12 ounces bully cooked chicken apple sausages, halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1 /2 inch thick slices (I like smaller)

4 cups thinly sliced green cabbage

3 leeks white and pale green parts only, halved lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise (about 3 cups)

2 cups carrot, cut in half lengthwise, and then sliced crosswise, 1/2 inch or smaller

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 tbsp chopped fresh Italian parsley

1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

8 cups chicken broth, (start with 6 and add more if necessary)

1 15 oz can cannellini beans, rinsed, drained

1. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in heavy large pot over medium-heat. Add sausage slices and saute until brown around edges, about 5 minutes. Add cabbage; saute 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl.

2. Add remaining 2 tbsp of oil to same pot and heat over medium heat. Add leeks and carrots and saute until soft, stirring occasionally,about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, parsley, and rosemary and stir 1 minutes.

3. Add broth, sausage-cabbage mixture, and beans and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 40 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

DOUBLE CELERY AND POTATO SOUP

Using a handheld blender to puree the soup right in the pot makes it easier to prepare. If the celery root is stringy, press the soup through a strainer.

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
1 large onion, chopped
2 medium-size Yukon Gold potatoes (about 12 ounces), peeled, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 medium celery roots (celeriac; about 1 1/2 pounds total), peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 large fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
8 cups low-salt chicken broth
5 celery stalks with leaves, stalks thinly sliced, leaves reserved

1/3 cup whipping cream

Melt butter with oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add leeks and onion and sauté until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in potatoes, celery roots, thyme, and bay leaf. Add broth and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 40 minutes. Add celery stalks and simmer until all vegetables are very tender, about 12 minutes longer. Cool slightly.

Using handheld blender, puree soup in pot. Stir cream into soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill celery leaves. Cool soup slightly. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled. Rewarm soup over medium heat before serving.) Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with reserved celery leaves and serve. Makes 8 servings. Bon Appétit February 2003

POTATO, CELERY ROOT, AND JERUSALEM ARTICHOKE PUREE

1/2 lemon
2 pounds (1 kg) russet potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
12 ounces (375 g) Jerusalem artichokes (sunchokes), peeled
1 medium celery root (celeriac), peeled, cut in half, then cut into thick slices
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Fill a large bowl with water, squeeze the half lemon into it, and then add the lemon half as well, Peel the potatoes and the Jerusalem artichokes, placing them directly in the acidulated water.

2. Bring plain water to a boil in the bottom of a vegetable steamer. Place the celery root in the top and cook until it begins to turn tender, 10 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook until the celery root is nearly tender through, 10 minutes. Then add the Jerusalem artichokes and cook until they are tender through, about 10 minutes.

3. Transfer the vegetables to a large bowl, of to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough blade, and blend to a consistent but slightly chunky purée (do not puré them in a food processor or they will turn to glue). Add the butter and continue mixing until it is incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve piping hot.
Makes 6 servings. French Farmhouse Cookbook November 1996

Emergency Food Network - The Mother Earth Farm

Here's more on the Emergency Food Network in Pierce County, Washington

http://www.efoodnet.org/mother_earth.htm

Carrie Anne Little — Mother Earth Farm

Apparently, there is lots of support for Carrie Anne Little. This is from one of her supporters:

Carrie Anne Little — Mother Earth Farm

I believe that above all “The White House Farmer” must project a determination to see every person in the United States has access to high quality fresh food every day regardless of economic circumstances. In Pierce County, Washington, Carrie Little has lived and worked this belief for the past 16 years.

In 1993, Carrie became a volunteer at the newly formed Guadalupe Gardens urban community garden project. It was the goal of this group to provide fresh vegetables free of charge to homeless and low-income people in Tacoma, Washington by turning empty space in the economically depressed central area of that city into organic gardens. By the end of that first season, Carrie had become “the farmer in charge” and by 1996, the project had grown from one lot to nine lots providing significant produce not only to low-income individuals but also to the community’s largest food pantry (St. Leo’s Food Connection) and largest soup kitchen (The Hospitality Kitchen).

By 1999, the fledgling Guadalupe Gardens had become a significant project of the Pierce County Washington State University Cooperative Extension Program.

Carrie and I had crossed paths numerous times at social/political events. As executive director of the sole food bank in Pierce County, I was well aware of the impact of Guadalupe Gardens and the magic Carrie created.

In 1999, the Emergency Food Network (EFN) was offered the opportunity to create a “food bank farm” on eight-acres of prime farmland in the Puyallup Valley. As fresh produce is difficult for food banks to secure on a regular basis and farmland in the Puyallup Valley is disappearing at an alarming rate, the board of directors gave us permission to pursue the project.

I immediately sought out Carrie Little and offered her the daunting task of turning the formerly leased “high production”, pesticide riddled acreage into an organic farm. Carrie, having conquered the task of developing scattered urban organic gardens, accepted my offer of rebuilding soil and producing food that would go directly into the community’s emergency food system.

While not certified, Mother Earth Farm uses no non-organic materials of any kind in the production of fruits and vegetables. Since full acreage use began in 2004 – after four years of rebuilding the soil quadrant by quadrant – the farm has produced more than 150,000 pounds each year. All of this food has gone into food pantries and soup kitchens in Pierce County on the day of harvest (please see website: www.efoodnet.org and click on Mother Earth Farm page).