Did you notice the tasty-looking side-dish I paired with the previous post? I first tasted this salad at a cooking demonstration last fall, given by my good friend and talented chef Hilla Abel. I was immediately hooked. So I started making it – a lot – and I haven’t stopped. It has everything you can ask for: it’s a cinch to make, has a little spice, a little sweet, it’s healthy, it’s filling…and it’s DELICIOUS! While you can use any hearty green, I’m partial to collards. Collard greens are a little over-looked these days, with all the incredible press kale seems to be getting, but I would advise you to try them for this dish. Once the leaves are washed and de-stemmed (see the brilliant “quick and dirty method” Hilla demonstrates here) chiffonade into wide ribbons.

Toast a handful of nuts in a dry skillet. I’ve used all different nuts, depending on what I have in the freezer at the time. In an ideal world, I would use sliced almonds or pine nuts, but walnuts or pecans work as well.

In the mean time, make the dressing by mixing together 1 minced garlic clove, and 2-3 T each of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and honey. Add a hefty pinch of red pepper flakes (of course you can use less if you’re sensitive to heat). Toss the greens with the dressing and a handful of raisins.

When the nuts are fragrant, golden brown and hot, toss into the bowl. I like how the hot nuts wilt the greens. On one hand, it’s best if the salad marinates for a bit before serving, but on the other hand, I like when the greens are a bit tough. Either way, the salad keeps wonderfully, and can be made ahead of time. Thanks Hilla for a great recipe that is now part of my rotation!

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I threw on a pot of water to cook the lentils, and heated a skillet to sauté some vegetables as a base for the lentils. I ended up with a great quick braise of onion, garlic, carrot and rutabaga (from our CSA) with white wine and herbes de Provence, to which I added the cooked lentils and a little balsamic vinegar. Thrown on the re-heated cooked pasta and garnished with crumbled goat cheese, another episode of clean-out-your-fridge-dinner is complete!

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Steel-cut oatmeal has been a long-time favorite Winter breakfast for me, but lately I’ve been branching out, inspired by the fact that we have a ton of other whole grains in our pantry such as oat groats, spelt berries, wheat berries, farro and rye berries.  These grains all came from Cayuga Pure Organics, a bean and grain farm located near Ithaca, NY that is a provider for our CSA.

I’ve been treating these grains the way I would treat steel cut oatmeal, and it’s my new favorite way to start off the day! Follow these instructions to turn any whole grain into a warm, hearty breakfast flavored just to your liking.

Instructions:

Heartier whole grains such as rye berries and wheat berries cook quicker if you soak them overnight prior to cooking. A single serving is about 1/2 cup of dried grain. Just measure out the grain and put it in a bowl covered by at least a couple of inches of water (preferably filtered). Cover, and leave overnight.  The next morning (or some hours later), strain the grain and put it in a heavy pot with water in a 2:1 water:grain ratio.  Don’t worry about using too much water as this type of grain doesn’t turn into a porridge, the individual rye berries retain their integrity so you can just strain the grain when it’s cooked through, or fish it out with a slotted spoon.

Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, until they tastes done.  These rye berries took about 40 minutes. They’re still al dente even after all that cooking, and they’ll pop in your mouth when chewed. At that point, you can add whatever flavorings you want, sweet or savory.   I like a touch a sweetness, so here I grabbed a small handful of raisins and sunflower seeds and it was perfect. Other great sweet options include maple syrup, honey, cinnamon, vanilla, walnuts, almonds, cashews, fresh apples, bananas, etc.  For the more savory side, Alexa adds things like sesame oil, soy sauce, steamed vegetables, balsamic vinegar, and pine nuts.  What flavor combinations come to your mind? We’d love to hear your favorites, it’s going to be a long Winter and we’ve got a lot of grain to get through!

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I am a sucker for the polenta/mushroom combo, a flavor profile you’ve probably seen before on this blog. In terms of the mushrooms, I often choose shitake and maitake, which can be expensive, but worth it when you factor in the immune-boosting properties. Just chop them up, and sauté over medium/low heat with the tips of the garlic,  salt and pepper, thyme (if you have it) and olive oil. Mushrooms give of a lot of moisture when cooking, and I find that cooking slowly over low heat insures they soften up without burning.

