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Marinated Asian Kale Salad

As recollected by Frank Schmidt and Nancy Lasher

Kale – Tuscan is best but any will do – washed, destemmed, and thinly shredded
2 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Oil
5 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
2 Tbsp Soy Sauce (I use low sodium)
1 Tbsp Sugar (other sweeteners fine like agave)
½ Tbsp Minced Ginger
½ Tbsp Minced Garlic
Red Pepper Flakes or Sriracha
Toasted Sesame Seeds

Mix all dressing ingredients together in a jar and mix well. This can be made a day or so in advance.

One to two hours before serving, mix kale and dressing in a big bowl. Stir to coat all kale pieces. Dressing should cover all the kale and have a few tablespoons in the bottom. Stir every 10-15 minutes to make sure dressing coats and wilts the kale. Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving. Enjoy.

Note: The flavors are all very strong in this recipe. Feel free to increase or reduce any ingredient according to taste. If it’s too strong, increase the rice wine vinegar and/or add a tablespoon or two of water to the dressing before mixing.

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Garlic Scape and Almond Pesto

Makes about 1 cup

10 garlic scapes, finely chopped
1/3 to 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan (to taste and texture)
1/3 cup slivered almonds (you could toast them lightly, if you’d like)
About 1/2 cup olive oil
Sea salt
Put the scapes, 1/3 cup of the cheese, almonds and half the olive oil in the bowl of a food processor (or use a blender or a mortar and pestle).  Whir to chop and blend all the ingredients and then add the remainder of the oil and, if you want, more cheese.  If you like the texture, stop; if you’d like it a little thinner, add some more oil.  Season with salt.
If you’re not going to use the pesto immediately, press a piece of plastic against the surface to keep it from oxidizing. The pesto can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days or packed airtight and frozen for a couple of months, by which time tomatoes should be at their juiciest.
From In The Kitchen and On The Road with Dorie, http://doriegreenspan.com

Note: So you only got 6 scapes this week, you say? If you have a small food processor, cut the recipe in half, OR save up for next week – your scapes will keep!
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Garlic Scapes!

Wondering what to do with your garlic scapes and all that lovely fresh pasta? Look no further!

Here is a recipe for Spinach & Garlic Scapes Pasta.

Directions

  1. Place spinach, garlic scapes& parmesan in a food processor& pulse until mixture is chunky.
  2. With machine running, pour in olive oil.
  3. Process until mixture is smooth.
  4. Add butter& seasonings to taste.
  5. Meanwhile, cook pasta as directed.
  6. If the sauce is too thick, add a little pasta water& mix well.
  7. Drain pasta, place in serving dishes& top with sauce.

Eat and enjoy!

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Pasta with Parsnips and Bacon

For all those storage parsnips languishing in the back of your frige and that wonderful Woodbridge Farm bacon because, as Nick Kindelsperger observes

‘ … the fundamental property of the original Babbo dish remains the same: parsnips cooked in pork fat taste really good. They come out slightly sweet with a luscious, creamy texture. Whatever you do, don’t mess with that.’

This dish is from Babbo via Epicurious via Serious Eats: New York.

Pasta with Parsnips and Bacon

– serves 4 –

Ingredients

1/4 pound bacon or pancetta, chopped into 1/4 inch dice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds parsnips, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut crosswise 1/4-inch-thick
8 ounces pasta (fresh pasta if you have it)
1/4 cup chopped parsley
Salt and pepper

Serve with: Grated parmesan

Procedure

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, add the chopped bacon to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until the bacon is browned, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and let drain on a couple paper towels. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat.

2. Turn the heat to medium and add the butter to skillet with the bacon fat. Add the parsnips and cook for about 12 minutes, stirring often. They should be lightly browned and very tender. Turn off the heat.

3. Cook pasta according to the directions on the box to al dente. When done, reserve 2 cups of the cooking water and then add the pasta directly to the skillet with the parsnips. Turn heat to high and add about 1 1/2 cups of the cooking water, the bacon, and the parsley. Cook for 1 minute, stirring often. Add more of the cooking water if it looks too dry. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

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Basic Pesto

Contributed by Jeff Schiller

1 cup pine nuts
2-3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup basil leaves (can also add parsley, arugula, or a small amount of cilantro)
pinch of salt

Combine all in food processor until a creamy texture. Use on pasta, spread on slices of tomato, or drizzle over corn on the cob.

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Basic Salsa

Contributed by Jeff Schiller

2 cups diced tomatoes
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 medium hot pepper, chopped (more to taste; remove seeds for milder heat)
1 large clove of garlic, minced
2 tbsp lemon/lime juice or vinegar
chopped cilantro, basil, parsley to taste
salt, to taste

Mix all ingredients in bowl and enjoy right away, or let marinate overnight for a fuller flavor. Shelf life: 2 to 3 days, so enjoy quickly with chips, in burritos/wraps, or with avocado and eggs for huevos rancheros.

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Cooking Greens

Contributed by Jeff Schiller

Jeff serves up some additional variations on cooking greens. That’s right, any of our hardy greens: kale, kohlrabi, turnip greens, pac choi . . .   Enjoy!

  • Using any coarsely chopped greens and stems, steam until wilted.
  • Take steamer from pot and set greens aside.
  • Add soup bouillon to water, dissolve bouillon fully, and then return greens to the pot.
  • Stir and serve!

And to jazz this up, consider these options:

  1. Before steaming the greens, steam other veggies first. You can try garlic scapes, onions, and later in the season, zucchini. When these have cooked a bit, add the greens as directed above.
  2. Add a hard-boiled egg or two.
  3. Serve the dish over grain or pasta
  4. Season with fresh herbs.
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Just Food: The Binder

During distribution you may have noticed a Just Food binder sitting around, chock full of veggie tips and resources. Well, CSA member Russell Tanenbaum has created PDFs of each section of the binder for easy at-home access. Simply click on a section name below to read the info.

Introduction
Veggie Tip Sheets:
  Table of Contents
  Veggies A-C
  Veggies D-O
  Veggies P-Z
Preservation and Preparation
How to Conduct a Cooking Demonstration
Nutrition Tip Sheets
Resource Directory