in this issue | | | | |
|
| when local food just isn't enough |
| cherry tomatoes, recipes and more! |
fresh this week cherry and heirloom tomatoes, potatoes, carrots and other root veggies, salad mix, all kinds of winter squash and pumpkins, and onions to store for the winter! Plus: live music with Traditional Blends cooking demo with Chef Todd guest artists Kelly Bunnell and Emma Phipps Customer Appreciation Day - stop by the Information Booth for pumpkin pie and coffee! LAST MARKET DAY - don't miss it! | veg of the week | Cherry tomatoes: Solanum lycopersicum ![]()
This hybrid of the traditional tomato has been cultivated at least since the early 1800's, and most likely originated separately in Peru, northern Chile, and Egypt. Our modern varieties have been bred for sweetness, , size, shape, and sturdy skins. The first records of cherry tomatoes in the United States are from 1916, and the first recipes from the 1960's, when they gained immense popularity.
Cherry tomatoes are most often eaten raw in salads, on bruschetta, as garnish, or with dip as an appetizer. They are not often cooked or used in sauces, though Creole dishes like jambalaya and gumbo prove an exception! They are best eaten within a day or two of being ripe, and refrigerating is not recommended.
Tomatoes are low in sodium, cholesterol, and saturated fats. They are rich in vitamin E, thiamine, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, magnesium, phosphorus, copper. dietary fiber, vitamin A and C, vitamin K, potassium, and manganese. ![]()
| ![]()
| upcoming events |
| PRESCOTT FARMERS MARKET October 29: Live music from Traditional Blends Guest mixed media artists Emma Phipps and Kelly Bunnell plus: customer appreciation day & last day of the market! 7:30-noon Yavapai College
SUSTAINABLE FOOD PRESENTATIONS experiential series of events and lectures with Prescott College student Wren Myers. See attached flier for more info. - A Sense of Self Prescott College Chapel October 27, 5-7pm - A Sense of Place Highlands Center November 5, 10am-12pm - A Sense of Community Highlands Center November 12, 10am-12pm - A Sense of Responsibility Prescott College Chapel November 17, 5-7pm
|
| | | 29 October 2011 | | | |
when local just isn't enough by Annie Teegarden
I love supporting local farmers, I love knowing that my money is helping out a local farm stay in business. But I often ask myself, what about those other products that I love and can’t live without that cannot be sourced locally? Every morning I start my day with a cup of coffee, and my dinners are often flavored with spices from other countries. So, I started doing a little research on the “fair trade” and “organic" certifications. If I can’t know the farmer, then at least I can rely on specific agricultural and trade standards that benefit the farmer and the land.
The Fair Trade (FT) certification ensures that the farmer gets a fair price for their product, farm workers have a safe working environment and a decent wage, there is a direct trade between the farmers and merchant, some money gets reinvested in community development, and that the farms are environmentally friendly (non-GMO, few if any agrochemicals, and generally sustainable farming practices). Fair trade most often refers to coffee, chocolate, tea, herbs and spices, but can also apply to fruits and vegetables, grains, cotton, beans, oil seeds and wine. But, like most food related certifications, this one comes with its own set of controversies. While we pay upwards of $10 for a pound of free-trade coffee, the farmer gets paid maybe only $1.50 for that pound - but even then this is better than non-FT. Lucky for us, we have access here in Prescott through the farmers market and the CSA store, to excellent coffee that we know is grown well. Cafe de Dona Ella coffee is a step better: direct-trade. Manuel Santana and his family grow the coffee on their plantation in El Salvador, and he directly imports it and sells it through the Prescott and Flagstaff Farmers Markets, as well as the Prescott and Flagstaff CSA stores. The organic certification maintains that the farms do not use toxic chemicals (fertilizer, pesticides, antibiotics, GMO’s), the farm land has not been used with any of the above chemicals for a minimum of three years, that it must have sustainable fertility and other farming practices, all farm inputs must be natural, that sustainable soil practices are utilized, and that each farm is inspected yearly. I see the organic certification as a nice baseline when I am shopping. It tells me that I can count on certain standards when I can’t find a product grown locally. So, when local just is not an option for those must-have food items, I find that these certifications are helpful when navigating the supermarket. While there are arguments in favor and in opposition to both of these certifications, at the very least these standards tell us that people and the environment are being treated in an ethical manner. http://www.learnvest.com/living-frugally/when-is-it-worth-buying-organic/ http://transfairusa.org/resource-library/faq http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/nop | |
recipes… walla walla onion and cherry tomato bruschetta Adapted from thepurloinedrecipe.com - 20 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 1 medium Walla Walla onion, sliced thin
- 15 kalamata olives, pitted and finely chopped
- 2 T finely chopped fresh basil
- 1 T capers
- 1/2 C olive oil
- 2 t balsamic vinegar
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- freshly ground black pepper
- 8 slices bread, your choice (1/2" thick, 4" wide)
- 4 oz mascarpone cheese
Mix together tomatoes, onions, olives, basil, and capers in a small bowl. Whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic and black pepper. Pour over the tomato onion mixture and toss. Set aside.
