Eat Fresh, Eat Local: Join A CSA Or Start One

Winter it may still be, but right now I am dreaming of the fresh vegetables and fruits that Farmer Rich of Catalpa Ridge Farm will deliver come June. I am coming up on my third year hosting this CSF from my home and right now we are reaching out to old members and looking for new. Next week I will host a "Meet the Farmer" event at my home.

I hope to find an eager bunch of eaters, willing to volunteer and pick up their shares on time. Last year I had to beg for volunteers, never mind the bags of forgotten shares I had to find a home for.

Wherever you live, I urge to you to either join a CSF or start your own. It's as easy as finding a farmer within driving distance and looking for neighbors who want fresh, local produce.

With scary beef in the news, and the tainted spinach of last year, the idea of belonging to a CSA/CSF (community-supported agriculture/farm) is ever more appealing. You get access to great-tasting, pesticide-free produce and you know where and how it was grown.

The Cream Cheese Made Me Do It

Dear R.,

I know it was understood that I would purchase a container of Ben's Cream Cheese for you every week, when I bought mine. I know it was cruel of me to tempt you and then not deliver the goods. Believe me, I had every intention of doing so this week. In fact, I bought two containers of it. But temptation got the best of me. I got greedy and I had to keep them for myself. You see, Izzy and I have already made the first container disappear. Between breakfast, snacks and sneaking spoonfuls, it was unavoidable and I simply can't imagine going the rest of the week without it.


I blame you anyway. You had to go and mention those Blueberry Cream Cheese Scones. At first they sounded like an abomination but I am definitely warming up to the idea. Maybe if I make those for us for Sunday afternoon, you will forgive me.. Next week I promise to buy at least three packages. I won't let you down.





xoxo,



Izzy's Mama

Happy Belated First Blogaversary To Me: Merguez Soup For You

How could I have forgotten to mark this momentous occasion? Better yet how could you have just let it pass by? Never mind a gift, not even a card or a wish came my way and after all I've offered you..

I can't believe that a year has passed since I started this blog in February 2007 . Since then I have posted over 400 times. I write once a day, if not more and I have rarely skipped a day, not for lack of something to write but rather for lack of time.

When I first began posting, I didn't have a decent camera so my first few posts didn't have photographs. One of the first dishes I wrote about was what we now call Merguez Soup. We all love this dish and it is incredibly simple to make. Tonight we added chopped kale to the recipe and other greens would also work well. It is definitely a meal in a bowl, easy to make in advance and a simple dinner, perfect with salad.

Tonight Izzy helped prepare the soup. He stirred the onions and merguez while they browned, stirred in the tomatoes, added the water and watched it simmer. He also helped tear up the kale which he insisted he didn't like. He told me he would pick it out but then just slurped up three bowls of it, kale and all. The merguez makes the soup special and it comes from 3-Corner-Field Farm a stand at Union Square that I can't rave enough about.

A year later, I marvel at the good fortune I have. I never want for things to write about or eat! Right now I live close enough to all the best foodstuffs the world has to offer. I have the Union Square Greenmarket within 30 minutes from my house and a great farmer who delivers pesticide-free produce to my doorstep (to share with the other members of our CSA) in the warmer months. There are great neighborhood shops in Jersey City and Hoboken and I can take the Path into the city for shopping at some of my other favorite venues.

The icing on the cake? Izzy goes to school half days which gives us more time for cooking, baking and shopping together. Here's looking forward to more years of Izzy Eats, as his palate grows and my pleasure in sharing all that we eat and cook, grows along with him.

Long Day Of Foodie Shoot: Harvest Cart To The Rescue

Who knew what went into taking one measly photo!? And I thought models had the easy life.

My photographer friend, Elizabeth, was kind enough to consent to do a "foodie shoot" with me because I happened to need a decent photo of myself and Izzy for a project (fingers crossed) I hope to see in print. At first it was all fun, games and laughter but when it came time to upload the photos, some computer gadgetry went afoul and we had to go back and try to recapture the magic.

The second go round was more grimacing than glowing, with Izzy becoming less and less cooperative. After the second session, we went back to Elizabeth's house for more uploading.

We worked until nearly dinnertime while our boys played so nicely together. When I realized what time it was, I wished I had something to offer them for dinner and we pondered our choices. Then I remembered Harvest Cart, a new comforting take-out choice for downtown Jersey City. They have whole organic rotisserie chickens, several side dishes and more.

