CSA Week 18

I find myself making a dish from week three tonight and accepting that we are truly on the other side of the season. Indeed, the Greenacres CSA only has five more weeks remaining. Week 18 includes lettuce, arugula, bok choy, kale, leeks, sweet peppers, eggplant, beets, onions, a butternut, tomatoes, green tomatoes, summer squash, zucchini, radishes, and carrots. A generous share indeed!

CSA Week 17 - September 21st - leek fritters: a friendly reminder

We have been eating leek fritters almost every week lately. If you haven't tried them you really should. They are the most consistently great fritter I have ever made. We don't always eat them with the lemon garlic cream; they are also good with plain sour cream or just plain. This dish is a prime example of something I would have never made without the CSA (even though it's in one of my favorite cookbooks).

CSA Week 17

CSA Week 16 includes leeks, radishes, carrots, lettuce, arugula, Poppen kale, tomatoes, butternut squash, onions, yellow squash, sweet peppers (lots! need ideas!), eggplant, beets, and free choice cayennes and jalapenos. 

CSA Week 15 - September 9th - tortilla soup

Tortilla soup is a dish I have been making consistently for years, always tweaking it and adapting it to what I have available. I suppose I could consider it one of my "signature" dishes.

I typically make the soup vegetarian, but last week I added some leftover carnitas pork (I think that was the style) from Gomez salsa. That was pretty amazing.

How is this different from a chili? I don't really know. A few things that distinguish it in my mind are the crispy corn tortillas and cilantro on top as well as the corn in the soup. It's also somewhat lighter and thinner than chili and lacks the tomato base (though it does have tomatoes in it).

As with so many things it is totally customizable. I tend to go all-out with toppings (cheese, sour cream, lime, cilantro, tortilla strips, and avocado), but you certainly don't have to.

Tortilla Soup
Ingredients

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1-2 bell pepper, chopped
• Minced fresh hot pepper (e.g. 1 seeded jalapeno) to taste (or a couple pinches of dried hot pepper) 
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. Mexican oregano, crushed/ground 
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder
• 2 cups fresh tomato, diced (or one 14.5-oz can diced tomatoes)
• 1 15-oz can black beans (or about 2 cups) 
• 1.5 cups, or about 12 ounces, frozen or fresh corn (I suppose you could use canned, too, but I've never tried it)
• Cooked pork/chicken or other Mexican-style meat (completely optional) 
• 2-3 tbsp. minced fresh cilantro, divided
• A few pinches of sugar
• Salt to taste
• 5 corn tortillas
• Crumbled Queso Fresco and/or grated Cheddar as toppings 
• Sour cream as topping
• Wedges of lime for serving 

Directions

• Saute onion with a few pinches of salt and sugar in a stock pot over medium heat until soft and somewhat caramelized. 
• Add sweet pepper and hot pepper (if fresh) and saute until soft. 
• Add garlic and spices and saute until fragrant, less than one minute.
• Add 4 cups water or chicken/vegetable broth plus 1 tbsp. cilantro.
• Add tomato, black, beans and corn. 
• Bring to a simmer and cook, covered, about 15 minutes. 
• Meanwhile, prepare the tortillas
• Preheat the oven to 350 F
• Coat the tortillas in a thin layer of oil
• Cut tortillas into 1/2-inch-thick strips
• Spread strips out on a baking sheet and toast 7-15 minutes (depending on the type of tortillas), checking and tossing them every 2-3 minutes. They should be slightly browned and crisp up after being out of the oven for a couple minutes. 
• Taste and add salt if needed. (This will depend on if you use broth and on the salt in any canned veggies you use. When I use water and canned beans I believe I often add around 1 tsp. salt.) Continue simmering to allow flavors to meld. 
• Remove from heat and ladle into bowls. 
• Top with tortillas strips, cilantro, cheese(s), and sour cream

CSA Week 16 - September 15th - summer squash gratin with salsa verde

I want to point you in this amazing direction before summer squash season fizzles out. That being said, I'm sure this preparation would be good with all manner of vegetables soon to be upon us (I'm thinking butternuts and sweet potatoes).

I'm not putting the recipe in the post since I didn't really make any notable modifications. I will say that I found the final dish a tad greasy (though not so much after a day) so would consider decreasing the oil in the salsa verde. 

CSA Week 15 - September 10th - grilled eggplant with fresh hot sauce and crispy eggs

This dish was in the August issue of Bon Appetit Magazine. It was a novel and winning flavor combination for us. I love that it specifically calls for Japanese eggplant and sings its praises. I have been having similar sentiments, finding it creamier, tastier, and easier to work with than Italian-type varieties.

Jonathan grilled the eggplant while I put together the hot sauce and other toppings.

