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Category: Recipes

  • Green Tacos

    Aylyn sent me a couple ideas for dishes using our CSA vegetables. I really like soft tacos using vegetables so I had to try the green taco recipe she sent.

    The recipe is quite simple.  I only changed a couple things using what I had.

    It was quick to make and very satisfying. I had some kale, walking onions  and garlic scapes and a little asparagus. You could use collards or broccoli and any allium you like. I loved the creamy tang of goat cheese but any cheese or yogurt or vegan option would work.

    As always, use what you like and have. My changes are in parentheses

    Green Tacos makes about 12 tacos. Great for leftovers.

    1 large bunch of greens, washed and tough stems discarded
    1 1/2 tablespoons oil
    1 large onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick (I used walking onions)
    3 garlic cloves, finely chopped (I used garlic scapes)
    1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
    1/2 cup water (I needed a little more)
    12 corn tortillas, warmed with a bit of water in a kitchen towel in the microwave (I heated mine on the stove)
    1 cup of any cheese or cheese substitute you like. (I used goat cheese)
    A large handful (6-10) cherry tomatoes (I used radishes and avocado)
    1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (a store-bought salsa or hot sauce will work) (I didn’t use this and didn’t miss it)

    Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high, add the onion and cook until golden but still a bit crunchy, 4-5 minutes.

    Meanwhile, slice the greens crosswise into 1/2 inch slices.

    Add the garlic and chili flakes to the onion and cook for an additional minute, then add the water, a large pinch of salt, and the greens.

    Reduce heat to low and braise, cover, for about 5 to 10 minutes or until the greens are nearing tender, but not quite finished.

    Meanwhile, put the cherry tomatoes (I didn’t use these, but feel free to if you have them) into a dry skillet over medium-high heat until blistered, transfer to a small food processor with the chipotle pepper in adobo and a large pinch of salt, and blend until smooth.

    Remove the cover from the greens and cook off the moisture until they are nearly dry.

    Season with salt and pepper to taste. Fill each taco with a tong full of the greens, top with cheese and or salsa.

    Enjoy!

    Have a great week. See you at pickup.

    Mo

  • Pea Shoots

    One of the best parts of being a part of a CSA is getting unusual or unfamiliar vegetables. This week everyone will be getting pea shoots in their shares and to some of you I bet this is a new item.

    Pea shoots are the top tender growth of the pea plant. Can you see the tip-top of the plant with the tendrils and delicate leaves?  That is all we harvest for pea shoots.

    Unsurprisingly they taste just like peas! They are very tender with a fresh-crunchy texture.

    You can store them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for at least a week.

    One of my favorite ways to  enjoy pea shoots is in pesto.

    You can use them in salads, on sandwiches, or add them to a stir fry or fold them into scrambled eggs.

    I think you will love using them in different dishes all week.

    Have fun eating and I’ll see you at pickup.

    Mo

  • Asparagus and Spring Herbs Two Ways

    Is everyone enjoying the lovely asparagus and herbs we got in our CSA share as much as I am? It’s so great to have fresh vegetables and herbs again!

    I made a couple really simple dishes with my asparagus. I felt like I was eating in a restaurant while eating these, the addition of the herbs really elevates dishes and really made these special. I wanted to share what I made.

    I sauteed my asparagus with walking onions, chive blossoms and some mint (recipe below) – it made enough for two herby asparagus side dishes. The first one, I made some polenta and topped it with the asparagus and herbs.

    The second, we had an arugula salad with chopped eggs and topped it with the asparagus herb mix. Asparagus and eggs are classically delicious and this was so good with the beautiful arugula from our CSA share. Yum.

    I really like the bigger stalks of asparagus, I think they are more tender and have more flavor (not everyone agrees, some people really like the skinny stalks!). I do peel the bottom of the thick stalks because they are a little stringy but I don’t mind the extra step, I love the crisp thicker stocks.

    Prepare your asparagus by trimming and peeling it and chop up any herbs you are using.

    Any soft herb would be delicious here, basil, chives, tarragon, sorrel, walking onions aren’t really herbs but they cook very quickly so I used them just like herbs.

    I like to sauté the vegetables in olive oil and a little chicken or vegetable stock. I used Better than Bouillon mixed with about 1/3 cup water.

    Here is the asparagus, oil, stock and walking onions after just a few minutes of cooking when they are just starting to soften I add the soft herbs.

    Let that cook until it is tender enough to your liking, serve alone or with polenta or as a salad.

