Is Anybody There?

Well. Here we are at the end of May! I have no idea how time disappeared so quickly, but I'm grateful to anyone who's still checking the blog to see if I've written. 

Yesterday kicked off the second week of my 2013 CSA, and I'm thrilled to be getting strawberries and vegetables from Amy. I'm also attempting to grow my own vegetables again, in brand new raised beds, and will keep you informed of their progress.

For today though, I'd like to share a grain salad recipe, which has endless possibilities for substitutions and additions. It's really more of a method, based loosely on a recipe from the The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook. 

I discovered Trader Joe's 10 Minute grains a few months, ago, and haven't looked back since. They taste just as good (to me) as the long-cooking versions, and come in small pouches that are ideal for a two-person household. I keep the farro and barley around at all times in case I need a quick and healthy base for a meal.

The version below is from early spring, but I made a salad just yesterday with roasted spring onions, summer squash, and oregano. The possibilities really are endless, as the dressing is fairly neutral, and feta tastes good with just about everything. 

Speaking of feta, I'm leaving for a big trip to Greece in two days! I can't wait to eat my weight in cheese and baklava. Thank you so much for reading, and I'm looking forward to posting more when I return (in June!!!).

Farro Salad
adapted from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook

1 cup farro

olive oil

1/2 pound carrots 
seasoning salt

fresh thyme

2 cloves minced garlic

kale - a few handfuls, chopped

dressing:

5 Tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce/chili sauce (or more to taste)

1 teaspoon agave nectar

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

pinch of cumin

salt
black pepper

1/2 cup crumbled feta, more or less

1. Cut the carrots into bit-sized sticks, toss with olive oil, seasoning (I used Texas Heat, but you could use any kind of seasoning salt) and fresh thyme; roast at 425 to desired doneness. I checked them after 10 minutes, stirred them, and had them in for another 10.

2. Boil water for the farro and cook for 10 minutes or until it's got a slight bite but isn't too soft. Drain and set aside.

3. Whisk the dressing ingredients in the bowl you're going to use for the salad, and adjust flavors to taste.

4. Cook the kale: heat olive oil over medium heat, add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes, then add kale and cook until it's slightly wilted and chewable.

5. Add carrots, farro, and kale to the bowl and stir to coat everything with the dressing. Top with feta and ground black pepper. 

CSA Meals - Weeks 12 and 13

It's normal to make a big pot of soup when your air conditioning breaks at the end of July, right? The heat of the stove certainly doesn't increase the temperature of the kitchen and surrounding rooms to the point that you just want to leave your house.

I'm not sure making soup in the summer is a good idea even with functioning central air, but I had a significant number of vegetables to work with, and wasn't creative enough to think of another use for them. I chopped potatoes, scraped corn off cobs, cut ribbons of Tex's chard, sliced carrots, and minced garlic in preparation. 

To start, I sauteed the garlic in olive oil in my dutch oven, added the carrots and potatoes to brown them a bit, and then dumped in a mixture of chicken stock, water, and some diced tomatoes that were taking up freezer space. Rosemary, thyme, and a parmesan rind went into the broth to add some flavor, and I let everything simmer for a couple of hours. When I turned off the heat (to Davy's relief), I stirred in a can of rinsed cannellini beans, corn kernels, and the chard. 

The soup rested in the fridge over night, and on Sunday, I made a cross between gremolata and pesto by blending lemon zest, basil, garlic, and olive oil to add a little bit of freshness and citrusy tang.

What I should have made, instead of soup, was something like the Vietnamese chicken salad that we ate earlier in the week. I don't have the source of the recipe, but it includes chicken, napa cabbage, scallions, cilantro, and peanuts. I added grated carrots, and the dressing contains fish sauce, sesame oil, and sugar. It's quick, light, and especially satisfying served over rice noodles.

To go with the salad, we tested out the Padron pepper method I mentioned, and it worked beautifully. 

On average, about one in every ten pepper is supposed to be extremely hot, and the bunch that we got fit that standard. The few that were spicy hit me in a surprising rush of heat and saltiness, which only made me want to eat more.

Luckily, Amy had more Padrons available this week, and Davy and I made another round on Tuesday night. In the interest of not turning our kitchen into a room-sized oven, we ate Hungarian salami, a few cheeses from Caramont, and a makeshift bruschetta with yellow cherry tomatoes and basil marinated in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

I will admit to making pasta a few times, despite the unofficial stove ban, but all of our tomatoes were practically begging me to make fresh pasta sauces. There may have been a few tomato and feta sandwiches thrown in as well, which only require the brief, contained heat of a toaster oven.

