Intern recipes

Sarah’s Scallion Sauce
Melt half a stick of butter in a sauce pan over medium heat.
Chop a handful of scallions and toss them into the butter.
Saute the scallions for several minutes then remove from heat.

Scallion sauce can be poured over roasted or boiled potatoes.
It is also delicious on broccoli or pasta.

Andrew’s Arugula Pizza Idea
Andrew suggested adding arugula to pizza. The secret is adding the arugula just AFTER the pizza comes out of the oven. The heat of the pizza will wilt the arugula slightly and enhance the delicious taste.

You can do this on pizza with or without tomato sauce. Epicurious suggests making a regular mozzarella and red sauce pizza then scattering prosciutto and arugula over the top right when you pull it from the oven. Other potential things from the basket to use as toppings in combination or not as you see fit: garlic, sliced boiled potatoes, or thin slices of tomato.

Janet McConnell’s Fettuccine with Marinated Tomatoes, Basil & Cream

1 /2 pounds ripe tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup coarsely chopped basil.....20-25 leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 pound pasta ('tho it can easily be more)
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
2-3 ounces Gorgonzola (or feta) cheese

Cut the tomatoes into large chunks and toss with the oil, garlic, basil 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper (I add lots more).

Heat the cream in a large skillet...reduce to about 1/2 cup (give or take). Lower the heat and add the tomatoes...cook together 3-4 minutes gently.

Add drained pasta and cheeses to the cream..toss together and serve.

I never have Gorgonzola on hand...have substituted feta with great results! (add it to the cream first and let it begin to melt (stirring) before adding the pasta.

It's from the Fields of Green (Somerville). Quick & delish !

Farmers Market Meatloaf

1 pound ground beef, preferably Badger Brook
3/4 cup torn up pieces of day old country style bread
½ cup milk
1 egg lightly beaten
½ cup cheese (I used a combo of mozzarella and romano because that’s what I had, the original recipe said parmesan)
Salt and pepper

Veggies (substitute freely)**
1 bunch garlic scapes, finely chopped
1 cup or more chopped chard
A few sprigs oregano, destemmed and chopped

Put the bread in a bowl and pour the milk on it to soak while you chop veggies etc. Stir a few times so it gets all soaked.

Mix everything up. Don’t overmix or it makes the meatloaf tough. Put in a buttered loaf pan and bake at 350 for about an hour. Enjoy.

*** This was loosely based on the meatball recipe in Alice Waters’ Book The Art of Simple Food. I like this recipe as a way to use up miscellaneous veggies. You can use all sorts of combos, but use at least one allium (garlic, onion, etc.), at least one green (chard, parsley, spinach, etc.). The original recipe I based it on called for a small onion, grated, 2 garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon each chopped oregano and parsley, plus cayenne. I made it with the combo listed above and it was awesome (Deb and Vince’s beef helped a lot I think). I used a whole big bunch of chard, choppe (6 cups maybe?). I think that was too much chard for a true meatloaf, and so it fell apart when sliced. Using less chard or maybe cooking it first probably would’ve helped the meatloaf hold together better. But it was still really, really good. The kids ate it up and asked for seconds.

Two recipes for greens

Korean Greens

1 pound fresh spinach (or other cooking greens)
1½ tablespoons vegetable oil
1½ tablespoons white vinegar
1½ tablespoons tamari soy sauce
Pinch of sugar
1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds toasted

Prepare the sauce by mixing together the sesame oil, vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar.
Heat the vegetable oil in a wok or large skillet. Add the greens and stir-fry until just tender, but not overcooked. Pour off any excess oil or liquid. Toss the greens with the sauce in a serving bowl. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and serve.

Chinese Greens

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large garlic clove, minced or pressed
½ teaspoon grated fresh ginger
6 to 8 cups of washed and chopped bok choy or 12 to 14 cups of chopped spinach
½ cup dry sherry or Chinese rice wine
1 tablespoon vinegar or fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon of sugar or honey
2 tablespoons of fish sauce or tamari soy sauce

Heat the oil in a wok and add the garlic and ginger. Saute very briefly. Add the greens and toss to coat with oil. Add the sherry or wine, vinegar or lemon juice, honey or sugar, fish sauce, and a splash of water. Continue sautéing. The spinach version will take about 1 minute, the bok choy version will take 5 minutes, or until tender. If you use tamari soy sauce instead of fish sauce, add it right before serving.

Both adapted from New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant. Thank you Tracy!!

Sarah and Anna's Lentil Soup with Spinach

We decided to celebrate the beginning of the season with an impromptu dahl-soup with spinach from the fields. This week we harvested a great crop of spinach and are thrilled to be eating the first few tomatoes. The soup came out beautifully so we thought we'd share the recipe, rough as it is.

A combination of red and green lentils (soaked)
a few spoon-fulls of tomato sauce
one large onion, chopped
three cloves of garlic, chopped
at least one fresh tomato (more could be added), chopped
olive oil
curry powder
garam masala
tumeric
salt and pepper
lots of fresh, chopped spinach

We cooked the lentils until they were soft, then added the tomato sauce. We let it cook a few minutes longer before adding the olive, onion, and garlic. Next we spiced with curry powder, tumeric, and garam masala to taste (and color). We added the tomato and when the soup was a soft golden-brown color we used the food processor to blend half of it. Last we added enough spinach to cover the top of the soup and stirred it in so it cooked down a bit, then we added more and let it cook down again. The soup tasted great, and was great again the next day as well.

Sarah and Anna

Robyn and Tim’s Carrot and Potato Sauté

Ingredients:
2 large Onions
4 Medium Potatoes
Equal amount Carrots
1 tablespoon butter
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Parsley
Sour Cream

Directions:
Chop onions. In large fry pan, stir fry onions in butter, add salt and pepper (generous amount). Let brown slightly (4-5 minutes). Meanwhile, thinly slice potatoes and carrots. Add to pan with 1/8 inch water. Cook 20 minutes (or until potatoes are soft) stirring occasionally so pan does not burn. Serve with spoonful sour cream, fresh ground pepper, and chopped parsley.

