CSA round-up weeks 9 and 10

I realize that last time I did a CSA round-up, it sounded like it was my final share.  I really meant 'last' as in previous, not final.  But, this post does wrap up the end of my CSA.  Several weeks ago I picked up share #9, and selected corn, spinach, potatoes, green peppers, tomatoes, dino kale, leeks, and cabbage.  It's so strange seeing tomatoes and corn right now, and hard to believe that I was enjoying them just a few weeks ago.

 The corn, tomatoes, and kale went into a spaghetti squash recipe:

 

I used the leeks, potatoes, and cabbage to make another batch of cabbage, potato, and sausage soup (I told you I loved it).  I ate the spinach and green peppers in several salads.

I received my final share early because of my trip to Chicago last week, and came home with sweet potatoes, eggplant, peppers, carrots, broccoli, leeks, brussels sprouts, and cabbage.  I ate the carrots for a snack, roasted the brussels sprouts, and sauteed the eggplant with a bunch of other veggies.

I used the cabbage to make one of my favorite (and perhaps the simplest) veggie dish: roasted cabbage

The sweet potatoes, which were some of the best that I've ever eaten, were roasted with white potatoes and butternut squash:

And finally, I baked a few chicken breasts with leeks and peppers:

It's really sad that my experience with Titus Farms is over.  If I were planning to live in Michigan next year, I would sign up again in a heartbeat.  They are planning to have a winter CSA next year, and I'm jealous of everyone who will be able to enjoy even more of their delicious produce.  I just hope that I'll have good CSA options wherever I end up next year.  Did anyone else have a great first CSA experience?

Roasted butternut squash and potatoes recipe

During the fall and winter, there's nothing I crave more than roasted vegetables.  Part of the reason that I enjoy them roasted is that turning on the oven (at a fairly high temperature, no less) does a very good job warming up my apartment.  I haven't yet turned on my heat, so my oven has been getting quite a workout lately.

The great thing about roasting veggies is that you can throw together just about anything and it works.  I happened to have several butternut squash that my parents brought from my grandparents' garden several months ago (I was in denial that fall had arrived for some time, and refused to eat winter squash).  I combined that with sweet potatoes from my CSA share and a few potatoes that I bought at the market last week.  It was fabulous.  These sweet potatoes are some of the best that I've ever had, and I'm hoping to stock up before the market ends next week.  Feel free to throw in other veggies, such as carrots, parsnips, turnips, other types of winter squash, etc. 

Roasted butternut squash and potatoes
(Printable version)

2 small or 1 large butternut squash
3 medium sweet potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces (peel if you want; I didn't)
4 small russet potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp dried thyme or rosemary
1/4 cup shredded parmesan (optional)

Peel the squash with a vegetable peeler, and cut it in half.  Remove the seeds and stringy membrane, and then cut the squash into bite-sized pieces.  Combine the squash and the potatoes on a large baking sheet (I line mine with foil to make clean-up easier).  Drizzle oil over the veggies, and sprinkle with salt and herbs.  Toss the veggies well so that everything is covered in oil, and then roast at 425 for 30 min.  Stir the veggies and continue to cook until everything is very tender (15-30 more min).  Sprinkle with parmesan if desired.  Serves 5.

Turkey and mixed bean chili recipe

Chili is my ultimate comfort food, probably because my mom made chili frequently when I was growing up.  Sometimes it was by itself and sometimes it topped a baked potato, but either way I always loved it.  We always used one of those chili seasoning mixes (sorry to reveal your secrets, Mom!), and I even did this throughout college.  What were we thinking??  It's so easy (and much cheaper) to add you own spices, and then you have complete control over the taste.

This was somewhat different than what Mom used to make (I used turkey instead of beef, and a blend of beans), but the overall taste was very similar.  It was perfect for a cold day when I was stuck inside working.  Next time I may add a little bit more chili powder because I like to end up with a runny nose and watery eyes when I eat chili.  This will depend on your chili powder, so taste it before you dump a ton in there.  Oh, and when I make chili, I make a LOT of chili.  I never get tired of eating it, and it also freezes well.  I don't quite understand the concept of small batches, but adjust as you see fit.  I'm submitting this to My Legume Love Affair, which is organized by Susan from The Well-Seasoned Cook and is hosted by Jeanne at Cook Sister this month.

