Our Weekly Good Eats Newsletter
I
write the weekly Good Eats newsletter that you will receive every
Tuesday evening with farm updates, the week's share contents, storage
and use tips, localvore information and recipes and anything else we
think you might find interesting or useful. Pete will often chime in
with farm updates, thoughts and pleas for feedback.
The
picking for the weekly share begins on Monday and the packing of shares
is finished late Tuesday afternoon. Although we try to get the
newsletter out just as early as we can, we do like to wait until the
share is finalized. Sometimes there are last minute changes to the
contents and we want to make sure that you've got the right information
to accompany your pick-up.
If there are changes to the share that occur after the newsletter has been sent (which happens occasionally), you may receive a follow-up email Tuesday night or Wednesday.
If you have any feedback on the newsletter, recipe contributions or just general questions about the CSA, feel free to email me.
We also post each newsletter on our blog.
It generally gets posted sometime on Wednesday or Thursday. There's a
good history there for recipes, farm stories and share contents.
Please add goodeats@petesgreens.com to your address book to limit the possibility of having newsletters filtered as spam.
Feel free to contact me anytime with questions or comments about Good Eats. ~ Amy
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Picking Up Your ShareIf you are unsure of your pick-up times or site location, please visit our website's Delivery page. If you have any questions about your pick-up please email me. The quickest way to reach me is always by email, but if you must, you may leave a message on voice mail at 802.586.2882 x2.
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Share Pick-Up Instructions! Please review.
Whether
you are a seasoned CSA share member or new to Good Eats, it's important
to review the pick-up instructions before you head out to pick up your
share!
• Clipboard #1, Names List - Check off your Name!
- Find your name on the pick-up list and check it off. The first
clipboard contains a list of all share members at your site. Note that
only one name is listed for each share. If you can't find your name on
the list, look for your share partner's name (only one of you is
listed). Checking off your name lets us know who has picked up and is
extremely helpful in solving any mysteries at the end of the day. If you can't find your name or your share partner's name, please don't take a share! Call or email us and we'll figure it out.
• Check your share type on the list. Share types are
Localvore, Localvore Vegetarian, Veggie Only, Small Veggie Only, Pete's
Pantry. If you are listed incorrectly or have questions, let us know.
 • Clipboard #2, Pick-up Instructions -
Select your items by following the Pick-up Instructions. These are
posted on the second clipboard. Follow the specific item
list/instructions to assemble your share.
Small
Veggie only Members select their yellow bag and (occasionally there may
be a second item to select that will be out of the bag and it will be
listed in same section).
Regular Veggie Only Members pick up the larger tan/green bag and any other veggies listed for that share type.
Localvore
and Pantry members both select the items listed on the bottom section
of pick up instructions (the non -vegetable items).
We pack whole shares only! If you are sharing a share with someone -
coordinate with your share-mate to split your share and DON'T take
double the amount of any items.
Taking more than your share WILL leave other members short so please be careful selecting your items.
THANKS FOR PICKING UP CAREFULLY!
Please note that the first Meat Share pick up is not this week, it is November 7th.
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What To Do If You Have a Problem at Pick Up
Although
we do our best to make sure that every delivery and pick-up goes
smoothly, there are the occasional shortages and disappointments. Should
you arrive at your pick-up site to find that your name (or share
partner's name) is not on the list, one or more of your items are
missing or that some of your produce is in unsatisfactory condition,
please let us know right away!
Our goal is 100% satisfaction. If you email us
(or call if you can't email) as soon as you discover the problem, we
may be able to resolve it the same day or the following day. If you
would like to receive an item that you missed at pick-up, you must
contact us by Thursday morning.
If we have not heard from anyone, by Thursday afternoon our site hosts
are instructed to donate leftover food, ensuring that they do not end up
with bad food on their hands.
If we can not resolve your issue right away, email us to arrange a replacement or substitution the following week.
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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 I can stop your share delivery and you will retain a
credit on your account toward the purchase of your next share.
