CSA (our) week 7: August 27th, 2009

1. Lettuce
2. Tomatillos
3. Cilantro
4. Swiss Chard
5. Peppers, Green (sweet NOT hot)
6. Eggplant
7. Green Beans/Cranberry Beans/Dragons Tounge
8. Summer Squash



Lettuce... what to do with lettuce. I will probably have it for lunch one day... maybe. Poor lettuce.

Our share consisted of Green Beans, Cranberry Beans or Drangons Tongue beans. I thought we had to take all three and ended up with 1/3 lb of each. I had intended to make a chili with the cranberry beans. However, after shelling 1/3lb of cranberry beans you end up with less than a handful. So... not much came of them. The Green and Dragons Tongue beans were roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper.

So the menu this week consists of Eggplant Rollatini, Stuffed peppers, Tuna tacos, Thai pasta and vegetables with potato samosas and spicy zucchini......and pizza topped with swiss chard and 3 cheeses (mozzarella, asiago and parmesan that's what I've got)

Buffalo Shrimp and Peach Salsa

Buffalo Shrimp

These spicy fried shrimp are a favorite of mine. They are a pretty good substitute for Buffalo wings, I wouldn't exactly call them healthy but they are very easy to make.

Peel and de-vein shrimp

mix together one egg, 1/4 cup milk and hot sauce in a bowl and add the peeled shrimp.
Get together a plate of flour.
One by one remove the shrimp from the egg and coat in flour. Then repeat the process, egging and flouring the shrimp a second time.
Heat at least 1/2 inch of oil in a frying pan to 375 degrees.
You can test this with the handle of a wooden spoon. If the oil bubbles when you put the handle in, it's ready.
Fry the shrimp to golden brown on each side 1-2 minutes per side.
drain on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet.
When all shrimp are dry, put them in a bowl and cover with buffalo sauce, turning shrimp gently in the sauce.
If you don't want to serve them immediately, you can then let the shrimp sit overnight in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap.
Heat at 400 degrees


Peach Salsa

2 Ripe peaches
1/4 red onion
1/2 jalapeno seeded (reserve the seeds to add a little kick)
1/2 tomato or 1/4 cup cherry tomatoes
Cilantro to taste
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt to taste

Peel and slice the peaches. Chop the onion, jalapeno and tomatoes and combine in a bowl. Add lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and about 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of jalapeno seeds. Mix gently and taste. Season as necessary.

Summer Squash

There were 4 types of squash available at the CSA this week; zucchini, Italian, 8 ball, and zorah (?) [I hope I am remembering this correctly] It was not until after I had taken my share and was manning the squash/cucumber table that I realized I was not taking full advantage of the diversity of my CSA share. The majority of people went for the 8 ball and zorah squash while I had stuck to what is familiar, zucchini. This is a mistake I promise to not make another time. Part of this experience is trying new things. Next time, I will choose the unfamiliar.

I don't make my eggplant or zucchini Parmesan than I generally see it prepared in restaurants. My vegetables are baked and juicy. The way I remember my mother making this dish growing up was tedious; cut the vegetables, press/drain the water, egg and bread crumb, stand over a hot pan of oil and fry them, then begin to layer the veggies, cheese and sauce and finally bake. Mine is still time intensive but much easier and no or very little oil is used.



Zucchini or Eggplant or both!
Flour
Bread Crumbs
1-2 Egg(s) mixed with water or milk
Tomato Sauce
Cheese


Cut the vegetables into 1/4 inch pieces. This will insure that you have juicy pieces of vegetables in your dish. The #1 reason I don't like eggplant parmesan or fried eggplant that I've found at restaurants and delis is because the vegetable is cut so thin it is lost under the fried coating.

Flour the vegetable strips, then egg, then coat with bread crumbs.
Grease a cookie sheet using oil or cooking spray. Lay the pieces of coated vegetables on the greased pan and brush with oil or use cooking spray. Try to keep like sized pieces together (they will have the same cooking time) Bake at 350 until soft. This probably takes about 15-20 minutes. The outside should be crispy. Zucchini tends to be less crispy because of the water content of the vegetable. Also, you will get more crunch using oil than cooking spray.

