Pete's Greens at Craftsbury Village Farm

Good Eats Newsletter - September 15, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 19:56:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
 Orange Carrots; 1 Bunch of Chiogga Beets, tops on; Yellow Onions; Cippolini Onions; Savoy Cabbage; 1 Bunch of Kale; Sweet Pepper; plus...  

1 Bag Mesclun Greens
10 Ears Sweet Corn
Tomatoes 

 Localvore Offerings Include: 
Butterworks Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
 Champlain Orchards Macintosh Apples 
Les Aliments Massawippi Miso

Pete's Musings
Sign up now for the Oct - Feb share period! We are more prepared than ever for this share with a full freezer, excellent storage crop production, and great Fall and Winter greens coming along in the greenhouses. Today we'll freeze another 1000 lbs. of red peppers, next week we'll begin to puree winter squash, another batch of chickens will go in the freezer tomorrow - the bounty of Fall never ends.

Fall harvest is in full swing. We tackled potatoes on Sunday, a big job that I had been dreading a little because the field they are in this year has little clumps of sod in it (and stones) that prevent the potato digger from working at its full potential. It is a huge and excellent crop and we've worked out a system for harvesting them that, while not pretty, will get the job done.

 The crew is doing great. I knew things were going well yesterday when I got to the potato digger a couple minutes early and then watched a group of 4 guys sprint 100 yards across the field racing and wrestling with each other as they ran to see who could get to the digger first. They seem to like working on the digger. I drive the tractor and it is a boring and tedious job but always gratifying to see the potatoes emerge from the earth.

 The crew has been playing basketball a few evenings a week. Gringos against amigos, we gringos have lost every game but one even though we have a significant height advantage over our friends from south of the border. The amigos are quick, play with great teamwork, are excellent passers, and don't miss many shots. They are very fun to watch and maddening to play against. We haven't thrown in the towel and have been working on some new defensive strategies that we think might shut them down. ~Pete

Storage and Use Tips
Cippolini Onions - Pronounced chip-oh-LEE-nee. These are the short, disk-shaped yellow onions in your bag. Originating in Italy, cippolinis are very sweet and delicious. Try roasting some whole. Peel them, toss with a liberal amount olive oil, a few sprigs of thyme, salt and pepper, and roast in a 375F oven for around 30 minutes, or so. Serve as a side dish. Store in a cool dark place.

Chioggia Beets - An Italian variety, chioggias have alternating white and pink rings of color on the inside. The outside is lighter and more pinkish than traditional red beets. With a sweet peppery flavor, they are smooth and mild tasting. To prevent chioggias from bleeding their color, roast them whole then slice crosswise to show off the beautiful rings. Roasted this way, they make a stunning addition to a salad made with the baby greens and shoots mix. Yoiu can also slice them thin and add them to salads raw. I keep a bag of them pre-sliced in the fridge and toss them in to salads daily. Even pre-sliced they keep very well in the fridge for a week or more. Do roast and store cooked chioggia beets separately from your red beets to prevent the chioggias from being dyed red. Store raw beets loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in your crisper drawer.

Sweet Corn - Today's sweet corn is small in size and they may have some earworms! Earworms won't hurt you and are the result of growing corn without any pesticides, organic or otherwise. Back in the day, all corn came with the possibility of earworms or earworm damage. With the development of pesticides, we aren't used to seeing these pesky creatures anymore, but with organic corn, there is always that risk. Cut the kernels off in damaged areas and enjoy good corn while it lasts.

Savoy Cabbage - Round with crinkled leaves, Savoys are the beauties of the cabbage world. Their leaves are more delicate and more loosely packed than their green cabbage cousins. Store as you would other cabbages, unwashed, loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in the crisper drawer. Don't worry if the outer leaves begin to discolor or tear on you, just remove them to expose the perfectly good leaves remaining below.

Fall/Winter Share Begins in Just 5 Weeks on October 20th
Vegetable Only, Localvore, and Meat Shares Available

NEWSFLASH!~ We have decided to offer a Vegetable Only Share this Fall along with our Localvore Share.

The Fall share is a rich share period that inspires a great season of cooking. We are still harvesting much of the vegetables from the field at the start of the share. Remnants of summer such as tomatoes and peppers may appear, but by mid-November the offerings will be distinctly fall-like. Our root cellar will be overflowing with potatoes, onions, leeks, turnips, shallots, rutabagas, carrots, beets, cabbages, kohlrabi, celeriac, and winter squash. We expect to be harvesting baby greens such as head lettuce, and other hardy greens such as chard and kale into December. With each passing year, Pete gets better and better at growing salad greens and sprouts in the cold winter months and last year we succeeded in sending out fresh green salad fixings throughout the share. We intend to provide something fresh and green nearly every week this winter to compliment our wide variety of roots and storage crops. We will also be supplementing our stored crops and fresh greens with frozen item like tomatoes, corn, spinach, braising greens, winter squash, rhubarb, peppers and more. The combination of storage crops, hardy crops, greenhouse items and frozen and preserved veggies and fruits will keep us all eating a healthy, rich local diet all winter long. 
There are only 4 more deliveries after this week - DON'T DELAY.

Sign up for the Good Eats Fall/Winter Share now to ensure your continued weekly deliveries. The Fall share begins on Oct 20th and continues through Feb 16th.  Please visit the Fall/Winter Share page for details and to download a sign up form.

If you have questions about the Fall Share, please email Amy.

Pete's Pastured Chicken
All chicken is not created equal. Most chickens live in terribly cramped, foul smelling barns, breathing ammonia fumes most of their lives. "Free range" chickens usually fare better but the only requirement for free range birds is that they have the OPPORTUNITY to go outside. Meaning the barn they live in needs to have a door that connects the birds to the outside. Because all their feed and water is inside the barn, the birds often do not take advantage. And most free range producers do not have lush fields on the other side of that chicken door, often just an overused dirt yard.

At Pete's Greens our chickens lead a pretty charmed life. They begin their days in the greenhouse, and then move outside as soon as they are feathered out. They spend their whole lives eating greens from the farm, and get plenty of fresh air and sunshine.

 Our chickens are an important part of the fertility plan on the farm. They are moved from place to place, cleaning up fields and greenhouses before the old crops are tilled under. They provide a valuable service, making use of the greens as feed, and leaving behind nitrogen to replace that which the arugula drew from the soil. This is good for the fields, it's a great, fresh environment for the birds, and it's also great news for those of us who dine on them. The meat from our birds are packed with far more vitamins than non pastured birds.

You can order chickens and have them delivered directly to your pick up site any week (except meat share weeks). Minimum order is 3 chickens, but if you order 5 or more you can take advantage of our special price of $3.50/lb (regular price is $3.75/lb).  For more info about our chickens, and to order, please visit the chicken page.

Localvore Lore
Last year, our few Vermont wheat farmers had a near total crop failure of whole wheat pastry flour. It was a wet season and the wheat just molded. This year we will have beautiful pastry flour and other flours as well to choose from. Fresh from harvest, and freshly ground for this week's share, we have Butterworks Farm organic whole wheat pastry flour. Pastry flours are made from soft wheat varieties with less gluten than hard wheat varieties. Like all whole wheat flours, the flour is ground from the entire grain - bran, endosperm and germ are all present. The germ contains oils that can go rancid, so please store this flour in a cool dry place. I often keep my whole wheat flour in my freezer if I know I won't use it up in a month or so.

And of course we couldn't send fresh flour without some inspiration for baking, so along with the flour you will be receiving fresh MacIntosh apples from Champlain Orchards. Macs are great for baking (the apples will be softer than some other baking varieties), and also great for fresh eating of course.

Gilbert and Suzanne of Les Aliments Massawippi in Quebec made the superb Japanese miso in the share today. The two are big supporters of local growers. Their oats come from Michel Gaudreau. Their soy beans come from a grower within 60 kilometers of their facility, and their Quebec barley is processed on the south shore of Montreal. The seaweed for the Japanese miso comes from southern New Brunswick and Gaspe Bay. To make this miso, Suzanne and Gilbert begin by introducing their own lactobacilli culture to washed oats. After culturing for 45 hours, they have what is called, "koji," the basis for making their miso. At this point, they will mix in soy that has been soaked and then slowly cooked for 20 hours. This part of the process takes around 4 days. The next phase of miso production is fermentation. Gilbert and Suzanne ferment their miso very carefully controlling the temperature, humidity and oxygen levels. Their fermentation chamber is on premises, and is held at a continuous 60F. The Japanese soya and oats variety in the share this week ferments for 2-3 years. As a fermented product, miso will keep in your fridge many years. There are so many delicious and interesting ways to eat miso. To make a simple cup of miso soup, mix a heaping teaspoon of miso with cold water to make a paste. Then, stir in hot (but not boiling water) to make a hot breakfast beverage, midday pick-me-up or soup base for a meal. Add a small amount of vegetables (carrots, onions, greens) to the boiling water and perhaps some noodles to for a heartier cup. As miso is a living food, try not to cook it, rather, stir it in at the end of cooking once the pan is off the heat.

Recipes

 Savory Corn Cakes
Excellent with a tomatillo or pico de gallo salsa. Grate a little cheese on top while still warm, if you'd like. Serves 4.  

1 TB oil 
1 cup thinly sliced onions 
3 cups fresh corn kernels, about 3 ears worth 
1 jalapeno, minced, to taste 
salt to taste
1 TB lemon juice 
2 eggs 
1/2 cup yogurt
1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour 
1/2 cup cornmeal
 1/2 tsp salt 
1 tsp baking powder 
oil for cooking  

Saute onions, corn and chilies in oil with a sprinkling of salt for about 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and set aside. Whisk together eggs and yogurt. Blend together dry ingredients. Add corn mixture to the eggs and then fold in the dry ingredients.  Heat a lightly oiled griddle over medium high heat. Spoon batter making 3 rounds. Cook until golden on both sides, flipping once, about 7 minutes total.

Spicy Savoy Slaw
Adapted from a 2002 Gourmet recipe.
5 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 to 2 teaspoons minced fresh serrano chile (including seeds)
1 teaspoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
1 1/2 pounds Savoy cabbage, thinly sliced (6 cups)
1/4 pound carrots sliced very thinly sliced lengthwise, or grated (1 cup)
1/4 sweet bell pepper, cut into thin matchsticks

Whisk together vinegar, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until sugar and salt are dissolved, then whisk in chile, ginger, and sesame oil. Add remaining ingredients and toss well. Let stand, uncovered, at room temperature, tossing occasionally, until wilted, about 30 minutes.
Baked Black Beans and Corn, Enchilada Style
Here's a really quick and easy dish if you'd like to use up some of your corn. Serve this along with some fresh shredded cabbage, sour cream, hot sauce, and lime wedges. From How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman.

 1/4 c extra virgin olive oil 
2 c salsa (homemade is preferred), warmed
 4 c cooked or drained canned black beans
1 cup fresh (or frozen) corn kernals
salt and ground black pepper
1 c cubed Monterey Jack cheese (or cheddar)
1 c crushed tortilla chips
1/2 c crumbled queso fresco (don't worry if you don't have this, it will be great anyway without it) 
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro for garnish (again optional)

Variation suggestion - you could add chopped beet greens to this dish. They'd bring up the nutritional value and would be tasty.  

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Use a tablespoon or so of the olive oil to grease a 2-quart souffle or gratin dish or a 9x13-inch baking dish.  Spread the salsa and con queso in the dish and spoon the beans on top. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Spread the cheese cubes around evenly, pressing them into the sauce and beans a bit. Sprinkle with the tortilla crumbs, then the queso fresco, and drizzle with the remaining olive oil.  Bake until the cheese has melted, the sauce is bubbly, and the tortilla chips are browned, 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the size of your dish. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the cilantro and a few more grinds of black pepper if you like, and serve.

Miso Carrot Sauce With Ginger
Here's a quick dressing to put on your mesclun greens and raw chiogga beet salad this week. From Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, this dressing is very similar to the dressing you might receive on your green salad at a nice Japanese restaurant.

  ¼ cup peanut or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn 
¼ cup rice vinegar
 3 tablespoons miso
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil 
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into big pieces 
1 inch-long piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into coins 
Salt and freshly ground black pepper.
 Put all ingredients except salt and pepper into food processor and pulse a few times to mince carrots. Then let machine run for a minute or so until mixture is chunky-smooth.

Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or cover tightly and refrigerate for up to several days.

Nutty Miso Sauce 
Another versatile sauce from Mark Bittman, this one goes well with many vegetables and will be delicious on top of your steamed kale or beet greens this week. Also rather good on sliced tomatoes.

One 1 inch long piece of ginger
1/4 cup miso
1 cup shelled walnuts (or any other unsalted roasted nut, or seeds, or 1/2 cup tahini, 1/2 cup water)
1 tsp tamari

Grate the ginger over a bowl, then press out the juice to obtain about 1 tsp. Combine ginger juice with remaining ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth, stopping the machine and scraping down the sides if necessary. Add a little water or tamari until mix is desired thickness. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Honey, Apple Crisp 
Incredibly easy to throw together, this crisp makes a lovely weeknight treat. Serve it with a dollop of last week's yogurt or a spoonful of whipped cream. Serves 6-8.

  1.5 lbs apples, peeled, cored and sliced (about 6 cups)
1/2 cup + 2TB honey, divided, or to taste
 1 tsp vanilla pinch salt
 1/2 cup flour 
1/2 cup rolled oats 
3/4 tsp cinnamon 
3/4 tsp ground nutmeg 
5 TB cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces  

Preheat the oven to 375F. Butter an 8" square pan and set aside. Combine the apples, honey, vanilla and salt. Spread into the prepared pan. Whisk together the flour, oats, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in the honey, and then cut in the butter until a coarse meal forms. Sprinkle over fruit topping. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the juices are bubbling, apples are tender and the top is golden brown. Serve warm.

Good Eats Newsletter - September 8, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 15:00:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Red Norland Potatoes; 1 Bunch of Beet Greens; Red Torpedo Onions; Mixed Sweet Peppers; Jalapeno Peppers; 2 Heads of Garlic; Zucchini; Broccoli; 1 Bunch of Mizuna; plus...

1 Bag Arugula

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Foagies
VT Pasta Spinach Ravioli
Maine Sea Salt

Pete's Musings
I have one guilty pleasure in life. It is buying pre Tacoma (pre 1995) Toyota pickups. I've written about this before, some of you are probably tired of hearing about it and would rather hear about the details of kohlrabi production, but sometimes you just have to write what you feel. Anyway, my life transportation plan is to accumulate 10 Toyota pickups. Each is good for 3-5 years of driving so I figure that will pretty much take care of my transportation needs until I'm old enough to become a road hazard. I like the 2wd models for general road use. Great mileage (30 mpg plus), sporty performance (I hear the snickers), and always an open bed to fill with a bike or a dog or two. You can pick these up for about 2 grand so I figure $20,000 for the purchasing, another $10,000 for parts over the next 40 years (remember I'll have plenty of parts vehicles), and I'll be mobile for the next 40 years for less than $1000 per year.

I have a partner in this plan. His name is Andrew and he is my brother. He likes to act like I'm crazy but has been assisting in the plan and now has acquired one of these trucks for himself. He has lived in Utah for several years and Utah is a great place to buy these yotas. Little salt, a great website that makes them easy to find, and a little less competition from the amigos in Mexico than places like LA and Arizona. He just moved back to Vermont and brought one of these trucks for himself and towed one for me. So now my stash is up to 3-only 7 to go though I have no idea where I will store them. I've been encouraged to take a break from the acquisitions for a few years but who knows how long these most perfectly designed of all vehicles will be available? Enjoy the share this week, it is a nice one. ~Pete

Sean's Adventures
Sean has been let out on furlough and is enjoying a few days of leisure away from the farm. Imagine my surprise when his post appeared in my email box moments ago. He is dedicated to serving you all with his weekly farm tales. Check out Sean's blog.

Fall/Winter Good Eats Sign Up
The Fall share is a rich share period that inspires a great season of cooking. We are still harvesting much of the vegetables from the field at the start of the share. Remnants of summer such as tomatoes and peppers may appear, but by mid-November the offerings will be distinctly fall-like. Our root cellar will be overflowing with potatoes, onions, leeks, turnips, shallots, rutabagas, carrots, beets, cabbages, kohlrabi, celeriac, and winter squash. We expect to be harvesting baby greens such as head lettuce, and other hardy greens such as chard and kale into December. With each passing year, Pete gets better and better at growing salad greens and sprouts in the cold winter months and last year we succeeded in sending out fresh green salad fixings throughout the share. We intend to provide something fresh and green nearly every week this winter to compliment our wide variety of roots and storage crops. We will also be supplementing our stored crops and fresh greens with frozen item like tomatoes, corn, spinach, braising greens, winter squash, rhubarb, peppers and more. The combination of storage crops, hardy crops, greenhouse items and frozen and preserved veggies and fruits will keep us all eating a healthy, rich local diet all winter long.

Sign up for the Good Eats Fall/Winter Share now to ensure continued weekly deliveries! The Fall share begins on Oct 20th and continues through Feb 16th.

Please visit the Fall/Winter Share page for details and to download a sign up form.

Storage and Use Tips
Red Torpedo Onions - The red torpedo onion is an heirloom onion native to Torpea in Calabria, Italy, where it has been cultivated for well over a thousand years. It has been around that long because it is touted to be the sweetest onion in the world. Delicious raw, they can be used in salads and sandwiches. Cooking these onions though brings out its divine sweetness, with roasting and carmelizing delivering a melt in your mouth delicacy. They are not terrific keepers, so they are generally around only in Fall after harvest. As always, store onions in a cool dry environment or loosely wrapped in your crisper drawer.

Sweet Peppers - we have sweet peppers again this week. Our harvest has been great this year with the intermittent rain and loads of sun. If you aren't keeping up with yours, I thought I'd offer a couple freezing suggestions. Sweet peppers freeze beautifully and are so pricey off season that it's well worth doing so. Just core and deseed them, and then slice them up into quarters or slices or toss them into a freezer bag. They'll be perfect in stir fries, casseroles, etc. Or try roasting them and then freezing them. If you can avoid eating them after roasting them.... To roast, simply core and seed, quarter them, brush them with olive oil (or not), and then roast them in the oven, skin side up at n oven temp of anywhere from 45o to broiling. The hotter the oven, the quicker they will roast. With a very hot oven, you may want to turn them a time or two for even roasting.&n bsp; Roast until the skins blister and brown or char a bit. Then remove from oven to cool. Most cooks like to remove the charred skins from the peppers before using in a dish. This is done easily if you cover the cooling peppers with a cloth for 10 minutes. The steam loosens the skin and peeling is easier. If freezing your peppers however, skins on may be better as it's said that they help prevent freezer burn. You can peel them when they thaw.

Mizuna - Also known as spider mustard, mizuna is a Japanese mustard green with tender leaves and a pleasant, peppery flavor. You could substitute it, chopped, in a salad calling for arugula. It adds a nice zest to a stir-fry or saute. Store mizuna, unwashed, loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in your crisper drawer.

Beet Greens - The beet greens in your share today are best eaten cooked. They are related to Swiss chard and may be used exactly the same way. I love them sautéed with a bit of oil and vinegar (balsamic or apple cider) and salt & pepper. Or with garlic, oil, a drizzle of sesame oil and tamari. You can also toss them into most recipes that call for other greens (mustard greens, spinach). They are milder in flavor than mustard greens, but a bit stronger than spinach. They are delicious.

Arugula - Also known as Rocket or Roquette, this is a very popular and versatile green, that can be eaten raw, but also stands up well in the sauté pan. It has a peppery mustardy flavor so some people prefer to tone it down by mixing it with other greens. It blends particularly well with goat cheese and balsamic and olive oil. It is delicious simply sautéed in a pan with olive oil. I toss it on sandwiches to give them pep, and into salads to take it up a notch. This is baby arugula which is the mildest of all.

Localvore Lore
Several local treats this week. First from Ted Fecteau and VT Pasta we have a brand new product that he has developed just for us. The spinach ravioli are made with our own spinach, goat feta from VT Butter and Cheese Co., organic buttermilk from Butterworks Farm, and the pasta itself is made using organic whole wheat flour from Butterworks Farm and Aurora Farms organic white flour. I can think of three sauces that would be delightful with these - a sage brown butter, a nice marinara, and a roasted red pepper sauce - re cipe included. The ravioli will go out frozen. If you are not going to cook them up tonight, just toss them back in your freezer til you will use them. To cook, boil a pot of salted water. When boiling, toss in the frozen pasta, and cook for 5 minutes or until tender.

We have sea salt from the Maine Sea Salt Company. The Cook Family isolates the salt in the same basic way people have done forever, yet it's the first salt works company to be set up in Maine in 200 years.

Our solar greenhouses, known as "salt houses" are filled with fresh seawater from the Gulf of Maine. The seawater evaporates naturally, from the heat of the sun and the drying effects of the wind blowing through the greenhouses. Over a period of time, fleur de sel floats on the pool surface, then grows and sinks to the floor to form the salt bed. When all of the water has evaporated, the sea salt is ready to be packaged as natural Maine Sea Salt™. We do not wash or bleach our salt at any time during the solar production process. Therefore, the nutritious trace minerals naturally occurring in seawater are retained in our products. We also do not use chemicals or drying agents.

And back by popular demand, Blair and Andrew baked us some more tasty Elmore Mountain Bread Foagies - their focaccia hoagies. For special sandwiches these are just wonderful toasted and then topped with roasted veggies or tomatoes, some feta or goat cheese and a drizzle of oil and perhaps some good vinegar. They are made with Quebec organic unbleached wheat, water, extra virgin olive Oil, sea salt, yeast.

Recipes
This is a terrific week for a stir fry, you could throw nearly every single vegetable this week into the wok. Though I am skipping that recipe option, it's there for you if you are in that mood. The other super obvious easy direction is a roasted veggie meal, with the sea salt as the star topping. I see a meal of roast potatoes, onions, zucchini and peppers.

Roasted Veggie Focaccia
My suggestion for lunch this week involves roasting some veggies up in preparation.

Roasted red torpedo onions (following directions below)
Roasted red peppers (following directions above)
1/2 bunch Beet Greens
2-3 cloves Garlic
jalapeno (totally optional!)
goat cheese, or parm, or cheddar or whatever suits you

Roast peppers and onions in advance.

In a sauté pan, add a bit of oil and garlic and cook for no more than a minute. Add beet greens and saute until well wilted. Add a little red wine vinegar or balsamic at end.

Split the focaccia in half and toast one round in toaster oven. Brush with olive oil. Top with roasted veggies, beet greens/garlic, and cheese of choice, all mixed together.

Toast again until all is hot. Delicious.

Spinach Ravioli with Roasted Sweet Pepper Cream Sauce
This one also calls for roasting your peppers in advance.

1 tablespoon olive oil 
1 medium onion, chopped 
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
 3 tablespoons packed fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried
2 teaspoons packed fresh oregano or ½ teaspoon dried oregano
2 roasted red bell peppers (roast according to directions in Storage and Use Tips)
 1 cup half-and-half
 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper 
½ teaspoon salt 
¼ teaspoon black pepper

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil for your ravioli. Meanwhile begin the prep below. Add ravioli to pot and cook for 5 minutes to the pot while you are on the final step of the prep of your sauce below.

1. In medium skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add onion; sauté until onion is tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer and do not burn. Remove from heat; set aside.

2. In food processor , process basil and oregano until chopped. Add onion mixture and peppers. Process until smooth, scraping sides if necessary.

3. Add onion-pepper mixture to skillet. Over medium heat, heat to simmer. Add half-and-half, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper. Cook until mixture is thickened and heated through. Serve hot over cooked ravioli.

Potato, Roasted Pepper and Mizuna Salad
Adapted from Epicurious.com. You can roast and peel peppers following the directions below. Anchovies are a great source of omega-3s. If you are not so sure you are an anchovy lover, try this recipe. You may change your mind. Serves 4.

2 pounds potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
3.5 TB dry white wine
2 mixed colored sweet peppers
half of a 2-ounce can flat fillets of anchovies, drained, minced
4 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive or sunflower oil
2-3 red torpedo onions, sliced (or 1 bunch of green onions)
1 bunch mizuna, sliced

Place potatoes in large pot. Cover with water. Boil until potatoes are just tender. Drain well. Transfer to large bowl. Mix in white wine. Char red or yellow peppers over gas flame or in broiler until blackened on all sides. Wrap in paper bag and let stand 10 minutes. Peel and seed. Rinse if necessary; pat dry. Alternatively, grill green or red peppers at a lower temperature to color and soften, without a lot of char. Cut peppers into 3/4-inch squares. Transfer to medium bowl.

Combine anchovies and vinegar in small bowl. Gradually whisk in oil. Pour 2/3 cup dressing over peppers. Add remaining dressing, green onions and mizuna to potatoes and mix gently. Season peppers and potatoes with salt and pepper. Let stand 30 minutes. Gently mix peppers into potatoes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before serving.)

Classic Oven Roasted Onions
Bursting with rich brown flavors, roasted onions can be a one-dish meal, a first course, a salad or side dish. For a simple supper, try the warm onions with balsamic, maybe a drizzle of olive oil, and a crumbling of a favorite blue cheese, mild fresh goat cheese, or sp,e parm or whatever appeals.

4 medium to large organic onions (yellow, red, white)

Spread a sheet of foil on oven rack and preheat to 400 degrees. Trim away root and a 1/4 inch of top of onions. Set root side down on foil, spacing about 2 inches apart. Roast 1 hour, or until easily pierced with a knife. Serve warm or at room temperature. Make 2-inch deep cross out of top of each onion, spread slightly and season.

Seasoning Ideas:
*salt and freshly ground black pepper, 2 TB wine vinegar and 1 TB extra-virgin olive oil
*3 TB balsamic vinegar and possibly 2 to 3 oz of Gorgonzola, Maytag Blue, fresh goat cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Fontinella, or cheese of choice, crumbled or grated
*chopped fresh herbs, rice and grain salads.

Asian Greens with Ginger Miso Dressing
This dressing of ginger, miso, tahini (sesame paste) and lemon adds a creamy balance to organic baby spinach, arugula, mizuna, and baby asian green blends.
1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
2 TBS white miso (or brown if you don't have white)
3 TBS tahini (sesame paste)
1/2 cup water
3 TBS fresh lemon juice

Salad:
5 ounces baby Asian salad mixed greens with mizuna
Several radishes or 1 small daikon, sliced into 1/8-inch-thick rounds
1 carrot, cut into 2-inch-long slender sticks
 2 green onions (white part only), chopped (or sub in slices red torpedo onions, sliced thin)

For the dressing, place ginger, miso, tahini, water and lemon juice in a blender and blend until completely smooth. The consistency should be similar to cream. Strain the dressing through a fine sieve to remove ginger fiber if desired (I never do).

For the salad, divide greens among serving plates. Arrange radish and carrot on top, then sprinkle with scallions/onions.
Drizzle one to two tablespoons of dressing over each salad and serve. Delightful recipe.

Good Eats Newsletter - September 1, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 14:29:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
Orange & Yellow Carrots; Shallots; Sweet Mixed Peppers; Yellow Swiss Chard; Leeks; Yellow Storage Onions; Radishes; Edamame; Savoy Cabbage; plus...

1 Bag Mesclun
1 Head Lettuce

Localvore Offerings Include:
Red Hen Grain & Seed Bread
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Les Aliments Massawippi Tamari
Quebec Mixed Cracked Grains

Laughing Moon members will get their pizza dough this week.

MEAT SHARE MEMBERS - THIS IS A MEAT SHARE WEEK

Pete's Musings
Just your average August day at Pete's Greens. Here are some of the things that have already happened today. We harvested, washed, and packed 800 lbs of baby greens; picked and shucked 3 pallets of corn for freezing tomorrow; finished prepping and packed 300 gorgeous CSA shares; harvested piles of fennel that are at risk of going by in this heat; packed meat shares; containered tamari for tomorrows delivery, sent a bunch of veggies to stores and restaurants via Black River produce; worked on our new reefer truck; bushhogged several fields; tended the farmstand; fed and watered lots of chickens; weeded; answered dozens of emails; wrote a CSA newsletter; planned tomorrows fall crop planting, and it goes on. Thanks crew, we're getting it done. ~Pete

Sean's Adventures
This week Sean takes a short farm tour with Pete, gleaning tips and info on specific veggies out in the field. Check out Sean's blog.

Fall/Winter Good Eats Sign Up
The Fall share is a rich share period that inspires a great season of cooking. We are still harvesting much of the vegetables from the field at the start of the share. Remnants of summer such as tomatoes and peppers may appear, but by mid-November the offerings will be distinctly fall-like. Our root cellar will be overflowing with potatoes, onions, leeks, turnips, shallots, rutabagas, carrots, beets, cabbages, kohlrabi, celeriac, and winter squash. We expect to be harvesting baby greens such as head lettuce, and other hardy greens such as chard and kale into December. With each passing year, Pete gets better and better at growing salad greens and sprouts in the cold winter months and last year we succeeded in sending out fresh green salad fixings throughout the share. We intend to provide something fresh and green nearly every week this winter to compliment our wide variety of roots and storage crops. We will also be supplementing our stored crops and fresh greens with frozen item like tomatoes, corn, spinach, braising greens, winter squash, rhubarb, peppers and more. The combination of storage crops, hardy crops, greenhouse items and frozen and preserved veggies and fruits will keep us all eating a healthy, rich local diet all winter long.

Sign up for the Good Eats Fall/Winter Share now to ensure continued weekly deliveries! The Fall share begins on Oct 20th and continues through Feb 16th.
Please visit the Fall/Winter Share page for details and to download a sign up form.

Pete's Open Farm Day
Our open farm day this year was attended by around 200 people who came throughout the day. People really seemed to enjoy the tours of the farm, given via tractor/wagon ride. Our open farm coincided with the first annual Kingdom Farm & Food Days which was well attended by people wanting to visit all the open farms in the area and learn more about the food production happening here. There were quite a few people who planned their weekend around the event, visiting farms on Saturday, and then taking part in the workshops at High Mowing and eating well at the Local Foods Showcase on Sunday. This event will continue to evolve in the next couple of years and will be a really great weekend to plan to make time for. The planning is already underway for next year.

Outstanding Blog Posts
Two great blog posts out this week about the Outstanding in the Field dinner held at the farm. Click below if you'd like to read more about the event.

Farm Plate blog
Piccante Dolce blog

Storage and Use Tips
Edamame - Soybean varieties grown for eating the beans from the pod are called edamame. Long common in the Japanese diet, in recent years edamame has been gaining popularity in the US and now I see kids in daycare with their little containers of beans for lunch. And no wonder because it's incredibly easy to prepare, the beans are delicious, and they pack a lot of nutrition into a very small package. A half cup of shelled edamame (from approx 1.25 cups of pods) contains 9 g fiber, 11 g protein, and a good amount of Vitas A and C. Edamame freezes really well too. Just blanch pods in boiling water for 2-3 mins, drain and cool in ice water, and freeze in a single layer, then bag. Edamame should not sit in the fridge for days before you get around to eating it. Like all beans they are better the fresher they are. If you won't eat them in the next few days, freeze them!

Yellow Swiss Chard - Chard comes in many varieties with stems gleaming in an array of gorgeous colors, this week yellow. I know that none of you need any introduction to Swiss chard but this morning I read an article about how most Americans don't get nearly enough potassium or magnesium. And then it went on to list top sources of both and chard was there at the top of the list for both nutrients. And of course it's at the top of the charts for vitamins K & A (you get more than 100% of your DV), C (you get more than 50%), and it's an excellent source of iron, Vita E, fiber, copper, calcium and the list goes on. How nice that it is also so versatile and delicious.

Localvore Lore
From Randy George at Red Hen Baking Co.
This week we are baking a bread that could be called "Four Grains and a Seed" that features some fun things grown in the area. There is wheat flour from both Aurora Farms and Gleason Grains, cornmeal from heirloom corn (Wahpsie Valley variety), flax from Canada, oats from Canada, and cracked rye. Many of you have probably had our Mad River Grain bread. This is a version that sticks a little closer to home in terms of the ingredient sourcing and is also a fair bit darker because we have used a higher proportion of Ben Gleason's whole wheat. Enjoy! ~ Randy

Two items in the share today from Isaac's Quebec trip. In North Hatley, Suzanne and Gilbert, owners of Les Aliments Massawippi, make very fine miso and miso-damari (aka tamari). 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. It is an unpredictable process in terms of flavor and yield. Each time I call Gilbert to place a tamari order, what I give him is really just a wish list. It's not until after he presses the miso that we find out how much tamari will be available.

Eventually producers learned to brew tamari-like liquid soy sauce that had similar characteristics as the original by-product of miso. Most high end tamari is brewed from whole soybeans, sea salt, water, and koji (Aspergillus hacho) rather than pressed from naturally fermented miso. The newer method is a fast way to turn out a fairly consistent product that is similar to but not nearly the quality of the real thing. Commercial soy sauces (even some labeled as shoyu or tamari) are another step down and are usually made from soybeans that have been defatted with hexane, a petroleum derivative. Other common shortcuts are artificial fermentation methods including genetically engineered enzymes. Most soy sauce is actually caramel colored water with lots of salt, hydrochloric acid treated soy isolate, and sugar added.

This tamari is pretty special and rare. It is a live food and has never been pasteurized. This is a Soy Oats Barley Tamari. Please transfer to a small glass jar and for best quality and store in your fridge. It will last a very long time.

From Michel Gaudreau in Quebec we have his Mixed Cracked Grain cereal mix. This is a blend of 6 grains, including organic wheat, rye, oats, barley, spelt, and flax seed. The grains have been cracked for quicker cooking. This grains mix can be cooked and used as you would use bulghur wheat or barley, it can be cooked as a breakfast cereal, or added to breads and muffins for some whole grain goodness.

Pa Pa Doodles eggs again this week. Enjoy them, it will be two more weeks (Sep. 22) before you see them again. We are on a two week on, two week off schedule.

Meat Share
Tangletown Whole Peking Duck - I have been wanting to supply duck for a while. But it's hard to get and it can be expensive. Why is it pricey? Because it turns out ducks are notoriously hard and time consuming to pluck! So I was excited to get an email from Lila at Tangletown Farm telling me that she was going to have more ducks than she would have room for in her freezer. Tangletown Farm is a small family farm in Middlesex, Vermont. Lila Bennett & David Robb and their three children raise a diverse selection of organic and ethically raised animals for meat. They farm as a family with a vibrant commitment to healthy animals, healthy people, and sustainable agriculture. They purchase certified organic grain when available from growers in Addison county and believe strongly that Vermonters can thrive on VT grown food. All of the Chickens, Ducks, Guinea Hens, Turkeys, Rabbits, Lambs, Pigs and Cows are raised on lush pasture. You can meet Lila and Dave any week at the Montpelier and Waterbury Farmers' Markets.

Pete's Pastured Country Style Pork Ribs - Our pork has just returned from the butcher and we are in the meat business again, while it lasts! Our pigs are pasture raised on our farm, with acres and acres to call their own. They graze on the plants and grasses in the field, wallow in their mud hole when it's hot, and make use of lots of leftover vegetables on the farm. They live a supremely happy life, just being pigs. Because of the vegetation they take in, their meat is vitamin packed. Country style ribs are great, marinated and slow cooked, finishing them off on the grill or under the broiler. You can also cut them up and use them to make chili, stews, or a rustic pasta sauce. If you cook them slowly (1.5 to 2 hrs) in the oven and then finish them on the grill or at a higher oven temp, you will be rewarded with meat falling from the bone, tender, browned on the outside, tender on the inside ribs, no matter what flavor you make them. A simple BBQ recipe follows below.

Pete's Pastured Ground Beef - A second offering of our own this round as we have recently put some of our beef in the freezer. We raise our beef in partnership with friend and neighbor Bruce Urie. Our beef are raised on pasture, and fed Bruce's own hay in winter supplemented with some beet pulp and soy. Like their pig friends and neighbors, they spend their days on pasture, un-medicated, hormone free, stress free.

Recipes

Leek and Swiss Chard Tart
This recipe comes together quickly after sautéeing the leeks and the chard for a few minutes. Although the recipe here calls for puff pastry, you can line your pie plate with a regular pie crust or change it up by adding several layers of filo dough instead. Your choice. You could reduce the fat by switching from full cream to part cream, part milk. You could even go to straight milk though you will lose some of the rich flavor of the dish. The recipe comes from Bon Appétit October 1999 and makes 8 servings.

1 sheet frozen puff pastry (half of 17.3-ounce package), thawed

2 tablespoons butter
3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 bunch Swiss chard, ribs removed, leaves chopped (about 2 1/2 cups)

1 1/4 cups whipping cream
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch of ground nutmeg

Roll out pastry on floured work surface to 12-inch square. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Trim overhang to 1 inch. Fold under; crimp edges. Cover; chill.

Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add leeks and thyme. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover; cook until leeks are very tender but not brown, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add chard; saut until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; cool.
Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 425°F. Whisk cream and next 5 ingredients in large bowl. Mix in cooled leek mixture. Pour filling into crust.

Bake tart 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake until filling is puffed and just set in center, about 15 minutes longer. (Tart will take longer to cook if using more milk, less cream.) Transfer to rack; cool 10 minutes.

Roasted Carrots And Leeks Recipe
serves 8

8 large carrots
4 large leeks
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon crumbled dried tarragon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Wash and peel carrots and cut into 1-inch chunks, or, if using smaller carrots, cut slightly longer pieces. Trim leeks, reserving tough parts for making stock if you wish. Split leeks in the middle lengthwise and wash thoroughly to remove any sand and dirt. Cut into lengths about the same size as the carrots.

Pour olive oil to cover the bottom of a heavy-bottomed, oven-proof skillet. Heat and add carrots; toss and pan-roast until vegetables begin to brown a little. Add tarragon and salt and pepper. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in oven.

Add a little additional olive oil to the pan and saute leeks until they wilt and begin to caramelize. After carrots have baked for about 1 hour (less time if using small carrots), add leeks, toss with carrots and continue baking for about 15 minutes more, or until vegetables can easily be pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes.
Curry Carrot-Leek Soup

1 pound thinly sliced leeks, white parts only
1 pound carrots, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons butter or stick margarine
1 medium potato, peeled and diced
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

In a large saucepan, saute leeks and carrots in butter until leeks are tender. Add potato and curry powder; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add broth, salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the vegetables are very tender. Cool slightly. Process in batches in a food processor or blender until pureed. Return to the pan; heat through.

Tahini Tamari Lemon Dressing
This is yummy dressing. You can swap the olive oil for sunflower oil. You can skip the nutritional yeast though it does add depth to the flavor. The dressing is great on green salads (it's similar to Amy's Goddess dressing) and also great as a fresh veggie dip and with falafel.

2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup tahini
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/4 cup tamari
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste

In a blender, combine olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, nutritional yeast, tamari, honey, oregano, mayonnaise and salt and pepper. Process until smooth and serve over salad.

Edamame

whole fresh edamame pods
salt (preferably sea salt or kosher salt)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add edamame and continue boiling until beans are crisp-tender, about 10 minutes. To prevent overcooking, start checking for doneness approximately 7 minutes after cooking. (To check, remove one carefully, dip in cold water to cool, and taste.)

When done, run cold water over, or put in ice water, to stop cooking. Drain well; pat excess moisture off, and sprinkle with salt to taste. (Start with 1/2 teaspoon.)

To eat, hold pod by stem end, and slide the individual beans out with your teeth. Discard pod.

Mixed Cracked Grains
The recipe below gives the very basic method of cooking mixed cracked grains. There are many, many ways to play with cooked grains though. For a special breakfast cereal, cook them with part water and part milk and add dried fruit, nuts, cinnamon and maple syrup or sugar (as you would for oatmeal). Or cook them with broth as you would a risotto. Cook them plain and use them in a salad, dressed with a special dressing to flavor the whole dish. Or bake the cooked grains with vegetables and or meats and some seasoning in the oven for a hearty meal. The cooked grains can be kept in the fridge for a week, so cook up a pot and see what uses you might find for them during the week. Many mixed grains recipes have rice as part of the blend. You can try adding 1 part uncooked brown rice to 3 or 4 parts mixed cracked grains and cooking them together.

