Homemade mozzarella

It would never have occurred to me to make mozzarella from scratch until Alice & I both read Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle this summer. It was an interesting book, and got us thinking even more about eating seasonally and locally, including canning our own produce.

One of the striking things in the book was how casually they make cheese. They even gave a website to order cheesemaking supplies from, so we went ahead and ordered a kit for $25. It comes with citric acid, rennet tablets, salt, a thermometer, cheesecloth, and instructions. The only part of this that's actually hard to find separately is the vegetable rennet, which comes in 10 tablets, enough to turn 40 gallons of milk into mozzarella. We will order this separately in the future if we run out.

The recipes are available online here and here for mozzarella. I think we've tried it a total of six times now, with 4 successes and 2 failures. The failures we attribute to excessively pasteurized milk, and we have been keeping a list of brands that work and brands that don't (Trader Joe's and Farmland have been good, Shoprite and Borden's have not). When it works, it really takes about half an hour to turn a gallon of whole milk into about ¾ pound of cheese. The process can be summarized as curdling the milk with citric acid and rennet, then squeezing out the whey while heating it up until it is firm enough to knead. We've made ricotta twice, too, which is even easier, you just curdle milk with citric acid (which initially looks as disgusting as it sounds) and strain it through cheesecloth. The ricotta ends up drier than store-bought, but we think it may be more like the Italian style.

One trick with making mozzarella is knowing when to add the salt. The first time, I added the salt to the milk initially, and I think it came out with the whey. I think the secret is to add the salt at the very last stage, when the whey is almost entirely out, but the consistency has not yet changed to the glossy, resilient final product.

It's fun to make and watch, and good, but not noticeably better than other fresh mozzarella. As for the locavore credibility, I'm not sure it save you much having the milk transported in gallon form from the dairy, instead of being transported as much more compact cheese. If you're comparing local milk with imported mozzarella, sure, you are eating a more local product if you make it yourself, but if the sources are comparably distant, my guess is that you would have a lower impact buying it as cheese.

Truffled Corn and Wild Mushroom Fettuccine

1/2 lb pancetta or bacon, cut into 1 inch strips
2 cups corn kernels from 3-4 ears of corn
2 1/2 teaspoons of salt (not tablespoons)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound mixed wild mushrooms (such as wood ear, chanterelle, and/or shiitake, stems wiped clean, and sliced)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 lb fresh fettuccine
1 tablespoon white truffle oil, or more to taste
3 ounces parmigiano-reggiano, grated (about 3/4 cup)
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook until crispy, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels and drain. Let cool and coarsely chop
2. Add the corn, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and the pepper to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are tender and give off the juices, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat, add the pancetta, and cover to keep warm.
3. Meanwhile, bring 1 gallon water and the remaining teaspoons salt to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add the fettuccine and cook, stirring occasionally to separate the noodles, until al dente, 4-5 minutes for fresh, or about 10 minutes for dried. Drain the pasta and return to pot.
4. Add the corn mixture and truffle oil and toss to coat evenly. Add the cheese and basil and toss again. Serve hot.

From Chad and Becky, from their Emeril cookbook (don't know which one).

Bounty

• Cilantro
• Chard
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Onions
• Parsley
• Peppers
• Hot Peppers
• Potatoes
• Scallions
• Summer Squash
• Tomatoes
• Grape Tomatoes
• Heirloom Tomatoes
• Watermelon

Heirloom tomatoes!

• Beans
• Chard
• Cilantro
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Peppers
• Hot Peppers
• Potatoes
• Grape Tomatoes
• Tomatoes
• Shallots

Plus some cut flowers.

Bubble and Squeak

We don't post our old standbys often enough. This is one, that's simple, filling, and doesn't need any meat or side dishes. Bubble and squeak is just fried potatoes and cabbage. I'll often add onions or garlic, and maybe sausage if we have it around. Tonight we used up some grated beets we had, so it was nearly red flannel hash. It's good winter food, but we get potatoes and cabbage through much of the late summer and early fall from the CSA, so we'll make it almost any time. This is probably the first week we got both this year.

Hail damage!

Note from the farm this week:

CROP UPDATE
We had a severe thunderstorm on July 23rd that included large hail. We had hail as large as 1", and know that it damaged the tomato, scallions, beets, summer squash and early watermelon crops, and destroyed completely the remaining chard and summer lettuce. We are still assessing the damage and will keep members apprised via the "This Week Page" on our website. This is the first time we have had damaging hail in our 17-year history! But never fear; we're still open for business!

So, no more lettuce, but we got:

• Cabbage
• Garlic
• Onions
• Peppers
• Potatoes
• Summer Squash
• Tomatoes
• Grape Tomatoes

Everything looked pretty good, but the zucchini (above) was a bit pockmarked from the hail.

Another view of this blog

Salad fixins

The lettuce isn't as good these days, but we have nice grape tomatoes to go with it now. First potatoes this week, too; maybe we'll make potato salad.

• Basil
• Garlic
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Peppers
• Potatoes
• Summer Squash
• Grape Tomatoes
• Tomatoes

Stuffed Cabbage

This is a good, hearty meal. We agreed that a higher rice/meat ratio in the fillng would be good. I might leave out the raisins next time, but they were fine. We had about ⅔ head of cabbage to use up, so they were slightly overstuffed. I used 2 fresh tomatoes and a 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes for the sauce, and left out the sugar, and cooked it in a 325°F oven instead of on the stovetop. That worked fine, except for the fact that it was a 90° day today, so the oven wasn't ideal. This may be a better winter/fall dish.

Friday Night Stuffed Cabbage

Friday night dinner meant stuffed cabbage, challah, and chicken when artist Brenda Miller was growing up in New York. Her mother, Florence, who came to America in 1932 from Moldavia, "made the whole house smell like cabbage," Brenda remembers. "We ate this as an appetizer, with plenty of challah to sop up the juice."

1 Savoy Cabbage
1 lb. ground beef
1 egg
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Juice of 1 small lemon
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon raw white rice
6 fresh tomatoes, cored, seeded and chopped
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
¾ cup raisins
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon sweet paprika

Cut cabbage across the base and separate the leaves. Any leaves that are not large enough to roll should be chopped.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Blanch the cabbage leaves until they are soft. Drain in a colander and cool under cold running water. Drain and pat dry. Lay the leaves flat on a cutting board and cut out any thick ends, in the shape of a small triangle, at the bottom of the leaves.

In a mixing bowl, combine ground beef, egg, salt, pepper, half the lemon juice, 2 teaspoons of the chopped onion and the raw rice.