The Tuv Ha’aretz Forest Hills CSA we belong to also organizes shares of grain, bean and flour from Cayuga Pure Organics, an Ithaca-based company. They offer both cornmeal (finely ground) and polenta (coarsely ground). If I’m planning on keeping the resultant cornmeal soft and smooth, I use the finely ground cornmeal. If I’m planning on baking it or cutting it into squares (like this other mushroom polenta recipe), I use the coarsely ground cornmeal. Either way, cornmeal is something you want to try to buy organic, since corn is often genetically modified and sprayed with tons of pesticides. It also keeps pretty much forever, so you don’t have to worry about it going bad if it’s kept either in the fridge or freezer. I find the ratio for creamy polenta is a little more than 2:1, so if I’m cooking 1 cup of cornmeal (which will serve 2 for a main course), I use about 2.5 cups of water. Bring the water to a boil, and whisk in the polenta. I like to use a flat whisk, but whatever you have that you can keep whisking with will be fine. If there are clumps, keep whisking, and it it becomes too think, just add more water. When the cornmeal has thickened, add the roasted garlic, salt, about a tablespoon of olive oil and more water if needed. Whisk until smooth, top with sautéed mushrooms, and voila – a delicious, vegan side dish!

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This is a synergistic salad, meaning the resulting dish is much greater than the sum of its parts. Not that the ingredients on their own aren’t fabulous – I love them all. But together, they meld into a salad that is just out of this world.  The first time I had this dish I fell in love with the flavors. The salad is based on a recipe from my dear friend Victoria, whose mother Josiane is Moroccan. In the original version, the carrots are par-boiled and chopped. While it’s not an extremely complicated step, I’ve removed the need to cook the carrots, and instead rely on The Cuisinart, and possibly my favorite attachement – the shredder. Once you peel the carrots, a quick zip through the shredder creates a beautiful confetti of orange.

This salad is a perfect combination of bold flavors, and you can really play with and vary the proportions of each: GO CRAZY!  If you want to use a whole bunch of parsley, go for it! If you’re feeling like you want it more garlicky, as you wish. You won’t be disappointed, as I have yet to use any measuring utensils when making this salad, and all times it’s come out perfectly. The one thing I will say, is that it is essential that you use a good amount of whole cumin seed and toast it before tossing with the salad. This will give the spice a warm earthiness that contrasts nicely with the freshness of the other ingredients.

Moroccan Carrot Cumin Salad

• Carrots, peeled and shredded
• Garlic – diced or put through a press*
• Parsely – cleaned and chopped
• Cumin seed – toasted
• Lemon juice
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients. If you make this salad the evening before, hold off on the olive oil and store in the fridge. Toss with olive oil an hour before serving. Serve cold or room temperature.

* I used to be majorly anti-garlic press. I was ridiculously rigid about having to chop or dice my garlic by knife, on a board…until one day, I took note of Cooks Illustrated’s review of the best garlic presses. The next time I was at a kitchen supply store, I bought their recommendation, and (let me tell you) it kinda changed my life. Sure, there are still times when I want to be intimate with my garlic, but on a day-to-day basis, I just smash a clove with my knife, peel the clove, throw it in my press, and squeeze. It’s a breeze.  (Couldn’t resist!)

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Poof…I’m back! It’s CSA season, and in July, that means zucchini. And a lot of ‘em. One of my favorite ways to prepare zucchini is inspired by a classic appetizer from The Red Cat. When I was working my way through grad school in my 20s, my evenings and weekends were spent hostessing at The Red Cat, a friendly restaurant in NYC’s Chelsea. One of the perks of being a hostess was that at the end of our shift, we could order up to $22 off the menu (in lieu of tips – It was my kind of deal). After my glass of wine, I had about $15 dollars left to spend on food, and most nights, I used part of that to buy their Sauteed Zucchini with Toasted Almonds and Pecorino. I’ve used this dish as an inspiration many-a-time, and I was jonesing for it after getting 5 pieces of zucchini in last night’s CSA share. I took many liberties with the original recipe, which calls for pecorino and almonds. I only had parmigiano and walnuts, which worked fine. I also wanted to work in some onions, chives, and garlic (all which came in last night’s CSA box as well), so I did.

