November 2, 2012
I was amused to come across the WTF, CSA section in the Huffington Post (thanks to Rupert Dunn).
The idea is that when you shout “WTF?” into your weekly veg box Huffington can tell you what on earth to do with a glut of basil, or aubergine fatigue, or a particularly tricky vegetable like the kohlrabi we’ve got in Camel CSA’s small boxes this week.
Now I don’t see the point of cooking kohlrabi (although there are some perfectly nice-sounding recipes). I prefer to eat it raw as it’s deliciously crunchy and juicy. Just make sure you peel off the tough skin before sticking your teeth in.
This take on the famous Waldorf salad is from Riverford Organic.
If you have just one kohlrabi, this salad works for two people – simply divide the amounts by three.
Serves: 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
3 kohlrabi, peeled + cut into small segments
2 crisp, red-skinned apples, cored + diced
2 little gem lettuces, shredded (or mixed salad leaves)
a little lemon juice
a handful of watercress (optional)
75g walnuts, lightly toasted + broken into pieces
For the walnut dressing
1 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp light olive oil
2 tbsp walnut oil
a pinch each of celery salt, salt + pepper
Method
Combine the kohl rabi, apples and little gem lettuces in a serving bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent browning. Add the watercress, if using, and the toasted walnuts.
Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss well.
November 1, 2012
Camel CSA’s growers are continuing to supply our boxes with plenty of mixed salad in spite of the shorter, darker days. Also in our share of the harvest this week are kohlrabi and squash.
Everyone will be having:
* kohlrabi (Camel CSA)
* mixed squash (Mark Norman / Camel CSA)
* onions (Camel CSA)
* salad leaves (Camel CSA)
* calabrese (Camel CSA)
* spinach (Camel CSA)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
Standard boxes will have extra potatoes plus:
* Jerusalem artichokes (Camel CSA)
* peppers(Camel CSA)
* parsley (Camel CSA)
* chillies (Camel CSA)
UPDATE: Only the small boxes have kohlrabi this week, standard boxes have a swede
October 28, 2012
If, like me, you’re fond of carrot cake, you’ll enjoy this. It’s another way of using up the flesh from the Hallowe’en pumpkin in Camel CSA’s weekly veg boxes.
This is adapted from the recipe in BBC GoodFood (which adds a rich frosting). There are quite a few different versions. Tess, one of our CSA members, includes pine nuts in hers (a delicious addition) and finishes with a swirl of glace icing.
Serves: 15 portions
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 mins
Ingredients
For the cake
300g self-raising flour
300g light muscovado sugar
3 tsp mixed spice
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
175g sultanas
½ tsp salt
4 eggs, beaten
200g butter, melted
zest 1 orange
1 tbsp orange juice
500g (peeled weight) pumpkin or butternut squash flesh, grated
For the drizzle
100g icing sugar , sifted
zest 1 orange and juice of half
Method
Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Butter and line a 30 x 20cm baking or small roasting tin with baking parchment.
Put the flour, sugar, spice, bicarbonate of soda, sultanas and salt into a large bowl and stir to combine. Beat the eggs into the melted butter, stir in the orange zest and juice, then mix with the dry ingredients till combined. Stir in the pumpkin. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 30 mins, or until golden and springy to the touch.
Mix together the icing sugar, orange zest and juice. When the cake is done, cool for 5 mins then turn it onto a cooling rack. Prick it all over with a skewer and drizzle with the icing mixture while still warm. Leave to cool completely.
BBC GoodFood says: “Pumpkins can vary dramatically in water content, so keep an eye on the cake towards the end of cooking – yours may take less or more time to cook through. If you’re not carving out a pumpkin this year butternut squash works brilliantly, too.”
October 25, 2012
Camel CSA’s head grower Mark Norman is providing some large Hallowe’en pumpkins for our Cornish veg boxes this week. So get carving your lantern and, as the weather is getting colder, use the flesh for soup!
Everyone will be having:
* pumpkin (Mark Norman)
* onions (Camel CSA)
* peppers(Camel CSA)
* salad (Camel CSA)
* french beans or carrots or broccoli (Camel CSA)
* tomatoes (Camel CSA)
* kale (Camel CSA)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
Standard boxes will have extra potatoes plus:
* swiss chard/spinach (Camel CSA)
* radicchio (Camel CSA)
* sprouts (Camel CSA)
* = grown to organic principles
October 24, 2012
This autumnal twist on a traditional Italian favourite comes from Barney Desmazery, food editor of BBC Good Food. He uses butternut squash but I substituted the grey-green Crown Prince variety from Camel CSA’s weekly veg box. And still had plenty left over to make a big batch of spiced squash soup.