    Sauteed Asparagus and herbs

    • 1 pound of asparagus trimmed of stringy ends
    • 2-4 tablespoons of oil
    • 1/3 cup stock or broth
    • a large handful of soft spring herbs
    • 3 or 4 stocks of walking onions or green garlic

    Sautee oil and onions or garlic if using with asparagus until it is just starting to soften and add the stock. When the vegetables are just beginning to look glazed add the herbs. Continue cooking until the asparagus is done to your liking. Serve with a salad or over polenta making sure to scrape up all the herbs and onion clinging to the pan.

    We are getting asparagus again this week. What a treat! I hope you enjoy it as much as I am.

    See you at pickup.

    Mo

  • Roasted Carmen Peppers and Romesco Sauce

    This week everyone is getting roasted red Carmen peppers. We roasted and froze them this summer when we had tons and what a treat it will be to have a little bit of summer in our last CSA share.

    Carmen peppers are a really thick walled sweet red pepper. To prepare them from this frozen state just let the peppers thaw overnight in the refrigerator or leave them on your counter for an hour or two. Then rinse them under the faucet to get rid of the seeds and skin. They will look like this after you defrost and clean them.

    The possibilities are endless with what you can do with these. I love them added to grilled cheese or any pasta dish, add them to egg or tuna salad, top a pizza with them, any rice or grain bowl would be so delicious with roasted peppers. I really like to make Romesco sauce. Like roasted Carmen peppers, this sauce makes just about anything more delicious.

    The ingredients are almost exactly the same for making pesto if you swap the peppers for basil. Nuts, oil, garlic (hard to see but there) and acid (vinegar, I ended up adding lemon too) same as pesto. Anything dish you like with pesto I think you will like with Romesco sauce.

    This couldn’t be any simpler to make. The hardest part is cleaning the blender or food processor, depending which you use. Oh, I usually use tomatoes or sundried tomatoes. I didn’t have any so I left them out. I didn’t miss them. I liked the texture better I think without.

    Romesco Sauce

    • 1 pound of roasted red peppers seeded and peeled
    • ½ cup raw or roasted almonds or any nut
    • 2 medium-to-large cloves garlic peeled
    • 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
    • ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper to taste
    • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
    • ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
    • 1 tomato or 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes (optional)
    • 1/2 the juice of a lemon. I added this after I tasted it. Taste yours and see if you want a little more zip

    Put everything in a blender or food processor and blend until you are happy with the texture. I made it smooth this time. Sometimes I like it a little chunky so I can taste the almonds. Both ways are nice.

    I was at a Farm to Table dinner one time (exactly one time) and the vegetarian meal was roasted vegetables served with Romesco sauce. It was delightful. It was made with summer vegetables but winter vegetables make just as lovely a dish I think.

    Well CSA Fam. This is it. Our longest winter CSA will be in the books this Thursday. We can’t say enough how much we appreciate your support and loyalty.

    Virtual hugs to all of you. Be well, hopefully we’ll see you back here in May.

    Mo

     

     

     

  • Garlic Fried Rice

    This is for all you garlic lovers out there. Garlic is the star here. The oil used for ‘frying’ the rice is infused by roasting garlic in the oil first, then removing it and using the infused oil to ‘perfume’ the rest of the ingredients.

    This is so good with shrimp or fish but really it will compliment any roasted vegetable or protein. Or just eat it alone.

    I wrote down measurements but you can adjust the amounts to your needs.

    I had-

    • 8 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
    • 1/4 to 1/3 cup neutral tasting oil – you want to coat the bottom of the pan you are using so the garlic ‘floats’. It will burn if you don’t use enough oil and you want to coat the rice with the yummy oil.
    • Salt to taste
    • 2 inch piece ginger, peeled, finely chopped
    • 1 large egg, beaten
    • 3 – 4 cups chilled cooked white or brown rice
    • 2 tsp. toasted sesame oil (optional)
    • 4 scallions, thinly sliced on a diagonal (optional)
    • 2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds (optional)

    Heat the oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat and add the garlic slices in one layer.

    Let them gently sizzle until they are brown, don’t let them burn. Fish them out with a slotted spoon as they brown onto a plate. See my plate to the right of the pan with the browned garlic?

    When they are all brown and removed from the pan (leave all the oil) add the chopped ginger.

    And the beaten egg, rice, scallions and sesame oil if using.

