Canning: Gold Tomato Sauce

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

My CSA arrived on Monday, but on Tuesday I was leaving for Alaska for 10 days. What to do? Blanch and freeze the greens and can everything else. Much like Marissa from the local canning blog “Food in Jars,” I enjoy small batch canning. It’s an easy evening project and lets you use up all kinds of odds and ends before they pass their ripeness. This golden tomato sauce is based on a recipe I saw recently on 101 recipes, but I added just a few red cherry tomatoes, languishing on the counter, for a little variation.

11th Red Earth Farm half share/egg share CSA

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

A dozen eggs, mixed cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, green bell peppers, and red slicing tomatoes.  I see a lot of pickling in my future (and I’ll be sure to share my recipes)!

I love seeing those big red slicing tomatoes in the basket - my absolute favorite way to eat them is sliced into circles with a pinch of salt AND sugar on each one.  And sometimes a small basil leaf from my front porch really finishes it off right.

Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA 8th delivery

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

I was delighted to see chard again - my favorite vegetable. And yet more little tomatoes! What are you doing with yours? I’ll post a recipe later this week.

Monday, August 9 – Half Share

1 Package Cherry Tomatoes – Certified Organic - Farmdale Organics
3 Aruba Sweet Peppers– Certified Organic – Maple Lawn Organics
1 Bag Tomatillos – Certified Organic – Organic Willow Acres
1 Bag Green Beans – Transitional – White Swan Acres
1 Bunch Rainbow Chard – Certified Organic – Friends Road Organics
1 Bag Mixed Onions – Certified Organic – Soaring Eagle Acres
1 Musk Melon– Certified Organic – The Back 40 Ranch
2 Sweet Dumpling Squash – Certified Organics – Landisdale Farm

6th Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA

Thursday, July 29, 2010

All kinds of fun vegetables this week! I went on vacation the week before, and still had half of the last share leftover. Both crisper drawers were full!

1 baby fennel – certified organic –Autumn Blend Organics
1 bag red tomatoes – certified organic – Plum Hill Farm
1 cherry mix tomatoes – certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 red onion – certified organic – Meadow Brook Organics
1 bunch of red beets – certified organic – Soaring Eagle
1 bag yukon gold or green cabbage – certified organic – Hillside Organics
2 radicchio - certified organic – Bellview Organics
1 bag shallots - certified organic – Shady Brook Organics

9th Red Earth Farm CSA Box

Green snap beans, mixed heirloom tomatoes, okra, Sungold cherry tomatoes, carrots, yellow onions, and a dozen eggs. 

I’m not completely sure what to do with okra, but tonight I added it to my stir-fry along with the green beans and some mushrooms and eggplants.  Yummy!

5th Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA to

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Obviously, it’s zucchini season. I’m thinking of new and interesting ways to use this prolific vegetable. I’ve already made raw zucchini noodles, fried it with summer squash for burritos, and am thinking about stuffing it, if it ever gets cool enough in Philadelphia to turn on the oven. How do you use your zucchini?

4 green zucchini – certified organic –Rolling Ridge Farm
1 bunch beets – certified organic – Farmdale Organics and Maple Lawn Organics
1 bag potatoes – certified organic – Plum Hill Farm and Hillside Organics (2lbs)
1 bunch cippolini onions – certified organic and transitional – Millwood Organics and Liberty Branch Farm
1 bag green beans – certified organic – Healthy Harvest (1lb)
2green slicing cucumbers - certified organic – Maple Lawn Organics
1 bunch carrots – certified organic – Friends Road Organics

I also ordered some portobello caps for grilling, shitakes, saurkraut, eggs, and the chive garlic cheddar from Friendly Farms that I’m obsessed with.

7th Red Earth Farm Partial Share CSA

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Red leaf lettuce, broccoli, beets, potatoes, onions, green peppers, green beans, and our egg share.

5th and 6th Red Earth Farm Partial Share CSA

Wednesday, July 07, 2010

New white potatoes, cucumbers, green onions, Swiss chard, and green leaf lettuce.

Garlic (3), sweet yellow onions (2), and Italian basil.

3rd and 4th Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

1 head broccoli – certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 box new red potatoes – certified organic – Green Valley Organics
1 bunch white garlic – certified organic – Friends Road Organics
1 head red Romaine lettuce – certified organic – Riverview Organics
1 bunch cilantro – certified organic – Noble Herbs
1 head green Romaine lettuce – certified organic – Riverview Organics
garlic scapes

Sadly, I did not receive the beets or the cabbage that I expected along with this delivery.

1 head cauliflower – certified organic – Green Valley Organics
1 bunch beets – certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 bunch kohlrabi – certified organic – Maple Lawn and Friends Road Organics
2 yellow straight neck squash – certified organic – Goshen View Organics
1 green zucchini – certified organic – Rolling Ridge Organics
1 head red Romaine lettuce – certified organic – Riverview Organics
1 head green Romaine lettuce – certified organic – Riverview Organics
1 head radicchio – certified organic – Bellview Organics
1 bunch dandelion greens – certified organic – Hillside Organics

Kohlrabi recipe to come! I’m going out of town for a long weekend, so I spent the evening blanching the greens (kohlrabi, dandelion, beet) to freeze, and slicing the squashes to also freeze for a nice gratin later.

