With the month of November almost over, our harvests now are slow but steady. I pretty much harvest what we need to eat, when we need it. It’s nice to have fresh food to compliment what we have in storage.
I got a bucket bull of Lacinato/Black Tuscan kale. We made baked kale chips with part of it, and I steamed the rest of it another night. We are now in the process of taste testing our 5 different kale varieties. The Lacinato was very tender and tasty, though not as sweet as the Red Russian. I think the leaves made better kale chips than some of the other varieties. It is usually not as hardy as some of the other kales, but I think I would grow it anyway just for its looks and earthy flavor.
Lacinato kale
To make the kale chips, I first remove the tough stem from each leaf, then cut the kale into small, 2-3 inch pieces. I toss the leaves in a little olive oil, then place them in a single layer on a baking sheet. They get baked for about 20 minutes in a 300F oven. I don’t salt the chips, because we think they are flavorful enough without it. I lined the baking sheet with foil for easier cleanup.
baking kale chips
The finished chips are crisp, and the kale flavor is really highlighted. This has become one of our new favorite ways to fix kale.
kale chips
I finally got to harvest some of the fall planted broccoli. Due to the drought and hot weather, this broccoli has been very slow to head up. We were happy to get a little over a pound of it from several plants. Hopefully it will give us a bit more before the really cold weather comes. Though we have some in the freezer, this was our first taste of fresh broccoli since early July. It was lightly steamed and cooked in no time.
I also got some nice lettuce this week for salads. This was some Salad Bowl (green and red) from the greenhouse. It’s been a great grower for us this fall, planted back when weather was hot.
Salad Bowl and Red Salad Bowl lettuce
The total haul for the week was 3.7 pounds, which brings our yearly total to 860 pounds. I am very happy with the results we have gotten in a somewhat challenging gardening year!
I would never have thought to use kale to make chips! We definitely have specific varieties of kale that we prefer but occassionally grow others for some variety and interest. The broccoli is beautiful. Ours has been done for several weeks now and I surely do miss it.
My wife heard about the kale chips from someone who was serving it at a day care center. The kids loved them! So I did a quick search and found lots of recipes for it.
Those kale chips sound yummy! I didn’t have any kale seeds to plant this fall so I bought some fresh kale at the grocery store. It was my first time eating kale. I loved it. And I’ll use the chip recipe! It makes a nice snack alternative to potato chips, and sometimes, it’s just nice to snack on something.
Happy gardening!
What a nice harvest you are still getting. I might have to try growing some kale sometime. Everything looks good.
Lovely lettuce. We enjoyed kale chips this week but I find that the curly winterbor kale works better then the all the nooks and crannies in the lacinato.
Emily, I haven’t tried the kale chips with a really curly kale yet. We have some Starbor that is very similar to the Winterbor. It will be up for testing soon. I just thought it was hard to get uniform pieces out of the Red Russian.
Nice harvest, those broccoli and kale look so good. It’s good to know the Tuscan kale is tender. We love all tender greens, we can eat them everyday in stir fry and soups.
I will have to try those kale chips!!! Looks wonderful:)
You have a beautiful harvest! Kale chips! What a good idea for a healthy snack! I’m going to try that recipe. Great-looking broccoli, too!
You are still getting some really nice harvests. Those kale chips look so good. I have never had them. I can’t wait until next year to make some.
I love kale chips! I agree, no salt, they’re fine without. Unfortunately our last batch of Lacinato kale had abysmally poor germination for some reason. Your lettuce looks great (ours just got nipped by frosts this week). Are you growing yours in the greenhouse, or outdoors?
The lettuce in the photo was grown in the greenhouse. We have more that’s protected by cold frames. The outside lettuce will be harvested when it’s younger, since the mature plants are usually less tolerant of frosts and freezing. Hopefully I have selected the more hardy lettuces for growing now. I’ve got Winter Density, Oak Leaf, Ruby, Spotted Trout, Rouge D’Hiver, and Simpson Elite that have done well before. I’ve also got a few that I am testing to see how they will take the cold. The cold frames have been below freezing several times now, and everything has survived so far. We will see, and I will share what worked (and what didn’t)!
I really have to grow kale next year just so I can make kale chips. Looks so good. That broccoli looks so perfect. I wish mine were that pretty. Loving those salad greens. Go greenhouse!
I bought kale seed this year, but never got a chance to plant it. I do have some dwarf kale in the garden, but it got eaten to the nub by some caterpillars. It has grown back, but it isn’t nearly big enough yet. I hope it survives the winter and grows in the spring.
THe kale chips look interesting. I don’t do greens but that looks like something I’d like!
I was ready to try out kale chips as well, but I procrastinated on cutting some kale and the wild rabbit ate it all! ARG! I’m hoping to get some in the spring to try out. Great harvest 😉
Hi, the kale chips looks very interesting. I have to make some. Have a nice week/Gela