FarmShare CSA Newsletter, week of October 20th, 2015
What’s in this week’s box?
Veggies:
Chioggia Beets
Pepper Medley
Sugar Pumpkin
Carrots
Brussel Sprouts
Swiss Chard
Kale
Fruit:
Apples
Storage, handling and general cooking tips…
Beets
Storage – If your beets still have greens attached, cut them off, leaving an inch of stem. Keep these greens unwashed and refrigerated in a closed plastic bag. Store the beet roots, with the rootlets (or “tails”) attached, unwashed, in a plastic bag in the crisper bin of your refrigerator. They will keep for several weeks, but their sweetness diminishes with time; so try to use them within a week.
Handling – Just before cooking, scrub beets well and remove any scraggly leaves and rootlets. If your recipe calls for raw beets, peel them with a knife or vegetable peeler, then grate or cut them according to your needs.
Just before cooking or consuming, scrub beets well and remove any scraggly leaves and rootlets. If your recipe calls for raw beets, peel them with a knife or vegetable peeler, then grate or cut them according to your needs. Try baking beets at 350-400 degrees for an hour or until they are easily pierced with a fork. Cut the tops and bottoms off and the skin should easily slip off. Why not add some other root vegetables to the dish along with olive oil, garlic, herbs, and salt. I like to boil beets as well. Boil beets 45 minutes to an hour depending on size, they should easily pierce when done. Plunge them directly into cold water after boiling and the skins will slip right off. Then slice and top with fresh lime juice. Please don’t miss the opportunity to have your kids taste beets! My daughter loves them and they are chock full of fiber, vitamins (lots of Bs and C!), minerals (iron, magnesium), and antioxidants. Plus, they look beautiful on the plate.
Peppers
Storage + Handling
Store whole peppers in a cool, dry place or refrigerate 3-4 days in a plastic bag. Always refrigerate cut peppers. Peppers are high in vitamin C and also contain vitamins A, B6 and K. The purple variety offers some antioxidants as well.
Sliced peppers can be eaten raw, roasted, or sauteed in olive oil or butter for 3-10 minutes until soft. Peppers can also be frozen. Wash your peppers, then slice and remove seeds and pulp. Place sliced peppers in a pot of boiling water to blanch for 2 minutes than submerge in ice water until cool. Place peppers in a labeled plastic container and freeze for up to 9 months.
Hot peppers should be treated equally when storing them, although care should be taken when handling. The heat giving component, capsaicin, is found in the pithy, seed-studded flesh, or placenta, which is located near the stem and extends along the inner ribs. Cut pepper open and scrape this part off, with a spoon, which will reduce some of the pungency. Be sure not to touch your face and wash your hands when finished.
Pumpkin
Storage + Handling Tips
Store your pumpkin in a dry, well-ventilated area. It will look adorable on your table as you decide how to prepare it! Before use, wash your pumpkin in hot, soapy water to remove any soil residue. Pumpkin can be baked, steamed, stir-fried, or boiled. Pumpkin is great for soups, pies and roasts. You can also freeze your pumpkin. The easiest way to freeze pumpkin for later use is to preserve cooked pumpkin mash. First, wash the pumpkin, then cut in half and remove seeds. Bake pumpkin in oven then remove pulp from rind and mash. From here you can place the mash in labeled plastic bags and freeze.
Carrots
Storage- Remove the leafy green tops, leaving about an inch of stems. Refrigerate dry, unwashed carrots in a plastic bag for two weeks or longer.
Handling– Carrots fresh from the farm generally don’t need to be peeled, but should you decide to peel them, the nutrient loss is negligible. Peel carrots or scrub them well with a stiff brush just before using. Trim off any green spots, which can taste bitter. When slicing or chipping carrots for cooking, be sure to make all the pieces relatively the same size. With their tapered shape this can be a challenge, but your efforts will ensure an evenly cooked dish.
