Monkey House Travels to Glade Road Growing September 10 to host Peterson Brothers Band

From Dave Roye's YouTube video of the Peterson Brothers Band's gig at the T-Bone Walker Blues Fest in Linden, Texas on June 21, 2013.  You can see more photos of the band (taken by Nashville photographer Dean Dixon) at the festival's archives for 2013.  An interview from Buddy Guy's Legends is here.

*The Peterson Brothers Band--Glenn, Jr, 18 (right) and Alex, 16 (left)--will come to Blacksburg's  Glade Road Growing 7 pm on September 10, hosted by Monkey House Concerts. From Bastrop, TX (near Austin), the brothers started out playing piano seven years ago, but "it didn't really click" for either of them.  Their parents asked if they'd like to try something else and they've been playing blues since 2009 with Glenn as lead guitar and singer, while his brother Alex plays bass guitar and violin and sings. 

In 2011, Buddy Guy invited them (then  14 and 12) on stage to play with him at the Moody Theater in Austin Texas on Sept. 3 2011.  Here's the video:

2013 winners of the Best Under 18 Band at the Austin Music Awards, the City named October 3 Peterson Brothers Band Day.  The previous year, they had come in 7th in that category.

On July 20th, 2015,  the brothers  released their self-titled CD on Blue Point records produced by Michael Freeman at their regular happy hour gig at the  Continental Club.

Freeman was engineer and producer of the 2010 Grammy winner for Best Traditional Blues Album, Joined at the Hip: featuring blues pianist Pinetop Perkins and drummer and harmonica player Willie "Big Eyes" Smith (both of whom died the following year.)  According to Deborah Sengupta Stith, a music writer for the Austin American-Statesman, Freeman met the brothers when they performed at a birthday party for Perkins shortly before Perkins died.

Watermelon, Juliet Tomato and Carmen Pepper Salad with Feta and Lime-Ginger-Kalamata Dressing

Photo by Pornchai Mittongtare for Simply Zov, Rustic Classics with a Mediterranean Twist by Zov Karamardian as featured in Jaden Hair's SteamyKitchen.com



The September farm share for Glade Road Growing is expected to include:  eggplant, Juliet tomatoes, lettuce mix and red carmen peppers.

While it's still summer I wanted to include a recipe for a salad that included watermelon.    The Juliet tomatoes are slightly larger than a grape tomato and shaped like a Roma.  They are sweet and perfect for this salad, although the photograph shows larger mixed heirloom tomatoes. Do not refrigerate them (or any fresh tomatoes) as they will get pulpy.

The vinaigrette is my own and I use basil, rather than mint and dice my onions fine and keep the cuke's skins and seeds (unless the seeds are large, then I scoop them out with a spoon.)

Lime Ginger Dressing:

1. Mince one tablespoon of fresh ginger.  Grate the zest off of one fresh lime. Finely chop two tablespoons of Kalamata olives, pits removed.

 2.  In a small bowl, whisk together the ginger, zest and 2 tablespoons of lime juice and 2 teaspoons of demerera sugar.  Gradually whisk in 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil.  Stir in olives and add fresh ground pepper to taste.  If you want, you can store this in  tightly-sealed jar in the refigerator.  Let the dressing stand at room temperature until the olive oil liquefies, about 20 minutes, before shaking to blend.

Salad:

1.  Peel alternating strips of a small cucumber.  Slice thinly.  Peel and cut off stem of one small onion and finely dice.  Cut the Juliet tomatoes in half.  Cut peppers in half and remove stem, seeds and white membrane.  Cut into bite-size chunks.  Thinly slice 1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves.  Place in a large bowl.

2.  Remove rind and seeds from watermelon and cut into bite size chunks to make an equal volume with the veggies in step one and add to bowl.

3.  Drain and rinse 7 oz. of feta and cut into 1/2 inch cubes and add to bowl.

4.  Just before serving, add enough dressing to coat and toss lightly.  If you'd like serve on a bed of  lettuce mix or thinly sliced kale or spinach.

Save Our Towns Summit in Abingdon September 9-10

Abingdon, VA, Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center
A block of rooms have been made available (under “Virginia Tech”) at the Comfort Inn & Suites, Exit 14, 1093 Ole Berry Road, Abingdon, VA 24210 276-698-3040.
$49: Registration - September 10
$35: September 9th Optional Regional Tour for participants 
To register online: https://www2.cpe.vt.edu/ShopCartEdit.aspx?section_id=6376
All other registrations, download pdf: http://www.cpe.vt.edu/reg/saveourtowns/saveourtowns.pdf

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

Wednesday, September 9th (Optional tour for participants)

11:30 a.m. – Noon Registration (@ Heartwood) for Regional Tour – Community Assets
Noon Depart Heartwood – Trolley Transportation Provided
12:30 – 1:45 p.m. Harvest Table Restaurant – Meadowview, Virginia
Lunch and discussion of the restaurant’s philosophy, the farm that supports the restaurant.
Other topics include community capacity building in Meadowview.
1:45 – 2:15 p.m. Trolley Transportation Provided – Municipal Lot Abingdon
2:15 – 3:15 p.m. Presentations at the Farmer’s Market, Abingdon
Origins and development of the market. Its use as both a market and a venue. Discussion regarding the “Rooted in Appalachia” program, local wineries, craft brewing industry, and the Creeper Trail.
3:15 – 3:30 p.m. Walk to the Arts Depot
3:30 – 4:30 p.m. Arts and Culture Presentation at the Arts Depot. The presentation will focus on arts incubation and development and issues and opportunities related to local artists.
4:30 p.m. Trolley Transportation Provided – Guided Downtown Tour – Return to Heartwood
5:00 – 5:45 p.m. The Crooked Road Presentation at Heartwood with Jack Hinshelwood. Presentation topic will focus on the creative economy and identification of local cultural assets.
6:00 p.m. Dinner on your own

Thursday, September 10th (Summit)

7:30 a.m. Exhibit Set-Up Begins
8:00 – 9:30 a.m. Registration
9:00 a.m. Opening General Session Welcome/Set the Stage: Keith Pierce, Moderator and Greg Kelly, Abingdon Town Manager; Keynote Presentation: Basil Gooden, State Director, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development, Commonwealth of VirginiaUSDA Rural Development

