Good Eats Newsletter - December 21st, 2011



This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
Handful of Chard; Handful of Kale; Sweatheart Cabbage; Sugar Beets; Red Norland Potatoes; Yellow Onions; Butternut Squash and

1 Bag of Pea Shoots and Chard Mixed
1 Bag of Frozen Broccoli

 


Localvore Offerings Include:

Elmore Mountain Bread
Jasper Hill Harbison Cheese
Pa Pa Doodles Eggs

 

Now Taking Bulk Vegetable, Localvore Items and Meat Orders!

There are a few new items on the Localvore list including Organic Steel Cut Oats, Miso and Tamari. 

Order forms can be downloaded on thehomepage of our website. There are separate order forms for veggie/bulk and meat in both PDF and EXCEL format. All orders need to be in on the Friday before delivery date.

Let me know if you have any questions.


THERE IS NO CSA DELIVERY NEXT WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 28TH!



Happy Holidays!
From all of us at Pete's Greens we wish you a happy and safe holiday season. We are very thankful to have such wonderful members to share our weekly harvest with and appreciate your support of what we do. We could not do it without you.

Live and Eat Well


Delivery Issues

If there is a shortage at your pick up site and you go home without one of the items you should have received, please email us!  We want to know, and we want to fix it for you.  Please don't just write it on the check off sheets.  Those sheets may not make it back to us and we may miss your note.


Changes to Your Delivery?

If you will be away some upcoming week, and need to make changes to your share delivery, let us know at least 1 week before the change. You can have your share donated to the Food Pantry, or we can stop your share delivery and you will retain a credit on your account toward the purchase of your next share.


Storage & Use Tips
 
Sugar Beets -  This big, white, lumpy root is mainly grown to produce refined sugar crystals that we all know as white sugar (more so now that our old standby corn is being used more and more for fuel production).  Though its resurgence in popularity for human use is relatively recent, it has been used for centuries as animal fodder, images of the beet have been found on the walls of Egyptian crypts.  We are constantly trying new things and new varietries on the farm and the sugar beet made the grade when we noticed how sweet these beets really were. They are not the best beets for raw eating, but when roasted are absolutely delicious, sweet and earthy. Store in plastic bag in the crisper drawer of the fridge indefinitely (just kidding, but they store a long time).

Arrowhead Cabbage or Sweetheart Cabbage can be picked out by its pointed "arrowhead" shape. It may seem that all cabbages are made equal but I wish to share with you a big secret, they are not. This type of cabbage has very tender leaves, being succulent and sweet as compared to slaw or kraut cabbages that have thick leaves and high dry matter which is desirable for slaw and kraut. These sweethearts are the perfect cabbage for stir fry, egg rolls and summer-like salads and even as a substitute for lettuce on sandwiches. Store in plastic bag in crisper drawer of fridge (if it fits) for 7-10 days. Because they are a more tender cabbage they do not store as long as other cabbages. If the outer leaves do not hold up well just peel them away and use the inner part of the head.

Red Norland Potatoes have a red outer skin and crisp white flesh inside. They are commonly sold in the summertime as "new" potatoes but store quite well too. The best way to cook a Red Norland is to boil, steam or roast them. They make a great red potato salad with skin on, or toss with olive oil, garlic and herbs or go for it and smother them with good old butter (yum). 


Localvore Lore

For those of you who are not familiar with Elmore Mountain Bread, they are regular contributors to the share. Located in Elmore, VT, Blair and Andrew bake bread in their "bread studio" built into the side of their home. They have a wood fired oven and use the best flours and grains available. This week they are baking Country French or Pain au Levain. It is a rustic, naturally leavened loaf made with sourdough.  They use Milanaise unbleached wheat flour, Milanaise whole rye, Gleason's Snake river sifted wheat and sea salt.   

Harbison Cheese from Jasper Hill Farm in Greensboro, VT is a bark-wrapped bloomy-rind cheese with woodsy, sweet, herbal, and bright flavors. It is made with pasteurized cow's milk and aged 3-6 weeks. They named their newest cheese after Anne Harbison, seen by many to be the grandmother of Greensboro, VT. She's active in the community, runs a bed and breakfast, and volunteers at the public library, and has known the Kehler brothers since they were children. The bark, cut from Jasper Hill Farm's woodlands holds the delicate cheese together, provides flavor to the creamy paste, and allows for an ideal presentation as the centerpiece of a cheese plate.

It's a Pa Pa Doodles eggs week again to keep you stocked up through the holidays.  We'll have eggs again on Jan 4th, and then will return to our every other week schedule.



Recipes


Tarragon, Lemon & Garlic Roasted Sugar Beets
So there are not too many recipes out there for the sugar beet. This is one that I found on a blog that I added tarragon to because I love the way tarragon has a sweet, earthy undertone that pairs perfectly with lemon. If you prefer you may want to substitute dill, fresh or dry.
 
1 large sugar beet, cubed into 1/2" pieces
1/2 tsp lemon zest, fresh
2 Tbs lemon juice, fresh
1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried tarragon
salt and pepper to taste
 
Preheat oven to 375F. Toss all ingredients. Use a glass baking dish and spread evenly on bottom of the dish. Cover with foil making sure the lemon and foil do not come into contact (if tight put a piece of parchment paper between beet mixture and foil). Roast 30 minutes, remove foil top and cook uncovered for 10 minutes or until beets are soft.
 
