As I got more into cooking as a young adult, this was one of the first recipes that I set out to tackle. Check out the size of this one that we had for dinner the other night.

Before writing this post, I did a little research to see what other people were saying about this recipe, and also to find out exactly how to spell it. To my amazement, there was almost nothing out there that documents this recipe. I even consulted my father on how it should be spelled. He never remembered seeing it actually written out, but provided the insight that it is actually pronounced as ‘Mm-banata’. Of all the things that make you go Mmmmm, this is certainly at the top of the list.

There are many variations of Sicilian stuffed breads. Here is the recipe that has been the tradition in my family for generations.

Ingredients:
A healthy portion of Swish chard and kale
Potatoes
Onions
Pizza dough
Raisins (yes, sounds weird)
Olive oil, salt and pepper

Step 1: Make your favorite pizza dough recipe or buy some pre-made dough. Our favorite dough recipe utilizes both white and whole wheat flour, a great combination. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Step 2: Saute the greens, potatoes, onions and a few raisins in a pan with olive oil. The portions are up to your taste. Remember, the Swiss chard and kale will cook down significantly, so be sure to pick an abundance. Your pan should be overflowing with greens when you first start cooking them. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the ingredients until the potatoes are almost all the way soft, but still raw in the middle. You will bake this in the oven, so there is still plenty of time for them to cook.

Step 3: While the ingredients are cooking, roll out your dough into a big oval shape.

Step 4: Pour the cooked ingredients onto one side of the dough. Pull the other side over the ingredients so that the ends of the dough are touching.

Step 5: Pinch the ends closed beginning at one end and going around the perimeter of the embanata. The end result should be a nice half-circle, filled to the brim with goodness. Slice some openings for air to escape and drizzle olive oil over the top.

Step 6: Bake the embanata for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown on top.

Let cool, slice up, and enjoy! Serve with a nice side of marinara dipping sauce to really please your palate.

Got any farm fresh recipes you would like to share with us?

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I wasn’t quite sure what these would look like as they began to grow. Pretty cool looking. I believe this is the Mt. Hood variety. Can’t wait to harvest these so I can make home brew with my very own hops.

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We’ve scoured Facebook for the most popular and supported Farmers Market pages, focusing on why people ‘like’ them so much.

To read more, visit this article on Antler’s Blog

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Coincidentally, my parents sent me this video the other day. It’s nice to see a hummingbird up close. Also, notice how the mother is smaller than her baby…funny how nature works.

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Mr. Real Frog

Hops

Early Black Raspberry

First Pea Flowers

Potato

Full Moon over Chestnut Hill Reservoir

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While watering the garden earlier this week, I glanced over at one of our wild areas and was psyched to see these little spit collections created by you know who.

I quickly ran inside and pulled Karen out to see them. I swear, this was almost as if I were showing her bigfoot tracks.

Why do they make these frothy spit collections?

The spittlebug, aka: ‘the Froghopper’ does this for 2 main reasons:

1) The froth hides the nymph from the view of predators and parasites,
and 2) it insulates them against heat and cold by providing thermal and moisture control.

Spittlebugs can also jump over 70cm vertically. Beat that Fleas! For a nice time-elapsed view of just how they make their froth, check out this video:

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In addition, I like knowing how things are made. Just recently, my brew master friend, Adam, introduced me to the fine art of brewing. Since our first batch together in mid-winter, we’ve brewed over 50 gallons of 4 different varieties.

Seeing as I already enjoy growing so many varieties of plants, the obvious next step was for me to grow my own hops.

Last month, we picked up some dormant hops rhizomes. 3 different varieties to be exact: Cascade, Chinook and Mt. Hood. Soon after potting them, their little hops vines popped out and were reaching for anything to hold onto. Our plan was to build a 17 ft. trellis (Hops can grow as high as 20+ feet!). However, for this season we made the last minute decision to run them up some strings and onto our newly built Pergola.

Did you know that the first documented instance of hop cultivation was in 736? Yup, that’s true. Those Germans knew what they were doing. I’m glad to partake in this age old tradition. The more local ingredients I can get for our home brew, the better.

Read more on our brewing adventures: sweetlocalfarm.com/2010/02/11/the-joy-of-home-brew/

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Some people have been known to think that ants actually help the peonies bloom. I did a little research on this subject and learned that this is not the case. For all of your ‘ants on peonies’ related questions, I recommend reading the Heartland Peony Society’s FAQ on this matter.

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They have even gone to seed. There is 1 lonely carrot that made it through the Winter as well among this bunch.

As soon as it began to warm up at the beginning of March, we planted out many more rows of our favorite salad greens.

We are happy to report that we’ve had ample amounts of salad pickings for many servings each week. Typically, we wouldn’t plant these varieties until early May. These extra 2 months at the beginning of the season sure are great, especially since I have a slight addiction to Arugula.

Tomorrow night…spinach pie. Mmmmmmm

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I’ve always wanted to grow asparagus. This hearty and healthy perennial is one of my favorites and I’m very happy to finally be in a place where I’ll be able to tend to this crop for years to come. I’ve read a lot about planting asparagus from crowns, but I had no idea what these ‘crowns’ actually were. I’ll admit, when they showed up in the mail I was a bit surprised. They looked like tiny dehydrated squids, without the big squid heads of course.

Our planting process was as such:

Prepare yourself with some rich compost, fertilizer and mulch. Dig a trench approximately 1 foot deep.

Add the fertilizer to the bottom of the trench. This will give the young crowns some food for their early life. We used bat guano as we have plenty of that consistently brewing in our barn. Create mounds approximately 5 inches high and 18 inches apart out of the compost.

Spread the roots of the asparagus crowns over each mound, much like a happy squid basking in the sun in a magical place where squids actually bask in the sun.

Cover the crowns with 2-3 inches of soil. It’s OK if the trench isn’t all the way filled in yet, in fact, you want it to not be completely filled. As the asparagus begins to grow through, you’ll continue to add soil until you’ve filled the trench. Finally, cover the area around the trenches with mulch to keep the weeds down. The asparagus roots will be thick and dense making it very difficult to remove weeds intact.

Now the waiting begins. We will not actually be able to harvest any asparagus for the first 2 years. The plants need to establish themselves before the picking can begin. Patience is truly a virtue. A virtue that will lead to great tasting asparagus.

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