Food Friday: Blueberry Pie

Blueberries are full of antioxidants, flavonoids and other vitamins that help prevent cell damage.

Tomorrow is National Blueberry Pie Day and a great time to give this recipe a try. It is from the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council. Virginia-grown blueberries will be available starting in June.

Double Blueberry Pie

(Photo courtesy of U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council)

1 9-inch frozen or homemade pie shell

10-ounce jar blueberry jam or fruit spread

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 cups fresh blueberries

whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (optional)

Following package or recipe directions, prebake pie shell and allow to cool. In a microwaveable dish, combine blueberry jam and cinnamon. Microwave on high until mixture liquefies, or about 1 minute. Stir in fresh blueberries. Spoon mixture into prepared shell, then chill. Serve topped with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

More blueberry recipes also are available from the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council.

Note: Blueberry equivalents

1 dry cup (8 ounces) of fresh or frozen blueberries is equal to:

• 90-129 large blueberries
• 130-189 medium blueberries
• 5 ounces by weight (3 cups to a pound)
• ⅔ cup pureed
• ½ cup pureed and strained
• ⅔ cup after simmering 5 minutes with 2 tablespoons water

1 cup frozen blueberries = ⅔ cup thawed blueberries

Show & Tell Wednesday: Cotton fields

This photo by Thane Everett of Spotsylvania County, titled “Soft Stillness Before Harvest,” was a first-place winner among entries by those 18 years and older in the 2011 Virginia Farm Bureau Federation photo contest. 

The annual Farm Bureau photo contest is open to all Virginia residents, and the 2012 entry deadline is June 30. Contest details and an entry form are available here.

To view other scenic views of Virginia farms, farm animals and farmers, take a look at the winning entries from the 2011 Virginia Farm Bureau Federation photo contest.

Turn the weekend upside-down

(Photo courtesy of Duncan Hines)

While pineapples aren’t grown commercially in Virginia—at least not until Virginia State University’s Extension specialists start to experiment with them—fresh pineapples are often available in grocery stores. And if they’re not, you can find them on the canned fruit aisle.

I recommend buying some pineapple so you can properly celebrate National Pineapple Upside-down Cake Day, which is today.

According to some historians, the term “upside-down cake” first began appearing in the late 1800s. Until then, this type of cake was referred to as a skillet cake, which was made on top of the stove in a cast-iron skillet.

The first upside-down cakes were made with apples and cherries. In 1901, Jim Dole formed the Hawaiian Pineapple Co., and it began producing canned pineapple, which was used in upside-down cakes.

PUDC has long been one of my favorite desserts, and I’d like to share a classic recipe with you.

Cast-iron Pineapple Upside-down Cake

¼ cup butter

⅔ cup packed brown sugar

9 slices pineapple rings in juice, drained

9 maraschino cherries

1⅓ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

⅓ cup butter, softened

1½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup milk

1 egg

Pre-heat the oven to 350°. Place ¼ cup butter in a large cast-iron skillet, and place the skillet in the oven to melt the butter. Remove the skillet, and sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the melted butter.

Arrange pineapple slices over the brown sugar, cutting some in half if needed to make them fit. Place a cherry in the center of each ring.

In a medium bowl, beat the remaining ingredients with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping the bowl constantly. Then beat on high speed for 3 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally. Pour the batter over the pineapple and cherries.

Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Immediately place a heat-proof serving plate upside down over the skillet; turn the plate and skillet over, and leave the skillet over the cake for a few minutes so the brown sugar mixture can drizzle over it. Remove the pan, and serve

Antibiotic use on livestock ‘wildly overestimated’

Pigs like these are treated with antibiotics when they are ill (Photo by Kathy Dixon, Virginia Farm Bureau).

Opponents of antibiotic use in livestock say the drugs are overused and abused.

But a recent study conducted by Kansas State University shows that antibiotic use in livestock production is “wildly overestimated.”

Using data from a 2006 U.S. Department of Agriculture swine survey and a 2009 survey of swine veterinarians, KSU found that annually about 1.6 million pounds of antibiotics are used in pork production for growth promotion/nutritional efficiency and disease prevention. By contrast, a 2001 report, “Hogging It,” from the Union of Concerned Scientists claimed that 10.3 million pounds a year are used.

National Pork Producers Council President R.C. Hunt said the UCS report should have been titled “Fabricating It.”

“Pork producers do not overuse antibiotics, Hunt said. “We work with veterinarians to carefully consider if antibiotics are necessary and which ones to use.”

The KSU study, which was published in the March issue of Foodborne Pathogens and Disease, found that 2.8 million pounds of antibiotics were used for growth promotion/nutritional efficiency, disease prevention and disease treatment. That amount is 368 percent less than the amount asserted by UCS for just growth promotion/nutritional efficiency and disease prevention.

