Good Eats Weekly Newsletter - January 23, 2019

In Your Share This Week: FANCY/ LOCALVORE (PURPLE) Shoots, Yellow Onions, Garlic, Leeks, Daikon Radish, Adirondack Red Potatoes, Chioggia Beets, and OUT OF THE BAG Frozen Sweet Peppers EVERYDAY STANDARD (YELLOW) Shoots, Yellow Onions, Garlic, Parsnips, Adirondack Red Potatoes, Red Beets, and OUT OF THE BAG Frozen Sweet Peppers LEAN & GREEN (GREEN) Shoots, Daikon Radish, Garlic, Orange Carrots, and OUT OF THE BAG Frozen Sweet Peppers Pantry/ Localvore Items Champlain Orchards Applesauce: New item alert! This applesauce is made at Champlain Orchards in Shoreham, using their own eco-certified apples. I tasted some today - it's not your typical store-bought applesauce! This is a beautiful amber color sauce with a smooth (not gritty) texture. It's quite nice and I'm anxious to hear what you think of it, too! Keep refrigerated. Slowfire Bakery Bread: Scott Medellin, who owns Slowfire Bakery, took some time off, and then our schedules never quite coincided, but he's back and the schedule worked to include his yummy bread! Scott bakes out of a wood-fired oven in Jeffersonville, VT, on the road up to Smugglers' Notch Ski Resort. From Scott: the bread this week is theRye Porridge Bread: country sourdough with fully cooked rye flake porridge mixed in. The porridge softens the crumb and adds an earthy, spicy aroma, which should be nice for the cold days we’re having! Cellars at Jasper Hill Little Hosmer: Two cute little cheeses named for a cute little pond and big pond) here in Craftsbury. Hosmer Pond is just a couple miles down the road from us and is a favorite spot for locals and visitors. It's also a part of the Craftsbury Outdoor Center. In the summer it's used for boating and sculling and in the winter for ice fishing and skiing. This cheese was an experiment that seems to have stuck. This cheese is a smaller version of the popular Moses Sleeper, a brie-style cow's milk cheese. Each pantry member gets TWO. Sign up for your Spring Share Today! Don't miss a week without your Pete's share! The Fall/ Winter Share ends February 6/7. Sign up today so you can continue receiving your weekly veggie deliveries. The Spring Share runs February 13 - June 6, 2019. Around the Farm This week we received an annual report of what our farm contributed to Salvation Farms. Salvation Farms is a gleaning organization that works largely in the Lamoille Valley (which includes Craftsbury) but with a presence across Vermont. Readers of this newsletter may recall that we work with SF on field gleans and wash house gleans (un-sellable produce we have after our packing days). In 2018, we donated almost 40,000 pounds of produce! This produce is then distributed to over 30 organizations in the area, including senior programs, food shelves, children's food programs, schools, and more. This is a lot of produce that otherwise would not have found its way to Vermonters. While we're proud of the partnerships we have with Salvation Farms and dozens of other churches, non-profits, workforce development programs, and food shelves that we donate to, we also know we can do more to make local food more accessible and not rely quite so much on the charitable food system. In my off-time, I am working on a "food access planning" toolkit that will help communities integrate food access into their municipal planning efforts. This project is part of the Vermont Farm to Plate Network. Last week I had the opportunity to testify before the Legislature on the value of this toolkit and the Network - and of course to represent our farm. The toolkit will be ready by this summer and is full of actionable ideas to address hunger in our communities. Last summer I had a conversation with Pete about why our farm partners with Salvation Farms and other organizations on food access. His answer? "Because it's the right thing to do." In the spirit of our friend Enid Wonnacott, an advocate of the organic and local food movement who led NOFA-VT and was instrumental in forming the Farm to Plate Network, who recently passed away, I encourage all of us to think about doing the right thing when we have more than we need. ~ Taylar Ceres is the Roman goddess of agriculture. She was recently reinstalled atop the state house dome after being re-carved in 2018. Our state's economy is driven by agriculture, and when you choose to support farms like ours, you're supporting our local and state economy! We thank you! Storage Tips and Recipes Every week we'll send you snapshots of veggies in your share. You can always find more recipes and storage info on our blog and website. Mixed Shoots: A colorful zing of sunflower & radish shoots! I've been enjoying my shoots with slaws: shredded cabbage, grated