In a nonreactive large pot, combine the remaining chopped onion and the chopped cabbage.

Place 1 tablespoon meat mixture on the lower third of a cabbage leaf. Fold the base of the leaf over the meat mixture and then fold each side toward the center. Roll to form a cylinder. Place each cylinder on the onion and cabbage in the pot as you finish it.

Pour the tomatoes, tomato sauce, raisins, remaining lemon juice, the sugar, oregano and paprika over the cabbage rolls. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, covered, over low heat for about 2 hours, to get all the flavors mingled.

Serves 4 to 6.

From Molly O'Neill's New York Cookbook

Tomatoes have arrived!

Only a few small tomatoes, but they are delicious. No basil, unfortunately, to go with them and our homemade mozzarella.

• Beets
• Chard
• Cucumbers
• Green Garlic
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Parsley
• Peppers
• Summer Squash
• Tomatoes

banana vanilla popsicles

Inspired by a recipe from Locopops, in Durham NC, where our friend Sara used to work. However, they make theirs classier.

One box instant vanilla pudding (see what I mean about classier?)
1.25 cups milk
3/4 cup cream
one ripe banana, mushed
about 1/2 cup crushed vanilla wafers

Make the instant pudding with the cream and milk, beating for about a minute and a half, then adding the banana and beating for another half minute. Add the vanilla wafers and just beat enough to mix them in evenly. Put into popsicle forms and freeze (it's super lumpy, so do this fast, and use something like chopsticks to help get air bubbles out).

Next time I might use a banana and a half, and more vanilla wafers. The vanilla pudding is a shortcut--we should be making this with heavy cream and some vanilla and sugar. The problem I have is that our popsicles almost always come out too grainy--with large ice crystals. For cream ones, instant pudding helps a lot. For juice ones, I haven't found a solution. I think the problem is that they freeze slowly--the lovely Locopops ones don't have this problem at all and I think they must be frozen in a colder freezer. I have yet to stoop to the point of taking the popsicle mold to work to make them in the -80, though.

Pasta with homemade pesto, sauteed tomatoes, and homemade mozzarella

Today I made pesto with basil from the csa (no garlic yet--we get our first garlic of the year Sunday!). For dinner, I made gemelli pasta, sauteed some grape tomato halves in butter (also our last non-farm tomatoes for the summer!!), and tossed the tomatoes, pesto, cream, and little chunks of homemade mozzarella with the pasta. Served with grilled french bread with olive oil, and very tasty.

Homemade mozzarella? Stay tuned.....

Chard and Beet Green Pie

We've had good and bad experiences with recipes from Mark Bittman. He is responsible for us making both No-Knead Bread and Banana Goulash. This is a pretty easy biscuit-style crust for a vegetable pie, but it didn't work as smoothly as I had expected. There wasn't nearly enough dough for both a top and bottom crust that size, so I made another half batch quickly to finish the top, and the bottom was too thin to be substantial. I would either double it or leave out the bottom crust entirely. And 8 chard leaves wouldn't make much of a pie, unless he uses chard that's a whole lot more substantial than what we get. I used over a pound of combined beet greens and chard. A little less would be OK, but not a lot less. Like his previous cookbook, The Best Recipes in the World, this one seems rushed, like the recipes haven't been fully tested. This recipe is definitely close to something good and easy, but needs a little work.

Kale or Chard Pie
2 tbl. butter
About 8 large kale or chard leaves, thinly sliced [I used much more]
1 medium onion, sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped mixed herbs, like parsley, thyme, chervil, and chives
6 eggs
1 cup whole-milk yogurt or sour cream
3 tbl. mayonnaise
½ tsp. baking powder
1¼ cups all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Put the butter in a large skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium heat. A minute later, add the kale and onion. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leaves are quite tender, about 10 minutes; do not brown. Remove from the heat, add the herbs, then taste and adjust the seasoning.

Meanwhile, hard-cook 3 of the eggs, then shell and coarsely chop. Add to the cooked kale mixture and let cool while you make the batter.

Combine the yogurt, mayonnaise, and remaining eggs. Add the baking powder and flour and mix until smooth. Lightly butter a 9×12-inch ceramic or glass baking dish. Spread half the batter over the bottom, then top with the kale filling; smear the remaining batter over the kale, using your fingers or a rubber spatula to make sure there are no gaps in what will form the pie's top crust.

Bake for 45 minutes; it will be shiny and golden brown. Let the pie cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing it into as many squares or rectangles as you like. Eat warm or at room temperature.

From How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, by Mark Bittman

Stuffed Zucchini, Turkish Style

This leaves us with only one zucchini to use before we get more on Sunday. This has been a standard for me for a long time. The herbs and cheeses are flexible, I will often swap out the dill and swiss cheese.

I've always wondered: how Turkish is this?

Stuffed Zucchini, Turkish Style

4 medium zucchini (about 7" long), halved lengthwise
3 tbs. butter
¾ cup finely minced onion
3 smallish cloves crushed garlic
3 beaten eggs
½ cup crumbled feta cheese
¾ cup grated Swiss cheese
2 tbs. freshly chopped parsley
1 tbs. fresh, chopped dill (or ¾ tsp. dried dill weed)
1½ tbs. flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Paprika for the top

Scoop out the insides of the zucchini to leave a half-inch rim. Chop the innards into little bits and cook in butter with onions, garlic, salt (a few shakes) and pepper until onions are soft. Combine with flour, cheeses, herbs and beaten eggs. Correct salt and pepper. Fill the zucchini cavities and dust the tops with paprika.

Bake at 375ºF for 30 min. or until the filling solidifies. Serve with a fresh tomato salad.

From the original Moosewood Cookbook

Green-wrapped Flavor Bundles

Filling
1/2 pound boneless lean port or lean ground pork
1 T. tamarind pulp, dissolved in 1/4 c. warm water
3 T. peanut or vegetable oil
1/2 c. chopped shallots
3 T. minced garlic
2 T. palm or brown sugar
1 or 2 T. fish sauce
1/2 to 1 tsp. salt, to taste
1 T. minced ginger
2 T. dry-roasted peanuts, finely chopped

Wrapping and topping
about 30 pieces Thai-style pickled cabbage, or Bibb or other tender leaf lettuce leaves
1 stalk lemongrass
2 T. minced ginger
2 to 3 scallions, trimmed and minced
1/2 c. chopped coriander leaves and stems

If not using ground pork, cut the port into small cubes and then mince to even consistency. Set aside. Place a sieve over a bowl and press the dissolved tamarind through the sieve; discard the pulp. Set the tamarind juice aside.