Cream of broccoli soup

very loosely based on a recipe in Deborah Madison’s Vegetable Soups

3 large, dense, moist potatoes (like the red ones this week)
3 cups good chicken (or other) stock
1-2 pounds broccoli (half or all of the broccoli this week, depending on how you like it)
1 onion
½ tsp marjoram
½ tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
1 big clove garlic
1½ tablespoons butter
1½ tablespoons milk
½ cup milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Peel the potatoes, dice, and put in a pot with the stock and set to simmer. Add onion, chopped. Take the broccoli stems off, peel them, dice them, and add to the potatoes too. Add the herbs and minced garlic. When the potatoes are tender (10-15 minutes), remove the bay leaf and then blend in at least two batches. Blend gently and leave less than totally smooth because otherwise the potato might get gummy. Put back in a big soup pot.

Chop the broccoli florets into bite size pieces. Peter likes chunky soup so I left them on the large side of bite size.

Melt the butter, add the flour, stir for a minute or two, then slowly add the milk to basically make a milky sauce.

When you are ready to eat, heat up the potato etc. base of the soup, add the florets and cook just a minute, then add the milky sauce and grated cheese and enjoy.

Mimi - our beloved intern - does not drink milk or cheese so she had the soup without the milky sauce and cheese and it was pretty darn good that way too, she said.

Deborah Madison says to add mustard and cayenne, but I didn’t. She list curry as an option.

Susan Houle’s Buttercup Squash Soup

1 BUTTERCUP or BUTTERNUT SQUASH, cut in half (preferably with no fingers amputated) and the seeds scooped out.

1 large ONION, chopped, sauteed in OLIVE OIL in a large pan while squash bakes.

Bake squash halves cut sides down in an inch of water in 9x13 pan, another 9x3 pan inverted over the top so you're steaming the squash. Takes about an hour at 350-400 degrees. Check as you go along-done when a fork slides into the squash. When squash is done, take it out of oven (let it cool a bit if you want) and scoop it out of the skin, adding it to the pot with the onion. Mash and mix, add BROTH or MILK to thin as you wish.

Flavor with CURRY POWDER (I hate to recommend an amount as it varies, but start with 1/2 teaspoon and keep adding to taste). Season to taste with salt, pepper, bouillion.

So easy. I fix it often- this fall [I actually got this from Susan last fall] at a course at Yestermorrow we were all working industriously in class all afternoon. Meanwhile the squash was happily cooking in the adjoining kitchen and was ready for famished people in 5 minutes after we had finished. Served it along with french bread and cheese, wine-delish.

Karen Fitzhugh’s Potato, Kale and Sausage Soup

Ingredients:
1 lb of sausage (Italian or country style – Karen recommends the homemade sausage from Robie Farms in Piermont, NH)
5 potatoes, diced
1 onion, diced
1 clove minced garlic
1 bunch washed kale (leaves only)
1 quart chicken stock (or water with chicken stock mixed in)
1 cup milk or half and half or cream
small handful of precooked bacon

Cook sausage in fry pan or bake in oven until cooked through. Set aside. Fry bacon in large saucepan. Remove drain and crumble. In the same pan, over medium heat cook onion until clear, add garlic and cook additional 1 minute. Add chicken stock and potatoes and simmer for 15 minutes. Add crumbled bacon, sausage, kale and milk. Simmer 4 minutes and serve.

I hope you enjoy! The kids love it . . .

Shaved Brussel Sprout and Shallot Saute

from Bon Appetit via CSAer Beatrice DeRocco

1 pound brussels sprouts, outer leaves removed
1 TB butter
1½ TB olive oil
6 medium shallots, thinly sliced (about 1 cup)
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 TB pine nuts, toasted
1 TB fresh lemon juice

Working in small batches, place brussels sprouts in feed tube of processor fitted with thin slicing disk; slice.

Melt butter with olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Add shallots; saute until almost translucent, about 3 minutes. Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Add brussels sprouts; increase heat to medium-high and saute until tender, about 8 minutes.

Stir in 3 tablespoons pine nuts and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl.

Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon pine nuts and serve.

Serves 4.

Orecchiette with broccoli rabe

adapted from Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

Ingredients:
1 bunch broccoli rabe
12 ounces orecchiette (ear shaped pasta)
4 tablespoons olive oil plus
salt
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
finely grated parmesan
lemon wedges
capers

Bring a big pot of water to boil. Add the broccoli rabe and cook for 3 minutes. Remove with a strainer and chop. Salt the water and cook the pasta in it.

Meanwhile, warm the oil with the garlic and pepper flakes in a wide skillet over medium heat until fragrant. Add the rabe and cook gently. Drain the pasta and add it to the greens. Toss with more olive oil and capers if desired. Serve topped with grated cheese and with lemon on the side.

Russian Cabbage Borscht

from Moosewood

1½ cups thinly sliced potato 1 stalk celery, chopped
1 cup thinly sliced beets 1 medium sized carrot, sliced
1 to 2 Tbs butter 3 to 4 cups shredded cabbage
1½ cups chopped onion 1 tsp dill
1 scant tsp. caraway seeds 1 to 2 Tbs brown sugar or honey
1½ tsp salt (or more) 1 cup tomato puree

Toppings: sour cream or yogurt, extra dill

Gently boil potatoes and beets in 4 cups of water, covered until tender (20 minutes or so).

Meanwhile, melt the butter and cook the onions, caraway seeds and salt in it until onions are transclucent (8 minutes or so). Add celery, carrots, and cabbage plus 2 cups of water from the beets and potatoes. Cook another 8 minutes or so, till veggies are tender.

