Tasty chard in the veg boxes

… as well as more of the mixed basil, baby carrots and other spring vegetables, all supplied by two of Camel CSA’s expert growers – Mark Norman of Bodmin and Jeremy Brown of St Kew Harvest.

* new potatoes (Mark)
* carrots (Mark)
* Swiss chard (Jeremy)
* salad bag (Jeremy)
* basil (Jeremy)

Standard boxes will also get:
* extra potatoes
* calabrese (Mark)
* spring greens (Jeremy)

* = grown to organic principles

They’re springing up everywhere!

The number of community supported agriculture projects like ours is increasing all the time, notably in other parts of the far south-west of England.

Members of the newly-formed Trevalon Organic Co-operative at Herodsfoot near Liskeard in east Cornwall are coming to see us during our volunteer growing session next Sunday. 

They’re hoping to get a perspective on how we’ve achieved our 50-strong membership and and built up a list of more than 30 weekly veg boxes in just over a year.

St Just Allotment and Growers Association and Lands End Peninsula Community Land Trust have just secured an 18-month land lease from Cornwall Council to set up Bosavern Community Farm at St Just in west Cornwall.  They want to set up a CSA to prevent this 36-acre organic farm from going into private ownership and to keep it in perpetuity for the benefit of the local community.  

In Devon, Chagford Community Agriculture members have got planning permission from the Dartmoor National Park Authority for three polytunnels and two sheds.  This means the project is now eligible for £38,600 of funding from the Lottery Local Food Fund.

The newly-formed Broadclyst Community Farm is based on 32 acres of National Trust land on the Killerton estate near Exeter in east Devon. 

Occombe Farm, which is run by Torbay Coast & Countryside Trust, is setting up a 4-acre smallholding as a CSA scheme.  It’s been awarded £475,000 from the Lottery Food Fund for its One Planet Food project. 

These new CSA schemes in the south-west join the already up-and-running Harrowbarrow and Metherill Agricultural Society (known as Hamas) in east Cornwall, Lowarth Brogh (Badger’s Garden CSA) near Penzance in west Cornwall, and Exeter Community Agriculture in Devon. 

And of course us - Camel CSA at St Kew Highway in north Cornwall.

Cornish asparagus in the veg boxes

At last! We’re getting the first of the Cornish asparagus and Cornish Early new potatoes in our veg boxes this week:

Cornish asparagus (Lower Croan, Sladesbridge)
Cornish Early new potatoes (JH Allen & Sons, Marazion)
spinach (Rest Harrow Farm, Trebetherick)
onions (Rest Harrow Farm)
* salad leaves (Jeremy Brown)
* baby carrots (Jeremy)
* parsley (Camel CSA)

As well as larger quantities of some of the above, standard boxes will also have
* baby beet (Jeremy)

* = grown to organic principles

Spring salad in this week’s veg boxes

All the veg boxes will have:

potatoes (Gavercombe Farm, Tintagel)
onions (Rest Harrow Farm, Trebetherick)
* salad leaves (Jeremy Brown)
spinach (Rest Harrow Farm)
cauliflower (Rest Harrow Farm)
leeks (Rest Harrow Farm)

Standard boxes will have extra potatoes and:
* bunched beetroot (Jeremy)
* parsley (Camel CSA)

* = grown to organic principles

Seasonal recipe No 42 – Sweet-and-sour marinated cabbage

Largely from Sarah Raven’s Garden Cookbook but with a few tweaks from Camel CSA member Henrietta Danvers. It’s great with cold meats, smoked fish, cheeses, almost anything. You need to make it at least the day before you need it so that the flavours of the spices really come through. It will keep in a screw-topped jar in the fridge for two to three weeks.

Serves 6-8

Preparation: 15 minutes plus at least 24 hours in fridge

Ingredients
½ white cabbage
100ml cider vinegar
100g soft brown sugar
large bunch of dill/parsley/mint/coriander
3 tbsp sunflower oil
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 tsp dill or fennel or caraway seeds
2 tsp mustard seeds
salt and black pepper

Method
Cut the cabbage into quarters and remove the hard core, then slice very thinly. Don’t use the stem.
Heat the vinegar in a small pan over a low heat and then stir in the sugar until it has dissolved. Leave to cool.

Finely chop the herbs. Mix the oil, garlic, seeds, salt and pepper. Add both herbs and oil mix to the sweet vinegar. Dress the cabbage with this marinade. Put in a jar or container and leave for at least 24 hours in the fridge.

