mar 2009 | meat | contents

Ground Beef (2 lbs)
Pork Sausage (1 lb)
Ribeye Steak
Ham Steak
Bacon
Chicken (one whole and two half fryers)
One Dozen Eggs

Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm is an old-fashioned family farm located north of Ottawa, IL on the banks of Indian Creek. Jody and Beth Osmund returned to this family farm to five years ago to embark on sustainable farming and raise their sons: Richard, Duncan and Jack. Their animals are raised in healthy environments, so drugs and hormones aren’t necessary to promote growth or maintain health.

The March Melting Pot

I often come across articles, events or tidbits about cooking or local food, but they’re not enough on their own to warrant a whole article. So, I thought I would start collecting these and post a miscellaneous article with random thoughts, resources and interesting information. Here goes:

First up, the 5th Annual Ramp Fest at the Garfield Park Conservatory on Friday, April 5. Ramp Fest is The Land Connection’s annual Spring fundraiser, inspired by the wild ramp, allium tricocum, which is the first edible green to come up each spring, and which Chicago was named after (who knew!). Enjoy spectacular dishes featuring the vegetable of honor created by the likes of Paul Kahan: Blackbird Restaurant, Carrie Nahabedian: NAHA, Sarah Stegner & George Bumbaris: Prairie Grass Cafe, and Paul Virant: Vie Restaurant. For ticket information, visit TheLandConnection.org > events.

Which leads me to my second feature: The Land Connection.
Their Vision: to support and foster the growth and creation of community-based food systems in the Midwest, in which every farmer has the opportunity to grow food in a sustainable manner, and every person has the choice to enjoy local and organic foods.
Their Mission: to establish successful farmers on healthy farmland, ensuring an abundance of delicious, local, and organic foods.
A great cause that is worthy of our support (and you get to eat ramps!). For more information, visit TheLandConnection.org.

I found out about the Ramp Fest and The Land Connection in the latest issue of edible Chicago, a magazine featuring news of the region’s family farmers, brewers, food artisans, chefs, home gardeners, and others who have a dedication to producing and using sustainably produce, local, seasonal foods. You can pick up free copies at various locations around the city and suburbs (I grabbed mine at the Chopping Block), you can read the content online, or you can subsribe and have it delivered to your door four times a year for $28.

Chicago’s Downtown Farmstand is now open on a permanent basis and offers edible local and seasonal products all produced within 250 miles of Chicago. The Farmstand was recently featured on WGN Lunchbreak and highlighted local buttermilk, scone mix, soups and more that are available for purchase. For hours and more information, visit the Farmstand’s website.

And one more local, seasonal shopping spot that’s not open quite yet (as far as I know, but someone please correct me if I’m wrong), but very soon we’ll be able to buy local, organic and healthy food at the Dill Pickle Food Co-op in Logan Square. For updates and more information, visit www.dillpicklefoodcoop.org or call 312-523-8299.

Slow-Cooker Chicken Stock

I finally broke down and purchased a slow cooker that I had in my Amazon wish list for almost a year. It’s been close to a month since it arrived all shiny-new and stainless steel and, funny thing is, the only thing I’ve made so far is chicken stock – lots and lots of chicken stock. It’s become a joke now in our house that I’m stocking up on stock (you can never have too much homemade chicken stock). Making stock in a slow cooker cannot be any easier. And after doing some research online and reading up at Cook’s Illustrated, I determined that you don’t need a lot of ingredients to end up with a really flavorful, full-bodied stock. Throw some chicken (wings, backs and/or necks), an onion (with the skin, adds a nice golden-brown color), garlic, salt and bay leaves in a slow cooker, set it to cook and forget about it. Eight hours later (or four hours on high), you’ve got yourself three quarts of homemade stock that you can use within a week or freeze for up to three months.

For safety reasons, it’s always a good idea to cool down soups, stocks or stews before transferring them to the refrigerator. Putting hot-off-the-stove foods directly into the refrigerator can increase the interior temperature to more than 50 degrees – which is unsafe for all of the food inside. You can let the food cool down on the countertop for an hour and then transfer to the refrigerator. Or, you can cool it down more quickly with a cooling paddle. A Rapi-Kool Food Chiller, or cooling paddle, cool sauces, soups, stews, and other hot foods quickly and easily. It allows you to insert a shaft of cold directly into the core of the food. You can find cooling paddles at restaurant supply stores online such as Ace Mart, item number KATRCU-64.

Click here to download and print a pdf of this recipe:

Slow-Cooker Chicken Stock

feb 2009 | meat | contents

Ground Beef (2 lbs)
Sirloin Steak
Italian Sausage
Pork Shoulder Roast
Pork Chops
Chicken (one whole and two halves)
One Dozen Eggs

Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm is an old-fashioned family farm located north of Ottawa, IL on the banks of Indian Creek. Jody and Beth Osmund returned to this family farm to five years ago to embark on sustainable farming and raise their sons: Richard, Duncan and Jack. Their animals are raised in healthy environments, so drugs and hormones aren’t necessary to promote growth or maintain health.

