Purple Pesto Pizza

I was getting concerned about the purple basil. Here is how it was looking.

I didn’t like the leaves losing their purple. So I checked it out on the internet and as the leaves grow you are supposed to pluck them off and let the plant keep producing leaves and growing. Good to know. I’m so bad with plants.

So here is what I harvested.

The plant has been looking pretty good since then. I used the harvested leaves to make a purple basil pesto. I made a pesto pizza with it for Friday night pizza night.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/05/csa-and-pizza-happy-partnership.html

Sea Scallops with Asparagus Sauce

Asparagus season is almost over, but I think we’ll have this again next week!

(Note the purple stalk!)

I was able to get some super thin stalks of asparagus, which I think was a real advantage when I made the puree. The beauties of a farmer’s market – getting to pick the exact produce you want.

Sea Scallops with Asparagus Sauce
Adapted from http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/sea_scallops_with_asparagus_sauce/ and http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Simple-Saute-Scallops-102311

½ pound asparagus
¼ cup chicken broth
1 ½ T butter
1 T olive oil
1 T minced garlic
8 sea scallops
1 t smoked paprika
Ground black pepper

Break off the tough end of the asparagus and chop into 2 inch pieces. Boil for 5-8 minutes. To retain color, put asparagus in an ice bath when finished boiling. Use an immersion blender to puree asparagus with chicken broth. Put the mixture in a saucepan with butter. Melt butter and cook down to the thickness desired.

Meanwhile heat a sauté pan and add oil. Saute garlic until just golden brown. Add scallops and sprinkle with paprika. Cook scallops on medium heat for 15 minutes, turning mid way.

Spread asparagus sauce on plate, grind black pepper over the sauce, place scallops on the sauce and serve.

NOTES: The original recipe at simplyrecipes.com gives some great tips about cooking scallops and especially if you are using regular sized asparagus stalks. I have had success many times over with the scallop method from Recipezaar, which is why I used it again for dinner last night. It makes a mess of the pan because the garlic gets way overcooked in the oil. I just get the stuff off as quickly as possible, and then let the pan soak. Any leftover grime came off easily this morning. Again, check out the tips in the simplyrecipes.com version.

Roasting

In the spirit of counting down to CSA time, I wanted to mention roasting as a good option for many of the vegetables that usually come in a CSA. Roasting will often give a sweetness to veggies and gives them a wonderful texture. Here is a favorite combination at our house….carrots, zucchini, and onions (red onions are the best).
A rule of thumb I use is 400degreesF and check after 20 minutes. Most need about 40 minutes. Once the vegetable sstart rolling in, I’ll be roasting them, so I’ll share a variety of recipes.

Last year I dreaded getting beets, YUCK (I thought) on so many levels. Not a taste I enjoyed and what a messy vegetable to prepare. And then I roasted them…yum! We can’t wait for beets again soon.

Here is a list of vegetables I get from my CSA that are really good roasted.

Beets, Broccoli, Carrots, Eggplant, Garlic, Onions, Peppers, Potatoes, Summer Squash, Turnips, Winter Squash, and Zucchini.

Garlicky Spaghetti

So here is the story of last night’s dinner. First, you need to know my husband approaches any dish with bitter greens, like arugula, with trepidation. Let me just tell you he is counting the days to CSA time too because he just can’t wait for all those green leaves – the bitter ones and the ones I turn into pastes, as he refers to the many pesto’s that grace our table.

So I get to eating first, and declare this dinner DELICIOUS! He says, “Great, so I’m not going to like it”. After 2 or 3 bites, he too declares it delicious. We have a winner!!! I’ll say it right now, this one will be served several times this summer. It could be made ahead, we’ll go to the pool, and have dinner waiting for us when we return. Last night’s version was made with arugula and green garlic from the market. I can’t wait for those sweet little tomatoes fresh from the farm to give this dish that much more flavor.

Garlicky Spaghetti with Beans and Greens
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1911373

I think this dish worked because it has heat from the crushed red pepper and sweetness from the tomatoes that doesn’t allow the bitterness of the greens to overpower. Any bitter green would work in this dish, and there should be lots of those during CSA season. We also had this for Meatless Monday and it makes for a great choice with the beans, pasta, and veggies making for a complete meal. Like I said, we have a winner!

