BOK CHOY BABY.

Not just for stir fry anymore. But you can still make stir fry.

Moo Goo Gai Pan
(From Dinner at the Zoo)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced

• 1 large egg white

• 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon of cornstarch divided use

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil divided use

• 2 teaspoons minced garlic

• 1 teaspoon minced ginger

• 2 cups of sliced mushrooms

• 1 cup of snow peas

• 2-3 baby bok choys, sliced

• 1/2 cup of thinly sliced carrots

• 1 8-ounce can of sliced water chestnuts drained

• 1 8-ounce can of sliced bamboo shoots drained

• 3/4 cup chicken stock

• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

• 1 tablespoon soy sauce

• 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil

• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl whisk together egg white and 1T cornstarch. Add chicken slices and toss to coat. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then strain and discard liquid.

2. In a large pan, heat 1 tsp oil over medium high heat. Add the carrots and 1 T water and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the mushrooms and cook for 3-4 minutes until browned and tender. Add the snow peas and bok choy and cook 1-2 minutes until tender. Stir in the water chestnuts and bamboo shoots. Season the vegetables to taste with salt and pepper and remove the vegetables from the pan onto plate and cover with foil. 

3. Wipe out pan with paper towel, then add 2 tsp oil to the pan and heat over medium high heat. Add chicken and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through, 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook for 30 seconds more.

4. In a small bowl whisk together the chicken stock, sugar, soy sauce and sesame oil. Whisk in 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon of cornstarch. Add the vegetables back to the pan and heat through, approximately 1 minute. Pour in the sauce and turn the high to heat. Bring the sauce to a boil and boil for approximately 1 minute or until sauce has just started to thicken, stirring occasionally.

5. Serve immediately, over rice if desired.

It’s a SQUASH CARNIVAL.

Carnival Squash in Your Box = Time to Get Some Soup On!
 

Delicata and Carnival Squash Soup 
(thecoppertable.com)
 

Ingredients:

• 6 Slices Bacon, Chopped

• 1/2 Cup Onion, Chopped

• 2 tsp Salt

• 4 Cups Delicata and Carnival Squash, Roasted

• 4 Cups Chicken Stock

• 1 1/2 tsp Ground Dried Sage

• 3/4 tsp Aleppo Chili Powder

• 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream

Instructions:

1. In a large stockpot on medium high heat, cook 6 slices of chopped bacon until fat is rendered and bacon is crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the bacon and drain off all but 1 tbsp of drippings.  

2. Add 1/2 cup of chopped onion to the pot and cook for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add salt and 4 cups roasted squash, and stir for about 3 minutes.  

3. Then, add 4 cups chicken stock, 1 1/2 tsp dried sage, and 3/4 tsp aleppo and bring to a simmer, and cook for about 10 minutes.  

4.  Add heavy cream and puree with stick blender, or pour soup into blender in batches to puree. Serve in bowls and top with cooked chopped bacon.  

Notes:

For the squash: cut one large Delicata and one large Carnival squash in half lengthwise, drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper, and place cut side up on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to one hour in a 425 degree oven. This part can be done in advance, making this an easy dish to throw together quickly.

GOLDEN.

Click the pic to take home pears that are the color of fall.

Pear Streusel Cake
from thebusybaker.ca

INGREDIENTS FOR THE CAKE:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

• 3/4 cup white sugar

• 2 eggs, at room temperature

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 cup milk, at room temperature

• 1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature (full fat is best)

• 2 cups all purpose flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1 tbsp unsalted butter for greasing the cake pan

• 3-4 fresh pears, peeled and thinly sliced (or 850 ml large can of canned pears)

FOR THE STREUSEL TOPPING:

• 2/3 cup all purpose flour

• 2/3 cup white sugar

• 4 tbsp melted butter

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Pear Salad with Balsamic and Walnuts
from LoveandLemons.com

Ingredients:

• 4 cups mixed salad greens

• 2 ripe pears, sliced

• 1 fennel bulb, sliced paper thin

• Lemon wedge

• 2 tablespoons dried cranberries

• 1 tablespoon chopped pecans

• 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts

• 1 tablespoon chopped hazelnuts, or more pecans or walnuts

• ⅓ cup shaved pecorino

• Balsamic Vinaigrette, for drizzling

• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

SOME LIKE IT HOT.

(Spicy Shishito Pepper.)

SOME LIKE IT NOT.

(Sweet Bull's Horn Pepper.)

Make life easier...it's time to stock your freezer! 

GARLIC POWER.

This Garlic Parmesan Roasted Broccoli recipe is a simple and flavorful way to elevate this nutritious vegetable. It's perfect as a side for any meal and is sure to become a favorite in your household. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 pound broccoli florets
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 425°F. In a large mixing bowl, toss the broccoli florets with olive oil and minced garlic until they are well coated. Spread the broccoli evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Season the broccoli with salt and pepper to taste. Roast the broccoli in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes or until the edges are slightly crispy and browned. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and immediately sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese over the roasted broccoli. Toss the broccoli lightly to ensure the cheese is distributed evenly.

Serve hot as a delicious and healthy side dish! 

Farm. Us. You.

Tomato Pepper Sauce

Fastest way to utilize tomatoes and peppers in a fun "all purpose" sauce:

1. Blend 4-5 large cored tomatoes (with skin if good blender, and can even throw in cherry tomatoes!), 4-5 small to medium cored peppers of any kind, a can of coconut milk, 1 cup chicken broth, 1T sugar or honey, 2 peeled garlic cloves or 1T minced garlic, 1T onion powder, 1 tsp salt, and a little chili powder.
2. Sauté some diced onions and peppers and 2 lbs of ground chicken Italian sausage or cut links, then pour the blended sauce over meat and heat all together in the pan.
3. Serve with rice or pasta! Tried this last night, and everyone (including some kids I know) loved it.

These are called Ground Cherries, or "Choke Cherries".  They have a husk that you need to remove and eat the little fruit inside.

I describe them as starting like a pineapple, and finishing with a vanilla flavor.  

The coolest way I have ever eaten them is with the husk peeled back but the fruit was still attached.  They were then dunked into chocolate so that you would grab the husk and pull the chocolate-covered fruit out...I think I ate the whole carton this way.

Gorgeous bounty galore this week! As the fair announcer says before Demolition Derby, let's get ready to rumble! We have a lot of fun things developing at YB right now.

• fall tour poster in the works

• new employee's joining the team (think better social media)

• new partnerships developing (think chefs and foragers)

• new products being procured 

• events being planned (think supper clubs)

Time to start over.

Week #1 of 2023

This is our 10th YEAR!!  Are you freaking kidding me?!?

I've got good news for you...WE BUILT A FOODSHED
 

Week #52

OJ's people...get your C's up!!

For the past couple of winters, we have fought off scurvy here in Ohio with some help from our friends down in Florida.

Thorpes Organic Farm has THEE BEST OJ you have ever tasted...this isn't an opinion...it's a FACT.

Their kids have a farm in New York and when they send shipments of produce and juice up north, we drive our van over, pull a roadside heist, and take what we can from them...just like true pirates.  
Fly The Colors