Christmas greetings from the volunteer picking and packing team at Camel CSA! Our double-value boxes have everything you need over the festive season, including a jar each of our own green tomato chutney and Cornish honey. Regular weekly veg boxes resume on Friday 5 January, 2018.

In all the bumper boxes:-
*winter salad leaves (Camel CSA)
*squash ‘Crown Prince’ (Camel CSA)
*baby carrots (Camel CSA)
*parsley (Camel CSA)
green tomato chutney (Camel CSA)
jar of honey (James family, Bodmin)
onions (Restharrow Farm,Trebetherick)
savoy cabbage (Restharrow)
Brussels sprouts stalk  (Restharrow)
parsnips (Total Produce)
potatoes ‘Electra’ (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:-
extra potatoes
*chard (Camel CSA)
swede (Restharrow)
leeks (Restharrow)

* = grown to organic principles

Please wash all vegetables carefully

This easy and very satisfying vegetarian gratin, good at lunchtime, is adapted from two recipes in Delicious magazine – one for a pastry-encased pie, the other for a pastry-based tart.

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
400g leeks
3 large potatoes, thinly sliced
3 large eggs
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tbsp creme fraiche
1 tbsp grainy mustard
100g Gruyere cheese (you could use Cheddar)
Small bunch of chives or parsley, finely chopped

Method
Preheat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/Gas Mark 5. Meanwhile boil the potatoes for 3-4 minutes until beginning to soften. Drain and set aside. Clean the leeks, halve them lengthwise and chop into large pieces. Leave them whole if they’re small, slim ones. Steam or boil for three minutes, then drain and pat dry.

Beat the eggs with the creme fraiche, cheese and garlic, then stir in the chives or parsley. Layer the potatoes in a greased gratin dish, arrange the leeks on top and pour over the egg mixture. Bake for 25 minutes until the filling has set and the top is golden.. Leave to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Another cold week in north Cornwall (but no snow). Lead grower Mark N got into the shelter of the polytunnel to harvest Parisian carrots.

In all our vegetable boxes:-
*baby carrots
squash ‘Crown Prince’ (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
Savoy cabbage (Restharrow)
leeks (Restharrow)
beetroot (Restharrow)
onions (Restharrow)
‘Maris Peer’ potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:-
*chillies
**frisee/curly green endive
Jerusalem artichokes (Restharrow)

* = grown to organic principles

All produce cultivated by Camel CSA unless stated otherwise. Please wash all fruit and veg

Try more than 350 delicious ways of serving vegetables on the recipes page on our website

Yay! Kale CHIPS! They’re fantastic, says Camel CSA chair Danny Barry. “Super easy and quick to make, lovely spices and really crispy…. They were so yummy I ate the whole baking tray of them in one go.”

From Super Healthy Snacks and Treats by Jenna Zoe (via West Country FoodLover magazine).

Serves 2-4

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients
1 head of curly kale (about 50g)
1 large tomato, quartered
3 sun-dried tomatoes (dry not marinated ones, with no added sugar)
½ tsp paprika
¼ tsp ground cumin
pinch of sea salt
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
freshly-ground black pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6. Line a baking sheet wih foil. Tear small pieces of kale off the stems and place them in a colander. Wash and then dry them as completely as possible – ideally they should be completely dry. Place the dry pieces in a large bowl.

Put the tomato quarters and sun-dried tomatoes in a food processor. Pulse until smooth. scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. It won’t seem a lot of mixture, as the idea is just to flavour the kale rather than cover it in a thick sauce.

Add the paprika, cumin and salt, then as much cayenne and black pepper as you like. Process the mixture again and then pour it into the bowl of kale. Using your hands, toss the kale so it is evenly coated in the masala mixture.

Spread the kale pieces on to the prepared baking sheet and bake in the oven with the door slightly ajar for 14-16 minutes. You will know the kale is ready when it is totally crispy and thin.

Chilly weather! Fortunately Friday was sunny and dry for our volunteer picking and packing team, who wrapped up warm against the cold wind to harvest the kale.

In all our weekly boxes:-
kale (*Camel CSA / Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
Brussels sprout stalk (Restharrow)
cauliflower (Restharrow)
leeks (Restharrow)
swede (Restharrow)
onions (Restharrow)
‘Maris Peer’ potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:-
*green pepper (the last ones, sadly)
beetroot (Restharrow)
Jerusalem artichokes (Restharrow)

* = grown to organic principles

All produce cultivated by Camel CSA unless stated otherwise. Please wash all fruit and veg

Try more than 350 delicious ways of serving vegetables on the recipes page on our website

Our two professional growers Mark and Bridget cultivate a terrific selection of vegetables for Camel CSA’s weekly veg boxes. Mark has been trying out different carrot varieties and these Parisian carrots are an absolute winner! This simple recipe is from ohmydish.com
Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 20 mins

Serves 2-4

Ingredients
about 30 Parisian carrots (depends on their size!)
2 tablespoons of honey
1 tablespoon of olive oil
a few sprigs of thyme (or parsley)
pepper and salt

Method
Pre-heat the oven to 180C. Scrub the carrots to get off all the dirt and remove both ends with a sharp knife. Place the cleaned carrots in a shallow oven dish, then season them and drizzle with the olive oil and honey. Rinse the thyme sprigs (or parsley) under running cold water and spread over the carrots.

