Topic: Home Cooking Kitchen Tips

The Dogma Box is transitioning into local fall produce in a lovely way. Atlas Farm is moving further into their fall harvest and that means potatoes, onions, and beets are being added to the list.

We're also starting to work more with Deep Root Organic Coop, a cooperative of almost 20 organic farms in northern Vermont and southern Quebec. We work with them mostly in the colder months to get some of the best root veggies around! This week we're getting delicata squash, turnips, and Brussels sprouts from Deep Root.

This week’s Dogma Box includes:

• Delicata Squash - Deep Root Organic Coop (Johnson, VT)
• Turnips - Deep Root Organic Coop (Johnson, VT)
• Brussels Sprouts - Deep Root Organic Coop (Johnson, VT)
• Potatoes -Atlas Farm (S. Deerfield, MA)
• Beets- Atlas Farm (S. Deerfield, MA)
• Onions- Atlas Farm (S. Deerfield, MA)
• Kale - Atlas Farm (S. Deerfield, MA)
• Romaine Lettuce - Atlas Farm (S. Deerfield, MA)
• McIntosh Apples - Dwight Miller & Son Orchards (E. Dummerston, VT)
• Mixed Herbs- Happy Valley Organics (Whately, MA)

Brussels sprouts are very hard to find locally, and these look particularly great. We've got a few preparation tips and recipes for this notorious veggie on our Brussels Sprouts page.

Recipes
The recipes below work well with many of the items that you’re receiving in the Dogma Box this week. These recipes are usually quite flexible and easily adaptable based on your pantry and your dietary needs. Feel free to get creative in the kitchen! If you come up with new ways to use some of our recipes and would like to share, post them on our Facebook or Tweet us.

Kale & Potato Gratin

Beet & Apple Salad

Delicata Squash & Apple Saute

Kale & Brussels Sprouts Salad

What are you cooking this week? Feel free to share with us at any time! For more recipes, check out the Produce Info, Storage Tips and Recipes section on our website and browse recipes by item. Here you can find nutritional information, preparation tips, and recipes for each produce item we offer. Happy eating from your friends at Boston Organics!

Happy October! October is shaping up to be quite a busy month with the Boston Local Food Festival and the Boston Vegetarian Food Festival coming up soon. We're also celebrating Non-GMO Month and Fair Trade Month with a sale on Equal Exchange coffees, teas, and chocolates throughout October!

By Sarah S.

With the weather cooling off, we’re craving hearty comfort foods here in the Boston Organics "Test Kitchen." As the winds bluster off the Charlestown waterfront and through Commerce Center, we’re sitting in the office dreaming of Shepherd’s Pie for tonight’s Meatless Monday dinner.

Inspired by true stories, BO’s very own Amy L. put her culinary skills to good use and recently made a vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie. Using a package of Amy’s veggie burgers (no relation to our Amy L.) and some of the veggies from her weekly box, Amy created this delicious dish. The recipe is included below.

Delicata Squash has been bouncing into Boston Organics boxes over the last few weeks! Though it’s technically a hard-rind squash, like acorn or butternut squash, the delicata has edible skin and tender, creamy flesh, which makes it very easy to prepare.

You’ll recognize the delicata squash by its colorful and wrinkly skin. It has distinct dark green stripes on a yellow or cream colored skin and sweet, orange-yellow flesh. The squash grows best from late summer through early fall and we are excited to start putting it in your boxes!

Delicata squashes are great sources for vitamins A, B6, C, and K, as well as folate, fiber, potassium, and manganese. They are also rich in antioxidants, like beta-carotene, and may provide anti-inflammatory benefits as well as blood sugar regulation.

You can become a squash master and prepare your delicata in many different ways. While it is most commonly baked, this versatile hard-rind squash can also be microwaved, sautéed or steamed. Like an acorn squash, it may be halved and filled with meat or vegetable stuffing. The seeds of the squash are also edible, usually after being toasted like pumpkin seeds.

Here are five of our favorite delicata squash recipes to help get you started! If you would like to read more about delicata squash, visit the recipes and storage tips page on our website. It is listed under hard-rind squash.

• Delicata Squash with Mixed Nut Stuffing
• Spiced Roasted Squash

• Delicata Squash and Roasted Mushrooms with Thyme

• Maple Glazed Delicata Squash Rings

• Delicata Squash Pie

How do you like to cook Delicata Squash? Let us know!

