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Arugula

What’s Below:

About Arugula

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Arugula

Arugula is a green leafy vegetable that grows in cool temperatures, and is in the same family as other brassicas like collards, cabbage, kale and radish. It has origins in Southern Europe, particularly Italy and Greece where it’s been cultivated for at least 2,000 centuries. These tender leaves are known for their peppery, mustard-like flavor at their most mature, however they can be picked when younger for a more subtle, sweet taste. 

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and flowers

  • Medicine and Nutrients: These punchy little leaves also pack lots of nutrients like vitamins A, C, & K, as well as minerals like calcium, iron, and potassium.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Don’t wash arugula until you are ready to use it, make sure you are storing the leaves when dry after washing. Arugula will last in the refrigerator for about one week, loosely wrapped between some paper towels and kept in a plastic bag or container.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: Arugula is most commonly eaten raw in salads tossed with a dressing or vinaigrette, on sandwiches, in smoothies to add a kick, or just by itself. If you’re lucky enough to catch an arugula plant flowering you can harvest the bright yellow flowers and eat those too.

  • COOKED: Arugula can also be quickly cooked as a sauteed or stir-fried green like spinach, or added towards the end of a soup or stew’s cooking time.

RECIPES 

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Onions

Farmer Kyle with a ton of curing onions.

What’s Below:

About Onions

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Onions

Onions are a root vegetable in the Allium family alongside its plant cousins garlic and leeks, and has origins in Central Asia where it’s been cultivated for over 7,500 years. It’s a vegetable that’s been valued for its medicinal and flavor enhancing properties for centuries, as well as for its symbol for eternal life and veneration for the dead in African traditions such as those in Egypt. Over several centuries, onions have been bred or developed in the wild to create quite a wide variety of types. 

The type most people are familiar with are the large bulbing onions, but there are also your milder torpedo-shaped ones, small round ones, and bunching onions (aka scallions). All have the power to add savory and sweet complexity to salads, soups, stews, braises, and marinades among other culinary applications.

Here at the farm we grow yellow, white, red, and tropea onions. Tropea onions are of particular interest due to their origins in the Tropea area of Calabria Italy where they’ve been cultivated for about 2,000 years. This particular variety is sweeter than most onions (except maybe Vidalia from U.S. Georgia) and traditionally included in antipasto spreads.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Root (Note: The stems, skin, and leaves are good for stock and broth making both for their vitamin and flavor concentration)

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Onions are packed with Vitamin C, manganese, potassium, water, and fiber. They can improve your digestion due their naturally occurring probiotics, and are also great for maintaining your heart, eye, and joint health. Alongside all of this they’ve long been recognized for their medicinal properties to clean wounds and strengthen your immune system.

  • Storage: Whole onions are best stored in a cool, dry, dark and well-ventilated area. Peeled onions can be stored in the fridge for 10–14 days, while sliced or cut onions can be refrigerated for 5-7 days. Onions can be frozen, ideally chopped or sliced

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: When prepared for raw salads or slaws, onions need to be thinly sliced or minced finely.

  • COOKED: Onions can be roasted, baked, caramelized, braised, fried, stir-fried, and pickled.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes and Ayllen Kocher

Okra

Photo Source: Unsplash

What’s Below:

About Okra

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Okra

Okra is a tall, heat loving plant that generously produces fruit at the peak of summer through to the early fall, and has origins in Ethiopia that go back at least 3,000 years. It’s in the Mallow family with cacao beans and cotton, and it’s name has origins in Twi, Igbo, and Bantu languages (okuru, nkuruma, and ngombo respectively), with its Bantu name being the reason its also known as gumbo, both as a plant and the dish.

Okra is an herbaceous yet mildly sweet fruit that can range in color from green to white and red. It has a slimy texture in the center that can be used as a thickening agent for soups and stews!

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Fruit

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Okra is rich in vitamin C, B6, iron, and calcium.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Refrigerate your okra unwashed and untrimmed in a paper bag in the crisper drawer for three to five days.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: Enjoy them diced up in a salsa or salad; sliced on a sandwich; or just as is with a sprinkle of salt and your favorite herbs or spices alongside some pungent cheese.