Tasty spring greens in the veg boxes this week

As predicted, this week’s veg boxes are a little bit more restricted but it’s a tasty selection nevertheless. All boxes will get:

potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
onions (Rest Harrow Farm, Trebetherick)
leeks (Rest Harrow Farm)
spring greens (Rest Harrow Farm)
white cabbage (Rest Harrow Farm)
spinach (Rest Harrow Farm)

Standard boxes will get larger quantities of some of the above.

Seasonal recipe No 41 – A risotto of leeks and pancetta

This recipe from Nigel Slater’s Tender makes a beautifully creamy risotto. And it’s dead easy too – no celery or onion to chop, just the leeks to slice. A good farewell to one of our winter stalwarts which won’t be around much longer.

Enough for 2

Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: about half an hour

Ingredients
2 medium leeks
about 50g butter, plus a walnut-sized lump to finish
300g arborio rice
a glass of Noilly Prat (or white wine)
1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
6 thin rashers of pancetta (or streaky bacon)
3 tbsp grated parmesan plus more to finish

Method
Wash the leeks thoroughly, splitting them down their length and rinsing under a cold running tap, then slice them finely. Melt the butter in a wide, high-sided pan over a low heat and add the leeks. Let them soften without colouring, stirring from time to time. [A lid can help prevent burning or a piece of greaseproof paper on top - just don't let them brown.]

Stir in the rice, then pour in the Noilly Prat or wine. Let the mixture boil until the alcohol has evaporated, then tip in the first ladleful of hot stock. Continue stirring, adding stock as and when the rice has absorbed almost all of the previous ladleful, till the rice is plump, tender and yet has a little bite left in it – a process that will take about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, grill the pancetta or bacon, or cook in a non-stick frying pan, until truly crisp. Cut into pieces the size of a large postage stamp, leaving a couple of rashers whole. Fold the cut pieces into the risotto.

Stir in the walnut-sized lump of butter, adding the 3 tbsp of parmesan as you go. Divide between warm dishes and finish with a piece of pancetta/bacon and more grated parmesan.

Seasonal recipe No 40 – Kale with chorizo and poached egg

A recipe from Nigella Lawson’s How to Eat. She claims it’s one of her ‘regular fast hot lunches’. Quantities are for one, so double, treble or quadruple etc as necessary.

Serves 1

Preparation 15 minutes
Cooking 15 minutes

Ingredients
175g kale
approx. 100g chorizo (the fresh or semi-dried sausages – rather than the salami type – half of one of the horseshoe-shaped linked sausage loops is about right)
1 egg
1 tbsp ordinary oil

Method
Remove the curly leaves of kale from the stems and tear the leaves into smallish pieces. Cut the chorizo into slices about 5mm to 1cm thick and then cut them into quarters. Bring a pan of water to the boil and add salt. Put the kale in the boiling water and cook till tenderish (about 5-7 minutes).

Put 1 tbsp oil into a heavy-bottomed, deepish frying pan and cook the chorizo pieces for a few minutes, stirring and pressing with a wooden sppon – 3 or so minutes should be fine. While this is happening, as well as keeping an eye on the kale, put a pan of water on to poach the egg. Drain the kale well when cooked and then stir into the chorizo. Put the egg in to poach and when it’s ready, turn the orange-spliced kale on to a plate and put the poached egg on top.

Fresh salad leaves this week

This week’s small veg boxes will have:
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
onions (Rest Harrow Farm, Trebetherick)
carrots (Rest Harrow Farm)
kale (Rest Harrow Farm)
leeks (Rest Harrow Farm)
* salad leaves (Jeremy Brown)

Standard boxes will have more of some of the above plus:
cauliflower (Rest Harrow Farm)
* coriander (Jeremy)
* radishes (Jeremy)

* = grown to organic principles

Enjoy sprouting broccoli this week

… it won’t be around for much longer!

Small boxes will have:
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
onions (Rest Harrow Farm, Trebetherick)
carrots (Rest Harrow Farm)
kale (Rest Harrow Farm)
white sprouting broccoli (Rest Harrow Farm)
swede (Rest Harrow Farm)

Standard boxes will have some extras of the above plus:
cauliflower (Rest Harrow Farm)
parsnips (Rest Harrow Farm)
red cabbage (Rest Harrow Farm)

Large boxes will also have:
* coriander (Jeremy Brown)
* salad leaves (Jeremy)
* spinach (Jeremy)

* = grown to organic principles