Basic Recipe
1 cup Mixed Cracked Grains
3 cups water
1/2 tsp salt

Boil water, add grains and salt. Cover and simmer until tender, about 35 minutes. Drain if necessary.

Ground Beef and Savoy Cabbage Lo Mein

12oz ground beef
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1/2 head savoy cabbage
1 medium carrot
1 sweet pepper
4 oz spaghetti - about 1 1/4" (3cm) diameter
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup beef stock
1 tbs tamari
2 tbs sherry
1 tbs cornstarch

Cook pasta according to package instructions.
While pasta cooks: Thinly slice onion. Mince garlic. Mince ginger (peel first). Cut carrot into matchsticks. Slice pepper into thin strips. Remove dark green outer leaves from cabbage. Cut off a thick slice, avoiding the core. Lay flat, cut into 3 or 4 wedges, then thinly slice the wedges
Heat olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and carrot to skillet; stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, peppers, cabbage and stir-fry another 3 minutes. Remove vegetables from skillet and set aside. Add beef, and fry, breaking it up as it browns. Return vegetables to pan. Add beef stock and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. In a small bowl, whisk together sherry, tamari and cornstarch. Uncover skillet and stir in cornstarch mixture until thickened.

When pasta is done, drain and add to skillet. Toss to combine, tongs work best, or two forks. Serve. (If spaghetti doesn't fit into pan, put it into a large bowl and pour beef and vegetables on top.) Add more tamari if desired, according to taste.

BBQ Country Style Ribs
This recipe was reviewed by over 200 users of allrecipes.com, most giving it 5 stars. Not surprising as the method is perfect for this cut of meat and the lemon slices on top help tenderize the meat while it cooks. You could use any BBQ sauce for this, or just serve the ribs plain if you have picky kids in the house. They'll be yummy regardless. Some reviewers covered the ribs with foil for the first 2 hours to keep the more moist.

10 country style pork ribs
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 (18 ounce) bottle barbeque sauce

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
In a shallow baking pan or roaster, place ribs in a single layer; salt if desired. Spread the garlic on the ribs, then place the lemon slices on top. Bake in a preheated oven for 2 hours - the ribs should be tender. Drain any grease and liquid. Pour BBQ sauce over the ribs. Return to oven and bake one more hour at 200 to 250 degrees F.

Oven Roasted, Delicious and Tender Tangletown Duck:
This is Lila and Dave's method for roasting their ducks in the oven. Though duck meat is quite lean, there is a layer of fat under the skin of ducks so drippings will be copious. Be watchful in case the fat should catch fire (less of a concern in the oven than on the grill).

1 Whole Duck

For stuffing (none of this is set in stone - use what you have)
3/4 cup celery - chopped
1.5 cups onions, chopped
1/2 apple, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
fresh herbs (thyme,oregano and sage are favorites)
Seeded Baguette, pre toasted and cut into small cubes

Preheat Oven to 350.
Mince at least 2 cloves garlic and rub over entire duck.
Place ON A RACK in a roasting pan. (this is important so as to let the fat from
the skin drip out).
Remove heart, neck and liver from cavity. Add stuffing to the cavity.

Gently make a few smalles holes in the breast and back of your duck. This is to
allow the fat to be released more evenly.

Put the duck in the oven, breast sided down. reduce the temperature to 275.
Cook slowly for 2 and a half hours or so.
Pull the duck out and flip over. Increase the heat to 300 and cook for another
30-45 minutes until the duck is fully browned. it will be more time for a duck
over five pounds, less for a duck under four pounds.

Drain the fat out of the pan. Save for later use in other recipes. Or, add garlic and herbs and make the fat into a rich gravy. Be careful not to over-cook your duck. Duck meat by nature is very lean, even though the skin has quite a bit of fat. The meat is flavorful and tender when cooked carefully and thoroughly.

Grilled Duck
So, there are two ways to grill duck: with a small grill fire or a large one. Meaning not what temperature you heat your grill to when you begin, meaning that you can either cause a small grill fire or a large one while cooking. Cooking a duck on the grill equals fire. No matter how you choose to grill your duck, keep you eyes on the duck at all times. All methods below have been tested thoroughly by Lila and Dave.

For a smaller fire:
Cut your duck in half. Cooking halves is much easier, and only takes a minute to cut the duck in half with a very sharp knife. Rub your favorite seasonings on the duck. We usually use salt and pepper only, as the duck flavor stands alone. We have marinated in barbecue sauce, or garlic herbs and a dash of olive oil as well. For a small grill fire, gently poke some holes into the breast and back of your duck (about 1" apart and piercing through both skin and fat until the knife tip meets the resistance of the duck meat below). Pan sear for a few minutes to just cook out some of the fat. Keep the duck moving a bit in the pan so as not to begin to cook the meat very much. Because duck meat is very lean it is important to cook the meat slowly to keep it from toughening.
Turn your grill on Medium.
Wrap your duck halves in foil, and place on the grill with the open carcass side down. Cook for 7-10 minutes, with the cover on the grill. Wait until you hear dripping and sizzling a bit going on. Then flip the duck and cook for about five minutes.
Now, remove the foil, and let the duck brown.

If the fire is getting big, take the duck off, let the fire burn out, and start again.

Duck is done when the skin is thin and crispy, and the duck is brown all over. If skin is not thin and crispy, the fat underneath has not been cooked off.

You can use the method above to grill a whole duck. Just wrap in foil and grill for 40 minutes or so. Then cook uncovered to brown.

If you want to grill the duck without foil, cut the duck into smaller pieces, and grill like small pieces of chicken. If you remove the skin from the duck breast, cook carefully so as not to overcook and toughen the meat. It is REALLY good this way. Like the steak of poultry.

For a large fire, cut the duck in halves or parts and put it on the grill. Turn the pieces continuously for about 12-15 minutes, avoiding the large flames ensuing from your grill. Cook until the fire is just subsiding. We have cooked half a duck at a time to keep the fat at bay. Usually after the fire completely chars the outside of the duck it is done and tender, and you eat it immediately. If you wait to eat for more than 30 minutes, the meat will cool and toughen.

Good Eats Newsletter - August 25, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 01:17:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
1.5 lbs Red Thumb Fingerling Potatoes; 2 Zucchini; 2 lbs Mixed Sweet Peppers; 1 Bulb Fennel; Broccoli -or- Beans; 1 or 2 Eggplant; 1 Bag of Mesclun

2 lbs Tomatoes
1 Melon (mostly canteloupe, some honeydew)

Please note that bags of mesclun will be in the totes with your veggie bags, but they will NOT BE INSIDE your veggie bag. We didn't want them to be crushed! So please remember when you take your veggie bag from the tote, to collect your mesclun as well.

Localvore Offerings Include:
On The Rise Pizza Dough
Pesto
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Quebec Organic Oats

Pete's Musings.
Thanks to all of you who visited the farm last week both for the Oustanding in the Field dinner and our open farm day. Both events went great and it is always exciting to show the farm both to folks who are members and customers and know the food well, and also to those who have barely heard of Pete's Greens. The dinner was a magical night. We ate in a field of flowering buckwheat, the food by Hen of the Wood was top notch with pork in every course, and the weather was one of those perfect late summer evenings that makes all seem right in the world.

Full on onion harvesting this week. The crop looks great and is in excellent condition for storage. We mow the tops at 6-8 inches, pull the onions and place into black crates, haul to the greenhouse where we stack the onions as high as we can reach in long rows with air space in between. In 6 weeks they will be dry and ready for topping and cold storage. ~Pete

Sean's Adventures

Sean's weekly posts are a great read to get a glimpse of a day in the life at the farm. In his post today Sean mentions those of us who don't get out to the fields much. I am one who is tied to the desk by a less gritty, yet necessary kind of farmwork. So I really appreciate the opportunity to peek in on the days of my colleagues through Sean's writing. This week he shares tales of our farm events, his first farm tours, and the pace of the onion harvest underway. Photo at left is our own Deb Rosewolf (aka the egg lady) and Sean. Check out Sean's blog.

Fall/Winter Good Eats Sign Up
The official end of summer is near, and for many, school begins this week. Wow, did it go fast. Harvest is already underway at the farm. Stockpiling the goodness of Summer will keep us very busy now in the weeks and months ahead. We have been putting corn, rhubarb, zucchini, and pestos in the freezer the last few weeks and we have lots of other summer vegetables on our preservation to do list. Roots harvest is getting an early start this year, the onions just the first on the long list. Potatoes, turnips, potatoes, rutabagas, carrots, beets, cabbages, kohlrabi, celeriac, a variety of winter squash, herbs and more will be harvested in the weeks ahead. In our greenhouses, we'll keep head lettuces, scallions and chard growing into December, while hardy field greens continue to do well outside. With each passing year, Pete gets better and better at growing salad greens in the cold winter months and last year we were able to grow a baby greens/sprouts mix through the whole winter! The combination of storage crops, hardy crops, greenhouse items and frozen and preserved veggies and fruits will keep us all eating a healthy, rich local diet all winter long.

Sign up for the Good Eats Fall/Winter Share now to ensure continued weekly deliveries! The Fall share begins on Oct 20th and continues through Feb 16th.

Please visit the Fall/Winter Share page for details and to download a sign up form.

Outstanding in the Field
Here are just a few photos from the dinner at the farm last week. Sean posted many more on his facebook page. I'll have photos from our potluck for you next week.

Storage and Use Tips
Red Thumb Fingerling Potatoes - These fingerlings are rosy inside and out. Their tender easy to clean skin needs no peeling. Just scrub and prepare. Cut these into 1 1/2 inch chunks, toss liberally with oil and salt and roast in a 400F (with fresh rosemary if you have it!) oven until crispy and golden at the edges. It doesn't get much better than that! Store in a cool dry place away from onions.

Melons - a mix of our honeydew melons and canteloupe will be going out this week (though heavier on the canteloupe). How to tell if your melon is ripe? Canteloupes will have dull yellow rinds with raised netting. Honeydews actually get a slight velvety stickiness on their rinds when perfectly ripe. Both melons will yield to pressure at the blossom end and you should be able to detect their smell sweet as well.

Localvore Lore
Each share we do our best to supply a variety of grains and staples for your pantry. To that end, we round up any that we can locally, and then we cross the border into Quebec to locate a few more. A week ago, Isaac made the trek to visit Michel Gaudreau at his Golden Crops mill in Compton, Quebec. Then he crossed the backroads over to North Hatley to pick up tamari and miso from Les Aliments Massawippi. You'll be seeing these products in the share in coming weeks. This week we have Michel's organic oats. You all got the long cooking steel cut oats at the start of the share. This week it's quick cooking oats or rolled oats. The oats for these two products start out the same and can be used much the same way. Quick cooking oats are rolled oats that have been milled further into smaller pieces so they cook quicker. If you are looking for a chewy texture, rolled oats will be better. But if you are looking to shorten cooking time or for some baked items, quick cooking oats are great. Since some of you may not often make oatmeal for breakfast, I have included basic directions for oatmeal using both oat types.

Eggs are back this week and next week, fresh from under Deb's hens. I sure appreciate having the steady supply of fresh eggs. It's the first time we have been able to consistently supply eggs 2 weeks out of each 4.

What a great week for pesto. Between the pizza dough and this week's mix of veggies there will surely be some excellent pesto inspired meals. Our pesto is simply made with extra virgin olive oil, our own basil, salt, pepper, and garlic.

Once again, Ben and Rachel, owners of On the Rise Bakery have supplied us with their pizza dough made with VT sunflower oil, Milanaise unbleached white flour, Ben Gleason's whole wheat flour, local honey and sea salt. The pizza dough will come to you frozen. Put it right back into your freezer if you don't plan to use it Wednesday night. When you do use it, thaw it, and don't wait for it to rise. When it is thawed it is ready to stretch and top and bake. As pizza dough sits, thawed, either on the counter or in the fridge, the live yeast in the dough continues to work away and the dough will steadily lose elasticity. If you haven't used it 48 hrs later, the risk is not that the dough will go bad, it's that it will lose elasticity, and become more difficult to work with, it will tear more easily. At this point, your best bet is a rolling pin! Ben posted the instructions on line along with some instructional videos that you can watch for technique and inspiration. As always, if you make a great looking or great tasting pizza that you are pleased with, email a photo along to Ben or post it to the On the Rise Facebook page.

Recipes
Pesto Pizza with Roasted Garlic and Potato
As the addition of potatoes are what really sets this pizza apart, it is important to make sure they are cooked and seasoned properly before they go on top of the pie. To ensure that the potatoes are cooked all the way through when the pizza comes out of the oven, blanch them in boiling water, just until they lose their crunch. After draining them off, toss them them oil, sprinkle with herbs and a bit of salt. A drizzle of the oil from roasting the garlic would be fantastic.

On the Rise pizza dough, divided
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, for dusting
About 1 cup homemade pesto (or store-bought)
2-3 cups grated mozzarella/provolone cheese
1 cup roasted garlic cloves (recipe below)
4 red skinned potatoes, very thinly sliced
1-2 tomatoes thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herbs or a sprinkling of fresh
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Crushed red pepper flakes

Place a pizza stone in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 500°. Allow the stone to heat for at least half an hour before baking pizzas. (You can carefully roast your garlic heads at this time.)

Allow the pizza dough to come to room temperature.
Blanch the potato slices in boiling water until just cooked through, anywhere between 1 – 2 minutes. Drain and allow to cool slightly before drying the slices with paper towels and coating them with a touch of olive oil, a pinch of Italian seasoning and kosher salt.

On a lightly-floured work surface, form the dough into two large balls, collecting the sides and tucking them under to create a smooth outer surface. Generously dust a wooden peel or the back of a sheet pan with flour or cornmeal. With lightly-floured hands, press the dough with your fingertips to form a flattened disk. Lift the dough up and use the back of your knuckles to stretch and thin-out the dough into a circle with a diameter of 12-inches. Be careful to preserve the edge of the dough if you want a light, chewy crust. Carefully position the stretched dough onto the prepared peel or baking sheet.

Using a large spoon, spread an even layer of the pesto onto the dough and carefully spread it to within 1/2-inch of the edge, being careful to leave a sauce free edge. Top with an even layer of the grated mozzarella/provolone cheese followed by slices of parboiled potatoes and roasted garlic cloves and fresh tomatoes. Top with a light sprinkling of a bit more mozzarella, season with salt to taste and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Lightly brush the exposed crust with a bit of olive oil (or leftover garlic) oil to promote browning.

Carefully slide the pizza onto the preheated stone and bake until the crust is crisped and golden and the cheese is bubbling and just beginning to brown, about 6-7 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and allow it to rest for a few minutes before slicing.

To make roasted garlic
Cut the top off a head of garlic so that the tops of each of the cloves is exposed. Place head atop some aluminum foil and drizzle olive oil over the head. Bake at 400F (or higher if you are heating your oven) until cloves are soft.

Tomato Fennel Salad
Fennel goes really well with tomatoes, potatoes, and actually melon too (melon and fennel soup is a classic French soup). This very simple salad is great on its own, but could be further enlivened with a bit of feta, some kalamatas, some fresh basil, etc.
1 1/2 pounds heirloom tomatoes
1 small fennel bulb
2 tablespoons good olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Optional - Fresh basil, feta, sweet peppers

Core the tomatoes and cut into wedges. Slice the fennel bulb very thinly crosswise with a knife or on a mandoline. Toss the tomatoes and fennel in a bowl with the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Season to taste, and serve.

Summer Vegetable Frittata
Works best with a well seasoned, cast iron skillet, but any oven proof skillet will do. Eat this with a fresh salad for a healthy mid-day meal. Serves 4 comfortably.
8 farm fresh eggs
1/4 C milk or cream
Generous pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon sunflower oil
1 medium Walla Walla onion, roughly chopped
1 lb zucchini, sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
1 medium bell pepper, sliced into strips
1.5 C of chopped broccoli florets and stems, sliced beans, and or thinly sliced potatoes
1 cup local cheese, shredded or sliced thin
1 large tomato, sliced into rounds

Preheat broiler.

Whisk together eggs, milk or cream, salt, and pepper in a bowl.

Heat sunflower oil in a 12 inch cast iron or oven proof skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until just fragrant. Add beans (if using), potatoes, broccoli, zucchini and bell pepper, cooking just until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Pour egg mixture into skillet and cook, lifting up cooked egg around edge using a spatula to let as much raw egg as possible flow underneath, until edge is set, about 2 minutes (top and center will still be very loose). Sprinkle evenly with cheese and then lay tomato slices on top in a decorative manner.

Broil frittata about 6 inches from heat until set, slightly puffed, and golden, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Cool frittata 5 minutes, then loosen edge with a clean spatula and slide onto a large plate. Cut into wedges.

Old Fashioned Oatmeal
This is just the basic how to cook recipe. There are endless possibilities of what you might add to your oatmeal including honey, maple sugar or syrup, dried fruits, frozen berries, sliced apples or melons, etc. You can go totally dairy free, omitting butter and replacing all the milk with water, or add just as much of those as you like.

2 cups dry rolled oats
3.5 to 3.75 cups water/milk (1.5 cups milk/2+ cups water is good)
1/4 tsp salt
1 TB butter (optional)

Place oats, milk, water and salt in a medium saucepan and stir to combine. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Stir, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for five to 10 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed and oats have softened to a porridge. Stir in butter. Divide into bowls and garnish with dried fruit and sweetener of your choice.

Quick Oatmeal
2 cups quick oats
3 cups water/milk (2 cups water, 1 cup milk is a nice mix)
1/4 tsp salt
1 TB butter (optional)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

In a medium saucepan, bring the water and salt to a boil. Slowly, stir the oats and let the water return to a rolling boil. Immediately, reduce heat to a simmer. Stir in the cinnamon and butter and continue to cook on low for 1 minute. Then add the milk and cook for another 2 minutes.

Nova Scotia Oatcakes
My family and I spent 4 years in Nova Scotia before moving back To VT last year. Because of the Scottish heritage there, Scottish oatcakes are popular. Stop at any coffee shop and in place of the ubiquitous biscotti you will nearly always find oatcakes. These lightly sweet, creamy cookies are great to take along as a healthy snack. With some experimentation you could substitute honey for the sugar.... With this recipe I'd substitute 3/4 cup honey for the sugar, I'd reduce the water to approximately 1/2 cup, and I'd increase the baking soda to 1.5 tsp.
3 cups quick rolled oats 
3 cups flour 
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
 1 teaspoon baking soda
 2 teaspoons salt 
1 1/2 cup shortening 
2/3 – 3/4 cup cold water
In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients together. Cut in shortening. Add enough water to form a rather stiff, pastry-like dough. Roll 3/8 ” thick and cut into circles. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes on a greased baking sheet.

Good Eats Newsletter - August 18, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 13:00:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
1 Bunch of Sugar Snax Carrots; 1.5 lbs Zucchini; Mixed Sweet Peppers; 2 lbs Walla Walla Onions; 1 Head of Garlic; 2 Jalapeno Peppers; Napa Cabbage plus...

1 Pint Sun Gold Cherry Tomatoes

Localvore Offerings Include:
Red Hen Vermont Wheat Bread
Cabot Clothbound Cheddar
Butterworks Cornmeal
Elmore Roots Jam

Pete's Musings
When you have as much mechanical crap as we do sometimes bad things happen. It did last week when our very spiffy 20 ft refrigerated truck blew a motor way before it should have. Only $14,000 to install a new motor! We decided not to go that route so I spent all day yesterday glued to the computer attempting to find the perfect new truck. Found some seemingly really good options in Chicago and Steve is going to fly out in the morning to hopefully drive one home.

We are moving into full on onion harvest. They are about 2 weeks earlier than normal and in the past it has seemed that waiting too long leads to lower quality. Crop looks great so far, beautiful shallots too. We'll be digging main crop storage potatoes by the first week of September the way things are looking.

Hope one and all can make it to our open farm day this Saturday. It's going to be a great day here and there are other farms in the area that will be open for visits as well. ~Pete

Sean's Adventures
Sean Garvey has been blogging about his adventures as an intern on the farm. This week he has been beautifying the rhubarb patch for our expected guests and connecting people to their food in the meantime. Check out Sean's blog.

Join Us Saturday - Farm Tours, Potluck, and Music
This is it folks, the week we have been waiting for! Will we see you at the farm this Saturday August 21st?

Schedule of Events:
11:00 First Farm Tour with Pete
12:3o - 2:00 Potluck Lunch under the tent
1:30 or 2:00 Second Farm Tour with Pete

We'll be preparing a big salad for everyone and providing cider. Elena Gustavson and I got together and made some lasagna this weekend with sauce made from farm tomatoes and veggies, and beef donated from Greenfields Highlans beef. We'll be making some quiche too. Please bring a dish that you love to prepare (using local ingredients if you can!). Be sure to clearly mark your dishes and utensils with your last name. Also, please mark any meals that are vegetarian or vegan. Feel free to BYOB too!

We'll have some bluegrass by the Mud City Ramblers. Please visit their page to listen to a couple sample tracks. Mud City Ramblers are a bluegrass trio featuring Chris Lyon on guitar, Fran Forim on upright bass, Neil Dean on mandolin and Luke Auriemm on banjo.

Please come, we'd love to see you!

Kingdom Farm & Food Days - August 21st & 22nd
In case you missed this last week...
This two day event features tours, workshops, music, food and festivities with our event just one of the many stops you could plan on your route.

The event will begin on Saturday, August 21 with self-guided tours of more than a dozen the area's farms and agricultural businesses that have opened their doors to the public (see the list here). Businesses range from dairy sheep, llamas, and worms (vermiculture) to ice wine, soy, and maple syrup. Check out the farms on the map here.

The Craftsbury Outdoor Center is offering a 25 mile scenic bicycle tour to area farms ending at Pete's Greens. Get in a beautiful, scenic morning of bicycling and then join us for a feast! For more details on how to register, contact bikes@craftsbury.com.

On Sunday, High Mowing Seeds trial gardens will be open for tours, both self guided and guided. The trial gardens have over 800 vegetable, herb and flower varieties growing. Visitors will see side-by-side comparisons of many popular and some yet-unreleased varieties. There will also be workshops on seed saving and pest and disease identification, live music and an evening bonfire.

At 4pm the New England Culinary Institute (NECI) will present a Local Foods Showcase. This is an extraordinary chance for visitors to taste some of the finest Vermont-made food products and culinary delights, all donated by local businesses and prepared by NECI students and chef Jeffrey Ferrell.

Direct questions about Farm & Food Days to Elena Gustavson at center@hardwickagriculture.org or call 802-472-5840

Any Volunteers For This Weekend?
The Center for An Agricultural Economy is organizing volunteers for all the events taking place this weekend. If you are one of those people who prefer to be involved rather than just attend, please contact Elena (above). Here are the available time slots/jobs.

Saturday:
Pete's Greens
8:30am to 12:30pm to help with set up - 2 volunteers
3:30pm to 5pm to help with breakdown - 2 to 3 volunteers

Craftsbury Outdoor Center for the Bike Tour - TBD on time, but definitely in the morning and possibly the afternoon - 1 to 2 volunteers

Center for an Agricultural Economy
9:30am to 12pm Greet visitors, hand out maps - 1 volunteer
12pm to 2:30pm Greet visitors, hand out maps - 1 volunteer
2:30 to 5:30pm Greet visitors, hand out maps - 1 volunteer

Sunday:
All volunteer activities will happen on Marsh Rd at the Trial and Showcase Garden for High Mowing Organic Seeds.

Compost Station 2:30pm-4:30pm - 2 volunteers
Compost Station 4:30pm-6:30pm - 2 volunteers
Parking 9am-1pm - 2 volunteers
Clean-up 4:30pm-6:30pm - 4 volunteers
Other "go-fers"
10am-2pm - 2 volunteers
2pm-6pm 2 volunteers

Localvore Lore
Pretty exciting bread news from Randy George at Red Hen Baking Company this week:
The handful of Vermont farmers that are brave enough to grow wheat in this challenging climate have brought in their 2010 harvest. You may recall that June was unusually dry... well, this may not have been what the vegetable farmers wanted, but June is a critical period for the development of a good wheat crop. Basically, the mature wheat berries shouldn't see anything but the slightest trace of moisture during this period lest the crop's quality can be severely diminished. As one dry day followed another this June, I started to think that we might have something special on our hands this year. By the time the state's winter wheat was harvested in early July, it was clear that luck really was on our side more than it's been for probably over a decade. Now some of this wheat has made its way to us bakers in the form of flour and here at Red Hen we're delighted to report that what we have this year is unprecedented in the 10 years that we have been baking with Vermont-grown wheat. We have baked two test batches of naturally leavened bread made entirely with Ben Gleason's whole wheat flour... what you see in your share today is the third batch. Never have we seen such satisfying results from locally-grown whole wheat. This is a year to be celebrated and remembered. Although the wheat growers in this state have become very clever at dealing with our difficult climate, there is nothing like having just the right combination of factors come together at the right time. There is a lot of very, very good wheat that will be available (in stores and through the Pete's CSA) under the Gleason's Grains, Nitty Gritty Grains, and Butterworks Farms names over the next 12 months. We can all bask in the glory of it's abundance and deliciousness. ~ Randy

Oh how I love the cheese in the share this week. Cabot Clothbound Cheddar is a multi award winning cheese, judged best cheddar in many competitions, including winning the American Cheese Society's Best in Show Award in 2006 besting some 940 other cheeses from around the country in that year's competition. And it has earned both a gold and silver medal at the World Cheese Awards taking home the title of the Best US Cheddar. The cheese starts out at the Cabot Creamery. Immediately after the wheels are unmolded from their cheddar hoops at Cabot, they are loaded into a truck and delivered to the Cellars at Jasper Hill. For the next 10-14 months they remain at Cellars, lovingly tended. During the aging process a bloomy rind is allowed to develop which flavors the cheese. The cave environment is carefully monitored to age the cheese perfectly. The result is a traditional English type cheddar, with a slightly craggly texture, and flavors that are sweet and nutty.

Our cornmeal today comes to us from Butterworks Farm. Jack Lazor and his family not only milk cows and produce fantastic yogurt, Jack is also a very good organic grains grower. He grows all the grains for his animal needs while also growing excellent quality wheat and corn for flour and cornmeal. Though normally we'd be providing you with Early Riser corn, a variety Jack grows and saves seed for each year, last year was a terrible growing season and Jack's crop was a total lost. Fortunately, Jim Geer of Great River Farm in Windsor was able to harvest a crop of good flint/dent corn, and it is this corn that Jack has ground for us in this cornmeal.

From Elmore Roots we have rhubarb ginger jam. The jam is made with organic rhubarb and apples grown at Elmore Roots, organic evaporated cane syrup and organic Hawaiian ginger. It's a terrific accompaniment to cornbread. David and the crew at the farm grow an incredible variety of fruits on the farm, all organically. The farm sells the fruit and the jams, but is also reknowned as a place to buy fruit nursery stock, as all varieties are selected for the cold climate. The farm's motto is "if it will grow in Elmore, it will grown anywhere (in Vermont)".

Recipes

Sauteed Veggies for Pasta or Grains
More of a suggestion than a recipe, but this is the first thing that comes to mind when I look at this week's list. Bored with pasta, lately I have been sautéing a Mediterranean mix of veggies as I would for pasta, but then placing them atop a plate of grains - either quinoa or couscous, barley for a meatier meal, and sometimes good brown rice. And then because I love it so, I add various cheeses. You really can't go wrong. Serves 2 hungry people.

1-2 TB vegetable oil (sunflower, canola, olive)
3-4 cloves Garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 Sweet Pepper, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 zucchini, halved and quartered and sliced 1/8" thick
Quinoa or Couscous or brown rice or pasta

Put on a large pot of salted water and cook your grains or pasta as directed.

Place a large skillet over medium heat. When the pan is hot, put 1-2 TB of oil in the pan and swirl around til pan surface is covered. Add the onion and turn pan to medium low and sauté covered till onions begin to soften, around 3-5 minutes. Then add carrots and cover again, letting carrots steam a couple minutes. Then add garlic, peppers, and zucchini. Cook uncovered, on low, until veggies are softening and starting to brown. Then add cherry tomatoes and cook til heated through and veggies are as desired. Add salt and pepper to taste and some fresh herbs - basil, oregano, thyme, marjoram. Remove from heat when your veggies are perfectly tasty.

Serve the vegetables on top of hot grains or pasta. Crumble some feta, or goat cheese or ricotta on top. Serve with some freshlt grated parm.

Mexican Variation
Follow the directions above adding (if desired) 1/2 of a seeded jalapeno pepper. As the vegetables are cooking, you could add a can of drained black beans or kidney beans to the mix. Add 1/2 to 1 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp chili powder (or more to taste), some cilantro and oregano if you have them. Taste to adjust seasoning.

Serve on top of brown rice or quinoa with grated cheddar cheese, salsa or hot sauce, and perhaps sour cream, or roll it up into a tortilla.

Polenta - Polenta is such an easy, homey dish and can be paired with so many other ingredients. I usually make mine the old fashioned way, on the stovetop but I like the oven baked version below for the simplicity. When the polenta is finished on the stovetop you end up with cornmeal mush, but as polenta cools it firms up. And if you chill it in the fridge, you can then cut it into all sorts of shapes for later dishes. I love it right out of the pot and every other way as well.

Oven-Baked Polenta
By Martha Rose Shulman and published in the NYT June 9, 2009
Polenta is traditionally made on the stovetop. The classic recipe is to stir 1 cup of polenta (a coarse grind cornmeal) into 4 cups water boiling water with one tsp of salt addes. Then polenta is simmered and stirred constantly or at very regular intervals until it is a thickened gruel. It takes 50 minutes or so and requires watchfulness. Martha's oven baked method simplifies the process.

1 cup polenta
1 quart water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the polenta, water and salt in a 2-quart baking dish. Stir together, and place in the oven. Bake 50 minutes. Remove from the oven, and stir in the butter. Use a fork or a spatula to stir the polenta well, and return to the oven for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, and stir again. Carefully taste a little bit of the polenta; if the grains are not completely soft, return to the oven for 10 minutes.

Serve right away for soft polenta, or let sit five minutes for a stiffer polenta. Spoon onto a plate. Make a depression in the middle, and serve with the topping of your choice or plain, as a side dish.

Alternatively, for grilling or use in another recipe, allow to chill and stiffen in the baking dish, or scrape into a lightly oiled or buttered bread pan and chill.

Cheddar Jalapeno Polenta
When you remove the polenta from the oven, stir in 1/3 cup to 1.5 cups grated cheddar and some minced jalapenos, to your liking. Serve at once.

Grilled Polenta Squares
Prepare a medium grill or heat an electric griddle on medium. Cut the polenta into squares, and brush the squares on both sides with olive oil. Place on the grill or griddle. When grill marks appear or when nicely browned, usually in about two to three minutes, turn and brown the other side. Serve hot.

Pan-Seared Polenta Squares
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, and sear the polenta squares on both sides oil until lightly colored. The surface should be slightly crisp.

Stir Fried Napa Cabbage and Carrots
Here's a simple quick recipe that you could serve with brown rice. This is a basic stir fry into which you could also add in some celery or peppers and/or some cooked chicken or pork or beef. From the 75th Anniversary Edition of the Joy of Cooking.

Combine in small bowl:
2.5 TB tamari
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

1 TB canola oil (or sunflower)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 TB fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 cups shredded carrots
1 medium Napa Cabbage, thinly sliced
Minced parsley or cilantro

Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add and stir fry the garlic and ginger for a few seconds taking care not to allow the garlic to brown. Add the carrots and stir fry for 3 minutes. Add the cabbage and stir fry until tender, about 3 more minutes. Add the tamari mixture and heat through, stiring to coat the vegetables. Serve garnished with minced parsley or cilantro.

Zucchini Cheddar Breakfast Biscuits
With the colder mornings lately, I have been inspired to bake and these look like just what I could use some mornings. They would also be a terrific accompaniment to dinner. From Andrea Chessman's Serving Up the Harvest.

2 cups shredded zucchini
1 tsp salt
4 ounces good quality bacon
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 TB baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp freshly grated ground black pepper
4 TB cold unsalted butter
1 cup grated Cheddar
3/4 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk with 1.5 tsp lemon juice added)

Combine the zuc and salt in a colander and set aside to drain for 30 mins. Squeeze out any excess moisture and place in small mixing bowl. You should have around a 1/2 cup.

Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp, around 10 minutes. Remove and set aside on paper towels to drain.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda and pepper into a large bowl. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the cheese, bacon, and buttermilk to form a stiff dough.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured board and knead briefly till dough is a bit smoother. Pat out or roll out to 1" thick. Cut biscuits with 3" cutter or slice into squares and place on a baking sheet 1" apart.

Bake for 15 mins or until golden.

Good Eats Newsletter - August 11, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 19:05:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Red Beets; 2 lbs Onions; 1 Bunch Kale; 1 Bunch of Herbs; plus...

1.5 lb Beefsteak or Heirloom Tomatoes
1 Bag Spicy Brassica Mix
6 ears of Sweet Corn
1 Qt Frozen Winter Squash Puree

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Country French Bread
Sholten Family Farm Weybridge Cheese
Champlain Orchards Paula Red Apples
Butterworks Yogurt

Pete's Musings
A bunch of us from the farm got away to the Vermont Fresh Network summer gathering at Shelburne Farms last Sunday evening. This event is always one of the highlights of summer socializing and feasting. It is held near the shore of Lake Champlain in the Shelburne Farms coach barn. Twenty restaurants partner with farms and create appetizers that the crowd circulates and samples. We partnered with Black Door, Hen on the Wood, and Bon Temps Gourmet catering. We had 3 or 4 other restaurants that we were planning to partner with but the organizers cut us off at 3. Marian Burros, former NY Times food writer and nearby neighbor here in Craftsbury was the keynote speaker, and Senator Leahy was in attendance.

Senator Leahy spoke for a few minutes and talked about the Child Nutrition Act which recently passed the Senate with bipartisan support. This is very important legislation that will increase funding for school meal programs and farm to school programs. Leahy and Sanders have been major players in this legislation and I've got to tell you those two guys make me proud to be a Vermonter. You may not agree with their politics, but we are really lucky as such a tiny state to be represented by two senators who stand out from the crowd, work hard for what they believe in, and don't appear to have succumbed to any of the temptations of power that do so many others. And they are both very accessible and willing to talk to their fellow Vermonters.

Great energy at the Vermont Fresh event. If you've never attended I recommend putting it on your calendar for next year. ~ Pete

Storage and Use Tips
Onions - The onions today are mostly Purple onions, but there are some Walla Wallas among them too. Purple onions, also known as red onions contain anthocyanins in their skins, a powerful antioxidant. So they may carry a bit more of a health benefit than other varieties. They are particularly great in stir fries, but also tasty sliced for sandwiches and salads. Walla Walla onions are super sweet and should be eaten raw to really enjoy them. They don't keep as long as other varieties, so best to use them up. Walla Wallas are particularly good carmelized where there sweetness is intensified. Store Walla Wallas loosely bagged in fridge. The purple onions will store better unwrapped.

Frozen Winter Squash Puree - We thought you might enjoy some more diversity and are sending out frozen winter squash puree this week. This is just pure frozen winter squash goodness. Use this in recipes calling for pureed winter squash or pumpkin - particularly soups, pie, baked items like pumpkin bread, muffins or cookies, or for casseroles or rice dishes. Also fantastic just on its own sweetened with a bit of maple syrup, enriched with some cream and served as a side. The puree is coming to you frozen. If it is has thawed a bit when you receive it, no worries. Just pop it back in freezer til you are ready to use.

Spicy Brassica Mix - Instead of mesclun, you will be receiving a mixed bag of arugula, mizuna, tatsoi, red russian kale, vates kale today. This blend is great for salads, lots of flavor, a bit of spice from the arugula and mizuna. Though perfect for a salad, you could also add these greens to a cooked dish - a soup, a casserole, a rice dish. Very versatile greens.

Herbs - You will be receiving one bunch of herbs in your bag, either oregano, sage, rosemary, or thyme.

Pete's Greens Open Farm Day - August 21st
Please join us for our annual potluck party! This year, our event is part of the larger Kingdom Farm & Food Days (see below), so there's lots to do and see in the area all weekend. We look forward to connecting with Good Eats members and sharing a meal together. We really hope you can make it!

Schedule of Events:
11:00 First Farm Tour
12:3o - 2:00 Potluck Lunch under the tent
1:30 or 2:00 Second Farm Tour

Please bring a Localvore potluck dish to share. We'll be providing a big Pete's Greens salad and Champlain Orchards cider.

This year we will have the Mud City Ramblers playing some bluegrass tunes to tap your toes to. Please visit their page to listen to a couple sample tracks. Mud City Ramblers are a bluegrass group featuring Chris Lyon on guitar, Fran Forim on upright bass, Neil Dean on mandolin and Luke Auriemmo on banjo.

This is a great time for you to come out to the farm, meet all of us, see the fields and greenhouses, visit the pigs and chickens, and connect with the source of your food.

Kingdom Farm & Food Days - August 21st & 22nd
Fill up your whole weekend celebrating local VT agriculture! This two day event features tours, workshops, music, food and festivities with our event just one of the many stops you could plan on your route.

The event will begin on Saturday, August 21 with self-guided tours of more than a dozen the area's farms and agricultural businesses that have opened their doors to the public (see the list here). Businesses range from dairy sheep, llamas, and worms (vermiculture) to ice wine, soy, and maple syrup. Check out the farms on the map here.

The Craftsbury Outdoor Center is offering a 25 mile scenic bicycle tour to area farms ending at Pete's Greens. Get in a beautiful, scenic morning of bicycling and then join us for a feast! For more details on how to register, contact bikes@craftsbury.com.

On Sunday, High Mowing Seeds trial gardens will be open for tours, both self guided and guided. The trial gardens have over 800 vegetable, herb and flower varieties growing. Visitors will see side-by-side comparisons of many popular and some yet-unreleased varieties. There will also be workshops on seed saving and pest and disease identification, live music and an evening bonfire.

At 4pm the New England Culinary Institute (NECI) will present a Local Foods Showcase. This is an extraordinary chance for visitors to taste some of the finest Vermont-made food products and culinary delights, all donated by local businesses and prepared by NECI students and chef Jeffrey Ferrell.

Outstanding in the Field Dinner - August 17th
Feeling like you deserve a really special night out? How about a five course meal prepared by one of the regions top chefs served with wine pairings and then served outside in a beautiful farm setting? The Outstanding in the Field dinner being held at Pete's Greens is just one week away.

Outstanding in the Field, the touring restaurant without walls brings together top chefs and local producers for an aesthetically beautiful and special culinary experience. This year, Outstanding's one Vermont dinner will be held at Pete's Greens with Chef Eric Warnstedt of Hen of the Wood restaurant in Waterbury preparing the meal. A place at the table includes a five course meal with wine pairings, all gratuities, producer discussions, and a tour of the farm with Pete.

Tickets are still available from Outstanding in the Field and event details are available on the Outstanding in the Field website.

Pete's Meats
In just a couple of weeks we'll have our own beef and pork cuts ready to order. We have a good amount of pork, but not a lot of beef. Start thinking about what you might like to stow away in the freezer for the winter! You'll be able to place an order and have your meat bulk order delivered to your pick up site. I'll let you all know when the order form for meats is available on line. Stay tuned.

Our Localvore Farm Stand
There was a really nice blog piece posted this week about our farmstand at a blog site called Nourishing Words.

Read the article here.

The Pete's Greens farm stand is open daily and is stocked with our organic vegetables, local meats and a vast array of local products. Come visit!

Localvore Lore
This week Andrew and Blair are baking Elmore Mountain Country French bread for Good Eats. Quebec Flax bread is made with Milanaise Winter Wheat, Milanaise Whole Wheat, Milanaise Rye, sourdough and sea salt.

The Sholten Family Farm Weybridge is an artisan cheese made by Patty Scholten and her organic Dutch Belt cows in Weybridge, Vermont. After Patty makes the rounds, the cheeses are aged 21 days at the Cellars at Jasper Hill to create the bloomy rind and creamy perfection. Please allow to warm to room temp before eating. So much more flavor!

