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Member Farms>Who We Are>August 11, 2006
Newsletter -- August 11, 2006
Dear community of meadowlark,
Under the trees today, in the shade, we were in warm shirts, rubber boots and sweaters even. Jon had his long underwear and famous Empire Bank hat (which has been in our family since I was a little girl). I definitely feels like the "turn of summer" doesn't it? The nighttime temperatures and cool winds from the north definitely change the feel and tempo of life on the farm and live in general. Change is in the air. School lingers in the not so distant future, the light comes up in the morning later and sets earlier and we ate the first ripe watermelon yesterday as well as the first ripe winter squash... Take some time to appreciate that which you personally love about summer; be it spending as much time as possible in the water or enjoying a dish bursting with the heat of summer sun, or the first juicy bite of a fresh and local plum or blackberry, make sure to take time, savor and enjoy...
Today boxes have: salad mix, kale bunch (some people will receive purple curly, some green curly, some dino kale and some red Russian kale), shallots, sweet onions, carrots, chiogga beets, cukes, zukes, many eggplant of various shape and hue, green pepper, dill, cranberry red potatoes, green or dragon beans for all sites except farm and tomatoes. Fruit shares are plums and blackberries!
How about all of those eggplants? We are happy to give you many beautiful purple and magenta globes today and hope that you will give them a try. Eggplant seems to be one of those veggies that either elicits sighs of ecstacy or grimaces of disgust, but we urge you to give these lovelies a place in your diet. They are not the bitter, tasteless and seedy eggplant that you find on the shelves of the supermarket that are ancient and shipped across the country or continent. They need no salting to reduce bitterness. They are wonderful grilled. If you are a grilling family, try and marinate these eggplant in a balsamic venegar, olive oil, garlic and basil marinade and enjoy them grilled entil soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. They can sit right on the grill! Make a quick tomato sauce using all of the tomatoes in your box, the shallots, garlic and salt. Chunk tomatoes and cook over medium high heat until the juices evaporate a bit and the tomatoes break down, about 20 minutes. Add salt and a little bit of butter or half and half and a pinch of sugar to finish. Then you can make this eggplant gratin.
EGGPLANT GRATIN LAYERED WITH FRESH MOZZARELLA AND/OR FONTINA
- fresh tomato sauce (use at least 2 lbs tomatoes)
- 2 1/2 lb eggplant (all of the eggplant in the box)
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- fresh torn basil leaves
- at least one 4 oz ball fresh mozzarella or 1/4 lb thinly sliced fontina (or both!)
Start the broiler. Lightly oil a baking dish. Cut the eggplant into 1/2" rounds or ovals and lightly brush or spray each slice of eggplant with olive oil and broil until golden, about 12 minutes. Broil the second side about 12 minutes, then season lightly with salt and pepper. When the tomato sauce is ready, set the oven at 375. Spread a scant third of the tomato sauce in the baking dish. Layer eggplant, then another layer of tomato sauce, layer of eggplant, cheese and spoonfuls of remaining sauce. Bake until heated and bubbling, 35 minutes.
Have a great week and don't forget to order your Higher Grounds Coffee for next week: contact jody at info@highergroundstrading.com to place an order. Support the Treters, drink good coffee and get a good deal, too.
Enjoy, the meadowlarks
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This page last updated on 8/22/2006.
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