10:00 – 10:45 a.m. CONCURRENT SESSION I:

• Housing for All
• Main Street Initiatives
• Infrastructure: Planning and Funding
• Meet the Towns from Save Our Towns Internet Series

10:45 – 11:15 a.m. Networking Break with Resource Providers and Poster Showcase
11:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. CONCURRENT SESSION II:

• Asset Mapping Maintaining Technology/Broadband
• Infrastructure: Maintenance and Funding
• Being Proactive in the New Economy: Tourism, Internet Biz, Incubator
• Meet the Towns from Save Our Towns Internet Series

12:15 – 1:30 p.m. Lunch + General Session:  Keynote Presentation: Appalachian storyteller Saundra Kelley
1:30 – 2:15 p.m. Action Planning – Town Hall Meeting – How will we use what we have learned today? (Keith Pierce, facilitator)
2:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. Closing Session
“As you go out perspectives – realistic next steps”: Suzanne Morse Moomaw, Director, Community Design Research Center/Academic lead, Appalachian Prosperity Project, University of Virginia
3:15 p.m. Networking & Refreshment Break in Exhibit Hall (Resource/Poster Showcase)
4:00 p.m. Adjournment

On Asters and Wood Asters

Some of my friends, such as Rachel, rescue animals. I have done the same in the past, but my current landlord nixes the idea, so I rescue plants. You might have noticed the horticulture death camps aka Kroger and Walmart and one apartment I shared with a roommate who shall go unnamed.

I have a velvet plant propagated from a cutting from a straggly victim of said roommate before she could kill it.  I've got an orchid that's re-bloomed and last fall I picked up a New York aster, my favorite blue, the color of the periwinkles my dad raised.  My friend Cara kept all of them alive (she called them the Green Wellingtons) during my time away from home after an unfortunate December run-in with a car in a crosswalk (I was the pedestrian) that left me with shattered legs, a dropped foot and a still painful broken shoulder which made my left arm pretty useless.

So, when Cara wrote me a note back in April to say she and Mike were about to leave leaving the country for 13 days starting Wednesday and she needed to return my plants, I was apprehensive. After all, I was still homebound and could barely feed and water myself.  It fell to Mike to bring them by.  And although he was  on his way to a gig, he kindly helped me re-pot them into lighter containers which I'd be able to take to the sink from my desk one at a time via walker.

Happily, my bedroom is sunny and all of the houseplants are doing well, and if anything, helping  me heal, however slowly. I've even got a new addition, a basil plant which Sue brought me.

New York asters, though, require full sun. I thought my adopted had baked to death recently, since I couldn't set it in the ground (the landlord warned his groundskeeper might mistake it for a week unless I marked it clearly and I just wasn't up to digging a hole anyway.)  Full of guilt and sadness, I watered the pot of scorched stalks and leaves one last time and set it with some small measure of optimism  against the building.

The aster failed to come back to life. In fact, it dried up until it resembled a tumbleweed. I even announced its demise to one of my favorite circulation staff members whom I had promised a start if I were able to divide the root stock. (She too loves the color and had kept it on her desk for the day while I ran errands until I could return to the library to take it home.)  She consoled me that she had lost some of her rose bushes.


And then today, a small miracle, new green leaves! If this aster doesn't make it after all, my next will be a wood aster, even if I have to buy it retail. Strangely, this beautiful late flowering native plant is sometimes called a weed because it can grow almost anywhere, loves the shade and can tolerate dry soil.  Fittingly, its largest populations can be found in Appalachia, although it's been known to thrive even in Central Park.  While the white version is most common, there's even a variety in my favorite color.  And looking at its photograph, I think it is even lovelier than the domesticated version; its disk florets start out yellow, but eventually turn purple.

Garlic and Ginger Roasted String Beans and Red Peppers with Red Onion, Coconut and Lime Dressing

Photo by Kalyn Denny inspired my own recipe.  The vinaigrette  is a variation on one by the wonderful Molly Kazen, who uses hers in a recipe for roasted eggplant.

The veggies in the August 24 share from Glade Road Growing is slated to include:  eggplant, green beans, sweet red Italian peppers, red onions and lettuce mix.  If you wanted you could also use the eggplant in this recipe.  I have a green bean and cucumber salad here and a Salad Niçoise that includes green beans here.  I love green beans so much, I've even got a poem about them (published some decades back in Artemis.

*

Serves 4


1.  To make coconut milk,  heat 2 cups of water on the stove until it’s hot, but not boiling.  Put 1 cup dried coconut chips in a blender and add hot water.  Blend on high  for 2 minutes or until you get a creamy, thick homemade coconut milk.  Line a strainer or colander with cheesecloth. Pour the coconut milk through the lined strainer into a bowl. This will remove any larger remaining coconut meat. When you’re done pouring the coconut milk through the strainer, ball up the cheesecloth and give it a good squeeze to press the remaining liquid through. You can use your residual coconut caught in the cheesecloth in a recipe that calls for coconut.  You will need 3 tablespoons to make 3/4 of a cup dressing.  Transfer coconut milk from the bowl into a lidded glass container and keep in the refrigerator for up to four days.  Or you can preserve the unused portion longer by freezing it in an ice cube tray. Once firm, transfer the cubes to a wide mouth canning jar for longer storage to pull out what you need, when you need it.

2.  To make the dressing, finely chop  4  tablespoon of  red onion.  In a small bowl, combine with 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, 3 tablespoons of the coconut milk,½ teaspoon sea salt, 1 teaspoon demerara sugar or honey and whisk to thoroughly blend. Drizzle in 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, whisking as you go, until it is fully incorporated.  Store in a tightly covered container (a small jar with a lid is ideal) in the refrigerator. Shake and/or stir from the bottom before use. Makes about ¾ cup.

3.   Preheat oven to 450F (or I used my countertop convection oven at the same temperature.

4.  Mince enough fresh garlic (4-5 large cloves) to make a heaping tablespoon. Peel fresh ginger root and finely mince enough a heaping tablespoon.  Add to 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a small container and let it marinate.