Heat a wok over high heat. Add the oil and, when it is hot, add the shallots and garlic. Stir-fry until golden, then add the pork and stir-fry until it has all changed color, about 4 minutes. Add the sugar, the tamarind juice, the fish sauce, and salt and cook until the liquids have almost evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and peanuts and stir-fry for another minute. The mixture should be the consistency of paste and somewhat salty tasting. Adjust seasonings if you wish. Remove from the wok and let cool. You will have about 1.5 cups filling. (Can be made ahead and stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.)

To make a flavor package, put a leaf of pickled cabbage or lettuce on the palm of one hand, then scoop up a scant tablespoon of the filling and place it on the leaf. Sprinkle on a pinch of minced lemongrass, a little ginger, a pinch of scallions, and another of coriander. Fold the leaf over to make a bundle, or leave it open, like a filled cup, and place on a platter. Repeat with the remaining ingredients and greens. Or instead, serve these roll-your-own style. Makes about 2 dozen.

from Hot Sour Salty Sweet by Alford and Duguid


I often include dry-roasted grated coconut (not the sweetened kind!) and sometimes tiny lime wedges as additional toppings. Served tonight with lettuce-wrapped salmon (including a leaf of Asian basil in the wrapping of each), and leftover Javanese sambal, from Sunday's dinner that included sweet chili grilled chicken.

Zucchini-Crusted Pizza

This is good way to use zucchini, and pretty tasty. The crust wasn't as crispy as I had hoped, I baked it around 20 minutes, I would let it go longer next time.

Zucchini-Crusted Pizza

A normal pizza on top, with a beautiful, substantial-yet-tender crust: golden, with flecks of green and a slight crunch.

The Crust:
31⁄2 cups grated zucchini
3 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup flour
1⁄2 cup grated mozzarella
1⁄2 cup grated parmesan
1 Tbs. fresh basil leaves, minced (or 1⁄2 tsp dried)
salt and pepper

Salt the zucchini lightly and let it sit for 15 minutes. Squeeze out the excess moisture.

Combine all crust ingredients and spread into an oiled 9x13-inch pan. Bake 20-25 minutes, until the surface is dry and firm. Brush the top with oil and broil it, under moderate heat for 5 minutes.

Pile all of your favorite pizza toppings on (tomato sauce, olives, sauteed mushrooms, strips of peppers, lots of cheese - etc.) and heat the whole mess in a 350ºF oven for about 25 minutes. Serve hot, cut into squares, with a big tossed salad.

From the original Moosewood Cookbook

Bread and Butter Pickles

This was our first try at real, canned pickles. I've been a fan of making quick pickles for a while, and made a big batch of bread & butter pickles each of the last couple summers, but I always had a big jar of them that ended up taking up too much space in the fridge and hanging around too long. Since we started canning jams recently, I thought I'd try making some pickles to put up as well. The cucumbers and onions were all from our weekly CSA share.

We canned four pint jars, and had about ½ a pint left to refrigerate, which we tried today. They're pretty good, and crunchy - I had been afraid that they might not hold up as well to cooking, but they seemed fine.

Bread-and-Butter Pickles
about five 1-pint jars

Wash, then slice ⅛ inch from the ends of:
2½ pounds pickling cucumbers
Cut crosswise into ¼-inch thick slices. Peel, then cut the same way:
1 pound 2- to 2½-inch onions, preferably red
Combine the cucumbers and onions in a large bowl along with:
3 tbl. salt
Mix well to dissolve the salt. Cover with a clean wet towel, then top with 2 inches of ice. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. Discard the ice; drain the vegetables, rinse, and drain again. Combine in a 4-quart or larger saucepan:
2 cups white vinegar
2 cups sugar
1 tbl. mustard seeds
1 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)
¾ tsp. celery seeds
¾ tsp. ground turmeric
¼ tsp. ground cloves
Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Cook uncovered until the syrup boils. Add the vegetables, stir to mix, and continue to heat until the syrup just begins to boil. Using a slotted spoon, pack the hot slices into hot pint jars and then add the hot syrup. Leave ½-inch headspace and process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes.

From The Joy of Cooking: All about Canning and Preserving

Beets, etc.

This week:

• Basil
• Beets
• Cabbage
• Chard
• Cilantro
• Cucumbers
• Dill
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Summer Squash

The first beets are exciting. Time to make cold beet borscht.

The zucchinis are getting big enough to stuff, and we've got enough cucumbers to make pickles.

The farm has started a recipe blog. We haven't made anything from it yet, but it looks interesting. The recipes are different than those in the weekly newsletter.

Waffles (or: Joy of Cooking 1, Alton Brown 0)

We decided that waffles would make a great Saturday morning vessel for our Five Fruits Sauce, uh, Jam. I am the primary waffle maker (probably; instigator, definitely) and I reached for our Joy when Kels asked why I always use that recipe. Why not try another one? Why not indeed. So he reached for Alton Brown and found his. Look, it's much simpler! And indeed it was. What we learned: there is a reason that they come out so fabulously when you go to the trouble to separate the eggs, and beat, then fold in, the egg whites. We have a Villaware Belgian waffle maker, and the Alton Brown ones did not rise enough. Overdone on the bottom, deflated and doughy on top, these were not keepers. Tasty with the jam, though....

Summer vegetable stir-fry with couscous

I made something resembling this recipe tonight. It's a good use for lots of vegetables - in our case zucchini, broccoli, carrots, onion and garlic scapes. I would add a little more spice next time, maybe garam masala and red pepper flakes.

Five Fruits Jam Cockaigne

I have been wanting to make this for almost a year (I just missed these fruits in season last year when I re-discovered the recipe). I also went through a phase of wanting to make it when I was in grad school, but never got the chance during joint summer fruit/field season. This week we got gooseberries, red currants, sweet cherries, and red raspberries all at the farmer's market. We missed strawberries (were hoping for one week of overlap between currants/gooseberries and strawberries, but it was not to be) and had to end up using California ones from the grocery. The Joy recipe suggests you can put up strawberries first, then finish the jam when the other fruits are in season. A good idea.

The recipe is from the Joy of Cooking, where I originally found it, but we used the updated Joy All About Canning and Preserving version, which meets the new USDA standards.

