Last Saturday, I spent the day at the BelleWood Acres' Ciderfest celebration, talking with people about locavore eating and handing out samples of my Squash Cider Soup (see recipe below). Spectacular fall weather that day brought a steady stream of people to the farm to see demonstrations of old-time cider pressing, tour BelleWood's modern cider making facilities and orchards, and learn how to ferment hard cider at home. Homebrew hobbyists brought their carboys to fill with fresh cider, and everywhere you looked were caramel apples, cider doughnuts, and people with smiling faces. The scent of ripe fresh apples was pervasive and as intoxicating in its own way as hard cider.
BelleWood Farmers Dorie and John Belisle say this has been an unusual year for apple growers in Whatcom County. First, we had a cool, damp spring and early summer, which allowed the trees to develop lots of fruit. Then we had some sunshine, which brought the fruit to full ripeness and sweetness. Now, for the first time since they started farming near Lynden in 1996, they are still harvesting apples in the month of November. As a result, 2011 is a special year for those of us who enjoy apples.
Squash also produced heavily this year. A friend of mine, Nancy Simmerman, planted just four spaghetti squash plants in her garden, and ended up with dozens of lovely yellow squash to harvest. They filled her pantry and a large portion of her dining room floor as well, with the excess finding its way to my kitchen counter. Thanks, Nancy!
Bellingham Farmers Market has been overflowing with squash of every size, shape, color, and description lately, too. Butternut, acorn, delicata, carnival, hubbard, turban, spaghetti and several kinds of pumpkins (also a type of squash) make colorful and delicious fall market displays.
Squash can be a little scary to work with in the kitchen. Getting through the tough outer shell is a formidable challenge, to say the least, and the solutions veer toward the dramatic. People use heavy meat cleavers, small hatchets, serrated electric knives, or they may drop squash from stairs or ladders onto concrete decks. I finally opted for safety, eating only smaller squash varieties with thinner skins, such as delicata.
This year, though, my friend Nancy came up with a less drastic solution for almost any kind of squash. It still requires one cut to divide the squash in half along its "equator" - halfway between the stem end and the end where the blossom used to be. I used a very sharp, heavy chef's knife for that job. "Sharp" is the key word. I pushed the knife just barely through the shell in one place, pulled out the knife, rotated the squash, and lined up the knife blade with the end of the previous cut. Then I pushed it through the shell again, repeating until I'd cut all the way around the squash and it fell into two pieces. Now comes the good part-microwave the squash halves, cut-side down on a plate, for 8-10 minutes on high. If not completely cooked, turn the squash halves over and cook them for another 2-3 minutes. Use a towel to grasp the hot squash and spoon out the seeds, discarding any tough fibers from the center as well. Then spoon out the rest of the squash flesh to prepare however you like. Easy!
If you were going to roast the squash and eat it as is, you could cook it in an oven instead of the microwave. If you're going to use the squash in a recipe, though, the microwave method is a fast and easy way to go rather than trying to cut chunks of tough raw squash to steam or boil.
This week's recipe is the soup I used for the Ciderfest sampling. Squash is a vegetable that not everyone likes, but this brought surprised smiles. One fellow made a point of coming back to my table later to let me know that even though he "didn't like squash," he loved this soup. Even children (at least the ones who were willing to taste it) expressed satisfaction. That's the ultimate in high praise, don't you think?
SQUASH CIDER SOUP
Ingredients
2 small or 1 large squash (I used spaghetti squash from a friend's garden, Lummi Island)
2 tablespoons butter (Breckinridge Farm, Everson)
1 onion, chopped (Alm Hill Gardens, Everson)
1 teaspoon dried sage, minced (Half Acre Farm u-pick, Ferndale)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme (Half Acre Farm u-pick, Ferndale)
1 teaspoon dried chopped jalapeno pepper (friend's greenhouse, Lummi Island)
1 teaspoon salt
1-2 cups beef or vegetable broth (homemade with soup bones from Second Wind Farm, Everson)
1 cup apple cider (BelleWood Acres, Lynden)
1 lbs. tart apples, peeled, cored, and sliced (I used Jonagolds from BelleWood Acres, Lynden)
Directions
Cut squash in half across the middle. Put halves cut side down on a plate, and microwave for about 10 minutes on high until squash flesh is soft.
Remove seeds and any tough center, and discard. Remove squash meat from the shell, and discard the shell. Chop the remaining squash into 3/4 inch chunks. (For spaghetti squash, use a fork to scrape out the squash meat. It will naturally form spaghetti-like strands.)
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a stockpot over medium-high heat. When hot, add onion, sage, thyme, jalapeno, and salt. Saute until onion just begins to brown, about 3-5 minutes.
Add 1 cup broth, cider, and the apple slices. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes until apples are softened. Add more broth, if needed. Add squash and simmer for another 15 minutes or so to blend flavors. Taste and correct seasoning, if necessary.
Use a stick blender, or blend in batches in a regular blender, to puree the soup. Reheat, if necessary. Serve.
LOCAVORE RESOURCES
You'll find Whatcom County foods at these stores and farms. Many outlets have seasonal hours. We recommend you call or check websites for current hours.
Appel Farms Cheese Shoppe, 6605 Northwest Road, Ferndale; 360-384-4996; appel-farms.com
Artisan Wine Gallery, 2072 Granger Way, Lummi Island; 360-758-2959; artisanwineclub.com
Bellingham Farmers Market, Railroad at Chestnut; 360-647-2060; bellinghamfarmers.org
Boxx Berry Farm Store and u-pick, 6211 Northwest Road, Ferndale; 360-380-2699; boxxberryfarm.com
Cloud Mountain Farm Nursery, 6906 Goodwin Road, Everson; 360-966-5859; cloudmountainfarm.com
Community Food Cooperative, 1220 N. Forest St. and 315 Westerly Road, Bellingham; 360-734-8158; communityfood.coop
Everybody's Store, 5465 Potter Road, Deming; 360-592-2297; everybodys.com
Ferndale Public Market, Centennial Riverwalk, Ferndale; 360-410-7747; ferndalepublicmarket.org
Grace Harbor Farms, 2347 Birch Bay Lynden Road, Custer; 360-366-4151; graceharborfarms.com
Green Barn, 8858 Guide Meridian, Lynden; 360-354-1008
Hopewell Farm, 3072 Massey Road, Everson; 360-927-8433
Lynden Farmers Market, 514 Liberty St., Lynden, fiveloavesfarm.blogspot.com
Pleasant Valley Dairy, 6804 Kickerville Road, Ferndale; 360-366-5398; facebook.com/pages/Pleasant-Valley-Dairy/161872142667
Red Barn Lavender Farm, 3106 Thornton Road, Ferndale; 360-393-7057
Small's Gardens, 6451 Northwest Road, Ferndale; 360-384-4637
The Islander, 2106 S. Nugent Road, Lummi Island; 360-758-2190; islandergrocery.com
The Markets LLC, 3125 Old Fairhaven Parkway and 1030 Lakeway, Bellingham; 8135 Birch Bay Square St., Blaine; 360-714-9797; themarketsllc.com
Terra Organica, 1530 Cornwall Ave., Bellingham; 360-715-8020; terra-organica.com