Brussels Sprouts
Storage- Store sprouts unwashed in a closed plastic bag in the veggie bin. Their flavor is sweetest right after harvest, so try to use them within a few days.
Handling– Trim the base of each sprout and cut a shallow X in the stem end to speed cooking. Rinse the sprouts in cool water. It can take a while to prepare Brussels sprouts, so be sure to give yourself some extra time.
Culinary Tips- The key to using Brussels sprouts is cooking them enough, but not too much. As with full size cabbage, overcooking sprouts evokes an unpleasant, sulfurous smell. Ideally, sprouts should be tender enough to yield when pierced with a fork but not so soft that the fork sinks right in.
-Roast brussels sprouts: first boil the sprouts until just tender, 5 to 10 minutes depending on size. Drain, then coat lightly in olive oil, place in a roasting pan and roast in a 375 degree F oven until lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.
-Steam and boil brussel sprouts, but watch them carefully when doing this.
-Slice brussels sprouts to about 1/3 inch thick and stir-fry them with onions and ginger.
Cooking Greens (Kale, Swiss Chard, Beet Greens, Bok Choi)
Storage- Keep dry, unwashed greens in a sealed plastic bag in the refrigerator. Thicker greens will keep up to two weeks, but tender ones like beet greens should be eaten within a week.
Handling- Just prior to use, swish leaves in a large basin of lukewarm water. After any grit has settled to the bottom, life the leaves out carefully. Additional rounds of washing may be necessary. If the sink has dirt in it or if you sample a leaf and it tastes gritty, the greens probably need to be rinsed again.
How you prepare greens for cooking can make or break a dish. It’s fine to leave the stems on small baby greens, but many greens (choi, chard, kale) have thick stems that cook more slowly than the leaves. If stems are not removed, you wind up with either soggy greens or raw stems. Fold each leaf in half and slice out the stem De-stem several leaves, then stack them up and slice them diagonally into 1 inch-wide ribbons. If you want to use the stems in your dish, slice them a quarter inch thick and begin cooking them before you add the greens.
Apples
Storage and Handling
Apples should be kept uncovered or in a perforated plastic bag in the refrigerator. Warm temperatures will cause apples to lose their crispness and flavor, so if they are kept out of the refrigerator, make sure it is in a cool, ventilated place far from direct sunlight. To prevent cut apples from turning brown, sprinkle with lemon juice or soak them in a bowl of ½ cup water and 2 tbsp lemon juice.
Recipes of the Week!
Take a fancy foodie picture with your Applecrest fruit and veggies? Let us know and post it on Facebook or Instagram or Twitter with #applecrest !
- Roasted Beets, Brussel Sprouts and Carrots
- Sauteed Rainbow Chard with Beets and Goat Cheese
- Pumpkin, Carrot and Apple Soup
- Twice-baked potatoes with Kale
- Swiss Chard & Egg Casserole
- Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
- Brussel Sprout Salad
- Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chili and Feta
- Pumpkin Apple Streusel Cake
Roasted Beets, Brussel Sprouts and Carrots
- 4 small beets, peeled and halved
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, ghee, or butter
- 10-12 Brussels sprouts, cut in half and outer leaves removed
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
- salt and pepper
- dried rosemary and sage (or your favorite herb combination!)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Toss beets with a tablespoon of the oil, ghee, or butter and place in a baking dish that will be large enough to hold all of the vegetables.
- Place in oven and roast for 30 minutes.
- Remove dish from oven, add second tablespoon of oil and allow to melt. Add Brussels sprouts and carrots and toss with oil, salt and pepper to taste, and sprinkle with dried herbs.
- Return to oven and roast until all vegetables are tender and Brussels sprouts and beginning to get lightly browned (about 30-45 minutes more)
Sautéed Rainbow Chard with Raw Beets and Goat Cheese
From The Kitchn
This is a “use it up” recipe, so the amounts of vegetables are not set in stone. Use what you have or need to get rid of. For a complete meal, add a poached egg and a handful of roasted nuts or chickpeas.
