Here we are at week 15 - only 5 weeks to go and I'm already thinking ahead to next season! This week you'll notice I added a couple of purchases to my pic: (1) Wade's White Cornmeal and (2) Organic fresh yogurt. I was raised on cornbread made from white stone ground cornmeal, not the yellow mix that everyone seems to classify as "real" cornbread. I think the texture and flavor are much more subtle and gives you a lighter cornbread, so I hope you try it as an alternative bread side to your dinners.
Since we received lots of winter squash we decided to make it the focal point of one of our dinners this week. Acorn Squash is one of my personal favorites so we roasted it and even added a bit of leftover chicken, then cornbread complimented last nights dinner of White Chicken Chili. Hmmm, thinking the yogurt is going to appear in a dessert this weekend....stay tuned!
I hope you have an opportunity to support local growers and organic food merchants in your area. If not readily available to you, then locate the organic aisle in your grocery store to find some really special items that you can use in everyday cooking.
Roasted Acorn Squash
INGREDIENTS:
2 Acorn Squash
4 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
4 Tablespoons butter
olive oil
Kosher salt
HOW TO:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Slice off a small portion of the top and bottom of your squash and slice in half...the halves will now sit stable on your sheetpan. Remove all the seeds and membranes. Pour a bit of olive oil in your hands and then rub the squash halves all over. Place on sheetpan and put 1 Tablespoon of butter and 1 Tablespoon of dark brown sugar in each squash. Sprinkle the top rim with a bit of Kosher salt.
Bake for 1 hour then test with a sharp paring knife for doneness. You do not want the squash to collapse, but you do want all the meat to be tender. Serve immediately as a side or a main dish.
(we just fork the sides into the melted butter/brown sugar and mix inside the baked shell)
Options: add precooked shredded chicken when the squash is done to add your protein directly to the dish. This will work with other types of squash as well...however you may want to eliminate the brown sugar for a more savory dish. Try adding your favorite herbs as the squash is roasting.
White Cornmeal Cornbread
INGREDIENTS:
1 Cup white cornmeal
1 Cup flour
1/4 to 1/3 Cup sugar (depending on how sweet you like your cornbread)
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 Cup Buttermilk (if you don't have any handy just add 1 Tablespoon vinegar to the milk)
1/3 Cup vegetable oil
1 Egg
HOW TO:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place a cast iron 10" pan in the oven during preheating.
Measure and mix together all the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another (make sure you whisk them well)
Blend with a spoon or spatula wet and dry together.
Remove the cast iron pan, add about 3 Tablespoons of vegetable oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan well. Add your cornbread mix and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from oven and spread 1 Tablespoon butter over the top while the bread is hot. Allow cornbread to cool for 5-10 min in the pan and then remove to slice.
OPTIONS:
Add 1/2 cup shredded cheddar (or any of your favorites) to the cornbread mix before baking.
Top the mix with 1/4 Cup shredded cheese before bakeing.
Add finely chopped jalapeno pepper to the mix before baking.
Add chopped cilantro to the mix before baking.
Top your warm sliced cornbread with honey or molasses.
As always....use your imagination!!
Enjoy,
Cheryl
Stoneybrook Farm - 2011
Stoneybrook Farm
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Cookie Time...
Ok, this post has absolutely nothing to do with farm fresh ingredients! We made these cookies over the weekend and it didn't take them long to disappear....give them a try!!
I should have caught a pic of them right out of the oven....next time!
Chewy Oatmeal/Chocolate Chip/Cranraisin Cookies
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup CRANRAISINS
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
HOW TO:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Lightly spray cookie sheets with PAM.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth.
Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla.
Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended.
Mix in the quick oats, chocolate chips and cranraisins.
Drop by heaping spoonfuls (I use a 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop) onto baking sheets (leave room to spread during cooking – I usually only put 8 per sheet).
Bake for 12-15 minutes in the preheated oven.
Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
These make great ice cream sandwiches!! Just take a good scoop of your favorite ice cream and flatten it out a bit put between 2 cookies and voila!! You can make ahead and re-freeze in cookie sandwich form for later.
Enjoy!
Cheryl
I should have caught a pic of them right out of the oven....next time!
Chewy Oatmeal/Chocolate Chip/Cranraisin Cookies
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup CRANRAISINS
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
HOW TO:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Lightly spray cookie sheets with PAM.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth.
Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla.
Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended.
Mix in the quick oats, chocolate chips and cranraisins.
Drop by heaping spoonfuls (I use a 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop) onto baking sheets (leave room to spread during cooking – I usually only put 8 per sheet).
Bake for 12-15 minutes in the preheated oven.
Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
These make great ice cream sandwiches!! Just take a good scoop of your favorite ice cream and flatten it out a bit put between 2 cookies and voila!! You can make ahead and re-freeze in cookie sandwich form for later.
