Essential CSA Kitchen Tools – Salad Spinner

On CSA pick up day the Salad Spinner gets quite a work out.  Every week in our CSA there are greens.  Early on there will be arugula, bok choi, radish and turnips greens, as the summer goes on we’ll have broccoli rabe and spinach, and in the fall we hope for collard greens and kale.  We also get lettuce and herbs almost every week.  All these leafy greens need cleaned and stored.
 
The salad spinner does a great job with a quick rinse on herbs and then a quick spin.  I then line a plastic bag with a paper towel to store these herbs.
 
Greens like lettuce, spinach, and bok choi can come with lots of gritty dirt.  The salad spinner allows you to fill the container with water and then immerse the greens in the water.  Let them sit for a few minutes and the dirt will fall to bottom of the container.  I then pick up the colander section, drain the greens, discard the dirty water, and spin the greens to prepare them for storage.
 
And as any fan of Alton Brown knows, we try very hard to avoid uni-taskers.  The bowl of my Salad Spinner makes for a great salad bowl.  The lid also fits securely and the plunger locks in a lowered position to allow for easy transport. 
 
One week till our first CSA pick up!  We get to pick up a week early, I’m so very excited

Essential CSA Kitchen Tools – Immersion Blender

By far, my favorite kitchen tool is the immersion blender! 
 
An immersion blender is so easy to use.  Mine came with a tall cylindrical container that you put ingredients in for blending.  It is easy to clean.  You only have to clean one detachable part.  I find this so much easier that the multiple pieces of a food processor.  All right, you should probably wipe down the top piece, but being able to immerse the actual blender without worrying about electrical parts is such a relief.  Two or Three times a week I pull the immersion blender out of the cupboard, pop it together and blend away – marinades, dressings, sauces, and soups.
 
During CSA season my immersion blender is used to make pesto, soup, salsa, sauce, and dessert.  Here is a sampling of Purple Cook Favorites that use an immersion blender.
 
Basil Pesto
Cilantro Pesto
Arugula Pesto
Parsley Pesto
 
Thai Butternut Squash Soup
Cucumber Gazpacho with Shrimp Relish
Creamy Tomato Pesto Soup
 
Salsa Verde
 
Strawberry Sauce
Eggplant Parmesan Caprese Salad
 
Beet Red Velvet Cupcakes
 
And that is just to name a few of the recipes in which I’ve used both CSA offerings and my immersion blender.
 
Looking forward to CSA season!  5 weeks till the first pick up!

Strawberry Cream Cake

This was dessert when my book club recently discussed “The Dirty Life” by Kristen Kimball.  Local frozen strawberries made the cream filling yummy.
 
Strawberry Cream Cake
based on Raspberry-Cream Layer Cake from Everyday Food
 
for the cake:
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ¾ cup sugar
4 large eggs, plus 2 large egg yolks
1 T vanilla extract
3 cups cake flour, spooned and leveled
1 T baking powder
½ t fine salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk, divided
 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with cooking spray for baking.
 
Using an electric mixer beat butter and sugar on high until light and fluffy, 6 minutes.  Beat in 4 eggs plus two yolks, one at a time, until combined.  Beat in vanilla extract. 
 
In another large bowl which together flour, baking powder, and salt.
 
Mix 1/3 of flour mixture into butter mixture, then ¾ cup buttermilk, another 1/3 of flour mixture, another ¾ cup of buttermilk and then remaining 1/3 flour mixture.  Beat until just combined.
 
Divide batter evenly between the pans.  Bake until golden, about 30 minutes.  Let cakes cook in pans for 10 minutes.  Then remove cake and cool completely on wire racks.
 
for the cream filling:
2 cups strawberries
3 T confectioner’s sugar
2 cups cold heavy cream
 
In a large bowl mash strawberries.
 
Using an electric mixer beat sugar and cream on high until peaks form, about 1 minute.  With a rubber spatula gently fold strawberries into whipped cream. 
 
Place a layer of cake on serving dish.  Spread with strawberry cream leave ¼-inch border.  Top with the other cake layer.  Finish top with remaining strawberry cream.  Serve immediately.

“The Dirty Life” Book Club Meeting

My favorite things to do are to cook and to read.  Once a year I cook for my book club, and this year we focused on local food while we discussed “The Dirty Life” by Kristin Kimball.  This book club meeting was a perfect combination of all my favorite things!

 
In “The Dirty Life” Kristen Kimball shares the story of her romance with Mark and their first year building Essex Farm.  Essex Farm is a full diet CSA farm in Essex, NY.  Kimball is a wonderful writer.  One of my favorite lines in the book is when she described the beginnings of member pick up days like cocktail parties in a third-world market.
 
Shopping for the book club diner at the market last weekend was slightly frustrating.  It had been wet and cold and the farmer’s did not have vegetables usually expected in spring, most obviously missing was asparagus.  I had expected to find baby lettuces, piles of carrots, radishes, small potatoes, and the favored asparagus.  I found some of these in small quantities – lettuce and carrots.  I did well with radishes and potatoes.  I left so sad about the asparagus.  I really wanted to share my favorite asparagus dish – Spaghetti with Shaved Asparagus.  Mark and Kristin had many occasions in that first year when they needed to make dinner with what was available.  Upon getting home I realized I had beautiful radish greens and could make Braised Greens to serve with the spaghetti.  I was back to being excited about the menu.  Here is what we had...
 