Roast them in the oven for about 20 minutes, depending on their size. They’re done when they’re slightly caramelized. They don’t have to be cooked a lot, it’s better if they have a little bite to them.

NO imports! Our boxes contain a selection of seasonal winter vegetables locally grown in north Cornwall.

In all the boxes this week:-
*salad leaves – mixed winter lettuce, red mustard, mizuma, rocket, coriander
*Parisian carrots
*chillies
*flat-leaved parsley
leeks (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
squash ‘Crown Prince’ (Restharrow)
potatoes ‘Maris Peer’ (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:-
extra potatoes
*rainbow chard  or spinach
*swede
red cabbage (Restharrow)

* = grown to organic principles
Produce grown by Camel CSA unless otherwise indicated. Please ensure you wash all fruit and veg

Try out more than 350 ways of serving vegetables on Camel CSA’s recipe pages

We’re so fortunate to have cavolo nero on our field and extra supplies available from our neighbours at Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick. This quick and easy supper dish comes from BBC Food.

Preparation time: less than 30 mins
Cooking time: less than 10 mins

Serves 4

Ingredients
large handful cavolo nero, or kale
100ml olive oil
2 lemons, zest only
½ lemon, juice only
200g cooked chickpeas
500g fresh tagliatelle pasta, or similar
salt
freshly ground black pepper
100g pecorino or other hard cheese, finely grated

Method

Bring a deep saucepan of water to a rolling boil and blanch the cavolo nero for one minute. Drain, and when cool enough to handle, chop finely.

Heat the olive oil in a wide pan and fry the cavolo nero in it for a few minutes, over a moderately high heat, stirring constantly.At the same time, bring a pot of water to a boil and drop in the pasta to cook for two or three minutes until just tender.

Drain the pasta and stir it into the kale with the lemon zest and juice, the chickpeas and half of the grated pecorino. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Serve the pasta in deep bowls with more cheese scattered over.

We’ve reached that time of year when some weeks a higher proportion of the veg in our weekly boxes is coming from other local growers in north Cornwall.

We do have winter salad leaves and veg in our polytunnels as well as root veg and brassicas outside. But we can’t harvest them every Friday because growth slows down as temperatures drop and light levels fade.

So we’re seeing the welcome return of winter staples like Jerusalem artichokes and cauliflower. If you’re stuck for ideas how to prepare and cook these thoroughly British veg, look for inspiration on the recipes page on our website.

In all the boxes this week:-
cavolo nero (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
Brussels sprouts stalk (Restharrow)
Jerusalem artichokes (Restharrow)
cauliflower (Restharrow)
beetroot (Restharrow)
onions (Restharrow)
potatoes ‘Maris Peer’ (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:-
extra potatoes
*turnips
*radishes
*green pepper

* = grown to organic principles
Produce grown by Camel CSA unless otherwise indicated. Please ensure you wash all fruit and veg

Try out more than 350 ways of serving vegetables on Camel CSA’s recipe pages 

We had this tasty stew for tea on Friday, using the Savoy cabbage in this week’s veg boxes.  It’s from TV chef Tom Kerridge’s Dopamine Diet.  As I am not a fan of smoked food we used ordinary cheddar cheese for the crust.  It has a lovely liquor, delicious spooned over mashed potato.

Serves 4-6

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 3 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients
vegetable oil
1kg shoulder of pork, skin removed and cut into 3 cm cubes
200g pancetta, diced
2 onions, halved and sliced
10 garlic cloves, grated
2 chicken stock cubes
200ml white wine
2 tsp cracked black pepper
A bunch of rosemary (about 6-8 sprigs), tied together with kitchen string
400ml chicken stock
3 tbsp medium-hot German mustard
1 Savoy cabbage, cored and finely sliced
2 x 70g packets of pork scratchings, packets bashed to coarsely crush
6 tbsp dried onion flakes
3 tbsp thyme leaves
250g smoked cheese, grated
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method
Set a large, lidded heavy flameproof casserole over a medium heat.  Add a little oil and saute the pork in batches until golden brown.  Remove with a slotted spoon; drain on kitchen paper.

Add the pancetta to the casserole and fry until it has rendered plenty of its fat and is lightly browned.  Reduce the heat slightly and add the onions and garlic.  Sweat gently, stirring occasionally for about 10-15 minutes until softened. Crumble in the stock cubes, then add the wine and cracked black pepper.  Bring to the boil and simmer until the liquor is reduced down to a rich glaze.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 150°C/Gas mark 2.  Return the pork to the casserole, add the herb bundle and pour on the stock.  Bring to the boil, put the lid on and cook in the oven for 2 hours.

Stir in the mustard and some salt and pepper.  Spread the sliced cabbage over the pork.  Cover and cook in the oven for a further 45 minutes. Remove the lid and return to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes to reduce the liquor.

In a small bowl, mix the pork scratchings with the onion flakes and thyme leaves.  Scatter the cheese over the casserole, followed by the crunchy pork mixture.  Return to the oven for a further 25-30 minutes.  Leave to stand for 5 minutes before serving.

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