What is an heirloom?

Once unknown except to gardeners and farmers, heirloom vegetables are in the spotlight these days. Even Price Chopper is selling “heirloom tomatoes”. So what makes them different? One important difference is that an heirloom must be open pollinated, which means that it is a stable, self replicating population. In contrast, hybrid vegetables are the result of a cross between two specific parent lines. Their seeds will not produce plants similar to the hybrid. Heirlooms are usually older varieties introduced before WWII, or recent stabilized crosses of older varieties. They tend to exhibit wildly different colors, tastes, and shapes, with little standardization. Sometimes they suffer from cosmetic defects and uneven ripening when compared with hybrids, but the flavor makes up for these shortcomings.

Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato

This is typically the first of the heirloom tomatoes of the year. Cherokee Purple is a very dark maroon on the bottom, with green around the top. When cut, the flesh is dark red with contrasting green. They have a good balance of sweet and tart with a little smokiness. Best used raw, but would add complexity to a sauce along with a good deal of water to cook off.

Rossa Lunga di Tropea onion

The name means red long from Tropea, and this is indeed an elongated red onion. It has a mild flavor and is good used raw, but also can be cooked. It is a good candidate for grilling, whether skewered or just cut in half. The long shape makes it ideal for cutting into evenly sized rounds. These onions have not been fully cured yet, so I recommend removing the tops and storing in the refrigerator if you won’t use them within a week. -Aaron

Vegetables

Melon Cucumbers or Peppers Eggplant or Zucchini Carrots Tomatoes Rossa di Lunga Onions Lettuce

Herbs

Upper Garden: Mint, Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Garlic Chives, Tarragon, Hyssop, Catnip , Winter savory, Lovage, lemon balm

Lower Garden: Parsley, Marjoram, Cilantro, Dill, Summer Savory, cutting celery, Borage, Basil

Flowers Bachelor’s Button, Nasturtium, Snap Dragon, Shasta Daisy, Dahlia, Sunflower, Amaranth, Dyer’s Coreopsis, Echinacea, Nigella, Zinnia

Chilled carrot soup with tarragon

2 tbsp canola oil

1/4 cup white rice

1 onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon

1 lb carrots, sliced

salt, pepper

3 cups chicken broth

sugar

1/2 cup white wine

Heat oil in large pan. Add onion, sauté 3-4 minutes until soft. Add carrots, 2 cups broth, wine, rice, and tarragon. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then simmer, covered until carrots are completely soft, about 45 minutes. Cool briefly. Puree in blender, return to pot, add remaining broth, taste and season adding a little sugar if needed. Chill before serving or reheat to serve hot. Garnish with sprigs of fresh tarragon. Serving up the harvest by Andrea Chesman

Panzanella

Heat oven to 350. Spread on a baking sheet:

5 cups 1 inch cubes of crusty bread Bake until browned, 10-15 minutes.

Whisk together:

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

3 tbsp minced fresh parsley

1 tsp minced garlic

salt, cracked black pepper

Toss the croutons in a salad bowl with:

2 cucumbers, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch cubes