Good Eats Weekly Newsletter - July 13th, 2016

News Updates
Did you know?
If you're out of town, you can skip a delivery and get a credit, or donate to the food shelf. 
Just email us at goodeats@petesgreens 
.com by the Sunday before your expected skipped delivery.
Full Veggie Share
 
Mesclun, Chard, Parsley, Celery, Carrots, Onions, Broccoli, Garlic Scapes, Euro Cucumber

Half Veggie Share
Mesclun, Chard, Celery, Carrots, Onions,
Garlic Scapes, Euro Cucumber


Localvore/Pantry Share
Slowfire Bread
Ploughgate Cultured Butter
Ruth's Rhubarb Jam
Around the Farm
Ever wonder what goes into making that wonderful bag of mesclun mix? We grow baby greens in our fields, one variety per bed. Once they're ready to harvest, we use our tractor-driven greens harvester to cut the greens, bring them up a conveyor belt, and drop them into bins, before heading inside to be washed, mixed, and bagged. This is just one of the ways we make growing food efficient so that we can feed more people!


   
 

 
Storage and Use Tips
 
Mesclun - Now that you know how we harvest our mesclun, here's a bag to appreciate. This mix contains kale, lettuce, chard, arugula, and more. Perfect for salads, store in your crisper drawer for up to one week.

Chard - Chard is a leafy green vegetable that is related to beets and spinach. Some of the stems are multicolored, while others have white or red stems only. Chard is a delicious nutritious green, high in Vitamins A, K, and C. This green works great as a spinach substitute but needs to be cooked down a bit longer. It also works well in soups and stews, or sauteed as a side.

Bunched Carrots - Both shares will have carrots straight from the field. They are bunched with their tops, which are edible too! See below for a great way to use all parts of the carrot. Store in your crisper drawer loosely wrapped in plastic.

Parsley - Full share members will get flat-leaf parsley this week. Much more than a garnish, parsley has lots to offer. Chopped parsley can be sprinkled on a host of different recipes, including salads, vegetable sautés and grilled fish. Combine chopped parsley, garlic and lemon zest, and use it as a rub for chicken, lamb and beef. Add it to soups and tomato sauces. It is a key flavor ingredient in the mediterranean dish tabouli.

Celery - The celery is beautiful this week.  You can eat celery fresh (or make ants on a log for the kiddos in your life), or cook it up- its incredibly versatile and can add a great savory flavor to lots of dishes. The leaves are good eating too! Celery leaves make a great flavorful addition to soups so chop tops and then freeze in plastic bags for use this Fall- you will be glad you did.

Onions - These onions are sweet mini onions straight from the field. They are great for eating raw in salads or braising or sauteing. They don't have a protective outer paper shell, so they won't store for a really long time like our winter onions. Store them in your crisper drawer for up to 10 days.

Broccoli -  Full share members will have broccoli this week. These green florets are a popular veggie that may already be an ingredient in some of your favorite recipes. But if not, it can be steamed, sauteed, or made into casseroles or salads. Store your broccoli cold in the fridge, loosely wrapped in a bag. You can even store it with a handful of ice cubes just to keep it extra cool.


Garlic Scapes - These tall, curly seed stalks that a garlic plant sends up at this time of year are a short season delicacy. Garlic scapes are trimmed from the garlic plants so that the plant will put energy into fattening the garlic cloves in the ground, not making seed. Garlic scapes have a nice garlic flavor, without the bite of garlic cloves. These scapes are young and tender and they may be eaten raw or cooked. You can chop and add to stir fry recipes, pasta dishes, guacamole, salsas, and vegetable dishes.

European Cucumbers! - These long, skinny cukes taste like a burst of summer. We were able to squeeze in some extra cukes this week as a special treat. While all of these cucumbers aren't the most aesthetically pleasing (they may be curled or uneven) they make incredibly good eating. Slice them up and toss them into salads or eat them as a snack on their own. Cucumbers like to be stored around 50 degrees, but if you don't have that climate in your house, your fridge's crisper drawer will also do just fine.
Veggie Storage and Use Tips are on our website too, so please bookmark the recipe and storage tip section. I am sure you will find it useful.
 
