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"Veggie Group"
Here in California, we have so many things to be thankful for when it comes to fresh food. Avocados are certainly one of those things, and they are in prime time right now. Given that California produces 95% of the avocados in the USA this is not surprising. Of those, the Haas is the most widely grown, as it is worldwide. Overall, the Haas accounts for 80% of avocados grown. However, at one time in California there was something like 100 varieties grown, with the majority of them in the Santa Barbara/Ventura area and further south.
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“…of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” (Matt. 6:28-29)
What? Why am I quoting this piece of scripture in a food column you ask? Well, like leeks, onions, and garlic, asparagus is in the lily family, and for many this member of the family is THE harbinger of spring. For many of us that think with our bellies, asparagus is as beautiful as any lily, or more so. With its distinct flavor and fairly short season, asparagus is a divine treat and sure sign that winter is past.
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A relative newcomer to the vegetable world, Brussels sprouts have only been around for five hundred years, whereas there are records of cabbages that go back three thousand years. Why the name “Brussels” sprouts? It is thought that they have always grown near Brussels and that they were good, and so they became associated with the area. Thomas Jefferson was an avid farmer, and his are the first records of the vegetable in North America from 1812. Chances are good he brought them here originally.
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We offer several varieties of apples during the late summer and fall. At our home farm, we have planted orchards of Jonagolds, Rubinettes, Waltanas and Hudson’s Golden Gems.
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What I want to know is, who was the first person to eat an artichoke, and why? Ponder the artichoke and you too may wonder this same thing. The artichoke is a member of the thistle family (a sub-group of the sunflowers), and is aptly named.
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Basil is an aromatic herb belonging to the mint family. Basil originates from India but certain varieties are used commonly in Southeast Asian cuisines. It has a strong, pungent, if sweet, smell. This versatile herb is commonly used fresh in Italian and other Mediterranean dishes, added at the very end as to not lose too much flavor.
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Beans and peas are one of those marvelous crops that not only taste delicious, they actually give back nutrients into the soil. Peas can take nitrogen out of the air and “fix” it into the soil. Nutritious for you, nutritious for the earth. We offer several kinds of beans throughout the season.
Click for cranberry shelling bean recipes
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We grow several varieties of beets. Red Ace beets are the earthy deep red kind. Chioggia beets are a beautiful candy-striped beet, an heirloom variety from the Italian town of Chioggia, near Venice. Golden beets are sweet (and won’t turn everything you are cooking red).
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We have four varieties of blueberries in our blueberry patch, Southmoon, O’Neal, Misty, and Jewel–which are supposed to ripen sequentially so that we could stagger our harvest over a longer season than if we just had one variety.
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Braising mix is a variety of baby cooking greens. One of our favorite mixes includes mizuna mustard greens, tatsoi, red russian kale, and green kale. The tender baby greens can be sauteed quickly for a delicious side dish.
Celery Root, The Ugly Duckling
If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone pick up a celery root and say something like, “What is this, it’s so ugly!” I think I’d be quite well off. It’s funny, because in France the word “céléri” refers to the celery root (a.k.a. “céléri-rave”), whereas it is always “céléri branche” for the stalks Americans know and crunch for everything from dips to diets. Celery root is also known as celeriac, and is one of three forms of celery; root, branch (or stalk), and leaf, but they are all variants of the same plant.
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We grow several varieties of chard. You might see Ruby Red, Golden, White or a Rainbow of colors. Chard is a member of the beet family, but unlike beets, it is the leaves and stalks that are eaten. Chard’s leaves are always green, but the stalks can be a variety of colors ranging from red to yellow to white. High in Vitamins C, K, A and Iron, chard is one of the most nutrient-rich vegetables around.
Cilantro, or coriander leaves, is an annual herb and member of the carrot family. It is widely used in Mexican, Caribbean and Asian cooking. Cilantro has antioxidant and antibacterial properties and is said to aid digestion, anxiety and Type 2 diabetes.
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Collard greens are a part of the brassica family, along with cabbage and broccoli, but lacks a central “head”, so it is the oval-shaped leaves that are eaten. Collards are a good source of vitamin C and soluble fiber, and have nutrients with anti-cancer properties.
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I can remember back to a time that I just didn’t get the appeal of fennel. This course, stringy, strongly scented vegetable didn’t seem worth the trouble to cook. But now I can honestly say that it is among my very favorite vegetables. I fully realize that there are many of our CSA members who still don’t “get” fennel, and if you are among these, you simply must try Jeanne’s recipe for roast fennel and onions.
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Click for green garlic recipes
Green garlic is young garlic which is harvested before the cloves have begun to mature. It resembles a scallion, with a deep green stalk and a pale white bulb, but has a garlicky taste.
Kohlrabi is an odd vegetable that I think is often bought more for appearance than for the desire to eat it. Looking like something from a science-fiction movie, they come in lovely deep purple or jade green, and the leaves come up from all over what seems to be the root. 
Leeks, like garlic and onions, belong to the allium family. Since leeks are related to garlic and onions, they contain many of the same beneficial compounds found in these well-researched, health-promoting vegetables.
Click for mustard greens recipes
Spicy and tangy, mustard greens are often associated with Southern slow cooking, but quick braising or fast stir-fries make this a quick fast meal.
We offer several members of the allium family in our boxes including spring onions, scallions, purplette onions, leeks and green garlic.
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