Edition 186

July 2, 2010

• Local Box Contents
• News & Updates
• Recipe Corner
• Greenling Tidbits

• New - Chevre, from Pure Luck - June's Joy is PL's award-winning chevre with Good Flow honey, pepper, and thyme
• New -Pancake Mix, Sweet Potato (also good for waffles) from Homestead Gristmill
• In Trouble -Kombucha, from GTs...the alcohol content eeked above .5% so the govt yanked it from the shelves. Try Buddha's Brew instead!
• New -Honeydew, local from Ringger farm
• New -Local Lamb, from a new local, grass-fed source, will add a few cuts and smooth out supply
• New - Corn Starch, for all the wonderful baked and fried summer dishes
• Lotsa -Fruit, big bounties from non-local, certified organic farms

Greening your 4th

Chris Searles is an awesome environmentalist who has brought us great gifts like the Sustainable Shopper's Ball & more. He created green4th.com in 2006 on an impulse to address the absence of 'green' from our celebration of the red, white, and blue.

He has put together tips on everything from greening your picnic, to the fireworks, to grilling, parades, and travel.

Check out Austin EcoNetwork's summary of how to be a little more sustainable with your celebrations this weekend:

Greening your 4th

The Secret to Awesome Tomatoes

The grocery stores don't want you to know this, but there's a simple secret behind great-tasting tomatoes -

Don't refrigerate them and eat them within a couple of days

So, I admit it's not as convenient as throwing them in the refrigerator. But if you're serious about peak tomato flavor, this is all you need to do. Cooling tomatoes below about 55F actually changes the flavor.

The tomatoes in the store are all from the refrigerator in back of the store. Stores just don't turn these morsels around fast enough to leave them out because they'll spoil within a few days. At Greenling, our tomatoes don't get below 55F and arrive almost daily so they still have that off-the-vine taste to them.

Greenling Cuts More Than the Mustard

And not just any mustard. Before you ask - I tried to look up where this saying comes from and apparently there is isn't even a moderately confident answer. If you know, please share. Anyway, we've got a special summer treat - curly mustard greens. Dark greens of any kind are not normal in the summer but Texas Naturals, an Organic farm south of Austin, took a chance on growing these late-season and with all the rain we've received they've managed to flourish and bring us a nutritional powerhouse often confined to cooler months.

Mustard greens actually are the plant that brings us the seeds for Dijon and other mustards. You can taste the spunky and peppery flavor of mustard in the greens. They're in the same family as broccoli and cabbage so are packed with the same phytonutrients and antioxidants, but are actually one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet. With substantial levels of 9 vitamins, 7 minerals, fiber and protein you could just about survive on mustard greens alone. Toss with some lemon juice, salt and oil for a raw snack or sub in any recipe for kale, collards, or even spinach.

Texas Naturals grows their Organic bounty with love you can taste. Greenling has been working with Waymon & the crew since we launched and they've been featured in several of our news and video spots. Waymon is the kind of spicy, humorous, and humble farmer we wish we could clone. They farm about 20 acres in an area that is being overtaken by progress. They're right next to the new 130/I35 interchange south of Austin and will soon have developments sprouted around them. They'll keep farming as long as they can and bring us Organic goodness from their little hillside. Get your curly mustard here

Vote Greenling 'Best Local Food Company' Again!

And not just because we ask nicely (pretty please?). We're working hard to grow the local food movement & are the largest single source for local food anywhere and are still able to work with any size farmer or producer - from a backyard gardener to hundred-acre farms. We also threw an awesome party last year when we won! We collected the best local food and beverages and threw a bash that hundreds of people attended and were able to sample what makes Austin food so good. We'd love to throw another party and need your votes! Here's what makes us the 'Best Local Food Company:'

• We have the largest selection of local, sustainably produced foods of any retail outlet, anywhere!
• We have 2x-10x the local produce of any grocery store
• We bring it all right to your door!
• We're the best outlet for local vendors with flexible receiving and the ability to work with any size producer from a backyard gardener to large local farmers
• We even work with many CSAs and buy crops before and after their CSA season to increase the farm income
• We help new producers get started with purchasing commitments and growing, year-round demand
• We also support local operations through fund-raisers and behind-the-scenes efforts like drafting legislation to make local, Organics easier and helping form Slow Money Austin which aims to bring more investment capital to the local food system

We hope it's an easy vote for you. Go here to cast it and ask your friends to vote for us too!

