Sunshine Community Gardens

25 November, 2021

www.sunshinecommunitygardens.org

Gardener's Picture page

---

If you are signed up to receive the Weekly Weeder and have not been receiving it, here is a troubleshooting page to help. If this doesn't help, please let Sharon at scgardenweb@gmail.com know. Thanks.

---

In This Issue

• Happy Thanksgiving Weekend
• Nancy Seibert Memorial December 5 at Sunshine
• Sunshine's Test Kitchen: Three Recipes for Sweet Potato Leaves (or other Greens)
• Garden Tasks for Service Hours

---

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!

This edition of the Weekly Weeder is coming out on Friday instead of Thursday because I (Co-editor Maria Beach) spent too much time cooking a big holiday meal to finish the newsletter on Thanksgiving Day. But I am very grateful for fresh food I was able to include in the feast (sweet potatoes, green onions, shallot tops, and herbs) that came from Sunshine, as well as the friendship and community that the garden provides. I hope all my fellow gardeners are enjoying their weekends and are harvesting good things from their plots.

Speaking of good things that Sunshine gardeners are harvesting and cooking: please consider sharing some of your favorite holiday recipes with the Weekly Weeder. Holiday recipes may be submitted at any time through the end of the year for publication.

---

Nancy Seibert Memorial December 5

A memorial and celebration of Nancy Seibert's life will be held at Sunshine Community Garden at 2 pm on Sunday, December 5, 2021. Please join us in remembering her.

---

Sunshine's Test Kitchen

Three Recipes for Sweet Potato Leaves (or Other Greens)

Text by Maria Beach

Welcome to another edition of Sunshine's Test Kitchen, where recipes and techniques are tested using seasonal produce! This installment makes use of a green that is hard to find in stores but easy to grow here in Austin - sweet potato leaves.

If you don't have any sweet potato leaves in your garden and want to try these recipes now you can substitute other mild greens like baby spinach.

The first time I grew sweet potatoes at Sunshine I had no idea sweet potato leaves are edible. I knew regular (Irish) potatoes have leaves that are toxic, so I composted a wheelbarrow load or two of leaves when I harvested my sweet potatoes. But the two types of potatoes belong to completely different families - sweet potatoes are in the Convolvulaceae (Morning Glory) family while Irish potatoes belong to the Solanaceae (Nightshade) family. Sweet potato leaves have a mild flavor similar to spinach or Swiss chard. They are delicious, nutritious, and widely eaten in Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean. Sometimes in those areas of the world sweet potato leaves are simply called "potato leaves," but it is crucial to understand that these are not what most Americans think of as "potatoes." So to sum up this safety lesson:

• Never eat regular/white/Irish potato leaves.
• Do enjoy sweet potato leaves.

Once I realized that sweet potato leaves are edible, I read more about how to prepare and cook them. The leaves are best when they are still green and tender. The tiny purplish new leaves on the ends of vines are also good. Avoid very large or yellowed leaves. The leaves should be trimmed off of the thick vines, and if desired you may leave an inch or two of stem when you cut the leaves. Some recipes call for using the whole stem, but recommend peeling or "stringing" the lower portions of the stem. The stems are a good source of fiber, but do require cooking a bit longer than the leaves themselves (more on stems and handling the leaves shortly). Some recipes call for blanching the leaves, but in my opinion if you stick to young, tender leaves and use only small sections of stems (or none at all) then blanching is not necessary. Permaculture College Australia notes on its site on "Sweet Potato Tips" that sweet potato leaves contain less oxalic acid than spinach and blanching is optional.

I found many recipes for cooking sweet potato leaves online, and decided to focus on the ones that 1) did not call for too many ingredients and that 2) could be made vegetarian or vegan since many Sunshine gardeners do not consume meat. Many of the recipes called for onions and/or garlic, so all three variations that I experimented with used those ingredients. The same weekend I harvested my sweet potato greens another gardener placed a lovely huge bouquet of basil on the porch to share, so I also included fresh basil in all three recipes, although this is an optional ingredient.