Grilled Eggplant with Fresh Hot Sauce and Crispy Eggs
Adapted from here.

Ingredients 
Hot Sauce (You will likely not use all the hot sauce for this scaling of the recipe especially if you use Cayennes, as I note)
2 Fresno chilies, with seeds, chopped (I used 2 seeded CSA Cayennes, but it was HOT and I couldn't use nearly all the hot sauce. Still good, though)
1 garlic clove, minced
Kosher salt
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. honey

The rest of the dish
2 Japanese eggplant, halved lengthwise
~3 tbsp. oil, divided
Freshly ground black pepper
3 scallions (white and light green parts only), thinly sliced (or to taste)
~1/3 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped (or to taste)
~1 tbsp. fresh dill, chopped (or to taste)
2 large eggs

Directions

• Prepare grill for medium heat.
• Toss chilies garlic, and a large pinch of salt in a small bowl. Let sit until just softened, 8-10 minutes. Stir vinegar and honey into hot sauce
• Meanwhile, coat eggplant with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill, turning occasionally, until lightly charred and tender, 6-8 minutes. Cut on the bias into thick slices; toss in a large bowl with scallions, half the cilantro and dill, and and about one fourth of the hot sauce. Transfer to plates.
• Heat remaining oil over medium high heat. Add eggs and season with salt. Cook until whites are golden and crisp around the edges and set around the still runny yolk, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until yolks just begin to set, about 30 seconds. Season with black pepper. Optionally, cut the eggs (I didn't since the yolk was still runny and I didn't want to lose any!), then arrange over eggplant. 
• Top with remaining herbs and another fourth of the hot sauce, or to taste. 

CSA Week 16

Week 16 includes lettuce, bok choy, beans, leeks, beets, carrots, tomatoes, onions, green onions, eggplant, red peppers, and free choice cayennes and jalapenos. There were also sunflowers, but I forgot to pick them up.

CSA Week 15

CSA Week 15 is Swiss chard, bok choi, carrots, onions, sweet peppers, eggplant, yellow squash, zucchini, a cucumber, scallions, leeks, beets, green beans, tomatoes (what you see is what we got - no more free choice), free choice jalapenos, and free choice cayennes.

CSA Week 14 - September 7th - panzanella

MAKE THIS BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE. Okay that's my general sentiment about all summer foods right now, but this panzanella (my first) is seriously good.

Be sure to store bread leftovers separate from the rest of the salad so the bread doesn't get soggy.

Panzanella

Adapted from here

Ingredients 

Salad

• 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. cooking oil
• 1 small loaf of bread, cut into approx. 1/2-in cubes
• 1-2 tsp. minced garlic
• A few pinches kosher salt 
• 2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-in cubes
• 1 cucumber, peeled and sliced
• 1 bell pepper (or more if you like), cut into 1/2-in cubes
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• ~20 leaves basil, coarsely chopped
• 2 tbsp. capers, drained

Vinaigrette

• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

Directions

• Whisk or shake the vinaigrette ingredients together. 
• Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add 1-2 tsp. garlic, then the bread, and cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes or until nicely browned.
• In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, onion, basil, and capers. Toss with the vinaigrette. Season with salt and pepper if needed. 
• Allow to sit and meld for about 1/2 hour. 
• Mix in bread cubes with each serving that will be eaten immediately. Make sure they soak up some of the delicious liquid (which we drank out of the bowls when we ran out of bread). 

CSA Week 14 - September 7th - carrot ginger soup

This soup is among my oldest recipes. The original version comes from Bruce via Rudi and is very adaptable and forgiving. If you can get through peeling and chopping 4 onions the soup is an absolute breeze.

And yes, I am in the midst of a bit of a pureed soup obsession (see here, here, and here), any supposed seasonality about eating soup be damned, because the ingredients are in season! And I want soup! At least a decent amount has been making it into the freezer.

Carrot Ginger Soup
Adapted from Bruce

Ingredients
1 tbsp. butter plus 1 tbsp. cooking oil
4 medium onions, chopped
4 cups veggie or chicken stock (this yields a very thick soup so add more if you want it thinner)
3 lbs. carrots, peeled and chopped
1-2 tbsp. grated fresh ginger (this version had 1, which I liked)
1/3-1/2 cup heavy cream (will someone try subbing coconut milk and get back to me, though?)
Salt
Ground black pepper
Nutritional yeast as a topping (optional)

Directions

• Saute onion in oil and butter until soft
• Add ginger and saute until fragrant, less than one minute
• Add carrot and saute a couple minutes
• Add stock and simmer until carrot is tender.
• Remove from heat and add ground black pepper to taste and cream
• Puree, then taste and add salt to taste
• Optionally, top with nutritional yeast, which adds richness/fullness 

CSA Week 14 - August 31st - shakshuka

A recipe for shakshuka recently came across my NY Times Cooking Newsletter and piqued my interest. 

