Week 18

If you enjoy cooking and baking, this is the time of year to start firing up the oven again! The warmth and aroma is the perfect compliment to chilly October nights. What to cook though? Consider the recipe below for a roasted pepper spread.In Poland and eastern Europe, peppers are often made into a delicious garlicky spread called ajvar. If you've never tried it, ajvar is is similar to baba ghanoush but with a tangy pepperiness. Its a perfect way to make use of the bountiful sweet peppers that our CSA members have been getting this year! It also keeps well in the fridge and can be frozen if you wish to enjoy it during the winter.This week your share includes:Sweet Peppers - Food FieldEggplant - Fields of Plenty, Iroquois Avenue FarmGarlic - Food Field, Singing Tree Garden, Occupy YourselfChard or Kale - Fields of Plenty, Occupy YourselfTomatoes - Occupy Yourself, Iroquois Avenue Farm, Food FieldBeets or Carrots - Fields of PlentyScallions - Iroquois Avenue FarmHerbs - Occupy Yourself, Singing Tree GardenRed Pepper Spread45 minutes of preparationMakes roughly 1 quart of spreadIngredients:3 ripe sweet peppers2 small eggplants4 cloves of garlic1/2 cup olive oil1 tsp dried chili flakesLemon juice to tasteBlack pepper to tastePreheat oven to 300 degrees.Half and core your peppers. Half your eggplant. Peel garlic. Lay out all veggies on a baking tray. Positioning garlic in the middle will help avoid burning. Drizzle some olive oil over veggies and add a pinch of salt. Bake for 45 minutes.After 45 minutes, peppers should be browning at the edges. Eggplant should be browning in its flesh and its skin should be peeling back. Remove from oven and allow to cool.Once cool enough to handle, scrape eggplant into a food processor or blender and discard its skins. Add peppers, garlic, chili flakes, 1/4 cup olive oil, and 1Tbsp lemon juice. Blend until a smooth consistency and taste. If you're not getting a creamy consistency, slowly add more olive oil and blend in. Season with salt, pepper, and extra lemon juice as you'd like.

This spread can be kept for several weeks in the fridge or frozen for use over winter. Try serving with crostini squares as part of a charcuterie platter, or try layering on toast with chevre and fresh herbs!