WEEK 1
Kale Chips
The healthiest chips you’ve ever tried (and tasty to boot!)
Ingredients
1/2 bunch Red Russian Kale
light olive oil
salt ‘n’ pepper
This is a tasty, healthy snack–and it’s incredibly quick and simple. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Chop the kale into broad strips. Lightly oil a baking sheet, and spread the kale strips out over the sheet and toss a bit to coat with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then place sheet in the oven. Bake until the strips are crispy–but be careful not to burn! Now you’ve got kale chips. Enjoy!
Spaghetti Squash with Marinara for a family of four
No fuss pasta, without the pasta.
Ingredients
1 Spaghetti Squash
Marinara sauce of choice
Light Olive oil
Pre-heat oven to 350 F. On an oiled baking sheet, bake squash whole for 30 minutes. Remove carefully (it’s hot!) and slice in half lengthwise. Remove seeds and “guts” and place both halves face down on the baking sheet. Return it to the oven for another 30-60 minutes, or until squash is soft and comes out easy with a scraping fork. [If you prefer, you can cut the squash in half before baking at all; I prefer to soften it a bit in the oven first, because it can be very hard to cut otherwise.] Once the squash is finished baking and your sauce is ready, take a fork and scrape the squash “noodles” out into a bowl. By scraping against the grain, you will separate the squash into individual tendrils that look remarkably like spaghetti! Enjoy this delicious, hearty meal.
WEEK 2
Lemon-Garlic Chard (or chard “a la Lynda”)
This is a favorite in our house: very quick, tasty and nutritious – and an excellent side dish to any meal!
Ingredients
• Chard, 10 leaves
• Garlic, 2-4 cloves chopped (to taste)
• Light olive oil, 1 T
• Lemon juice, 1 t (to taste)
• Balsamic vinegar, 1 t (vinegar may be used in place of lemon juice, or use just a dash to add depth to the lemony flavor)
• Salt and Pepper
Take about 10 chard leaves, and chop in very thin strips cross-wise. Continue all the way down the stalk, as finely as possible. Heat a frying pan on med-high heat. Heat oil in the pan. Once oil is hot, add garlic and sautee for a few minutes. Add fine strips of chard. The chard will start out very voluminous and quickly shrink down. Stir the chard from the top down to the bottom of the pan. Add lemon juice and balsamic to taste (the measurements listed above are approximate). Only leave chard on heat for a couple minutes—don’t let it get mushy! When it has all wilted and become tender, remove, and salt and pepper, serve and savor!
Roasted Baby Beets with Braised Greens
A fresh and trouble-free way to enjoy these tender, tangy young beets.
Ingredients
• Baby beets, 1 bunch with beet greens attached
• Vinaigrette of choice (I typically use 3 parts olive oil, 1 part balsamic vinegar, with a dash of salt and pepper; sometimes adding honey and/or lemon juice can be nice.)
• Salt and pepper
Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Rinse the beets, leaving the greens intact, and remove any small yellow leaves. Prepare the vinaigrette (I usually do this by pouring the ingredients into a mason jar, sealing a lid, and then shaking vigorously.) Place your beets on a baking pan or broad pyrex baking dish, and the drizzle the vinaigrette over them, coating the greens and beets. Toss the beets and greens to make sure they are well coated. The dressing should be enough to moisten the beets and let the greens sit in a shallow pool. Now you cover the pan with aluminum foil and place it in the pre-heated oven. After 25-30 minutes check the progress; you’ll want to make sure the largest beets have cooked through. (To go for a crispier finish, you can remove the foil for the last few minutes.) Serve as a side dish or eat over a bed of rice.
Aloo Palak
An Indian dish that uses spinach, shelling peas, garlic, onions and coriander seed.
Ingredients
• 2-3 cups spinach, roughly chopped
• 4 medium sized potatoes, peeled & diced
• 1/4 cup shelled peas
• Several green onions, finely chopped
• 1-2 green garlic finely chopped
• 1 tsp ginger powder
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp curry powder
• ½ tsp red chili powder
• salt to taste
• 1 tbsp oil
Wash the spinach and cook in a little water. Add ½ of garlic and a little salt. Wash & peel the potatoes and dice to small cubes. Boil water in a pan, add a little salt and cook the diced potatoes and shelled peas till tender but not too mushy. Remove from flame, drain the boiled vegetables and keep aside. Meanwhile put the cooked spinach in a mixer and blend to form a smooth puree. Take a non stick pan, heat oil and saute the chopped onions for a few minutes. Add the ginger, chili powder & ½ of garlic and fry for 2 mins. Add the chopped tomatoes and spinach puree and cook till the tomatoes are mixed thoroughly and the mixture starts to bubble. Reduce the flame and add the boiled potato cubes & peas, salt, and curry powder and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Transfer in a serving dish. Serve with rice.
