An item that I’ve noticed more and more at many farmers’ markets over the last couple years is the tomatillo. You’ve seen them—they look like small green tomatoes wrapped in a papery husk. Unless you’re familiar with Mexican food, though, you may not know much about them.

As [...]]]> by guest blogger Rich Baringer,

An item that I’ve noticed more and more at many farmers’ markets over the last couple years is the tomatillo. You’ve seen them—they look like small green tomatoes wrapped in a papery husk. Unless you’re familiar with Mexican food, though, you may not know much about them.

As you would expect, tomatillos are related to the tomato as well as the cape gooseberry, or ground cherry. (You can read my post about these little fruits here.)

Unlike tomatoes, though, tomatillos hold very well for weeks in the refrigerator without losing any flavor or texture. Their flavor is a bit hard to describe—herbal and a bit citrusy—but distinctive and delicious. They’re very high in pectin, so when cooked, they add a luxurious thickness to a sauce.

Tomatillos may be most familiar to many as the main ingredient in salsa verde. This green salsa usually uses raw tomatillos and other typical salsa ingredients like garlic, chiles, cilantro, and onion. But the best tomatillo recipe I’ve come across is from Mexico One Plate at a Time by Mexican food guru, Rick Bayless. It uses many of the same ingredients as the raw salsa in a delicious, spicy sauce served with a tender pork loin. It’s a little involved, but definitely worth it. Your guests will be crazy about it.

Tomatillo-Braised Pork Loin (Lomo de Puerco en Salsa Verde)
Serves 6

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ Tbsp pork lard or olive or vegetable oil
1 (2 lb) boneless pork loin roast, untied if in two pieces
1 lb (10-12 medium) tomatillos, husked and rinsed
Fresh hot green chiles to taste (serranos or jalapenos, for example), stemmed
1 medium white onion, sliced
3 large garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped or minced
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus a few sprigs for garnish
Salt
10 small (about 1 ¼ lbs total) red-skin potatoes, scrubbed and quartered

HOW TO

• BROWNING THE PORK. In a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid, heat the lard or oil over medium heat. When very hot, lay in the pork loin (if in 2 pieces, don’t crowd them, or they’ll stew rather than brown). Brown well on one side, about 5 minutes, then flip and brown the other side. Remove pot from heat and transfer the pork to a plate; set the pot aside to use for the sauce.
• THE SAUCE. Roast the tomatillos and chiles on a baking sheet 4 inches below a very hot broiler until darkly roasted, even blackened in spots, about 5 minutes. Flip them and roast the other side 4-5 minutes. This will give you splotchy-black and blistered tomatillos and chiles that are soft and cooked through. Cool, then transfer everything to a food processor or blender. Be sure to scrape the flavorful stuff from the baking sheet. Process until smooth.
• Set the pork-browning pot over medium heat. When hot, add onion and cook, stirring regularly, until golden, about 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook a minute longer. Raise the heat to medium-high and when oil is sizzling, add the tomatillo puree. Stir until noticeably darker and very thick, 3-4 minutes. Add 1 ½ cups water and the cilantro. Taste and season with salt, usually 1 tsp. Stir.
• BRAISING THE PORK. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Nestle the browned pork into the warm sauce, cover and cook in oven for 30 minutes.
• While the meat is cooking, simmer the potatoes in heavily salted water to cover until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• When the pork has cooked 30 minutes, nestle the cooked potatoes into the sauce around the meat, cover and cook until the interior of the pork registers about 145 degrees, 5-10 minutes longer. The meat will feel firm (not hard) to the touch and cutting into the center will reveal only the slightest hint of pink.
• SERVING. With a pair of tongs and a spatula, transfer the pork to a cutting board. Let rest for 3-4 minutes while you finish the sauce. Spoon off any fat from the top of the sauce. Taste and season with salt, if necessary. Spoon the sauce and potatoes onto a warm deep serving platter. Cut the pork into ¼” slices and arrange on top of the sauce. Garnish with cilantro sprigs and enjoy!
• NOTE: The pork can be browned and the sauce made a day ahead; refrigerate separately, covered, until a couple of hours before you’re ready to braise the pork. The meat will be best if braised just before serving, but will hold fine in a very low oven (uncovered) for about a half-hour if you slightly undercook the pork—it will finish cooking as it sits.

