Harvest Monday June 6, 2016

Welcome to Harvest Monday, where we celebrate all things harvest related. The lettuce plants I planted in the cold frame beds seem to all be sizing up at once, and a few have started bolting. I cut three heads of the Three Heart lettuce last week to use in salads. This is a small heirloom butterhead that reminds me a bit of Tom Thumb, and it had a soft texture and mild flavor. I’ll be growing this one again. I also cut the three heads of the French heirloom crisphead Reine des Glaces.

Also coming in from the cold frame beds is more kohlrabi. Konan and Kolibri continue to outperform Winner, which has been slow to size up this year. I used three of the kohlrabies to make a batch of kohlrabi kraut, and we ate the other one raw.

I left the skin on the Kolibri and Konan for the kraut, grating it using a medium grater then mixing with salt before packing into a jar. I only had about a pound of kohlrabi, so I used a pint jar which the kohlrabi filled nicely. The kraut has been on the kitchen counter fermenting now for six days, and is developing a tart flavor. The purple color from the skin of the Kolibri has ‘bled’ into the brine, and is giving the kraut a faint pinkish color. I usually peel the kohlrabi before making kraut, and I’m anxious to see how this batch did with the skin on. I’m using an inverted lid for a regular size jar which fits in the wide-mouth jar quite nicely and helps keep the kraut submerged in the brine. I’ll probably put it in the refrigerator later today, which will slow down the fermentation.

I harvested the last of the garlic scapes last week from the Rocambole types German Red, Russian Red and Spanish Roja. My wife and I really enjoy this seasonal treat, and many of them have wound up in mixed stir-fries. We wound up getting right at two pounds of scapes this year, which is in line with what we usually get.

Another veggie that’s been showing up in stir-fries is snow peas. Oregon Sugar Pod 2 and Avalanche are both doing well, though I think the Oregon Sugar Pod 2 has a bit better flavor.

I think the Oregon Sugar Pod 2 is also a bit bigger than Avalanche. I plan on growing it again this fall, along with Sugar Ann and the heirloom Corne De Belier.

A newcomer in the harvest basket is the first broccoli of 2016. Or should I say the first brockali, as I harvested from the Apollo and Artwork plants. I’ve been growing Apollo for several years, but it’s my first time growing the 2015 AAS winner Artwork. I steamed a few of each and dressed simply with a little olive oil and salt for a taste-test. My first impression is that Apollo had both a better taste and texture.

The first head of Artwork was a bit bigger than Apollo, but they both were ready at about the same time. Artwork is supposed to do better in summer heat, so we will see how it compares to Apollo in that regard. I’m going to enlist my wife for further tasting too.

Over in the berry patch, my wife has been harvesting the first blueberries of the season. Patriot has been the first to ripen this year, and it is a tasty and sweet early season berry. We have been enjoying these first berries for breakfast in the morning, topping our muesli.

The last harvest I want to share was destined to top a pizza I made for dinner one night while my wife was out. I cut some leaves of Adagio arugula, plus some Profuma di Genova basil and one young Red Torpedo Tropea onion. I am growing Adagio arugula for the first time, and it is a slow to bolt variety (thus the name) developed at Purdue University. It’s not quite as mild tasting as Speedy or Apollo, but it wasn’t strong or bitter either and made a tasty pizza topping.

UPDATE: Information on the Adagio arugula is available here: ‘Adagio’: A Slow-Bolting Arugula

The veggies joined some of last year’s slow-roasted tomatoes and pizza sauce from the freezer, and a bit of pancetta I cooked up. I made a whole wheat crust using fresh ground White Sonoran wheat, and yes I ate the whole thing myself! It was only 8″ in diameter, and I think I have been working enough in the garden to burn off the calories. At least I hope so!

Harvest Monday is a day to show off your harvests, how you are saving your harvest, or how you are using your harvest. If you have a harvest you want to share, add your name and blog link to Mr Linky below. And be sure and check out what everyone is harvesting!