It’s a good day when you learn something new. For instance, did you know that radishes assist in reducing fever symptoms such as inflammation and help to lower the body’s temperature? This is just one of the many interesting facts about radish. There are over 100 varieties of radish, which make up 2% of the total world vegetable production! That is a great amount of radish in the world!

The radish crop comes from the Brassicaceae family, and is cousin to broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale and turnip. Like its cousins, radish comes with a litany of potential health benefits which include lowering blood pressure, regulating blood sugar, and treating respiratory ailments. The benefits of course include nutrients such as, well sought-after vitamin C and B6, folic acid, potassium, iron and selenium.  And, more!

It may also benefit you to know about radish’s ability to decongest that stuffy nose and reduce mucus. This time of year, the anti-congestive qualities of radish are extremely helpful. Radish is said to decrease congestion of the nose, throat, windpipe, and lungs; occurring from colds, infections, and allergies. To receive such benefit from our friend the radish, it is recommended that the radish is juiced in combination with other delicious, healing fruits and vegetables (please see juicing recipe below).

We really enjoy radish here at Blue Sky Organic Farms. Therefore, we grow a wide variety all year round. Our variety includes the French Breakfast, Easter Egg, Red, Daikon, and the colorful Watermelon radish. For those who know and love radish, you may have some wonderful recipes of your own you’d like to share. And, please do! However, if you are new to the radish scene, or have yet to develop your joy for its taste, we suggest finely slicing radish into your salads. Paired with the other ingredients in your salad you can receive its health benefits without the intensity of its peppery bite. Before you know it, you may find yourself slicing your radish a little thicker as you begin to enjoy its unique flavor. We have also picked out a few recipes to help you on your path to enjoying more radish in your life. Enjoy, and have fun in the kitchen coming up with your own favorite ways in which to prepare our friend, the robust radish.

Buttered Leeks and Radish (recipe by Kay Chun)

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 3 scallions or spring onions, cut into 2-inch pieces
• ¼ lb. radishes, quartered
• 3 leeks, white and light green parts only, cleaned and thinly sliced crosswise
• ½ cup chicken broth
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

• Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the spring onions and cook until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the radishes and cook another minute. Remove the spring onions and radishes from the pan and set aside.
• Add the leeks, chicken broth, salt, and lemon juice and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the parsley, scallions, and radishes and toss well. Plate and enjoy!

Radish Remedy Juice (recipe sourced from livelovefruit.com)

Ingredients:

2 cups radish
4 sticks celery
1 inch fresh ginger root
1/2 lemon, peeled

Directions:

1. Run all the above ingredients through a juicer and enjoy immediately!

 

Glazed Radishes

Ingredients:

1 lb. radish (trimmed)
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley leaves

 

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan melt butter, sugar, and salt over low heat. Add the radishes in a single layer and continue to cook while stirring, for 1 minute.
2. Add the 1/2 cup of water, cover and simmer for 10-15 min, or until radishes are tender
3. Once tender, uncover and continue to cook until the liquid has been reduced to a glaze. Shake pan occasionally to get a nice coat of the glaze on all sides of the radish. Enjoy on as a side dish or as an addition to your salad.

 

Veggie Cream Cheese

Ingredients:

6-8 radishes (depends on size)
3 green onions, white and green parts

1 Tbsp of chopped fresh Dill
1 package of Cream Cheese (room temperature)
Salt & pepper to taste

 

Directions:

1. Finely chop all vegetable ingredients (mini food processor works best)
2. Add softened cream cheese to chop ingredients and mix (can be completed in food processor)
3. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy on sandwiches, crackers, pretzels, pita, or with your favorite smoked salmon.

 

CSA Farm Box Contents for the week of 1/22/2018

 

First off, may I begin by thanking each one of you for joining us at our Open Farm Day event. We were blown away with the amount of community members that joined in the festivities. This outpour of community involvement gives us great hope for the future of local, organic agriculture.

