This Week's Delivery Saturday April 16, 2011

Store In The Fridge:

Radishes-Tuscarora Organic Coop
Pink Lady Apples-Papa's Orchard
Red Swiss Chard- Hartland Farm
Buttercrunch Lettuce-Hartland Farm
Spring Onions-Northern Neck Fruits and Vegetables

Store In A Cool Dry Place:

Colorado Rose Potatoes-Path Valley Farms


Recipes and Information

Grilled Spring Onions with Romesco Sauce
This recipe is a bit more involved, but you can use this romesco on beef, chicken, eggs, as a dip with veggies, as a spread on sandwiches...it's very handy.


1/2 dried ancho chile, stemmed, halved,
and seeded
5 1/2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1⁄4 cup whole blanched almonds
1 slice crustless white bread,
roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp. smoked paprika
3/4 cup roughly chopped
jarred roasted peppers
1 1⁄2 tbsp. sherry vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper,
to taste
1 bunch scallions

1. Put chile and 1 cups boiling water into a bowl; let soften 5 minutes. Drain chile; roughly chop. Heat 4 tbsp. oil in a 10" skillet over medium-high heat. Add almonds and bread; cook until golden, 3–4 minutes. Transfer almond mixture to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Return skillet to medium heat. Add chiles, garlic, and onions; cook until golden, 3–4 minutes. Add paprika; cook for 1 minute. Put chile mixture, almond mixture, peppers, and vinegar into a food processor; purée. Season romesco sauce with salt and pepper; set aside.

2. Build a medium-hot charcoal fire or heat a gas grill to medium-high heat. Drizzle scallions with remaining oil; season with salt and pepper. Grill until charred and tender, 5–6 minutes. Serve with romesco sauce.

SERVES 2 – 4

This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #128

Colorado Rose Potatoes: A potato all the way from the Rocky lands. This early potato has rose red-skin. It is wonderful in all red potato recipes. Try them roasted with some rosemary and sage(also available from Blue Rock Farm) or in a delectable potato salad.

German Potato Salad

1 lb. waxy potatoes, such as red new potatoes
Kosher salt, to taste
2 strips bacon, chopped
1⁄4 yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2t all-purpose flour
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup white wine
1 tbsp. dijon mustard
3/4 tsp. sugar
1 tbsp. chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves,
plus more for garnish
Ground black pepper, to taste

1. Put potatoes into a 4-qt. saucepan; cover with salted water by 1". Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until potatoes are tender, 20–25 minutes. Drain; transfer to a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap to keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a 2-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat until crisp, about 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel; set aside. Reduce heat to medium and add onions; cook, stirring, until soft, about 8 minutes. Add flour; cook, stirring constantly, for 45 seconds. Add broth, wine, mustard, and sugar. Bring to a boil, whisking constantly; set aside.

3. Peel potatoes and cut into thick slices; transfer to a bowl. Pour in broth mixture, add parsley, and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Garnish with reserved bacon and parsley.

SERVES 2-4

And finally, check out this post on how to cook swiss chard-with photos!

with thanks,

christy and tom

This Week's Delivery Saturday April 9, 2011

Store In The Fridge:

Red Leaf Lettuce- Hartland Vegetable Farm

Lacinato Kale- Hartland Vegetable Farm

Mustard Spinach- Hartland Vegetable Farm

Cameo Apples-New Morning Farm

Store In A Cool Dry Place:

Red Onions-Tuscarora Organic Coop

Recipes and Information

Thanks to long time CSA member Anna for reminding us that Kale Chips are an awesome way to use your kale! Here's a recipe from Smitten Kitchen which has the added bonus of Kale Chip Dusted Popcorn (delish!):

Baked Kale Chips
Adapted from a bunch of inspiring places

1 bunch (about 6 ounces) kale (I used Lacinato or “Dinosaur” Kale but I understand that the curlier stuff works, too, possibly even better)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 300°F. Rinse and dry the kale, then remove the stems and tough center ribs. Cut into large pieces, toss with olive oil in a bowl then sprinkle with salt. Arrange leaves in a single layer on a large baking sheet (I needed two because mine are tiny; I also lined mine with parchment for easy clean-up but there’s no reason that you must). Bake for 20 minutes, or until crisp. Place baking sheet on a rack to cool.

