AUTHOR: Julia TITLE: Harbinger of Spring DATE: 3/30/2009 08:17:00 AM ----- BODY:
My dad grew up in the forties and fifties in a small town in western Pennsylvania. Fish came frozen and breaded, and vegetables were canned. When he went to graduate school in Manhattan, he discovered all sorts of new foods. One of them was during a date to a fine French restaurant. His girlfriend ordered artichokes and he followed along. As he watched her eat, pulling back the leaves and daintily nibbling the heart away from the leaves with her teeth , he thought, "This is how a proper woman eats artichokes, surely real men eat the whole leaf." Much to his discomfort, he discovered that real men also eat artichokes by nibbling off the heart from the leaves.

Artichokes grow in warm climates with cool nights: the quintessential spring climate of their native Mediterranean. I've read that they can grow in New England too, but require starting the seeds indoors and full sun when planted outside. Given my ability to start seeds inside and the conditions of my yard, I will leave the growing to others, and purchase them at my favorite green grocer. Look for tightly closed globes -- as the leaves start to open the hearts turn bitter and tough.

I typically braise artichokes in olive oil. This tenderizes the heart as well as the inner leaves, and takes away the tart after taste that makes artichokes so hard to pair with wine. Once braised, I'll roast them for a crispy exterior, top them on pizza with St. Andre cheese or mix them in with risotto. This recipe uses a lot of anchovies, which is great if you have an abundance.

Braised artichokes

4 artichokes
1 cup olive oil
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup anchovies
1/2 cup garlic
1/2 cup capers
1/2 cup parsley
salt and pepper to taste


1. Clean artichokes by cutting back tough outer leaves and trimming stem back to the white part. Cut artichokes in half and scoop out the fuzzy choke.

2. In food processor, gently puree anchovies, garlic, capers and parsley.

3. Bring olive oil to a boil in an oven proof pot with caper mixture. Add artichokes and water. Cover with foil and cook in the oven for 45 minutes or until leaves are tender.

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----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types DATE:3/30/2009 09:38:00 AM I really enjoy artichokes but struggle with the time it can take to prepare them - this sounds much easier than what I've tried in the past, so now that spring is here, I think I'll give it a shot. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger adele DATE:3/30/2009 10:47:00 AM I usually steam artichokes to eat plain, but this sounds very good.

Love the story about your father. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger michael, claudia and sierra DATE:3/30/2009 11:02:00 AM beautiful
wonderful
i want this!
it's perfect spring food

i might make these this weekend as i'm having friends over.

are they over oily? do they stay kinda green? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Anonymous Anonymous DATE:3/30/2009 11:38:00 AM lol! that's an amusing story about your father!
I love, love, love artichokes,but never know how to prepare it myself except from a can. so thanks for the info! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger Chiot's Run DATE:3/30/2009 04:13:00 PM Oh, I've only cooked artichokes once and I wasn't impressed. Probably more my fault than the artichokes, although I am very good in the kitchen when it comes to most veggies. Perhaps next year I'll try growing them in the garden and see what happens. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger jesse DATE:3/30/2009 04:40:00 PM What a great story about your dad! Hahaha! When I first ate artichokes, my cheapskate Chinese blood screamed, "WHAT A WASTE!! You have to eat ALL of it!!!" And I spent five whole minutes chewing the same leaf, too stubborn to spit it out, too grossed out to swallow. Stubbornness wins any day though, and I swallowed. That was quite an experience. Now I stick to just the heart. ^_^ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger Heather DATE:3/30/2009 08:37:00 PM HAHAHAHA! i love that story. your dad sounds adorable :D ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Anonymous we are never full DATE:3/30/2009 09:04:00 PM i can't get enough of artichokes. i really think i could eat them every day. i love how you added anchovy to your artichoke. i love doing my artichokes like you too - braise then roast. and breadcrumbs are not necessary! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger Julia DATE:3/31/2009 09:55:00 AM T.W. -- Growing up, the only way I knew them was steamed whole. Very easy to prepare. This is pretty easy too.

adele -- it's definitely a nice change up.

ceF - they're not oily at all. I usually drain them before serving.

burpandslurp -- the canned variety taste so much different because they are packed with lots of citric acid.

Chiot's Run -- if you can grow artichokes in your garden I'll be thoroughly impressed and envious

jesse -- that's too funny!

