​
Here's our little rototiller doing the next round of field prep. Fergus and Ben, our two newest crew members spread pelletized chicken manure into the field, one bucket per bed. I drove over the beds and incorporated it with this little piece. 
Hopefully by the next round of amendments, I will have finished repairing our drop spreader, then the tractor can do the whole job, saving time and wear and tear on our bodies.

​And here are the final steps in one:
Bed mark out with our basket weeder. This way our rows are nice and straight for mechanical cultivation. 
Planting! What you see to the left is the first round of outside plants for 2025! Let the games begin! Carla is doing a decent job in a supervisory role. 

It snowed! Actual snow accumulation! Lucky for our spinach, it is tucked away safely in one of our caterpillar tunnels.

Animal Sign!
An owl pellet? Or one from some other bird? I'm not sure. But what I do know that this is evidence of some wondrous bird helping us to manage field pests. Thank you birds! 

And more bird sign?

​A track! Ground birds don't have the back toe found in song birds and perching birds, making their tracks distinct!

Evidence of the night bird hunting for worms.

Fergus has lots of knowledge about animal sign and pointed out this evidence of a Woodcock hunting in our field. If you have time, I highly recommend watching a video of these silly birds. Here's one Fergus shared with me. I will add that they likely don't think of themselves as silly, who am I to designate them as such?

Ahoy!
Another week gone by and we are almost back at market time. This week we will have delicious tender lettuce to add to our collection of offerings. And yesterday before the snow we got turnips and radishes seeded, along with our first bit of cabbage. We have a lot more cabbage to go! 

This year feels like getting an old ship back in shape. Imagine the creaking you imagine when thinking about a ship. That is what I feel like. That is what my equipment feels like. Am I the ship or is the farm? These are the deep questions I get to ask myself while sitting in the dark waiting for my baby to fall asleep. Or sitting on the tractor, traveling back and forth across the field slower than walking pace. 
Whatever the case may be, were creaking and cracking as we get back up to speed. 

Everything is broken or in disrepair. It makes sense. I haven't been boots on the ground since 2021. But man oh man! It is a lot to catch up to. Take the tractor (an Allis G) we use for basket weeding as an example. It is one of our main tractors. We use it weekly and call it OG for "original G." It had a split side wall on one of the rear tires, extremely low gear oil in the case, the chain on the basket weeder (its main implement) was too long, the front tires were rubbing the frame of the implement when turning, and a bolt interferes with the lifting and lowering of the baskets, causing the implement to get stuck and clog up. The tractor functions through these ailments, so an operator may not notice they need attention but over time, each of these will cause a bigger problem: a flat tire; broken chain; worn gears; worn bolts. Most of these issues decided that this April was the time to come to a head! Each implement and machine has had its own set of like problems. Checking 'em off one by one is the only way forward!

Here is a repeat about our fundraiser for Stockbridge Community Outreach.  In January, when i hear the first hints of federal support of food programs being pulled, I was really upset. That money is important. It helps food banks and pantries have access to healthy food to distribute to people that need it. And it helps the people in all our communities eat better and live healthier lives. I believe in helping each other out in our tough times. Everyone goes through them. That's what community is all about. 

I was feeling really powerless and had the lucky shift to consider what I could do to help rather than spinning out in despair. Because growing vegetables is in my wheelhouse, this is what I figured I could try. The money raised through this gofundme does directly to the cost of production of vegetables for our community. If you have been considering contributing but have questions, please reach out. We are now almost at 20% of our goal! Way further than I really expected to get. I am invigorated by the support this venture is receiving and hope that we get closer to our goal yet!

No one can do everything but we can all do something. 

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
  • A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
    • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
    • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our farm membership (CSA). This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
    • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Fresh From the field
• Recipe: Patty's Mashed Turnips!
• Member Info- 
  • Royal Oak members: If you haven't received an email from me regarding any remaining balance you have, please send me an email and I will get it to you.

Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Arugula Raab
Head lettuce
Kale Raab
Micros: Dill! Kale, Radish, mustard mix!
Pea shoots
Spinach

All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrisp, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard (Eastern only)
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: Autumn frost

Coming Soon
??