Kale-Dusted Popcorn If you’re making the chips with the intention to grind them up for popcorn, I’d use less oil — perhaps half — so they grind without the “powder” clumping. I ground a handful of my chips (about half) in a mortar and pestle (well, actually the “pestle” was MIA so I used the handle of an OXO reamer, not that anyone asked) and sprinkled it over popcorn (1/4 cup popcorn kernels I’d cooked in a covered pot with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil over medium heat, shaking it about with potholders frequently). I seasoned the popcorn with salt. I liked this snack, but I think Parmesan and Kale-Dusted Popcorn would be even more delicious. Next time!

Mustard Spinach(Komatsuna) Information:

Also known as Tendergreen, they are sure to please anyone who loves fresh greens. Tastes great fresh, stir-fried, or steamed. A traditional Southern favorite.

An early maturing flavorful nutritious vegetable. Leaves are mild flavored, smooth and dark green. Usually cooked as greens but can be used raw in salads like spinach. Easy to grow and it is rich in vitamins and minerals.

As we learn more and more about the the health benefits of whole foods, Tom and I are amazed that specific combinations of certain foods yield very specific results. Here are some combinations for Mustard Spinach:

-Combined with dried sardine whiting, or with sakura ebi/Cherry blossom shrimp, or with scallops, or with konbu/seaweed, helps preserve human bones, and activate rejuvenation.

-Combined with tomatoes, or with wakame seaweed, or with carrots, or with green chili peppers, povides for extra stamina, and helps prevent cancer.

-Combined with rice vinegar, or with orange, or with lemon, or with strawberries, helps prevent stress, and sore back/articulations, and helps swift recovery.

-Combined with konnyaku/devil’s tongue tuber, or with mushrooms, or with celery, or with bamboo shoots, helps combat obesity and prevent high blood pressure. Helps lower down blood cholesterol.

Awesome!

Here's a recipe for Caramel Sauce that is really simple and great for dipping all those apples. Extra (yeah, right!) can be poured over ice cream.

Caramel Sauce

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of sugar

6 Tbsp butter

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

METHOD

1 First, before you begin, make sure you have everything ready to go - the cream and the butter next to the pan, ready to put in. Making caramel is a fast process that cannot wait for hunting around for ingredients. If you don't work fast, the sugar will burn. Safety first - make sure there are no children under foot and you may want to wear oven mitts; the caramelized sugar will be much hotter than boiling water.

2 Heat sugar on moderately high heat in a heavy-bottomed 2-quart or 3-quart saucepan. As the sugar begins to melt, stir vigorously with a whisk or wooden spoon. As soon as the sugar comes to a boil, stop stirring. You can swirl the pan a bit if you want, from this point on. Note that this recipe works best if you are using a thick-bottomed pan. If you find that you end up burning some of the sugar before the rest of it is melted, the next time you attempt it, add a half cup of water to the sugar at the beginning of the process, this will help the sugar to cook more evenly, though it will take longer as the water will need to evaporate before the sugar will caramelize.

3 As soon as all of the sugar crystals have melted (the liquid sugar should be dark amber in color), immediately add the butter to the pan. Whisk until the butter has melted.

4 Once the butter has melted, take the pan off the heat. Count to three, then slowly add the cream to the pan and continue to whisk to incorporate. Note than when you add the butter and the cream, the mixture will foam up considerably. This is why you must use a pan that is at least 2-quarts (preferably 3-quarts) big.