Five Fruits Jam Cockaigne
About nine 1/2 pint jars

Stem, hull, or pit as necessary,
placing each fruit in its own bowl:
1 pound strawberries
1.5 pounds red currants
1 pound sweet cherries
1 pound gooseberries
1 pound red raspberries

Put strawberries in one pan,
currants and cherries in
another, and gooseberries
and raspberries in a third pan.
Lightly crush all but the
goosberries and raspberries.

Measure: 7 cups sugar

Mix 1 cup of the sugar with the strawberries and 3 cups of sugar with the fruits in each of the remaning pans. Bring each jam to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook to the jelling point.

Remove from the heat and skim off any foam. Combine the jams before ladling into hot jars. Leave 1/4 inch headspace, and process for 10 minutes.


Last week we made strawberry rhubarb jam (with pectin) and went too far past the jelling point. It is yummy but seriously verging on hard. Gun shy, we undershot here. Sometimes it is hard to tell how jelled jam is when it's still hot, and we really thought it was ok, based on the foaming subsiding, and the cold plate test, and I think Kels was measuring temperature too. Anyway, we made sauce, and we canned it before we realized (rats). Also, I wonder if we shouldn't have crushed more, or cut things up some. Many gooseberries were still whole, and cherries and strawberries could have been cut up, for a more even texture. Lastly, I wish it were a little less sweet--possibly crushing the gooseberries would help with this, but I wonder if we couldn't add some pectin and cut down on the sugar? We were slightly under on gooseberries but slightly over on red currant proportions, so I thought they would cancel out and leave us with the right tart/sweet balance. And, as always, the recipes never make the amount we think they will (thought this wasn't as hilarious as our canning a single jar of jam, as in a prior escapade!).

Why we haven't really been posting lately

This is really for Susan (our loyal reader).
Before:
And the view that greeted you when you walked in the front door:
During--Gabby helping:
After (well, close enough for now):
No after picture of the stairway, because it doesn't merit one yet.

Swiss chard with raisins and almonds

This was pretty good. I made it with what we had on hand, pecans instead of almonds, and regular old thompson seedless raisins. Used 2 weeks' worth of chard, which I'm sure was less than 2 lbs. Needs salt, of course. This was the recipe in our weekly CSA newsletter.

Swiss chard with raisins and almonds
Gourmet, February 2008

½ large onion, sliced lengthwise, 1/4 inch thick (1 cup)
2½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
¼ teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika
2 lb Swiss chard, center ribs discarded and leaves coarsely chopped
½ cup golden raisins
½ cup water
¼ cup coarsely chopped almonds with skins

Cook onion with ¼ teaspoon salt in 2 tablespoons oil in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot over medium heat, stirring, until softened. Sprinkle with paprika and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add chard in batches, stirring frequently, until wilted, then add raisins and water. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until chard is tender, about 7 minutes. Season with salt.

Cook almonds in remaining ½ tablespoon oil in a small heavy skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle almonds over chard.

Makes 4 servings.

Garlic scape pesto

In an effort to use garlic scapes in a new and interesting way, I tried making garlic scape pesto. It was inspired by this recipe, but more traditional in using a whole lot of basil, pine nuts, parmesan and olive oil. Really, it's just replacing the garlic with a whole lot of garlic scapes. It has a really nice, mild garlicky flavor - almost like cooked garlic.

Normally we throw in the weekly scapes into a stir-fry, which is also good.

More, more, more

This week:

• Basil
• Cabbage
• Chard
• Cilantro
• Cucumbers
• Dill
• Garlic scapes
• Lettuce
• Parsley
• Radicchio
• Scallions
• Zucchini

More herbs, more zucchini, first pickling cucumbers.

It's getting summery

This week in the box:

• Zucchini
• Broccoli
• Kale
• 3 heads lettuce
• Basil
• Chard
• Garlic scapes
• Scallions
  
• Oregano

We're starting to move beyond the spring greens.

Broccoli Potato Soup

From Barbara Kafka's Vegetable Love, abbreviated.

2 large floury potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 head broccoli, florets only, in 1.5-inch pieces (about 5 cups)
1 cup part-skim ricotta
6 cups chicken stock
1 T. kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Steam potatoes until soft, about 25 minutes. Set aside. Steam broccoli until soft, about 10-13 minutes. Transfer potatoes to a food processor and puree until smooth. Pour into a medium saucepan. Transfer broccoli to the food processor and puree until smooth. Add the ricotta and pulse until just incorporated. Add 2 cups of stock and puree until smooth. Pour the mixture into a medium saucepan. Add remaining stock. Heat over medium heat until hot. Season with the salt and pepper.

My comments: first, my Mom taught us all the hard way once that it's just a really tragic idea to food process potatoes to mash them. You make an approximation of wallpaper paste. So I gamely went along and did it and made the requisite gloop, which was really hard to scrape out of the food processor into a saucepan (starch taffy, anyone?). I then proceeded with the recipe and added the broccoli mix to the same saucepan, heating and smooshing and stirring, and eventually stick blending to try to get the gloop to mix in. Even that didn't work completely. (Kels tried to make Kloese once and made potato soup--I try to make potato soup and get Kloese. Go figure.) So here's my question. Why do it this way? Susan? Can you think of any reason not to just throw everything in a pot with the stock and then stick blend it?

Is there something else I missed? I have reproduced the recipe as directed in the cookbook, and you'll notice that it never actually tells you to do anything with the potatoes again (i.e. it does not tell you to put the broccoli mixture in the same saucepan, I just assumed that's what they meant but it's not how it's written). Is that because they're so awful after you've food processed them that you throw them out and simply make broccoli ricotta soup? Is it because they meant to tell you to throw them back in with the broccoli/ricotta/stock mixture and process them together there, before returning it all to the pot? Next time I will try stick blending it all in the pot.

I used 4 cups of Kels stock plus some water, and even then only added 2 tsp. salt. I think a T. is too much, but since this isn't in the potato section of the book, it's only got 1.5 times the salt you'd want, as opposed to 4x or so. Also, I peeled and chopped broccoli stems and included them.

Raspberry lemon muffins

She lives, she breathes, she even bakes muffins!

1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
4 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (about 2 lemons' worth)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
juice of 1 lemon
1 cup frozen raspberries

Preheat oven to 375°F. Mash 1/4 cup sugar and lemon peel in small bowl until sugar is slightly moist. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat remaining 1 cup sugar and butter in large bowl until smooth. Beat in egg. Beat in buttermilk, then vanilla, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and half of lemon sugar. Beat in flour mixture. Very briefly mix in raspberries.

Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake muffins until lightly browned on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Brush tops of muffins lightly with lemon juice; sprinkle with remaining lemon sugar and cool.