5.  Cut red peppers in fourths lengthwise, removing the stems and seeds and trimming any white pithy parts.   Cut into thin strps.  Trim ends of green beans and cut them in half.  Put in a medium-sized bowl and toss with the seasoned olive oil from Step 4. Season to taste with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper. Spread the vegetables out on a large baking sheet, arranging it so vegetables aren't crowded (as much as you can.) Roast 15 minutes, or until a few beans are starting to look browned and the veggies are tender-crisp.

6.  Place 4 tablespoons of the dressing in a shallow dish or large pie pan.  Transfer the still-hot veggies directly to dressing in the dish.  Let them  it sit to absorb the dressing as they cool to room temperature.  Stir in another 2 tablespoons or so of the dressing.  Cover and refrigerate for at least and hour or up to two days.  Serve cold or at cool room temperature. Top, if you'd like with red pepper flakes and toasted chopped peanuts. 

Pickled Summer Veggies!

I found this gorgeous photo at the website for  Virginia Willis (bio).  My friend Jessica Schultz, aka the Bagel Lady, had been asking about about okra recipes. This is for her, right now.  Maybe I'll get to use it for Glade Road Growing, if the share ever includes Sally and JP's okra.



*


Serves 8


1. Fill a large bowl with ice and water to make a bath. Remove alternating stripes of peel from a cuke and set aside. Halve and thinly slice one red onion. Sut 1 large garlic clove (or more!) into slivers.


2. Cut 8 cups assorted veggies such as carrots, cauliflower florets, green beans, wax beans, and small okra. Over high heat, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Cook these veggeies vegetables in the boiling water until vibrant in color but still firm, 1-2 minutes. Drain well in a colander, and then set the colander with the veggies in the ice-water bath to set the color and stop the cooking, making sure the vegetables are submerged. Drain well. Set aside.


3. Place ½ the red onion, garlic, 1 tsp. each of mustard seeds, coriander seeds, and white peppercorns in the bottom of a large sealable bowl or jar. Transfer the blanched vegetables to the jar, layering to alternate the color and texture. Layer in remaining ½ onion, cucumber, and 4 small red peppers.


3. In a large saucepan over medium high heat, combine 6 cups white vinegar, 2 cups demerara sugar, and 3/4 cup kosher salt and cook until just under a boil. Pour mixture directly over vegetables and spices. Depending on the size container and the size of the vegetables you may not use all of the vinegar. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature. Cover or seal and store refrigerated, stirring occasionally, for at least 48 hours. Serve well-chilled.

Chard with Tomatoes and Tempeh

Photo is cropped by one  Gnoe of Utrech, Holland.



 *

Veggies in the farm share from Glade Road Growing the week of August 18 are expected to include:  sweet peppers, eggplant, garlic, tomatoes, and rainbow chard. 

I like to serve this recipe over cooked brown rice, quinoa or buckwheat kasha, drizzled with a bit of balsamic vinegar. 

Two previous recipes are for eggplant rollups with chard and chard with a balsamic vinegar and rosemary syrup.  The chard would also be great tossed with warm cooked lentils to wilt  and then chillded and served in a salad with the tomatoes, the peppers and some feta cheese.

Serves 4



1.  Wash and rinse chard twice and drain in collander.  Slice stems and chard leaves in 1/2 pieces, keeping stems separate.

2.  Wash tomatoes and dice.

3.  Peel and smash 8 cloves of garlic and chop finely

3 cloves garlic, minced

4.  Cut  2 blocks of tempeh into cubes

5.  Saute tempeh and garlic in a cast iron skillet coated well with extra virgin olive oil until light brown in color.  Add chard stems, red pepper flakes and sea salt to taste with some more oil and cook for a couple of minutes until stems are soft.

6.  Transfer to a covered saucepan.   Add chopped chard leaves and a bit more oil, mixing well to coat evenly.  Cover and let simmer for about 6-8 minutes, until leaves are wilted. Stir occasionally. When chard is done, add tomatoes.

Amanda Pauley's story ""Jack Nicely" will be in October Carve Magazine

Looking forward to the October issue of  Carve Magazine,  which will include  Amanda Pauley​'s (website) story "Jack Nicely" (She placed 3rd in the magazine's annual Raymond Carver Short Story Contest   Andre Dubus III judged.)


Amanda, who Amanda received an MFA from Hollins in 2014, wrote there were over 1200 entries and tells something of the story's history on her Facebook page:

This story began to form when I worked at Social Services and was given a tour of the DCSE, and later interviewed an employee there. Then it was written, rewritten, rewritten in a different point of view, and REJECTED 32 times.

Her two years at Social Services had already yielded another published story, "Braids" in  the third issue of the Masters Review Anthology. (You can read an interview on that story here.)  "Butchering" appeared in Mud Season Review, along with another interview. You can read her story, "An Ace Up My Sleeve" in Gravel.  Shennandoah Magazine published her flash fiction piece "Hope."  Steel Toe Review published her story, "Muddy Water." 

 Her work has also appeared in  Arts & Letters ("The Window"), Clinch Mountain Review ("Dark Eyes"), West Trade Review ("Blind Fish") and  Canyon Voices.

Chickpea Ratatouille with Quinoa

Photo from Sonia Lacasse at The Healthy Foodie

Glade Road Growing's  vegetable share for the week of August 11 is expected to include tomatoes, red onions, sweet peppers, eggplant and summer squash.  As Sally suggested, this is perfect for ratatouille.  Two years ago, I posted a recipe here and have another one for you today.

*

Serves 6


1.  Cook 1 and 1/2 cups of dry chickpeas.  In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom and a tight-fitting lid, cover with 3 cups water, and and bring to a boil.  Rinse.  Return to pot, add ½ teaspoon sea salt and bring again to a boil again.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Let stand over night or for at least one hour. Rinse a second time.  Add two cups of water and bring to a boil again and simmer on low heat until soft, about 1 hour.

2.  In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom and a tight-fitting lid, combine 1 1/2  cup quinoa, 3 cups water, and and bring to a boil.  Rinse.  Return to pot, add ½ teaspoon sea salt and bring again to a boil again.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Turn off heat and leave for 20 minutes until water is absorbed.

