Dearest Sizzling Hot Seekers of the Freshest Flavors in Town -
This is Farmer Brooke and pardon me but DAMN !! My sunburnt booty is EXHAUSTED. (I am sure I can speak on behalf of all my rowdy and righteous BADSEED farmers when I say that). The August heat is hard on our ole' bones and it is hard on the crops as well. I bet we could all use a nice big hug from our favorite customers this "first" Friday from 4-9 PM at the BADSEED Farmers Market. Come to think of it, us farmers will be really sweaty and surely smell bad, so you might want to skip the hug and just buy some summer squash or tomatoes instead. Deal??
Anyway, I have an extra good excuse for being tired this week. As most of you know, this is mine and Dan's last season on our beloved BADSEED Farm. Last year our idyllic urban farm came under attack by the City and we have been battling to stay afloat ever since. I won't go into the whole mess (I am sure you caught a whiff of it in the papers somewhere along the lines), but the brighter side of the coin is that we have purchased 13 glorious urban acres on the East side of town, re-zoned it Agricultural, and will be creating an off-grid diversified farmstead complete with an organic orchard, vineyard, and vegetable production as well as heritage animals. All of this in the heart of KCMO!! (and yes folks.....we will be getting our GOATS back!!!). Aaaaahhhh! Easier said then done, right?? The real challenge is managing both farms at once. We are currently in full production on BADSEED Farm, and the workload on the new site is nothing short of terrifying especially for two low-tech (totally broke) organic farmers.
Right now we are prepping the entire 13 acres for both vegetables and fruit trees. Yesterday (which happened to be the hottest day of the year reaching 100 degrees) we spread 4 tons of ground limestone by hand. We only have 6 more tons to go!! So that is 10 tons total, or to be a bit more clear - 20,000 freakin' pounds!!! Like I said, we are very low-tech. We don't possess big machinery for handling such jobs. Furthermore, we are "old-school". Our two hands are the tools we trust and know best. You should have seen us though.....it was totally nuts. I am a whopping 104 lbs and Dan is an even more impressive 148 lbs (yeah yeah yeah, we are really small), and we kept joking that we were 252 lbs up against 20,000. But hey, Team 252 is tough as nails. We tackled that freakin' limestone with more gusto than you can ever imagine. Dan and I have chosen a hard life and we may have very well bitten off more than we can chew. However, when it really boils down to it, muscles and machines don't mean a thing. All you really need is sheer determination, passion, and heart....and believe me, we have no shortage of that. Stay tuned for up-dates. We hope our edible oasis in the city will someday serve as a successful national model for large-scale, diversified urban agriculture. We believe that Kansas City can responsibly feed it's people off it's very own (wasted) land with creative planning and progressive policy....AND (of course) "tough as nails" farmers to grow the food.
of the Week***
*Sunday, Aug 15th, 1-6 pm at the BADSEED Market, 1909 McGee, KCMO, 64108
Ah, the tomato!! So versatile and delicious, you must learn to capture it in the summer for fall and winter eating. This very red day of recipes will include preparation of a smooth and delicious pureed tomato sauce. Learn the quick ways of cleaning tomatoes and the benefits of the food mill—giving you both sauce and juice from the same tomato.
Another must for tomato season is salsa. We will prepare two types: cooked and oven roasted. And how about catsup/ketchup? Are you ready to be one of those people who actually makes their own? You will learn this simple recipe, along with a similar one for pizza sauce. *Pressure canning
Cost of Class - $60
One bunch of sweet potato leaves (volume of the untrimmed bunch was 6-10 Qt.)
1-2 hot dried red chilies
1-2 cloves of garlic
Salt, soy sauce, pepper to taste
Method
- Fill a pot with water and put it on the stove over high heat. The pot should be large enough to hold the leaves, and there should be enough water to cover the leaves.
- Strip the leaves from the branches. The thin stems that attach the leaves to the branch are tender enough to eat, so there is no need to remove only the leaves. Wash and drain the leaves.
- Mince 1-2 cloves of garlic.
- Chop the chilies fine, and combine with the garlic.
- When the water comes to a boil, turn off the heat and carefully add the sweet potato leaves. After 2 minutes, remove and rinse with cold water. Chop the leaves. (This step was recommended by the cookbook to remove traces of natural slime from the leaves.)
- In a large skillet or wok, heat some vegetable oil over high heat. When it is hot, add the garlic and chilies. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring often.
- Add the greens, then stir-fry the mixture until the greens are tender, about 2 or 3 minutes. Add salt, pepper, soy sauce, or other flavorings to taste.
4 large tomatoes, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1/3 C rice vinegar (I used brown rice vinegar)
1 T sugar (or more if you prefer a bit sweeter taste)
salt and pepper to taste
1. Blanch the leaves in boiling water. Drain. Immerse in cold water bath. Drain again.
2. Mix the rice vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper together.
3. Arrange the sweet potato leaves on a platter. Top with tomatoes and onions. Drizzle with the vinegar-sugar mixture.
Celebrating Local Food, Culture, and Community