Slow Roasted Salmon and Potatoes - an adaptation

I got these fingerling potatoes at the market last week and the farmer recommended roasting them. I thought, “Perfect, I’ll make the slow roasted salmon and potatoes again”.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/03/purple-potatoes.html
Ooops, the recipe calls for boiling the potatoes! That’s okay, we can adapt the recipe. Here is what we had last night…

To adapt the recipe, I put the scallions and potatoes in a 400 F oven for 25 minutes. Then I turned it down to 275 F, placed the salmon on top of the scallions and potatoes, brushed it with olive oil and sprinkled it with salt and pepper. I baked all of it for an additional 20 minutes. It worked great.

For the herb butter I had parsley and chives (1 T, not mentioned in the recipe) from my garden. I used my immersion blender instead of the food processor. The best kitchen tool ever!!! And it got the herbs nicely blended. The herb butter goes on the salmon and potatoes.

CSA and pizza – a happy partnership

We are getting closer to CSA season, two weeks from tomorrow is my first pick up. As we countdown I want to share tips for using the produce from your CSA. Pizza is a great partner for a family with a CSA.

Is Friday night pizza night at your house? It has become so at the request of my 6 year old at our house. My husband sighs on Friday mornings as he leaves, knowing he’s coming home AGAIN to pizza on Friday. He recently requested an adult pie for he and I to share, an option that provides variety to the standard tomato sauce and meat topping (turkey pepperoni, meatballs, or chicken sausage for my kids). CSA season will allow me to easily fulfill his request. Pizza is a great way to use leftover veggies and herbs you can’t use fast enough. Often I find myself with just a few roasted vegetables, those will be great to throw on a pizza. I have pesto recipes for every herb – basil, parsley, cilantro, etc. Those make great alternative sauces. My Dad’s wife, an Italian through and through, recently reminded me that pizza was invented to get rid of leftovers, let’s celebrate CSA season with creative, leftover pizza toppings.

This pizza is made from the last of my frozen pesto. I don't freeze it with cheese or nuts, so it makes for a perfect pizza sauce to which I add pine nuts, mozzarella cheese, and parmesan. I love it with a little crushed red pepper added right before serving.

Here is my pizza crust recipe…
Formulated with inspiration from these two recipes
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/whole-wheat-pizza-dough
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/homemade_pizza/

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

1 ½ cups warm water (105degrees F – 115degrees F)
1 package (2 ¼ t) of active dry yeast
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bread Flour
1 cup Self Rising Flour
¼ cup olive oil
2 t salt
2 T sugar

Add warm water to the bowl of the stand mixer (Kitchen Aid). Sprinkle on the yeast and let site for 5 minutes. Stir to dissolve completely at the end of 5 minutes.

With the mixing paddle, combine the olive oil, flour, salt and sugar with the yeast water on low speed. When combined, switch to the dough hook and knead for about 10 minutes on medium speed. You may want to start on low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Places the dough ball in a bowl coated with olive oil. Coat the dough ball with olive oil too. Let sit in a warm place for 1 – 1 ½ hours.
Need a warm place? Heat the oven to 150degrees F and then turn it off. Place the dough in the oven to rise.

Rhubarb Ice Cream

A reader sent me this recipe. I really wanted to get some Rhubarb at the market this weekend, but I knew I just wouldn't be able to make it this week. Everything this reader makes is yummy, so I thought it would be best to pass this on before Rhubarb season is over. I'll let you know if I try it. Let me know if you get a chance to try it!

RHUBARB ICE CREAM
Serves 8

1 pound rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, about 3 1/2 cups
1 cup sugar
3 large egg yolks
2/3 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream

In a saucepan, combine rhubarb and 3/4 cup sugar. Cover and cook over low heat until rhubarb releases its juices, about 5 minutes. Uncover and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until most of water evaporates and rhubarb has a soft jam like consistency, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Whisk egg yolks lightly. In a saucepan, combine milk and remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Bring to a boil. Gradually whisk milk mixture into yolks. Return to saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thick enough to coat back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Using a fine-meshed sieve, strain into a bowl. Add rhubarb mixture and cream. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or as long as overnight. Freeze in an ice-cream maker to manufacturer's instructions.

