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JBG Meet and Eat! JBG Potluck This Saturday!

Laurel Daniel oil painting, Johnson’s Backyard Garden

1) In Your Box this Week

2) Farm News:

  • From the Farmer’s Perspective … The Spring Potluck
  • Spring is Here!  By Grit Ramuschkat, JBG Resident

3)  Updates, Meetings, and  Events

  • JBG Meet and Eat!  This Saturday, April 10, 4pm till dark!
  • Slow Money Austin 2010 Conference at Austin City Hall, April 21st
  • Interested in Becoming a CSA Site Host?
  • Wanna Trade?
  • Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre™ Cooking Class Series, a project of Sustainable Food Center, is now open to the community.  There are just a couple spots left to fill in this series, and it starts next week – so please sign up today.

4) Quotable Food

5) Recipes

  • Mediterranean Rice-Stuffed Escarole
  • Pan Seared Salmon on Baby Arugula

6) Produce Storage Tips

7) Johnson’s Backyard Garden Contact Info

Another Johnson family came out last week to learn about veggies and help harvest

1) In Your Box this Week

Carrots
Beets
Bok Choy
Kale or Collards
Kohlrabi or

radish
Green Onions
Lettuce
Endive
Parsley or Dill

Dandelion or Spinach

2) Farm News:

  • From the Farmer’s Perspective …. Our Spring Potluck

Our spring potluck is like an announcement of the spring season. We are so grateful for these sunny days. All our crops are loving the heat and growing so big!  We really appreciate all the kind words we’ve been getting about our boxes. Your encouraging emails really mean a lot to us here. We’re always so happy to hear that you are enjoying the boxes we make for you. We have a lot of things still coming; in the next few weeks we’ll be harvesting garlic, leeks, and swiss chard for the boxes!

Last week we started staking and caging our tomatoes. That’s right, they’re already growing big enough now that they will need some support soon. We’re expecting tomatoes as early as May, so get ready! To make sure that all of our nightshades grow big and produce a lot of fruit, we are embarking on an organic fertilization program that we are going to evaluate at the end of the season. The program consists not only of organic fish sulfur and compost, but also garlic spray, which is a natural insect repellant. Bugs have been a big problem in the past with our tomatoes, and until now the only measure we’ve taken has been to plant a lot more than we need, so we could share! With this new program, we’re hoping the bugs won’t be as big of a problem, and we can keep more of our tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers healthier, longer.

We hope to see all of you on Saturday!  Be prepared for some delicious local, organic food!

We let our older broccoli plants go to flower. The bees are loving it, and don't worry, we have plenty more coming!

  • Spring is Here!, By Grit Ramuschkat, JBG Resident

This is what squirrels up in Minneapolis do to celebrate the first warm days of the year after a long, snowy winter. Steven’s brother Andy took the photo from his living room and explained the squirrels were stretched out like this for hours, sunbathing on the neighbor’s roof.


3)  Updates, Meetings, and  Events

  • Saturday is Your Lucky Day!  …Join us for JBG’s Annual Spring Potluck!

We look forward to seeing you this Saturday at JBG’s Spring

Potluck and Open House! Be sure to arrive early to catch Elizabeth

McQueen (of Asleep at the Wheel) play at 4:30 p.m., then stay for

tasty food and lots of fun activities.

The potluck starts at 4 p.m. and will go ‘til dark in the Pecan

Orchard. Come see where your food is grown, meet the staff and enjoy

some delicious, locally grown food. The event is open to the public

and family-friendly, so invite your friends and bring the kids!

What to Bring: lawn chairs, plates, utensils and a dish to share.

We’ll provide drinks, but BYOB. Pack your swimsuit for water

activities. We will also be silk screening JBG t-shirts, so bring a

shirt to design!

Directions: From 71 going east towards the airport, turn at

Dalton, which is right before Gatti’s Pizza (you have to make a

U-turn in order to get to Dalton). Turn right, and follow Dalton to

Hergotz Lane. Turn right onto Hergotz. Hergotz will branch right

into a no outlet street. Turn right into the last driveway on

Hergotz and park near the Pecan Orchard. Come Hungry!

  • Slow Money Austin 2010 Conference at Austin City Hall, April 21st
Slow Money Austin brings a conversation about financing our regional food system to the front steps of City Hall with an educational conference featuring leaders of this emerging industry.  Register for this half-day conference to mingle with leaders in the slow money movement, attend panel discussions about slow money initiatives in Austin, and hear a keynote speech from Woody Tasch, author of Inquiries into the Nature of Slow Money.
Read more about the Slow Money Conference and Showcase and register to attend here.
  • Interested in Becoming a CSA Site Host?

JBG is always looking for new delivery locations that are convenient for our members. If you’re interested in becoming a CSA host, there are a few things you should consider: What you need:

  • A shady, covered carport or porch, preferably that’s air-conditioned.
  • Space for at least 10 CSA boxes.
  • Convenient parking for other members to drop by and pick up their boxes.
  • A pickup site that’s accessible every week from mid-afternoon (around 3 p.m.) until 7 p.m.

What you do:

  • Hosts store empty boxes until our delivery driver picks them up the following week. JBG asks that you put away the boxes that day or the next.
  • After the delivery period ends, you distribute unclaimed veggies to charity or a needy family.
  • You do not have to be present during pickup hours. Pickups are self-serve and on the honor system.

Perks:

  • Hosts receive a complimentary CSA box every quarter.

JBG will work with you to determine which weekday fits best with the delivery route and schedule. If you’re interested in becoming a CSA host, please email farm@jbgorganic.com.