  • COOKED: Okra is a staple in Creole and Southern cuisine. It can be sauteed, deep-fried, or simmered in soups and stews, such as gumbo. Raw okra can even be pickled. 

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Ginger

What’s Below:

About Ginger

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT GINGER

Ginger is a bright, peppery rhizome (or underground stem) in the same plant family as turmeric and cardamom. This rhizome has its origins in Southeast and Central Asia specifically The Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, China, and India where it was first cultivated over 5,000 years ago. Ginger is still a beloved spice in these regions, as well as across the globe, for the flavor and medicinal properties it imparts on dishes both savory and sweet.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Roots

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Ginger offer trace amounts of potassium and vitamin C, but its medicinal properties are far more important. Ginger is known to relieve digestive, respiratory, and pain issues as well as support a healthy immune system. It’s taken in the form of in teas or other medicinal brews and infusions.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Fresh ginger rhizomes need to be stored in a cool moist area like a fridge crisper or a sealed plastic bag, and can keep for about a month or so. Ginger can keep in the freezer for about 6 months minced, sliced, or pureed.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: It’s best to consume raw ginger in small amounts like a spice, it adds incredible punch to dressings, vinaigrettes, salads, spreads, dips, and smoothies. They are also great added to a pickling brine or pickled alone.

  • COOKED: On the savory end, ginger is great to use in stir-fries, marinades, stews, soups and curries. On the sweet end it can be candied, baked in cakes or muffins, or infused into honey or simple syrup for drinks.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes.

Tatsoi

Photo Source: Morning Chores

What’s Below:

About Tatsoi

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT tatsoi

Tatsoi is a tender green that has rounded leaves. It has a smooth texture and a sweet, earthy flavor. These yummy greens have origins in China, particularly along the Yangtze River in East China, where it’s been cultivated for over 2,000 years. To this day it is especially popular in Chinese and Japanese cuisines for adding to stir-fries and soups.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and flowers

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Tatsoi is very rich in vitamins C, K, and A. They also provide a significant source of fiber.

  • Storage: Store tatsoi in the refrigerator, in the crisper drawer with other vegetables. Put it in a plastic bag and wait to wash until eating or cooking. Tatsoi has a short shelf-life and will only last a few days.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: Tatsoi can be eaten raw, and is tender enough to use as a salad base.

  • COOKED: In terms of cooking, tatsoi has some similarities to spinach, and can be used in place of it. That said, their leaves are best prepared using quick cooking methods like sautéing, steaming, braising, and adding to soups.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri.

Cabbage

Caraflex cabbage

Caraflex cabbage

What’s Below:

About Cabbage

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Cabbage

Cabbage is a leafy green that forms a head of densely packed leaves that can range from tasting sweet to a mild bitterness. These versatile greens have their origins in Southwest Europe/Mediterranean where they’ve been cultivated for at least 2,500 years. Due to their nutrient density, transportation friendly shape, and a great vehicle for flavor infusion from spices and herbs, cabbage has been a valued green for centuries across cultures. Cabbage is a popular green to cook in the African and Asian diasporas, and is important for its medicinal uses just as much as it is for food.

Napa Cabbage (Photo source: Unsplash)

Tendersweet Cabbage (Photo source: Seeds Day)

We grow three types of cabbage here at Rock Steady; caraflex, tendersweet, and napa cabbage. Caraflex cabbage is a small cabbage with a pointed shape. It has a mild flavor and the texture is tender and crunchy. It can be eaten raw or is sturdy enough to cook. Tendersweet cabbage is a flat cabbage with a true to name sweet taste and tender texture. It can be cooked but it’s best appreciated eaten raw. Napa cabbage is an elongated cabbage with crinkly, tender leaves. It is very tender and is often fermented. It is ideal cooked quickly in stir fry, but can be stewed in soups as well. This variety first came about in China where it’s been cultivated for about 600 years.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Cabbage provides a great source of vitamin C and potassium. It’s high fiber content is good for regulating your digestion and is good for boosting your immunity.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: A whole head of cabbage will keep for a week or longer when stored unwashed in the fridge and sealed in plastic.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: All cabbage types can be pickled, as well as shredded into slaws and salads. They also make for a delicious wrap for savory fillings hot and cold.

