NZ vegetables
Pick of the week is eggplant. Once you start digging you will be amazed at all the different types of eggplant recipes available on the internet.
Recipe suggestion: Eggplant meat balls taste fantastic and don’t leave you feeling bloated after. Heat the oven to 190°. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Place ½ tbsp olive oil in a large non stick skillet over medium high heat. When hot add around 400g of unpeeled, diced eggplant and ¼ cup water. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally until tender, 10-15 minutes. Transfer to the bowl of a food processor. Add the remaining ½ tbsp of oil to the skillet with 1 medium, chopped onion and 1 tbsp crushed garlic and cook for 3-5 minutes until they are translucent. Add to the food processor along with 1 cup of rinsed and drained white beans and ¼ cup of chopped parsley and pulse until well combined and chopped, but not pureed. Combine the mixture with 1 cup panko crumbs and a pinch of red chill flakes (optional). Taste for salt then roll into 12 meatballs, about 50mm in diameter. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and bake until firm and browned, about 25-30 minutes. While this is cooking warm (store bought or homemade) marinara and make zucchini pasta. Add the julienne attachment to the food processor and cut 1 zucchini per serve. Sautee in ½ tsp. of olive oil and garlic for 1-2 minutes.
Other top vegetable buys are bellavere, beans, mung beans, button mushrooms, cabbage, watercress and fennel bulbs. Bellaverde is a sweet broccoli stem that has a clean fresh taste unlike that or traditional broccoli. Vitamin loaded and mineral enriched like all leafy greens, the taste really sets it apart.
NZ fruit
Pick of the week is green kiwifruit.
Recipe suggestion: Green kiwifruit sliced ice treats are a must for children and adults alike. Peel green kiwis and slice about 1.5cm thick. Stick a lollipop stick into each slice, lay the slices on a parchment-lined tray and freeze for an hour or two until firm. In a medium glass bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt 2 cups of dark chocolate chips and 1 ½ tbsp oil together until smooth. Dip each kiwi-pop into the melted chocolate, tapping gently to let the excess chocolate drip off. Place them back on the parchment tray and again into the freezer for an hour or two to set. If you are feeling creative; sprinkle kiwi-pops with chopped nuts or make a frozen yoghurt coating by combining Greek yoghurt and honey.
Other top fruit buys are truss tomatoes, Jazz apples, lemons, NZ Rose apples, avocados and navel oranges. Truss tomatoes are considered to be the freshest most flavoursome tomato as the longer it is left on the vine, the more the flavours develop.
Imported produce
Australian strawberries, beans and melons are all in good supply. Strawberries are the perfect desert topping. To make slicing easier, place strawberries in an egg slicer and you will have perfectly uniform slices each time. For a healthy variation of a smore, dip a strawberry in marshmallow fluff and roast. – Turners & Growers
Fresh on the shelves
JUICY BEER
DB has added grapefruit to its DB Export Citrus range, which flavours DB Export beer with 100% natural juice. “Last summer when we launched DB Export Citrus we introduced a Kiwis beer drinkers to a new kind of beer and they loved it,” marketing manager Tony Wheeler says. “We are looking to extend the reach and are excited to launch a new flavour … that delivers a bitter-sweet profile to appeal to different tastes.” DB Export Citrus Grapefruit is a 2% ABV beer that is available in 330ml bottle 12 packs and in select on-premise outlets.
NBR Food Industry Week
Sat, 06 Sep 2014
Sat, 06 Sep 2014
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Weekend food: Produce report, fresh on the shelves
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