Add the remaining ingredients, including beets and potatoes and their water, cover and simmer at least another 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot topped with sour cream or yogurt and garnished with dill.

Sarah Frederick’s Easy Raw Tomato Spaghetti

Adapted from The Silver Spoon by CSAer (and my college roommate!!) Sarah Frederick

1 lb 2 oz ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped (if a wetter type drain a bit)
4 Tb olive oil
10 fresh basil leaves
2 garlic cloves
12 oz spaghetti
Salt and pepper

Put tomatoes in salad bowl with oil, basil, and garlic, season w/ salt and pepper. Mix and let sit 30 minutes. Remove garlic. Cook spaghetti in salted water, drain, and mix with tomatoes. Also nice with additions of garlicky croutons added right before eating and/or mozzarella chunks.

Also, the same book had the idea of adding green beans and "batons" of small potatoes (like chunky fries shape) right to the water when boiling pasta for pasta with pesto and tossing them in. Just a change and nutritional add on to the usual pasta with pesto.

Peter's Gazpacho

We make and sell gazpacho at market in Waitsfield on Saturdays. This is the recipe we use. With really good summer veggies there is no need to make it complicated – simple is good!

2.5 pounds tomatoes (the amount in the basket this week)
2 cucumbers
1 sweet onion
1 clove garlic

Partially peel the cucumber (peel the big strips but leave some green).

Put garlic in the food processor and process till stuck to sides. Put onion and cukes in and chop. Add tomatoes and process till texture desired. We like it short of perfectly smooth, but its to taste.

Charise Baker's Pico de Gallo

Ingredients: Tomatoes, onions, fresh cilantro, hot pepper, fresh lime and salt.

Making Pico is not an exact science and does not involve an exact recipe.

The ratio of tomatoes to onion is 2:1

Example: 2 cups tomatoes to one cup onion

Chop tomatoes and onion fine or use a food processor.

Chop cilantro (or use food processor) using enough to get good green coloring.

Use the hot pepper of your choice (Jalapeno, habañero) using enough to get as mild or hot as you like. Remember that a little goes a long way and you can always add more. Deseed the hot pepper and fine mince the amount you want to use. I would strongly recommend using gloves. Or use a fork to hold the pepper. Avoid using your hands to touch the pepper or you might be sorry. ☺

Squeeze the fresh lime. I use @ ½ lime for a medium sized bowl.

Sprinkle with salt.

Mix well.

Taste and adjust as you like.

CSAer Charise Baker writes that this salsa is “very authentic Mexican, as I learned to make it while living near the Tex/Mex border.” Thank you Charise for the awesome recipe!!!

Eggplant recipes

Andrea Searls’ Eggplant Caponata
CSAer Andrea adapted this from The Italian Ingredients Cookbook by Kate Whiteman

3/4 lb eggplant (the amount in the basket this week)
1/8 cup olive oil
grated rind and juice of 1/2 lemon
1TBSP capers
6 pitted green olives
1 TBSP chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper
toasted pine nuts
Parmesan

1. Cut eggplant into cubes. Cook in olive oil for about 10 min, until golden and softened. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with a little salt.

2. Toss eggplant other ingredients.

This is good just as a side salad, as an app with bread, or with pasta.

Eggplant Parmesan also by Andrea

I also really like eggplant parmesan. I don't have a real recipe but I bread eggplant slices using egg then breadcrumbs then bake them till they're tender and a little crispy. Layer tomato sauce, eggplant, mozzarella, till I fill up my pan, then top with mozzarella and lots of parmesan. Bake till bubbly, an hour? Other veggies are really good mixed in there too.

Grilled Eggplant Stack
originally by CSAer Lisa Whitney based on a recipe in Cooking Light but mutilated by me to make it fit on the back of the CSA flyer
dressing:
3/4 lb eggplant 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 small green zucchini 1 tbsp brown sugar
1 small yellow zucchini 1/4 dry red wine
1 large red bell pepper
1/4 cup goat cheese Salt and pepper
olive oil 1 tbsp each chopped basil and oregano

Slice the eggplant ½ inch thick (salt, rinse and dry if necessary), slice zucchini ¼ inch thick, flatten pepper piece with a hand. Brush with olive oil, salt and pepper and grill 8 mins - until tender. Combine dressing ingredients and boil dressing to reduce it to 1/4 cup (about 8 minutes). Mix goat cheese and herbs. Stack: eggplant, cheese, both color zucchinis (side by side), drizzle with dressing, then pepper, eggplant and more dressing. Let sit 5 mins before serving.

French Potato Salad with Parsley

adapted from Cook’s Illustrated Summer Grilling issue

1 1/2 pounds new red potatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 ½ tablespoons salt
1 clove garlic
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 ½ teaspoon dijon mustard
1 ½ tablespoons shallot (I skipped because I didn’t have one)
1/4 cup parsley, or mix of parsley, chives and fresh tarragon

Put the sliced potatoes in a pan with 5 cups cold water and salt, bring to a boil and simmer potatoes, uncovered until tender but still firm, about 5 minutes. While they are boiling, spear garlic with a fork and put in the boiling water for about 45 seconds (to slightly blanch) then run under cold water and set aside. Drain potatoes, reserving 3 tablespoons of cooking water. Put the potatoes close together in a single layer in a lasagna pan.

Mince garlic. Whisk with reserved potato cooking water, oil, vinegar, mustard and pepper in a small bowl until combined. Drizzle over warm potatoes and let stand 10 minutes.

Put potatoes in a large serving bowl, add parsley and shallot (if using) and mix gently with a rubber spatula to combine. Serve immediately.