  • Wanna Trade?

JBG is always looking to its members for new skills or ideas to contribute to the farm.  Good at photography?  Web site design?  Recipe writing?  We’d be happy to trade for a few CSA boxes!  Just call or email the office and let us know you’re interested. farm@jbgorganic.com or 512-386-5273.

  • The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre™ Cooking Class Series

Here’s a chance to take one of The Happy Kitchen’s nationally recognized cooking and nutrition classes! Learn how to select and prepare healthful, seasonal foods as well as nutrition information that can help you meet your health and wellness goals.

Class Time: Tuesdays April 20-May 25; 5:15-6:45

Location: Dept. of State Health Services, 1100 West 49th Street,78756 (across Lamar from the Triangle)

Cost: $195, free parking available in covered garage

What you get:

- 6 1.5 hour classes filled with cooking and nutrition information

- 5 bags of groceries (one at each of the 1st 5 classes) to try that week’s recipe at home

- Numerous recipes and nutrition handouts

- A free copy of The Happy Kitchen cookbook

- One free bag of local, seasonal produce

For more information or to register, email Katy@SustainableFoodCenter.org

4) Quotable Food

“Personally, I have been very impressed by the slow food movement. It is about celebrating the culture of food, of sharing the extraordinary knowledge, developed over millennia, of the traditions involved with quality food production, of the sheer joy and pleasure of consuming food together. Especially within the context of family life, this has to be one of the highest forms of cultural activity.”

-Prince Charles

5) Recipes

  • Mediterranean Rice-Stuffed Escarole

Ingredients:

1 large head escarole (1 1/4 pound)

3/4 cup Arborio rice

1/2 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 (12-ounce) jar roasted red peppers, rinsed and coarsely chopped

1/3 cup golden raisins

3 tablespoons chopped rinsed capers

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in upper third. Quarter escarole lengthwise, leaving base attached, and rinse well. Cook in a medium pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 4 quarts water) 6 minutes. Drain and cool.Meanwhile, bring 1 quart water to a boil with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a medium saucepan. Add rice and parboil, uncovered, 10 minutes (rice will not be tender). Reserve 1/2 cup cooking liquid, then drain rice in a sieve. Cook pine nuts in 1/4 cup oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring, until pale golden, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until it begins to brown, about 1 minute. Add peppers, raisins, capers, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until raisins begin to plump, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add rice. Cool slightly, then stir in egg and 1/4 cup cheese. Cut off and discard base from 1 escarole quarter, then gently spread leaves to create a 4-inch-wide area. With base end nearest you, place one fourth of rice mixture in center of bottom half of escarole. Fold base of leaves over rice, then fold in sides and roll up rice in escarole. Put, seam side down, in a 2-quart flameproof shallow baking dish, then repeat with remaining escarole and rice.  Drizzle with reserved cooking liquid and remaining tablespoon oil, then sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Cover tightly with foil and bake until rice is tender, about 30 minutes.  Remove foil and turn on broiler, then broil 4 to 6 inches from heat until cheese is browned, 4 to 7 minutes.
  • Pan Seared Salmon on Baby Arugula

Ingredients:

2 center-cut salmon fillets (6 oz. each)

1 1/2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the Salad:

3 cups baby arugula leaves

2/3 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup thinly slivered red onion

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp red-wine vinegar

Preparation:

Place the salmon fillets in a shallow bowl. Toss well with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Let rest for 15 minutes.  Cook the salmon, skinside down in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, shaking the pan and carefully lifting the salmon with a spatula to loosen it from the pan.  Reduce the heat to medium. Cover the pan and cook until the salmon is cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes more. The skin should be crisp and the flesh medium rare.  Meanwhile, combine the arugula, tomatoes and onion in a bowl. Just before serving, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with oil and vinegar. Toss well.

6) Produce Storage Tips

Wrap escarole in damp towel or place in plastic bag and keep in the hydrator drawer of the refrigerator. Escarole is best used fresh but will keep for 2-4 days if kept moist and refrigerated.

7) Johnson’s Backyard Garden Contact Info

Johnson’s Backyard Garden
9515 Hergotz Lane, Box E
Austin, TX 78742
Office Phone: 512.386.5273
Office Hours: M-Th 8am to 5pm, Friday 8am to 12pm

The farm office is closed 12 pm to 1 pm for lunch.

e-mail: farm@jbgorganic.com

Our spring potluck is like an

announcement of the spring season. We are so grateful for these

sunny days. All our crops are loving the heat and growing so big!

We really appreciate all the kind words we’ve been getting about our

boxes. Your encouraging emails really mean a lot to us here. We’re

always so happy to hear that you are enjoying the boxes we make for

you. We have a lot of things still coming; in the next few weeks

we’ll be harvesting garlic, leeks, and swiss chard for the boxes!

Last week we started staking and caging

our tomatoes. That’s right, they’re already growing big enough now

that they will need some support soon. We’re expecting tomatoes as

early as May, so get ready! To make sure that all of our nightshades

grow big and produce a lot of fruit, we are embarking on an organic

fertilization program that we are going to evaluate at the end of the

season. The program consists not only of organic fish sulfur and

compost, but also garlic spray, which is a natural insect repellant.

Bugs have been a big problem in the past with our tomatoes, and until

now the only measure we’ve taken has been to plant a lot more than we

need, so we could share! With this new program, we’re hoping the

bugs won’t be as big of a problem, and we can keep more of our

tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers healthier, longer.

We hope to see all of you on Saturday!

Be prepared for some delicious local, organic food!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 6th, 2010 at 11:05 am and is filed under Newsletters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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