Two Farms Newsletter #412

**Corn Note: This is organic corn: many ears likely have a worm, that's organic corn! Just chop the end off with a large knife and the corn is perfect to eat! Eat it as soon as possible: it's tastier sooner. -zelda and julia

September 4, 2007

Table of Contents:

1) In your box this week
2) A Few Historical Recipes
3) Renewal Time
4) Tomato Time
5) Photos
6) Recipes
7) Which Farm?
8) Unsubscribe
9) Two Small Farms Contact Information

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1) In your box this week: Tomatoes, Tomatillos, Radishes, Rapini OR Spinach, Eggplant OR Onions, two mysteries

How to store this week's bounty: all (except tomatoes and tomatillos) in the fridge as soon as you arrive home.

The tomatoes can be stored at room temperature.

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2) A Few Historical Recipes from Julia

I started reading cookbooks like novels when I used to babysit, starting at about age 11. Before that I loved looking through my children's cookbooks that I received for birthday presents. Not much has changed. In college I was the one pouring through Mollie Katzen's now-classic Moosewood Cookbook and Enchanted Broccoli Forest.

In honor of those days I have some recipes from those cookbooks. More about cookbooks in two or three weeks.... If you're a fan of Andy's writing, make sure to sign up for his writing blog. We update it 2-4 times a month...

Italian Eggplant Salad
adapted from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest by Mollie Katzen

1 eggplant (about 1 pound)
1/2 cup olive oil
3/4 cup minced onion
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
3/4 Tablespoon salt
1 stalk celery, minced
3 medium tomatoes, diced
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
3-4 fresh leaves basil, minced
1/2 cup minced green olives
fresh-ground black pepper
1/4 cup finely minced parsley

Optional:
2-3 Tablespoons capers
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

1) Cut the eggplant into small (1/2 inch) cubes. Steam the cubes in a vegetable steamer over boiling water, until they are tender (15-20 minutes). Prepare the other ingredients while the eggplant steams.

2) In 2 Tablespoons of the olive oil, saute the onions and garlic with salt, until the onions begin to soften (5 minutes). Add the celery, and saute another 5 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes, and cook a few minutes more.

Remove from heat, and transfer to a large bowl.

3) Add all remaining ingredients to the bowl, including the steamed eggplant (you don't need to cool it first). Mix well, and chill.

note: this salad is exceptional the day after it's made, so it can marinate thoroughly

Cauliflower Cheese Pie with Grated Potato Crust

julia's note: this crust is a GREAT alternative to a buttery-flour crust for most quiche/vegetable pie type dishes. I also make a mashed potato crust for quiche... that I learned in college from one of these two Mollie books!

Crust:

2 cups, packed, grated raw potato
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup grated onion

Heat the oven to 400 degrees
Set the freshly-grated potato in a colander over a bowl. Salt it and leave it for 10 minutes. Then squeeze out the excess water (which can be used as for soup stock) and add it to the remaining ingredients. Pat it into a well-oiled 9 inch pie pan, building up the sides of the crust with lightly-floured fingers. Bake for 40-45 minutes - until browned. After the first 30 minutes brush (or spray) the crust with a little oil to crispen it.

Turn down oven to 375 degrees

Filling:

1 heaping, packed cup grated cheddar cheese
1 head cauliflower, broken into small flowerets
1 medium clove crushed garlic
1 cup chopped onion
3 Tablespoons butter
dash of dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil or 2 tablespoons fresh, chopped basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs beaten together with:
1/4 cup milk
black pepper to tasted
paprika

Saute onions in butter for 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Add herbs and cauliflower and cook, covered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spread half the cheese into the baked crust, then the saute, then the rest of the cheese. Pour the custard over and dust with paprika. Bake 35-40 minutes - until set.

Going way back: here's a book that was published in 1967, and I had a copy in my book collection by 1970: I was 5 years old. I'm including a recipe with tomatoes for obvious reasons, but what I remember loving to make was their version of baked Alaska, which included a meringue, and using a very hot oven for 3 minutes so the ice cream didn't melt. The drama was quite fun at age 5!

