Basil plant by Linda Nelson

Dear WCM Shopper,

Have you been playing in the dirt? There’s more to plant in your garden from the Market!

Bill and Cathy Mayr of Countyline Plants & Produce, DeForest, have hot and sweet pepper, tomato and herb plants including the very fragrant lime basil and pineapple sage. Don’t take my word for it. You have to stop to smell these plants to believe it – and to start thinking about all the great ways to use the herbs, such as pineapple sage pork tenderloin on the grill or maybe lime basil pesto on chicken or fish.

Tomato Mountain, operated by Chris Covelli and Sarah Costa of Brooklyn, also has a wide variety of basil, including purple basil, plus hearty tomato plants.

Natalie Ortega of Natalie’s Garden & Greenhouse, Oregon, plans to bring annuals such as million bells,  Gerbera daisies, salvias, fiber optic grass, papyrus grass and more; perennials such as lupines, columbine and delphinium, and a variety of hanging baskets.

And, from Bob Klebba’s Morningwood Farm Nursery, Mount Horeb, you can find annuals and mixed hanging baskets this May and perennials as they kick in.

“We bring a different selection every week because we can’t bring all of what we grow at the nursery,” he says, adding, “We’ll be promoting some spectacular peonies in the next two markets.

Among the many reasons to purchase your plants at the Market is this one offered by Klebba on his website: “As an independent local grower, you can trust that our plants are well suited for our local gardening climate. Your dollars spent with us also strengthen the local economy.”

Shoppers this week likely also will find radishes, leeks, fresh cut herbs, shallots, garlic, mushrooms, asparagus, greenhouse tomatoes and cucumbers, spinach and various greens including sorrel, pea tendrils, turnips, bok choy, potatoes, green onions, rhubarb, eggs, cheese, meats, dry beans, bread and other bakery, and specialty products.

Time is running out to stock up on maple syrup, maple corn (some customers freeze it!) and bratwurst from Geoff King of Sunnyhill Acres, Cascade. He expects to wrap up sales at the Market May 29.

My apologies to those newsletter readers disappointed about Dan Deneen’s absence last week. Deneen of Black Earth Valley, Mazomanie, didn’t come because his asparagus froze and he didn’t have much to offer shoppers on a less-than-perfect Market day, but he plans to return May 22.

Among the early vegetables are the pea tendrils or tips of sugar snap peas sold by vendors including Ka Vang of Madison. These can be eaten raw in salads, boiled or stir-fried. They taste like (no surprise coming) peas. The radish “bouquets” at this stand look too good to eat. Any ideas on using radishes beyond eating them raw? One friend adds them to his curry dishes. Any recipes for this or other ideas?

Many thanks to Lucy Richards for her rhubarb cake recipe. She will have a $5 Market gift certificate waiting for her at the Information Tent at the Market – as will other shoppers who share recipes for the newsletter. Drop them off – with your contact info – at the tent or send them to kalliosandra@yahoo.com.

If you’d rather enjoy a seasonal treat such as rhubarb or leeks without the prep work, check out the rhubarb-apple pie and leek quiche at Mary White’s Honey Bee Bakery of Madison. She patronizes Market vendors for many ingredients, such as Dreamfarm of Cross Plains for the goat cheese in her quiche. She uses organic whole grains and the few ingredients that are not organic are chosen because they’re high quality local products.

Thanks also to Tomato Mountain helper Celeste Eno for simple ways to use the vendor’s Sungold tomato preserves: in grilled cheese sandwiches (between the cheese and bread) and to marinate skinless, boneless chicken in a plastic bag for an hour so before dumping the chicken and preserves into a saucepan and cooking on the stove or dumping them into a baking dish and cooking at 350 degrees, either way until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.

Recipe Corner

Rhubarb Cake

• 6 tablespoons butter
  1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• ½ cup milk
  2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon salt
  1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  2 or 3 cups rhubarb chopped in to short pieces
  Granulated or powdered sugar for dusting the top
• Whipped cream (optional)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10-inch glass pie dish or rectangular “lasagna” pan. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat together the egg, milk, vanilla and salt. Add egg mixture to butter mixture. Sift flour and baking powder together and stir in until all is well mixed. Turn batter into prepared dish or pan. Scatter chopped rhubarb over the top. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees, then reduce to 325 degrees and continue baking for about an hour. Let cool a bit in the dish. Serve warm with sugar sprinkled over the top and, if desired, top with whipped cream.

Carrot Leek Soup

Here, reprinted with permission is a leek soup recipe from “Potluck! Home Cooking from Wisconsin’s Community Cookbooks” (Trails Books, 2007) by Toni Brandeis Streckert, who selected Virginia Finke Urness’ recipe from “For Everything There Is a Season, Vermont Lutheran Church, 150 Years of Faith, Fellowship and Food.” The recipe – which is not nearly as complicated as that credit – also includes potatoes and carrots, but you could skip the carrots when not available and just use more potatoes.

• 1 medium leek, thinly sliced and rinsed of all sandy residue
• 4 teaspoons butter
• 6 medium carrots, sliced
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 3 cans (14 ½ ounces each) chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup half and half
• Salt to taste after cooking
• Sour cream (optional)
• Nutmeg (optional)

In a large saucepan, sauté leek in butter until tender. Add carrots, potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until vegetables are tender. Cool to room temperature. Remove vegetables with a slotted spoon to a blender or food processor. Add enough cooking liquid to easily process until smooth. Return to pan. Stir in milk and pepper; heat through. Add half and half, and season to taste with salt. Continue to heat but do not simmer. If desired, serve with a dollop of sour cream and a dash of nutmeg. Makes 10 small or 6 large servings.

As a special treat for these early season Saturdays, the WCM is offering free hot chocolate as well as coffee. The hot chocolate will be available after around 8:30 am until it’s gone. When you are at the WCM Information Tent, fill out a chance to win the raffle and win a $5 WCM Gift Certificate.

Happy shopping – and spread the word about the Market to your friends and neighbors: 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays at Hill Farms State Department of Transportation parking lot at the corner of Segoe Road and Sheboygan Avenue, one block south of University Avenue and one block west of Hilldale Shopping Center. Make sure to tell those with young children to come and play along with the Moldy Jam Band, which usually performs when the weather is good (and not at the crack of dawn).

Until next week,
Sandy Kallio
for the Westside Community Market

Send recipes to: kalliosandra@yahoo.com