Turkey and mixed bean chili
(Printable version)

1 lb ground turkey (or meat of your choice)
2 onions, chopped
2 green bell peppers, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp ancho chile powder
2 tsp dried oregano
1 can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes
1 can (14 oz.) diced tomatoes
1 can (38 oz.) whole tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 cups cooked kidney beans (or 1 can)
1 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans (or 1 can)
1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 can)
salt to taste
chopped red onion for garnish (optional)

Brown turkey in a large pot over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks.  Once turkey is browned, push it to the sides of the pot and stir in the onion and bell pepper and let cook until veggies are tender (about 5 min).  Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, ancho chile powder, and oregano and cook another minute.  Dump all of the tomatoes and beans into the pot and season with salt.  Bring the chili to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally.  Garnish with onion (or cheese, sour cream, or anything else) if desired.  Serves 8.

Spaghetti squash with black beans, corn, and kale recipe

I picked up a spaghetti squash and an acorn squash at the farmers' market last week intending to combine them with one lucky member of my heaping butternut squash pile to make a soup.  Then I remembered that all I've made lately is soup, and figured that I should venture out from my liquid realm.  So, I began searching for spaghetti squash recipes.  Many looked good, but I wanted something that could be a filling main dish.  When I discovered Karina's recipe, I knew that I had the answer.

This is a fabulous way to make spaghetti squash.  Sure, it's good as a simple pasta substitute, but this recipe far surpassed that.  I added some kale because I had some lying around, and it was perfect in this (apparently I'm over my kale burnout from the spring).  It makes a good meal, but has also served me well as a snack.  I'm submitting this dish to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is organized by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, and is hosted by Susan from The Well-Seasoned Cook this week.


Spaghetti squash with black beans, corn, and kale (adapted from Karina's Kitchen)
(Printable version)

1 spaghetti squash
drizzle of olive oil
pinch of salt, cumin, and chili powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
kernels from 3 ears of corn
1 tsp cumin (or more, to taste)
1 tsp chili powder (or more, to taste)
1 bunch dino kale, stems removed and leaves torn
4 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 can)
4 oz. can diced green chiles
juice of 1 lime

Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise (I've heard that this is much easier if you microwave it for 5 min, and I plan to try this method next time).  Put the squash halves in a large baking dish (cut side up) and drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, cumin, and chili powder.  Bake them at 400 for about an hour, or until the flesh is very tender when you stick a fork in it.  When they're done, let them cool down a bit.

While squash is cooling, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Saute the onion, garlic, corn, cumin, and chili powder for a few minutes, until the onion is tender.  Then use a fork to scrape out all of the squash flesh, and add this to the skillet along with the kale, tomatoes, beans, and chiles.  Stir well, cover, and let this cook for about 10 min (or see Karina's instructions for baking it).  Stir in lime juice before serving.  Serves 5.

CSA round-up week 8

 

Things are certainly changing around here.  It's crazy to think that a few short months ago I had strawberries coming out of my ears.  It seems like decades ago, although I am transported back to spring every time I open my freezer.  My last CSA share consisted of chard, cabbage, yellow squash, eggplant, okra, a melon, potatoes, and lots of tomatoes (both heirlooms and "regular").

The squash went into this delicious summer squash and jalapeno spoonbread:

 

I combined the potatoes and cabbage with sausage for an amazing soup:

Several of the tomatoes were topped with parmesan and broiled:

The second I arrived to pick up my share, Amy informed me that there was okra and whispered, "you can take more than one basket."  I love that they know my food obsessions :).  I decided to only take a single basket because part of my mission in life is to spread the okra love.  I sauteed it with a few tomatoes, corn, and zucchini. 

 

I'm pretty sure that there's nothing better than grilled eggplant, so of course that's what I did with mine.

 

And, finally, I sauteed the chard with a tomato and topped it with a fried egg.  It was a delicious and fast dinner!