This Week's Box Contents & Local Items

Ok, Mr. Rain, that'll do. We're praying for the melons and hope you do too. in 2008 we were set for a great melon season then we were blessed with many many inches of rain in a short period and the melons literally exploded! we're anxiously awaiting news this year of how they're faring with the hurricane rain.

Here's what will be available from local farms on our website this week (the best selection of local produce in the state - guaranteed). Items with a (*) are only available in the Local Box:

In Local Boxes ($34.99) this week (Jul 5-9):

• San Marzona Tomatoes - Acadian
  
• Potatoes (red, yukon, purple) - Various
  
• Summer Squash - Gordan Taylor
  
• Lady Cream Peas - Just Peach
  
• Carrots - Acadian
  
• Garlic - My Father's Farm
  
• Basil - Various
  
• Cantaloupe - ABJ
  
• Peaches or Plums - Caskey or Massey
• Curly Mustard - Texas Natural
  
• Cucumber - Acadian

Last Week's (Jun 28-Jul 2) Local Box Video:

In Farmstead Boxes this week (Jul 5-9):

• World's Best Eggs - Coyote Creek
• Muenster Cheese - Brazos Valley
• Challah Bread - Sweetish Hill

Order Here

Fresh, Prepared Meal Selection for this week:

Dish #1 - Cracked Wheat Salad w/ Dates & Preserved Lemon(1 pint - serves 1 for lunch) - Organic cracked wheat tossed with sweet medjool dates, scallions & Moroccan-style preserved lemons. Finished with extra virgin olive oil and fresh cilantro.

-Ingredients: cracked whole wheat, olive oil, medjool dates, scallions, lemon, vinegar, herbs, spices, salt, pepper

Dish #2 - Potato & Corn Salad w/ Cherry Tomatoes & Feta(1 pint) - Tender red potatoes mixed with juicy corn, sweet summer peppers and cherry tomatoes. Sprinkled with feta cheese and tossed in a lemon-sherry vinaigrette with fresh thyme. An easy side for delicious weeknight dinner.

-Ingredients: red potato, corn, sweet pepper, feta, lemon, vinegar, olive oil, herbs, spices, salt, pepper

