Peas to You!
We've been busy at Pleasant Hills catching up with Mother Nature. As soon as all the plants and seeds are in the ground, our focus turns to battling weeds which can seem like an endless task when farming organically. As frustrating and tiring as it can be, it's worth every effort to provide our family and yours with chemically free produce and flowers.
Peas are one of my favorite first harvests of the season. I love how they adventurously climb weaving their fragrant flowers through our trellises and then seemingly overnight explode with pods so sweet you can eat them off the vine, as I often do. Peas thrive in cooler weather and shut down shortly after the high heat of summer arrives so it's important to enjoy them while we can!
This Week's Flower Share
Sweet Peas are the theme for this week's flower share. Their beautiful fragrance is undeniably special but I find their delicate stature make them difficult to pair with other flowers. I prefer them alone in a simple arrangement on my windowsill where they can fill the room with their soft aroma.
I also included a mixed arrangement of flowers from our gardens as well as a few wild flowers gathered in a foraging expedition around the farm. The arrangement includes hydrangea, veronica, celosia, and platycodon grandiflorus (balloon flower) along with an assortment of fresh herbs including lavender, oregano and dill.
This Week's Produce Share
Raspberries
Mint
Parsley
Oregano
Shallots
Garlic
Garlic Scapes
Radicchio
Fennel
Green peas
Rosemary Bread - Upper Crust Bakery
Strawberry Rhubarb Jam
Recipe Suggestions
Radicchio, Fennel and Olive Panzanella
The crunchiness of the bread toasted in lemon zest and olive oil along with the crispness of fresh fennel and radicchio make this one of my favorite summer salads. Add artisan salami, manchego cheese and olives and you can't go wrong!
I like to mix all the ingredients and dress the salad the night before so all the flavors have a chance to mix together. It doesn't crispness. This salad will be a hit at any barbecue or picnic! Enjoy with a good Pinot Noir.
Share Ingredients Used: Fennel, Radicchio, Oregano, Parsley, Shallot
Additional Ingredients Required: lemon, olive oil, salami, manchego cheese, green olives, country-style bread, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper
Raspberry Mint Mojito
Ingredients
2 lime wedges
1 sprig fresh mint
1/2 ounce Raspberry Infused Simple Syrup
2 ounces white rum
Fresh Raspberries
Raspberry Infused Simple Syrup
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 cups raspberries
In cocktail shaker, muddle the lime and mint leaves. Add in raspberry simple syrup and white rum. Add ice, cover and shake. Garnish with raspberries, mint leaves and lime. To make simple syrup, combine sugar and water in sauce pan. Cook the mixture over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Remove from saucepan and add in raspberries. Allow mixture to steep for at least 2 days in refrigerator but will keep for up to a month to add to any drink when desired.
Chilled Pea and Scallion Soup
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 medium shallots, finely chopped
2 bunches scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups shelled fresh peas
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
6 to 8 pieces country bread
12 fresh mint leaves
Heavy cream for drizzling (optional)
In a heavy sauce pan, heat 2 tablespoons for the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and the whites of the scallions and cook until soft and translucent, about 3 minutes. Pour the broth, add the peas and season with salt and pepper. Raise the heat to medium-high, bring to boil and then reduce heat to low, cover and and simmer until the peas are tender, about 6 minutes.
Working in batches, transfer the soup to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Strain into a a container, cover and chill for 2 hours. Taste and season the soup with salt and pepper as needed. In a small mixing bowl, toss the scallion greens with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. When you are ready to serve, grill or toast the bread and spoon the greens over. Place 1 crostino in each bowl and divide the soup among the bowls. Drizzle with heavy cream, sprinkle with chopped mint and serve.
About Garlic Scapes
Garlic scapes are my new epicurean obsession. If you have never tried them, you are in for a delightful surprise. Scapes shoot out of the garlic bulb. Farmers harvest them when they are young and tender to avoid depleting the garlic bulb of essential nutrients to grow. They look like long curly vegetable pasta! When in hand, I add them to just about any recipe for added flavor. My favorite way to prepare them though is grilling. Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper and then grill on an open flame 2 minutes and then turn for another 2 minutes. Add a little lemon zest and sea salt flakes and enjoy!
Garlic Scape Pesto
Another great use for them is in a pesto with pasta.