Summer Week 7

Contents:
Hot, Sweet and Shishito Peppers
Peaches from Thomas' Orchards
Tomatoes from Clearbrook Farm
A blend of three sea salts from the Spice Cowboy (Red Alaea, Black Hiwa Kai and White Maldon)

Greetings Garden Clubbers!
For those of you who know Dev, you know that peppers (both sweet and hot) are her specialty. She grows over a hundred varieties of these little babies in every shape, size, and color you can think of. One of our favorite types is the Shishito, read more about this rock star pepper below. We also added enough tomatoes to get some serious summer salsa going. Also, if you can withhold from eating them immediately, try making some peach salsa as well. See recipe below.

SHISHITO PEPPERS
from http://www.starchefs.com/features/shishito_peppers/index.shtml

"These bright green pods are often seen around town blistered and seasoned with a generous toss of coarse salt – as a stand-in for Spanish pimientos de padron. When seared over high heat, shishitos flaunt the same soft, slightly sweet, bit of spice, eat-in-one-salty-charred-bite appeal as the harder to find Spanish padrons, but their roots, as the name implies, lie further east. Averaging 3 inches long, the shiny peppers are common additions to stir-fries and tempuras, and their thin, crisp walls stand up well in flash-frying.

And they’re versatile: Chef Eric Hara of davidburke and donatella pairs them with Japanese (bonito, yuzu, soy, lime, tempura) and Mediterranean (tomatoes, olives, shallots) flavors. The recipes cross boundaries, mixing Japanese peppers with Ligurian olives and Chinese rice wine, and make a point: this is a pepper to be used as a central component of a dish, not just a flavoring. How many of its brethren can say that?

Raw shishitos are reminiscent of green peppers in flavor and texture, but with the occasional mild burn of capsaicin that barely registers (one in 10 of these peppers will bite you back) on the Scoville scale. They are easy to work with but somewhat hard to find – Japanese markets and farmers markets are the best bet; late summer and fall are their seasons."

Quick prep:  poke each pepper with a sharp knife, sauté in olive oil over high heat until the skin begins to brown, drain on paper towel and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Eat while still warm.

Below we have provided a couple variations on peach salsas.  These recipes may be modified liberally to accommodate your personal preferences (i.e. adding the basil to the tomato salsa).


Basic Peach Salsa                        Peach-Cucumber Salsa
2 ripe, but firm medium peaches                2 cups diced peaches (about 1.5 lbs)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil                    1 cup diced unpeeled cucumber
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice                    3/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion                1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup diced red and/or green bell pepper            2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro                2 tablespoons apricot preserves
1 teaspoon (or to taste) minced jalapeno pepper        1 teaspoon ground chipotle chiles
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Peach-Tomato Salsa                    Peach-Mint Salsa
3 firm peaches (about 1 lb.)                    2 ripe peaches, diced
1 tablespoons. lemon juice                    1 small red pepper; chopped
2 ripe tomatoes (about 1/2 lb.)                1/2 red onion; chopped
6 large green onions                        1 small jalapeno pepper; minced
1 tablespoons canned jalapeno peppers, chopped        1/3 cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon cilantro, coarsely chopped            2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
12 tablespoons good quality olive oil                2 tablespoons fresh chopped mint
6 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons honey (warm honey mixes better)

Peach-Ginger Salsa
1 cup diced peaches (about 2)
1 cup cubed seeded tomato (about 3)
1/4 cup sliced green onions
2 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger  
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 dash of fresh ground pepper

Preparation:
1. Cut the peaches into half-inch cubes, sweet peppers into somewhat smaller dice, chop any cilantro, finely chop any onions and mince any especially pungent ingredients, such as jalapenos, chipotles or ginger.

2. Blend any oils and fruit juices or vinegars together before combining with other ingredients.

3. If you care to peel your peaches and/or tomatoes (a step that is not at all necessary), plunging them into boiling water for 15 or 20 seconds will make it easier to slip the skins off.

4.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss until all ingredients are coated in liquids
5. Let the salsa sit for at least five minutes before tasting to see if you need to adjust the seasoning (e.g. lime juice, vinegar, cilantro, jalapeno or salt). You should prepare the salsa at least an hour, or as much as day or two, before serving, to allow the flavors to fully meld.