Eating in Season: July

Spotlight Ingredient: Raspberries

Featured Recipe: Raspberry Lemonade

Ingredients

½ cup sugar

1 cup water

1 ¼ cups fresh lemon juice (about 6 lemons)

2 cups raspberries, pureed

3 ½ cups cold water

ice cubes

Directions

1. In a small sauce pan, bring sugar and water to a simmer. Stir so that sugar dissolves completely, then remove from heat and let cool
2. Place raspberries in a food processor and process until smooth
3. Pour pureed raspberries in the sugar water and stir well. Add lemon juice
4. Combine the raspberry mixture and the cold water in a large pitcher. Stir well and add lots of ice

Eating in Season: June

Spotlight Ingredient: Asparagus

Featured Recipe: Roasted Asparagus with Feta

Ingredients

2 lbs. fresh crisp asparagus

¼ cup olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon lemon zest

½ teaspoon dried oregano

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

kosher salt (to taste)

fresh ground black pepper (to taste)

1-2 tablespoon chopped fresh italian parsley

3-4 ounces crumbled feta cheese

1 lemon (juice of, no seeds)

Directions

1. Heat olive oil, minced garlic, lemon zest, oregano, and red pepper flakes in small pan over low heat until garlic becomes golden and oil becomes fragrant; remove from heat and allow to cool
2. Bend asparagus gently until it breaks at a natural point, and discard ends
3. Toss asparagus pieces with infused olive oil and place in single layer on a baking sheet
4. season asparagus with salt and pepper
5. Sprinkle asparagus with feta cheese
6. 
   Roast at 400F for 12 minutes or until cooked to your liking
7. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and lemon juice

Eating in Season: May

Spotlight ingredient: Kale

Featured recipe: Kale chips

Ingredients

3 pounds kale

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

8 tablespoons finely grated parmigiano-reggiano, divided

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, divided

Sea salt, to taste

Directions

1. Heat oven to 275°F with racks in upper and lower thirds
2. Line rimmed sheet pans with parchment or nonstick foil.
3. Cut out and discard stems and center ribs from kale. Wash leaves and dry well.
4. Transfer half of kale to a large bowl. Toss with half of oil, rubbing leaves to make sure they are well coated, then toss with half of parmesan, pepper, and salt. Once the first half is in the oven, repeat with the other half of the kale.
5. Working in batches, spread leaves in a single layer on lined sheet pans and bake, switching positions of sheets halfway through, until crisp, about 25 minutes. Transfer crisps with a metal spatula to baking sheets or platters to cool. Reuse parchment or foil for successive batches.

Eating in Season: April

Spotlight ingredient: Garlic

Featured Recipe: Garlic Hummus

Ingredients

1 15 ounce can chickpeas, drained

4 - 6 cloves fresh garlic, minced

⅓ cup tahini

¼ cup lemon juice

3 tbsp water

1 tsp onion powder

¾ tsp garlic salt

Directions

Puree all ingredients together in a food processor or blender

*you may need to add more water until desired consistency is reached

Enjoy with pita chips or fresh vegetables

Eating in Season: March

Spotlight Ingredient: Cauliflower

Featured Recipe: Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 head cauliflower, 7 - 8” wide

1 egg, large

½ cup parmesan or mozzarella cheese, grated/shredded

1 tsp italian (rosemary, basil, parsley) herb seasoning

⅛ tsp salt

¼ tsp ground black pepper

Topping suggestions:

Diced bell pepper, mushrooms, onions, spinach, garlic, sausage, pepperoni, pineapple, canadian bacon, etc.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper

3. Rinse cauliflower, place florets in a food processor and process until “rice” texture

4. Place on baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes

5. Remove cauliflower and transfer to a bowl lined with a double layered cheesecloth

6. Squeeze out the liquid (repeat a few times)

7. Turn up oven to 450 degrees F

8. Combine cauliflower with egg, cheese, herb seasoning, salt, pepper, and mix in a bowl

9. Transfer cauliflower to the same baking sheet and flatten with hands until a thin crust forms

10. Bake 15 - 20 minutes

11. Add sauce, cheese, and desired toppings

12. Bake until cheese turns golden brown

Eating in Season: February

Spotlight Ingredient: Sweet Potato

Featured Recipe: Sweet Potato Fries & spicy dipping sauce

Prep Time: About 1 hour.

Serves: 4.

Ingredients

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges or strips

1 Tablespoon of olive oil

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

Fries:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

2. Toss the potatoes with the oil, salt and pepper, then place in a

single layer on a lightly-oiled baking sheet.

3. Bake for 20 minutes, then turn and bake another 20 minutes, until

soft inside and crisp outside (if you cut the fries very thin, you’ll want

to keep an eye on them to prevent burning). Serve hot.