Coat the bottom of a casserole or lasagna dish with sauce. Put down one layer of the cooked vegetables. Add a layer of cheese (I use ricotta, mozzarella or goat cheese) then sauce and another layer of vegetables. Continue doing the same until all of the vegetables have been used. Top with sauce and cheese and bake until heated through. About 20 minutes at 350.

I have also used cooked chick peas between layers in lieu of cheese. I cook the chick peas in broth with dried oregano, garlic, red pepper, S&P. Or, broth, garlic, fresh oregano, lemon juice, S&P.

CSA (our) week 6: August 20th, 2009

1. Basil - 1 bunch
2. Mini-Tomatoes - 1 carton
3. Beans - 1 lb
4. Squash, Summer -2 lb
5. Cucumbers - 1 lb
6. Lettuce - 1 head

Being a part of this CSA means that 5 times throughout the season I (or John) need to help out for two hours on pick-up day. If you don't work then you loose a $100 "will work deposit" that you put down at the beginning of your share. (If you complete all of your work time for that season you won't have to put down the deposit next year) This is actually something I was excited about. It only takes 5 minutes to pick-up a share. Not long enough to get a good idea of who you are sharing this CSA with, something I am naturally inclined to be curious about. I was also interested to see what goes on behind the scenes, and I did.

I chose the later hours 5:30-7:30 because I work. It just so happens that those are the least desirable hours to work (which makes me wonder how so many people can be available from 3:30-5:30?)

The most uncomfortable part of this job is "policing" the table. I don't mind explaining what each person is supposed to take but having to look over their shoulder and make sure they're only taking what I told them too is just too much for me. I understand that every ounce counts but if someone has to look through 5 different zucchini because the scale is 1 ounce over I say... take the 1 ounce, there are plenty of zucchini. Last week there were 2 large boxes (probably close to 50lbs) left over.
I understand the idea behind this; everyone pays the same everyone should get the same. Unless, of course, you have some special affiliation with the CSA [sarcasm] but that is an off-web topic. I just mean let’s cut people some slack. You don't need to "police" the pick-up. If people have read what they're supposed to take, and it is explained to them, and you can tell they clearly understand, then I honestly believe that 99% of people are not going to cheat on their share. And the other 1%? Well, you can tell pretty well if someone is taking 5 zucchini that it's not going to equal 2lbs and then you can politely confirm that they understand it's 2lbs of zucchini they are getting.
So those are my thoughts (bit of a rant) on that.

From my basil I made pesto. Basically I fought with the only machine I have in the house capable of chopping anything (a blender meant to [pretty much exclusively] make mixed drinks) to chop up the basil best it could and mix it with oil so it would not spoil before I could do something with it. It worked as well as I needed it too. Luckily, I received a call today that my mom has purchased a food processor for me. Hallelujah! I did not expect it but it is a welcomed and much needed gift. That's two down (dehydrator and food processor.) I will be mixing the garlic and parmesan into the basil and oil just as soon as I can get that food processor over here.

I also used quite a bit of the basil making tomato sauce from the tomatoes John's mom has given us plus those we've been getting from our garden. I've made the equivalent of 5 jars so far.

The beans were blanched, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper.
Served with buffalo shrimp and peach salsa (courtesy of Sam's peaches which were the best I've EVER tasted) Recipe for both will follow in another post.

The cucumbers were used for the ricotta topped cucumber slices. Whatever didn't make it into the mix, I will be using to make a very simple cucumber and tomato salad. That is, cucumbers sliced, tomatoes sliced, red onion and dressing. I'll probably use our leftover beans in this as well.

I have actually been using the lettuce...sort of. I have used it for sandwiches and our roommate Chris' guinea pig has been enjoying it as well.

The zucchini was used for zucchini parmesan. See following post.

Beer, Leeks and Potatoes

If you came to our recent Beer Tasting BBQ then you experienced some food from our CSA and local farmers market first hand.

A week prior I received a huge bunch of leeks as part of our share. I already knew I wanted to adapt the recipe for scallion pancakes posted under 'Asian Inspiration' to make some meat free fried wontons.

