Sesame Kale Salad

Poolside Potluck Picnic

The weather was not picture perfect pool weather, but that doesn’t mean we couldn’t gather at the poolside for a picnic. We were having so much fun my husband called and asked where we were. I assured him we’d be home soon with picnic leftovers!

Picnic Contributions – Sesame Kale Salad, Claremont Salad
Farm Share Food – Kale, Garlic Scapes, Carrot, Scallions, Arrowhead Cabbage

Claremont Salad – a non-creamy coleslaw with a lighter dressing
http://www.auntruthskitchen.com/recipes/claremontsalad.html
Getting kids in the kitchen – my kids love helping me shred cabbage with the food processor.

Sesame Kale Salad
A recipe in “From Asparagus to Zucchini”

Printable Version
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/83196924/Sesame-Kale-Salad

1 pound fresh Kale
2 T soy sauce
2 T sesame oil
1 T toasted sesame seeds
1 clove garlic, minced (I used a garlic scape)
2 t honey
1 T apple cider vinegar

Separate Kale – leaves from stems. Chop stems into ½ inch pieces. Rough chop the leaves.
Steam stems for 4-5 minutes, then add the greens for an additional 3 minutes, until tender. Drain the Kale and let cool. Squeeze out as much water as possible. Place in serving bowl.

In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame seed, garlic, honey, and vinegar. Toss with the greens. Chill for at least 1 hour. Serve.

NOTES: I loved that the stems of the Kale were used. This cooking time allowed them to be soft enough to chew. They gave the salad texture. This salad had great flavor!

Simple Spinach Salad

Tuesday Menu – Quesadillas, Simple Spinach Salad
Farm Share Food – Garlic Scapes, Scallions, Spinach, Zucchini

Simple Spinach Salad
Based on http://www.marthastewart.com/315091/herb-crusted-salmon-with-spinach-salad

Printable Version
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/83131561/Simple-Spinach-Salad

3-4 cups Spinach, cleaned, stems removed and rough chopped if necessary
2 Scallions, cut into 2-3 inch lengths
3 T lemon juice
1 T extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Toss Spinach and Scallions in a medium bowl.

In a small bowl whisk together lemon juice, oil, and salt and pepper. Toss dressing with Spinach and Scallions.

Here is my write up on quesadillas. They are great for using lots of CSA veggies. Last night’s quesadillas had a vegetable mixture with Zucchini, Spinach, Garlic Scapes, Mushrooms, and Onions.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/06/spinach-and-mushroom-quesadillas.html

Week 2 of 2011

We got…

Cabbage, Carrots, Kale, Scallions, Snap Peas, Spinach, Zucchini, Basil and Parsley
Fruit – Cherries

My plans…

Cabbage
I plan to make a Claremont Salad, a lighter coleslaw, for a potluck.
http://www.auntruthskitchen.com/recipes/claremontsalad.html

Carrots
The young, spring carrots we got this week would be perfect for these Israeli Carrots.
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/israeli-carrots-50400000111126/

Kale
I’ve wanted to try this dish for a long time, Kale Caesar Salad. I think it will be great in the summer. You don’t want the usual Kale dishes – like soup with Sausage and Kale.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/kale-caesar-salad-recipe/index.html

Snap Peas
Here is a recipe for Soft Polenta with Roasted Portobellos and Snap Peas. My guess is they will just get eaten as snacks again at our house.
http://www.marthastewart.com/349745/soft-polenta-roasted-portobellos-and-snap-peas

Spinach
I rushed home tonight from CSA pick up and made a Simple Spinach Salad. Stay tuned to the blog tomorrow for a recipe.

Basil and Parsley
I plan to make pesto to share and freeze with both of the herbs.

Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Basil, and Lemon

The Orecchiette dish originally called for fresh oregano, but with all those fresh herbs from the farm in the fridge I consulted “The Flavor Bible” by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg and discovered that basil also pairs well with Broccoli Rabe.