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

Patty's Mashed Turnips 
From: All Recipes
These hot buttery mashed turnips always reminds me of the holiday season when my grandmother prepared this dish for the family.
 Ingredients

• 7 large turnips (that's about 2 quarts of our turnips)
• 1 cup milk or to taste
• 2 tablespoons butter
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

• Gather the ingredients.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook turnips until tender, 35 to 45 minutes. Strain and rinse.
• Mash turnips with a potato masher in a large mixing bowl. Add milk and butter.
• Mash to desired consistency and season with salt and black pepper; serve hot

​We got to do more tractor work last Saturday! It was a good thing Tyler went to market instead of me Because of that choice, I was able to move forward our ground preparations. About 2.3 acres are bedformed and ready for the final round of preparation before planting.

​

​We took some of the rainy days to move forward our greenhouse work. Our first round of tomatoes are potted up. This means we moved them from smaller pot sizes to something a little more roomy. They'll have lots of room to grow before we get them out into a hoop house at the end of the month. We also got the ginger greensprouting, thinned the celery, and got all caught up on greenhouse seeding.

​We've been working on our deer fence and it is coming along nicely. I don't expect to prevent 100% of deer farm visits, but hopefully a good portion. Here's the view from the fence line. The birds are making a true racket. We here mostly blackbirds now, with killdeer, pheasants, and sandhill cranes mixed in. 

​Here's the trusty bedformer. This implement doesn't look complicated but it took a little while to get used to. There are several opposing forces that have to be balanced for it to work well. The "thrower discs" need to be lined up so they pile soil onto the beds. The furrowers need to be lined up so they follow the aisles and the edge of the shaper pan. They also pull the machine down the severity of which depends on the the tilt of the whole frame. This will affect how much soil gets piled (how high our beds go), and how easily the implement can be pulled through the soil. And the shaper pan is in the back. It presses down on top of the soil pile and (hopefully) makes a smooth bed top.
I say it every year but we do this not just cause it looks pretty but also because it creates a deeper seed bed, warms the soil, and provides better drainage for our crops. Added bonus? It helps our machines track through the field. This is really helpful when we are planting or cultivating.

Ahoy !

I hope you weathered the storm without too much damage. Amazingly, we came out ok, despite all our metal frames covered in loosely affixed plastic.
Even with all the hustle, we will be planting about a week behind, and that's if the weather holds. We've gotten at least 2" of rain this week already and are due for another storm tomorrow. All this water, all at once isn't ideal. On the plus side,  you can see some cool water fowl in some unusual places!

Hopefully the fields dry out in the coming week and we get a chance to seed our turnips and radishes, as well as plant all these lush brassicas we have growing in the greenhouse. I'm trying to adopt a stress-free mentality.  We try for the best case and relish the possible case. As in: We aimed for getting our plants in the ground on time, it wasn't possible because of several factors outside of our control, including weather and the unfortunate timing of some required repairs. I am going to refuse to lament. What purpose would it serve? This year, doing my best has to be enough. Join me?

I wanted to also mention a little about our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project.  In January, when i hear the first hints of federal support of food programs being pulled, I was really upset. That money is important. It helps food banks and pantries have access to healthy food to distribute to people that need it. And it helps the people in all our communities eat better and live healthier lives. I believe in helping each other out in our tough times. Everyone goes through them. That's what community is all about. 

I was feeling really powerless and had the lucky shift to consider what I could do to help rather than spinning out in despair. Because growing vegetables is in my wheelhouse, this is what I figured I could try. The money raised through this gofundme does directly to the cost of production of vegetables for our community. If you have been considering contributing but have questions, please reach out. We are now almost at 20% of our goal! Way further than I really expected to get. I am invigorated by the support this venture is receiving and hope that we get closer to our goal yet!

No one can do everything but we can all do something. 

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
  • A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
    • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
    • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our farm membership (CSA). This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
    • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Fresh From the field
• Recipe: Roasted Potatoes and Carrots!

Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Arugula Raab
Kale Raab
Micros: Broccoli, Radish, mustard mix!
Pea shoots
Spinach
Tatsoi Raab


All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrisp, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard (Eastern only)
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu

Coming Soon
Lettuce!

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

Roasted Potatoes and Carrots 
From: Well Plated


Perfect Roasted Potatoes and Carrots with rosemary, spices, and honey. Tender, caramelized and absolutely delicious, this easy side pairs with any recipe!
 
