Who loves the sun.....

At last some genuine summer weather; I adore heat, and have felt profoundly cheated so far this summer. Therefore , accompanied by Harry Potter to submerge any feelings of guilt, I have managed to aquire a good tan by sitting out in the garden on every possible occasion over the last week.
Not so Luke, I'm afraid; he has been working round the clock, preparing land for planting, trying to do 2 month's work in 2 weeks. On top of it all, the land has set like concrete now that the rain has stopped, and he has had to irrigate some crops that are struggling to draw moisture from soil that has tightened like a noose around their roots.
But at least crops are starting to grow: pink and yellow leaves are greening up, and stationary transplants have realised there is a reason to go on living. The sweetcorn is in full flower, and we may have finally managed to start lifting our not-so-early potatoes, Maris Bard. Too long in wet ground has given the slugs a great opportunity to share in the bounty, and we are doing our best to spot the damage before it leaves the farm- let us know if we are not successful!

Slough of Despond

If I was a duck in the desert, I'd probably think things are great. As it is, watching all this year's hard work being swallowed up by relentless rain and flooding has reduced our farm to a self-pitying bunch of whingers, desperate to put a good face on things and be positive- but a quick walk round a farm with small yellow crops, big weeds and large puddles , rapidly dispels any fantasies. Note the yellow digger in the foreground of the picture- the only piece of farm machinery that has constantly been at work over the last few weeks.
Prior to last Friday, I calculated that 50,000 tons of water had fallen on our farm in the last 2 weeks- a crazy figure! I have now stopped calculating....
Anyhow, I'm just trying to soften you up and make you sorry for us, when I once again apologise for broccoli that goes yellow, repetitive boxes, and more old season potatoes. Please feel free to complain- you are entitled to expect good quality produce, regardless; however, it is definitely not up to our usual standard. Broad beans, spring onions, courgettes, more cabbages and beetroot- we are getting a bit overfamiliar with all these now!
I like to scout supermarkets and check out the competition; last week when Marks&Spencer only had Spanish broccoli I was unbearably smug. This week tales of air -freighted broccoli from USA- Europe hasn't got enough- at extraordinary prices , by packers under fixed-price contracts to the BIG retailers, created a frisson of satisfaction; however, I don't want to be a sour puss!
Three months of non-stop wet weather has washed away nutrients, soil structure, and crops:even the wild marsh samphire, a local delicacy that grows on the dunes up the coast, hasn't cropped.
ALL those jokes about webbed-feet in Lincolnshire may finally come true....

The Great Kohlrabi Competition

Kohlrabi, strange vegetable relation of turnips and cauliflowers, is much loved almost anywhere except the UK. Go on any farmers market and ecstatic customers with continental accents snatch up huge bags of them and scurry home to gorge on delicacies made with this under-rated veg.
So why do I feel I have to keep apologising for it?
At a time of year when vegetables are in short supply, we find it an invaluable ally- fast to grow, very versatile as either a salad item, or stir fried, saute, casserole, roast, steamed in a sauce etc.
I made a really tasty vegetable accompaniment to bangers & mash by just braising carrot, kohlrabi slices, onion, and at the last minute, a few broccoli florets, in margarine, salt and black pepper- totally simple but delicious.
Anyhow, to prove that this vegetable is as good as I say, please enter our big KOHLRABI COMPETITION! Send in your recipes and comments, anmd we will choose a winner( or several if they are all wonderful!) who will receive a hamper of organic and fair trade goodies, and 25kg net kohlrabi ( just joking...)
I'll start of with an email I received from a customer this week:

Dear M et al
Just a line of support for your good work - as one who
said yes to the whole 'home grown' package and spurned
flown in lychees or even green beans from Kenya, I
say 'yes' to the humble Kohlrabi and was slightly
disappointed (no, that is a lie) to see none in my box
this week. I didn't even dare ask why onions had long
since disappeared off the radar, thinking that this
was all part of God's plan and that it wasn't up to us
mere mortals to question their non-existence.
Seriously, it's a bit like the 21C obsession with 2
week package tours to remote places like outer
Mongolia with punters then moaning that they can't
find semi-skimmed milk or somewhere to plug in their
hair tongs. Just DON'T GO.
Me? I'm off to mark some more A level French tapes
(now that IS hair-shirt and scourge)
Regards
Linda

Yellow Greens

Summer should be a mellow dreamy time to enjoy the great outdoors and recover from too many nights spent in watching "B" movies and snacking sweeties. Instead, we seem to be living in a sub-tropical forest of large weeds and even larger puddles, bad-tempered staff gently poaching in full wet gear, and even worse tempered farmers who cannot get any work done!
So why should vegetables be immune from the general misery?! Just as our summer range of veg comes into full swing, the perverse weather causes problems! Spinach and lettuce leaves are bruised and ripped by the staggering force and size of the raindrops, and broccoli has received the message" go forth and multiply- quickly!!", with the result that no amount of chilling prevents it from trying to flower- hence you may have received a brownish piece. Our delicious new potatoes may have to grow gills and swim out of the field, and winter modular plants are spending their second month laid out in the farmyard waiting to be planted.
Please do contact us if you have received yellow green veg, and we will credit you! We are doing our best, but Eden Farms likes- hot, dry summers and cold, wet winters- this is the order I'm putting in for 2008!!