Enjoy!
Cheryl
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Fresh Pressed Cider and Winter Squash
Welcome to week 14! The weather is so amazing and we really enjoyed the ride this morning to pick up our market basket of goodies from Stoneybrook Farm. Today's items included winter squash, tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini, eggplant, okra, basil, arugula and mesclun greens and a quart of fresh pressed apple cider!
John was so excited and proud of what they had just harvested for all of us who join in this CSA when we chatted with him today. In fact he said most of what they had provided us today were only about ½ hour out of the field!! A quick look-up in a dictionary for the word ‘mesclun’ and a general description will be read: a salad made of greens and herbs. In fact reference to these greens in today's market really refer to baby lettuces and fresh herbs grown together and harvested early. While many of the greens in the mesclun mix can be grilled or sautéed and served warm when grown larger, the key to mesclun mixes are that they are grown and cut as small leaf lettuces making them more tender and less bitter than their full grown counterparts.
Dinner one night this week will certainly include a great salad featuring the fresh greens accompanied by a hearty soup....and of course I have a favorite recipe to share! This recipe will take advantage of the winter squash as well as incorporating the fresh pressed cider.
Cheryl's Butternut Squash Soup
INGREDIENTS:
1 large Vidalia or Yellow Onion, chopped
2 packages of pre-peeled butternut squash, usually comes in cut pieces
1 granny smith apple peeled, seeded and chopped
2 cups white wine
1 cup apple cider
4 cups chicken broth
8 fresh sage leaves
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoons brown sugar (you can use the Splenda Brown sugar if you like)
salt and pepper to taste
HOW TO:
Use a soup pot for the entire dish...
On med-hi heat melt 1 tablespoon butter in about 3 tablespoons of olive oil
Add onions and saute till tender
Add squash and apple, stir and cook for a couple minutes
Add white wine and cook for a couple minutes
Add cider, chicken broth, sage, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar
Simmer till the squash and apple fall apart
Remove sage and throw it away
Using a blender run the contents of the soup pot till all of it is smooth and then return to the soup pot.
Add about 1 Tablespoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper, simmer a couple min.
Taste...you might need more salt or pepper. If you think its too thick, add more chicken broth (you can't add too much)
OPTIONS:
You can kick this up a little – add ¼ Teaspoon Cayenne, top with a dollop of crème fraiche, garnish with a crispy sage leaf, serve in a hollowed out mini pumpkin or a great mini boule....use your imagination!
ENJOY!
Cheryl
John was so excited and proud of what they had just harvested for all of us who join in this CSA when we chatted with him today. In fact he said most of what they had provided us today were only about ½ hour out of the field!! A quick look-up in a dictionary for the word ‘mesclun’ and a general description will be read: a salad made of greens and herbs. In fact reference to these greens in today's market really refer to baby lettuces and fresh herbs grown together and harvested early. While many of the greens in the mesclun mix can be grilled or sautéed and served warm when grown larger, the key to mesclun mixes are that they are grown and cut as small leaf lettuces making them more tender and less bitter than their full grown counterparts.
Dinner one night this week will certainly include a great salad featuring the fresh greens accompanied by a hearty soup....and of course I have a favorite recipe to share! This recipe will take advantage of the winter squash as well as incorporating the fresh pressed cider.
Cheryl's Butternut Squash Soup
INGREDIENTS:
1 large Vidalia or Yellow Onion, chopped
2 packages of pre-peeled butternut squash, usually comes in cut pieces
1 granny smith apple peeled, seeded and chopped
2 cups white wine
1 cup apple cider
4 cups chicken broth
8 fresh sage leaves
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoons brown sugar (you can use the Splenda Brown sugar if you like)
salt and pepper to taste
HOW TO:
Use a soup pot for the entire dish...
On med-hi heat melt 1 tablespoon butter in about 3 tablespoons of olive oil
Add onions and saute till tender
Add squash and apple, stir and cook for a couple minutes
Add white wine and cook for a couple minutes
Add cider, chicken broth, sage, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar
Simmer till the squash and apple fall apart
Remove sage and throw it away
Using a blender run the contents of the soup pot till all of it is smooth and then return to the soup pot.
Add about 1 Tablespoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper, simmer a couple min.
Taste...you might need more salt or pepper. If you think its too thick, add more chicken broth (you can't add too much)
OPTIONS:
You can kick this up a little – add ¼ Teaspoon Cayenne, top with a dollop of crème fraiche, garnish with a crispy sage leaf, serve in a hollowed out mini pumpkin or a great mini boule....use your imagination!
ENJOY!
Cheryl
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Summer turns to Fall - Squash Baby!!