Leek and Egg Filled Friend Wontons
1/2 cup chopped leeks
6 whole eggs
Salt and Pepper
1 tsp olive oil
1 package pre-made wonton wrappers
Vegetable oil for frying

Fry the leeks in olive oil until they start to brown.
Scramble the eggs together with salt and pepper.
Add eggs to the pan with the leeks. Cook just as you would scrambled eggs.
Remove pan from heat. The wontons have directions on them and are very easy to use.
Lay out the wrapper, put a small amount of the egg mixture in the middle, wipe two edges with water or egg wash and bring them together to form a triangle over the egg. Pull the bottom corners up to criss cross over the front dabbing one with water or egg to keep them together. Then fry them in a light oil or steam them if preferred.

The dipping sauce is:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 tbsp honey


Leek Dip

2 cups sour cream
1 cup chopped leeks
1 tbsp olive oil
garlic powder
salt and pepper

Part of the flavor of this dip definitely came from the sour cream I used which had a very yogurt like taste to it. It was Trader Joe's organic sour cream.

Heat the oil and add most of the chopped leeks (reserve some to add raw to the dip and to use as garnish)
Fry the leeks until they begin to brown. Then remove from heat.
Season the sour cream with garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.
Add the fried and raw leeks and garnish with raw leeks.


Guacamole inspired Potato Salad

2 avocados
1 lemon
garlic powder
2 lb potatoes
3 tbsp cider vinegar
kosher salt
1 jalapeno
1 green or red pepper
2 celery stalks
red pepper flakes
fresh ground black pepper
1/4 cup mayo


Start by boiling the potatoes until fork tender.
Drain the potatoes and set in an ice bath. When cool to the touch you can remove the skins and chop.
Add chopped potatoes to a bag with the 3 tablespoons of vinegar and let sit overnight (if possible).

The next day, drain the potatoes and put them into a bowl. Salt the potatoes.
Add chopped green or red pepper, chopped jalapeno without the seeds and chopped celery to the bowl. Reserve the jalapeno seeds.

In a separate bowl, mix together mayo with red pepper, black pepper and jalapeno seeds. I think I used about 1/2 the seeds from 1/2 of a jalapeno pepper. About 1/4 of the seeds in a full jalapeno.
Add this mixture to the potatoes and give it a few turns in the bowl.

In a separate bowl, prepare the avocado. Slice the avocados into small pieces and add to the bowl. Squeeze 1 the juice of one lemon over the avocado pieces and add garlic powder to taste. Season more than you would if just making guacamole because part of the flavor will be lost when you add this with the mayo.

Add this to the bowl and mix lightly.



Honey Mustard Potato Salad
MAYO FREE

2 lbs potatoes
1/4 cup spicy mustard
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 lemon juiced
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp cider vinegar
fresh summer savory

Cook potatoes until for tender. Cut into bite sized pieces leaving the skin on.
Salt the potatoes and add herbs or spices.

In a separate bowl combine the mustard, olive oil, lemon juice, honey and vinegar. Add mixture to potatoes and mix lightly.

Victory in Vegetable Lasagna

I was very excited when I found out for week #5 we would be getting both eggplant and zucchini. I had wanted vegetable lasagna for weeks. My experience so far prepared me for the limited number of both that we would get in our share. Still, plenty to make a small dish. John's mom also provided 2 additional eggplant so we were able to make enough lasagna for the whole week.
I have been experimenting with making some easy cheeses, Ricotta and Mozzarella, at home and was eager to try them out in a dish. As it happens, John and I had a mix up that weekend and both went to the farmers market. We came home with a combined 10 lbs of tomatoes, 2 bunches of carrots, 8 lbs of potatoes, 8 green peppers, and then some. So, we would have homemade vegetable lasagna with homemade ricotta, mozzarella and tomato sauce. The pasta came from a box. That's for another time.

