Every week we'll send you snapshots of veggies in your share. You can always find more recipes and storage info on our
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Sweet Salad Turnips: Tender, fresh dug Sweet Salad Turnips can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw they have a texture similar to a radish, but are not so sharp. Or slice, dice, or quarter them and saute with butter or oil. Cook until just tender and still a little crisp. Just a little salt or maybe a little bit of vinegar is all they need. Cooked with butter and given a slight drizzle of honey and even picky little eaters may gobble them up. Don't forget the greens! Turnip greens are tender and flavorful. Chop and saute with the turnips for a side dish, or cook up with other greens, or by themselves. They make a great addition to pasta sauces too.
Squash: Two varieties are going out this week: the favorited Delicata and Spaghetti squash, by popular demand! Last year at the end of the Fall/ Winter season, members responded to the survey saying they wished we grew spaghetti squash. So... this year we grew spaghetti squash for the CSA! You're getting our only distribution of it! Some members will receive delicata instead. Delicatas are a delicious heirloom variety and wholly edible. They are a crowd pleaser, with a mild but flavorful taste. Try halving it the long way, scooping out the insides, and roasting it with butter or olive oil or slicing it into rings. You can eat it as is or fill it and cook it stuffed with vegetables, meat, or grains. Both are great squash to roast and eat with little more ingredients needed. Neither variety lasts a long time, so enjoy in the couple of weeks.
Cauliflower: To plain cook cauliflower, steam it in a heavy pot of boiling, salted water for about 5 minutes to maintain its crispness and nutty flavor. Do not overcook as no one enjoys mushy cauliflower. I love cauliflower roasted in the oven with olive oil, and a little blue cheese melted on top (add about halfway through cooking). I learned this from a former employee of ours. Store it in a plastic bag in your refrigerator.
Shallots are a member of the alium family being similar to both garlic and onions. They grow in cloves similar to garlic and have a sweet, mild flavor like a sweet or Spanish onion. They are well known for their ability to be caramelized or cooked down to where the sugars are reduced or concentrated. When eaten raw, they are much sweeter and milder than even sweet onions. You can slice them thin and saute them in recipes that benefit from a sweet, mild onion flavor. When minced, they are fantastic in homemade vinaigrette and pan sauces. Store them in a cool, dark place.
Edamame: Soybean varieties grown for eating the beans from the pod are called edamame. Long common in the Japanese diet, in recent years edamame has been gaining popularity in the US and now I see kids in daycare with their little containers of beans for lunch. And no wonder because it's incredibly easy to prepare, the beans are delicious, and they pack a lot of nutrition into a very small package. A half cup of shelled edamame (from approx 1.25 cups of pods) contains 9 g fiber, 11 g protein, and a good amount of Vitas A and C. Edamame freezes really well too. Just blanch pods in boiling water for 2-3 mins, drain and cool in ice water, and freeze in a single layer, then bag. Edamame should not sit in the fridge for days before you get around to eating it. Like all beans they are better the fresher they are. If you won't eat them in the next few days, freeze them!
Red Beets: Yellow bags receive some red beets this week. You'll notice some pretty enormous beets in your bag! Large ones are about 2 pounds each, or you may receive 2 - 3 smaller ones. If you're a borscht eater, this is the beet for you! If not, I've included other beet recipes below.
Featured Recipes
Caramelized Shallots
What to do with all the shallots besides tossing them into a stir fry? Make these caramelized shallots! This recipe, from the Smitten Kitchen, is a great way to maximize the sweetness of the shallots.
6 tbs unsalted butter
2 pounds fresh shallots, peeled, with roots intact
3 tbs sugar
3 tbs good red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbs chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Melt the butter in a 12" oven-proof saute pan, add the shallots and sugar, and toss to coat. Cook over medium heat for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the shallots start to brown. Add the vinegar, salt and pepper and toss well.
Place the saute pan in the oven and roast for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the size of the shallots, until they are tender. Season, to taste, sprinkle with parsley, and serve hot.
