Farm Share Friday #6

A glance in our share bin this week, and you know we are heading for midsummer. The bounty included kale, lettuce, salad mix, green onions, Swiss chard, cabbage, zucchini, mushrooms and potatoes.

I admit it is still sometimes a challenge to use up all my greens even after all these years as a CSA shareholder!

One of my favourite ways to use up a whole bunch of chard or spinach is to toss them into a quiche. To keep things super simple, I often make a crustless quiche (no fiddling around with a pastry crust!)

Quick Crustless Quiche
This is a truly crustless quiche - not like the other "crustless" variety that forms a crust while it bakes. Serve this with a tossed salad and you will use up lots of salad greens too!

Time: 60 minutes
Serves: 4-6

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch of spinach or chard, chopped
3 eggs
3/4 cup milk
4 slices regular or turkey bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper

Preparation:

1. In a large frying pan, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil until tender. Add spinach or chard and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until greens are wilted.

2. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and milk together. Add bacon, cheese, parsley, salt, pepper, and spinach mixture, stirring gently until well combined.

3. Pour into a greased 9" pie plate and bake at 375° F for 30-45 minutes or until golden brown on top and knife inserted in centre comes out clean.

P.S. My new camera arrived today, so photos shall return to the blog next week!

Farm Share Friday #5

I've finally gotten a chance to come back and edit this post!

This week's share included: salad mix, strawberries, asparagus, lettuce, cilantro, potatoes, cabbage, and green onions.

I confess I promptly gave the cilantro to my neighbour - I abhor the stuff; she loves it. If you happen to be in the latter category, it's great in curries!

I've pretty much done my "standard stuff" with the veggies this week - green salad, potato salad, sauteed asparagus (I tucked some leftover Garlic-Sesame Asparagus into a Hummus and Veggie Wrap for lunch today).

I was pleased to see a cabbage in our share so early in the season. These cabbages are far superior to their grocery store counterparts - smaller and more tender.

Here is one of my favourite summer uses for cabbage (still no camera, sorry guys!:

Colourful Cabbage Salad
Moat of the prep time for this salad is chopping the vegetables. Use a food processor to shred the cabbage - this will speed your prep time considerably!

Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 6-8 as a side dish

1 *small* cabbage, shredded (or approx. 1/2 a large cabbage)
1/2 a red onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, shredded
1/2 a medium red pepper, finely chopped
6 strips regular or turkey bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, cut into small (1/2" or less) cubes
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp honey mustard
1 tsp celery seed
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped fine

1. In a large bowl, combine cabbage, red onion, carrots, red pepper, bacon and cheese.

2. In small bowl, combine remaining ingredients and mix until well combined.

3. Pour dressing over cabbage mixture and stir until vegetables are well coated with dressing.

4. Transfer to serving dish. Can be served immediately or prepared up to 24 hrs in advance.

Farm Share Friday #4

This week's share included a container of delicious organic strawberries - YUM!! Salad mix, kale, spinach, garlic scapes, asparagus and potatoes made up the remainder of the share.

[Note: no photos this week as my digital camera has kicked the bucket!]

So far I have not done anything terribly original with my veggies this week. Greens have been used in salad, asparagus sauteed, strawberries sliced and eaten by the bowlful.

I did end up making a delicious cake last weekend with the zucchini from last week's share. I think this Chocolate Zucchini Cake is possibly the most decadent use for zucchini I know! It's been a family favourite for a few years - perfect washed down with an ice-cold glass of milk on a hot summer evening.

Garlic scapes are the part of the garlic that grows above ground; it's cut off to encourage the bulbs to grow larger. Scapes can be prepared similar to green beans. I think I might try a potato-and-scape salad or possibly a scape and spinach quiche. I should have a recipe to share by next week!

Kale, kale, what to do with kale? It's good in soup but this time of year I'm looking for some more warm-weather friendly alternatives. I might try this Sweet Pepper Pasta Toss with Kale, or see what I can come up with on my own, perhaps using this Kale with Garlic and Bacon recipe as a springboard!

Farm Share Friday #3

This week's share of the harvest included asparagus, zucchini, mushrooms, spinach, lettuce, salad mix, radishes and potatoes.

We had quite the early summer feast for dinner last night:

Turkey Burgers
Baked Potatoes
Sauteed *mushrooms and onions
Moroccan-Inspired *Carrot and *Parsnip Salad (recipe below)

*from our CSA share

Local strawberries with vanilla ice cream
(I was dismayed to see that the local strawberries were priced $1.00 higher than the U.S. imports!! Please buy them anyway!)