Ingredients 
For the Roasted Potatoes and Carrots:

• 1 pound carrots peeled, halved lengthwise if thick
• 1 pound baby red or yellow potatoes halved
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey or pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper omit if sensitive to spice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

For the Honey Yogurt Sauce:

• 1 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
• 1 ½ tablespoons honey

Instructions

• Place a rack in the lower third of your oven, then preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with foil and coat the foil with nonstick spray.
• Place the carrots and potatoes in the center of the baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and honey, then sprinkle with cumin, smoked paprika, salt, and cayenne. Toss to coat, then spread into a single layer.
• Bake in the oven’s lower third until vegetables are browned in spots and tender when pierced with a small, sharp knife, about 25 to 30 minutes, tossing halfway through. Sprinkle with rosemary and toss to coat.
• While the vegetables bake, prepare the honey yogurt sauce: In a small bowl, stir together the Greek yogurt and honey. Transfer the vegetables to a serving plate. Serve warm with big dollops of yogurt on top and extra yogurt on the side.

Here's the view of the disc from the tractor. It kinda looks small in that big field. You can see three 150' foot fields in this picture. A lot of what you see will be planted within the next 2 weeks (hopefully.) Most of it will be brassicas: kale, cabbage, radish, turnip and the like. 
​We've got some great vegetables coming for ya this year.

​A roller bearing, it makes stuff turn! Our bedformer had some crunchy bearings that were too worn to allow the shaper disc to do its work. Luckily, the company we got the piece from sent us to new ones on the house without batting an eye. They are back in and ready to work now. And I can add hub bearings to my collection familiars.

The garlic is mega mulched! Hopefully it can get through the carpet we laid. 

Ahoy!

I am busier than I have ever been before in my life, and that is saying a lot. Between kids and farm, home and mind, I'm swamped and running. Literally running. Remember this spring when I mentioned that Tyler and Hailey were starting a farm but would still be working with us? Well, as to be expected, their farm is demanding and it ended up making more sense for them to focus on their budding business. I am so excited for them and am looking forward so seeing all the great farming they will do. Tyler will be at Eastern tomorrow, possibly for his last time as a Lake Divider. If you see him, wish him luck on his venture.

The shift has left me tying to get my sea legs. Tyler sure did a lot around here and I am feeling the absence. It seems I have found enough people to work with us this year, so we have been working on acclimating, scheduling, and training. The other big learning curve I've been riding? Repair work. I have been working really hard to get our equipment back in fighting shape. I am so lucky to have connected with my neighbor Terry, who has a wealth experience he is willing to share with me. It is such a relief to work with him. Instead of a 20 minute internet search followed by internal uncertainty while I do the work, I just ask- hey, can I break this using this approach? Is this the best tool for this? Is this the next step? I am learning so much. And we are having a lot of fun. 

We got enough implements in shape just in time to sneak in a bit of field work before it rained today. It wasn't much rain so here's to hoping I can get back out there tomorrow and get us a little more on our way to set up. I am feeling the great spring relief to have done the first big round of soil moving. 

And you should know, I saw a tree with 18 turkey vultures in it! You read that right! EIGHTEEN!! It was awesome.  

If you didn't see it yet, we launched the GoFundMe for our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project. We are growing vegetables for our local food pantry and are asking for donations to cover the overhead. I appreciate any support you have to offer, even if it is sharing it with a friend or on your social media, so please, share with abandon! We are just over 10% of our goal!

No one can do everything but we can all do something. 

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
  • A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
    • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
    • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our farm membership (CSA). This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
    • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Fresh From the field
• Recipe: Kale rabe pasta!

Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Arugula Raab
Bok choy shoots
Kale Raab
Micros: Broccoli, Radish, Arugula!
Pea shoots
Spinach
Tatsoi Raab


All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrisp, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard (Eastern only)
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu

Coming Soon
???

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

Kale Rabe Pasta!
From Kale + Compass

​Ingredients

• 1 large bunch kale rabe, tough ends removed
• 1/2 cup Romano cheese, grated
• 3/4 lb small pasta (we used campanelle)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
• 1 heaping tsp anchovy paste
• 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, roughly chopped
• zest of one lemon
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp olive oil
• salt
• pepper

 Instructions

1. PREP: Chop kale rabe into bite-size pieces. Peel and smash garlic. Roughly chop mint and pumpkin seeds. Zest lemon.
2. ROAST: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Toss kale rabe with olive oil, salt and pepper and spread evenly onto a baking sheet. Roast in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, until tender and charred on the edges.
3. BOIL: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions.
4. SAUCE: Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, red pepper flakes, anchovy paste, golden raisins, pumpkin seeds and stir to combine. Add the cooked pasta, fresh mint, lemon zest, Romano cheese and kale rabe to the skillet and toss everything together until well combined. Add in some pasta water to thin sauce if necessary.
5. SERVE: Portion pasta into 4 bowls, top with a fresh squeeze of lemon juice and more grated Romano.