At Butterworks Farm, Jack and Annie Lazor milk a small herd of Jerseys, all of whom are born on the farm and are fed entirely organic feeds grown on the farm. Milk from Jersey cows is rich, with a high protein count and fat content and yogurt made from this milk is richer than others. The non fat yogurt produced by Butterworks is the only non fat yogurt on the market that does not contain milk thickeners like whey protein or dry milk. Their whole milk yogurt is made from just that, whole jersey milk straight from the cows, so the yogurt comes with cream on top and a butterfat content of 5%, the highest on the market. There will be a mix of non fat vanilla and maple yogurt at sites tomorrow. The non fat vanilla is flavored with pure vanilla extract and sweetened with maple syrup. The whole milk maple is made with their plain whole milk yogurt and sweetened with maple syrup (and is nearly as good as a bowl of ice-cream!).

Champlain Orchards has sent us the very first variety picked from their trees! The Paula Reds are a large red apple similar to Macintosh but a bit sweeter. Great for fresh eating, salads.

Recipes
Squash and Kale Risotto
This dish from the cookbook Moosewood Restaurant Low Fat Favorites is a great way to use kale and squash together for a very healthy meal. And delicious. The original recipe called for 4.5 to 5 cups broth and 2 cups cubed squash. I made changes to accommodate the squash puree, reducing the liquids a bit. Though you won't get chunks of squash, you will get the great flavor throughout the dish.
4 to 4.5 c. vegetable stock or garlic broth 1 cup minced onions
2-3 TB olive oil
1.5 cups arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1.5 to 2 cups winter squash puree
3 cups stemmed and chopped kale, packed
1/8-1/4 t. nutmeg
1 tsp fresh lemon peel
1/4 c. grated parmesan
salt & black pepper to taste

Bring stock to boil, reduce to simmer. Meanwhile, in heavy saucepan sauté onions in 2 TB of oil for 5 minutes. Using wooden spoon, add rice and stir until well coated with oil. Add wine. When absorbed, ladle in 2 1/2 c. of stock, 1/2 c. at a time, stirring frequently for 2-3 min. each time until rice has absorbed the liquid. Add squash and kale and stir. Continue adding 1/2 c. of broth every few minutes for about 10 minutes, stirring often, until all of stock has been added and rice is tender but firm. Add nutmeg, peel, and salt and pepper to taste. Remove risotto from heat, stir in cheese, and stir immediately

Thai Winter Squash Soup
Having puree in hand makes this a super easy soup to put together and the soup is a flavor explosion (one of my favorites). In traditional Thai fashion, it combines sweet, sour and salty flavors and has a kick too. The lime and coconut both come through beautifully.

Vegetable oil
1 onion,
3 cloves garlic
2 thumb sized pieces of ginger
3-4 cups of winter squash or pumpkin puree
1 qt chicken or vegetable stock
3 TB Fish sauce
2.5 TB brown sugar (or maple syrup, or maple sugar)
2 TB Lime juice
1 can coconut milk
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper

Puree the onion, garlic and ginger in a food processor. Put a small amount of oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and stir for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Then add the pumpkin puree, stock, fish sauce, brown sugar or maple syrup, lime juice, and crushed red pepper and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Before serving, add the coconut milk. Taste the soup. You may want to add a fresh splash of lime just before serving.

Simple Roasted Beets
Several new share members have mentioned lately that they don't really know what to do with beets. If you are one of these, try roasting them. It intensifies the sweetness in the beets until they are nearly irresistable.
Scrub beets and cut off stem and root ends. Chop into 1/2 to 3/4 inch dice. Spread beets one layer deep in a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and give a good stir til all are coated. Then put in 400°F oven til they are tender and look a bit roasted. Probably 20-30 minutes. Then remove from oven and serve hot, or let cool, put in container and save for uses cold.

Spicy Brassica Salad with Roasted Beets, Apples, and Goat Cheese Dressing
When Pete told me what greens he was harvesting and what the rest of the vegetables were, this is the salad that came to mind.

Baby brassica mix
Tart apples sliced thin, or grated
Roasted Beets
Red onions or Walla Wallas sliced thin
Walnuts (toasted slightly first)

Mix greens, sliced or grated apples and roasted beets in a bowl. Dress with dressing and serve with a sprinkling of toasted walnuts on top.

Creamy Goat Cheese Dressing
If you don't have buttermilk around, try substituting plain yogurt, or a yogurt/whle milk combo or even substituting with mayonnaise (which is not at all the same but would proably taste great).

4 ounces goat cheese, at room temperature
2 tablespoons buttermilk
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Pinch salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves

Mix all together in a blender. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Good Eats Newsletter - August 4, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 02:58:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Kohlrabi; 2 Heads Baby Garlic; 2 Heads Fennel; 4 Cucumbers; Japanese or Black Bell Eggplant; 1 Head of Lettuce plus...

2 lb Beefsteak or Heirloom Tomatoes
6 ears of Sweet Corn

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Flax Bread
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Tullochgorum Farm Popcorn
Honey Gardens Apitherapy Honey

On the Farm
The farm is always busy. All but one week a year (Christmas), the weekly cycle of washing and packing and delivering vegetables for Good Eats and wholesale accounts requires steady, timely commitment from each of us on the farm. Yet certain times of the year seem to sneak up on us and suddenly we are over the top busy. Spring is one of those times, first it's still winter and the pace more moderate and then one day, the weather turns and there's tremendous urgency to take advantage of the warmth and moisture and plant. About 3 weeks ago, there was a momentary lull in the pace, most of the crops underway, just continued cultivation, irrigation, succession plantings to be done. But the beginning of Harvest proclaimed itself here last week and it's all hands on deck. Along with the regular weekly harvests we are now putting away vegetables to keep the diversity in winter high. We have been pickling cukes in barrels, making pesto by the hundreds of containers, freezing zucchini. Tomorrow we'll put away rhubarb and corn and more zucchini. It will continue at this pace for a while now until sometime in November after roots harvest when we'll all breathe a big collective sigh of relief and sleep well with the satisfaction of having preserved an abundance of beautiful food for the the long winter. ~ Amy

Storage and Use Tips
Fresh Corn! - I have picked up ears of corn several places in the last couple weeks, looking forward to that sweet crunch. But I haven't been lucky enough to find corn that was really fresh, until yesterday. The corn on the farm is finally ready and we have begun picking. We had it for dinner last night and it was fantastic. Corn is at its sweetest when first picked. If you can fit it in your menu, use it tonight! Otherwise, wrap your corn, with their husks still on, in a plastic bag and store in the refrigerator. Eat it as soon as possible!

Kohlrabi - Kohlrabi is a member of the cabbage family and its outer skin would attest to that. Raw, it is crisp, sweet, and clean, strikingly reminiscent of raw broccoli stalks. Cooked, it touts a mild, nutty, cabbage-like flavor that adapts beautifully to many cooking styles. It can be eaten raw and is great in salads and slaws. I can also be boiled, steamed, baked, roasted, etc. The greens may be eaten cooked like turnip greens or any other cooked greens. To prepare the bulb, cut off the leaves and stems. Use a vegetable peeler to pare off the tough outer layer. Or use a chefs knife to slice it off. Dice or shave up the inner bulb according to your recipe. Store loosely wrapped in plastic in the fridge.

Tomatoes - You will all receive either red beefsteak or a variety of heirloom tomatoes this week. Please note that some of the tomatoes that are being sent to you are slightly under ripe. When they are very ripe, they can bruise/damage easily in the process of getting them to you. Please, as hard as it might be, leave under ripe tomatoes on your counter and they will ripen very quickly - within a day or two. Your patience will be rewarded with a much tastier tomato.

Pete's Greens Annual Potluck - August 21st
On August 21st we'll take the day off to spend it with you and members of our community. Pete and others on the farm will be giving tours of the farm via wagon ride, we'll have live music, and we'll all share a meal under the tent together. We'll be providing a big salad and cider for all. This is a great time for you to come out to the farm, see the fields and greenhouses, visit the pigs and chickens, and connect with you source of your food. It's also a great time to visit, eat, and enjoy. The day will start with a farm tour at 10:30, music will begin at 11:30, lunch under the tent at noon, another tour at 1:30 or 2:00 pm.

Outstanding in the Field Dinner - August 17
The touring restaurant without walls Outstanding in the Field brings together top chefs and local producers for an aesthetically beautiful and special culinary experience. Nearly all the food for these dinners is sourced locally, sometimes just yards from the signature long white table and the meals are extraordinary.

We are honored to be chosen by OITF as a site for a dinner this year, the only one they will hold in VT, and to be partnering with Chef Eric Warnstedt of Hen of the Wood restaurant in Waterbury for the event. A place at the table includes a five course meal with wine pairings, all gratuities, producer discussions, and a tour of the farm with Pete. These are very special events.

Tickets are available from Outstanding in the Field and event details are available on the Outstanding in the Field website.

Hardwick VT Fresh Network Farmers Dinner
We had a very full house at Caledonia Spirits last Friday for our Vermont Fresh Network dinner. It was a fun night, lots of great food and excellent honey wine was served. It was a true labor of love for those involved, so many people pulled together to make this dinner happen. Many thanks to all who participated!

Localvore Lore
This week Andrew and Blair are baking their Elmore Mountain Quebec Flax bread for Good Eats. Quebec Flax bread is made with Whole Wheat & Winter Wheat from Meunerie Milanise in Quebec, flax seed from Michel Gaudreau Golden Crops in Quebec, sea salt, and sourdough.

From Honey Gardens Apiaries this week, we have 1 lb jars of Raw Apitherapy Honey. Raw honey is the concentrated nectar of flowers that comes straight from the hives (after extraction). It is unheated, pure, unpasteurized, unprocessed honey. Raw honey is the healthiest choice amongst the various forms of honey as it has the most nutritional value and contains amylase, an enzyme concentrated in flower pollen which helps predigest starchy foods like breads. Most honeys found in the supermarket are not raw honey and instead they have been heated and filtered so that the honey looks cleaner and smoother, more appealing on the shelf. When honey is heated, its delicate aromas, yeast and enzymes which are responsible for activating vitamins and minerals in the body system are partially destroyed. Hence, such honey is not as nutritious as raw honey.

Honey has a greater sweetening power than sugar. Twelve ounces (by weight) of honey equals one standard measuring cup. In baked goods, reduce the amount of liquid by 1/4 cup for each cup of honey used; add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda for each cup of honey used; reduce the oven temperature by 25 degrees to prevent overbrowning.

A couple times a year, Lorraine and Steve Lalonde load up their truck and bring us their farm grown popcorn. Tullochgorum Farm is in Quebec, and the Lalondes grow two varieties of popping corn, a blue variety and a white. Last year they had a crop loss on the blue, and it's still too early yet to tell whether there will be blue this year. If it pans out, we'll be getting the blue popcorn on their next trip to see us. You won't be disappointed by the white though. This is the most delicious popcorn I have eaten. It's noticeably different and very flavorful. This photo of Steve and Lorraine was taken in front of their organically grown fields of popping corn.

And last but not least, we have another round of eggs for you from Pa Pa Doodles Farm. Overall this is an especially high value localvore share this week, as last week's was a bit low.

Meat Share
It has taken a whole year of cajoling Mike and Julie to please make more, but finally we have the North Hollow Farm Kielbasa again! These kielbasa are made from North Hollow's free range beef with just a bit of pork added for flavor and fat. Mike and Julie send their meat to some folks in MA who have been making Polish kielbasa for 90 years with their secret recipe. This is the real deal, they are delicious. The kielbasa is smoked, so partially cooked but should be heated through before serving.

Greenfield Highland Short Ribs
The VT Fresh Network dinner we co-hosted last week featured Greenfield short ribs and they were delicious. Ray Shatney and Janet Steward raise award winning Scotch Highland Cattle in Greensboro, you know the long haired, long horned red cattle? Over centuries, Scotch Highland Cattle have evolved to be very efficient grazers, able to yield great meat on a grass only diet. Their heavy hair coat enables them to stay warm without packing on additional fat, so the meat contains far less fat than other breeds. Highland short ribs are unique in that they have a higher proportion of meat to bone than other short ribs. The reason for this is because Highland Cattle need to be able to forage for large amounts of food when it is available, and so they have more "spring of ribs" than other breeds. Their rib bones are thinner so they can expand to hold the quantity of food available, and there is more muscle between each rib to accomodate that stretching.

Bonnieview Farm Ground Lamb - the beauty of ground lamb is it's mild flavor. You can season it with anything you like and the flavor of your dish comes through without being overpowered by the meat itself. It's a perfect season for lamb burgers and I have included a recipe below, but there's dozens more recipes on line. Lamb meat balls of many ethnic varieties would also be wonderful.

Pete's Pastured Poultry - and of course we have also put one of our own chickens in the share. Our birds spend their days outside with moveable shelters and unlimited pasture. They are moved from place to place on the farm, eating fields of greens before they are ready to be tilled under, scratching aerating soil, and fertilizing all the while. Their meat is much lower in fat and much higher in vitamins than most you can buy. Plus they are very happy doing what chickens are supposed to do.

Recipes

Greenfield Highland Beef Short Ribs
From Janet Steward, here are two easy ways to prepare your short ribs, both really easy and straightforward. Both recipes will give you short ribs that are tender and tasty.

Super Easy: Brown all sides of short ribs on medium/high heat in heavy pan or skillet, approximately 5 minutes/sides. Transfer to crock pot of Dutch oven. Add 1/4 cup wine or broth and 1/4 c. water. Add 3-4 cloves crushed garlic. Cook on low heat for 6 hours.

Easy: Prepare as above. Add to crock pot or Dutch oven: 1 onion, sliced
1/3 c. red wine vinegar
1/3 c. maple syrup
1/4 c. ketchup
3/4 tsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Cook as above. Enjoy!

Charmoula Lamb Burgers
Charmoula is a North African spice mixture, but there are many variations. Usually the first two ingredients are garlic and coriander, but cumin is featured in many, as is lemon juice and herbs. Don't worry if you don't have all of these spices and things in your pantry. Use this recipe as and inspiration and guide. From August 2007 issue of Gourmet.

3 garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon paprika (not hot)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 1/2 pound ground lamb (not lean)
4 (6- to 7-inch) pita pockets
1/4 cup tapenade (black-olive paste)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
4 thick tomato slices

Mince garlic and mash to a paste with 3/4 teaspoon salt using side of a large heavy knife. Stir together garlic paste, cumin, coriander, paprika, cinnamon, cayenne, and cilantro. Sprinkle evenly over lamb and mix with your hands until combined (do not overmix). Form lamb mixture into 4 (3/4-inch-thick) patties (4 inches in diameter).

Cut off enough from one side of each pita to leave a 5-inch opening and open pockets. Stir together tapenade, oil, and lemon juice.

Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-hot charcoal (medium heat for gas).
Oil grill rack, then grill patties, covered only if using a gas grill, turning over once, 6 to 7 minutes total for medium-rare. Grill pitas, turning over once, until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes total.

Spread patties with tapenade mixture and slide into pita pockets with tomato slices.

'Caponata' (Sicilian Aubergine Stew)
Caponata is a kind of eggplant stew that is flavoured with vinegar and sugar which gives it a sweet and sour flavour. It is usually served cold as part of an antipasti platter but is also nice served as a light lunch with some good crusty bread. Adapted from a recipe on Jamie Oliver.com

1 large aubergine, cubed
1 med onion, thinly sliced
3 sticks of celery (leaves left on), sliced (can be skipped - or could add sliced fennel)
about 20 green olives
1 heaped tbsp of capers
2-3 large tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp of vinegar
3 tsp sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Approx 4-5 tbsp olive oil

Using a large frying pan, heat the 3-4 tbsp of olive oil and fry the eggplants over a medium heat till nicely browned. Remove from the pan.

Add 1 tbsp of olive oil to the pan and fry the onions gently till opaque and lightly golden. Add the celery (or fennel) next and fry for about 2 mins. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pan (including the eggplants)and season with salt and pepper. Add a few of tablespoons of water to the mixture and cook over a low heat for a total of 15mins. If the mixture begins to dry out, add a little more water (no more than a tbsp at a time).

Remove from the heat and allow to cool down to room temperature before serving.

Creamy Kohlrabi
Here's something decadent you can do with your kohlrabi this week. Though I usually eat my kohlrabi raw sliced into salads or cooked in stir fries or other dishes combined with other veggies, in this dish it takes takes center stage. From the Cook's Garden by Ellen Ecker Ogden.

2 large kohlrabi
1 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
4 TB (1/2 stick) butter
1 small onion
3 TB heavy cream
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cut off top and root ends of kohlrabi and ue a paring knife to remove tough cabbage-like outer skin. Grate the kohlrabi on the large holes of a grater. You should have about 4 cups. Toss in a colander with the salt. Let stand in a sink to drain of the juices, about 30 minutes. Rinse well under cold water. A handful at a time squeeze out the excess liquid.

Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add kohlrabi and the sliced onion and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kohlrabi is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in cream and marjoram and cook until cream is absorbed, about 1 minute. Season with the salt & pepper, being careful with the salt. Serve hot.

Laura's Mom's Honey Cake
This recipe came from Honey Gardens. It's a great honey cake recipe - tried and true.

1 lb. honey
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 eggs
2 cups strong cold coffee
3/4 cup oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. pastry spices (clove, nutmeg, allspice)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
scant tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
4.5 to 5 cups flour

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix together honey, sugar, eggs, coffee, oil, and vanilla. Add spices, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder to flour and sift into bowl holding liquid ingredients. Beat until fairly smooth. Grease large tube pan, pour batter, and bake for one hour and ten minutes or until a wooden skewer or toothpick that you have inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Good Eats Newsletter - July 28, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:05:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs New Norland Potatoes; 1 Arrowhead Cabbage; 1 Bunch of Lacinato Kale; 2 lbs Zucchini; 2 Large Sweet Peppers; Japanese or Black Bell Eggplant; 1 Bunch of Cilantro plus...

1.5 lb Beefsteak or Heirloom Tomatoes
1 Bunch of Sweet Basil

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Quebec Multi-grain Bread
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
1 Pint Champlain Orchards Plums

Pete's Musings
Today feels like September. Cool night, breezy, hot, low humidity day. I went to the potato and onion field to harvest some of both and you could feel the two crops maturing, ripening, in the dry heat. There are few better foods than those two to store the goodness and energy of the summer sun to nourish us all winter and into the next spring. It is a pleasure to be a participant in their ability to absorb nutrients and minerals from the rich hilltop soil and turn it into gorgeous green plants. Every day the parts we eat swell while the tops begin to look older, less fresh, heading towards death. We want the tops to die by the end of August as these two crops are harvested in early and mid September. If they live too long the potato skins are too fragile for harvest and the onions are difficult to dry. I crawled into a row of potatoes and lay down under the canopy. The tops are 4 feet tall so it created a cathedral of potato stems and leaves, a great place for a nap if there were time. We are blessed to have such plants that create such nutrition and pleasurable eating the whole year through. ~ Pete

Sean's Adventures
I asked Sean yesterday afternoon whether he'd like to attend the VT Fresh Network Farmers Dinner this Friday night and he replied that he didn't think he could stay upright that long after his workday ended. Poor Sean is weary from many days of straight farm work. Tired, but still energized - this week from digging new technicolor Purple Viking Potatoes. Sean is writing about his internship here. It's a good glimpse into life in the fields and around the farm. Check out his blog.

Storage and Use Tips
Arrowhead Cabbage - This pretty cabbage is sometimes called conehead cabbage and for good reason. Though similar to European green cabbage in texture, it is more tender and can be used in recipes that call for Napa or Savoy cabbage. It is delicious raw or cooked. Nearly all of the head can be used, just not the bottom inch or so. Cabbage should be stored unwashed in your crisper drawer, loosely wrapped in a plastic bag.

Tomatoes - You will all receive either red beefsteak or a variety of heirloom tomatoes this week (Cherokee Purple, Brandywine, Striped German, German Green, Great White, Prudens Purple among them). Please note that some of the tomatoes that are being sent to you are slightly under ripe. When they are very ripe, they can bruise/damage easily in the process of getting them to you. Please, as hard as it might be, leave under ripe tomatoes on your counter and they will ripen very quickly - within a day or two. Your patience will be rewarded with a much tastier tomato.

Cilantro - A member of the carrot family and related to parsley, cilantro is the leaves and stems of the coriander plant (the seeds of the same plant are the spice known as coriander). Cilantro has a very pungent odor and is widely used in Mexican, Caribbean and Asian cooking. The leaves and stems can be chopped and added to salads, soups and sauces, and can garnish many meals. I toss cilantro into any Mexican dish I am making, and love it in summer when I have tomatoes to make salsa. Storing cilantro with moist leaves in a plastic bag will most likely lead to green slime instead of a good meal. It keeps better if you stand it up, unwashed, in your refrigerator in a glass full of water, covered loosely with a plastic bag. Change the water every 2 or 3 days to keep it fresh. If you can't use all your cilantro just yet and wish to save it for a future dish, you can freeze it. Wash and gently dry your cilantro with paper towels. Then either put sprigs loosely in a plastic bag and freeze them. Or lightly chop cilantro, measure by the tablespoon into ice trays, fill remaining space in ice tray with water, and then after cubes are frozen, store in a plastic bag. You can take one out and thaw anytime you need to use it.

Basil - Basil is short lived and care must be taken to store it for any length of time. I often store mine in a glass of water like a bouquet. I trim the stems if they have become dry so they can absorb water. They may last a few days like this. DON'T put your fresh basil in your fridge. Basil gets frostbite very easily and turns unappealingly black. You might get away with it if your fridge is not very cold, but it's quite likely you will freeze it. Basil is also very fragile and we try to handle it very gently. Thus we don't wash our basil before sending it out, so some stalks could be a bit dusty/gritty and will need washing.Beautiful Kale in the Field

Just A Few Seats Left for Dinner this Friday
We have nearly filled all the seats for our VT Fresh Network Farmers Dinner this Friday July 30th. If you would like to attend this dinner, please make your reservation soon. This is going to be a spirited event with a good mix of folks and food!

Much of the food is being sourced from the host producers and nearly all is being sourced very nearby. Prepared by Chef Lauren Bowes, the 4 course meal will be paired with honey wines (mead) from Honey Gardens Winery. Participating member producers include Cellars at Jasper Hill, Vermont Soy, Greenfield Highland Beef, Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, and High Mowing Seeds.

When: Friday July 30th, 6 pm
Where: Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, Hardwick, VT
Tickets: $40/per person plus tax ($43.66 total with taxes)
Please contact Todd Hardie for information and reservations: 802.472.8000, todd@caledoniaspirits.com

Pete's Greens Annual Farm Party August 21st
I hope you all have marked your calendars with the date of our annual farm party/open farm day Saturday August 21st. We look forward to this event each year as it gives us a chance to visit with all of you! Pete and others on the farm will be giving tours of the farm via wagon ride, we'll have some great music playing, and we'll all share a meal under the tent together. In my last email about this event, I mentioned that we were planning on offering an option for people to buy a plate of food at the party. But we have switched gears back to our traditional potluck. This is a great time for you to come out to the farm and see where your food is grown. It's also a great time to visit, eat, and enjoy. I really hope to be able to meet/connect with many of you there!
Localvore Lore
At Elmore Mountain Bread, Blair and Andrew are busy baking special loaves of bread for Good Eats. Their Quebec Multigrain bread is made with Whole Wheat & Winter Wheat from Meunerie Milanise in Quebec, cracked grains from Michel Gaudreau Golden Crops in Quebec, sea salt, and sourdough.

The fresh very free range eggs in the share this week are, of course, from Deb Rosewolf's flock at Pa Pa Doodles Farm.

The certified organic plums this week are from Champlain Orchards in Shoreham, VT. I am not certain what varieties of plums are going out and it's probably a mix but I think many of you will receive a variety called Early Gold. These little yellow plums with red blush are a sweet summer Asian plum and will be delicious eating this week. If they are a little firm and tart, give them a day or two on the counter to ripen a bit further. Champlain Orchards grows a variety of summer fruits including cherries, raspberries, plums, and of course apples, lots of apples. Owner Bill Suhr began running this 100 year-old family orchard in 1998 and he combines old farming practices with the best of the new. Much of his fruit is certified organic, and some of his apples are too (or are in transition).

Recipes
Mini Frittatas with Zucchini, Tomatoes, and Goat Cheese
If you have guests coming this week or you are doing some traveling and need handy car food, or just want to make something a little fun for the family, here's a great one for this week. These little frittatas are delicious and a good way to get some veggies into the kids too! The original recipe comes from Does Leap Farm, and I came to it by way of Tracey Medeiros Dishing Up Vermont Cookbook.

1.25 cups grated zucchini
Salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup grated cheddar
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 cup goat cheese (around 2 ounces) crumbled (parm or feta good too!)
1/4 cup seeded minced tomato
1.5 TB fresh basil

Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly oil and flour a mini muffin tin; set aside.

Place zucchini in a colander and sprinkle lightly with salt. Place colander in a bowl and set aside to drain about 15 minutes. Place salted zucchini between layers of clean tea towel or paper towel and gently press down to remove excess water.

Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl. Add zucchini, flour, cheddar cheese, garlic, salt, and pepper, and mix well. Spoon mixture into each muffin cup, just even with the rim, and sprinkle with the crumbled goat cheese. Bake in the oven until the edges are crisp and brown and frittatas are set, about 12 minutes. Carefully remove from oven and evenly top with tomatoes and basil. Return to oven and bake until tomatoes have heated through, about 1 minute.

Simple Baked Arrowhead Cabbage Here's a nice, easy side dish that showcases these lovely cabbages.

1 Arrowhead Cabbage, cut in two lengthwise
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Chopped Scallions
Grated Parmesan

Place the cabbage halved on a baking sheet or in a glass baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and chopped scallions. Roast for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven, sprinkle with grated parm and return to oven to bake a few more minutes until cheese is lightly browned.

The result was very light and lovely without any of the heaviness sometimes associated with cabbage. The best description of the taste I can come up with is buttery crunch — not at all tough, but a velvety texture. Mild, sweet, delicious.

Oven Ratatouille
This recipe looks long. But really, it's just a lot of instruction about properly roasting the various vegetables in this dish. The roasting sweetens and concentrates the flavors of them all. This is a very healthy, very tasty dish. Another from Mollie Katzen's Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without.

3 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large globe eggplant (about 1 pound), cut into ¾-inch cubes (peeling unnecessary if the skin is tight and smooth)
2 pounds ripe plum tomatoes (or 1 smallish heirloom or beefsteak)
6 medium-sized garlic cloves, unpeeled
2 large bell peppers (red, yellow, or orange)
2 cups coarsely chopped onion
1 medium zucchini (7 to 8 inches long), cut into 1-inch cubes
1½ teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon dried marjoram or oregano
½ teaspoon each crumbled dried thyme and rosemary
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Optional:
Small amounts of fresh herbs (basil, marjoram or oregano, rosemary, thyme, and/or parsley)
Pitted chopped olives

Arrange an oven rack in the topmost position, and another in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line 1 small and 2 large baking trays with foil, and coast the foil generously with the olive oil.

Place the eggplant on one of the large trays, and toss to coat with oil. Then push it to one side, keeping it in a single layer. Arrange the tomatoes on the other half of the tray, rolling them around so they get coated with oil. Wrap the garlic cloves (still in their skins) and a half teaspoon of water tightly in a piece of foil, and place this on the corner of the same tray.

Place the whole bell peppers on the small tray.

Spread the onions and the zucchini pieces on opposite ends of the remaining large tray, and toss to coat with the oil.

Place the eggplant tray on the middle shelf of the oven, and put the small sheet with the peppers on the upper rack. After 10 minutes, use tongs to turn everything over. Repeat this turning process after another 10 minutes or so. Gently squeeze the garlic to see if it is soft. If it is, remove it from the oven; if not, continue roasting.

Place the onion-zucchini tray on the middle shelf next to the one with the eggplant, and continue roasting all for another 10 minutes. Turn the peppers and tomatoes one more time, and toss the eggplant, onions, and zucchini to help them brown evenly. Sprinkle the eggplant, onions, and zucchini evenly with the dried herbs. Once again, squeeze the garlic to see if it is soft. If so, remove it from the oven; if not, continue roasting. Roast a final 10 minutes, or until the vegetables become deep golden brown and very tender.

Transfer the eggplant, onion, and zucchini to a large bowl. Let the peppers, tomatoes, and garlic sit for a few minutes, or until comfortable to handle. Peel the peppers, then chop the tomatoes and peeled peppers roughly into 1-inch pieces and add to the eggplant mixture. Slip the roasted garlic cloves from their skins, mash with a fork, and add to the eggplant mixture.

Toss until well combined. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled – plain or topped with a sprinkling of freshly chopped herbs and/or olives.

Good Eats Newsletter - July 21, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 20:41:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
3 lbs NEW! Norland Potatoes; 1 Head of Napa Cabbage; 1 Head of Garlic; 1 Bunch of Garlic Scapes; Summer Squash; 1 Bunch Sugar Snax Carrots; plus...

Bag of Mesclun Greens
1 lb Tomatoes
1 Bunch of Sweet Basil

Localvore Offerings Include:
Red Hen Pan De Campagne (with Maple!)
Aurora Farms Vermont Organic White Flour
Landaff Creamery Landaff Cheese
1 Pint Blueberries

Meg's Musings
Thank goodness for the rain! What a great couple of growing weeks we've had here, but we definitely welcomed the water. The fields are looking great as all the sexy summer veggies are making their way to maturity. Squash and zucchini, along with tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, broccoli and beans are producing at a much more rapid pace. Cauliflower and melons are on the way, slowly sizing up. This week you receive new Norland potatoes in your bag and in the coming weeks you'll receive other varieties of potatoes too.

Planning and planting for our fall root harvest, tedious and rigorous cultivation, and the day in and day out harvesting of all of our crops has kept everyone super busy and all of the farm equipment tied up. All in all, it's been a great growing season so far, and we're looking forward to the coming weeks! ~Meg

Sean's Adventures
Our intern, Sean Garvey, is blogging about his experiences working at Pete's Greens. For a peek into Sean's life on the farm and his transplant to the community, check out his blog. It's a fun read.

Storage and Use Tips
Napa Cabbage - The flavor of Napa cabbage is somewhat milder and a bit sweeter than that of regular green cabbage. It is delicious raw or cooked, and can be substituted for regular cabbage in most recipes. It is extremely popular in China partly because of its versatility. It can be sliced and used raw in salads, thrown in stir-fries, or fermented in traditional kimchi. Nearly all of the head can be used, just not the tough center core. If your Napa sits a while in the fridge and some leaves are limp, you can refresh it with a good soak in cold water. Napa cabbage should be stored unwashed in your crisper drawer, loosely wrapped in a plastic bag.

Sugar Snax Carrots - These carrots have high levels beta carotene and are renowned for being tender and sweet. They are the ultimate snack carrot.

Basil - Basil is short lived and care must be taken to store it for any length of time. I often store mine in a glass of water like a bouquet. I trim the stems if they have become dry so they can absorb water. They may last a few days like this. DON'T put your fresh basil in your fridge. Basil gets frostbite very easily and turns unappealingly black. You might get away with it if your fridge is not very cold, but it's quite likely you will freeze it. Basil is also very fragile and we try to handle it very gently. Thus we don't wash our basil before sending it out, so some stalks could be a bit dusty/gritty and will need washing.

T-Shirts for Early Birds
The Pete's Greens Ts for those of you who signed up before May 1st will be delivered this week. We could not accommodate each person's size request but did the best we could! Shirts are individually bagged and each has a member's last name on it. Please take a shirt only if your name is on the bag.

Changes to your Delivery?
If you will be away on a pick up day, you can arrange to have your share transferred from your pick up site to the Hardwick food shelf. We have systems in place to accommodate this change. I can also move your share from one site to a different site on occasion if you have need. If you need to move your share though, I do need to know before Sunday. Delivery reports are generated for the farm Sunday night, and it's hard to make changes after that. If you need to make changes, just email me.

Newsletter Trouble?
I send the newsletter out each week on Tuesday right around 5 pm. You should be receiving it each week shortly afterward. I have been hearing from quite a few people lately who have been receiving some newsletters and missing others, yet they are not bouncing on my end. That means they are likely getting caught in folks' spam filters. To prevent this from happening to you, please add amy@petesgreens.com to your address book. Additionally, each week the newsletter is posted on our blog site. So if you don't receive a newsletter, you can check for it here

Celebrate Local Food and Wine with us July 30th
We will co-host our first Vermont Fresh Network Farmers Dinner at Caledonia Spirits in Hardwick on Friday July 30th and I hope to meet some of you there. Chef Lauren Bowes and the New England Culinary Institute is creating the menu and what I previewed yesterday looks delicious! She is creating the menu using local, fresh ingredients that are grown in our region and the meal will be served with honey wines from Honey Gardens Winery.

Participating members include Cellars at Jasper Hill, Vermont Soy, Greenfield Highland Beef, Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, and High Mowing Seeds.

The Vermont Fresh Network Farmers Dinner series were designed to bring people closer to their food sources. At the start of the meal, producers and farmers share a bit of their story or anecdotes about the food they have contributed to the dinner. Those attending the dinners benefit first from a delicious meal made from local foods and from meeting the producers.

When: Friday July 30th, 6 pm
Where: Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, Hardwick, VT
Tickets: $40/per person plus tax ($43.66 total with taxes)
Please contact Todd Hardie for information and reservations: 802.472.8000, todd@caledoniaspirits.com

Localvore Lore
Tomorrow morning I'll drive to Red Hen Baking Co. to pick up a portion of the freshly baked loaves for Good Eats. I'll deliver my loaves to a few Good Eats sites heading North toward the farm and for a couple hours my car will be filled with the wonderful aroma of warm fresh baked bread. Tomorrow's loaves look like they will be very hard to resist! We are lucky for Randy's thoughtful experimentation when it comes to developing all local breads for the share.

This week we’re baking a special loaf for the CSA that features local maple syrup from the Von Trapp Farm in Waitsfield. Kelly and Martin have been farming for decades on the Common in Waitsfield and in the last few years they have gained some recognition for their artisan cheeses made by their two sons. In the traditional Vermont fashion, they supplement their dairy operation with maple syrup production in the spring. We use the Von Trapps syrup in our sticky buns, but this week we have added some to a special pain de campagne (country bread). The small amount of syrup goes nicely with the whole wheat and rye flours in this bread and the slightly sour flavor of the levain (natural starter). Also, the crust on this bread caramelizes much more with the addition of the syrup. This brings out all kinds of interesting flavors. You’ll notice that this bread has a fairly dark crust without being bitter or too thick. Enjoy! ~ Randy

The Welsh style farmstead Landaff cheese in the share this week is made through a partnership between Doug and Debby Erb, proprietors of the Landaff Creamery and the Kehler brothers, owners of the Cellars at Jasper Hill. The cheese is made at the Creamery, with milk from the Erb's Holsteins. After the cheese is made, it heads to the Cellars for the affinage, or aging process where it is lovingly cared for for a minimum of 60 days to maturity. Landaff is particularly great melting cheese, but also a great slicing cheese for sandwiches. From Landaff's website: A mild, semi-firm cheese with a delicious combination of flavors, tangy with a clean finish. The open and buttery texture comes with a natural, cave-aged rind. It melts beautifully for cooking, and makes a wonderful addition to any cheese plate.

The white flour you are receiving in the share this week was organically grown in Charlotte by Tom Kenyon at Aurora Farms. Tom and Randy George of Red Hen Baking Company collaborated to grow the flour, and when a successful crop was harvested this Fall (after a couple failures in prior years) and when it turned out the flour was good quality, there was reason to celebrate! It's a lower protein flour, more of an all purpose flour than a bread flour, though still with enough protein and gluten strength to bake breads (Red Hen's Cyrus Pringle bread uses this flour). I am thankful for the opportunity to have a good, very local flour on hand to bake with, one that I know has been grown organically and that performs so well to boot. There is a nice article in the Spring issue of Local Banquet about the partnership between Tom and Randy that brought this flour into existence for us to enjoy. Read the article here.

The blueberries in the share are from Paul Mazza's farm in Colchester. They are nice and sweet after soaking up so much sun!

Recipes

Simplest Summer Squash
A very simple summer squash recipe from Molly Katzen’s The Vegetable Dishes I Can’t Live Without. I really like Molly's cookbooks (The Moosewood Cookbook being the most well known of the bunch). The recipes are simple and straight forward and the results always good. Serves 3-4.

1.5 to 2 Tb olive oil
2 small or medium onions
1/8 tsp salt, possibly more
1.5 lbs. summer squash – cut into 1/2 in. thick slices
1 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste
freshy ground pepper to taste

Place a large skillet over medium heat. After a minute, add 1 Tb of the oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add the onions and salt. Cook, stirring often for about 10 minutes or until the onions are tender and lightly browned. Transfer the onions to a bowl and set aside.

Do not clean the pan and return it to medium heat. Add a little more olive oil to coat. Add the squash in a single layer and cook until golden brown. Leave them alone (or don’t stir them around) — allowing them to get golden brown. This will take a minute or two, depending on how crowded the pan is.

Scrape the squash loose and flip over (or use tongs). Continue cooking, again without stirring, another 1 to 2 minutes until deeply browned on the other side.

Toss in the garlic and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Add the onions to the pan. Mix well and season with salt and a good amount of freshly ground pepper. Serve hot, warm, or at room temp, garnished if you like with a light sprinkling of thyme and some cheese (parm, feta or try the Landaff!)

Herbed New Potatoes
The best way to honor new potatoes is to cook them in a way that highlights their creamy goodness.

2 lbs new potatoes, scrubbed
3 TB butter, melted
2-3 TB fresh herbs (parsley, chives, oregano, dill, tarragon ...)

Add water to a sauce pot and bring to a boil. Put scrubbed potatoes in a basket steamer and cover, steaming for 25 to 35 minutes until potatoes are tender. Transfer to a bowl, drizzle with melted butter, sprinkle with herbs, salt and pepper and toss gently to coat.

Napa Cabbage Picnic Salad Recipe
From www.elise.com. This salad is sooo tasty! I have made it a lot lately because it's just really good, flavorful with a good amount of spice. The recipe below is great, but there's lots of room for improvisation (vary up the veggies, reduce the amount of mayo in dressing, etc). You can also prepare a lot of this salad ahead and then just throw it together in minutes when you are read to serve it. I have been washing, salad spinning dry, and then chopping a whole head of Napa and then storing it in a bag in my fridge. It easily stays fresh 5 days or more. I make the dressing ahead and keep it in the fridge. Then when I want the salad I put some Napa in a bowl, toss in snap peas or a substitution of garlic scapes, carrots, salad turnips, thinly sliced beets, whataver I have on hand. It's all good. The almond are really good in this and the cilantro is totally optional.

1/3 cup slivered almonds
4 cups (.5 lb) coarsely shredded napa cabbage
6 ounces snow peas, strings removed, rinsed and thinly sliced
2/3 cups thinly sliced salad turnips
2/3 cups thinly sliced scallions including greens (or baby leeks)
2/3 cups lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

Dressing
1.5 Tbsp rice vinegar (seasoned or unseasoned)
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 clove peeled and minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon cayenne powder
1/2 cup mayonnaise

1. Spread almond slivers out in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast in a 350°F oven for 5-10 minutes, until nicely browned. OR toast in stick-free or cast-iron skillet on medium high, stirring frequently until browned. Careful not to burn. Set aside.
2. Combine cabbage, snow peas, radishes, scallions, cilantro in a large bowl. Can make this step a day or two ahead.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the rice vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, ginger, and cayenne until sugar has dissolved. Whisk in the mayonnaise.
4. When ready to serve, gently combine the dressing and almonds with the cabbage mixture.

Blueberry Cobbler
There are lots of blueberry cobbler recipes out there. This one is pretty standard, though you could choose one that uses honey and whole grain flour that would also be delicious. I just wanted to throw out the idea. This is a very good recipe however!

1 pint blueberries
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
6 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons butter
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons sugar
1 pinch ground cinnamon

Optional - 1/2 lemon, juiced (or 1/4 cup orange juice)

Directions
Lightly grease an 8 inch square baking dish. Place the blueberries into the baking dish, and mix with vanilla and lemon juice. Sprinkle with 1 cup of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of flour, then stir in the tablespoon of melted butter. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, stir together 1 3/4 cups of flour, baking powder, and 6 tablespoons sugar. Rub in the 5 tablespoons butter using your fingers, or cut in with a pastry blender until it is in small pieces. Make a well in the center, and quickly stir in the milk. Mix just until moistened. You should have a very thick batter, or very wet dough. You may need to add a splash more milk. Cover, and let batter rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Spoon the batter over the blueberries, leaving only a few small holes for the berries to peek through. Mix together the cinnamon and 2 teaspoons sugar; sprinkle over the top.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the top is golden brown. A knife inserted into the topping should come out clean - of course there will be blueberry syrup on the knife. Let cool until just warm before serving. This can store in the refrigerator for 2 days.

