Tuesday, Jan 11 Harvest Bag
all for $20
includes the following items:
Brussels Sprout ( see recipe idea below)
broccoli
fingerling potatoes (see below for cooking ideas)
baby spinach
fennel bulb ( see recipe below )
Delicata squash ( see below for recipe idea)
orange Mokum carrots
"Daisy" Mandarin oranges from Friend's Ranch in Ojai, pesticide free
Kiwis from Mallard Lake Ranch in Nipomo, pesticide free
VENDORS THIS TUESDAY
Little Red Hen bread
Oceano Craft scones and cookies
EASY TIPS FOR PERFECT ROASTED VEGETABLES
adapted from The Santa Monica Farmer's Cookbook by Amelia Saltsman
Roasting vegetables concentrates their flavors, develops and caramelizes natural sugars, and gives them that appetizing crisped look. Best of all, the same technique works for just about any vegetable you've got on hand, any time of the year. Follow these simple steps for great results.
Keep vegetables or vegetables pieces a uniform size for even cooking.
Toss cleaned, trimmed vegetables with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil, kosher or sea salt, and freshly ground pepper. For convenience, do this directly in the pan.
Always preheat the oven.
Roast dense vegetables, such as beets or potatoes, at 400 degrees, quick-cooking ones, such as asparagus or tomatoes, at 425 to 450 degrees.
Don't crowd the pan, or your vegetables will steam rather than brown. Large baking sheets and heatproof-glass dishes are ideal for roasting.
Roast vegetables uncovered in the upper third of the oven for better browning.
Halfway through the cooking time, remove the pan from the oven and give it a shake or use a spatula to loosen and turn the vegetables.
When the vegetables are browned and tender, season again with your favorite seasonings...salt, pepper, garlic powder.
If serving the vegetables at room temperature, allow them to cool before piling them onto a serving dish( so they won't steam themselves and get soft).
My favorite way to prepare the fingerling potatoes:
Thinly slice the potatoes lengthwise, arrange single layer on a cookie sheet ( not touching each other), brush on a little olive oil on both sides, salt and pepper to your taste, roast in oven at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes until crispy on the outsides.
Use the fennel bulb as you might use an onion...cut up the white bulb portion and add to a stir fry...it will give you a mildly, sweet licorice flavor. You can also use the white bulb portion to make a salad by finely shaving and adding to salad greens
Brussels Sprout.
An easy recipe:
Wash off the sprouts, cut them in half, coat with a little olive oil, garlic powder and salt and pepper, spread them out single layer on a cookie sheet ( don't crowd them ) and roast in your oven at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, turning once or twice until crispy on the outside. You can add a little Balsamic vinegar during the last 5 minutes of roasting them if desired. The other night, I tried a quick "pan-fry" method of cooking the sprouts...unfortunately, they came out rather bitter tasting, so I strongly recommend the slower oven roasting method mentioned above.
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The delicata squash is sweet and delicious and easy to cook. Slice the squash in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, season with a little olive oil, garlic and salt and pepper, place cut side down in a roasting pan, cook at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes until soft, you can eat the whole squash...skin and all.
Another way to cook the Delicata is to make "squash rings". Cut into 1/2 inch wide rings, scoop out the seeds from the center, brush on some olive oil and sprinkle on a little seasonings, spread out on a cookie sheet single layer, roast in the oven until the rings become brown and crispy...the kids will think they are onion rings!
