(TRENTON) –Agriculture Secretary Charles
M. Kuperus today announced the fall harvest is now
underway, featuring apples, greens – including
spinach, lettuces, and arugula – pumpkins and
other squashes, and potatoes.
“Favorable growing conditions have produced high quality crops this fall,
almost across the board,” said Secretary Kuperus. “Whether you crave
crunchy, sweet apples, delicious cauliflower, or tasty salad greens, you can
find an abundance of good quality products in the markets now.”
It is prime time for apples and the Garden State is home to 30 different
varieties of apples, with the Winesap being the oldest dating back to
the late 1700’s. There are almost 100 apple growers in New Jersey
who are expected to produce 40 million pounds of apples this season.
Most of those apples are for fresh market retail sales through pick-your-own
farms or farm stands.
“Apples not only taste good, but are good for you, delivering fiber and
other nutrients the body needs,” said Secretary Kuperus. “And with
such a wide variety of apples, New Jersey orchards have just the right apple
for your taste, whether it’s fresh eating or baking.”
The U.S. Apple Association is encouraging people across the country to
visit www.usapple.org from now through
mid-November to take part in an “election” of the favorite
homegrown variety.
The warm days and cool nights this fall have produced bumper crops of
lettuces, spinach, cabbage, arugula, escarole, endive, broccoli, cauliflower
and leeks. The weather also has provided for a good crop of both sweet
and white potatoes.
New Jersey is a national leader in production of several vegetables.
In 2002, the Garden State ranked fourth in the nation in spinach with
15.7 million pounds produced. The state ranked sixth in the nation in
squash with 13.1 million pounds produced.
“New Jersey is known for the diversity of the agricultural products it
produces and this fall’s harvest is a shining example of that diversity,” said
Secretary Kuperus. “The Garden State is certainly the place to sample nature’s
bounty”
Following is a recipe for cauliflower from Jersey Fresh Cooks, a cookbook
available at local farm markets. Olga Nelson of North Brunswick submitted
the recipe.
CREAM OF CAULIFLOWER SOUP
1 head Jersey Fresh cauliflower, broken into little pieces
½ cup Jersey Fresh onions, chopped
1 cup Jersey Fresh celery, chopped
¼ cup Jersey Fresh carrots, chopped
1 TBS Jersey Fresh parsley, chopped
6 cups chicken broth
½ cup of butter or margarine
¾ cup flour
2 cups milk
1 cup half-and-half
white pepper and salt to taste
Cook onions, celery and carrots in chicken broth for 5 minutes. Stir
in cauliflower and parsley. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are
tender. In a separate saucepan, melt the butter. Stir in flour to make
a smooth paste. Beat with wire whisk and gradually add milk. Cook, stirring
constantly until thick and creamy. Remove sauce from heat and stir in
half-and-half. Stir the cream sauce into the vegetables. Season to taste.
For the location of farm markets or other information on Jersey Fresh,
visit the Jersey Fresh website at www.jerseyfresh.nj.gov. |