It's is mixture of onions, peppers, and tomatoes seasoned with cumin and cooked down, then topped with eggs and baked. This version (and Melissa Clark's) includes feta. I highly recommend it!

Shakshuka
Adapted from here and here

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp. cooking oil
• 1 medium red onion (or other type of onion), chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped (I used two small CSA 'Lipstick' peppers)
• 4 cups diced tomatoes
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 tsp. cumin, preferably ground from whole seeds
• 1 tsp. paprika
• Minced cayenne pepper or a few pinches of ground cayenne pepper to taste (Optional. We actually ate it with schug so I omitted the hot pepper completely. I would probably add some if I wasn't using schug.)
• A few pinches of sugar
• A few big pinches of salt
• Ground black pepper
• 5 eggs
• About 6 ounces feta cheese (I used a soft Bulgarian sheep feta, which was delicious. It didn't stay intact, but melted into the dish once incorporated, so if you want pockets of feta like Melissa Clark indicates, use a drier feta.)
• Bread, pasta, and/or summer squash for serving [I loved it with roasted summer squash (summer squash, garlic, oil, salt, pepper, Parmesan], Jonathan preferred it without).
• Cilantro and/or parsley for serving if desired. As I noted above, we ate it with schug so I omitted the fresh herbal topping.

Directions 

• Preheat oven to 375 F
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium
• Add the onion and saute until it begins to soften
• Add the sweet pepper and saute until softened, a few more minutes
• Add the garlic and saute until fragrant
• Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and stir to blend
• Add the spices, salt, and sugar, and allow to simmer until reduced/thickened
• Taste and adjust seasonings, but remember that you're adding feta!
• Remove from heat and mix in feta
• Top with ground black pepper 
• Crack the eggs, one at a time, directly over the tomato mixture, making sure to space them evenly over the sauce.
• Transfer to the oven and cook, uncovered, until the eggs are cooked to your liking, 10 minutes for runny yolks and 12-13 minutes for cooked yolks. 
• Garnish with cilantro, parsley, and/or schug (Jonathan liked the schug with this more than I did). Update 9/19/15 - this was delicious with leftover salsa verde from this in place of any other herbal toppings or schug. 
• Serve with roasted squash, bread, and/or pasta. 

CSA Week 13 - August 27th - Swiss chard and potato soup

Just see here if you have chard sitting in the fridge. I recently posted about this at work (we made it during Farm-to-Table camp this summer) and I made it for Jonathan and me last week. Feel free to adjust the amount of chard. Proportionally, I used about half the amount indicated in the recipe in my last batch.

CSA Week 13 - August 27th - roasted eggplant and tomatoes with Parmesan

Given that I am pretty behind on blog posts and I have lot to share here...eventually...hopefully...I needed to prioritize what I thought would be most useful to any potential recipe/idea seekers out there for this post. I didn't even think to post about this dish before I made it, as is apparent from the afterthought of a photo, but after making it last week, it shot to the top of the list. I know a number of people struggle with what to do with eggplant; this the easiest and most delicious preparation I have found.

I have been making this dish for years. Roasting eggplant and tomatoes together with plenty of garlic and topping with Parmesan makes even tomatoes on their way to the compost burst with flavor and eggplant melt-in-your-mouth creamy. And they complement each other so well.

Roasted Eggplant and Tomatoes with Parmesan Cheese 
Adapted from here.
Note: This is less of a recipe and more of a set of guidelines to play with.

Ingredients

• 2 Oriental eggplant, cut into thick half moons, some peel removed if desired (I like to take two strips off of each fruit)
• A handful of cherry tomatoes or 1-2 slicing tomatoes, cut into thick slices
• 2-4 cloves garlic, minced
• Salt
• Cooking oil
• Parmesan cheese, shredded

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425 F
• Toss the eggplant, tomato, and garlic with salt to taste and enough oil to coat
• Spread the mixture out in a baking dish or on a baking sheet and roast, tossing every 10-15 minutes, until eggplant is creamy, 20 to 40 minutes 
• Top with Parmesan cheese

Note: I don't find it necessary to salt this Oriental eggplant to remove bitterness, but it may be necessary for some varieties.

CSA Week 14

CSA Week 14 includes carrots, beets, beans, New Zealand spinach, green onions, leeks, zucchini, cucumbers, summer squash, onions, eggplant, sweet red peppers, free choice tomatoes, free choice cayennes, free choice jalapenos, and flowers.