WEEK 3
Arugula Pesto
You can make fresh pesto from local ingredients all year round. You just have to think outside the (basil) box.
Ingredients
• 2 cups of packed arugula leaves, stems removed
• 1/2 cup of walnuts
• 1/2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
• 1/2 garlic clove peeled and minced
Brown 6 garlic cloves with their peels on in a skillet over medium high heat until the garlic is lightly browned in places, about 10 minutes. Remove the garlic from the pan, cool, and remove the skins. Toast the nuts in a pan over medium heat until lightly brown, or heat in a microwave on high heat for a minute or two until you get that roasted flavor. In our microwave it takes 2 minutes.
Option A: Food processor method (the fast way): Combine the arugula, walnuts, roasted and raw garlic into a food processor. Pulse while drizzling the olive oil into the processor. Remove the mixture from the processor and put it into a bowl. Stir in the Parmesan cheese.
Option B: Mortar and pestle method (the slow foodie way): Combine the nuts and garlic in a mortar. With the pestle, grind until smooth. Add the cheese and olive oil, grind again until smooth. Finely chop the arugula and add it to the mortar. Grind up with the other ingredients until smooth.
Note: Because the pesto is so dependent on the individual ingredients, and the strength of the ingredients depends on the season or variety, test it and add more of the ingredients to taste.
Mix with freshly prepared pasta of your choice. You may need to add a little bit of water or more olive oil to mix the pesto more evenly with the pasta. Makes enough pesto sauce for an ample serving of pasta for four people.
Raw Kale Salad
We love using Lacinato Kale (aka Dinosaur Kale) in raw salads. Although we don’t have a well-calculated recipe of our own—we tend to chop it up, grate a raw beet into it, and toss everything with a homemade vinaigrette—here’s one we found on the “kale aficionado’s” blog that’s a little more specific and gourmet with its ingredients.
For this salad, toss the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Wisk together dressing ingredients, then toss with salad. Allow salad to marinate at room temperature for 5-10 minutes.
Ingredients
For the salad:
One large bunch of Lacinato kale, tough center ribs removed and leaves very, very thinly sliced crosswise (so they end up in thin strips several inches long)
1 medium sized beet, peeled and coarsely grated
2 medium carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
1/2 cup mixed olives, very thinly sliced
1 cup crumbled feta
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
A generous sprinkling of black sesame seeds
For the dressing:
5 tbs. olive oil
2 tbs. white wine vinegar
1 clove of garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
Beets & Feta Salad with a Balsalmic Reduction
We love tossing together roasted (or boiled) beets with some nuts, cheese, and a nice dressing—and a balsalmic reduction is delicious if you like your salad tart and tangy. A friend taught us how to throw together a salad like this; we usually make it up as we go, but we found a very similar recipe that we’ve copied for you below. It’s taken from a blog called “Eggs on Sunday” – thanks to the writer for making this available!
Ingredients (for 2 main-course salads)
For the salad:
2 medium-large (2 1/2 in. diameter) cooked beets, cubed or cut into wedges
1 bunch greens, torn into bite-sized pieces (I use a small bunch of kale, but you could use any kind of salad greens you like; just use enough for two servings)
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 of a 4-oz. log of goat cheese, crumbled (roughly 4 tbsp)
For the dressing:
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp honey
pinch each of salt and pepper
For the balsamic reduction:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
To cook the beets:
There are 2 ways I like to cook beets — baking or roasting.
To bake the beets, cut off the greens (if they’re attached) and leave about an inch of stem above the beet. Place the whole beets, skin still on, in an 8×8 baking pan. Fill with water just so it covers the whole bottom of the pan, then cover the pan tightly with foil. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the beets are tender when pierced with a fork (you kind of just have to check; it will take more or less time depending on the size of your beets.) Once the beets come out of the oven, let them sit with the foil still covering the pan for about 15 minutes. Then, remove the foil and peel the beets – the skins should be so loose that you can just slip them easily off. Be prepared for your hands to get really, really bright pink – it washes off afterwards! Cut up the peeled beets into 1/2 inch cubes.