5 Whisk until caramel sauce is smooth. Let cool in the pan for a couple minutes, then pour into a glass mason jar and let sit to cool to room temperature. (Remember to use pot holders when handling the jar filled with hot caramel sauce.) Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Warm before serving.

Makes a little over one cup of sauce.

This Week's Delivery Saturday April 2, 2011

Store In The Fridge

Fuji Apples- Papa’s Orchard

White Carrots- Country View Farm

Mushrooms-Mother Earth Mushrooms

Kale- Hartland Farm

Scallions- Northern Neck Fruits and Vegetables

Store in A Cool Dry Place

Cannellini Beans-Path Valley Farm

Recipes and Information

We know, maybe you're getting tired of Kale by now, but it is SO good for you. At home we strip the leaves off the stems, wash them, then keep them in a bowl with a wet towel.

Salads and smoothies, salads and smoothies.

The scallions were the first of the season's deliveries from Farmer Steve Turnidge in the Northern Neck, a long time farmer friend. Tom meets him on the Mall at 7am every Thursday morning until late Summer/early Fall. Labor of love.

Use them in these scallion pancakes.

Mushrooms with Sherry and Sage

1/2 lb. white mushroom caps, quartered (save the stems and add them to stock later, or to a pot of rice while it's cooking)
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp. dry sherry
2 tsp. chopped fresh sage leaves

Put caps into a pan. Add cream and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer over low heat until cream is thick.

Add sherry and sage. Simmer for a few minutes more. Spoon over toast. Or pasta. Or chicken. Or steak. Or eggs...

Cannellini Bean Hummus

1/2 pound dried cannellini beans

1 lemon, juiced

1 teaspoon ground cumin (I would not add this because I find it overwhelming, your choice)

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 cup tahini paste

Salt and pepper

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

To cook the dried beans, soak them overnight in plenty of water. Drain, put them in a pot, and cover them with fresh water by 1-inch. Bring them to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer until they are tender, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Put the beans into the bowl of a food processor. Add the lemon juice, cumin, garlic, tahini paste, and salt and pepper, to taste. Turn the processor on and slowly pour in the olive oil. Process until smooth and thick.

Serve the hummus with your carrots!

Organic Pastured Amish Chicken Eggs: $4 a dozen

with thanks,

christy and tom

This Week's Delivery- Saturday March 26, 2011

Special shout out to Kelly and Emily, CSA members-we tore through some Old Plantation Oysters at Food Matters last night, sold out by 7:00! We are thankful to have more delicious and sustainably raised local oysters-yum and thanks for the heads up!

More information on the oysters here.

Store In The Fridge
Mustard Greens - Hartland Farm

Mixed Color Carrots - Sunny Ridge Farm

Parsnips - Windy Knolls Farm

Watermelon Radishes - Country View Farm

Mizuna Greens- Hartland Farm

Store in A Cool Dry Place

Red Pontiac Potatoes - Path Valley Farms

We were short on our precious Amish chickens for a couple of weeks but they are back and oh so tasty!

Whole Organic Pastured Amish Chickens $4.25/pound

Whole Organic Pastured Amish Chicken Eggs $4/dozen

Recipes and Information

Marmalade of Spring Greens

(you can mix the mizuna and mustard greens for this, or add any leftovers from last week)

From the book Mostly Mediterranean by Paula Wolfert

Serves

3-5

Culinate editor’s note: According to Paula Wolfert, this spread is inspired by the fillings found in Sicily’s impanatas. It has several steps, yet none is difficult. Read through the entire recipe at least once, and have all your ingredients ready before beginning. When finished, you will have cooked down quantities of greens into a delicious buffet appetizer you can prepare in advance. Serve with crostini, bruschetta, or multi-grain crackers; it also makes a tasty flatbread topping.

