Vegetable of the Month - Green Garlic

Did you know...? Fun facts!

• Green garlic is nothing more than immature garlic - garlic that has not been allowed to grow to full size. Typically this results from farmers thinning their garlic crops, but green garlic has become increasingly available as the demand for it grows.
• Green garlic looks almost exactly the same as a green onion. Almost. The green leaves of green garlic are flat rather than tubular, and the stalks smell pleasantly of garlic rather than onion. Remember, the nose knows.
• Green garlic will impart garlic flavor to your dishes, but with less pungency than its adult counterpart. 

Nutritional Information

• Green garlic has the same nutritional properties as regular garlic, including antibiotic properties to several forms of bacteria and intestinal parasites. Plants in the Allium family are also well-known for their blood pressure and cholesterol-lowering abilities.
• Green garlic is a good source of calcium, phosphorous, selenium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, and manganese.

Recipes

Green Garlic Risotto
Asparagus with Young Garlic and Horseradish
Shrimp Stir-Fry with Green Garlic
Spaghetti with Green Garlic

Vegetable of the Month - Beets

Did you know...? Fun facts!

• Beets are a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains. Betanin and vulgaxanthin are the two best-studied betalains from beets, and both have been shown to provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and detoxification support.
• Humans appear to vary in response to dietary betalains; only 10-15% of adults in the United States are estimated to have the capacity to absorb and metabolize enough betalains to gain the full benefits.
• Beets belong to the chenopod family, which includes chard, spinach, and quinoa.
• Beets come in red, white, golden-yellow and even rainbow colors! But they aren't has hardy as they look - even the slightest puncture will cause the betalains to bleed, especially during cooking.

Nutrtional Information

• 1 cup sliced cooked beets contains 136mcg folate, 0.55mg manganese, 518.50mg potassium, 0.13mg copper, 3.40g fiber, 39.10mg magnesium, 64.60mg phosphorus, 1.34mg iron, and 0.11mg vitamin B6.

Recipes

• The easiest way to prepare beets is to cut them into quarters without peeling the skin, steam them for 15 minutes, and serve as a side dish or an addition to your favorite salad!
• Baked Beet Chips
• Beet Salad
• Fudgy Vegan Beet Cupcakes

March Volunteer of the Month: Barbara and her class!

Barbara Roether and her middle school class come out to the farm every Tuesday to help with one of our daily harvest. Her students are always eager to get their hands dirty. It’s great seeing the younger generation out on the farm learning and growing with the community. We are happy to announce that Barbara and her class are this month’s Volunteers of the month here at Veggielution. We asked each student and Barbara why they loved Veggielution, and what is their favorite thing about the farm.

Kevin:

Veggielution gives me a chance to explore the outside world and lets me learn to do farm work. This is a good opportunity to learn and have fun at the same time. My favorite part of the farm is the orchard and harvesting. I’ve learned how to harvest each veggie on the farm. My favorite veggie to harvest is lettuce mix, because it’s easy.

Hana:

Veggielution is a chance to get outside of the classroom and interact with the earth. You get to be outside and help the community. My favorite part of the farm is the orchard because we can really see it grow from the ground up and everything we do to it affects it. I also like the dome that is covered in flowers in the spring and summer because it is really pretty. My favorite Veggie to harvest is lettuce because it’s so cool and light.

Isabeaux:

Veggielution means a chance for us to get outside and get our hands dirty, it also means that after our farm duties are done we can work on our orchard and our shack project. My favorite veggie to harvest is lettuce, even though there are so many stinging nettles.

Caeden:

To me Veggielution is a place to do hands on work instead of the work we do in class. My favorite part of the farm is the orchard because because I get to use a lot of different tools! My favorite veggies to pick are jalapenos because there are a lot of them and it goes fast!

Georgette:

It’s a good time to get out of the classroom and do outside work. It helps the earth, yourself, and the people buying the vegetables! My favorite thing is picking the veggies and bringing them back to the shed to weigh them.

Bella:

My favorite part of the farm is the dome with the vines over it, because it is very pretty and peaceful with the colorful flowers on it.

Emily:

Veggielution means “change” and “making a difference” in our world. In a world full of technology and innovation Veggielution is still one of the only green farms in the area that produces for the people. My favorite parts of the farm are the youth garden and the packing shed. The Youth garden has many types of plants and there is a circle of stumps; it is a calm and peaceful place. The packing shed on the other hand, is bustling with life and people doing many things! I like harvesting turnips. You pull them out of the ground and sometimes you fall over. It’s really fun and dirty!

Barbara:

My favorite things about Veggielution are watching how my students change into bigger and bolder people when they get outside. And then those moments that sometimes happen when we are working in the fields, maybe picking tomatoes, and time falls just falls away, it seems that we have always been in the fields together, under the sunshine, in the smell of earth, and green leaves, working together.  Being with my students in those moments, when we are simply “earthlings” is the best.