Modified from this recipe on epicurious.

Scapes

This week:

• 4 heads lettuce
  
• broccoli
• kale
• dandelion greens
• bok choy
• garlic scapes
• spinach

The most interesting thing to me is the garlic scapes (ramps). No strawberries this week.

Ice cream cake!

Ice cream cake is not really that hard to make. Line the bottom of a springform pan with crushed chocolate wafer cookies and melted butter, and cool in freezer. Soften ½ gallon ice cream until it can be mixed and spread over the crust. Freeze for at least 1 hour. Melt 8 oz. semisweet chocolate chips in ½ cup heavy cream, and spread over ice cream. Top with chopped candy if desired, and freeze for 3 hours. Soften a bit before removing springform ring.

Source: Eggs on Sunday

Marinated cauliflower salad with arugula

We've liked this recipe for a long time. I like to use prosciutto or other cooked ham instead of bacon, and skip the celery.

Marinated Cauliflower Salad
Arugula, bacon, and olives

Ingredients for 4

½ pound fresh arugula
½ head cauliflower, cut into bite size florets
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon picked fresh thyme leaves
¼ cup small diced celery
¼ cup diced scallions
½ cup cooked bacon, small diced and cooked
½ cup of your favorite olive, pitted
salt and pepper

Dijon Vinaigrette

1 cup cottonseed oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
¼ cup dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Method

Wisk together all the ingredients for the vinaigrette and set aside. Marinate the cauliflower florets in a ¼ cup of vinaigrette. Let stand 1 hour or overnight.

In a large mixing bowl, combine all the salad components with a pinch of salt and pepper. Drizzle with dijon vinaigrette, about 1 ladle or 2 ounces. Gently toss to coat with vinaigrette.

Plate on one large platter or individual plates and enjoy!

Source: chef2chef.net

Rotini with roasted peppers and spinach

I didn't have pine nuts, but otherwise followed this recipe pretty closely. It was fine, but a little bland. Needed more salt, and more dried red pepper and a little cream might be nice next time.

A little variety

This week:

• 3 heads lettuce
• spinach
• radishes
• peas
• arugula
• kale
• bok choy
• strawberries

That's a pretty good haul for the 2nd week. The pick-your-own quota for strawberries at the farm field is now 4 quarts.

First veggies

Now it really feels like summer, with our weekly vegetables back for the season. Largely greens this week, unsurprisingly.

• 6 heads of lettuce
• kale
• arugula
• strawberries

How are we going to eat that much lettuce?

Salad composée

It's the start of summer salad season. We're not getting our vegetables yet, but it's warm enough to feel like having a nice salad for dinner, with maybe a little wine and cheese afterwards. My standard summer salad ideal comes from this recipe, that appeared in the NY Times a few years ago. We don't often put everything in, but tuna on greens with a homemade mustard vinaigrette and whatever else we have is common enough.

Somehow, it doesn't work in February.

Salade Niçoise
(Adapted from ''French Provincial Cooking,'' by Elizabeth David)
1 head bibb or Boston lettuce
1 12-ounce can or jar imported tuna in olive oil
12 small new potatoes, cooked until tender and halved
1 cup green beans, ends trimmed and cooked until tender
½ red bell pepper, seeded and julienned
1 6-ounce jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained
2 firm ripe tomatoes, quartered lengthwise
2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and halved lengthwise
6 anchovy fillets
12 black olives, pitted and sliced
Handful of capers
3 tablespoons tarragon vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon mixed chopped herbs, like chervil and chives.

1. Quarter the lettuce through the root end. Rinse and pat dry with paper towels. Place each quarter on a large plate or in a shallow bowl. Drain the tuna and place in a bowl; flake into bite-size pieces with a fork and scatter over the lettuce. Next, scatter the potatoes, beans, pepper, artichoke hearts and tomatoes. Arrange an egg half to the side of each plate. Sprinkle the dish with the anchovies, olives and capers.

2. Mix the vinegar, mustard and garlic in a bowl. Whisk in the oil until thickened. Season with the salt, pepper and herbs. Drizzle over salads. Serve.

Yield: 4 servings.

Fractions in HTML and Unicode

Not a food post, but about computer issues relating to recipes.

I haven't been consistent about this, but sometimes I try to put vulgar fractions into recipes as individual characters, rather than digits separated by a "/". It looks better, but I wonder if everyone sees them correctly.

Only three vulgar fractions are in ISO-Latin-1, so they have their own HTML codes:

¼ (1/4, HTML ¼)
½ (1/2, HTML ½)
¾ (3/4, HTML ¾)

I assume those work fine for most people. Lots more are in Unicode, so they can be added directly, but I don't know how widely they are supported by browsers, operating systems, and font character sets. I wouldn't be surprised if they disappear for some people if they set their font differently. Like these:

⅓ (1/3)
⅔ (2/3)
⅕ (1/5)
⅖ (2/5)
⅗ (3/5)
⅘ (4/5)
⅙ (1/6)
⅚ (5/6)
⅛ (1/8)
⅜ (3/8)
⅝ (5/8)
⅞ (7/8)

Not all are common in recipes, but many are helpful. I use some of them, but I don't know how to enter them except by cut and paste, so they are here mostly for my reference.

Let me know if you get funny characters where fractions should be.

Eggs & Cake

For Saturday brunch today, Cardamom Coffee Cake from the original Moosewood Cookbook, and bacon and eggs baked in ramekins. The cake was as rich as the Ashkenazic Sour Cream Coffee Cake we've made before, and it's a nice, easy way to make eggs.

Cardamom Coffee Cake

1 lb (4 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
2 c light brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
2½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tbs cardamom
2 c sour cream (or yogurt or buttermilk)
¼ c light brown sugar
1 tbs cinnamon
½ c walnuts, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube or bundt pan.

In a LARGE mixing bowl, beat butter with 2 cups brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Stir in the vanilla.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and cardamom in a separate bowl.

Add the flour mixture, ⅓ of it at a time, to the butter mixture, alternating with the sour cream. Stir just enough to blend after each addition. Don't beat or otherwise overmix.

Combine ¼ cup brown sugar, cinnamon, and walnuts in a separate small bowl.

Spoon approximately ⅓ of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with half the nut mixture, then add another third of the batter. Cover with remaining nut mixture, then top with remaining batter. Lightly spread into place.

Bake approximately 1¼ hours or until a knife inserted all the way in comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then invert onto a plate. Cool at least 30 minutes more before cutting into it. Enjoy!!

