Ground Cherry and Cucumber Salsa

½ cup husked and diced ground cherries

1 cup peeled, seeded diced cucumbers

1 sweet pepper, sliced for garnish, the rest diced

¼ cup chopped cilantro

2 garlic cloves diced

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. You may need to add a little water or vinegar/olive oil to moisten the mixture. Allow to chill for about 25-30 minutes and serve.

Source: http://blog.kitchentherapy.us/2009/08/ground-cherry-salsa/

Ground Cherry Pie

2 ½-3 cups ground cherries

2/3 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp flour

2 tbsp water

3 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp flour

2 ½ tbsp butter

Instructions:

Place ground cherries into an unbaked pie shell. Stir together the brown sugar and the 1 tablespoon of flour-put this evenly over the ground cherries and then sprinkle water-again evenly-over all.

Stir together the 3 tablespoons sugar and the 3 tablespoons flour. Cut in the butter until it is crumbly-Place on top of pie.

Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Then turn down to 375 degrees and bake another 25 to 28 minutes.

Source: http://michele-engholm.hubpages.com/hub/Discover-the-Ground-Cherry

Seared Salmon with Tomatillo Coulis

For tomatillo coulis:

1 small red onion

¼ lb fresh tomatillos

1 fresh green Anaheim chile

1 fresh poblano chile

3 unpeeled garlic cloves

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup cilantro chopped

1 cup fresh spinach leaves

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup water

Four 5 oz pieces of salmon with skin

12 fresh basil leaves

salt and pepper to taste

olive oil

1 tbsp fresh lime juice




Instructions:

Quarter onion. In a shallow baking pan toss onion, tomatillos (in husks), chiles, and garlic cloves with 2 tablespoons olive oil until coated. Roast vegetables in middle of oven until tender, about 25 minutes.

Wearing rubber gloves, peel chiles. Cut off tops of chiles and remove seeds and ribs. Discard husks from tomatillos and peel garlic. In a blender purée roasted vegetables and all remaining coulis ingredients except water, adding just enough water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary to facilitate blending. Season coulis with salt.

With a paring knife make 3 slits in top of each salmon fillet and stuff each with a basil leaf. With a mortar and pestle or an electric coffee/spice grinder coarsely grind peppercorns. Brush salmon with extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle with ground peppercorns and sea salt. In a large nonstick skillet heat olive oil over high heat until hot but not smoking and sear salmon fillets, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides and just cooked through, about 7 minutes total. Serve salmon with coulis.

Source: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Seared-Salmon-with-Tomatillo-Coulis-15623

Salsa Verde

1 lb tomatillos, husked

½ cup finely chopped onion

1 serrano chile, minced

1 tsp minced garlic

2 tbsp chopped cilantro

1 tbsp chopped oregano

½ tsp cumin

1 ½ tsp salt

2 cups water




Instructions:

1. Place tomatillos, onions, garlic, and chile pepper into a saucepan. Season with cilantro, oregano, cumin and salt. Pour in water. Bring to boil over high heat, then reduce head to medium-low and simmer until the tomatillos are soft, about 10-15 minutes

2. Using a blender, carefully puree the tomatillos and water in batches until smooth.

Source: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/tomatillo-salsa-verde/

U Pick Instructions and Recipes

Two new items are being offered as an option in this week’s U-pick. I’m excited to introduce to you ground cherries and tomatillos! Both are in the tomato family and are rare and tasty treats.

Ground Cherries

Ground cherries are mildly sweet and to me, taste like a cross between a grape and a cherry tomato. They look like a small cherry tomato wrapped in a loose, papery husk. They are called ground cherries because they are harvested from the ground, after they have fallen off the branch of the plant. Look for them on the ground and pick the ones with dried, brown, outer husks. If you peel back the husk slightly, the “cherry” on the inside should be a shiny and somewhat translucent, varying from light green to yellow to tan. Remove the husk and enjoy! I just snack on them as they are, but see the recipe section for suggestions on how to cook with them.

Tomatillos

Tomatillos are slightly tart and to me, taste a bit like a green tomato with a hint of lemon. They look like small tomatoes wrapped in a tight husk. Look for them on the plant, and pick the ones that have grown large enough to fill out or split open their husk. The actual tomatillo will be various shades of green inside the husk. Remove the husk and use in salsa verde or other Central American dishes. See the recipe section for more cooking suggestions. 

Volunteer Day

Last Saturday’s volunteer day was the best turnout we’ve ever had for a volunteer day! Thank you all who participated. I was amazed at how quickly we turned our meadow-engulfed bean beds into an orderly, weed-free haven. Thanks to everyone’s hard work we WILL have edamame in this year’s share! Thanks again to Mary, Robert, Tony, Pete, Anna, Emma, Ralph, Denise, Ning, Carl, Jen and Nancy.

Rain Barrel Workshop

I think the next time we need rain I’ll just schedule a rain barrel workshop, and wait for the rain to follow! After weeks of dry, hot weather, last Thursday’s rain barrel workshop seemed to bring the rain! I would like to say a BIG thank you to Sally McCabe from PHS who ran the workshop. CSA members Sara and Janice enjoyed a hands on, personalized workshop at the farm last Thursday. Many folks told me they were interested but unfortunately couldn’t make it. The city of Philadelphia also holds rain barrel workshops. The next one is July 25^th in Kensington. Check out for more details

http://www.phillywatersheds.org/whats_in_it_for_you/residents/rainbarrel