 
 
Three Variations on Latkes
Fried food is traditionally eaten on Hanukkah in commemoration of the oil that miraculously burned for eight days when the Maccabees purified and rededicated the holy Temple in Jerusalem. Fried Potato Pancakes (called Latkes in Yiddish and Levivot in Hebrew) are the holiday favorite. While traditional latkes are made from potatoes, today one can find many creative twists to the traditional latkes recipe. 
 
Potato Latkes
Here I give you the traditional latke. Do not be afraid to spice up a little with leeks, horseradish, cheese or whatever else sounds appealing. 
 
4 medium potatoes, shredded (skin on or off)
1 medium yellow onion, shredded
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp matzoh meal *see subs below
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp coarse black pepper
oil for frying
Applesauce or sour cream (optional)
 
 
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add eggs, matzoh meal, salt and pepper and mix well. Drop 6 to 8 spoonfuls of mixture into hot oil. Using the back of a spoon, pat down each latke to flatten it. Put as many as you can in the skillet without crowding. Putting them too close together will make them soggy. Fry 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden and crisp around the edges. Blot excess oil with paper towels. Serve warm with applesauce, sour cream or for a real treat spread Harbison cheese on top. 
 
TIP: Corn meal is a great substitute for matzoh meal and will also make your latkes nice and crispy. Other on the fly substitutes for Matzoh are crushed saltine crackers, crushed cornflakes or crushed potato chips.
 
 
Butternut Squash Latkes
 
2 lb fresh butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 1/2-2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp salt
4 eggs, beaten
oil for frying
 
Place pieces of squash into a large pot. Cover with water. Bring to a boil. Lower flame. Cook until squash is tender enough to mash with a fork. Drain and cool to room temperature. Mash with a fork. Squeeze out excess water. In a separate bowl, mix flour, sugar, salt with beaten eggs. Mix in mashed squash. If the pancake mixture is too thin, then add more flour. Drop 6 to 8 spoonfuls of mixture into hot oil. Using the back of a spoon, pat down each latke to flatten it. Put as many as you can in the skillet without crowding. Putting them too close together will make them soggy. Fry 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden and crisp around the edges. Blot excess oil with paper towels. Serve warm with applesauce, sour cream or for a real treat spread Harbison cheese on top. 
 
 
Cabbage Latkes
And for something a little more heart friendly, I propose the cabbage latke.
 
2 c cabbage, finely grated
1 whole egg plus 2 egg whites
1 scallion, chopped (if available)
2 tbs whole-wheat flour
salt and pepper to taste
non-stick cooking spray
1 Tbs vegetable oil
 
Place the cabbage in bowl. With a wooden spoon, mix in the eggs and scallion. Add flour and season to taste.  Use wet hands, form latkes. Wipe a non-stick frying pan with a paper towel dipped in oil and spray the pan with non-stick cooking spray. On medium heat, heat pan and drop batter by tablespoonfuls into pan. Using the back of a spoon, pat down each latke to flatten it. Put as many as you can in the skillet without crowding. Putting them too close together will make them soggy. Fry 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden and crisp around the edges. Blot excess oil with paper towels. 
 
 
 
Butternut Squash with Creamy Green Gratin
This dish is layered like a lasagna with long, thin slices of Butternut squash alternating with a cream and greens sauce made with greens from the share. 
 
1 c greens, steamed and drained (use chard, kale, cress whatever you have)
5 Tbs unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg (freshly ground if you have)
1 c heavy cream
1 large Butternut squash (4lb), peeled, quartered lengthwise 
1/4 c Parmesan cheese or Romano cheese 
 
Special tools: a mandoline or other adjustable blade slicer is helpful but not necessary
 
Cool greens and finely chop, add to mixing bowl. Saute onion and garlic in 3 tablespoons of the butter, stirring until softened about 3-5 minutes. Add mixture to greens in bowl along with salt, pepper, nutmeg and cream. Combine ingredients.
 
Slice squash into 1/8" slices the long way. In baking dish layer bottom layer with squash and then cover with one quarter of creamy greens, repeat three times ending with a layer of squash. Sprinkle top evenly with cheese and dot with remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Cover top with parchment or wax paper.
 
Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes until squash is tender and filling is bubbling then remove parchment and bake until top is browned another 10-15 minutes.



Cowboy Breakfast
This can be assembled the night before and cooked the next morning. The eggs and thick slices of garlicky bread are transformed into custardy bread pudding making a savory base for your favorite breakfast treats like broccoli, greens, onions, sausage etc for filling.

1/2 loaf of french bread, cut into 1" slices
4 Tbs  (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
2 dozen eggs
1 c whole milk
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 c cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)

Put rack in middle of oven and preheat to 375F.  Saute toppings and set aside.

Generously butter a 13x9 baking dish. Melt butter and add garlic to it. Brush a layer of garlic butter on each side of bread, arranging bread tightly packed into bottom of baking dish. 

Whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper in a large bowl until frothy and then add half of cheese (if desired). Layer filling over bread. Pour egg mixture on top of filling. Bread will float to the top, push down with spatula to help absorb liquid. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Butter underside of sheet of foil and over baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes. Carefully remove foil and bake until top is slightly puffed and eggs are cooked all the way through about another 20 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Comments

Popular Posts