Melon

Here at the Sippel Family Farm we grow Muskmelon ( cantelope) and small watermelons. Not many recipes for these. The CROWS are loving the watermelons, lets hope they dont sample too many!

Sweet Corn

Tomatoes

We ahve so many varieties of Tomatoes, Heirlooms mostly. The difference between and heirloom and a hybrid tomato is that the Heirlooms are seeds from tomatoes that have remain unchanged by human science. Hybrid Tomatoes, typically red-round-boring, have been bred in a lab to be redder, rounder, more disease resistant, etc.

Some Heirloom Varieties we grow are: Cherokee Purple, Prudens Purple, Black Prince, Black Krim, Rose De Burne, Pink Brandywine, Yellow Brandywime, Roman CAndle, Striped German, Aunt Rubys German Green, Valencia, San Marzano Paste, and Great White.

We tend to use HEirlooms more foten than any other tomato. We like to make sauce from these. To make a simple sauce ( not for those that are afraid of seeds ) cut the top of the tomato off, squeese out the juice and seeds, rough chop and place tomatoes in a deep saucepan. Cook them on MED until the juice comes out and they are gently boiling. Boil, stirring occasionally, until the sauce becomes thick. I dont always mill out the seeds and skin, but you certainly could at this point. Add garlic, onion, hot pepper, green pepper, mushrooms- whatever you like in your sauce at this point. Season with salt and pepper, also a little bit of sugar can really brighten up a sauce. Enjoy with your favorite pasta- Add basil when serving, it doesnt cook well.

YOu can also get a more smokey sauce by cuttign the tops off the tomato, squeezing out seed and then placing them on a cookie sheet- with sides of course- and baking them in the oven with a little olive oil until they are very limp and slightly browned- you can cook the onion and garlic in the oven with them. 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, depending on the amount.

Tomatillo

Eggplant

Shallots

Bell Pepper

Mixed Summer Vegetable Recipes

Here is a good place for those recipes with a little bit of everything in them!

July 14, 2007 Pick-Up -WOW!!!

Cabbage

Ahhh...Cabbage Season! One of my favorites! Did you know that if people ate more cabbage in their diet ( this is science...) that we would have far fewer intestinal ailments in this country? It's true! Brassicas are the best thing you can do for your body! We grow severl types fo cabbage, this is the traditional green cabbage, we also grow red, savoy ( crinkly kind), and Napa ( Chinese Cabbage).

Of course, Cole slaw is a given. We use cabbage all year long, its the one thing we buy at the grocery when we run out in the winter. We like to sautee it with onions and add caraway seeds to the mixture, serve this with Pierogies ( mashed potatoes inside a pasta shell, can be found in the freezer section, or made from scratch) or add ground beef and put it inside pizza dough like a calzone! In the clazone, I would also add a TBS of vinegar to the cabbage-onion-beef-caraway mixture.

Shredded cabbage with a little lime juice on it makes a great topping for FISH TACOS!!! Our official favorite food! We use talapia, but red snapper is traditional- Toss fresh fish sliced into strips in seasoned flour, deep fry for a few minutes until crispy. Place in a soft corn tortilla with cliantro, shredded cabbage and sauce ( mix 2 TBS mayo with 1/4 cup sopur cream, the juice of 1 lime and 1/4 tsp celery seed) Yummy!

Basil

It's that time of year again! Time to make PESTO! and Tomato Basil Salads!

I do not recommend that you put basil in the refridgerator, I dont recommend washing it ahead of using it either. The best place to keep basil is in a glass of water on your counter, this way it will not turn black and will stay fresh for a week.

To make pesto, I just use a generic recipe, meaning I made it up!

In a food processor put a ton of basil, some garlic cloves ( or scapes) to your liking , a good amount of salt and,if you choose, pine nuts or walnuts. Puree until it is the desired texture. I like mine a little chunky. Slowly add olive oil until it is yout desired thickness. Add parmesean cheese just before you are planning to use the pesto, it gets kind of gross in the freezer or fridge with the cheese in it. Use this pesto on sandwiches, pasta, pizza, you name it!

To preserve pesto or plain basil, you can freeze it very easily. Using an ice cube tray will make easy work out of adding pesto or basil to your recipes. Simply remove the "basil cubes" after they are firmly frozen and put them in a plastic bag for long term storage, 6 months is about it.

To freeze pesto- just put it in the cubes as is.
To freeze plain basil, chop it and put in in ice cube trays with a little bit of water to fill the cube.

