Morning Song Farm News

Ok, this is only a best guess, but I know a lot of our supporters would love to know what we think will be in boxes ahead of time, so here's what Sara and I have on our harvest list for next week. Understand that we're days away and "stuff" happens, so it's not set in cement.... Limes Kumquats Loquats for large shares Spicy stir fry mix bunches (bok choi, mustards, etc.) Cheno (that leafy green I've raved about that kind of "pops" in the frying pan as its seed heads are heated Basil Bunches (yeah!) Mixed Herb Bouquets--chives, rosemary, oregano, thyme and fennel Baby Lettuce Mix bags with Sara's amazing Edible Fowers and small quantity of Snap Peas (maybe 1/4 pound each) Avocados Carrots Cukes Green Onions Head Lettuce Swiss Chard (I think in both size boxes, but not sure)

When prepared properly, Kale Chips will kind of melt in your mouth with an explosion of nutty flavorfulness and a surprisingly satisfying crunch. Kale hasn't been fully appreciate until it's been enjoyed this way! This week we suggest you try kneading your kale in an olive oil herb marinade, rather than the typical Olive Oil and Salt mixture we've suggested before. Process: 1. Chop up your kale in bite sized pieces, eliminating the toughest part of the stalk, set aside. 2. Blend a mixture of herbs in the cuisinart with an 1/8 cup of California Olive Oil.  (If you haven't visited Temecula Olive Oil's on-line ordering site, you might be interested in joining their Olive Oil CSA: http://www.temeculaoliveoil.com/index.php/olive-oil-club.html . Thom, the owner/farmer is a dedicated olive tree grower, and has provided Morning Song Farm with their 100 olive trees. We're not in production yet (and when we are, Thom has offered to process our olives for us!) 3. A...

..... Ingredients: 3 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 2 Tablespoons finely chopped rosemary 2 eggs 1/2 cup melted butter 1/4 cup California Olive Oil 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/4 cup sugar 1 Tbsp lime zest 3 cups grated zuchhini To Do: 1. Preheat oven to 350. Prepare two loaf pans, coating withi butter. 2. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (except the sugar) with the rosemary. Set asisde. 3. Beat the eggs until frothy. Beat in the sugar. Add the melted butter and olive oil. stir in the zest and grated zuchs. 4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients, a little at a time, stirring between additions. 5. Bivide batter into two loaf pans. Bake in oven for 45 to 50 miniutes. Test after 40 minutes. If you gently press down on the loaf, it should bounce back, and a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. 6. Remove from oven and cool before removing loaves from their pans to cool.

Ingredients: Carrot Bunch, peeled and sliced thin 2 Tablespoons Butter Herb Bouquet Chopped 2 Tablespoons Dry Sherry 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar Pinch Salt Directions: Steam carrots until tender and drain. Return carrots to pot. Add herbs and gently toss. Cook on medium-low heat for about 5 minutes or untilo carrots are glazed.

The fun thing about the little bouquets of herbs you'll find in your shares this week; is you can toss the whole thing into a soup or stew with nothing but a quick rinse beforehand. Tie with a piece of kitchen twine. By keeping the herbs together in this fashion, it's super easy to remove them before serving.

Such an easy way to save herbs and have them ready for your use at a moment's notice. Combine herbs and butter in a cuisinart and puree. Place in plastic wrap and roll into a log. Chill, and then cut off what you need when you need it!

Another nice flush of mulberries to harvest this week off of the few trees that are producing. You'll only get a "taste" of these amazing and rare berries; we've added our neighbor's organic blueberries to the clamshells as a combination. We can't wait until next year, when 100 or so young mulberry trees should be more productive. For now, we only have enough for "taste tests!" It looks like our sapote trees may have a decent harvest this coming year, and our loquats may be ready to pick next week. Blackberries are just starting to come in! I'm guessing we'll have enough to send out in boxes in a couple weeks. Sara has combined a little of this and a little of that into a bunch of tender herbs, and suggests trying your hand at herb butter, see the recipe she suggests above. My current addiction, herbed kale chips are in our recipes this week. I know dehydrated kale sounds a little iffy, but you just have to try these chips! I can eat ...

