Creamy Corn Soup and Grilled Peaches Dessert

My in-laws and I were at a market that other day that specializes in produce, much of which is local. The best items we got were corn and white peaches, local of course. Both of these items when in season are so good they just take care of themselves, but our eyes were a little bigger than our stomachs buying the first of the season. I needed to do something with the corn and peaches, and luckily my mother-in-law gave me this great cookbook, “Great Food Fast” which is put out by the publishers of Everyday Food. I saw that it was out and I wasn’t much interested, but once I looked through it I was hooked. It is organized by season and the recipes are simple, but look so tasty. I easily found something to make with the corn and peaches. There will be lots more to share from this book in the weeks to come.

Monday Menu: Creamy Corn Soup, Hamburgers and Brats, Grilled Peaches with Ice Cream and Crushed Cookies

Creamy Corn Soup
From “Great Food Fast” by the publishers of Everyday Food
Adapted for portion sizes

8 ears of corn
2 T of butter
Coarse salt

Remove the kernels and puree with accumulated juices in 1 cup of water until chunky.

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the corn, butter, 2 cups of water, and 2 t coarse salt until the butter is melted and the corn heated through.

Serve hot with any or all of the following garnishes: lime wedges, crushed tortilla chips, or scallions.

NOTE: I made the soup with corn that had already been boiled. They suggest making it with fresh corn. You can freeze the soup for up to six months. We had it with all three garnishes and loved it.

Grilled Peaches with Ice Cream and Crushed Cookies
Adapted from “Great Food Fast” by the publishers of Everyday Food

4 peaches, halved and pitted
2 T melted butter
Vanilla ice cream
Crushed Cookies

Heat grill to medium low. Brush both sides of the peach with butter. Place peaches on the grill, skin side up. Cook until peaches are charred and softened, 4-5 minutes. Set aside.
Place two peach halves in a bowl. Add two scoops of ice cream and sprinkle with crushed cookies.

NOTE: I grilled the peaches before I grilled anything else for dinner. I put them in a baking dish and covered them. When it was time for dessert, I warmed the halves in the microwave and then added the ice cream and cookies. I used Keebler Sandies for the cookie, but I think sugar or shortbread cookies would work too. The original recipe suggests amaretti cookies.

Guesstimate Week 6

Next week's guesstimate...

Carrots, Chard, Cucumbers, Eggplant or Peppers, Green Beans, Onions, Salad Mix, Summer Squash, Sweet Corn, Zucchini

Fruit - peaches

Please send any favorite ideas or recipes for these items through the comments or e-mail me at purplecook8@gmail.com

Week 5 of 2010

We got...
Basil, Beets, Boston Lettuce, Cabbage, Cucumbers, Onions, Summer Squash, Swiss Chard, Zucchini
Fruit – Peaches

My ideas…

Beets
You can make beet chips!
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/beet-chips

Cucumbers
Dan Dan Noodles – can’t wait to try what looks like a refreshing side dish on these hot days!
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1932657

Swiss Chard
Swiss Chard Pie
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/swiss-chard-pie

Summer Squash and Zucchini
I’ll just throw the summer squash and zucchini together in this dish that pairs them with lemon and thyme. I bet any fresh herb would work, maybe the basil that came this week.
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/zucchini-with-lemon-and-thyme

Freezing Broccoli and Kale

I still had broccoli and kale, and more vegetables on the way today. It’s got to be frozen and saved. I’m always happy to have items from the farm stored in the freezer.

I’ve shared this site a couple of times – it is the best! It gives great advice on how to freeze and store all the summer bounty. It’s in my list of links – Freezing Vegetables.

http://extension.missouri.edu/publications/DisplayPub.aspx?P=GH1503

For the broccoli…

I blanched it for 3 minutes. Drained and let it cool. I spread it out on platter to dry and then freeze. Once frozen, I stored it in a freezer bag.

For the kale…

I blanched it for 3 minutes. Drained and let cool. I placed in a freezer bag and then pulled it apart, just so it wasn’t one big clump of a ball. I tried to have it fill the whole bag and lay flat on a drawer in the freezer to freeze.

Guesstimate Week 5

Week 5 Guess

Beets or Carrots, Cabbage, Cucumbers, Head Lettuce, Onions, Salad Mix, Scallions, Summer Squash or Zucchini, Swiss Chard, Basil, Parsley, and maybe Peppers

Fruit Guess

Cherries

If you have any favorite ideas or recipes for these items I would love to include them in my menu planning. Contact me through the comments or e-mail me at purplecook8@gmail.com

Roasted Cabbage Wedges

The original recipe calls for fennel seeds. I just did not feel like that tangy, licorice like flavor last night. I pulled out my favorite kitchen reference book “The Flavor Bible” by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg. It lists ingredients and what pairs well with them. Bay Leaves and Garlic also go well with Cabbage, so we tried those flavors instead.

Thursday Menu: Roasted Cabbage Wedges, Leftovers
Farm Share Produce: Cabbage

Roasted Cabbage Wedges
Adapted from http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/roasted-cabbage-wedges

½ head cabbage, cut into 4 wedges
2 – 3 T olive oil
2 – 3 t green garlic or garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves, broken in half

Place cabbage wedges on roasting pan. Brush with olive oil. Spread on garlic and place bay leaves on wedges. Roast at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Beets and Beet Greens Salad, Pasta Salad with Shrimp

Wednesday Menu: Pasta Salad with Shrimp, Beets and Beet Greens Salad
Farm Share Produce: Beets and their greens, Scallions, Summer Squash, Zucchini

Beets and Beet Greens Salad
I found it here, in this farm’s current newsletter
http://www.roxburyfarm.com/content/6177
They reference marthastewart.com, but I couldn’t find it. Here is what I did.

3 medium beets with greens
1 t olive oil
1 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T rice wine vinegar, or other mild variety
½ t grainy mustard
Pinch of sugar
3 T extra virgin olive oil

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Trim stalks to ½ inch and wash beets and beet greens. Set beet greens aside.

Tightly seal beets in an aluminum foil pouch. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 35 minutes. Remove beets and let cool in pouch for 10 minutes. Place in fridge to cool completely.

Meanwhile heat the 1 t of olive oil, then add the garlic and cook 1 – 2 minutes to flavor the oil. Add the beet greens and toss occasionally until wilted, 5-7 minutes.

Mix vinegar, mustard and sugar. Slowly add extra virgin olive oil to make dressing.
Put greens on the serving dish, slice beets and place on top. Dribble with dressing and serve.

Pasta Salad with Shrimp
Adapted from Summer Pasta Salad with Shrimp in Everyday Food Jul/Aug 2010

Interestingly enough, Simply Recipes has a very similar recipe posted today as well.

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/shrimp_pasta_salad/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+elise%2Fsimplyrecipes+%28Simply+Recipes%29

½ pound farfalle, penne, or fusilli pasta
1 T extra virgin olive oil
2 small summer squash
1 medium zucchini
3 scallions, sliced
1 T lemon juice
½ t crushed red pepper
Salt to taste
½ medium jar of sun dried tomatoes in oil
16 – 18 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Cook pasta according to package directions.

In a large mixing bowl combine extra virgin olive oil, summer squash, zucchini, scallions, lemon juice, crushed red pepper and salt. Place pasta over the mix after it has cooked. Leave to sit for a minute so the heat can slightly cook the squash and zucchini. Toss after 1-2 minutes.

Place sun dried tomatoes and their oil in a skillet and heat. Add shrimp and toss occasionally until cooked. Toss shrimp and sun dried tomatoes with pasta mixture. Serve.

ALL DONE!!!