carrots, sliced kohlrabi, and wedges of apples tossed with a light vinaigrette and shoots. The shoots provide a great color and texture against the roots. Daikon Radishes: This large root looks like an overgrown white carrot, but it is actually a radish. In Korea, cubed daikon radish is used to make a type of kimchi. Its mild taste makes it an excellent palate cleanser. In Japan, strings of daikon marinated in vinegar typically accompany sashimi. Try serving the radish in light salads where its own flavor won't be overwhelmed by the other ingredients. I suggest peeling it as the exterior is a little rough, but underneath you'll be surprised! You can cook it or grate it and eat raw. Wrap the unwashed root in a plastic bag and place it in the refrigerator, where it will keep for up to two weeks. Adirondack Red Potatoes: Adirondack Red potatoes have a bright red skin and an even more vibrant interior! Use these purplish red potatoes, which do lighten some after cooking, as vibrant home fries for dinner or breakfast. Store in a cool, dry, dark place.​ Frozen Sweet Peppers: Colorful sweet peppers, grown on our farm and frozen in our on-farm kitchen! We preserve the harvest by freezing some of our favorite summer veggies to enjoy in the off-season. Depending on how you use these peppers, you can thaw them first or throw them into your dish frozen. I like them on nachos, in black beans, and in tacos but you can throw them into your tomato sauce or into a stir-fry. Recipes Shoots Salad with VT Vinaigrette Here's a member submitted recipe.  3 parts canola oil or oil of your choice 2 parts apple cider vinegar 1 part maple syrup salt and pepper to taste garlic (minced or powder to taste) Try putting some VT Vinaigrette on the coarsely chopped shoots about an hour before serving as a side salad - toss in a few sliced almonds, maybe some croutons, maybe some feta cheese...or serve with some nice fresh bread.  Daikon with Tahini Dressing Serves 4 4 inches daikon, cut into matchstick-sized strips 3/4 cup thinly sliced red radishes (optional) 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 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. Stir-Fried Daikon 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. 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. Daikon Raita A raita is a yogurt-based condiment served alongside spicy dishes. It can be used either as a sauce or a dip. 1/3 cup shredded daikon 1/2 cup plain yogurt 1/4 tsp salt 1 TB freshly squeezed lemon juice Place shredded daikon in a kitchen towel and squeeze out extra moisture. Mix together all the ingredients and refrigerate at least 30 minutes to allow flavors to blend. Bring to room temperature before serving. Marinated Beets A little sugar softens the edge of the vinegar here and complements the natural sweetness of the beets. Keep these on hand for healthy snacks, or add to salads. 1 bunch beets 1/3 cup red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar Salt to taste 2 garlic cloves, cut in half 2 teaspoons sugar Place the beets in a saucepan, cover with water, add 1/4 cup of the vinegar and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until tender, 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the beets. Remove from the heat, add the garlic to the pot and set aside to cool. Remove the beets from the pot (do not drain), slip off the skins and cut in wedges. Combine the remaining vinegar and the sugar. When the sugar has dissolved in the vinegar, stir in 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid from the beets. Toss with the beets and the garlic. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then remove the garlic from the marinade. Remove the beets from the marinade with a slotted spoon to serve. Skin-on Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Parsnips Author: Dani Lind, Driftless Valley Organics 2 lb. red potatoes 1 lb. parsnips 5-7 whole cloves garlic, peeled 4 Tbsp. butter 1 c. milk or half & half ¼ c. sour cream salt & pepper to taste Instructions Scrub potatoes & cut into 2” pieces. Scrub parsnips & cut into similar sizes. Place cut potatoes, parsnips, & whole peeled garlic cloves into a medium sauce pan & cover with salted water. Bring to a boil covered, lower heat, & simmer uncovered for about 10-15 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Drain water & mash vegetables & garlic with the remaining ingredients. Need to Skip a Week? You can donate your share to the food shelf, receive a second share the following week, or receive a credit on your account. We ask for one week's notice. Sorry, no changes to the week's delivery after 8 am on Monday of that week. EMAIL TAYLAR TO SKIP A DELIVERY Questions? Contact Taylar, goodeats@petesgreens.com