Eggs in Tomatoes
from My Learn to Cook Book by Ursula Sedgwick, illustrated by Martin Mayhew

you will need:

bread crumbs
S & P
butter
eggs
tomatoes (one for each person)

small pointed knife
oven proof dish

1) Turn on the oven and set at 350 degrees.
2) Cut off the top of each of the tomatoes.
3) Scoop out the insides with a spoon.
4) Put the tomatoes into the ovenproof dish.
5) Sprinkle salt and pepper into the tomatoes.
6) Crack and egg on the edge of the dish and drop it into the first tomato. Repeat, until you have dropped an egg

into each tomato.
7) Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
8) Sprinkle with bread crumbs and top with a small piece of butter.
9) Bake until the white of the egg is firm (about 10 minutes). Serve quickly.

more recipes below in section #6

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3) Renewal time is coming!

Next week, September 12/13/14 is the last paid share of the current session. The final 9 weeks starts the week of September 19/20/21. Cost is $180 or $234 with flowers. You can mail a check to Two Small Farms, PO Box 2065, Watsonville, CA 95077. Please contact Zelda at the office: csa@twosmallfarms.com or 831-786-0265 to

confirm you want to continue.

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4) Tomatoes! We can sell 20# of San Marzano 'paste' tomatoes as an 'extra'. 20# boxes are $29 delivered to your pick up site. Contact Zelda in the office to order. 831 786 0625 or reply to this email.

Also: another tomato upick at Mariquita Farm on Sept. 22nd.

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5) Photos:

tomatillos

Rapini Greens

Photo Gallery
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6) Recipes from Jennifer, Jeanne and Julia

What I would do with this week’s box, from Jeanne Byrne, of High Ground Organics. (Stephen's wife...) I’ll cook the rapini (broccoli raab) or spinach with garlic and red pepper flakes. Saute the garlic and pepper flakes in olive oil for a few minutes, add the washed, chopped greens and some course sea salt to the pot with a little water, lower the heat, cover, and cook until the greens are soft. This will take longer for the rapini than spinach.

Make sure there’s enough water that it doesn’t burn.

If I get cauliflower as the mystery, I’ll make potato cauliflower curry in my pressure cooker. This is an easy quick recipe if you have a pressure cooker and it’s really good. (Recipe below.) Otherwise I will parboil the potatoes

(boil until just barely soft when pricked with a fork; don’t overcook), cut them to similar sizes, then toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary (and maybe onion wedges) and roast them in the oven at 400 until done. OR if I have large potatoes, I’ll make “potato chips.” Slice them with a mandoline, spray with olive oil spray, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook on a greased baking sheet at 400 until slightly crisp. (One daughter likes them crispy, the other likes them still soft.) They need to be eaten right out of the oven to be good, which usually happens anyway.

I’ll make tomatillo salsa with one of Julia’s recipes and serve it with tortillas. I’ll make a Chinese radish salad with thinly sliced radishes and green or red pepper if I have one around. For dressing, use 2 TBS vinegar, 4 tsp. soy sauce, 1 TBS sugar. Mix well and toss. If I get an eggplant I will slice, salt, and coat it with olive oil, broil it, and chop to add to tomato sauce for pasta, or toss cold with sliced tomatoes and a simple vinaigrette dressing. Any remaining tomatoes we will eat on sandwiches and salads.


Cauliflower-Potato Curry, from Great Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure, by Lorna J. Sass

1 large head cauliflower
2 tsp. safflower or canola oil
2 tsp. whole cumin seeds
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
2 TBS tomato paste
2 TBS mild curry powder
1 tsp. ground coriander seeds
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt, or to taste
Pinch of cayenne
1 1/2 lb. thin-skinned potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 minced fresh coriander (optional)

Cut the cauliflower into florets about 2 inches wide across the top. Set aside. Heat the oil in the cooker. Sizzle the cumin seeds over medium-high heat just until they begin to pop, 5­­–10 seconds. Turn off the heat and add the coconut milk (stand back to avoid sputtering oil) and tomato paste. While stirring with a fork, sprinkle in the curry powder, coriander, cinnamon, salt, and cayenne. Bring to the boil. Set the potatoes and red bell pepper in the liquid and place the cauliflower florets on top.

Lock the lid in place. Over high heat, bring to high pressure. Lower the heat just enough to maintain high pressure and cook for 3 minutes. Reduce the pressure with a quick-release method. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow any excess steam to escape. If the potatoes are not quite done, replace (but do not lock) the lid and let them cook for a few more minutes in the residual heat.

