Season 2 :: Week 4

Yes, we didn't post during our third week. Sorry for that but we did let all our facebook friends know we would be at the Market. We didn't totally forget about everyone.

I shall make it up to you by posting a killer recipe! We have been eating these stuffed peppers weekly and they are so delicious. Roasting the peppers gives them a get taste and texture.

Before I get to the peppers though, I want to let you know we will be at the Ferndale Public Market tomorrow. Our melons aren't ready yet (hopefully we will have some in a couple weeks, they are a few weeks behind) but we will have:

Kale
Salad Mix
Heads of Red and Green Leaf Lettuce
Purple and Yellow String Beans
Baby Carrots
Purple and Orange Carrot Mix
Red Cabbage
Fingerling Potatoes (both pink and yellow)
Snap Peas
A Handful of Heirloom Tomatoes
Flower Bouquets

Now for the stuffed pepper recipe. This is both vegetarian and gluten free but if you want to throw some ground beef or turkey in the mix, that would be good too!

Stuffed Peppers

created by Emily Marrs

feeds 2 (for main dish) or 4 (as a side dish)

INGREDIENTS

4 bell peppers

3/4c brown rice, cooked

1T olive oil/butter

1/2 onion, diced

1 small tomato, diced

1/2c cheese, grate

1/2t salt

METHOD

1. Remember your rice must be cooked, so you may want to do that first. Preheat the oven to 350 while you are at it too.

2. Roast the peppers. If you have a gas stove, this works super well, just place the peppers on the open flames and turn as each side blackens. If you have an electric stove, I think you will need to use the broiler in your oven (just make sure you use the shelf closest to the broiler). Remember to turn the peppers when they blacken. The entire pepper won't turn black but big spots will.

3. Put the blackened pepper in the plastic bag and let sit for 10 minutes.

4. While the peppers are sitting, go ahead and put your oil in a sauté pan. Sauté your onions for about 5 minutes or until soft.

5. Put the rice, cooked onion, tomato, cheese, and salt in a mixing bowl. Mix them all up.

6. Take your bell peppers out of the bag. Use the edge of a knife to scrap off the blackened areas of the peppers. If you don't get it all off, that isn't a big deal. Just do the best you can.

7. Cut the top off your peppers and take out the seeds.

8. Stuff each pepper with the rice mixture. Place them each in an oven pan, I use a small one.

9. If there is leftover rice-mix, go ahead and put it on the top of all the peppers in the pan.

10. Cover with tin foil.

11. Bake for 20 minutes.

12. After 15 minutes, take off the foil and bake uncovered for 10 more minutes. After that, they're ready!

Enjoy!

- Emily

Season 2 :: Week 2

We have been bad communicators lately so I apologize for that. We were not at the FPM last week because of a family wedding and then we took a mini vacation part of this week. With the mini vacation, that meant we had A LOT to harvest when we returned home Thursday. But luckily, you will benefit because we are taking many great things to Market this week.

Unfortunately though I didn't have time to create a recipe (as I was harvesting until dark the past two nights). I can give you a little tip though about how we have been eating our veggies pretty much every night this week because it is so delicious. I have been chopping veggies, mostly zucchini and squash, marinating them in soy sauce, pepper, and curry powder for about 15 minutes, and then grilling them until they are soft and delicious!

Anyway, we are off to the FPM here soon and here is what we are bringing with us:

- Yellow and Purple Beans
- Fingerling Potatoes
- Cucumbers
- Green Peppers
- Jalapenos
- Salad Mix
- Squash
- Kale
- Leaf Cabbage
- Carrots (orange and purple mix)
- Beets (golden and red/white striped)
- Garlic
- Flowers

Come visit us. If I may recommend something to you for this week, it would be the beans. They are the best beans I have eaten. No joke!

Even the "farm" cats missed us this week!

Emily

Going to Market :: Season 2, Week 1

All right, I know I teased you last week making you think that we would be selling at the Ferndale Public Market. I really thought we were going to make it in July but when Friday hit and we had to take inventory, we realized we just didn't have enough stuff.

Don't fret though, Red Planet Farm WILL be at the Market on Saturday August 4!

We will be bearing gifts of:

Kale
Cabbage (green and leaf cabbage...great for making wraps!)
Beets
Salad Mix
Spinach
Green Peppers
Jalapenos
Yellow Squash
Zucchini
Flowers

Make sure you check out this week's recipe and even recipes from last season for some great dinners using our local produce!

See you tomorrow between 10a and 3pm.

Emily

Season 2 :: Week 1 - Kale Salad Recipe

Kale is one of those vegetables that is considered a "superfood" because it has such great nutritional value! "One cup of kale contains 36 calories, 5 grams of fiber, and 15% of the daily requirement of calcium and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), 40% of magnesium, 180% of vitamin A, 200% of vitamin C, and 1,020% of vitamin K. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus." (The Truth About Kale by Kathleen Zelman)

Luckily, kale grows crazy well up here in the Pacific Northwest! Unluckily though, most people don't eat much of it because it isn't really a food one craves but you are in luck, I have a GREAT kale salad recipe that I can say I crave every summer.

At Red Planet Farm, we grow kale pretty much year-round so make sure you pick some up at our Ferndale Public Market booth. It is a great salad to take to a BBQ this summer!


