What are you going to do with a kohlrabi almost as big as your head? Buy another one, carve them into  salad bowls and fill with  kohlrabi slaw  and ranch dressing.  Kohlrabi has noble pedigree , all those good nutritional assets that the health police are always nagging us about, and it won’t frighten anyone tucked in with the carrot and celery sticks on a relish tray.  If you haven’t learned to love chile salt yet, try some on thinly sliced kohlrabi. (Salt-free versions are available.)  The Veggie Fairy in the photo is holding a monster grown at Primrose Community Farm, but kohlrabi is on many vendor tables right now.

Ease that creeping sense of anxiety about the end of strawberry season…Door County Fruit returns to the market this week with their famous berries.  (Cherries are coming in another two weeks.)  Read this next sentence out loud:  Get here early!

Jean Statz is also back at the market this week with red currants.  Juiced, jellied, jammed, dried or stashed in the freezer, currants earn a huge return for your local food dollar.  Research puts them high up on the list of healthy phytonutrients, too. Click here for a zucchini currant muffin recipe  and here for a gluten free currant apple crisp.

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Remember to bring your lucky mug for Metcalfe’’s coffee on Saturday and warm up your sing-a-long voice ; The Raging Grannies will be at the market around 9 am.

Swiss chard is in full neon glory this week.  It’s easy to cook a double bunch and freeze half-you’ll feel smug in January when you’ve got it for greens and cornbread.

Blue Moon Community Farm, Jen Ehr, Primrose Community Farm, Sai Vang: all have beautiful chard that could as easily go into a flower vase as a soup pot.  (Food for the eyes – the fifth food group.)  Add some new potatoes from Don’s Produce and smoked sausage (Pecatonica Valley, Jordandal, Hawk’s Hill, JenEhr) to a saute of Swiss chard, finish with a hefty spoonful of your favorite mustard and surprise those who say they don’t care for chard.

If they still don’t go for the chard, promise ice cream from Sassy Cow for dessert.

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We can all relate to how these piggies felt about moving to a pasture at Blue Moon Community Farm.  Click here and find the video of the move on their Facebook fanpage.  Ah, the romance of farming……

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Hey!  The market has a new fanpage too!  Remember, fan pages are public, so you don’t need a Facebook account to check them out.  Naturally, we’re going to offer warm fuzzies in the form of market gift certificates from time to time.  There are market photo albums to page through and this week, a posting of Anthony Bourdain’s ride on the train that cuts through a Thai market. (This video has gone viral; once you see it, you won’t complain about anything for awhile.)  The market page has links to  market vendors on the left side of the screen, so it’s easy to find them, too.

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In our Making a Meal of the Issues section this week is a story from the L. A. Times that will make you grateful for food inspectors and health department regulations… yes!  really! click here to read the article; the link will be on our Facebook page also.

Save It for Later!

Where did you put that dehydrator that the kids/Secret Santa/in-laws gave you a while back?  Time to dust it off…there will be currants at the market this week!  They’re easy to dehydrate and even people who hate raisins, love dried currants.  Once you’ve got the machine out, you can dry some herbs also.  I put mine on an extension cord and let it run outside to avoid that heating–up–the–kitchen problem.  (Haven’t got a dehydrator?  I got a great one, an expandable American Harvester with thermostat, at a garage sale for 5 dollars.  I often see them at the thrift store too.)  With a dehydrator full of herbs on an Aldo Leopold bench, I’m a total local food geek.

I’m going to stock up on Jean Statz’s red currants too.  Here’s how to make a frozen juice concentrate :

*wash (no need to stem them) and pile currants into a pot big enough to hold them about 1 inch from the top.  Pour in 1 cup water, put on the lid and simmer gently until berries collapse.  Strain and feed the cooked gunk to your backyard chickens or compost pile.  Freeze the juice in two cup containers.  (You can sweeten it upon use.)  Excellent mixed half and half with iced tea.  (Or hot tea later, but let’s not think about that now.)

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Recipes!

German Style Stuffed Kohlrabi

(no need to peel  unless your kohlrabi is ugly)  (recipe from Epicurious)

• 8 kohlrabies (about 5 pounds), bulbs peeled, stems discarded, and the leaves trimmed of tough center ribs
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 garlic clove, chopped fine
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 1 pound ground pork or smoked sausage
• 1/2 cup cooked long-grain rice
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves plus additional for garnish if desired
• 2 tablespoons sweet paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram, crumbled
• 1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 large eggs, beaten lightly
• 3 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or yogurt from Sugar River

Method:

Trim 1/4 inch from the root end of each kohlrabi bulb so the bulb will stand upright, scoop out the pulp from the opposite end with a small melon-ball cutter or spoon, leaving 1/4-inch-thick shells, and chop it fine (there will be about 2 3/4 cups). In a large kettle of boiling salted water cook the kohlrabi leaves for 3 minutes, or until they are just tender, drain them well, and chop them fine (there will be about 2 cups).

In a large skillet cook the onion and the garlic in 2 tablespoons of the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until the onion is golden and transfer the mixture to a large bowl. To the bowl add the pork, the rice, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, the paprika, the marjoram, the caraway seeds, the tomato paste, the eggs, 1/2 cup of the kohlrabi pulp, 1/4 cup of the chopped kohlrabi leaves, and salt and pepper to taste and combine the mixture well. Divide the mixture among the kohlrabi shells, mounding it, and arrange the shells in a shallow flameproof baking dish just large enough to hold them in one layer. Scatter the remaining pulp and leaves in the dish and pour in the broth. Bring the broth to a boil and simmer the shells, covered partially, for 30 to 50 minutes, or until they can be pierced easily with a sharp knife. Transfer the shells with a slotted spoon to a plate, reserving the cooking mixture in the baking dish, and keep them warm.

In a small saucepan cook the flour in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter over moderate heat, whisking, for 3 minutes and whisk in the cream. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking, simmer it for 1 minute, and stir it into the reserved cooking mixture, a little at a time. Add salt and pepper to taste and cook the sauce over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until it is thickened. Return the stuffed shells to the baking dish and garnish them with the additional parsley.

The following recipe is from the blog, Closet Cooking: cooking in a closet sized kitchen, which you might enjoy reading.

Grilled Lamb or Pork chops with Red Currant Sauce

Ingredients:
4 lamb  or  pork chops
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons red currants (crushed)
2 tablespoons rosemary (chopped)
1 tablespoon honey
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1 teaspoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Trim the fat from around the chops.
2. Place the lamb chops into a ziplock bag with the rest of the ingredients. Place the ziplock bag into the fridge and let marinate for 30 minutes to a few hours.
3. Broil the lamb chops in the oven for about 5 minutes per side.
4. Place the marinade into a small pan and reduce to a sauce.
5. Place the lamb chop onto a plate and cover with the sauce.