Mimi's lasagna

Mimi is one of our wonderful interns. She and Claire both have done amazing work on the farm and are a joy and a pleasure to live with!! Mimi is learning to make cheese and one batch came out more like ricotta, so she made it into an awesome veggie lasagna. Mimi says the lasagna was not much work to make, just a lot of waiting around because you have to roast the veggies first.

Mimi’s Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

1 medium or two small eggplants
3 medium yellow zucchini
2 pounds tomatoes
olive oil
½ pound ricotta
1 egg
1/2 cup grated parmesan
½ pound mozzarella cheese, grated
½ pound lasagna noodles
½ cup bread crumbs
salt and pepper

Slice the eggplant and zucchini into rounds ½ inch thick. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Slice the tomatoes in half crosswise, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and put in a separate pan. Roast the two pans of veggies for 45 minutes or so at 450 till the eggplant and zukes are browned and soft and the tomatoes are soft and slightly golden. Mix all the veggies, including any tomato juice and oil, in a bowl.

Stir together ricottta, eggs, half the parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Boil the lasagna noodles until barely tender.

Layer as follows: noodles, 1/3 ricotta mixture, 1/4 mozzarella, 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, 1/3 roasted veggies. Repeat until all used. Sprinkle top with remaining parmesan and mozzarella cheeses and then sprinkle on breadcrumbs.

Cover with aluminum foil, bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden and bubbly, about 15 more minutes. Let sit before 15 minutes (if you can stand it) before eating.

Basil Pesto

2 cups basil leaves (strip off stems - use stems in stock if you want)
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup pine nuts, sunflower seeds, walnuts or pecans
1/4 cup parmesan cheese or mix of parmesan and romano
3/4-1 cup olive oil

Wash and dry the basil in a salad spinner. Toast the nuts – I toss them in a hot, dry, cast iron skillet. Put the garlic in the food processor and chop fine. Add the basil and most of the olive oil. Chop finely. Add parmesan cheese and nuts. Chop just a bit – I like the nuts to be still chunky. Taste. Add salt if desired. Add olive oil if thinner consistency desired.

Green Pea Risotto

Adapted from Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

1 pound shell peas (that’s how much are in the basket)
3 cups stock
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 pinch saffron threads
3/4 cup arborio rice
1/4 white wine
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, plus extra to finish
2 small tomatoes, diced
4 large basil leaves, thinly sliced

Shell the peas. Bring stock to a simmer on the stove. Add the empty pea pods (and basil stems, if available) to flavor the stock. (Scoop the pods out before using the stock.)

Melt butter and cook onion and saffron in the butter over low heat until the onion is softened, about three minutes. Stir in the rice and cook for one minute. Raise the heat, add the wine, cook till absorbed. Add 1 cup stock, cover, simmer till absorbed, start adding stock in ½ cup increments, stirring each constantly until absorbed, then adding the next. When rice is nearly done and only one more addition remains, stir in the peas, last of the stock, parmesan, tomatoes and basil. Season and serve.

Deborah Madison Zucchini Recipes

I got Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking For Everyone for Christmas. It is awesome. These two recipes are adapted from it.

Zucchini with scallions

1 pound small zucchini (that’s the amount in the basket this week)
1 tablespoon olive oil, butter, or a mix
4 scallions, including some of the greens, thinly sliced

Halve the zucchini lengthwise or slice ½ inch thick. Heat the oil in a wide skillet, add the zukes, saute over high heat until lightly colored around the edges, about 3 minutes. Add scallions and 2 tablespoons water, then lower the heat, cover, and cook till zucchini is tender. Season with salt and pepper.

Sauteed zucchini with garlic scapes and lemon

1 pound zucchini, thinly sliced or diced into cubes
2 garlic scapes, finely diced
1 ½ tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons basil, marjoram or other herb

Heat the oil, in a wide skillet, add the scapes and saute over medium heat 1-2 minutes. Raise the heat, add the zucchini, saute until heated through. Lower the heat and continue to cook, turning occasionally, until tender and golden around the edges, 8-10 minutes, Season with salt and pepper, toss with the lemon and herbs, serve.

Chris' Garlic Scape Recipes

Scape Sprinkles
Blanch scapes in boiling water about 3 minutes and then shock in iced water to set the color. Dice fine, then scatter on salad or pizza, add to sautés briefly as a garnish, and so on.

Scapes for soup
Chop scapes 1/2-inch long, saute in butter for 2-3 minutes – until bright green, and add to simmering soup about 20 minutes before serving.

Garlic Scape Potato Cake
Sauté finely-diced scapes in butter, then add a few tablespoons of water and boil it off. Shred some potatoes in your Cuisinart or mandoline, squeeze out as much water as you can, and then toss with an egg, a few tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper, and the scapes.

Heat a large nonstick or cast iron pan over high heat, add oil and wait until it smokes, then spread the potato mixture on top. Turn heat down to medium and cook until the bottom is brown. Dot the top with lots of butter, then bake at 425 degrees until golden. Put a plate over the top and turn the pan upside-down. Serve in wedges.

Garlic Scape Vichyssoise
8 garlic scapes, coarsely chopped
1 small onion, sliced
1 Tb butter
3 medium potatoes unpeeled and cubed
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
½ Tb salt (omit if using canned stock)
1 cup milk
1 cup cream (divided)
Arugula and chives (chopped fine), and black or white pepper, for serving

Sauté scapes and onion in butter until limp, 5-8 minutes. Add potato, stock, and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer rapidly, uncovered, 35 minutes, until potato is very tender. Fill blend half full (to avoid splattering), blend till very smooth – 3-4 minutes. Repeat until all blended. Strain into the saucepan through a wire-mesh strainer, add milk and half the cream, and bring slowly almost to a boil, stirring often and scraping the bottom to avoid scorching. Remove from heat and stir in remaining cream. Add salt. Cover and chill thoroughly. To serve, put some chopped arugula in the bottom of each bowl, ladle on the soup, add a dash of white vinegar, garnish with chives and pepper.