All Hail the Kale Salad
Created by Emily Marrs
serves 6-8

INGREDIENTS
Salad:
2T sesame seeds
1/2c slivered almonds
4 green onions, chopped
2 packs of Thai Kitchen rice noodle snack-thingies (I like green onion and garlic vegetable)
About 15 leaves of kale

Dressing:
The 2 packs of seasoning/oil from your noodle snack-thingies
3T agave or sugar
1/3c oil
2T balsamic vinegar

METHOD
1. Crush the noodles in their package, put into a small sauce pan, and cover with water.

2. Boil the noodles for about 5 min until parboiled. Drain and rinse. Set aside.
3. Strip your kale of leaves and chop roughly.
4. Mix kale, seeds, nuts, onions, and noodles in a big bowl.
5. Mix the dressing together in a small jar and shake well.

6. Pour dressing over kale mixture and toss.

7. Eat right away or cold....it is supergood the 2nd day too! YUM!

We will have a list of what we will be taking to the Ferndale Public Market this week here soon too!

- Emily

Ferndale Public Market

On April 21, the Ferndale Public Market opened for the season. There were some great vendors there selling produce, re-purposed housewares, soaps, plants, handmade bags, and lots of other amazing items.

Although, Red Planet Farm will not be at the FPM until July or so, I still went and did some shopping! I truly believe in buying local and the FPM is the first place I go before driving to the store for groceries.

So please, check out the FPM for yourself (or go to your own local market if you don't live in the 'dale). Do some shopping there first before going to the store for supplies. You won't get everything you need but you will get some fresh food and great items, plus you will be supporting local business!

Then in July, make sure you definitely stop by because we will be there selling own our amazing produce and flowers. Can't wait to see everyone!

www.ferndalepublicmarket.org

-Emily

Garlic Carrots (Raw)

Here at Red Planet we are busy eating our storage food including: squash, carrots, potatoes, canned tomatoes, and pickles. We also have some great salad mixes in the ground still that we are slowly eating. 

I want to share a recipe though that I created recently because I had carrots on hand and I love garlic! A couple of years ago I had a Russian dish that included carrots and garlic in their raw state and this recipe is my way of trying to re-create those tastes. Your breath will not be at its best after eating this but really, if you ask me, that shouldn't matter. It is too delicious and healthy to let garlic breath stop you.

 
INGREDIENTS
6 larger-sized carrots
3 cloves of garlic
1Tbls Mirin (an asian sweet rice vinegar) or regular rice vinegar
2 tsp agave (or 2t simple sugar)
1/2 tsp (or to taste) salt

METHOD
1. Grate carrots and put into a medium sized bowl.

2. Mince the garlic and put in same bowl.

3. Pour Mirin, agave, and salt into bowl.
4. Mix together.

5. You could eat it now or stick it in a jar and put in the fridge to let the flavors mix together a bit more. Pull it out of the fridge when you need a snack and want to give that bag of chips a rest.


Enjoy!
- Emily

Think Local This Holiday Season

Thanksgiving is this week! I am very excited to eat all the Thanksgiving goodness. Although, I must say, this will be my first gluten-free Thanksgiving. I probably won't be 100% gluten-free because it is just so easy to sneak into my diet. I most likely will not be able to forego the desserts. It will be well worth it though!

Anyway, I am getting side tracked, I really wanted to share with everyone the idea of eating and buying local this holiday season.

For Thanksgiving, think of buying those potatoes local or getting your turkey from a local farm. Personally, I will be using our own potatoes, onions, garlic, and squash but I did buy butter, carrots, and even sour cream from local farms. Putting that money back into my local economy is good for everyone involved.

As for the gift-giving season, there are a couple of different events going on where people will have the opportunity to purchase local and get some good deals. November 26, the Saturday after Thanksgiving, there is a national movement emerging called Small Business Saturday. We all know the craziness of Black Friday but usually that only occurs at the big box stores. You should definitely check out the local shop deals on Saturday too (maybe instead of going to those crazy stores on Friday)!

If you live in Whatcom County, there are some other great places to get local gifts if you are so inclined. Personally, I love gifts that are sourced locally. The gifts are made with great craftsmanship and have something a little extra special. Last year I got my bro-in-law a really great sushi set, my mother an awesome wooden bench, Tyler some woodsy-smelling soap (he loves that stuff), my sister some jewelery, and my dad's whole family some Seattle Organic all purpose cleanser, local roasted nuts and of course, chocolate! I am sure you could find something for anyone in your family too if you take a peek!

If you need inspiration, here are some local events happening in our corner of the state:

- November 25-December 4 is Buy Local week. Many local shops will be having sales.

- Sustainable Connections is holding an auction to benefit their Farm to Bank On program. They have some great items that can be used as gifts...even a gift for yourself.

- Allied Arts holds a festival every year featuring many local artists. Find out more here.

- Ferndale businesses are holding open houses during the first weekend of December.  

- The Bellingham Farmer's Market is still open for business until December 17th.

Those are just a few of events going on in my local community. Make sure you check out your newspaper and find out what you can attend in your area. Plus, don't forget all the local shops that would love your business over the holiday season.

Now you can go put up your holiday decorations. Well, maybe wait until after Thanksgiving.

- Emily