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Storage and Use Tips
 Pie Pumpkin
- Pumpkins are the essence of fall, and pumpkin recipes are sure
comfort food. But be sure to use the correct type of pumpkin to achieve
a richly flavored result in the kitchen. Pie pumpkins are not only
smaller than jack-o-lantern type pumpkins but they also have a denser
flesh and more sugars that make their edible quality much more like
winter squash. In fact pumpkins and winter squash can be used
interchangeably in many pie, soup & bread recipes. Not all! But
many. Pie pumpkins are an excellent source of beta carotene, calcium and
potassium. Store all winter squash and pumpkins in a cool, dry, dark
place with good ventilation, like a porch or garage, but make sure they
do not freeze, around 55F is perfect and for shorter duration (1-3
weeks) your kitchen counter should be fine. They should last over a
month for decoration but use within a few weeks for best flavor quality.
Once cut, you can wrap the leftovers in plastic and store in the
refrigerator for 5 to 7 days.
Russet Potatoes
- Also known as Idaho or baking potatoes, Russets are in the class of
starchy potatoes, as opposed to waxy varieties like red and fingerling.
They are high in vitamin C and B6, as well as natural sugars. Russets
make great baking potatoes, and are ideal for mashing and making fries.
Store potatoes in a cool dark place. Storing your potatoes in the
refrigerator can make their starch turn to sugar and therefore should be
avoided as doing so can give the russet potato an unpleasant, sweet
taste.
 Torpedo onions
are included in the class of roasting onions, though they are also
great for grilling, sautéing, or pickling. Torpedo onions originated in
the Italian town of Tropea, where the Phoenicians introduced them more
than 2,000 years ago. These onions are very pungent, with a sharp note
which balances out the sweet flavor. Because the red torpedo onion does
not store well, it is generally a seasonal delicacy, available only in
the Fall. You may get a mix of red and yellow. Keep them loosely
wrapped in a plastic bag in your refrigerator.
Ferono Beets
- These beautiful beets are unusually shaped - long and slender rather
than round. They're shape makes them easy to peel, and good for slicing
into uniform discs. They taste just like regular red beets!
Parsley
- A little chopped parsley adds an enormous amount of flavor (and
color) to almost any dish. Toss a little into your russet potato hash
or sprinkle it on top of a bowl of roasted forono beets.
Celery -
Wrap unwashed celery tightly in a plastic bag and store in the coldest
part of your refrigerator. To maintain really crisp celery, store as you
would basil or parsley. That is, place it upright in a glass of water
in your fridge and cover loosely with a plastic bag.
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Localvore Lore
 You may associate Butterworks Farm name
with their outstanding organic yogurt. Jack Lazor and Annie started
selling dairy products from their 3 Jersey cows to their Northeast
Kingdom neighbors in 1979. Over the years, the herd, raised entirely on
the farm, has grown to 85 cows, and they milk around 50. Due to the
needs of the herd, Jack has become an excellent grower of grains and
beans feeding not only the cows, but many Vermonters with his
beautifully milled products. Freshly ground for this week's share, we
have Butterworks Farm Organic Whole Wheat Pastry Flour.
Pastry flours are made from soft wheat varieties with less gluten than
hard wheat varieties. Like all whole wheat flours, the flour is ground
from the entire grain - bran, endosperm and germ are all present. The
germ contains oils that can go rancid, so please store this flour in a
cool dry place. I often keep my whole wheat flour in my freezer if I
know I won't use it up in a month or so. This flour is my go to for pie
crust & biscuits.
Flour Primer
Whole wheat flour is made from the entire grain - bran, endosperm and
germ are all present. "White" all pupose flour flours are made from the
endosperm only and are actually yellow when freshly milled. It is also
somewhat unstable and must be conditioned to help the glutens strengthen
and for keeping quality. Unbleached flour is matured and bleached
naturally by oxygen present in the air (rather than by using various
chemical bleaching agents that are used in commercial bleached white
flours).
There's more to it... Wheat is categorized as hard and soft. Hard
wheats have a higher protein content which makes stronger gluten and
results in a better rise and more elastic quality in breads. Soft wheats
are better for delicate pastries and cakes. Therefore "bread flour"
contains a mixture of hard wheat varieties. All purpose flours contain
hard and soft wheat. Pastry flours are made from soft wheat varieities
We also have Champlain Orchards Cortland
apples this week. Though not organic, Bill selects his apple varieties
for disease resistance and sprays his apples very judiciously,
preferring to be satisfied with some apple imperfections in order to
satisfy the greater goal of cleaner produce. My personal testamonial: I
am very allergic to non-organic apples (and pears and peaches etc) and
cannot eat them at all. Even some "organic" apples imported from other
countries will cause a reaction. But Bill's apples I can eat!