    Carefully mix it all up make sure the oil has coated everything. Now smoosh it into the pan to so the bottom can crisp up a little and turn it over once or twice to brown it all.

    When you are happy with the crispness add a few of the roasted garlic slices back and taste for salt or if you want more garlic. I used about 1/2 the garlic. I’ll save the rest for another dish.

    I added some hot sauce in the above picture. MMmmm, mmmmm.

    I hope you try this simple dish.

    Have a great week.

    Mo

  • Butternut Squash Sauce

    I am becoming a big fan of using more plant based only food in cooking.  I still eat dairy and some meat but I really like using only plant based foods in my cooking. I love the way plant based cooks have embraced using plants and nuts and seeds to add thick lusciousness to dishes without using cream or cheese. I’m trying to learn how to incorporate more of that into my daily cooking.

    I made some tortellini and Brussels sprouts and this butternut squash sauce. It looks pretty decadent doesn’t it?

    Cashews and butternut squash make this sauce really creamy and satisfying but not heavy. The only time consuming part of this recipe is to soak some cashews and roast some squash.

    • 1/4 cup raw cashews, soaked in water at least 4-6 hours or as long as overnight
    • 2 cups roasted butternut squash
    • 3/4 cup water
    • 2 garlic cloves
    • 2-4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
    • 1-2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice start with 1 and taste if you need more
    • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
    • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • hot sauce, to taste

    Put everything in a blender and give it a spin for about 2-3 minutes.

    Now taste it and see if it needs more lemon or salt or if you want, hot sauce. Add that now and taste again. Some butternut squash are sweeter than others. The lemon and hot sauce tone the sweetness down as does the nutritional yeast. Taste taste taste.

    This is great with pasta or roasted vegetables.

    I like to make a puddle of sauce on a plate and put my food around it so I can run my food through the sauce. I feel it’s not as gloppy as putting the sauce directly on the food, it’s more appetizing (to me at least).

    If you haven’t tried plant based recipes I hope you try this one, or this is one I really like too.

    Mo

     

     

  • Carrot and White Bean Burgers

    I hope everyone and their homes stayed safe from the fires. It was very close to us but thankfully we are ok. Our community has been through so much I know we will get through this. We were out of our house for several days and the electricity was off so I had to throw almost everything in the refrigerator away. The root vegetables were all ok. I needed a little comfort food so I made these.

    I really like to make vegetable burgers and fritters. I like how they are filling but not heavy.

    I haven’t posted very many veggie burger recipes here because it seems like most of them have really long list of ingredients. Most recipes too have you use a food processor so it feels like a bit of an ordeal. This one you mash the beans with a fork. It comes together in a jiff and is really delicious.

    I got the recipe here. Lots of great ideas on that site.

    Makes 4 big burgers (or 6 smaller ones)

    Olive oil
    1/2 cup panko
    3 shallots, or 1 small onion, diced
    1 tablespoon tomato paste
    1 1/2 teaspoons salt
    1 cup grated carrot (from 2 medium carrots)
    1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
    Two 15-ounce cans cannellini or other white beans, drained and rinsed
    1 egg, beaten
    Freshly ground black pepper
    Burger accompaniments, as you like

    Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over low heat. Add the panko and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl or plate, then return the pan to the heat.

    Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the skillet, followed by the onion. Cook until softened and lightly golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, salt, and carrots and stir frequently until the carrots are soft and a bit blistered, another 8 to 10 minutes. Add the vinegar, scraping up all the browned bits until the pan is dry.

    Remove from the heat and add the toasted panko and beans. Use a wooden spoon or spatula (I used a fork) to very coarsely mash the mixture until a bit pasty and holds together—there should still be plenty of beans intact. Stir in the egg and pepper to taste.

    Shape into 4 patties, or 6 smaller burgers (I got 6, they were plenty big) or 10 to 12 sliders. To cook the burgers, heat a thin layer of olive oil in a wide skillet over medium heat and carefully cook until browned and slightly firm to the touch, 3 to 4 minutes per side. It may be necessary to cook in batches. Serve hot or at room temperature, with accompaniments as desired.

    I am positive you could substitute any root vegetable for the carrots, parsnips, celeriac, rutabaga… even winter squash would work. Next time I would add a handful of hemp or sunflower seeds for a little texture.

    Delicious meal and the leftovers are just as good as the first day.

    Have a great week.

    Mo

  • Celeriac Puree

    This is a really easy celeriac dish that comes together in about 40 minutes with only about 10 minutes of hands on time, 30 minutes is cooking. You only need a few ingredients and if you are new to cooking with celeriac this will give you an idea of the flavor and texture of the vegetable.