3.  While quinoa is cooking, wash, peel and chop onion.  If you are using cherry tomatoes, cut in half.  Otherwise chop coarsely to make 2 cups.  Cut 1 eggplant (about 1 pound) into 1/2-inch pieces.   Cut squash in half lengthwise and cut crosswise into 3/4-inch-thick pieces.  Cut peppers in half and remove seeds and stems and slice into 1 inch pieces.  Smash and peel 6 cloves of garlic and mince.  Rinse basil and remove leaves from stems to make about 1/2 cup. 

4.  Heat 1 TB extra virgin olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion  and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 6 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for another minutes.  Remove to plate.  Replenish oil and cook peppers until soft.  Remove to plate and repeat for squash and then egg plant.

5.  In a 3 quart covered saucepan, add tomatoes, cooked vegetables, 1 teaspoon sea salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until eggplant is tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Stir in the cooked chickpeas and cook just until heated through, about 3 minutes. Remove the vegetables from heat and stir in  fresh basil leaves.

6.  Uncover the quinoa and fluff with a fork. Divide among six bowls and top with vegetables and, if you like, some shaved Parmesan or Asiago cheese.

Thai Grilled Eggplant Salad (Yum Makeua Yao)

Photo from Rachel Cox of Rachel Cooks Thai

The farm share for Glade Road Growing for the week of August 4 is slated to include: tomatoes, lettuce mix, cucumber,  cilantro, and eggplant.  I thought I'd travel this week to Thailand, inspired by Rachel Cox, but substituting this homemade vegetarian sauce for the traditional fish sauce and peanuts for the dried shrimp...

*

Serves 4


1.  To make the sauce,  the night before, combine in a large sauce pan and bring to a boil:
      1 1/2 cups shredded seaweed
      1/2 cup of dried shitaki mushrooms
      6 cups water
      6 fat cloves garlic, crushed but not peeled
      1 T peppercorns

Lower heat and simmer about 20 minutes. Strain and return the liquid back to the pot. Add 1 cup soy sauce, bring back to a boil and cook until mixture is reduced.  Remove from heat, cool and  and stir in 1 TB miso.  Decant into a bottle and keep in the refrigerator.




2.  If we have oriental eggplant this week, use them whole.  If they are the Italian variety, you can cut them in half. Grill outside or roast in oven or convection oven until soft to the touch, which will take about 20-30 minutes.   Remove and let cool in a covered container.

3.  While the eggplant is cooking, boil 4 eggs (duck eggs are great, or chicken eggs, if you don't have them) for approximately 7 minutes to achieve a soft boiled egg. Allow to cool and then peel.
4.  Chop 1/4 cup of cilantro coarsely.  Thinly slice 2 TB of shallots or thinly chop the same amount of red onions.  

5.  To prepare dressing, combine:
      1 T sauce from step one
      1 T lime juice
      1 T demerara  sugar
      1/2 tsp.  dried red chili peppers 

6.   Peel the eggplant and cut into bite-sized pieces. You should have roughly 1 cup. If you have more or less, adjust the amounts of the other ingredients accordingly. Combine the  eggplant with the chopped cilantro, 4 T chopped toasted peanuts and dressing. Divide into four bowls. Slice the soft boiled eggs in half one to the side of each salad. ( (If you are feeding vegans, you can substitute a block of tempeh, sliced thinly.)  Serve while the eggplant is still slightly warm.

Curried Eggplant, Tomatoes and Chickpeas with Basil

Photo by Con Poulos appeared on the Real Simple website.  He's one of my favorite food photographers.  See more of his work at the link.


The expected vegetables in the Glade Road Growing farm share for the week of July 28 will be include:  tomatoes, head lettuce, summer squash, green peppers, basil, sweet onions and maybe an eggplant.  Here's a recipe for an Indian curry.  If you don't have an egg plant, you can make this with summer squash or with steamed potatoes and cauliflower.  (This share is also perfect for making ratatouille, a recipe I provided two years ago.)

Serves 4

1.  To cook 1 cup dry chickpeas,  in a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom and a tight-fitting lid, cover with 2 cups water, and and bring to a boil.  Rinse.  Return to pot, add ½ teaspoon sea salt and bring again to a boil again.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Let stand over night or for at least one hour. Rinse a second time two cups of swater and bring to a boil again and simmer on low heat until soft, about 1 hour.


2.  In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom and a tight-fitting lid, combine 1 cup basmati brown rice , 2 cups water, and and bring to a boil.  Rinse.  Return to pot, add ½ teaspoon sea salt and bring again to a boil again.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Turn off heat and leave for 40 minutes until water is absorbed. 

3.  While rice is cooking, wash, peel and chop one onion.  If you are using cherry tomatoes, cut in half.  Otherwise chop coarsely.  Cut 1 eggplant (about 1 pound) into 1/2-inch pieces.

4.  Measure out these spices:

1/2 tsp gound cumin 
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

5. Toast spices in a dry cast iron skillet and set to the side.

6.  Heat 1 TB extra virgin olive oil in the skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 6 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, eggplant, spices, 1 teaspoon sea salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until eggplant is tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Stir in the cooked chickpeas and cook just until heated through, about 3 minutes. Remove the vegetables from heat and stir in  1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves.

7.  Uncover the rice and fluff with a fork. Divide among four bowls and top with vegetables and a spoonful of non-fat plain yogurt.

Eggplant, Tomato, Cucumber and Cilantro Pasta Salad

Photo from Joanne Mumola Williams recipe.


The expected bag of vegetables from Glade Road Growing for the week of July 21 will include: tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, cilantro, garlic, and an eggplant.  This recipe includes the tomatoes, cucumber, cilantro, garlic and eggplant.  With days getting hotter, you may want to prepare the cooked parts of this pasta salad in the early morning while it is still cooler and then serve it in the evening for dinner.

*

Serves 4


1.  Wash and dice one unpeeled eggplant.  Place in a steamer basket and sprinkle generously with salt and toss to distribute salt.  Let sit in the sink for at least 15 minutes until the eggplant sweats.

2.  Peel and smash and finely chop garlic and  and one or more large portobello mushroom caps.

3.  While eggplant is sweating, bring water salted water with a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil to a boil.  Add 4 ounces of whole wheat spaghetti and return to boil.  Cook for about 7 minutes or until al dente.  Drain pasta, reserving water in the pot to cook the eggplant.  Toss pasta with a bit more olive oil and set aside to cool and then chill in the refrigerator.

