Hello Rootabaga Subscribers,
A warm welcome to this week’s Rootabaga reveal. I’m so excited to have lots of new veggies to pack in your subscription bags this week. This Friday we get our delivery of fresh produce from the Valley, right in time to pack up your orders. With it, we will be getting the first of the year’s bunched beets! They always look so beautiful on the shelves with their vibrant magenta roots and bright green leaves. We also expect to receive snow peas! It’s always super exciting to get peas, they really feel like proof that summer is here. And we also have Boston Bib lettuce to share, one of my personal favourite lettuce varieties. The leaves are so tender and sweet it’s delicious all on its own. This week we are also sharing more radishes, as well as a simple recipe for Roasted Honey Radishes. In all, the small share has:
Radishes – Elmridge Farm, spray-free
Bunched Beets – Elmridge Farm, spray-free
Snow Peas – Elmridge Farm, spray-free
Boston Bib Lettuce – Elmridge Farm, spray-free
Russet Potatoes – Noggins Corner Farm, conventionally-grown
Arugula – Elmridge Farm, spray-free
The large share has everything above as well as:
½ lb of snow peas instead of ⅓ lb
⅓ lb of arugula instead of ¼ lb
Greenhouse Peppers – Stokdijk Greenhouses, conventionally-grown
Cucumber – Stokdijk Greenhouses, conventionally-grown
Eating seasonally is satisfying for so many reasons. It’s great getting to know your food suppliers, it feels good to support Nova Scotians by buying local food, and it makes it so exciting when you wait all year for the first taste of summer lettuce, or radish, or strawberries. In the spirit of continuing the excitement about summer produce, this week I have a recipe to share for Roasted Radishes with Fresh Herbs. Inspired by one of our cook’s at Uprooted (thanks Emily), I had never cooked radishes before but now that I have I’m hooked. Roasting radishes really mellows out their peppery bite and brings out a sweetness I never knew radishes had, but don’t take my word for it, try them for yourself!
- 1 bunch radishes
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon fresh herbs (I used rosemary, but thyme would also work well here)
- Salt
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Wash and trim the ends off the radishes. Slice the radishes in half.
- Place the radishes on a baking sheet and drizzle with the honey and olive oil. Top with fresh herbs, a good sprinkle of salt, and toss everything to coat.
- Roast the radishes, uncovered, for about 30 minutes. Halfway through the cooking time, give them a stir, then continue cooking until fork tender.
This side dish is a delicious accompaniment to any meal, but I used mine in a tofu rice bowl with crisp Acadiana Extra-Firm Tofu, lots of veggie bits I had to use up, and a drizzle of spicy mayo. I think they’d also be delicious in a salad with Baked Snowy River Chicken Breasts, Boston bib lettuce, some raw shredded beet, and your favourite vinaigrette dressing.
I hope you also enjoy the little taste of snow peas this week! Pea season is just starting, and we will have other varieties available shortly as well. Snap peas are the variety that’s skin is also tender and sweet, so you can eat the whole pod. They’re tasty raw or thrown into a stir-fry or soup.
Thank you for joining us and continuing to support our Rootabaga subscription program!
Until next week,
Robin