  • COOKED: All cabbage types can be roasted, braised, blanched, steamed, and stir fried.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Purslane

What’s Below:

About Purslane

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Purslane

Purslane is an adorable, juicy, tart plant that some might say is a combination of a mini nopal, watercress, and spinach. It has tear-drop “leaves”, fat stems, and vibrant little pinkish to yellow flowers that are all edible raw or cooked.

The origins of purslane are still not super clear, some researchers believe it may have originally grown in the wild or have been domesticated in Europe, while others have found different species in the Americas and Africa. Either way, most researchers believe the plant came into existence at least 4,000 years ago. It can be found in many Asian, Mexican and Southern European dishes.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Root, stems, and flowers

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Carrot roots are packed with Vitamins A and K, and are a great source of potassium. Their leaves/tops are an incredible source of Vitamin C, fiber, and trace amounts of essential minerals.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Gently wrap it in a towel then place in a loosely closed plastic bag and refrigerate for up to a few days. If you want to freeze purslane, steam it just until tender, squeeze out any excess moisture, cool, then wrap tightly in plastic and freeze.

  • Cooking with Purslane: Although purslane is typically eaten raw in salads, you can also cook it using quick methods like sauteeing and stir-frying, or add it to soups.

Recipes 

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, and Amara Ullauri

Potatoes

Photo Source: Markus Spiske

What’s Below:

About Potatoes

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT POTATOES

Potatoes are a starchy tuber vegetable in the Solanum family that was first cultivated in the Andes, specifically Peru and Bolivia, anywhere between 4,500 - 10,000 years ago (depending on the type). Indigenous peoples of these regions of the Andes have a deep history of growing and cooking with potatoes, as well as using natural elements to preserve potatoes through freeze drying, dehydration, and fermentation. Indigenous peoples of the Andes have also continued to cultivate a wide variety of potatoes with flesh that come in a range of colors including red, black, and blue.

Although potatoes are often associated with European countries like Ireland, they wouldn’t reach Spain until the mid-1500s, and this would be after Spanish colonizers invaded and began to exploit the resources and Indigenous peoples of Peru and Bolivia. European colonizers would then take potatoes to Europe, and by the late-1700s were being widely cultivated in Ireland.

Potatoes continue to be an important crop in the diets of people across ethnicities and class lines due to them being a delicious, reliable, and inexpensive storage crop that offers an incredible source of energy.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Tubers*

  • Nutrients: Potatoes are a great source of complex carbohydrates, fiber, potassium, vitamin C and B6.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: The best place to store potatoes is in a cool, dry area of your kitchen, with good ventilation and out of direct sunlight. At warmer or more humid temperatures, they have a tendency to start sprouting or going bad; and when they’re too cold they develop sugars that can make their texture gummy when cooked.

  • Cooking with them: Potatoes can be baked, roasted, boiled, fried, grilled, and slow cooked; and can also be the basis for soups or salads.

RECIPES

*Note: Although potatoes are commonly called root vegetables, they are not true roots, but are tubers and their “roots” are the little eyes they have. Tubers are a swollen underground stem. Whatever you want to call them is fine though.

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes and Ayllen Kocher

Salad Mix

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About Salad Mix

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

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ABOUT SALAD MIX

Typically a salad mix is a combination of tender greens that can include any variety of lettuces and baby mustards/brassicas.

Although Lettuces have their origins in Egypt, and Mustards have their origins across West and Central Asia and Italy, the concept of a salad mix was first recorded in Southern France where mesclun salads were gaining popularity in the early 20th Century. However, it’s worth noting that gathering a mixture of greens has been a common practice across the world for millennia, and it’s very likely that indigenous peoples of the Americas, Africa, and Asia were gathering and combining wild, tender greens and flowers for consumption even if there aren’t very many records of what they called those mixtures or how they dressed them.

The word salad comes from the Latin/Spanish word for Sal, and speaks to the use of salt, oils, and vinegars used to dress lettuce greens in ancient times throughout the Mediterranean. 