Spiced Party Nuts

Oh my. I had never experienced homemade spiced nuts before making them on New Year’s Eve. Man, they are good. The flavor of homemade versus store bought spiced nuts is incomparable. You really get a lot more bang for your buck if you can spare a few minutes to create your own (all three of these recipes takes less then 20 minutes and that’s including cooking time). They’re fresher, bolder and you have the flexibility of playing with the flavors. Say goodbye to expensive, stale, store-bought nuts and try one – or all three! – of these. Be forewarned: they’re addictive.

Note: all three recipes have slightly different cooking techniques.

Click here to download and print a pdf of this recipe:

Spiced Party Nuts

Tex-Mex Cornbread Skillet

If you’re looking for a hearty, warm, satisfying winter meal that you can eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner, look no further than Tex-Mex Cornbread Skillet made with ground beef from the Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm share. I used Beth’s recipe from this month’s newsletter as a jumping off point. It comes together fast and really is as good as it looks and sounds.

Click here to download and print a pdf of this recipe:

Tex-Mex Cornbread Skillet

dec 2008 | meat share | contents

Ground beef (2 lbs)
Stir Fry Strips
Beef Polish Sausage
Bacon
Pork Sausage
Pork Shoulder Steak
Chicken
1/2 dozen eggs

24 Boxes is expanding!
As of today, I am technically at 25 boxes* due to the pick up of my December Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm Meat CSA share. Actually, it was an insulated bag full of local and sustainable Angus beef, pasture raised chicken, free range eggs and farm raised pork. It’s a monthly share that offers a variety of pick up locations throughout the city and western suburbs. I can’t wait to add this into my rotation and it’s especially fun to participate this time of the year now that my vegetable boxes have ceased. Which leads me to my next increase in box count...

As many of you know, the Angelic Organic shares do not start until the second week of June. That leaves me anxiously awaiting my first box and making do with the farmers markets when they open in May. But in 2009, I’ve signed up for a Spring share from Genesis Growers that will take me through April and May and provide me with wonderful Spring vegetables and early fruits like rhubarb and strawberries. So much to look forward to in 2009...

* No, I’m not going to change the name!

2008 Season: Recipe Wrap-up

All of the recipes from this year’s 24 box season in one convenient spot. If you would like to view the original post, enter the recipe name in the search box located at the top left corner in the gray bar. You can also access all of the recipes from the 2007 season here.

Click on a recipe name to download and print a pdf:

Bacon, Leek & Potato Gratin
Baked Chicken Fingers with Sweet & Sour Dipping Sauce
Banana-Walnut-Chocolate-Chip Cookies
Basil Green Goddess Dressing
Celery Root & Apple Purée
Chicken & Dumplings
Compound Herb Butter
Cream Cheese Muffins
French Onion Soup with Cheese Croutons
Fresh Tomato Salsa
Goat Cheese Pasta with Asparagus
Hot Pepper Jelly
Mediterranean Couscous with Zucchini, Chickpeas & Feta
Moroccan Carrot Salad
Rhubarb Crisp
Roasted Radishes with Soy Glaze & Scallions
Roasted Ratatouille
Roasted Tomato Sauce
Simple Series :: Cucumbers
Skillet Lasagna Bolognese
Sliced Brussels Sprouts with Brown Butter
Sloppy Joes
Sweet Potato Salad with Caramelized Red Onions
Veggie Burger with Curry Mayonnaise
Veggie Cold Cut Deli Style Sandwiches
Well Done Burgers Done Well
Whole Wheat Molasses Bread
Winter Chopped Salad
Zucchini Pancakes
Zucchini-Carrot Muffins with Lemon Cream Cheese Icing

2008 | box no. 24 | contents | last box!

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

cooking greens
Red Russian Kale, Kale Tops
fruiting crops
Popcorn, Butternut Squash
roots
Potatoes, Celeriac, Carrots, Beets, Radishes
brassicas
Brussels Sprouts, Red Cabbage
alliums
Garlic, Onions

Week 24 newsletter

Celery Root & Apple Purée

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Cooking! If you have room to squeeze one more dish on the table, make it this one. Celery Root (aka Celeriac) & Apple Purée tastes like a cross between creamy, buttery mashed potatoes and sweet baked apples with an underlying hint of celery. And if you don’t get around to making it today, the purée would pair wonderfully with Thanksgiving leftovers.