Braised Radish Greens over Spaghetti
Spaghetti with Basil Pesto
Roast Chicken with Spring Vegetables
Salad
Strawberry Cream Cake
 
The Basil Pesto was made from Basil I had stored in the freezer.  It worked really well!  Good to know.
 
The Strawberry Cream Cake was also made from foods in my freezer store.  I thought the berries might be too soggy for the cream filling, but I thought the dessert was delicious.  Now, it was quiet messy to serve, but my dessert guru friend always says taste is the most important.

Chicken Sausage with Kabocha Squash Mash

Before the devastating floods that ended our CSA season last year, the farm was doing really well and was able to freeze some of the vegetables they were growing in anticipation of the Winter Share.  We unfortunately were not able to have our winter share, but the farm did sell the vegetables they were able to freeze and I got a 16oz package of frozen, pureed Kabocha Squash.  This is how I used it.  
Chicken Sausage with Kabocha Squash Mash
based on Everyday Food’s Cider-Glazed Chicken Sausages withButternut Mash
 
2 T olive oil
1 large onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
8 chicken sausages
1 t ground, dried sage
2 cups apple juice
salt and pepper
1 16ox package of frozen, pureed Kabocha Squash
1 large russet potato, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 Granny Smith Apple, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1/3 cup Greek yogurt
 
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onion and sausages and cook until sausage begin to brown, about 10 minutes.  Turn sausage occasionally to brown different sides.  Add sage and apple juice and season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a simmer and cook about 15 minutes.
 
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan combine potato and apple.  Cover with 2 inches of water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.  Cook until tender, 15 minutes.
 
Drain the potato and apple, then transfer to a container to blend with an immersion blender or a food processor.  Add the squash.  Process until smooth.  Add the yogurt and season with salt and pepper.  Pulse to incorporate the yogurt.
 
Serve the mash with sausages and onions.

Essential CSA Kitchen Tools – Ice Cube Trays

Do you have any ice cube trays?  Many of us may not because our refrigerators have ice makers. 

 
I do have several ice cube trays I use to store my CSA herbs and pesto.  I had a friend who went out and bought some after I told her how to store her CSA herbs.
 
In our CSA we get a small handful of two or three herbs every week.  Sometimes I don’t use them quick enough.  Like Basil on a Caprese Salad is only a scattering of leaves.  The basil is well used, but does not get you through the whole handful.    When we get Dill I do not have enough recipes in my repertoire or the taste buds for Dill to use it all in a timely fashion.  So...ice cube trays become an essential CSA Kitchen Tool.
 
Check out this post from 2010 about Freezing Herbs.  It details the process of freezing the herbs and putting them to use all winter in soups, stews, and braises.
 
I also will make pesto from all of my herbs and freeze them in the ice cube trays.  Then you can use them as needed. 
 
I’ve made several varieties of pesto in the past.
 
Basil Pesto
Arugula Pesto
Cilantro Pesto
Parsley Pesto
 
Looking forward to CSA season!  7 weeks till the first pick up!!

Swiss Steak

My husband’s favorite meal is Swiss Steak.  I have never made this meal for him...until Monday night.  While growing up his grandmother made it for him on birthdays and special occasions, and likely just about any time he asked.  We’ve been together 14 years and during that time I’ve showed him many different recipes.  With each one I was sure he would say, “YES!!!, try this one – it sounds just like what I grew up with”.  He has never said that.  It has occurred to me many times just to make “The Joy of Cooking” version and see what he thinks.  So, with two pieces of steak still in the freezer from our CSA beef share, I did just that on Monday night.  It was DELICIOUS and my husband thought so too, BUT it apparently was NOT Swiss Steak.  
Monday Menu – Swiss Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli
Farm Share Food- Strip Steak, Rib Steak, Basil
 
The recipe calls for 2 pounds of bottom round or round steak.  I used the strip steak and rib steak I had from our CSA beef share.
 
Swiss Steak
from “The Joy of Cooking”
 
2 pounds beef
1 t minced garlic
Salt & Pepper
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 T bacon drippings (or vegetable oil)
1 cup diced onions
1 cup chopped carrots
½ cup diced celery
1 ½ cups chicken stock
2 T tomato paste
2 T chopped fresh basil (frozen from CSA season)
½ t dried thyme
2 bay leaves
 
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
 
Pat beef dry and sprinkle with garlic, salt and pepper.  Dredge in flour and shakes off excess.
 
Heat bacon drippings in a Dutch oven on high heat.  Add the coated steak and sear until browned on both sides, 6-8 minutes total.  Remove the meat from the pan and reserve.
 
Add onions, carrots, and celery to the Dutch oven.  Cook until the vegetables have softened, 5-10 minutes.  Then add broth, tomato paste, basil, thyme and bay leaves. 
 
Return the meat to the pan.  Cover and bake 2 hours.
 
Serve by removing the meat to a platter.  Season vegetables with salt and pepper to taste.  Then spread vegetable mixture over the beef.