	1	lb. spinach, escarole, Swiss chard, or any mixture of greens
	~	Salt
	1	garlic clove, peeled and lightly crushed
	1 1/2	Tbsp. olive oil
	2	anchovy fillets, drained and crushed with a fork
	1	tsp. capers (preferably salted), rinsed and drained
	¼	cup chopped pitted olives (2 or 4 Kalamatas)
	1½	Tbsp. black or yellow raisins, soaked in warm water, drained and chopped
	⅛	tsp. chile flakes, or more to taste

1. Wash the greens, remove their stems or stalks, and drain. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the greens 3 to 10 minutes or until thoroughly tender. Drain, refresh in cold water, drain, and squeeze out excess water.
2. In a skillet, fry the garlic in olive oil over medium heat until lightly browned. Remove garlic and discard. Add the anchovies and capers and fry, stirring until the anchovy dissolves, about 1 minute. Add the greens and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes, or until the greens absorb the flavored oil.
3. Remove the mixture to a large cutting board, allow it to cool, then chop finely or pulse in a food processor with the olives, raisins, and pepper flakes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

If you're big into salads you might like to add some raw dark leafy greens to your next meal. Since eating raw greens in large pieces is intense and sometimes hard to chew, I suggest that this week you learn the technique of chiffonade. By learning to cut the greens into very thin slices you can add them to salads, pastas, eggs, soups and they can me enjoyed raw or slightly wilted, preserving the valuable nutrients.

Here's a link to learn the chiffonade technique. Great demo but they pronounce it incorrectly.Geez.


Watermelon Radishes

A bit milder and sweeter than regular radishes, and much larger; they average about three inches in diameter. Watermelon radishes can be braised or roasted like a turnip, or mashed like a rutabaga, but we personally hate to cook them because it causes them to lose their beautiful colors, so we prefer to serve them raw in a salad or in a veggie plate with some dip. Watermelon radishes can also be pickled.

Watermelon radishes are a heirloom variety of daikon radishes and originated in China where they are called shinrimei.

Best Way To Eat Radishes

From the book Local Flavors by Deborah Madison

A good radish sandwich can be nothing more than sweet butter spread on bread and topped with sliced radishes and sea salt. But this is an easier way for getting the radishes and butter on quickly (and getting them to stay on), especially if you’re making radish sandwiches for a crowd.

		6 small or 2-3 largeradishes
		4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
		1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
		sea salt or at least kosher salt if you can
		Toasted Baguette slices, for serving

1. Wash and trim the radishes. Thinly slice the radishes into rounds.
   
2. Mix the butter with the lemon zest until it’s soft, then stir in the chopped radishes, radish leaves, and a few pinches of sea salt. Spread on slices of crusty baguette and serve.

Red Pontiac Potatoes

An early season potato with sweet, solid white flesh with a flavor you just have to try to believe! The large, round tubers hold their shape and color during cooking, making them a great all-around choice for boiling, baking, and easpecially mashing, but not so much frying.


enjoy!

with thanks,

christy and tom

This Week's Delivery Saturday March 19, 2011

Store In The Fridge

Kale -Hartland Farm, VA

Red Leaf Lettuce- Hartland Farm, VA

Parsnips-Windy Knolls Farm, PA

Carrots-Breezy Hill Farm, PA

Fuji Apples-Papa's Orchard-VA

Recipes and Information

Parsnips:Growing from its shoulder above ground the plant's foliage resembles large celery leaves and stems. Its tapered root varies in skin color depending on variety, but its flesh is always a creamy white. Parsnips have smooth skin with a sweet, nutty flavor and fine grained flesh.

Parsnips, like carrots, may be used in sweet or savory preparations because of their high natural sugar content. Cook diced parsnips in milk and sugar until tender, then puree, strain and freeze into ice cream. Boil cooked parsnips until tender, then mash with butter and cream and blue cheese. Saute sliced parsnips with onions, tomatoes, and vegetable stock, then blend into soup. Thinly slice parsnips, fennel and celery root, then toss with a lemon vinaigrette.