Velvety carrot and ginger soup

We had this for lunch yesterday, with sandwiches, when my folks came to visit. Everyone loved it, especially Henry!! It is adapted from a recipe in the Candle Cafe Cookbook.

1 tablespoon butter
3 red onions, coarsely chopped
5 cups chicken broth
6 large carrots, diced
3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger root
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground coriander
a pinch hot pepper (I used 1/2 tsp on frozen hot pepper puree I had left over from salsa making last summer, but cayenne would work or whatever)
1/2 cup tomato puree
sour cream for garnish
parsley (I used because the store was out of cilantro, which I think would've been better)

Saute the onions in the butter for about 5 minutes, until softened. Add 2 cups of the broth, the carrots, the tomato puree, hot pepper, and 2 tablespoons of the ginger. Simmer for about 20 minutes until the carrots are tender. Let soup cool for about an hour.

Blend the soup with the remaining ginger, cinnamon, coriander, and broth until very smooth. I just added enough broth to be able to blend it and then added the rest to the blended soup until I had the consistency I liked. This also meant less volume to actually blend.

Reheat gently, add salt and pepper to taste, and serve with sour cream and parsley.

Delicata and Bleu Cheese Quiche

Ingredients:
One friend to give the extra quiche to (this recipe makes two)
2 9 inch pie crusts
2 ½ cups delicata squash peeled, seeded, cut into small (½ inch) cubes, and steamed
8 oz bleu cheese
1½ cups half and half
½ cup milk
7 eggs
1 medium onion
1 tablespoon butter
salt and pepper

Roll out the pie crust and fit into the pans. Put the crusts in the fridge. Heat the oven to 400.

Finely chop the onion and saute in the butter until soft. Crumble the blue cheese into a bowl. Crumble it into very small pieces. You can use some of the half and half and the back of a wooden spoon to mush it if that's easier. Beat the eggs and mix the eggs, cheese, milk, half and half and onion all up. Add salt and pepper.

Spread the pieces of delicata squash on the bottom of the pie pans. Pour the egg mixture on top. Bake 40-45 minutes until pastry and pie are golden brown. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving so that it sets.

Our friend and CSAer Deirdre told me about this recipe. The combination of delicata and bleu cheese is excellent!! The feedback I got was that I should've maybe broken up the bleu cheese and squash into smaller pieces and maybe a bit more squash, so I made those adjustments in the recipe above.

One last note, steamed delicata squash with butter is yummy on its own. I made it for dinner one night and just saved out enough to be able to make this a few nights later.

Moroccan Carrot Slaw

2 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 small cloves garlic
3 tablespoons lemon juice
15 leafy sprigs cilantro, stems removed
½ teaspoon ground cumin
4-5 large carrots, scrubbed
1/4 cup currants

Chop garlic fine in food processor bowl. Add oil, lemon juice, cilantro (I like to save out a sprig for garnish), cumin, blend. Pour dressing into a large bowl.

Shred the carrots finely, Toss carrots and currants in the dressing until all mixed. Serve and enjoy.

This is one of our family all time favorites. It’s really great for pot lucks. Last year, I got specifically asked to bring it again to Town Meeting. You can substitute parsley for the cilantro or raisins for the currants, but we like it the regular way best.

Colonial Carrot Pie

1¼ pound carrots (there are 2 ½ pounds in the basket this week)
¾ cup white sugar
1 cup milk
¾ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
3 eggs
1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell.

Slice the carrots and steam till very tender.

Heat the oven to 425º.

Puree the carrots in a blender or food processor until very smooth. Add some of the milk now if you need to for the carrots to be smooth. Add everything else and blend until smooth and evenly mixed (you might have to do two batches). Put into the pie shell and bake for 15 minutes, then turn down the oven to 350º and bake for another 45 minutes or until set. Cool before slicing.

This recipe reminds me of Zoë’s excellent carrot souffle (on the blog at October 5, 2005). It is also not unlike pumpkin pie.

I made this with a whole wheat crust from Laurel’s Kitchen. Cornelia says the pie is too delicate for the whole wheat crust, that it really needs a white flour crust. Peter said it was good but too cinnamony, so I wrote in reduced it to ¾ teaspoon.

Buttercup Pasta

1 buttercup squash
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chicken stock (or other stock or water)
1 pound fusilli or other pasta
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
5-6 leaves sage
½ cup fresh grated parmesan plus more for on top

The hardest part of the recipe is preparing the squash. You need to peel it. The easiest way I think is to cut the squash in half, scrape out the seed, cut into sections, then slice off the peel with a knife. Then, using a food processor, finely grate all the squash. After this the recipe is easy.

Melt the butter in the bottom of heavy bottomed pot. Add the squash, ½ cup stock, and the garlic. Stir occasionally. As it dries out and threatens to stick, add another ¼ cup stock. Repeat as needed, but don’t thin it any more than necessary. Chop the sage and add it midway through the cooking. When the squash begins to fall apart and get soft (about 10-15 minutes), put the pasta in to cook. Taste the squash and add salt and pepper and sugar to taste. When the pasta is done, drain it and add it to the sauce with the cheese. Mix it all up. Serve topped with more parmesan and fresh ground pepper.

Cornelia and I made this Tuesday night, and it was awesome. It is pictured above with the collard green ribbons. This recipe is roughly based on one in the Minimalist Cooks at Home, by Mark Bittman.