As many of you have requested, we are posting the recipes for the soups featured at Open Farm Day, created by Chef Peter Russo. These soups require minimal ingredients, and are best made with Blue Sky Organic Farms produce, of course!

Once again, thank you for your support. Thank you for choosing local, organic produce! We look forward to seeing each of you at our next Open Farm Day on February 25^th. Cheers!

 

Carrot and Fennel Soup

Recipe by: Chef Peter Russo

Ingredients:

2 quarts chicken stock (or vegetable stock)

2 lbs carrots

2 large fennel bulbs

2 cloves of garlic

Juice of 2 oranges

2 Tbsp Olive Oil or Unsalted Butter

 

Directions:

1. Dice fennels bulbs, and reserve fennel fronds for garnish.
2. Slice carrots into coin size pieces, and mince garlic.
3. Sautee fennel with minced garlic in a heated pot, with 2 Tbsp of Olive Oil or unsalted butter.
4. Deglaze sautéed items with the juice of 2 oranges
5. Add carrots to the fennel and garlic, add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Cover ingredients with chicken or vegetable stock. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 20 minutes or until the carrots are fork tender.
7. Remove half the contents of the soup, and puree in a Vitamix, blender, or food processor.
   1. Please employ precautionary methods by removing the plastic center component of the blender lid, and cover this opening with a dish towel while blending. This will prevent the build up of steam and a possible blender explosion. Do not full blender over half full of hot contents/liquid, work in batches if necessary.
8. Pour blended contents back into the pot with the other half of the ingredients.
9. Serve in a bowl with a dollop of sour cream, and garnish with the fennel fronds. Enjoy!

 

Beet and Ginger Soup

Recipe by: Chef Peter Russo

Ingredients:

2 ½ lbs of Red Beets

¼ cup of chopped ginger

¼ cup chopped leek

¼ cup chopped garlic

1 cucumber

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 Tbsp Fresh Dill

Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Peel raw beets and chop into equal size pieces
3. Toss beets in 1 Tbsp of olive oil, salt and pepper.
4. Place uncovered in preheated oven, roast for 20-25 minutes until fork tender (cooking times vary based per individual oven).
5. Sautee chopped garlic, ginger, and leeks in 2 Tbsp of olive oil.
6. Once translucent, add roasted beets and cover ingredients with fresh water.
7. Bring to a boil, and let simmer for 15 minutes.
8. Puree in Vitamix, blender or food processor.
   1. Please employ precautionary methods by removing the plastic center component of the blender lid, and cover this opening with a dish towel while blending. This will prevent the buildup of steam and a possible blender explosion. Do not full blender over half full of hot contents/liquid, work in batches if necessary.
9. Once blended your soup is ready to be served with a garnish of cucumber slices and dill. Enjoy!

 

Escarole and White Bean Soup

Recipe by: Chef Peter Russo

Ingredients:

3 cloves of garlic

1 leek

2 Tbsp of unsalted butter

2 cups of white beans soaked overnight (or you can use two cans of white beans)

1 head of escarole

2 quarts of chicken stock

 

Directions:

1. Slice leeks and chop garlic
2. Sautee garlic and leeks in a heated pot with the unsalted butter.
3. Chop escarole, add to sautéed ingredients.
4. Add chicken stock to the pot
5. Add soaked white beans, and salt/pepper to taste.
6. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until white beans are fully cooked (20 minutes if using canned beans).
7. Serve in a bowl with Parmesan cheese to garnish (optional).

There are few other simple pleasures that compare to a warm, bowl of homemade soup. This is particularly true as the cold winds pick up, and we do our best to stay warm. Homemade soup can sometimes take hours to prepare. When you have a winning soup recipe that takes less than one hour to prepare, you kindly pass it on to your friends!

Let’s begin, shall we? In your CSA Farm Box this week you will notice the very fluffy, crisp, broad-leafed chicory family member, escarole. This curly leafed green, grows quite large at Blue Sky Organic Farms, especially this time of year. It enjoys the cold air, and we enjoy it in our warm soup!