My tomato sauce is really basic and probably not at all the way it "should" be made (I didn't take any of the seeds out of the tomatoes and I don't process or strain it at all)

Peel and dice the tomatoes ahead of time
Sautee about 4 cloves of garlic in oil add dry herbs, oregano, savory, basil, parsley, red pepper whatever you like. I like mine pretty spicy. My dad swore by cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin spice or marjoram. I have heard of this since but still not my taste. There are only a few rules I follow...fresh tomatoes, lots of garlic and lots of basil. Add tomatoes, 1 tbsp of honey, salt and pepper to taste and let the sauce cook down. I'm working without a food processor. John suggested I mash the sauce with a potato masher, which I did, but I really like an extra chunky sauce.

I wanted to grill the vegetables but didn't have a working grill at the time. I baked them instead. I used:

4 carrots
2 zucchini
3 Japanese eggplants
1 cup ricotta
10 2" pieces of sliced mozzarella
About 3 cups of sauce

Slice all of the vegetables about 1/4 inches thick
I don't remove the skin from the zucchini or eggplant. However, the eggplant can be pretty tough so you may want to. Also, you may want to press the zucchini to remove some of the water.
Bake the vegetables at 350 until tender.
The carrots will probably take the longest. Make sure those are fork tender.
In your Lasagna or Casserole dish start with a layer of tomato sauce. Then lay one layer of noodles then layer the vegetables the opposite direction (john's suggestion) on top of the noodles. Layering the vegetables that way made it so much easier to cut the finished product. I like to mix all my vegetables together.
On top of the vegetables, spread (or glob) ricotta. It's much easier to do if the cheese is warm or at room temperature.
Then more pasta, I spread some sauce over the pasta at this point before adding more vegetables, then ricotta and so forth until everything is used up. Top final layer of pasta with sauce and mozzarella.

Heat for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

This is a really fresh summery dish and very filling. P.S. the fresh ricotta really makes it!

CSA (our) week 5: August 13th, 2009

Week 5
1. Eggplant (Japanese)-1 lb
2. Lettuce - 1 head
3. Cucumber - 1 lb
4. Cabbage, Green - 1 head
5. Squash, Summer - 1 lb
6. Beans: Dragon Tongue 1 lb
7. Leeks - 1 bunch

This week, again, our lettuce went to waste. I really have to be better about that. Does anyone have ideas on how to keep lettuce fresh? Mine always wilts within 36 hours of getting it home.

The cucumbers were used as an appetizer with ricotta cheese on top.
Slice the cucumbers 1/2 inch thick. Sprinkle with salt. Top with Ricotta cheese and fresh ground pepper. I thought it came together pretty well. Sean really enjoyed them with my leek dip (recipe to follow).

The squash was used in a similar recipe to last (with mixed vegetables in a tomato sauce) this is really a go to dinner for me. It's satisfying and can be made with pretty much any vegetable combination.

The cabbage I used to make what I'm going to call my
"not just for rabbits cabbage combination"


Yes, I'm all cheese.

So, anyway, eat cabbage because it's great for you, it's extremely filling, filled with vitamins and good for your digestive system, although it can be difficult to process. Get ready for some stink bombs. Was that inappropriate?

You will need: 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/2 onion, 2 carrots, 1/2 head of cabbage, 3 cups vegetable stock, 1 bay leaf, 1 can chick peas.
You will also need 2 tablespoons olive oil, the 2nd 1/2 of that onion and 1/2 lb potatoes. The smaller the potatoes are the better.

Start by cleaning and slicing the potatoes into 1/4 inch pieces. Thinly slice 1/2 of your onion.
In a bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of olive oil with salt and pepper. Toss in potatoes and onion and coat thoroughly. Lay potatoes and onions on a cookie sheet.
Another option is to spray your pan with cooking spray, lay out your potato and onion slices. Spray the top of your potato and onions with cooking spray and sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder and I like to spice it up with a little red pepper. If you have any hearty fresh herbs they would also work well, chili powder, curry powder, etc.
Cook in oven at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes or until crispy and browned.

Cut the other 1/2 of the onion and the carrots into bite size pieces and sauté in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Cut cabbage into wedges and place in pot to sauté for 5 minutes. Flip cabbage and sauté on the other open edge for another 5 minutes. Then add 1 can of drained and rinsed chick peas, 3 cups of vegetable stock and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook until cabbage is tender.

