Produce notes from Allen.....130 local items

We have a good supply of Black Futsu winter squash and Mutsu Apples.  I never intended for this blog to provide recipes but it's hard to resist just thinking about "Futsu a la Mutsu".  This is more of a how-to than a recipe.  Cut the top off of a Futsu Squash and fill it with chopped Mutsu Apple and bake at about 350º for about an hour.  Some people would add brown sugar and raisins, season with nutmeg, cinnamon, maybe ginger.  You can do whatever you want, for example, add walnuts, chopped pineapple, or ruin it with cranberries. You could add a bit of butter, or some booze.  Keep it simple or go crazy.  You can do this with any Squash and any filling, but you know you want to serve "Futsu a la Mutsu".

Many members ask how you eat Red Bananas.  They eat just like Bananas.  As they ripen, the skin gets darker and the Banana softens. They can be moister, sweeter, creamier than the yellow "cavendish" variety, but not as completely predictable. If you do accidentally peel it before it ripens, you can slice it and fry it. 

 

We could not get as much Tatsoi as we wanted, but the farmer did have some Red Tatsoi.  It looks a bit different. with a flatter leaf.  It's probably the prettiest green (I mean red) this week. 

 

The local Orange, Purple and Green Romanesco Cauliflower seasons are off to a slow and late start. We have all three today, and they are beautiful.  Marketed to us as baby vegetables, they are pricier than we wish, but since they are so tiny, they may be more accessible to households that can't eat their way through a normal sized Cauliflower.  The florets of the Romanesco are perfect fractals, and much admired by Kris (Fibonacci) Marx.

 

Having avoided Enoki Mushrooms because we couldn't find them domestically grown, I did some research, and learned at the New York Produce Show, that all Enoki Mushrooms are indeed grown in Korea.  We focus on local, but love all of the world's produce, and well, I really missed eating them.  We got some in yesterday, and I ate some last night.  Those tiny little things are packed with flavor  and very fresh.  I hope you enjoy them.

 

Pretty - Purple - Peruvian - Fingerling - Potatoes.  Say that three times fast. 

It's staring to get cold outside, but we still have 130 local items.