3-4 medium-sized beets with the leaves
1 large bunch rainbow chard
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
4 ounces of goat cheese, crumbled
For the dressing:
2 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
Chop off the beet greens and set them aside. Peel the beets and either grate them on a box grater or in a food processor. You should have about 2-3 cups of shredded beets.
Wash the beet greens and chard. Shake to remove excess water, but no need to dry. Remove the tough center ribs and give them a rough chop. Stack the leaves on top of each other and slice them crosswise into thick ribbons.
Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven or pot on medium heat. Add the stems and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the leaves of the chard and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the leaves have wilted and taste very tender. If the leaves still taste bitter, season with additional salt. Transfer the chard to a large bowl and allow to cool to room temperature.
To make the dressing, whisk together the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. Season with salt and pepper, then stream in the olive oil while whisking vigorously.
Combine the greens and the shredded beets, and toss with the vinaigrette (depending on how much chard you have and how saturated you want your greens, you may have some vinaigrette left over). Serve, topping each plate with goat cheese.
This salad will keep refrigerated for up to one week. Wait to top with goat cheese until serving.
Pumpkin, Carrot and Apple Soup
From PaleoLeap
Ingredients
- 6 cups pumpkin flesh, cut into cubes;
- 2 onions, chopped (about 2 cups);
- 1 cup carrot, peeled and chopped;
- 2 cups apple chunks, peeled and cored;
- 4 garlic cloves, minced;
- 4 cups chicken stock;
- ½ cup full-fat coconut milk;
- ½ tsp. dried thyme
- ¼ tsp. ground sage;
- 1 tbsp. smoked paprika;
- ½ tsp. ground cumin;
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper;
- 1 pinch cinnamon;
- 2 tbsp. butter or olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste;
Preparation
- Heat some cooking fat in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat.
- Add the onions and garlic. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until softened.
- Add the pumpkin, carrot, and apple, and cover with the chicken stock.
- Add the cumin, thyme, sage, paprika, cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat to medium and let it simmer 30 to 40 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.
- Using a food processor, process in batches to the consistency of a purée.
- Bring the soup back to the saucepan. Add the coconut milk, combine and season again with salt and pepper to taste. Warm up the soup again a little bit.
- Add a pinch of cinnamon over top before serving.
Twice-baked Potatoes with Kale
From Smitten Kitchen
Serves 6 as a side; 3 as a hearty main
3 russet potatoes (9 to 10 ounces each)
1 bundle lacinato kale (aka dinosaur, tuscan or black kale), swiss chard or spinach (10 ounces)
Coarse salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 large leek
1 cup coarsely grated cheddar, gruyere or comté, 2/3 cup finely grated parmesan or pecorino, or 1/2 to 2/3 cup cream cheese or goat cheese, softened
3/4 cup sour cream
Freshly ground black pepper or red pepper flakes to taste
Heat oven to 400°F (205°C).
Cook potatoes the first time: Gently scrub potatoes but do not peel. Pierce all over with a fork so that steam escapes [raise your hand if you’ve forgotten to do this and had the pleasure of jumping three inches off the sofa due to an oven ka-pow!] Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender when pierced in center with a skewer. Leave oven on.
Alternatively, you could microwave fork-pierced potatoes for 10, turning them over halfway through to ensure even cooking. You could also boil the whole potato for 15 minutes.
While potatoes cook, prepare your filling: Tear kale, chard or spinach leaves from stems (you can save the stems for another use, such as a vegetable stock or juicing) and plunge leaves in cold water to remove any residual dirt or grit. No need to dry them when you’re done. Tear leaves into large chunks. Heat a skillet over medium-high and add greens and a pinch of salt. Cook them in the pan with just the water clinging to the leaves until they wilt and collapse. Transfer to a colander and when cool enough to handle, wring out any extra moisture in small fistfuls. On a cutting board, finely chop greens. You should have about a cup of wrung-out, well-chopped greens; don’t worry if you have a little more or less.