Notes
If you can't find kale rabe, feel free to use broccoli or broccoli rabe instead. (or tatsoi or bok choy rabe!!)
You can substitute Parmesan cheese for the Romano.

​Some of the last gray skies over brown ground of the year. Soak it up! That's right, green is rising. 
Between now and the last time I wrote, we all experienced some significant winds. We didn't get whipped as hard as we could have, thank goodness. All remains intact. We also didn't get quite as much rain as was predicted. I am grateful for that too, given I would like to get some ground prepared for planting. 

​Here an army of kale waits to head out to the field, getting stronger every day. 

​Clare's chicks are here, hiding in the greenhouse, with there chorus of cute peeps and their soft fluffy feathers. Some of us can't get enough of holding them. 

Welcome to spring! The frogs are singing, the ducks are passing through, the buds changing the hue of the woods. We have only 10 days before our first plants are supposed to get out into the field. Will we meet the deadline? It depends. 

Will our equipment be ready to go? While there are still some things to check off, we could hobble out there right now if the soil conditions were right, so I would say yes. Will the weather be favorable, allowing the ground to dry out enough? That part we have no control over. My guess is the earlies chance will be next Thursday. But that changes with the wind so I will continue to surreptitiously check the weather. Will our plants be ready? Well, we did start some of them a little later than we wanted but the plants are growing faster and faster with the increasing sunlight.

If you didn't see it yet, we launched the GoFundMe for our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project. We are growing vegetables for our local food pantry and are asking for donations to cover the overhead. I appreciate any support you have to offer, even if it is sharing it with a friend or on your social media, so please, share with abandon! We are just over 10% of our goal!

No one can do everything but we can all do something. 

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
  • A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
    • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
    • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our farm membership (CSA). This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
    • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Fresh From the field
• Recipe: Stir-fried bok choy rabe!

​
Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Arugula Rabe
Bok choy shoots
Micros: Broccoli, Radish, Arugula!
Pea shoots
Spinach
Tatsoi Rabe


All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrisp, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard (Eastern only)
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Rutabaga!
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: Autumn frost

Coming Soon
Kale

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

Stir fried Bok choy rabe

From CSA Boxing Day

​Ingredients

• small bunch of bok choy rabe (mine was about 8 oz), washed and dried
• knuckle-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and slivered
• 4 scallions (white and light green parts chopped into 1-inch pieces,  plus some finer pieces of the dark green tips)
• 1 tbsp peanut or grapeseed oil
• 1/2 – 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari, to taste

Directions:

Start with a smoking hot wok or large skillet. Swirl in the oil, and get it good and hot.
Add the scallions (reserve the tops, though) and stir-fry for 30 seconds or so. Add the ginger, and keep everything moving for another 30 seconds. Add the bok choy, and stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes, depending on how soft you like it. I like to retain some crunch, so I definitely err on the short side.
Before you plate, sprinkle in the scallion tops and toss the greens with a bit of soy sauce.

Ahoy reader!

​While we vegetable farmers love a good spring break (in the weather) like anyone else, it inspires a particular anxiety for many of us. We don't want to let "the early weather window" go by. Usually there is only one early one. But the field can't be too wet. If it is we could damage our soil structure, affecting drainage as well as air and nutrient availability for years to come. The first soil work of the year happens on the morning that I go out to the field and scoop a fistful of soil and give a squeeze, expecting moisture to ooze out, but it doesn't. It is just dry enough to flip some ground. This week, I thought that was going to be Friday. When I wrote this Thursday night, I believed I was wrong, but you better believe I went out ther this morning to poke around to be sure. 

Why do we want to get out there? So we can plant the kale, start the sweet turnips, get those fabulous onions on their way to being bulbs etcetera etcetera, but we quite literally can't rush nature. It's another example of something vital that is not human control. Acknowledging my lack of influence over the weather is a great practice toward sanity. 

If you didn't read about it last week, we launched the GoFundMe for our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project. We are growing vegetables for our local food pantry and are asking for donations to cover the overhead. I appreciate any support you have to offer, even if it is sharing it with a friend or on your social media, so please, share with abandon!

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
  • A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
    • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
    • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our farm membership (CSA). This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
    • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Fresh From the field
• Recipe: Smashed Potatoes!
• Member Info- 
  • Royal Oak members, please give me a little more time to send a separate email to you.