 

I'm trying not to think about the fact that my CSA will soon be over, but I'm excited that it's actually a week longer than I originally thought.  I've become so spoiled this summer that it's going to be a difficult adjustment to shop for produce at the store.  And who will encourage my love for weird, sometimes slimy vegetables??

Broiled tomatoes with parmesan recipe

I know that the tomatoes will soon be gone, but I'm trying to enjoy as many as I can before they disappear.  I've been eating a ton of them in salads because, to me, a salad isn't really a salad unless it has delicious tomatoes on top.  I also enjoy cooked tomatoes, but I never think to make them.  While I was looking at the mix of heirloom and "non-heirloom" ("traditional"? "standard"?) tomatoes on my counter, I realized that I have never had broiled heirlooms.  So, I mixed them together in an extremely simple broiled tomatoes dish.

This was simple, but amazing.  I love the way that the cooked tomato taste is completely different, but equally delicious.  The tomatoes virtually melt in your mouth, too.  I love the heirlooms and, as with raw ones, the green zebras were my favorites.  The bit of cheese on top was the perfect complement, and this is an ideal accompaniment for just about any meal.

Broiled tomatoes with parmesan (adapted from "Vegetables Every Day" by Jack Robbins)
(Printable version)

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
4-5 tomatoes, sliced in half

Mix the cheese, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.  Place tomatoes in a baking dish and sprinkle the cheese mixture over them.  Broil them (ideally on a rack about 6 inches away from the heating element) for about 5 min, or until the tops brown.  Serves 4.

Cabbage, potato, and sausage soup recipe

From the time I was 10 until I left for college, I never had to go outside or check the weather to know that it was fall.  As soon as the cooler temperatures arrived, my dog, Rascal, would run around and bounce all over the place.  It was great entertainment, but unfortunately I haven't been home during fall in a long time (although I have a feeling that she's not as crazy as she once was, given that she's 15 now).  But, I can relate.  There's something about the crisp air and beautiful colors that slaps a silly grin on my face and gives me an extra boost of energy.  I don't usually get to the point where I'm running around in circles, but it's tempting sometimes!

However, I fear what follows falls.  It's already getting colder than I like, and I have to keep reminding myself that this will be my last winter here.  We had our first freeze on Wednesday night, and since then all I want to eat is bowl after bowl of soups, stews, and chilis.  I thought it was only natural to make a soup from the cabbage and potatoes out of my CSA share.

This might be my new favorite soup.  It was delicious the first time, and got better and better over the next few days.  It warmed me up and fills me up, which are my two most important soup characteristics.  My sausage is fairly spicy, so it provided a lot of flavor for the soup.  If you use a milder sausage (or no meat), you might want to season it a bit more.  This will definitely be making an appearance for St. Patrick's Day, but I'm not sure that I can wait that long to have more.  I'm seriously considering making it again this week.

Cabbage, potato, and sausage soup (adapted from Karina's Kitchen)
(Printable version)

6 oz. spicy sausage, sliced thinly
3 leeks, sliced thinly
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 small head of cabbage, chopped
12 small red potatoes, cut into small chunks
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
5 cups chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste

Brown the sausage over medium heat in a large pot.  Add the leeks and cook until they soften (about 3 min).  Add the garlic and cabbage and continue to cook until the cabbage begins to get tender (about 7 min), stirring occasionally.  Add the remaining ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and let simmer for 45 min (or until the potatoes and carrots are very tender).  Serves 4.

CSA round-up week 7 and a farm tour!!

Before we get to the really exciting part, here's the usual recap of my CSA creations.  I started with kale, corn, watermelon, eggplant, muskmelon, husk cherries, heirloom tomatoes, and green beans.  I'm guessing that one of these things stands out to you.  What are husk cherries??  Well, they look like baby tomatillos (and are related), but have a sweet and slightly tart taste that is somewhat reminiscent of pineapple and coconut.  They can be cooked, but I snacked on mine until they were gone.  I also quickly ate the watermelon and muskmelon.  Seriously, don't leave me alone with a melon.  The muskmelon was gone in about 20 min.  I never make anything adventurous with green beans because they're so amazing when they're simply drizzled with olive oil and roasted, and that's what happened to these.  I threw the kale into some soup that was far from blogworthy (and barely edible).  But here's what happened to the rest:

