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

Wow!  What a great harvest this week!  This is what we did tonight.  NO-COOK, it was hot tonight.   Used all grape rather than beefsteak tomato.  Grilled corn in husk. found sa few years back on Cookinglight.com  .

• 1  tablespoon  grated lemon rind
• 5  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice, divided
• 1  tablespoon  extravirgin olive oil
• 1  teaspoon  honey
• 1/2  teaspoon  Dijon mustard
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1  cup  fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
• 1/4  cup  thinly sliced basil leaves
• 1/4  cup  chopped red bell pepper
• 2  tablespoons  finely chopped red onion
• 1  pound  lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed
• 8  (1/4-inch-thick) slices ripe beefsteak tomato
• 2  cups  cherry tomatoes, halved

1. Combine rind, 3 tablespoons juice, and next 5 ingredients (through black pepper) in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Reserve 1 1/2 tablespoons juice mixture. Add remaining 2 tablespoons juice, corn, and next 4 ingredients (through crab) to remaining juice mixture; toss gently to coat.

2. Arrange 2 tomato slices and 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes on each of 4 plates. Drizzle about 1 teaspoon reserved juice mixture over each serving. Top each serving with 1 cup corn and crab mixture

So easy and fast.  Good for hot nights as it is “No Cook”.   

You can also toss the ribbons with wide flat pasta, such as pappardelle, for a delicious entrée.   I recommend basil and oregano but use whatever fresh herbs you have on hand.  I found it last year at cookinglight.com

• 3  small zucchini (about 1 pound)
• 3  small yellow squash (about 1 pound)
• 1  tablespoon  extravirgin olive oil
• 1/4  teaspoon  grated lemon rind
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 1/3  cup  thinly sliced fresh basil
• 1  tablespoon  chopped fresh oregano
• 1/4  cup  (1 ounce) shaved fresh Parmesan cheese

1.  Shave zucchini and yellow squash into ribbons using a vegetable peeler, stopping at the seeds; place ribbons in a large bowl. Discard seed cores.
2.  Combine oil, rind, juice, salt, pepper, and garlic in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Drizzle oil mixture over vegetable ribbons; sprinkle with basil and oregano. Toss gently.
3. Sprinkle with cheese.

Serve immediately

From FDC Newsletter 8-23-07 .  Posted by Sandi Peaslee from the Martha Stewart Magazine.

• 8 ripe medium tomatoes
• ½ red onion, chopped
• 2 ripe peaches, cut into ½” pieces
• 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded, cut into ½” pieces
• kernels from 2 ears of corn
• 6 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 ¼ tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• ½ cup fresh basil leaves plus sprigs for garnish

1. Slice off tops of tomatoes (about ½ inch). Scoop out seeds and ribs and coarsely chop.
2. Stir together chopped tomatoes, peaches, cucumbers, corn oil, lime juice, salt and pepper.
3. Let stand for 15 minutes.
4. Stir in basil.
5. Season inside of tomato shells with salt and pepper. Fill tomatoes with tomato mixture and garnish with basil sprigs.

Serve immediately

Orginally from FDC  newsletter 7-27-07.  Contributed by Sandra Broughton

• 1 cup cornmeal
• ½ cup flour
• 2 tsp. molasses
• 2 tsp. baking powder  
• ½ tsp. salt  
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 2-3 jalapeno peppers, chopped
• 1 onion, grated
• ¼ cup corn oil
• 1 cup corn kernels
• 1 cup Monterey jack or sharp cheddar cheese, grated  

1. Mix all ingredients and pour into a hot oiled 8×8-baking pan. Do not over stir.
2. Bake at 375° for 40 Minutes or until browned on top.

Serve hot with butter.

Variation: For an equally delicious yet less “hot” cornbread, simply leave out the jalapenos and onions 

 From FDC  Newsletter 7-26-07  Contributed by Sandra Broughton

• 3 medium or 2 large zucchini
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 cups corn, cooked
• 2 Tbsp. cilantro, finely diced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• ½ cup vinegar
• ½ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. oregano

1. Shred zucchini using a food processor or grater.
2. Spread between paper towels and squeeze to remove extra liquid.
3. Mix corn and onion and zucchini.
4. In a separate bowl, combine cilantro, vinegar, oil, salt and oregano, then pour over vegetables and mix.
5. Cover and refirgerate for 4-6 hours, or overnight.

Makes 1 quart of relish

Ooooh what a fun haul! We were super excited to see tomatoes! Really, there isn’t too much better than warm summer tomatoes. Except when you add a little salt. So. GOOD.

The goodies:

Week #5 was chockful of: black raspberries, blueberries, zucchini, summer squash, tomatoes, beets, carrots, walnut sourdough, basil vinegar and arugula.

