Farm Direct Coop Recipesor. . . what you can do with your share!

I found this recipe, and lots more winter squash recipes, at www.cooks.com.

• 1 spaghetti squash, about 1 ½ pounds
• 1 medium sized green pepper, chopped
• 1 medium sized onion, chopped
• 1 tsp. dried basil leaves, crushed
• 1 tsp. dried oregano leaves, crushed
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• ¼ tsp. each of dried marjoram, thyme and sage
• 2 Tbsp. Italian olive oil
• 5 to 6 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Wash squash, prick with a fork. Cook in 400° oven until tender, about 40 minutes.
2. Cook green peppers and onions in oil over medium heat until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the tomatoes. Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes.
3. Cut the squash into halves, remove the spaghetti-like squash strands with two forks. Toss the squash with the butter and cheese. Spoon tomato mixture over squash.

Submitted by Bill Brown

The first time we got kohlrabi at the beginning of the season, we had no idea what to do with it. I looked it up on line and saw that you could cook it and mash it up. So, I decided to combine it with potatoes and mash them together, in hopes that my 9-year-old son would at least try it. Well, the results were spectacular! The kohlrabi gives the potatoes a sweeter flavor and a different texture. He loves kohlrabi now and was very excited to get a second round of it in the fall.

So, here’s the recipe – simplicity itself!

• 2 Idaho potatoes (peeled, if you prefer)
• 1 kohlrabi (leaves removed, peeled)
• skim milk
• butter
• salt & pepper
• Minced chives or parsley, or dash or paprika

1. Dice up the potatoes and kohlrabi into large chunks. Add to boiling water and cook until done.
2. Drain, then mash the potatoes and kohlrabi together, adding milk and butter to taste (but not too much, you want mashed potatoes and kohlrabi, not cream of potato and kohlrabi soup!) Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with minced chives or parsley, or sprinkle with paprika.

Is that easy or what?

Submitted by Barbara Rotger
Adapted from “Carolyn’s Kitchen” by Carolyn Shohet

• 1 medium eggplant, cut into ½ inch cubes (no need to peel)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 celery stalk, coarsely chopped
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons wine vinegar
• ¼ cup water
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ cup stuffed green olives, sliced
• 1 tablespoon capers, drained

Garnish:

• 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
• Minced fresh basil or parsley for garnish

1. Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven and sauté the eggplant, onion, celery, green pepper, and garlic until vegetables are soft – about 10 minutes.
2. Add the remaining ingredients, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Cool to room temperature. (Can be refrigerated for up to a week.)
3. To serve, stir in the pine nuts, place in an attractive bowl, and top with fresh herbs.

(“From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce,” 3rd Edition)

• 2 lbs. Green beans, stem ends snipped off
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 2 medium onions, sliced as thinly as possible
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 ½ Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook beans in boiling salted water until crisp-tender, 2-4 minutes. Drain; immerse in ice water. Drainagain and let stand to dry.
2. Melt butter in skillet over medium flame. Stir in onions and cook then slowly until very wilted and deepened in color, about 15 minutes.
3. Boil stock in a saucepan until reduced to ¼ cup; stir in sugar and vinegar. Stir in onions. Simmer until slightly reduced.
4. Combine onions and green beans; heat through. Season with salt and pepper.

Submitted by Amy Kamosa, courtesy of her mother-in-law

• 1 ¾ cup unsifted flour (we use 1 cup King Arthur’s white whole wheat and ¾ cup all purpose)
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 package (1/4 0z) active dry yeast
• 2 Tbsp. butter, softened
• ½ cup very hot tap water
• 1 egg
• peach topping (recipe below)

1. In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly mix ½ cup flour, sugar, salt and undissolved yeast.
2. Beat in butter.
3. Gradually add water to dry ingredients; beat 2 minutes at medium speed with an electric mixer.
4. Add egg and ½ cup flour or enough to make a thick batter. Beat at high speed for 2 minutes.
5. Stir in remaining flour.
6. Spread batter evenly into two greased 9-inch round pans or one 9-inch square pan. Cover with peach topping.

Peach Topping:

• 2 cups peeled, sliced peaches
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
• ½ cup peach or apricot jam

1. Arrange peaches on batter. Sprinkle with combined sugar and cinnamon.
2. Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from draft, until double in bulk (about 1 hour).
3. Bake at 400° for 25 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes.
4. Heat jam in a saucepan over low heat, brush on top of cake(s).

Submitted by Jane Levine
This recipe can be made with kale, chard or most any of the other greens we receive from the co-op. It’s easy and v    versatile too; it makes a great side dish or a sauce served over pasta.

• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 Tbsp olive oil (or more as needed)
• 1-2 tsp. smoked Spanish paprika (sweet or hot, we prefer hot at our house, or you can use sweet and add
• some cayenne)
• 1 bunch kale (or chard, etc.) coarsely chopped
• 1 can white beans
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until softened.
2. Stir in paprika and cook for another minute or two.
3. Add the chopped greens and cook until softened.
4. Add a can of white beans, undrained, or the equivalent amount of cooked beans with some of their cooking liquid. Cook partially covered until kale is the consistency you like. Add some water or broth (or pasta cooking water if you’re serving it with pasta) to keep it somewhat “saucy.”

Submitted by Jeanne MacDonald

• 1 bunch arugula
• 1 bunch beets, greens removed
• 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil
• Salt Juice of half a lemon
• 8 oz. Crumbled feta cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Boil or steam the beets with their skins on, until just tender, and allow them to cool.
2. Roughly chop the arugula, rinse several times in cool water, and spin dry in salad spinner.
3. Rub the skins off the cooled beets and cut beets into bite-sized cubes.
4. Toss the arugula in a bowl with the olive oil until it looks wilted and darkens.
5. Add the beets and lemon juice and toss. Toss in the feta last, and add salt and pepper to taste. Let salad rest about ten minutes, toss again and serve.

Submitted by Lynne Paschetag
From The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion, Woodstock, VT: Countryman Press, 2003

• 1 cup (5 ¼ oz)whole wheat flour
• 1 1/3 (5 ½ oz)cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup (7 oz) sugar
• 1 cup (8 oz) firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking soda
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp allspice
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• 8 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 3 Tbsp minced crystallized ginger (optional)
• 4 cups (28 oz) cored, chopped, unpeeled apples
• ½ cup (2 oz) diced pecans or walnuts
• ½ cup (3 oz) raisins or currants
• 2 large eggs

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, sugars, baking soda, salt and spices. Cut the softened butter into chunks and add it along with the ginger, apples, nuts, raising, and eggs. With an electric mixer, beat the mixture at medium speed until well blended.
3. Turn the batter into a greased and floured 9 x 13 inch pan and smooth the top. Bake the cake for 45 minutes, or until it springs back when lightly touched in the center. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Serve with whipped cream sweetened with confectioner’s sugar. If desired, add a bit of Calvados (apple brandy) while whipping the cream for added apple flavor.

Note: I use King Arthur’s white whole wheat flour. You still get the nutritional benefits of the whole grain but the flavor is lighter and not as tannic as traditional whole wheat flour.

This recipe is from the Boston Globe.

This quick pie has no pastry crust, but during cooking the edges develop a crustlike texture. You can also substitute a bunch of swiss chard or any other greens for the leeks.

• 6 medium leeks
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Pepper to taste
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 pound feta, crumbled

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Strip all the coarse outer leaves and the tops from the leeks. Wash them, then slice the white and tender green parts into 1/2-inch discs. In a frying pan, heat the oil over a medium burner and saute the leeks in it for 5-6 minutes or until they are slightly tender. Do not let them take more than a little color.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper and make a well in the center into which you pour the beaten eggs and milk. Whisk until smooth — about 1 minute — then stir in the crumbled feta and leeks.
3. Grease a 9-inch quiche dish or pie pan with olive oil, then pour in the mixture. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a knife blade inserted in the center comes out clean. This pie can be served warm or cold. If serving warm, let it rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting it.

Serves 6.

I made this recipe the first time I cooked Thanksgiving dinner, twenty years ago! I’ve been meaning to post it here, but couldn’t remember which of my many cookbooks had the recipe. A web search revealed that I’d been looking in the wrong books – the recipe is from Betty Groff’s Country Goodness Cookbook.

Bettie Stewart’s Squash and Cranberries

• 2 lbs butternut squash
• salt
• 2 cups water
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed (can substitute maple syrup)
• 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 to 1-1/2 cups fresh cranberries, cut in half (frozen berries don’t need to be halved)
• freshly grated nutmeg (or regular ground nutmeg)

Peel the squash and cut into cubes. Cook in lightly salted water until tender. Drain well, then puree by putting through a food mill or food processor. There should be about 4 cups. Mix well with the eggs, butter, sugar, salt, pepper, and cranberries. Put in a buttered 1½-quart casserole. Grate nutmeg over the top. Bake in a preheated oven at about 350° F. for 45 minutes.