​
Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Bok choy shoots
Micros: Broccoli, Radish, Arugula!
Pea shoots
Spinach
Tatsoi


All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrips, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard (Eastern only)
Napa Cabbage from Jacob's Fresh Farm
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Rutabaga!
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu

Coming Soon
Arugula
Kale

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

​Smashed potatoes! Who would have thought that cooking potatoes twice would be worth the effort. I'm here to tell you it is.
Boil them til they can be punctured with a fork.
Put them on a roasting pan smash them. I used a flat plate for maximum smash.
Apply a generous amount of olive oil and seasoning (I like salt and rosemary) and put them in the oven at 350 for 60 minutes, flipping halfway through. You'll see. 

Also, check out those cutie pink potatoes. Find those at our table this weekend. As tasty as they are cute.

The pea shoots are coming along. Next week, we'll me loving them for taste. Now we love them for green in our grayscape.

Our exciting news is that we launched the GoFundMe for our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project. We are planning to grow vegetables for our local food pantry and are asking for donations to cover our overhead. I appreciate any support you have to offer, even if it is sharing it with a friend or on your social media, so please, share with abandon!

And we have even more exciting news, if you can handle it. We hired someone! And we have had a few more promising interviews. Things are looking possible, if not a little overstuffed, from this vantage point, and that feels great. 

I get the honor of heading to Eastern this week, so please come out and see me. I am sure I will have plenty of caffeine coursing through my veins and either a chipper song and dance or thousand-yard stare, either of which have their own entertainment value. 

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
  • A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
    • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
    • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our CSA. This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
    • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  

Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Spinach

All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrips, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard
Napa Cabbage from Jacob's Fresh Farm
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Eggs from Hilltop Greenhouses and Farms
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Rutabaga!
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu

Coming Soon
Arugula
Kale
Pea shoots
Tatsoi

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

Spinach! Frost sweetened and ready to be eaten-ed!

Pictures: Helen

Big foot in the melting snow spot.

Picture: Helen

Wind keeps us busy. When the weather warms and cools, the rebar and rope that holds our temporary tunnels down is loosened. That combined with the wild winds of temperature change, you better bet we learned and make sure the tunnels are still anchored down. 
Pictured here is a 18" piece of rebar that has been hauled out of the ground. 

Picture: Tyler

​We're back! And I am endlessly under the gun to get it all done. What we did this week:

• Seeded lots of cabbage spinach, beets, kale, microgreens, and pea shoots!
• Worked on cleaning up the fence line (that's right deer, we hope to exclude you.)
• Cleaned up the greenhouse a bit more fixing the benches, cleaning and putting materials away.
• Interviewed possible candidates for the field crew position.
• Machine maintenance
• Worked on a new to us piece of equipment soon to be revealed.
• Harvested and prepped vegetables for market.
• Maintained the the caterpillars against the wind.
• Clare has come out to assess the scene and start building various chicken paraphernalia.

And a couple notes 

• WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
• Eastern and metro Detroit customers:
  • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
  • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our CSA. This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
  • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.

Here is that list again. It lays out what we will be doing this year. I put it in last weeks email but want to leave it in here, in case some missed it. 

Our plans are this year. 

• Growing food for Stockbridge Community Outreach, a community building and support organization right in my own town. I have been trying to figure out the best way for our farm to contribute to the health of our community and this may be it. In the coming weeks, I plan on putting up a gofundme to raise the money to offer vegetables to Stockbridge Outreaches's weekly food distribution. I am still working out details. If you want to be involved, or have any good ideas, please don't hesitate to let me know.  
• We will be at Eastern, often in the winter months and always once May rolls around. We may even attend some of their Tuesday markets. We aren't heading to any other markets this year. 
• We will continue growing food for the Greater Lansing Food Bank. Last year we delivered to them every other week from June onward, culminating in thousands of pounds of fresh vegetables available at food pantries. The Greater Lansing Food Bank is an awesome organization dedicated to distributing food to as many people in need as possible. They are a food pantry for food pantries! We are proud and grateful to work with them.   
• Contribute to Collaborative CSA programs of The Farm at Trinity (Ann Arbor) and Allen Neighborhood Center (Lansing.) Both of these organizations are community minded and oriented towards health and healing through a connection to growing and eating nutritious food. We have worked with Allen Neighborhood for several years and are now adding in The Farm at Trinity.
• Clare is raising egg laying chickens, right here at the farm! I have never been involved in animal husbandry (besides these doggies haha) so I am excited and offering as much support as I can.
• Tyler and Hailey are starting their own farm! They are still figuring out where they will be selling this year but check out their website here: Turnip The Beets Farm! They still plan on moonlighting at Lake Divide, never fear, you haven't seen the last of them yet!

