Quinoa and Vegetable Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
6 small bell peppers, mixed colors, seeded and halved
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 small firm eggplant, trimmed of half the skin, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 fresh chile pepper, such as Fresno, thinly sliced, or 1 teaspoon dried crushed pepper
1 small to medium firm zucchini, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, a handful, chopped
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 cup crumbled feta or ricotta salata cheese

Preparation: 

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Bring the quinoa and stock to a boil. Cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the grain looks translucent, 12 to 15 minutes. Then fluff with a fork. You will have about 4 cups of cooked grain.

Drizzle the bell pepper halves with olive oil and season both sides with salt and pepper. Roast cut-side down until the skins begin to char and the peppers are just tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temp, then arrange in a baking dish cut-side up.

Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil, 3 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, eggplant, onions and chiles, and season with salt and pepper. Cook partially covered to tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the herbs and tomatoes, and combine with the quinoa.

Fill the pepper halves with the quinoa and vegetable stuffing and drizzle with olive oil. Cool and chill for a make-ahead meal. To serve, roast in a 375 degree F oven until the peppers are hot through. Serve the pepper halves topped with lots of cheese crumbles.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/quinoa-and-vegetable-stuffed-peppers-recipe/index.html

Grilled Tomatoes With Balsamic Dressing

Ingredients: 3 yellow tomatoes 3 red tomatoes  3 tablespoons olive oil, divided  1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil  Garnish: fresh basil sprigs  Preparation: Cut tomatoes in half; thread onto skewers, alternating colors. Brush with 1 tablespoon oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium heat (300° to 350°) 10 minutes, turning skewers often. Combine remaining 2 tablespoons oil, vinegar, and basil; drizzle over kabobs. Garnish, if desired. http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/grilled-tomatoes-with-basil-vinaigrette-10000000257441/

Ground Cherry Salsa

Ingredients:

1/2 pint of Ground Cherries, each one halved
1/4 Red Onion, diced
1/4 jalapeno, diced
Cilantro, chopped
Red Bell Pepper, diced
Very *small* squeeze Lime Juice
Roughly a teaspoon or two Extra Virgin Olive oil
Very *small* pinch Salt

Preparation:

Mix everything together and let sit for 30 minutes so the flavors can come together. Do not overdue it with the salt or lime; the small amount of salt is only needed to draw out liquid from the cherries so they can macerate with the olive oil and lime juice.

http://catertots.net/by-type/vegetable/ground-cherry-salsa

Introduction to Tomatoes

We grow three categorical types of tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes, paste tomatoes (also known as Roma), 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 the 7 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.

Cherokee Purple

Medium-large, flattened globe fruits. Color is dusky pink with dark shoulders. Multicolor interior ranges from purple to brown to green.

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.

Mt. Merit Hybrid medium-large, 8-10 oz., red slicer with an excellent disease package to keep it healthy in the field. Larger than Defiant PHR.

Defiant PHR Hybrid The 6-8 oz., globe-shaped fruit are smooth and medium-firm with good texture. Deep red internal and external color.

How to Pick Cherry Tomatoes, Ground Cherries and Basil

Cherry tomatoes- our cherry tomatoes are located to two areas: in the large hoop house (plastic greenhouse) in the field, and in the you-pick section, near the flowers and herbs. We will be alternating pickings between these two areas to give each area time to recover from heavy picking. In the hoop house, all the cherry tomatoes are the same variety: Sun Gold. Pick these when they are dark orange. The row in the you-pick section in the field is half Sun Gold (the first half if you are coming from the main pathway), and half Sakura. Pick the Sakura’s when they are bright red. Gently pull the tomatoes from the vine. Avoid the cracked ones, they might be over ripe.

Ground Cherries- These are a peculiar vegetable, closely related to the tomato, but much sweeter. Ground cherries get their name from the fact that you can harvest them from the ground. They are ready when the outer husk (they are also known as husk cherries) is dry and light brown. Sometimes at this point they are still attached to the plant, but often they fall off the stem when they are ripe. You can pick the ones on the ground or the brown ones on the plant. The variety we are growing is called Goldie. Peel the outer husk back and enjoy!

Basil- we have four different kinds of basil, I encourage you to try them all. They are (in order from the main pathway): lemon basil, Thai basil, Purple basil and green basil (the traditional king). We recently planted a second planting of all green basil. In years past our basil has been cut short by a disease called Downy Mildew, so this year we are hoping a second planting will come in strong just as the first is dying down.  When harvesting basil, take a pair of pruners or clippers and cut the stem just above the intersection of the main stem and a side shoot. By leaving the side shoots you are leaving a viable growing point for the plant to regenerate. Try to make your cut as close to this intersection as possible as to avoid leaving a “stump,” which will only turn brown and die back.