Aug
26
2010

Tomatillos Redux

Tomatillos

Tomatillos

‘Tis the season of the tomatillo. And so, what to do with these tasty and nutritious fruits when they land at our CSAs and farmers markets?

Last Thursday we posted our recipe for Tomatillo Soup. Over the weekend, we made Tomatillo Salsa, a recipe we got from Dorris and Jilly Cook, with terrific results. (The only deviation, using a habanero pepper rather than a jalapeño, because, hey, it’s what we had on hand.)

Here are two more recipes we’re going to try soon from some of our favorite local blogs.

What are your favorite tomatillo recipes?

Aug
19
2010

Tomatillo Soup

Tomatillos and Habanero pepper.

Two tomatillos from the CSA, and one habanero from the front yard.

Tomatillos taste to me like a cross between tomatoes and corn. In other words, they taste like late summer.

Don’t despair if they show up in your CSA haul, or turn your back on them in your local food co-op or supermarket. They are quite versatile as well as tasty.

Here’s what we did with them this evening.

Spicy Tomatillo Soup (until we come up with a better name)

What you’re gonna need

  • 4 medium tomatillos
  • 8 medium tomatoes, chopped or crushed. (A large can will also do)
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic (but don’t be afraid to use more if you like)
  • 2/3 cup cilantro
  • 2 tbs lime juice
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 habanero, chopped
  • 3 ears corn, quartered
  • 4 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 tsp ground cumin

What you’re gonna do

  • Remove husks on tomatillos, then roast ‘em in a 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes.
  • Place roasted tomatillos, cilantro, one clove of the garlic, lime juice into the food processor. Mix until blended. Hold onto this for later.
  • In a large pot, sauté onion, garlic, habanero, until soft.
  • Add corn, tomatoes, cumin, stock. Bring to a boil.
  • Reduce heat and simmer about 15 minutes.
  • Remove from heat and mix in 3 tbs of the tomatillo mixture.
  • Serve garnished with avocado slices and a generous dollop of the tomatillo mixture.
Tomatillo Soup

Tomatillo Soup

Aug
2
2010

Canning Tomatoes

Canned Tomatoes

Canned Tomatoes

We are entering the height of tomato season. If you love tomatoes, these days you are probably eating them in sandwiches, salads, soups, or perhaps just with a pinch of salt or a drizzle of olive oil. And if you have a membership in a CSA or food co-op, or frequent farmers markets, you are enjoying an increasing variety of heirloom and antique varieties. All those different flavors, all those different colors and shapes!

But what do you do when tomato season is over? Anyone who truly appreciates a good tomato won’t go near those flavorless abominations you find in the supermarket. The answer is you find a way to preserve them.

You can freeze them with fairly good results. You can dry them, which will transform them into something quite good, but also quite different in flavor and texture. Or you can can them. Call me a traditionalist, but in my book nothing beats canning tomatoes as the preferred method of preservation.

Canned tomatoes are ready to use. They look beautiful on the shelf of your pantry. (Especially if you put different varieties in the same jar. ) And as soon as you pry off the lid you return to the aromas of summer.

This is not going to turn into Tomato Canning 101. There are folks out there who have been doing this a lot longer than we have, so let me point you to some excellent resources.

A great basic primer for food preservation, including canning tomatoes, is Preserving Summer’s Bounty.

I also recommend taking a class. If you are a beginner, you will acquire basic techniques and build confidence. Even if you’ve been canning for a while, you will always learn something new and useful. And you’ll get to hang out with other cool people with similar interests.

Last week we attended a great class conducted by “Doris”  from Doris and Jilly Cook, and if you are in the Philadelphia area, we highly recommend it.  The class was friendly, thorough and fun. She provides all the necessary background, answers your questions, let’s you get down and dirty in the kitchen, and sends you on your way with a jar of the finished product.

Jul
18
2010

BLT

Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich

Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich

Bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches are like gazpacho and Caprese salads — they’re all about the tomato. If the tomato you are using is sub par, it just isn’t worth it.

Therefore, if you are a fan of the BLT, your window of opportunity has opened, and like other seasonally specific food, you need to get ‘em while the getting is good.

The fellows in the photo above are our first BLTs of the year. They are also a near perfect amalgam of local food. The bread was homemade. So was the mayonnaise, made with eggs laid less than two days before at Pennypack Farm. The pasture raised bacon was from Meadow Run Farm in Lancaster County, the lettuce from Paradise Organics, also in Lancaster County, and the tomatoes, which were gorgeous, were from New Jersey.

Jul
5
2010

How Local is That: Part Two

Raspberry Jam

Raspberry Jam

Part of our consolation in coming off the mountain, especially into 90 degree plus weather, was looking forward to raspberry picking in the park near our home. Last year’s yield was incredible in both quality and quantity, far better than what we were finding in the stores.

This year’s offering, however, was much poorer. Probably the lack of rain and the intense heat played the biggest role. But that’s part of the territory when you buy into the philosophy of eating local. Every season and every year has its own character, its own goods and bads.

So when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When it gives you fewer good raspberries, make less jam.

Jul
2
2010

How Local Is That?

Donna After the Blueberries

Donna After the Blueberries

It all began this morning when the old tom turkey who’s been visiting us all week landed at the end of the meadow in front of our cabin and I got ambitious and decided to take his picture. I was too late or too obvious to accomplish that task, but on the way back, I found a cluster of blueberry bushes I’d overlooked all week. Snapped a few pictures, snagged a few berries to bring back to Donna.

I should have known this would set in motion a project. Herself was off the porch first with a glass, then with a bowl, harvesting every ripe berry she could find. What to do with her magnificent stash? It turns out the answer was to drive down the mountain to a local general store and purchase canning jars and pectin.