Trim leek down to just yellow and pale green part. Halve lengthwise — if it’s gritty inside, plunge it in cold water to remove grit, then pat dry. Cut leek halves lengthwise again, so that they’re in quarter-stalks, and thinly slice.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat; add butter and oil. Once both are warm, add leek and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until mostly tender and sweet, about 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Try to avoid letting it brown. Add chopped greens back to skillet and warm with leeks, 1 minute. Transfer mixture to a bowl.
Prepare potatoes: When potatoes are cool enough to handle, halve lengthwise and scoop out all but the last 1/4-inch thickness of skin and potato (essentially, you want to leave a shell inside for stability) and add potato filling to bowl with leeks and greens. Arrange the potato shells on a baking sheet. Mash potatoes, leeks and greens together until smooth. Stir in the sour cream, 3/4 of cheese and more salt and pepper than you think you’ll need. Heap filling in prepared potato skins. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 of cheese.
Bake potatoes a second time: For 20 to 30 minutes, until bronzed and crisp on top.
Swiss Chard & Egg Casserole
From Love & Lemons
- a bit of olive oil, for the pan, to cook the mushrooms
- 1 cup sliced cremini mushrooms
- 4-5 large chard leaves, stems removed, leaves coarsely chopped
- ¼ cup scallions, chopped
- 6 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino cheese
- ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
- 5 large eggs
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- a few pinches of red pepper flakes
- salt & pepper
- serve with: crème fraîche, or lemony yogurt: (plain yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, a little minced garlic)
- Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 7?x11? baking dish (or similar size), and set aside.
- In a medium skillet heat the oil. Add the mushrooms and a few pinches of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until they’re golden and soft. Remove from pan and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Stir in the minced garlic and dijon mustard. Then add in the chard leaves (they should be still raw), mushrooms, scallions, 3 tablespoons (half) of the cheese, and a few pinches of salt and pepper. Toss to coat all of the leaves.
- Transfer mixture to the baking dish and bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes, until the eggs just start to set.
- Mix together the remaining cheese with the panko. Sprinkle it on top of the casserole and bake it for about 10 minutes more, until the cheese starts to brown.
- Sprinkle with a few red pepper flakes and serve with a dollops of crème fraîche or lemony yogurt on the side.
How To Roast Pumpkin Seeds:
From Oh She Glows
1. Clean the seeds. The annoying-but-necessary task is that you have to meticulously clean the seeds until there are no signs of pumpkin guts. The best way to do this (that I have discovered from your comments!) is to plunk the seeds + guts into a big bowl of water and use your hands to break it apart. The seeds will float to the top of the water! They clean much faster this way.
Note: Some of you say that sugar pumpkin seeds yield much crispier seeds than carving pumpkins. I used sugar pumpkin seeds and mine were certainly super crispy!
2. Boil for 10 minutes in salt water. Using Elise’s method for inspiration, I added the pumpkin seeds to a medium-sized pot of water along with 1 tsp salt. Bring it to a boil and reduce the heat to simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes over low-medium heat. Apparently, this method helps make the pumpkin seeds easier to digest and produces a crispy outer shell during roasting. If you are short on time, you can totally skip this step! They will still turn out lovely.
3. Drain the seeds in a colander and dry lightly with a paper towel or tea towel. The seeds will stick to the towel, but just rub them off with your fingers. Don’t worry, they don’t have to be bone dry – just a light pat down.
4. Spread seeds onto a baking sheet and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil (I only needed to use about 1/2-1 tsp). Massage oil into seeds and add a generous sprinkle fine grain sea salt . Try to spread out the seeds as thin as possible with minor overlapping.
