What’s in this week’s box?

Mini Cabbage

Swiss Chard

Kale

Head of Lettuce

Butter & Sugar Corn

Roma Tomatoes

Red & Yellow Beefsteak Tomatoes

Cocktail Tomatoes

Fruit:

Apples

Raspberries

Peaches

**Quick Note about deliveries: Occasionally what we plan on putting in the boxes for the week change by the time delivery actually comes around. This is affected by several factors: weather can quickly and ruthlessly destroy a crop, what we thought was a completely ready row of carrots (for example) is only in fact half ready, miscommunication between the CSA Coordinator and the Veggie manager, etc.

In the end, as a CSA member know that these are normal occurrences and that there is the occasional discrepancy from the emailed list  of box contents. Thank you!

Storage, handling and general cooking tips…

Cabbage

Storage– Cabbage is cleverly self-packaged.  Just stick dry, unwashed cabbage in the refrigerator, preferably in the vegetable bin.  The outer leaves may eventually get floppy or yellowish, but you can remove and discard them to reveal fresh inner leaves.  Cabbage can keep for more than a month.  Once it’s cut, seal it in a plastic bag and continue to refrigerate it; it will keep for several weeks.
To freeze cabbage: Cut into coarse shreds and blanch for 2 minutes in boiling water. Remove, drain, and chill. Pack into airtight containers and freeze up to one year. Once thawed, frozen cabbage will only work well in cooked applications. Cooked cabbage may be refrigerated in a covered container for up to four days

Apples

Our summer apples are in, and you guys are getting the cream of the crop. Jersey macs, related to the famous Mackintosh, are tart and tender. If you are a Mackintosh fan, you need not wait for them to ripen, these Jersey macs will keep you satisfied for now. Gravenstein apples are native to Denmark and were discovered in the 1600s as a chance seedling. These early guys are excellent for cooking and make fantastic cider and apple sauce.

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.

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.

 Corn

Corn is quintessential Americana, synonymous with BBQs, Summertime, and Grilling. There isn’t a red-checkered tablecloth on a picnic table that won’t see a bowl of these steaming ears. Sweet corn is not only tasty it also contains fiber, protein, vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, magnesium and phosphorous. Fun fact: there is one silk for every kernel of corn, on average there are 800 kernels in 16 rows on each ear of corn. Here at Applecrest we grow about 5 acres of corn, which at the height of the season will remove about 40 tons of carbon dioxide from the air, talk about goin’ green!

Storage and Handling 

Corn can be stored in its husk up to four days in the refrigerator but it will be at its sweetest the closer it is to the day it was picked. Corn can also be frozen. Boil your ears of corn for 4-6 minutes, cool in an ice bath, cut kernels off the cob, store in air tight container (bag or tupperware works), and stick in freezer. You’ll thank yourself on a cold February night, when you can taste these sun kissed kernels alongside your meatloaf and mashed potatoes.

Cook tips

Corn can be grilled, boiled, or roasted. Easily eaten directly off the cob, added to a salad, or frozen for later use.

Tomatoes

The sun-loving tomato’s arrival could mean only one thing—Summer is definitely here! This delectable, heart healthy summer fruit, beyond being a palate pleaser is fantastic in so many ways. Tomatoes can be eaten raw, stewed, sun dried, in soup, as a snack, with balsamic vinegar and fresh mozzarella, chopped into salsa, on sandwiches and burgers. The possibilities are endless.

FYI-Tomato paste will remove chlorine from hair, especially if you have blond hair and the recent heat wave has turned you into a pool diving mermaid and your locks are now greenish.

Did you know that tomatoes are thought to originate in Peru where their Aztec name “xitomatl’ means “plump thing with a navel”.

