Subito Salad

Now, I’m not always a laggard with my subscription. Immediacy certainly has rewards. This is especially true with salad veggies. I love putting them altogether in a bowl with just a touch of dressing. The natural flavor of these farm fresh veggies, in the truest sense, is enough to stand on its own.

Don't let it sit! I made this salad within a couple hours of picking them up from the CSA. The taste was truly worth the effort. Here, you see tomatoes, carrots, red peppers on a bed of lettuce.

I call this salad a “subito” salad for the Italian word that means immediately.

Project Consumption part III & IV (of IV): Squash and Zucchini

Summer squash (front) and zucchini (back) ready for stir-frying.

The next morning, the one summer squash and two zucchinis went the way of stir-fry with caramelized onions and a few carrots. Mission accomplished. And, then some, I even threw in some of the current week’s squash.

 

 

 

What’s left?

Lots more….stay tuned

Project Consumption part II (of IV): Beets

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I would never give away my beets. They are incredible. If I wanted to buy them, I wouldn’t know where to go.

I ate them tonight much as I have previously. Steamed with dirty skin intact.  After steaming, the skin melts off under running cold water.

 

Steaming the beets. Notice the dirty skins intact.

 Eat the beets plain without any other flavoring.

Tonight, I sliced the beets and placed them on a bed of thingly sliced fennel (from the current week’s subscription). Then, I drizzled it all with olive oil and sprinkled with feta cheese. Delicious!

 

 Golden beets on a bed of crisp fennel. Notice the beautiful pattern of concentric circles of the golden beets. This pattern is more difficult to see with the more conventional purple beets.

What’s left?

2 zuccchinis

1 summer squash

Project Consumption, part I (of IV): Tomatillos

Not sure if I was more interested in trying Freecycle or putting my neglected tomatillos to good eating. Whatever the reason, I listed my tomatillos with Palo Alto Freecycle. To my surprise, I received five responses, all interested in these little husk-wrapped tomato-like green fruits.

Now, it’s one thing to make arrangements for a time/location to exchange a couch or other furniture, but to go through such hassle just for tomatillos? Wow, that really makes a statement about the value of farm fresh items. I almost changed my mind about giving them away.

However, I should note that two of the respondents were actually members of the Two Small Farms CSA. They wanted more tomatillos. Now, I really wanted to keep them for myself.

I ended up giving them away to a woman who biked over from Palo Alto. I chose her because she was the only respondent who provided a phone number. Not sure if she was the perfect recipient. For one, she answered a very cut-and-dry ”I don’t know” when I asked her what she was going to do with the tomatillos. It’s as if she would’ve answered a Freecycle post that offered Wonder bread.

I wish I would’ve saved the tomatillos for one of the two respondents who also belong to Two Small Farms. I regret the lost opportunity to share their experiences with the CSA subscription — and to learn about their great plans for the tomatillos.

Then, I felt even more regret when Joyce told me about her success with tomatillos and how easy they were to prepare.

“I am no longer intimidated by tomatillos,” she says.

Wish I could say the same. I’m still tomatillo timid. Until next time….

What’s left?

two beets

two zucchinis

one summer squash

stay tuned as this saga continues…

Pesto, It’s Not Just For Basil Anymore

Maybe I’m the last person in the world to find out, but I don’t think so. Pesto is not only a yummy sauce for pasta and pizza, but also a great way to use up certain types of greens. Wait, let me rephrase that in a more optimistic tone: Pesto is a great way to enjoy and appreciate the bountiful offerings of the farm. How’s that?

Anyway, my first foray into non-basil pesto was with the CSA offering of sorrel. I had never worked with sorrel before, so consulting the Two Small Farms website for guidance was a must. I saw the word “pesto” in the title of the recipe and off I went, throwing garlic, pine nuts, parmesan cheese and olive oil into the food processor.

A few weeks later, Joyce found a recipe for kale and walnut pesto. Another chance to eat pesto while using up the week’s greens. Joyce’s kale pesto was delicious. My attempt was good, but a little grassy. The recipe calls for parsley, along with kale.

What’s pesto? Greens pureed along with pine nuts/walnuts, garlic, parmesan cheese, olive oil, salt and pepper. Go crazy. Experiment. Use whatever greens that need attention. Let me know how your brocolli pesto turns out (or maybe not).

Just this past week, I happened to have some mint, chives and cilantro. To that I added some basil. Pesto for dinner.

It’s Been A Baaaaad Week

I just came back from Joyce’s house with my week’s allotment of veggies. That’s good, and all, except for that I’ve barely made inroads with last week’s allotment.

Monday Night Panic

It’s usually Monday that I realize that Wednesday (the day of CSA delivery) is just around the corner. I had only used up the tomatoes. Some went into the Greek salad that I shared with neighbors on Friday. Lyndon and I enjoyed the rest of the tomatoes with Hainan Chicken, which we also had with the sweet fish sauce that’s served at Vietnamese restaurants.

The only item I managed to use on Monday night was the Hungarian wax chiles. I threw it into a recipe for Mongolian Chili, which I ended up throwing away because the ground lamb smelled sour. You know what they say, “when in doubt, throw it out”.

Tuesday Night Catch-Up

Chopped up half of the celery and tossed it into a pot, along with onions, carrots, chicken broth, tomato sauce and dried rosemary. Soup that’s perfect for Lyndon’s cold.

Wednesday Night Frenzy

I’ll never forget the words of the nun at St. Anthony’s in San Francisco, “Everything goes in a stew”. We were a bunch of grade school kids at the most ritzy private school in San Francisco, delivering canned goods to a homeless shelter. One kid asked, “What do you do if you only have one can of peas?”. She was referring to the fact that the soup kitchen feeds hundreds everyday.

