REVD Good Eats Newsletter - April 3, 2013

Meat share members - it's a meat week!     Localvore Members  & Regular Veggie Only Share Members take a LIGHT GREEN/TAN BAG This week your bag will contain: Mixed Greens; Baby Potatoes; Carrots; Mixed Beets; Savoy Cabbage; Yellow & Red Onions and OUT of the Bag Frozen Corn Tomato Puree Localvore Offerings Include: Butterworks Farm Organic Kidney Beans Pa Pa Doodles Eggs Pete's Hot Sauce Small Veggie Only Members take a YELLOW BAG containing: Mixed Greens; Baby Potatoes; Carrots; Savoy Cabbage; Yellow Onions and OUT of the Bag Tomato Puree

Despite this cold snap and snow, spring really is coming!  I was truly reminded of this yesterday when I ventured into the head house. I walked in and was instantly transported to another world as it was bright and sunny and smelled so good.  The smell was a mixture of soil and seedlings, but more importantly, spring.  It gave me high hopes that spring is on its way and soon the trees will be blooming, flowers sprouting, and our plates will be brimming with beautiful spring and summer vegetables.  ~Sara

Storage and Use Tips This week's Greens  are a mixture of Claytonia, Sunflower and Radish Shoots, Spinach, Cress and  Chickweed.   The Baby Potatoes are a mixture of Nicolas, Purple Vikings, and All Blues.  They are all baby size, very cute, and great for roasting whole.  There's no need to peel any of these baby taters; just cover in some oil, salt and pepper, and roast in an oven pre-heated to 425 F for about 30-40 minutes.  This week's Beets are red round beets and red cylindra (forono) beets.  Nice large good-looking beets.  This is the last time members will get large beets until we have fresh ones beets this spring.  Members will probably get a share of baby beets in a few weeks, but the large ones aren't storing well enough to save them for another share.  So, use the beet recipes now if you have em. Not all cabbages are created equal.  Our Green Savoy Cabbage has loosely wrapped, savoyed or crumpled leaves.  These cabbages have a thick wrapper leaf which enables them to store well but are not as well suited to stir fry or egg rolls as Chinese types of cabbages with their thin skins and sweet flavor.  They are also not so high in dry matter like your slaw or kraut cabbages which are perfect for retaining structure during processing and fermenting.  The savoy cabbage is perfect for cooking however, especially in soups that can tenderize its thick kale-like leaves.  I also prefer savoy cabbages to stuff with rice, tomato sauce and sausages.  Saute with a little butter and a splash of milk or cream to quickly soften the leaves and bring out its sweet flavors on the stove top.  Store cabbage in a plastic bag in your crisper drawer for a few weeks. Onions are a mix of yellow and red large share and all yellow for the small share.  Our red onions aren't supposed to store well (according to seed catalog info, they shouldn't have lasted past early Feb), and they've stored beautifully this year.  Pretty cool that we still have them and can share them with you. Everyone gets a jar of our Tomato Puree this week - pure tomatoes cooked down and then canned. Store in your kitchen cabinet for up to one year or until you are ready to use.  The puree works well in tomato sauce, soups, or stews. Veggie Storage and Use Tips are our website too, so please bookmark the recipe and storage tip section. I am sure you will find it useful. Localvore Lore Butterworks Farm Light Red Kidney Beans are a gourmet bean loved for their delicate texture and rich flavor. Often used interchangeably with Dark Red Kidney beans they are a different variety all together having excellent culinary qualities for soups, chili and casseroles and other slow cooked dishes due to its thin skin and rich flavor. Dark Red Kidneys are traditionally used for red beans and rice and dishes where it is not desirable for the bean to break or add to the texture of a sauce or soup. Dry beans are an excellent source of protein and iron. 1 pound dried beans = 2 cups dried = 4-5 cups cooked beans. Get ready to add some heat to your cooking with Pete's Roasted Hot Pepper Relish. Made right here in our kitchen it's a great addition to the chili recipe below, folded into scrambled eggs, added into your burger, or added to caramelized onions to top your burger.  A little bit goes a long way! This is not a salsa.  It's great for adding to chili or burritos.  Keeps in the fridge a long time too.  I'm a total wimp when it comes to spicy things so I don't have many great ideas for its uses.  However when I googled some ideas one interesting thing I read about was adding hot sauce to your birdseed to keep the squirrels away. This week you will also receive a dozen eggs from Pa Pa Doodles. Meat Share Pete's Pastured Chickens are grazed on our greens fields all summer moved from field to field. They fertilize and aerate the fields while growing into beautiful vitamin packed table birds.  