Stir well to combine the cauliflower and the potatoes. While stirring, the cauliflower will break up into small pieces and amalgamate with the cooking liquid to create a thick sauce. Mix in the coriander (if using)

before serving.

2 tomatillo salsa recipes:

Tomatillo Salsa
2 pounds Fresh tomatillos
1 cup Onion -- chopped
1 Or 2 hot peppers, cored Seeded and chopped.
1 cup Fresh cilantro -- minced
1/4 cup Fresh lime juice
1-2 cloves garlic
salt to taste
Remove husks from tomatillos, wash throughly, dry and halve or quarter. Combine tomatillos, onions, chiles, and garlic in a non-reactive pan. Over med-high heat bring to boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 mins. Cool a little or a lot then put into blender with cilantro and lime juice, blend away, salt to taste, and you have some GREAT salsa verde Mexicano.

SWISS CHARD WITH BEETS, GOAT CHEESE, AND RAISINS
submitted Jennifer Levey; originally published in Bon Appetit

I made this recipe last week with the beets and chard from the previous week. It was a bit time intesive, but fantastic and I highly recommend it.

SWISS CHARD WITH BEETS, GOAT CHEESE, AND RAISINS
1 1/2 pounds red beets (about 3 large)

4 pounds Swiss chard

1/4 cup olive oil
1 large red onion, halved lengthwise, cut thinly crosswise
3/4 cup sliced green onions (about 3)
5 garlic cloves, chopped
2 jalapeño chiles, thinly sliced crosswise with seeds
3 14 1/2-ounce cans diced tomatoes in juice, drained
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons golden raisins

1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 51/2-ounce log soft fresh goat cheese, crumbled

2 tablespoons pine nuts
Preheat oven to 400°F. Wrap beets individually in foil. Roast until beets are tender, about 1 hour. Cool. Peel beets, then cut into 1/2-inch cubes. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover; chill.)

Fold Swiss chard leaves in half lengthwise and cut stalks away from leaves. Cut leaves coarsely into 1-inch pieces. Slice stalks thinly crosswise. Reserve stalks and leaves separately. Cook chopped leaves in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 1 minute. Drain and reserve.

Heat oil in heavy large pot over high heat. Add sliced stalks; sauté until starting to soften, about 8 minutes.

Add onion and next 3 ingredients; sauté 3 minutes. Add drained tomatoes and 1 cup raisins. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until vegetables are soft, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Add chard leaves to pot; stir to heat through. Remove from heat; add lime juice and stir to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer chard mixture to large platter. Sprinkle with beets, goat cheese, pine nuts, and remaining 2 tablespoons raisins. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Bon Appétit
December 2005

Ways to use Tomatillos:

Before using, peel off the husks and rinse to remove the sticky residue. Other than peeling off the husk, do not peel the green skin.

Tomatillos are traditionally used in three ways — raw, boiled/blanched, or roasted/grilled:

Raw - Uncooked tomatillos add a fresh, tangy citrus-like flavor and are often used raw in Mexican table sauces. Finely dice or puree them.

Blanching - Mellows the flavor. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the whole tomatillos (husks removed and rinsed) and boil for about 5 minutes, until soft. Drain and crush or puree as directed in a sauce recipe.

Fire roasting - Leaving slightly blackened skins on enriches a sauce with a smoky, woodsy flavor. Can roast under the broiler, with a propane torch, or over an open flame such as a grill or a gas burner. Make sure the heat is quite hot, otherwise the tomatillos will turn mushy before being charred.

Dry roasting - Produces an earthy, nutty flavor. Place the tomatillos in a heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron). Turn heat to low. Roast for about 20 to 30 minutes, turning occasionally, letting each side take on a rich, burnished golden color before turning.

Punchy Tomatillo-Tomato Relish adapted from Chutneys and Relishes by Lorraine Bodger

Chop cleaned tomatillos. Combine with pullped, seeded, and diced plum tomatoes, minced spicy chile (such as hungarian, jalapeño, or anaheim), and red onion, chopped cilantro, and garlic. Add lime juice, tequila, and salt. Serve with grilled fish, burgers, chicken, or traditional Mexican fare.

