Artichokes: These artichokes don’t have a choke – the fuzzy center of some varieties. The stem is tender, the inner leaves and heart are delicious. You will want to remove some of the outer leaves to get to the tender inner ones. There may be a few aphids that need to be washed off with a blast of water. These artichokes can be trimmed and roasted with some salt, pepper and olive oil.
Carrots: I have been chopping the carrots into bite-sized pieces and dressing with oil and vinegar to make a very satisfying salad without lettuce. Other ideas: carrot cake, carrot juice, honey roasted carrots…
Baby Fennel: Trim the fronds and base, then drop the bulbs into boiling water for 8-10 minutes. Then fry the fennel in olive oil with your garlic, anchovies and pepper flakes.
Oranges: These organic Valencia oranges are from a neighbor’s orchard. A farmer and fruit breeder in southern California created the Valencia orange, which is much later to mature than the Navel oranges we have been putting in your boxes in previous weeks.
Arugula or Mizuna: Some of you will get mizuna and some will get arugula — These are both tender greens that can be used raw or gently cooked.