I love the photos my husband takes!

It seemed to be a little cooler this week (or perhaps I have acclimated finally?) so I did more than just salad assembling. What did I do with this lovely haulage? Check it out.

Black Raspberry Bread with Whipped Creme

I was imagining a spongey, lemony, fluffy goodness of a bread. My husband pretty much wants everything with whipped cream (I am incredibly grateful for my KitchenAid stand mixer!) and I wanted something light and refreshing to accompany it.

I adapted it from this Lemon Blueberry Bread recipe over at All Recipes, which is a handy site (espescially if you’re wondering what to do with an ingredient you’ve got on hand. You can simply enter random ingredients into their search feature. It gives me lots of ideas when I get stuck.)

1/2 cup melted butter

1 cup sugar

juice and zest of 1 lemon

 2 eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

1 pint black raspberries

Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Cream together eggs and butter for three minutes. Add milk, lemon juice and zest. Add dry ingredients. After washing black raspberries, toss in flour before adding to cake batter. This assures they won’t sink to the bottom of the bread. Which makes for prettier pictures.

Bake at 350 until it’s done. My oven took about 25 minutes.

For the whipped cream, I used about a cup of heavy cream (I prefer this to whipping cream as I feel it’s got too many unnatural ingredients and I don’t want monoglycerides in my food) and 2 tablespoons of organic powdered sugar. You can use a hand or stand mixer, or, if you’re looking to work your upper body, whisk it by hand! I topped the whipped cream with mint, because mint makes things look fancy. 

Caprese Salad

 I know, right? You can totally taste it. These tomatoes were HANDS DOWN pretty amazing. I wanted to really taste the tomatoes and make them the feature of the dish. I paired with slices of mozzarella, and farm share basil (from the potted herbs in week #1). I arranged in a circle, topped with extra virgin olive oil, cracked pepper and coarse salt. Suffice as to say, there was nothing remaining in short time. We loved it!

Roasted Zucchini and Summer Squash with Lemon Ricotta

Blogging pics of (mainly) everything I cook has opened my eyes a lot. I tend to make a lot of salad! I was trying NOT to do that this week. I decided to roast these up instead.

1 zucchini, diced into even pieces

1 summer squash, diced into even pieces

drizzle of olive oil

pinch of fennel seeds

pinch of cumin seeds

juice of 1/2 a lemon

Salt, pepper

ricotta

Preheat oven to 400. Add veggies and oil to a pan and roast for about 18 minutes. Remove from oven, add spices, toss, and return to oven for five minutes.

In a bowl, add a few spoonfuls of ricotta, and juice of the lemon half. Mix up, and plate next to the zucchini and squash. Add a wee bit more olive oil to the ricotta. They’re really good when you eat them together!

Roasted Beets with Rosemary

My girlfriend Anne and I could talk about food and recipes for days on end – and we sometimes do! So when she sent me a link for a recipe for roasted beets, I jumped right on it. We made the same thing for dinner that night. And when your dear friend is all the way in Kentucky, it’s a nice little feeling.

You can check it out right here: Roasted Beet Wedges

Moroccan Tagine

This is 1) a favorite in our house and 2) a total joke in some ways. I have “threatened” to make this on many a hot night, only to scrap it at the last minute. Hey, I always have the best of intentions. And while I can do lots of things, I can’t control the weather. So now “moroccan” is synonymous with “we’re-totally-getting-takeout-instead”.

I came across this recipe this past winter, and ohhhhh, I have been in love with it since. I used the farm share carrots for this little gem.

Moroccan Tagine from Bon Appetit is a great recipe. I make it exactly as it reads here. I think you could substitute ground chicken, turkey or ground meatless, for the vegetarians. It’s really REALLY good. I hope you make it and LOVE IT!

I could not resist these cute little flying saucers when I saw them at the depot.  Someone there mentioned they had stuffed them and they were great.  I googled some recipes.  There are a million and mostly call for garlic and onion as a main part of the stuffing.  I am allergic to both so I made up my own.  My son ate the “hats” so I guess they passed the “good test”  here is what I did

• 2 patty pan squash
• 1/4 cup wild rice
• sprig fresh thyme chopped
•  sprig fresh oregano chopped
• 2 tablespoon panko breadcrumbs
• salt and pepper to taste
• grated Parmesan cheese

1. Steam squash for about 15 minutes until fork tender.
2. Cut off top and scoop out flesh leaving about a 1/4 inch  thick sturdy wall
3. Cook rice according to directions ( I used vegetable broth instead of water)  or use orzo, couscous, barley or even bean.
4. To make stuffing chop squash combine with fresh herbs and cooked wild rice, cheese and salt and pepper.  saute in a skillet 3-5 minutes
5. Place stuffing in scooped out squash sprinkle with  panko and a bit more cheese to make a nice crust.
6. Bake in baking dish for about 15 minutes at 400
7. Cover with tops and serve.