It's Not Easy Being Greens

Leafy greens are probably the least respected of all vegetables. Their nutritional value is high, they're low in calories and filling, they are easily enhanced with any of your favorite flavors and they are readily available year round. Here are a couple of ideas to get more greens into your diet. Most of the greens listed below can be used interchangeably in these recipes.

Arugula, Broccoli/Rabe, Collard Greens, Dandelion Greens, Kale, Mustard Greens, Romaine Lettuce, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Escarole, Beet Greens, Bok Choy, Endive, Watercress. Just a few of many.

A simple way to eat more greens is to add them to a salad. I also think this is the most boring. I also suggest adding them to a tomato sauce with other mixed vegetables. If you cook the greens right in the sauce you won't lose the nutrients you would if they were first blanched and then added to the dish.

See my first post for a Mustard Green soup.


Escarole Bread
You can make your own pizza dough, if you are so inclined. I bought mine from a local pizzeria.

1 pizza dough
3 cloves garlic
1/2 medium onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 bunches of escarole
1 can chick peas or cannellini beans
2 table spoons pine nuts toasted
4 anchovies or 1 tsp anchovy paste (just try them... they're not fishy)
1/4 cup dried cranberries (I would have preferred fresh cooked down)

Finely chop all ingredients. Rinse your escarole and chop.

Heat the olive oil and chopped onions add minced garlic sauté until onions are translucent.
Add anchovies, pine nuts, escarole and beans. Sautee for a minute and then add salt and pepper. Add cranberries and sauté for another minute then remove from heat.

Spread out pizza dough on a well flowered countertop, as if making a pizza. Spread escarole filling down one half of the dough. Fold the dough on top of itself and press the edges sealed. Put 3 or 4 slits in the top of the bread. Brush with a mixture of crushed garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Bake for about 30 minutes at 400 or until the edges have browned.


Mozzarella cheese is also a nice addition to this bread. Sprinkle it on top of the escarole mixture before sealing the bread.


Spinach Bread

1 pizza dough
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1/3 cup shredded mozzarella
2 1/2 cups spinach
3 cloves of garlic
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Wash and chop your spinach
Heat oil and sauté with 2 cloves of garlic, salt and pepper to taste
Add spinach and sauté for a minute until it begins to wilt
Mix salt and pepper and one clove of garlic crushed into the ricotta and then mix in the mozzarella
Add cooked spinach to the cheese mixture

Roll out the pizza dough into a rectangle. Spread cheese and spinach mixture evenly over the dough, with a bit more at one end. Start rolling from the end with the most stuffing. Brush the top of the roll with olive oil, salt and pepper.



Swiss Chard Stuffed Shells
Swiss Chard and onions from week #2

1 box of pasta shells
1 head (about 12 ounces) red or white Swiss chard
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped (I used about 4 small-medium green onion bulbs)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 clove garlic, crushed
1/4 cup chopped fresh or frozen basil
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Boil your pasta in salted water. When cooked, rinse with cold water and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

Chop your onions and swiss chard
Heat olive oil in pan and add onions. Let the onions sweat until translucent.
Add some garlic to brown.
Add the swiss chard and cover. Reduce by 1/4 then stir.
Let the rest of the chard wilt in the pan then remove from heat.
The greens should still be bright. The longer you cook them the more nutrients you will use. However, you don't want them to be too difficult to chew.

Let your chard mixture cool.

In a large bowl mix together your ricotta with 2 cloves of crushed garlic, chopped basil, salt and pepper to taste.

Add the ricotta to the chard mixture (not the other way around.) You may find you like a bit more or less ricotta than I used. Doing it this way will allow you to control that. Basically you just want to bind the chard together and add some creaminess.

Coat the bottom of your baking dish with tomato sauce to keep the shells from sticking (no need for oil or butter here!)

Fill each shell with approximately 2 tablespoons of the ricotta-chard mixture. Line the shells up in the dish and cover with sauce enough to keep them from getting dry.