Warm Zucchini Salad

• 2-3 pieces of zucchini,  julienned (I shredded tonight in the Cuisinart. It went okay (maybe a little wattery). In the future I might take the extra time to julienne properly.)
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• chives
• Walnuts, roasted
• Parmigiano, shaved
• Olive oil, salt, pepper

1. Saute the onion and garlic in some olive oil until soft and fragrant
2. Add zucchini, salt and pepper; saute for no more than 1-2 minutes
3. Toss with walnuts, plate, and top with shaved parmigiano

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A few months ago we had a revelation: There was a beach…IN QUEENS! Jacob Riis Park is due south of us, and (without traffic) only 30 minutes away. Needless to say with the heatwaves this summer we’ve been spending many-a-weekend there. We always pack our own food, since the concessions there aren’t that hot. This past weekend we were meeting foodie friends there for a beach picnic. With the abundance of CSA produce in my fridge from the past week, I whipped up these 3 salads. Together with some sandwiches, homemade hummus, and tomato salad that our friends made, we were SET! EVERYTHING below except the red cabbage and jalepeno is from our CSA.  Local food at a local beach, nothing beats it.

Peach Salsa

• 4-5 peaches, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1/2 red pepper, diced
• garlic chives and parsley, chopped
• 1 japepeno, seeds/ribs removed, diced
• Rice wine vinegar
• Salt, pepper

1. Mix all ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Easiest recipe ever.

Red Cabbage Slaw

• 1/2 large or 1 small red cabbage, cored and shredded
• 1 red pepper, julienned
• Parsley
• 1 T Dijon mustard
• 1 T Apple cider vinegar
• 1 T Grapeseed oil
• Salt, pepper

1. Toss sliced cabbage and red pepper with 1 teaspoon salt, set aside for 10 minutes
2. In a small bowl, mix mustard and vinegar, whisk in oil
3. When cabbage softens a bit, toss with dressing, and parsley, season with pepper

Potato Salad

• Quartered new potatoes, steamed until JUST done
• 1 T whole seed mustard
• 1 T white wine vinegar
• 2 T olive oil
• Parsley, salt, pepper

1. Mix mustard, oil and vinegar in a large bowl.
2. When potatoes are just about done, remove from steamer and place in bowl with dressing. Toss, and set aside for 5 minutes.
3. Toss with parsley and season with salt and pepper.

Matthew’s photos of Jacob Riis Beach, our new summer home:

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It’s not August until the tomato crop comes in, so it’s no surprise that this month’s Tigress Can Jam ingredient is the tomato. Fittingly, Golden Earthworm delivered 5 pounds of globe tomatoes with our regular vegetable share this week. Since I’m already getting a large share of plum tomatoes in a couple of weeks that will be devoted to “regular” canned crushed tomatoes, I wanted to have fun with these and try something I’ve been wanting to make for a while.  I have to admit, I was always a little reluctant to make homemade ketchup since it seemed quite labor intensive. But then I thought about how AWESOME it would be to top my NY State BOG burgers with NY State ketchup, and all hesitancy went out the window. In the recipe below, the tomatoes, onions and garlic are all from Golden Earthworm. In the end, it wasn’t that labor intensive. Sure there’s a food mill involved, and you steep spices in the vinegar before you use it, but these steps are worth it!

Homemade Tomato Ketchup

• 1.5 teaspoons celery seeds
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 whole allspice
• 2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 4 pounds tomatoes, cored and chopped roughly
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 3 cloves garlic, halved
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt

1. Tie celery seeds, cloves and allspice in cheesecloth, creating a spice bag
2. Combine vinegar and spice bag, bring to a boil over high heat. When boiling, turn off heat, and let stand for 25 minutes. Discard spice bag.
3. Meanwhile in a large saucepan, combine tomatoes, onion, garlic and cayenne. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and boil gently for 20 minutes. Add vinegar and cook for 30 minutes.
4. Transfer mixture, little by little, to a food mill, cranking to extract all liquid. Continue until all the tomatoes have been through the food mill. Discard solids.
5. Return liquid to saucepan, and add sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and and boil gently until volume is reduced by half, and the ketchup thickens up. This will take around 45 minutes.
6. Prepare canner, jars, lids. Read THIS if you don’t know what I’m talking about.
7. Ladle hot ketchup into 1/2 pint jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Remove air bubbles, adjusting headspace if necessary. Wipe rim, center lid, and twist on screw band.
8. Process in boiling water canner for 15 minutes. Remove and cool.

It really tasted like ketchup! I expected it to be more runny, or more tomato-y, but it was very savory, a little sweet, and actually tasted exactly like Heinz (in a good way). However, which would you prefer?! I’m so excited to be able to stock my pantry with this version!

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