4.  Leaving the eggplant in the steamer basket, rinse off salt.  Bring pasta water back to a slow boil and steam eggplant until cooked - about 10 minutes.

5.  In a skillet, heat olive oil and stir in 1/8 teaspoon of pepper flakes, garlic and chopped mushrooms and cook until soft and add eggplant and cook for another five minutes to meld flavors.  Cool and toss cooked veggies with pasta and refrigerate.

6.  Chop tomatoes,  1/2 cup of cilantro leaves,  cucumber with skins on (but seeds removed if too large) and mince about 1 tablespoon of raw onions.

7.  Divide the pasta and veggie mixture among four small bowls.    If you would like this to be a main dish, you can also add in at least a half cup of cooked, chilled chickpeas or lentils  to each bowl. Garnish with raw veggies and with olives and feta cheese, if desired.

Summer Beet Borscht

Photo from Ina Garten from her similar recipe.


The expected farm share from Glade Road Growing for the Week of July 14 will include red beets, carrots, cucumbers, a sweet onion, a rosa de tropea onion, basil, sprig of dill and celery.  Here is a recipe for the beets, rosa de tropea onion, cucumbers and dill.  The carrots, celery and sweet onion would make a good base for a split pea soup, with the addition of potatoes and garlic and bay leaves.

Serves 6

1. Wash and rinse twice, 2 pounds of red beets and roast  in a convection or conventional oven at 450 degrees F until almost tender, about 30 minutes.  If you are using a countertop convection oven, as I do, no preparation is needed.  To roast in a conventional oven, preheat oven.  Coat beets lightly with a bit of olive oil. Wrap beets in aluminum foil, place on a baking sheet to roast.

2.  Remove beets from oven and let cool and then peel with a small paring knife and discard skin.  Chop into a small to medium dice.

3.  Cook beets until tender for about another 10 minutes in 4 cups of boiling water to which you have added 1 teaspoon of sea salt. Remove beets to a bowl with a slotted spoon and cool.  Strain the cooking liquid and cool.

4.  While beets are cooling, wash and dice cucumbers with skin on, but seeds removed to measure up to two cups.  Wash one rosa de tropea onion and chop finely to make 1/2 cup (or you can use scallions, both the white and green parts.)  Wash and chop 2 tablespoons of dill.

5.  In a large bowl, whisk together beet cooking liquid, 2 1/2 cups of plain non-fat yogurt, 1/4 cup demerara sugar, 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice, 2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar  and 1 1/2 teasoons of freshly ground pepper.  

6.  Add the beets, cucumber, onions and dill.  Cover and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

7.  Serve chilled in six bowls and garnish with an extra dollop of yogurt and a sprig of dill.

Fennel and Cucumber Salad

Photo by Helene Dujardin accompanied her recipe for a fennel, cucumber, scallion and mint salad.  I first published this entry on 7/6/15 at 5:24 p.m. and updated on 7/7/15 at 9:45 p.m. to include a picture of the farm share, which can be found at the bottom of the post.

Since the expected Glade Road Growing farm share for week of July 7 includes fennel, cucumbers, sweet onions, carrots, and rainbow chard, I used the above photo as an inspiration and substituted the sweet onions for the scallions and also fennel fronds for the mint.

You could also make a delicious pasta primavera by chopping and sauteing any of the following and serving over cooked pasta, finished with some grated Parmesan cheese: fennel bulb, onions, carrots and chard.




Serves 4

1.  Wash the fennel,  cucumber and the onion in cool water.

2.  Peel the onion, cut in half and thinly chop to to make a quarter to a half a cup.  If you would rather use scallions, as pictured, cut 4 of them lengthwise, keeping all of the white parts and most of the green. Place in a bowl of ice water to curl, while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

3.  To prepare the fennel, trim the stems and fronds close to where they connect to the bulb.  Chop some of the fronds to make 1/2 cup and reserve the remaining to use as an herb in salads or with pasta.  You can also use the stems in stews.

Trim the root end from the bulb to make a flat surface, for the bulb to stand on then cut straight down through the root of the fennel bulb in halves and again into quarters.  Peel off any wilted or rubbery outer layers and discard.  With the quarter on its side, thinly slice crosswise.

4.  With the skin on thinly slice the cucumber into disks.

5.  When ready to plate, layer the cucumber and fennel slices, top with the onions and fennel fronds. To make this salad hardier you could also add steamed string beans and new potatoes. If you would like this to be a main course, top each plate with 1 ounces of crumbed blue cheese and 1/2 cup of cooked chickpeas.  You could also serve it over a bed of cooked, chilled quinoa.

Here's another recipe for fennel:
Gingered Fennel Peach Tomato and Red Onion Salad

The fennel, onions and carrots are also delicious roasted with a Freedom Ranger Chicken.

UPDATE:  Here's the actual farm share (small version) photographed by my neighbor, Blacksburg Town Councilman Michael Sutphin (twitter).  Notice the addition of Thai basil.

In the newsletter, Sally Walker, half of Glade Road Growing's proprietors, writes:

Thai basil is a type of basil that is slightly spicy and also is somewhat licorice-flavored. Try a few leaves chopped into a cold noodle salad with sesame oil. If you do nothing else, just put it in a vase of water on your counter and smell it periodically. If you have a pollinator garden, this would be a nice addition because it has beautiful purple flowers that honeybees love.

Easy Creamy Cucumber Salad with Raw Sunflower Seeds

Photomontage from Community Table, Bates Nut Farm and Serious Eats. (I couldn't find a photograph from a similar recipe.)

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The June 30 farm share from Glade Road Growing is slated to include kohlrabi, cucumbers, summer squash, basil, kale, and lettuce and baby spinach mix.

I have a friend who likes tzatziki  and didn't have any dill.  And while I rebuild bone and muscle,  I needed to come up with easy, wholesome meals with enough protein.  This was so yummy that I eat it every day, so I thought I'd share it with you this week.