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and tender stems

  • Medicine and Nutrients: See collard, kale, and lettuce profiles. 

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Store washed salad mix in a paper towel lined container in the refrigerator for 7-10 days

COOKING WITH IT 

  • RAW: Salad mixes are typically eaten raw and tossed with a dressing or vinaigrette. To make it into a complete meal you can add nuts, seeds, smoked meats, roasted vegetables, dried fruit, and cooked whole grains. 

  • SAUTE: Salad mixes can also be sautéed or stir-fried to go with rice, noodles, or alongside a broth or eggs (scrambled, fried, or poached are some great egg preparations to eat with sauteed greens).

RECIPES

LEARN MORE

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes and Ayllen Kocher

Callaloo (Amaranth Greens)

Photo Source: Now You’re Cooking (“Callaloo plant at Farintosh Farms in Stouffville, Ontario.”)

What’s Below:

About Callaloo

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Callaloo(Amaranth)

Callaloo (also known as amaranth) is a tender leafy green that also produces grain. It’s leaves have a slightly bitter flavor with a nutty undertone that is very similar to spinach, and the grains can be toasted or boiled. Callaloo has been cultivated for over 9,000 years across the Americas, Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. Each of these regions have a long history of preparing callaloo leaves and seeds in a variety of ways that include savory dishes, soups, stews, drinks, and sweets.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and seeds

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Amaranth is a nutrient and medicinal powerhouse, with leafy greens that provide tons of essential nutrients like protein and fiber; vitamins K, A, & C; as well as minerals like iron, calcium, and manganese. The grains also offer significant amounts of those nutrients alongside copper and complex carbohydrates.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: To preserve callaloo, it's best to chop it before. Place the freshly chopped callaloo into a zip lock bag and store it in the fridge for 7-10 days. Place the cut up callaloo into a zip lock bag and remove the air before sealing it. Callaloo can also be stores in the freezer in the same way for future use.

  • Ways to Prepare: Callaloo can be sauteed, blanched, steamed, and put into soups and stews. It can also be made into a filling for patties and dumplings.

RECIPES 

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Winter Squash

Image Source: Unsplash

What’s Below:

About Winter Squash

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT WINTER SQUASH

Winter Squash is a delicious, hearty fruit that comes in a several varieties that range in taste and texture, from sweet to nutty and creamy to delightfully stringy. These versatile, fall fruits grow on vines and have their origins across North, South, and Central America where they’ve been cultivated by Indigenous peoples for at least 10,000 years. It’s believed that the word squash comes from the Narragansett word for “eaten raw” askutasquash." While it is possible to eat many varieties of winter squash raw, many people prefer to eat the skin, flesh, and seeds cooked.

While we no longer grow winter squash here at Rock Steady Farm, we often purchase it for our CSA from other farms who grow delicious winter squash. We most often will purchase butternut, delicata, kabocha, or acorn squash. Kabocha is a Japanese squash with a green outer shell and starchy interior, with a flavor that’s described as sweet potato mixed with pumpkin. Butternut squash is a hybrid of a pumpkin and gooseneck squash with a soft, creamy texture and is often described as being sweet, but nutty tasting. Acorn squash has a slightly stringier texture, closer to a spaghetti squash, and is a bit more mild. Delicata squash has a very thin, delicate skin and does not need to be peeled. The interior texture is similar to a butternut and it has a very sweet taste.

Butternut squash

Butternut squash

Kabocha squash

Kabocha squash

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Fruit

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Depending on the type winter squash have varying levels of different nutrients, but most are a great source of potassium, fiber, vitamin C, and beta-carotene.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Store squash at room temperature in a cool, dry and dark place for up to 3-4 months. Refrigerate cooked and cut squash and use within 2-3 days. Store sliced squash in plastic wrap, foil or a sealed plastic bag. Discard if it becomes soft, squishy, or moldy. Squash is best frozen when pureed as the texture does not hold up to freezing when kept whole.