Yee-ha. It’s blueberry season. We got some lovely ones from Solebury Orchard yesterday. Some are going into Mark’s homemade ice cream (made from Birchwood Farms sweet cream), some went into the freezer for cold winter days, and some, well, [...] Related posts:

1. Big plump blueberries are coming

Even thought the weather hasn’t been reminding us, it is springtime.  And that means fresh, local veggies are starting to appear.  How long we’ve waited.

One of my favorite spring vegetables is asparagus.  Oh, you can buy South American spears all winter in the grocery stores, [...]]]> by guest blogger Rich Baringer,

Even thought the weather hasn’t been reminding us, it is springtime.  And that means fresh, local veggies are starting to appear.  How long we’ve waited.

One of my favorite spring vegetables is asparagus.  Oh, you can buy South American spears all winter in the grocery stores, but they just can’t compare to the freshness of locally-grown asparagus.

Asparagus takes patience and skill to grow. It must be in the ground for three years before it can be harvested for a whole season.  Farmers often harvest it for just a short time over the first couple of years to allow for the plants to fully grow.  But when it grows, it GROWS!  Sometimes as much as 6-7 inches in a day.

We’re used to eating the green asparagus–sometimes with specks of purple thrown in.  But if you can find purple asparagus, try it.  It’s sweeter and more tender than the green variety.  If you want it for the color, don’t cook it too long.  It will retain the color with brief cooking, but then turn green if cooked for a while.  White asparagus (actually kind of cream-colored) is the same as the green variety, except that the farmer has kept it from sunlight, which gives it the white color.  The flavor of the white asparagus is milder and degrades fairly quickly, so it’s probably not worth the extra expense.

When you’re choosing asparagus in the market, pick spears that are firm and straight with compact tips.  They should smell fresh and the color should be vibrant.

The thickness of the asparagus doesn’t affect the taste, so choose a size that fits the way you’re going to prepare them: thicker stalks for broiling, grilling or sautéing; thinner for steaming.

What does affect taste is time, so try to use asparagus within a few days of buying it.  Store the stalks in the refrigerator in a tall glass with an inch or two of water.  Change the water daily.

When you’re ready to cook, rinse the stalks, then hold one with one hand at the base and the other hand an inch or two toward the tip.  Bend it and it will bread where the tough part begins.  If all the stalks are about the same size, you can use this one as a template and cut the rest of the bunch with a knife.  Or snap each stalk this way.

Asparagus makes a delicious, healthy, easy and quick side dish.  And when they’re fresh, they don’t need much to enhance the flavor.  Here are a couple of recipes to try.

Grilled Asparagus from America’s Test Kitchen
Serves 4-6
Use asparagus that’s about 1/2″ thick near the base.  Very thin spears can’t handle the heat of the grill.

INGREDIENTS

3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3 small garlic cloves, minced or put through a garlic press (about 1 1/2 tsp)
1 1/2 lbs asparagus, ends trimmed (as described above)
1/4 tsp salt
Ground black pepper
Vegetable oil for cooking grate

HOW TO

• Combine butter and garlic in a small bowl.  Brush asparagus with butter mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• When grill is medium-hot, scrape grill grate clean with grill brush.  Dip a wad of paper towels in the oil; wipe grate, holding the towels with tongs.  Grill asparagus, turning once, until just tender and caramelized, 2-5 minutes per side.  Transfer asparagus to platter and serve.

Asparagus Gratin from Cook’s Country
Serves 8
Use asparagus that’s between 1/4″ and 1/2″ in diameter.