You can count on us to keep stewarding this piece of land, minding it for ecosystem health, while raising vegetables to feed our community, whether in Lansing, Ann Arbor, Detroit Metro, or right here in our town. Lots of love to you. Thank you for your support over the years and hopefully for years to come. 

Enjoy the beautiful snow storm!

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Member Info- 
  • Royal Oak members, please give me a little more time to send a separate email to you.

<<Your Balance>><<Balance>>
<<Special Note>> <<Balance>> Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Spinach

All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrips, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard (Eastern only)
Napa Cabbage from Jacob's Fresh Farm
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Eggs from Hilltop Greenhouses and Farms
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Rutabaga!
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu

Coming Soon
Arugula
Kale
Tatsoi

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie

​Here comes the sun, rising in the east, shining through these reptilian scales. Ice collects on the warmer more humid side of our greenhouse plastic.

Pictures: Helen

​Cold times call for drastic measures. We have a frost free hydrant. That means the hydrant itself doesn't freeze when the water is running or off in below freezing temperatures. However! There are fittings attached to our hydrant that aren't so evolved. Hence the creation of yet another interim solution: the ole heater and a tarp. I've used this to thaw soil, warm a tractor, keep vegetables from freezing, and here it is saving the day in this continuously below freezing winter we are having.

​Picture: Helen

​You can see our greenhouse there, down the hill. It takes two 75 foot hoses to get from there to the hydrant. 

For all its trouble, I'm grateful for the cold. Hopefully it is resetting some of the disease and pest cycles for an easier year. It sure does make a lot of extra work though!

Picture: Helen

​There is our greenhouse. You can see it is quite a ways from the hydrant. Another extra chore the winter offers is hauling the hose in and out of there every day. We drag it into the warm(er) greenhouse so that there's no ice blocking the flow when we need to use it.
​
Picture: Helen

Ahoy!

So sorry to have not sent this during the week to keep you apprised of our comings and goings. Like everyone else, we have been rocked with various virus' and this past week was no exception. We are, obviously not at market this week. It looks promising that we will be back next. We are looking forward to seeing you there. In the meantime...

• WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill. 
• Eastern and metro Detroit customers:
  • Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info. 
  • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our CSA. This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
  • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.

Here is that list again. It lays out what we will be doing this year. I put it in last weeks email but want to leave it in here, in case some missed it. 

Our plans are this year. 

• Growing food for Stockbridge Community Outreach, a community building and support organization right in my own town. I have been trying to figure out the best way for our farm to contribute to the health of our community and this may be it. In the coming weeks, I plan on putting up a gofundme to raise the money to offer vegetables to Stockbridge Outreaches's weekly food distribution. I am still working out details. If you want to be involved, or have any good ideas, please don't hesitate to let me know.  
• We will be at Eastern, often in the winter months and always once May rolls around. We may even attend some of their Tuesday markets. We aren't heading to any other markets this year. 
• We will continue growing food for the Greater Lansing Food Bank. Last year we delivered to them every other week from June onward, culminating in thousands of pounds of fresh vegetables available at food pantries. The Greater Lansing Food Bank is an awesome organization dedicated to distributing food to as many people in need as possible. They are a food pantry for food pantries! We are proud and grateful to work with them.   
• Contribute to Collaborative CSA programs of The Farm at Trinity (Ann Arbor) and Allen Neighborhood Center (Lansing.) Both of these organizations are community minded and oriented towards health and healing through a connection to growing and eating nutritious food. We have worked with Allen Neighborhood for several years and are now adding in The Farm at Trinity.
• Clare is raising egg laying chickens, right here at the farm! I have never been involved in animal husbandry (besides these doggies haha) so I am excited and offering as much support as I can.
• Tyler and Hailey are starting their own farm! They are still figuring out where they will be selling this year but check out their website here: Turnip The Beets Farm! They still plan on moonlighting at Lake Divide, never fear, you haven't seen the last of them yet!

You can count on us to keep stewarding this piece of land, minding it for ecosystem health, while raising vegetables to feed our community, whether in Lansing, Ann Arbor, Detroit Metro, or right here in our town. Lots of love to you. Thank you for your support over the years and hopefully for years to come. 

Party on (and show up to 50501!

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Market Details:
  • Not at Market this week ​

Most of the crops we seeded last we have burst forth into the light! Today and tomorrow, we will seed pea shoots and microgreens (yay!) along with all the onions that we will plant this year. 

