SPORK
SUM MER 2014
SPORK
A Letter from the Editors
Princeton High School 151 Moore St Princeton, NJ 08540
Editors-in-Chief Gina Hsu & Janie Kim Contributors Noelle Anglade Annie Prior Cara Straus Victoria Wayland Advisor Kristina Donovan Special thanks to:
Insung Choe and Anne Fahey, for kitchens; Byrne Fahey, for guidance; Annie Kim, for arugula sandwiches
Within
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Food Waste in Princeton
Ingredient Feature: Ginger
Honey Brook Organic CSA
Summer Dinner Party
We’d love to hear from you! Email us with any questions, comments, suggestions at: 2691 Main Street Lawrenceville, NJ 08648 (609) 620–1100
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sporkphs@gmail.com
“One man’s trash is another man’s [compost].” —Proverbial
FOOD WASTE by Janie Kim photos by Gina Hsu
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INGREDIENT of the MONTH recipes compiled by Noelle Anglade and Victoria Wayland photos by Gina Hsu
Ginger: a spice whose history is as rich as its taste. Originating from Southern China, where it was used for medicinal purposes, this spice was one of the first oriental spices to be traded to Europe—as early as the first century, but fell into disuse as the Roman Empire fell. During the Middle Ages, it was rare and widely coveted, worth more than even livestock. In the Elizabethan Era, ginger regained popularity, becoming the second-most popular spice in the world (after only black pepper). It traveled with conquistadors to all corners of the globe, where it has been integrated into the cuisines of many cultures. We’ve grown up singing about the gingerbread man and drinking ginger ale, but here are some new ways to use ginger in your kitchen.
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Candied Ginger
2 1/2 cups water 1/2 lb fresh ginger 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1. Peel and dice ginger into 1/4 inch cubes. 2. Place the cubes in a pan with water and cook for 30 minutes on medium high heat. 3. Strain the ginger and reserve 1/8 cup of the cooking liquid. 4. Place the sugar, cooking liquid, and ginger in a pan and bring to a boil. 5. Reduce heat and simmer until water is evaporated and sugar is beginning to recrystallize. 6. Remove from pan and allow ginger to cool and harden before use.
Glazed Ginger Scones
THE BASICS Sliced Pour hot water over several slices of ginger to make a simple ginger tea. Use ginger slices to flavor oil prior to cooking. Heat the oil with a few slices for 30 seconds to a minute, then remove.
Snack on a piece (or ten) straight from the jar. Sprinkle chopped candied ginger over baked goods, or fold into batter before baking. Add to yogurt, oatmeal, or granola.
Ginger Simple Syrup 1 cup sugar 1 cup water 1/2 cup fresh ginger
1. Peel and dice ginger into 1/2 inch cubes. 2. Bring sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan. 3. Add ginger and simmer for 15 minutes. 4. Remove from heat and allow to sit for an hour. 5. Strain the syrup and discard ginger. Add to seltzer water for an easy ginger ale. Use instead of, or with, maple syrup on pancakes.
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Julienne Use in stir fry to add both a ginger flavor and a crunchy texture. Add to fish recipes to neutralize strong fishy odors, especially in saltwater fish.
Grated Add a teaspoon of grated ginger to any baked good recipe for a spicy kick. Use in marinades for chicken and other meats.
Scones: 2 cups flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup rolled instant oats 1 tablespoon brown sugar 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/4 cup ginger syrup 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1/2 cup butter 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Glaze: 6 tablespoons whole milk 3 cups powdered sugar 1 vanilla bean 1/2 cup candied ginger, finely chopped
1. Preheat oven to 400째 2. Combine all dry ingredients. 3. Cut cold butter into 1/4 inch cubes. 4. Using a pastry cutter or fingers, work the butter into dry ingredients until mixture resembles bread crumbs. 5. Slowly add and combine wet ingredients. Do not overmix! 6. Spoon 1/4 cups of dough onto greased baking sheet. 7. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden. 8. In a separate bowl, gradually whisk whole mil, powdered sugar, and vanilla bean srapings until smooth. 10. Using a spoon, drizzle glaze over warm scones. 11. Top with crystallized ginger. 12. Serve warm.
