Roasted Tomato Soup

Need another way to use your tomatoes? Try this roasted tomato soup recipe! It's a great way to use a few lbs of tomatoes and it freezes well, too. 

Ingredients:

2 lbs plum tomatoes
6 garlic cloves, peeled and whole
1⁄4 medium red onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 sprigs oregano, remove leaves from stem
3 -4 basil leaves
salt
pepper
2 cups fat-free vegetable broth or 2 cups fat-free chicken broth or 2 cups water
1⁄4 cup parmesan cheese, shaved or grated (optional)

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. (You can also grill the tomatoes for an extra smokey flavor)

Wash and cut tomatoes, placing in a shallow baking dish cut side down.

Add onion pieces, garlic, oregano and basil to the pan.

Drizzle vegetables with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Season with salt and pepper.
Bake for 45 minutes. (Allow tomatoes to cool and then peel the skin off of them). 

Place roasted vegetables in food processor bowl or blender and begin puree. Slowly add broth or water until soup has desired consistency.

Continue blending until smooth.
An immersion blender also works very well. (If you warm the broth first, the soup will be hot without reheating.).

Serve garnished with cheese if desired.

Recipe Source

Cherry Tomato and Ground Cherry Salsa

Ingredients:

2 c. quartered cherry tomatoes
1 c. halved ground cherries
1/3 c. finely chopped red onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T. minced red chili
1/2 c. finely chopped fresh cilantro
3 T. fresh lime juice
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

In a medium bowl, fold together cherry tomatoes, ground cherries, onion, garlic, chili, and cilantro. Drizzle the lime juice and olive oil over the top, folding a couple times to incorporate. Then sprinkle with cumin, salt, and pepper. Fold again to bring it all together. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate for an hour or two before serving.

Serve with tortilla chips, or over grilled fish or chicken.

Recipe Source

Charred Tomatillo Guacamole

Ingredients:

6 oz tomatillos (6 or 7), husked and rinsed
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
3 to 4 fresh serrano chiles, seeded (optional) and finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 large California avocados (1 lb total)

Instructions:

Preheat broiler.

Broil tomatillos in a flameproof shallow baking pan about 4 inches from heat until tops are charred, 7 to 10 minutes. Turn tomatillos over with tongs and broil until charred, about 5 minutes more.

Combine onion, chiles, cilantro, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add tomatillos 2 at a time, mashing with a fork or pestle to form a coarse paste.

Pit and peel avocados. Add avocados to mixture and continue mashing until incorporated but still chunky.

Recipe Source

Simple Baba Ganoush

Enjoy tastings of this recipe courtesy of shareholder Tanya Rotenberg at this week's pickup. 

Ingredients:

1 medium or 3/4 of a large eggplant
1 large clove garlic, grated or finely minced
1 lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp Tahini
sea salt
Optional: 2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, parsley or basil, chopped
olive oil (for roasting)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to high broil (or medium if you have the ability) and position a rack at the top of the oven.

Slice your eggplant into 1/4 inch rounds and sprinkle with sea salt and place in a colander in the sink to drain any excess liquid. After 10 minutes, rinse slightly and then pat dry between two towels.

Arrange on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Roast for 5-10 minutes, turning once or twice, until the eggplant is softened and golden brown. Remove from pan, stack and wrap the rounds in foil to lock in moisture – wait 5 minutes.

Peel away most of the skin of the eggplant (a little is OK) and add flesh to a food processor. It should be soft and tender and the skin should come off easy.

Add lemon juice, garlic, tahini, a pinch of salt and mix until creamy. Add herbs last and pulse to incorporate. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. I added a bit more tahini and another pinch of salt.

Serve with pita and/or pita chips and veggies. Will keep covered in the fridge for several days.

Recipe source

Creamy Leek Soup

Ingredients:

8 medium leeks (3 pound), trimmed, leaving white and pale green parts only, and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1 small boiling potato (6 ounces)
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken stock or reduced-sodium chicken broth (24 fluid ounces)
3 cups water
1 Turkish bay leaf or 1/2 California
1 1/2 cups fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chilled heavy cream

Instructions:

Wash sliced leeks in a large bowl of cold water, agitating them, then lift out and drain well in a colander.

Cook leeks, onion, carrot, celery, salt, and pepper in 4 tablespoons butter in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 8 minutes. Peel potato and cut into 1/2-inch cubes, then add to onion mixture along with wine, stock, water, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

Stir in parsley and simmer soup, uncovered, 5 minutes. Discard bay leaf and keep soup at a bare simmer.

Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a 1-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, then add flour and cook roux, whisking, until golden, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add 2 cups simmering stock (from soup), whisking vigorously (mixture will be thick), then whisk mixture into remaining soup and return to a simmer, whisking.

Blend soup in 4 batches in a blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids), about 1 minute per batch, transferring to a 3- to 4-quart saucepan. Reheat if necessary, then season with salt and pepper.

Beat cream in a bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until it almost forms soft peaks. Serve soup topped with cream.

Recipe Source

Beet Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

2 Cups All Purpose Flour

1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

1 Cup softened Butter 

1 1/2 Cups Sugar

2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract

4 Tablespoons Non-Dairy Milk

1/2 Cup Finely Grated Beet (about one medium beet)

1 1/4 Cups Chocolate Chips

Instructions:

Preheat the over to 350 F. Grease a pan or prepare with a non-stick mat. (These cookies like to stick to the pan, so make sure you don’t skip this step).

Chop the beet greens and the tail off the beet. Save the beet greens, they are delicious sautéed as a side dish. Use a potato peeler to peel the skin off the beet. Grate beet using a fine grater. 

In bowl number 1, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt.

In bowl number 2, cream together the butter, sugar, vanilla, and non-dairy milk. Let the butter soften a bit, (not melt all the way)!