We're leaving for the Outer Banks tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to bringing the rest of our share and using a kitchen to its fullest capacity without worrying about the temperature ramifications. Have a wonderful week!

CSA Meals - Weeks 9 and 10

I'm officially in holycowit'smid-Julywhereisthesummergoing? mode. The last couple of weeks went by in a whirlwind of celebration, relaxation, and travel.

Our house guests were in Richmond through the 4th of July, which meant that the annual party benefited from Lyndsey's extreme chopping talent. She used some of her salvaged cabbage and carrots, and our CSA red onion, to compile a simple, pretty coleslaw. If you don't believe me, the proof is in the photo below; it looks like bagged slaw mix sliced by machine, but it was all done by a skilled hand.

In the meantime, I put together a haphazard pasta salad with roasted summer squash, mozzarella, and several basil leaves (pictured). The rest of the basil was made into pesto the following week.

I believe my contribution was eaten, but it wasn't very noteworthy compared to the slaw and several of the other dishes gracing Tex's air-conditioned kitchen.

We recovered from the holiday in Seabrook, SC, and our first dinner there was a group effort that incorporated components of our share from Week 9. Davy and I steamed the yellow and green beans, and made flank steak with chimichurri sauce, which was decent. Keith and Carrie's dish, however, outshone ours, and the cucumber and cherry tomatoes we brought added a lot to the roasted shrimp and orzo salad. At the end of the meal, we added the remaining steak and beans to the salad to keep it going for lunch the following day.

In an attempt to clean out our fridge a little before the next round of CSA produce, I repeated a Splendid Table recipe from the spring (Spring Vegetables and White Beans Scented with Fresh Bay). Instead of spinach, I used dandelion greens - courtesy of Lyndsey and Travis, chicken stock instead of vegetable broth, and added some freshly made pesto. The "stew," as Lyne Rosetto Kasper and Sally Swift call it, was light and garlicky, and had an earthy flavor from the greens and carrots.

By some miracle, I managed to make caramel for turtle brownies the same night. The bubbling corn syrup and sugar were mesmerizing, and made a delicious sweet topping for the fudgy brownies. 

Davy and I whittled away at our cherry tomato and mesclun salad mix supply with a few green salads throughout the week, adding different ingredients depending on what we had and what was appealing at the time. 

I was visiting family in Harrisburg over the weekend, and we brought a big cucumber and tomato salad over to my grandma's for dinner on Sunday night. There were sungolds, slicing tomatoes, sweet peppers, and cucumbers from my share, and different types of herbs, tomatoes and cucumbers from my parents' CSA and garden. My mom and I worked on the salad together, and dressed it with a little olive oil, red wine vinegar, and sugar.

Despite the fact that it feels like summer is already slipping away, I know that there are many more meals and memories to be made over the next couple of months.

CSA Meals - Week 7

Our house and lot are surrounded by large trees, and we don't have a pet to scare pests away. Squirrels always wreak havoc on my potted plants, but this year I've been fighting them off by sprinkling cayenne pepper over the dirt to keep them from digging holes that ruin plants at all stages. I don't feel the least bit sorry.

Right now, arugula and basil are yielding the most out of everything I planted. The basil pot is elevated on a stand to maximize sunlight, and the arugula seems to like a little more shade. 

Only the arugula and basil came from our garden.
The cucumber and bell pepper are from the share, and
the banana pepper came from Maymont via Caitlin.

I thought my garden and potted plants were finally doing well, thanks to the spicy soil, and then Tex brought some of his homegrown chard over. 

This was taken on the final night of the 
NBA season, in case anyone was curious.

Leafy greens thrive in his beautiful, fenced-in back yard that is almost all garden. The chard, which we sauteed with garlic, olive oil, and red pepper flakes, was incredibly fresh. It was an excellent addition to our meal of grilled striped bass and pasta salad with mozzarella, grilled zucchini and squash, and capers.

Earlier in the week, I managed to utilize some of our plants (see first photo) in a makeshift bruschetta and salad. I mixed our lovely sungold cherry tomatoes, pieces of fresh mozzarella, and torn basil with a little olive oil to enjoy on top of thick slices of toasted Billy Bread rubbed with fresh garlic.

By the end of the weekend, the carrots and dense head of cabbage were still untouched in the bottom produce drawer, and I felt obligated to use them that night. I managed to use about a third of the cabbage, and cut the carrots into matchsticks.

Ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, and Szechuan peppercorns (thanks, Evan!) went into the pan for flavor, and the resulting stir fry was light and satiating.

It may not have been completely local, but it was good enough to make me excited for dinner two nights in a row. I'm grateful to have the share, and friends with wonderful plants, to supplement the (sometimes literal) holes in our garden.

CSA Meals - Week 4

As I mentioned when I first reported on our Week 4 haul, I took less than half of the produce because we were traveling to Pittsburgh for the wedding of my good friend, Sarah. The bride was exquisite, and all of her careful planning resulted in a fabulous weekend, including delectable brownie truffles in the hotel gift bag and tea sandwiches for the bridal party that were the perfect pre-ceremony lunch.

Davy and I started our trip to Pittsburgh with regular-sized sandwiches I made at home. They utilized the remaining arugula, along with some Idiazabel cheese and Hungarian salami my grandma had given us.

Prior to leaving Richmond, I finished up the kale, tuna, and white bean salad, and we made hoisin turkey burgers for dinner on Wednesday night. I had high hopes for the burgers, and while they were flavorful, they didn't stay together well on the grill, and we didn't end up eating the second round of them. Luckily, the grilled carrots, squash and broccoli turned out well (we just tossed them with olive oil and seasoning), and were a refreshing afternoon snack the following day.

I was on my own Sunday evening, and seized the opportunity to eat pasta with pesto. In addition, I made what has been my go-to salad for the past few weeks: lettuce, edamame, sunflower seeds, and Asian sesame dressing. It's simple, summery, and has a blend of textures and tastes that's been very appealing lately.

For once I'd had the foresight to prep the chard I wasn't going to use right away, and sauteed it with garlic halfway through the week. On Monday night, I chopped it and added it to risotto with spicy turkey sausage. The onion, pictured below, is also from our CSA, and it formed a great base for the dish. I neglected to take any photos of the finished product, but the risotto turned out beautifully.  

My forgetfulness can probably be blamed on the extended recovery that was required after celebrating the union of two wonderful people. Congratulations, Sarah and Thomas!

CSA Meals - Week 3

Sometimes inspiration comes in the form of hearing what you already know from someone else. Two weeks ago, I experienced a renewed interest in my CSA after taking a cooking class called "Late Spring at the Farmer's Market" through the University of Richmond School of Continuing Studies.

The instructor gave us a few tastes of local and grocery store products to compare the difference between the two, which is more pronounced when they're sampled back to back. I'm already sold on fresh eggs, local strawberries, and turnips grown by someone I can talk to face-to-face, but it was the creamy, tangy, locally made goat cheese we had in class that re-opened my eyes about buying food at a farmers' market. Looking back, my meals during Week 3 seem much more interesting as a result.

On Wednesday, I prepared a salad with some of Week 2's kale, and massaged the leaves with my trusty Asian sesame dressing and lime juice. Sunflower seeds, corn, and edamame helped make the salad into a more substantial meal. That evening, I put together a penne, arugula and feta dish that turned into lunch on both Thursday and Friday.

Although it doesn't have anything to do with local produce, the encouragement I felt from my class led me to change my regular breakfast routine. I tried out a Martha Stewart recipe for breakfast quinoa, which was sweet and comforting. I'm not sure I'd want to eat it every day, but it was a nice switch from my usual wheat toast with peanut butter, and was very filling.

No vegetables were harmed during our Thursday night wine, cheese, and salami dinner, either, but the salami is local (to Harrisburg), and the round cheese and chutney were made within 100 miles of Richmond.

The dish I prepared in class was "Spring-to-Summer Vegetable Ragout Over Goat Cheese Grits," and I loved it enough to attempt it at home for some friends visiting from out of town (recipe below). I made a special trip to the St. Stephen's farmer's market for some extra vegetables, and picked up beautiful baby carrots and large, shelled peas. 

The ragout can be made with a variety of vegetables - we substituted edamame for peas in class - and in my opinion, the dish can be eaten any time of the day. I finished the leftovers for breakfast one morning, and they tasted completely appropriate as the first meal of the day.

A head of broccoli and a container of little cucumbers also found their way into my bag at the market, and I added them, with some peas, to a Thai-inspired noodle salad as part of Shannon's birthday dinner. Along with the noodles, we had arctic char from Yellow Umbrella that Davy grilled, and it was absolutely delicious.

On Monday, Memorial Day, I sauteed the curly kale with some garlic and red pepper flakes, and used some of it to make a frittata. Going with what seems to be the theme this week, I only took pictures before I did anything with the veggies. Luckily, they're pretty enough on their own.