Julia’s informal baba ganoush

Pulp from 1 or 2 pounds roasted eggplants
juice from one lemon, or 1-2 tablespoons rice vinegar
3-5 tablespoons tahini(toasted sesame paste)
2-3 finely chopped cloves garlic
small amount smashed up roasted pine nuts, optional
salt and pepper

Mix everything up together, you may need to mash the eggplant pulp together with a fork. You can add olive oil to make it smoother (and tastier.)

Eggplant with Hot Garlice Sauce (Adapted from Pei Mei's Chinese Cooking)

4-6 Chinese or Japanese eggplants

1 t chopped fresh ginger
1 T chopped fresh garlic
1 T Hot bean paste
2 T soy sauce
1 t sugar
1 t salt
1/2 cup soup stock or water
1 T chopped green onion

Cut eggplant into finger sized pieces-cut lengthwise, then into quarters etc.
Saute with some water in a non-stick pan/wok, until soft.
When soft, remove from pan.
On low heat, cook garlic, ginger, and hot bean paste for a minute, then add
salt, sugar, soysauce and stock/water. Return eggplant to the pan and cook for
about five minutes until garlic is soft and a sauce forms. If sauce is too
thin, thicken with 1t corn starch mixed with 2t water.

Serve over white/brown rice.

ORANGE AND RADISH SALAD WITH CINNAMON VINAIGRETTE

Vinaigrette
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/8 teaspoon Ground Red Pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt

Combine all of the above.

For the salad use your favorite greens. Toss with orange slices and thinly sliced radishes. Top with lightly toasted sliced almonds.

BROCCOLI RAAB W/CARMELIZED ONIONS
Pasta e Verdura, Jack Bishop

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 large onion (about 1 lb.), thinly sliced
1 bunch broccoli raab
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 lb. pasta (linguine or other long, thin shape)

Saute onions over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden
brown, about 20 minutes. If the onions start to burn, lower the heat.
They should be richly colored to bring out their sweetness.

Meanwhile, bring several quarts of water to a boil ina medium sauce
pan. Roughly chop the greens and stem and boil in the hot water and
cook for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Add the garlic to the pan with the onions and cook for 1 minute. Add
the broccoli raab, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally,
until the broccoli raab is tender, about 5 minutes. Taste for salt and
pepper and adjust seasonings if necessary.

While preparing the sauce, cook and drain the pasta, making sure that
some liquid still clings to the noodles. Toss the hot pasta with the
broccoli raab sauce. Mix well and transfer portions to warm pasta
bowls. Drizzle each bowl with olive oil to taste and serve immediately.

BROCCOLI RAAB WITH SPAGHETTINI
The Victory Garden Cookbook, Marian Morash

1 bunch broccoli raab
1 sweet bell pepper (optional)
1/2 lb. spaghettini
1tbsp. chopped garlic
6 tbsp. olive oil
2 cups water or chicken stock
2 tbsp. butter
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Parmesan cheese

Wash and peel broccoli raab, and cut into 2-3 inch pieces; set aside.
Peel the pepper, and thinly slice. Break spaghettini into 2-3-inch
pieces. In a large saute pan, cook garlic in oil for 1 minute. Add
pepper, cook slightly, and stir in raab, spaghettini, and water or
stock. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for
approximately 10 minutes, adding additional water if necessary. When
broccoli raab is tender, and spaghetiini cooked, remove the cover,
reduce any pan liquids, and stir in butter. Season to taste and serve
with Parmesan cheese. Serves 4.

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7) Which Farm?

>From High Ground: Radishes, rapini, spinach, one mystery, Flowers.
>From Mariquita: Tomatoes, tomatillos, eggplant, onions, one mystery

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8) Unsubscribe/Subscribe From/To This Newsletter

Two Small Farms Blog

BLOG ADVANTAGES: I can change mistakes after I post them. I don't have to subscribe/unsubscribe folks. Old newsletters easily accessed. Links! (I send this newsletter out as plain text so more folks with differently-abled computer systems can easily read it.) You can sign up for email updates to the Two Small Farms Blog on the main

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9) Two Small Farms Contact Information

Two Small Farms
Mariquita Farm/High Ground Organics
Organically Grown Vegetables
831-786-0625
P.O. Box 2065
Watsonville, CA 95077
csa@twosmallfarms.com
http://www.twosmallfarms.com
http://www.mariquita.com
http://www.highgroundorganics.com