    I followed this recipe exactly.

    The rice in this dish gives it a firmer texture than a puree using only celeriac but lets the celeriac flavor shine on it’s own. The milk makes it luxurious without being heavy like mashed potatoes made with cream and butter.

    I used two celeriac. Here is how to prepare them if you need help with that. You’ll need;

    • 3/4 pound celeriac (celery root) peeled and cut into chunks
    • 1 quart milk
    • Salt and pepper
    • 1/2 cup rice
    • 2 tablespoons heavy cream

    Put everything but the cream into a pan and simmer for 30 minutes.

    After 30 minutes (I let mine stand off the burner for another 15 minutes so it wasn’t so hot transferring it). Strain out the rice and celeriac (save the yummy flavored milk for soup or making mashed potatoes) and put the solids and the cream in a food processor and let it spin for a full 3 minutes.

    That’s it.

    You can serve this with any roasted meat. It’s really good with a mix of roasted vegetables.

    I hope you try this and enjoy it.

    Mo

     

     

     

     

  • How to Prepare Celeriac aka Celery Root

    Behold celeriac, also referred to as celery root. One of my favorite vegetables and also, one of the weirdest looking vegetables we grow. Weird but delicious. You can use celeriac in any root vegetable recipe; soups, roasted, puree or in slaws and salads.  You can use it alone or mixed with any other root vegetables. Its flavor is similar to a salad turnip but it also has a hint of celery-like freshness. That freshness is delightful and unexpected in a root vegetable dish. I love to mix different root vegetables together in soups and gratins.

    An added bonus of this wonderful vegetable it is stores in your refrigerator for a really really long time, like months.

    Don’t let it’s looks intimidate you. Celeriac isn’t much harder to deal with than a potato. Let’s break this task down. Grab your celeriac and a knife and peeler you are comfortable handling.

    Put the celeriac on it’s side and lob off the bottom gnarly root. I cut at an angle to make a point at the bottom of the root, making sure to cut away from the hand holding the celeriac.

    Then I used a peeler and peeled the smoother upper part of the root.

    There are usually some areas where you can’t peel and there is some dirt to get rid of.

    Just get your paring knife or the tip of your peeler and cut those out like you would an eye of a potato or a bad spot on a potato, easy peasy.

    That’s it. You are ready to carry on with whatever recipe you are making.

    If you are new to celeriac try making a simple mash or classic remoulade. I think you will really like the flavor.

    Mo

     

     

     

  • Roasting Winter Squash

    I thought some people, like me, might be a little overwhelmed by the amount of squash we got the last couple of weeks. I thought I would show you how I roast different winter squash varieties and maybe give you a couple new ideas for dishes using winter squash other than soup.

    The squash I have are delicata, butternut, kabocha and pumpkin.

    Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds. I’m not going to peel the delicata, pumpkin or kabocha.

    I peeled the long shaft of the butternut and cut it in two shapes for comparison. The small cavity where the seeds are I am leaving unpeeled and I’ll roast them with the pumpkin and scoop the flesh out.

    I cut the kabocha up in thin strips and tossed the strips in olive oil and salt and pepper and tossed in some sage leaves. You want to set your oven for 400F to 425F to roast squash. These are kind of thin so I went with 400F.

    After 25 minutes they were done. Kabocha is more dry and fluffy like potatoes when it’s roasted. I love the texture contrast of the skin and the flesh. This would make a nice risotto.

    I didn’t  make risotto. I made a super simple rustic galette with the roasted kabocha squash.

    The delicata squash I cut in small dice, I tossed it with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper. Don’t forget that you can roast any vegetables together with the squash if you have room. I like to keep them separate incase one gets done sooner than the other.

    Here is the delicata done, it took about 30 minutes to cook at 400F. It’s kind of hard to tell from the picture that they are done (soft all the way through). These delicata will be delicious in a grain or noodle bowl like this.

    Here is the butternut squash done. Again, tossed in olive oil and salt and pepper and cooked for about 40 minutes at 425F. It keeps its shape better than the kabocha. There are lots of nice winter squash salad recipes you could make with the roasted butternut squash.

    And here are the pumpkin and seed cavity of the butternut squash done.

    I have seen a couple recipes for squash pasta sauce I want to try with these.

    I hope this gives you an idea or two for what to do with your winter squash.

    Have a great week.

    Mo