Friday, September 17, 2010

Organic Harvest Box for September 17, 2010

Here's a quick look inside this week's Organic Harvest Box:


A few years ago I had never seen a piece of fruit with a papery, light-weight covering. And then I was introduced to ground cherries! Ground cherries come from a small shrub similar to the common tomato, and can be grown as an annual or perennial. This tiny round fruit can be eaten raw, used in salads, tossed in desserts, or used as a flavoring. It is also fantastic in jams and jellies. Ground cherries are decadent when dipped in melted chocolate. And did you know they can also be dried and eaten? Yes, they can!

So I set off on a mission to gather some good quality ground cherry recipes for you. At the top of my list: this
Ground Cherry Pie and this Ground Cherry Clafoutis. These small cherries lend themselves well to baking, but sometimes the key is making sure you have enough with which to bake. Another fabulous dessert to try are these Poached Ground Cherries. Fancy a good jam once in a while on your morning toast? Give this Ground Cherry Jam a go and be sure to let me know if you test it out, I'd love to know how it tastes! And I see endless possibilities for this Ground Cherry Sauce.

Like many, I was not a fan of brussels sprouts for a large portion of my life. I can pretty much guarantee that once you taste brussels sprouts cooked properly -
in a suitable recipe - you will thoroughly enjoy them. A good place for you to start is with these Roasted Brussels Sprouts from Simply Recipes. And then I found an even better site to see each how-to step in making Roasted Brussels Sprouts - check it out, it's worth the click! Another simple, but tasty, method in which to try brussels sprouts is Sauteed Brussels Sprouts.

To awaken the true chef inside you (or for hard core foodies) you may want to try Braised Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta, Shredded Brussels Sprouts and Apples, Brussels Sprouts with Bacon, Shallots and Figs, or this fantastic and delicious Brussels Sprouts with Walnuts from celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse.

I was all set to write about leeks this week, but I decided I'd hold off another week or two since I know that more are on the way! So instead, I'm talking cilantro.

Nothing beats fresh cilantro - it is widely used and is a part of many salad and pasta recipes. I tried to gather a few different uses for cilantro this week, recipes you may not have thought of before.

You can read about
cilantro here and check out some interesting recipes - cilantro pesto, cilantro rice, etc. I like the looks of this Tomato and Onion Relish with Cilantro Chutney and think it would compliment a variety of different meals. I've tried this Avocado Salad with Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette and it does not disappoint. A decadent Lime Cilantro Butter Sauce is a wonderful topping to many meats or vegetable dishes. I am anxious to try this Thai Grilled Chicken with Cilantro Dipping Sauce because I have a hunch my whole family will enjoy it (my children will eat anything that is associated with any kind of "dipping sauce"). And most interesting recipe of the week? Definitely this Carrot, Avocado and Cilantro Soup - a mix of tastes I had never considered before, in a soup I suspect is out of this world! Until next week, happy organic munching!



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