Storage

Tomatoes bruise easily, so handle them with care. Wash and dry your tomatoes before storing. Unless you’re planning to store your tomatoes for over a week, a windowsill, counter-top or bowl, stem side down, works fine. If you know you won’t use them in the next few days, then lower ter is not otherwise recommended, as the cooler temperatures can reduce flavor and cause mushiness and mealyness. Your fresh-picked tomatoes will last longer on the kitchen counter than store-bought ones anyways, which are probably a few days old when you get them.

Recipes of the Week!

• Rolled Kale and Chard with Feta and Olives
• Savory Kale, Corn, & Feta Galette
• Homemade Sauerkraut in a Mason Jar
• Roasted Cabbage and Apples with Italian Sausage
• Stewed Cabbage, Tomatoes, and Peppers
• Israeli CousCous with Chard
• Kenyan-Style Kale and Tomatoes

• Apple, Raspberry, and Almond Cake

• Buttermilk Peach Pudding

How to make frozen roasted tomato preserves

1. Wash and dry your tomatoes.
2. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees if using a convection oven and 400 degrees if not.
3. Set up a work area with the following:

• Your washed and cleaned tomatoes
• Pans lined with aluminum foil that have been greased on the top side with olive oil
• A fine-mesh colander set atop a large bowl
• A cutting board
• A knife

4. Remove any blemishes or bruises from the tomatoes and then cut each one in half.

5. Gently squeeze the tomato halves into the colander so the seeds fall inside.
6. Set the tomato halves on the lined baking sheets, cut side up.
7. Sprinkle extra virgin olive oil, kosher or sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, and freshly minced or dried oregano or basil onto your tomatoes.
8. Bake for 50 minutes if using a convection oven or 1 hour if not (or until the tomatoes are cooked through, being careful not to burn them).
9. When the tomatoes have only ten minutes to go, place the juice from the bowl into a pot and slowly boil with some salt and pepper for about five minutes.
10. Remove the pans from the oven and scrape the tomatoes into a small pile using a wooden spatula and then spoon them into a large bowl.

11. Add in the cooked tomato juices and stir.
12. Let cool until room temperature and then ladle into quart-sized freezer bags that have been labeled with the date and contents.

13. Set bags in the freezer until ready to use

Apple, Raspberry, and Almond Cake

• Granulated sugar, for pan
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• ¾ cup packed light-brown sugar
• ½ cup coconut-almond milk (you can use just almond or just coconut milk)
• 2 large eggs
• 3 apples (about 1½ pounds), peeled, cored, and cut into 8 wedges
• 1 cup (1/2 pint) raspberries

• 2 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter,cut into pieces
• 3 tablespoons slivered almonds
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Spray with cooking spray or butter a 9-inch springform pan, and dust with granulated sugar.
3. In one Large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
4. In a medium bowl whisk together melted butter, ¾ cup brown sugar, milk, and eggs in another bowl.
5. Whisk butter mixture into flour mixture.
6. Spread batter evenly into prepared pan.
7. Arrange apple wedges over batter, and sprinkle with raspberries.
8. Gently press fruit into batter.

1. In a small bowl combine brown sugar, cinnamon, almonds and sprinkle over fruit. Dot with 2 tablespoons butter.
2. Bake until top is dark gold, apples are tender, and a cake tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 55 minutes.
3. Let cool before removing from pan.

Buttermilk Peach Pudding

From Southern Living

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 3 1/2 peaches, peeled and coarsely chopped (about 1 1/2 lb.)
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced (about 1 lb.)
• Vanilla ice cream

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Sift together first 7 ingredients; sift again.
2. Process chopped peaches in a food processor or blender until smooth. (Yield should be 2 cups puree.) Stir in buttermilk.
3. Beat butter and sugar at high speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Add peach mixture, and beat until well blended.
4. Layer sliced peaches in a greased 13- x 9-inch pan.
5. Fold flour mixture into butter mixture. Pour batter over sliced peaches in pan. Place pan in a large roasting pan, and add boiling water to roasting pan to a depth of 1 inch.
6. Bake at 350º for 50 minutes or until set. (Pudding will still be moist.) Serve warm or cold with ice cream.