French onion soup

6-8 cups yellow onions
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon canola oil (you can use olive oil in place of the butter or canola oil or both but it may scorch if you are not super careful)
1/2 tsp of white sugar
1 cup white wine (optional)
2 quarts beef broth (or chicken broth, vegetable broth or even water)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
6-8 slices french bread
1 clove garlic
1 ½ cups grated Gruyere or Swiss cheese or a mixture of either with Parmesan
cheese
¼ cup Cognac or sherry (optional)

Use thick- bottomed pot or kettle. Heat the butter and canola oil on medium heat, then add onions and 1 teaspoon of salt. Mix onions with oil and salt, stirring until onions wilt. Turn heat to low, sprinkle on sugar, cover, and stir every 2-3 minutes until onions are deep golden brown, approximately 30-40 minutes. Add white wine and boil down until it is nearly evaporated. Add broth and simmer partially covered for 45 minutes.

While soup is simmering, toast bread slices (on a sheet in a 325 degree oven). Rub the toasted bread with a raw garlic clove. Season the soup, if needed, with salt and pepper. Add the cognac or sherry, if using, then ladle soup into oven-proof bowls. Place a slice of bread into each bowl and divide the cheese among the bowls. Place a sheet pan into a 350 degree oven and place soup bowls into pan. Bake until bubbling and cheese is slightly browned, 20-30 minutes.

Wendy Stein's Potato Leek Soup

6 medium leeks, thinly sliced
4 medium potatoes, cut into cubes
2 14½ oz cans chicken or vegetable broth
¼ cup butter or margarine
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 cup half and half
fresh chives (if desired)

Mix all the ingredients, except half and half and chives, into a slow cooke, like a crock pot.
Cover and cook on low heat 8-10 hours, or, if you want, high heat for 4-5 hours.
Pour vegetable mixture in batches into food processor or blender and blend until smooth.
Put it back into the slow cooker and add half and half.
Cook for another 20-30 minutes on low.
Serve sprinkled with chives, if you want.

Much thanks to CSAer Wendy Stein for this recipe!!

Pasta with mesclun

8 oz spaghetti or other pasta
3/4 bag (6 ounces) mesclun, washed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
1-2 tablespoons tamari or other soy sauce
fresh ground black pepper
parmesan cheese

Heat the garlic and olive oil gently, just until warm.

Cook the pasta, drain. While its still warm, mix with the mesclun, warm oil and garlic, and tamari. Toss to mix until greens wilt slightly. Season with black pepper. Serve immediately, topped with grated parmesan cheese.

A lot of the meals in our house consist of various combinations of pasta and veggies. This is one of my favorites. It is adapted from Lorna Sass’s book Short-Cut Vegetarian. You can add pan fried tempeh or chicken to make it a complete meal.

Griffin Family Pesto

basil - 1/4 pound is the size bag in the basket
pine nuts, sunflower seeds, walnuts, or pecans - 1/4 cup
parmesan cheese - 1/4 cup fresh grated, plus extra for topping.
1 garlic clove (or 2 or 3)
olive oil
salt and pepper

Wash and dry the basil in a salad spinner. Toast the nuts – I toss them in a hot, dry, cast iron skillet. Put the garlic clove in the food processor and chop fine. Add the basil and most of the olive oil. Chop finely. Add parmesan cheese and nuts. Chop just a bit – I like the nuts to be still chunky. Taste. Add salt if desired.

We especially like this with pasta and sungolds (cut in half) or other tomatoes in it. The pesto freezes well too, but I usually freeze without nuts and cheese. Once the cut basil is exposed to air it turns a darker green. If you want to keep it bright, leave a layer of olive oil on the top of your pesto.

Asian slaw

½ head cabbage, shredded
1 cup shredded carrots
3 tablespoons rice vinegar (or lemon or lime juice)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
optional additions: chopped peanuts, toasted sesame seeds, chopped fresh cayenne pepper, avocado, fresh grated ginger, garlic, chopped onion, cilantro

Mix the dressing: the vinegar, oils, soy sauce, honey. Toss with cabbage and carrots. Add any additions you have and like. Enjoy!

This is an amalgamation of recipes from the Candle Café Cookbook and our friend and CSAer Sarah Frederick!

Broccoli and Walnut Pizza

Our friend/employee/housemate Kat made us a delicious pizza dinner last night! Kat said she does not cook the broccoli at all before putting it on the pizza – it just cooks in the oven with the rest of the pizza. Kat said to keep the pieces of broccoli small. This recipe is adapted from The Cooks’ Garden seed catalog.

one pizza crust (homemade or store bought)
8 oz fire roasted tomato sauce
1 ½ cups grated mozzarella chese
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 cup broccoli florets, cut small
½ cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup black olives (optional)
Cornmeal

Preheat oven to 450. Roll out pizza dough. Sprinkle cornmeal on thin (not insulated) cookie sheet or pizza pan. Put dough on. Top with tomato sauce, grated cheeses, broccoli, walnuts and olives. Bake for 25 minutes.

Chris's Beet Recipes

These recipes came from our friend and CSAer (and professor) Chris Lehrich!!

Beet Bruschetta
Beets
Extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Chives
Caraway seeds
Salt and pepper
french bread
parmesan cheese

Boil several trimmed, fat beets in cold water to cover, about 30-40 minutes, until tender. Reserve the liquid for the beet drink (see next recipe). Refrigerate beets, then peel and dice coarsely. For every 1/3 pound or so beets, toss with 1 Tb extra virgin olive oil, 1 tsp balsamic vinegar, 1 Tb finely minced chives, ½ tsp caraway seeds (optional but nice), and salt and pepper to taste. Toast some french bread rounds, then mound the mixture on top. If the beets are cold and you want something warm, heat the whole thing in a 350-degree oven or a toaster oven. Shave some Parmesan on top and serve.

Sharaab al-Shuwander (ancient pink lemonade)

This is one of the most ancient beverages known. Something much like it appears in a cuneiform tablet from about 1700 bce, and since we know the Sumerians used beets extensively it seems probable that they made a drink like this at the very beginnings of history. It requires little more than the cooking liquid, making it amazingly frugal. And to top it all off, it is both delicious and visually beautiful.