Margaret Ann Smith, a beef cattle producer in Rockingham County, said livestock farmers can’t afford to use antibiotics for anything other than treatment of diseases.

“If we have to treat every single animal with antibiotics, it’s not cost-effective for our business,” Smith said. Bottles of animal antibiotics can range in price from $300 to $1,600 apiece.

Farmers treat their animals with medication the way parents treat sick children. If children need medication, parents give it to them. Some doctors might over-prescribe antibiotics, but that doesn’t mean the tools shouldn’t be available.

Likewise, farmers should be allowed to use animal antibiotics for treating livestock. Taking them away could cripple the industry and limit our healthy meat supply.

Food Friday: Cookies! Oatmeal Cookies!

This is your official two weeks’ notice that April 30 is National Oatmeal Cookie Day.

Most of the oats grown on Virginia farms are used for animal feed, but there are no shortage of human Virginia cooks who bake oatmeal cookies. There’s a classic oatmeal cookie recipe at eatmoreoats.com, and here’s a fancy version from Bring It to the Table, a cookbook compiled by women’s committees of county Farm Bureau’s in Southeast Virginia.

Oatmeal Cookies

½ cup butter, softened

½ cup  granulated sugar or sugar substitute

½ cup packed brown sugar or a blend of sugar substitute and brown sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup old-fashioned oats

1 cup coconut

1 cup dried cranberries, raisins or mixed dried fruit bits

Preheat oven to 375°.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugars, baking powder and baking soda. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.

Beat in egg and vanilla until combined, and then flour.

Stir in oats, coconut and fruit.

Drop by rounded teaspoons (or use a small cookie scoop) 2 inches apart onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheets.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are light brown and centers are set. Cool on cookie sheets for 1 minute, then transfer to a cooling rack. Store in an air-tight container.

Makes about 48 small cookies.

Lee County couple’s farm featured on Furniture Row Racing site

Amber and Jonathan Cavin, shown here in late 2010, when they won Virginia Farm Bureau Federation's Young Farmers Achievement Award (Photo by Kathy Dixon)

Fourth-generation farmers—and NASCAR fans—Jonathan and Amber Cavin and their Lee County farm are featured among profiles of American farm families on the website of Furniture Row Racing.

Furniture Row is featuring farm families on its site throughout the 2012 Sprint Cup season as art of its Farm American program, which supports keeping the nation’s food produced in the United States.

The Cavins operate a farm in Rose Hill, where they grow burley tobacco and vegetables and raise beef cattle.

They were the 2010 recipients of Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s Young Farmers Achievement Award, and Jon Cavin is a participant in the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Partners in Agricultural Leadership training program for industry spokespersons. He’s set to graduate from the intensive two-year program next February.

Food Friday: Roasted Asparagus with Feta and Walnuts

(Photo taken by Kathy Dixon, Virginia Farm Bureau)

On this month’s Real Virginia and in the upcoming issue of Cultivate magazine, is an asparagus recipe by author and culinary instructor Kendra Bailey Morris. Morris uses fresh Virginia-grown asparagus to create this delicious, simple dish. Virginia-grown asparagus is available in April, so start looking for some at your local farmers’ market.

You can find Morris cooking with Virginia foods each month on Real Virginia, courtesy of Virginia Grown, a program of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Her work has been published in Better Homes and Gardens, Food Republic, Virginia Living, Chile Pepper and other publications. She is a former food columnist for the Richmond-Times Dispatch and blogs at fatbackandfoiegras.blogspot.com.

Roasted Asparagus with Feta and Walnuts

¼ cup walnut pieces, lightly toasted

one bunch of fresh asparagus, washed and ends trimmed

2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

3 ounces crumbled feta cheese

quality balsamic vinegar for drizzling

Preheat the oven to 325°. Place walnut pieces on a baking sheet in a single layer, and bake for about 10 minutes, making sure they are fragrant and brown but not overcooked. Remove toasted nuts from the oven to cool.

Increase oven temperature to 400°. On a large sheet pan, toss the asparagus with the olive oil, coating each piece well. Season with salt and pepper, and toss again. Spread asparagus in a single layer on the baking sheet.

Roast for 12-14 minutes, shaking the pan several times so the spears will cook evenly on all sides.

Remove the asparagus onto a platter. Scatter feta over the spears, and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Top with toasted walnuts and serve.

Goats galore

(This photo features a cashmere goat. 

The photo was taken by Kathy Dixon, Virginia Farm Bureau)

The goats featured in our February issue of Cultivate magazine have received a lot of attention from readers.

For those who just can’t get enough of Virginia goats, check out this story on the goat industry in Virginia. It recently aired on our monthly television show Real Virginia.