Circle M Farm

Right about in the middle of every week, I experience a flutter of nerves that we’re not going to have any produce to put in the CSA boxes. Of course, harvest day comes and we always have way too much. Our boxes are twice the size they should be and a customer last week mentioned something about “vegetable fatigue.” Oh, well. I recall having these same apprehensions when I was a newspaper reporter. Every time I turned in a feature, a bigger piece that required more effort than the typical town-board-type story, I was pretty convinced it was the last one I’d ever be able to write. I’m not sure what this particular neurosis is, but right now the cure for it is nasturtiums.

This spring, I planted them in rings all around the baby pears that line my driveway since they repel some of the bad bugs that plague fruit trees. The pear trees died back nearly to the ground in an early spring frost that followed a warm spell (the whips had budded out), but the nasturtiums have done nothing but thrive through everything this crazy year threw at them. Now, as the temperature drops, they are reaching their peak.

Everything about them is gorgeous – from the glowing jewel flowers to the gently waving lily-pad leaves to the perfectly round clumps they form as they vine out. And they are absolutely delicious. The drought/flood combination destroyed a lot of what I expected to be harvesting this fall – potatoes, roasting corn, spinach, carrots and pumpkins – but I’ve got plenty of these beautiful herb/flowers to eat and to give.

Not only do they combine well with the fall salads we are starting to harvest, they can carry a lot of stunning dishes on their own. Jesse, our first-ever farm intern who just moved in here at Circle M, was packing CSA boxes this week and recognized them as a taste treat he’d enjoyed as a child in Berkeley. “You can eat these, right?” he asked. “These grow everywhere in California, and I thought I remembered eating them. But I haven’t seen people in the Midwest eat them, and I thought maybe I was just crazy!”

Nope – nasturtiums are something you’d be crazy NOT to try! Our CSA customers will get an extra-big bag this week, so I did some web-searching for recipes. All of the following were written by Wen Zientek-Sico, editor of perfectentertaining.com. If you have some of these delicate twining beauties growing at home, I hope you’ll bring them into the kitchen, too.

Nasturtium Vinegar
This vinegar is always one of my most popular gifts. Everyone loves how attractive the vinegar is with a wide range of different colored nasturtium blossoms included. The finished vinegar has a nice peppery bite and makes an excellent ingredient to use in salad dressings, sauces, and other dishes.

1 cup nasturtium leaves, flowers, and buds
1 pint champagne, white wine, or apple cider vinegar

Place the ingredients in a clean clear glass jar or bottle. Tightly seal. Let sit for at least 3 weeks before using. The nasturtium can remain in for decoration, but you should make sure the vinegar always covers the flowers or they will mold. Makes 1 pint vinegar.

Strawberry-Nasturtium Salad
This unique salad is filled with delightful flavor and color. The sweetness of the strawberries is perfectly balanced by the pepper of the nasturtiums and spark of the vinegar for a salad that everyone will love. This salad should not be made too far in advance to prevent wilting of the nasturtium blossoms.

1 pint sliced strawberries
1/3 cup nasturtium blossoms
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
2-3 tablespoons sugar

Toss together all of the ingredients. Taste the mixture, and adjust the amount of sugar depending on how sweet the strawberries are.

Stuffed Nasturtiums
I love serving trays of these easy appetizers at parties. We grow a bunch of different types of nasturtiums and use them a lot, and they are exquisite served together. The wide range of colors makes for a great presentation, and the mixture of flavors is actually quite tasty as well.

3 ounces softened cream cheese
1 tablespoon heavy cream
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
Salt to taste
30 large nasturtium blossoms

Mix together the cream cheese, heavy cream, chives, and salt until smooth. Spoon about a teaspoonful of the mixture into the center of each flower. Fold the petals up around the stuffing. Chill for up to an hour before serving. Makes 30 appetizers.

Salmon-Cucumber Stuffed Nasturtium Leaves
Nasturtium leaves are very similar to watercress leaves, and have the same affinity for cucumber and salmon that watercress does. These little rolls are very easy to make and offer a beautiful presentation. Homemade salmon cream cheese can be made by mixing equal amounts of lox and softened cream cheese.

2 ounces softened salmon cream cheese
1/4 cup finely minced cucumber
Salt to taste
20 large nasturtium leaves
20 long-stemmed nasturtium blossoms

Mix together the salmon cream cheese, cucumber, and salt until smooth. Spoon about a teaspoonful of the mixture into the center of each leaf. Roll the leaves up into a tight roll. Wrap the blossom stems around the leaf and tie tightly. Chill for up to an hour before serving.

Nasturtium-Lemon Butter
This butter has a light lemon flavor lightly accented with peppery nasturtiums. It is one of my favorite herb butters for fish, chicken, broccoli, and asparagus. It is also excellent on white bread for just a hint of peppery citrus.

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons finely chopped nasturtium blossoms

Mix all of the ingredients well until smooth and well blended. Refrigerate or freeze until ready to serve. Makes 3/4 cup flavored butter.