Cortlands were developed in NY by crossing the MacIntoch and the Ben
Davis variety and were named after Cortland County, NY. Cortland apples
are crimson red with a little bit of light green background showing.
They are sweet and juicy with a hint of tartness. They are good for
fresh eating, salads, sauce, pies and baking. The snow-white flesh is
also a favorite for fruit plates and garnishes because it does not turn
brown very quickly.
For
6 years Deb Rosewolf has been a force to reckon with on the farm and
these days she spends most of her farm time in our kitchen, processing
and preserving food for our CSA. The last couple of days Deb has been
hard at work putting up squash puree for us for later this season. At
home she has her own farm to tend to along with 400 laying hens that she
keeps so that we can have a consistent supply of Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
for Good Eats. Every day, Deb loads her truck up with leftover veggie
scraps that she feeds to her chickens and they free range at her place
too. As a result, Pa Pa Doodles eggs have rich orange yolks and firm
whites.
A
couple years ago, Seven Days Eva Sollberger visited Deb and the hens for
a Stuck in Vermont episode. Want to see where your eggs come from? Check out the video!
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Recipes
Pumpkin Chard Lasagna
I
had a most delicious butternut squash/kale lasagna the other day, and
this one is just along the same lines. Healthy, savory and delicious!
This recipe is adapted from Taste of Home.
1 bunch of chard, sliced
1 onion, diced
2 cups of cooked pumpkin
10-20 sage leaves chopped or 1/2 tsp sage or to taste
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
9 lasagna noodles
16 oz ricotta (part skim fine)
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat 1 t. of oil in a large skillet. Add
onion and cook until translucent. Add chard and cook until wilted. Add
sage and cook for 1-2 minutes more, stirring to combine. Remove from
heat and set aside.
Combine pumpkin, whipping cream and salt and pepper and sage to taste.
Boil a pot of water and add lasagna noodles. Cook until soft (4-6 minutes). Remove from water and drain.
Spread some sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Top with three lasagna
noodles. Cover with more sauce, half of chard mixture, half of ricotta,
mozzarella and Parmesan.
Top with three noodles. Repeat sauce, chard, ricotta, mozzarella and
Parmesan layers. Top with last three noodles and last of sauce. Cover
with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
Remove foil and top with a light dusting of Parmesan. Bake for 15 more minutes. Allow to cool a bit before serving. Enjoy.
Russet Potato Hash
From
one of our crew Annie Myers: "This has been a part of my Sunday morning
breakfast for the last few weeks. Russet potatoes make for a hearty
hash, and these small ones are perfect for frying."
1# russet potatoes
1 green pepper
1 yellow onion
3 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper
Quarter the potatoes and boil them in water with a little salt for
about 20 minutes. Slice and sautee the onion and pepper in butter,
while the potatoes boil. Set the onions and peppers aside. Drain the
potatoes when they are soft but still a little undercooked. Melt 2
tablespoons of butter in the same pan you already used, and pack the
potatoes down into the pan. Cook, without moving, until underside of
potatoes is brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Turn potatoes, pack down again, and
continue to cook until well browned and crisp, another 5 to 7 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring potatoes every
few minutes, until crusty and golden on all sides. Stir in onions and
peppers, and salt and pepper as you like it.
Roasted Beet and Onion Salad
If
you are one of those folks who have never developed a love for beets,
try roasting them. Roasting sweetens them and deepens their earthy
flavor. Roasted beets keep well in the fridge for 4-5 days and are
great tossed onto daily green salads. This recipe brings together
roasted onions and roasted torpedo onions and tops them with parsley,
all in the share this week. The original recipe is adapted from one by
Clifford Wright. You could roast the onions and beets together but
please watch the onions closely, they will be bitter if they blacken too
much. The beets will take longer to roast.
