August 9,
2005
Summer’s Peak
Yes, it appears we have reached the peak of the summer with today’s awesome-looking corn harvest and incredible summer weather. Matt and Alex have harvested over 200 pounds of cucumbers, so if you enjoy making pickles you are in luck this week!
A note about our website: I am unable to communicate with our web server at this time, so I can’t put the newsletter online (you may have noticed his last week). I apologize for any inconvenience, and I hope to get the problem fixed in the next few days.
In the meantime, enjoy the hard copy!
Please let us know if you plan to come to our Mid-Season CSA Potluck tomorrow so we know how many to expect. We realize that this is a very busy time of year for everyone, but we felt that it would be better to have our potluck at the height of the season rather than at the end of the season as we have done the last two years.
We hope you can make it!
Just a reminder: Please return your Mid-season Surveys as soon as possible. There are extra copies in the farm stand if you didn’t receive one.
Chelsea Clark — CSA Outreach
This Weeks Harvest:
Beets, blueberries, carrots, corn, cucumbers (pickling & slicing), garlic, head lettuce, peppers, scallions, summer squash, tomatoes
U-Pick
yellow beans, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, basil, dill, flowers
...and by the weekend, the pineapple tomatillos will be ready for picking!
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THE RECIPES:
Short-Term Cucumber-Onion Pickles
2/3 cup white wine or apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
pinch salt
2 shiny fresh red or white onions
2 cups thinly sliced cucumbers, peeled only if the skins are tough
A few lovage leaves, fennel greens, or dill sprigs
1 tsp. mixed whole peppercorns
3 T olive oil
Mix the vinegar, sugar, and salt and set aside, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved.
Thinly slice the onions into rounds, then toss them with the cucumbers, herb, and peppercorns in a non-corrosive bowl.
Add the oil to the vinegar, stir well, then pour over the vegetables. Toss well, then cover and refrigerate. It’s best if the pickles can sit for a day before being used.
Cucumber and Pepper Relish
1 or 2 (about 3/4 pound) dark green cucumbers
1 small sweet pepper, any variety, very finely diced
3 scallions, including an inch of the greens, thinly sliced
2 T chopped dill
1 T chopped lovage or cilantro
1 1/2 T rice wine vinegar
Sea salt and freshly ground white pepper
Score the cucumbers with the tines of a fork or a citrus zester. Cut them lengthwise into quarters, slice off the seeds, then chop the flesh into small pieces. Toss with the remaining ingredients. Taste for salt and adjust the level of acidity if needed. Let stand for 30 minutes if time allows. Use within a day or two.
A Basic Vegetable Stock
1 onion and/or 1 to 2 cups leeks trimmings (roots and inner leaves)
2 carrots
2 celery ribs with leaves
8 parsley stems
a few thyme sprigs or pinches leaves
4 garlic cloves
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
Chop everything roghly into large, bite-sized pieces. In addition to the basic ingredients, include clean trimmings from the vegetables you’re using in your soup, risotto, or whatever you’re making, such as celery root skins, mushrooms stems, squash seeds, corncobs, zucchini ends, tomato cores, chard stems, or bell pepper cores. (Avoid strong, aggressive vegetables such as mustard greens, turnips, and parsnips.) Add these trimmings to the stock as you do your cutting and slicing. If the recipe calls for an herb, add a few sprigs to the stock as well. The more vegetables matter you use, the more flavor.
For a light stock, bring the vegetables, 2 quarts cold water, and the salt to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 25 to 40 minutes. For a slightly more robust stock, sauté the vegetables in a tablespoon of olive or vegetables oil first to brown them, which gives color as wall as flavor to the stock, then add the water and salt. When the stock is done, strain it immediately. If you want to reduce it further, do so after straining.
These recipes are from Local Flavors by Deborah Madison
Corn and Bean Salad
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 TBS olive oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
Several ears worth fresh sweet corn, cut from cob
1 can black beans
1/2 of a red onion, chopped
Mix oil, vinegar, sugar, and spices in a bowl. Pour over other ingredients, toss together and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
Marinated Zucchini
2-3 medium-small zucchini (about 1 pound)
2 T olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 T chopped fresh mint, basil, or thyme
1 T red wine vinegar
Dash of salt
Wash and dry the zucchini. Cut them diagonally into long, oval-shaped 1/3-inch-thick slices. In a large heavy skillet, heat just enough oil to coat the bottom of the skillet. Quickly fry the zucchini slices in a couple of batches (add more oil if necessary) until golden-speckled on both sides and tender in the center. Drain the fried zucchini slices on paper towels. Lower the heat and sauté the garlic, stirring it constantly until just golden but not brown. Arrange the zucchini on a platter or in a bowl, and sprinkle with the chopped mint, vinegar, salt, and garlic. Cover and set aside to serve at room temperature. This marinated zucchini may be kept, refrigerated, for a week or so, but bring it to room temperature before serving.
