Rolling organic produce idea thread

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I get organic produce shipped to me these days. Here, I post pictures of it, and people suggest what I should do with it all.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Monday, 13 March 2006 21:22 (nineteen years ago)

(Obv others can post things as well.)

Here's today's shipment:

http://www.flim.com/artisan/produce.jpg

A nice box. Gala apples, honey tangerines, anjou pears, a grapefruit. Rainbow chard, carrots, an onion, some lettuce, snow peas, a tomato, some red potatoes, celery.

This week's doesn't really pose any huge challenges. The only thing I haven't played with before are the snow peas. Still, all ideas are appreciated.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Monday, 13 March 2006 21:25 (nineteen years ago)

Are snow peas like mange-tout? They go really well in green curries with squash. Oh you didn't get any squash. But your carrots look beautiful!

― Archel (Archel), Tuesday, 14 March 2006 17:23 (nineteen years ago)

Nice box!

Can I ask how much it was? I'm just being nosy...

Make apple crisps with a couple of the apples. Delicious and nutricious!
Is rainbow chard like swiss chard? That goes great with anything. Cooks the stalks and the leaves separately, In butter!
I think snow peas ARE mangetout aren't they? So, of course they are excellent for stir fry, but you probably knew that...

― Ned T.Rifle (nedtrifle), Tuesday, 14 March 2006 17:58 (nineteen years ago)

$23, delivered to my door.

Snow peas are, according to wiki, a type of mangetout, in that yes you do eat the whole pod. I am mostly familiar with them from stir-fry.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Tuesday, 14 March 2006 18:26 (nineteen years ago)

Those carrots do look wonderful, roast them and then toss them with fresh mint.

Upside down pear cake!

― Matt (Matt), Tuesday, 14 March 2006 20:08 (nineteen years ago)

Snow peas are good raw. Also, lightly steamed and put in a salad.

My favorite way to cook chard is to roughly chop it and saute with lots of garlic in olive oil.

Candy the grapefruit peel! Remove the pith, slice it into strips and simmer in a heavy sugar syrup (1 c. sugar to 1 c. water) for 45 min - 1 hour. Remove from syrup and let dry.

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 15 March 2006 16:03 (nineteen years ago)

Ah, I should have done that! The grapefruit was eaten almost immediately, since I get absurdly excited about them. I always forget I like them until one is there waiting for me to eat it.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Wednesday, 15 March 2006 17:15 (nineteen years ago)

Yeah, I made loads of candied citrus peel a couple of xmases ago -- my recipe involved simmering then cooling the peel several times to get the worst bitterness out. (It definitely didn't get all.)

Preferred snow peas method: steamed for 0:60, dab of butter, squeeze of lemon, pinch of salt.

― pixel farmer in DC (Rock Hardy), Wednesday, 15 March 2006 22:22 (nineteen years ago)

http://static.flickr.com/39/118981477_2ac8614775.jpg

― Casuistry (Chris P), Monday, 27 March 2006 20:55 (nineteen years ago)

Apples, pears, minneolas, bananas, potatoes, onions, carrots, kale, a mango, an avocado, sunburst squash (yay!), lettuce, a green pepper, and, most intimidatingly, some rather insect-looking sunchokes. Sunchokes? I have never had them, any ideas?

Also: My god, I cannot seem to wash the lettuce enough to get it non-gritty. What am I doing wrong?

― Casuistry (Chris P), Monday, 27 March 2006 20:58 (nineteen years ago)

My experience with mustard greens is that washing in salted water gets the grit out. But I've always cooked them immediately after that, and I don't know if lettuce would keep long after washing in salted water.

― pixel farmer (Rock Hardy), Monday, 27 March 2006 21:04 (nineteen years ago)

You might try the sunchokes simply scrubbed and baked, like a potato (though they cook faster). They taste a bit like artichoke hearts. You can eat them raw too, like jicama (slightly sweet and crunchy). They get sweeter if you store them in the fridge. Basically, pretty much anything cooked prep you can do with a parsnip or turnip, you can do with these.

― Jaq (Jaq), Monday, 27 March 2006 21:15 (nineteen years ago)

Hrm. This: pretty much anything cooked prep you can do with means: any way you could cook.

― Jaq (Jaq), Monday, 27 March 2006 22:05 (nineteen years ago)

Avocado and mango to be blitzed with chilli to make salsa for fish oh yes.

― Matt (Matt), Monday, 27 March 2006 22:40 (nineteen years ago)

Well, no, that's not going to happen. Although avocado + mango salsa, maybe.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Monday, 27 March 2006 23:08 (nineteen years ago)

I made kale soup. It was pretty nice.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Monday, 27 March 2006 23:08 (nineteen years ago)

If you eat the sunchokes raw, do you eat the skin, or do you peel them? You peel them, right?

― Casuistry (Chris P), Tuesday, 28 March 2006 04:12 (nineteen years ago)

Peel them.