Or, to roast the beets, cut off the greens and peel the skins off the beets with a vegetable peeler. Cut the raw peeled beets into 1/2 inch chunks, toss with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and place them on a baking sheet. Roast for about 20-30 minutes, until the beet chunks are tender.
To assemble the salad:
First, get the balsamic reduction going. Place 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil until the vinegar has reduced to a syrupy consistency, about 5 minutes (should yield about 1 tbsp.) Turn off heat and set aside until your salads are ready.
In the bottom of a large bowl, make the dressing by whisk together 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tsp balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp honey, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Add washed (and spun dry) greens of your choice directly to the bowl (on top of the vinaigrette). Using a large spoon, toss the greens with the vinaigrette. Divide the dressed greens among two plates.
Now, top your greens with the beets, crumbled goat cheese, and walnuts. Finally, drizzle your balsamic reduction over the tops of the salads.
WEEK 4
Potato, Onion, Arugula and Brie Pizza
Makes enough topping for one 14 inch or two 8-10 inch pizzas (Modified from the Earth to the Table, by John Ash)
Ingredients
1 recipe Basic Pizza Dough
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup sliced onions (the green onions will do nicely)
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground pepper
12 ounces red potatoes, thinly sliced
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
6 ounce Brie, thinly sliced
1 cup loosely packed arugula leaves
Prepare basic pizza dough. Preheat oven to 500 F preferably with a pizza stone or brick-oven insert in the oven. In a deep, heavy bottomed pan, heat the olive oil and saute the onions until crisp-tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, blanch the potatoes in lightly salted boiling water until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Cool in ice water to stop the cooking, drain and pat dry.
Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the dough. Layer the potatoes evenly on top. followed by the onions and the slices of Brie. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Bake the pizza for 12 to 15 minutes on the top rack. Scatter the arugula on top and slice and serve immediately.
Frittata with Fresh Chard and Onions
Frittatas are so easy to make, and are great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Ingredients:
Eggs (at least 2 for each serving)
6 large chard leaves
1 Onion (green onions will do)
Local cheese of choice, grated
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Basic Frittata Technique (Modified from The Good Egg, by Marie Simmons):
Preheat the oven 350 degrees. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet with low, sloping sides. Sauté the filling ingredients until tender if raw or until heated through if precooked.
Meanwhile, whisk the eggs (at least 2 for each serving) in a large bowl. Add a pinch of salt and a grinding of black pepper, plus any other seasonings, such as grated cheese or minced parsely.
Now pour the filling into a pyrex baking dish and distribute evenly. Next, pour the egg mixture over the filling, and then place the dish into the preheated oven. Let cook until the egg no longer moves when you jiggle the pan. For a browned top, you can finish with the broiler for a few minutes.
Asian stir-fry with Bok Choi
This is a quick meal to be served with rice or Udon or Soba noodles.
Ingredients (…quantities to your liking)
Light olive oil
Onion, chopped
Garlic, chopped
Bok Choi, whole or chopped
Carrots, chopped into thin diagonal strips
Broccoli, florets and chopped “trunks”
Soy sauce, to taste
Ginger (optional)
Heat the oil in a pan, then add onions and garlic and sauté for a few minutes. Add fresh or powdered ginger if desired. Next add the carrots and cook until almost tender, adding soy sauce as moisture is needed. Add broccoli and then bok choi very soon after. Don’t overcook! The veggies are best when they are just cooked through but not mushy. Add soy sauce to taste and enjoy.
WEEK 5
Kale & Sausage over rice
Soy or real sausage will work…we use the soysage.
Ingredients:
1 bunch Red Russian (or Lacinato) Kale, sliced cross-wise into thin strips
1 Sausage or soysage per person, sliced into round chunks (or how ever much you like)
Garlic
Light olive oil
Salt ‘n’ pepper
1 cup cooked rice per person (cooked in vegetable or chicken broth for more flavor)
Saute the garlic in hot oil for a few minutes, then add your sausage chunks. Keep moving over the heat with a spatula for a few minutes, until it is cooked through and starts to brown. When the sausage it ready, add the kale and stir until it shrinks down. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy over a bed of rice.