Ginger Ice Cream in a Bag Ginger Chunk Ice Cream in a Bag 4 tablespoons ginger simple syrup 2 cups half and half 2 tablespoons candied ginger, chopped into 1/4 inch cubes 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 vanilla bean a pinch of salt 2 gallon sized zip-top bags 3/4 cup coarse salt
1.Whisk together half and half, ginger syrup, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean scrapings in a bowl. 2. Pour into zip-top bag. 3. Fill another bag half way with ice cubes and add coarse salt. 5. Shake for about 5 minutes or until the ice cream reaches desired consistency. 6.Mix chopped candied ginger into ice cream. 7. Scoop, garnish with additional candied ginger, and serve.
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Back to Basics at Honey Brook CSA by Gina Hsu
photos by Gina Hsu
Hello, summer. Hello, heirloom tomatoes, eggplants, strawberries, kale, watermelon, arugula, squash, peppers, and over 45 different varieties of fruits and vegetables grown at Honey Brook Organic Farms, here in our very own Garden State. 10
Sherry Dudas, farm manager (and wife of farmer Jim Kinsel), tells the story of one of the nation’s largest CSA programs: its history, changes, challenges, and future.
“T
his farm has a very unique history. The land has been farmed since at least the mid 1800s,” said farm manager Sherry Dudas. We sat on a picnic bench outside the main farmhouse on an overcast, gusty April afternoon, a few weeks before opening day. Chip, the farm’s border collie and German shepherd mix, rolled fervently in the grass nearby, taking frequent breaks to run over and nuzzle and lick our legs. Sherry laughed and said, “He’s very intuitive. He’s very protective of me.” In the background, interns and workers were busy seeding in the greenhouse and preparing young the farm.
Origins The year was 1991, and the board of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association sat in a meeting room and voted to terminate the operation of an organic farm owned by the association in Pennington, NJ. The decision weighed heavily on the consciences of the board members, and some proposed to take a break and revote. A single member changed his vote, and the farm survived. That’s when Jim Kinsel came in as a tenant farmer and, with him, the CSA system, the earliest of which had just begun a few years earlier in New England. Community Supported Agriculture is a model where people purchase memberships for a growing season to receive a certain weekly share, investing in the unpredictable risks of organic farming—weather, pests, etc.—while receiving the reward of healthy, fresh, and organic produce each week. The rich history of the farm, which has been home to pigs and other livestock before being converted to an organic produce farm, probably led to the hesitation of the Watershed members in terminating the farm. “They were losing money, but they wanted to see the farm succeed. The CSA idea gave everyone a lot of hope.” With three and a half acres and 50 original members from the Watershed Association, Jim began growing and distributing produce weekly. The next year, there was a waiting list. That waiting list existed for more than two decades, prompting Honey Brook to expand each year.
Today at Honey Brook Organic Farm, farmacres at four separate farms in Pennington over 4,000 members, as one of the largest CSA programs in the nation. Members may pick up their shares at either the Pennington delivery locations, convenient to residents in
own produce throughout the season.
Values ry have noticed some trends in the farm’s membership base and how people think about food. One of the largest causes of the program’s growth can be contributed to the organic food movement becoming more mainstream. “The typical person who the early ‘90s, it was people who you would characterize as ‘hippies,’” said Sherry. Today, families, young couples, single professionals, and individuals of every demographic choose to eat organically. While the organic movement has certainly contributed to their growth, some of the more surprising trends are not attached to food movements. “The year that we really noticed a substantial increase was 2002. We think it was directly related to September 11th. People started to change things about
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their lives,” said Dudas. “People were eating at home more. And that’s what CSAs are for—families that cook.” Though evidence is anecdotal, it’s easily reckoned that food isn’t just good for the body, but for the soul too—for comfort and for family. One of Honey Brook’s missions in its statement is to encourage members to establish “healthy, responsible connections to the land,” which is why Honey Brook makes it one of its goals to increase accessibility to high-quality fruits and vegetables
ton, Somerville, and Monroe Township—areas that normally have limited access to organic produce. Sherry also speaks at elementary schools in Trenton, an experience she described as “gratifying,” and is attempting to raise funds to arrange for farm visits for those students. “My mother was a gardener. My father was a crabber and also taught us how to mushroom pick,” Sherry said. “Some of my best memories of being a kid
Some of my best memories of being a kid have been related to food, and I think families pass down values through food.
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have been related to food, and I think families pass down values through food. It’s really a luxury to garden these days, and I think this is the next best thing.” Although Honey Brook is a ‘family farm,’ Dudas acknowledges the farming and family. Sherry and Jim began dating before Sherry became a part of the farm, a few years after its founding. “He was kind of crazy in the beginning… he would farm with a miner’s cap in the middle of the night,” she said. “He actually feels that was part of his success, that he started the business when he was single.”
