Southside CSA

I first “met” our farmers through their tomatillos. I worked out of Prospect Park (Best.Office.Ever) and became addicted to the farmers market on Wednesdays in the Windsor Terrace corner of the park. The addiction centered around the tomatillos and cilantro at one farmer’s stand. Being an Angelino-born & bred- I crave cooking with Mexican staples like jalapeno peppers, tomatillos, epazote, and cilantro. While cilantro is common at green markets around the city, I hadn’t seen tomatillos anywhere else. The farmstand was run by the Rodriguez family and that farmstand kept my kitchen stocked with all my faves for making salsas and enchiladas.

3 years later the Southside CSA was hooked up with MimoMex farm by Just Food and I couldn’t have been happier to work with this farm and their produce. Hopefully you guys will get as much pleasure cooking up the tomatillos as I do.

(PS. Our farmers can still be found on Wednesdays at the Windsor Terrace market. If you have friends that live in that part of Brooklyn, you should give them a heads up about MimoMex tomatillos, sweet corn, beets, and outrageous selection of herbs)

Part of the nightshade family, the tomatillo plant bears a fruit surrounded by a paper-like husk. As the fruit matures, it fills the husk and can split it open by harvest. The husk turns brown and the fruit can be yellow, green, red, or purple when ripe. Ripe the fruit is firm and tart and is “typically” not eaten raw. (Some people think I am crazy, but i ate the purple ones raw last summer and it was heavenly divine. Super-yums!) It is the main ingredient of salsa verde, so if you like the green sauce served at Mexican restaurants, get ready to rock your own version.

SALSAs & DIPs

• This is the best how-to around for the salsa verde. Spicy Tomatillo Salsa aka Salsa Verde Recipe by Herbivoracious
  • It would go amazing with Roasted Corn w/ Ancho Chili Butter Recipe by Herbivoracious too.
  • YUMmmmm! Herbivoracious is a cornacopia of nom nom nommy recipes. Roam around a bit and you will find something you HAVE TO cook up for dinner.
• NYT dishes their featured tomatillo salsa recipe.
• Epicurious recommends adding avocado for a delicious Tomatillo Dip.
• Fire up the grill for a Grilled Tomatillo Salsa by Serious Eats.
• Charred Tomatillos Salsa by Vallarta Blog
• Preserving Tomatillos for Winter; A Hot Water Bath Recipe by Tigers & Strawberries
• Green Mole by Epicurious

SALADs

• Creamy Tomatillo Salad Dressing
• Creamy Roasted Tomatillo Dressing
• Grilled Okra & Tomatillo Salad
• Tangy Tomatillo Salad w/ Sun-Dried Tomatoes
• Tomatillo Potato Salad
• Seared Sirloin w/ Tomatillo Salad
• Quinoa Salad with Vegtables & Tomatillo Vinaigrette
• Tomatillo, Black Bean & Avocado Salad
• Corn & Tomatillo Salad

MAIN COURSES

• Tomatillo Dal by Tasty Palattes
• Pork & Tomatillo Stew by Bay Area Food Blog
• Tofu Tomatillo Tamales
• Tomatillo Masial by Holy Cow
• Tofu w/ Sauteed Tomatillo & Grape Sauce by Delicious Living
• Chicken Tomatillo Soup with Hominy by Cafe Zupas
• Enchiladas with Tomatillo Sauce w/ Garlic & Cumin by Spicelines
• Enchiladas Suizas (a cramy tomatillo sauce…) by Mexconnect
• Tomatillo Gazpacho
• Vegan Sweet Corn Tomatillo Pudding

Filed under: Recipes | Tagged: salad, Savory Ideas, tomatillos |