  • Ways to Prepare: Winter squash can be roasted, fried, simmered, stewed, and added to soups with or without their skin peeled. The seeds can be seasoned with spices and roasted.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Parsnip

What’s Below:

About Parsnips

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT PARSNIPS

Parsnip is a root vegetable that’s plant cousins with carrots, dill, and parsley. It has a texture that’s similar to turnips, slightly sweeter than a carrot, and sometimes has a hint of spice like a radish. These creamy colored roots have origins in the Mediterranean where they’ve been foraged for in the wild and cultivated for thousands of years, with the exact date being unknown. Although parsnip tops can be eaten, they have a small level of toxicity that mostly irritates the skin when touched, therefore they’re best eaten cooked and typically don’t come with their tops.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Roots (and the leaves if handled properly)

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Parsnips offer a rich source of vitamins C and B6, as well as potassium, iron, magnesium, and fiber.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Parsnips will stay firm and fresh for about 2-3 weeks if kept in a cool, moist area of the fridge like the crisper or in plastic bag.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: Parsnips can be eaten raw in salads tossed with your other favorite fruits and vegetables, they’re best when shredded thin or cut small.

  • COOKED: Parsnip roots are excellent roasted, sauteed, or stir-fried with other vegetables, and also are a great addition to your favorite soups and stews.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes.

Melons

2021 Pollinators Amanda and Alexx enjoying some cantaloupe.

What’s Below:

About Melons

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT MELONS

Melons are deliciously juicy fruits that grow on bushy vines and are plant cousins of cucumber and squash. They have multiple points of origin across Africa and Southeast and West Asia where they’ve been cultivated for about 4,000-5,000 years. There are many types of melons that come in a variety of shapes and sizes, however the most well known ones are watermelons, cantaloupe, honey dew, and bittermelon.

Here at Rock Steady Farm we’re growing watermelons and cantaloupe which you can learn more about below.

D enjoying a cantaloupe.

Cantaloupe has origins across Southeast and West Asia, specifically India and Iran, where its been cultivated for at least 4,400 years. The word cantaloupe is believed to come from the Italian town of Cantalupo where it became popular thanks to a Pope being obsessed with it at the time. They’re also known as muskmelons which comes from the Persian word for perfume, and in India the Hindi word for melon is Kharbhuj खरभुज. All this is to say that there are many names for this sweet little fruit, that speak to its honey like scent and taste which has helped it maintain its popularity in Mediterranean and South West Asian cuisines to this day.

Mika enjoying some yellow watermelons!

Watermelons are native to Egypt and Libya, as well as Southern Africa, where they were first cultivated over 5,000 years ago and became valued for to their drought tolerance. Early watermelons had really bitter flesh and were most prized for their nutrient dense seeds. Overtime they would be bred to have a sweeter flesh surrounding the seeds, but the nutritious seeds have remained important especially in West African dishes like Egusi.

In the African diaspora of the Americas watermelon have come to symbolize liberation and joy for many Black people. And despite decades of harmful marketing campaigns, that are still somewhat pervasive in the minds of people today, many Black folks have resisted such stereotypes by continuing to both grow and enjoy the refreshment that watermelon has to offer.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Fruit and seeds

  • Medicine and Nutrients:  Both Watermelons and Cantaloupe are a great source of vitamins C and A, as well as potassium.

  • Storage: Melons can be kept at room temperature until they’re fully ripe, and when ripe they should be kept cool in the fridge. There’s lots of debate as to whether or not melons can ripen off the vine on their own, but if you place a melon in a paper bag with an apple or banana it will encourage the melon to ripen somewhat. Ripe melon slices or cubes can be stored in an airtight container or wrapping for about a week. Melons can also be cut up and stored in the freezer, which make a sweet alternative to ice cubes for drinks.

  • Ways to Prepare: Although the raw pulp of melons are the most popularly eaten part of the plant, their seeds are prized in some Black and Brown cultures (particularly West African and South East Asian cuisines) to make soups and stews, or toasted as a snack. The rinds of melons can also be cooked like winter squash, used to flavor dishes like soup, or brined to make a crunchy pickle.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes

Pronouns 101

Ever wonder why we include those (pronouns) next to our names in our bios? We know that we reach a diverse community of people, including allies that do not identify as LGBTQIA+ and those who might be new to gender expansive pronouns. Being that it's PRIDE month, we want to share some suggestions to help us all be in community together.