Take the beet-boiling liquid and strain through a paper towel to remove impurities. For every 2 cups: while liquid is hot, add 1/3 cup sugar and stir to dissolve completely. Chill well, then add the juice of ½ lemon. Add a dash of rose water (optional). Serve in clear glass so the ruby color shows up.

Dana's Fire Roasted Eggplant

Last summer, CSAer Dana Kraus showed me how to roast eggplants directly over the gas flame on the stove top. You just place the eggplant right on the burner (like roasting peppers), and turn it (with tongs) when skin goes from purple to black until the whole thing is black and soft and collapsed. It is surprisingly quick – 20 minutes maybe, depending on the size. I would imagine you could do the same thing on the grill or in a hot oven.

Once the eggplant cools enough to handle, you can peel off the skin with your fingers and it easily breaks into strips perfect for adding to pasta (especially good with roasted peppers) or turning into baba ghanouj, a smoky dip.

To make baba ghanouj, put your roasted eggplant (without the peel) in a blender with 1½ tablespoons olive oil, a clove of minced garlic, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 2 tablespoons tahini, 2 ½ tablespoons lemon juice, salt and cayenne pepper. Blend and add more of any of the ingredients to taste.

Cauliflower recipes

Dana also passed on her family’s recipe for cauliflower. Break and cut cauliflower into smallish florets. Steam until tender. Drain. Add butter to the hot pan and melt. Add caulflower back in and toss. Toss with bread crumbs. Enjoy.

Another idea for cauliflower came from CSAer Deirdre Detjens. She makes her cauliflower mashed, like mashed potatoes. After steaming puree the cauliflower in the blender with milk, butter, salt and pepper.

Not grandma's cole slaw recipe

My mom makes the best cole slaw. I called her for the recipe, but she couldn't give it to me because, she said, she never measures anything. This is what I made up based on talking with her. Two tips she passed on: try to make the cole slaw a couple hours ahead so it can marinate and taste the cole slaw before adding vinegar because it is easier to tell if you have the right balance of salt, pepper and sugar before you add the vinegar.

Grate, thinly slice or chop cabbage to desired texture.

Add sugar, oil, salt and pepper to taste. Start with 2 teaspoons sugar, 2 tablespoons oil, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper per head of cabbage. You'll probably end up with double that, but it's easier to add then subtract!

Taste and add more salt, pepper, oil and sugar to taste.

Add vinegar, start with about a third of the amount oil you used, then keep adding to taste.

Let sit for 2 hours if possible.

Dandelion salad with warm hazelnut vinaigrette

I love dandelion greens, and this is one of my favorite ways to eat them. This is based on a recipe in an old Gourmet magazine.

1 large bunch dandelion greens
1/4 cup nuts (pecans or hazelnuts are good)
3 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Trim tough stems from greens and discard. Cut top 5 inches from greens and put in a large serving bowl. Cut rest of the greens into 3/4 inch slices and put in the bowl.

Coarsely chop nuts and finely chop garlic. In a small, heavy skillet, cook the garlic and nuts in oil over medium-low heat, stirring, until garlic is golden. Stir in vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.

Pour hot vinaigrette over greens, toss, and enjoy!

Fiery, Crispy Broccoli

From Chris Lehrich, CSAer and sometime employee . . .

Ingredients - 1 bunch broccoli
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pinch hot pepper flakes (optional)
1 healthy pinch salt
1 tablespoon peanut or canola oil

Cut up into broccoli florets. You can also include slices of stem if you want.
Heat a heavy pan (cast iron, wok or some such). Add the oil and heat until it smokes.
Throw in broccoli and toss or stir until the broccoli starts to scorch. A little bit of brown is not worrisome here.
Throw in minced garlic, hot pepper flakes, and a healthy pinch of salt.
Cover and turn heat down to medium low and cook for about 4 minutes until broccoli is tender.
Serve and enjoy!

Grated zucchini

Adapted from a recipe in From Asparagus to Zucchini, a Guide to Farm Fresh Seasonal Produce, a book of recipes published by a coalition of CSAs in Madison Wisconsin. That book says the recipe comes from Martha Stewart Quick Cook.

Ingredients: 2 Tablespoons butter
1 garlic scape
3 medium zucchini
freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper

Chop the garlic scape fine. Use the garlic scape up to the point where it becomes floppy (and a pain to chop). Grate the unpeeled zucchini. Melt the butter in a large skillet and add the chopped garlic scapes and cook for 1-2 minutes. Do not brown. Toss the zucchini in hot garlic butter until tender, 2-3 minutes. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Two spinach recipes

Note: Here are two spinach recipes. The first adapted from a book published by a coalition of CSAs in Madison Wisconsin. The book is called From Asparagus to Zucchini, a Guide to Farm Fresh Seasonal Produce. I haven’t actually tried that one, but it seemed perfect, what with the strawberries in the basket this week and all. The second recipe is from Short-Cut Vegetarian by Lorna Sass, one of my all time favorite cookbook authors. I love this so much I had written “excellent!!’ in the margin of this recipe.

spinach strawberry salad

Ingredients: sesame seeds salt and pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons sugar 1/4 cup salad oil
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar ½ bag spinach, washed
minced garlic to taste 1 cup strawberries, sliced or chunked
dry mustard to taste 1 ½ teaspoon fresh dill or ½ teaspoon dried

Toast sesame seeds in a dry skillet for several minutes, tossing often. Combine sugar, vinegar, garlic, dry mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk in oil in a thin stream. Toss with spinach, strawberries, dill and sesame seeds.

spinach with toasted coconut and black mustard seeds
ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon safflower or canola oil
1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened, dried, grated coconut
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1 bag spinach, washed
salt to taste

Heat the oil over high heat. Toast the coconut and mustard seeds, stirring constantly until the coconut turns light brown and the seeds pop like crazy, about 30 seconds. Add the spinach with the water still clinging to its leaves and add a dash of salt. Cook until the spinach wilts. Lift from the pan with a slotted spoon, enjoy hot.