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs asparagus
2 1/2 cups water
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

HOW TO

• Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat broiler.  Line broiler-safe baking dish with paper towels.  Trim asparagus (as described above) and reserve ends.  Bring water to boil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add asparagus ends and 1/4 tsp salt and cook, covered, for 5 minutes.  Using slotted spoon, remove ends and discard.  Add asparagus spears to skillet, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until nearly tender, 2-4 minutes.  Transfer asparagus to paper-lined baking dish.  Pour asparagus water into liquid measuring cup; reserve 1 cup.
• Melt butter in now-empty skillet over medium heat.  Add flour and cook, stirring constantly until golden, about 1 minute.  Whisk in reserved asparagus water and bring to boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, 3-5 minutes.  Off heat, whisk in 1/2 cup Parmesan and Monterey Jack until smooth.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.
• Remove paper towels from baking dish.  Drizzle sauce over center of asparagus and top with remaining Parmesan.  Broil until cheese is golden and asparagus is tender, 6-8 minutes.  Serve.

Follow Chef Rich Baringer on his blog, Dinner’s Done, or sign up for his great email newsletter.

Spring holidays. Lenten Fish Fry suppers start at several locations today – the Riegelsville Fire Co. and the Columbia Fire Co. in [...]]]> Spring, spring, spring! At the risk of bringing on a March snowstorm, I am thrilled to welcome signs of spring. What are they – in food terms? Read on.

Spring holidays. Lenten Fish Fry suppers start at several locations today – the Riegelsville Fire Co. and the Columbia Fire Co. in Lambertville – and will continue right up to Easter. The Stockton Farmers’ Market has fish and chips on Fridays too. On a similar note, many folks celebrated Fastnacht this past Tuesday by eating yummy donuts. This tradition, observed by many Pennsylvanians of German descent, is about using up fat and sugar before Lent.

This coming Thursday is the greenest of all green Spring holidays, St. Patrick’s Day. Many restaurants and bars are of course celebrating this. Too many for me to research and put on the calendar! Go out and enjoy!

Next weekend, will be the Jewish holiday, Purim. While the story is definitely Jewish, many of the customs – dressing up in costumes, imbibing adult beverages, and eating good food – will remind others of Carnival. Who knows? Jews have lived in many countries and cultures over the last two thousand years. Maybe it just looked like too much fun to ignore. If you’re into making the holiday’s famous cookies, Hamentashen, look up my post from last year. There’s a recipe and photos of each step. Hag Sameach (happy holiday)!

Another sure sign of Spring? Ice cream parlors all over the county are reopening. Yippee! oWowCow Creamery in Ottsville, Chubby’s Dairy Barn in Plumsteadville, Dilly’s Corner in Centre Bridge and Uncle Dave’s in Yardley, to name a few. If I haven’t mentioned one of your favorites, see our post on ice cream places in Bucks County, and give them a call to see if they are open yet.

To market, to market. This Saturday, the Wrightstown Farmers’ Market will hold one of it’s winter mini-markets from 10 to 11 am at its regular location, 2203 2nd Street Pike, next to the Wrightstown Township Municipal Building (just north of Newtown). Pre-orders are encouraged but not necessary. See their website for information. (If you are coming from Richboro via Route 232, know that 2nd St. Pike is closed for the next month between Worthington Mill Rd. and Swamp Rd.)

The New Hope Farmers’ Market will also have a winter market this Thursday, March 17, at their new location, just next to the Eagle Diner on Route 202 (same location as the New Hope Flea Market). The market will be open from 3:30 to 6 pm. Come on by!

Coming up next weekend, is the 2nd Annual New Hope-Lambertville Restaurant Week, starting Sunday, March 20 through Friday, March 25. Participating restaurants are offering great deals. The week-long promotion includes a $29.95 Prix-Fixe Fine Dining or $19.95 Prix-Fixe Casual Dining at 27 restaurants in both New Hope and Lambertville. Visit the New Hope Chamber website for more details.

Save-the-date. Saturday, April 16th yours truly will be the featured guest and guide at a Spring Farm-to-Table Dinner at Crossing Vineyards in Washington Crossing. Just spoke last week with the caterer at the winery, Emily’s Café & Catering, to plan the menu. It is going to be delicious, filled with locally sourced food (yes, even in April!). The five-course gourmet meal will of course be paired with Crossing Vineyards’ internationally-acclaimed wines. For more details and to sign-up, go to their website.