Future
Despite the rewards that have come in the past two decades for Jim
and Sherry, the issues that plague the agricultural industry have been encroaching upon the farm year by year. One of the biggest challenges: climate change. “Every year there’s always some month that’s the wettest on record, the driest on record, the warmest on record. We’re breaking a lot of records, and with the CSA model, members are assuming those risks of farming,” said Sherry. And there is a niers. It’s become more of a challenge Another challenge that agriculture faces in the 21st century, especially in New Jersey, is the lack of land owned by farmers themselves. Honey Brook, for example, still farms as tenant farmers on its Pennington farms, while they do own their land in Ches-
are content just where they are. “[We] feel like we’ll be farming for another 15 years. We don’t really anticipate growing anymore; the numbers that we’re at pay the mortgage.” They hope that another young farmer, perhaps one of their employees, will want to take over the business when the time comes. They plan to re-
We stopped the land from being developed, but we didn’t really create greater opportunities for farmers on those lands.
about it…we’re creating a class of peasants now. Even preserved farms are unaffordable in [New Jersey],” said Dudas. While she and Jim participate in the Farmland Preservation Program, she said, “It hasn’t helped young farmers realize the dream farm ownership. We stopped the land from being developed but we didn’t really create greater opportunities for farmers on those lands.” As for themselves, Jim and Sherry
and transition into pick-your-own only, which means that Jim will hopefully be able put his miner’s hat to rest for good.
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Summer Dinner Party recipes compiled by Annie Prior and Cara Straus photos by Gina Hsu
As the school year ends and June rolls by, find excuses to celebrate: Graduation. Going away. Good grades The solstice. The fourth of July. Canada Day. Midsummer. Birthdays. This three-course meal uses fresh summer ingredients, is served cold—perfect for eating on a warm patio—and, best of all, requires no baking, so you won’t heat up your entire house. Keep your kitchens cool and your stomachs happy as you enjoy a summer dinner party with friends and family.
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Pear and cherry arugula salad Recipe adapted from Food & Wine
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1 teaspoon honey ½ teaspoon chopped thyme Salt and ground pepper 5 ounces arugula 2 Asian pears—peeled, cored and very thinly sliced on a mandoline 1 cup pitted cherries 3 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled Sea salt, for sprinkling 1. In a small bowl, whisk olive oil with lemon juice, honey, and chopped thyme. Season the salad dressing with salt and pepper. 2. In a large bowl, toss arugula with pear slices and cherries. Add the dressing and toss well. 3. Top with crumbled goat cheese, sprinkle lightly with sea salt, and serve right away.
No-bake summer lasagna recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
¾ cup ricotta 4 tablespoons grated Parmesan ½ cup shredded mozzarella 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil Salt and ground pepper, to season 8 lasagna noodles, broken in half crosswise 1 garlic clove, minced 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved 3 zucchini, thinly sliced 1 tablespoon torn fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving 1. In a small bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, mozzarella, and one tablespoon oil; season with salt and pepper. 2. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook noodles two minutes longer than the package instructions indicate; drain. 3.Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat two tablespoons oil over medium-high. Add garlic and tomatoes; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until slightly broken down, about three minutes. Transfer tomatoes to a bowl. 4. Add one tablespoon oil and zucchini to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until zucchini are tender, about five minutes. Transfer to another bowl and stir in basil. 5.Place a noodle on four plates each; top with a tomatoes, zucchini, and small spoonfuls ricotta. Repeat layering twice, then top with remaining noodles and tomatoes. Garnish with basil.
Frozen berry orange cheesecake pie Recipe adapted from Woman’s Day
4 boxes of shortbread cookies (20 cookies) 2 tablespoons of melted butter 2 packages of ⅓ less-fat cream cheese ¾ cups sugar 2 tablespoons grated orange zest 1 cup of orange juice Fresh strawberries and blueberries 2 oranges, peeled and sectioned 1. Coat a nine-inch pie plate with nonstick spray. 2. Make crust: Process cookies in food processor until fine crumbs form. Add butter; process until crumbs are moistened. Press over bottom and up sides of pie plate. Freeze for 15 minutes until firm. 3. Make filling: Process cream cheese, sugar, orange zest, and once cup orange juice in food processor until smooth, scraping bowl as needed. Leave in processor. 4. Place pie in freezer overnight, then place in refrigerator until ready to serve. 5. Take pie out of refrigerator, then top with fruit and enjoy!
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