Good Eats Newsletter - July 14, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 01:27:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Mixed Potatoes; 1 Bunch Garlic Scapes; 1 Bunch Scallions or Baby Leeks; Shelling or Sugarsnap Peas; 1 Bunch Bright Lights or Ruby Red Chard; Sweet Peppers; 1 Bunch Celery; Fennel; Rhubarb; plus...

Bag of Mesclun Greens

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Foagies
Ploughgate Elmore Cheese
Pete's Greens Pesto

Introducing Sean...
Sean joined us a week ago on the farm and has begun a blog to share his stories as he embarks on a path to learn more about healthy food production. We are excited to add his enthusiasm to the mix!

My name is Sean Garvey. I am your latest intern on the farm, and I’m very excited to be here. On paper, I am an unlikely candidate for farm work. I grew up in Essex Junction, Vermont and studied Microbiology & Molecular Genetics at UVM. From there, I worked two years at The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. I have a PhD in Genetics from Duke University, and I just completed a 3-year fellowship in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Virginia. Just a month ago, I was on a laboratory bench studying how vascular smooth muscle cells respond to inflammation. Our research team was trying to figure out how blood vessels get clogged, creating what we call atherosclerotic plaques. When a plaque breaks off, there is high risk for heart attack or stroke. To counter plaque disruption, high risk patients may undergo balloon angioplasty. A small balloon is inflated within the blood vessel, and a metal mesh stent is compressed against the plaque, allowing better blood flow. We were trying to find ways to improving this ‘stenting’ process.

While treating the disease deserves funding and attention, I simply wanted to be on the other end of the equation. Rather than treat disease, I wanted to help prevent the disease from occurring. I think food is part of the answer. It is no secret that the average American diet is large and largely unhealthy. So I started learning more about food, food policy, and farming. I watched Food Inc, heard Joel Salatin speak, read The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and volunteered at a local produce farm. And then I started asking a lot of questions, and many of those questions led me to want to work on a farm to be able to better advocate local, organic food production and distribution. I had been preaching from propaganda, and now it was time for me to find out for myself just what it takes to harvest and distribute high quality, fresh, organic food. Because when your desire to participate in CSA becomes the average American option, I want the supply to be there. So thank you all for being a part of this CSA. I really believe that all this vitamin, antioxidant, and fiber-rich food has the power to create good health. ~ Sean

From Sean's first blog post after arrival on the farm:
"There’s so much I want to write, so much that I could write, from my first week at Pete’s Greens. But one lesson stands out most. Passion." Read his first farm blog post here.

Storage and Use Tips
Fennel - Fennel is crunchy and slightly sweet with the flavor of anise. It is delicious and slightly sweet 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 many dishes, and in soups and stews and sauces and is particularly great with tomato sauce dishes. Fennel is composed of a white or pale green bulb from which closely superimposed stalks are arranged. The stalks are topped with feathery green leaves near which flowers grow and produce fennel seeds. The bulb, stalk, leaves and seeds are all edible. To prepare, trim off the fronds and stalks and reserve them for garnish or seasoning. 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.

Peas - There will be snap peas and shelling beans going out this week. You will get one or the other in your bag. How to tell the difference? The snap peas are a little flatter, the shells glossy, and the outline of the peas inside are usually clear to see. These peas are delightful to eat pod and all. The pods are less fibrous than shelling pea pods and are a nice crunchy fresh addition to salads and sautés. The shelling peas are great too, and actually you can eat those pods. They are just more fibrous. Shelling peas have the bonus of bigger peas, and these are as fresh as they come. The peas can be eaten raw or cooked.

Rhubarb - Meg and Noah were able to havest the very first of our new rhubarb plantings that we put in this spring! We are excited to be sending it to you so soon. Rhubarb is a very old plant, and has been harvested by man for over 4000 years. It was prized for it's medicinal qualities (purgative). Only the stalks of rhubarb are eaten, the leaves of the rhubarb plant are actually toxic containing large amounts of oxalic acid. Only much later did people learn to love it for purposes of PIE. You don't have quite enough this week for rhubarb pie, but if you can slice up what you have and add to it enough strawberries to make 6 cups total, you'll be in business. How to make it? How about this... mix strawberries and slices of rhubarb (1/2" thick) together with 1 cup of sugar, pour it into a pie shell, top it with the other crust (or streusel) and bake it (therein lies the expression easy as pie). But if pie is not in your meal plan this week, there are loads of rhubarb recipes here and a real simple one below.

Join us for a Special Dining Experience Friday July 30th
The Vermont Fresh Network Farmers Dinner series were designed to bring people closer to their food sources. At the start of the meal, producers and farmers share a bit of their story or anecdotes about the food they have contributed to the dinner. Those attending the dinners benefit first from a delicious meal made from local foods and from meeting the producers.

In just a little over two weeks, together with Cellars at Jasper Hill, Vermont Soy, Greenfield Highland Beef, Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, and High Mowing Seeds, we will host our first Farmers Dinner at Caledonia Spirits in Hardwick. We have teamed up with Chef Michael Werneke from the Highland Lodge to create an outstanding, special meal that will be paired with selections of Honey Gardens honey wine (aka mead!).

Chef Michael is pretty excited about the opportunity to create a menu using the rich array of cheeses from Cellars at Jasper Hill, the produce, chicken and pork from Pete's Greens, the wonderful grass fed beef from Greenfields Highland Beef, fresh tofu and other soy products brought to the table by Vermont Soy, and other products he will be sourcing from the region .

Please join us for this special event.

When: Friday July 30th, 6 pm
Where: Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, Hardwick, VT
Tickets: $40/per person plus tax ($43.66 total with taxes)
Please contact Todd Hardie for information and reservations: 802.472.8000, todd@caledoniaspirits.com

Pete's Pastured Chicken on a Bed of Greens
Our meat chickens are an important part of the fertility plan on the farm. They are moved from place to place, cleaning up fields and greenhouses before the old crops are tilled under. In this photo, they are dining on a bed of older arugula. They provide a valuable service, making use of the greens as feed, and leaving behind nitrogen to replace that which the arugula drew from the soil. This is good for the fields, it's a great, fresh environment for the birds, and it's also great news for us. The meat from our birds are packed with far more vitamins than free range birds who are not pastured (and many are not).

You can order chickens and have them delivered directly to your pick up site any week (except meat share weeks). Minimum order is 3 chickens, but if you order 5 or more you can take advantage of our special price of $3.50/lb (regular price is $3.75/lb).

For more info about our chickens, and to order, please visit the chicken page.

Localvore Lore
I am excited for you all to try Elmore Mountain Bread "Foagies". These delightful foccacia breads have been a mainstay at our house the last couple weeks. I have been splitting them, toasting them, topping them with garlic, tomato, basil, olive oil blend, sometimes topping with goat cheese, feta, or fresh mozz, and then toasting the resulting bruschetta again. Yum. They are made with Quebec Milanaise Organic Unbleached Wheat, Water, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Sea Salt, Yeast.

The "foagies" or focaccia-hoagies is a bread that was developed out of our relationships with several local restaurants. Our friend and former chef of the Cliff House at Stowe, Jeff Egan came to us looking for a bread or rolls that would be suitable for sandwiches and hamburgers. Rolls were something that we wanted to stay away from, but we were very interested in classic Italian Focaccia style breads. After much trial and error, we came up with the"foagies". It was very well received and before long we were working with many local chefs on developing their own custom versions. Grill it like a panini, make an egg breakfast sandwich, or eat it with your favorite local cheese and fresh seasonal veggies; it will soon be your favorite sandwich bread! ~ Blair

From Marisa Mauro's Ploughgate Creamery, we have Ploughgate Elmore. This cheese (which some of you may have known by its former name Cowslem) is a smooth, rich, creamy spreadable cheese and will be wonderful spread on the foagies and topped with whatever you dream up. Marisa makes her cheeses entirely from milk sourced from Hancock Family Farm in Conventry, Vermont where the same family has been milking for 100 years.

Pesto! Bill made this pesto yesterday and will be making lots more in the next several days. This is a product we get pretty excited to stow away in the freezer. It's such a welcome treat when we send it out in Good Eats shares in Fall, Winter and Spring. This pesto is made simply with our organic basil, olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper. We decided to skip the nuts and cheese to accommodate all diets, and figuring that these are easy for everyone to add to their liking.

The pesto is great on its own, as a dipping sauce, a finishing oil for pasta, lamb, fish or chicken as well as on tomatoes and mozzarella. It is truly a universal sauce. You can add cheese or pine nuts if you like. One of Bill's favorites is combining the pesto with toasted walnuts, ground up then drizzling over an avocado, bibb and tomato salad. The enhanced nuttiness gives a whole new dimension to the pesto. For a version of chimicurri add vinegar, crushed red pepper and some cumin.

We need your feedback! We are in the process of fine tuning our recipe so we really want to hear what you think about this batch. To that end, I am going to send you all a brief survey later this week so you can share your thoughts before we make lots more. In the meantime, if you start slathering pesto onto your foagies and fear you will finish the tub before receiving the survey, and you need to contact us with feedback earlier, please email.

Recipes
Grilled Foagies with Roasted Peppers & Grilled Garlic Scapes

6 slices of foagies, sliced lengthwise, rub with some oil
2 peppers, roasted over open flame or in oven
1 bunch garlic scapes
Ploughgate Elmore Cheese
salt & pepper

Pre-heat grill to low.

Place peppers on open flame and char. Remove from heat., place in bowl and cover. When cool enough to handle, peel char skin away, cut in half and remove seeds. Do not run under water as this washes away the flavor. A few seeds never hurt anyone. Slice into ½ inch long julienne strips While the peppers are cooling, toss scapes with a very small amount of oil, season with salt and pepper and grill until lightly charred. Set aside. Place bread on corners of grill and lightly toast on both sides. Spread some Elmore cheese on each grilled bread. Top with peppers, then scapes and finish with some freshly ground black pepper and fresh basil (or pesto!), if you have some on hand.

Braised Fennel and Potatoes
In this dish the potatoes are perked up with fennel. The fennel becomes very tender and lends loads of moisture to the dish. Makes 4 to 6 side-dish serving. Gourmet February 2006.

1 large fennel bulb with fronds
1 large onion, halved lengthwise, then cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices (2 cups)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb red boiling potatoes
1/2 cup water

Quarter bulb lengthwise and core, then cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Cook fennel, onion, pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut potatoes crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Add potatoes and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt to fennel mixture and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, 3 minutes. Add water and cook, covered, stirring once, until potatoes are tender, 10 to 12 minutes more.

Chilled Fennel & Potato Soup

2 tbsp. olive oil
3 cups fennel, rough chop (save fronds for garnish)
2 onions, chopped
2 cups potatoes, peeled, diced
4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1 cup whipping cream
3 sprigs tarragon, stripped, chopped

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add fennel bulbs, onions and potatoes. Sauté until slightly softened. Add broth and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are soft. Cool slightly.

Meanwhile, bring cream and tarragon to boil in heavy small saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 20 minutes so that flavors can infuse.

Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return soup to same pot. Stir in cream mixture. Simmer thinning with some water or more broth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill until cold, then cover and keep chilled. Garnish with reserved fennel fronds.

Seared Wild Caught Salmon Salad
4 Salmon fillets
Pete’s pesto, as needed

Salad:
Mesclun Greens
4 tbsp. olive oil
3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper, to taste

Heat large non-stick skillet with just enough oil to shimmer the pan. Carefully add salmon and lower heat immediately. Sear until lightly brown and turn. You will cook on each side approximately 3-4 minutes for a medium rare fillet .

Remove to a plate and let rest. Meanwhile, place mesclun in a large bowl, toss with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Split the greens up amongst 4 plates, place a salmon fillet, belly side up, on top of each salad and top with pesto. Garnish with lemon zest.

*** The beauty of the wild salmon is that is considered a “green” fish. Click here for more information on which fish to eat and which to avoid.

Minted Rhubarb Iced Tea

8 stalks rhubarb, cut in 3-inch pieces
8 cups water
½ cup honey
1 bunch mint, picked, roughly chopped

Place the rhubarb and water into large pot, bring to a boil. Simmer for one hour.
Strain the liquid, add the honey and a mint. Chill completely and garnish with mint sprig.

Rhubarb Dream Bars
I just came across this recipe on the website allrecipes.com while looking for something appropriate for a smaller amount of rhubarb. With a combination of a shortbread base topped with rhubarb, walnuts and coconut, how could you go wrong?

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup cold butter or margarine
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 cups finely chopped rhubarb
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup flaked coconut

In a bowl, combine 1 cup flour and confectioners' sugar. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Pat into a lightly greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for 13-15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

In a bowl, combine the sugar and remaining flour. Add eggs; mix well. Stir in rhubarb, walnuts and coconut; pour over crust. Bake 30-35 minutes longer or until set. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.

Good Eats Newsletter - Jul 7, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 02:02:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
3 lbs Mixed Potatoes; 1 Bunch of Purple Carrots; 1 Bunch of Red Bore Kale; 1 Head of Radicchio; 1 Bunch of Sage; 1 Bunch of Baby Pearl Onions -or- Baby Leeks; Sugar Snap Peas -or- Shell Peas; 1 Zucchini (2 if small) -or- 1 Pepper (if we don't have quite enough, you will get a substitute tomato or eggplant!); plus...

1 Head of Lettuce
1 Bag of Mesclun

Localvore Offerings Include:
On the Rise Pizza Dough
Maplebrook Mozzarella
Pete's Greens Maple Mustard Vinaigrette
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs

Meat Share Members - This is a Meat Share Week!

Pete's Musings
Hot and I love it. I'm convinced this farm could grow twice as much food if every summer day were 85 degrees and sunny. Everything happens faster, crops produce and produce. Of course we'd have to have a lot more irrigation than we have and today's low 90's is a little too hot. It's also a little rough on those of us who are working in the fields but still so much better than last summer's cold mud slog.

The exciting news around here is that the Vermont Food Venture Center has broken ground on their new building in Hardwick. Tomorrow Pat Leahy will be in town for a groundbreaking ceremony on the $3 million plus facility. The Food Venture Center is currently located in Fairfax and the new building in Hardwick will be bigger and better. There will be commercial kitchen space of all types available for rent, help with business planning and development, and Jasper Hill will have a cheesemaking space as well. This has great potential to stimulate a pile of new ag and food based businesses. If you have been secretly harboring a plan for the next great Vermont localvore delicacy take advantage of the Food Venture Center. ~ Pete

Storage and Use Tips
Purple Carrots - The cool purple carrots are the variety Purple Haze. The purple maroon exterior reveals a bright orange interior when cut, and the purple color fades some when cooked. Purple carrots are not something new, in fact they have been around a very long time, at the very least since medieval times. Orange carrots only became the dominant color in the last few hundred years. Purple carrots contain all the vitamin goodness of orange carrots, with some antioxidant anthocyanins accompanying the purple color that in fact take them up a notch.

Peas - There will be snap peas and shelling beans going out this week. You will get one or the other in your bag. How to tell the difference? The snap peas are a little flatter, the shells glossy, and the outline of the peas inside are usually clear to see. These peas are delightful to eat pod and all. The pods are less fibrous than shelling pea pods and are a nice crunchy fresh addition to salads and sautés. The shelling peas are great too, and actually you can eat those pods. They are just more fibrous. Shelling peas have the bonus of bigger peas, and these are as fresh as they come. They are so sweet my kids ate a whole bag of them last night while shelling them such that there weren't any left for dinner. The peas can be eaten raw or cooked. I tossed what was left of mine into my salad.

Baby Pearl Onions - These little onions are fantastic. They have a real zing and are quite a treat in salads and on sandwiches. You can use the tender greens part way up in the same way you'd use scallions. They aren't as crisp as scallions but they are flavorful. Creamed pearl onions and peas might be a delicious side this week!

Radicchio - A member of the Chicories family along with endive and escarole, radicchio resembles a small red lettuce. You can chop radicchio and add it to your salad for some color and extra flavor. It is also quite good brushed with olive oil before tossing on the grill. Try adding some to risotto. Keep unwashed radicchio in a perforated plastic bag in the crisper drawer for up to a week.

Sage - Sage is very good in stuffings, beans, potatoes, risotto, cheeses, and tomato sauces and pairs well with fatty meats such as pork, sausage, goose, and lamb. Complementary flavorings include onion, garlic, thyme, oregano, parsley, bay leaf, and rosemary. Sage can easily overpower a dish. Use with a light hand when experimenting. Though it has a strong flavor, it is an aromatic and will lose some of its flavor when cooked, so for fullest flavor, add it at the end of the cooking process. Wrap in paper towels and store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Use within 4 to 5 days. Sage can also be preserved for later use by freezing freshly washed leaves in ziploc bags (they'll keep for about a year), drying (will be good for about 6 mos), or covering with olive oil and refrigerating (will be good about 3 weeks).

Please join us for a VT Fresh Network Farmers Dinner
Mark your calendars and make your reservation. I have a feeling that these tickets will go quickly!

Pete's Greens, Cellars at Jasper Hill, Vermont Soy, Greenfield Highland Beef, Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, the Highland Lodge and High Mowing Seeds have joined forces to host a Vermont Fresh Network Farmers Dinner to be held at Caledonia Spirits in Hardwick. Chef Michael Werneke from the Highland Lodge will be dreaming up this meal sourcing his ingredients largely from the producers involved and from others nearby. With the wealth of products available (at the height of the summer season!) this meal promises to be something really special. And what's more, the meal will be paired with Honey Gardens honey wines! So come on out, meet the producers and farmers of this food; enjoy an amazing meal, sample some beautiful honey wine. This promises to be a fun, delicious event. Seating is limited.

When: Friday July 30th, 6 pm
Where: Caledonia Spirits & Honey Gardens Winery, Hardwick, VT
Tickets: $40/per person plus tax ($43.66 total with taxes)
Reservations: Vermont Fresh Network, 802.434.2000, credit cards accepted.

Pete's Greens Annual Farm Event - Aug 21st - Save the Date!On Saturday August 21st, we'll have our annual open farm day at Pete's Greens. Have you been thinking you ought to get out and see where your food comes from? This is a perfect opportunity. Pete will give a couple scheduled farm tours of fields and greenhouses. There will be live music and a great meal. This year the event is taking place amidst the Kingdom Farm & Food Days, a two day event celebrating local Vermont agriculture. There are lots of other activities over the two days of the event, many, like viewing the sheep milking at Bonnieview Farm, are kid friendly. If you enjoy biking, The Craftsbury Outdoor Center will be leading a scenic bike tour of area farms with that ride ending at Pete's Greens.

In past years our open farm days have been potluck affairs, but this year we are doing something a little different. Chef Bill Allen will prepare a BBQ pork meal and tickets for the meal will be available for $13 to the general public, $9 for CSA members, and $5 for kids. Alternatively, people are welcome to picnic and salad and cider will be provided free of charge. The farmstand will be stocked with cheeses, breads, fruits, veggies and local goodies as well for your foraging pleasure.

More details on this to come but please save the date! We'd love to see you there!

Volunteers Needed
Are you someone who would prefer to be involved than to be an onlooker at an event? We need some volunteers for our open farm day, and the Kingdom Farm & Food Fest is looking for volunteers as well. If you'd like to help out in exchange for some food and fun, please email m e.

Localvore Lore
It's a pizza week! Ben and Rachel, owners of On the Rise Bakery have supplied us with their pizza dough made with VT sunflower oil, Milanaise unbleached white flour, Ben Gleason's whole wheat flour, local honey and sea salt. The pizza dough will come to you frozen. Put it right back into your freezer if you don't plan to use it Wednesday night. When you do use it, thaw it, and don't wait for it to rise. When it is thawed it is ready to stretch and top and bake. As pizza dough sits, thawed, either on the counter or in the fridge, the live yeast in the dough continues to work away and the dough will lose elasticity steadily. If you haven't used it 48 hrs later, the risk is not that the dough will go bad, it's that it will lose elasticity, and become more difficult to work with, it will tear more easily. Ben posted the instructions on line along with some instructional videos that you can watch for technique and inspiration. If you make a great looking or great tasting pizza that you are pleased with, email a photo along to Ben or post it to the On the Rise Facebook page.

To go along with the dough , we have some Maplebrook Farm's Fresh Mozzarella for you. In Bennington, Maplebrook makes their cheese from hormone free Vermont milk. The cheese freezes very well, so if pizza isn't in the plan for this evening, you can save it for another day (or another week!).

With all the lettuce and mesclun coming, we thought you might enjoy some localvore dressing. Bill made maple mustard vinaigrette today. The dressing contains Stateline Farm sunflower oil, Gingerbrook Farm cider vinegar, grain mustard, Pa Pa Doodles Farm maple syrup, thyme and oregano from the farm, salt, black pepper, and garlic.

More eggs this week from the girls at Pa Pa Doodles Farm.

Meat Share
Maplewind Farm Summer Sausage - Up on top of a ridge with the Long Trail running by, Beth and Bruce raise beef, poultry, pigs, and poultry at Maplewind Farm while also growing vegetables for their CSA down on the valley floor. Their Berkshire Tamworth pigs are all born on the farm and pastured throughout their lives. The Summer Sausage is made with 100% grass fed pork and beef from the farm as well as sea salt, spices etc and NO nitrates/nitrites. The mild flavored summer sausage needs no cooking and is great on crackers or with a cheese plate or as a sandwich meat. Just slice up and enjoy. It is also excellent heated however, so fry it up or use it on pizza or with a pasta dish if you choose. Though the sausage is coming to you frozen, it is actually totally shelf stable and you can leave it sitting on the counter for up to 6 months or take it on a hike. It must be refrigerated after opening however.

Chorizo Sausage - The Maplewind chorizo sausage is made from pasture raised Huntington pork. Chorizo is a highly spiced sausage, and a traditional sausage flavor in Spanish and Mexican cuisine. This sausage is not overly spicy, it has a great taste that is amazing in paella, on pizzas, tossed in pasta, in soups, with black beans and it's wonderful in scrambled eggs.

Brotherly Farm Ground Beef - Craig and Angela Russell own Brotherly Farm, a small organic farm in Brookfield . They milk 100 cows selling their milk to Horizon, and they raise organic chicken, pork, beef and veggies. This ground beef is from their transitioning cows, so it's not certified organic, but the animals have been organically raised. This is lean, delicious, grass fed meat

Pete's Pastured Chicken - Our chickens are raised on pasture. Lots of pasture. As soon as they are large enough our birds move out onto pasture with moveable shelters and there they remain for the rest of their days, moved regularly to new fields of green. They ingest loads of healthy, vitamin packed organic forage throughout their lives and this goodness is assimilated in their meat. These whole birds are delicious and nutrient packed.

Sweet Italian Lamb Sausage - Just down the road from us in Albany is Bonnieview Farm, owned and operated by Neil and Kristin Urie. The land has been farmed by the Urie family for four generations, bought first by Neil’s great-grandfather in 1890. Neil and Kristin make some great sheep cheeses (the feta from the first week is one) and they also produce lambs. Neil raised 40 lambs for us last year, and the lamb in the share comes from these lambs raised on the hillsides nearby. The sweet italian sausages are made from pastured lamb, fennel, sugar, salt and pepper.

Menu Planning!
David and Renee Wahler live in Wolcott and have been share members since 2008 (or maybe longer!). Each week they plan their meals around their Good Eats share, and eat very locally year round. Their planning is impressive and they make great use of their food and end up with tasty, healthy meals. I asked them to share with you their process and a week of their planning. Thank you David and Renee!

We are retired and both enjoy cooking; thus, we look forward to the weekly challenge of menu planning and making use of all of our shares within the given week after pickup. However, for those of you with a hectic lifestyle of working full-time, menu planning can easily become apart of your weekly routine. It’s not a daunting task. In fact, we find that by posting our handwritten plan for the week on the refrigerator, we spend much less time trying to figure out what to prepare for the next meal. By reviewing the menu each morning, it frees us from even thinking about what we’re going to eat or what to prepare for the day. Planning also helps to minimize grocery shopping trips, saving time, gas, and impulse buying.

When we receive the listing of the shares on Tuesday night, we prepare our weekly menu. Generally, we follow the plan pretty well -- making revisions as needed for leftovers, freezing something for a quick backup meal, or if we are invited out, or have friends over. As we plan, we make an effort to consistently include staples received from previous shares so that we keep the items rotating out for freshness (such as the flours, grains, and so forth). For additional staples, our pantry also holds rice, pastas, and our own dried beans, and some canned goods, which supplement all of our planning. Most of our non share purchases are made at the food Co-op. The addition of the CSA meat share has been great; there’s always something new and different to challenge our cooking creativity.

Since we began participating in the CSA program, we have sized down our own vegetable garden, focusing on beans for drying, tomatoes to enjoy fresh and to freeze, additional winter squashes, and other items that we know will compliment the shares. Besides, we like working in the dirt! ~ David and Renee Wahler

Recipes

Sweet Italian Lamb Sausage Roti
1 package Naan bread or similar

1 package lamb sausage
1 onion, sliced
1 hot pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup vinegar
3 tbsp. curry powder
oil

Roast or grill sausage and set aside. Heat oil in sauté pan and add onion, pepper and garlic and sauté until just lightly browned. Add vinegar and curry powder and season with salt and pepper. In each roll, pace a sausage and top with onion mixture. Serve with a few wedges of lime.

Stuffed Brotherly Farms Burger

1 lb. BF beef
½ cup Jasper Hill/Cabot Clothbound Cheddar
Salt & Pepper

Season beef with salt and pepper. Take a small chunk of cheddar and form burger round it. You decide how cheesy you want it. Grill and serve with grilled onions, grilled tomato slices and a mesclun salad…no bread necessary unless you choose. A little of Pete’s hot sauce is a great contrast to the cheddar and beef.

Portuguese Pizza

1 ball pizza dough, rested and rolled out to 10-16 inches
2 links chorizo sausage, removed from casing, crumbled and sauteed til browned.
1 bunch kale, washed, trimmed and sliced thinly
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 sprigs sage, rough chop
olive oil
1 can white beans, rinsed thoroughly with cold water

Sprinkle some flour on a sheet pan. (If you have a pizza stone, you’ll know what you are doing once you build the pizza.) Spread all ingredients evenly on dough, drizzle with olive oil and salt & pepper. Bake in a 450 degree oven until crispy. If you prefer leave the chorizo off for a vegetarian version. Both can be topped with a simple mesclun salad dressed with vinegar and olive oil. Make sure the kids help on this one.

Kale & Smashed Potato Cakes

1 bunch kale, washed, trimmed
2 lbs. potatoes, washed and quartered
2 onions, finely chopped
5 sprigs fresh sage, rough chop
½ cup scallions, bias cut
¼ cup olive oil
salt & pepper

Bring 8 cups of salted water to a boil. Add kale. Cover and cook over medium until tender. Remove kale with a slotted spoon, reserving cooking liquid. Chop kale and set aside.

Add potatoes to the same pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until tender. Drain; partially mash potatoes. Stir in kale. Add half of the olive oil and season with salt & pepper.

Heat remaining oil in a large nonstick pan. Add diced onion and chopped sage. Cook until browned. Combine potato mixture, onion mixture, green onions. Remove from heat; cool slightly. Divide potato mixture into 8 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. In the same nonstick pan, add a some olive oil and carefully place potato patties, Brown evenly on both sides.

Grilled Radicchio with Balsamic Glaze
This recipe comes from Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian." It would be delicious sprinkled with some blue cheese.

1 lb Radicchio, cored and quartered
1 TB sunflower oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 TB honey
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your grill to a moderately high heat. Brush the radicchio with the oil, taking care to keep the wedges in tact. Stir the honey into the vinegar and set aside. Place the radicchio wedges on the grill, cut sides down. Grill for a minute or two, then turn and brush (or drizzle) with the vinegar mixture. Cook until just starting to crisp and char around the edges, another couple of minutes. Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with salt and black pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature. Sprinkle with blue cheese, if desired.

Roasted Purple Carrots with Fresh Thyme

1 bunch carrots, scrubbed
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 tbsp, olive oil
salt & pepper

Cut the carrots on the diagonal into roughly 1 inch pieces. Place in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Season with kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper and thyme leaves. Toss carrots until well coated and place on a baking sheet. Roast for about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are nicely browned on the edges but not burned, and tender when you pierce one with a fork.

Good Eats Newsletter - Jun 30, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 02:46:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Mixed Potatoes; 1 Bunch of Carrots; 1 Bunch of Lacinato Kale; 1 Bunch of Garlic Scapes; 1 Bunch Scallions; 1 Bunch of Herbs; Sugar Snap Peas; plus...

1 Sweet Pepper -or- 2 Zucchini -or- 1 Eggplant -or- 1 or 2 Tomatoes

plus...

1 Bag Frozen Zucchini -or- Red Onions -or- Spinach -or- Hot Peppers

plus...

1 Bag Arugula

Localvore Offerings Include:
Bread and Butter Farm 3 Seed Bread
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Gingerbrook Farm Cider Vinegar
Champlain Orchards Organic Cherries

Please bring your empty plastic veggie bags, berry boxes, egg cartons, and plastic containers and leave them at your pick up site on Wednesdays. We will re-use these items!

Pete's Musings

Hi Folks,
Some of you are probably wondering why we have so many combination share items this time of year. For example, this week some of you will receive zucchini, others eggplant, and others peppers. I imagine it is a little frustrating if peppers are your favorite vegetable in the world and you get eggplant instead. The reason this happens is that these are all very early hot weather crops that we only have a little bit of. Keep in mind it is still June, we are in northern Vermont, and it's pretty cool that we even have peppers and eggplant. We choose to make our CSA members top priority for early sexy crops but we just don't have enough of them for everyone to get the same thing in the same week. If you didn't get just what you want don't worry - there will be plenty more of all these crops as the summer progresses.

Sunshine - we need it! Looking forward to a hot 4th of July weekend to get the fields and greenhouses cranking again. ~ Pete

Storage and Use Tips
Carrots! - These first carrots pulled from the ground this year are called Ya Ya and they are renowned for their sweet flavor.

Mixed Potatoes - This week it's a mix of Russets, Nicolas, white, and Viking potatoes.

Lacinato Kale - this week's kale is called Lacinato and is one of my favorites. It's also called dinosaur kale for it's dark, leathery, bumpy appearance.

Herbs - You will get one bunch of herbs in your bag this week. We'll be sending a mix of thyme, sage, summer savory, or oregano.

Arugula - Also known as Rocket or Roquette, this is a very popular and versatile green, that can be eaten raw, but also stands up well in the sauté pan. It has a peppery mustardy flavor and is great on sandwiches to give them pep, and into salads to take it up a notch. It also does well with a quick wilt added to pastas, frittatas or calzones, or as a stand-in for lettuce on an Italian-inspired sub. It blends particularly well with goat cheese and balsamic and olive oil. It is delicious simply sautéed in a pan with olive oil with a sprinkle of coarse salt & pepper.

Garlic Scapes - The tall, curly seed stalks that a garlic plant sends up at this time of year are a short season delicacy. Garlic scapes are pulled 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, vegetable dishes. They are also good in salads and on bruschetta & pizza and so many more ways.

Frozen Veggies - This week you will get a bag of frozen veggies. There will be a mix at each site and you may get frozen spinach, zucchini, hot peppers, or red onion. The spinach is great for casseroles, lasagnas, quiches etc. Thaw it, squeeze out the excess liquid and add it in. The zucchini I love in pasta dishes, burritos, and it's actually really tasty on it's own sauteed in olive oil with salt & pepper. Great for baking too. Again, squeeze out the liquid after thawing and before adding to your recipe. Frozen peppers you ask? You'll be delighted. Frozen hot peppers (and sweet peppers) are great to have on hand. I have loved having a bag in the freezer this winter and I pull out just a couple as I need them. They take only a few minutes to thaw enough to chop them, and I add them as I would fresh to many recipes. The red onions are best used in a sauté of course. Great to thaw and then toss in pan on low, low to slowly carmelize. I use these in as the onion base at the start of so many soups, sautés, stir fries, casseroles, and quiche recipes.

First Meat Share delivery is Next Week
There's still time to join the meat share in time to receive for the first round of meat selections. Once a month, the meat share delivers a selection of sustainably farmed, grass fed meats from Pete's and from other nearby farms that we know and love. All animals grown for the share are grown without use of hormones or chemical dewormers etc. All are raised on pasture (except the trout!) and many raised organically. This is meat grown in a way that is good for our environment, providing the needed fertility to compliment other crops grown on these farms. Grass fed meats contain a much higher vitamin concentration and much lower fat content than other meats.

Sign-up for the Summer Meat Share (4 Deliveries: Jul 7, Aug 4, Sep 1, Oct 6)

Pete's Pastured Chicken
On most weeks during the share (all except meat weeks) you can order Pete's Pastured Chicken. Our chickens are raised on pasture. Lots of pasture. Even as chicks in the barn, our little birds get to feast on sprouts and baby greens left from each days vegetable processing. As soon as they are large enough our birds move out onto pasture with moveable shelters and there they remain for the rest of their days, moved regularly to new fields of green. They can't help but ingest loads of healthy, vitamin packed organic forage throughout their lives and this goodness is assimilated in their meat.

You can order average sized birds (4.74 to 5.5 lbs each) or large birds (5.5 to 7 + lbs birds). The large birds are nice because you can roast one up, have a great meal, save the best meat for sandwiches, and STILL have leftovers for a casserole or soup or stew. Minimum order is 3 birds, and price is $3.75/lb. Only $3.50/lb if you order 5 or more.

Click here to visit our chicken page and download an order form.

Localvore Lore
Several weeks ago I sat down in the office on a Wednesday next to an open box full of sawed off loaves of bread. Meg came in and said "you should try that bread, it's really good". I sawed off a hunk and was delighted by the dense, earthy, still moist, crunchy nature of the bread and the distinct rye flavor. Then she told me it had been sitting around like that since Saturday market, yet it still was great. Of course we had to get some more for you all to try. And so Adam Wilson of Bread and Butter Farm in Shelburne baked a special round of his 3 Seed Bread for Good Eats today. Adam and farming business partner Corie Pierce and their respective partners purchased a 143 acre Land Trust farm in Shelburne in 2009 and have begun farming in earnest. They raise grass fed Jersey cows, sell raw milk from the farm, and hope to put in a cheese facility at some point. Corie will be heading up a greens operation in their passive solar greenhouses. And Adam bakes traditional German style sourdough breads in his wood-fired oven. Though the flours are all VT and Quebec grown, some of the seeds are not. But we wanted you to have a chance to try the bread anyway. We like it lots.

Last Friday afternoon I drove out to meet Jo Liddell and Bob Machim to pick up the cider vinegar in the share today. Bob and Jo's carved their homestead, Gingerbrook Farm, out of the woods of South Washington, VT 40 years ago. As they cleared for their fields, they found wild apple trees and decided to keep them. The land around their home is dotted with these old wild trees and it is from these trees and others nearby their farm that Bob makes their cider vinegar. This is the real macoy, Honest-to-Goodness cider vinegar as they call it, a health tonic, and almost good enough to drink straight! It starts with unpasteurized apple cider that Bob seeds with a "mother" culture of yeast that ferments the cider. The difference between apple cider gone bad due to the infiltration of natural airborne yeasts and a good artisanal cider vinegar is in controlling the process. The mother culture makes a big difference, as does the fresh cider used for the vinegar, and the aging process. Bob ages this vinegar for two years and poured the beautiful amber liquid from big wooden barrels in a corner of his home. In time, you may find a slippery gelatinous mass forms in your cider vinegar. Fear not! This is just more "mother" forming in your jar. Just remove it from jar and continue to use your vinegar. Andrew Chessman wrote a good article about cider vinegar for the Winter 2009 Edible Green Mountains magazine.

Champlain Orchards picked every cherry they could for Good Eats yesterday. These are certified organic Hedelfingen Sweet Cherries and they are such a treat. Along with the apples for which he is best known, Bill Suhr, owner of Champain Orchards in Shoreham grows quite a variety of organic fruit that folks can buy or pick themselves.

And we have eggs again this week from Deb's hens at Pa Pa Doodles Farm.

Recipes

Spring Vegetables with Pasta
I love that the summer veggies are really starting to come in force now. Here's one from Bill that you can substitute as much as you please. Use arugula or one of your greens from last week instead of the kale if you like. Sub in beans for the peas. Or eggplant for the peppers or zuc.

3 carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips
1 large zucchini, cut into thin strips
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 yellow or red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1/2 bunch kale, washed trimmed, chopped fine (or baby arugula!)
1 cup sugar snap peas, bias cut, in half
1/4 cup olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp. fresh oregano or basil
1 pound penne rigate
½ pint cherry tomatoes, split in half
½ cup freshly grated Reggiano

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss carrots, zucchini, onion and bell pepper with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place vegetables on a baking sheet and roast until carrots are tender and other vegetables begin to brown.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. In the last 30 seconds, add sugar snap peas and kale to the water, Drain and rinse briefly with cold water.

Toss the pasta with the vegetable mixtures in a large bowl to combine. Toss with the cherry tomatoes. Drizzle with some more olive oil and fresh herbs. Season the pasta with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and serve immediately.

Scallion & Garlic Scape Tortilla

1 bunch garlic scapes, roughly chopped
1 bunch scallions, biased cut
¼ cup water
4 eggs, lightly beaten
Salt & pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil

Place garlic and scallions in a 10 inch skillet with 1 tsp. oil, 1/4 cup water and a pinch of salt. Cook covered over medium high heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well. Beat eggs with salt and pepper. Add remaining oil to skillet. When oil is hot, shake skillet to spread greens evenly, add eggs. Cover and cook over medium low heat until top is set.

Arugula Salad with Lemon-Parmesan Dressing
Here's a solidly reviewed recipe for you. This salad makes a great side dish on its own, but is even better as a pizza topping! Brush the dough with olive oil, sprinkle it with sea salt and shredded mozzarella, then bake. When the pizza comes out of the oven, top it with the salad. The simple dressing could also be used to dress pasta with wilted arugula and whatever else you fancy in your dish.

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
4 cups (packed) baby arugula
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

Blend first 4 ingredients in processor. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Cover; chill up to 3 days.

Combine arugula and tomatoes in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat.

Arugula with Cherries and Warm Goat Cheese Rounds

1 tbsp. or olive oil
1 tbsp. fresh tarragon, rough chop
1/2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 to 1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 small log goat cheese, cut into 4 rounds
1/2 bag arugula
1/2 pint cherries, pitted and stemmed

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Whisk together oil, lemon juice and tarragon. Season dressing with salt and pepper.

Spread almonds on a small baking sheet. Rub goat cheese rounds with olive oil and season with pepper. Gently place goat cheese on almonds, coating one side and then the other. Place in oven for 5 minutes, remove and let set up.

Carrot-Zucchini Quick Bread

3 egg whites, whipped until frothy
½ cup applesauce
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup grated zucchini
1 cup grated carrots
3 cups AP flour
½ cup sugar
1 tbsp. cinnamon
½ tsp salt
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350°F. 
Prepare 2 bread pans with cooking spray and flour.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the egg whites, applesauce, orange juice, vanilla, grated zucchini and grated carrots. 

In another mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, baking powder and baking soda.  Mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients just until moistened. Pour the batter into your pan and bake for 60 minutes.

Cherry Infused Gin

1/2 pint cherries, pitted and stemmed
1 pint gin

Once cherries are stemmed, gently smashed them in a bowl. Place them in a sealable vessel and pour the gin over. Let this sit for 2-3 days. The juniper in the gin works really well with the cherries. Served in chilled glasses, garnishing with some of the macerated cherries.