For more details on any of these events, please go to our full calendar, Food Events in Bucks County. Have a lovely, warm weekend – and don’t forget to turn your clocks ahead. Daylight Savings Time begins on Sunday.

Friday, March 11:

• Stockton Farmers’ Market, Stockton, NJ [11 am - 7 pm]
• Beer Tasting @ Phillips’ Fine Wines, Stockton, NJ [4 - 6 pm]
• Fish Fry @ Riegelsville Fire Company, Riegelsville [5 - 7 pm]
• Lenten Fish Fry @ Columbia Fire Co., Lambertville, NJ [5 - 7:30 pm]
• Friday Wine & Music @ Hopewell Valley Vineyards, Pennington, NJ [5 - 8 pm]
• Spaghetti Dinner @ Delaware Valley Fire Co., Erwinna [5:30 - 7:30 pm]
• Barbara Trent @ The Centre Bridge Inn, New Hope [7 - 11 pm]
• Kindle Cafe Supper Club @ Rojo’s Roastery, Lambertville, NJ [7:30 - 9 pm]
• Opus One Wine Dinner with Roger Kissling, Stockton, NJ [7:30 - 10 pm]
• All That Jazz – Jazz Night @ Crossing Vineyards, Washington Crossing [8 - 10 pm]

Saturday, March 12:

• Stockton Farmers’ Market, Stockton, NJ [9 am - 3 pm]
• Wrightstown Winter Farmers’ Market, Wrightstown [10 - 11 am]
• St Patrick’s Day Celebration @ Crossing Vineyards, Washington Crossing [12 - 6 pm]
• Wine Tasting @ Phillips’ Fine Wines, Stockton, NJ [12 - 6 pm]
• Beer Tasting @ New Hope Beverage, New Hope [3 - 7 pm]
• Second Saturdays, New Hope [3 - 9 pm]
• Dinner @ Cafe Blue Moose, Buckingham (address provided with reservation) [7 - 9 pm]

Sunday, March 13:

• Breakfast Buffet @ Richland Twshp Fire & Rescue, Quakertown [8 am - 1 pm]
• Stockton Farmers’ Market, Stockton, NJ [10 am - 3 pm]
• Ham Dinner @ Sellersville Fire House, Sellersville [11 am - 5 pm]
• St Patrick’s Day Celebration @ Crossing Vineyards, Washington Crossing [12 - 6 pm]
• Winter Wine Concert Series @ Shady Brook Farm, Yardley [1 - 4 pm]
• Pairing Wine and Chocolate @ Crossing Vineyards, Washington Crossing [2 - 4 pm]

Monday, March 14:

• Evening in the Colonial Kitchen @ Cock n’ Bull, Lahaska [5 - 9 pm]
• Wine 101 – Class #2 – Types of Wine, Washington Crossing [6:30 - 8:30 pm]

Tuesday, March 15:

• 2-for-$25 Tuesday @ Vintage Grille, Doylestown [4 - 10 pm]
• Kitchen Knife Skills and More, Horsham [6:45 - 9 pm]

Wednesday, March 16:

• Pierogy Wednesdays @ St. Anne Ukrainian, Warrington [9 am - 12 pm]
• American Legion Meals on Wednesdays, Quakertown [11:30 am - 9 pm]
• Complimentary Beer Tasting @ the Copper Leaf Grill, Buckingham [5 - 9 pm]

Thursday, March 17:

• New Hope Winter Farmers’ Market, New Hope [3 - 5 pm]
• St Patrick’s Day Party @ Pineville Tavern, Pineville [4 - 11:30 pm]
• Pasta Dinner @ New Hope-Solebury High School, New Hope [5 - 6:30 pm]
• Sushi Night in the Wine Cellar – The Inn at Lambertville Station, Lambertville, NJ [6 - 10 pm]

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This time of year is perfect for cooking in a Crock Pot—stews, soups, tender meats, even desserts—with minimum effort.  You come in from the cold to a house full of delicious smells and a steaming bowl of true comfort food waiting for you to dig [...]]]> by guest blogger Rich Baringer,

This time of year is perfect for cooking in a Crock Pot—stews, soups, tender meats, even desserts—with minimum effort.  You come in from the cold to a house full of delicious smells and a steaming bowl of true comfort food waiting for you to dig in.

