Winter is definitely here, but the days are getting longer. We are busy with our seed catalogs and excited to begin planning for the new year. In the meantime, there are cool and cold weather vegetables available and plenty of other great food items. In addition to the winter produce we offer, we’ve got wonderful cheese, raw honey, real fruit jams and jellies, great pastured meats, duck eggs, chicken eggs, fresh oysters and locally prepared artisan food made with really healthy ingredients to order. Eat well and prosper!

Ideas for Winter Produce

Kale, like all hearty cooking greens, sweetens in cooler weather. There are now plenty of nice loose turnips available. These healthy root vegetables can be roasted, mashed, baked, and added to soups and stews. Turnips go especially well with other root vegetables. And kohlrabi is crisp and juicy, which may be eaten raw as a salad ingredient or cooked.

But don’t forget some of the other under-appreciated vegetables of the winter season. Cabbage, for example, is an unsung hero of the winter garden. And one cabbage will keep in your crisper for weeks providing several side dishes!

We are all familiar with cole slaw, but try cooking cabbage to really bring out the sweetness and flavor. Stir-fry with olive oil and walnuts, lemon juice and honey. Make a Portuguese soup with cabbage and potatoes, garlic, onion, celery, salt and pepper and maybe a bay leaf. Or just steam, serve with salt, pepper and butter.

Rutabagas! You know those large rutabagas in the supermarket? The ones that look about as large as a soccer ball? Well not those. Our rutabagas from Chesapeake Organic are much smaller and great flavor. When I first tasted them, I thought, “oh, that is what a rutabaga is supposed to taste like!”

Rutabagas are called “Swedes” or “Swede turnips” everywhere but the United States. The rutabaga is a cross between the cabbage and a turnip and is nutty with a sweet earthiness and a flavor milder than turnips. Recipes for potatoes, turnips, parsnips, and carrots can usually be exchanged for rutabaga. Rutabagas can be roasted, sautéed, baked, fried, boiled, mashed, and added to soups and stews. They also can be eaten raw as a snack or grated into salads or coleslaw. A mix of mashed rutabagas, potatoes, onions, and carrots, seasoned with butter and salt, is a hearty, delicious, warming dish.

If you have any questions about our winter vegetables, or about anything we offer, please email me. I love to talk about vegetables!

Remember the deadline for ordering is Wednesday at noon. You will receive an updated reminder on Tuesday, but please order early to be sure you get everything you would like as some items are sure to sell out.

Yours in the kitchen and in the garden,