Coming back from vacation is never easy, it was especially hard leaving a great cruise full of live music and a stop at Grand Cayman Island. We got to swim in the most beautiful turquoise water and even kissed a stingray!! While on Grand Cayman we had a delicious lunch made right on the beach. The plate consisted of corn on the cob, beans and rice, fresh pan seared red snapper and a wicked good butternut squash sauce. Such spicy, sweet and tender flavor profiles...needless to say nothing was left behind.
This week's market basket had the feel of fall with crisp juicy apples, acorn and butternut squash and the largest patty-pan squash I've ever seen! Making it through the week with the lingering memories of our time in the Caribbean had us shopping for fresh fish, and you guessed it – we HAD to try to replicate that butternut squash sauce. What transpired was acceptable, but somehow without our toes in the water or our butts in the sand it wasn't exactly the same!
Butternut Squash Sauce
INGREDIENTS:
1 small butternut squash, chopped into small pieces
1 small onion chopped
Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper
Cayenne
Brown Sugar
Thyme
Chicken Stock
HOW TO:
Use a large saute pan add about 3 Tablespoons of Olive oil and the onion and chopped butternut squash. Sprinkle with approx 1 Teaspoon salt and ½ Teaspoon pepper. Allow squash to become tender by cooking over med heat, approx 10 min. Add ½ cup chicken broth, ¼ Teaspoon cayenne and 1 Tablespoon brown sugar along with the Thyme (1/2 Teaspoon).
The squash will break down and become a chunky style sauce. If its too thick, add a bit more broth. Taste to make sure the seasonings are where you want them (does it need more salt, is there enough heat from the cayenne) and adjust to your likes.
Serve with fish or pork. We did a side of cranberry salsa with our sea bass this week and the sweet/tart combo was wonderful!
Cranberry Salsa
1 12 oz bag of fresh cranberries (you can use frozen if you can't find fresh!)
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup lime juice
2 garlic cloves minced
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, minced
1 jalapeno pepper finely chopped
3 scallions, finely chopped
Use food processor to chop up cranberries. Add all ingredients together and refrigerate for a couple hours, or overnight. Serve with tortilla chips, or use as a condiment to fish, pork or chicken dishes.
ENJOY!
Cheryl
This week's market basket had the feel of fall with crisp juicy apples, acorn and butternut squash and the largest patty-pan squash I've ever seen! Making it through the week with the lingering memories of our time in the Caribbean had us shopping for fresh fish, and you guessed it – we HAD to try to replicate that butternut squash sauce. What transpired was acceptable, but somehow without our toes in the water or our butts in the sand it wasn't exactly the same!
Butternut Squash Sauce
INGREDIENTS:
1 small butternut squash, chopped into small pieces
1 small onion chopped
Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper
Cayenne
Brown Sugar
Thyme
Chicken Stock
HOW TO:
Use a large saute pan add about 3 Tablespoons of Olive oil and the onion and chopped butternut squash. Sprinkle with approx 1 Teaspoon salt and ½ Teaspoon pepper. Allow squash to become tender by cooking over med heat, approx 10 min. Add ½ cup chicken broth, ¼ Teaspoon cayenne and 1 Tablespoon brown sugar along with the Thyme (1/2 Teaspoon).
The squash will break down and become a chunky style sauce. If its too thick, add a bit more broth. Taste to make sure the seasonings are where you want them (does it need more salt, is there enough heat from the cayenne) and adjust to your likes.
Serve with fish or pork. We did a side of cranberry salsa with our sea bass this week and the sweet/tart combo was wonderful!
Cranberry Salsa
1 12 oz bag of fresh cranberries (you can use frozen if you can't find fresh!)
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup lime juice
2 garlic cloves minced
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, minced
1 jalapeno pepper finely chopped
3 scallions, finely chopped
Use food processor to chop up cranberries. Add all ingredients together and refrigerate for a couple hours, or overnight. Serve with tortilla chips, or use as a condiment to fish, pork or chicken dishes.
ENJOY!
Cheryl
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Vacation week....
Hello All
We are on vacation and will not be posting any recipes this week....but I did capture a photo of our market basket ingredients to share!! A wonderful new addition to the items this week were shallots, red and white. Can't wait to make something yummy with them when we get back.
I would like to ask any of those reading this week to feel free to share pics and recipes they've been making with all the fresh fruits/vegetables during the summer looking forward to hearing from all of you!!
Have a great Labor Day weekend!
Cheryl
We are on vacation and will not be posting any recipes this week....but I did capture a photo of our market basket ingredients to share!! A wonderful new addition to the items this week were shallots, red and white. Can't wait to make something yummy with them when we get back.
I would like to ask any of those reading this week to feel free to share pics and recipes they've been making with all the fresh fruits/vegetables during the summer looking forward to hearing from all of you!!
Have a great Labor Day weekend!
Cheryl
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