No Knead Rolls

I so very much want to be a baker. I often resolve that I will make all our bread. After two loaves my husband will ask if we could please buy a loaf of bread. The reality is I am NOT a baker. I have lots of great stories about my baking flops. So when I read this recipe in Cooking Light April 2010 I said, "I could do that". The best part is that I actually did it. These rolls were easy, a great recipe to have in the file, and will be a nice way to use all the herbs from the garden.

No Knead Rolls
adapted slightly from http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1973629

1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
2 tablespoons warm water (100° to 110°)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
1/3 cup skim milk
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1.1 ounces whole-wheat white flour (about 1/4 cup)
5.6 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/4 cups), divided
Cooking spray
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper

Preparation

1. Dissolve yeast in 2 tablespoons warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes or until bubbly.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add thyme to pan; cook 1 minute or until bubbly and fragrant. Add thyme mixture and milk to yeast mixture, stirring with a whisk; add 1/4 cup cheese, sugar, salt, and egg, stirring well.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon whole-wheat white flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Using a wooden spoon, stir whole-wheat white flour into yeast mixture. Weigh or lightly spoon 4.5 ounces (about 1 cup) all-purpose flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Add all-purpose flour to yeast mixture, stirring well. Add enough of remaining all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to form a smooth but very sticky dough. Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and refrigerate overnight. (Dough will not double in size.)

4. Remove dough from refrigerator. Do not punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a floured surface; sprinkle dough lightly with flour. Roll dough into a 12 x 7–inch rectangle. Brush dough with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup cheese evenly over dough; sprinkle with pepper. Beginning with a long side, roll up dough jelly-roll fashion. Pinch seam to seal (do not seal ends of roll). Cut roll into 8 (1 1/2-inch) slices. Place slices, cut sides up, on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until rolls have risen slightly.

5. Preheat oven to 400°.

6. Place pan in oven, and immediately reduce heat to 375°. Bake rolls at 375° for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

The only changes I made were I used rosemary instead of thyme and I used skim milk instead of 2%.
We had this last night with a plate of spaghetti and saute carrots. This time I made the carrots with basil to pair with the basil in the sauce.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/04/broiled-tuna-with-cilantro-sauce-and.html

Braised Turnip Greens

Braising greens is a great technique to have on hand during CSA time – you tend to get lots of greens. This is what I did with the turnip greens from the bunch of turnips I got at the market.

Braised Turnip Greens
Inspired by http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1650,130181-252196,00.html

Greens from 1 bunch of turnips (about 2 cups)
1 T olive oil
1 tsp garlic minced
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
1 cup tomato sauce
Salt and pepper

Clean the greens and cut off any stems that will remain rough. Allow moisture to remain after washing.
In a skillet heat the olive oil and then cook garlic and crushed red pepper until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the greens and cook until wilted. Add the tomato sauce. Cook over low heat for 5-7 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

NOTE: The tomato sauce could be anything you’ve got hanging around – left over jar sauce, left over homemade, a can of tomato sauce.

I made this for lunch and ate it with a little bit of leftover pasta. It was the best lunch I’ve had in weeks.

Market Menu Week of May 16

Tuesday – sauté carrots with Rosemary, no kneed rolls with Rosemary
We’ll have these with Spaghetti and Sausage Sauce. The carrots from the market, the rosemary from the garden
Wednesday – Salad with Pizza
Salad greens from the market
Thursday – Stir Fry Chicken with radishes, turnips, and edamame
Radishes and turnips from the market
Friday – Oven Fried Chicken with Scallions, Garlicky Spaghetti
Scallions and Garlic from the market
The garlicky spaghetti also has arugula from the market.
Saturday – Hamburgers, Fries, and Salad
Salad greens and potatoes for the fries from the market

I’m not quite meeting my goal of having something local at every meal. Soon! CSA starts June 8.

I never got to do my post about roasting last week for my countdown to CSA time. So I’ll try to do that this week. My countdown post this week is about pizza and how helpful it can be during CSA season.

Garden....Mostly Herbs

Here are my flowers from last week’s TH market. They seem to have survived two nights with the temperature going below freezing.