Some of the websites that I visited that inspired the two Sautéed Sweet Potato Green recipes included Cecelia's Good Stuff, Taffy Cooks, Edible Houston, and The Woks of Life. The Thai-Inspired Sweet Potato Greens in Coconut was adapted from Love & Olive Oil's site, which acknowledged it found the recipe on Permaculture College Australia.

All three recipes that I made were given to five people to taste test: my spouse, my two garden partners, and another friend and fellow Sunshine gardener. They graciously filled out a survey for me ranking the recipes and comparing two different ways of handling the leaves. Normally I would try to feature only one recipe in "Sunshine's Test Kitchen," but all three of these are delicious, they have different flavor profiles, and the majority of my five tasters/testers advised including all three recipes in the newsletter.

Quantities of Leaves

Several recipes called for "a large bunch" of sweet potato leaves. One specified eight cups. I measured out eight cups of leaves for the first recipe (which conveniently also filled my colander) and decided to use that amount for all three. But these are flexible recipes - they would be fine with a bit more or less leaves, or you could adjust the other ingredients if you are halving or doubling a recipe. As written, these recipes make about four servings each.

Handling the Leaves

Wash sweet potato leaves in a large container of water or a clean, stoppered sink, letting them sit for a little while in the water. Swish gently and lift the leaves out (leaving behind dirt and debris in the water). Place the leaves in a large colander and rinse. Let the leaves dry slightly before using or pat with a towel to remove excess water.

Some of the recipes called for whole sweet potato leaves with an inch or two of stem left on. Some called for cutting the leaves into ribbons and/or removing the stems. I decided to make my first test recipe with whole leaves and including up to 2" of stems. For the second test recipe I cut off the stems completely and made a rough chiffonade by stacking leaves, rolling them into a cigar shape, and cutting strips about 1/4 inch wide. Three out of the five tasters preferred the leaves without stems and cut into ribbons, one liked the whole leaves with a bit of stem left on, and one did not have a strong preference either way. Therefore, I am recommending making the recipes without stems and with the leaves cut into a thick chiffonade, but this is ultimately a matter of personal preference.

Base recipe: Sautéed Sweet Potato Greens

Each of these two recipes got one "favorite" vote among my tasters/testers. Despite starting the same way the end products are quite different from each other.

• 1 cup of chopped onions (I used sweet onions)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic

Both of these recipes begin the same way: sauté onions in olive oil in a large skillet over medium low heat until translucent, then add garlic and cook just until the garlic is fragrant.

Sautéed Sweet Potato Greens Italian Style

• Base recipe (see above)
• 3 medium-sized ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh basil (optional)
• 1 teaspoon oregano or your favorite Italian seasoning blend
• 8 cups sweet potato leaves, cleaned. If desired remove the stems and cut into a thick chiffonade.
• Red pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper
• Salt

To the base recipe add the chopped tomatoes, the basil (if using) and the oregano or Italian seasoning. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the tomatoes start to soften and release their water.

Add half of the sweet potato leaves. When they start to cook down add the other half of the leaves. Turn the heat down slightly and cook about 10 minutes, turning the leaves to insure they all cook evenly.

Finish with red pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper and salt to taste.

Eat as a side dish or serve over cooked pasta or polenta.

Sautéed Sweet Potato Greens with Sesame

• Base recipe (see above)
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil (optional)
• 1 jalapeño pepper (or other small pepper that you like), thinly sliced, with or without seeds
• 8 cups sweet potato leaves, cleaned. If desired remove the stems and cut into a thick chiffonade.
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• Salt and pepper

To the base recipe add the ginger, basil (if using) and pepper. Sauté for a minute or two over medium heat, until the pepper starts to soften.

Add half of the sweet potato leaves. When they start to cook down add the other half of the leaves. Sauté until the leaves are wilted, about 3-5 minutes. Add the sesame oil and sesame seeds and cook about a minute more, until the sesame seeds are toasted, being careful not to let them burn.