Heather -- it's definitely one of his better stories. ;-)

WANF -- what do you braise yours in? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger Melissa DATE:4/05/2009 02:14:00 AM I am so looking forward to cooking all the artichokes I can this season. I may even make some Steve will eat. ;) These sound beautiful! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Julia TITLE: Seed Management DATE: 8/20/2008 09:11:00 AM ----- BODY:
There are three big reasons why Even’ Star Farm’s produce is superior to its competitors. Since it’s organic, we know that it has not been grown with synthetic pesticides or artificial fertilizers. This does not necessarily enhance the flavor, but it protects the environment and our natural resources. More importantly, because they sell only to local markets, the produce is able to ripen on the vine instead of in the back of a truck. The produce develops sweeter flavors and better texture. Most importantly, though, is how farmer Brett protects his gene line of seeds.

When I start my garden in the summer, I purchase seeds and seedlings from random suppliers. I still have the advantage of growing all-natural and fully ripening on the vine, but am beholden to their quality control.

Seed management is a rather straightforward process. For every crop, you save the most flavorful, hearty plants and harvest the seeds for the following year’s crop. The sheer volume of seeds necessary for production farm like Even’ Star means that one person could work solely on this project, and work full time. Further, the seeds are harvested when the farm is in peak production – essentially doubling an already full workload. In the midst of harvesting tomatoes, okra, eggplant and watermelon, the crew generates hundreds of pounds of seed!


Each crop has different criteria for ideal. For the ancho chilies, it’s the size, shape (perfect conical) and color (evenly red ripe). Meredith, who was charged this week with harvesting the breeders, had to taste each pepper to make sure the heat level was appropriate. Brett wanted just the slightest hint of spice. For the arugula, the seeds are saved from the hardiest plants that survive cold, frost and wind. The peachy mama’s which have an obscenely long maturation time, are bred to shorten that span. The tomato seeds are selected from the healthiest, disease-resistant plants. After several years of picking the best seeds, the gene lines get better and better. So good in fact, that Brett sells his seeds to Fedco in Waterville, ME – a national, highly regarded seed supplier. Even’ Star seeds sell for 4 times more than the equivalent “generic” variety.

You may recall that earlier this season, I harvested some of my broccoli raab seed for Brett. Because the raab had “wintered-over”, that is, it re-grew after being buried for 5 months under a blanket of snow and ice. Should Brett be able to grow raab from this seed, the plants will be more tolerant of cold weather.

To keep the workers/crew happy through all this work, I usually make them special lunches when I visit. One of their perennial favorites is arepas. The corn comes from Alan Sivak, whose farm is just 2 miles down the road.

Arepas with Tomatillo Salsa

1 – 1 lb. bag hominy
4 ears corn
1 tbs. chopped garlic
4 scallions, chopped
2 tbs. chopped cilantro *or more
1 – 2 cups grated jack cheese
3 tbs. butter
salt and pepper
plain oil


3 green tomatoes or tomatillos, finely diced
1 red pepper, finely diced
1 onion, finely diced
1 tsp. Tabasco (or more to taste)
1 smoked tomatoes, chopped
1 tbs. lime juice
3 scallions, thinly sliced
2 tbs. chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook hominy according to package directions.
2. Heat a large skillet. Melt butter. Add the corn, then the garlic. Cook over medium heat until the corn begins to roast and brown.
3. Drain hominy. Grind with a medium hole. Grind corn and garlic mixture as well.
4. Mix in by hand the jack cheese, scallion and cilantro. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Form patties with dough. Pan fry in plain oil until crispy on both sides.

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----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger PG DATE:8/21/2008 11:03:00 AM It would be neat to go to your farm and learn all of this first hand.

I'm always amazed at the difference between produce that has ripened on the vine vs. on the back of a truck. Like night and day. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger Julia DATE:8/22/2008 09:28:00 AM Psychgrad, I've been very lucky to have such a wonderful classroom and teacher. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Anonymous Anonymous DATE:8/25/2008 08:43:00 AM I would enrol too!

Interesting that the basic principles of seed collection are the same the world over - but the ingredients for your Arepas recipe - are unheard of here!

hominy, scallions, cilantro
& jack cheese are all new!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Anonymous Anonymous DATE:8/25/2008 09:09:00 AM I had much inferior arepas at the Fishermans Feast of the Madonna in the North End last week. Are they Italian in origin? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:Blogger Julia DATE:8/25/2008 08:46:00 PM Topveg, the hominy I use is not the whole kernel, but the broken yellow kind. Goya makes it, but I couldn't find a photo of it on their website.

limeduck, I actually learned this recipe from a Colombian chef I worked with in Boston. I've only seen Latin American versions. Other variations have used the flour and not the dried kernels. ----- --------