These are large birds- they're perfect for roasting whole for dinner and you'll have plenty of leftovers.  We also recommend using the carcass and neck to make broth afterwards.  One of my favorite things to do with a whole chicken is to throw it into the crockpot, cover with water, and add plenty of cut up veggies and spices.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Once it's cooked through strain the broth into a bowl, discard the veggies, and shred the chicken.  I freeze the broth for later use and keep the shredded chicken in the fridge to use throughout the week on a salad or burritos.  This is the last of our chickens for now; new chicks will be arriving at the farm later this month. This week's Salmon is coming to you from Anthony at Starbird Fish.  Anthony spends a portion of his year commercial fishing in Alaska then ships the fish to VT.  These are packages of salmon bits and pieces ready to make into salmon burgers or chowder.  See below for a great burger recipe. McKnight Farm Organic Burger - The burger this week comes from McKnight Farm in East Montpelier.  This organic grass-fed burger is loaded with healthy fats such as Omega 3's and CLA's (conjugated linoleic acid - a very potent defense against cancer), Vitamin E, and is lower in fat than store bought meat.  This lean beef can actually have the same amount of fat as skinless chicken breast, elk, or wild deer.  Lean beef can also lower your "bad" LDL cholesterol levels.  This would be great made into burgers, included in the tomato sauce recipe below, or thrown into chili. Pork Chops - these pork chops come from the whey-fed pigs at Jasper Hill.  You've previously enjoyed sausages and bacon from these pigs.  I love that these pigs are fed the by products of Jasper Hill's cheese making so nothing goes to waste! 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. Recipes Curried Potatoes Here's a recipe for some spicy potatoes.  If you like a little more heat add some hot sauce! Baby Potatoes 1 tablespoon cumin seed 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 cup finely chopped onion 1 teaspoon curry powder 1 teaspoon turmeric 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth Cut potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. In a large pan, sauté the cumin seeds in the sunflower oil for 2 minutes, or until golden. Add the minced garlic and onion and cook until soft. Add the potatoes, chicken broth, and the spices and cook on medium low heat, stirring occasionally. Continue to cook, adding small amounts of water from time to time to keep the potatoes from sticking, until potatoes are tender. Cook 2-3 minutes more, until the outsides of the potatoes are slightly crispy and golden brown. Quick Pickled Beets These pickled beets are ready in a snap after you have cooked the beets.  I tend to cook a lot of beets at once and eat some with my meal and then pickle some. These will keep in the fridge for a week. 2# beets, cooked, peeled, and cut into wedges 1/4 c minced scallions 1 Tbsp honey 2 Tbsp oil 3 Tbsp vinegar 1/2 tsp salt fresh black pepper Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a small sauce pan and heat gently. Toss with the warm beets and the scallions. Chill before serving. Even better the next day. Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onions A very simple, rich, delicious sauce adapted from Marcela Hazan’s Essentials of Italian Cooking. Serves 4 as a main course; makes enough sauce to lightly coat most of a pound of spaghetti. 1 quart tomato puree 5 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved Salt to taste Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a heavy saucepan (it fit just right in a 3-quart) over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste and keep warm while you prepare your pasta. Serve with spaghetti, with or without grated parmesan cheese. Ginger Garlic Savoy Cabbage I love cooking up savoy cabbages as a side dish and pairing it with pork chops.  You could add some red pepper flakes and onions, or even some hot pepper relish to spice it up! 1 head savoy cabbage 2 tbs light olive oil or sesame oil 1 tbs minced garlic salt and pepper 1 1/4 tbs ginger, minced Juice of 1 lime Heat wok or large skilled to medium high heat, wait until the oil is hot.  Add cabbage and stir fry until cabbage just starts to wilt.  Add garlic, salt and pepper and cook 1 minute.  Add ginger and cook 1 minute.  Drizzle with lime juice and serve. Chili The recipe below calls for beef but if you prefer a vegetarian chili simply omit the beef. You can also substitute a number of meats such as stew beef, ground pork, turkey or veal. Chili is also one of those dishes you can add other veggies and ingredients to very easily. I like to add diced carrots (cook like potatoes), frozen corn (add at end) and pickled jalapenos (add to taste) to mine at home. A good friend of mine swears by adding chocolate to her chili to give it a rich flavor. Have some fun! 2 Tbs vegetable oil 1 lb ground beef 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 large onion, chopped salt and pepper to taste 1 pinch ground nutmeg 1 Tbs chili powder (paprika, cumin, cayenne, oregano, garlic powder) 28 oz diced tomatoes 1 jar tomato puree 1 package frozen sweet peppers, thawed and chopped 1 1/2 lb (6 c cooked) light red kidney beans, cooked with broth 3 c (3-4 med sized) potatoes, diced Heat the oil in a soup pot set over medium heat. Add the ground beef, garlic, and onion. Cook, stirring to crumble the ground beef, until beef is no longer pink. Drain off any excess grease. Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and chili powder. Add the tomatoes, puree, peppers, cooked light red kidney beans and broth and uncooked potatoes. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Season as desired. Penne Alla Vodka Another tasty and easy way to use your tomato puree. 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 1 large onion, chopped 6 garlic cloves, chopped Salt and black pepper 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper, or more as desired 1 jar tomato puree 1 pound penne or other tubular cut pasta 1/4 cup vodka 1/2 cup heavy cream 1 tbsp butter 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.  When it's hot, add the onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the crushed red pepper and tomatoes, adjust the heat so the mixture simmers steadily, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. When the water comes to a boil, salt it generously and add the pasta.  Add the vodka to the tomato mixture, and continue cooking until thick and saucy, another 10 to 15 minutes.  Stir the cream and butter into the tomato sauce, and turn off the heat. When the pasta is al dente scoop about a cup of it's cooking liquid out of the pot, and then drain the pasta.  Toss the pasta with the sauce, adding the reserved cooking liquid as needed to thin out the sauce.  Add the parmesan, toss again, and serve hot garnished with more parmesan. Salmon Burgers If you finely grind part of the salmon, it will bind the rest, which can be coarsely chopped to retain its moisture during cooking. The two-step grinding process means that those flavorings that you want minced fine, like garlic or ginger, can go in with the first batch of salmon; those that should be left coarse, like onion or fresh herbs, can go in with the rest.  This recipe comes from the New York Times. 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless salmon 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 2 shallots, peeled and cut into chunks 1/2 cup coarse bread crumbs 1 tablespoon capers, drained Salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil Lemon wedges Tabasco sauce Cut the salmon into large chunks, and put about a quarter of it into the container of a food processor, along with the mustard. Turn the machine on, and let it run -- stopping to scrape down the sides if necessary -- until the mixture becomes pasty. Add the shallots and the remaining salmon, and pulse the machine on and off until the fish is chopped and well combined with the puree. No piece should be larger than a quarter inch or so; be careful not make the mixture too fine. Scrape the mixture into a bowl, and by hand, stir in the bread crumbs, capers and some salt and pepper. Shape into four burgers. (You can cover and refrigerate the burgers for a few hours at this point.) Place the butter or oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet, and turn the heat to medium-high. When the butter foam subsides or the oil is hot, cook the burgers for 2 to 3 minutes a side, turning once. Alternatively, you can grill them: let them firm up on the first side, grilling about 4 minutes, before turning over and finishing for just another minute or two. To check for doneness, make a small cut and peek inside. Be careful not to overcook. Serve on a bed of greens or on buns or by themselves, with lemon wedges and Tabasco or any dressing you like. Pork Chops with Curried Apple-Onion Sauce I love pork chops with apples.  This sauce is divine! 4 8-ounce pork chops (each 1 inch thick) 1 teaspoon dried thyme 1 teaspoon dried marjoram 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 large apple, peeled, cored, chopped 1/2 onion, chopped 6 garlic cloves, minced 3/4 cup canned low-salt chicken broth 1/2 cup dry white wine 1/4 cup whipping cream 2 tablespoons honey mustard 1 teaspoon curry powder Sprinkle pork with 1/2 teaspoon thyme, 1/2 teaspoon marjoram, salt and pepper. Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and cook until no longer pink inside, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer pork to plate; tent with foil to keep warm. Reserve drippings in skillet. Add apple, onion and garlic to drippings in skillet and sauté over medium-high heat 2 minutes. Add chicken broth, wine, cream, mustard, curry powder and remaining 1/2 teaspoon thyme and 1/2 teaspoon marjoram. Boil until sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Divide pork among plates. Pour sauce over and serve.