Friday, July 15, 2011

CSA Meals - Week 9

My default cuisine, especially in the summer, is Italian.  Something about the combination of multiple vegetables and the abundance of basil always inspires me to make pasta, pizza, or risotto.  


Week 9 was no exception.  I combined the remaining zucchini and corn from the Fourth of July extravaganza with arugula, raw green beans, thyme, lemon juice, and tomatoes to make a tasty salad.  It didn't have typical Italian flavors, but using the ends of several different dishes to produce something new is a very Italian technique.








I employed the same method on Wednesday and used cherry tomatoes, arugula, and more of the Brigid's Abbey cheese in a pasta dish for lunch.  The cheese lent the perfect "saline funk" (the appropriate words Melissa Clark used to describe a pecorino) to the plain pasta and fresh vegetables.   







That night for dinner we used more of the arugula to imitate 8 1/2's arugula, prosciutto and mozzarella hero.  Davy even got the rolls and mozzarella from 8 1/2, and the prosciutto from the butcher.  By now I don't need to describe how much we love these ingredients together, but hopefully the pictures do them justice.  We also had a cucumber, tomato, and feta salad to complete the meal.









Our bag of arugula seemed never-ending, though it help up nicely for the whole week.  On Sunday I made myself an arugula and feta omelet, and on Monday I finished it off in a risotto tomatoes, green beans, zucchini, onions, garlic, and basil.


I sauteed the garlic, onion and zucchini, and added the tomatoes and arugula after I'd turned off the burner.  When the risotto was ready, I was able to unload all of the contents in the pan, as well as three cheeses (fresh mozzarella, Brigid's Abbey and parmesan), and we had a wholesome one pot meal for dinner and lunch the following day.  If I lived in Italy, I would have used the risotto to make arancini during my siesta the next day, but for now, I'll have to be content with mimicking the cuisine as well as I can from Richmond.






2 comments:

Brett said...

B-E-A-UTIFUL! I miss your cooking already :0)

Madelaine said...

aw, thank you! we miss you already!