 
 
Localvore Lore
 
This week's Localvore share includes: Slowfire Bread, Ploughgate Creamery Butter, and Ruth's Rhubarb Jam! 

Scott Medellin of Slowfire Bread is excited to be baking in a new, bigger space now! Slowfire is a farm-based, wood-fired bakery. They make breads and pastries that are naturally leavened, hand-crafted, and baked in a masonry oven. This week, Slowfire is bringing you a Sourdough Ciabatta bread, which is suitably light and airy for these hot July days.

Marisa Mauro of Ploughgate Creamery is based in Fayston at Bragg Farm, a beautiful historic farm she acquired through the Vermont Land Trust. Marisa makes Cultured Butter fresh from Vermont cream. The cream is cultured for 48 hours before being churned, giving the butter a distinct tangy, nutty, and slightly cheesy flavor. Hope you enjoy this delicious fresh butter this week!

Ruth Antone makes delicious jams in Williston, Vermont. The Rhubarb Jam in your share this week was made just for the CSA with rhubarb from her farm. They've got a wonderful, large rhubarb patch, which they harvest for fresh selling and also for making jam. This little jar is packed with delicious rhubarb flavor with just the right amount of sweetness.
Recipes

Honey-Roasted Carrot Tartines with Whipped Goat Cheese and Pistachio-Carrot Top Pesto
 
Your favorite crusty bread
For the whipped goat cheese:
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
10 ounces fresh goat cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup whole milk
15 cracks black pepper
For the pesto:
3/4 (90 grams) cup roasted, salted pistachios
the juice (4-5 tablespoons) and zest of 1 large lemon
10 cracks black pepper
the tops and stems of 1 large bunch of carrots
1/2 packed cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon fresh mint, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
up to 2/3 cup olive oil
kosher salt
For the roasted carrots:
1 large bunch of carrots (about 2 pounds/900 grams)
about 15 fresh thyme stems
1 tablespoon fresh mint, minced
1 tablespoon hot honey (or, 1 tablespoon honey plus 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes)
1 scant teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil
 
Whipped goat cheese:
     Move all the ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, beat on medium-high speed for 2 minutes, or until the goat cheese whip is light and fluffy. (This can also be accomplished in a food processor.) (The goat cheese whip can be made up to 3 days ahead, and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before using.)
Pesto:
     Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Blanch the carrot greens for 45 seconds, and then shock them in an ice bath. (Or, run them under chilly water for 30 seconds. The idea is bring down their temperature and arrest "cooking.")
     Move the pistachios, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper, carrot greens, parsley, mint, and garlic to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 10-15 times, to break down the greens. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. As you run the machine, pour in 1/3 of the olive oil; blend for 10 seconds. (After the initial 1/3 cup, add olive oil tablespoon by tablespoon, until you have a pesto texture you're happy with-I had a lot of carrot greens, so it took 2/3 cup olive oil to achieve a "runny" pesto consistency.) Taste the pesto, and add more salt if needed. (The pesto can be made up to 1 day ahead, and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before using.)
Roasted carrots:
     Heat the oven to 400F/200C. Peel and chop the carrots into bite-sized pieces. Move the carrots to a large baking sheet and, using your hands, toss with the thyme, mint, hot honey, salt, and olive oil until evenly coated. Roast the vegetables for 30 minutes, until they are starting to brown on the outside, and they are tender inside. You can serve the vegetables hot, or at room temperature. (The vegetables can be made up to 2 days ahead, and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring to room temperature, or warm, before using.)
Putting it together:
     Toast some bread. For lunch, I'd cut slices from a sourdough boule, or use whole wheat sandwich bread, or rye bread. You can halve a baguette, and make more of a sandwich. If you're preparing this recipe for a party, use crostini rounds. The type of bread you use is not that important.
     Smear the bread with a generous swipe of the whipped goat cheese, and then a dollop of pesto. Pile on some vegetables. You could also top the toast with an extra drizzle of hot honey and/or a sprinkling of flake sea salt.
 
