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Archive for August, 2009

26 Aug Gadzukes!

Eating seasonally is a big part of the eating local movement (i.e. you eat what your local farmers and climate can support at any given time, right?). Eating seasonally is also a way to give your body the nutrients it needs during specific times of the year and zucchini are a great example of how this works.

Zucchini and its cousins, crooknet, straightneck, pattypan, etc., are the summer contingent of the general squash family. Not as hearty and storable as the winter varieties (e.g. butternut, acorn, delicata, etc.), summer squash are rather delicate, largely because they are 95% water. In hot summer months, when zucchini and friends are growing like weeds and making home farmers crazy, the water content in summer squash helps protects us against dehydration and cool us off, while the potassium replenishes what we loose through increased sweating, the carotenes help protect us against damaging effects of extra exposure to the sun, and the Vitamin C, with its roles in producing collagen (the protein that basically holds our bodies together), strengthening our immune system, and the absorption and utilization of other nutrients … well, that’s just good for us all year ’round.

It’s pretty amazing how nature takes care of us.

When you’re tired of ratatoille, zucchini bread, grilled zucchini, stuffed zucchini, etc, etc… here is one of my favorite ways to serve up the summer lovelies:

Zucchini Pasta

(adapted from a New York Times recipe — serves 4 people)

1 T. olive oil

2 lbs. zucchini (or other summer squash)

lemon juice and grated parmesan to taste

salt and pepper to taste

Using a mandolin or vegetable peeler, cut zucchini length-wise into thin ribbons (two or three in a spot, then turn squash on its radius to continue). Heat oil in skillet, cooke zucchini for just 2-3 mins, until they begin to turn translucent (they should be slightly “al dente”). Serve topped with lemon juice and grated parmesan. Salt and pepper to taste. I also like to toss on some fresh chopped basil, if I have any.

21 Aug Taming the Tomatoes

I found two ways to take advantage of my tomato haul: marinara and oven-drying.

The marinara, which I had never really done before, started with veggies I had around the house: a few spring onions (3-4 med), sweet peppers (4-5 medium-small), red bell peppers (4-5 medium), and zucchini (3 medium, good sized), all chopped fine-ish in my food processor. First, I sauteed the onions in olive oil for quite a while on medium heat (I wanted to bring out a bit of a carmelized flavor), then I added the other veggies, salt and pepper and roughly chopped fresh mixed herbs (rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano, and basil). Then I added six varieties of heirloom tomatoes (cut in halves and quarters), mostly Shady Lady and Roma, but also Lemon Boy, Coppia, Costaluto Genovese, and Green Zebra, plus a mishmash of heirloom

cherries (I don’t know the exact varieties). I simmered the beast for hours and hours until it was thick enough for my taste. The Shady Lady and Roma tomatoes broke down nicely and the Lemon Boy and Coppia left some good soft chunks. The batch filled 11 1/2 pint jars, and preserving was much easier than I thought.

Oven-drying tomatoes is a nice alternative if you don’t have a dehydrator and you don’t want to deal with the bugs and dust that come with sundrying (in fact, a friend in the know recently told me that most “sundried” tomatoes are actually ovendried before they’re packed in olive oil). I took a quart of mixed heirloom cherry tomatoes, cut them in half and placed them, wet side up, on a cookie sheet then popped them into a 180 degree oven.

The exact amount of time in the oven really depends on the size of the tomatoes and how dry you want them. Personally, I like them a little soft. For my first batch, I checked in after four hours and, since my mix had quite a few big cherries, put the tray back in, checking every hour for another two or three. I ate them all right away, but you can freeze them to enjoy all winter long.

Next I’m going to try some full-sized Roma tomatoes.

13 Aug Everything's Coming Up … Tomatoes.

I have tomatoes coming out of my ears. Between my CSA and the loot I take home from working at the Ferry Plaza Farmer’s Market (Eat Well Farm), I am buried under tomatoes.

The upside is that tomatoes, especially organically grown heirloom varieties, are nutritional powerhouses. According to Michael Murray (The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods) tomatoes are an excellent source of Vitamins C, K, B6, pantothenic acid, niacin, folic acid, biotin, dietary fiber and, last but not least, carotenes, especially lycopene, which has been shown to prevent disease — e.g. heart disease, cataracts, macular degeneration, and breast, colon, lung, skin and prostate cancers. The redder, the more nutritionally-packed. Processing tomatoes — e.g. juicing, cooking — actually releases more of the beneficial lycopene from the plant cells. Also, eating tomatoes with a little bit of healthy fat (e.g. olive oil) can improve nutrient absorption.

From a slightly more alternative perspective, Paul Pitchford (Healing with Whole Foods) writes that tomatoes, with their cooling thermal nature, build yin fluids, have an alkalinizing effect on the body, and relieve dryness and thirst. They tonify the stomach, cleanse the liver, purify the blood, encourage digestion and detoxify the body in general. They are useful for addressing diminished appetite, indigestion, food retention, anorexia and constipation. However, over-consumption, Pitchford warns, can be weakening, so… moderation in everything.

Speaking of moderation… back to my tomato over-load problem. I’m up to here in tomato salad, tomato tarts, and TLTs (tomato, lettuce and tomato sandwiches). I see a giant vat of marinara in my future, or else… I may experiment with oven drying them to preserve for later (moderation, remember?).