I will use the spinach to making more Lemony Chicken and Spinach Pasta - for which my husband will thank me profusely! I think the zucchini may become zucchini bread - or possibly chocolate zucchini cake, depending on how ambitious I feel on the weekend.

Moroccan-Inspired Carrot and Parsnip Salad
This is mildly spiced - if you like it hot, add more paprika and cumin. I used green onions in this dish because I still had plenty on hand from last week's CSA share, but you could use 1/4 of chopped fresh parsley instead.

Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4-6 as a side dish

5 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into coins
2 parsnips, peeled and sliced into coins
3 green onions (scallions), chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp orange juice
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tsp honey mustard
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper

Preparation:

1. Cook carrots and parsnips in boiling water until carrots are tender-crisp (don't overcook the carrots - they should still have a bit of "crunch" to them; the parsnips will be a bit softer). Drain.

2. While carrots and parsnips are cooking, combine remaining ingredients. Pour dressing over cooked vegetables and mix well.

3. Chill before serving (tastes best if refrigerated overnight to allow flavours to blend).

RECIPE: Rhubarb Muffins

Judging by how quickly these are disappearing from my kitchen, this one is a winner! The rhubarb is from our CSA share.

Time: 20 minutes prep
20 minutes baking

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups finely chopped rhubarb

Topping:
1 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Preparation:

1. In a medium bowl, combine flours, brown sugar, soda, powder and salt. Mix well.

2. In a separate small bowl, combine egg, vanilla, oil, buttermilk and rhubarb.

3. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add rhubarb mixture and gently stir until just moistened.

4. Spoon mixture into greased muffin cups.

5. Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over muffin tops, pressing topping lightly into muffin batter.

6. Bake at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched.

"Use What You've Got" Tip:
-If you don't have buttermilk on hand, put 1/2 tbsp vinegar in the bottom of your measuring cup, then add regular milk to make 3/4 cup
-I've also used half milk/half plain yogurt or half milk/half sour cream in place of buttermilk with good success (in baked goods)

Farm Share Friday #2

This week's share was similar to last week's: asparagus, cucumber, parsnips, spring onions, salad mix, lettuce, radishes and red potatoes. I confess I still have a bit of arugula and bok choi left over from last week, plus the rhubarb and parsnips!

[Apologies for another ghastly photo from Tuesday's cell-phone-camera photo session. Yes, I have new camera batteries now!]

The asparagus always seems to go first at our house - we stir-fried it again to have with our Turkey Burgers (this time I used lemon juice and olive oil rather than sesame oil).

I haven't gotten much further with this week's share other than to make green salads. I'm not much for radishes, so I think I'll let my hubby snack on those. I am definitely making those rhubarb muffins this weekend - I'll share the recipe here once I have it worked out to my satisfaction.

The parsnips (now that I have 4 of them to use up!) will be my big experiment. I want to do something summery with them, rather than a more fall-like roasted vegetable dish (yes, I know I said I was going to roast them last week, but now I've changed my mind since I'm firmly entrenched in my summer cooking mode). Stay tuned for what I hope will be an innovative and tasty recipe!

Farm Share Friday #1

Picking up the first share of the season always feels like a momentous occasion to me! Every week is a new surprise as I'm never exactly sure what will be waiting in our bin when I arrive.

This is our vegetable booty for the week:

Boston lettuce, spinach, basil, rhubarb, cucumber, green onions, parsnips, bok choi, asparagus and arugula!

The greens and cucumber will all get used up in salads. I will make either muffins or a cake with the rhubarb. I had planned on roasting the parsnips with some other vegetables, but after being unseasonably cool for the past few days it's shot up to 30 degrees Celsius today ("feels like" 38!) Luckily the parsnips will keep just fine until this little heat wave passes by. We had the asparagus stir-fried last night to accompany baked fish and vegetable pilaf.

Garlic - Sesame Asparagus

Time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 (as a side dish)

Ingredients:

1 bundle of asparagus
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper

Preparation:

Trim asparagus ends and cut into 1" pieces. In a small frying pan, saute the garlic and sesame oil for 20-30 seconds, then add the asparagus, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until tender-crisp (5-10 minutes). Serve immediately.