Izzy and I ordered a chicken last week and this time I ordered two, along with some roasted potatoes and braised greens. I ran home and put together a salad and in 20 minutes, dinner was on the table for all of us, and Izzy's papa even joined us.

The boys couldn't wait to dig in, both using forks AND knives! Not always a regular occurrence around this house.

You may think that $14 is a steep price to pay for a rotisserie chicken but it is worth every penny to get a juicy organic rotisserie chicken at your doorstep in 20 minutes. The side dishes we tried, roasted potatoes and braised greens were bit on the oily side but tasty nonetheless. Overall, we were happy to have this new option for warm comfort food at the end of a long day.

p.s. After dinner, the boys were debating their political choices. E. is a staunch Hillary supporter and Izzy favors Obama. When queried as to why, E. had much to say, he is six, after all. Izzy's reply, "I don't know."

Bagel Shmaigel..Let's Talk Schmear

Disputes over the best New York Bagel crop up time and time again. But what about the topping? How many articles or cream cheese comparisons do you read about? In my opinion, the only thing worth topping a bagel with is cream cheese, with butter as an acceptable second. What is a bagel without its cream cheese?

Yet how often does one hear about the cream cheese offerings? Which ones are the most delectable and spreadable? For years I had been partial to the Zabar's variety, which appears to be regular cream cheese, whipped with sour cream to lighten it.

But then I came across Ben's Cream Cheese. It has now become a weekly habit. Must go to Murray's Cheese to buy Ben's..it is smooth, yet not airy or gummy. I sing its praises to the world, for it is unlike store-bought cream cheese and doesn't cost much more than organic. It is so superior it doesn't even need a bagel. In fact I love it on Amy's Semolina Raisin Bread and English muffins too, or just licking it plain, off the knife.

We have been eating it for about the past month or so and I thought Izzy was as smitten with it as I. He has grown up eating Organic Valley Cream Cheese and he is having a difficult time adjusting.

Over a dinner of eggs, beans, bagels and cream cheese tonight he asked, "Mama, why don't you get the other kind of cream cheese anymore?" "Because this one tastes so much better." His response, which can only be born of the "eat what you know" syndrome, "It's not that I don't like the taste, I just want the old kind."

He'll get used to it, I'm sure. Just as I hope he gets more accustomed to good bagels,instead of the Lender's variety his classmates bring in for snack.

Which brings me to my bagel preferences.


Columbia Bagels were my favorite but I rarely bought them because they were too far up town (and have closed down anyway). So I will settle for H & H, Murray's, or Hudson Bagels. In the bagel realm I take the best in close range, or none at all. In fact, Izzy remarked that we almost never eat bagels at home anymore and I realized it was because we don't have any really decent bagel shops in Jersey City. On our way home from pottery class tonight, I bought a few to have for dinner. My cream cheese was begging for them.

Waffle Wizardry: A Work In Progress

Before

After

I couldn't help but share this creation, born of limited dinner options. Will post when we have perfected the recipe. The possibilities are endless...

Today's Brunch: Waiting Patiently

We had invited friends for brunch at noon. Come 12:15, Izzy was restless and looking for eats. I told him his friends would be arriving shortly. He did not want to eat without them and he was sad because he was hungry. They arrived just in time and suddenly, his hunger was forgotten for a few minutes. Eventually, he and his friend T. made their way to the table.

Izzy and his friend T., feasted upon Belgian waffles (I tweaked the recipe yet again) and fruit salad. Waffles make good finger food although Izzy preferred to use his fingers for the fruit and his fork for the waffles. They both cleaned their plates!

Belgian Buttermilk Waffles ( Inspired by Epicurious)

1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup wheat germ

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups well-shaken buttermilk

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature

2 large eggs, separated, egg whites whipped to soft peaks

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Vegetable oil for waffle iron

Directions

Put oven rack in middle position and put a large metal cooling rack directly on it.

Preheat oven to 250°F and preheat waffle iron.

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

Whisk together buttermilk, melted butter, egg yolks and vanilla extract in another bowl, then whisk into flour mixture until just combined. Fold in egg whites.

Brush hot waffle iron lightly with vegetable oil and pour a slightly rounded 1/2 cup of batter into each waffle mold (see cooks' note, below).

Cook waffles according to manufacturer's instructions until golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer as cooked to rack in oven to keep warm, keeping waffles in 1 layer to stay crisp. Make more waffles in same manner.

Makes 8 squares, depending upon size of waffle-iron.