To finish the week, I made another kale salad, this time with tuna fish, cannellini beans, cucumber, lemon juice, and olive oil. It's ideal for warm weather, and could also be used as a sandwich filling.

My trip to the St. Stephen's farmers' market was the first I'd made to a market during CSA season (outside of picking up my share). I'm really going to try to keep it up as we move into summer, and continue to branch out with local products other than what's given to me each week.



Spring-to-Summer Vegetable Ragout Over Goat Cheese Grits
Yields: 4 servings

For the Grits:
1 cup water
1 cup vegetable or chicken stock
1/2 cup stone ground white grits (coarsely ground)
1/2 T salt
2 t pepper
1/2 cup goat cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest

1. Bring the water and stock to a boil
2. Add the grits, and stir with a small whisk. Skim off any floating husks and reduce the temperature to medium. Continue stirring for five minutes, or until the grits absorb the liquid.
3. Remove from the heat and cover with a lid, or wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Set in a warm area for 35 minutes - the grits will finish cooking by steam.
4. Add the salt, pepper, goat cheese, and zest, and stir to incorporate. Keep warm until ready to serve.

For the Ragout: 
1/2 cup shelled peas
4 oz small carrots
4 oz small zucchini or yellow squash
3 green or spring onions
3 cloves garlic
2 T olive oil
salt, to taste
1/2 cup stock or water
1 T chopped mint
1 T chopped thyme 

1. Cut the carrots and squash into quarters lengthwise and then into 2 in lengths. Cut the onions in two inch lengths, quarter, and set aside. Slice the garlic thinly.
2. Cook the garlic in the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the carrots, onions, a pinch of salt, and the liquid. Cover and cook until the onions soften, about 3 minutes.
3. Add the squash/zucchini and cover. Cook until it softens, about 3 minutes. 
4. Add the peas and cook uncovered until everything is tender (2-3 more minutes). Stir in herbs, taste, and adjust seasoning as necessary.

Serve the ragout in bowls over the grits.

CSA Meals - Week 8

Due to the exciting three day holiday weekend, I stuck to basic and quick meals during Week 8: pasta with pesto and cucumber and tomato salad; tuna salad with cucumber, tomato, parsley, feta, lemon juice, and homegrown greens from our garden over toast; grilled mahi mahi fish tacos garnished with cabbage and spring onions, along with grilled carrots and spring onions.  There are pictures of some of the highlights below, minus the fish itself, which I forgot to photograph.  I hope you all had a nice Fourth of July!

CSA Meals - Week 2

If I can help it, I like to make one pot meals, or at least use multiple types of vegetables in one dish.  Surprisingly, Davy and I don't eat a lot of salads, even though they lend themselves to using a variety of ingredients.


Soup, on the other hand, is one of my favorite things to make and to eat, even in hot weather.  Last Wednesday I used the garlic scallions, kale, and broccoli rabe from our to make a vegetable soup.  Sauteed carrot and celery, along with the scallions, formed the base.  Once they were cooked through, I added a little wine, then homemade chicken stock, and petite diced tomatoes. 


I blanched the broccoli rabe separately from the soup pot, fearing that the bitter flavor would leach out into the broth.  The contents got a good hour or so to simmer together before I added the greens (broccoli rabe and kale) and a can of cannellini beans.  

I flavored the soup with some rosemary sprigs and parmesan rinds, but it still needed salt, pepper, grated parmesan, and oil to make it really tasty.


Thursday was the exception to the rare salad rule.  I was on my own for dinner, and decided to make use of the nice lettuce mix.  Pistachios, a hard-boiled egg, feta, and a sliced radish made the salad more interesting and substantial.    


I blanched the remaining greens, which consisted mustard greens, mizuna and a few other Asian varieties.  I froze about a quarter of them, and used the rest to lighten up a big bowl of sesame noodles (my uncle's recipe), along with frozen edamame.    

The turnips from Fertile Crescent Farm have been large and gorgeous this spring.  Normally I don't get excited about turnips, but I was intrigued when I realized I could mash them and then make them into cakes to pan fry.

As you can see, the cakes weren't overly sturdy, and I didn't do a great job of flipping them, but they were very tasty.  Despite the fact that they were cooked in butter, I still felt healthy eating them alongside of a salad.


We're left with some nice-looking radishes and some salad mix, but considering all of the extras Adam and Darbi have been giving us, I feel good about how many vegetables we ate in a week.  One dish dinners are a convenient and easy way to consume a lot of produce, even if you have to resort to a salad to do so.