Here is the purple basil I got at Sunday's market. It is accompanied by thyme (teeny tiny little thing) and sage. The angel was given to us by our flower girls when we got married. Her necklace is from the balloon our friends used to welcome us home from the hospital with our oldest.
The mint was in the box with the chives, but it was taking over so I moved it into the ground.
The chives were the first herbs from our home garden I put into a meal this season.

Last night we had broiled tuna with a lemon chive sauce and the Shaved Asparagus and Spaghetti.

http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/04/asparagus-for-lunch.html

I made a sauce based on this recipe for the tuna.

http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/04/stacked-asparagus-salmon-poached-egg.html

Broiled Tuna with Lemon Chive Sauce

Preheat broiler. Place tuna steaks on a well greased broiler pan and brush with soy sauce. Broil 4-5 minutes. Turn and broil 5-6 additional minutes. 145 degrees in the center.

1 1/2 T lemon juice

2 1/4 t parmesan cheese

1 t fresh chives

1/2 t minced garlic

1/4 t kosher salt

1/4 t ground pepper

1/4 t dijon mustard

1 T olive oil

Mix first 7 ingredients. Slowly whisk in olive oil. Serve sauce over tuna steaks.

Then today with the leftover tuna steak and sauce I made myself a tuna fish sandwich. I broke up the tuna with the sauce, 1 T of mayonaise, and some celery. Yummy lunch!

Random Thoughts

Meatless Monday
Since posting about the concept of Meatless Monday as a way to eat for the environment I've made sure we’ve done this at our house. I made the same thing last night as I did the week before…so no new recipe.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/05/yummy-easy-dal.html

I thought I would share this tidbit I read in the April 2010 issue of Cooking Light
“Add an all-vegetable night to your weekly menu plans. Buying one less pound of meat a week can save an extra $415 a year, on average, plus help you meet daily vegetable needs”.

Springtime Pizza
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/05/springtime-pizza.html
This is the pizza I made Friday night. Same issue of Cooking Light (April 2010) had this recipe.
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1973721
Adding pancetta might give it an extra nice zip

CSA time is coming
One of the best parts of CSA time is the fresh herbs every week. Simply Recipes (my favorite food blog) did a great piece on parsley.
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/whats_the_deal_with_parsley/

So there are my random thoughts.

Goan Curried Braised Beef with Potatoes

I used potatoes and onions from the market for this recipe.

Did you cook on Mother's Day or did someone cook for you? I cooked! It was much more fun for me to cook without interruption on a yummy dish that made the house smell good all day.

Here is the link. We used 14 oz. of greek yogurt instead of coconut milk.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/2009/02/goan-curried-braised-beef-with-potatoes.html

With 3 pounds of meat, this recipe makes a good deal of food. I've tried to half braises like this and it just doesn't work. My advice...make the whole thing and freeze half for another day or share the yumminess.

Market Menu Week of May 9

It was freezing at the market!!!! My hands were so cold by the time I was paying the last vendor I could barely give him a quarter.

I got asparagus, carrots, eggs, potatoes, scallions, and salad greens.

For the garden I got a purple basil plant. I have some fascinating recipes that use purple basil tucked away. I was excited to see the plant so we could grow it and try those recipes out soon.

With the craziness of soccer and baseball season at our house the menu is getting a little repetitive. Here is the plan for this week…

Sunday – Goan Curry Braised Beef with Potatoes
Meatless Monday – same Dal as last week using local onions and cilantro
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/05/yummy-easy-dal.html
Tuesday – Shaved Asparagus with Spaghetti and Seared Tuna fillets
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/04/asparagus-for-lunch.html
Wednesday – Chicken Satay and Grilled Sweet Potatoes
Thursday – Shrimp with Scallions and Roasted Potatoes
Friday – Pizza and Salad
Saturday – no good plan yet, it is never what I plan for anyway

In my countdown to CSA time I’ll do a post this week about roasting and blanching vegetables…tip and which vegetables work the best with those methods.

Springtime Pizza

I wish I would have taken a picture of this. The day got busy and it was all eaten up before I remembered.

The original recipe also called for 4oz. of goat cheese in clumps spread around the pizza. I’m not a fan, so I skipped that step. I know lots of people would love that, so I thought I’d mention it.