Browned Butter Pasta with Tatsoi
We found this recipe on a blog called “Backyard Farming: The Urban Homesteader”
http://backyardfarming.blogspot.com/2008/06/marisas-csa-week-2.html It serves 2 and is very tasty. Yummm.
Ingredients:
Your pasta of choice, preferably curved or with ridges
1/2 stick unsalted butter
Salt and pepper
Leaves of 2 to 3 bunches of tatsoi, rinsed
1/2 cup chopped sage
Freshly grated parmesan
Lemon wedges, optional
Cook pasta to al dente in salted water.
When pasta almost done done, melt butter in a skillet. Swirl the butter in the pan as it foams. (At this point, remove pasta from the heat and drain well in a colander.) When butter begins to brown, toss in pasta and mix to coat with butter. Salt and pepper to taste.
Add tatsoi and sage and cook until slightly wilted, about 1 to 2 minutes. Plate and serve immediately with grated parmesan and lemon wedges on the side.
Spaghetti with Marinara Tomatoes, Arugula, and Ricotta Salata
A salad of marinated tomatoes and arugula makes a fast pasta sauce. Recipe from Four Seasons Pasta by Janet Fletcher. Serves 4-6. Since tomatoes aren’t yet in season here, we recommend replacing fresh tomatoes with either canned or sundried tomatoes.
Ingredients
1 ½ pounds slicing tomatoes, peeled, seeded and thinly sliced (note: replace with canned tomatoes or chopped/food-processed sundried tomatoes when fresh tomatoes aren’t in season.)
1/3 cup virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced (or a small head of fresh garlic)
A pinch of hot pepper flakes
Salt
1 pound spaghetti
1/3 pound baby arugula (the whole bag in your CSA box)
¼ pound ricotta salata cheese, coarsely grated
In a large serving bowl, combine tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, chilies, and salt to taste. You can do this step a couple hours ahead; keep at room temperature.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.
Just before the pasta is done, put the arugula in the serving bowl. Drain the past and add it to the bowl along with the cheese. Toss until the arugula wilts slights, then serve immediately.
WEEK 6
Raw Kale, Beet & Carrot Salad
We’re repeating a variation of this raw kale salad recipe because this week’s box has all the basic ingredients: lacinato kale, golden beet, carrots, and garlic.
For the salad:
1 bunch lacinato/dino kale
1 medium sized golden beet, peeled and coarsely grated
3-4 medium carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
1 cup crumbled feta (optional)
a generous sprinkling of sesame seeds (optional)
For the dressing:
5 tbs. olive oil
2 tbs. white wine vinegar (apple cider vinegar or balsamic will work too)
1 clove of garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
De-rib the kale (i.e. remove the tough, central spine) and very finely slice the kale leaves cross-wise (so they end up in thin strips several inches long.) Toss the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Wisk together dressing ingredients, then toss with salad. Allow salad to marinate at room temperature for 5-10 minutes.
This salad can rest for days without getting slimy and limp. That sturdy kale is more than a match for any dressing, which means you can snack with pleasure and leisure on this salad for about three days.
Sizzling Scapes
Quick, tasty, and oh-so-gourmet!
Ingredients
1 bag garlic scapes (10-15 scapes with do for a side dish)
½ of a small onion, chopped
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Chop the garlic scapes (minus the flower at the end) into 1 inch pieces. Heat the oil in a pan, and then add the onion to sauté for a few minutes. Add the scapes and sauté for a few more minutes until the scapes are tender.
Serve hot over a bed of rice or as a side dish.
Roasted Beets
This is a simple and delicious way to prepare beets. It is especially beautiful when using 2-3 different beet varieties together.
Ingredients
2-3 large beets
Light olive oil
Salt and pepper
(Note: you can also prepare baby carrots in the same way. Just wash them and chop the stem off. No chopping necessary if they’re small enough. This can go nicely tossed together with the beets.)
Preheat the oven to 350. Peel the beets and dice (into roughly ½ inch cubes). Spread them over a baking pan, then drizzle oil lightly over the top. Toss the beets through the oil to coat all around, and then shake salt and pepper over them generously (to your liking). Stick the pan in the oven to roast. Check on the beets every 10-15 minutes, using a spatula to scrape under the beets and mix them around so that they brown and caramelize all around.
