Polk County Living
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • April 26, 2017 9A
Try eight unusual veggies today
David Coon is on a mis-
sion. Not exactly a Mission
Impossible save-the-world
mission; more of a quest.
He’s out to educate others
about the potential for un-
usual vegetables in the gar-
den and the kitchen.
Coon, an Oregon State
University Extension Serv-
ice master gardener, knew
he was on to something
when he’d be stopped in the
grocery store by shoppers
fascinated by the produce
he was sending through the
checkstand.
Try them out and see
what you think.
Shishito pepper: A small,
usually sweet pepper that
runs around 2 inches. Per-
haps one in 10 will surprise
you with a little kick, but
“never crying hot,” Coon
said. He turns the green
pepper into snacks by
throwing them in a hot pan
with some oil for a few sec-
onds and then dresses them
with a dash of kosher salt.
The plant originally came
from the Americas and was
one of the first new world
peppers to make it around
the world, first gathered by
Europeans, then passed
along to the Far East.
Kohlrabi: Coon’s research
shows kohlrabi originating
in central Asia and now pop-
K YM
P OKORNY
These Polk County groups would welcome individuals
who have time or expertise to volunteer. Organizations that
would like to be added to this list should call 503-623-2373
or email IOnews@polkio.com.
Your
Garden
ping up occasionally on gro-
cery shelves. It looks like a
bulb about the size of a
baseball and tastes like a
cross between cabbage and
broccoli. Use it raw, sautéed,
steamed, roasted or stuffed.
Broccoli rabe or rapini:
Related to turnips, rapini ar-
rived in the U.S. in 1927
from Italy. It looks a little like
mustard with tiny broccoli
heads and features a pleas-
antly peppery taste. Coon
has been known to sauté,
braise, stir-fry and steam it,
but advises not eating it raw.
Mache — also known as
lamb’s lettuce (not lamb’s
quarters), corn salad and
field salad: This plant — re-
lated to broccoli but with
small heads — has been cul-
tivated in temperate Europe
since Neolithic times, accord-
ing to Coon. It’s easy to grow
and tastes like sweet, nutty
lettuce with no bitterness.
Leaves are used in salads.
Spigarello: Common in
southern Italy, spigarello is
related to broccoli. Eat the
small heads, stems and
FLICKR
Shishito peppers are small and usually sweet.
curly leaves in salads,
steam, sauté or throw in
soup. The flavor, Coon says,
is sweet and grassy, a mix of
kale and broccoli.
Sorrel (also called
spinach dock or narrow-
leaved dock): Native to Eu-
rope, western Asia and
north Africa, sorrel has
leaves used raw in salads or
in sauces and soups. The
flavor is tart and lemony
with a crunch when raw.
Coon said it makes a great
pesto and pairs well with
eggs, cream and pasta.
Scarlet runner bean: A vin-
ing bean with beautiful, red
flowers that call out to hum-
mingbirds. Comes from Cen-
tral America and is widely
grown in England. Try these
mild beans raw, steamed,
sautéed or as a dry bean.
Cardoon: This Mediter-
ranean native is one of
Coon’s favorites, not only
because of the mellow taste
similar to artichoke, but
also for the dramatic state-
ment its big, silvery leaves
make as an ornamental
plant. Instead of eating the
head and heart like arti-
chokes, cook and serve the
stems. Before using, Coon
suggests peeling off the
ridges on the stem, which
contain strings like celery,
and blanching them to re-
move some bitterness and
to keep their pretty green
color. Eat raw, sautéed,
steamed, boiled or in soups
and stews.
MI TOWN
As the damp and soggy
month of April trudges on,
we’re all hoping that the ar-
rival of Miss May will bring
sunshine and flowers and
our long awaited — and
overdue — arrival of spring-
time. The tulips and daf-
fodils have been beaten into
submission by the rain, the
blossoms from the trees
have been blown onto
lawns, sidewalks and drive-
ways much to our collective
disappointment. Sightings
of azalea and rhododendron
blooms and lilac buds all
over MI Town give us hope
and optimism.
—
Celebrate Arbor Day at the
Monmouth library today at
3:30 p.m., where there will
be a fun and interesting pro-
gram about trees, plus an
opportunity to bring home a
seedling to plant in your
P ATTY
T AYLOR
D UTCHER
Columnist
own yard — or in a container
near a sunny window in your
house or apartment. One
seedling per family, please.