Pasta with Edamame and Tomatoes
8 ounces uncooked whole wheat linguine
1-1/2 cups frozen shelled edamame
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup white wine or reduced-sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
Cook linguine according to package directions, adding edamame during the last 5 minutes; drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.In a large nonstick skillet, saute onions in oil until tender. Add the tomatoes, garlic, oregano and salt. Add wine and reserved cooking liquid; cook and stir for 2 minutes.Add linguine and edamame; cook and stir 2-3 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Sprinkle with cheese and basil; toss to coat.
Twice-Cooked Beets in Chianti Glaze
The wine glaze both balances the natural sweetness of the beets and intensifies the savory beet flavor. This dish and perhaps some smashed new potatoes would make a fine meal with a roast chicken or other fowl. From the October 2003 Bon Appetit. Makes 6 servings
8 2 1/2-inch-diameter beets, trimmed, scrubbed
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium leeks or a bunch of small (white and pale green parts only), trimmed, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
2 cups Chianti or other dry red wine
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss beets with 2 tablespoons oil in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Roast beets uncovered until tender when pierced with knife, about 1 hour. Cool beets slightly, then slip off peel. Cut beets into quarters.
Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add leeks and saute until translucent and tender, about 12 minutes. Add beets to skillet; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Saute 5 minutes. Add Chianti and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until wine almost evaporates and glaze coats beets, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add butter and stir until melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl and serve.
Bake them in foil packets and moisten them with the savory juice that accumulates inside as they bake.
Chocolate Beet Cake
It's a sure-fire way to get your kids to eat their beets!
2 c pureed cooked beets
1/2 c chocolate chops
1/2 c cocoa powder
1/2 c (1 stick) butter
1 c sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 c whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Preheat oven 350F. Grease a bundt pan.
Steam 5 or 6 beets until tender, peel and puree until quite smooth. Set aside.
In a sauce pan, melt chocolate, cocoa, and butter together until just smooth. Using a mixer, beat eggs until light yellow and very foamy. Slowly beat in sugar until very fluffy and pale yellow. Combine beets, vanilla, and chocolate. Whisk flour, soda, and salt. Fold into eggs in this order: 1/3 chocolate beets, 1/2 flour, alternating until all is incorporated. Use a light quick hand with a rubber spatula, cutting down into the center and scooping up towards the outer edge of the bowl. Combine well, but don't over mix.
Pour into greased pan and bake until a skewer comes out clean from the center; at least 35 minutes, up to 50. Watch carefully after 35 minutes. Cool on a rack, then loosen the center with a knife and turn out onto a plate.
Drizzle with ganache:
Over a double boiler heat 2/3 c milk or cream to a bare simmer. Add 5 oz bittersweet chocolate. Stir to melt, adding more milk or chocolate to get a smooth pourable consistency.
Beet and Cabbage Borscht
Borscht began its existence in Eastern Europe from trimmings of cellared vegetables consumed throughout the winter months. Most families had a container, usually a kettle or stove pot, kept outside to store those trimmings. Around the first spring thaw, that pot was placed on the fire and cooked into a soup-like meal. One of the primary vegetables of the Slavic diet consumed during the winter months was the beet but other vegetables such as cabbage, potato and carrots were often included. The beet color was most predominant and hence, the recipe changed into what is traditionally known as a beet soup. Borscht is a great cold weather way to enjoy those winter veggies. There are many variations of borscht. This recipe was adapted from Vegan Express: Featuring 160 Recipes for Quick, Delicious, and Healthy Meals, by Nava Atlas.
3 Tbs sunflower oil
3 c potatoes, peeled, chopped
1 c parsnip, chopped
3 c chopped cabbage (about 1/2 cabbage in this week's share)
1 large onion, chopped
8 cups (or more) canned broth (chicken, veggie, miso consumme (see below) or water)
3 c beets, peeled, chopped
1 c chopped tomatoes (drained) or tomato puree
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
Sour cream or plain yogurt
Chopped fresh parsley
Lemon wedges
Heat oil in heavy soup pot over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, cabbage and onion and saute until cabbage softens, about 5 minutes. Add broth, beets and tomatoes. Bring soup to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.
Working in small batches, puree 4 cups of soup in blender; return to remaining soup in pot. If desired, add more broth by 1/2 cupfuls to thin soup. Add lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with dollop of sour cream or yogurt; sprinkle with parsley. Serve, passing lemon wedges separately.
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