Brassica Rescue

I was out early this morning salvaging what I could of my crops of greens. This must be the first year that I've planted so many spring brassicas, because I don't remember my yard being awash in yellow, four-petaled flowers before.

I planted my greens mid-March and the big disappointment is, I hardly had a chance to use them. Well, there was a lot. Too much for just our family for sure. Still, I hate being without some of our favorites, such as arugula and mizuna. Yet there they all are, bolting like mad.

I had to toss a ton of radishes that were already tough and woody. What a shame. Hopefully, they will be happier in the compost heap.

I checked the seed packet from Johnny's Seeds to remind myself what the planting dates were. According Johnny's, mizuna should be good to plant "early Spring through mid-Summer." Well, I've got news...

Last year, I had beautiful mizuna and arugula. But that must have been the stuff I planted in September. Apparently, I need to get to work a bit earlier in the year. But the weather has been very fluky around here--balmy in January, then record lows in April.

What I did manage to harvest was a big bowl of Osaka purple mustard and some lovely Pink Lettucy Mustard. I gave them both a deep soaking in the kitchen sink. Then I'll move them to a big pot of salted boiling water. When they're tender, I'll give them a course chop, toss them with a cooked grain such as quinoa or brown basmati rice and season with sherry vinegar, perhaps, and some extra virgin olive oil.

This makes a fine breakfast.