—
A sure remedy to the
dreary rainy days is hearing
happy children sharing
laughter, energy, curiosity
and a love for learning. Mark
your calendars for Saturday,
when the Independence li-
brary celebrates El Dia de
los Ninos (Children’s Day)
and El Dia de los Libros
(Book Day). The fun begins
at 3:30 p.m. Everyone is in-
vited to celebrate and dis-
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITIES
cover all the good and inter-
esting programs available
for children and adults right
in our own community.
—
Speaking of books and li-
braries, another sure sign of
springtime is the Annual
Spring Book Sale at the
Monmouth library on May 5
and 6. If you haven’t gotten
around to donating those
books you finished – or
those gifted ones you don’t
intend to read anyway --
please drop them off this
weekend so the Friends of
the Library volunteers can
add them to the items for
sale. May 5 from noon until
2 p.m., is the friends’ mem-
bers only sale. The sale is
open to the public from 2
until 8 p.m. that day. Satur-
day sale hours are from 9
a.m. until 3 p,m.
—
The Monmouth Garden
Club spring plant sale is
being held May 5 right out-
side the library meeting
room. This is a great oppor-
tunity to get some great sale
prices on plants – plus learn
all about plants and trees
from those who have excel-
lent gardening knowledge
and expertise.
—
At press time, the garden
beds at our house are still
too wet for planting, but the
little seedlings are growing
in the cardboard containers
on the back deck. The Mon-
mouth library has veggie
and flower seeds available in
the seed lending library, at
no cost. If you’re looking for
plant starts, check the farm-
ers’ markets in Independ-
ence on Saturday. If we all
wish and wish for sunshine,
perhaps it will happen.
• AARP Foundation Tax-Aide — 503-930-7636
• After DARC — 503-623-9501
• American Cancer Society Road to Recovery
— 1-800-227-2345
• Arc of Polk County — 541-223-3261
• Ash Creek Arts Center — 971-599-3301
• Central School District — 503-838-0030
• City of Dallas — 503-831-3502
• City of Independence — 503-838-1212
• City of Monmouth — 503-751-0145
• Crime Victims Assistance Program — 503-623-9268
• Dallas Area Chamber of Commerce — 503-623-2564
• Dallas Fire Department — 503-831-3532
• Dallas Food Bank — 503-623-3578
• Dallas Kids, Inc. — 503-623-6419
• Dallas Police Department — 503-831-3582
• Dallas Public Library — 503-623-2633
• Dallas Retirement Village — 503-623-5581
• Dallas School District — 503-623-5594
• Delbert Hunter Arboretum — 503-623-7359
• Girl Scouts of Southwest Washington and Oregon
— 1-800-338-5248
• Ella Curran Food Bank — 503-838-1276
• Falls City Arts Center — 503-559-6291
• Falls City School District — 503-787-3531
• Family Building Blocks — 503-566-2132, ext. 308.
• H-2-O — 503-831-4736
HART (Horses Adaptive Riding and Therapy)
— 971-301-4278
• HandsOn Mid-Willamette Valley — 503-363-1651
• Heron Pointe Assisted Living — 503-838-6850
• Independence Health and Rehabilitation — 503-838-0001
• Independence Public Library — 503-838-1811
• Kings Valley Charter School — 541-929-2134
• Luckiamute Watershed Council — 503-837-0237
• Luckiamute Valley Charter School — 503-623-4837
• Meals on Wheels — 503-838-2084
• Monmouth-Independence Chamber of Commerce
— 503-838-4268
• Monmouth-Independence YMCA — 503-838-4042
• Monmouth Public Library — 503-838-1932
• Northwest Human Services — 503-588-5828
• Oregon Child Development Coalition — 503-838-2745
• OSU Extension Service - Polk County — 503-623-8395
• Perrydale School District — 503-623-2040
• Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of
Polk County Inc. — 503-623-8473
• Polk Community Development Corporation
— 503-831-3173
• Polk County Community Emergency Response Team
— 503-623-9396
• Polk County Museum — 503-623-6251
• Polk County Public Health — 503-623-8175
• Polk County Resource Center — 503-623-8429
• Polk Soil and Water Conservation District — 503-623-9680
• Relief Nursery Classroom — 503-566-2132
• SABLE House — 503-623-6703
• SALT (Senior and law enforcement together)
— 503-851-9366
• Salvation Army — 503-798-4783
• SMART (Start Making A Reader Today) — 503-391-8423
• Salem Health West Valley Hospital — 503-623-8301
• Victim Assistance Program-Polk Co. District Attorney’s
Office 503-623-9268 x1444
• Willamette Valley Hospice — 503-588-3600
• WIMPEG Community Access Television — 503-837-0163
PEDEE NEWS
Pedee Church escaped
rain once again on Easter’s
sunrise service at Womer
Cemetery, even though the
sun was, as usual, not in evi-
dence through the clouds.