Roasted Carrots and Parsnips

• 1 pound parsnips, peeled
• 1/2 pound carrots, unpeeled
• 1 1/2 tablespoons good olive oil or coconut oil(!)
• 1 1/2 t kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill or parsley

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

If the parsnips and carrots are very thick, cut them in half lengthwise. Slice each diagonally in 1-inch-thick slices. The vegetables will shrink while cooking, so don't make the pieces too small. Place the cut vegetables on a sheet pan. Add the olive or coconut oil, salt, and pepper and toss well. Roast for 20 to 40 minutes, depending on the size of the vegetables, tossing occasionally, until the parsnips and carrots are just tender. Sprinkle with dill and serve hot.

Adapted From Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa

Roasted Kale
1 bunch kale, stems removed
Approximately 2 teaspoons olive oil
½-1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place kale in an oven-proof baking dish. Add oil gradually, and with tongs, toss to coat kale, until thoroughly coated. Add salt, garlic and pepper flakes, tossing to coat.

Place in oven and roast until tender and just slightly crispy, 8-10 minutes. Serve immediately.

Local Humanely Ground Rose Veal $6.99/pound

This makes awesome meat sauce for serving on pasta, polenta, or (for us Paleo folk,) sweet potatoes!

with thanks,

christy and tom

This Week's Delivery Saturday March 12, 2011

I'm typing this before I head into tonight's Moutoux Orchard Dinner (where I will see some of you!)

Store In A Cool Dry Place:

Coco Rubico Beans-Path Valley Farms-PA

Store In The Refrigerator:

Corn Meal-Path Valley Farms-PA

Savoy Melody Spinach-Corvallis Farm-VA

Red Russian and Vates Kale-Hartland Farm-Locust Dale, VA

White Button Mushrooms-Mother Earth Mushroom-PA

Monocacy Ash Goat Cheese-Cherry Glenn Goat Cheese-MD

Recipes and Information

Cherry Glenn Monocacy Ash
Farmstead Soft Ripened Goat Cheese

This soft-ripened two-layer cheese is very similar to the previous cheese, but has an edible ash coating and ash line through the center. Using the same culture as in the Silver, this more complex cheese tastes slightly different due to the alkalinity of the vegetable ash. Although we would not pair this with Champagne or dark chocolate - it ranks right up there. Decadent! Serve with fresh or dried fruit, toasted nuts, preserves, honey, crackers and/or bread. Awesome with eggs.

Coco Rubico Beans are bush-type beans.
The pods are 5 to 6 inches (13 to 15 cm) long, with up to 6 beans per pod; 60 days from seed.
The pods are cream-colored, and almost completely covered with bright red-coloured streaks. The beans inside are similar: cream-colored with red spots.
Coco Rubico Beans can used fresh (shelled from the pod, partially-dried or fully dried), or when harvested very young, can be eaten as green beans, pod and all.

Beans and Greens

Serves 2

1 cup dried beans

5 T olive oil

1 whole dried red hot chili

1 small onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 bunch greens, such as Swiss chard or kale, washed and cut into ½-inch wide strips

1 fresh lemon, sliced

Sort beans and soak overnight in bowl using 3 times as much water as beans. The next morning rinse beans thoroughly with cold water. In medium saucepan, combine soaked drained beans with 1-quart fresh water. Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer, leaving lid slightly ajar, until beans are tender (about 30 minutes). Turn off heat and set aside. In small fry pan, heat 3 T olive oil. Add dried red chili, onion and garlic and cook until onion turns brown on the edges. Add contents of fry pan to pot of beans and stir to mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper. In large pan heat olive oil, add greens and coat with oil. Add several tablespoons of water; cover pan and steam until greens are tender. Combine greens with beans or serve on the side and garnish with fresh lemon slices.