Moving from the outward leaves inward you will notice the shade of green changes, as well as the flavor.  The slightly bitter notes of escarole tend to decrease as you move toward the center (lighter green) area of the head. We find it best to cook the outer leaves and if the center, lighter leaves are tender enough we will add them to our salads. Escarole is a good friend indeed, as it provides us with dietary fiber (16 grams per average sized head), antioxidants (carotenoid compounds), minerals (high in iron, calcium, and potassium), and a large amount of Vitamin A (more than 100% RDA), Vitamin K (60%-74% RDA), and C. Escarole is known to be one of the best sources of Vitamin K!

The leaves are versatile and can be prepared in a multitude of ways; grilled, sautéed, or in place of any leafy green. Which brings me to that quick to prepare soup you have been waiting for. It is one of my favorite recipes because it is light, flavorful, and of course, easy! I originally came across this recipe online at 3 Italian Sisters. It is an Italian soup called Zuppa di Scarola e Fagioli (Escarole & Bean Soup).

Escarole & Beans (Zuppa di Scarola e Fagioli) (sourced from www.3italiansisters.com)

Ingredients

• 1 head of Escarole, cut into bite size pieces
• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced thin or minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• ½ tsp. red chile flakes
• 2 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth or water
• 1 can cannellini beans, rinsed in cool water.
• pecorino romano cheese
• optional additions: chunks of pepperoni, sausage or soppressata, ham hock, or meatballs

Instructions (makes approximately 4 servings)

1. Clean escarole leaves in large basin of water to rid greens of sand and grit.
2. Rinse until all grit is gone and then chop leaves into bite size pieces.
3. In a large pot, add olive oil and minced garlic and sauté for 1 min.
4. Add escarole leaves, salt, pepper, red chili flakes, chicken broth or water and then
5. Simmer for 5 minutes until escarole wilts.
6. Add the beans and simmer for 15- 20 minutes more or until escarole is tender, add more broth if you like it soupy.. Adjust seasonings and serve.
7. Sprinkle with grated pecorino cheese and large loaf of toasted Italian bread to soak up the delicious broth… Enjoy!

 

And, just in case soup is not your gig, here is a simple recipe for sautéing your escarole.

 

Sautéed Escarole with Garlic and Parmesan Cheese (sourced from theperfectpantry.com)

Ingredients

8 cups roughly chopped escarole
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, slivered
1/4 to 1/2 tsp mild red pepper flakes, to taste
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp fresh black pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, or more to taste

Instructions (makes approximately 4-6 servings)

1. Wash the escarole in a bowl of cold water, and spin dry in a salad spinner, leaving a little bit of water on the greens.
2. In a very large frying pan, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Sauté the garlic for 30 seconds, to infuse the oil.
3. Add the escarole, in batches if necessary, stirring gently until the hot oil begins to wilt the greens. When all the escarole is in the pan, toss in the red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.
4. Cover the pot, reduce heat to low, and cook for 5 minutes, until the greens are wilted and soft.
5. Transfer the escarole to a serving dish, and top immediately with grated cheese.
6. Serve hot.

Come pick up some delicious organic jam at the Farm Store before it sells out!

Hello Friends!

We wanted to make you aware of the deals going on right now with the Organic Pastured Chickens.  

Deal #1 :

We have a selected number of meat chickens that we tested a different cooling method with and it turned out to have dried them out a bit, so they would be excellent for dog food.  You could then use the chicken bones (cooked) for chicken stock.

You won’t believe this, but we are able to put these chickens on sale for a smoking’ deal:
Buy 5 chickens 
(the birds that got a little dried out, but would be great for dog food and chicken stock)
at the $4/lb sale price, and get TWO FREE!

Buy 10 Organic Pastured Chickens at the SALE price of $5.95/lb, get one FREE!

That is a steal.

The even better news is, you can call ahead to reserve your chickens in the Farm Store,

or we will even bring them to one of our farmer’s markets Saturday mornings.

(Roadrunner, Old Town Scottsdale, or Verrado)

This sale won’t last as numbers of these beautiful birds are limited! Call now!

623-266-4031