Serves 18

Chard Tart

This was one of our summer favorites that we never got around to blogging. We often need to use up extra greens when the veggies are coming in.

Swiss Chard and Herb Tart

Ingredients
1 pound Swiss chard, stems and ribs removed
1½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 15-ounce container whole-milk ricotta cheese
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon minced fresh thyme
¼ teaspoon minced fresh oregano
⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 17.3-ounce package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed

Preparation

Cook chard in large pot of boiling salted water until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Drain. Squeeze out liquid. Chop chard.Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic; saut
ée 1 minute.

Add chard; sauté until excess liquid evaporates, about 5 minutes. Transfer chard mixture to large bowl. Cool slightly. Mix in ricotta and next 7 ingredients.Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 375°F. Roll out 1 pastry sheet on lightly floured surface to 14-inch square. Transfer pastry to 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Trim edges, leaving 1-inch overhang. Fill pastry with chard mixture. Lightly brush pastry overhang with pastry brush dipped into water. Roll out second pastry sheet to 13-inch square. Using tart pan as guide, trim pastry square to 10-inch round. Drape over filling. Seal edges and fold in.Bake until pastry is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Remove pan sides from tart. Transfer to platter. Cut into wedges and serve.

Add chard; sautée until excess liquid evaporates, about 5 minutes. Transfer chard mixture to large bowl. Cool slightly. Mix in ricotta and next 7 ingredients.Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 375°F. Roll out 1 pastry sheet on lightly floured surface to 14-inch square. Transfer pastry to 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Trim edges, leaving 1-inch overhang. Fill pastry with chard mixture. Lightly brush pastry overhang with pastry brush dipped into water. Roll out second pastry sheet to 13-inch square. Using tart pan as guide, trim pastry square to 10-inch round. Drape over filling. Seal edges and fold in.Bake until pastry is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Remove pan sides from tart. Transfer to platter. Cut into wedges and serve.

Malaysian Chicken Satay

Our favorite chicken satay recipe from Cradle of Flavor. A good reason to fire up the grill for the first time of the season.

Cheese Fondue (Fondue au Fromage)

We got a fondue pot for a wedding present, over 2 years ago, and we don't use it often enough, but we both like fondue. We've made this recipe for cheese fondue before, with and without the tomato chutney. Oddly, the instruction booklet that came with the fondue pot had no recipes for a standard cheese fondue (although there was a "French Brie and Onion Fondue," which doesn't appear at all in the French language section of the booklet), they were all various forms of meat fondues and dips. Then we noticed that the French side of the instruction book has several pages of information about cheese fondues, plus 9 different recipes. I guess they thought that English speakers wouldn't like them (the German is intermediate, with a single cheese fondue recipe).

I would like to translate the whole cheese fondue section of the French section, but for now, here is the first recipe. It is practically the same as two versions available online, in French and English, but with its own campy flair:

The Classic Recipe

proportions, per person:

150-180 g Gruyère (grated or cut into thin strips)

100 mL white wine

1 tsp. lemon juice

150-180 g bread

and in addition, for the fondue:
1 clove garlic
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 shot of Kirsch
pepper (or grated nutmeg or paprika to taste)

After rubbing the interior of the fondue pot with the garlic clove, add the wine and lemon juice. Place it over a live fire, and, when hot, add the grated cheese, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon.

When the mixture has begun to boil, add the cornstarch, having previously dissolved it in the Kirsch, and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Your fondue is ready. You may proudly bring your culinary work to the table and place it over the lighted burner. Complete the seasoning with pepper, nutmeg or paprika to taste.

Do not forget to stir the fondue occasionally while eating to keep it well mixed. Little by little, at the bottom of the pot, the grillon will form. It must be divided fairly, for it is the best part...

The ambiance is created and gaiety reigns...

The literal translation for grillon is "cricket", but I suspect that his usage is unrelated, derived instead from griller, to grill or broil.

English booklet cover:












French booklet cover:

Orange Chicken

I was looking for an orange chicken recipe that doesn't require deep frying. This one was OK, but I should have been more careful to dry off the marinaded chicken before dredging it in flour - it made a gooey mes in the bottom of the wok. The sauce was good.

It's a lot like General Tso's chicken - it's not that hard, but makes a mess an takes several steps. In the end there are a lot of simpler meals that are just as good.

Leftover Turkey Enchiladas

Finished off the last of the turkey with the great after-Thanksgiving turkey enchiladas. I like jazzing up a canned sauce, which makes it much better but faster than starting from scratch.

I used green enchilada sauce, pepper jack cheese, and didn't bother deep frying the corn tortillas or saving sauce in a gravy boat. It was very good.

The Great After-Thanksgiving Turkey Enchiladas

Bon Appétit | November 1998

Serves 6. ingredients 3 tablespoons plus ½ cup vegetable oil 1¾ cups finely chopped onions 1 28-ounce can enchilada sauce 5 plum tomatoes, finely chopped 1½ teaspoons finely chopped canned chipotle chilies* 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro 3 cups coarsely shredded cooked turkey 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese ¾ cup sour cream 12 5- to 6-inch corn tortillas *Chipotle chilies canned in a spicy tomato sauce are sold at Latin American markets, at specialty foods stores and at some supermarkets. preparation Heat 3 tablespoons oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1½ cups onions and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add enchilada sauce, tomatoes and chipotles. Cover; simmer 20 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat. Stir in ½ cup cilantro. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Mix turkey, 1½ cups cheese, sour cream, ¼ cup onions and ½ cup cilantro in bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 350°F.

Heat 1/2 cup vegetable oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Cook 1 tortilla until pliable, about 20 seconds per side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Spread 1/2 cup sauce in 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish.

Spoon 1/4 cup turkey mixture in center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas. Arrange seam side down in dish. Spoon 2 1/2 cups sauce over enchiladas. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese. Bake enchiladas until heated through, about 30 minutes.

Rewarm remaining sauce in saucepan over medium-low heat.

Transfer to sauceboat. Serve enchiladas, passing sauce separately.

Heat ½ cup vegetable oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Cook 1 tortilla until pliable, about 20 seconds per side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Spread ½ cup sauce in 13 × 9 × 2-inch glass baking dish.

Spoon ¼ cup turkey mixture in center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas. Arrange seam side down in dish. Spoon 2½ cups sauce over enchiladas. Sprinkle with ½ cup cheese. Bake enchiladas until heated through, about 30 minutes.

Rewarm remaining sauce in saucepan over medium-low heat.