The principle ingredients are cucumbers and plain non-fat yogurt (or plain yogurt of your choice or a vegan tofu "sour cream" which is at the link for tzatziki.  Plus raw sunflower seeds.  Plus green onions.  If you have them, it's nice to add  fresh chopped basil or dill or mint.  If you have a week when there are no cucumbers, it's also excellent with roasted summer squash or beets with potatoes, raw radishes or salad turnips, chopped kale or nappa or just about anything, I think.

Serves 4 as a main course

Combine in a large bowl:

2 cups of chopped cucumbers
4 cups yogurt
1 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup of green onions (or 1/4 cup of finely chopped onions)
1/2 cup, if available, of finely chopped fresh herbs
freshly ground black pepper and sea salt to taste

Stir and refrigerate over night, if you have time, so that the flavors will have time to meld.  It will keep for several days. You can eat this as a main course, as a dressing for your favorite greens or as a dip.

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Since we have basil this week, I plan to make pesto hummus, too.

Photo of week 5 share by Michael Sutphin.

Today Only at Blacksburg Farmers' Market: Berries from Talking Hill Farm

Photo of goumi berry (elaeagnus multiflora) by HEN-Magonza on Flickr

Today, at the market, Bill Whipple ((AKA Dr. Barkslip) of  has set up a display of his berries for folks to taste and buy.  He offered at least three kinds of gooseberries, red currants, tart cherries, black cherries, black raspberries, mulberries and one I couldn't identify.

It turned out those were goumi berries, a sweet-tart red fruit (aka gumi, natsugumi, or cherry silverberry), a native of China, Korea and Japan, which he has grafted on to the more common Autumn olive (or maybe Russian olive...I can't remember which)  in the same family.  I read it's  regarded by the USDA as an invasive--that's probably because all of them have the ability to fix nitrogen and thus can grow places where more delicate plants suffer.

Next to the table, he had set out a large branch from a tart cherry tree  in a pail of water, with a sign "pick your own"  sign. I bought a box of mixed berries which included the goumis. He talked about how he lets his trees decide if they're fit for propagation, by whether they thrive without spraying.

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 Bill homesteaded his farm in Monroe County near Union, West Virginia starting decades ago and began planting fruit trees as he  pursued a career as a studio furniture maker.  He has furniture on display at Henderson, NC's Silver Fox Gallery and has made traveling violins which he calls wipLstix, pictured at the end of this post.  I'm not sure if he still makes them, as he lists his address on the site as Union, WV, rather than Asheville--I'll have to ask him about the wipLstix when he comes back to Blacksburg with his pears.  That's  how I met him last year, through baker Aaron Grigsby.

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If you want to read more about Bill's adventures in horticulture, you can read his blog, where he posted before he started a website for his farm and fruit school.  He has also published on grafting in Permaculture Activist (#87 Weeds to the Rescue, Spring, 2013, "W.E.E.D:  World of Excessive Extracurricular Dendrology") and is one of the founders of the Buncombe Fruit and Nut Club. At one time he was caretaker for the George Washington Carver Edible Park.   In the small world department, it turns out that that park is managed by Bountiful Cities Project, which also manages my friend Randal Phlegar's project, Grass to Greens.

Photo from Bill's site  and three videos from YouTube.

And finally a chin and shoulder rest adaptation from Australia's Animato Strings.

Senators Move to Restore Pre-Clearance in Voters Right Act

Photo by  Heather Rousseau for the Roanoke Times

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Rev. Sylvia Ball of Roanoke's Sweet Union Baptist Church (left) and Rev. Leslie Watson Malachi, director of African American Religious Affairs with People for the American Way joined  others in Elmwood park for a three-hour rally calling on Republican House Judiciary Committee Bob Goodlatte, to update (and preserve) the pre-clearance formula of the Voters Right law, struck down two years ago in the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder.


“Hold a hearing, Mr. Chairman,” Brenda Hale, president of the Roanoke Branch NAACP, urged Goodlatte. “You’ll hear the evidence.”

The previous day, Dems Tim Kaine and Mark Warner co-sponsored Patrick Leahy's Senate bill S.1659 seeking to restore the pre-clearance provision. The bill establishes a “rolling” trigger so only states with recent records of discrimination would be targeted and expands the authority of the courts to order that troubled jurisdictions be put under pre-clearance.

Upon its introduction, Senator Leahy explained the rationale for the bill:

Mr. President, this year marks the 50th anniversaries of the March from Selma to Montgomery and the passage of the landmark Voting Rights Act. Passage of the Voting Rights Act was the result of the blood, sweat, and tears of so many brave Americans who marched for justice--and the decades-long work of countless other men and women committed to seeing our country live up to its promise of equality and justice for all. Their actions transformed our Nation. On this 50th anniversary year, we pay special tribute to their legacy, but there is still work to be done. Each generation must contribute to the fight for equality. Each of us must answer the call to move this Nation toward a more perfect union.

In the coming weeks there will be continued celebrations of the passage of the original Voting Rights Act. Unfortunately, two years ago, the Supreme Court voted to dismantle a core piece of that vital legislation. In Shelby County v. Holder, five Republican-appointed justices on the Supreme Court drove a stake through the heart of the Voting Rights Act. Under Section 5 of the Act, the Federal government has the authority to examine and prevent racially discriminatory voting changes from being enacted before those changes disenfranchise voters in covered jurisdictions. By striking down the coverage formula that determined which States and jurisdictions were subject to Federal review, the Court effectively gutted Section 5. And in holding that the formula was based on outdated information, the Roberts Court disregarded thousands of pages of testimony and evidence from nearly 20 congressional hearings held when the law was reauthorized in 2006.
Within weeks of the Supreme Court's devastating ruling, Republican governors and State legislatures exploited the Shelby County decision. Several States with a documented history of racial discrimination in voting implemented sweeping laws that disproportionately suppressed the voting rights of minorities, the elderly, and young people.

For example, Texas immediately implemented the most restrictive photo identification law in the country. Although, a Federal judge found the law to be an ``unconstitutional poll tax'' that could disenfranchise up to 600,000 voters and disproportionately impact African Americans and Latinos, the law was allowed to disenfranchise voters this past election.

In North Carolina, the Republican legislature and Republican governor passed a far-reaching bill that restricted its citizens' right to vote. The bill cut early voting down from 17 days to 10 days, eliminated teenagers' ability to preregister before their 18th birthday, and eliminated same day voter registration. It also enacted a strict photo identification requirement, which is currently being challenged in court.