Some may not realize that “Crock Pot” is Rival’s registered trademark for their slow cooker.  “Crock Pot” has become one of those names that have defined its products (like “Kleenex” and “Xerox”).  But no matter what you call it, it’s a useful and versatile piece of kitchen equipment.

As I usually do, I turn to Cook’s Illustrated for useful information (actually, in this case I am using their other magazine, Cook’s Country).  According to their testing of slow cookers, you want to find one that is no smaller than 6 quarts, has a power light and a “keep warm” setting.  You also would want to look for a dishwasher-safe crock and lid, insert handles to lift the crock out and a clear lid so you can see what’s going on inside.  The Crock-Pot Touchscreen Slow Cooker was their winner.

I found it interesting that in most of the slow cookers they tested, the maximum temperature (about 200° F) was reached on both the “high” and “low” settings.  (One model even got hotter on the “low” setting.)  They suggest that these settings should be changed to “fast” and “slow”.

There’s no shortage of slow cooker recipes either in cookbooks or online.  Many of them are the “dump and go” type of recipe—put a bunch of stuff in the cooker and turn it on. Done. Many of these are very tasty (in addition to easy), but many are not so great. Probably the best recipes require a little more hands-on time to get things ready for cooking.

Contrary to what you may think, though, you don’t need a special slow cooker recipe. For the most part, you can convert a favorite recipe from oven or stovetop to the Crock Pot with just a few adjustments.  Consider these tips:

• Recipe: If you have a slow cooker cookbook, see if you can find a recipe in it that is similar to the one you want to cook.  This will give you some guidelines to follow.
• Meat: In a slow cooker, you want to use tougher cuts of meat like beef chuck, pork blade roast, ribs, etc.  The fat in these cuts melts during the slow cooking and makes the meat tender and moist.  If there is a large amount of fat on the outside, you should trim that off.  Browning the meat before putting in the cooker—as in the stew recipe that follows—gives the best flavor (deglaze the pan with water or wine and add that liquid for even more flavor), but if you’re in a hurry, it’s not necessary.
• Veggies: Surprisingly, vegetables cook slower than meat in a Crock Pot, so you should cut them (especially hard veggies like carrots, potatoes, etc) in 1-inch pieces and put them on the bottom of the cooker, topped with the roast.  Cook’s has created a trick to avoid overcooked veggies in a stew that’s part of the following recipe.
• Liquid: Unless the recipe calls for long-grain rice, cut the liquid by about a quarter from your original recipe.  (If you have a similar slow cooker recipe, you can use this as a guide.)  Water works fine, but using broth, wine or juice adds great flavor and moistness.
• Rice: Converted long-grain rice is best to use for slow cooker recipes.  Don’t reduce the amount of liquid from your recipe if rice is included.
• Herbs: If you’re using fresh herbs, add them toward the end so they don’t spend their entire flavor before the dish is finished.  You can add dried herbs earlier in the cooking (use about half the amount of dried herbs as a substitute for fresh).
• Dairy: These products can break down during the long cooking time, so they should be added in the last hour.  Condensed cream soups are a decent substitute that can be added at the beginning.
• Flavor Boosters: Since liquid in a slow cooker can’t evaporate and reduce, the flavor of a sauce may be a bit tepid.  Add 2-3 tablespoons of soy or Worcestershire sauce to chicken or meat dishes to kick up the flavor.  If the recipe calls for tomato paste, sauté it briefly to concentrate the flavor before adding.  For mushroom dishes, add a handful of rehydrated dried mushrooms for more mushroom flavor.
• Thickener: Many recipes call for flour and cornstarch to thicken sauces in traditional recipes, but they tend to loose their thickening power over time.  Your best bet for a thick and silky sauce in a slow cooker is to add Minute tapioca instead.
• Finishing: Add delicate ingredients like fresh herbs, pasta, peas, corn, Swiss chard, etc. at the end of the cooking process.
• Cooking Time: Generally, if your traditional recipe has a cooking time of 15 – 30 minutes, cook in the slow cooker for 4 – 6 hours on Low, or 1 ½ – 2 hours on High.  A cooking time of 35 – 45 minutes translates to 6 – 8 hours on Low, or 3 – 4 hours on High for the slow cooker.  Cooking times of 50 minutes or more on the stove or in the oven should stay in the Crock Pot for 8 – 16 hours on Low, or 4 – 6 hours on High.