― Jaq (Jaq), Tuesday, 28 March 2006 04:30 (nineteen years ago)

Though, I don't think the skin would hurt you any, just be unpleasant.

― Jaq (Jaq), Tuesday, 28 March 2006 04:31 (nineteen years ago)

Ack - green peppers - that's why I stopped getting organic veg delivered.
Are sunchokes what we in the UK call Jerusalem artichokes? If so they make a very good soup if simmered in chicken stock (w/onion, garlic etc) & then blended.

― bham, Thursday, 30 March 2006 10:21 (nineteen years ago)

i got organic "carnival" cauliflower. it's a pale orange, and a bit mellower and sweeter than the regular white. aside from steaming it with butter, salt and pepper (which is actually quite tasty), what can i do? bear in mind that i don't really like cauliflower cheese or cauliflower soup.

― lauren (laurenp), Thursday, 30 March 2006 12:42 (nineteen years ago)

I can barely compute cauliflower without cheese! It sounds lovely as it is though - maybe try it raw dipped in vinaigrette? Or you could make aloo gobi.

― Archel (Archel), Thursday, 30 March 2006 14:12 (nineteen years ago)

Steamed cauliflower with a lemony hollandaise is nice. Does the orange color deepen when it's cooked? You could also scallop it by baking in a mild white sauce seasoned with salt, pepper, and a shake of nutmeg.

― Jaq (Jaq), Thursday, 30 March 2006 14:25 (nineteen years ago)

Ack - green peppers

I'm with you on this, bham. Can't stand them cooked, can't eat them raw.

Sunchoke is the US marketing name for Jerusalem artichoke.

― Jaq (Jaq), Thursday, 30 March 2006 14:30 (nineteen years ago)

the orange color goes a bit more yellowish after cooking. i'd recommend trying one if you come across it. if nothing else, it perks up the look of the meal and it doesn't release the dreaded cauliflower stink when you boil it.

― lauren (laurenp), Thursday, 30 March 2006 14:50 (nineteen years ago)

and green peppers - meh. nigella lawson gave out about them in an interview i read with her quite a while ago: "i don't get it. they're unripe. they make you ill!". i concur.

― lauren (laurenp), Thursday, 30 March 2006 14:51 (nineteen years ago)

I sort of like green peppers, especially on pizza.

― Archel (Archel), Thursday, 30 March 2006 15:41 (nineteen years ago)

I like them. Especially in crudites.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Thursday, 30 March 2006 16:40 (nineteen years ago)

I had the sunchokes raw with lime and chili powder. They were like jicama, a bit, but sadly I'm not that into jicama. I added a few of the leftovers to the soup stock that I made.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Thursday, 30 March 2006 19:49 (nineteen years ago)

dude, you know about their... erm.... gaseous properties right? ;)

― Porkpie (porkpie), Thursday, 30 March 2006 20:25 (nineteen years ago)

Sunchokes or peppers?

Either way it doesn't really matter. I don't let it stop me with cabbage. Also, my cat doesn't seem to mind.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Thursday, 30 March 2006 20:49 (nineteen years ago)

the sunchokes, well renowned for making you fart like a bastard

― Porkpie (porkpie), Thursday, 30 March 2006 21:01 (nineteen years ago)

six months pass...

last time we got cauliflower, i picked the tahini cauliflower recipe here:

http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=10931.0

turned out too salty, but seemed promising, so maybe we'll buy the low sodium tamari sauce and try it again.

i have a large pale winter squash that i have no idea what to do with--haven't had time to contemplate it much, but thankfully mark bittman says that winter squash can keep for a month. any suggestions?

― Juulia (julesbdules), Tuesday, 17 October 2006 15:51 (nineteen years ago)

I always end up just making risotto. Squashes are just one of those things I'm no use with.

― Matt (Matt), Tuesday, 17 October 2006 17:06 (nineteen years ago)

I roasted some cubes of butternut squash the other week, then had them the next day at work in a pitta bread - mixed in with a shredded poached chicken breast and dressed with a mixture of creme fraiche and adobo chiles - bloody marvellous

― Porkpie (porkpie), Tuesday, 17 October 2006 18:58 (nineteen years ago)

That sounds awfully good. I dunno, I think I always have trouble dealing with the texture. I like them, it's just a blind spot I have.

― Matt (Matt), Tuesday, 17 October 2006 20:09 (nineteen years ago)

We are being challenged by a cauliflower and a cabbage in our box this week (I'm not sure what kind of cabbage is it - sort of pale and quite pointy?)

I would quite happily smother the cauli in cheese sauce and eat it just like that, but M requires something more inspiring I think. Any ideas? (I don't much like tahini.)