2 medium size torpedo onions, sliced across the grain in 1/4 " rings
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 lb beets, roasted, peeled and sliced (roast all of your beets and save remainder for other salads)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley or arugula
1 ounce toasted almonds, chopped (2 tablespoons chopped)
Preheat
the oven to 425 degrees. Place beets in a glass baking dish and add
1/4 inch of water and cover tightly and place in oven. Large beets over
8 oz will take 50-60 means to roast. Roast til they are easily pierced
with a fork. Toss the sliced onions with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil
and salt to taste, and place on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Toward the
second half of the roasting of the beets, place the onions in the oven
and roast 15 minutes, turning the onions over halfway through. They
should be nicely browned and just beginning to blacken around the edges,
but not charred. Remove from the heat.
Remove
beets carefully when roasted, and the skins will slip from them easily
(you can run them under cool water briefly if too hot to handle when
removing skins, they will still retain some warmth. Slice beets into
discs.
Arrange
the sliced beets on a platter. Arrange the onions over the beets.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Whisk together the vinegars, salt and
pepper to taste and the remaining olive oil. Drizzle over the onions and
beets. Sprinkle on the parsley or arugula and the almonds, and serve.
Pumpkin Bread Pudding
Another
from Annie this week. This dessert is even better than pumpkin pie, and
makes for a good breakfast too. The recipe comes from one of my
favorite sources, Smitten Kitchen. You'll want to slice your pumpkin in
quarters, scoop out the seeds, and bake in a 375 degree oven for about
an hour, until it is quite soft. Scoop the flesh out of the skin and
puree it in a mixer or just mash it up with a fork. Keep the leftover
puree (in tupperware in the fridge) for another batch of bread pudding
or a good old traditional pumpkin pie.
1 1/2 cups whole milk (Or 1 cup heavy cream plus 1/2 cup whole milk)
3/4 cup pumpkin, cooked and pureed
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs plus 1 yolk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
Pinch of ground cloves
5 cups cubed (1-inch) day-old baguette or crusty bread
3/4 stick unsalted butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
Whisk together pumpkin, cream, milk, sugar, eggs, yolk, salt, and spices in a bowl.
Toss bread cubes with butter in another bowl, then add pumpkin mixture
and toss to coat. Transfer to an ungreased 8-inch square baking dish
and bake until custard is set, 25 to 30 minutes.
Apple Pie
This
is my favorite apple pie recipe. The pie is made with honey rather than
sugar. The honey flavor comes through in the pie and gives the pie a
rich, decadent flavor.
Crust:
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1.5 sticks cold butter cut into 1/4" slices
Ice water
Pie filling:
7-8 Cortland apples, peeled, cored and sliced 1/4" thick
2/3 cup honey
3 TB flour
1 TB lemon juice
2 TB melted butter
1 tsp cinnamon
For the crust
Place flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and give it a quick
pulse to mix. Toss in the slices of cold butter. Using the pulse button,
pulse 7-8 times for 1 second each time until the flour butter mixture
looks like very coarse cornmeal. Run a fork through it and look for
butter chunks. The largest chunks should be pea sized or a bit larger
(high bush blue berry sized?). Transfer to a mixing bowl. Pour in 1/3
cup of water and fold flour in from outer edges of bowl with a rubber
spatula. The goal in mixing water into the dough is to do it with as few
strokes as possible so use some strategy. You will need to add more
water, depending on how cold your butter is, moisture content of flour
etc. You may need as much nearly another 1/3 cup but probably not quite
that much. As soon as it starts holding together, use your hands to
gather the dry flakies that resist capture and form the dough into two
equal sized balls. The dough wants to be just moist enough to come
together, and not so dry that your balls want to crack apart again.
Press your dough balls into flattened rounds and proceed to rolling it
out if you are ready. If you aren't, wrap your flattened rounds in
plastic and refrigerate (can be made a couple days ahead).
For the filling
Melt the butter and if your honey is thick and creamy, let it heat
along with butter so that it is easier to blend with the apples. No need
to heat it lots, just enough to make it pour easier. Pour the
honey/butter mix over the apple slices in a large bowl and mix to coat.
Add the flour, cinnamon, lemon juice.
Assemble your pie and bake at 425°F in the middle of your oven for 30
mins. Then turn the temp down to 350°F and bake until lightly browned
and bubbling - another 15-25 mins.
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Fall/Winter Shares Still Available
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