Kennett Square Mushroom Festival
Thursday, September 09, 2010
I’m a mushroom lover - maybe even a little obsessed. For years I’ve been meaning to attend the Kennett Square (mushroom capital off the world!) Mushroom Festival to participate in the mushroom-themes carnival, try some tasty dishes, and celebrate the growth of fungus so close to home! This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the festival, so pop over this weekend and enjoy the events, food and scenery.
I’ll also be competing in the Aetna Healthy Food Fight with my recipe for Morrocan Tagine on Sunday afternoon. Stop by and say hi!
15th Red Earth Farm Partial Share
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Red leaf lettuce, slicing tomatoes, eggs, apples, leeks, bok choi, acorn squash.
14th Red Earth Farm Partial Share
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
Kennebec potatoes, cherry tomatoes, garlic, delicata squash, mixed slicing tomatoes, yellow slicing tomatoes.
Potatoes, My Way
Monday, August 30, 2010
Last year was my first experiment with growing potatoes and it was revelatory. When you eat potatoes that were harvested that same day, the flavor is unbelievably earthy and complicated. I never knew potatoes could taste like that and I am truly a convert.
So this year I expanded my crop and grew four different types of potatoes: ‘Yukon Gold,’ ‘Red Pontiac,’ ‘Katahdin,’ and some mysterious small blue potato that my friend gave me. By far, the ‘Yukon Gold’ potatoes were the most dense, buttery, and delicious and I am definitely going to be growing more of them next year.
I planted my potatoes in April, they bloomed in June, and I started harvesting in July. There are still some potatoes in the ground and I plan on leaving them for a few more weeks while we eat the ones I harvested this weekend. If I wanted, I could leave them in the ground and harvest as late as November. Potatoes are amazing.
My favorite way to eat my potatoes is chopped with onions and sauteed in left over bacon fat (from bacon that I sometimes treat myself to from Milk and Honey Market at 45th and Baltimore in West Philly. Yum).
Toss in a few slices of tomato with salt and sugar and presto! Lunch.
Canning: Hot Cherry Peppers
It’s no secret that I love hot pepper. And pickles. Pickled hot peppers? Yes, please. I bought some lovely hot cherry peppers on the side of the road in New Jersey, and then got a big bag in my CSA last week, so I decided to give them all the pickling treatment so that I can enjoy them with cheese, and all kinds of other things, later this winter. I’ve been using this recipe from Martha Stewart, and I have to say, it’s just about perfect.
Posted by Erin on 08/30 at 02:27 PM
Kensignton Community Co-Op Seeks Members
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Begun as a buying club, the Kensington Community Co-Op is in the middle of an ambitious membership campaign to expand the Co-Op and bring fresh, local, and healthy food to the Kensington community. If you live in Kensington, please consider joining up, and remember that creating safe, healthy and sustainable food stores not only help you and your family, but your neighbors, as well!
From the site:
“Looking ahead”
The year ahead will be to raise enough funds through member investments, donations, grants and loans to purchase equipment, to buy a building, finance construction and hire a general manager. Once our funds are secured we will begin to narrow down our options for a location.
“Local Ownership Means a More Secure Future.”
Since KCFC is owned and operated by its members, it is their needs that the co-op most cares about, rather than the needs of corporate investors whose interest are often strictly the bottom line. Become a member of KCFC and your bottom line becomes our bottom line. Invest in your community today!
August Harvest
Saturday, August 28, 2010
* ‘Katahdin’ and ‘Yukon Gold’ potatoes
* one tiny (and slightly tasteless) watermelon
* habanero peppers
* ‘Sungold’ and ‘Tomaccio’ cherry tomatoes
* ‘Long Slim’ cayenne peppers
* a ‘Cherokee Purple’ and two other tomatoes
* red onions
* an eggplant
* leeks
* deformed, end-of-season cucumbers
Enjoy your own summer harvests!
Canning: Pickled Carrots
Carrots are just fine, but sometimes they feel a little boring to me. Pickled carrots to the rescue! They’ve got more kick than fresh, are easy to make (especially when you have a bag of baby carrots hanging around) and a delicious snack with hummus. You can make these pickles over night in the refrigerator, or can them, like I did above. I love them at picnics! I started with this recipe originally published in Gourmet magazine. I cut the sugar a bit, and used dried hot thai peppers for extra kick. Adjust the garlic, dill and hot peppers to your liking!