Good Eats Newsletter - Jun 23, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 01:43:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Nicola Potatoes; 1 Bunch Red Beets w/ Greens; 1 Bunch of Swiss Chard; 1 Bunch of Sorrel -or- Upland Cress; 1 Bunch of Red Bore Kale; 1 Bunch Green or Purple Kohlrabi; 1 Bunch Scallions; 1 Bunch Garlic Scapes; 1 Bunch Dillweed; plus...

1 Bag of Mesclun Greens
1 Quart of Strawberries

Localvore Offerings Include:
Red Hen Baking Company Cyrus Pringle Bread
1 Qt VT Organic Sunflower Oil
Mushrooms from Amir Hebib or Wildbranch Mushrooms

Hen of the Wood, Laughing Moon, Concept 2 and Johnson will get either beans or zucchini this week, to make up for last week.

Please bring your empty plastic veggie bags, berry boxes, egg cartons, and plastic containers and leave them at your pick up site on Wednesdays. We will re-use these items!

Pete's Musings
Farm is clicking along. A friend within 60 miles of here thinks he has late blight in his potatoes. Hopefully he is wrong. I have not heard of it being closer than CT, this will be big news if it is already in Vermont. The good news is our potatoes are a foot tall and starting to flower so we should be able to hold off the blight long enough to get a good crop. Garlic has scaped, you'll enjoy them this week. Sorry we don't have our own strawberries. Three nights in May that were 21, 19, and 21 degrees pretty much wiped out our blossoms. We expect to have a nice late summer berry crop.

We continue to tackle weeds every chance we get. Today we are going through the greenhouses and hand weeding the few that have slipped through the straw mulch. Then we'll be out hoeing celeriac and fennel. Later, corn, brussel sprouts, cauliflower and leeks will be hilled to smother baby weeds in the row.

There have been some questions about how we control weeds. It is a complicated question to answer as there are many elements. As a general rule we try to kill as many weeds as possible before we plant the crop. You can do this with a bare fallow (turning the soil every 10 days to allow new weeds to sprout but not go to seed). We might do this with a weedy section of field for a few weeks or as much as half a growing season. It is a useful technique but hard on soil structure as all the turning causes organic matter to be lost from the soil. Another technique is stale seedbed. This method requires making beds and scratching the top of the beds shallowly with a tine weeder every 3 days. It kills all the newly sprouted weeds but does not turn up weed seeds that are buried more deeply than a couple inches. This is a great technique and one we use alot. Another method is flame weeding. A slow germinating crop such as carrots is sown and then about a week later just before the carrots are up baby weeds are killed with a powerful propane flame. This works well but timing is critical and it is a little dangerous. I have burned off my arm, leg and eyebrow hair with our flame weeder. Actually my eyebrows are a little thick so I looked pretty good with a sleeker version.

And then there are all the tools we use once the crop is up. Basket weeders, knives mounted to tractor toolbars, hoes, hilling discs, it is endless. Any angle we can get on weeds that reduces hand weeding or handhoeing saves the farm money and allows expensive hand labor to focus on picking and packing food. ~ Pete

Storage and Use Tips
Red Bore Kale - Last week you had some green kale in your bags. This week it's pretty Red Bore kale. I mentioned this last week, but it's worth saying again... Kale is packed with health-promoting compounds, and it has been found to have the greatest antioxidant capacity of all fruits and vegetables. It’s an excellent source of vitamins K, A and C, as well as manganese, and a very good source of dietary fiber, calcium, iron and potassium. You can't do much better for yourself than to take in regular servings of this veggie.

Kohlrabi - The name means cabbage turnip in German and that is a pretty accurate description. It is a member of the cabbage family and its outer skin would attest to that. The greens look more like turnip greens however and the inner bulb can be a bit fibrous, like turnip. Raw, it is crisp, sweet, and clean, strikingly reminiscent of raw broccoli stalks. Cooked, it touts a mild, nutty, cabbage-like flavor that adapts beautifully to many cooking styles. It can be eaten raw and is great in salads and slaws. I can also be boiled, steamed, baked, roasted, etc. The greens may be eaten cooked like turnip greens or any other cooked greens. To prepare the bulb, cut off the leaves and stems. Use a vegetable peeler to pare off the tough outer layer. Or use a chefs knife to slice it off. Dice or shave up the inner bulb according to your recipe. Store loosely wrapped in plastic in the fridge.

Sorrel - Sorrel is a green leaf vegetable native to Europe. It is also called common sorrel or spinach dock. In appearance sorrel greatly resembles spinach and in taste sorrel can range from comparable to the kiwifruit (or lemons or a combo) to a more acidic tasting older leaf (due to the presence of oxalic acid which increases as the leaves gets older). Young sorrel may be harvested to use in salads, soups or stews. Young sorrel leaves are also excellent when lightly cooked, similar to the taste of cooked chard or spinach. Older sorrel is best for soups and stews where it adds tang and flavor to the dish.

Upland Cress - This is a great flavorful green. There are many types of cress, but all of them may be eaten cooked or raw, and they all have variations of their mild peppery flavor. I absolutely love cress and when available I eat it as often as I can, putting it in salads and sandwiches or just on the side of my plate with a little oil and vinegar. Watercress is a very powerful antioxidant. A two year study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2007 determined that eating watercress daily can significantly reduce DNA damage to blood cells, which is considered to be an important trigger in the development of cancer. It is brimming with more than 15 essential vitamins and minerals. Gram for gram, it contains more iron than spinach, more vitamin C than oranges and more calcium than milk.

Garlic Scapes - The tall, curly seed stalks that a garlic plant sends up at this time of year are a short season delicacy. Garlic scapes are pulled 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, vegetable dishes. They are also good in salads and on bruschetta & pizza and so many more ways.

Dillweed - The freshly harvested dill in the share today can be used right away or preserved for later use. This is the part of the plant called dill weed, the feathery spring growth. Later on in the season the seed heads of the dill plant will mature. There are numerous methods for preserving dill. The easiest is to simply hang the dill for several days in a warm dry place (attic perhaps). You can dry it in your oven if your oven can operate at a low temp of 100°F. You can also freeze the leaves in a plastic bag. Dill perks up soups, salads, casseroles. It pairs really well with cucumbers, potatoes, eggs, beets, fish, salads and sald dressings, tomatoes, yogurt.

Nicola Potatoes - These slightly waxy potatoes have a smooth yellow exterior and white and are creamy within. Nicolas are excellent for boiling, roasting and using in salads. Store in a cool dry place away from onions. It's the very end of the storage time for our potatoes and these are beginning to get soft. We have only valued them at half their value but thought you'd all still like to have them!

Summer Meat Share - First delivery is July 7th
We are continuing to accept members for the meat share. Once a month, the meat share delivers a selection of sustainably farmed, grass fed meats from Pete's and from other nearby farms that we know and love. All animals grown for the share are grown without use of hormones or chemical dewormers etc. All are raised on pasture (except the trout!) and many raised organically. This is meat grown in a way that is actually good for our environment, providing the needed fertility to compliment other crops grown on these farms. Grass fed meats contain a much higher vitamin concentration and much lower fat content than other meats.

Sign-up for the Summer Meat Share (4 Deliveries: Jul 7, Aug 4, Sep 1, Oct 6)

Pete's Pastured Chicken

On most weeks during the share (all except meat weeks) you can order Pete's Pastured Chicken. Our chickens are raised on pasture. Lots of pasture. Even as chicks in the barn, our little birds get to feast on sprouts and baby greens left from each days vegetable processing. As soon as they are large enough our birds move out onto pasture with moveable shelters and there they remain for the rest of their days, moved regularly to new fields of green. They can't help but ingest loads of healthy, vitamin packed organic forage throughout their lives and this goodness is assimilated in their meat.

We have just changed our chicken order form slightly so that you can now choose different sized birds, from a 4.5 lb to a 7 pounder (we have some big birds out there in the freezer!). The large birds are nice because you can roast one up, have a great meal, save the best meat for sandwiches, and STILL have leftovers for a casserole or soup or stew. Best of all, our chicken is only $3.50/lb if you oprder 5 or more. Minimum order is 3 birds, and if orders are for less than 5 birds the price is $3.75/lb.

Click here to visit our chicken page and download an order form.

Open House at Caledonia Spirits each Thursday
Our friend Todd Hardie from Honey Gardens Apiaries, beekeeper, plant medicine creator, mead maker has a new venture in Hardwick. Over the last year, Todd and business partner Dana Matthews have built and opened Caledonia Spirits/Honey Gardens Winery. You can stop by the winery any Thursday to tour the new facility and to sample the honey wines (also known as mead). They are making five types of honey wine: Traditional, Black Current, Blueberry, Melody Sweet, and Melissa Sparkling. I am a big fan of the Black Currant Mead! You can also buy Elderberry plants, and products from Honey Gardens Apiaries.

Circus Smirkus This Weekend!
Vermont’s acclaimed, non-profit international traveling youth circus kicks off its 23rd annual season at home in Greensboro! The theme of this year’s tour is “Wilderness Wonders: Outdoor Adventures Under the Big Top,” featuring alpine aerialists, juggling lumberjacks, trailblazing tumblers and more. It’s a fantastically fabulous four-season spectacle, a Smirkus-style exploration of the marvels of nature with merrymaking, mirth and a touch of magic. Circus Smirkus was hailed by The New York Times as “exuberant” and “Joyful,” by The Boston Globe as “a cultural treasure,” and by Family Fun magazine as “one of America’s best circuses!”

JUNE 26: Greensboro, VT
2 shows; 2 & 7 p.m. - Friday $18/Adult ; $14/Child ; Free for under 2

JUNE 28-30: Essex, VT (Champlain Valley Expo)
2 shows each day; noon & 6:30 p.m. - $18.75/Adult; 15.75/Child

Localvore Lore

To begin Red Hen Baking Company's participation in this new share period, Randy couldn't have chosen better than to bake us fresh loaves of Cyrus Pringle bread. This bread has been a long time in the making. Back in the 1850s, 40,000 acres of cropland from the Champlain Valley to Orleans County were sown with wheat. Less than 2 dozen farms grow wheat today. A few years ago, Tom Kenyon of Aurora Farms in Charlotte began trying to grow a variety of wheat originally bred in VT by Cyrus Pringle, a botanist who was considered the father of wheat breeding. After failed crops two years in a row, last Fall he had success and brought in a great crop of Vermont organic white flour. With slightly lower protein, Randy wasn't sure the flour would make it as bread flour, but he was soon proved wrong and he's been baking Cyrus Pringle bread ever since. In addition to the Aurora Farms white flour, the bread contains Ben Gleason's whole wheat flour, water, salt, and yeast. To read more about the partnership between Red Hen and Aurora Farms and the history of the bread, check out this article in Local Banquet magazine.

Most of the oyster and Shiitake mushrooms in the share today were grown by Amir Hebib. Amir grows his mushrooms in a mushroom house behind his home in Colchester. He has 20 years experience growing mushrooms, having been a farm mushroom manager for a large Bosnian agricultural producer before immigrating to VT. He grows shiitakes (the more traditional shaped mushroom of the two) and oysters (the clusters of more trumpet shaped ones) and sells them to restaurants and markets in our area as well as at the Burlington Farmers Market. The oyster mushrooms are more delicate in flavor and texture than the shiitakes. You can eat the whole mushroom stems and all. The shiitakes have a deeper flavor, and are more hearty, enough so that they can be used in place of ground beef in some recipes. Many people discard the stems of shiitakes because they are tougher and take longer to cook. But these are generally tender enough to add to most dishes thought you may want to allow longer cooking time for the stems. Due to the volume of mushrooms required for the share, Amir could only supply enough for MOST of the sites. But fortunately, Chris Coville of Wildbranch Mushrooms was able to provide some of her beautiful organic oysters to fill in the gap.

The organic sunflower oil comes from John Williamson's State Line Farm in Shaftsbury, VT. This is a good all purpose mild flavored oil that you can use wherever a recipe calls for vegetable oil. We will send it in a plastic quart container, but we recommend transferring it to a glass container. If you will not use the oil quickly in your household, it's best to store it in the fridge. This is an unrefined product and it can spoil. In the fridge it will last indefinitely. It may get a little cloudy in your fridge but this is normal and the cloudiness will dissipate as it warms up. John and partner Steve Plummer did not start out with the intention to make sunflower oil for consumption but instead built Vermont's first on farm biodiesel facility pressing oilseeds grown on site to be used as bio fuel. But they are able to press the same seeds to create a very high quality oil for consumption, and we all are lucky beneficiaries.

Recipes

Stir Fried Kohlrabi and Mushrooms

1 TB sunflower oil
1 small onion
1 clove garlic
6 oz shiitake or oyster mushrooms
1 lb kohlrabi
1 TB water
2 tsp tamari (or soy sauce)
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp cider or rice vinegar
1/4 tsp white pepper (or black)
1 tsp dried ginger

Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. Add onion and garlic (and fresh ginger, if using) and cook stirring frequently for about 1 minute. Add mushrooms, continue cooking another minute or two. Add kohlrabi and cook for three minutes, stirring frequently. Add the water, soy, sesame oil, vinegar, pepper and dried ginger. Cover, reduce heat slightly and cook at a high simmer for about 5 minutes, until kohlrabi is crisp tender.

Potatoes with Oyster Mushrooms
This recipe was adapted from a four star recipe in the June 2006 issue of Bon Appetit. If you have shiitake mushrooms, they'll be just fine in this recipe too.

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 pounds small potatoes, unpeeled, halved lengthwise
3 TB garlic scapes, chopped well
1/4 onion, minced
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/2 pound large fresh oyster mushrooms, torn into 1-inch-wide strips

1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley

Position 1 rack in top third of oven and preheat to 450°F. Brush a large rimmed baking sheet with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Place potatoes on 1 prepared sheet; drizzle 2 tablespoons olive oil over and toss to coat. Spread potatoes in single layer; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place potatoes on top rack of oven and roast 10 minutes. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons garlic scapes, minced onion and garlic over the potatoes.

Drizzle remaining 2 TB oil over the mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and pepper and add to potato roasting pan. Continue to roast potatoes and mushrooms on top rack of oven until golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes or a bit longer as needed.

Add parsley to potato-mushroom mixture and toss; season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

Swiss Chard Gratin
This is not a low fat recipe, nor is it a quick one. But it was extremely well reviewed and uses a large quantity of greens which you have in your share this week. So if you are seeking to pack in the greens this week while also treating yourself to some decadence, this recipe is for you. Adapted from an October 2000 recipe in Gourmet. Serves 6.

5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs
3 oz Gruyère cheese, grated (1 cup) (parm would work too)
1 garlic clove, halved lengthwise, germ removed if green, and garlic finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped mixed fresh herbs (preferably chives, tarragon, and flat-leaf parsley)
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 lb Swiss chard, Beet Greens, Kohlrabi Greens, Sorrel (and if you are more adventurous - kale or Upland Cress) leaves and stems separated and cut into 1-inch pieces
(if using kale though, don't use stems, just leaves - stems too tough)

Melt 2 tablespoons butter and toss with bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, herbs, half of nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.

Boil broth in a small saucepan until reduced by half. Add cream and keep warm.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a small heavy saucepan over moderate heat and stir in flour. Cook roux, whisking, 1 minute, then whisk in broth mixture and boil, whisking, 1 minute. Season sauce with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Cook onion in remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a wide 8-quart heavy pot over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened. Add chard stems, remaining nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring, until vegetables are tender but not browned, about 8 minutes.

Increase heat to moderately low heat, stirring, until softened. Add greens stems, remaining nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring, until vegetables are tender but not browned, about 8 minutes.

Increase heat to moderately high and add greens leaves by large handfuls, stirring, until all greens are wilted. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer vegetables to a colander to drain well and press out liquid with back of a large spoon (be sure to press out as much liquid as possible!). Toss vegetables with cream sauce and transfer to a buttered 12-inch oval gratin or 2-quart shallow baking dish, spreading evenly.

Top vegetables with bread crumbs and bake in middle of oven until bubbling and topping is golden, about 20 minutes.

Sorrel Soup
This is a very simple light soup that highlights the fresh, slightly lemony flavor of the sorrel. It's from the Sundays at Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. Light, lemony and delicious.

2 c. well-packed, washed and stemmed sorrel leaves
1 medium onion, chopped
3 T. butter
1 T. unbleached white flour
3 c. vegetable stock
2 egg yolks
1 c. milk or half and half
salt and freshly ground black pepper
dash of Tabasco or other hot sauce (optional)

Finely chop the sorrel leaves. In a medium saucepan, sauté the onion in the butter until translucent. Stir in the flour. Mix in the sorrel and cook for a minute or so, just until it wilts. Add the vegetable stock. Bring the soup to a low simmer and cook for about 3 minutes. Beat the egg yolks and milk in a medium mixing bowl. Slowly add 2 c. of the hot soup while stirring constantly. Stir this soup-egg mixture into the soup pot. Reheat the soup gently but don’t let it boil. Add salt, pepper to taste and a dash of Tabasco, if you like.

Kale and Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta
I love mushrooms and polenta so couldn't help but pull this one in this week. Feb 2006 Bon Appétit. Serves 6.

1 1/4 pounds kale, stemmed, cut into 1-inch pieces

4 cups whole milk
3 1/2 cups water
2 cups polenta (coarse cornmeal)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 ounces pancetta (Italian bacon) or bacon, coarsely chopped
4 ounces oyster mushrooms, sliced
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup low-salt chicken broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Cook kale in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 6 minutes. Drain.
Bring milk, water, polenta, salt, and pepper to boil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to low and simmer until thick, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, cook pancetta in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to paper towels. Add mushrooms and 2 tablespoons oil to drippings in skillet. Sauté until mushrooms are tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in kale and pancetta. Add garlic and broth; simmer until broth is slightly reduced, about 6 minutes. Stir in thyme, lemon peel, and 2 tablespoons oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Whisk butter and Parmesan into polenta and divide among plates. Top with kale mixture.

Good Eats Newsletter - Jun 16, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 01:46:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Nicola Potatoes; 1 Bunch Baby Beets w/Greens; 1 Bunch Bright Lights Chard; 1 Bunch Green Kale; 1 Bunch Curly Parsley; 1 head of Romaine Lettuce plus...

1 Tomato
1 Bunch of Sweet Basil
1 Bag of String Beans -or- Zucchini*

1 Bag Squash Puree (Frozen)

*Hen of the Wood, Laughing Moon, Concept 2 and Johnson will not get the string beans/zucchini and will instead get one of these items next week.

Localvore Offerings Include:
Bonnieview Farm Ewe's Feta Cheese
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Pete's Kitchen Hot Sauce
Quebec Organic Steel Cut Oats

Welcome to Good Eats Summer Share!

Your first pick-up is tomorrow (Wednesday).

Picking Up Your Share
If you are unsure of your pick-up times or site location, please visit our website's Pick-Up page. If you have any questions about your pick-up please email Amy Skelton. Though you may leave a message on voice mail at 802.586.2882 x2, email will get a much quicker response.

When Picking Up Your Share Please:
• Clipboard #1 - Check off your name on the pick-up list. The first clipboard contains a list of all share members at your site. Note that only one name is listed for each share. If you can't find your name on the list, look for your share partners name. Checking off your name lets us know who has picked up and is extremely helpful in solving any mysteries at the end of the day. If you can't find your name or your share partners name, please don't take a share! Call or email Amy and we'll figure it out.

• Check your share type on the list. Share types are Localvore, Localvore Vegetarian, and Vegetable Only. If you are listed incorrectly, let Amy know via email.

• Clipboard #2 - Select your items following the Pick-up Instructions. These are posted on the second clipboard. Follow the specific item list/instructions for the share you are signed up for to assemble your share. The top section of the pick up list describes what to select for the vegetable portion of both the Vegetable Only and the Localvore share. The bottom section of the Pick-up Instructions list the items that only the Localvore members should select.

If you are sharing a share with someone - coordinate with your share-mate to make sure that you DON'T take double the amount of any items. All shares at the sites are whole shares.

Please note that the first Meat Share pick up is not this week, it is July 7th.

What To Do If You Have a Problem at Pick Up 
Though we do our best to make sure that every delivery and pick-up goes smoothly, there are the occasional shortages and disappointments. Should you arrive at your pick-up spot to find that one or more of your items are missing or that some of your produce is in unsatisfactory condition, please let us know right away! Our goal is 100% satisfaction. If you can call or email Amy as soon as you discover the problem, we may be able to resolve it the same day or the following day. If you would like to receive an item that you missed at pick-up, you must contact Amy by Thursday morning.

If we have not heard from anyone, by Thursday afternoon our site hosts are instructed to donate leftover food, assuring that they don't end up with bad food on their hands.

If we can't resolve your issue right away, contact Amy via email to arrange a replacement or substitution the following week.

Meg's Musings
Welcome to the summer share everyone. We are looking forward to this season with you. We have been busy here on the farm with irrigating, planting, row-covering, pruning, irrigating, cultivating, harvesting and more! In the midst of all of it though, I had a really special experience this week when the whole farm crew took 15 minutes out of their day to wish me a happy birthday. They all sung me Happy Birthday in a mixture of English and Spanish, gave me hugs and handshakes, and we all enjoyed a wonderful coconut carrot cake that our kitchen manager Bill had made. I was really moved by it and it made me think about how blessed we are here, to have such a wonderful crew, and such beautiful land to work together. I'm looking forward to sharing more of what we've got going on at the farm in the coming weeks. Thanks so much for your support. Eat up! ~Meg

Newsletter Intro 
Hi Folks,
I write the Good Eats newsletter each week. It goes out every Tuesday evening with farm updates, the week's share contents, storage and use tips, localvore information and recipes and anything else we think you might find interesting or useful. Pete or Meg will often chime in with farm updates, thoughts and pleas for feedback. The picking for the weekly share begins on Monday and the packing of shares is finished late Tuesday afternoon. Though we try to get the newsletter out just as early as we can, we do like to wait until the share is finalized. Sometimes there are last minute changes to the contents and we want to make sure that you've got the right information to go with your pick-up.  If, as happens occasionally, there are changes to the share that occur after the newsletter has been sent, you may receive a follow-up email Tuesday night or Wednesday.

If you have any feedback on the newsletter, recipe contributions or just general questions about the CSA, feel free to email me.  We also post each newsletter on our blog. It generally gets posted sometime on Wednesday. There's a good history there for recipes, farm stories and share contents.  

Please add amy@petesgreens.com to your address book to limit the possibility of having newsletters filtered as spam. Feel free to contact me anytime about with questions or comments about Good Eats. ~ Amy

Summer Shares Still Available
The summer share is not quite full. We are continuing to accept members for both Localvore and Vegetable Only shares. If you have friends or neighbors who you think would enjoy weekly deliveries of fresh local food, please direct them to www.petesgreens.com to learn about Good Eats or forward them this email.
Good Eats Summer Shares

Meat Shares Available Too
Once a month, the meat share delivers a selection of sustainably farmed, grass fed meats from Pete's and from other nearby farms that we know and love. All animals grown for the share are grown without use of hormones or chemical dewormers etc. All are raised on pasture (except the trout!) and many raised organically. This is meat grown in a way that is actually good for our environment, providing the needed fertility to compliment other crops grown on these farms. Grass fed meats contain a much higher vitamin concentration and much lower fat content than other meats. These meats are good for body and soul.

Sign-up for the Summer Meat Share (4 Deliveries: Jul 7, Aug 4, Sep 2, Oct 6)

Pete and Bill Attend Chefs Move to Schools Launch
Last Thursday, Pete and our farm chef Bill Allen climbed into one of Pete's little Toyota trucks and drove to DC tobe part of the launch of Michelle Obama's Chefs Move to Schools program. Over 500 chefs gathered on the South Lawn of the White House while Michelle spoke of the role they could play in reducing childhood obesity. The goal of the brand new program is to connect schools with local chefs who will champion healthy foods in a way that gets kids excited and involved. Earlier in the day, the visiting chefs had gathered at the Marriott to hear from others who were actively involved with schools in their communities. Most spoke of the challenges they had faced in changing the meal program from one based largely on prepared foods, to one based on whole foods made from scratch. Pete and Bill were mentioned in an article by Marion Burros about Friday's South Lawn event and the new program.

Pete's Greens plans to cook meals for the Craftsbury schools one day a week beginning in Fall, with the goal being to get kids eating (and liking!) real, whole, local food.

Storage and Use Tips
Swiss Chard and Beet Greens - I love summer's abundance of greens, and Swiss chard just might be at the top of my list. I use it (and other greens somewhat interchangeably) everywhere I can. I chop and add to almost any pasta dish I am making, I just had some for lunch chopped and wilted into a burrito mix of beans I reheated, I add it into scrambled eggs, soups, casseroles, rice dishes, even muffins. Beet Greens can be used in any recipe that calls for Swiss chard. (And many other recipes that calls for other greens). I also love both of these greens on their own as a side dish to a meal. If sautéing your greens, toss the little baby beets in the pan for a few minutes, and then eat them along with the greens. Store loosely wrapped in your crisper drawer.

Green Kale - Young tender kale in your shares this week. We harvest kale from the fields from May through December. It's nice to have it make its reappearance these last couple of weeks. We grow quite a few varieties on the farm and this one is green kale. This time of year, the kale is pretty tender though still stronger in flavor than say, swiss chard or spinach. It holds up really well in cooking, retaining its shape a long while, so is particularly good in sautés and soups. For a simple, healthy side dish, heat some olive oil or sunflower oil, toss in some a couple cloves of minced garlic and heat that until fragrant. Then toss in the freshly washed kale and toss until just wilted. Salt and pepper to your hearts content. Store loosely wrapped in your crisper drawer.

Frozen Squash Puree - We put up bags and bags of Butternut winter squash and pumpkin puree last Fall for Good Eats and its been a delight to have these bags at the ready. Over the weekend I was making a nice in season strawberry rhubarb pie when my 4 yr old daughter started complaining that she only liked pumpkin pie. No problem! I thawed out a bag of puree, dumped it into a blender with eggs, milk and spices and poured the mixture into another crust. It's great in soups, casseroles and baked items and Bill has included a recipe for a savory filo pie that looks delicious. Winter squash puree is one of more nutritious veggies you can put on your plate, packed with beta carotene and other goodness. Store in freezer until you are ready to use.

Check out our Oct 28 blog from to read about the squash puree process
And click here for my go to recipe for pumpkin pie.

Localvore Lore
At Bonnieview Farm just over the hill from Pete's Greens, Neil and Kristin Urie milk their herd of sheep and make some pretty terrific sheep cheese. This week we have their Ewe's Feta, a 2007 American Cheese Society Award winner. I love this cheese and you can nearly always find a container of it in my fridge. I love to crumble a little onto my salads and pasta, and I use it on summer bruschetta and pizzas and in casseroles. The perfect balance of creamy, tart, and tangy, it's great to just nibble on too.

Our Good Eats eggs are laid each day by "the girls" at Pa Pa Doodles Farm. Deb Rosewolf is one of our team at Pete's Greens and a couple of years ago Pete talked her into keeping a flock of hens to supply the CSA (actually he talked her into taking the farm's small flock over to her house). Deb now has 400 hens and supplies eggs 2 weeks out of 4 weeks for the share. Last March, Eva Sollberger visited Deb's Farm and shot a video for the Seven Days Stuck in VT series. Watch it now for a first hand look at where your eggs come from! You'll have to scroll down a bit to find the video...

The steel cut oats in the share today come from just across the border in Quebec, little more than an hour's drive from the farm. At Golden Crops, Michel Gaudreau farms several hundred acres of organic grains, and in his mill he processes and then stores the grains from other organic grain farmers in his area. Once each share period we drive to his mill to pick up grains for Good Eats. Michel is an avid member of the organic movement. The existence of his mill makes it possible for a couple thousand neighboring acres to be farmed organically. His products are beautiful and we are grateful to have such an excellent source or oats, barley, flax, spelt and rye. Steel cut oat make for a pretty fab weekend morning meal. These are oats that require long cooking, but you are rewarded with a nutty, creamy beautiful breakfast. These are the oats I cook when it's a special breakfast day.

Last week Bill pulled our stash of frozen cherry tomatoes from the freezer and whipped up some hot sauce for Good Eats....

Okay. It's time to put all those peppers and cherry tomatoes we froze this past season to use and whip up some hot sauce. Your typical hot sauce has three little ingredients: peppers, vinegar and salt. That's it, and that makes it a breeze to make at home. But we added Pete’s delicious cherry tomatoes to give it another dimension.

Hot sauce is one of the simplest condiments to make. Simply puree the tomatoes and peppers, strain, add the right amount of organic vinegar, salt and crushed red pepper. While ours is mild in comparison, you can make yours as hot as you like dependent on the pepper you choose. The Scoville Scale measures the “heat” of individual peppers. Many of you have enjoyed jalapenos and Scotch bonnets. They are baby food compared to what is out there.

A quick history on Scoville Scale
The heat comes from capsacin, the oil that makes peppers hot. That heat is rated in Scoville units, which tell you how much the pepper must be diluted before you can't taste the heat. For instance, a bell pepper's rating is zero, meaning there's no heat. An Anaheim is anywhere from 500-1500, jalapenos are 2500 to 5000, cayennes are 30,000-50,000, and habaneros are 100,000 to 300,000. That means if you poured a cup full of habanero heat into a large empty swimming pool, you would have to add up to 300,000 more cups of water to it before the heat disappears.

You may ask “Why want something so hot?” Endorphins! When the capsacin hits your tongue, it sends pain signals your brain, which in turn, releases endorphins, causing a mild euphoria. Of course, I'm sure some out there like it just because of the flavor alone. Yeah right!!! Be careful to wear gloves, don’t rub your eyes (or anything else) when working with hot peppers!

I have included a recipe for a spicy, moist fried chicken but this sauce can be used as any condiment, drizzled on eggs, make a dip with sour cream, adds a great kick to guacamole. My favorite is a burger with a fried egg and lots of the sauce in place of the ketchup. Great on potatoes too! ~ Bill

Recipes
Most of the recipes each week are written up by Chef Bill Allen. Those that aren't are usually credited with a source. If you have questions about a recipe or about cooking with something in the share, please contact Bill or Amy.

Savory Squash & Chard Pie

1 pkg. Frozen filo dough
2 lbs. squash puree, completely defrosted, drained through sieve
2 onions, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons kosher salt
5 tbsp. olive oil, plus extra for brushing the filo
1 tbsp. finely chopped ginger
1 tsp. ground cumin
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ cup fresh cilantro, rough chop
¼ tsp. black pepper
1/3 cup raisins
¼ cup walnut pieces
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bunch chard, large stems removed

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Defrost filo for about one hour prior to start.

Once the puree is completely defrosted and drained, heat oil in a large sauté pan and add onions and cook until translucent. Add puree and cook down until well incorporated and excess liquid is evaporated. Add salt, ginger, cumin, cinnamon, cilantro, pepper, raisins and walnuts and set aside. In another pan, heat some oil and add garlic. just barely cooking. Add chard and wilt. Place chard and garlic mixture in a colander and push excess liquid out.

Brush a 9 x13-inch baking dish with olive oil. Unroll the pastry sheets so that they lie flat. Lay one sheet of filo in the dish crosswise so that it covers about half of the bottom, and half of the sheet hangs over the side facing you. Brush the part that covers the bottom with olive oil. Now lay a second sheet along the right-hand side of the dish, overlapping the first sheet in the middle of the dish and overhanging the side facing you. Brush with olive oil. Repeat with 2 more sheets but this time arranges them in the dish so that they overhang the other long side of the dish (at the top). Continue in the same way until you've used 14 sheets of filo.

Line the bottom of the dish with about half of the chard, using your hands to open up the leaves and spread them out. Spoon the squash mixture on top and gently flatten with the spoon. Cover with the rest of the chard. Fold one of the filo sheets over the filling and brush with oil. Fold the sheet next to it over and brush with oil. Do the same for 2 sheets on the opposing side of the dish. Continue in this way until all of the filo is folded over the filling. Then cover with 2 more sheets of filo, brushing each one.

Put the baking dish in the oven and bake until the pastry is golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving, or let cool to room temperature.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

8 oz. Pete’s hot sauce
1 quart buttermilk
1 chicken, quartered
3 cups flour
2 cups corn flakes, crushed
salt & pepper

Oil, for frying

Preheat oven to 325.

In a large bowl, whisk together hot sauce and buttermilk. Place chicken in bowl and coat thoroughly. Marinate for at least 6 hours and up to 24.

In a paper bag, mix flour, corn flakes, salt and pepper. Shake excess marinade off of chicken pieces and place into bag. Close top and give a good shake. Until all chicken is well coated.

In a large, heavy bottom pan, cast iron being the best, put enough oil just to come halfway up the pan and heat. Test the heat by pinching some of the flour mixture in. If it starts to fry and float immediately, you’re there. CAREFULLY add chicken to the pan, legs and thighs first. After a few minutes, add breasts and wings, lowering heat to medium. After 6 Minutes or so, turn chicken pieces over and brown on other side.

Place browned chicken on cookie sheet and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the internal temperature of the thigh is 150 degrees.

***Be very careful when handling hot oil. Let the oil cool completely in the pan before discarding it.

Caesar Salad
In honor of the return of romaine lettuce, I made Caesar salad last night. I thought I'd share the dressing recipe I have used for years which I modified from the 1975 edition of the Joy of Cooking.

Caesar Salad Dressing
Makes 1 cup dressing or enough to dress a couple large heads of romaine.

Put the following into a blender:
4 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp Worcestershire
2-4 anchovy filets (I never have these and instead add 1 scant tsp anchovy sauce or 7-10 kalamata olives)
2 eggs (you can add these raw, but I cook boil my whole eggs for 2 mins and then spoon the lightly cooked egg into the blender)

Blend the above as well as possible, then with blender on low, add in a slow, steady stream:
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Add to your liking:
black pepper
more lemon juice

The Salad:
Head of Romaine Lettuce
Croutons
Grated Parmesan
Caesar salad dressing

Chop a head of romaine lettuce, rinse, and salad spin, or put in a colander to dry. (If you don't have a salad spinner and want dry lettuce quickly, you can use the towel spin method which is a good show if you have kids. Just put the washed salad greens onto a clean towel, pull together the corners and then spin in a circle and the water will fly out of the greens into a towel and often do a good job spraying the kitchen too.) Transfer greens to a bowl, add dressing, and toss to coat lettuce well. Add parm and toss again. Plate the salads and top dress with croutons and grated parm to your liking.

Basil Smashed Norland Potatoes
The recipe was supplied by Vt Butter and Cheese. Serves 8.

2 lbs, Red Norland potatoes, washed and cut in half
I bunch basil
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup olive oil
½ sour cream
salt & pepper, to taste

Rinse cut potatoes well and place in a pot with salted water. Bring to boil and when potatoes are knife tender, drain and let dry out a bit. While the potatoes are boiling, heat cream and olive oil in small sauce pan. Add basil and remove from heat.

Return potatoes to pot and mash with potato masher or a large whisk. They are supposed to be chunky so don’t worry about getting every last bit smooth. Add cream mixture and fold in. Dependent on how creamy you like your potatoes, add the sour cream in bits until it is the consistency you like, Correct seasoning.

Kale, Tomato & Potato Frittata

10 of Deb’s eggs
1/4 cup Vermont Cheddar cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 lb. Norland potatoes, rinsed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 bunch kale, stems and inner ribs discarded, leaves coarsely chopped
1 tomato, medium dice

Preheat oven to 350.
Whisk eggs and cheese together in a large bowl.
In a large, non-stick pan, heat 2 tbsp. oil. Add onion and potatoes and cook for 3 minutes. Add kale and sauté until wilted. Add egg mixture and incorporate vegetables and eggs.

Cook over moderate heat for 1 minute. Gently lift the edge of the frittata and
Tilt the pan to allow for the egg to get underneath. When the frittata starts to form, place in the oven and cook for approximately 10 minutes. Tapping on the center with some spring says it is done.

Remove from oven and let sit for 2 minutes. Run a rubber spatula around the edg to loosen the frittata. Place a plate large enough to cover the pan over the pan and CAREFULLY invert it on to the plate. Serve warm with a salad of Pete’s mesclun or arugula

Good Eats Newsletter - Jun 9, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 01:48:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:

2 lbs Nicola Potatoes; 1 Bunch Chiogga Beets w/ Greens; 1 Bunch Lacinato Kale; 1 Bunch Scallions; 1 Bunch Wild Arugula; 1 Head of Napa Cabbage; plus.....

1 Bag of Spinach
2 Head Lettuces (Speckled Red or Butterhead)
1 Large Tomato

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Farmshare White Bread
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Butternut Farm Maple Cream

Pete's Musings
We dodged a bullet here on Saturday. The Great Craftsbury Tornado of '10 passed within 1/2 mile of the farm. It tore the roof off a house, leveled a couple hedgerows, and sucked a shed off its foundation leaving a startled farmer knocked to the ground but unhurt. We are very grateful this little windstorm decided to avoid our greenhouses. We spent an hour scurrying around putting row cover on a couple acres of tender crops to protect them from potential hail. No hail but we got some rain hard enough to tear leaves.

Killing weeds continues to be priority #1. Cultivating tractors are out in force, crew is hoeing and handweeding any time we have a chance, and we are keeping them in close check. Crops are growing well. We really needed the weekend rain and the cool weather crops are enjoying the lower temps. Greenhouses are looking great. I think we are going to have our best tomato, pepper, and eggplant, and melon season. Second batch of chicks is keeping warm inside and the first batch is getting ready to go outside next week. Turkey chicks will be here later in the week. Pigs are thriving on the sweet grasses of the bottomland pasture - I think they are my favorite farm animal. We're graining them about 1/3 the recommend amount and they are growing well, getting much of their nutrition from the pasture. Sweet potatoes are planted, tomorrow the edamame will be set out.

Thanks for joining us this share period. I hope you enjoyed the share and that you will give us an honest assessment on the share evaluation form. We want to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly. We still have some spots in the summer share and hope to see you there or in the fall. ~Pete

Pete cultivates brussel sprouts using one of the cultivating tractors. There are several sets of adjustable tines on the tractor fore and aft, and when positioned correctly, and cultivated frequently, the weeds don't stand a chance.

Paul weed whacks between rows of rhubarb planted this spring. If the grass is kept low, the rhubarb can take off and will eventually shade the weeds out quite a bit.

Spring Share Ends, Spring Survey This Week
This is the very last delivery of the Spring share period. I hope you all have enjoyed being a part of Good Eats these past months. I have thoroughly enjoyed filling the localvore portion of the share, writing the newsletters, and my email contact with all of you this share period. Later this week you will receive the Spring Share Survey via email. PLEASE take a few minutes to go through the survey and give us your feedback. We read through these surveys thoroughly and take all the feedback to heart. Future shares will be shaped using the answers you give us. Thanks in advance for your answers.

Summer Share Begins June 16th
Procrastinators, if you haven't yet sent your sign up, this is it, your moment! There is still time to get your sign-up in before the share starts. If your sign-up arrives by Friday, I can still get you started for the first week of the share. Don't miss out on your weekly bags of goodness! We do still have summer shares available so please spread the word to people who may be interested.

Summer Vegetable and Localvore Share Sign Up
Summer Meat Share Sign Up

Storage and Use Tips
Wild Arugula - Wild arugula is a slightly more peppery arugula variety. Its pungent flavor adds a great kick to salads. I like the sound of the salad Bill has offered up this week that contrasts the sweet beets with the peppery arugula. Arugula also stands up well to cooking and is great in pasta dishes or braised. I have included a simple pasta dish below to.

Lacinato Kale - Also called black kale or dinosaur kale, this variety has very dark and bumpy leaves that stand up really well to cooking. This kale will retain its shape even in soups and stews. Kale is in the super veggie club, 1 cup packing 1300% of your daily requirements for Vita K, 200% of your Vita A, and nearly 100% of vita C, along with lots and lots more vitas and minerals as well as several compounds fairly well documented to be helpful in fighting certain types of cancers. And what's more, it's tasty, so eat lots.

Chiogga Beets - Originating in Chioggia, Italy this is the prettiest beet around. Slice through it to reveal the alternating scarlet and white rings. This variety is sweeter than most and tender and is often eaten raw where it has opportunity to show off it's beauty. Slice it thin and add to salads this week. Or roast them and then add to salads if you like. Cooking them through will cook away the rings though until the flesh is uniformly pink. Don't forget the beet greens! Use your beet greens as you might chard or spinach. I like mine sauteed asian style with garlic and tamari, or sliced into ribbons and tossed with garlic and tomato and pasta, or simply steamed and then dotted with butter and tossed with a nice vinegar. Tasty and healthy.

