Good Eats Newsletter Jan 2, 2008

Good Eats Newsletter January 2, 2008
Happy New Year!

Localvore Vegetable Share

This week’s share includes purple potatoes, rutabaga, shallots, daikon radish, mixed carrots, 1 sugar pumpkin, 1 loaf Elmore Mt Bread, Pete's Eggs, 5# tote Organic Empire apples, organic oat flour and organic mixed cracked grains.

Root Share

This week’s root share includes potatoes, rutabaga, carrots, sweet potatoes, daikon radish, and celeriac.

Bread ingredients: Anadama Bread Organic flour, organic cornmeal (Butterworks), maple syrup (Butternut Mt), water, sea salt, yeast

Mixed Cracked Grains: wheat, barley, rye, oat, flax

Notes and Localvore Goodies

It’s been a quiet here, with most of us gone for at least a few days and Pete in California on a bike trip for the whole week. Steve was busy around the farm with maintenance projects. He built a new barrel for the root washer, made some insulation improvements on the chicken house and worked on his endless list of repairs. Thanks Steve!

We hope you all enjoyed your last share and are looking forward to 2008. We are already halfway through this share and are thinking about the next share period. Stay tuned for more info about signups!

The localvore items this week are Pete's Eggs, Elmore Mt bread made with organic flour from Quebec , Champlain Orchards organic empire apples, and the last of the organic grains from Michel Gaudreau: oat flour and mixed cracked grains.

I was able to chat with Blaire a little when she brought in the bread this afternoon. She and Andrew have been baking Elmore Mt Bread for the past 3 1/2 years. They moved to Elmore from Hyde Park and bought the business from their good friend and neighbor, David. She says his 15 year old daughter loves to bake and comes to help them on school breaks, and whenever else she can. This morning, she shaped the loaves. David also helps them out with developing new varieties. Otherwise, it's just the two of them cranking out 1500 loaves a week! In the summer they bake an additional 400 for the Stowe Farmer's Market, but do have some help from David's daughter. Blaire was so excited about the Anadam bread because they've been baking small test batches of it for the past few weeks, with flat results! This batch certainly looks and smells incredible. Enjoy and let us know how you like it so we can pass on your comments.

Storage and Use Tips

Pumpkin preheat oven to 350. Get a large baking pan. Cut the pumpkin in half and place cut side down in the pan. Add one inch of hot water. Bake until tender, about an hour. Cool, then discard seed pulp. Scoop out flesh into a bowl, discard skin. Now you have pumpkin to use for soup or pie or muffins or pancakes. To make it a smooth puree, blend in a food processor or run through a food mill.

Potatoes Keep in a cool dark place. Any light will turn them green, which is not edible. It’s ok to cut off a small green spot, but eating a quantity of green potatoes can make you sick.

Sweet potatoes keep these in a warmer, room temp, dark place. Make some great sweet potato oven fries by scrubbing and cutting them into sticks. Toss to coat with olive oil, salt, pepper, pinch of cumin and 2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning. Roast in a 400 oven for 30-45 minutes, turning with a spatula a couple times.

Mixed roots the rest of the roots should be kept in the fridge in a bag. They’ll be good at least a week to 10 days.

Mixed cracked grains Soak 1 c over night in 3 cups water. Drain excess water in am, then add 1 c fresh water and pinch of salt. Simmer 20-30 minutes. I ate mine with cinnamon, dried cranberries and maple syrup. Also, you can use soaked grain in yeast bread.

Recipes

This is an idea more than a recipe; you could make a yummy root chowder. Chop shallots, onion, and garlic; sauté in oil. Add diced roots, cover with broth or water, add a pinch of salt, and bring to a boil. Simmer until tender. You can puree a bit of it to make a thicker broth. You could also add any frozen vegetables you might have, like corn, peas, green beans, zucchini, etc. Add some milk or cream, salt, pepper and, parsley, thyme and/or dill to taste. Heat through over low heat so the soup does not boil again.

PUMPKIN PANCAKES

1 c Flour

½ c Oat flour

2 tsp Baking powder

½ tsp Baking soda

¼ tsp Salt

½ Cinnamon

½ tsp Ginger powder

1 Egg

1 c Buttermilk

2 tbsp Oil

2 tbsp Maple syrup

½ c Pumpkin

In a mixing bowl whisk together the wet ingredients until well blended. Sift together the dry ingredients and quickly mix into the wet mixture with just a few quick strokes. The batter should be thick and a bit lumpy. Add a bit more buttermilk to thin or more flour if it seems to thin. Cook on a hot greased griddle. Excellent with maple syrup, of course!