5. Roast seeds at 325F for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and stir. Roast for another 8-10 minutes (if your oven temp is wonky, this bake time could vary a lot!). During the last 5 minutes of roasting, remove a few seeds and crack open to make sure the inner seeds are not burning (you don’t want the inner seed brown). Cool a couple and pop them into your mouth to test. They are ready when the shell is super crispy and easy to bite through. The inner seed should have only a hint of golden tinge to it. They should not be brown.
6. EAT! Remove from oven, add a bit more salt, and dig in! Ah, so good, so good! There is no need to remove the outer shell; it’s quite possibly the best part.
Brussel Sprout Salad
From Shutterbean
- 24 Brussels sprouts, shredded
- 1/2 cup Parmigiano–Reggiano, finely grated
- 1 cup toasted walnuts, in pieces
- 9 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons apple cinder vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- salt & pepper
Shred the Brussels sprouts in a food processor, mandolin or chop with a knife! Toss the sprouts in a bowl, top with toasted walnuts & grated cheese. In a small jar, add the olive oil, apple cider vinegar and mustard with a sprinkle of salt & pepper. Put a lid on the jar and shake it up! Pour the dressing over the salad and stir thoroughly! Best served immediately.
Maple Roasted Pumpkin with Chili and Feta
From Recipe Tin Eats
- 2 lb pumpkin
- 2 red onions, peeled and each onion cut into 12 wedges
- ¼ cup walnuts, roughly chopped (Note 1)
- 3 tbsp maple syrup (or honey or brown sugar) (Note 2)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp dried chili flakes (adjust to taste – flavour becomes milder when roasted)
- ½ tsp salt
- Black pepper
- ¼ cup feta cheese
- Fresh red chili, finely diced
- Parsley, finely chopped
- Preheat oven to 200C/390F.
- Peel and dice the pumpkin into 1″cubes (no need to peel if using squash or butternut pumpkin). Reserve the pumpkin seeds and give them a quick rinse under the tap.
- Place the pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, onion and walnuts onto a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and maple syrup, then use an egg flip to toss the pumpkin so it is evenly coated.
- Sprinkle the pumpkin with the dried chilli flakes, salt and pepper.
- Roast for 25 minutes, or until the pumpkin is browned and cooked through. Toss once at around 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, crumble over feta and garnish with fresh chili and parsley, if using. Serve immediately.
1. You can use whatever nuts you prefer but just be aware that you might need to adjust the cooking time i.e. toss them in partway through roasting. Walnuts hold up well in the oven for the full roasting time. Almonds, peanuts and cashews will also be fine for the full time. If using pine nuts, sunflower seeds or pepitas (or other small nuts), add them halfway through the roasting time.
2. If you use brown sugar instead of honey or maple syrup, mix it with the olive oil before pouring over the pumpkin.
Pumpkin-Apple Streusel Cake
From Epicurious
Ingredients
- Apples
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 cups diced peeled & cored apples (about 4 large)
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Cake
- 11/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup (firmly packed) golden brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup pure pumpkin puree
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 large eggs
To serve: Vanilla ice cream
Preparation
- For apples:
- Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add apples; sauté until apples begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add sugar and cinnamon and sauté until golden brown, about 3 minutes longer. Cool.
- For cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan. Combine flour, brown sugar, butter, and salt in large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat until mixture resembles coarse meal. Set aside 2/3 cup of mixture for topping. Beat pumpkin, sour cream, 2 tablespoons sugar, spice, and baking soda into remaining flour mixture, beating just until smooth. Beat in eggs. Transfer batter to pan. Scatter apples evenly over top. Sprinkle reserved topping over apples.
- Bake cake until topping is golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack 20 minutes. Run knife around pan sides to loosen cake. Release pan sides from cake. Transfer cake to platter. (Can be made 6 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) Serve warm or at room temperature with ice cream.
As a reminder, part of the fun of being a member of a CSA is collaborating with your community, so always feel free to post cooking suggestions or feedback on recipes that we post, or favorite recipes of your own that you’d like to share.
