Green Goddess Green Beans

I’ve wanted to make a Green Goddess dressing for a long time now. Last night was the night. Easy!

Thursday Menu – Honey Mustard Glazed Chicken, Fruity Cous Cous, Green Goddess Green Beans
Farm Share Produce – Green Beans, Parsley

Green Goddess Green Beans
based on http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Green-Goddess-Green-Beans-231809

1 ½ cups green beans, trimmed
1/3 cup parsley
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sour cream
1 ½ t red wine vinegar
½ t lemon juice
Salt and pepper

Place Green Beans in a pot of salted water and cook for 6-8 minutes, until tender. Transfer to a bowl of ice water at the end of the cooking time. Pat dry when you are ready to add dressing to the beans.

Use immersion blender to combine the remaining ingredients.

Toss Green Beans with dressing.

NOTE: The original recipe also had ½ t of anchovy paste in the dressing. My husband tends to not like things with this ingredient, to I left it out. The comments suggested substituting pesto for the anchovy paste.

Apple Pie

This pie just came together so nicely. I’ve been intimidated for a long time about making my own pie crust. I did it for this pie, and have to say I’m excited about how pretty it looks.

Apple Pie
Crust based on http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/potato-bacon-torte-recipe/index.html

Filling based on http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Apple-Pie-3/Detail.aspx

For the crust:
2 sticks of butter, cubed and chilled
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 t salt
8-10 T ice water

Pulse butter, flour, and salt in food processor until mixture looks like wet sand. Add 1 T of water at a time and pulse briefly after each spoonful. Add water until the dough begins to gather in large clumps. Dump the dough onto a work surface. Divide the dough into two equal portions, wrap in plastic wrap and rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

When ready to roll out, dust work surface with flour and using a dusted rolling pin roll out dough to 9 to 10 inch rounds.

For the filling:
½ cup of sugar
½ cup of packed brown sugar
3 T all-purpose flour
1 t cinnamon
¼ t ginger
¼ all spice
7 cups of apples, peeled and sliced
1 T lemon juice
1 egg white
1-2 t water

Combine sugars, flour, and spices; set aside. In a large bowl toss apples with lemon juice. Combine apples and sugar mixture and toss well to coat. Line a pie pan with one 9 inch crust from above, place filling in the crust, and fit pie with remaining crust. Cut a few slits in the top. Beat egg white with water. Brush egg mixture on top of pie. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Increase temperature to 400 and bake an additional 10 minutes.

Tomato, Potato, and Pea Kheema

I’ve been saying I was going to make this Kheema for weeks. We had it last night. The recipe suggests serving it with plain Greek yogurt, almost didn’t do it. The yogurt added a perfect bit of creaminess to the spicy dish. Kheema is a traditional meat dish of Pakistan and India. It has many variations. This was a yummy first attempt at making this type of dish at our house.

Wednesday Menu – Kheema and Rice
Farm Share Produce – Beefsteak Tomato, Potato

Tomato, Potato, and Pea Kheema
http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/2010/09/comfort-kheema.html

I’m just sharing the link because I didn’t change anything about it. I do have a few thoughts. The recipe suggests combining ground meats. I used beef and turkey. The recipe suggests beef and lamb are also great. I hate to admit this, but I think it was too spicy. I did use a green chile, the original recipe makes this optional. I also used cayenne, the original recipe suggest cayenne or paprika. Next time I would either use a chile or cayenne, not both. I served it with rice, but Naan would also be good. The yogurt was a great addition!

Week 16 of 2010

We got…
Arugula, Broccoli, Broccoli Rabe, Delicata Squash, Green Beans, Italia Sweet Peppers, Red Russian Kale, Salad Mix, Beefsteak Tomatoes, Golden Rave Tomatoes, Roma Tomaotes, Parsley
Fruit - Apples

My plans…

Arugula
I love this Arugula Pesto. I’ll probably freeze it.
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/arugula_pesto/

Delicata Squash
I’ll probably make some version of this Squash and Sage Pasta.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Butternut-Squash-and-Fried-Sage-Pasta-357109?mbid=ipapp

Green Beans
We had so many Green Beans this year. I’m always looking for something new for them. I’m looking forward to trying this Green Goddess Green Beans.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Green-Goddess-Green-Beans-231809?mbid=ipapp

Red Russian Kale
I have a recipe for Chicken Cutlets with a White Bean and Kale Sauce that is the perfect fall meal. I’ll try to make that soon.

Using up the Cilantro Pesto

Here is the recipe I use for Cilantro Pesto
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/06/strawberry-sauces-and-cilantro-pesto.html

I had some that needed to get used; here is what I came up with.

Tuesday Menu – Grilled Cilantro Tuna Steak, Cilantro Pesto Bruschetta, Salad
Farm Share Produce – Cilantro, Roma Tomato, Salad Mix, Golden Rave Tomatoes

Grilled Cilantro Tuna Steak

2 Tuna Steaks
2 T Cilantro Pesto
2 T olive oil

Marinade tuna in pesto and olive oil for up to 2 hours, minimum of 30 minutes. Grill 6 minutes each side or 6 minutes total on a grill like a George Foreman.

Cilantro Pesto Bruschetta

Spread Cilantro Pesto on a crusty baguette slice. Layer on a tomato slice and a fresh mozzarella slice. Put under the broiler for 2-3 minutes to melt the cheese.

Pasta with Lentils and Arugula

My husband saw this recipe while watching a cooking show years ago. It has been a well loved dinner in our house for years. The original recipe suggests substituting Parsley for the Arugula. Last night I had some Arugula, some Cilantro, and some Parsley left. The combination of the three worked great.

Meatless Monday Menu – Pasta with Lentils and Arugula, Salad
Farm Share Produce – Arugula, Cilantro, Parsley, Salad Mix

Pasta with Lentils and Arugula
http://www.pbs.org/everydayfood/recipes/Pasta_with_Lentils_and_Arugula.html

Mexican Bean Salad

For the last month or so I was feeling like my CSA was getting ahead of me, I felt like it would be pick up day again and I still had lots from last week. This week I feel like I’m doing much better. Heading into the weekend all I have left is salad mix, arugula, and herbs. AND I have plans for most of it before pick up on Tuesday. I think it’s being back in a routine. As summer came to a close we would wind up staying late at the pool or being with friends for dinner, which meant I didn’t cook every day. I like being in a routine, I like cooking every day.

Friday Menu – Chard and Pepper Quesadillas, Mexican Bean Salad
Farm Share Produce – Chard, Carmen Peppers, Roma Tomato, Green Beans, Jalapeno, Cilantro

Mexican Bean Salad
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/mexican_three_bean_salad/

I made a few minor changes. I had kidney beans on hand, not pinto, so I used kidney, black, and green beans for the salad. I realize while writing this post I left out the scallions – I’ll add those to the leftovers. Finally, I didn’t put the cheese in because I didn’t have any, but that’s okay with me since I don’t really like cheese (I know, everyone finds that very STRANGE!).

My husband loved it! I knew he would, that’s why I made it. I needed to make up for having Chard in the quesadillas; he’s not so keen on the bitter greens.

Chard and Pepper Quesadillas
I used Chard and Carmen Peppers as the veggies in these Quesadillas. I also added sliced Roma Tomatoes to the quesadillas. I enjoyed this quick Friday night dinner.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/06/spinach-and-mushroom-quesadillas.html