Localvore Lore
At Elmore Mountain Bread, Blair and Andrew are busy baking this week's bread. This just in from Blair.

We wanted to bake a bread for the share that has the same staple qualities as the Country French, but is lighter with hints of wheat and rye. This simple yeasted bread, which we are calling Farmshare White, is a new bread to us and has a similar flavor profile to our baguette. We think it will appeal to all kinds of palates and uses. ~ Blair

For over 40 years, the Marvin Family have been involved in maple production, while stewarding their 600 acre sugarbush. Butternut Mountain Farm produces a variety of products but maple butter is truly the cream of the crop. This is a new product for the farm and we are eager for your feedback, so please email comments.

We’re really excited to be developing a new recipe for our maple butter and to have this opportunity to share it with the folks in Pete’s Greens CSA. For those of you familiar with maple butter you’ll find that ours is more spreadable and less thick. No prying it out of the jar. For those of you who aren’t, maple butter, also known as maple cream, is a single ingredient product made solely from 100% pure (in our case) Vermont maple syrup. Try it on your morning toast or as a dip for fresh fruit. For a true Sugarhouse at Home experience use it to frost your favorite donuts. Our maple butter is best when refrigerated upon receipt and should always be refrigerated after opening. Also, you’ll likely notice a thin layer of maple syrup on top of the maple butter. Maple butter naturally separates, simply stir the syrup on top back in to reincorporate. We hope you all enjoy it as much as we do. Please email us to let us know what you think of our new product! ~Emma

Lastly, we have fresh eggs from "the girls" at Deb's Farm. French toast slathered with maple butter anyone?

Recipes
Crunchy Raw Chioggia Beet Salad

1 bunch Chiogga beets, scrubbed, peeled and cut into fine matchsticks
2 granny smith apples, cored and cut into matchsticks
7 oz. feta cheese
½ bunch of fresh mint, smallest leaves picked
¼ cup sunflower seeds

Lemon-Honey Dressing
6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. honey
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Whisk all ingredients together. Correct seasoning.

Dress the beets and apple matchsticks in a little of the lemon oil dressing and season with some salt and pepper. Taste and add more dressing if desired.

Divide the salad between four plates or put it on a big platter, crumble over the feta, and sprinkle over the baby mint leaves and the sunflower seeds.

Wild Rocket and Chili Spaghetti
This is a Jamie Oliver recipe and a great way to use some wild arugula also known as wild "rocket". From jamieoliver.com. Serves 4.

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
 1 dried red chilli, crumbled 
4 anchovy fillets in olive oil (or sub a handful of chopped kalamata olives)
3 handfuls of wild rocket 
zest and juice of 1 lemon
 500g dried spaghetti 
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
 100g Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat a wide saucepan or frying pan over a medium heat and add the extra virgin olive oil. Add the garlic, chilli and the anchovy fillets and fry gently for a minute or so. Add 2 handfuls of the wild rocket with the lemon zest and juice and then remove from the heat. The rocket will wilt from the heat – mix it well with the garlic, chilli and anchovies.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in plenty of salted boiling water, according to the packet instructions, and drain. Tip into the saucepan and toss together with the rocket and chilli sauce. Season well with salt and pepper and serve with some of the reserved fresh rocket and the grated Parmesan on top.

Kale & Potato Soup
4 large russet potatoes, washed, cut into large cubes
3 links linguica sausage, cut into small cubes (or andouille, kielbasa or chorizo...)
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 large onion, small dice
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 bunch kale, ribs removed, chopped
3 quarts chicken stock
3 sprigs fresh oregano, stripped and roughly chopped

Heat oil in soup pot Add linguica and sauté until the oil takes on a reddish hue.
Add onions and garlic and sauté until onions are translucent. Add chicken stock and bring to simmer. Add the potatoes and cook until they are just tender. Remove from heat. Add kale and oregano and stir until the kale wilts.

Cut thick slices of the Elmore Mountain bread. Rub with some olive oil and toast them in oven. Ladle soup into bowls and place a piece of bread on top.

Braised Napa Cabbage

3 tsp. neutral oil, sunflower, grape seed or vegetable
1head Napa cabbage, cut into 2 inch pieces
3 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tbsp. ginger, finely chopped
¼ cup water
1.5 tsp. cornstarch or arrowroot
¼ cup tamari
6 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tsp. rice wine vinegar

In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 tsp. of the vegetable oil . When it is very hot, add half the cabbage. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes or until leaves begin to brown. Remove them from pan. Use 1 tsp. of the remaining vegetable oil to cook the remaining cabbage in the same way; remove from the pan. Add the remaining 1 tsp. vegetable oil to pan. Cook the garlic and ginger, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.

In a small bowl, stir together the water and cornstarch. Stir the tamari into the pan. Add the cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Return all the cabbage to pan, stirring well to coat it all over. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until the cabbage is tender. Remove from the heat. Stir in the scallions and vinegar. Grilled chicken or shrimp can be added to this to make a complete meal. Just add the pre-cooked protein to the pan when tossing cabbage with tamari mixture.

Greens With Garlic and Chile
Here's a simple classic you can use this week with beet greens, kale or the spinach in the share.

1 bunch (about 1 lb.) greens of your choice
1 Tbsp. salt (for boiling water) plus more to taste
1 to 2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 to 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 to 3 whole, small dried chiles (such as arbol) or 1 fresh red chile such as fresno, sliced
Lemon juice (optional but delicious)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, clean greens and cut off any tough stems. Chop greens into fairly large pieces and set aside.

Add 1 tbsp. salt and chopped greens to boiling water (except for spinach, you can skip this step if using spinach). Cook until greens wilt, 30 seconds to 2 minutes depending on toughness of the greens you're using. Drain and immediately rinse with cold water until cool. Use your hands to squeeze out as much water as possible from the greens. Set aside.

Heat a large frying pan or saute pan over high heat. Add oil, garlic, and chile. Cook, stirring, until fragrant and just starting to turn golden, about 30 seconds. Add greens and stir to combine. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until greens are tender and flavors combine, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve greens hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Roasted Beet Salad

1 bunch beets, trimmed
1/4 cup toasted walnuts or almonds
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. minced shallot
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. cider vinegar
1/4 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 large Asian pear
3 cups arugula

Preheat oven to 425°F.
Wrap beets in foil and roast in middle of oven until tender. Unwrap beets and cool. While beets are roasting, toast desired nut in a small pan until just slightly brown. Stir together shallot, lemon juice, oil, vinegar, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Slip skins from beets and halve large beets. Cut beets into 1/4-inch-thick slices and add to dressing, tossing to coat.
Quarter and core pear and cut into julienne strips. Add pear and arugula and gently toss. Top with nuts. A good blue or goat cheese goes well with this salad and gives it some depth.

Good Eats Newsletter - Jun 2, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 09:28:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Mixed Potatoes; 2 lbs Mixed Beets; 1 Bunch Joi Choi, 1 Bunch Sweet Salad Turnips; plus.....

1 Bunch Dill -or- Cilantro

2 Head Lettuces (1 Red, 1 Green)
1 Large Tomato!
1 European Cucumber*

*We don't have enough cukes for everyone this week, so half the sites will receive cucumbers this week, the rest will receive them next week.

Localvore Offerings Include:
Red Hen Ciabatta
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Eggs
Pete's Kitchen Onion Relish
Pete's Kitchen Potato Salad

Meat Share Members - This is a Meat Share Week!

Pete's Musings

We are beginning a very exciting project with the Craftsbury K-12 school. Next school year Pete's Greens will be making lunch for the school one day per week. We'll be using almost entirely local ingredients (the same goods distributed in our CSA) and our chef Bill Allen will be concocting the kid friendly fare. The Craftsbury School has agreed to pay us the school's per diem ingredient cost (about $1.50 per student) and Pete's Greens will be making up the difference in the cost. We have commitment of low cost ingredients from High Mowing Seeds (produce), Vermont Soy (tofu), and Jasper Hill (cheese). We will be working with many of our other localvore suppliers for low cost or donated ingredients. We plan to have local food producers lunch with the kids often and talk about their operations.

This is a trial project that we hope will lead to a much larger venture both in the Craftsbury school, other area schools, and statewide. I'm particularly excited about this project because it is all about what caused me to become a farmer. My days are spent dealing with growing crops, working with employees, managing money, making decisions, it goes on and on. Sometimes in the flurry of all the hustle and bustle there is not enough of the true inspiration that caused me to choose this life. I get that when I see one of the neighbor kids beg for a cucumber like it is candy and devour it on the spot. I'm convinced that exposing kids to top quality food when they are young has a lasting impact and will influence their food decisions throughout life. And that is why we do what we do. ~ Pete

The Spring Share ends next week
This week and next week, Jun 9th are the last deliveries of the Spring share period.

Summer Share Begins June 16th

Good Eats Summer Share begins in just two short weeks. Don't miss the start of the share! We must receive your sign up by Friday June 11 to get you started with the first delivery on June 16th.

The Summer share is going to be amazing this year and we hope you can join us again. We have such good stuff coming along in fields and greenhouses. In case you missed the news earlier, we have added 3 new sites, two in Burlington and one in Williston. For more site info, please visit our delivery site page on the website.

Summer Vegetable and Localvore Share Sign Up
Summer Meat Share Sign Up

The Pete's Greens Farm Stand is Open

The Farm Stand opened last week for the season! Stop by and stock up on local produce and locally produced staples.

Vegetables and herbs are picked daily for the Farm Stand and this is where you will find the greatest assortment of what's in season. The Pete's Greens Farm Stand stocks all your localvore favorites: local breads; cheeses and dairy from many local VT producers; yogurts; local grass fed meats and Pete's Pastured Chicken; local raw honey and maple syrup; local & organic grains and flours; tofu and soy products; local cooking oils & vinegars; and the list goes on. As the season progresses Bill will begin creating some localvore prepared food selections for the Farm Stand as well. Everything in the stand is grown locally or produced using local ingredients. Much of what is in the stand is organic too.

Open Daily from 8am to 8pm at the farm in Craftsbury.

Storage and Use Tips
Joi Choi - This is a pac choi variety that it is darker green with thicker white stalks. It's delicious cooked or raw. Perfect for stir frys or a saute of some kind. Also great for a slaw kind of salad.

Localvore Lore
At Red Hen Baking Company, Randy has been experimenting some more with the Aurora Farms Vermont grown organic white flour.

We’re really excited about this week’s bread selection. I’ve been playing around with some different uses for the local white flour milled from wheat grown at Aurora Farms. Although I initially said that this flour was not up to being used in a baguette or a ciabatta, we’ve been experimenting with just those things lately and the results are quite exciting. Because this is a very different flour than the stronger Midwest ones that we normally use to make these breads, we have to use entirely different methods, but we’re finding that, when it’s handled properly, we can produce some very nice breads. The exciting thing about the ciabatta you’ll find in this week’s share is that, unlike naturally leavened breads that have strong taste of the fermented grains, the taste of the wheat is the dominant flavor. And when that wheat comes entirely from Vermont, this is a great way of getting to know the “Charlotte terroir!” ~Randy

We have two items that Bill prepared in the kitchen for you this week. The first is Mustard Seed Pickled Onions. This is a tasty onion relish made with our onions, local maple syrup, cider vinegar, salt, celery seed and mustard seed. It will be great with the sausages this week, or on a burger of any kind. The second is a Morroccan Spiced Potato Salad made with potatoes, onions and pac choi. To dress the salad, Bill made a basic mayo with Deb's eggs and sunflower oil and then combined that with cider vinegar, maple syrup, cumin, curry powder, black pepper, and some salt and pepper. The potato salad should last for 4 days or so, the onion relish a couple weeks at least. As with all our kitchen products, we really want to hear what you think - what you liked or didn't like so please send feedback if you have some thoughts on these items.

And we have eggs again from Pa Pa Doodles Farm. Enjoy!

Meat Share
This is a smaller meat share this week due to the tenderloin in the share which is of course more pricey than most other cuts of meat. I hope you all appreciate the selection and are happy with the 3 item share.

North Hollow Farm Beef Tenderloin - From Mike and Julie Bowen's farm in Rochester, VT we have some beautiful tenderloin. The tenderloin is the most tender cut of meat on a beef animal, so these ought to make a pretty special meal. The cows at North Hollow are born on the farm and graze the farm fields in spring, summer and fall, and in winter dine on hay and silage produced on the farm. I stumbled across a great article on line a while back about cooking 100% grass fed steaks. Lots of great tips here, definitely give it a look before cooking your meat. Briefly though, don't overcook or allow to dry out! Because of the lower fat content and resulting quicker cook time - lower the heat by 50°F, cook for 30% less time than grain fed beef recipes. Marinating in oil will add moisture and help seal in juices. Pan is better than grill for same reason of retaining juices. Turn with tongs, not a fork to hold in the juices. Cook to medium rare. I am putting my favorite beef marinade recipe in again below.

Greenfield Highland Beef Sausages -The sausages in the share are made entirelywith Greenfield Highland organic beef and spices, no pork added. You will receive either Garlic Parmesan or Hot Italian. Both have really excellent flavor and are great for eating on their own or for cooking into a pasta dish or casserole. The Hot Italian is flavorful with good but not overpowering spice. The Garlic Parm is just plain delicious, smooth and well - garlic/parmy. I have to admit, I am sometimes skeptical about all beef sausages but I think these are really, really good. Hope you do to.

Ray Shatney and Janet Steward raise award winning Scotch Highland Cattle in Greensboro, as have Ray's parents for over 40 years. Over centuries, Scotch Highland Cattle have evolved to be very efficient grazers, able to yield great meat on a grass only diet. Their heavy hair coat enables them to stay warm without packing on additional fat, so the meat contains far less fat than other breeds.

Pete's Pastured Chicken - To balance out the price of the share perfectly we selected big chickens this week! You should be able to cook a terrific meal, and then have lots of meat left over for other meals or sandwiches this week. Bill has offered up a nice Greek chicken and potatoes recipe below.

Recipes
Asian Joi Choi Slaw
Great with seared tuna, halibut or salmon. Also terrific on black bean burgers.

½ cup rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp. sesame oil
2 tsp. honey
2 tsp. dijon mustard
pinch of sea salt

3 cups Joi Choi, thinly sliced
1 cup salad turnips, halved and thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
2 scallions, thinly sliced

Whisk together wet ingredients. Add vegetables and toss will. Correct seasoning as necessary

Grilled Beef Sausage & Caramelized Onion Relish Sandwiches

4 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. onion relish
1 Sweet Peppers, seeded, halved and thinly sliced (frozen is fine too)
1 pkg. sausage
4 slices Red Hen Bread, cut about ¾ inch thick

Brush each slice of bread with some of the oil and set aside.

Once your grill is ready, place the links on making sure they are not in a hot spot on the grill. In a small sauté pan, pour the remaining oil and heat on another section of the grill. Once hot, add the peppers and sauté for one minute (longer if frozen). Drain the relish and add to the pan. Let the onions caramelized, tossing occasionally. Remove the pan. Place each slice of bread on the grill and toast. Remove to platter. Place a bit of the onion/pepper mixture on each slice, then a sausage and finish with good mustard or a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

Roasted Greek Lemon-Garlic Chicken

1 chicken, cut into quarters
2 lbs. potatoes, halved
3 lemons, juiced
2 tsp, fresh oregano or 1 tsp. dried
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ cup olive oil
Fresh ground pepper
1 tsp. kosher or sea salt
1.5 cups water or chicken stock

Preheat oven to 355°F.
Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Salt and pepper the chicken and potatoes. Transfer chicken to a roasting pan and add potatoes, around the chicken. Add oregano, garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice, distributing evenly across the pan. Add water/stock and roast uncovered for a total of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Half way through turn the chicken. Remove chicken and potatoes from pan with slotted spoon and reduce the pan jus on top of the stove by half.

Tomato, Cucumber Salad with Buttermilk Dressing

½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup buttermilk
2 tbsp. White vinegar
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh dill
Salt & Pepper

1 European cucumber, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
1 head lettuce, washed, leaves pulled

Whisk together mayonnaise, buttermilk, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste until smooth, then whisk in dill.

Lay a few leaves of the lettuce on a plate, top with tomatoes and cumbers and drizzle dressing over the top.

Citrus Herb Marinade
This is my favorite marinade for beef steaks. It's from the good old Joy of Cooking. You can assemble this in about 3 minutes. I like to marinate steaks for 8 hours or up to 2 days in this marinade. If pan cooking, I use some of the marinade to provide liquid to the pan.

1/4 c mild tasting oil (olive oil or sunflower work well here)
2.5 TB lemon juice
1.5 TB orange juice or red wine
1/3 c parsley (nice if you have it - but I often don't and just skip)
1.5 tsp dried thyme or appropriate herb
1/2 bay leaf crumbled
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Good Eats Newsletter - May 26, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 26 May 2010 01:24:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:

2 lbs Nicola Potatoes; 1 lb Orange Carrots; Savoy Cabbage; 1 lb Mixed Kohlrabi, Sweet Salad Turnips; 1 Bunch Red Flowering Pac Choi; 1 Bunch Flowering Ruby Streaks Mustard; 1 Bunch of Broccoli Raab; 1 Bunch Scallions ; 1 Bag of Mesclun; plus.....

1 Head Lettuce (Green Butterhead)

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Flax Bread
Vt Pasta Butternut Ravioli
Blythedale Farm Cookeville Grana

Adams Court and Grove St members will receive the cucumbers they missed last week.

Yesterday Afternoon on the Farm
What weather we are having! Things are growing like crazy at the farm and it's busy non stop with planting, pruning, preparing the ground for new crops and harvesting.

Pete Interviewed for Love Tomorrow Today
A couple of weeks ago, Pete was interviewed for the blog site Love Tomorrow Today. Pete talks about the farm, the greenhouses, the CSA model and making the choice to eat locally or organically. Love Tomorrow Today's mission is to bring innovative ideas together in order to inspire people to make small changes in their lives toward sustainability. The video was just posted yesterday.

Click here to check it out.

Summer Share Starts June 16th
Good Eats Summer Share begins in just three short weeks. Have you sent your sign-up sheet? Don't miss the start of the share! We must receive your sign up by Friday June 11 to get you started with the first delivery on June 16th.

The Summer share is going to be amazing this year and we hope you can join us again. We have such good stuff coming along in fields and greenhouses. In case you missed the news earlier, we have added 3 new sites, two in Burlington and one in Williston. For more site info, please visit our delivery site page on the website.

Summer Vegetable and Localvore Share Sign Up
Summer Meat Share Sign Up

Pete's Pastured Chicken
If you order 5 or more of our pasture raised whole chickens, they are only $3.50/lb (regular price $3.75/lb). This is a great price for well raised pastured birds. These birds which were raised on our pastures in just about the best conditions possible. Their meat is far healthier having assimilated the nutrients of all the forage they consumed.

All free range is not created equal. Many farms that offer "free range" chicken raise their birds just to free range standards which require the birds have access to an outside area. Often times this means that the birds live loose in large barns with a couple openings to small dirt lots outside. This is an improvement over the standard meat bird production, but does not compare to keeping birds outside on pasture and greens throughout their lives. For more info about our ordering chickens, please visit the chicken page.

Storage and Use Tips
Broccoli Raab - Though it's name might suggest otherwise, broccoli raab is not actually a broccoli. It belongs to the brassica family, along with mustard greens, turnips, and cousin broccoli. Like mustard greens it has a strong peppery bite, milder when the plant is young, stronger as it gets older. And like broccoli it grows florets but they remain small tucked between the large leaves, with taller flower stalks protruding from the plant. All of these parts of broccoli raab are edible, either raw or cooked. In Asia and Italy the plant is grows wild and is popular, and it is cultivated in the rest of the world. It is very high in calcium, potassium, iron, vitamin A, and vitamin C.

Localvore Lore
VT Pasta's Ted Fecteau created some very special ravioli for us this week. He used the same 50/50 flour content (50% Aurora Farms white/50% Gleason whole wheat) and local eggs to make the ravioli dough. Then he stuffed the ravioli with a mix of Pete's Greens Butternut Squash & Pumpkin puree, Bonnieview Farm Ewe's Feta, a bit of VT Butter and Cheese Co. butter & mascarpone, Cranberry Bob's balsamic and a few spices. The result is a very local pasta with sweet & smooth pumpkin flavor. To cook the pasta, simply boil a pot of salted water, lower in the ravioli and boil for 5 minutes. Drain and it's done. Bill has provided a sage brown butter recipe that should be delicious with it. This is a brand new, never been done before product and we want to know what you think. Please email feedback!

To go along with the pasta, we have a parmesan style grating cheese. Becky and Tom Loftus of Blythedale Farm in Corinth milk 30 of their own Jersey cows and use their milk to hand craft all of their cheeses. The Cookeville Grana is a fantastic grating and melting cheese. Please indulge in a grill cheese this week! Bill has provided a fancy scallion version below. Or use the cheese on pastas, pizzas and anything else you can dream up that might require, melted cheese. That is if you can keep from nibbling it when you begin slicing it.

The bread this week is Elmore Mountain's Flax bread made with Milanaise Winter Wheat, Milanaise Whole Wheat, Milanaise Rye, Quebec Flax, Sourdough, and Sea Salt. I love the flavor of this bread and am looking forward to some fantastic sandwiches.

Recipes
Pumpkin Ravioli with Sage Brown Butter

1 package ravioli
4 tbsp. butter
4 sage leaves, chiffonade*
¼ cup pecans, toasted and chopped fine
Blythdale Grana (optional)

Bring a pot of salted water to boil.

Add ravioli to water and stir. Cook for 5 minutes, and drain.

While the ravioli is cooking, melt butter in a non stick pan. Add the sage when the butter just starts to turn brown. Add sage and cook for a few seconds and then and ravioli and toss off of heat. Be careful not to burn the butter.

Remove ravioli to platter and sprinkle with toasted pecans and/or grated grana cheese

*Chiffonade…sounds fancy but it’s easy. Pul the sage leaves from their stems, stack them and roll them up. Then thinly slice them. You’ll have very
thin strands of sage, which helps to release the flavor

Broccoli Rabe & Potato Pasta

1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
3 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
½ tsp. crushed red pepper
2 lbs. Nicola potatoes, cubed
1 bunch broccoli rabe, trimmed
4 cups cooked fusilli pasta
1/2 cup Reggiano cheese, grated

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. You will be using this water for three steps of the preparation. Place the broccoli rabe in the water and blanch for 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the pasta and the potatoes to the same water and cook until the pasta is al dente.

In a large pan heat the olive oil, crushed red pepper and garlic. Add the broth and let reduce by half. Add the potatoes, pasta and rabe to the pan and toss for a minute of so. Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl and sprinkle the
cheese over the top.

Pac Choi Saute

1 bunch pac choi
1 bulb kohlrabi, sliced and cut into medium julienne
2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin sticks
1 bunch Ruby Streaks Mustard, rough chop
2 tbsp. ginger
2 tbsp. tamari
1 tsp. honey
¼ tsp. sea salt
¼ cup water
2 tbsp. sesame oil
2 tbsp. oil, any neutral oil works

Wash the pac choi shake excess water off.
Separate the stalks and leaves. Cut the stalk diagonally and cut the leaves across.

Heat wok or large sauté pan and add oil. When oil is ready, add ginger and toss for 30 seconds, until the ginger is aromatic. Add the pac choi, adding the stalks first, carrots and kohlrabi. Add the mustard and the pac choi leaves.

Stir in the tamari, honey, and salt and on high heat for 1 minute.

Add the water, cover the pan and simmer for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir the sesame oil in.

Chicken or shrimp can be added to this to make it a complete meal. In a separate pan, sauté the protein and cook all the way through. Add it to the pan when you add the water to the vegetable mix.

Vegetarian Thai Lettuce Wraps
1 bulb kohlrabi, sliced into thin matchsticks
½ cup carrots, shredded
½ cup mint, finely chopped
½ cup cilantro, finely chopped, with some stem
½ cup red onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. crushed red pepper 
3 tbsp. fresh lime juice 
2 tbsp. fish sauce
1 head Savoy, leaves separated 
Lime wedges

Set up a blanching station. In a medium pot boil salted water. Add the leaves to the water and cook for 15 seconds. Do this in batches. Remove leaves to an ice bath to “shock.” Remove to paper towels and let dry somewhat.

Mix mint, cilantro, carrots, kohlrabi, onion, red pepper, lime juice and fish sauce in la bowl. Place a small amount of mixture into each leave and roll, tucking the sides in as you get toward the end.

Serve with lime wedges.

Grilled Scallion & Grana Crostini

8 thinly sliced pieces of Elmore bread
Blythedale Grana, rind remove, cut into equal slices
8 scallions, ends trimmed
olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Sea salt

Place bread slices on cookie sheet and brush with olive oil. Toast in a 350 degree oven until just brown on the edges. Toss scallions with just enough olive oil to barely coat them. Either in a grill pan, grill or, if you don’t have either, a hot sauté pan, place the scallions and grill/sauté until wilted. Remove from heat immediately.

Place a piece of cheese on each crostini and melted under a broiler. Top the crostini with a scallion and drizzle with balsamic, if desired. Sprinkle with sea salt.
A Hole in One Breakfast

4 slices Elmore bread, about and inch thick
4 eggs
3 tbsp. butter

Using a round cookie cutter or small glass, “cut” a hole in the center of each slice of bread.

In a non-stick pan, melt the butter over medium heat and place the bread in the pan. Crack one egg into the center of each and cook for 2minutes. Flip over each slice and cook for one minute more.

Good Eats Newsletter - May 19, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Tue, 18 May 2010 22:50:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains: 2 lbs Mixed Small Potatoes; 2 lbs Copra onions; 2 lbs Gilfeather Turnips, 1.5 lbs Beets; 1 lg Head of Napa Cabbage; 1 Bunch of Sweet Salad Turnips; 1 Bunch of Bright Lights Chard; 1 Bunch of Parsley; plus.....

1 European Cucumber

Localvore Offerings Include:
3 lbs Frozen Organic Wild Blueberries!
Pa Pa Doodles Farm Fresh Eggs
On the Rise Pizza Dough

Pete's Musings
Our spring is back on track. Rough week with dime sized hail followed by 3 nights in the upper teens and low 20's. But in general the weather has been awesome and it's nice to see the crops grow. No baby greens again this week but we promise you will get them next week. Our greens are still recovering from the hail.

Farm work is going great. Today the crew is planting 5000 strawberry plants to double our strawberry field. Monday our brussel sprouts went in, followed by 1/3 of an acre of leeks and a nice slug of cauliflower. Then our main crop of kale and yesterday Steve seeded the beginning of fall storage beets. Onions are growing fast and our 4 acres of potatoes are not up yet but growing lots of pretty shoots and roots underground.

I'm really excited about this year's weed control. We learned so much last year about cultivation and it seems that we have the potential this year to keep our fields very clean. This is a great development. Proper weed control allows us to properly rotate our crops and not make decisions about what to grow where based on the weed pressure in the field. Weed control is a cumulative project. The better you do one year, the easier is is to do a good job the next.\

We hope you join us for the summer share. It's going to be better than ever and we're excited about where the farm is headed. ~Pete

Google Earth photo of the farm fields taken in 2009. It looks so NEAT from the air.

The moving greenhouses are the four that are all the same size - you can see where they would slide back and forth.

Summer Share Sign-Up
There's only a few more weeks left to get your sign up sheet in before the new share period starts. Please send in soon to ensure uninterrupted weekly deliveries of veggies and or localvore products through the summer.

Summer Vegetable and Localvore Share Sign Up
Summer Meat Share Sign Up

Burlington Site News
Along with the existing sites at Adams Court and Grove St, we will add two new Burlington locations bringing the number of Burlington options to four! In addition, you if you sign up for their services, you can have your share delivered to your home or office by the new bicycle delivery company One Revolution. (See last week's newsletter for more info).

NEW! Ward Street - We just added this new site which we hope will be very convenient for folks in the North end or new North end. The new spot is on Ward St, which is just off North Ave. Hours for this site will be noon to 7 pm.

NEW! Burlington/Flynn Ave - Select Design at 208 Flynn Ave (off Pine St) will also be hosting beginning at the start of the summer share. Pick up hours for Select Design will be noon to 5 pm.

Williston Pick Up Site
New! Williston/Blair Park - DEW Construction is located at 277 Blair Park Road, Suite 130. The pick up will be located at the back entrance of this building and pick up hours will be 2 to 5:00pm. It is a short window, but we hope that the site offers convenience for some of you.

Montpelier/True Colors
True Colors will remain our pick up site in Montpelier. The share will move to a different door/building in weeks to come. We will notify you when that change happens and put a new Good Eats poster on the door at that time. The space is just to the left of the present entrance, in the neighboring building, and the space will be dedicated to Good Eats. We are pleased that we can continue our partnership with True Colors and the McQuiggans. It's a good, convenient spot and has the benefit of long pick up hours.

Pete's Pastured Chicken
If you order 5 or more of our pasture raised whole chickens, they are only $3.50/lb (regular price $3.75/lb). This is a great price for well raised pastured birds. These birds which were raised on our pastures in just about the best conditions possible. Their meat is far healthier having assimilated the nutrients of all the forage they consumed.

All free range is not created equal. Many farms that offer "free range" chicken raise their birds just to free range standards which require the birds have access to an outside area. Often times this means that the birds live loose in large barns with a couple openings to small dirt lots outside. This is an improvement over the standard meat bird production, but does not compare to keeping birds outside on pasture and greens throughout their lives. For more info about our ordering chickens, please visit the chicken page.

Localvore Lore
This week we have a special treat for you - Maine wild blueberries! Maine you ask, Maine? OK, I know we have strayed a bit from our mission of really local here, but honestly, we have tried hard to find local wild organic blueberries in quantities enough for the share and it's been challenging. Ben Perrin, one of Maine's largest organic wild blueberry growers, has been providing his beautiful berries to our friend Todd Hardie, for use in Todd's Honey Garden's Blueberry Mead. Todd introduced me to Ben at the grand opening of his new distillery in February, and I drove home that night eating a large cup full of some of the sweetest frozen wild blueberries ever. I resolved that I might have to make an exception to bring you all these berries. Many thanks to Todd and Ben for their efforts in making this happen.

Deb's hen flock is in full on egg laying mode now so you can plan on regular egg deliveries. You may have noticed the eggs were on the smaller size last week. Young hens (aka pullets) lay smaller eggs (pullet eggs), but these will size up considerably in the coming weeks.

We have pizza dough once again from On The Rise Bakery. This dough is made with VT sunflower oil, Milanaise unbleached white flour, Ben Gleason's whole wheat flour, local honey and sea salt. This dough does not need to rise again. For best dough quality you should use it after it reaches room temperature. If you won't be cooking it Wednesday evening, put it in the freezer until you do wish to use it. Then take it out, thaw it, and again, use it as soon as possible after it has thawed. Ben posted the instructions on line along with some instructional videos that you can watch for technique and inspiration. If you make a great looking or great tasting pizza that you are pleased with, email a photo along to Ben or post it to the On the Rise Facebook page.

Recipes

Swiss Chard and Potato Frittata
Leftover frittata makes a great grab and go breakfast! From bigoven.com.

6 large Swiss chard leaves
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 medium boiling potato, peeled and diced finely
6 large eggs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon salt
Ground black pepper
1 teaspoon unsalted butter

Wash the Swiss chard and pat very dry. Cut off and discard the stems, then gather the leaves into a tight bundle and finely chop them.

Heat the oil in a 9- or 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and sauté until the onion turns golden, about 10 minutes. Mix in the potato and cover the pan. Cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the potato is tender and the onions are brown, about 10-15 minutes. Remove the cover and pile on the Swiss chard. Cover again and cook, tossing occasionally, until the leaves are wilted, about 5 minutes. Scrape this mixture onto a plate and let cool. Wipe the pan clean.

Beat the eggs thoroughly in a large bowl. Beat in the cheese, salt and pepper. Stir in the cooled vegetable mixture.

Melt the butter in the skillet over low heat and swirl it around to coat the sides of the pan. Pour in the egg mixture. After about 5 minutes, when the edges begin to set, help the liquid egg pour over the sides of the frittata by occasionally loosening the edges with a rubber spatula and tilting the pan. It should take about 15 minutes for the frittata to become almost completely set.

Preheat the broiler. When the frittata is about 80 percent cooked, slide it under the broiler for a minute or so, until the top is set. (If the handle of your pan isn't ovenproof, wrap a few layers of foil around it before placing it under the broiler.) Let the frittata cool 10 minutes before cutting it into wedges.

Potato Pizza
From Epicurious January 2001
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, green germ removed, thinly sliced
3 medium potatoes (about 14 ounces), peeled, cooked, and thinly sliced into rounds
1/2 cup heavy cream or crème fraîche
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Let dough come to room temp. Dust a baking sheet with semolina flour. Roll out the dough to an 18 x 12 inch rectangle, and fit it onto the baking sheet. Let the dough rise for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Brush the dough with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, then sprinkle it with the garlic slices. Cover it with the potato slices, then drizzle those with the remaining olive oil and the cream. Sprinkle it with the fresh thyme leaves, crushing them as you sprinkle, and season it liberally with pepper, and lightly with salt.

Bake in the center of the oven until the dough is golden at the edges and the cream is bubbling gently, about 35 minutes. Remove, let sit for 5 minutes, then cut and serve.

Beet Risotto
Here's a recipe from Bill that he says is tried and true. Sounds delicious with the addition of the ginger!

2 lbs. beets
3 cups water
1 onion, small dice
1 Tbsp. ginger, peeled, smashed and minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 cup Arborio* or long-grain rice
.5 cup dry white wine
.5 cup either local blue or goat cheese

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Wrap beets tightly in foil and roast in middle of oven until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Unwrap beets and let stand until cool enough to handle. Discard stems and peel beets. In a blender purée half of beets with 1 cup water and transfer to saucepan, whisking in remaining 2 cups water to make beet broth.

Bring beet broth to a simmer and keep warm.

In a large heavy saucepan cook onion, ginger and garlic in butter over moderate heat, stirring, until onion is softened. Stir in rice and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Add wine and cook, stirring, until absorbed. Continue simmering and adding beet broth, about 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and letting each addition be absorbed before adding next, until about half of broth has been added. Remove from heat once the rice is al dente and stir in the remaining chopped beets and the cheese of your choice. Parmesan can be used as well.

Tip for peeling ginger: A spoon is the easiest and most efficient way to peel ginger. Use the lip of the spoon in a downward motion. As well, slice the ginger into small pieces and smash with the heel of you knife.

Turnip Hash

6 Tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, small dice 
1 lb. turnips, small dice 
2 cups hot chicken stock
2 Tbsp, unsalted butter 
.5 cup reggiano cheese
.5 cup parsley, rough chop
Salt and pepper, to taste

Warm the chicken stock in a sauce pan over medium-low heat.
Heat the olive oil into a large skillet and turn the heat to medium. Toss in the onion and cook until translucent. Add the turnips and cook for 2 minutes. Ladle in some of the hot chicken stock and cook until absorbed. Continue until all of the stock has been added, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the butter and grated cheese off the heat. Garnish with parsley.

Rosy Beet/ Napa Cabbage Slaw
From Global Cookbook. Serves 4-6.
6 c. Thinly sliced Napa cabbage leaves
1 1/2 c. Minced red onion
2 med Beets, grated
1 c. Minced fresh parsley
1/4 c. Red wine vinegar
1/2 c. Water
2 Tbsp. Brown sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1/3 c. Minced fresh dill leaf
3 Tbsp. Minced fresh chives
1/2 c. Low fat lowfat sour cream
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine vegetables and parsley in a large bowl. In a saucepan, combine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring till sugar is dissolved. Pour over vegetables and toss. Add in dill and chives and fold in well. Cover and let marinate overnight. Stir well once or twice. Just before serving, drain off excess liquid. Stir in lowfat sour cream and add in salt and pepper to taste.

Blueberry Muffins
You all probably have a go to recipe for muffins, but JUST in case you don't, this muffin recipe from the Joy of Cooking is the one I turn to for unfailingly good muffins. You can substitute up to 1 cup whole-wheat flour or whole-wheat pastry flour for an equal measure of all-purpose flour. You can use the liquid ingredient of your choice, from low-fat milk to cream. You can even use sour cream, yogurt or buttermilk if you add in 1/2 tsp baking soda. You can use from a half stick to a whole stick butter. (Definitely opt for the larger qty of butter if you will be eating these muffins hours or a day after being made). Yield 14-16 muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground or freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
2 large eggs
1 cup milk or cream
⅔ cup sugar or packed light brown sugar
¼ to ½ cup (½ to 1 stick) butter, melted, or ¼ to ½ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla

1.5 cups frozen blueberries

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a standard 12-muffin pan.
In a large bowl, whisk together thoroughly the flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg (if using). In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk or cream, sugar, butter or oil, and vanilla.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a few light strokes, just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Fold in the frozen or thawed blueberries. Do not overmix; the batter should not be smooth. Divide the batter among the muffin cups.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in 1 or 2 of the muffins comes out clean, about 12 to 25 minutes or more depending on how big the muffins are, how big the berries are, whether berries are frozen etc. Let cool for 5 minutes minimum before removing from the pan. If not serving hot, let cool on a rack. Serve as soon as possible, preferably within a few hours of baking.

Variations - You can substitute different berries for this recipe - raspberries, strawberries are great too. When adding berries, if they aren't real sweet, you can add 1/3 cup sugar. You can add up to 1 cup of nuts to any (walnuts are particularly good in raspberry muffins). If using mashed fruit, like bananas, add 1 cup.

Good Eats Newsletter - May 12, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Tue, 11 May 2010 20:51:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
1 lb Mixed Colorful Carrots; 2.5 lbs Mixed Potatoes; 2 lbs Yellow Storage Onions, 1 Bunch Scallions; 1 Bunch of Mustard Greens; 1 Bunch of Radishes; 1 Head of Napa Cabbage; plus.....

1 Bunch Sweet Basil
1 Bag of Coleslaw Mix

Localvore Offerings Include:
Dreuxmanna Spelt Berry Crackers
Vermont Butter and Cheese Co Bijou
Quebec Organic Mixed Cracker Grains

The lack of salad greens in this week's share is due to some golf ball sized hail we had at the end of last week. Fear not, the greens will return to your bags very soon.

Pete's Musings
Great trip to DC last week with Andrew Meyer (Vermont Soy), Mateo and Angie Kehler (Jasper Hill), Tim Fishburne and buddy Jennifer from Pete's Greens, and Tom Stearns (High Mowing Seeds). Tom did a thorough job of getting us meetings with key folks and we had excellent meetings with Kathleen Merrigan (Deputy Secretary of Ag), Peter Welch, Bernie's people, Leahy, and a tour of the White House garden.

Many of us are on an advisory board for the new Vermont Food Venture Center which will begin construction in Hardwick this month. One purpose of our trip was to seek additional funding for the Center for hiring an executive director and to fund programming for several years. Another purpose of our trip was to present to the politicians our idea for radically revamping the Hardwick area school lunch program. We're seeking funds for a 3-5 year project to take the schools in Hardwick and the surrounding towns from serving about 5% local food to 50% or more. This is a big project involving remodeling school kitchens, training school chefs, working with existing and new farms to grow the food, developing processing systems so that the schools have access to minimally processed produce. We were very well received and it was an exciting trip.

On the local food and sustainable ag front things are changing fast in DC. We toured the People's Garden at the USDA building. It is just a small vegetable garden that doesn't look like much. But they are also growing cover crops lining both sides of the entrance to the building, expanding edible landscaping, and they just got the go ahead from Secretary Vilsack to plant more vegetable gardens in other parts of the lawn. It is merely symbolic, but the symbolism is powerful.

The White House garden is also small. We toured with White House chef Sam Kass, a guy who is best described with the word smooth. Smooth bald head, smooth speaker, smooth in the halls of power. He is very down to earth and gave us a great tour. He cooks dinner for the Obamas five nights a week (using food from the garden every night) - the rest of his time is spent working on policy issues.