Click here to download and print a pdf of this recipe:

Celery Root & Apple Purée

2008 | box no. 23 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

cooking greens
Spinach, Collard Tops, Winterbor Kale Tops
fruiting crops
Popcorn
roots
Potatoes, Rutabaga, Celeriac, Carrots
brassicas
Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli Florets, Purple Kohrabi, Cabbage
alliums
Garlic, Onions

Week 23 newsletter

Sliced Brussels Sprouts with Brown Butter

I always struggle with Brussels sprouts. I’ve tried all different ways of cooking them – roasting, pan searing, even braising them with bacon. None of them did it for me. They always had that “funky” taste and sometimes came out mushy. I’ve heard different theories on causes of the funky taste. Number one reason could be overcooking (admittedly, that blame lies with the cook). Another theory proposed that the tiny core of each sprout was to blame. One recommended solution was to pull off all the outer leaves, one by one, and discard the core. I actually tried it – and it did work – but boy was it a pain in the you-know-what. Then I tried a new approach: slicing the sprouts very thin. The resulting pieces cooked up very quickly, thus solving the overcooking, mushy problem (and it’s a lot faster than pulling off the leaves one at a time). And because you have to grip on to the stem of each sprout in order to slice it, you end up discarding the core. When all is said and done, you’re left with crisp, buttery Brussels sprouts without a lot of prep time in the kitchen.

Click here to download and print a pdf of this recipe:

Sliced Brussels Sprouts with Brown Butter

2008 | box no. 22 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

cooking greens
Swiss Chard, Choi
fruiting crops
Popcorn, Butternut Squash
roots
Potatoes, Beets, Sunchokes, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, Radishes
brassicas
Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli Florets
alliums
Garlic, Onion
herbs
Cilantro
salad greens
Lettuce

Week 22 newsletter

2008 | box no. 21 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

cooking greens
Spinach, Red Russian Kale, Winterbor Kale
fruiting crops
Popcorn
roots
Potatoes, Rutabaga, Beets, Celeriac
brassicas
Brussels Sprouts, Kohlrabi
alliums
Garlic, Onion

Week 21 newsletter

Sweet Potato Salad with Caramelized Red Onions

When I hear “salad”, it usually conjures images of lazy summer dinners or outdoor picnics – days when you yearn for something cool and crisp. But this salad is all about Fall. The roasted sweet potatoes and caramelized red onions are enveloped in a sweet, piquant dressing and served with the peppery bite of arugula. The big kick of flavor comes from the toasted guajillo chile dressing. Don’t be scared – it’s not spicy. Guajillos are rich, smoky and only register at 6,000 heat units on the Scoville scale (the spiciest of chiles and peppers can clock in at 855,000 units or more!). My favorite source for dried chiles is Penzey’s. They have a huge selection of quality herbs, spices and dried chiles.

Click here to download and print a pdf of this recipe:

Sweet Potato Salad with Caramelized Red Onions

2008 | box no. 20 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

salad greens
Lettuce
cooking greens
Swiss Chard, Pac Choi
alliums
Onions
fruiting crops
Popcorn, Butternut
roots
Potatoes, Radishes, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes
brassicas
Broccoli Florettes, Cabbage

Week 20 newsletter

2008 | box no. 19 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

salad greens
Lettuce
cooking greens
Spinach, Collards
alliums
Onions
fruiting crops
Popcorn
roots
Potatoes, Radishes, Carrots, Beets
brassicas
Broccoli Florettes, Brussels Spouts, Kohlrabi

Week 19 newsletter

Thanksgiving Turkeys

Since returning from vacation, I’ve been focusing a lot of my kitchen time on stocking up for winter – roasting, pureeing and freezing squash and sugar pumpkins, harvesting the last of my patio-grown jalapeños and drying them in a dehydrator for a powdered spice, and I even “put up” some pickled beets and blackberry jam before I left for Hawaii. All in all, necessary, but not very exciting “post-worthy” stuff. I’ve got some ideas in the hopper and I promise I’ll be back to posting recipes soon.

In the mean time, if you’re in the Chicagoland area looking for a Butterball alternative, check out this link from Slow Food Chicago. These farmers have turkeys, ham, geese, ducks, goats, and lamb available for Thanksgiving and Christmas. They are conscientious stewards of land and animals, and are committed to sustainable and humane livestock production.

Many of the turkeys can be picked up at farmers market locations in Oak Park, Evanston or the Green City Winter Market in Lincoln Park. You can also arrange delivery or pick up directly from the farms.

2008 | box no. 18 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

salad greens
Lettuce
cooking greens
Swiss Chard, Red Russian Kale
alliums
Garlic
fruiting crops
Butternut Squash, Popcorn, Eggplants
herbs
Cilantro
roots
Potatoes, Celeriac, Carrots, Daikon Radish
brassicas
Broccoli, Cabbage

Week 18 newsletter

2008 | box no. 17 | contents

Click on an ingredient and link to a past 24 Boxes post using that vegetable.

salad greens
Lettuce
cooking greens
Winterbor Kale, Spinach
alliums
Onions
fruiting crops
Peppers, Tomatoes, Acorn Squash, Delicata Squash
herbs
Parsley
roots
Potatoes, Beets
brassicas
Broccoli, Kohlrabi

Week 17 newsletter