Veggie Grab Bag March 10, 2005

Green Leaf Lettuce ~ Celery ~ Garlic ~ Cilantro ~ Pink Lady Apples ~ Avocado ~ Anaheim Peppers ~ Portabella Mushrooms ~ Blueberries ~ Minneola Tangelos ~ Snow Peas ~ Valencia Oranges

All the huge rains in California have left a terrible gap in the produce market, and a lot of large price increases to go with it. But as you can see, we have still managed to come up with a beautiful, bountiful bag of goodies to make your week shine. The Anaheim is mildly spicy with lots of good pepper flavor Let’s put it together with the portabella:

Sweet and Spicy Portabella Seak

1 portabella – remove the stem, peel it and slice it. Peel the cap

1 large clove of garlic – chopped fine

1 tablespoon thin slices Anaheim pepper

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

the juice from 1 orange

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves

a pinch of kosher salt

Heat the oil in a small skillet. Add the garlic, pepper, mushroom stems, and the mushroom - top side down. When the mushroom starts to brown, turn it over, add the juice, and salt and let simmer for 5 minutes. Turn the mushroom again and sprinkle on the cilantro. Give it a few more minutes and serve it up as a side or a main dish.

Let’s use the rest of the Anaheim to make:

Chili-Pumpkin Pesto

The rest of the Anaheim chili – seeded and chunked

½ cup pumpkin seeds – toast in a dry skillet or the oven for a few minutes

¼ cup cilantro - stems and all

4 cloves garlic - peeled

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon fresh tangelo juice

optional: 1 or 2 jalapeño peppers – de-seeded and roasted in a dry skillet for 5 minutes – use as much as you want to make it as spicy as you want - Jill would use 3.

Put the chilies, seeds, cilantro, garlic, and salt in the food processor with the sharp blade in the bottom and let ‘er rip. Drizzle in the oil and then the juice. This is a great pasta sauce or see the meat share sheet for another option.

Now have a wonderful weekend and remember to eat healthy – it’s more fun!

Love, Anner, Ed and Jill

available at Organic