Produce from Local Farms

• Arugula-Bluebonnet
  
• Arugula, Baby-Animal Farm
  
• Basil-Various
  
• Basil, Live-BellaVerdi
  
• Beets and Carrots Juicing-My Father's Farm
  
• Carrots with Tops-Various
  
• Chard-Texas Natural
  
• Cucumbers-Acadian Family Farm
  
• Garlic-Ringger Family Farm
  
• Green Cabbage-Naegelin
  
• Herbs-Pure Luck
  
• Parsley-My Father's Farm
  
• Lettuce,Bibb-BellaVerdi
  
• Microgreens-BellaVerdi
  
• Mushroom, Crimini-Kitchen Pride
  
• Mushroom, Oyster-Kitchen Pride
  
• Mushroom, Port caps-Kitchen Pride
  
• Mushroom, White-Kitchen Pride

Produce from Local Farms

• Okra - My Father's Farm, Tecolote
  
• Pepper,Cayenne -
• Pea Shoots-Bluebonnet
  
• Pepper, Green Bell-My Father's Farm, Ringger
• Potatoes, Red-Naegelin
  
• Potatoes, Yukon-Oak Hill
  
• Shallot-Lundgren
  
• Sprouts, All-Groovy Greens
  
• Summer Squash-Various
  
• Tomato, Cherry-Naegelin
  
• Tomato, Slicing - ABJ Farms
• Tomato, Green-Ringger Family Farm
  
• Watercress-Bluebonnet
• Berries, Blueberries -Berry Best Farms
  
• Mango-G&S
• Cantaloupe - Orange Blossom
  
• Peaches-Caskey, Lundgren
• Watermelon - Orange Blossom, ABJ Farm

Events & Local Food Happenings Around Town

Greenling Austin Soiree

-July 24th

-FREE

-Venue TBD...maybe Akoya pool party?

Mix, Mingle and Munch! Join us in downtown Austin this month for our community potluck. You're welcome to bring something, but you don't have to. All dishes should please include at least one ingredient of locally produced, organically grown food. Dishes will be in the running for inclusion is our upcoming cookbook. Plus, the dish that gets the most votes overall that night wins a FREE Local Box!! You get to be famous and get a free box of $34.99 of local, seasonal veggies. RSVP by calling or emailing Greenling.com (512-440-8449) or emailing jevans AT greenling.com.

The French Twist w/ Chef Alain Braux

-July 12, 7-8:30pm

-Free, I think

-Habitat Suites, Austin

Join Slow Food for a special session with French chef and Nutritherapist for People’s Pharmacy, Alain Braux. Alain Braux grew up in Southern France where he learned to cultivate a SLOW FOOD lifestyle that laid the foundation of knowledge shared in his award winning book, How to Lower your Cholesterol with French Gourmet Food. We will learn how to choose, prepare, and enjoy foods in ways that preserve their nutrients and healthy benefits as Alain reveals the nourishing qualities of French cuisine and lifestyle. He will also cover gluten food allergies and the discoveries he has made writing new gluten free cookbook. Best of all, everyone will get to sample and take home one of Alain’s tres bonne gluten free recipe in time to celebrate Bastille Day with your friends.

See same info on Slow Food Austin's website here

Natural Epicurean Professional Training Program, Open House

-July 24th, 11:30am-2:30pm

-Free

-Natural Epicurean, Austin

The Natural Epicurean Academy of Culinary Arts is proud to offer one of the only plant based professional chef training programs in the country, training chefs in macrobiotic, classical vegetarian, vegan, Ayurvedic and raw & living foods techniques and recipes.

In this open house session, held at the brand new kitchen facilities at 1700 S. Lamar Blvd, learn about our unique 900-hour chef training program, meet the instructors and directors, and realize your future as a certified chef in the rapidly growing field of natural and whole foods cooking.

This program will give you the education you need to be competitive and savvy in this ever-expanding market. Come experience something uniquely different with The Natural Epicurean Academy of Culinary Arts.

click here to learn more

Recipe Corner

Gazpacho

Ingredients

• 2 cucumbers, diced
  
• 3 large tomatoes, diced
  
• 1 red pepper, chopped
  
• 1 green pepper, chopped
  
• 1 red onion, chopped
  
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  
• 2 1/2 cups tomato juice
  
• Salt
  
• Pepper
  
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
  
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
  
• Juice of 1 lime
  
• Tabasco
  

Instructions:

In large glass bowl combine vegetables. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Add half the mixture to a food processor and blend until smooth. Combine puree with original mixture. Chill for 4 hours and serve.

Cheesy French Toast

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon butter
  
• 2 eggs
  
• 1/2 cup milk
  
• 8 slices Challah Braid
  
• 8 slices Muenster cheese
  

Instructions:

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. In a shallow bowl, beat together eggs and milk.

Dip bread slices one at a time in egg mixture, and fry in butter until golden. After turning once, top with a slice of muenster cheese, and cover until cheese is melted.

For More Recipes Check Out The Eating Out of the Local Box Blog. Also make sure to become a fan of Greenling on Facebook to get weekly recipes from Woman With A Whisk & The Best of Thymes food bloggers.