Posted by Erin on 08/28 at 02:11 PM
Spicy Tomato Tempeh
Friday, August 27, 2010
If you have a giant basket of tomatoes sitting on your counter, you can always make a quick sauce for dinner. I finally found an opportunity to try the Spicy Tomato Tempeh recipe from Simply in Season when my parents were visiting last week. The weather was a bit cooler out, and we needed an easy, comforting dinner. I baked the tempeh earlier in the afternoon in the toaster oven, and then when we were ready for dinner I started the wild rice, threw together the tomato sauce, tossed in the tempeh, and we were happily eating in 25 mintues.
Posted by Erin on 08/27 at 02:08 PM
Canning: Jalepeno Salsa
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Often when I make salsa, I don’t really use a recipe. I glance at a few in trusty canning cookbooks, and then just use what I have. The above salsa is about two parts tomatoes, one part fresh chopped jalepenos, one part diced red onions, a generous splash of cider vinegar, 3 chopped garlic cloves, a dash of salt, and the juice of half a lime. And let me tell you, it’s kicking. I cooked it down on the stove for about 20 minutes just to reduce some of the water, and made two quick pint jars of salsa.
Posted by Erin on 08/26 at 02:05 PM
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.
Posted by Erin on 08/25 at 01:59 PM
Fall Vegetable Gardening
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
It’s Fall! Okay, maybe I’m getting ahead of myself, but I just can’t wait to get to my favorite season (and the weather these past two days has been such a tease). But even though we’re still in the thick of the summer crop harvest, it’s not too early to start thinking about cool weather crops again. If you want to get a jump on your fall garden, come to this fun workshop taught by Sally McCabe at the new South Philly garden store Urban Jungle!
When: September 9th, 6pm
Where: Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Ave. (at Tasker)
What: Fall Vegetable Gardening - Join community gardening guru Sally McCabe of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society to learn how you can grow vegetables in the cooler weather of fall. Find out what kinds of vegetables can be grown, how to extend your harvest of vegetables into the winter, and how to do it all in a small space! Cost includes instruction, wine, and snacks. $20 per person.
Lancaster Farm Fresh 11th CSA
Monday, August 23 – Half Share
1 Bunch Dinosaur Kale – certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 Bag Stuffing Peppers – certified organic – Organic Willow Acres
1 Pint Sun Gold Cherry Tomatoes – certified organic – Scarecrow Hill Organics
1 Bag Jalapeno Peppers – certified organic – Farmdale Organics
1 Head Bok Choy – certified organic- Scarecrow Hill Organics
1 Bag Tomatoes – certified organic – Green Valley Organics
Posted by Erin on 08/24 at 01:50 PM
Current Harvest
Monday, August 23, 2010
On a recent trip to my community garden plots (one at the St. Bernard Community Garden and one at the Woodlands Community Garden) I brought home the following haul:
A huge bouquet of zinnias, over a pound of potatoes (‘Yukon Gold’ and a mystery blue), and several ‘Cherokee Purple’ heirloom tomatoes. I also picked a bag of swiss chard, and a half pound of ‘Sungold’ cherry tomatoes.
My butternut squash is starting to really take over my Woodlands plot, and my cayenne and habanero peppers are all starting to ripen now. My cucumbers have been a disappointment, along with my tomatoes overall. But the swiss chard is going gangbusters and I will have potatoes to harvest well into September. So I can’t complain, not really.
Happy harvesting!
Posted by Erica on 08/23 at 02:37 PM
Discount Mondays at Fair Food Farmstand
A little bird over at The Griddle told me that on Mondays the Fair Food Farmstand at Reading Terminal Market offers a shelf-clearing discount of 10 percent off produce and 30 percent off dairy. EVERY Monday! Stock up on freezable cheeses, yogurt, goats milk, and fruits and vegetables to your heart’s content! Remember, Reading Terminal is only open until 6pm on Mondays, so consider stopping by on your lunch hour!