MORE ABOUT WATER

Listening to the weekend farming programme( yes, I know it's sad), farmers in Australia are apparently in the forefront of global warming and are running out of water. In line with official thinking worldwide, protection of home-owners' privileges tends to take precedence over farmer's needs. So while flush toilets and automatic washing machines continue to work, irrigation quotas, already cut this year to 60%, are anticipated to fall between 0 and 50% next growing season.
Needless to say, in a drought-stricken landscape, farming could rapidly become impossible.
In an interview with one farmer, I was astounded to hear that his full quota is 5 million gallons per acre; our entire 70 acre farm has just 2 million gallons of water in the reservoir!
While feeling sympathetic for this man's plight- he grew onions- it did occur to me that I have on occasion seen Australian onions- particularly organic ones- for sale in the UK. And Australian beef and apples. So their rare and precious water is at least in part being exported to the opposite end of the globe in a worldwide commodity that could just as easily be produced on our own doorstep. Joining the mad international gathering of Mexican spring onions and South African caulis in our local supermarket. And creating lots more carbon emissions, leading to even more global warming, and round and round...
Sometimes humans can be extraordinarily stupid...

CAULIFLOWER CHAOS

Cauliflowers are one of the most weather-responsive vegetables I know. When its cold, they sulk annoyingly, with hearts the size of 50p pieces protectively concealed from the chill. If its hot, carefully planned progressions are thrown out of the window as they all burst simultaneously into beautiful white curds, which rapidly develop a yellowish tinge when exposed to sunshine, and then develop a "ricey" texture- The seeds can be very expensive, and as heavy feeders of organic matter, they have rightly gained the reputation for being difficult!
Lincolnshire grows some of the best caulis in the UK, and the two varieties we are cutting this week, Skegness and Wainfleet, are named after two seaside resorts well known to the Midlands.
Here are two very interesting un-Lincolnshire recipes that I have adapted from Antonio Carluccio's vegetable book- very different, unexpected, and delicious:
"REINFORCED" CAULIFLOWER ANTIPASTA
Steam cauliflower pieces until it is al dente, and place in a large bowl.
Meanwhile, crush 2 garlic cloves, and add to a dressing containing olive oil, white wine vinegar, 5 finely chopped anchoyy fillets, black pepper. Sprinkle the cauliflower with 20 capers and about 20 pitted green and black olives, add the dressing, and refrigerate.
This salad can only get better as you leave it- if you can! and you can add more cauliflower to the dressing if you've eaten it too fast.
Guaranteed to knock your socks off!
CAULIFLOWER AND PASTA
An unlikey combination to UK eyes that turns out to be fantastic.
Boil together pasta of your choice- I prefer penne or shell-shapes for this recipe- with cauliflower florets.
Meanwhile, fry until golden an onion with dried crumbled chilli, then add chopped bacon, ham, or cheating bacon if preferred, and sliced mushrooms, cook gently till soft.
Drain the pasta mix when soft, stir into the onions, and mix gently, adjusting the seasoning. Grated cheese and chopped parsley can be added here .
This has become a weekday-staple- quick to make, popular and tasty.

DRY WEATHER
The last few weeks of dry weather, while being fantastic for catching up on undone winter work, have really piled on the pressure. When I think back to last spring, continuous rain and cold, it's hard to see the pattern that everyone identifies as global warming. But after last summer we did fill our pit right up in the winter- and its reassuring to see this big expanse of water , which is already going down as we irrigate the small lettuce plants . 2 million gallons of water sounds like a lot- but without rain, it certainly won't last until autumn!

Eat your greens!

Here are the two extra greens recipes that I promosed you in this week's newsletter.
The first is from a customer, Ginny Blonde, and transforms kale into something unrecognisable- by all accounts, this could be an advantage......

KRISPY KALE

Heat up the oven to about 180*/ gas mark4. Meanwhile, thoroughly wash your kale and rip leaves into several pieces, removing any stems; large leaves work the best. Lay it on a large, very lightly greased flat metal baking tray, place in the oven and leave for about 20 minutes until the leaves have gone dry and crispy, while retaining their bright green colour. Oooh! This tasty snack lasted no time in the office, it would be great with other crispy things in a salad , or sprinkled on top of pasta or rice, or just on it’s own- no prepping time, an ideal “recipe”!

We have been eating purple sprouting broccoli for weeks now. I think it's wonderful, but just in case enthusiasm is flagging, here is an adaptation of a very simple broccoli recipe by Antonio Carluccio:

SAUTEED BROCCOLI
Very lightly steam your broccoli spears until barely soft. In a wok, sizzle 2 finely sliced garlic cloves with either a fresh chilli, or some chilli flakes, taking care not to burn the galic. Throw in your broccoli, toss around for a few seconds, then apply salt, black pepper and lemon juice to suit, and serve instantly!