Spinach

Image Source: Elianna Friedman

What’s Below:

About Spinach

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT SPINACH

Spinach is a delicious tender green that’s related to beets, chard, and celosia flowers, but a lot milder in flavor. These greens have origins in Southwest Asia, specifically Iran, where they’ve been cultivated for over 2,000 years and become one of the most popular leafy greens to eat across the globe. There are many varieties of spinach to try out there but three main types of spinach include flat-leaf (with spade shaped leaves), savoy (with curly, wrinkled leaves), and semi-savoy (which have only somewhat curled leaves). Here at the farm we grow the flat-leaf type which are really versatile to cook with in the kitchen.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Spinach is a nutrient rich leafy green that is packed with vitamins C, K, and E as well as minerals like iron, magnesium, and potassium.

  • Storing and Shelf Stability: Place spinach in an airtight container with a dry paper towel to absorb any excess moisture and store in a cool part of the fridge for 1-2 weeks.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: The leaves are a great base for a salad with a light dressing, topped on a sandwich, or blended into your favorite green smoothie.

  • COOKED: Spinach leaves have a really short cooking time and are best suited for quick dishes like stir-fries, sauteed with other vegetables, or put in a soup or stew at the final cooking stage.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes.

Collard Greens

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What’s Below:

About Collards

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Collards

Collards are a flavorful dark green that has origins in Italy, Greece and Turkey where it was first cultivated over 4,000 years ago. However, the continued use of collards in modern times can be largely attributed to Black and African Diasporic peoples who were forcibly brought to the United States during the trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. During this period some enslaved people would grow collards in subsistence gardens and substitute them in place of the ones they were familiar with back in Africa but were unavailable or hard to grow in the Southern U.S.

To this day collards continue to be a highly favored dish in Southern cuisine where they’re a staple in the meal spread for various holidays and celebrations, and are also important in areas of the U.S. where African Americans moved during The Great Migration. Outside of the U.S., collards are also a very popular crop to cook within Brazilian cuisine.

Collards have somewhat bitter tasting leaves, however they become tender and sweet the longer they are cooked. This is one of the reasons why braising and boiling them have traditionally been the go-to method for cooking them. However, longer cooking methods tend to make them a muted, green color that can be unappealing to some and there are a variety of quicker ways to cook them to maintain their vibrant green color (see below).

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and stems.

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Collards are incredible source of vitamins and minerals like iron, Vitamins K and C.

  • Storage:  These hearty leaves are best kept in an open plastic bag in the refrigerator for about 5 days. When you are ready to cook the greens, you'll need to wash them.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: When prepared for raw salads or slaws, collards need to be chopped very fine and/or massaged in order for oils, vinegars, and salt to fully penetrate and season the leaves. The leaves can also be used for making nutritious, gluten-free wraps.

  • COOKED: Collards are traditionally braised or stir-fried, but can also be sautéed, steamed, roasted, stir fried, and used in soups/stews.

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Escarole

Escarole.jpg

Escarole is like a hearty lettuce - a little bit bitter and very delicious! You can cook it in soups, sauté with loads of garlic or toss in salad with a sweet tangy dressing.

Storage: Store unwashed with a dampened paper towel in a perforated plastic bag and refrigerate. By changing the towel occasionally and keeping it damp, you'll be able to store the greens for up to a week.

Recipes and Ideas:

Here’s a place to start!

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Kale and Baby Kale

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What’s Below:

About Kale

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Kale

Kale is a leafy green in the mustard/brassica family that has origins in Italy, Greece and Turkey where it was first cultivated over 4,000 years ago. It’s been adopted into a variety of cuisines across Black and brown diasporas in place of greens native to Africa and Southeast Asia, and has typically been substituted or combined with several other greens in Southern U.S. dishes or stir-fries and stews in Asian dishes.

Mature kale and baby kale are green leafy vegetables that grow abundantly throughout our whole CSA season. Mature kale is known for its tough and fibrous texture.

