If you don’t know what to do with Jerusalem artichokes try this dish.  You need to prepare it ahead of time as it requires at least 2 hours marinating in the fridge though overnight is better.  It is taken from Yotam Ottolenghi’s book Jerusalem and he suggests serving it with mejadra, a rice and lentil dish, though this weekend we are going to try it with new potatoes and a green salad.

Serves 4

Preparation time: 30-40 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients
450g Jerusalem artichokes, peeled and cut into 1.5 cm wedges lengthways
3 Tbs lemon juice
8 chicken thighs
12 banana shallots, peeled and cut in half lengthways
12 large garlic cloves, sliced
1 lemon, cut in half lengthways and then thinly sliced
1 tsp saffron threads
50ml olive oil
150ml cold water
1 1/2 Tbs pink peppercorns, slightly crushed
10g fresh thyme leaves
40g tarragon leaves, chopped
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Method
Put the Jerusalem artichokes in a pan, cover with plenty of water and half the lemon juice,  Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10-20 minutes, until tender but not soft.  Drain and leave to cool.

Place the Jerusalem artichokes and all the remaining ingredients, excluding the remaining lemon juice and half the tarragon in a large mixing bowl and use your hands to mix everything together well.  Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight, or for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 240°C/ Gas Mark 9.  Arrange the chicken pieces, skin-side up in the centre of a roasting tin and spread the remaining ingredients around the chicken.  Roast for 30 minutes.  Cover the tin with foil and cook for a further 15 minutes.  At this point the chicken should be completely cooked.  Remove from the oven and add the reserved tarragon and lemon juice.  Stir well, season to taste and serve.

Our winter salad leaves are doing really well now the light levels are improving. Much helped by Mike’s efforts to clean the polytunnels inside and out – a necessary winter chore that makes so much difference.

In all our veg boxes this week: –
*salad bag (mixed lettuce, mibuna, mizuna, red/golden mustard, baby beet/spinach, namenia, rocket)
*sprouted mung beans
*Jerusalem artichokes (Mark Norman, Bodmin)
leeks (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
*purple sprouting broccoli (CSA/Restharrow)
*cabbage (CSA/Restharrow)
potatoes

Standard boxes also have: –
*coriander
*Swiss chard
beetroot (Restharrow)
extra potatoes

* = grown organic principles
All produce grown by Camel CSA unless otherwise indicated
Please ensure you wash all vegetables carefully

This week’s recommended recipes from our online archive:-
Leeks with greens
Cabbage with bacon and lemon

A big thank-you to CSA members Alex and Jeremy for recommending this recipe.  It is taken from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s book Veg every day.

Serves 4

Preparation time: 30-40 minutes
Cooking time: 50-60 minutes

Ingredients
35g butter
2 large leeks, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon English mustard
4 tablespoons crème fraîche
125g Gruyère or other well-flavoured hard cheese, finely grated
2–4 smallish squash (400–800g each)
A handful of thyme sprigs
Sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper

Method
Preheat the oven to 190C / gas mark 5. Heat the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat and add the leeks. As soon as they begin to sizzle, turn the heat right down and cover the pan. Sweat the leeks gently for about 10 minutes, until very soft. Remove from the heat and stir in the mustard, crème fraîche and cheese. Season the mixture well with salt and pepper, as it will be surrounded by a good amount of squash.

Cut a small slice off the base of each squash so it will stand up on a baking tray without wobbling. Carefully slice a “lid” off the top of each one too and set aside. Now, with a small, sharp knife, cut into the centre of each squash, then use a teaspoon to scoop out all the seeds and fibres.

Fill the squash cavities with the leek mixture – they should be about two-thirds full. Tuck a few thyme sprigs into the centre of each. Put the “lids” back on top and stand the squash on a large baking tray – there should be plenty of room for hot air to circulate around them.

Bake for 50–60 minutes – possibly longer if the squash are large – until the flesh feels very tender inside. Serve straight away.

This week all boxes have:-
*Crown Prince squash (Camel CSA) 
onions (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
kale (Restharrow)
beetroot (Restharrow)
red cabbage (Restharrow)
leeks (Restharrow)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:
extra potatoes
*Camel CSA tomato and apple chutney
purple sprouting broccoli (Restharrow)
celeriac (Restharrow)

* = grown organic principles
Please ensure you wash all vegetables carefully

This week’s recommended recipes from our online archive:-
Squash and sage risotto
Stuffed squash

This is the perfect soup for the depths of winter, it is thick and warming.  The original recipe came from Simply Vegan by David Scott but this is my take on it.  If I haven’t got vegetable stock to hand I add a splash of soy sauce to add flavour.  Often I finely chop the broccoli stalk and add that at the same time as the potato, again for extra flavour.  This soup has a chunky texture but if you prefer a smooth soup you can easily blend it and reheat before serving.

