A quick sauté brings out the natural sweetness and crunch of peas. Fresh basil, tart lemon zest, and tangy pecorino cheese are sprinkled on top for a delicious and fast dish.

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 lb sugar snap peas, strings removed
• 1 lb English peas, shelled
• sea salt and fresh ground pepper
• 1 lemon
• leaves from 4 fresh basil sprigs, torn
• about 1 oz chunk pecorino Romano cheese

in a large frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add both kinds of peas and 1/4 cup water. Add a pinch of salt. Cover and cook for 2 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the water has evaporated, about 2 minutes. The peas should be tender-crisp and still bright green.

grate 2 teaspoons zest from the lemon, then halve the lemon. Remove the pan from the heat and squeeze the juice from 1 lemon half over the peas. Add the lemon zest, basil, and a pinch each of salt and pepper to the pan. Grate the cheese over the top to taste, and stir to mix well. Transfer the peas to a warmed serving dish and serve right away.

serves 4

Strawberries!  It’s strawberry season and we love it!  Shares this week are full of goodies like, strawberries, carrots or peas (not both), baby beets with greens, scarlet salad turnips with greens,, fresh garlic (use fresh or let sit a week or two), baby head lettuce, loose leaf lettuce greens, cabbage head and our herb is dill.

One more week to go with spring shares.  We will have more strawberries more delicious garlic  well as artichokes in our last basket!  Summer shares will be beginning June 2nd.  Summer share consist of more hardy vegetable like tomatoes, squash, peppers, eggplants and such.  We are all looking forward to a great summer growing season!

April 28th, 2016

Last week wind, this week hail!  Oh hail!  Most of our tender head lettuces were destroyed in Mondays hail storm, while the rest of the veggies survived they look a little bruised, beat and holey.  So maybe the term should be “holey hail”!  But once again, we survived the odds and the garden grows on!

This week we have a bag of microgreens.  If this is new to you, be sure to rinse in a colander.  Top these nutrient dense babies on top of salads or sandwiches.  They are nutritious and delicious.  Another odd ball this week is garlic scapes.  Before you pooh pooh (as my mother would say) the idea of using them, give them a try.  They can be made into pesto, or you can saute them just as you would garlic or onions for a super taste.  Use the whole thing!  You can also grill or broil them with a little salt and olive oil.  Our share holders have grown to love garlic scapes and look forward to them in the spring.  Also, you will find a bag of spinach.  To our dismay, the spinach has some holes in them from the hail, but it is perfectly fine to eat fresh, or cooked.  Waste not, want not.  The herb this week is chives.  You’ll find a chive flower in the herb bag as well.  Pull the little flowers off and toss them over your salad for a nice peppery taste.  Magenta head lettuce, loose leaf lettuce, shallot and broccollete are all a part of shares this week.

March 21st, 2016.

Windy, windy, windy week!  Gusts howled through the garden, destruction of wind can be worse than a late frost.  Unfortunately, the wind took out most of the plums and persimmons this year, but most of the other crops seemed to survive and forward we move!

This week cook something hardy with leeks!  I’ll post a great recipe for this later.  Radishes, salad turnips (which can be eaten raw), salad greens, cilantro, butter head lettuce (great leaves for sandwiches!), and other produce.

Cabbages and broccoli are coming along nicely and will be in the shares within the next few weeks.

This week we are happy to say we have asparagus!  We don’t get this very much in the spring, so enjoy!  Spinach, lettuce, radishes, herbs, peas and other greens will be in this weeks shares.

What you will need

• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 8oz of tofu or farm cheese cut into cubes
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp mild Indian curry paste       (madras or balti)
• 2 large green chiles (optional), deseeded and chopped
• 1 lb spinach roughly chopped
• A handful of chopped fresh cilantro, leaves and stems included
• 1/2 cup light cream
• Lemon wedges, to garnish
• Basmati rice and warm naan bread, to serve (optional

Heat oil in a nonstick frying pan over high heat and cook the cubes of cheese for 2-3 minutes, turning often, until golden all over. Remove the cheese to a plate and set aside until needed.

Add the butter to the pan and when sizzling hot, add the curry paste and green chiles and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the spinach and cilantro and cook for 3-4 minutes, until all the spinach has wilted, then stir in the cream.

Put the mixture in a food processor and process until the sauce is thick and smooth. Return the pan, add the cheese and cook over low heat for 2-3 minutes, to warm the cheese through.

Serve the curry spooned over basmati rice with warm naan bread on the side, if you like.

Serves 4

For this weeks shares we have for your enjoyment: mixed baby lettuce, mixed spicy greens, salad turnips and turnip greens (steam those greens and you will have found a new favorite) Valentine radishes, bag of spinach, and a Savoy cabbage. Oh and the herb of the week is cilantro. Fun fact about cilantro is that it helps the body eliminate metals and toxins. So toss that stuff in everything!

What a wild weather week we have had!  79 degrees to snow… Well, that’s March for us.

Shares are done early today for those who want to pick up early.  This week we have wonderful spinach, mixed large greens that are great for sauteing, green onions, radishes, salad greens, parsley, beets and other produce in the mix.

Large greens are great to saute.  It quick and healthy.  Chop leaves and stems coarsely.  Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in deep skillet.  Add greens and a few pinches of salt.  Cook until wilted and tender, but don’t overcook. Add 1 tablespoon of butter or ghee.  Season with zest of lemon, lemon juice or a nice robust vinegar to bring up the flavors.

Next week we are hoping for cabbage, salad turnips (these are so great!), cilantro and possibly rhubarb, and of course other spring crops. In two weeks we should have peas and asparagus!  And of course this all depends on Mother Nature!

It’s time!  Spring shares are about to begin. Here are some of the things you’ll find in our first week share.  Chard, arugula, leeks, mixed salad greens, celery, dill, green onions, bok choy, small radishes and green shallots. 

If you are not sure how to use any of the produce, we will list recipes weekly or you can search Desert Sage for more delicious ways to prepare our fresh produce. 

Young arugula is so good and good for us. This week we will be featuring a nice hefty bag of it in our shares. 

1/2 pound fresh arugula

1 1/2 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon brown sugar or honey

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 clove garlic

1 cup toasted pine nuts

1 cup peptias 

1 cup olive oil

Blend all ingredients in a food processor, stopping to scrape down sides and processing again. 

Use immediately for fresh use or freeze in greased ice cube trays for later.

Arugula pesto is great tossed with warm pasta, spread for pizza, or added to sour cream for a dip.