These are just a few of the numerous discriminatory voting restrictions that have been enacted since Shelby County was decided. We cannot sit by as the fundamental right to vote is systematically undermined. We must not retreat from our commitment to civil rights and the great accomplishments we celebrate this year. As my friend Congressman John Lewis has stated, voting ``is the most powerful, nonviolent tool we have to create a more perfect union.''

Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson on the Charleston, SC Terrorism

This photo of the victims was used on a memorial poster.  The original, in color, had accompanied news accounts.

Top row: Cynthia Graham Hurd, 54, manager of St. Andrews Regional Library branch at Charleston County Public Library; Reverand Clementa Pinckney, 41, the senior pastor at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church; Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45,  speech language pathologist at Goose Creek High School, a track coach there and an assistant pastor at the church.

Middle row:  Daniel Simmons Sr., 74, a retired pastor; DePayne Middleton Doctor, 49, an enrollment counselor at Southern Wesleyan University's Charleston Campus; and Tywanza Sanders, 26, a 2014 graduate of Allen University in business administration, who was a poet and rapper.

Bottom row:  Myra (Quarles) Thompson, 59, teacher at  Brentwood Middle School, now known as Meeting Street Elementary School at Brentwood, in North Charleston, during the 1980s and 1990s; Ethel Lance, 70, a retired custodian at Gaillard Municipal Auditorium and sexton at the church; and Susie Jackson, 87, Lance's cousin and Sanders's aunt.

For those wishing to donate, 

Throughout his ministry, the Rev. Clementa Pinckney worked with many non-profit organizations, including the Palmetto Project, to address social and economic challenges facing youth and marginalized communities in South Carolina.  In coordination with the City of Charleston, the Palmetto Project has created this special fund to continue this work in those communities in which Reverend Pinckney served as a pastor. The Fund is guided by an advisory board of his colleagues, friends, and family along with representatives from congregations he served including Emanuel AME Church.

Also, at the request of her family, the library will have a fund to continue Ms. Hurd's work there.

The City of Charleston has also been collecting funds for the Mother Emanuel Hope Fund for the victims' families, with any surplus to go to the church. 


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What to say about the killings in Charleston?  I'm heartsick and at a loss, other than to say that this was an act of terrorism.  And so I turn this page over to my friend and community organizer Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson of Chattanooga, who calls on us to respect the local leadership in her post on Facebook, which I'm republishing here with her permission.  Ash is connected to both Concerned Citizens for Justice in that city and Atlanta's Project South.  Both organizations are signatories of  The Movement for Black Lives statement on Charleston.  The picture is her current profile picture on Facebook.  That's her in the center standing behind Margaret Block (oral history pdf), one of the leaders of the Mississippi Freedom Summer.  For another piece by Ash, see her post on fighting mountaintop removal.

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I'm feeling some sorta way about folks who aren't from Charleston, some who aren't even in Charleston, encouraging folks to flock to the city, to flock South, for the funerals/memorials.

1) anti-Black racism is everywhere. Including where you live. What you doing on your home turf?

2) the activists and organizers worth their salt are working nearly 24/7 to get folks free in that city. It's where their focus should be (healing from this trauma, taking care of themselves and their community, and fighting like hell to get free), not comforting those of us that aren't most immediately impacted by this tragedy. We're all impacted, sure, but not in the same ways or to the same degree.

3) these communities and, even more, these families deserve to have their moments to collectively grieve without being watched like they're in a reality tv show that they never asked to participate in.

Black tragedy is NOT a tourist attraction. It shouldn't be made into an extractive industry. Don't buy into or perpetuate it.

Things to think about before going:

Did someone from or living in Charleston ask you to come?

Are they connected to and accountable to a crew that supported that invitation?

What can you contribute that will support their local work? What are you leaving behind to increase their capacity to change Charleston for the better?

Can you handle the emotional and physical toll it will take on your body, so as to not burden the local folks who are going through it right now.

Kohlrabi Home Fries

Photo by Andrew Scrivani, the food stylist for The New York Times accompanied Martha Rose Shulman's 3/7/2012 recipe, which was posted as part of her Recipes for Health column.

The expected Glade Road Growing farmshare for the week of June 23 will include beets, collards, summer squash, scallions, and kohlrabi.

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If there's not enough kohlrabi to suit your taste, you can augment the serving by making home fries from the (unpeeled) summer squash and, of course, potatoes and sweet potatoes.


1.  Peel the kohlrabi  thoroughly including the thick, hard fibrous layer under the surface, which will not soften when cooked.  If greens are included, they're edible, so reserve and cook like any other kind of turnip greens. Cut kohlrabi into thick sticks, about 1/3 to 1/2 inch wide and about 2 inches long. If you want to can store the kohlrabi sticks in the refrigerator for several hours.

2.   Place 1 tablespoon of whole wheat, chickpea or rice flour in a large bowl, season with salt if desired and quickly toss the kohlrabi sticks in the flour so that they are lightly coated.

3.  Heat the 2 tablespoons of oil (or more if needed) over medium-high heat in a heavy skillet (cast iron is good).  When the oil is rippling, carefully add the kohlrabi to the pan in batches so that the pan isn't crowded. Cook on one side until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes. Then, using tongs, turn the pieces over to brown on the other side for another 2 to 3 minutes. The procedure should take only about 5 minutes if there is enough oil in the pan.

4.  Drain on paper towels, then sprinkle right away with the seasoning of your choice such as chili powder, ground cumin, curry powder or paprika. Serve hot.





Here are some previous recipes for kohlrabi:
Kohlrabi Apple Carrot Slaw
Kohlrabi Fritters with Tzatziki (Greek Cumber Yogurt Dill Sauce)

Robert Gipe's Trampoline

Looking forward to returning to McConnell Library at Radford University tonight to attend Robert Gipe's reading from his illustrated novel, Trampoline (hardcover, 360 pages, Ohio University Press,  3/17/15, ISBN 978-0821421529.)

This reading is part of the Highland Summer Conference.  With more than two hundred drawings throughout the narrative, this debut novel this would be a good addition to the English and Appalachian Studies collection at the Virginia Tech Library, so I submitted a request today.   Gipe is  also a playwright whose work has attracted the attention of the NYT.

