Week 13, Recipe 1, Quinoa Salad w/ Tomato Vinaigrette

Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 cups water
1 can black beans
1 cup corn* fresh or frozen
1/2 red pepper*, diced
1/2 cucumber*, diced
1/4 large red onion*, diced
1/2 zucchini*, diced

Vinaigrette:
1 large fresh tomato*, seeds removed, chopped
pinch chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. coriander
juice of 1 lemon
2-3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
black pepper

1. Bring quinoa to boil with water and salt. Cover and reduce to low. Cook for 20-25 minutes until most of the water is absorbed. Spread on serving dish to cool.
2. Meanwhile, combine all vinaigrette ingredients in processor until combined.
3. Combine cooled quinoa with remaining veggies and vinaigrette. You may not need all the dressing. Season to taste.

Points
Taste: 5 points
Ingredients: 6 points
Documentation: 0 points, I make versions of this all the time... I'll get a picture sooner or later.
Originality: 5 points
Total 16 points

Week 13, Non-Share Recipes, Half Sour Pickles & Pesto

Recipe 1
Half-Sour Pickles



Ingredients:
2 tsp. Pickling Spice.
1 Tbsp. dill weed
5-8 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup straight up salt
4 cups water
8-9 kirbies

Apparently there's such a thing as pickling salt. I found this out by browsing pickle sites online. Actually, when we called, Whole Foods carried pickling salt. But when I got there to pick some up, they didn't. Note to Whole Foods: carry pickling salt during pickle season. Whole Foods did, however, carry a sea salt without any additives; no iodine, no pourability chemicles, just NaCl. Picked it up.

Wash the pickles carefully and cut off any flower or stem remnants. Pack your jar as tight as possible. If you don't you're going to get some floaters, and you want the cukes to be completely covered to avoid spoiling during the whole process.

In another bowl, combine the water and pickling salt until the salt's totally dissolved.

Meanwhile, grind up the pickling spice with a mortar and pestle. I'm going to say, do it a couple of minutes, just to break up the spices a bit, you don't have to grind it to a pulp. Add mortar ingredients to the jar of cukes and then add the water right up to the top. Hopefully you don't get any floaters, but if you do, just try to jam 'em down with a clean finger. (I know... this is getting technical.)

Have a catchment bowl under the jar because it'll probably overflow a little. Let the pickles sit out at room temperature for 48 hours, uncapped. Then transfer to the fridge for another 24 hours, capped. Eat soonafter and enjoy.

PS. As you can see in the photos, we threw in the ton of peppers we got from a friend's backyard... Pickles tasted a little spicier in this batch. Only ate half a pepper though. It kind of went like, Hm, not bad. Ooooh a little spicy! OH MY GOD!!! GET ME SOME WATER!!!! HELP!!!!!!! I guess that's the downside to no labels.

Recipe 2
Pesto








These are our basil plants that we can't keep up with. I haven't collected any from our outside garden, and there is more than enough for a second batch from our window boxes already. Who wants some basil!?


2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts
3/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1 tsp. coarse salt
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Process first 4 ingredients in food processor to just short of a puree. Add Parm and process briefly again. Add 1/2 cup of oil while processing. If consistency is too thick, add more olive oil.

Week 13, Check 'er Out

The Pot o' Pickles wasn't part of the share, but it's what's growing in our garden right now. Cukes amaze me and make me want to plant a camera right next to them to see how they really get so big in one day. Next time I have nothing to do on a nice day, I may just plant a lounge chair next to the garden and watch 'em blow up. Who wants to join me?

I pawned off the Collards on my unassuming mother and felt my anxiety go down about 5 notches.

Watermelon! Let's go have a picnic.

Niagara White Grapes – Linvilla Orchards, Media, PA
Watermelon – Lancaster County, PA
Heirloom Tomatoes- Reineer Family Farms, Lancaster, PA
Red Bell Peppers- Lancaster County, PA
Collard Greens- Flaim Farms, Vineland, PA
Golden Zucchini- Landisdale Farms, Jonestown, PA
Organic Beets- Lancaster Farm Fresh, Lancaster County, PA
Hot and Sweet Peppers- Lancaster County, PA
Red and Yellow Onions- Lancaster County, PA
Cheese – Herdsman Cheddar- Style Cheese –Cherry Grove Farms, Lawrenceville, PA
Dairy Option - Nature's Soy Tofu

Week 12, Recipe 3, Cantaloupe Ice Cream

This one requires an ice cream maker machine contraption. I used the one that I've been cursing for taking up so much space in my kitchen. Just realized it's pretty cool. Although I want to research other ways to make ice cream. I have this memory of rolling around a tube filled with ice cream ingredients in Girl Scouts. I think there was rock salt in there? Sounds healthy...


2 lbs. cantaloupe* - peel, remove seeds and puree in food processor. Pour into medium bowl and stir in:
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup sugar
pinch salt, and refrigerate until sugar is dissolved. Meanwhile, in another bowl, combine and stir to dissolve the sugar:
1 cup light cream
1 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
Pour cream mixture into ice cream maker and let 'er whirl. After about 25 minutes add the cantaloupe mixture.

Points
Taste: 5 points, and I think it could even use less sugar, depending how sweet your fruit is.
Ingredients: 1 point
Originality: 3 points, Adapted from Joy of Cooking, Peach, Apricot, Mango, or Nectarine Ice Cream
Docuementation: 5 points. I know you love the frozen piece of cantaloupe as garnish.