For the love of kale!

Nichole, one of the awesome members of the OSF CSA, sent us this recipe. Thanks Nichole!!

1 bunch of kale
½ lb pasta (skinny rice noodles, thin whole wheat spaghetti or whatever you have)

sauce:
4 Tablespoons peanut butter (thick or crunchy all natural kind is best)
4 Tablespoons sweet chili sauce
3 Tablespoons tamari
A splash of water

Remove stems from kale and chop into bite-sized pieces. Rinse, but do not dry leaves. Wilt kale until tender in a hot frying pan. No oil or additional water is needed if the kale is wet from rinsing. It may take several batches depending on the size of your frying pan.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and toss with kale in a large bowl.

Gently heat sauce ingredients in the frying pan until smooth and warm. Add to pasta and kale and toss again.

This dish is even yummier when eaten with chopsticks! (I’m sort of kidding, but somehow that’s the only way I like to eat it...)

Sometimes I add leftover chicken or sausage (if so I make extra sauce), but this dish is totally satisfying by itself.

We tried this the other night and it was awesome. As Wavy demonstrates, finger lickin good!!

Zoë’s Carrot Souffle

Zoë writes “I adapted this recipe from the classic southern dish that literally has 6 times the butter and sugar. It's very flexible and kids love it.”

1.5 lbs** Old Shaw Farm carrots, sliced
1-2 tbl. butter
3 Second Chance Farm eggs (if available)
1/4 cup Butterworks Farm flour (I use white, but you could probably use whole wheat pastry flour or whatever you've got)
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup of sugar
1/2 tbl. vanilla

Steam carrots until tender. Drain and process in food processor or blender with all the other ingredients until smooth. Spoon into a lightly greased baking dish (or soufflé dishes or other casserole)

Bake at 350 for one hour or until set and lightly browned. Serve immediately. Makes great leftovers for breakfast or lunch the next day.

** Zoë’s recipe calls for 3 pounds carrots. Since there are a pound and a half of carrots in this week’s basket, I halved the recipe to fit. You may need to also cut down on the cooking time.

Chef Pierre’s Gazpacho

Some tomatoes
Roughly 1/3 as much cucumber
Onion and garlic to taste
A bit of a Hungarian hot wax pepper, or something hot (like Tabasco) to taste

Put it all in the blender or food processor and blend until you have achieved your level of preferred chunkiness (or smoothness as the case may be). Voila! you have a cold summer soup. Maybe add some salt and pepper to taste. Find a hunk of bread and some butter, and you have taken care of another lunch.

Garlic scapes flyer

Muchas gracias to all who sent and posted suggestions and ideas!! This is the flyer.

Garlic scapes

Our garlic scapes are in! They are a seasonal delicacy - green, scallion like curls with a bright, garlicky flavor. They are the top of the garlic plant. Here are a few ideas for them:

* I love scapes pureed with olive oil in the blender or food processor. I make it into a thick paste and put it in the fridge. I then thin the paste with olive oil and use it as a dipping sauce for crusty bread, like the way they do at fancy restauraunts. Yummy. Peter uses the paste as a salad dressing base, adding more oil and vinegar. You could add cheese and nuts for a yummy pesto. The paste would freeze well, too.

* Chopped fine and sprinkled in green or pasta or potato salad.

* Roasted with potatoes, cut up and drizzled with olive oil (in oven at 375 for half an hour or so, depending on the size of the potatoes).

* Cut about ½ to an inch long and sauteed, as a side dish.

* Brushed with oil and grilled in a veggie basket till crispy.

Sheri's Melting Squash Risotto

This is a recipe by my sister in law, Sheri. Unfortunately, I lost the recipe she wrote out for me. Sheri, if you're reading this, please make corrections! This is the version I made tonight for dinner, and it turned out great (though not as good as Sheri's!)

Sheri says its based on a recipe by one of my all time favorite cookbook writers, Lorna Sass. Lorna Sass is a big advocate of pressure cookers, and my love of her cookbooks eventually persuaded me to get one. This recipe is a lot easier with a pressure cooker. Anyway, here goes.

Ingredients:
one tablespoon olive oil
two small or one medium onion
a medium to smallish buttercup squash
2 cups risotto rice
4 cups stock
1 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon salt
parmesan cheese
ground pepper

1. Peel the squash. This is difficult. I find it's easiest to slice the squash in half, lay it flat side down on the cutting board, and slice off the skin with a sharp knife. Be careful! I usually have to cut the squash in quarters to get the skin from the middle of the halves and follow up with a peeler for the spots I missed.
2. Take out the seeds and cut into 1 inch chunks. (Shape doesn't matter becase the chunks will melt into the rice, but they should be similar in size.)
3. Coarsely chop the onion. Warm the olive oil in the bottom of your pressure cooker, if you have one, or in a regular pot. Cook the onion until translucent or so.
4. Add the chunks of squash, risotto, and sage. Stir well -- so all the rice is coated with oil.
5a. If you have a pressure cooker, add 3 1/2 cups stock and the salt, bring up to pressure for 5 minutes, release using a quick release method. Test the risotto --it may need a bit more stock and a minute or two more cooking. (This last part is not under pressure, but stirring constantly.)
5b. If you don't have a pressure cooker add the stock 1/3 cup at a time. Stir constantly. As soon as the stock is absorbed (which you know becase the spoon leaves an empty strip behind it), add another 1/3 cup stock. This takes about 30 minutes.
6. Serve with grated parmesan (I like lots) and black pepper

Makes a lot. It will freeze well.