Serves 4

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients
1 small onion, finely chopped
25g butter or vegetable margarine
450g potatoes, peeled and cut into 2 cm cubes
700ml vegetable stock
250g broccoli, divided into small florets
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method
Fry the onion in the butter or margarine for 3 minutes.  Add the cubed potatoes and fry for a further minute.  Add the stock and bring to the boil.  Add seasoning to taste and simmer for 10-15 minutes.  Stir well to break up the potato and thicken the soup.  Add the broccoli and simmer until just tender.  Serve.

This week all boxes have:-
*purple sprouting broccoli (CSA / Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
*rainbow chard
*swede
*brussels sprouts
*sprouted mung beans
leeks (Restharrow)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:-
Extra potatoes
red cabbage (Restharrow)
kale (Restharrow)
beetroot (Restharrow)

All veg grown by Camel CSA unless otherwise indicated
* = grown organic principles

Please ensure you wash all vegetables carefully.

This week’s recommended recipes from our online archive:-
Char-grilled broccoli with chilli and garlic
Pasta with sprouting broccoli

This recipe is from www.british-leeks.co.uk via West Country Foodlover magazine.  Be careful not to overcook the leeks at the beginning as they cook some more as the sauce is made.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
30g butter
4 large leeks cut into 2cm slices
30g plain flour
400mls whole milk
175g cheddar cheese, grated
2 heaped tsp Dijon mustard
30g chopped parsley

For the topping
100g plain flour
100g rolled oats
75g diced butter
50g chopped hazelnuts
50g grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
Salt and pepper

Method
 Preheat oven to 190°C. Place the butter in a large sauté pan and turn the heat to medium. When melted, add the sliced leeks, stir around in the butter and cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  When the leeks are soft, add the flour and stir around in the leeks for a few minutes.

Now add half the milk, stir well and bring to the boil. When the sauce starts to thicken, add the remaining milk and repeat the process. Add the grated cheese, the mustard, the chopped parsley, season with salt and pepper and leave to cool.

Make the crumble topping by combining the flour with the oats before adding the diced butter and combining together using your fingers. Once the mix resembles bread crumbs, add the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Pour the leek sauce into a baking dish and top with the crumble. Place into a hot oven to cook for 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbling. Serve straight from the oven to the table.

This week all boxes have:-
*kale
*beetroot
*mixed salad leaves
*chillies
carrots (Restharrow Farm, Trebetherick)
leeks (Restharrow)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:
Extra potatoes
*cabbage or purple sprouting broccoli
*coriander
cauliflower (Restharrow)

All veg grown by Camel CSA unless otherwise indicated
* = grown organic principles
Please ensure you wash all salad vegetables carefully.

This week’s recommended recipes from our online archive:-
Stir-fried curly kale with chilli and garlic
Hugh’s pasta with greens, garlic and chilli

This is from a Thomasina Miers column in The Guardian. If you haven’t got chipotle en adobo (a relish) she suggests deseeding a dried chipotle, simmering it in water for 20 minutes to soften before pureeing it; failing that use smoked paprika.  You could also substitute hazelnuts for the almonds.

The sprouts made a tasty supper with grilled sausages.  Thomasina Miers also suggests serving over rice or quinoa loosened with sesame oil, and topped with feta.

Serves 2-4

Preparation time: 10-20 minutes
Cooking time: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients
500g brussels sprouts
45g almonds (optional), skinned
60 g butter
1 tbsp chipotle en adobo (or 1 tsp hot smoked paprika)
1 tbsp honey
juice of 1 lime

Method
Wash and tail the sprouts, cut away any discoloured/damaged leaves, and cut into halves.  Put a large, heavy-bottomed frying pan on a medium heat and, when hot, toast the nuts (if using) for 5-10 minutes, tossing them every so often until they are toasted all over.  Roughly chop the nuts.

Turn the heat under the pan right up, add the butter, wait for the butter to start foaming, then cook until the solids turn a rich deep brown and it smells deliciously nutty.  Throw in the sprouts, fry for a few minutes, then turn them over and cook for 5 minutes more, tossing every so often so they colour all over.

Add the honey and chipotle to the pan, toss to coat the sprouts and squeeze in the lime juice.  Leave to heat through for a minute and sprinkle with the chopped nuts before serving.

Our first vegetable boxes of 2015 are full of fresh winter variety.

All boxes have: –
*sprouted mung beans
*leeks
*loose sprouts
*squash ‘Metro’
*parsnips (Mark Norman, Bodmin)
*Jerusalem artichokes (Mark) See recipes below
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)

Standard boxes also have:
Extra potatoes
*beetroot
*Swiss chard
*sprouting broccoli or carrots

All veg grown by Camel CSA unless otherwise indicated
* = grown to organic principles

This week’s recommended recipes from our website archive:
Palestine soup
A casserole of artichokes and pork for deepest winter

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