Here are two recipes for you to try in your slow cooker.  The first, a little more hands-on, is from Cook’s Country.  The other—more of a “dump and go” recipe—is from Better Homes & Gardens Biggest Book of Slow Cooker Recipes.

Slow-Cooker Hearty Beef Stew
Serves 6-8

INGREDIENTS
5 lbs boneless beef chuck, cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
¼ cup vegetable oil
4 onions, chopped fine
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
2 cups low-sodium chicken or beef broth
3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 bay leaves
1 lb carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 lb parsnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 lb red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 ½ tsp minced fresh thyme
2 Tbsp Minute tapioca
2 cups frozen peas, thawed

HOW TO

1. BROWN MEAT: Pat beef dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.  Heat 1 Tbsp oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking.  Cook half of beef until well browned all over, about 8 minutes.  Transfer to slow cooker insert and repeat with additional 1 Tbsp oil and remaining beef.
2. BROWN ONIONS: Add onions, 1 Tbsp oil and ¼ tsp salt to now-empty skillet and cook until browned, 6-8 minutes.  Add tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until paste begins to darken, about 2 minutes.  Slowly stir in broth, soy sauce and bay leaves and bring to boil.  Transfer to slow cooker.
3. WRAP VEGETABLES: Toss carrots, parsnips, potatoes, remaining oil, ½ tsp thyme, ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper in large bowl.  Place vegetables on one side of large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil.  Fold foil over vegetables to form packet that will fit in slow cooker; set vegetable packet on top of beef.
4. SLOW COOK: Cover and cook on high until beef is tender, 6-7 hours (or cook on low 10-11 hours).  Discard bay leaves and transfer vegetable packet to bowl.  Carefully open packet (watch for steam) and return vegetable and any accumulated juices to slow cooker.  Stir in remaining thyme and peas, cover, and let stand until heated through, about 5 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve.

Barbecue Pork Ribs
Serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS
3-3 ½ lbs pork country-style ribs (bone-in or boneless)
1 cup ketchup
½ cup onion, chopped fine
¼ cup packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp chili powder
½ tsp liquid smoke
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp hot pepper sauce (or more to taste)

HOW TO

1. Trim ribs of any large pieces of fat.  Place in slow cooker.
2. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients.  Pour sauce over ribs, turning to coat.  Cover; cook on low for 10-12 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.
3. Transfer ribs to a serving platter; cover with foil to keep warm.  Skim fat from surface of sauce; pour sauce into a medium saucepan.  Bring sauce to boiling; reduce heat slightly.  Boil gently, uncovered, until thickened to desired consistency, 5-7 minutes (should make about 1 cup).
4. Serve ribs with sauce.  (You can also shred the rib meat and serve on buns as a tasty sandwich.)

Couldn’t resist this one! In honor of Halloween, a healthy but fun way to get the kids (and adults) to eat broccoli. Got this recipe via the Pennypack Farm & Education Center newsletter, as submitted by Lisa Hansell. The original recipe is by Matthew Mead, via epicurious.com. Enjoy your “gruel!”