Readers here know of many folks in Appalachia, young and old, who equate the fight to save mountains and  to stay in their native home and make life more sustainable with love and survival, rather than its opposite. Gipe sets his story in Kentucky, where his narrator, teenager Dawn Jewell's  father Delbert has died in a coal mines leaves her mother Tricia  a grieving drunk while her grandmother Cora fights to stop mountaintop removal.

The publisher's summary is that  Dawn must decide "whether to save a mountain or save herself; be ruled by love or ruled by anger; remain in the land of her birth or run for her life."   Does Gipe truly view things as a dichotomy or is this Dawn's point of view or is the publisher thinking this is a dramatic "elevator pitch." I've yet to lay my hands on a copy of the book to read it but I'm looking forward to finding out.

Napa Slaw with Garbanzo Beans

Photo by Katie Trant from her blog post on The Muffin Myth



Katie Trant suggested a recipe that I've adapted to my taste by marinating in a dressing and topping with toasted sesame seeds, adding ingredients from Glade Road Growing's farm share for week of June 16 (which is expected to include: sugar snap peas, napa cabbage, summer squash, garlic scapes, and lettuce.

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Serves 6

1.  The night  prior or at least two hours before serving, cover one pound of garbanzo beans in cold water and bring to a boil in a heavy bottomed lidded pot..  Rinse on bring to a boil a second time and simmer for 5 minutes and then leave to soak for at least an hour or overnight.  Rinse again , cover with water, boil, then simmer until soft. Rinse in cool water. This will make about 6 cups of beans.  You will use half of them for this salad and reserve the rest in a covered jar in the refrigerator to make hummus.

2.  In a seasoned cast iron skillet toast  at least 2 tablespoons of  raw whole sesame seeds until they brown and start to pop.  If you toast more than you need you can store them in a covered jar in the refrigerator and use to make hummus or as a garnish for salads, soups and entrees.

3. Wash and prep the following vegetables:
    1 head of Napa thinly chopped
    3 medium carrots, grated
    3 stalks of celery thinly cut on the diagonal
    1 bunch garlic scapes thinly sliced
    1/2 #  sugar snap peas  thinly cut  on the diagonal
    1 cup of radishes or salad turnips thinly sliced and then cut into half moons (optional)
    1 tablespoon of ginger root, finely chopped
    1 cup of coarsely chopped cilantro   



4. In the bottom of a large salad or mixing bowl, to make dressing, whisk together with ginger root:
    1 tablespoon of maple syrup or demerara sugar
    1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
    1 tablespoon of miso paste
    1/4 cup of your favorite vinegar
    1/8 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

5.  Cut   2 lemons or limes cut into wedges for garnish

6.  Add veggies, sesame seeds and garbanzo beans and toss to coat.  Let marinate in refrigerator for at least 1/2 hour to combine flavors.

7.  Divide among six bowls, top with citrus wedges and serve chilled. 

Week 3 share by Michael Sutphin.

Rita Quillan and Robert Gipe Coming to Radford University

Rita Quillen and Robert Gipe will be giving public readings in Radford next week.

Beth Macy's Factory Man is Out in Paper!

Yes friends, Beth​'s Factory Man came out in paper today from Back Bay Books,  Tom​'s made a video and just look who's playing "Old Jack Gillie" (Yep, that would be the Black Twig Pickers from their 2010 album, Ironto Special (review in Pitchfork by Stephen Deusner).

Beet and Feta Burgers

Photo by David Frenkiel, which accompanied Luise Vindahl's recipe at Green Kitchen Stories post for July 22, 2013.

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Sally has started posting the Glade Road Growing farm share here and June 9 is slated to include broccoli, rainbow chard, beets, summer squash, scallions, and head lettuce. If you're not going to cook the beets right away, trim the greens as soon as you get your share home and store them separately in a large plastic bag.

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Serves 6-8

I've adapted this recipe for the beets and scallions from one of my favorite food blogs, Green Kitchen Stories, based in Stockolm, where David is a photographer/writer and Luise is a nutritional therapist.


1.  Wash beets in two rinses of water.  Trim beet greens and reserve.   Peel beets and discard peels.  Grate 3 cups of the peeled roots on a box grater into a large bowl (or you can use a food processor with the grating blades attached.)

2.  Wash scallions in two rinses of water.  Trim greens  and reserve.  Peel bulbs and grate along with two cloves of peeled garlic.  Peel and finely chop another two cloves of garlic and reserve to cook with the greens.

3.  To the bowl with the beets, onions and garlic add and mix well:

1.5 cups rolled oats
2 eggs
2 TB extra virgin olive oil

4.  Add in 7 ounces of crumbled feta cheese (you can  firm tofu, to make this vegan), a handful of fresh basil, sea salt and fresh-ground black pepper.

5.  Set aside in fridge for at least 30 minutes, so that the oats absorb the liquid and the patties will hold together.

6.  While beet mixture is setting up, bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Blanch beet greens for 2 minutes until tender.  Transfer immediately to a bowl of cold water to stop cooking and preserve color, then drain and squeeze the water out from its leaves. Chop coarsely.

7.  Chop onion greens.  Heat 2 TB extra virgin olive oil over medium heat in a large, cast iron skillet.. Add the finely chopped garlic and 1/4 tsp hot red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until the garlic is fragrant and translucent, 30 to 60 seconds. Stir in the greens. Stir for a couple of minutes, until the greens are nicely seasoned with garlic and oil. Season with salt and pepper, remove from the heat.  Set aside to serve as a bed for the burgers.

8.  Peel and slice 2 ripe avocados and a mango for use as a garnish.

9.   Add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a cast iron skillet and heat.

10. Try shaping a patty with your hands. If the mixture is to loose, add some more oats. Divide into six to eight portions.  Shape as many patties as will fit in your skillet and fry until golden on both sides.  Transfer onto a plate.  Continue making patties and frying until all the mixture is used.

11.  Serve patties on  whole-grain sourdough buns on a bed of the cooked beet greens and garnished with mango and avocado.  If you have extra greens, they will keep in the refrigerator for several days.

Photo of week 2 share by Michael Surphin.