None of the 35 people in at-
tendance were bothered by
that, though, as all celebrat-
ed the risen Christ before
going down to eat breakfast,
organized by Shawn Broth-
erton and cooked by the
men in the church.
—
This Easter Sunday’s mes-
sage at Pedee Church, was in
the form of a skit based on
Luke 7:36-50, but set in
today’s time. The event de-
scribed in the New Testa-
ment was about a sinful
woman, played by Heidi
Russell, who was so thankful
to Jesus that she washed his
feet with a jar of expensive
perfume, wafting fragrance
throughout the church.
A RLENE
K OVASH
Columnist
Nicely dressed Philip North
portrayed Simon the Phar-
isee, a very proper Jewish
leader; Adam Coe represent-
ed Jesus in a white hoodie
sweatshirt (and looked just
like him); and Daniel Russell
was a trendy pastor in jeans
with sequined crosses on his
back pockets, and who left in
a huff when Jesus declared
the woman’s sins forgiven.
—
How was this the Easter
message? Well, it’s easy to be
proper on Easter Sunday
and be thankful that Jesus
paid the price for the sins of
all those other really sinful
people. But the difference
between Simon the Phar-
isee and the woman wasn’t
how sinful they were, it was
how honest they were with
Jesus about their sin. Jesus
isn’t afraid of our sin, but
defeated it, so we all have a
lot to be thankful for in
Jesus’ resurrection.
—
Easter is also a great time
to get together with friends
and family in this communi-
ty. Dorothy McBeth was
happy to be able to go to son
Darrel and Shirley’s house for
dinner and be with them and
the rest of the family. Her
son, Sam, and Terry came
over and grandson, Barry,
and wife, Jennifer, were there
with Jennifer’s daughter,
Heather, and friend, Philip,
as well as Shirley’s mother,
Elizabeth Stout.
—
Bill and Linda Chertudi’s
...welcomes Joanie! With 7 years
son, John, and wife, Faith,
came down from Vancouver
on Saturday night and then,
on Sunday, were joined by
their daughter, Lisa, and
Delmer Sisson, with son,
Jo rd a n , a n d d a u g h t e r,
Michelle Unger, and her
family: husband, Aaron,
and kids, Nick, Lexy, Ethan,
and Emma.
—
There were similar gath-
erings in other Pedee homes
and, then there were several
who just enjoyed having the
time to themselves, as Don
and Frances Brostrom and
new Pedee Women’s Club
member, Kathy Elson, did.
—
There will be a baby show-
er for Allison Barnhart at 2
p.m. on Sunday at the Kings
Valley Community Center.
Talk to Heidi Russell or
Diana Barnhart for details.
experience, she has extensive
training in barbering.
WALK-INS ONLY Mon & Thurs 8-5 & Fri 10-6
• Flat Tops • Razor Cuts • Fades • Gentlemen’s Cuts
289 E Ellendale, Suite 502, Dallas
503-415-9054
Attention: Polk County Homeowners!
Is Your Home In
Need Of Repair?
Storm Damage
Broken Gutters
Peeling Paint
Broken Garage Doors Plumbing Problems Electrical Problems
POLK CDC
The Doctor is
The snow is melting and
summer vacation is just
around the corner.
Is your car ready for the challenge?
Call us today and we will perform a trip
check to make sure you get to your
destination.
- The Car Doctor
We can help finance home
improvement projects!
Contact Us Today!
HOME REPAIRS
AND
REPLACEMENTS
◆ Painting
◆ Gutters
◆ Roofs
◆ Septic
◆ Foundation
◆ Electrical
INCREASE
SAFETY AND
LIVABILITY
◆ Ramps
◆ Widen Doors
◆ Zero Clearance
Showers
◆ Grab Bars
◆ Repair Walls
◆ Heating
The Car Doctor
Full Service Auto Repair 503-623-8570
760 Monmouth Cutoff Rd, Dallas • thecardoctor.vp.com
Household
Size
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Annual
Income
$40,900
$46,800
$52,600
$58,400
$63,100
$67,800
$72,500
$77,100
HUD Area Median Income 4/2017
Contact Kelli
Call:
Celebrating 10 years of service!
INCOME LIMITS APPLY
503-831-3173
Email: kburnham@polkcdc.org
657 SW Main St/PO Box 33
Dallas, OR 97338
POLK CDC —Serving Polk County Since 1989
Nonprofit Leader in Affordable Housing • NMLS #345525