Hello!

Salsa is the perfect dish to bring to a July 4th cookout. It’s fresh, easy and works for just about any dietary restriction. Luckily, we are having a sale on salsa ingredients! For only $6, you get 1 pound of tomatoes, 1 head of garlic, 1 jalapeno and 1 bag of papalo. Wondering how to integrate papalo, also called summer cilantro, into your salsa? Look no further than our most recent recipe!

We will also have July 4th flower arrangements to make this weekend festive. We hope to see you at market!

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July 1st Produce

Here are some of the items you can expect this week:

• Red, Yellow and Heirloom Tomatoes: give these beauties a try in our salsa recipe. You won’t be sorry.
• Cherry Tomatoes: did you try the cherry tomatoes last week?! They were so incredibly sweet, I just ate they straight. How do you use your cherry tomatoes?
• Diva Cucumbers: tomatoes and cucumbers call for gazpacho! There are a million recipes out there but this one is my favorite.
• Japanese Eggplant: these eggplant have the cutest varietal names: Hansel, Gretel and Fairytale 🙂 Ok, names aside, you need to know that these are the long, skinny variety. They typically have firm, somewhat dry flesh that is best used for sauteing, stewing or stir-frying. See below for Miso-Sesame Glazed Eggplant recipe!
• Red & Green Cabbage: I made the Venetian Cabbage Soup tonight for dinner and it was oh so tasty. I topped mine with a little Parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Simplicity at its best.
• Tomatillos: salsa verde immediately comes to mind when I hear tomatillos. This bright, tart salsa can be made with raw or roasted tomatillos. I think this recipe for a roasted version sounds wonderful!
• Jalapenos: buy lots of these now and make pickled jalapenos to enjoy for months to come!
• Garlic: we are currently testing a batch of fermented garlic cloves. The only downside is the wait – 3 to 4 weeks at room temperature and then another month or so in the refrigerator (if they last that long!). Buy 5 or more heads and test this along with us!
• Papalo: although papalo has a unique taste all its own, it is a good substitute after cilantro bolts in the heat of the summer. Try it with our salsa recipe or use it in place of cilantro in guacamole.
• Mint: I made a citrus-mint-ginger syrup recently to drink with iced green tea. Be on the lookout for that recipe coming soon!

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Recipe :: Miso-Sesame Glazed Eggplant

This recipe is from My New Roots: Inspired Plant Based Recipes for Every Season. This serves 2 but it can easily be doubled. I made a couple substitution suggestions below in parentheses.

Ingredients:

• 2 medium Japanese eggplants
• Knob of coconut oil or ghee melted (or vegetable oil)
• 2 tablespoons white miso
• 1 tablespoon brown rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh chives (try some mint or papalo in place of the chives)
• Steamed rice for serving

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Slice eggplant in half lengthwise. Score the flesh on the diagonal and rub with a tiny bit of melted oil. Put the eggplant, cut side up, on the prepared baking sheet and roast until slightly golden and soft, 20-25 minutes.
• Whisk the miso, vinegar, maple syrup and tahini together in a small bowl.
• In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the sesame seeds until fragrant and popping, 5-7 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a plate to cool.
• Remove eggplant from the oven and turn on the broiler. Using a knife or spatula, spread the miso glaze evenly over the cut side of the eggplants. Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds. Cook under the broiler for 2 to 4 minutes, until just beginning to brown.
• Put 1 eggplant (both halves) on each plate, sprinkle with chives and serve with a side of steamed rice.

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Other :: Alice O’Dea Article

Have you read Alice O’Dea’s latest article? She discusses my favorite way to cook – finding ways to use what you have on hand.