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

First Frost - Squash Pudding

Hello again Red Planet Farm Friends! It's been about a month, I know. In that month, we have been pulling out the summer's plants, planting a cover crop, and harvesting the last of our fall veggies. Last week, I pulled out the rest of the pumpkins, squash, and lettuce. It was just in time too because we got a pretty good frost that would have wiped out the lettuce.

I can't wait to eat butternut squash everyday until the daffodils bloom! Have I ever told you how much I love squash?!

In fact, last night after making a pot pie from the Whatcom Locavore blog (but of course adding squash into the mix), I made a divine squash pudding. I know that doesn't sound too appetizing but with ice cream it tastes a bit like pumpkin pie and it is definitely a comfort food! The way the ice cream melts into the pudding after it is warm from the oven is so great. Not to mention, the kitchen smells just like autumn baking.

Go ahead, try the recipe yourself. Squash is in season now and while we aren't selling any, there are a lot of other Whatcom County farmers that would love to provide you with a great butternut squash!

Squash Pudding
serves about 6
adapted from Vegetarian Times

INGREDIENTS
1/2 smaller sized butternut squash
1 3/4c milk (or cream if you are feeling fancy)
1/3c cornmeal
1/2t cinnamon
1/4t ground ginger
1/8t ground nutmeg
1 pinch of salt
1T butter
1/4c brown sugar
2T molasses

METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 350. Place squash (remember 1/2 of the squash) cut-side down on a baking sheet or in a baking dish. Bake for 1 hour. Let the squash cool when it is done and then scoop the flesh into a food processor and puree until smooth.
2. Reduce oven to 275. Coat a 1 quart, or 6 cup, baking dish with cooking spray.
3. Whisk together milk, cornmeal, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt in saucepan.

4. Cook over heat slowly for 5 - 10 min until the mixture has thickened.
5. Remove the pan from the heat and add butter. Mix well.
6. Into the pan, stir in the squash puree, brown sugar, and molasses.
7. Pour into the prepared baking dish and bake, uncovered, for 1.5 hours. When done, a knife should come out clean when inserted into the dessert.
8. Let cool for a couple minutes and then serve with vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy!

-Emily

Season 1: Market Day 7

This Saturday, October 3, will be our last Saturday at the Ferndale Public Market. I HATE to say that but alas, it is the truth. Our garden just won't give us more with these cool nights.

We have had a great time though at the Market and while we aren't ready to be full time farmers, we certainly are excited for the next season! We have learned a lot and are already planning.

So, make sure you come visit us on Saturday, we will still have some great stuff:

- Melons

- Lettuce
- Tomatoes (great heirlooms!)
- Cherry Tomatoes (Sungolds and Green Doctors)
- Green Kale
- Tomatillos
- Cucumbers
- Winter squash (spaghetti, buttercup, Pennsylvania dutch crookneck)

- Green and Purple Peppers
- Flower Bouquets (mostly dahlias)

After you are done visitng us and eating the delicious produce from Red Planet Farm, make sure you come visit our blog over the winter for updates.

Thanks for buying local!
-Emily

Squash Soup - Better Than it Sounds!

Winter Squash Soup 

makes 5 servings

Created by Emily Marrs

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup (1/2sitck) butter

1 large onion, finely chopped

4 large garlic cloves, chopped
5.5 cups (or 3 14.5oz cans) veggie broth
3lbs (or about 8 cups) peeled winter squash (any type winter squash: butternut, delicata, pumpkin, etc) cut into 1-inch pieces

1 ¼ t minced fresh thyme
1 ¼ t minced fresh sage
1 ½ t ground cumin
½ t ground ginger
1t Salt
Pepper
¼  cup whipping cream
Sugar to taste (I used about one teaspoon)

METHOD
1. Melt butter in large pot over medium heat.
2. Add onion and garlic and sauté on low until tender, about 10 minutes.
3. Add broth, all squash and herbs and spices; bring to boil.
4. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until squash is very tender, about 20 minutes. *If you wanted to follow steps 1-3 and then throw everything into a slow cooker on high for 6 hours that works too. Just follow steps 5-6 when you get home.*
5. Working in batches, puree soup in blender.
6. Return soup to same pot. Stir in cream and sugar; bring to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.

This recipe is DELICIOUS with a broiled bread. Put butter on one side of bread and broil for one minute. Flip bread over, cover with your favorite cheese and some salt and pepper and broil for another minute. Awesome!