Daikon Radishes

Here is some info and a few recipes I got from the Farmer John’s website.

Although daikon radishes are actually members of the far-flung cabbage family, they look like overgrown white carrots and taste like mild radishes. Unchecked, daikon radishes have been known to weigh in at 50 pounds. Since daikon radishes are milder in flavor than regular radishes, they can be used like any other root vegetable in cooking.

Storage

If the greens are still attached, remove and refrigerate them in a plastic bag and use them within a week. Wrap the unwashed root in a separate plastic bag and place it in the refrigerator, where it will keep for up to two weeks.

Handling

There usually is no need to peel daikon radishes. Wash them thoroughly in cold running water to remove any lingering dirt. Slice, dice, chop, or grate the daikon according to the directions of your recipe.

Daikon with Tahini Dressing

This is an attention-getting dish: it’s unique, it’s attractive, and it tastes wonderful. Mix in some cooked shredded chicken and an extra 1/4 cup tahini, and you have a delicious, unique chicken salad. Angelic Organics Kitchen (adapted from Recipes from a Kitchen Garden).

Serves 4

4 inches daikon, cut into matchstick-sized strips

3/4 cup thinly sliced red radishes

1 medium carrot, grated (about 1/2 cup)

1/4 cup tahini

4 scallions, thinly sliced

1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)

1 tablespoon dry sherry or vermouth

dash salt

sugar

1/4 cup chopped almonds (optional)

1. Combine daikon, red radish, and carrots in a medium bowl.

2. Whisk the tahini, scallions, lemon juice, sherry, salt, and sugar to taste in a small bowl until well combined. Thin the dressing with a few tablespoons of water until the mixture is a smooth paste.

3. Toss the dressing with radishes until well combined. Garnish with almonds if desired.

Daikon in Plum Sauce

This fast and delightful recipe makes for a great introduction to the daikon. It’s sweet and savory with a pleasing texture, and the daikon’s distinct flavor shines through. Angelic Organics Kitchen.

Serves 3 to 4

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons plum sauce

1 tablespoon minced scallion

3 tablespoons peanut oil

1 daikon, peeled, cut into matchstick-sized strips

2 tablespoons water

1. Combine the soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch in a small bowl; stir until cornstarch dissolves. Stir in the plum sauce and scallions.

2. Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Swirl the oil around the wok so that it covers the cooking area, then add the daikon; cook, stirring constantly, for 30 seconds.

3. Add the water and cover. Cook until the daikon is tender, 1 to 2 minutes.

4. Add the soy sauce mixture and continue cooking, stirring vigorously, until the sauce has thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.

Stir-Fried Daikon

Simple, satisfying, and whipped up in minutes, this makes a great meal with teriyaki salmon and a bowl of rice. Angelic Organics Kitchen (adapted from From Asparagus to Zucchini).

Serves 4

2 tablespoons peanut oil

1/4 cup sliced scallions

1 medium daikon, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)

10–12 red radishes, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon hot chili oil or more to taste (optional)

1. Heat the peanut oil in a wok over high heat. Add the scallions; stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the daikon and red radishes; stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the water and continue stir-frying until all the water has all evaporated.

2. Add the soy sauce, sugar, and chili oil, mixing everything together vigorously and cooking for 30 seconds more. Immediately transfer to a serving platter. Serve hot.

A Shareholder

When I was growing up in the Bay Area, my Uncle George used to go out salmon fishing. Quite often during the season, he’d stop by unannounced on his way home, and as soon as I saw his truck pull into the driveway, I’d start grating the daikon root. We would drop our dinner plans and put the fish right into the broiler. Gorgeous fresh salmon with lemon juice, soy sauce, grated ginger, and loads of daikon. It was my favorite meal then, and still is now.

Excerpted from Farmer John’s Cookbook: The Real Dirt On Vegetables: Seasonal Recipes and Stories from a Community Supported Farm by Farmer John Peterson & Angelic Organics (Gibbs Smith Publisher). Check with your local farm or bookstore for availability. Additional recipes, charts, signed copies of this book, and quantity discounts available at www.AngelicOrganics.com/cookbook.

Keep those happy cooking fires going!

Heather