The nun’s answer is now answering my question, “How do I use all of last week’s veggies tonight”. Yes, stew. Tuscan Beef Stew, to be exact. I’ve made this specific recipe a few times previously. It’s not only yummy, but also gives me the opportunity to use up whole bottles of red wine, which we can’t drink anymore because they’ve been incubating during the summer in a warm closet.

What’s in the stew? Last week’s radishes, the radish tops, beet greens and celery. To that I added carrots and onions from the grocery store.

What’s left?

two beets

two zucchini

one small summer squash

a bunch of tomatillos

This situation calls for Project Consumption…

Delicious Cauliflower. No Longer An Oxymoron.

You heard about it right here: Cauliflower can be incredibly delicious. How? Braised with tomatoes. I got the recipe from the Two Small Farms website.

The Making of "Tomato-Braised Cauliflower": (left) the starting material; (right) in the pan with onions and tomatoes, ready for braising

TOMATO-BRAISED CAULIFLOWER
This is an excellent side dish, but it also makes a great sauce for pasta, or when topped with shave Pecorino Romano Cheese, a delicious appetizer.

1 head cauliflower (@ 2.5 lbs) or 3 smaller romanesco heads of cauliflower
3 Tb extra virgin olive oil
1 cup diced onions
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 fresh or dried bay leaves (I used dried rosemary)
1 tsp crushed red pepper
2 cups cored, peeled and seeded, tomatoes or one 16 oz can Italian plum tomatoes, drained and seeded.
salt

Pull off the cauliflower leaves and cut out the core. Break the cauliflower head into florets no larger than 1.5″. In a large casserole, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring until wilted, about 4 minutes. Add the cauliflower, bay leaves, and peperoncino and season lightly with salt. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Meanwhile, crush the tomatoes by hand. Add the tomatoes to the cauliflower and cook, covered, until the cauliflower is very tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed, about another 30 minutes. Check the cauliflower after 20 minutes. There should be just enough liquid to lightly coat it. If there is more, finish cooking the cauliflower uncovered. Season with salt and serve hot. 

I ate this relatively simple dish with a little sprouted whole wheat flour spaghetti, along with fresh cracked pepper and freshly grated parmesan cheese.  I’m sure the dish would be equally delicious with any kind of pasta or rice.

What A Sight

I couldn’t help but stop my meal preparation and take photos of these beautiful scenes.

Purple cauliflower (from this past week) and yellow cauliflower (from two weeks ago) sit washed and ready for cooking.

Yeah, purple and yellow seems to be nature's more popular theme. Here, purple beet greens and yellow chard on the chopping block and ready for washing.

This Is How It Came Down

I warily approached the plastic bundle. Admittedly, it looked much more imposing than it really was. Deep breath. It’s not so bad, Laura.

Ok, romaine lettuce…Take out, chop into bite-sized pieces, wash and dry in the salad spinner. Put in fridge. Now it’s ready for eating at anytime.

Strawberries…Wash and hull. Start eating as I deal with the other items. My husband, Lyndon, helps me to polish off the rest.

Golden beets…ooo, what a treat. Rip off the greens of both beets. Place beets into pot with the two red beets from last week. Add water. Cover. Simmer. (Don’t even worry about washing or peeling. )

Beet greens…group together with the lacinto kale. All these greens could be cooked together as a greens/bulghur pie, African peanut butter stew or other recipe that I’ve found are generic for all kinds of greens.

Beet greens and lacinto kale….place in dry plastic bag and place in fridge. It’s good for several days.

Carrots…ah, Joyce ripped off the greens part for me. Perfect. Leave in bag along with the purple cauliflower and sweet peppers.

Tomatoes…in paper bag, dump out on to counter. Lyndon enjoys one before going out on a run with my dog, Abigail. Wash three, cut in half and top with olive oil and balsamic glaze. Perfect for dinner. All other tomatoes go back into the paper bag and into the fridge. I know that tomatoes are best stored OUT of the fridge. But, without air conditioning and the current heat wave, the tomatoes are actually BEST stored IN the fridge.

Beets…after simmering for 20 minutes, rinse under cold water as the skin nearly melts away with slightest pressure. Eat. Wow. Pure gold, these golden beets. (Yes, I reluctantly shared with Lyndon.)

Last step…Wipe down counter. All those veggies leave a smattering of dirt on the counter. There’s no better evidence that the veggies are indeed straight from the farm.

Another Week, Another Load

Aaaaaaaaagriculture Anxiety. How's that for a new term to coin? Sometimes the weekly deliveries can seem overwhelming. Everything is in raw, unpackaged form. No easy convenient, pre-washed, ready-to-eat packaging to fall back on.

Each week’s load is usually fraught with more anxiety than anticipation. Joyce didn’t come to deliver my share until nearly 10 pm last night. I must admit that I was hoping that she forgot. I just wasn’t ready to deal with it all. But, arrive she did. And I reluctantly accepted. The plastic bag went straight into the fridge. Tomorrow is another day.

About 20 hours later, that day is right now, this evening. It’s not that I don’t value the veggies. But, dealing with them is true work with all the washing and sorting. Usually, I have to separate veggies that have more staying power versus the more fragile lettuce and strawberries. The strawberries are picked so ripe that they don’t last more than a day.

I’m looking at the bag of veggies right now. It’s looking at me. Siting there on my kitchen counter, the bundle dares me to take the first stab. It’s challenging me to plunder its riches. How can I resist?