Good Eats Weekly Newsletter - Nov. 13, 2019



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Winter is Here!

What a difference a week makes! With cold temperatures greeting us this morning, please try to pick up your shares earlier in the day if possible, especially if your share is an "outside" site. We take care to cover your produce with warm blankets to insulate from the cold, but it always helps to get them into inside sooner rather than later. If you notice any weather damage to any of your items, please let us know ASAP. Thanks!

Burlington Members:

We had an issue with our refrigeration unit on the truck this morning and all deliveries are delayed by one hour. We are sorry for the inconvenience!
Around the Farm with Taylar

Hello from the "log house"! As winter bore down around us, our crew of hearty harvesters was out getting this week's baby greens. From our log house (pictured below, named for its log poles), we harvested spinach, small purple and green lettuce heads, and upland cress, which went into your mesclun, along with mixed baby lettuces (red and green), mizuna, brassicas, and claytonia from our other greenhouses to make this tender mix. We raced against time and cold to get all the greens harvested. There are no lights in the houses. The log house has no heating. Our veggie beds stay warm with row cover (white fabric over the rows) typically until mid-winter and we harvest after the sun has warmed up the beds and before it is dark. Once everything harvestable is out of the log house in a week or two, anything left there will "overwinter" until the spring. The empty beds stay covered all winter so the ground stays warmer, which lets us start planting early in the season.

Harvesting in winter weather is no easy feat! It gave me a new appreciation for the food we then packed up yesterday. I take for granted the abundant fields of baby greens we reap all summer long. In winter, every head of lettuce, every piece of spinach, every cluster of cress is cut by hand, then washed and packed by our team. We have a cool contraption (for a future newsletter) that mechanically cuts some baby greens, saving your back, hands, knees, and joints, but the personal attention it takes to harvest these greens is a very different scale than the tractor in the field.

I hope to share more adventures of baby greens harvesting throughout the winter! Please enjoy these fresh greens. Please keep refrigerated and use within a week. We pre-wash them but we recommend you give them a nice rinse before eating. Enjoy!

~Taylar

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Reminders!

  • We are low on our bags! Please remember to bring back any of our bags that you have at home and bring your own grocery bag to bring your veggies home with you today.

  • Your share may come in a different colored bag or in a box today. Please be sure to look around your delivery site for a bag or box with your name on it!
Pantry/ Localvore Shares and Pantry Add-Ons
This week's pantry/ localvore pantry items are Soy & Barley Tamari, Rhapsody Natural Foods Original Tempeh, and 1000 Stone Farm Mushroom Medley- read more below

Cheese Shares: Cheese is OUT of the bag. This weeks cheese is Mad River Blue from von Trapp Farmstead.

Egg Shares: These are delivered OUT OF THE BAG. They are on your bag's tag but not packed in your bag. You'll find your dozen labeled with your name.

Bread Shares: These are delivered OUT OF THE BAG. From Elmore Mountain Bread in Elmore! They are on your bag's tag but not packed in your bag.

Milk Shares and milk orders from the store: These are delivered OUT OF THE BAG. They are on your bag's tag but not packed in your bag. They are in a cooler.

Store orders
Everything else ordered from the store is packed in your bag.

Pantry/ Localvore Items
  • Tamari: The tamari comes from North Hatley, Canada, from Suzanne and Gilbert, owners of Les Aliments Massawippi. Tamari literally means liquid pressed from soybeans, and for centuries it meant the thick brown liquid that pooled in casks of fermenting soybean miso. This tamari was a rare delicacy reserved for special occasions. The tamari in the share today was made by this slow natural process.This Soy Oats/Barley Tamari is pretty special and rare. It is a live food and has never been pasteurized, with a fuller richer flavor than soy sauce. You can use it to flavor stir fries, sauces, salad dressings, soups, grains and more. Please transfer to a small glass jar for best quality and store in your fridge. It will last a very long time. Like miso, sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented foods, tamari is alive with lactobacilli. These microscopic bacteria are good for your digestive system, but can be easily killed with too much heat. If at all possible, try to use your tamari at the end of the cooking process, stirring it in at the very end, once the pan has come off of the heat.

  • Mushroom Medley: These mushrooms are from 1000 Stone Farm in Brookfield. I have known Kyle for many years and I am really excited to be able to bring some of his amazing mushrooms to you guys! Kyle wanted me to pass along the following message about these mushroom varieties: The mushrooms should be cooked. This not only provides the best nutritional and health values, but it also deepens the flavor so that you get the most out of your quart. Enjoy!

  • Tempeh: This week you all are receiving the original tempeh from Rhapsody Natural Foods in Cabot. I know that in the past we have sent you the ready-to-eat flavored tempeh, but I wanted everyone to be able to decide how to flavor this product individually! Tempeh is an extremely versatile fermented soy product. Tempeh is a staple in Indonesia. It has a subtle, nutty flavor and a firm texture with a little bit of chew to it. You can bake it, sauté it, sear it, or deep-fry it! I personally like to slice it thin, fry the slices up, and then simmer it in a sauce. This allows the tempeh to absorb a ton of flavor and retain a nice texture! It is a larger portion than pantry members have received in the past, but half of it would feed 2-3 people. The remaining half could be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen for several months if you are concerned that you won't be able to finish it quickly enough.
Storage Tips
  • Tokyo Bekana: Tokyo Bekana is a Chinese cabbage. It is a member of the Napa family but has an open head instead of being tightly formed head like the Napa you are used to seeing. These cabbages have a gorgeous bright green color, mild, almost lettuce-like flavor, but with a slight bite on the aftertaste. Store these wrapped in a damp towel inside of a plastic bag.

