This week’s share brought the first butternut squash of the season. Just like that, nature is telling me we’re reaching the end of summer and the beginning of fall. Other items in Week 13’s share: cabbage, amaranth, bok choy, scallions, carrots, red pepper, rainbow chard, summer squash, corn, nectarines, a huge mama beet and a chile pepper. On the menu: Roasted butternut squash with cinnamon, Bulgar Salad with tomatoes, shredded carrots and cranberries, Amaranth with bread crumbs and garlic, my Super College Quinoa salad, Veggie Stir fry and nectarines every day for breakfast.
Monthly Archive for September, 2010
Last weekend I was at the Union Square Greenmarket for another chef demo. The weather was gorgeous! This time we did things a little differently. I was stationed outside of Stokes Farm and made a wonderful Zucchini & Thai Basil dish with the veggies donated by fifth-generation Farmer Ron Binaghi (that’s him in the back with the blue shirt & hat). He was so cool to work with! He answered customer’s questions and even offered marital advice to anyone who needed it, lol. There were lots of kids who wanted to sample the zucchini– who said kids don’t like vegetables? Special thanks to Tara for putting this together!
Week 12 brought us blackberries again! I was excited because I was away visiting family the first time they came around and haven’t seen them since. I know I’m going to sound extra, but those blackberries were PERFECT. In addition to blackberries we also received: corn, peaches, nectarines, mixed greens, scallions, kale, cilantro, squash, tomatoes, chile pepper, potatoes, cucumber, red bell pepper, un tomatillo, and carrots. Phew! On the menu: Zucchini bread, Un-tuna carrot salad, Homefries with shallots and garlic, Mixed greens with dijon dressing, Mixed Green salad with tomatoes, red pepper and veggie burger and Pan-fried corn with Skimkim’s kimchee butter.
We all like ways to save money while on our road to good health, no? One great way to do this is to hit the bulk foods section of your local store. When I discovered the bulk section at my local health & grocery food stores, I discovered you can buy nuts, grains, beans, granola, dried fruit and more at really reasonable prices. I think I used to walk past it because it’s not really a section with all the bells and whistles. You are not paying for fancy packaging and if you bring your own bags/containers, it’s an eco-friendly choice as well. For those with a Whole Foods in your area, check out the bulk section for a really great (and nicely designed) booklet that shows you how to buy and cook bulk foods. It’s the first time I ever heard of a flageolet!
You’re in college, you’re up late studying, you’re starving, and your options are what? Wings and pizza? It doesn’t have to be! This week I had the honor of working with the wonderful students of the Latin American Student Organization (L.A.S.O.) at Adelphi University. They invited me to host a Healthy Latino Cooking talk and demo. We had some real talk about health in our communities and then prepared my College Quinoa and Black Beans and..they loved it! Pictured here is yours truly (in my fly L.A.S.O. tee) with the executive crew. Special shout out to Hilda Perez for all her hard work in organizing the event!
Week 11 brought another wonderful share of peaches and raspberries. I keep meaning to make something adventurous with the fruit, but end up just eating them all as is. Ho well! Also in this week’s share: green pepper, swiss chard, mixed greens, savoy, cucumber, carrots, beets, corn, chile pepper, summer squash. Not pictured: kale. She was camera-shy this week. On the menu: Pan-fried corn with chile, Shredded beet and carrot salad (yum), green chutney, Swiss chard al ajillo, Mixed Greens salad, Carrot-beet-cucumber juice, Curried Squash Soup with savory and Raw marinated kale (never get tired of this, ever). Does anyone out there cook with savory? If so, what do you do with it? This was my first meeting with the herb.
This summer a group from my CSA got together for a day of farmwork up at Conuco Farm in New Paltz, NY. Hector Tejada is one of our CSA farmers and needed some help tending his organic farm. Together, we staked rows of tomatoes to keep them upright and growing nicely. A few others worked the pea crops. It’s amazing how disconnected we can live from our food, considering we have such an intimate relationship with it. Also, volunteering is good for the soul and a great way to meet like-minded (yet different) people. What can you do to be of service to your community? Share your time and/or skillset!
The NuVal Nutritional Scoring System was designed to help you, the shopper, choose nutrient-dense foods while food shopping. At the very least, you become aware of what you are putting in your cart, which is a step in the right direction. Nu-Val rates items from 1-100, with 100 being a nutritionally whole food (fresh brocolli florets get a score of 100). I like that this system covers all kinds of food- fresh, frozen, whole and processed-this is the reality of what people buy on a regular basis. And while it may help people make better choices, it’s still important to note that fresh, whole and unpnrocessed foods are what’s best for you. You don’t need a rating score for that! It’s going to be interesting to see how this pans out- would you change the bread you normally buy if you saw there was another one with a higher nutritional score? Or is price still the #1 concern for consumers? How will food manufacturers respond if their product gets a crappy score? Stay tuned and let me know what you think!
Week 10 brought so many raspberries that I began to freeze them for future use. Also in this week’s share: mixed greens, curly kale, russian kale, corn, green pepper, chili pepper, tomatoes (soo good), beet, carrots, summer squash, cucumbers and blackberries. On the menu: Beet-iful Cabbage Salad, Israeli Cous-Cous w/Veggies, Mixed Greens + Tomato Salad, Carrot Tuna, Raspberrie Smoothies, Beet-Cucumber-Carrot-Apple Juice, Marinated Raw Kale Salad and Grilled Corn with Skimkim Kimchee Butter!