Storage Tips and Recipes
Every week we'll send you snapshots of veggies in your share. You can always find more recipes and storage info on our blog and website.
Mesclun: A hearty, colorful blend of red lettuce, spinach, claytonia, mizuna, red and green sorrel, and baby chard. Wash greens before eating and use within a week.
Brussels Sprouts: Brussels sprouts stalks for all shares this week! Brussels sprouts can get a bad rap from those who have eaten overcooked versions that their parents may have boiled to oblivion. Try sauteing, or better yet, roasting them to bring out their inherent sweetness. Brussels sprouts should be stored in a closed plastic bag in the crisper drawer.
Squash: Baby green kabochas for the purple bags and acorns for the yellow bags. These small kabochas are nice for roasting as they are, scooping out the insides first and giving them a nice douse of fat (olive or coconut oil or butter) inside to make the flesh juicy and flavorful. Acorn squash are excellent baked or roasted, steamed or stuffed with rice, meat, or vegetable mixtures. It's a good source of dietary fiber and potassium, as well as smaller amounts of vitamins C and B, magnesium, and manganese.
Tatsoi is a dark green Asian salad green that has a spoon like shape, a pleasant and sweet aroma flavor like a mild mustard flavor, similar to bok choi. Tatsoi is generally eaten raw or sauteed, but may be added to soups at the end of the cooking period. Store tatsoi in a plastic bag or container and use within several days.
Recipes
Chilled Sesame-Ginger Tatsoi
From the New York Times November 1995. You can use both the pac choi and the tastoi in this recipe. The cooking time for the pac choi will be a bit longer, and pac choi stems a bit longer still (still no more than 2 mins).
1.5 lb Tatsoi; washed and dried
Salt to taste
1/3 tamari
2 TB sesame oil
1 TB ginger
1 TB sugar
½ c white vinegar
4 dashes Tabasco
Black Pepper to taste
¼ c sesame seeds
Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the tatsoi, blanch for I minute, drain, immediately plunge into ice water to stop the cooking process, and drain again.
In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, sugar, vinegar and Tabasco. Mix well, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
In a large bowl, combine the tatsoi and dressing, and mix well Refrigerate until well chilled, gar nish with sesame seeds and serve.
Squash & Coconut Curry
Serves 4-6
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 medium (roughly 2 1/2 pound) butternut squash (or other squash)
3 tablespoons cooking oil, such as grapeseed or peanut oil
1 large shallot, peeled and sliced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1/2-inch knob fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 jalapeño chile, chopped (seeds optional, for extra heat)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne (optional, for extra heat)
2 small, dried red chilies (optional, for extra heat)
1 Balinese Long Pepper (optional)
1 tablespoon tamarind paste
1 14-ounce can coconut milk
1 cup water
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
Cilantro, for garnish
Cooked rice, to serve
In a small, dry skillet over medium heat, toast the coriander, cumin, and fennel seeds. Once cool, grind the toasted spices in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle.
Meanwhile, peel and dice the squash into bite-sized pieces. You should have about 5-6 cups of squash.
Warm the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the shallot, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring, until the shallots are soft and translucent. Add the chile, turmeric, cayenne (if using), small dried red chiles (if using), Balinese Long Pepper (if using), and the ground toasted spices. Stir to release fragrance, cooking for 2-3 minutes.
Add the squash, tamarind paste, coconut milk, water, and salt. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for about 45 minutes until squash is tender and just beginning to break down. The squash will thicken the curry as it cooks down. If you want an extra-thick and creamy curry, puree a cup or two of the squash with an immersion blender and mix it back into the curry.
Garnish each plate with sprigs of cilantro and serve with cooked rice.
Kale salad with Asian Pears and ginger sesame dressing
This is the perfect fall salad. It's warm and crunchy and so fresh! Feel free to add any additional veggies to this (shredded carrots and beets would be great, as would matchstick slices of kohlrabi) or keep as is.
1 bunch kale
1-2 medium Asian pears, cored and cut into slices
1/4 cup cup pecans, rough chopped
coconut oil
Salt and fresh cracked pepper
Use coconut oil to lightly coat a saute pan. Cook kale in batches over medium low heat until bright green and slightly soft. Give it a good massage before cooking. This makes it less tough to chew.
Pile kale onto a large serving plate, top with sliced pears and pecans. Dress to your preference. Sprinkle with salt and fresh cracked pepper.Serve immediately!
Maply Acorn Squash
1-2 acorn squash, halved crosswise and the seeds and strings discarded
1-2 TBS unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
Dash teaspoon ground allspice, or to taste
1-2 tablespoons dried currants
Spread the cavity of each squash half with about 1/2 teaspoon of the butter, sprinkle the halves with salt and pepper to taste, and arrange them, cut sides down, in a large baking pan. Add enough water to reach about 1/4 inch up the sides of the squash halves and bake the squash in the middle of a preheated 400°F. oven for 30 minutes. While the squash is baking, in a small saucepan combine the remaining butter, the maple syrup, the allspice, the currants, and a pinch of salt and heat the mixture over moderately low heat, stirring, until the butter is melted and the currants are plumped. Remove the squash from the oven, turn it cut sides up, and brush it generously with some of the maple mixture. Return the squash to the oven and bake it, brushing it with the maple mixture occasionally and adding more water to the pan as necessary to keep the bottom covered, for 20 to 30 minutes more, or until it is very tender. Season the squash with salt and pepper.
Kale and Brussels Sprout Salad
1 pound Brussels sprouts
1 large bunch kale, stems removed (about 5 cups)
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2/3 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup sliced almonds (you'll toast them)
For the dressing:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
2 lemons, zested and juiced
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Wash both Brussels sprouts and kale. Trim the sprouts and cut them in half lengthwise then slice the sprouts to give you fine ribbons. For the kale, discard stems and finely chop kale. Add both the sprouts and kale to a large bowl, then make the vinaigrette.
To make the vinaigrette: combine olive oil, garlic, vinegar, dijon mustard, lemon juice and salt and pepper in a medium bowl, whisking to combine. Add to salad mixture and massage the vinaigrette into the kale for two minutes. This will help to make the kale less bitter and soak in the flavors. Add in cranberries, tossing again to combine. Cover salad and place salad in refrigerator at least an hour and up to overnight. This helps the flavors soak in and breaks down the kale.
While salad is marinating or before serving, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Add sliced or chopped almonds to a baking sheet and place in oven for 10-12 minutes until slightly golden and toasted, flipping almonds once halfway through.
Once ready to serve, add toasted almonds and parmesan to salad; toss to combine then serve in salad bowls. Garnish with more parm or almonds if desired. Serves 6.
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