Total: 14 points

Week 12, Recipe 2, Oriental Cabbage Raw Slaw, Veggie Burger Croque Madame w/ Heirloom Tomatoes

Here's a dinner recipe. Obviously these guys don't have to be served together, but I'm basing my points on the whole plate. End of story.








Recipe 1
Oriental Cabbage Raw Slaw Ingredients:
6 inner stalks Bok Choy*, washed and very thinly sliced
2 cups very thinly sliced Kale*
1 cup very finely shredded red cabbage*
1 medium carrot or 1/3 cup baby carrots, julienned
3 scallions, greens and whites, thinly sliced
1/4 cup minced parsley or cilantro (or both)

Dressing:
3 Tbsp. Canola Oil
2 Tbsp. Rice Vinegar
1 Tbsp Mirin or Sherry (or Red wine w/1 tsp. sugar added)
2 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp. Tamari or pinch sea salt
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds

1. Combine bok choy, kale, red cabbage, carrot, scallions, parsley/cilantro in a large mixing bowl.
2. In small bowl wisk together dressing ingredients. Pour over vegetables and toss gently to combine. Let rest 3-4 hours for flavors to combine and juices to meld.
3. Serve garnished with semame seeds.

Rounding out the plate...
Serve with:
Corn, dressed with Amish butter* and cilantro.
Veggie Burger, toasted and topped with 1 over-easy organic egg* with chopped heirloom tomatoes* and cilantro.

Points
Taste: 5 points, the slaw was even better the next day.
Ingredients: 6 points
Originality: 4 points (Slaw was adapted from Greens Glorious Greens cookbook by Johnna Albi and Catherine Walthers).
Documentation: 4 points
Total: 19 points

Week 12, Recipe 1, Curried Summer Vegetable Medley w/Coconut Rice

I made this one twice. I had to and I wanted to tweek a couple things, so here we are:



Ingredients:
1 cup basmati or jasmine rice
1 3/4 tsp. salt
15 oz. can light coconut milk
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1-2 scallion(s), white and green parts, chopped
1 Tbsp. ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 1/2 Tbsp curry powder
1 cup vegetable stock

1 medium yellow or red bell pepper, seeded and sliced 1/4" slices
1 baby eggplant, cut into 1/4" chunks
1/4 lb. green beans, trimmed
1/4 lb. button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 yellow summer squash, cut into 1/4" chunks
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4" chunks
1/2 block extra firm tofu, cubed at 1/4"(opt)
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. finely grated lime zest
Freshly squeezed lime juice, to taste
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (opt)

1. Combine rice, 1 2/3 cups water, 1 tsp. of salt and 3/4 cup of the coconut milk in saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce to low. Simmer, covered about 20 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed and rice is almost tender.

2. Heat the oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add scallion, ginger, garlic; cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in curry powder and cook 1 minute.

3. Pour veg stock, remaining coconut milk, and eggplant into skillet; stir to combine. Cover and cook 5 minutes. Add remaining vegetables, tofu (opt), 3/4 tsp. salt and pepper. Cover and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are just tender. Stir in lime zest and juice and remove from heat.

4. Spoon rice over serving plates and top with curried vegetables. Stir half the cilantro into rice, and use the rest to garnish.

I have nutrition facts for this because I stole most of it directly from Fitness magazine. In case you were wondering...

329 calories
7 protein (without tofu cubes)
56 g carbs
10 g fat (4.1 saturated)
6 g fiber

Points
Taste: 5 points. I mentioned I made it twice. These guys have the spices right on.
Using the Share Ingredients: 5 ingredients (5 points)
Originality: 1 point. Out of desperation to incorporate max ingredients, I turned to Fitness magazine, as mentioned. Although I did tweak.
Documentation: 4 points. Before and after, what more do you need.
Total: 15 points

What Week 12 Looks Like

I'm stressed out.

There is no room in my little city fridge and my recipes aren't using enough of the share!
It probably doesn't help either that I took this on knowing that Chris would dutifully try my veggie-based creations, throw a nod of approval my way, and then take a hike down to Jim's Steaks to satisfy the manbeast in him.

Anyway, this week I so kindly donated half this share to my mother-in-law. Hah. Take that! Not that it was a punishment, this share was. so. good. But a suburban-sized fridge should be a prerequisite for these kind of weeks. It's the kind of deceit that a farmer and/or farm share member probably know quite well. I've read about the squash wars in the south. Where if you don't lock your car, you may wind up with a paper bag full of squash that you'll have to do something with. It's like leaving a baby on a doorstep. It's a sad sacrifice, but you know someone else with less on their hands might be able to care for it the way the little bundle deserves.

I've even started tricking friends into coming over for dinner. At first they might think it's just a Phillies game and a couple beers they might be getting themselves into, but next thing you know... grab a plate.

The other reason for my donation is that I still had ample leftovers from last week, and so you'll see with the following recipes.../






Nectarines – Beechwood Orchards, Biglerville, PA
Yellow Peaches – Lancaster County, PA
Arugula- Graiff Farms, Newfield, PA
Bok Choy- Flaim Farms, Vineland, PA
Heirloom Tomatoes- Reineer Family Farms, Lancaster, PA
Green Beans- Lancaster County, PA
Sicilian Eggplant- Lancaster County, PA
Corn on the Cob- Cedarvale Farms, Logan Township, NJ
Hot and Sweet Peppers- Lancaster County, PA
Cheese – Choice of Garden Dill, Habanero, Old Bay or Smoked Cheddar –Hill Acres Pride, Peach Bottom PA
Dairy Option – Tofu