This is our last night at the cabin after probably the best vacation of our lives together. Hard to leave. But here’s the consolation: in December or January, when the snow is piling up and we are hunkered down in Philly, we can open up a jar and be back on the mountain.

Canned blueberries; Preserved memories.

Canned blueberries; Preserved memories.

Jun
30
2010

Local Goes on the Road

Grilled Peaches with Goat Cheese

Grilled Peaches with Goat Cheese

We are vacationing in the mountains of North Carolina this week, but still trying to stick to our local way of thinking.  We brought homemade yogurt, rolls and pita from home and were hoping to find some local fruits once we got here.  No luck at the supermarket, but on the way back to our mountain I spotted a produce stand and we were in luck. There were peaches from South Carolina, blueberries from North Carolina and tomatoes from Tennessee – not strictly local, but close enough.

The tomato made its way onto a sandwich for dinner last night, but tonight it was about the peaches.  Grilled and then topped with a basil pesto goat cheese from Yellow Springs Farm in Chester County PA, drizzled with honey from a farm in Lansdale, PA and topped with walnuts.  (I know that the walnuts are not local, but I think you may have noticed that Dan loves walnuts and they make their way into everything).  We ate this with a very nice local chardonnay from Shelton Vineyards, Dobson, North Carolina.

The goat cheese is a new thing going on this year at Pennypack.  Twice a month we get 3 different artisanal goat cheeses.  I tend to like the milder spreadable ones while Dan gets the pungent strong flavored ones.  So far every one of them has been eaten happily.

Chardonnay from Shelton Vineyards

Chardonnay from Shelton Vineyards

Jun
21
2010

Homemade Yogurt

Yogurt with strawberry jam, and walnuts.

Our yogurt with strawberry jam, and yes, walnuts.

I love yogurt. I eat it almost every day.  About a year ago Dan decided it would be a good idea to start making our own.  He ordered a Yogotherm.

It’s basically  a large  thermos designed to turn milk into yogurt. (And other things, kefir, various cheeses.) You heat the milk to 185 degrees and then cool it back down to 110 degrees. Then into the Yogotherm  with a yogurt culture.  Eight to ten hours later you have yogurt.

I love the fact that I can use milk from a local dairy that does not have any antibiotics or growth hormones in it.  There are no added sugars  or sweeteners, no unpronounceable preservatives, colorings, etc. Other than milk and culture, the only things added are added  by my choice.

Don’t have a yogotherm or yogurt culture? Don’t despair.  Any thermos will do and you can use 2-3 tablespoons of your favorite store bought yogurt per half gallon of milk (I would try for an organic, plain yogurt) and you will have the same results. I have done this and it does work beautifully.  You can continue to do this from your yogurt but know that eventually you will have to have new culture.

Dan is not as particular about his yogurt as I am.  I like to strain it so that  it becomes really thick, more like a dessert.  He is just as happy eating it right out of the container. When you strain it, you end up with about a quart of whey and this just wonderful stuff.  I use it for making oatmeal, sauces and bread. It adds a nice tangy flavor and is full of protein.

This week I am eating our yogurt with some of the strawberries that I picked from Willow Creek Orchards. Also, with the jam I made from the strawberries.

This is my favorite time of year for food.  I picked raspberries at Pennypack on Friday and found local blueberries in the supermarket.  They have all found a home in the yogurt and every day at 3:00 you can know that I am fixing my afternoon snack of homemade yogurt and the jewels of summer, berries.

Jun
15
2010

Sauteed Dandelion

Sauteed Dandelion Greens with Wanuts

Sauteed Dandelion Greens with Wanuts

Saw these beauties at the Weavers Way Co-op and I couldn’t resist. Brought ‘em home, trimmed the stems, gave ‘em a good washing (always wash your greens well),  and then into a hot skillet sizzling with olive oil and butter. I always crowd the skillet when it comes to greens. They’re going to reduce a lot in volume.

After a few minutes, I added a generous handful of walnuts. I knew it was done when the greens where good and soft, but not mushy. You know, taste as you go along.

Man oh man! The walnuts contributed a crunchiness and a sweetness in contrast to the pleasant bitterness of the greens. And this stuff is good for you, too.

Same old moral — eating healthy and cooking with local ingredients isn’t hard. A few simple basics are better than a lot of recipes. On the other hand, this isn’t the only way to prepare dandelion greens. But then, you know how to use Google.

Jun
13
2010

Cherry-Vanilla Braggot

Cherry-Vanilla Braggot

Cherry-Vanilla Braggot

The fellow with the big head is our cherry-vanilla braggot — a hybrid of  mead and beer. We made our version with six pounds of clover honey, two pounds of our favorite dried cherries, and two whole vanilla beans.

For a number of years, we’ve followed the recipe for “Crandaddy Braggot” from Extreme Brewing by Sam Calagione, the owner of Dogfish Head Brewery, with great results. But we wanted to put our own spin on it, so this time we substituted dried cherries for cranberries, and added the vanilla.

So how did it come out? Well, with that list of ingredients, how could it be anything less than terrific? Dark, heavy, sweet, and quite effervescent (thanks to the substitution of champagne yeast for ale yeast). Also quite strong, I’m guessing about nine percent alcohol. The cherries are very present in  aroma and taste, lending both a sweet and slightly tart quality. The honey is also noticeable, especially at the finish. The vanilla is less obvious, but dances around the roof of your mouth. If we make any changes to the next batch (and I guarantee there will be a next batch), it will be the inclusion of a bit of vanilla extract before bottling to enhance the aroma.