 
 
Cucumber, Celery, & Sweet Onion Salad with Sour Cream Dressing
 
3 tbsp. sour cream
3 tbsp. olive oil
3 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. chopped fresh dill, plus more for serving
Pinch sugar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 English cucumbers, thinly sliced
4 stalks celery, thinly sliced, plus 1/4 c. celery leaves
1 small sweet onion, halved and thinly sliced
 
Whisk together sour cream, oil, lemon juice, dill, and sugar in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Add cucumber, celery and leaves, and onion and toss to combine.
Serve topped with dill.
 
 
 
Lemon Garlic Scape Compound Butter
 
1 stick salted butter, softened
1-2 garlic scapes
zest, from 1/4 of a lemon
 
Chop the garlic scapes into small pieces, about a quarter of an inch each. Add the pieces to the bowl of a food processor and chop until fine.
Add the butter (you may need to give it a rough chop in order for it to fit in the food processor) and the lemon zest to the garlic scapes.
Puree in the food processor until all ingredients are evenly combined
Storage:
For immediate use, place the compound butter in a jar or plastic container. Store in the fridge for up to a couple weeks
For longer term storage, place the compound butter on a piece of wax paper, roll it into a log and twist the ends. See the image below. For additional protection, place the roll of butter into a plastic zipper bag. Store in the freezer for 2-3 months.
 
 
 
Rhubarb and Greek Yogurt Popsicles
If you have popsicle molds at home, this is an awesome healthy way to cool off on the dog days of summer!
 
1 jar of rhubarb jam
1 1/4 cups Greek yogurt (I used full fat)
milk or half and half or cream to thin the yogurt
 
Mix the yogurt with heavy cream, half and half, or milk to thin it. You want it to be thick but have a creamy consistency. There is no exact mount here, but since you are going to be spooning the yogurt into the molds, you want it a little looser.
Add a little hot water to the rhubarb jam to loosen it slightly.
Beginning with the yogurt, spoon alternate layers of yogurt and rhubarb jam into each mold until they are filled. Insert a skewer or chopstick down into each mold and stir just a bit to mix the layers and create a marblized effect.
Insert popsicle sticks in each mold, the sticks will stand up by themselves, so no need for a top or foil covering.
Freeze until firm, about 4 - 5 hours or overnight.
To un-mold the pops, fill your sink with hot water. Immerse the mold up to but not over the top edge, and hold for about 15-20 seconds. If the pops don't slide out easily, immerse for a few seconds longer.
Eat right away or store in plastic baggies in the freezer.
http://theviewfromgreatisland.com/rhubarb-and-greek-yogurt-popsicles/
 
 
Swiss Chard & Broccoli Baked Manicotti
 
For the filling:
12 manicotti tubes, cooked according to package directions
3 C. broccoli florets, steamed or boiled until tender
1 C. chopped swiss chard, blanched and drained
1 ½ C. fresh breadcrumbs
2/3 C. heavy cream or milk
4 T. olive oil
1 C. low fat ricotta cheese
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
½ C. grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the sauce:
2 T. olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed and minced
1 large (29 oz) can of diced tomatoes
2 T. tomato paste
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. dried marjoram or thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Pine nuts (optional)
In a blender, process the broccoli and swiss chard until smooth. Set aside. In a medium bowl, combine breadcrumbs with the cream/milk and olive oil. Stir until well combined. Add the ricotta, broccoli/chard puree, nutmeg and half of the grated cheese. Mix, season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
To make the sauce, heat the remaining olive oil in a frying pan and add the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until softened. Stir in the tomato paste until onions are coated. Add the diced tomatoes (juice too) and seasonings. Stir and bring to a boil for 2 or 3 minutes. Pour half of the sauce in a large greased baking dish.
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Using a piping bag or a ziplock bag with a small hole cut in one corner, carefully fill the cooked manicotti tubes with the filling. It might help to stand the tubes up on a cutting board, or just pipe in filling in each end. Place filled tubes in a single layer in the baking dish with the sauce.
When all the manicotti are filled and in the dish, spoon the remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Top with pine nuts if desired. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and bubbly. Serve hot.

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