We also attended the Taste of Vermont in the Senate office building. This party sponsored by Pat Leahy is great fun every year. Great Vermont food and great Vermont folks. ~Pete

Left Photo - Tim, Pete, Senator Leahy and wife Marcelle
Right photo - Andrew, Tom, Mateo, Pete in front of the White House

Summer Share begins in just 5 weeks!
Please send in your sign up soon to ensure weekly deliveries of veggies and or localvore products through the summer. This is the most diverse period of the year and the shares will be beautiful and plentiful. Veggie only share is just $28/week. The locavore share is $44/week.

Summer Vegetable and Localvore Share Sign Up
Summer Meat Share Sign Up

New Good Eats Sites
We have a couple new pick up site locations for Summer. If you have already signed up for your Summer share and one of these sites makes more sense for you, let me know and I can switch you.

Williston/Blair Park - DEW Construction is located at 277 Blair Park Road, Suite 130. The pick up will be located at the back entrance of this building and pick up hours will be 2 to 5:00pm. It is a short window, but we hope that the site offers convenience for some of you.

Burlington/Flynn Ave - Select Design at 208 Flynn Ave (off Pine St) will also be hosting beginning at the start of the summer share. Pick up hours for Select Design will be noon to 5 pm.

Good Eats is Looking for a new Montpelier Home
We are on the hunt again for a new pick up site in Montpelier. Our new site could be a home or office but must:

*be centrally located in Montpelier
*have good access for our 26 foot delivery truck and good parking for members
*not have stairs
*have a good amount of space for set up (Min. space is probably 8x10 feet.)
*have fairly long pick up hours to accommodate folks who need to pick up before or after work (8 am to 6:30 pm or later ideal).

Hosting the share requires some commitment from our site hosts but mostly just on the day of delivery. We do offer compensation for hosting, in the form of a free share (or cash payment), depending on the number of shares signed up at the site. If you have suggestions regarding a new site, please email me, I'd love to hear from you.

Burlington Bicycle Delivery by One Revolution
Have you ever wished your share would just show up at your home or office? If you live in Burlington, this summer your wish might be granted. Starting in June, One Revolution will begin a bicycle delivery service in Burlington. For just $5/week ($90 over the course of the 18 week share) One Revolution can pick up your share at one of our pick up sites and deliver it to your door.

Shares will be fully protected from the elements and will arrive fresh at your doorstep. You can expect your share delivered 0n Wednesdays between 3:30 PM and 6:00 PM.
For more information about this service, please contact Mark or Sam Bromley at One Revolution, Vermont Bikes at Work 1-877-4BIKEVT (424-5388) or Onerevolutionvt@gmail.com.

Pete's Pastured Chicken
Our meat order is over for now, but you can still order chicken! If you order 5 or more whole birds, they are only $3.50/lb. This is a great price for these birds which were raised on our pastures in just about the best conditions possible. Their meat is far healthier having assimilated the nutrients of all the forage they consumed.

All free range is not created equal. Many farms that offer "free range" chicken raise their birds just to free range standards which require the birds have access to an outside area. Often times this means that the birds live loose in large barns with a couple openings to small dirt lots outside. This is an improvement over the standard meat bird production, but does not compare to keeping birds outside on pasture and greens throughout their lives.

For more info about our chickens, please visit the chicken page.

Storage and Use Tips
Bagged Coleslaw Mix - Bill chopped cabbage, carrots and daikon yesterday to provide you with a ready to dress coleslaw. We thought you all might enjoy the simplicity. Just choose your favorite slaw dressing or choose from the three Bill has provided below, and in a few minutes you'll have slaw ready to serve.

Localvore Lore
The organic mixed cracked grains in the share today hail from Compton, Quebec from Michel Gaudreau's Golden Crops. They are a blend of wheat, barley, rye, oat and flax. The grains make a delicious breakfast cereal cooked as you would rolled oats for oatmeal. Use a 2-to-1 ratio of liquid to grains, perhaps even a bit more liquid (all water is fine, and a half and half mix of water and milk is tasty and rich). If you like your cereal softer still, soak the grains overnight before cooking them in the morning. You can also use these grains as you would cracked wheat (bulgar) in dishes like tabbouli (recipe below). Or cook the grains as you would arborio rice or for pilaf with a broth for a dinner meal. You can also use the grains mixed with oats for granola, or soaked or cooked to soften and then added to a bread recipe. Store as you would rice, oats or barley.

We have a cracker and cheese combo for you this week. From Dreuxmanna we have Spelt Berry crackers, made by Dreux and El Anya Nightingale in Barre. These are great, hearty crackers made with spelt flour & whole spelt berries from Meunerie Milanaise in QC. If you love these crackers and need more, you can find them at City Market in Burlington and at LACE in Barre.

To go along with the tasty crackers, we have delightful little goat cheese rounds from Vt Butter & Cheese Co. The Bijou is an aged goat cheese, made in the tradition of French crottins. When these cheeses are wrapped in their own micro-caves, the cheese is still fresh with a delicate rind. As the cheese ages the interior becomes soft and the flavor more robust. Allow to reach room temp for best flavor. A classic use of this cheese would be a chevre chaud, or hot goat cheese dish. To make your own, cut Bijou in half and place rind side up on a baguette. Toast under the broiler for five minutes and serve with a salad. For a more elaborate and even tastier prep, see the recipe for Baked Goat Cheese below.

Recipes

Coleslaw
This week, Bill hand chopped cabbage and mixed with some carrot and daikon to create ready to go coleslaw mix. He also wrote up three different coleslaw recipes to choose from. Any one of these recipes can be tripled and saved for future use. Best to store the remainder in a Ziploc container or ball jar.

Asian Coleslaw Dressing
1 bag Pete’s slaw mix
½ head Napa cabbage, sliced thinly
1 onion or 2-3 scallions, thinly sliced

½ bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
¼ cup tamari
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup vegetable oil
3 tbsp. grated fresh ginger
3 tbsp. white vinegar
2 tbsp. dark brown sugar
2 tsp. sesame oil
3 tbsp. sesame seeds, optional

Place all ingredients in large bowl and whisk until well incorporated. Add slaw mix, onion and Napa cabbage and toss until well coated. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. This slaw is best served within 15 minutes of making.

Apple Coleslaw
1 bag Pete’s slaw Mix
2 apples, small dice

2 tbsp. Dijon Mustard
1 clove garlic, minced
½ cup cider vinegar
2 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. mustard seed (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Whisk dressing ingredients together in a large bowl. Add apples and slaw mix and toss.

New York Style Creamy Dressing

¼ cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp. vinegar
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice (1/2 a lemon)
3 tbsp. dry mustard
Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, whisk ingredients together. Add slaw mix and toss well. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Baked Goat Cheese
From David Lebowitz website...This isn't a strict recipe, but a technique. I use sourdough (levain) bread crumbs made from stale bread but you can certainly use what's available where you are, as long as they're from a sturdy loaf. If you buy breadcrumbs that are already toasted, simply mix them with the seasoning ingredients and skip the toasting in the oven.

Leftover breadcrumbs can be stored in the freezer, or strewn over whole-wheat pasta tossed with greens cooked with garlic and red chile flakes.

Cut your goat cheese into disks about 3/4-inch (2cm) thick. Marinate the disks in olive oil, which can be done up to two days in advance. If done in advance, I like to add some herbs, such as fresh rosemary and thyme, as well as some black pepper, and let them rest in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 375F (180C).

Mix together fresh bread crumbs (for four servings, about 1/2 cup, 60g) with a generous pinch of sea salt, and just enough olive oil to moisten the crumbs, about 1 to 2 teaspoons.

Spread the crumbs on a baking sheet and cook the crumbs until golden brown and crispy, 5 to 10 minutes, stirring a few times during baking. Once toasted, let cool and mix in 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon chopped parsley.

Brush the goat cheese rounds with olive oil. (Unless they've been marinated. In which case, pluck them from the oil and let the excess drip off briefly.) Dredge the goat cheese in the toasted breadcrumb mixture until they're completely coated and bake on a cookie sheet or in a gratin dish, either non-stick or lightly-greased, for 5 to 8 minutes, or until warmed through and soft when you press gently in the center.

Remove from oven and use a spatula to lift the goat cheese rounds from the pan.

Serve with a green salad, and thin slices of toasted levain (sourdough) bread, a favorite crisp bread, or crackers. This also makes a great appetizer.

Mixed Grains Pilaf
This one from the archives was supplied to us by Good Eats members a while back. You can cook the mixed cracked grains as you would rice or barley (as done here) for some very interesting and healthy dishes. This one would be great with some chopped mustard greens and scallions baked in, with rounds of the Baked Goat Cheese on the side.

1 1/2 cups cracked mixed grains
3 1/4 cups chicken stock
8 TB (1 stick) butter or half butter & Olive or other oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
5-6 oz. sliced mushrooms
Salt & Pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375 (1 ¼ hour in oven, ¼ hour prep)

Saute grains in 4 TB butter, using a heavy frying pan on medium low, until golden (about 5 mins.) Meanwhile chop onions. Pour grain into covered casserole, such as corning glassware. Sautee chopped onions in 2 TB butter on low heat until soft, about 5 mins. Meanwhile slice mushrooms. Pour onion into casserole. Sautee sliced mushrooms in remaining oil on low heat until water evaporates, adding salt & pepper to taste, about 5 mins. Add to casserole. Add 1 1/2 cups chicken stock warmed in microwave 2 mins. or in saucepan to casserole. Cover and bake 30 mins.

Add another 1 1/2 cups chicken stock warmed in microwave 2 mins. or in saucepan to casserole. Cover and bake 30 mins. Add the remaining 1/4 cup warmed stock and bake the last 15 minutes covered. Stir well and serve

Tabouli Salad
3.5 cups salted water
2 cup cracked grains

¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 cups finely diced tomatoes
½ cup thinly sliced scallions
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons slivered fresh mint leaves
Salt & pepper, to taste

Bring water to water to boil. Cover and simmer until tender, about 35 minutes, and then drain any remaining water. In the meantime, mix all remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add grains and season with salt and pepper.

Cracked Grain Coffee Cake

1 cup butter
3 eggs
3 cups whole wheat flour
½ cup cracked grains
1.5 tsp.baking soda
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tsp vanilla extract
1.5 tsp. baking powder
1.5 cups buttermilk

½ cup brown sugar
½ cup chopped pecans
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease well a bundt cake pan, set aside.

In a large bowl beat butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until well blended. Stir together flour, cracked grains, baking powder and baking soda. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk to butter mixture. Blend well.

In a separate bowl, mix brown sugar, pecans and cinnamon.

With a large spoon, place half of the batter evenly into your prepared pan and sprinkle with filling. Top with remaining batter.

Bake for approximately 1 hour or just until cake begins to pull from pan sides. Cool in pan 15 minutes, then invert onto a serving plate.

Good Eats Newsletter - May 5, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 05 May 2010 00:31:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Red Norland Potatoes; 2 lbs Gilfeather Turnips, 2.5 lbs Copra Onions; 2 Heads of Lettuce; 1 Bunch Sweet Salad Turnips; 1 Bag of Upland Cress; 2 Lettuce Heads plus.....

1 European Cucumber
1 Bag Frozen Vegetables
(there will be a mix of frozen veggies delivered to sites - choose one bag only)

Localvore Offerings Include:
Aurora Farms Vermont Organic White Flour (not all sites, see below!)
1 Dozen Pa Pa Doodles Eggs
1 Container Maple Sun Cider Vinaigrette
1 Container Veg or Chicken Broth*

*Before selecting your broth, please double-check your share type on the names check off sheet. We have sent out veggie broth for vegetarians (says V on the lid), and chicken broth for non vegetarians. Thank you.

Flour Snafu! We did not receive our entire flour order. We packed as many bags as we could and will be sending out what we have. Not all sites will receive flour. Those that don't receive flour this week, will receive it next week.

Meat Share Members - This is a Meat Share Week.

Summer Share News
The share is about half way full now and the pace of sign ups has picked up in the last week or so. It really is going to be a great season, we are ahead of schedule and the crops are doing so well! The share begins June 16th and there's only 5 more deliveries of the Spring share after this week.

Good Eats Members Seeking Share Partners - There are a couple posts on the Members Seeking page from members looking to split a summer share with someone. If you pick up in Stowe or Morrisville and are interested in sharing with someone, please check the page. If you would like to split a share with someone at another site, please email me and I'll post your notice on the page.

New Sites for Summer - We are considering two new pick up sites for Summer. We are planning to add a downtown Burlington location, something we have wanted to do for a while. We are also looking at a Williston location in the Blair Park area. Though neither location is yet set in stone, both look promising. More details coming in the next week or so.

The Vegetable Only Share brings you weekly deliveries of a diverse mix of Pete's super fresh organic vegetables.
Vegetable Only - $504 (avg. $28 a week)

The Vegetable/Localvore Share offers the same veggies but also provides a weekly selection of great organic and local pantry staples, all sourced very near the farm. Vegetable/Localvore - $792 (avg. $44/week)

Meat Share available too, featuring 4 monthly deliveries of a selection of local, grass fed, and often organic meats. Meat Share - $199 (avg. $50 a month)

Meat Orders for May 12th delivery
We still have a small amount of meat left (Beef, lamb, chicken) and the meat order form is on our website. The minimum meat order is $50.

Because of our weekly CSA schedule, meat orders must be received by Wednesday to be packed Thursday for the next week's delivery. Email is best for getting forms to me, though mail will work too. If you cannot download the form please email me.

Pete's Pastured Chicken - Order 5 for special price
You can take advantage of our special Pete's Pastured chicken offer now as well, and have chickens delivered next week. If you order 5 or more whole birds, they are only $3.50/lb. This is a great price for these birds which were raised on our pastures in just about the best conditions possible. Their meat is far healthier having assimilated the nutrients of all the forage they consumed.

All free range is not created equal. Many farms that offer "free range" chicken raise their birds just to free range standards which require the birds have access to an outside area. Often times this means that the birds live loose in large barns with a couple openings to small dirt lots outside. This is an improvement over the standard meat bird production, but does not compare to keeping birds outside on pasture and greens throughout their lives.

To take advantage of this price, please visit the bulk meat order page and download the meat order form. For more info about our chickens, please visit the chicken page.

Storage and Use Tips
Frozen Vegetables This Week - We have a mix going out to fill the frozen veggie slot this week. At each site there will be a mix of different veggies in the coolers. Please take just one bag of frozen veggies. There will be braising greens, beet greens, spinach, broccoli, and hot peppers to choose from.

Sweet Salad Turnips - The beautiful white turnips in your bags have just been pulled from the ground yesterday and looked so beautifully creamy white stacked up in their crates. Sweet Salad Turnips can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw they have a texture similar to a radish, but are not so sharp. You can slice, dice, or quarter them and saute with butter or oil. Cook until just tender and still a little crisp. Just a little salt or maybe a little bit of vinegar is all they need. Or cook them with butter and drizzle of honey or maple syrup and even picky kids may gobble them up. The greens are a bonus and are tender and flavorful when cooked. Chop and saute with the turnips for a side dish, or cook up with other greens, or by themselves. I often chop them and toss them into pasta sauces.

Upland Cress - I can't wait to pack a sandwich full of cress this week. I absolutely love the stuff and when available I can't get enough, putting it in salads and sandwiches or just on the side of my plate with a little oil and vinegar. There are many types of cress, but all of them may be eaten cooked or raw, and they all have variations of their mild peppery flavor. Watercress is a very powerful antioxidant. A two year study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2007 determined that eating watercress daily can significantly reduce DNA damage to blood cells, which is considered to be an important trigger in the development of cancer. It is brimming with more than 15 essential vitamins and minerals. Gram for gram, it contains more iron than spinach, more vitamin C than oranges and more calcium than milk.

Localvore Lore

We have a second round of VT white flour organically grown in Charlotte by Tom Kenyon at Aurora Farms. I'd love to hear how you all have been enjoying this flour. I really like it. Though I try to incorporate as much whole wheat into my family's diet, there are times when it sure is nice to make a white flour confection! And I love to have a product on hand that is grown so close by, and that I know has been grown organically and that performs so well to boot. There is a nice article in the Spring issue of Local Banquet about the partnership between Tom and Randy George of Red Hen Baking Co. that brought this flour into existence for us to enjoy. Read the article here.

Finally, Deb's new flock of hens is producing enough eggs for the share and for the rest of the share period you can count on eggs every other week. Deb's flock produces eggs almost exclusively for Good Eats and (in summer) our farm stand. Her chickens are pampered and well cared for. If you didn't have a chance to watch the Seven Days interview with Deb and her hens last time I posted it, here it is again now!

Bill has made us a tangy sweet localvore salad dressing this week using our sunflower oil, apple cider vinegar from Gingerbrook Farm, maple syrup, mustard seed and a bit of sea salt. He recommends adding black pepper (fresh ground is best!) and maybe a bit of salt until the flavor is just to your liking. Let us know how you enjoy the dressing!

Also from the kitchen, we have quarts of chicken broth for you carnivore folk, and veggie stock for those of you signed up for the vegetarian share. The chicken broth is made from our own birds, and flavored with some of our veggies and herbs. And the veggie broth was made from our vegetables of course. Both should make your next batch of soup easy and tasty.

Meat Share
Bonnieview Farm Rack of Lamb - I drove over to Bonnieview Farm last week. If you have never been on the South Albany Rd in Craftsbury, make a point to drive it someday. It's one of the loveliest roads I have been on in Vermont. It's lambing season (nearing the end actually) and Neil has around 300 lambs on the ground now and his dairy herd are now producing milk and his cheese making season begins! The lamb in the share comes from the lambs from last years crop, raised on the hillsides surrounding Neil's farm. The rack of lamb is the prime rib of the lamb world and makes a very handsome dish. Bill has given a simple but what I am sure will be delicious recipe below.

Bonnieview Sweet Italian Sausage - This is a classic lamb sausage, and Bill has used it in a lamb stew recipe below. But don't hesitate to grill these and put them in a bun, or use them in a pasta sauce. They are mild and delicious.

Pete's Pastured Ground Beef - I know none of you will have any trouble trying to figure out what to do with some of our ground beef. There's a meatloaf recipe today if you are in a comfort food mood, but with the weather we have had of late, you may just end up grilling up some burgers. This is the very last of our ground beef for the moment, and we actually had to substitute Applecheek Farm organic veal cutlets in just a few shares.

Pete's Pastured Chicken - And for the second time this share period, we have one of our chickens. I am definitely going to be making Bill's Cinco de Mayo Oaxacan Chicken recipe below. Yum!

Recipes

Chicken with Oaxacan Mole
In the spirit of Cinco de Mayo, here is a favorite recipe from one of my favorite regions of Mexico. While it might seem daunting at first, if you double it you can refrigerate what you don’t use on the chicken and use it for lamb. As well, these spices are available at most local stores. While you’re at it, check out the story of mole, at least one of them, since there is still debate as to where it originated. ~Bill

1 chicken, quartered

1 tbsp. cumin seeds
4 cinnamon sticks, crushed
¾ cup almonds
½ cup sesame seeds
½ cup sunflower seeds
¼ cup coriander seeds

4 oz. butter
1 onion, rough chop
2 poblano peppers, seeded, rough chop
2 ripe plantains, sliced
3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup orange juice
½ cup lime juice
2 cups plum tomatoes, rough chop
2 oz. dark chocolate
For the chicken:

Heat some oil in a heavy braiser or large saucepot. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper and seared until golden on all sides. Place in 350 degree oven and roast until the chicken juices run clear from the chicken when pierced with a knife. Pull from oven, place on a platter and serve with sauce.
For the mole:

Toast first set of ingredients in heavy sauté pan until sesame seeds start to pop. Add coriander and toast for 1 minute more.

Transfer this to a food processor and pulse until you have a powder.

In a heavy saucepot, melt butter and add onions and poblano peppers and sauté until translucent. Add remaining ingredients, with the exception of the chocolate, spice powder and simmer for 30 minutes on very low heat, stirring often. Puree mole in blender. Add crushed tomatoes and chocolate and whisk until incorporated. Season with salt.

Upland Cress and Cucumber Salad

1 European cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into half moons
½ cup sweet salad turnips, washed and thinly sliced
2 cups upland cress
½ cup toasted pecans
Apple cider vinaigrette, to taste
Salt and Pepper

In a large bowl toss cucumber and turnips with just enough vinaigrette to coat them. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cress and gently toss. Mound this mix on plates and crumbled the toasted pecans on top of each. Drizzle some more dressing if needed. Any number of cheeses can be add to this including gorgonzola and goat cheese.

Stir Fried Turnips with Greens
From Jack Bishop's A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen. This is a simple and tasty way to use your turnips and greens.

3/4 cup orange juice
2 TB soy sauce
3 medium scallions
4 med garlic cloves
1 TB minced ginger
1/2 tsp hot red pepper flakes
1 TB plus 1 tsp peanut oil
1.5 lbs Salad Turnips or Spring Dug Turnips, cut into 3/4" wedges or chunks
5 cups packed, stemmed greens (Pac Choi, Braising Greens, Yukina Savoy, Chard, etc)

Combine orange juice and soy in measuring cup. Place scallions, garlic ginger, red pepper flakes in small bowl. Heat 1 TB oil in large skillet over med high heat until shimmering. Add turnips and stir fry until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Push turnips to edges of pan, spread garlic mixture in center of pan. Drizzle remaining 1 tsp oil over mixture and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir to combine with turnips. Add orange juice mixture to pan, cover and cook, until turnips are creamy and tender and liquid has reduced to a few tablespoons (2-3 minutes). Add greens, cover and cook until just wilted, about 1 minute. (If the contents of the pan are too soupy, simmer with the cover off to reduce the liquid to a sauce consistency.). Serve immediately.

Not Your Grandmother’s Irish Lamb Stew
4 links lamb sausage
3 tbsp. oil
2 cloves garlic, fine chop
1 copra onion, medium dice
2 carrots, peeled, cut into ½ inch rounds
2 Gilfeather turnips, washed, quartered and cut into medium chunks
6 Norland potatoes, washed and cut into medium chunks
4 cups beef broth
¼ cup fresh mint, rough chop

Greens - beet, spinach or braising greens

Prepare all vegetables and set aside.

Heat oil in a heavy soup pot. Once hot, add the sausage links and brown evenly on all sides. Remove to a plate and add onions, carrots and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes. Add beef broth, turnips and potatoes. When the sausage in cool enough to handle, slice each link into one inch pieces. Add to pot, cover and lower heat to simmer. When vegetables are tender, remove from heat and stir in mint and season with salt and pepper.

In a separate pan, heat a small amount of oil and sauté greens until barely wilted. Place greens in the bottom of a bowl and ladle the stew on top.

Market Street Meatloaf
2 lbs. ground beef
1 onion, finely dice
1 red pepper, fine dice
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs
½ cup ketchup
¼ cup grain mustard
1 tsp ground cumin
1 cup panko
6 strips bacon

Combined all ingredients in a large bowl and mix until well incorporated. Form into a loaf shape on an oiled sheet pan. Wrap bacon around the formed loaf, tucking the ends into the bottom of the loaf. Cook until internal temperature taken from center is 145 degrees. Remove from oven and cover with foil. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Herb & Mustard Crusted Lamb Rack
1 lamb rack
1 sprig rosemary, stripped and finely chopped
2 tbsp. dijon mustard
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix mustard, rosemary and black pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.

Remove any excess fat on the meat side of the rack, leaving a thin layer. Heat a dry sauté pan (enough fat will come from the lamb itself) and carefully place the rack, meat side down and sear until well browned. Remove the pan from the burner and using a large spoon, rub the mustard mixture along the top of the meat side. Place in the oven. Roast in the rack for 10 minutes for a medium rare lamb. Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before cutting the chops, slicing every 2 bones.

Good Eats Newsletter - April 28, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 10:00:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Nicola Potatoes; 2 lbs Copra Onions; 2 lbs Red Beets; 1 Bunch of Green Wave Mustard Greens; plus...

Bag of Mesclun Greens
Head of Green Butterhead Lettuce
1 European Cucumber

Frozen Zucchini
Frozen Winter Squash Puree

Localvore Offerings Include:
Red Hen Mad River Bread
Pete's Dill or Sour Pickles
Butterworks Farm Organic Cheddar

Ode to Onions
Saturday we began planting this years onion crop, all 320,000 plants, give or take. It occurred to me what a constant presence onions now are in this farm's life. We have them to eat every day of the year - which is a real blessing when you consider how many ways there are to eat them. Raw or cooked, they make a huge range of other ingredients taste better. I hope you are enjoying last year's crop of Copras. They are not in perfect condition - last summer's constant rain caused the occasional interior brown layer. But by and large they have held up really well in storage and have sweetened over the winter. And isn't it amazing that something that is so sweet and full of water can be harvested in September and kept in great condition until the next June! I've been thoroughly enjoying sauteeing up a big pan full and savoring the buttery sweetness.

Not only do we have them to eat every day of the year but one year's crop overlaps with the next. The half pencil thick onion plants we began planting on Saturday were started in the greenhouse on Feb. 1, a full 5 months before we will be finished with the 2009 crop. So for close to half the year we manage 2 years worth of onions - one in storage and one growing. We have a much more efficient system for planting onions this year, one that requires more riding on a comfortable transplanter seat and less time spent stooped over, but it is still a big job that will take a crew of five 3 days. We are hoping to get it done very soon as we are planting them in our new field 3 miles up the road and it is time consuming to move equipment back and forth. Wish these new onion plants well, hoping that they can store all the goodness of the summer's sun, the soil's minerals, and good fresh Vermont air for our eating pleasure next winter. ~Pete

Summer Share - Last week to get free T with sign-up
There's still time! If we receive your sign up this week (by May 1) you will get a bright colorful Pete's T featuring lots of the veggies we grow at the farm. But if that's not reason enough to send your sign up in, review the veggie pictures above. The share is going to be outstanding.
Share period - June 16th through October 13th

The Vegetable Only Share brings you weekly deliveries of a diverse mix of Pete's super fresh organic vegetables.
Vegetable Only - $504 (avg. $28 a week)

The Vegetable/Localvore Share offers the same veggies but also provides a weekly selection of great organic and local pantry staples, all sourced very near the farm. Vegetable/Localvore - $792 (avg. $44/week)

Meat Share available too, featuring 4 monthly deliveries of a selection of local, grass fed, and often organic meats. Meat Share - $199 (avg. $50 a month)

On the Farm - April 26
I took a stroll yesterday to see what was going on in the greenhouses and fields and thought you all might enjoy some imagery. The greenhouses are just beautiful and the field crops are coming in nicely. It was a pleasure to be among so much green! In our one heated greenhouse where the crops are further ahead, the basil and green tomato smell is heavenly. The other greenhouses are not heated but the crops in them are coming quickly. The growth of the crops in just a couple of weeks never ceases to amaze me. ~Amy

Next Meat Order Delivery May 12th
We have a small amount of meat available for you all and the order form is on our website. We still have a good assortment of our Bonnieview lamb, some Pete's Pastured Beef items, Yak sausage, and of course Pete's Pastured Chicken. The minimum meat order is $50. We do have some pork available but we are selling it by the box, not the piece. Please email me for more information.

Because of our weekly CSA schedule, meat orders must be received on Wednesday to be packed Thursday or Friday for the following week's delivery. To avoid pick up errors we will not be delivering meat orders the week of May 5th and instead will hold order until May 12th. Email is best for getting forms to me, though mail will work too. If you cannot download the form please email me.

Pete's Pastured Chicken - Order 5 for special price
We will continue the special Pete's Pastured chicken offer through the next May 12 meat order. If you order 5 or more whole birds, they are only $3.50/lb. This is a great price for these birds which were raised on our pastures in just about the best conditions possible. Their meat is far healthier having assimilated the nutrients of all the forage they consumed.

All free range is not created equal. Many farms that offer "free range" chicken raise their birds just to free range standards which require the birds have access to an outside area. Often times this means that the birds live loose in large barns with a couple openings to small dirt lots outside. This is an improvement over the standard meat bird production, but does not compare to keeping birds outside on pasture and greens throughout their lives.

To take advantage of this price, please visit the bulk meat order page and download the meat order form. For more info about our chickens, please visit the chicken page.

Storage and Use Tips
Mustard Greens - Related to kale, cabbage, and collard greens, mustard greens are the peppery leafy greens of the mustard plant. This week everyone will receive Green Wave Mustard. Mustard greens can be eaten raw in salads and they stand up very well in the a stir fry or saute. The heat they have when raw dissipates when cooked and the flavor mellows revealing a sweet and full flavored green.
Frozen Shredded Zucchini - We put up a bunch of zucchini in the Fall, simply shredded and frozen. It's tender and delicious and I've really enjoyed having a bag of this in the freezer this winter. It's great on its own, cooked up with a little garlic and oil, or great in pasta dishes, casseroles, stir frys or whatever you might dream up. When you thaw the zucchini, it will lose a lot of water. This is perfect for baking actually and for many other recipes as well. Let it thaw, and then squeeze out all the excess water and then add the zucchini to your recipe.

Localvore Lore
At Red Hen Baking Co. Randy is busy preparing to bake this week's bread, their Mad River Grain. This bread features a number of local and regional grains including flax, rye and oats (steel-cut) from Quebec and a cornmeal made from Wahpsie Valley heirloom corn grown on Aurora Farms in Charlotte. This bread makes great toast and sandwiches but is particularly special when used for French toast.

We have pickles again this week - the last of them unfortunately and we'll miss them when they are gone. But we will be at it again this summer, pickling cukes to supply us all through next Fall and Winter. This last week we have a mix of glass quart jars of dills and plastic quart jars of sours. You will receive on or the other tomorrow.

And what goes better with pickles than cheddar? This is pretty special cheddar too. Jack Lazor up at Butterworks Farm has only recently began making cheese from his herd of organic Jerseys. This cheese was made for Butterworks at Shelburne Farms last February, using only raw organic milk from the Lazor's herd. The fresh cheese was then brought to Grafton Village Cheese Co. to age, and it's now just over a year old. It's a nice farm type cheddar, mild and great for every day use. It is one of the few cheddars in the state made with organic raw milk. No need to be alarmed over raw milk use however. The FDA puts hard cheeses and cultured milk products in its lowest risk category and allows the use of raw milk in cheeses aged a minimum of 60 days.

Recipes

Nicola Potato & Cheddar Soup
Bill wrote up this recipe in honor of the cold dreary weather today while waiting for his delayed flight! It is soup weather indeed.
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly slice
.75 cup apple cider
2 # potatoes, peeled and diced
4 1/2 cups stock chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 cup heavy cream (half-and-half will work as well)
2 apples, small dice
I bottle dark beer (optional)
2 tsp. butter
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

In a soup pot, heat the oil. Add the onions and cook for a few minutes until starting to turn golden. Add the cider and cook until it reduces somewhat. Add the potatoes, stock and beer, bring to a boil, simmer it, covered. Whisk the cheddar in off the heat.
Blend, in small batches, in a blender. Be VERY careful and pulse the liquid. If too thick, add some water. It won’t deter from the flavor.
Once the soup is all blended, add the cream. In a small pan, melt the butter. When it melts, add in the apple chunks, and cook for a couple of minutes until they start to get a bit caramelized. Garnish Soup with carmelized apples.

Easy Onion Soup

2# onions, sliced thinly
.25 cup olive oil
2 quarts chicken stock
2 tbsp. sherry (optional)

Heat olive oil in a heavy sauce pot. Add onions and SLOWLY caramelize, very low heat. Add stock when the onions are brown. Season with salt & pepper and sherry if desired.
Rub slices of Red Hen bread with olive oil and toast. Top the soup with a slice each and grate fresh parmesan reggiano on them. Cheddar works well too.

Sauteed Mustard Greens
Serve these up alongside some potatoes or some scrambled eggs. Yum....

.25 lb of bacon cubed (3-4 slices)
1 onion, diced
1 Bunch Mustard Greens

Put bacon in a saute pan and render. Pour off 80 % of he rendered fat (save for another use). Add the onion and saute until browned. Add the greens, salt and pepper and cook for a minute longer.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake
Aren't new cookbooks great? Another one from the Cook's Garden by Ellen Ecker Ogden this week. This is a recipe that Lisa who gave me the book keeps raving about. And given that the frozen shredded zucchini is the ideal ingredient, it's a perfect week for this. This one has been a real crowd pleaser at her house. She tops it with cream cheese frosting and likes it best after its been refrigerated. It gets dense and more moist and rich. To substitute the frozen zucc, just thaw it and squeeze out the moisture and toss in.

1 C unbleached all-purpose flour
1 C whole wheat flour
1/2 unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 C sugar
8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 C (+) olive oil
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 C sour cream or yogurt
3 C grated zucchini (about 4 medium sized zuchhini)

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350F.
Butter and lightly flour a 9x13 - inch pan
Sift the flours, baking soda and powder, and salt all together into a medium bowl.
In another bowl use a mixer on high speed to beat together the sugar, butter, and oil until well combined.
One at a time, add in the eggs, beating well after each addition.
Gradually stir in the flour mixture, blending just until smooth.
Stir in the sour cream, then the zucchini.
Spead evenly into the pan!
Bake until the cake springs back when pressed in the center, about 45 minutes.
Cool completely on a wire rack.

Beet, Apple and Goat Cheese Salad
Yet another from Cook's Garden... There are seemingly endless variations of beet and apple salads and I have never met one I didn't like. So in honor of THE LAST beets of the share (pretty sure this may be it!) do them right by using them in a way that makes you pine for the day the new beets get pulled from the ground. This recipe is merely a suggestion, feel free to change up nuts (pecans, walnuts, pine nuts), cheeses (goat, feta, blue), herbs etc! I had a very similar salad the other night with beets, apples, some grated celeriac, pecans, blue cheese and maple balsamic. Funny thing is that even in the book the title is as above, but the recipe itself calls for feta. Apparently, even the author couldn't decide. So dig through the fridge and see what you've got t0 throw together.

6 medium beets
2 tart apples
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup parsley
1 small red onion
1/2 cup walnut or olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic
2 TB shallots
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400°. Scrub 6 mix beets and wrap in foil. Bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Cool, peel and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Mix with 2 finely chopped tart apples, 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, 1/2 cup chopped parsley, and 1/2 cup thinly sliced sweet red onion. Whisk together 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1/2 cup walnut or olive oil and 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard. Pour over salad and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Toss with 1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese.

Good Eats Newsletter - April 21, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 01:14:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Orange Carrots; 2 lbs Russet Potatoes; 2 lbs Celeriac; 1 head Savoy Cabbage; Pac Choi; 1 Bunch of Herbs (ONE of the following: Thyme, Lemon Balm, Savory or Rosemary) plus...

1/2 lb Fresh Spinach

European Cucumber -or- Head Lettuce

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Quebec Multigrain Bread
Champlain Orchards Empire Apples
VT Cranberry Co Balsamic Vinegar

Note - National Life members will receive their steel cut oats!

Pete's Musings
It's shaping up to be a great summer at Pete's Greens. We've taken advantage of the early spring to get a jump on crops and have peas up, potatoes in the ground, outside greens a week from harvest, carrots coming up, etc. We're harvesting greenhouse cukes this week and greenhouse tomatoes will be ripening in about a month. Our new blueberry and rhubarb fields will be planted this week, and after last years failure we're scaling back but improving the methods for this year's ginger trial. Steve will spend the week working lime and manure into our new rented field that is slated for large plantings of onions and potatoes. Green and purple beans will be transplanted to a greenhouse later this week for a mid June harvest. We're firing on all cylinders and becoming better farmers every day. We hope you'll join us for the summer CSA share and visit us at the Montpelier farmers market and our improved farmstand in Craftsbury Village. ~Pete

Steve and Deb washing this week's super green spinach

Summer Share - 9 days left to get free T with Sign-Up

You will receive a colorful Pete's Greens t-shirt printed on an organic cotton T if we receive your sign up by May 1st.

The Summer Share begins on June 16th and runs through October 13th. This is an exciting share period spanning 18 prime weeks of the growing season.

Sign up for the Vegetable Only Share to ensure your weekly deliveries of Pete's diverse mix of super fresh organic vegetables.
Vegetable Only - $504 (avg. $28 a week)

Or sign up for the Vegetable/Localvore Share to receive the veggies and also a weekly selection of great organic and local pantry staples, all sourced very near the farm.

Vegetable/Localvore - $792 (avg. $44/week)

Meat Share available too, featuring 4 monthly deliveries of a selection of local, grass fed, and often organic meats.
Meat Share - $199 (avg. $50 a month)

Taking Meat Orders Now!
We have a small amount of meat available to share members and the order form is now on our website. We have a great assortment of our Bonnieview lamb, some Pete's Pastured Beef items, and some Yak sausage, and of course Pete's Pastured Chicken. The bulk order form is available on the website and the minimum meat order is $50. This is great opportunity to select a variety of meats for your freezer.

Because of our weekly CSA schedule, meat orders must be received on Wednesday to be packed Thursday or Friday for the following week's delivery. To avoid pick up errors we will not be delivering meat orders the week of May 5th. Email is best for getting forms to me, though mail will work too. If you cannot download the form please email me.

Pete's Pastured Chicken - Special Offer
Along with the meat order we have a special chicken offer for members. For a short time, you can stock up on our Pete's Pastured chicken at $3.50/lb. Minimum order is 5 birds, but this is a great price for extremely well raised birds. To take advantage of this price, please visit the bulk meat order page and download the meat order form. For more info about our chickens, please visit the chicken page.

Welcome Bill Allen - our new Kitchen Manager!
We are thrilled to have Chef Bill Allen join us at the farm, bringing with him 30 years cooking experience. After growing up learning to cook in an Italian family that revered food, Bill spent 19 years in NYC honing his culinary skills. He made a point of learning to cook as many different cuisines as possible, working in kitchens specializing in Japanese, Italian, French, Pacific Rim, South African and down home comfort food. He even spent two years in the ice cream biz developing no fewer than 115 flavors for a NYC ice cream company, earning the title "Custard King" by NY's food critics along the way.

Ready for a change of environment, Bill went on to several high end establishments in CT, Long Island and then southern California where he also worked on a couple of PBS cooking shows. But, missing his New England roots, Bill moved back east in 2000, this time to Vermont. He was a Fine Dining Chef Instructor at the New England Culinary Institute for 2 years. He then headed the kitchen at the restaurant “O” in Burlington. Since O he's worked for several high end catering companies and did a stint running the restaurant end of a resort in the Turks and Caicos.

Over time, and particularly while living in Vermont, Bill's passion for cooking locally and seasonally has grown. As a chef in our area, he enjoyed cooking with the wide array of vegetables grown on the farm and upon his return to VT from the islands he was excited to learn that we were looking for a kitchen manager. We are excited to be welcoming someone into the Pete's Greens kitchen with as much varied experience as Bill brings. In the months to come we will be developing new locavore products for the share and hopefully launching some version of a prepared food share! We welcome hearing from you about anything we create at the farm for the share. You can email Bill and me with questions or comments about recipes, a localvore offering, or food suggestions anytime.

Pete mentioned in Scientific American
In the article Breaking the Growth Habit in this month's Scientific American, author Bill McKibben insists that in order to slow the path of environmental damage we are on, society must break the habit of growth. Pete is mentioned in the article for the innovative moveable greenhouses he designed to grow food for the share year round. You can download a pdf of the article from the press page on our website.

Localvore Lore

Blair and Andrew have just returned from a vacation and just in time for this week's bread. This week from Elmore Mountain Bakery they are baking a special Quebec Multigrain bread made with Milanaise Winter Wheat, Milanaise Whole Wheat, Michele Goudreau's Cracked Grains, Sea Salt, and Sourdough.

Champlain Orchards have sent along Empire apples this week. Empires are a cross between a Macintosh and Red Delicious. They are a great eating apple and are also excellent in salads and in sauces. Bill has used them in a muffin recipe this week. I've been putting them in my salads all winter and my kids plow through loads of them weekly. Great all around apple.

The balsamic vinegar in the share today is a little treasure. This is fantastic balsamic made right here in Vermont by Bob Lesnikowski, owner of Vt Cranberry Company. Along with being the sole cranberry grower in Vermont, Bob is a winemaker at Boyden Valley Winery. He brings to vinegar making the same high standards he adheres to for making wine. Each time he has a batch we try to secure enough for our Good Eats members!