Transfer to sauceboat. Serve enchiladas, passing sauce separately.

Okra-Free Gumbo

Inspired by an article from the Sunday New York Times, I thought I'd try to turn some of our abundance of greens into gumbo. This recipe sounded interesting, and uses lots of random greens instead of okra. I used spinach, bok choy and arugula. We didn't have collards, and threw out our turnip and beet greens last week, or I would have used them.

It was very good, but could have used a little thickener. I added some chicken stock, sausage and frozen shrimp to the base and served it over rice. I would try filé powder next time. We have 6 cups of the base frozen for future use.

I used some cajun seasoning mix instead of the paprika, cayenne, cloves and allspice, and green Tabasco instead of Pickapeppa sauce. the seasonings were about right, but there is a lot of room for playing with them.

Gumbo Zeb from The Passionate Vegetarian

Roux:
½ c mild vegetable oil
½ c unbleached all-purpose flour

Vegetable Saute:
4 T margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
½ bunch celery with leaves, chopped
½ large bunch scallions, chopped

Seasoning Puree:
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 T Pickapeppa sauce
2 T tomato paste
2½ t Tabasco
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried thyme
½ t paprika
¼ t cayenne
¼ t ground allspice
¼ t ground cloves
3 to 4 good grinds of fresh black pepper
1 can (8 oz.) whole tomatoes, drained, coarsely choped, the juice and tomatoes reserved separately
½ bunch Italian parsley, leaves and stems, rinsed and coarsely chopped

Stock and Greens:
Cooking spray
3 c any well-flavored vegetable stock
1 c tomato juice or V8 juice
½ t salt
2 bay leaves
3 bunches assorted greens, well washed and cut into ribbons

Make the roux with the oil and flour: Pour the oil into a large skillet or pot. Turn the heat to medium and immediately whisk in the flour. Stir frequently as the roux changes color from white to yellow to fairly brown. While the roux cooks, proceed with the other steps, but be sure to keep an eye on it, stirring very frequently. Warning--this is a long, slow process requiring attention.

Prepare the vegetable saute: In a heavy cast-iron skillet, melt the margarine over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the bell pepper and celery, lower the heat slightly and continue sauteing for another 10 minutes. (Don't forget the roux--keep stirring it while the vegetables saute.) Add the scallions and saute until limp, about 5 minutes more.

Meanwhile, between the sauteing and the roux-stirring, you will have time to prepare the seasoning puree. Place all the ingredients for the seasoning puree except the tomatoes and parsley in a food processor. (Pause to stir both roux and vegetable saute.) Buzz the puree ingredients until the garlic is finely chopped.

Check the roux again, then add the tomatoes and parsley to the food processor. Chop coarsely.

Pause to take note of where you are, and go stir the roux and vegetable saute (By now you have three mixtures: the roux, the sauteed vegetables, and th spicy, chunky paste in the food processor.) When the vegetables have softened, remove from the heat and set them aside. Keep working on the roux until it has reached a nice toasty brown. It may be ready now, or it may take a little longer.

Now prepare the stock and greens into which the other three mixtures will eventually go. Spray a large soup pot with cooking spray. In it, bring to a boil the stock and 1 cup of tomato juice (from canned tomatoes). Add the salt and bay leaves. Drop in the fresh greens. Bring back to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered for about 30 minutes.

Stir the roux. By now it should be dark caramel brown, but if it isn't, continue to cook it, stirring. When the roux has browned, remove it from the heat nad let it cool for a few minutes. Drain off any excess oil that has separated out, but be sure to leave every bit of the browned flour. Vigorously whisk in the 1 cup tomato or V8 juice. It will be smooth and thick and a pale orange paste.

When the greens have finished their 30-minute simmer, remove them from the heat. To the stock pot, add the roux mixture, the vegetable saute, and the seasoning puree. Give a taste and adjust the seasoning, set the pot back on the stove, and let simmer over the lowest possible heat, covered, for 15 minutes. Stir often.

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

(found here, with some typos corrected, but recipe referred to in the NY Times is in The Dairy Hollow House Soup and Bread by the same author)

Final veggies

It was a fairly light final box, by recent standards. We didn't get everything that was listed (no collards or kohlrabi, and as far as I can tell they all look like turnips, not rutabagas). It will still take us a while to get through everything, but we will be buying vegetables at the store again for the winter.

• Arugula
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Celeriac
• Collards
• Kohlrabi
• Lettuce
• Braising Mix
• Parsley
• Rutabaga
• Sage
• Thyme
• Turnips

The end is near

Next Sunday is our last week of vegetables. As much as we love them, we are feeling oppressed now. this week:

• Arugula
• Beets
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Celeriac
• Lettuce
• Braising Mix
• Parsley
• Radicchio
• Turnips

I made mashed rutabaga this week. We eat salad as often as we can. We're doing well on broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage, but we can't keep up with the greens. We haven't eaten any of our recent raddicchio. we have a drawer in our fridge given over to turnips and radishes. It will be a relief to receive our last vegetables of the season next week. By the time they start up again in May, we will certainly miss them, though.

More radicchio?

• Arugula
• Broccoli
• Chinese Cabbage
• Celery
• Kale
• Kohlrabi
• Lettuce
• Spicy Lettuce Mix
• Parsley
• Peppers
• Radicchio
• Rutabaga
• Spinach
• Gold Ball Turnips

At least there are still tomatoes for our salads....

• Arugula
• Baby Bok Choy
• Cauliflower
• Lettuce
• Baby Lettuce Mix
• Spicy Lettuce Mix
• Peppers
• Radicchio
• Rutabaga
• Scallions
• Spinach
• Turnips

Fall veggies

• Arugula
• Beets
• Baby Boc Choy
• Boc Choy
• Chard
• Cilantro
• Daikon
• Fennel
• Garlic
• Kale
• Peppers
• Radishes
• Spinach
• Tomatoes
• Pumpkin
• Winter Squash

More greens

Better Blueberry Pancakes

This was from Cook's Illustrated, and I've been wanting to try it for a while, since I haven't been that happy with pancakes from the Joy of Cooking (they're a little rubbery, and don't cook evenly in my cast iron pan). Cook's Illustrated isn't freely available online, but I found the recipe on someone's random food blog via Google.

The pancakes were pretty good, though they didn't cook as evenly as I would have liked either. Much more tender that Joy's, but I'm not sure I see the point of sprinkling the blueberries on after the pancake hits the skillet. I'm not afraid of swirly blue batter. They would probably cook better in a big teflon pan, but we don't have one these days.

