I’m excited to see the return of radishes. It gives me the chance to provide another pickling recipe for those of you into that sort of thing. This is from Roy Eyester at Rosebud. Cut the recipe in half for a small bunch of radishes.
On my mind right now are oysters – having just come home from one coast and headed to another in about a week. September brings the months with “r” back, so it’s time to be thinking oysters again. I think this is adapted from a recipe that actually came from Better Homes and Gardens magazine.
And how great is it to see that butternut squash in our box today? It may be the first of many to come, but what a blessing – a vegetable you can sock away in the pantry and pull out come January when we’re missing the delivery of fresh fruits and vegetables every week.
First of all, I hear there’s great consternation and confusion about how to handle those beautiful ears of popcorn in your box. We got popcorn last year, and I gave it all to Marcia Killingsworth – your faithful photographer – because she loves popcorn so much. Come to discover today that she tried to take the kernels off the cob before popping them and gave it up as an impossible job. I’m guessing last year’s popcorn went to feed the squirrels in her neighborhood.
The good news is that I’m keeping all the popcorn in this box for me. Now I get to experiment with it. Everything I’ve read says cook it in your microwave – on the cob – in a bag. Same idea as microwave popcorn, but just on the cob and without the icky stuff I imagine impregnates those microwave popcorn bags. I remember hearing from some CSA members last year that popping the corn in a paper bag worked just fine.
I know there are some folks who have concerns over what’s in our paper bags these days – especially those made of recycled content. Bits of metal? Tiny pieces of plastic?
It’s actually my intention to try the popcorn in my Whirley Pop popcorn popper – the lightweight metal pan with a lid that folds back and a crank to turn a small metal arm that keeps the popcorn from hanging out too long on the bottom of the pan. I’ll probably have to break the cobs in half, but that seems easy enough to do.
Let us know how your popcorn turns out.
I’m so glad to see the popcorn because I’ve been saving this recipe just for its appearance. The aforementioned Ms. Killingsworth is a true fan of bacon. She might be willing to pop a little Riverview popcorn to make this recipe.
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This recipe comes from Denver restaurant Colt & Gray. Who can resist salty-sweet caramel corn studded with cashews and bits of bacon? The method of popping corn here would work fine with the whole cobs. Oolong is a lovely chef-y addition to the recipe, adding its bit of smoky flavor to the mix. Bacon and Cashew Caramel Corn balls for Halloween anyone?
Makes about 15 cups
We’ll no doubt have peppers until frost, so here’s one more idea for what to do with them. Mix in a jalapeno or two if your household likes the heat. Did I mention that about 3 weeks ago I made cantaloupe-jalapeno preserves? I had seen a recipe for strawberry-jalapeno jam and I had this bowl of jalapenos just waiting for a use ….. turned out pretty well and I think we’ll be enjoying it on pork chops and tenderloin … chicken breasts …. grilled shrimp …. I can think of lots of uses.
Anyway, this chicken and pepper recipe came from Bertha’s Kitchen, a soul food restaurant in Charleston, South Carolina. It’s a reminder that a slow braise is a wonderful, fragrant thing.
I’m sorry I don’t remember the provenance of this last recipe, but it’s a fairly traditional way to make pickled squash. I can eat it by the pint. The directions are for processing the pickles in a boiling water bath. If you want to skip that step, just pack the pickles into jars after they’ve been heated in the vinegar, and seal them up. Let them cool and then keep the pickles in your refrigerator. They should keep about 2 months without processing but they have to be refrigerated. The recipe also says to wait a month before eating, but I don’t generally have that much patience. They’re really fine right away.
Makes 4 pints
Sweet potatoes! I’m very excited. Sweet potatoes! (Did I already say that?)
Last year I think it was the end of October before we had sweet potatoes in our box. This is truly the vegetable that says “fall” to me. I got home too late tonight to do anything with these beauties, but I’ll be making my traditional start of fall meal tomorrow just in time for the autumnal equinox at 5:05am on Friday morning. (I think I’ve made the calculation about the time right …)
I’ll be sautéing my sweet potatoes with some of those beautiful apples in a little bit of butter, and then adding honey or maple syrup, depending on my mood. This is a fall favorite in my household. Sometimes I add some sausage, sometimes I add some greens …. however it’s fixed we absolutely love it. And the smell of those sweet potatoes cooking tells me fall has arrived.
The complete contrast will be the cold salad of steamed spaghetti squash tossed with olive oil, a little lemon juice and lots of chopped tomatoes, then seasoned with plenty of salt and pepper that I’ll also be making. It’s that time of year when what you want to eat can go in any number of directions.
Just on the chance that more sweet potatoes are in our future (and maybe another cool snap), here’s a soup recipe from “Sara Moulton’s Everyday Family Dinners” (Simon & Schuster, $35). The recipe calls for 4 sweet potatoes, but if your box, like mine, had just 3 sweet potatoes, that will work fine as well. And feel free to substitute a jalapeno or two for the chipotles. Chipotles are just ripened, smoked jalapenos so you’ll still be getting the heat but not the smoky flavor. If you substituted bacon for the Canadian bacon, it would all even out. If you have an immersion blender, this recipe is even easier. Not a fan of rye bread? Just make plain croutons.
From www.101cookbooks.com
For the curried apple couscous, I’m going to use some of those pretty red bell peppers from our box this week for a splash of color and flavor with the fall apples.
Serves 6
With the nice cool weather we are having this week it just makes sense to open up your box and find two of my all-time Riverview fall favorites inside – Delicata Squash and Apples!
This little squash gave me all kinds of trouble trying to figure out what to do with it the first year I was a subscriber, but since then I can’t wait to see it every year. Contrary to its name – the delicata squash is not so delicate and can keep for several months. I’ve actually had some that kept for over 2 months on the counter. It is fantastic baked or steamed and served as a side dish with butter and herbs.
To bake: halve the squash lengthwise on the oblong side. Place the squash cut side down or up (depending if you want to put a little butter in the well), cover and bake for about 30 minutes at 375 degrees. Brush with a little butter or evoo some salt and your favorite herbs.
To microwave: halve the squash, place in a dish and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Microwave for about 10 minutes. If you put a little liquid in the dish with the squash it will stay nice and moist.
One of my favorite websites to find delicious recipes for our CSA boxes is Heidi Swanson’s www.101cookbooks.com – she is a fantastic vegetarian cook and her recipes are always delicious. Sometimes they may sound a little out there – like combining Miso and Harissa – but trust her, they work! For the Curried Apple Couscous, I’m going to use some of those pretty red bell peppers from our box this week for a splash of color and flavor with the fall apples.
From www.101cookbooks.com
Serves 2 to 4.
Prep time: 10 min – Cook time: 30 min
And finally, an idea for turning that squash into a salad.
Raw zucchini is wonderful when sliced very thin, carpaccio-thin. In this recipe it’s topped with feta, dill, and walnuts for a Greek spin, but it would be equally delicious with shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano, basil, and pine nuts. Don’t be tempted to save time and toss the zucchini with the other ingredients in a bowl—it will turn watery, and won’t be nearly as pretty.
This recipe comes from the food blog, Once Upon a Chef.
Serves 4