Balsamic Vinegar, a traditional Italian delicacy is a delectable condiment made from wine grapes. We grow the Frontenac variety of wine grape. My balsamic vinegar is made from the Frontenac grape that is used for Boyden Valley Winery' s Ice wine. Once the ice wine is pressed, the remaining juice is used to make vinegar. I ferment and then acetify some of the juice and then the rest is reduced to 40 % of the volume. The reduction is blended with the vinegar and then barrel aged for 2 years. This balsamic is dense, supple and slightly sweet. Perfect for summer grilling or salads. ~Bob

Recipes

Balsamic Rosemary Chicken

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
4 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 lemons, juiced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
2 sprigs fresh thyme or rosemary, stripped and roughly chopped
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper
1 whole chicken, quartered

Whisk all ingredients together in bowl. Combine the chicken and balsamic mixture in a large plastic bag and toss well. Let marinate for at least 2 hours or up to 12.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Remove chicken from the bag and arrange the chicken pieces on a large greased baking dish. Roast until the chicken is just cooked through, about 1 hour. If your chicken browns too quickly, cover it with foil for the remaining cooking time.

This is also a great dish on your outdoor grill but make sure you have burners on low or the sugars in the vinegar will caramelized and burn.

Carrot & Apple Muffins

1.25 cups whole wheat flour
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup carrots, peeled and grated
2 apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
¼ cup milk
¼ cup canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 12-cup standard muffin tin or use muffin papers. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, combine carrots, apples, eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Add half the carrot mixture to the flour mixture, stir until blended then add the rest pf the carrot mixture. Spoon batter into muffin cups and bake about 20 minutes or until a toothpick in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Serve warm.

Potato, Celeriac & Zucchini Casserole

2 lbs. celeriac;, peeled, halved, thinly sliced
2 lbs. russet potatoes, thinly sliced
1 bag frozen zucchini, defrosted, pressed to remove excess water
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups grated Gruyère cheese
2 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 cup whipping cream

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish.

Arrange 1/3 of celery root slices in dish. Top with 1/3 of potato slices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then 1/4 tsp. nutmeg. Top with half of onion slices, half of garlic, then all zucchini, then half of cheese. Repeat layering 1 more time.

Bring broth and cream to simmer in medium saucepan. Pour over vegetables. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Cover baking dish with foil. Bake casserole 1 hour. Remove foil. Bake until vegetables are very tender and liquid bubbles thickly and is slightly absorbed, about 55 minutes longer. Let sit 15 minutes.

Steamed Greens with Sesame-Ginger Sauce

.5 lb. pac choi, washed, drain and halved or quartered, dependent on size
1 lb. savoy cabbage, sliced on a bias ¼ inch thick
.5 lb. spinach
½ cup water
½ cups soy sauce
2 tbsp. sesame oil
2 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. ginger finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
¼ cup vinegar ( anything but balsamic)
¼ cup sesame seeds, lightly toasted

In a large bowl make an ice bath large enough to hold the steamed greens. In a large saucepan, bring a small amount of water to a boil. Add greens and steam until they are wilted. Using tongs, remove the greens and plunge in ice bath. Drain from ice bath and place on clean towels to dry. In another bowl, combine soy, sesame oil, honey, ginger, garlic and vinegar and whisk until well incorporated. Drizzle on amount of dressing as is to your liking and toss. Top with toasted sesame seeds.

Twice Baked Potatoes With Savory Green Sauce
Share member Lisa Scagliotti recently sent me a great cookbook which some of you may already use. It's called from the Cook's Garden and is written by Ellen Ecker Ogden. For any of you who have used the Cook's Garden seeds and leafed through the pages of the seed catalog, the book will be familiar as all of the illustration is done by Mary Azarian. The recipes are seasonal and use much that can be grown in our climate. And so here is a baked potato recipe, in which you can use this week's russets and fresh greens, and a bit of last week's horseradish! Thanks Lisa!

6 large baking potatoes, scrubbed, patted dry, and poked several times with a fork
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup milk or half-and-half
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

SAVORY GREEN SAUCE
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup yogurt or sour cream
1 teaspoon freshly grated horseradish root, or use prepared horseradish
2 cups mixed cooking greens and herbs, such as a combination of fresh spinach, young kale, or mustard greens

Position rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 450°F.
Place the potatoes on a baking sheet. Bake until the potatoes are tender, about 1 hour. Cut each potato in half lengthwise, and scoop out the flesh into a bowl, leaving potato-skin shells. Mash the potato flesh with the butter and milk, and season with the salt and pepper. Refill the shells and, if necessary, return to the oven to keep warm.
In the meantime, make the sauce. Fit a food processor with the metal blade. With the machine running, drop the garlic through the feed tube to mince the garlic. Add the yogurt and horseradish and pulse to combine. Add the greens and process until the greens are pureed. Serve the potatoes hot, with the sauce passed on the side.

Celeriac Remoulade
Here's another from the Cook's Garden recipe. If you look up celeriac you often find a remoulade recipe, but I don't think I have put one in for nearly a year. In honor of the book and the celeriac in the share this week, I thought it might be nice for you all to be reminded of the option. This is like a cole slaw, but with a zesty celeriac twist.

1/2 cup Mayonnaise
 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp Parsley, finely minced
 2 tbsp Tarragon, finely minced 
1 Garlic clove, finely minced 
2 Sweet pickles (opt'l.) finely chopped 
2 Young celeriac knobs (around 2 to 2.5 cups) coarsely grated

In a medium size bowl, mix together all ingredients but celeriac. Add  celeriac; toss until completely coated. Cover and chill until ready to  serve.

Good Eats Newsletter - April 14, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 01:03:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Large Gilfeather Turnips; 1.5 lbs Small Mixed Beets; 1 lb Copra Onions; 1 Bunch Fresh Oregano; Adolescent Heads of Pac Choi

Bag of Fresh Spinach!

1 Bag Frozen Braising Greens
1 Bag Frozen Sweet Peppers

Localvore Offerings Include:
Les Aliments Massawippi Japanese Miso
Quebec Grown Pearled Barley
Amir Hebib's Mushrooms
Deb's Pickled Horseradish Sauce

Pete's Musings
We are planting 2,000 trees along our beautiful Black River this week. It is really fun. The trees are from the Intervale Nursery in Burlington and consist of silver maple, a willow, box elder, and dogwood. Last year we fenced both sides of the river 35 ft. back from the bank. This created a wild corridor into which we are planting the trees in order to create a solid canopy of shade over the river. In time we hope the tree roots will help to anchor the streambank and help slow the erosion caused by our wild, wandering river. We are augering holes for the trees with a post hole auger on the tractor. This creates a beautiful, loose planting hole and makes planting the trees really easy. It seems like ideal conditions for them to take hold and prosper. This is a significant project. We own both sides of the Black River for close to 1/2 mile and then own one side for another 1/2 mile. In 20 years this portion of the river will be very different from what it is now. This project has reminded me of how true the saying is, "The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago, the next best time is today."

Vegetable diversity starts to increase this week. We're excited about the pac choi and herbs and at least some of you should be receiving greenhouse cukes next week. Field work continues to proceed at a nice pace. We'll be prepping land for onion and potato fields this week, along with sowing more greens, prepping and possibly planting 1,200 blueberry plants and 600 rhubarb plants. The blueberries and rhubarb are the start of our new perennial field. We plan to fill 4 acres with perennial fruits for better year round eating. ~Pete

Sign Up for Summer Share by May 1st and Get a Free Pete's T!

Only two weeks left to sign up for the Summer Share and receive your very own Pete's Greens T as an added bonus! That's right, you will receive a colorful Pete's Greens t-shirt printed on an organic cotton T if we receive your sign up by May 1st.

The Summer Share begins on June 16th and runs through October 13th. This is an exciting share period spanning 18 prime weeks of the growing season.

Sign up for the Vegetable Only Share to ensure your weekly deliveries of Pete's diverse mix of super fresh organic vegetables.
Vegetable Only - $504 (avg. $28 a week)

Or sign up for the Vegetable/Localvore Share to receive the veggies and also a weekly selection of great organic and local pantry staples, all sourced very near the farm.

Vegetable/Localvore - $792 (avg. $44/week)

Meat Share available too, featuring 4 monthly deliveries of a selection of local, grass fed, and often organic meats.
Meat Share - $199 (avg. $50 a month)

Meat Bulk Order Coming Up
We have a small amount of meat available to share members. We have some lamb, some beef, and possibly some other items. I'll be posting a bulk order sheet for meat by tomorrow. Because of our weekly CSA schedule, meat orders must be received on Wednesday to be packed Thursday or Friday for the following week's delivery. Visit the bulk order page to download the order form.

Want to be Part of a Prepared Food Share Trial?
Recently I sent a survey asking your thoughts on the concept of a prepared food share. As you all know we have recently hired a new kitchen manager, Bill Allen, and we are looking forward to working on projects with him. I am curious to know if some of you might be interested in being part of a small trial share in the weeks ahead that would serve up maybe one or two prepared food items weekly. Please email me if you think you might be interested.

Storage and Use Tips
Pac Choi - Also known as bok choy or Chinese Cabbage, Pac Choi originated in China, where it has been grown for over 1500 years. Part of the cabbage family, it packs in nutrition with high scores for vitamins A and C and calcium. The leaves taste similar to Swiss chard and the stems (called ribs) are deliciously crispy and can be substituted for celery in recipes. We grow both purple and green varieties. Your bag may have one or the other, or both. Pac Choi is mild enough to be chopped up for a salad, particularly if you give it a quick wilt in a hot pan. It's also great in stir-fries. Need a quick side dish? Try halving it lengthwise , brushing with olive or sunflower oil and throwing it on the grill. Pac Choi should be stored in a plastic bag in the produce drawer of your fridge.

Copra Onions - A medium-sized, slightly sweet yellow onion, the Copra have a high sugar content for storage onions. Add them to salads and sandwiches raw, or cook them in tarts, stews, soups, casseroles and stir-fries.

Oregano - Oregano's flavor is bold and gutsy and wants to be used with other bold flavors. It's a natural with garlic. It combines well with tomato and basil for Italian dishes and pizzas. Combine it with lemon juice and olive oil for classic Greek recipes. It's great in spicy dishes and on meats. Works well with paprika too. Store in fridge wrapped in plastic (place a damp paper towe in the bag to help the oregano retain moisture), or place stems in a vase of water on the counter until use.

Miso - As a fermented product, miso will keep in your fridge many years. There are so many delicious and interesting ways to eat miso. To make a cup, mix a heaping teaspoon of miso with cold water to make a paste. Then, stir in hot (but not boiling water) to make a hot breakfast beverage, midday pick-me-up or soup base for a meal. As miso is a living food, try not to cook it, rather, stir it in at the end of cooking once the pan is off the heat.

Localvore Lore
This weekend Deb pulled a whole field of horseradish. And so, there it was, this big pile of horseradish just sitting there. Being the thrifty Vermonter that she is, she couldn't bear letting it go to waste, so she came over to the farm, rummaged up some cider vinegar, organic cane sugar and sea salt and made enough pickled horseradish puree for everyone! It is a little chunky and if you want it smoother you can run through your blender. If you are having sinus trouble, this is a guaranteed cure. It's hot, but quite tasty. Add some to sour cream for a quick horseradish sauce to spread on burgers or serve as a side with meats. And bloody marys come to mind... Bill has provided a horseradish vinaigrette recipe below to go with a roasted beets on greens salad. The puree will keep in your fridge for a couple months, but will lose some of its potency over time.

I am excited to have the mushroom, barley, miso combo for the share this week. The mushrooms come from Amir Hebib in Colchester, and he delivered them to the farm himself this morning right after picking them. Super fresh! Some bags have Shiitakes, some have oysters, and some are a mix of each. Check out the blog for more info about Amir and for some recipes that were posted last mushroom round on March 3rd.

The organic pearled barley was grown in Quebec and milled at Golden Crops owned by Michel Gaudreau. I love going to the mill to pick up the grains. Michel is passionate about the organic movement and is very well respected in the organic community and his excitement is contagious. Pearled barley is barley that has been de-hulled, with some or all of the bran removed. It makes a great substitute in recipes calling for brown rice, is wonderful cooked, cooled and used in cold salads, and adds a nice texture to soups and stews. It also cooks down into a really nice risotto, without all of the attention and stirring required with Arborio rice. One cup of dry barley makes about 3 to 3 1/2 cups cooked. If you soak the grains for 6+ hours in cold water before use, you can reduce your cooking time by at least half. Without soaking, you'll want to let them simmer in water for a good hour. You can also cook barley like pasta, using lots of water (4-5 cups of water to 1 cup barley), then drain what's left over.

Owners of Les Aliments Massawippi Gilbert and Suzanne made the superb Japanese miso in the share today. The two are big supporters of local growers. Their oats come from Michel Gaudreau. Their soy beans come from a grower within 60 kilometers of their facility, and their Quebec barley is processed on the south shore of Montreal. The seaweed for the Japanese miso comes from southern New Brunswick and Gaspe Bay.
To make this miso, Suzanne and Gilbert begin by introducing their own lactobacilli culture to washed oats. After culturing for 45 hours, they have what is called, "koji," the basis for making their miso. At this point, they will mix in soy that has been soaked and then slowly cooked for 20 hours. This part of the process takes around 4 days. The next phase of miso production is fermentation. Gilbert and Suzanne ferment their miso very carefully controlling the temperature, humidity and oxygen levels. Their fermentation chamber is on premises, and is held at a continuous 60F. The Japanese soya and oats variety in the share this week ferments for 2-3 years.

Recipes
The first four recipes this week come from Bill Allen. I will be introducing Bill more formally next week. Stay tuned.

Mushroom, Barley & Miso Stew

1 cup pearl barley
1.5 cups water
1 cup shiitake or oyster mushrooms, stemmed & sliced
1/2 copra onion, small dice
1 carrot, peeled, roughly chopped
1 tbsp. garlic, minced
1/2 cup sunflower oil
1 tbsp. fresh grated ginger
1.5 quarts vegetable stock
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
8 ounces tofu, cubed (optional)
4 ounces miso (or to taste)
2 cups braising greens, sliced thinly
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced

Rinse barley and place in pot with the water. Cook until tender but not mushy.

In a large soup pot heat oil and add mushrooms, onions, garlic and ginger. Add vegetable stock. Add cayenne and tofu. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer. Remove 1 cup of the broth and mix with miso, stir into soup. Add braising greens. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Add barley and scallions.

***Note: You can use some of the Gilfeather turnips or beets in this soup. Slice thinly and add them when you add the stock and cook until tender.

Gilfeather Turnip & Copra Onion Casserole

2 lbs. Gilfeather turnips, peeled and thinly sliced
1 lb. Copra onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp. Vermont organic whtie flour
1 cup apple cider
1 tbsp. fresh oregano, chopped roughly
1 cup milk
½ cup chicken or vegetable stock
2 cups Vermont cheddar cheese, shredded
Salt and pepper, sprinkle through each layer gently

Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Put oven rack in center position. Grease a 8 x 10 rectangular baking dish. Place flour in a medium heavy saucepan; gradually add milk, whisking until smooth. Whisk in cider & stock. Bring mixture to a boil over high heat, whisking constantly. Cook one minute more, remove from heat and set aside. Mix cheese with oregano.

Arrange half of the sliced turnips (slightly overlapping) in prepared baking dish. Spread onions atop the turnips Sprinkle the cheese on half of the turnips and onions. Arrange another layer on top of cheese. Pour cider mixture over turnips. Continue to do so until all onions and turnips are layered. Season with salt and pepper as you go along. Reserve ½ cup of cheese for finishing.

Bake 25 minutes. Remove baking dish from oven. Using a metal spatula, press
down on the turnips. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and return to oven. Bake
until turnips are fork-tender and the top is crusted and lightly browned – about
20 minutes more. Let stand 20 minutes before serving.

Roasted Beets with a Horseradish Vinaigrette

1.5 Beets
2 tbsp oil
salt & pepper

Toss beets with oil and salt and pepper. Place on a roasting pan and put in a 350 oven. Test the beets with the tip of a knife. When easily pierced, they are ready. Let cool for 15 minutes. Using a kitchen towel, rub the skins off. This is optional as I like to leave the skins on. And of course, this towel will be dedicated to beets the remainder of the season. Slice the beets and toss with the vinaigrette. Build a salad of Pete’s greens and top with beets. Nuts and a mild cheese like Lazy Lady goat would be perfect accompaniment for this salad. The dressing from the beets should be enough for the greens as well.
Horseradish Vinaigrette

¼ cup mild flavored oil (grape seed, olive, sunflower, canola)
2 tbsp. vinegar
2 tablespoons grain mustard
.5 to 2 teaspoons horseradish***
***add a little, then try it, then add some more until it's to your liking!
Salt & pepper to taste

Whisk together vinaigrette ingredients in a large bowl.

Quick Stir Fry of Pac Choi & Peppers

1 lb. pac choi
1 lb. sweet peppers, defrosted, drained well
1 Tbsp fresh ginger root, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp sunflower oil

Separate the pac choi leaves and cut off the chunky stalks.
Slice the stalks finely. Roughly chop the leaves. Heat the sunflower oil in a wok or sauté pan. Add the garlic, peppers and ginger. Cook for 1 minute, stirring often. Add the pac choi stalks. Toss well. Cover and cook for 2 minutes. Add the pac choi leaves. Stir and then cook for 1 minute, until they are barely wilted. Add soy/tamari and sesame oil and toss.

Mushroom Casserole
I pulled this recipe from our blog. It's one Nancy Baron posted a while back and it might come in handy this week for any of you seeking a richer dish. Looks mighty tasty. Adapted from 101cookbooks.com. Serves 8.

2-3 TB olive oil or bacon fat
1/2 pound (8 ounces) mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
1 large onion, well chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons dry sherry
3 cups cooked barley (from about 1 cup dry), room temperature
1/2 tsp crumbled dried thyme
2 large eggs
1 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup freshly grated hard Vermont cheese or Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Rub a medium-large baking dish (somewhat smaller than a 9x13) with a bit of olive oil or butter and set aside.

Heat oil/fat in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, sprinkle with salt to taste and saute. Stir every minute or so until the mushrooms have released their liquid and have browned a bit. Add the onions and cook for another 4 or 5 minutes or until they are translucent. Stir in the garlic, cook for another minute. Add sherry and cook, stirring constantly until all the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat. Add the thyme and the barley to the skillet and stir until combined.

In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, cottage cheese, yogurt/sour cream, and salt.

Add the barley mixture to the cottage cheese mixture, and stir until well combined and then turn out into your prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with 2/3 of the cheese, cover with foil and place in oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 20 or 30 minutes more or until hot throughout and golden along the edges. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and enjoy.

Marinated Beets
This recipe just landed in my in box this very moment. How coincidental! By Martha Rose Schulman for the NYT. 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.

Good Eats Newsletter - April 7, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 01:11:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Mixed Baby Potatoes; 2 lb Kohlrabi; 2-3 lbs Green Cabbage; 2 lbs Yellow Storage Onions; 2 lbs Orange Carrots; plus...

Bag of Shoots/Mesclun Mix

Localvore Offerings Include:
Pete's Applesauce
On the Rise Pizza Dough
Bonnieview Ewe's Feta
Quebec Grown Steel Cut Oats

Meat Share Members
This is a Meat Share week!

Upon My Return
Last week I drove home from Florida in our minivan with our 3 kids in tow. A few times we got off I-95 to avoid traffic and found ourselves driving alongside farm fields awaiting plowing and planting. These were fields that had been planted last year, some had been plowed after harvest in the fall, some like the corn, had not. With the early emergence of spring this year, the grass was lush green surrounding the fields, the trees budded and even fully leafed out in the Carolinas. Yet the soil in the harvested fields was gray and stark in contrast, growing nothing. It seemed apparent that the soil was suffering from nutrient imbalance, nutrient depletion, or the residual effects of herbicides or most likely a combination of all three. While in FL, we picked up a bag of potatoes and I made some simple mashed potatoes. They tasted like nothing, no flavor at all. I doctored them with butter and salt, more butter and salt, and then (I am embarrassed to say) more butter and salt (we didn't have a very well stocked campground pantry). When I served them, Craig said "these potatoes don't really taste like anything." (!). The flavorless potatoes and colorless, barren fields reminded me of the section in the book "The Botany of Desire" where author Micheal Pollan spends time with an Idaho potato farmer. The conventional farmer, after describing all the chemicals he ultimately treats his crop with, finally intimates that he grows a patch of organic potatoes behind his house because he won't eat his commercial crop. Too tainted.

Yesterday, I drove to the farm for my first day back, and I passed the fields where the kale was last year, and next to that, the field where the chickens and pigs had grazed. The soil under the pig/chicken field had been turned over and the dirt was dark, dark brown and rich. There were a few plow swaths through the kale area, with technicolor contrast between the dark dirt brown and bright green of the volunteer vegetation that grew thickly everywhere, clearly exuberantly happy with the state of the soil beneath it. And last night, I boiled and smashed some potatoes from the farm. They were divine. ~ Amy

Summer Share Sign Up
A lot of planning and planting is happening right now to create a fantastic vegetable mix for the upcoming share period. We are excited about the expected selection in each and every summer bag. Broccoli, kale, chard, beans, peas, head lettuce, summer squash and tomatoes will make frequent appearances, along with onions, garlic and herbs for great flavor combinations. To ensure that you will receive a weekly selection of fresh, organic produce through out the summer sign up for our Summer Share now!

This summer we will be offering three different shares for the 18 week period:
Vegetable/Localvore - $792 (avg. $44/week)
Vegetable Only - $504 (avg. $28 a week)
Meat Share - $199 (avg. $49.25 a month)

Members who sign up by May 1st will receive a free Pete's Greens T!

Storage and Use Tips
Shoots/Salad Mix - The salad mix today contains sunflower shoots, radish shoots, pea shoots, Claytonia greens (the spade shaped green), lettuce, and and ruby streaks mustard. EXCEPT for a few bags which will contain lettuce, spinach and ruby streaks mustard.

Onions - PLEASE READ! - I know, I know, you have read this before. But just in case you haven't.... A percentage of our onions have a layer deep inside that is spoiled. This was caused by the excessively wet summer and the problem is that we usually cannot tell the bad ones from the outside. The rest of the onion is perfectly good. Just remove the spoiled scale and use the rest of the onion as you normally would. We are doing our absolute best to find the flawed ones and we are valuing the onions at half price. Though we hate to send out flawed onions, we also hate the thought of not sending any and wasting these. Thanks for your understanding-this is one of the challenges of farming in a variable climate.

Localvore Lore

On Sunday afternoon, our new kitchen manager (!) Chef Bill Allen cooked up a big batch of apples from Champlain Orchards. He flavored the applesauce with a wee bit of ginger and cinnamon. We eagerly look forward to any feedback on the sauce or other products we send out from the kitchen. If you have comments, please email us!

We have pizza dough from On The Rise Bakery today. This dough is made with VT sunflower oil, Milanaise unbleached white flour, Ben Gleason's whole wheat flour, local honey and sea salt. This dough does not need to rise again. For best dough quality you should use it after it reached room temperature. If you won't be cooking it Wednesday evening, put it in the freezer until you do wish to use it. Then take it out, thaw it, and again, use it as soon as possible after it has thawed. The dough is alive and the yeast in it is working away, doing its thing. As the dough sits, it will increasingly lose elasticity. That said, I have cooked this pizza dough after 3 days of being un-thawed in fridge and it was quite tasty. Rolling it instead of stretching it may be easier though after a couple of days. Ben posted the instructions on line along with some instructional videos that you can watch for technique and inspiration. If you make a great looking or great tasting pizza that you are pleased with, email a photo along to Ben or post it to the On the Rise Facebook page.

From Neil Urie we have Bonnieview's Ewe's Feta this week which is always such a treat. Bill provided a recipe for a Greek flatbread using the feta which looks fantastic. I love having this cheese on hand to crumble onto my salads and pasta dishes. This cheese is a 2007 American Cheese Society award winner.

The steel cut oats are from Michel Gaudreau's Golden Grains in Quebec. Maybe you recall that we seem to consume vast amounts of oats? Well, on special days, I cook up steel cut oatmeal instead of the standard using rolled oats. To make oatmeal using steel cut oats, you combine 1 cup of oats to 3-4 cups of water, bring the water just to a boil, and then turn down and let it simmer. For a long time. It can take 40 mins to an hour to absorb all the water, but you are rewarded with a creamy, textured, and nutty oatmeal that is really tops.

As a follow up to my observations about soil health and the taste of my store bought potatoes in comparison to those grown at Pete's, I wanted to share an article that a share member had sent me. It's a NYT article about a conventional rice farmer who made the switch to organic after years of making no money selling at commodity prices and who had watched his farm's soil deteriorate through his years of farming abuse. Inspiring. I ordered some rice. Click here to read the article.

Meat Share
Bonnieview Leg of Lamb - The lamb in the share was raised for us at Bonnieview Farm. These are lambs from their dairy herd, and they spent their summer grazing the Craftsbury area hillsides. Approximately 3 lb each, these legs of lamb have been boned for easier cooking. A bone in lamb leg really needs to be cooked on a rotating spit, something not all of us have in our backyards these days. So we had the bones taken from these so that you can lay them out on the grill. A recipe for an Asian style grills follows.
Pete's and Greenfield Highland Stew Beef - We have a mix of stew beef. Some from our animals, some of it certified organic from Greenfield Highland Beef. If after reading the recipes you are still at a loss for what to make with this week's share, this is a perfect share week for a beef stew! Brown the beef, then toss it in the stew pot with onions, potatoes, carrots, and even cabbage or kohlrabi. A little salt and pepper is all you'll need for a very tasty stew.
Pete's Spare Ribs -or- Bonnieview Leg Steaks - Some of you will get spare ribs this week, others will get leg steaks from our lambs. Either way you will be receiving great meat from happy, very local, grass fed animals. Bill has provided a spare rib recipe below, though there are many others to choose from out there. Spare ribs are best cooked long and slow until the meat is falling from the bone. Leg steaks are one of the best pieces of meat from a lamb and we had very few of these. They should be cooked on the grill briefly. A simple recipe follows below.

Spring Meat Share Still Open
Wishing you had a meat share? Once a month, the meat share delivers a selection of sustainably farmed, grass fed meats from Pete's and from other nearby farms. All animals grown for the share are grown naturally, out on pasture, without use of hormones or chemical dewormers etc. This is meat grown in a way that is actually good for our environment, providing the needed fertility to compliment other crops grown on these farms. You can still sign up for meat share deliveries!
Spring Meat Share (4 Deliveries: Mar 3, Apr 7, May 5, June 2)

Recipes
Yes, we finally have a new kitchen manager! Bill will be working at the farm more and more as the season progresses and the harvests come in. He will also be submitting recipes regularly. This week, he has submitted all but the lamb steaks recipe. I am really excited to have his inspiration here and we hope you enjoy the recipes. Please send any feedback our way!

Kohlrabi Slaw
As the weather gets warmer, it’s nice to use all these fantastic vegetables in their raw form. This is a very simple, healthy slaw.

2 lbs. kohlrabi, trimmed, sliced thinly
1 lb. cabbage, sliced thinly
1 onion, julienne cut
2 carrots, sliced and then cut into strips (or use of a mandolin)
4 radishes, sliced thinly
½ cup olive oil
Juice of 2 lemons
3 sprigs mint, rough chop
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Toss all ingredients in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Any other vegetables, apples or pears, can be added to this. Makes a wonderful side dish for any ribs or lamb.

Curried Potato Salad

baby potatoes
1 tablespoon cumin seed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth

Cut potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. In a large pan, sauté the cumin seeds in the sunflower oil for 2 minutes, or until golden. Add the minced garlic and onion and cook until soft. Add the potatoes, chicken broth, and the spices and cook on medium low heat, stirring occasionally. Continue to cook, adding small amounts of water from time to time to keep the potatoes from sticking, until potatoes are tender. Cook 2-3 minutes more, until the outsides of the potatoes are slightly crispy and golden brown.

Greek Flatbread

Pizza dough
8 oz. Feta cheese
2 Roma tomatoes
½ cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped roughly
Pete’s Greens
½ cucumber, rough chop
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Preheat your oven to 450 and place a cookie sheet in the oven.

Pull dough from fridge and let it rest, about 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the vegetables. Place chopped tomatoes and olives in a small bowl, toss with some olive oil and pepper. Once the dough has rested, sprinkle some flour on the counter and roll it out until a quarter inch think. If you don’t have a peel, slide it onto another cookie sheet, with some flour or cornmeal on it. Top the dough with the tomatoes, olives and feta. Slide the flatbread onto the cookie sheet in the oven. While the flatbread is cooking, mix the greens, cucumber and balsamic in a bowl and toss, seasoning with salt and pepper. When the flatbread is nicely browned on the edges, remove from the oven and let sit for a few minutes. Cut into desired slices, slide onto large round plate and top with Pete’s salad.

Grilled Leg of Lamb

1/3 cup tamari
4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup chopped green onions
4 tablespoons garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons clover honey
1 teaspoon sesame oil
4 tbsp. fresh ginger, peeled chopped fine
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
3# leg of lamb, butter flied

Place all ingredients in a bowl large enough to hold the lamb and whisk until incorporated. Place lamb in bowl and turn a few times. Cover with plastic and marinated for at least 12 hours, up to 24.
Preheat the grill. You can also sear this in a hot pan but make sure the you have adequate ventilation as this will produce a lot of smoke.

Oil the grill grate. Place lamb on the grill. You can get rid of the marinade. Cook 15 minutes on each side. Depending on how you like your lamb, cook it to an internal temperature of 135 and let it rest for 10 minutes, covered with a piece of foil. This will give you a medium lamb. If you like it either rare or well, subtract or add 10 degrees respectively. When rested, sliced thinly.

Jamaican Jerk Spice Ribs

3 tsp. cup cayenne pepper
2 tbsp. cinnamon, ground
2 tbsp. nutmeg, ground
6 tbsp. allspice, ground
6 tbsp thyme, dried
1/2-cup brown sugar
6 tbsp onion powder
6 tbsp gr. Ginger
¼ cup salt

Combine all spices in a bowl.

Place the ribs on a sheet pan. Rub the spices into each side, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Next day
Preheat oven to 275. Remove plastic wrap and cover ribs with foil. Slow roast in oven for 2-3 hours checking in each 15 minutes after 2 hours. When the meat pulls away from the bone, remove, leave covered and serve in the next 15 or so minutes.

Grilled Leg of Lamb Steaks

2 bone in lamb steaks
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 tablespoon rosemary
1 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the steaks in a shallow dish in one layer. Sprinkle with the garlic, rosemary, oil, salt and pepper. Turn the steaks to coat both sides. Let set about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a grill over high heat. Add the steaks and cook until the desired doneness, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare, depending on thickness. Serve immediately.

Good Eats Newsletter - Mar 31, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Pete's Greens) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 00:30:00 +0000

This Week's Vegetable Share Contains:
2 lbs Purple Adirondack Potatoes; 2 lbs Chiogga Beets; 2 lbs Rutabagas or Gilfeather Turnips; .5 lb Valentine Radishes, .25 lb Garlic plus….

Bag of Shoots/Mesclun Mix
Frozen Winter Squash Puree

Localvore Offerings Include:
Elmore Mountain Maple Oat Bread
1 Quart Sunflower Oil
Butterworks Yogurt

Pete's Musings
Ah - the joys of the tomato greenhouse in March. All is in perfect order, the willowy plants reaching their roots into the warm, moist soil and the stems and leaves reaching upward, more each day. It smells great, fecund and fresh, like life. The cukes line one wall-they are the most supercharged of all vegetables growing 6 inches a day once they get established. You must tend them almost like animals with near daily feeding and pruning. We have baby tomatoes, the fruit have set even without the help of the pollinating bumblebees that arrive later this week. The soil is 80 degrees thanks to warm water coursing through pipes a foot deep. That warmth drifts up through the plant leaves, providing perfect growing conditions. Pac choi, head lettuce, and basil line the edges of the bed-we'll be enjoying them in just a couple weeks. 80 degrees this Saturday - spring is here! ~ Pete

Summer Share Sign Up
As you all know by now, Summer sign-up is underway and the sign ups are rolling in. The Summer Share brings a pretty amazing assortment of produce over the course of the18 week share. This season brings to members virtually all types of veggies grown on the farm in that short time. And you get a free Pete's Greens T if you sign up by May 1st! Please visit the Summer Share page on our website for complete details and to download an order form.

Vegetable Only Share - Members receive the weekly share of Pete's organic vegetables. $504 for 18 weeks of deliveries ($28/week).

Localvore Share - The share you all are familiar with. Members receive the weekly share of vegetables plus a selection of locally produced staples. $792 for 18 weeks of deliveries ($44/week).

Interested in Splitting Your Summer Share?
If you would like to join for summer but would like to split your share with someone, please visit the Member's Seeking page on our website to see if there is someone there looking to split a share at your pick up location. If there isn't, let me know and I'll put a post on our website for you so others can see that you are looking for a share partner!

NOFA's Farm Share Program
For the third year, Pete's Greens has partnered with the Northeast Organic Farming Association's Farm Share Program. In 2008 and 2009, the program helped 40 limited income families gain access to fresh local produce through a Pete's Greens Good Eats share, and so far 9 families have been able to participate this year.

Eligible Farm Share recipients pay only 50% of the cost of a share. The other 50% comes from donations - 25% from Pete's Greens member donations and 25% from NOFA. (NOFA's funds are raised from their annual Share the Harvest Event in which participating restaurants pledge a portion of the day's sales to the program.) The number of Farm Share grants Pete's is able to offer each share period depends entirely on the number of donations we receive from you, our members. Please consider a donation to the Farm Share program when you sign up for your own share. Your donation will directly fund a portion of a share for someone, and lots of small donations really do make a difference.

Pa Pa Doodles Farm Featured on Seven Days

Eva Sollberger visited Deb Rosewolf aka The Egg Lady a week ago, and her video is now posted for your viewing on the Seven Days site. For a glimpse into where our Good Eats eggs come from, please check out the video! Deb has been working at Pete's Greens for a few years now. When she started at the farm Pete had his first flock of hens with which he intended to supply the eggs for Good Eats. Deb enjoyed the hens so much that she decided to bring them home to her farm and supply the eggs herself. It's been great for all involved. Deb is just starting a new flock of young hens so we won't see eggs for another couple weeks, but they'll be back soon.

Pete's Pastured Chicken

We still have some chicken for your dinner table!

We have quite a variety of sizes for you to choose from too, from 4 pounders to 7 lb birds suitable for a feast (or a week of chicken sandwiches!

Our chickens are raised on pasture and live a very happy chicken life. The forage they eat throughout their lives makes their meat far more nutritious than most chicken you will find on the market.

You can order chickens and have them delivered to your site any week that isn't a meat share delivery week. Minimum order is 3 birds and birds are priced at $3.75/lb.
Click here to visit our chicken page and download an order form.

Localvore Lore

Blair and Andrew have been inspired by all the maple sugaring happening in their neck of the woods lately and decided to tweak their Honey Oat bread for Good Eats members. So this week we have Elmore Mountain Maple Oat for you combining Butternut Mountain Farm maple syrup, Milaniase winter wheat and whole wheat flours, Michel Gaudreau's rolled oats, sea salt, and yeast. Should be yummy!

At Butterworks Farm, Jack and Annie Lazor milk a small herd of Jerseys, all of whom are born on the farm and are fed entirely organic feeds grown on the farm. Milk from Jersey cows is rich, with a high protein count and fat content and yogurt made from this milk is richer than others. The non fat yogurt produced by Butterworks is the only non fat yogurt on the market that does not contain milk thickeners like whey protein or dry milk. Their whole milk yogurt is made from just that, whole jersey milk straight from the cows, so the yogurt comes with cream on top and a butterfat content of 5%, the highest on the market. There will be a mix of yogurts at the sites this week - non fat plain, vanilla, and lemon and whole milk plain. The non fat vanilla and lemon are flavored with pure vanilla extract and natural lemon flavoring respectively, and both are sweetened with pure maple syrup.

The organic sunflower oil comes from John Williamson's State Line Farm in Shaftsbury, VT. This is a good all purpose mild flavored oil that you can use wherever a recipe calls for vegetable oil. We will send it in a plastic quart container, but we recommend transferring it to a glass container. If you will not use the oil quickly in your household, it's best to store it in the fridge. This is an unrefined product and it can spoil. In the fridge it will last indefinitely. It may get a little cloudy in your fridge but this is normal and the cloudiness will dissipate as it warms up. John and partner Steve Plummer did not start out with the intention to make sunflower oil for consumption but instead built Vermont's first on farm biodiesel facility pressing oilseeds grown on site to be used as bio fuel. But they are able to press the same seeds to create a very high quality oil for consumption, and we all are lucky beneficiaries.

Sunflower oil is high in vitamin E and oleic acid and is low in saturated fat, traits which make it a good choice of oil with cardiovascular benefits. Like many other vegetable oils however, the lack of saturated fats in the oil means that it can break down with high heat producing unhealthy compounds. After reading through many reports on oils and sunflower oil specifically, I think the take home message is that in general this is a very healthy oil selection, and great for a range of uses. But care should be used in not burning the oil (or most other vegetable oils) when cooking.

Recipes
Once again this week, Chef Bill Allen has sent along a couple of his recipe suggestions - Roasted Root Vegetables and a South American Butternut Bisque. Thanks Bill!

Roasted Root Vegetables

1 pound red-skinned potatoes, unpeeled, washed well, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound Chiogga beets, tip and root top cut, washed, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound rutabagas, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound turnips, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 red onions, skinned, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or thyme
1/2 cup sunflower or olive oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place 2 half sheet pans or cookie sheets in oven. Buy heating the pans first, it will prevent sticking of vegetables. Combine all remaining ingredients except garlic in very large bowl; toss to coat. Season generously with salt and pepper. Divide vegetable mixture between prepared sheets. Roast 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reverse positions of baking sheets for even cooking. Add 4 garlic cloves to each baking sheet. Continue to roast until all vegetables are tender and brown in spots, stirring and turning vegetables occasionally, about 30 minutes longer or until you can easily pierce the vegetables with a paring knife.

South American Butternut Bisque

3 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1 tomato, peeled, seeded, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red chili, seeded, chopped
2 pounds winter squash peeled, cut into 1/2" cubes such as butternut or acorn
4 cups vegetable stock
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 bunch parsley or cilantro, washed and finely chopped

Saute onions, tomato, garlic, and hot peppers in the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until the onion is softened and the mixture is thick, about 15 minutes. Stir in the squash and the stock and simmer. Reduce heat, stir in salt and sugar, then simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Turn of heat and stir in cilantro or parsley. Garnish with dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

Baked Chioggia Beet Chips
Here's a recipe for turning your pretty chiogga beets into beet chips. The beets need to be sliced thin, but not too thin! A thicker chip will hold up to a dip, which is a good thing. The trick with these chips is to take them out of the oven earlier than you think. They won't get crispy in the oven, they need to crisp as they cool, so start checking by taking a few out of the oven instead of peaking at them while they are still inside.

2 medium beets with stems trimmed to 1 inch
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon sunflower oil
Sea salt

Peel beets with a vegetable peeler, then slice thinly (but not too thinly) with mandolin or sharp knife, using stems as handles.

Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Add beets, then remove pan from heat and let stand 15 minutes. Drain beets in a colander, discarding liquid, then let stand in colander 15 minutes more. Toss beets with oil and salt.

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 225°F.

Line a shallow baking pan with nonstick liner, then arrange beet slices snugly in 1 layer. Bake beets until dry, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Immediately transfer chips to a rack to cool (chips will crisp as they cool).

Butternut Squash Bread
I like that this recipe calls for many ingredients you have recently received. And that it sounds rich and delicious!

2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F to 115 degrees F)
1 1/4 cups butternut squash puree
1 cup warm milk (110 to 115 degrees F)
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sunfower oil
1/3 cup honey, maple syrup, or agave
1 teaspoon salt
7 cups all-purpose flour (or a mix of flours)

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water; let stand for 5 minutes. Add squash, milk, eggs, oils, syrup and salt; mix well. Gradually add 3-1/2 cups flour; beat until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Shape into three loaves; place in greased 8-in. x 4-in. x 2-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until tops are golden. Remove from pans to cool on wire racks.