Tag: cooking greens

Get Pickled for the Holiday Weekend! ARTfarm open today, 3-6pm!

A jar of freshly pickled cucumbers sitting on a fence post gleams in the late day sun, with colorful zinnias, green garden beds and the ARTfarm seedling house and farmstand in the background.
Deb’s ARTfarm pickles! You can make your own pickles this holiday season. It’s fun and easy to do. Makes a thrifty, fun, and appreciated homemade gift!

ARTfarmstand 3-6pm today! We have five different kinds of amazing, sweet crunchy cucumbers, including Asian cukes and a thin-skinned English variety. Pickling is easy, quick and makes a gorgeous gift. This lovely jar was pickled by our super volunteer Deb Mattera, and to get the recipe you’ll have to come to the farmstand and chat her up!

Also available today: microgreens, sweet mix, spicy mix, arugula, escarole, lettuce heads, dandelion greens, radishes, four flavors of basil, zinnia flowers, garlic chives, lemongrass, sage, thyme, cilantro, dill, rosemary, honey and late season mangoes. Give thanks! It rained!!

Escarole-ing In Fresh Greens and Cucumbers! Saturday ARTfarmstand!

Today’s farmstand at ARTfarm features the freshest: tender teen arugula, arugula, sweet mix, spicy mix, microgreens, radishes, beets, cucumbers, Italian basil, Thai basil, holy (Tulsi) basil, sage, garlic chives, lemongrass, dandelion greens, escarole, lettuce heads, mangoes, zinnia flowers, honey and honeycomb. You’ll find some of ARTfarm’s organically grown cucumbers and lettuce heads over at Beeston Hill’s VI Farmer’s Coop this morning, too.

What do you do with escarole? It looks like a cross between a lettuce head and a bunch of arugula, with some snap to the leaves. When young, it can be eaten in a salad, although it can be on the bitter side. It can be steamed and dressed like other strong cooking greens – steam it until tender in a pan, then sauté it with garlic and hot pepper, or add salt, olive oil, and lime juice or vinegar. Lots of people like to make white bean classic Italian soup with escarole. Yum!!

A large head of escarole grows amongst young onions, lettuce and dandelion greens at ARTfarm.
Escarole is delicious in soups or sautéed as a side dish. A large head of escarole grows amongst young onions, lettuce and dandelion greens at ARTfarm.

ARTfarm Saturday Stand – De-stress!

A close up photo shows a flower spike on a clump of green tulsi leaves, or holy basil.
Bees love the nectar from the purple flower spikes that grow from holy basil. The plant is purported to have anti-stress medicinal qualities, and makes a refreshing ‘bush’ or herbal tea. We grow holy basil organically at ARTfarm and cut it fresh for the farmstand.

Happy ARTfarm Saturday! This morning starting at 10am we’ll have: sweet salad mix, spicy salad mix, arugula greens, mAcro greens, beets, radishes, tender young cucumbers, dandelion greens, escarole, red mustard greens, garlic chives, sage, thyme, fresh cut zinnias; Italian, Thai, lemon and holy basil, lemongrass, and local honey from Wanda and Patricia. Come out to St. Croix’s South shore this morning and enjoy the cool breeze!

Refreshing, de-stressing drink recipe:

Steep a bunch of fresh cut holy (tulsi, pictured above) basil with a bunch of lemongrass in a couple of gallons of freshly boiled water. Pull out the herbs after 10 minutes and add some local honey to taste. Enjoy hot or cold! Sip, be refreshed, be de-stressed, enjoy a local beverage! Costs pennies per serving!

Fruity Saturday at ARTfarm

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It’s officially mango season!! Today’s stand starts with a mélange of sweet and juicy local fruit: bananas from Reuben Liburd, Haitian kidney and Nam Duc Mai mangoes from Alex Ettienne, ARTfarm pineapples & papaya!! Microgreens, Kan-Kong (Asian spinach), sweet peppers, hot peppers, cherry tomatoes, pumpkin, beets, scallions, bok choi, Bodhi yard-long beans, garlic chives; italian, lemon, thai and holy basil;  lemongrass, zinnia flowers; native trees, and pineapple slips.

10am – 12 noon every Saturday. We are discontinuing Monday farmstands until next year. Wednesday hours are now 3-6pm! Thanks for your support.