I have also heard that you can simply layer basil between sheets of wax paper and keep them in the freezer whole.

Garlic Scapes

Garlic Scapes are delicious! Unfortunately, we only have them for 2 weeks a year, so you wont be seeing them again until next year.....

Use them as you would cloves of garlic, chop them up and saute them with greens, chop them or grate them into a pulp ( using a micro plane or rasp ) for marinades and sauces or use them fresh in salads and such. They last quite a while in the fridge, so hang onto a few.

Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi is a member of the brassica family ( broccoli, cabbage...) In my opinion it tasted like a mixture of apples and cabbage. You can cook the greens as well. Peel the skin before using.

Grate Kholrabi to make ( or add to) cole slaw ( brassicas are also called COLE crops, hence the name) or just eat it raw in a salad or with a little bit of salt.

It can also be cooked. Roasted in the oven or steamed it becomes very sweet.

Beets

Other than Kale, Beets are my Favorite! We enjoy them roasted in the oven. This brings out the sugar in them and they are so delicious.

scrub and cut beets into quarters and place them on a cooke sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Place in a 400 degree oven for about 20-30 minutes, until tender and a little caramelized. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar when they come out , they are good warm or cold.

Also, Add a little sour cream to them and a bit of horseradish, if you like that kind of thing! This is super kid friendly since the hot pink sour cream gets all over your face when you eat the beets! Have fun!

The greens are edible as well, just wilt them in a pan with garlic and onions like you would any other green, they are healty and delicious.

Turnips

We grow a special kid of turnips. Many of you may be more familiar with the purple top variety. Remember, when you were young your mom cooked them to death? And they still tasted horrible! Ours are a japanese salad variety, very sweet and tender. WE like them raw, on salads or just alone with a veggie dip.

They are also good roasted and in soup. Try them, don't be afraid!

Summer Squash and Zuchini

I think everyone has their favorite recipe for these, we like to split them in half and brush them with olive oil, salt and pepper and toss them on the grill.

Make bread out of either one, good, but boring.

Kale

HUM...Kale, how can I explain how much I love this vegetable! I think it is responsible for Charlie being so big and healthy! There are many things you can do with Kale, our favorites:

Kale Tacos!- Saute garlic and onion in a little olive oil with any meat you like ( hot italian sausage, yum.) or no meat at all. ( we did chicken the other day with some chipotle peppers in adobo sauce found in the mexican isle) Chop the KAle and add it to the pan, put the lid on till the kale is wilted. Serve on soft corn tortillas ( also found in the mexican isle, heat them up in a dry skillet to make them softer) We top with cheese and sour cream.

Add chopped kale to spaghetti sauce.

Use sauteed KAle AS a topping for spaghetti.

and a recipe from a CSA member for Greens and Apples:

Saute an onion, sliced with red pepper flakes, until onion is
tender. Add 1 or 2 apples in small chunks. I also added bacon (2
slices) at this point. Cook a bit, then add chopped greens. Salt and
pepper, stir and add water and cook for 20 minutes or so. After this
is done, add a little sugar (tsp) followed by lemon juice (Tbsp?).
serve and eat.

Sometimes I add cooked sausage to this. It's nice for a change.

Lettuce Recipes

We have been told that we have the most beautiful heads of lettuce around! Not to brag or anything, but you will never see lettuce this big, fresh, and delicious at any store, local or from california!

Of course make a salad- But you can use it for lettuce wraps also. I see these in restaurants, served with grated carrots, grilled chicken or shrimp, sprouts, thinly sliced onion or scallions, all wrapped in a lettuce leaf and served with dipping sauces! You can cheat and use my favorite ( Newmans Own Sesame Ginger salad dressing) and add some peanut butter, that would be so delicious! Or you could go with the old stand-by, Ranch Dressing!

Escarole Recipes

Escarole is best cooked, however, it can be eaten fresh, it is slightly bitter and spicy raw.

The best recipe is:

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent ( add a slice of bacon to the mix if you like it) add rinsed and chopped escarole to the pan and put the lid on it for about 2 minutes. Stir until wilted. Add one rinsed can of white beans ( great northern, canolini) and stir gently until heated through. Serve this with pasta, or on top of crusty toasted bread. YUMMY!!!

Radish Recipes

Martha Stewart always fry's them in butter, cant beat that! Another member likes them sliced thinly on toasted crusty bread with creamy herb butter. I guess butter is the way to go!