Spinach can be a challenge to grow in the metro Atlanta area. It needs cool temperatures to germinate, but it also needs longer days with plenty of daylight to grow well.
At Habitat Farms in Ringgold they planted spinach in September, and with the warmer temperatures germination was not so great. Another planting in October did a little better, but not by much. “The third time was the charm,” said farmer Megan Davis of her December planting, which has been yielding cut spinach since early February.
Davis and her husband, Tyler, have been succession planting ever since to keep a steady crop of spinach coming in for their community-supported agriculture program and to sell at the Saturday morning Marietta Square Farmers Market. To keep up with demand they put in three 4-by-50-foot beds. Spinach is a popular crop with her customers, many of whom use the leaves to make smoothies.
They planted “Bloomsdale,” an heirloom variety as well as a hybrid. Davis has been impressed with Bloomsdale. “It’s different from any spinach I’ve had before. It has crinkled deep, deep green leaves with pink stems. It’s beautiful, it has a buttery flavor and the leaves have a really crisp texture,” she said.
The spinach that’s growing in Ringgold is part of the last plantings for that location. Habitat Farms is moving to a new location in Mansfield, about 25 miles east of I-285. The 43 acres and outbuildings there will allow the couple to expand their farming while also offering classes in cooking, gardening and even butchering. Davis has a degree in nutrition and attended culinary school, and she’s excited about the opportunity to share her enthusiasm for local and sustainably raised foods.
The couple will also be raising Berkshire pigs, laying hens and ducks, and plan to add “Tunis” sheep, a heritage variety, to their menagerie later this spring. They plan to introduce their new farm with a pig roast in late April or early May. Check their website for more information: www.habitatfarms.com.
Davis enjoys her fresh spinach in salads, but one of her favorite dishes is creamed spinach. She sautes a little shallot in butter, adds the spinach and cooks it just long enough to wilt the leaves. A little cream, a little nutmeg, a sprinkle of cayenne pepper and a dusting with Parmesan, and the dish is ready to serve. She notes that this recipe is just as good with kale as it is with spinach.
When you get your spinach home from the farmers market or grocery, remember that damp spinach rots quickly. If you rinse the leaves before storing, dry them with a salad spinner and store them loosely wrapped in your vegetable crisper. Leaves fresh from the farm should keep for 5 to 7 days.
At local farmers markets
Green Market at Piedmont Park now open. Saturdays 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. www.piedmontpark.org
For sale
Vegetables: arugula, Asian greens, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, celery, chard, collards, dandelion, endive, escarole, fennel, frisee, green garlic, green onions, herbs, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, mushrooms, mustard greens, onions, potatoes, radicchio, radishes, rutabaga, sorrel, spinach, sweet potatoes, turnips, winter squash
From local reports
Red Pepper Taqueria’s De La Costa Salad
Hands on: 30 minutes
Total time: 45 minutes
Serves: 4
Spinach salads are a restaurant menu mainstay. This recipe is a simplified version of the salad served at Red Pepper Taqueria and created by its executive chef Mimmo Alboumeh. At the restaurant, the salad also includes toasted pumpkin seeds, shaved corn, cheese gorditas (small, seared, cheese-filled corn flour dumplings) and your choice of proteins such as salmon, shrimp or tuna.
2 cups red wine vinegar
1 cup water
1 small red beet, peeled and quartered
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon pickling spice
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 red onion, sliced into 1/4-inch rings
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
10 slices applewood-smoked bacon (about 3/4 pound)
1 pound organic spinach, stems removed
1 cup balsamic vinaigrette (see recipe)
In a medium saucepan, make pickled onions by combining vinegar, water, beet, garlic, pickling spice and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook 15 minutes. Remove from heat, add sliced onions and let cool. May be prepared up to one week ahead and refrigerated.
When ready to serve salad, preheat broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, make roasted cherry tomatoes by combining cherry tomatoes with olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Arrange on prepared baking sheet and broil until skins are slightly charred about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine sugar, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and cayenne. Sprinkle over both sides of bacon strips. Arrange bacon in roasting pan and bake 10 minutes or until crisp. Remove from oven and drain. Dice cooked bacon and set aside.
Divide spinach between four serving plates. Top each with roasted cherry tomatoes, diced bacon and pickled onion rings. Dress with each salad with 1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette and serve immediately.
Per serving, without balsamic vinaigrette: 556 calories (percent of calories from fat, 65), 28 grams protein, 22 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams fiber, 41 grams fat (14 grams saturated), 64 milligrams cholesterol, 1,558 milligrams sodium.
Red Pepper Taqueria’s Balsamic Vinaigrette
Hands on: 10 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes, plus chilling time
Makes: 3 cups
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup white balsamic vinegar
4 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons coarse-ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil
In a small saucepan, combine balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, cider vinegar and white balsamic vinegar. Boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Then chill in refrigerator or freezer until very cold.
In the jar of a blender, combine chilled vinegar mixture with garlic and salt and process until liquefied. Add mustard and pepper and process one minute more. While blender is running, slowly add oil in a steady stream. When all olive oil has been added, process one minute more. Remove from blender and refrigerate at least 45 minutes before using.
Per 1/4-cup serving: 250 calories (percent of calories from fat, 94), trace protein, 4 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, 27 grams fat (4 grams saturated), no cholesterol, 346 milligrams sodium.
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