Pictures: Tyler

​Look at these little Lettuce eggs: lettuce seed coated in NOP (national organic program) approved clay. In the bottom right, you can see the difference in size between "pelleted" seed and uncoated seed. It really reduces finger fatigue to bigger units to work with. I will say, it is nice to be getting my pinching muscles back in shape. 

Pictures: Helen. 

​
Here is the reason we can't come to market this week and possibly next week: A rusted out frame on our 4 x 4 truck combined with a snow storm. I took this picture right after removing my finger from INSIDE THE FRAME of my truck and picking my jaw up off the floor. When they service department told me there was some rust on the frame, this is not what I expected. This vehicle is not safe to drive. I'm getting it sorted out, never fear. I'll add that without the snow storm, Tyler is more than willing use his truck to bring our produce to market. But with the snow storm? His truck is rear wheel drive and I don't want to send him out in that weather.

I want to assure you that in the height of summer, we would still come to market. We would rent a truck for as many weeks as we need to resolve the issue. However, this time of year, we are taking the needed time to manage this "truck problem" along with catching up on a few on farm tasks. The storage crops will hold a week and maybe we will even have greens to accompany them by the time we get back. 

Picture: Helen

Ahoy!
​
The tale is in the picture captions this week.

• WE ARE HIRING! Look for our hiring ad in the next couple days. Please send people our way if you think they would be a good fit. 
• Eastern and metro Detroit customers:
  • If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our CSA. This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year. 
  • If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.

Here is that list again. It lays out what we will be doing this year. I put it in last weeks email but want to leave it in here, in case some missed it. 

Our plans are this year. 

• Growing food for Stockbridge Community Outreach, a community building and support organization right in my own town. I have been trying to figure out the best way for our farm to contribute to the health of our community and this may be it. In the coming weeks, I plan on putting up a gofundme to raise the money to offer vegetables to Stockbridge Outreaches's weekly food distribution. I am still working out details. If you want to be involved, or have any good ideas, please don't hesitate to let me know.  
• We will be at Eastern, often in the winter months and always once May rolls around. We may even attend some of their Tuesday markets. We aren't heading to any other markets this year. 
• We will continue growing food for the Greater Lansing Food Bank. Last year we delivered to them every other week from June onward, culminating in thousands of pounds of fresh vegetables available at food pantries. The Greater Lansing Food Bank is an awesome organization dedicated to distributing food to as many people in need as possible. They are a food pantry for food pantries! We are proud and grateful to work with them.   
• Contribute to Collaborative CSA programs of The Farm at Trinity (Ann Arbor) and Allen Neighborhood Center (Lansing.) Both of these organizations are community minded and oriented towards health and healing through a connection to growing and eating nutritious food. We have worked with Allen Neighborhood for several years and are now adding in The Farm at Trinity.
• Clare is raising egg laying chickens, right here at the farm! I have never been involved in animal husbandry (besides these doggies haha) so I am excited and offering as much support as I can.
• Tyler and Hailey are starting their own farm! They are still figuring out where they will be selling this year but check out their website here: Turnip The Beets Farm! They still plan on moonlighting at Lake Divide, never fear, you haven't seen the last of them yet!

You can count on us to keep stewarding this piece of land, minding it for ecosystem health, while raising vegetables to feed our community, whether in Lansing, Ann Arbor, Detroit Metro, or right here in our town. Lots of love to you. Thank you for your support over the years and hopefully for years to come. 

Enjoy the beautiful snow storm!

Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Market Details:
  • Not at Market this week 
• Member Info-  Balances updated at long last!!
  • Royal Oak members, please give me a little more time to send a separate email to you.

Storms and sunsets. I suppose I'm grateful for both. 
None of the damaging winds and hail hit our neighborhood. A huge relief. My heart goes out to the folks that were hurt by this last round of irate weather. When I personally saw that tornado last year, it was an oddity and a fascination. It didn't hit us or anyone else in the state. That storm was followed by another that travelled along 94, creating a humbling swath of wreckage.

These storms are frightening. They are life changing. They are out of our control. They are another stern reminder of how small we humans are. How all we build and maintain is small relative to the vastness of nature. A reminder that while we can exert our will on many of the pieces of our lives, some things are not in our hands. I draw comfort from this aspect, even while it scares me. 

Also in these two pictures, you can see the ground cloth we have laid. We will put down more. It keeps the weeds down between the aisle and around our single row crops: Tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and melon. (That's right, we're back on the melon train this year!) We still have some more to lay this year, but we hare on track to be on time... ish. ​

Ahoy!