Unlike mature kale, baby kale has a much milder flavor than its older sibling. Like arugula, baby kale is known for its slight peppery taste. It can be eaten raw or sauteed. Since baby kale isn’t at its peak maturity, it can also come in mixed salad greens because it tastes so mild. 

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and stems.

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Kale is an incredible source of vitamins and minerals like iron, Vitamins K and C.

  • Storage for Baby Kale : Wrap the bunch of kale in a layer of paper towels, and store in a supermarket plastic bag or a zip-top plastic bag in the refrigerator crisper drawer. The kale should be in great shape for a week.

  • Storage for Mature Kale: Kale is hearty, and it will keep in the refrigerator for more than a week. Store dry in a a plastic bag with most of the air squeezed out, or wrapped in a paper towel.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: When prepared for raw salads or slaws, kale needs to be chopped very fine and/or massaged in order for oils, vinegars, and salt to fully penetrate and season the leaves.

  • COOKED: Kale leaves can also be sautéed, braised, steamed, roasted, stir fried, and used in soups/stews. 

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

Pea Shoots

Pea shoots.jpg

What’s Below:

About Pea Shoots

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT pea Shoots

When grown to full maturity, peas produce a pod of legumes, however when harvested at a very early stage of growth in their life cycle prior to flowering they’re known as pea shoots. These shoots are typically ready in the summer in the Northeast and have delicate leaves on them.

The pea plant itself has origins in the Mediterranean and Southwest Asia where they’ve grown for thousands of years. However, Indigenous Hmong people of Southwest and East Asia are known as being the first to cook with and introduce pea shoots to other ethnic groups across Southeast Asia as well as some parts of Africa, where they’re typically eaten as a salad or quickly stir-fried green. Only in past two decades has it become a popular specialty food in the United States.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves and stems

  • Medicine and Nutrients: Pea shoots are rich in vitamins E, C and A; and provide a significant source of fiber and potassium.

  • Storage: Place your pea shoots inside a brown paper bag, or wrap them with a paper towel and place them in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator. They should last a week. Do not freeze them. 

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: The taste of pea shoots is sweet, grassy, and fresh. They’re typically eaten raw, in salads, and as a garnish for your favorite grain or vegetable bowl.

  • COOKED: These light sprouts can be stir fried, steamed, and sauteed.

Recipes

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri.

Dill

Dill.jpg

What’s Below:

About Dill

Cooking & Storage

Recipes

ABOUT Dill

Dill is a frilly herb that’s in the same plant family as carrots and fennel. It has origins in Egypt where it’s been cultivated, cooked with, and used medicinally for over 5,000. From there dill has become popular in Mediterranean regions like Greece and Italy, as well as in Indian and other Asian regions. Dill is perhaps most well known for the leaves that go in pickles, as well as creamy sauces for salads and dipping crunchy raw vegetables into. However, throughout history dill seeds have also been used for a variety of purposes: crushed into a poultice for wounds, chewed on to freshen breath, or brewed in a tea to soothe gastrointestinal issues. As far as flavor notes go, dill has a notable smell, with a strong grassy flavor.

COOKING & STORAGE

  • Edible parts: Leaves/fronds, seeds, and flowers

  • Medicine and Nutrients:  Dill provides some vitamin C, iron, potassium and manganese. It’s also known to relieve stomach and digestion issues when chewed on or made into a tea. 

  • Storage: Store stems of fresh dill weed loosely wrapped in plastic in the refrigerator and use within a day or two. Dill tends to wilt and get mushy rather quickly. To store it a bit longer, place a bunch of dill in a jar or glass of water (like flowers), then cover the top with plastic and put the whole thing in the fridge.

Ways to Prepare 

  • RAW: Dill can be used in salad dressings, marinades, mixed in salads, or used as a garnish, they just need to be thinly sliced or minced finely. The bright yellow flowers are edible and make a bright and tangy addition to salads, garnishes and as a pickling spice.

  • COOKED: Dill is mainly used for pickling with vegetables but can also be cooked in soups and with rice, or added towards the end of a dish’s cooking time to add more flavor. 

RECIPES

Authored and compiled by Maya Marie of Deep Routes, Ayllen Kocher, and Amara Ullauri

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