Every year at this time, I am amazed at how quickly the plants grow. Unfortunately, I feel the same way about the weeds. I look at at field and think we need to cultivate it right now, but it has to wait. Then I turn around and it is too late. We are trying to balance the large amount of planting we still have to complete, with the task of weeding all those beds we just planted. As it was a late spring, it feels like all the chores are piling up on top of each other rather than being nicely spaced out. Still, it is a joy to watch the small plants move from the greenhouse to the field, to see the dark green growth that indicates the plant has settled into its new home and start to grow, and to know that soon enough it will be in the barn and ready for all of us to savor.
This week's pick list:
- Turnips
- Radishes
- Spinach
- Tokyo Bekana
- Lettuce Mix
- Tatsoi
- Pac Choy
- Chicories
- Chard
- Collards
- Strawberries
Greens Strata with Goat Cheeseand Herbs, adapted from nytimes.com
- 2 cups whole milk
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 5 ounces greens (about 5 cups)
- ¾ cup mixed soft herbs, such as tarragon, mint or parsley
- ¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more as needed
- Black pepper, as needed
- 12 large eggs
- 1 pound day-old bread, cut into 2-inch cubes (about 6 cups)
- 6 ounces cold goat cheese, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
- Aleppo or Turkish pepper, for serving (optional)
In a medium pot, bring milk and cream to a simmer.
Meanwhile, place greens, herbs, cheese, salt and pepper in a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Once the hot milk mixture comes to a simmer, pour over greens and purée until smooth. Pour into a bowl and let cool completely. Once cool, whisk in 6 eggs.
Lightly oil a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Scatter bread cubes over bottom of pan. Pour custard over bread and press down so the bread absorbs the custard. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. If you can, stir bread cubes after an hour or so to encourage an even distribution of custard.
When you are ready to bake the strata, heat oven to 350 degrees. Tuck the goat cheese rounds into and on top of the strata. Transfer pan to oven and bake until top is beginning to firm up but is still slightly wet underneath, about 25 minutes.
Remove pan from oven and use a spoon to make 6 evenly spaced indentations on the surface of the strata. Crack an egg into each hole and season with salt and pepper. Return pan to oven and continue to bake until strata is cooked through and eggs are just set, 20 to 25 minutes more. Sprinkle with Aleppo or Turkish pepper if desired.