**These are so good. The flavor of the swiss chard is not lost which is excellent. The swiss chard has such a nice earthy flavor that goes really well with the tomato sauce. I was able to make about 2 dozen stuffed shells from this recipe. At least 10 of them are sitting in my freezer for another dinner <3


Kale Chips!!!
Using Kale from week #4 Please, try this recipe. I think you will love it.

1 head of Kale
Salt & Pepper
Your choice of seasoning

These are so easy to make and they're delicious. A little messy to eat but totally worth it.

Wash and dry your kale. Strip the kale leaves from their stems. Lay flat on a cookie sheet or elevate using a cooling rack over a cookie sheet (if possible)

Spray kale with olive oil spray or drizzle with olive oil from a bottle.
Add salt and pepper. I also add minced garlic and red pepper. Any seasoning works well.

Cook at 250-300 degrees until they are dry and crispy but before they start to brown.


**I could easily finish off two heads of Kale a week, by myself, because of these**

Asian Inspiration

In my childhood Chinese was a celebratory food. New Years, a Birthday request, a visit from a family friend, any day that was special where my parents wouldn't want to cook. That is a Chinese food day. Pizza is weekend food. Chinese is something to look forward to. As years progressed, Chinese food took a new roll as a once in a while weekend meal. However, its rarity kept it special.
There was a period of time when I would not eat Chinese food. Too greasy, too many unidentified objects floating around there. What is "brown sauce" made of anyway? Alas, Chinese food won out. Some sacrifices must be made for pleasure. Over the years my palate has expanded to include Thai, Korean, Vietnamese, Japanese and Indian cuisine.
As I have started experimenting with the food I cook, I have tried more to cook more Asian or Asian inspired foods. I am often hesitant to try an Asian recipes because they require ingredients I do not keep in the house, sesame or peanut oil, fish sauce, ginger, oyster sauce, rice wine vinegar, and special soy sauces. Recently I have been substituting and hoping for the best. Cross your fingers, this is what experimenting is all about.

The following four recipes have been tested and approved by John and myself and promise to be both exceptionally easy and delicious.


Recycled Pea Pods with Shrimp in a Brown Sauce
Including ingredients from week 1 and 2

The pea pods I used for this recipe were from the sweet peas that were used in the Alfredo with Peas sauce (posed earlier) I also added some left over snap peas.

Shrimp or other protein (as many as you like)
Flour
2 cups of pea pods (any kind; snap peas, sugar peas, Romano beans)
1 medium onion (I used 2 small green onions)
2 cloves Garlic
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
1 table spoon oil
1/8 cup Water
1 table spoon Corn Starch

Prepare the sauce in a small bowl. Mix soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of oil, water and 1 clove of crushed garlic. Taste and add more water if the soy flavor is too strong for your taste. Then add corn starch, mix and set aside. (you can add oyster sauce, sesame oil, ginger, rice wine or apple cider vinegar or honey to this recipe for a slightly different flavor) See the next recipe for more ideas.

Peel the shrimp, rinse and dredge in flour. No need for egg here you just want a light coating of flour to thicken the sauce a bit and also help to coat the shrimp with the sauce. You can use this technique with any protein.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet. Add onions and allow them to cook to translucent. Add 1 clove crushed garlic and let it begin to brown. Add the shrimp placing them directly on the oil so they will brown. Add beans. Let cook uncovered until the shrimp are brown and then turn. Pour the sauce over everything in the pot and toss. Reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for a minute. Mix together once more to cover everything with the sauce and let simmer until sauce is a desired thickness.

** I will never need to get Chinese takeout again ;) **

The Improvisation
Uses ingredients from week 4
I had beets and Romano beans I needed to use and this is what I came up with.

1 can garbanzo beans
1 cup beets
1 cup Romano beans (string beans or pea pods)
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/8 cup water
1/8 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey

This recipe is made exactly like the one before except the sauce adds 1/8 cup cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon honey.
Add the beets, Romano and garbanzo beans at the same time.

So easy and tasty.


Scallion Pancakes
Scallions from week 4 cut just the tops of the green onions for this recipe. The bulbs can be used just as you would yellow onions. However, they have a much milder flavor so you will want to account for that in your recipe.

