There are three things I appreciate about cabbage. One, a single cabbage gives a lot of cut or shredded pieces. Two, it has great shelf life. If I only need part of a cabbage for a recipe, the remaining cabbage seems to last for weeks in my fridge. (Yes, there are varieties of cabbage that are exceptions to this long shelf life.) Three, as I will share later in the post, cabbage is economical (read: cheap).
Fun fact I think many people have started to learn over the years: the cans of pumpkin puree on grocery store shelves are from "processing pumpkins" or "canning pumpkins," while the pumpkins we decorate with and carve are "ornamental pumpkins."
Fun fact number two: Illinois is a top state for processing of edible pumpkins. Check out more details from the Illinois Farm Bureau.
My CSA (community supported agriculture) farmer offered me a bundle of small beets. For this CSA, I can pick from a variety of available foods each week. Beets are not a go-to food for me, but the registered dietitian in me enjoys learning about foods, so I took the beets home.
Some foods I pick for blog posts are from my own curiosity of foods I have never cooked with much. In the case of this blog post, a fellow Extension educator made the request. She was working with a food pantry that had yellow split peas and wanted some recipe options for the pantry clients.
Citrus is a big family, like apples. Let’s see how long of a list I can name: lemons, limes, navel oranges, grapefruit, ugli fruit, cara cara oranges, blood oranges, pomelos, tangerines, and mandarin oranges.
While there are a lot of different types of citrus, nutritionally they are similar: a source of vitamin C, folate, potassium and other vitamins and minerals, a source of carbohydrates and fiber, and no significant amount of sodium, fat, or protein. One medium navel orange contains around 60 calories, 15g carbohydrates, and 3g fiber.
Jerky is a dried meat product that comes in as many different flavors and uses as many different meats as you can probably think of. While jerky can be made at home, this post will focus on prepared jerky.
Nutrition
The nutrition of jerky will vary based on the type of protein used and any flavorings. For nutrition information on your specific jerky, check the food label.
Check out Parts 1 and 2 of this series for more. Part 1 covers an introduction to deer meat and flavors. Part 2 shares information on cooking with venison. And check out the recipes videos on social media.
Venison & Root Vegetable Stew (Serves 8)
Partnerships are a big part of Illinois Extension programs. This one started with a conversation about deer hunting and turned into recipe videos and a blog series. So many ‘thank you’s to Sara Wade, MS, RD, LDN, with Kirby Medical Center for sharing her experiences.