Cleaning and Freezing Tips for Leeks

With the unseasonably sunny skies we've been having this winter, we've had gorgeous King Richard leeks coming in from the fields and into your boxes the past few weeks.

Often loved for their buttery, mild-onion flavor, leeks are a versatile vegetable and popular both as a star-player and/or substitute for onions in a variety of dishes such as tarts, soups, casseroles, everyday sautés and scrambles.

But for those new to this versatile veggie, we're often asked for cleaning and storage tips. Here's a few of our favorite tips for cleaning and saving leeks.

HOW TO CLEAN LEEKS

With leeks, the crucial first step is cleaning them, as they can hold quite a lot of sandy soil. As the plant grows, soil can get trapped between its layers. Here are two helpful tips to clean your leeks. The method you use depends upon how you are going to use the leeks in cooking.

Depending on what dish you’re making, you’ll use a small or large amount of the green stem. For stocks, most of the leeks can be used. For stir-fries or braising, use only the white part of the leek.

Method for Whole Leeks

Cut them in half lengthwise, keeping the root in tact. Run water over the whole leek rifling through the layers to give them a good rinse. If needed, do this a couple of times to make sure all of the fine sand is removed.

Method for Chopped Leeks

For recipes calling for chopped leeks, remove both the root and dark green leafy ends. Slice the remaining white stalk in half lengthwise, then chop crosswise to create half-moon shaped pieces.

Place chopped leeks into a bowl and fill with cold water. Swish the leeks around vigorously to encourage any dirt or sand to sink to the bottom of the bowl. Let sit for a few minutes, then scoop out the clean leeks with a slotted spoon. Or if you're cleaning a lot of leeks, you can place the cut leeks in a colander then partially submerge the colander in a large bowl of water. Swish and clean leeks as you would above but quickly drain by pulling out the colander.

HOW TO FREEZE LEEKS

Leeks can be easily frozen for later use in soups, stews or casseroles.  After cleaning, place cut leeks on a clean, dry towel and allow them to air dry.

Flash freeze by placing them on a sheet tray in a single layer until just frozen. Placing a sheet of waxed paper on the tray before spreading out the leeks can make transfer once frozen a little easier.

Once frozen, transfer to a re-usable, freezer-safe container. Use within 5 to 6 months (or before they get icy) for optimum flavor. When ready to cook, add to recipes without thawing.

Remembering Ché

In front of the farm house is a black granite pyramid. Bolted to the top of it is a rusted ornamental metal bar, looping upward toward the sky. Attached to the end of this bar is a metal Pitts S1A bi-plane positioned as if it were going to buzz the farm house.

Our brother Ché buzzed the farm house, farm tractors and farm tours as often as he could, in that plane or whatever plane he was piloting at the time. We always loved it - who doesn’t love being buzzed by an aircraft? The rattling of the house that sent us running outside, the roar of the engine we felt on the second pass-by, waving with both arms in excitement, and the feeling of freedom evoked by a fly-by never got old.

Etched into the black granite is a photo of our older brother Ché Jeremy Barnes and the story of the evening of October 29, 2009, when he was dispatched as the pilot in command of a Coast Guard Search and Rescue C-130 from Sacramento. He and his crew of six flew CG 1705 south to search for a missing boater who was last seen off the coast of San Diego. The search area was in the military training zone W-291.

While searching, CG 1705 was struck by a Marine AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter that was flying a night-vision training mission in a pattern with three other Marine helicopters. 

The last words recorded by the black box of CG 1705 were Ché’s voice giving a calm, but direct order to his co-pilot to "Climb up, dude." To this day, that location in the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, marks the resting spot of the aircrafts and their combined crews of nine.

The incident reminds me how close northern and southern California are. We share the same search and rescue resources, the same water resources and are separated by less than a work day in a vehicle or a long lunch in a jet.

It reminds our company of the importance of safety and the reality that huge accidents are never attributed to one single thing. Big accidents are the result of many small things, all of which are no issue independent of each other, until they line up perfectly to deliver a huge accident.

It is for this reason that safety, physical and food, must be approached with the understanding that the many small and subtle details of an operation’s behavior are required to avert disasters.

 

Our farm misses Ché dearly, his enthusiasm for a quality product being rewarded by the market place, his genuine appreciation for being true to the cause of our parents’ movement, his inquisitiveness into important details and above all his loving friendship and encouragement through hard and fun times.

Saying Goodbye to Ché's Pitts

Thank you to everyone who shared their well wishes and joined us in remembering Ché. We consider you, our CSA community, part of our extended family.

The Essential Good Food Guide Book Giveaway!

Photo credit: Jennifer Martiné

“At last we have Margaret Wittenberg to answer our most basic questions about any food we see: ‘What is it? and ‘What do I do with it?’ The Essential Good Food Guide is an extraordinarily comprehensive guide to foods, ingredients, and their handling.  Sophisticated cooks as well as beginners will be grateful to have this indispensable book at hand.” - Marion Nestle, author of What to Eat

The Essential Good Food Guide by Margaret M. Wittenberg is your one-stop resource for purchasing, storing, cooking and enjoying whole foods. From uncommon ingredient profiles to clarifying confusing food labels, Wittenberg skillfully educates consumers on where their food comes from, making it easier to determine healthier options.

“Rather than being about what foods to avoid and why, The Essential Good Food Guide is an introduction or a reminder of what good food is and what to do with it.” - Margaret M. Wittenberg, The Essential Good Food Guide 

Margaret helps explain common misperceptions about everyday items, allowing you to maximize the benefits of whole foods cooking. This book is more than a guide; it is an encyclopedia and your new kitchen companion. We are thrilled to give away this informative book to one of you!   

Photo credit: Kathy Weigand Photography

Margaret M. Wittenberg is a well-known authority and educator on natural and organic foods with more than thirty-five years of experience. She is a former member of the USDA National Organic Standards Board and has served on many other boards directed on organic agriculture, seafood sustainability, agricultural environmental standards, and farm animal welfare.  

We're so happy to announce we have a copy of this amazing
book to give away to one of you!

Here's How to Enter – (Giveaway is now closed)

To win a copy of The Essential Good Food Guide, simply leave a comment below answering this question by Tuesday, October 29, 2013 (one entry per person please).

If you could ask Margaret to share her insider's knowledge
about one particular ingredient, what would it be?

No purchase required. Limit one entry per person, please. Entries will close on Tuesday, October 29, 2013 at 8:00 am. Winners are chosen by Random Number Generator and announced on our blog on Tuesday, October 29, 2013.

Thank you to everyone who participated! It is very exciting to read your questions and see how many of you are provoking a food dialogue!

We have chosen a winner:

The winner chosen at random is Paul Picard who asked:

Is the nutritional benefit of young tender asparagus better than more mature asparagus? What are some of your favorite ways of serving this vegetable?

Congratulations Paul Picard!
A big thank you to again to Margaret M. Wittenberg!

Be sure to check out The Essential Good Food Guide.