Newsletter
september 26th 2011
A little more about the yellow carrots, the variety is Yellowstone and they are described as being a remarkable yellow main crop carrot with an excellent flavour both raw and cooked. What the catalogue does not say is they have a tendency to be big carrots! Although I cannot find out for definite, by its name, presumably it is an American bred carrot. Owing to their outstanding success on our field, we have a big crop of them out there. If you are not happy with them, please let us know, because otherwise, they are going to be a regular feature in the boxes for a while. They are very tasty grated into salads and make a lovely coloured soup.
Due to fire fighting rampant weed growth the planting schedule is a little behind at the moment, although another start was made today when we planted the pak choi out on the field.
This afternoon, Simon, James and my brother Lloyd brought the sheep in and split the male and little female lambs from the rest of the flock because the male lambs are going to the abattoir and the little female lambs are too small to go to the ram who is coming at the end of the week. There will be lamb available in three weeks time.
This week, the fixed price boxes have Mexican ingredients in them: tomatillos, peppers, chilli peppers and coriander. The tomatillos have been very slow to grow this year, but there is finally a half decent crop. There are two different varieties, yellow and blue. Below is a selection of recipes.
Green Corn Soup: in a saucepan combine fry a large chopped onion with three cloves of chopped garlic and add 6 cups of sweet corn kernels, ¾ lb chopped tomatillos, 2-3 chopped chillies, a dash of cayenne pepper and cover with 5 cups of stock. Simmer till soft, add 2 tblsp chopped coriander, salt to taste and serve.
Tomatillo Sauce: combine a finely chopped onion, ½ finely chopped bell pepper, 1 lb chopped tomatillos, 1-2 chopped chillies 2 tblsp chopped coriander with a tblsp crème fraiche and season with salt and cayenne. Use as a dip with tortilla chips or as a sauce for pasta.
Tomatillo and Tomato Salsa: Combine 2 tblsp oil, 6 finely chopped tomatillos, 4 large finely chopped tomatoes, 1 large finely chopped onion, 1-2 minced chillies, ¼ cup chopped coriander and salt to taste. Chill covered for at least an hour and serve with tortilla chips.
If you have other tomatillo recipes, please send them in to share with everyone. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy your boxes with a Mexican twist.