Now add the butter mixture into the flour mixture, add the beets and mix it all up.

Toss in your chocolate chips, give it a final stir and admire your pretty cookie dough.

Use a spoon to place on a cookie tray. 

Bake for 12-14 minutes.

Recipe Source

Shakshukah

Ingredients: 1 tbsp olive oil 1/2 medium brown or white onion, peeled and diced 1 clove garlic, minced 1 medium green or red bell pepper, chopped 4 cups ripe diced tomatoes, or 2 cans (14 oz. each) diced tomatoes 2 tbsp tomato paste 1 tsp chili powder (mild) 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp paprika Pinch of cayenne pepper (or more to taste-- spicy!) Pinch of sugar (optional, to taste) Salt and pepper to taste 5-6 eggs 1/2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley (optional, for garnish) Instructions: Heat a deep, large skillet or sauté pan on medium. Slowly warm olive oil in the pan. Add chopped onion, sauté for a few minutes until the onion begins to soften. Add garlic and continue to saute until mixture is fragrant.  Add the bell pepper, sauté for 5-7 minutes over medium until softened. Add tomatoes and tomato paste to pan, stir till blended. Add spices and sugar, stir well, and allow mixture to simmer over medium heat for 5-7 minutes till it starts to reduce. At this point, you can taste the mixture and spice it according to your preferences. Add salt and pepper to taste, more sugar for a sweeter sauce, or more cayenne pepper for a spicier shakshuka (be careful with the cayenne... it is extremely spicy!). Crack the eggs, one at a time, directly over the tomato mixture, making sure to space them evenly over the sauce. I usually place 4-5 eggs around the outer edge and 1 in the center. The eggs will cook "over easy" style on top of the tomato sauce. Cover the pan. Allow mixture to simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the eggs are cooked and the sauce has slightly reduced. Keep an eye on the skillet to make sure that the sauce doesn't reduce too much, which can lead to burning. Some people prefer their shakshuka eggs more runny. If this is your preference, let the sauce reduce for a few minutes before cracking the eggs on top-- then, cover the pan and cook the eggs to taste. Garnish with the chopped parsley, if desired. Shakshuka can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. For breakfast, serve with warm crusty bread or pita that can be dipped into the sauce (if you’re gluten-intolerant or celebrating Passover, skip the bread). For dinner, serve with a green side salad for a light, easy meal. Recipe source

Harvest on Henry Volunteer Opportunities

Event Date: Saturday October 15th, noon-4pm

Contact Stephanie Kane at skane@weaversway.coop to discuss your interests!

How to be involved - Activities at a glance:
Cow Plop Bingo - sell tickets on our bingo board at events prior to the festival and/or on the day of
Face Painting - templates provided to face painter volunteers
Kids' Games & Pumpkin painting - take tickets, stock supplies
Farm Market and Cafe - sales of apples, cider, coffee, tea, apple cider donuts
Pie Committee - cut & package donated pies, sell slices. May ask to help with pie contest set up
Ticket Sales - work the info booth selling tickets, event t-shirts, and answering questions about the event
WW Kitchen - take tickets for the food tent, help with serving food, utensils; keep supplies stocked, etc.
**All Committee Members and volunteers will receive 8 tickets to be used at the festival**
** Anyone working on the day of will be working alongside Saul High School students, teachers, and Weavers Way co-op volunteers.

Volunteers - We need many volunteers for all these activities; let us know if there is a particular area you would like to be involved in. We will contact you closer to the event to sign up for a shift. You can also volunteer prior to the event by handing out fliers, painting signs, etc.

Committee Members - If you would like to be on a HOH committee, you will be asked to attend 3-4 meetings, starting in August, and keep in touch with WW event coordinators in between meetings. You will also take more of a coordinator role on the day-of, orienting student and adult volunteers to their tasks on your Committee. If you cannot attend the festival, you can still be a committee member!

Tomato Season Has Arrived, In Full Force!

What are those beauties in your share? Here is an introduction to our tomato crop this year.  We grow three categorical types of tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes, paste tomatoes (also known as Roma, great for making sauce because of their low water content), and tomato tomatoes ☺ . Of the last category, there are two major types- heirlooms and hybrids. Heirlooms are old varieties that are particularly delicious, odd looking and VERY fragile. Hybrids are more ordinary tasting and looking but are more reliable producers that are less susceptible to disease and more sturdy. The heirlooms crack and ooze and are bumpy and funny colors. They have character, and taste out of this world amazing! Here is an introduction to some of the varieties we are growing this year, try them all! (All are heirloom, unless indicated otherwise.)

Prudens Purple- Large to very large (many over 1 lb.) fruits are flattened and smooth (except for shoulder ribbing on some), and resist cracking. Vivid dark pink skin with crimson flesh.

Valencia- Bright orange, round, smooth fruits average 8-10 oz. Their meaty interiors have few seeds. This midseason tomato will become more abundant as the season continues.

Striped German- The flat, medium to large, variably ribbed-shoulder tomatoes are shaded yellow and red. The marbled interior looks beautiful sliced. Complex, fruity flavor and smooth texture.

Big Beef Hybrid- Red, Large, avg. 10-12 oz., mostly blemish-free, globe-shaped red fruit.

Brandywine- Tomato lovers say this is one of the best tasting heirlooms. The skin is a deep pink color, with red flesh inside.

Nepal- This tomato does not look like an heirloom, but is still tastes like one!

Japanese Black Trifele- This unusual pear shape and burgundy color is one of the most unique varieties we are growing this year. Shoulders are still green, even when ripe.

Black Krim- This Russian variety is sometimes described as having a smoky flavor. It is deep brown/red with green shoulders, even when ripe.