Distribution - November 22, 2009

This Thanksgiving distribution we have food that is sturdy in the cold (kale, sage), many items from the root cellar, and our first fermented bit.

• roots: rutabagas, turnips, radishes from Huguenot Street Farm
  
• rhubarb chutney from Madura Farm (the rhu, not the chut!)
  
• sage from Huguenot Street Farm
  
• potatoes & sweet potatoes from Huguenot Street Farm
  
• squash: butternut and delicata from Huguenot Street Farm
  
• fennel from Morgiewicz Farm
  
• curly kale from Morgiewicz Farm
  
• garlic from Huguenot Street Farm

If green was the theme of the first distribution, the theme of the second is "roots."
There's nothing better than mixed roasted roots in the fall. I chop all roots (the denser ones should be smallest) with squash and fennel and whole garlic cloves and quartered onions and bake them with olive oil and salt, for an easy meal filled with a lot of earthy flavors. If you have a fry daddy or a good exhaust fan over your stove, you may want to make pretty root veggie chips.

If rutabagas (a cross between a turnip and a cabbage) are new to you, you might want to prepare them in a way that they are the focus: mashed with maple or with pears, or stuffed into squashes with pecans, or in a soup with chipotle.We decided to include rhubarb this distribution with the theory that this chutney can be a locally grown replacement for cranberry sauce at a thanksgiving meal. It's sweet, sour, tangy, and a tiny bit spicy, and goes nicely on crackers as an hors d'oeuvre, or as a tangy side to the many salty and savory foods we traditionally eat at this holiday. (The chutney has the following ingredients: fermented rhubarb, onion, raisins, agave nectar, apple cider vinegar, ginger, garlic, jalapeno, olive oil, salt, allspice, clove, black pepper, cinnamon, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.)

Sage is a rich herb, and a key ingredient to stuffing. It tastes great with potatoes and apples, and, if your fry daddy is still hot, there are sage potato chips.You can figure out what to do with potatoes and delicious sweet potatoes: Mash 'em! Ditto for squashes. Just don't forget to roast your seeds! Use garlic in your mashes, and every day in everything, to keep from getting sick.

And kale. We're so obsessed with bready things and creamy things on thanksgiving, that we often forget our greens. When we remember them, our guests are happy. There are a billion ways to prepare greens, but I find that this recipe (pretty and appealing) is by far the most universally accepted by people who aren't used to eating leafy greens.

Fantastic fennel. Try it carmelized, in potatoes, with pasta, or for the strongest licorice flavor, shredded raw in a salad.

There are some unusual foods in this distribution, but I urge you to give them a try. You're not always going to love every food that's locally grown, but it's worth it to find out.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!