Green Gruel with Eyeballs
by Matthew Mead
Matthew Mead’s Monster Book of Halloween

INGREDIENTS

3 TBSP unsalted butter
2 1/2 pounds broccoli, tops chopped into 1/2-inch florets; stalks chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
3 shallots, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 pound grated sharp cheddar cheese (2 cups)
6 hard-cooked eggs, peeled
6 pitted black olives
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg

HOW TO

1. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped broccoli stems, shallots, garlic, salt, pepper, and nutmeg; cook, stirring, until the shallots are tender, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Add the broth, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, until the broccoli stalks are tender and the liquid almost evaporated. Remove from the heat, add the cheese, and toss to combine. Working in batches, transfer to a blender and purée until smooth (OR use an immersion/stick blender).
3. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the florets and cook for 3 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold running water to stop the cooking.
4. Cut a notch in the side of each egg and press an olive into it. Heat broccoli purée over medium heat until just warmed through, 5 minutes. Stir in the florets and the remaining butter. Spoon the gruel into individual soup bowls and top each with an egg eye; serve immediately.

When I was a kid, my grandfather, who was quite the farmer, would always make personalized pumpkins for me, my sister and our cousins. When the pumpkin was very small, he would use a pen knife to carve our names and a little picture—by just slightly scoring the [...]]]> by guest blogger Rich Baringer

When I was a kid, my grandfather, who was quite the farmer, would always make personalized pumpkins for me, my sister and our cousins. When the pumpkin was very small, he would use a pen knife to carve our names and a little picture—by just slightly scoring the skin. As the pumpkin grew, so did the carving. We always looked forward to getting this special treat from him.

Like most families, we will carve a big orange pumpkin into a Jack-o-Lantern for Halloween. My son, Jake, gets very excited about that. And I think that’s what most people do with pumpkins—use them as autumn decorations. That’s a shame, because pumpkins are also a very delicious and nutritious vegetable.

Pumpkins come in many colors (orange, white, cream, blue-gray, reddish-brown), shapes (round, oblong, zucchini-like, flat), textures (smooth, netted, bumpy) and sizes (from those little ones used for decorations to huge ones weighing hundreds of pounds). They’re used all over the world to make pies, breads, soups, pasta filling, gnocchi and much more.

For those looking for a healthy diet, pumpkin is a great addition because it’s low in calories and high in potassium and Vitamin A. You can use pumpkin and most squash (even sweet potatoes) interchangeably in many recipes. And, if kept in a cool and dry spot, a pumpkin will last for several months.

If you’re going to use a pumpkin for cooking, however, you need to choose the right variety. The Jack-o-Lantern type is not the variety to use for cooking—the flesh is pretty stringy and tasteless. You’ll need to find smaller varieties for the best cooking results.

The names of these varieties are as colorful as their skins: Baby Pam, Small Sugar, New England Pie, Spooktacular, Mystic, Peek-a-Boo and Winter Luxury, just to name a few. All of these have relatively thin skins and flesh that is sweet and not very stringy.

Another pumpkin that is great for cooking is the Crookneck Pumpkin, which doesn’t really look like a pumpkin (imagine if a butternut squash and a giraffe had a baby), but it’s easy to cut up and peel, has very few seeds and sweet flesh.

Canned pumpkin works fine for most recipes, but if you want to make your own puree, peel and seed the pumpkin and then cut it into 3-4 inch pieces. Put them in a pot with a small amount of water, cover, bring to a boil and cook until very tender. (Start checking at about 20-30 minutes.) Cool a little bit and transfer to a food mill or food processor to puree. You can then use it or freeze for future use.

I prefer the flavor of baking (or roasting) a pumpkin. Cut it in half and place each half (cut side down) in a shallow baking dish. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or longer (depending on the size). Test for doneness by poking a fork into the flesh. When it’s very tender, remove, cool slightly, spoon out the flesh and puree, if desired.

I’ve even heard of baking the pumpkin whole—just poke some vent holes in it and bake at 350° until it collapses. I guess to do this you either need a small pumpkin or a big oven.

Don’t throw those seeds away! It’s easy to turn them into a tasty snack. Rinse and dry the seeds, then toss in a bit of vegetable oil. Season as you wish—with salt, chili powder, garlic salt, etc. Put them in a single layer on a cookie sheet and roast at 350° for about 30 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. They turn out crunchy and nutty.