Springtime Pizza
Adapted from http://www.thenaptimechef.com/2010/04/springtime-asparagus-pizza-for-moving.html

1 12oz ball of pizza dough
½ cup chopped artichokes, drained
¾ lb. asparagus, shaved
1 cup shredded mozzarella
zest of 1 lemon
¼ t crushed red pepper

Preheat oven to 450.

Spread out pizza crust onto your favorite pizza pan. Distribute the artichokes and then the shaved asparagus. Cover with the mozzarella cheese. Bake 12 – 14 minutes until cheese is golden.

When the pizza is removed from the oven scatter lemon zest and crushed red pepper.

I was inspired to shave the asparagus just like in this recipe...http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/04/asparagus-for-lunch.html
The original recipe calls for using pencil thin asparagus.

Thursday Market Opens

The outdoor market on Thursdays opened this week. There were mostly plants...annuals, tomatoes, peppers, herbs. There were food items for sale too...fudge and bread. The only edible vegetable I saw was asparagus.

So I came home with these impatients for our flower boxes. We painted the house green last summer and I'm so excited to have purple flowers. I'm sure you've guessed I LOVE purple!!!

I also got two sun gold tomato plants to grow with the kids, some thyme for the herb garden, and some garlic.

CSA and Kids

A question I often get is…”Do your kids eat all that stuff you put on your blog?”

NO WAY!!!! But I do have a few suggestions for things I try with my kids so they will enjoy our CSA too!

PIECE MEAL
So, no my kids do not eat all those recipes I put on the blog. I can’t even get them to eat simple casseroles like baked ziti – too much mixed up Mom! I tend to give them our meal in pieces. The best example of this from the blog is the Napoleons http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/03/grilled-chicken-spinach-and-avocado.html . I gave them pieces of chicken, a piece of puff pastry, a raw leaf of spinach (see below), and a favorite vegetable side dish.

PREDICTION CHART
I saw this idea in Family Fun (http://familyfun.go.com/ ). We have a chart we use to guess how we will feel about a new food. Before we eat the new food we talk about it…what is it, why it’s good for you, which ingredients were used, how it might feel in your mouth, etc. So on the chart, each child has a column. Each child must answer three rows of questions. Row #1…guess if you will like the new food (my little one draws a happy or sad face). Row #2…describe the food after eating a few bites, taste, texture, etc. Row #3…rate the food on a scale from 1 to 5, 5 being you love this new food!

RAW VEGGIES
It got this idea from Melissa d’Arabian when she was competing on The Next Food Network Star. She said when she is trying a new dish with vegetables or introducing a new vegetable she gives her children some of the vegetable raw. Kids seem to respond to this. Mine like it because they see what the vegetable looks like, they can touch it, see what color it is and so on. They just have to try it. If they like it raw and know what it is, they are more receptive to trying it cooked or mixed with other ingredients.

FUN FACTS
I made this up when I saw Jamie Oliver in a classroom asking kids to identify vegetables, eggplant, sweet potatoes, radishes, and so on. At first they didn’t know get too many right, but there teacher did a quick unit with them and they learned to identify their veggies. I wanted my kids to be familiar with all the vegetables that come into the house. I also found this helpful when I couldn’t convince them that sweet potato fries would be good too! So anyway, I find out what vitamins and minerals are in the vegetable and make sure the kids know how they help their body, like Vitamin C helps you fight off germs. If I’m really lucky I find some COOL fact – like sweet potatoes have been consumed since prehistoric times (http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=64 ). The best was getting my oldest to gobble up asparagus because it would make his pee smell like flowers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asparagus )!

GROWING VEGETABLES
Finally, nothing works better getting kids to eat vegetables than having them grow the veggies themselves. We don’t have a big yard, and certainly not enough sun to grow vegetables, but every year we have tomatoes in pots. The tomatoes get eaten as soon as anything ripe is spotted. Maybe 10 cherry tomatoes make it onto our dinner table a year, most are just eaten as the children stand by the plants. For me, this is just another reason why our CSA is so important. We get locally grown vegetables with lots of dirt left on them and we can talk about our farm and how things are grown whenever we go pick up our veggies.