Join us May 19, 2012 between 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 for our CSA cooking class being held in Santa Ana. Learn how to maximize your weekly basket in a number of ways with Farmer donna and Master Food Preserver Delilah snell of The Road Less Traveled. Prepare lunch made from the bounty of Morning song Farm while understanding how to make creative meaqls and bases for other dishes. Workshop ends with lunch, recipes included. Limited seats * call to RSVP: 714-836-8727 Cost: $15 per person for CSA members, $25 for non CSA members

Ingredients:  One bunch of celery, cut into pieces 1 starch potato such as Russet 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter 1 medium onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, crushed 1/2 cup dry white wine 1 quart veggie stock Seasalt to taste dash of hot sauce ground white pepper, to taste Saute the celery, garlic and onion for 2-3 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add wine and cook for a couple minutes. Add the stock and the potato. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Then lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Keep an eye on the potato and celery and adjust simmering time so that potato and celery don't become mushy. Remove from heat, cool to be safe; and puree in a cuinsart or blender, dividing into batches so as not to overfill your appliance. Return soup to pot and simmer again, season with your salt, pepper, hot sauce. Garnish with a little chopped celery, serve.

First off, making your own coconut shreds is a real money saver, and you'll be guaranteeing a much fresher product. Just open a store bought coconut, and shred; either with a carrot grater or with a Cuisinart. I've done it both ways. I then thinly spread my coconut on a cookie sheet and dry in a warm oven. Don't cook to the point that the nut meats turn brown. This may seem like a lot of extra effort, but you sure get a lot of coconut shreds for the price of one fruit. I store in a glass jar and use in dessert recipes, top smoothies and scatter in salads. If you want to make your own butter for this recipe:  (If you want to try making your own butter as we do here on the farm, choose an organic heavy cream (don't use non organic grocery store cow-milk cream because conventional producers now almost certainly have numerous ingredients besides just cream--but don't take my word for it; check out the label! Shocking! ). We use a basic Kitchen Aid stand-al...

Here's a quick recipe for an impressive dessert: First prepare a kumquat reduction, see recipe under "Kumquat" at right. You'll also need to purchase Chambord, which is a black Raspberry Liquer (optional) Makes 6 servings 3/4 cup sugar 1 and a half cups of fresh grapefruit juice pinch of salt In a saucepan, heat 1 1/2 cups of water and the sugar over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved. Stir in the grapefruit jice and the salt. Transfer to an ice cream maker and freeze according toi the manufacturer's instructions. Or: freeze the recipe in an old-fashioned ice-cube tray and then using a Vita-Mix or other heavy-duty blender, puree the frozen cubes until velvetey smooth. Pour into a bowl, freeze for an hour or so; and then scoop into serving bowls, top with your Kumquat reduction and a spash of Chambord.

Click on image to enlarge for easier viewing. Enjoy the grapefruit, juice and freeze! We won't have any in next week's shares. The only unusual leafy green this week is Mizuna; an Asian green that can be both eaten raw in salads (not quite as spicy as arugula) or it can be lightly sauteed or steamed. No mulberries this week; looks like they'll be plenty again next week to give at least the large shares, and maybe all shares a taste of these amazing berries. We only have a few trees in full production this year, but next year we'll have 100 trees or so to harvest from. Kumquats in this week's shares have plenty of uses! The "reduced" juice of the skin and fruit makes the most amazing reduction you may ever taste. The full flavor of the kumquat isn't realized until it's been cooked down, so click "Kumquat" at the right of this blog and kumquat recipes, including our Kumquat Reduction recipe will pop up. Use your reduction for a Kumqu...