  • Red Cipollini Onions: Cipollini onions are a small flattened Italian onion with a sweet, mild flavor. Cipollinis are traditionally served roasted or baked, but also work well on kebabs or eaten fresh. If you have never eaten a roasted cipollini you must, as you will never think of onions the same way. The advantage of the cipollini is its mild flavor that when roasted caramelizes quickly into sweet, flavorful goodness! Their shape lends them well to roasting. A classic Italian recipe is to glaze them with balsamic vinegar, roast and serve as part of an antipasto. Cipollini onions do not store as well as your typical onion. For short term storage keep in a cool, dry place or in the butter compartment of your fridge.

  • Fennel: crunchy and slightly sweet with the flavor of anise, fennel is delicious served raw but is just as often served cooked on its own or in other dishes. Though most often associated with Italian cooking, it has an uncanny ability to blend with other flavors adding a light and fresh note. It is delightful in soups and stews and sauces and is particularly at home with tomato sauce dishes. Fennel is composed of a white or pale green bulb from which closely superimposed stalks are arranged. To prepare, cut off the hard bottom and slice vertically or into quarters. Or cut the bulb in half lengthwise, cut out the core, and cut into strips. Add it raw to salads or try some thinly sliced fennel on your sandwich. Top thinly sliced fennel with plain yogurt and mint leaves. Or braise, roast or saute it. It is done when tender enough to pierce easily with a skewer.
RECIPES

Sweet & Spicy Tempeh:
Serves 4

Ingredients: 
  • 1/2 of the tempeh package
  • 2-3 onions or shallots thinly sliced
  • 4 cloves of garlic (minced)
  • 3T of honey
  • 1/4c tamari
  • 4T water
  • 1t sambal oelek, sriracha, or other hot sauce

Preparation:

  1. Heat enough mild cooking oil (such as sunflower seed oil or canola oil) in a deep pan to fry the tempeh.
  2. Cut the tempeh in half lengthwise and then slice 1/8" thick crosswise
  3. Once the oil is hot enough (stick a corner of one of the pieces of tempeh into the oil to test; if the oil starts to bubble, it's ready!) Fry the tempeh in oil until golden brown and crisp on both sides.
  4. Take tempeh out of pan and place on paper towel, to soak up the excess olive oil.
  5. Cook the onions over medium heat until they soften and start to brown. Add in the garlic and sambal and cook, stirring frequently, until very fragrant.
  6. Add water and honey until sauce begins to caramelize. Then add the tamari.
  7. Add tempeh into the pan and coat with sauce on low heat. If you need more sauce, just add more honey and tamari. Simmer until the sauce has reduced (think of the consistency of Chinese take-out) and thickened. It should be sticking to the tempeh
  8. Enjoy with a side of freshly steamed broccoli!


Mushroom & Bacon Congee:
This is definitely toddler-approved! I love to have leftovers of this dish for breakfast. It is the most nourishing way to start the day!

  • 1 cup short-grain rice
  • 2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
  • 6 to 8 cups water
  • 1 cup mushrooms
  • 1 3-inch piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 medium head of broccoli, cut into florets
  • 1 tablespoon scallions, thinly sliced
  • Bacon, diced

Preparation:

  1. Sauté bacon in a large pot. Render the fat to your preference. You can skip this step if you don't eat meat!
  2. Wash rice, and put it in a large pot with vegetable stock. Place over high heat until stock boils, then add about 4 cups water.
  3. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally and adding water as necessary (about 2 to 4 cups more.)
  4. After congee has been boiling for half an hour, add mushrooms to pot, along with ginger, carrots, and a generous pinch of salt.
  5. When the congee is almost done, add broccoli florets. Salt to taste. Serve hot in individual bowls and garnish with minced scallions and sambal (if you like a little heat!). 

Squash and Tokyo Bekana:
My toddler loves curry. It was one of his first favorite purées that I made him when he was first starting to eat food! His daycare recently served dal and most of them liked it, so I think you have good chances if you try this one out!

  • 3 pounds Kabocha squash (or any orange squash)
  • 1 bunch Tokyo Bekana (or another Asian green)
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper, ground
  • 1 teaspoons salt
  • 2 tablespoons grape seed oil (or another light frying oil like canola oil)
  • 1 stalk lemongrass
  • 2 cups veggie or chicken stock
  • 3 tablespoons red curry paste
  • 1 can coconut milk
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar

Preparation:

  1. Wash and dry vegetables. Thinly slice the onion and garlic, roughly chop the greens, and set aside. Peel and split the squash and remove the seeds, then cut into half-inch cubes.
  2. Add grape seed oil to a medium sized pot and turn on to high heat. When the oil begins to shimmer, add the onion, garlic, curry paste, salt and pepper, and cook for 3 minutes. Deglaze with the fish sauce and vinegar.
  3. Turn down the heat and add the squash, sugar, stock, and lemongrass and continue to gently simmer until the squash is very tender (about 20 minutes).
  4. Add the coconut milk and greens and cook just until the greens have wilted
  5. Right before serving, taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed. Serve alongside rice with chopped cilantro and sliced limes to garnish.


Papas Arrugadas (salt-crusted potatoes):

  • 2 pounds small yukon gold potatoes
  • 2 3/4c kosher salt
  • 1T cumin seeds

Prepare:

  1. Bring 2 qt of water to a boil in a large dutch oven. Add the potatoes, salt, and cumin. Cook, stirring occasionally to dissolve the salt and adjust the hed as needed to maintain a rapid simmer, until a fork easily slides in and out of your largest spud! This should take about thirty minutes.
  2. Drain the potatoes, then spread them on a wire rack set on a baking shet. Let dry until a salt crust forms on the skins, about five minutes.


Pete's Greens | www.petesgreens.com


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