Yummy! Easy! Dal

This Dal was a winner at our house last night! The onion, garlic, and cilantro were all from the market. Never made Indian food? This would be a great place to start. Made Dal over and over? This is a winner to add to the repertoire.

A couple of NOTES: The recipe can easily be doubled. This way it’s written two of us ate 2/3 of it and I have a nice portion of leftover for lunch. I didn’t have yellow split peas, so I substituted regular lentils. I had curry leaves in the freezer because my good friend is always at the Indian grocery store – I’ll have to get more because I think they were a big contributor to the flavor. Proportion the paprika/cayenne anyway you want with the total of the two being one teaspoon. I did half and half and it was spicy, which we like but others might want it toned down.

Yummy! Easy! Dal
Adapted from http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/2010/04/super-low-fat-dal-2.html

½ cup red lentils, rinsed and drained
¼ cup yellow split peas, rinsed and drained
1-2 T ghee (I used butter)
2 t cumin seeds
10 fresh or frozen curry leaves
Salt to taste
1 t paprika/cayenne
1 t turmeric
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
15 oz. can diced tomatoes (the recipe suggest fresh too…YEAH for tomato time!)
¼ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup cilantro, chopped

Place the lentils and split peas in a medium size saucepan and fill with water to cover by 1-2 inches (depending on how soupy you like your dal). Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 30-40 minutes until the peas are tender and the red lentils fall apart. Salt tto taste toward the end of cooking.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Melt the ghee and add the mustard seeds. Cover the skillet until they pop (about 30 seconds). Add the cumin seeds and curry leaves (leaves will sputter). After 15 seconds add paprika/cayenne and turmeric, along with salt to taste. Stir for 15 seconds, until fragrant. Add onion and cook until it begins to sweat. Add tomatoes, brown sugar, cilantro. Stir and simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes.

When the lentils are done, add the tomato mixture and stir well. Let simmer together for 5 minutes. Serve with rice.

Saute Broccoli Rabe

Every dish on last night’s menu had something from the local market. It made me realize the growing season is taking off. I got to thinking…my favorite market starts this TH and the Sunday market has moved outside, we should try and have something local in every dinner. My goal for next week!

Sunday Menu

Grilled Salmon with Cilantro Sauce
Grilled Sweet Potatoes
Saute Broccoli Rabe

Grilled Salmon
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/04/broiled-tuna-with-cilantro-sauce-and.html

I took the leftover sauce from the tuna earlier in the week, brushed it on the salmon and placed them in the grill pan on medium high heat for 4 minutes per side.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes
With help from Rachel Ray

I tossed three sliced sweet potatoes with 1 T olive oil, salt and pepper. I put them on the Foreman Grill for 10 minutes per side.
I thought I’d put this on the blog before, but I couldn’t find it.

Saute Broccoli Rabe
Adapted from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/sauteed-broccoli-rabe-recipe2/index.html

1 bunch broccoli rabe (rapini), stems trimmed
1 T olive oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 T craisins
Kosher salt
Cook the broccoli rabe in a large pot of boiling salted water until crisp tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the heated olive oil in the next step when the boiling is complete.Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, and saute until the garlic is golden, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add the broccoli rabe and toss to coat. Add the craisins, and cook until the broccoli rabe is heated through and the stems are tender, about 4 minutes. Season with salt, to taste

Market Menu Week of May 2

The market was outdoors! And it was a beautiful day.

I just put the highlights in the picture. The radishes are called breakfast radishes. I like their long look. The tomatoes just look so good. They are on the windowsill and I’m shocked my 4 year old hasn’t asked to eat the whole basket yet. The asparagus made the picture because it’s my spring favorite and it won’t be in season much longer.

Here’s the whole list…

Carrots – going to sauté again, it was such a big hit last week
Sweet potatoes – grilled sweet potatoes
Onions – I think they will be in our Meatless Monday Dal and Homemade Sloppy Joes
Lettuce – salad standby
Broccoli rabe – sauté with craisins
Cilantro – always good to have around
Tomatoes – for the 4 year old and if there are any left into a salad they’ll go
Asparagus – Springtime Asparagus Pizza
Radishes – Stir Fried

Approximately one month till CSA time. I’m going to write a special entry each week to get ready. Check back this week, I’m going to put together some stuff on kids and a CSA.