Meatless Monday Menu – Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Basil, and Lemon, and Frittata
Farm Share Food – Basil, Broccoli Rabi, Garlic Scapes, Parsley

Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Basil, and Lemon
From http://www.marthastewart.com/352659/orecchiette-broccoli-rabe-oregano-and-lemon

Printable Version
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/82995358/Orecchiette-Broccoli-Rabe

Salt and Pepper, to taste
¾ pound orecchiette
1 bunch Broccoli Rabe, stems removed and roughly cut into 1 ½ inch pieces
¼ olive oil
3 T garlic scapes, minced
½ heaping t red-pepper flakes
1 T fresh Basil, cut into strips
2-3 t lemon juice

In a large pot of salted water cook pasta according to package directions. Add Broccoli Rabe when 4 minutes of cook time remains. Drain pasta and Broccoli Rabe and return to pot.

While pasta cooks heat oil in a small skillet. Add Garlic Scapes and red-pepper flakes and cook over medium heat until garlic begins to brown, 2 minutes.

Toss oil mixture with pasta mixture. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with basil and drizzle on lemon juice.

Roasted Turnips and Mushrooms

Sunday Menu – Tuna with Sesame Bok Choi, Roasted Turnips and Mushrooms, Brown Rice
Farm Share Food – Bok Choi, Cilantro, Turnips

Roasted Turnips and Mushrooms
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/roasted-turnips-and-mushrooms-recipe/index.html
Minutes after putting these into the oven to roast they smelled so good. The cook time given is 25-30 minutes, I would give them closer to 40 minutes next time. I left my golf ball size turnips whole. Or I might cut the turnips in half.

Tuna with Sesame Bok Choi
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2011/05/tuna-with-sesame-bok-choi.html
I used mushrooms this time, as called for in the original recipe, as opposed to peppers. Still a super yummy meal.
Also, last time I had mini Bok Choi, this time I had a large head. Instead of searing the halves, I gave the Bok Choi a rough chop and again treated it like spinach.

Skillet Eggs with Kale and Chorizo

I have been freezing the Kale from our CSA, but I wanted to provide a recipe in “From Asparagus to Zucchini” in case you were wanting to put your Kale to use on your dinner table.

Skillet Eggs with Kale and Chorizio
“From Asparagus to Zucchini” pg. 97

¼ pound Chorizo, diced
1 bunch Kale, stems removed, leaves coarsely chopped
Lemon Juice
Pepper
4-6 Eggs
Grated Parmesan or Asiago

Heat large, nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add chorizo and cook 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the Kale and cook, tossing often 3 minutes, until wilted. Sprinkle with lemon juice and pepper and toss Kale mixture well. Push mixture to the outer edges of the pan. Reduce heat to medium and crack eggs one at a time in the center of the pan. Cook briefly uncovered, then sprinkle 3 T of water over Kale and eggs, cover and cook until eggs are set, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle a little grated cheese over the dish and serve immediately right from the pan.

Freezing – Kale, Broccoli, Herbs

My goal with a whole share for our family was to get items stored. I have frozen the kale the past two weeks, this week I froze the broccoli, and herbs will likely get frozen every week.
Kale in Ice Bath

Freezing Kale

Bring several inches of water to a boil. Discard stems and rough chop Kale. Add the Kale to the water and set a timer for 3 minutes. Immediately remove the Kale from the water and place in an ice bath. When the ice has melted drain Kale well. Freeze – I use zip top freezer bags.

Broccoli Cooling Before Being Bagged

Freezing Broccoli

Remove woody sections and leaves off the broccoli stalk. Cut the stalk into thin disc and prepare florets. Bring an inch or two of water to a boil and add steamer to pot. Steam stalk discs 2 minutes, then add florets and steam and additional 5 minutes. Remove broccoli and immediately rinse with cold water. Freeze.

Freezing Herbs

My favorite way is chopping the herbs and freezing them in ice cube trays. Here is my post on the method from last year.
http://purplecook.blogspot.com/2010/07/freezing-herbs.html

Later this summer I’ll work on freezing pesto made from Basil, Parsley, and Cilantro.

Sites I found helpful in freezing these vegetables.
http://extension.missouri.edu/publications/DisplayPub.aspx?P=GH1503
http://www.notmartha.org/archives/2009/06/12/how-to-blanch-and-freeze-kale/