*UPDATED OCTOBER 2018

Autumn in New England means apple picking season. A great activity for people of all ages, picking local fruit is an exciting (and delicious) experience and there are steps you can take to make it an even healthier one.

Fall is in the air, and many of the growers we work with are beginning their autumn harvest. We have gold potatoes and onions coming in from Atlas Farm in Deerfield MA, along with green leaf lettuce, lots of tomatoes, and green bell peppers. Just like the recent changes in weather, we're seeing an interesting mix of end of summer and early fall produce. It looks like this may be the last week for the ½ pints of wild blueberries from Burke Hill Farm in Maine. As we say goodbye to these sweet little berries, McIntosh Apples are coming into their prime, arriving from Dwight Miller & Son in East Dummerston, Vermont. We are still receiving tomatoes and some corn, and we're also seeing potatoes. This week's box looks to be hearty and offers great variety for dishes both savory and sweet!

This week’s Dogma Box includes:

• Corn –Lakeside Organics (Hadley, MA)
• Grape Tomatoes –Lakeside Organics (Hadley, MA)
• Green Bell Peppers- Atlas Farm(S. Deerfield, MA)
• Yellow Onions- Atlas Farm(S. Deerfield, MA)
• Salad Tomatoes - Atlas Farm(S. Deerfield, MA)
• Green Leaf Lettuce - Atlas Farm(S. Deerfield, MA)
• Gold Potatoes - Atlas Farm(S. Deerfield, MA)
• Collard Greens - Atlas Farm(S. Deerfield, MA)
• McIntosh Apples - Dwight Miller & Son Orchards (E. Dummerston, VT)
• Blueberries- Burke Hill Farm (Cherryfield, ME)

The included recipes utilize many of the produce items that you’re receiving in this week’s Dogma Box. Our recipes are usually quite flexible and easily adaptable based on your pantry and your dietary needs. Feel free to get creative in the kitchen! If you come up with new ways to use some of our recipes and would like to share, post them on our Facebook or Tweet us.

Turkey Meatloaf with Tomato Topping

Green Pepper and Tomato Salad

Heirloom Apple Salsa

Blueberry Buttermilk Scones

What are you cooking this week? Feel free to share with us at any time! For more recipes, check out the Produce Info, Storage Tips and Recipes section on our website and browse recipes by item. Here you can find nutritional information, preparation tips, and recipes for each produce item we offer. Happy eating from your friends at Boston Organics!

The Nashoba Brook Bakery in West Concord, MA is one of the bread suppliers for us here at Boston Organics. Not only do we think it is delicious, but we also agree with their philosophy. Baking organic 7-Grain and Wheat breads daily, Nashoba Brook values the use of quality ingredients for the best possible flavor and nutritious value.

The bakery accredits the dietary benefits of its breads to the practice of slow rise baking. Slow rise is a traditional way to prepare bread. This European method gives the dough more time to develop complex flavors. In addition to the flavor benefits, the slowed process enhances the nutritional value of breads and makes them easier to digest.

Slow rise breads such as sourdoughs use homegrown yeasts that contain probiotics when fermented, natural bacteria that help regulate function in the digestive track. Sourdough breads allow the body to break down usually difficult to digest plant proteins and are sometimes even digestible by people with celiac disease.

Quick rise breads can be hard to digest, as reflected in the upsurge in gluten sensitivity that has become a bit of a phenomenon. Focus on quick and cheap bread production sometimes overlooks proper food preparation methods. Traditional methods, as adapted by the Nashoba Brook Bakery, focus on quality of ingredients and accurate preparation in order to produce artisan loaves that are tasty and healthy to eat.

To read more about this wonderful bakery, check out our Nashoba Brook Bakery profile or visit slowrise.com.

Deliciousness is sprouting at Boston Organics! This week's box is filled with all New England grown items. Broccoli and apples from VT, blueberries from ME, and many Massachusetts produce including alfalfa and radish sprouts, yellow bell peppers and chives.

Back-to-school season is a busy time for students, parents and teachers. We would like to help you get ready for the transition to school, so we’re offering plenty of nutritious add-ons that can be enjoyed by every member of your family.