Teresa's Fruit and Herb Notes

Peak of the Strawberry Season Alert!

This week is already the peak of the season, but since the two frosts we had knocked out some of the blossoms, we won’t have to climb quite as high to reach it as we usually do. In other words, this week we will have our biggest harvest of the season, but it won’t be near as big as our usual biggest harvest. Put another way….don’t wait until too late in the morning to get to the market or you might be disappointed by tables devoid of strawberries!

Eat your straw- berries fresh out of the box, or try this:

Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler.

4 cups chopped rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 pint strawberries, hulled and halved; quarter if very large

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch or 2 tablespoons flour

1 recipe Cornmeal Cobbler Biscuit Dough, below

1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon milk for glaze

Place rhubarb and strawberries in a large bowl. Add the sugar and cornstarch or flour and toss. Spread evenly in the bottom of an 8 X 8 glass baking dish. Prepare biscuit dough. Arrange the dough over the fruit. Spread with glaze made by whisking egg and milk together. Sprinkle glaze with extra sugar. Bake until the top is golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 45-50 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Cornmeal Cobbler Biscuit dough

1 cup flour

1/3 cup cornmeal

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

5 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

2/3 cup heavy cream or ½ cup milk

Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl. Add the cut-up butter and toss with the dry ingredients. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles dry breadcrumbs. Add the milk or cream. Mix just until the dough sticks together. Gently knead 5 to 10 times in the bowl. Dust the top and bottom of the dough with a little flour, then gently roll small pieces of dough into balls, flatten each one slightly, and place on the fruit.

Herb of the Week: SAGE

Why should a man die whilst Sage grows in his garden?"

- attributed to Hildegard of Bingen
12th century naturalist, philosopher, physician

The folklore of sage goes back to the ancient Greeks and Romans who believed that it could impart wisdom, skill, esteem, long life, good health, domestic virtue, mitigation of grief, and increased psychic powers to those who ate it.

Added to all of that, the plant, again according to Roman mythology, supposedly belonged to the Satyrs, a half man half goat creatures, who loved sex, drink and loud parties. So, take your pick....

I love beans and that must come from the Italian side of our family. The Tuscans are known as “mangiafagioli” or “bean eaters” because of their love of beans. Even though our ancestors hailed from southern Italy, maybe there was a Tuscan in our past, because Tuscan beans served with crusty bread and a salad is one of my favorite simple meals.

Classic Tuscan Beans

1 pound dried cannellini, pinto, or cranberry beans, about 2 cups

12 fresh sage leaves

3 cloves garlic, halved

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and ground black pepper

Pick over, rinse, and soak the beans for 24 hours. Drain. Combine in a large pot with the sage, garlic, and olive oil. Add water to cover by 3 inches. Bring to a simmer, partially cover, and simmer gently until tender, about 1 hour. Drain. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature, seasoning each portion with about 1 teaspoon of olive oil.

ALL PLANTS -- Buy Two, Get One FREE!!

This is our last big week for plant starts, so make a little room in a sunny corner of your yard, or porch, or deck, and squeeze in a few more peppers, tomatoes, herbs, or eggplants. We even have a few tomatillo, kale, and cucumber plants left. It’s not too late to plant, and just think of all the delicious fresh produce you will have at your fingertips for the rest of the summer. Yum!