Well, I think I rambled on long enough in the captions to skip out on a lengthy email here. Enjoy the explosion of greenery and life! 

Onward!
Helen
she/her/hers
 
In this email:

• Generally important notes
  • Notes for members (or potential members!):
    • Find a copy of the 2024 membership agreement here. It is largely the same as last year's agreement, differing only in dates and the discontinuation of our CSA memberships in Ann Arbor.
  • Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.  
• Fresh from the Field
• Recipe: Spring Onion Soup
• Market Details:  Royal Oak and at Eastern (In shed 2 just Northeast of the shed's center, spots 276 and 274)
• Member Info- 
  • If you were thinking of adding to your account or recommending us to a friend, this is a great time of year to do so!   

​Fresh From the Field- 
Greens:
Microgreens: Arugula, Broccoli, Mustard, Radish, Cilantro, Dill, Basil
Parsley
Pea shoots: $4 each or 3 for 10!
Sage

All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: From Almar Orchard- Certified Organic: Evercrisp, Crimson Crisp (the last of these wonders), Braeburn, and Enterprise
Cabbage
Eggs: Back next week (hopefully) From HillTop Greenhouses and Farm (Eastern Only)
Kohlrabi
Green Onions
Daikon Radish: Red (spicy and sweet), white (mild and juicy), and purple (mild and sweet) daikon!
Watermelon Radish: The bell of the winter ball. Ask for a spicy and sweet sample
Rutabaga!
Purple top turnips

Coming Soon
Arugula
Kale (maybe three weeks out?)
Radish
Sweet Turnips

Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions. 

Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them. 

Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Titus Farms, Leslie 
Yoder Farms, Leslie
Recipe: Spring Onion SoupFrom: Veg Recipes of India

Spring Onion Soup with fresh, green spring onions of the season! This flavorful Green Onion Soup is one of those soups which is soulful, hits just the right spots to calm your senses, super easy to make and has a flavor burst for your palate. Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of this dish as this vegan Scallion Soup is also very nutritious for your body. Move over the usual traditional choices for soups, make this one instead.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 to 4.5 cups chopped spring onions or 1 bunch, rinsed and chopped – keep both whites and a few greens (reserve about 1 to 2 tablespoons of chopped greens for garnish)
• 1 potato medium to large-sized, peeled and chopped in smaller pieces
• 1 or 2 garlic small to medium-sized, peeled and chopped
• ½ teaspoon soy sauce or add as required – optional
• ¼ teaspoon dry oregano or preferred herb or a mix of various dried herbs
• 3 cups water or Vegetable Stock
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper powder or crushed black pepper, add as required
• salt as required
• 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped spring onion greens or parsley or coriander leaves (cilantro)

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat olive oil in a pot or saucepan. Add chopped garlic and sauté for 10 to 12 seconds on low heat.
2. Add the chopped spring onions and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes stirring often on a low heat.
3. Now add the chopped potatoes and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Stir and mix again.
4. Pour water or vegetable stock. Mix again. Cover the pan or pot on a low to medium heat and simmer till the potatoes are cooked completely and tender.
5. Let the soup cool down a bit. With a hand blender, blend the soup to a smooth and fine consistency. The soup will appear thick now.
6. Add soy sauce (optional), oregano and keep the soup to simmer on low to medium-low heat for 4 to 5 minutes on until hot.
7. If the soup appears too thick, then you can add about ¼ to ⅓ cup water or veg stock, while simmering the soup.
8. Serve Spring Onion Soup hot, as is or topped with some croutons or garnished with some spring onion greens or parsley or coriander leaves.

NOTES

• Use spring onions that are fresh, tender and green. Do not use green onions whose leaves are wilted or dried.
• Easily add your choice of herbs and spices to the soup. Though black pepper is the classic choice of spice in soups like these, you can easily add a bit of cayenne pepper or red chilli powder.
• For garnish spring onion greens or parsley as well as coriander leaves (cilantro) work well.
• The soup serves 2 servings and you can easily double this recipe to increase the servings.
• NOTE FROM HELEN: This is a great opportunity to use cilantro microgreens! YUM!

Market Details: We are at market this week
The Ann Arbor Farmers Market- Sporadic attendance! It will be noted if we in the important notes section if we are there.

Eastern Market, Shed 2, spots 276 and 274, close to the center of the shed. (Our regular outdoor spot), Saturday with Aaron! 6 am to 3:30 pm

Royal Oak, Saturday with Tyler from 7 am to 1 pm