recipe from zursunbeans.com

Cornmeal Pancakes

1 cup cornmeal

1 tablespoon brown sugar or honey

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup boiling water

1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 cup milk

1 medium egg

oil for frying

In a good sized mixing bowl combine the cornmeal, sugar or honey, and salt. Add the boiling water. The cornmeal will swell up into a lumpy mess. That’s alright, don’t worry about it. Stir the lumpy mess vigorously with a whisk or fork until it is a thick batter. Let it cool down a little bit. Add the flour, baking powder, milk and egg. Keep stirring the batter until it is nice and smooth. Drop the mixture by 1/3 cupfuls onto a hot, greased skillet. Fry until the underside is golden brown, and the top side bubbles a bit. Turn the pancakes over and continue frying until well browned.

Stack on a plate and serve with applesauce, or pancake syrup. Another option is to serve them as the hot bread with a main meal like soup, or chili.

One more thing. About mushrooms. I myself have never understood them raw. Canned, forget it. Do yourself a favor and learn how to properly sautee a mushroom. It will change your life forever.

Here's how.

Extras:

Local Humanely Ground Rose Veal $6.99/pound

Wild, Sustainably Caught Mahi-Mahi from Florida $16/pound

Whole Organic Pastured Amish Chicken Eggs $4/dozen

Head's Up: We will be doing and event with Olli Salumeria from Richmond on April 14th. Details to come...

First Week's Delivery: Saturday March 5, 2011

Here we are. Ready?

Store In The Fridge

Kale- Hartland Farms, VA

Red Leaf Lettuce- Hartland Farms, VA

Spring Mix- Path Valley Farms- PA

Carrots-Breezy Hill Farms-PA

greens need to be washed.

Store In A Cool Dry Place

Yellow Dutch Shallots-PA

Wildflower Honey-Golden Angels Apiary-VA

Also Available

Local Humanely Ground Rose Veal $6.99/pound

Local Grass Fed Bison Roast $6.99/pound

Whole Organic Pastured Amish Chickens $4.25/pound

Whole Organic Pastured Amish Chicken Eggs $4/dozen

Last year I typed up a whole mess of things you might want to have around the pantry and kitchen for the season. If you're interested in reading that post, here it is.

We are very lucky to get greens this early on-hooray!

Right off the bat I need to share this recipe for a raw kale salad. I tasted this recently at Mom's Organic and then searched the internet for the recipe. The recipe calls for currants and pine nuts but I save money by using raisins and walnuts or almonds or pecans...No need to marinate overnight either, a few hours should do it.

Kale Salad With Pinenuts, Currants And ParmesanBon Appétit | February 2009

by Dan Barber

Makes 3-6 servings 1 tablespoon dried currants 3 1/2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar, divided 1/2 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar 1/2 tablespoon honey 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 bunch kale (about 1/2 pound), center ribs and stems removed, leaves thinly sliced crosswise 1 tablespoon pine nuts, lightly toasted Parmesan cheese shavings Place currants in small bowl; add 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar. Let soak overnight. Drain currants. Whisk remaining white balsamic vinegar, rice vinegar, honey, oil, and salt in large bowl. Add kale, currants, and pine nuts; toss to coat. Let marinate 20 minutes at room temperature, tossing occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle cheese shavings over salad and serve.

Time To Start Making Your Own Salad Dressings!

Here's a basic vinaigrette.

Dice one small shallot and add to a jar

Add 1 tsp of Dijon Mustard.

Next you have a choice of what to add next to the shallots in the jar:

2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice PLUS 1 tsp of lemon zest

OR

2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar

Add one 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper to jar. Stir with spoon.

Add one 1 tsp of chopped fresh Italian parsley (optional)

Add 1/2 cup of GOOD olive oil to the jar. You will begin to see the olive oil and vinegar separate. Once you have double the amount of olive oil to your vinegar solution, you are ready to shake.

shake. use some. keep the rest in the fridge for next time. yum.

Questions? Let Us Know. We're here for you.

with thanks,

christy and tom