Ingredients
1 tbl. lemon juice from 1 lemon
2 cups milk
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces)
2 tbl. granulated sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. table salt
1 large egg
3 tbl. unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly
2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 cup fresh blueberries or frozen blueberries, preferably wild, rinsed and dried

Preparation

1. Whisk lemon juice and milk in medium bowl or large measuring cup; set aside to thicken while preparing other ingredients. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl to combine.
2. Whisk egg and melted butter into milk until combined. Make well in center of dry ingredients in bowl; pour in milk mixture and whisk very gently until just combined (a few lumps should remain). Do not over mix.
3. Heat 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes; add 1 teaspoon oil and brush to coat skillet bottom evenly. Pour 1/4 cup batter onto 3 spots on skillet; sprinkle 1 tablespoon blueberries over each pancake. Cook pancakes until large bubbles begin to appear, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Using thin, wide spatula, flip pancakes and cook until golden brown on second side, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes longer. Serve immediately, and repeat with remaining batter, using remaining vegetable oil only if necessary.

Lettuce again

• Chard
• Cilantro
• Cucumbers
  
• Dill
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Lettuce
• Peppers
  
• Potatoes
• Scallions
• Shallots
  
• Grape Tomatoes
• Heirloom Tomatoes
• Tomatoes
• Watermelon

Birthday veggies

• Basil
• Chard
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Leeks
• Hot Peppers
• Peppers
• Potatoes
• Shallots
• Summer Squash
• Grape Tomatoes
• Heirloom Tomatoes
• Tomatoes
• Watermelon

Eggplants and more

With nephews for scale.

• Basil
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Onions
• Hot Peppers
• Peppers
• Potatoes
• Shallots
• Summer Squash
• Thyme
• Grape Tomatoes
• Heirloom Tomatoes
• Tomatoes

Heirloom tomatoes

This week, we got 2 lb. of heirloom tomatoes, 4 lb. of slicing tomatoes, and 1.5 lb of grape tomatoes. We'll probably end up oven drying the grape tomatoes.

• Basil
• Beets
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Onions
• Peppers
• Hot Peppers
• Potatoes
• Grape Tomatoes
• Tomatoes
• Heirloom Tomatoes

10 minute meals

I just heard part of this segment on the radio about a column in the NY Times that ran while we were on vacation. Some interesting ideas in there. I must say that #94, "ketchup-braised tofu," sounds nasty, though.

Melons & potatoes & tomatoes

Another cabbage, to add to the 3/4 we still have from last week, plus tomatoes, potatoes, and more beets! This must be the heaviest box yet, even before counting the watermelon that didn't fit in the box.

• Beets
• Cabbage
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Melon
• Onions
• Parsley
• Peppers
• Hot Peppers
• Potatoes
• Grape Tomatoes
• Tomatoes
• Watermelon

Tabouli will help us use the parley & tomatoes tonight.

Lentil Soup with Chard and Lemon

Found in James Beard's American Cookery, according to this blog where I found it.

We ate it warm, because we were hungry by the time I got to the last step where it says "serve chilled", and because it sounded better anyway. We tried it chilled for lunch the next day, and it was OK. I can't say it was a favorite for either of us, but it managed to use up two weeks worth of chard. Not as good as the chard tart we got as a recipe with last years vegetables (I'll post the recipe here eventually).

Lentil Soup with Chard and Lemon

1½ cups lentils
2½ lbs fresh Swiss Chard
½ cup olive oil
¾ cup chopped onion
3 to 4 garlic cloves
Salt
1 Stalk celery, chopped
¾ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon flour
Chopped chives for garnish

Wash and pick over the lentils. Cover them with fresh cold water, and cook, covered, until tender. Wash the Swiss Chard leaves and chop them. Add these and a cup of water to the lentils. Continue cooking until the Swiss chard is done, adding more water if necessary. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the chopped onion. Crush the garlic cloves with salt, and add these and the chopped celery to the onion. Continue cooking until the vegetables are tender and blended. Add to the lentil mixture. Mix the lemon juice with the flour and stir it into the soup. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, until the soup is rather thick. Taste for seasoning. Serve chilled with chopped chives in soup bowls, and pass crusty French or Italian bread to sop up the juices.

First tomatoes

This week we saw our first grape tomatoes. Soon, we hope, to be followed by lots of heirlooms and slicing tomatoes, and sauce tomatoes in the field. This is the first week we haven't gotten lettuce - I guess the season is over, it will return again briefly in the fall.

• Basil
• Cabbage
• Chard
• Cilantro
• Garlic
• Melon
• Onions
• Parsley
• Peppers
• Hot Peppers
• Summer Squash
• Grape Tomatoes

Cold beet borscht

This is our favorite summer soup, and a reason we've been looking forward to beet season. It's hard to save any of the beets we get from the farm for anything else. This week we got less than half a pound, so only two large bowls came from them.

1 lb. beets
2 tsp. white vinegar, or to taste
4 tsp. fresh lemon juice
¾ tsp. citric acid powder [I skip this]
½ cup plus 1 tbl. sugar
1½ tsp. kosher salt
½ cup sour cream
2/3 cup heavy cream
Ad-lib toppings: chopped onion, chopped cucumber, chopped fresh dill, lemon wedges, sour cream, heavy cream, reserved grated beets, chopped hard-boiled egg, coiled boiled very small waxy potato

In a small saucepan, bring the beets and water to cover by 2 inches to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the beets are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 30 to 45 minutes (depending on the size and age of the beets).

Drain the beets in a sieve lined with a damp cloth; reserve the cooking liquid. Run the beets under cold water to cool, then peel. In a food processor, grate the beets with the grating disc (this can also be done with a box grater).

Return half of the grated beets to the cooking liquid. Reserve the rest of the beets for topping or for another use. Season the soup with the vinegar, lemon juice, citric acid, sugar and salt and stir until everything is dissolved. Chill.

Just before serving, whisk in the sour cream and heavy cream. Pass small bowls of the ad lib toppings.

Makes 7 cups; serves 6 as a first course.

from Vegetable Love by Barbara Kafka.

The veggies of summer

We missed a couple weeks of vegetables while on vacation, but they didn't go to waste, since we had friends pick them up. We picked up this week's bounty before heading to Michigan. I liked the food in Croatia, but it is meat heavy, and I am looking forward to the fresh vegetables.

• Basil
• Beets
• Cabbage
• Chard
• Cilantro
• Eggplant
• Garlic
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Peppers
• Hot Peppers
• Summer Squash