As you can tell simply by driving around Bucks County, pumpkins are plentiful in our area. Most farmers’ markets have loads of them—many of which can be used for cooking. Most of these local farms (from the Bucks County Co-op Extension) grow and/or sell a huge variety of pumpkins—some as many as 50-70 different kinds. The folks at the farm will be glad to point you toward the right pumpkin for your needs.

Active Acres Farm
881 Highland Rd.
Newtown, PA  18940
215-968-2192

Brumbaugh’s Farm
2575 County Line Rd.
Telford, PA  18969
215-723-3508

Center Farm
2224 Forest Grove Rd.
Furlong, PA 18925
215-794-7702

Charlann Farm
586 Stony Hill Rd.
Yardley, PA  19067
215-493-1831

Eastburn Farm
1085 Durham Rd.
Pineville, PA  18946
215-598-3396

Hellerick’s Family Farm
5500 Easton Rd.
Doylestown, PA  18902
215-766-8388

Lapinski Farm
1003 Middle Rd.
Dublin, PA  18917
215-249-3431

Maximuck’s Farm Market
5793 Long Lane Rd.
Doylestown, PA  18902
215-297-9894

Milk House Farm Market
1118 Slack Rd.
Newtown, PA  18940
215-852-4305

None Such Farm Market
4458 York Rd.
Buckingham, PA  18912
215-794-5201

Walter M. Orlowski, Jr.
2165 Trumbauersville Rd.
Quakertown, PA  18951
215-536-8859

Penn Vermont Fruit Farm
Rt. 113 & Rolling Hills Rd.
Bedminster, PA  18910
215-795-2475

Rick’s Egg Farm
4917 Durham Rd.
Kintnersville, PA  18930
610-847-5322

Shady Brook Farm
931 Stony Hill Rd.
Yardley, PA  19067
215-968-1670

Snipes Farm
890 W Bridge St.
Morrisville, PA  19067
215-295-1139

Solly Brothers Farm Market
707 Almshouse Rd.
Ivyland, PA  18974
215-357-2850

Styer Orchard
97 Styer Ln.
Langhorne, PA  19047
215-702-9633

Tall Pine Farms
1046 Swamp Rd.
Rushland, PA  18956

Trauger’s Farm Market
370 Island Rd.
Kintnersville, PA  18930
610-847-5702

Winding Brook Farm
3014 Bristol Rd.
Warrington, PA  18976
215-348-5514
215-343-8880

Windy Spring Farm
1845 Myers Rd.
Quakertown, PA  18951
(Market on Rt. 663 east of the turnpike)
215-536-8624

Here’s a pumpkin ice cream recipe that I make at the holidays.  It’s always a big hit. 

Pumpkin Spice-Cream (from Cooking Light magazine)
Serves 8

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups milk
2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
Dash of salt
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 (8-oz) carton sour cream
3/4 cup biscotti, crumbled (I’ve also used ginger snaps and baked pie crust)

HOW TO

1. Combine 1 cup milk and brown sugar in a medium, heavy saucepan, and heat to 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil).  Remove from heat.
2. Place egg yolks in a bowl.  Gradually add hot milk mixture to egg yolks, stirring constantly with a whisk.  Place mixture in a pan.  Cook over medium heat until mixture coats a metal spoon (about 4 minutes), stirring constantly.  Drain custard through a sieve into a bowl, discard solids.
3. Combine 1/2 cup milk, condensed milk, and next 5 ingredients (through salt) in a medium bowl.  Stir in pumpkin.  Gradually add custard, stirring with a whisk.  Cover and chill at least 8 hours.
4. Combine 1/2 cup pumpkin mixture and sour cream, stirring will with a whisk.  Add sour cream mixture to chilled pumpkin mixture, and stir until well blended.  Pour the mixture into freezer can of an ice cream freezer and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions.
5. Spoon ice cream into a freezer-safe container, fold in crumbled biscotti.  Cover and freeze 1 hour or until firm.