Serves: 4
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
1kg squash , peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
3 tbsp olive oil
bunch sage , leaves picked, half roughly chopped, half left whole
1½ l vegetable stock
50g butter
1 onion , finely chopped
300g risotto rice
1 small glass white wine
50g parmesan, finely grated
Method
Before you make the risotto, heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7. Toss the squash in 1 tbsp oil together with the chopped sage. Scatter into a shallow roasting tin and roast for 30 mins until it is brown and soft.
While the squash is roasting, prepare the risotto. Bring the stock to the boil and keep on a low simmer.In a separate pan, melt half the butter over a medium heat. Stir in the onions and sweat gently for 8-10 mins until soft but not coloured, stirring occasionally. Stir the rice into the onions until completely coated in the butter, then stir continuously until the rice is shiny and the edges of the grain start to look transparent.
Pour in the wine and simmer until totally evaporated. Add the stock, a ladleful at a time and stirring the rice over a low heat for 25-30 mins, until the rice is cooked al dente (with a slightly firm, starchy bite in the middle). The risotto should be creamy and slightly soupy. When you draw a wooden spoon through it, there should be a wake that holds for a few moments but not longer.
At the same time, gently fry the whole sage leaves in a little olive oil until crisp, then set aside on kitchen paper. When the squash is cooked, mash half of it to a rough purée and leave half whole. When the risotto is just done, stir though the purée, then add the cheese and butter and leave to rest for a few mins. Serve the risotto scattered with the whole chunks of squash and the crisp sage leaves.
October 18, 2012
Everyone will have:
* french beans (Camel CSA)
* kale (Camel CSA)
* squash (Camel CSA)
* spinach (Camel CSA)
* tomatoes (Camel CSA)
* peppers (Camel CSA)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
Standard boxes will have extra potatoes plus:
* salad leaves (Camel CSA)
* brussels sprouts (Camel CSA)
* chillies (Camel CSA)
* sweetcorn (Camel CSA)
* = grown to organic principles
October 11, 2012
In contrast to this year’s poor harvest of apples, we’ve had a good crop of quinces – so there’s one for you all to try this week.
You can’t eat them raw and they’re the devil to peel, but a bit of quince is the best flavouring for apple or pear pies and tarts. And they’re good in savoury dishes too – add a few peeled pieces to almost any stew for extra flavour.
To prepare, wash off the grey down first. As you remove the peel and core, drop the pieces in water with a squeeze of lemon juice to stop them discolouring.
As well as a * quince, everyone will be getting:
* onions (Camel CSA)
* french beans (Camel CSA)
* peppers (Camel CSA)
* cabbage (Camel CSA)
* sweetcorn (Camel CSA)
* spinach/chard (Camel CSA)
potatoes (Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
Standard boxes will have extra potatoes plus:
* salad leaves (Camel CSA)
* carrots (Camel CSA)
* tomatoes (Camel CSA)
* = grown to organic principles
October 5, 2012
I like to eat freshly-picked sweetcorn with Cornish butter (preferably from Trewithen Dairy). When I’m not feeling so pure but want to keep it simple, I use this recipe from Riverford Organic Farms.
The chillies are ripening in Camel CSA’s polytunnel. One will be enough in this dish, as they’re quite hot.
Serves: 4
Preparation: 5-10 minutes
Cooking: 5-10 minutes
Ingredients
4 corn cobs, cut into 3-4cm pieces
about 75g butter
2 tbsp olive oil
2x 5cm lengths lemongrass (optional),
2 mild red chillies, deseeded & finely chopped
zest & juice 1 lime
2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
sea salt & ground black pepper
Method
Heat the butter and oil in a large pan. Add the sweetcorn, lemongrass and chilli. Stir for 2 mins. Add the lime zest and juice, with 4 tbsp water.
Cover and cook for 6-8 mins, stirring every now and then, until the corn is cooked. Keep an eye on the liquid and top up a little if needed. Season to taste and stir in the coriander to serve.
October 4, 2012
Everyone will have:
* onions – red and white (Camel CSA)
* chillies (Camel CSA)
* salad (Camel CSA)
* carrots (Camel CSA)
* peppers (Camel CSA)
* tomatoes (Camel CSA)
* cavolo nero – black Tuscan kale (Camel CSA)
* basil (Camel CSA)
potatoes ((Burlerrow Farm, St Mabyn)
Standard boxes will have extra potatoes plus:
* sweetcorn (Camel CSA)
* beetroot (Camel CSA)
* spinach (Camel CSA)
* garlic (Camel CSA)
* = grown to organic principles