The flavor is mild so use whatever spices suit your fancy.  Make them spicy with red paper or Cajun if that suits you.  Or use basil and lemon juice. Hope you enjoy.

It was so hot during week 4, that on two occassions, we actually went swimming after work. When you’re driving to the beach, at 5:30pm, AC on high, there is not a lot of cooking happening. I was avoiding the kitchen like the plague!

And here’s what we hauled!

Week #4 meant: napa cabbage, cucumber, sugar snap peas, shelling peas, carrots, patty pan squash, black raspberries and raw cheddar.

Cucumber Salad

Super cool and refreshing – I love cucumbers in the summer! This was pretty simple and probably doesn’t warrant a recipe, but here’s what I put in there:

spinach

cucumber

grape tomatoes

avocado

scallions

chopped dill

raw cheddar

Assemble all in a bowl. Drizzle EVOO and balsamic over the salad. Top with kosher salt and coarse ground pepper to taste.

Salmon with Dill and Shelling Peas

This was a light meal that I made on the coolest day of the week! I roasted some asparagus in the oven (which goes really fast – less than 10 minutes). I shelled the peas and steamed them, then added a sprinkle of salt. They were pretty much perfect. The only item that might necessitate a recipe is the salmon. We used the dill from week 1, which is still going and growing strong.

1 pound of salmon (cut in half, feeds 2 people)

equal parts olive oil and lemon juice

2 tbsp chopped dill

salt, pepper

additional dill and lemon slices

Make marinade by mixing all ingredients in a bowl, save for the additional dill and lemon slices. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Brush marinade over fish, and if using rotisserie (like we did), assemble lemon slices and dill right before adding to basket. If you’re using a grill or oven, add lemon and dill before placing in foil. Wrap up, and cook.

Tempeh Salad

I have a soft spot for tempeh and tofu. I was vegetarian for 18 years of my life, and I still tend to lean that way. I usually eat these items for lunch (as to spare my poor husband from it!). So, I made a napa cabbage and mustard-marinated tempeh salad for lunch. Delicious.

napa cabbage, cut into ribbons

avocado

cucumber

tomatoes

scallions

raw cheddar

cilantro

3″x3″ block of tempeh, cut into cubes

equal parts dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar

EVOO

salt, pepper

Mix the dijon, balsamic and EVOO together. Cut the tempeh into bite sized pieces and pour 1/2 the mixture over the tempeh. In another bowl, assemble the cabbage, and top with layers of other veggies, and cheese. Put the tempeh on top, pour the rest of the dressing over the salad. Mangia!

  Blueberry-Lemon &  Black Raspberry-Lime Popsicles

Look, even the popsicles are melting fast!! And my husband is quick on the trigger with the camera.

Here, I just made one round of simple syrup and employed the use of my immersion blender. I blended about a cup of black raspberries with the juice and zest of one lime and some simple syrup, and poured into molds. In another bowl, I blended all remaining blueberries I had, along with the juice and zest of a lemon. Added the rest of the simple syrup and poured into molds. Freeze for about 4 hours before you try to wrangle them out. Hahaha, I have no patience and tried at hour 2. LOL.

This is a very simple, refreshing side salad that I make when I have a lot of cucumber.  I use a mandoline to do the thin slicing of the cucumber and red onion.  It makes it super fast to prepare.  Add salt to taste…I always under-salt it and have to add in more later.  I got the recipe from Everyday Food.

• 1 English cucumber, halved and thinly sliced
• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbl fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tbl olive oil
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• salt & pepper
• 2 Tbl chopped fresh dill

1. Combine cucumber, onion, lemon juice, oil, and sugar; season with salt and pepper.  Let stand 10 minutes.
2. Stir in dill.  Chill.

I love this recipe.  I stumbled across it reading SmittenKitchen blog and have made it several times since.  It was adapted loosely from Ina Garten.  Here’s a picture of the last time I made it.  It’s so moist and delicious.

• 1 1/2 cups + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour (if you’re skipping the fruit, you can also skip the last tablespoon of flour)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 extra-large eggs
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (approximately 2 lemons)
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen, thawed and rinsed (miniature wild blueberries are great for this, and pose the least risk of sinking)
• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.
2. Sift together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and oil. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
4. Mix the blueberries with the remaining tablespoon of flour, and fold them very gently into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 (+) minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
5. Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.
6. When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before flipping out onto a cooling rack. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan.
7. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in (a pastry brush works great for this, as does using a toothpick to make tiny holes that draw the syrup in better). Cool.