Spring 2026 #3/10: Turning it UP!
The heat, the harvest, the pressure to keep up (or stay ahead, if you’re Mark). They’re hitting hard on this particular Monday as we are reacquainting ourselves with what feels like when are putting more into the field than we are taking out in a given week. Tis’ the season! Sudden sunshine brings out great vibes and lots of opportunities to get good work done, but it also brought on a mildly-successful trial bed of Spinach and armloads of Tokyo Turnips and in the greenhouse that couldn’t wait. Little white Tokyo Turnips, aka Hakurei, are one of the sweetest Springtime crops we grow. Just last week, one of our CSA members sent me this awesome video about Tokyo Turnips, featuring Japanese farmers and cooks discussing what makes this vegetable so great. (Thank you, Shoko!) Though recipes abound for cooking, stir frying, roasting and sautéing them, they're a real treat sliced up and eaten raw. Being greenhouse-grown, the leafy greens are extra tender. Easy, delicious Spring food.
Meanwhile, out in the field, we will be harvesting our hearts out in a sea of purple in a race against time for some of the Purple Sprouting Broccoli and other flowering brassicas in the field. In the background, you’ll spot Mark cycling through various implements on the tractor, making pass after pass to get things ready so we can plant, plant, plant. In all of his zipping around this weekend, we discovered a patch of little green garlic that managed to overwinter. It pales in comparison to the size of our main crop, but there were just enough to make a few little “taster” bundles for part of an either/or CSA option this week.
Yay SPRING,
Katie
IN THE FARMSHARES THIS WEEK:
Purple Sprouting Broccoli or Raab Mix
Tokyo Turnips
Spinach
Green Garlic or Shallots
Bosc Pears
RECIPES & SEASONAL TIPS
BROCCOLI CHEDDAR SOUP - Love & Lemons
A VEGAN TWIST ON BROCCOLI CHEDDAR SOUP- Love & Lemons
SIMPLE CRISPY TURNIPS - A Pure Palate
MISO-ROASTED JAPANESE TURNIPS- Foolproof Living
ROASTED BROCCOLINI WITH SHALLOTS - Robin Asbell
SOBA WITH GREEN GARLIC, SPINACH, EDAMAME & CRISPY TOFU- NYT Cooking
WARM SPINACH SALAD WITH CUMIN SPICED PEARS- Back to Organic
BROCCOLI RUBBLE MELTS- Smitten Kitchen
GREEN GARLIC RISOTTO - Dishing Up the Dirt
GRILLED PUMPKIN SALAD - Katie at the Kitchen Door