7 Tips for New Community Shared Agriculture Shareholders

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been a CSA shareholder for almost a decade now. I have learned quite a few things over the years! With the recent surge in interest in eating locally, more and more people are signing on for shares with a local farm. Admittedly, choosing to participate in a CSA is not quite as quick and simple as grabbing items off the shelf from the grocery store. For the minimal investment of time and effort that is required, I feel the rewards are well worth it!

Here are a few tips to make the CSA experience as enjoyable as possible:

1. Know the rules/requirements of your CSA.
While most CSAs work in a similar manner, there are slight differences from one farm to another. Make sure you know if you are supposed to bring your own bags to the pick up depot, or if bags/bins are provided by the farm. Familiarize yourself with cancellation policies if you will be out of town (most farms provide credit to carry over to subsequent weeks if they are notified in advance that you will be away, but don't give credit if you simply forget to pick up your share!)

2. Set aside time on share pickup day to "process" your share.
Not only will you need to go pick up your share (unless you are getting home delivery!) but you will need to do something with it once you've got it. CSA vegetables are usually dirtier than grocery-store vegetables, and they don't come packaged up ready to go in the fridge! I usually need to spend about a half hour sorting and cleaning our weekly share (I don't wash greens until I am ready to use them, but items like Swiss Chard I trim to make storage easier)

3. Make space in your refrigerator.
You will be receiving a large quantity of vegetables at one time - they are NOT all going to fit in your vegetable crisper (trust me!) I usually leave the bottom shelf of my fridge open so I have plenty of space to store my weeks' worth of veggies. You don't want to have to cram them into a too-tight space; that will crush delicate items such as greens, and they will decay faster.

4. Store everything properly.
Nothing is more annoying than having to throw out half a share's worth of spoiled vegetables (I speak from experience here!) I have had great success using large Ziploc freezer bags to store my vegetables in. They are large enough to accommodate the generous amounts of each veggie typically received in a CSA share, and I can easily see what's in each bag when it's in my fridge. Most items will stay fresh for at least a week when stored this way. I wash and reuse the bags, so it's been more than a year since I've had to buy a new box! If I know in advance that we won't be able to use up all our items that week (for example, if we will be out of town part of the week), I will freeze a few items (usually greens like spinach and chard) so they won't spoil. As a bonus, at the end of the season I have some local organic vegetables already stored in the freezer to see me through the beginning of the winter.

5. Prioritize your eating.
Each week, after I finish processing our share, I make a list of all the vegetables we have received. I put the more delicate items (such as greens) at the top, and the hardier items (like root vegetables) at the bottom. I then focus on using up the "top of list" items earlier in the week, so that nothing goes to waste.

6. Be willing to experiment with unfamiliar vegetables.
When I was new to the CSA experience, I was confronted with a lot of vegetables I had never eaten before - arugula, mizuna, Swiss Chard, and garlic tops to name a few. It was a bit intimidating at first, but I've learned how to prepare all these "strange" vegetables over the years. Most CSAs provide recipe suggestions for their shareholders. There are even some cookbooks out there written specifically for shareholders, such as Farmer John's Cookbook: The Real Dirt on Vegetables and many others focusing on seasonal vegetables, such as The Garden Fresh Vegetable Cookbook. I have gotten a lot of mileage out of a 25-cent copy of the Joy of Gardening Cookbook that I picked up at a yard sale a few years ago! If you get to know your fellow shareholders, they are likely to have some suggestions as well.

7. Enjoy your seasonal eating experience!
It is a real pleasure to enjoy the changing contents of my CSA share over the course of the growing season. I feel more connected to the whole process, and my kids (who were babies when we signed on with our first CSA) have always had a good understanding of what eating seasonally is all about.

Cooking, Gardening, and Local Eating (oh my!)

Yes, blog posts have been sparse around here lately. I have been spending a lot of time in the garden in the last couple of weeks, and other things have sort of fallen by the wayside (cooking and blogging both falling into that "other things" category!)

Fortunately, my tomatoes, peppers, herbs, and flowers are all tucked safely into their garden beds, so expect to see 2-3 posts a week again. Starting next week, Fridays here at the Speeding Kitchen will be Farm Share Fridays. I have been participating in Community Shared Agriculture (or CSA, also known as Community Supported Agriculture) for close to a decade now (most of that time with Plan B Organic Farm), and will be picking up my first share of the season early next week. So, on Fridays from June 6th until sometime in October, I will be focusing on how to enjoy all the veggies for that week with a minimum of fuss and waste. Even if you're not a CSA shareholder, I'm sure you'll find some useful ideas for using fresh, seasonal produce!