Curried Corn and Peppers
1 cup chopped scallions
1 red or green bell pepper, diced
1 T butter
1 tsp. Curry powder
2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cut corn (10-ounce box)
2 tomatoes
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Sauté the scallions and bell pepper in the butter on medium heat for about 2 minutes. Stir in the curry powder and the corn. Chop the tomatoes and add them to the skillet. Continue to cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are thoroughly heated. Add salt and pepper to taste.
From The Moosewood Cooks at Home
Blueberry Flummery
1/2 cup sugar
2 T cornstarch
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 1/2 cups water
2 T lemon juice
1 tsp. Grated lemon rind
Toppings and Garnish:
Whole blueberries
Orange or lemon rind whipped cream
Mix sugar and cornstarch in medium saucepan. Stir in the blueberries, water, lemon juice and grated lemon rind. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until mixture thickens and bubbles for 3 minutes. Spoon into dessert cups. Refrigerate, covered, until cold. Serve topped with blueberries, rind, and whipped cream.
An amusingly-named Shaker recipe from “America Cooks”
John Willoughby's Easy Cucumber Pickles
Yield: About 2 quarts
Be sure you remove the blossom ends of the cucumbers. This is necessary not because that section wouldn't taste good, but because it will sometimes soften a pickle; only a very thin slice need be removed. For a quick pickle that's closer to the familiar bread and butter pickles, add one large onion, peeled and sliced into rounds, to the cucumbers from the beginning of the process.
3 pounds pickling cucumbers, under 5 inches long
3 tablespoons kosher or other coarse salt
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted and slightly crushed
1 tablespoon yellow mustard seed
3 cups cider vinegar
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
Trim and discard the blossom end of the cucumbers, then peel the cucumbers and cut them into rounds about 1/4-inch thick. In a nonreactive bowl, toss them with the salt, then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 or up to 24 hours (I like them after 12). Drain well, rinse, and drain again. Repeat the rinsing and draining process, then set the cucumbers aside.
In a nonreactive pot, combine all of the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring once or twice to dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat to low, simmer for 3 minutes, then pour the liquid over the cucumbers. The cucumbers should be amply covered or slightly afloat.
Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate. These pickles have good flavor as soon as they are cooled, but the flavor will deepen if you let them sit for 24 hours. They will keep, covered and refrigerated, for a month or more.
Sweet and Hot Curried Zucchini Pickles
Yield: 2 quarts
Summer squash is also excellent in this recipe, although the coloring of the final product is not quite as distinctive. If you're one of those ambitious gardeners who plants both types of squash, try using both in this pickle at the same time.
3 pounds zucchini, ends trimmed, cut into very thin rounds, about 1/8-inch thick
2 red onions about the size of baseballs, peeled and cut into thin slices
3 to 4 colorful chile peppers of your choice, cut into thin rounds
1/4 cup kosher or other coarse salt
1 cup seedless golden raisins (optional)
2 3/4 cups distilled white vinegar
3/4 cup sherry
1 1/2 cups orange juice
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons prepared curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon whole allspice berries
1 teaspoon whole cloves
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 piece of ginger the size of your thumb, peeled and sliced into very thin coins
In a large nonreactive bowl, combine the zucchini, onions, chilies, and salt, and let them stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse twice to remove the salt, then add the grapes and set aside.
In a medium nonreactive saucepan, bring all the remaining ingredients except the ginger to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring once or twice to dissolve the sugar. Pour the hot liquid over the squash mixture; the squash should be amply covered or slightly afloat. Add the ginger to the squash mixture, allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate.
These pickles develop great flavor within a couple hour of refrigeration and will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for 3 to 4 weeks.
Adapted from Quick Pickles: Easy Recipes for Bold Flavors, by John Willoughby, Chris Schlesinger, and Dan George, (Chronicle Books, spring 2001).
Both pickle recipes from The Splendid Table website— www.splendidtable.org
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