Brush the bread with olive oil and grill over medium heat, turning once, until toasted, 2-3 minutes total. Divide the mascarpone evenly among bread slices, spreading it with a knife. Spoon the tomato onion mixture over the mascarpone, dividing evenly. Serve at room temperature.
creamy carrot soup with cherry tomato & corn salsa-
- 3 C grated carrot
- 1 T raw sesame tahini
- 2 T lemon juice
- 1/2 t paprika
- 1 t sea salt
- 20 cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 1 ear corn, kernels removed from cob
- 1 2-inch cucumber, small diced
- 2 T fresh coriander, minced
- 1 jalapeno chili pepper, minced (remove seeds if you prefer your salsa less spicy)
- 2 T lime juice
- 1/2 t sea salt
To make soup: Simply combine all the ingredients in a blender, adding about 3 cups water and blending until smooth and creamy.
To make salsa: Combine all the salsa ingredients and set aside to marinate for at least half an hour before serving.
Serve the soup garnished with a scoop of salsa.
Variations:- In place of tahini, you could add an avocado or 1 cup coconut milk to give a creamy consistency. You could also add 1/3 cup raw cashews.
- You could make the soup spicier by adding some Tabasco or some fresh or dried chili pepper. Fresh ginger or other spices could be added to suit your personal taste.
pasta with spiced leek, butternut squash, & cherry tomatoes
Adapted from cookitsimply.com - 1 lb leeks, cut into 3/4" slices
- 1 lb butternut squash, peeled, de-seeded and cut into 3/4" chunks
- 3 T curry paste
- 2 t olive or vegetable oil
- 1 lb cherry tomatoes
- 1 lb dried pasta of your choice
- 2 C white sauce (see below)
- 4 T chopped fresh coriander leaves
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil, add the leeks and cook for 2 minutes. Add the butternut squash and cook for another 2 minutes. Drain in a colander.
Mix the curry paste with the oil in a large bowl. Toss the leeks and butternut squash in the mixture to coat thoroughly.
Transfer the leeks and butternut squash to a non-stick baking tray and roast in the oven for 10 minutes until golden brown. Add the tomatoes and roast for an additional 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet and drain.
Put the sauce into a large saucepan and warm over a low heat. Add the leeks, butternut squash, tomatoes and coriander and stir in the warm pasta. Mix thoroughly and serve.
for the white sauce- 2 C milk
- 4 T cornflour
- 3 t mustard powder
- 5 small bay leaves
- 1 medium onion
- 1/4 C freshly grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
To make the sauce, put the milk into a small non-stick saucepan with the flour, mustard, onion and bay leaf. Whisk over a medium heat until thick. Remove from the heat, discard the onion and bay leaf and stir in the cheese. Set aside, stirring occasionally, to prevent a skin forming. |