(This is a Rachel Ray recipe)

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 table spoons cider vinegar
1 table spoon honey
7 eggs (3 whole and 4 whites only)
4 bunches of scallions
Oil
5 whole wheat tortillas
Salt and Pepper

Mix together the soy sauce, vinegar and honey. Set aside.

Heat oil in a pan. Chop the scallions and fry them lightly.
Scramble the eggs. Add salt and pepper. Add egg mixture to the pan.
When the eggs are cooked, remove them from the pan onto a plate and set aside.
Wipe down the pan and spray with cooking spray/oil
Fry a tortilla until it starts to blister. Remove from the heat and add some of the egg mixture on top of the side that has been fried. Fold in half twice and set aside. (It should end up looking like a triangle and ours were pretty fat so you may need 6 of the tortillas) Continue doing this until all of the egg is gone.
Spray the pan and brown the exposed sides of the pocket.

Use sauce for dipping.

** I am ecstatic about this recipe. I miss fried Chinese dumplings like crazy but I won't eat the pork filling and I've not yet found a vegetable dumpling I really enjoy. This is an excellent substitute and I will be attempting to make them as dumplings or wontons in the near future **


Raw Thai Vegetable Pasta Salad
I haven’t made since we started the CSA but it’s still a great Asian inspired dish

1/4 box whole wheat spaghetti
1 zucchini shredded
1 carrot shredded or thinly sliced
1 red pepper thinly sliced
1 tablespoon raw nut butter (peanut gives the most flavor but any will do)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon red curry
A pinch of red pepper flakes
A pinch of chili pepper
1 clove crushed garlic or 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Cook the pasta in salted water. When done, rinse with cold water and set aside in a large bowl.
Shred and slice your vegetables and add them on top of the pasta.

Mix the sauce together combining the soy sauce, nut butter, garlic, curry, red pepper and chili pepper. Whisk together until combined. Pour this sauce over the vegetables and pasta and mix together. Chill overnight for best flavor. Serve cold.

** Yes! This recipe is as easy as it sounds but you would never know it from the flavor you get. I would add some fish sauce to this recipe but I haven't recently and don't know what quantity. I will update this when I figure it out. **

CSA (our) week 4: August 6th, 2009

Week 4

1. Beets – 1 bunch
2. Radicchio – 1 head
3. Lettuce: Bibb, Green OR Leaf, Green – 1 bunch
4. Onions, Spring – 1 bunch
5. Beans: Dragon Tongue, Green, Romano – 1 lb total
6. Kale, Green – 1 bunch

The radicchio and letuce were used in the same recipe I used for the radicchio in the first week.

The rest will follow with recipes

Mac and Cheese Challenge

If you couldn't tell from my 'Sunday Indulgence' post, I take cheese and cheese sauces very seriously. So, when John told me his very favorite macaroni and cheese comes from a blue box and is made from powdered cheese I took this as a direct challenge.
I won't lie; I like the taste of Kraft macaroni and cheese. I just don't want to swallow it. This is not real food. The recipe has literally been "krafted" to entice your taste buds without adding any significant nutritional value.

Here is my recipe for an excellent cheddar cheese sauce.
My macaroni preference is shells.

1/4 cup unsalted butter (1/2 of one stick)
Flour
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 block of cheddar cheese (Very sharp or smoky, something with lots of flavor unless you plan on adding flavor such as chipotle, jalapeño, sundried tomatoes, etc.) Add any flavoring to the cream base before adding your cheese.

I served this with steamed Romano beans. The beans were nicely complemented by the cheese sauce and added nutritional value and vitamins to the meal. I might try mixing in some spinach or other greens, another time.

The base of this sauce will be milk and cream thickened with a rue:

In a sauce pan melt the butter slowly, not boiling.
Add flour, should be about 1/4 cup, slowly until the mixture has formed a cohesive ball.
Add milk and cream to the rue and heat slowly, stirring constantly, until the rue is incorporated into the milk without lumps
Add pepper to the milk
Add your shredded cheddar
Melt the cheddar and taste. Add pepper if needed.

Cheese sauces tend not to re-heat very well so use this sauce quickly after it is finished or leave on a very low heat stirring occasionally until you are ready for it.