Finish with salt and pepper to taste.

Thai-Inspired Sweet Potato Greens in Coconut

This was the overall favorite of the three recipes among my tasters/testers.

• 2 shallots, minced (may use more if shallots are small)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I used grapeseed oil)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
• 2 lemongrass stalks (pale part only) bruised and thinly sliced, or 2 tablespoons prepared lemongrass paste
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil (optional)
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 (or more) red Thai red chili or other peppers you like (I used 1 small red jalapeño, 1 small green jalapeño, and a very small Anaheim pepper from my garden, all thinly sliced).
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce, or 1-2 teaspoons soy sauce/Tamari for a vegan option
• 8 cups sweet potato leaves, cleaned. If desired remove the stems and cut into a thick chiffonade.
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• Salt
• 1 lime cut into quarters
• Cilantro (optional)

Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok and add the shallots and cook until slightly translucent. Add the garlic, ginger, lemongrass, basil (if using), turmeric, and pepper(s) and cook until fragrant.

Add the fish sauce or soy sauce/Tamari and coconut milk to the pan. Add half of the sweet potato leaves. When they start to cook down add the other half of the leaves. Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer for a few minutes.

Add the brown sugar and finish by salting to taste. Serve with lime wedges to squeeze over each serving. Garnish with fresh cilantro or more basil leaves, if desired.

May be eaten over cooked rice.

---

Garden Tasks

Thursday, 25 November, 2021

Priority (Tasks specifically needed):

1. Work day Saturday 11/20/2021 09:00 - 12:00
   • A hearty Thank You to those who have participated in our last 5 work days, I hope to have one mid December. Day/date yet to be determined. We are going to turn our focus to the perimeter fence line, which needs to be cleared of all vegetation out to 3' on both sides to make way for our New Fence!
2. Maintaining common paths and common areas. If you have plants extending into common paths, trim them. The common paths are designed to allow the biggest wheelbarrows that we own to traverse them unimpeded.
3. Mowing and maintaining perimeter fence line inside and out.
4. Sunshine Community Garden was fined a few weeks ago for the dumpster being over filled. Please help us to avoid this by following a few simple guidelines.
   1. Fill the dumpster from the back (under the hinges) to the front. If you put stuff in the front, it tends to stay there.
   2. If you think the dumpster is full, contact me (Steve Camp, I'm there a lot) or Randy Thompson. We can usually compact stuff to make more space.
   3. Follow the rules regarding what goes into the dumpster and what does not, there's signage close by.
   4. If the dumpster actually does get full before pick up day, I'm working on finding a spot where we can store a reasonable overage, to be loaded after the dumpster is emptied.
   5. If you're done with your project, please close the lids.

TSVBI:

1. Weeding paths in TSBVI garden and wood chip areas on west side. (This is normally needed. Try to get out roots. Be sure to smooth out paths after weeding to facilitate TSBVI students moving around garden).
2. Mowing between fence and street along 49th St. and Sunshine Dr. along and 10' inside fence. (Frequent mowing will be needed this time of year.)
3. Picking up trash in compost area and along fence lines.

Regular:

1. Mowing (Please check area around trailer and greenhouses.
2. Maintaining common paths. (Gardeners are required to maintain a 2' strip of common paths adjacent to their plot.)
3. Mowing and cleaning up overgrown/messy places in common areas.
4. Cleaning street curb gutters of dirt and debris build up. (At places in the curb gutter along Sunshine Dr. and 49th St., soil and debris has built up and grass beginning to grow. Scrape off with shovel and put in wheelbarrow. If debris is gravel can be put in low places in parking lot. Otherwise, put in dumpster.)

Note: TSBVI hour tasks can also count as regular hours.

Slow Down..You're on Garden Time! Enjoy!

---

---

Weeder Content

Please submit weekly weeder articles, photos, and recipes by Wednesday to both Co-Editors:
Holly Gilman at hollyjgilman@gmail.com and
Maria Beach at dr.maria.beach@gmail.com

---