What to do with Garlic Scapes?

Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Perhaps garlic scapes have popped up in your CSA share, or you’ve seen them recently at a farmer’s market and thought “what do I do with these?
You’re not alone. Before I signed up for my first CSA last spring, I’d never seen a scape or even heard of them. A garlic scape is the greens that garlic bulbs shoot up out of the ground while they are growing (much like onion greens). Farmers remove the scapes so that the garlic bulb devotes more of its energy to making itself big and fat. While farmers used to throw scapes into the compost or feed them to animals, they’ve become a popular market produce and herald of the new Spring season.

So what do you do with them? Basically, anything that you would already do with garlic. Scapes taste like garlic, but with a milder, greener flavor. You can chop them (all the way through the flower) and add them to stir-fries, soups, salads, casseroles, burritos, and really, anything else. Many scape lovers find them especially delightful ground into pesto. I like to fry the scapes before using them (like garlic). Because they are milder, you can use many more scapes than you would white garlic cloves. A good estimate is about one full scape per garlic clove (if you are substituting) and you will still have milder flavor. And if for some reason you just can’t stand garlic, they also look beautiful in a vase!

3rd Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA delivery

Between the holiday, travel, and the odd schedule last week, I missed the CSA update, but here is week three. I was so excited to see garlic scapes again, and I have less lettuce this time. But what will I do with those turnips? What are you enjoying in your spring CSAs?

1 bunch radishes – certified organic – Friends Road Organics
1 bunch scallions – certified organic – Friends Road and Bellview Organics
1 bunch garlic scapes – certified organic – Friends Road Organics
1 head broccoli –certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 head Romaine lettuce – certified organic – Riverview Organics
1 head red leaf lettuce – certified organic – Misty Meadow and Railroad Organics
1 bunch beets – certified organic – Millwood Springs Organics
1 bag Hakurei turnips – certified organic – Autumn Blend Organics – 1 lb
3 pcs yellow straight neck squash – certified organic – Goshen View Organics

1st Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA Pick-Up

Thursday, May 27, 2010

I’ve been so excited this month, waiting for the Monday when I could finally pick-up my first CSA of the year. While I ordered a full-share last year, I’m growing more vegetables myself and decided to downgrade to a half-share this season. I have to say, I love not having to shop for vegetables. True to the time of year, I received greens, greens, and more greens. I’ll have to eat a giant salad twice-a-day to keep up. The red leaf lettuce - pale pink and speckled on the inside, the purple bulbed scallions, and the strawberries, just perfectly ripe, were the most beautiful this week.

1 pkg microgreens – certified organic – Eastbrook Produce – 2 oz
1 head red lettuce – certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 bunch green kale – certified organic – Life Enhancing Acres
2 small heads green leaf lettuce – certified organic – Back 40 Ranch
2 bunches scallions – certified organic – Sweetaire and Country Boy Farm
1 bag wrinkle crinkle cress – certified organic – Back 40 Ranch
1 box strawberries – certified organic – Friends Road Organics

Get Your CSA Today

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

There is still time to join a CSA for the summer! Deliveries for most begin in just a few weeks, so now’s the time to stop procrastinating and start participating. CSA’s ask you to pay in advance for your produce deliveries so that farms are able to invest in their crops for the season. All you have to do is pick up your share once a week and enjoy all the exciting, local Delaware Valley produce! Some CSAs with Philadelphia delivery (to a park, farmers market, or neighborhood location) that still have openings:

Lancaster Farm Fresh
Greensgrow Farms
Keystone Farm

Just Fruit Shares:
North Star Orchard

If you missed your favorite farm, put yourself on the waitlist and a spot may open.

Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA Extension

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

I extended my Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA though the winter season, and it’s been a pleasure. I decided to split my usual full share with friends because I just can’t get through that many root vegetables and asian greens in a week! Though I only photographed what I took from the share, I’ve listed the entire full share below.

1 green cabbage – certified organic – Green Acres Organics

1 bag Beauregard sweet potatoes – certified organic – Busy Bee Acres – 3 lbs
2 red kabocha squash – certified organic – Elm Tree Organics
1 bunch scarlet turnips – certified organic – Maple Lawn Organics
1 bunch chard – certified organic – Organic Willow Acres
1 bag Detroit red beets – certified organic – Autumn Blend Organics – 2.5 lbs
1 bag parsnips – certified organic – Elm Tree Organics – 2 lbs
1 bag spinach – certified organic – Riverview Organics
2 heads baby bok choy – certified organic – Scarecrow Hill Farm
1 bunch tatsoi – certified organic – Hillside Organics
1 bunch broccoli raab – certified organic – Riverview Organics

What to do with Radicchio?

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Yet again, my CSA surprised with a green that I’m mostly unfamiliar with. What to do? I searched through cookbooks, found a few things that looked good but weren’t quite right (usually because I didn’t have all the ingredients in the house) and ended up making my own recipe. Sliced and wilted raddichio with garlic and olive oil, tossed with cooked pearl barley and sun-dried tomatoes, splashed with red wine, and sprinkled with parmesan. Served with a side of coriander carnival acorn sauce. A great hearty meal full of good vegetables and grains. I only wish I would have remembered my red carrots in the fridge, and added a side of those for more color!