Spicy Dipping Sauce:

In a small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup healthy mayonnaise and 1/4 cup

chipotle salsa or other favorite salsa (we love the smokiness of chipotle,

but we’ve also tried peach salsa and loved the combo of fruity and spicy.

Feel free to experiment!)

Eating in Season: January

Spotlight Ingredient: Pear

Featured Recipe: Caramelized Pear, Prosciutto, and Gorgonzola Pizza with Arugula

Prep Time: 30 minutes, Cook Time: 25 Minutes, Total Time: 55 minutes

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

Pizza:

- Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (enough for 1 large pizza or split for 2

individual sized pizzas)

- 1 cup Gruyere cheese

- 1/2 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

- 1 firm Pear, thinly sliced

- 1/2 of a Red Onion, thinly sliced

- 1/2 cup thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into small pieces

- 1/2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

- 2 tsp. Olive Oil

- 2 tsp. honey

- 1/ tsp. rice vinegar

- 1/4 cup coarsely chopped Walnuts

Salad:

- 2-3 cups arugula

- juice of one Lemon

- 2 tsp. Olive Oil

- salt and pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°.

2. Spread out your pizza dough on a cookie sheet lined with parchment

and paper and pre-bake for 10 minutes.

3. Remove the dough from the oven and press down the middle with a

fork so that there is a definite edge for the crust.

4. As the dough is baking, heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat

and some olive oil. Once the butter is melted, add the sliced onion.

Sprinkle with salt, and cook slowly, for about 10 minutes or until the onions

begin to caramelize.

5. Remove the onions from the pan and place the pan back on the stove.

Add olive oil. Add the pear slices to the oil and cook for just a few

minutes, until they start to soften up just a bit. Don't overcook them or they

will turn to mush! Remove from the pan.

6. Whisk together the honey, 2 tsp. olive oil, rice vinegar, and fresh thyme

in a small bowl.

7. Brush the pre-baked crusts with the olive oil mixture.

8. Start layering your ingredients, starting with the caramelized onions.

Next, the Gruyere, then the pear slices, Prosciutto, and Gorgonzola.

Sprinkle the tops with the chopped walnuts.

9. Bake the pizzas for 12-15 minutes until the crust is beautifully golden, and

the cheese is melted and starting to brown.

10. Meanwhile, toss the arugula with the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

11. Serve the pizzas with the arugula salad piled on top.

* As a vegetarian option omit the prosciutto and substitute it with any toppings of your choice

Thrifty Shopping in Chico

March 5, 2015

This week's bee busy winding down from exams and gearing up for Spring Break! In my quest for an agtourism job, I scheduled some interviews in Hawaii and began my quest for some affordable additions to my wardrobe. I wanted to find some classic, comfortable, and professional outfits to wear to tours that I will be participating in before applying to some of the jobs I am interested in. I will also have preset interviews with private, public, and corporate businesses. I had visited Kohls,  JcPennys, and Kmart and purchased two pairs of black slacks ($40), a business jacket ($35), and black dress shoes ($12).

My Thrift Tour

My first stop was to "Thrifty Bargain". They're located at Esplanade and east Avenue in a large sized building/warehouse. They have appliances, dishes, furniture, clothes, shoes, and accessories. Their clothes are organized by type and color. I located an aqua blue top that I thought would be great for me to wear over a shirt on a breezy day while participating in tours on Coffee Farms and Honey Farms. I went there on a Thursday when everything store wide is half off. I purchased the top for $1.25.

My next stop was "GoodWill". They're located near Mangrove and East Ave on the back portion of the old mall in Chico. They have household goods, many purses, shoes, pet supplies, and name brand clothing. I was quite surprised with the selection of tops, sweaters, scarves, and purses. I tried on a few dozen items and purchased around 8 items. I located two dress shirts that I could conduct corporate interviews in, one's gray and the other a dark purple, both with rhinestones. I also purchased a slim black purse to wear to my interviews. In addition, I picked up a few knit cardigans and scarves because you can never have too many of those especially when the scarves were only a dollar or two. I spent under $20 for 5 items so the average price was $4 for an item. I specifically recall the scarves at $2 each and the purse was $2.50.

My final stop this week was "The Ark Thrift Store" located on Park Ave near 20th Street in Chico. They have lots of quality used furniture, bikes, household goods, and some name brand clothing. I was not particularly impressed with their clothing selection even though they boast "we wont sell it if we wont wear it". I though most of the items should be in a free bin. I did notice that any name brand or upscale items were pre-selected and placed at the front of the store. I still found nothing in my size so I decided to check should before I gave up. During that time, a purse that appeared to be upscale caught my eye but it had no price and there was a clutch marked at $1.25 so I grabbed that as well and headed to the front. Turns out the purse was $2.50 so that plus the clutch at $1.25 was a little over $4 with tax.