― Archel (Archel), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 13:31 (nineteen years ago)

Blanche it and finish it off by frying with lardons. Needs to be cut quite small. Cauli also makes a great base for a simple curry, goes really well with mustard seeds. (actually, you could add mustard seeds to the cauli/lardon mix)

Cut the cabbage in half and de-core. Blanch and roast with an egg broken into the cavity left when you remove the core. Top with a nutty cheese (like a Gruyere, perhaps) and flash under the grill.

― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 13:45 (nineteen years ago)

Pale and pointy = sweetheart cabbage. I wuv them, but mostly just boiled/steamed and slathered in butter and as an accompaniment to stews/casseroles and new potatoes.

― ailsa (ailsa), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 14:14 (nineteen years ago)

I must say the sweetheart cabbage looks as nice as its name and keeping it simple like you say ailsa sounds quite appealing. Although intrigued by egg in cavity...

― Archel (Archel), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 14:30 (nineteen years ago)

Don't let me influence you, I've never tried it. :-/

― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 15:32 (nineteen years ago)

http://www.fabfoodpix.com/images/preview/pF001408.jpg

― ailsa (ailsa), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 16:03 (nineteen years ago)

Intruiging!

― Casuistry (Chris P), Wednesday, 18 October 2006 19:18 (nineteen years ago)

four weeks pass...

Our first box of produce gets delivered on Tuesday! There could be great leafy wonderfulness for Thanksgiving.

― Jaq (Jaq), Friday, 17 November 2006 03:53 (nineteen years ago)

I get my next shipment next Tuesday -- I've been getting a lot brussel sprouts and potatoes lately. It should work out pretty well for Thanksgiving though.

― Beth S. (Ex Leon), Saturday, 18 November 2006 16:25 (nineteen years ago)

The folks I'm buying from put a list on their site of what to expect!! Yay brussel sprouts! They are so delicious roasted.

― Jaq (Jaq), Saturday, 18 November 2006 16:51 (nineteen years ago)

Also - granny smith apples + cranberries = wonderful combo for fruit crisp.

― Jaq (Jaq), Saturday, 18 November 2006 16:53 (nineteen years ago)

Or pie.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Sunday, 19 November 2006 18:29 (nineteen years ago)

I paused my organic produce people when I went to Toronto, and I haven't ever gotten around to unpausing them.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Sunday, 19 November 2006 18:29 (nineteen years ago)

Did you just call them up and yell "Red light!"?

― Jaq (Jaq), Sunday, 19 November 2006 21:03 (nineteen years ago)

Pic to follow, but what does one do with a fennel?

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 06:07 (nineteen years ago)

Here's the pic: http://static.flickr.com/111/303326425_162c45a249.jpg

cranberries as promised, granny smith and fuji apples, pears, fresh herbs including rosemary, sage, and thyme. Yukon gold potatoes, a yellow onion and a fat head of garlic. And a fennel.

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 06:24 (nineteen years ago)

Also, brussel sprouts and obviously celery.

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 06:26 (nineteen years ago)

Slice thinly in a salad, braise, make risotto...

― Mädchen (Madchen), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 10:16 (nineteen years ago)

... layer in a dish with cheese and bake ...

― Mädchen (Madchen), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 10:16 (nineteen years ago)

Brussels sprouts shredded finely and fried in sesame oil (garlic and chilli natch) are rather good. Stilton and Celery soup.

― Matt (Matt), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 11:35 (nineteen years ago)

Can you eat the feathery bits on the fennel? They are so delicate and soft!

― Jaq (Jaq), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 17:33 (nineteen years ago)

When I was watching a lot of "Molto Mario," it seemed like every other recipe involved fennel. He'd cook the bulb in various ways and add the raw fronds at the end. I searched the Food TV site for fennel and the gingered flank steak with fennel slaw caught my attention.

― Joe Isuzu's Petals (Rock Hardy), Wednesday, 22 November 2006 17:51 (nineteen years ago)

The frondy stuff at the top is the herb, innit?

― Mädchen (Madchen), Thursday, 23 November 2006 17:28 (nineteen years ago)

I don't know - all I've ever seen before is fennel seed which is licorice-y and generally spotted in sweet italian sausage. Mr. Jaq thought the thing was dill when he opened the box up (which he dislikes, mainly due to pickle associations).

― Jaq (Jaq), Thursday, 23 November 2006 17:33 (nineteen years ago)

the feathery herbs (in fact all of it sliced thin) is good stuffed into the cavity of a whole-roasted fish, along with some lemon.

― Porkpie (porkpie), Thursday, 23 November 2006 17:37 (nineteen years ago)

five months pass...

Today I am cancelling the box delivery - we keep getting stuff that has traveled too far (bananas, pineapples, mangos) when we'd rather have local apples/pears/cherries. And all the farmers' markets have started up, so that's my normal Saturday morning. It was good fun for the winter though, and I wouldn't have tried fennel otherwise.

― Jaq, Tuesday, 22 May 2007 18:04 (eighteen years ago)

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