The corn was sauteed with zucchini and topped a lovely pink potato along with beans and salsa made with a few of the heirloom tomatoes:

The eggplant and the rest of the tomatoes went into ratatouille:

And now for the exciting part!  Every year Titus Farms invites all of its CSA members out to the main farm for a tour and tomato tasting.  Even though I had way too much to do, I couldn't miss this.  They have four farms, so we didn't get to see everything, but here are a few highlights:

Okra!!

I resisted the urge to pick this eggpplant

Yummy cabbage :)

Kale, of course.  There were many jokes among the CSA members about the insane amounts of greens that we've received and finding ways to hide them in various recipes.

Delicious raspberries!  They let us pick as many as we wanted, and I certainly took advantage of it.

My favorite activity was the heirloom tomato tasting.  They had 17 varieties for us to try, and we voted on our favorite, least favorite, the "most tomato-like", and prettiest.  I gave all of them a fair shot, but nothing beats green zebras in my opinion.  I also enjoyed the Giant Belgiums, and voted that they had the most classic tomato taste. 

Ratatouille recipe

What happens when you have zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, and bell peppers lying around? Yep, that's right, you make ratatouille.  Not only is it a delicious combination of some of my favorite veggies, but it's also fun to say!

Every recipe is very similar, with the only major differences being how the veggies are cut (cubed vs. sliced) and how it's cooked (oven vs. stove).  According to Laura Rebecca, technically it's called a tian if veggies are sliced and baked.  I don't think you can go wrong either way, but I decided to go with the cube and stove version.

This was the perfect dish to enjoy the last bits of summer.  I've enjoyed it hot and I've enjoyed it cold, but my favorite part is looking at all of the amazing colors!  I'm submitting this to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is particularly fitting given that I adapted this recipe from Kalyn, the creator of WHB.  Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once organizes WHB, and this week's host is Chriesi from Almond Corner.  If you haven't already, go make yourself some ratatouille before it's too late!

Ratatouille (adapted from Kalyn's Kitchen)
(Printable version)

1 medium eggplant, sliced
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 medium zucchini, cubed
1 red onion, chopped
3 bell peppers (I used red, orange, and green), chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup basil, chopped

Sprinkle eggplant slices with salt and let sit for 30 min.  Then rinse eggplant slices and chop them into cubes.  Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat and saute eggplant and zucchini for 5 min.  Set this mixture aside and add more oil to the pot if necessary.  Add onion, peppers, and garlic to the pot and cook for a few minutes.  Stir in tomatoes, oregano, and salt and pepper and cook for another 5 min.  Add zucchini and eggplant back to the pot, reduce heat to low, and cook for an hour, stirring occasionally.  Stir in basil and cook for another few minutes.  Serves 6.

Smokin' black beans and heirloom tomato salsa recipes

Whoa!! I never imagined that this fall would be so crazy.  I suppose that the upside of having no time to cook or write means that I've had a chance to catch up on a lot of posts that I wrote a while back.  I also hope that working this hard will mean that I can defend my dissertation soon and will hopefully get a job (keep your fingers crossed!).  I just submitted my first application, so it's time to take a short break and return to blogging.  Ah, this feels good :)

You may remember that this month's cookbook of the month is "Vegetarian Planet".  Last week I was looking for something for dinner that was mostly hands-off so that I could "cook" while working.  I'm a sucker for anything with black beans, so I couldn't resist the smokin' black beans recipe in the book.  These beans were delicious and had a great smoky flavor from the chipotle pepper with just enough cilantro mixed in.  I've never used cilantro stems before, and I thought this was a great idea for something that will be cooked.

While I was in the Mexican mood, I couldn't let the summer end without salsa.  I love salsa on just about anything and, even though I rarely buy tortilla chips because they have a way of taunting me until the bag is gone, salsa never lasts long around here.  This batch was particularly good because I used a mix of heirloom tomatoes, and the combination of flavors is amazing. 

The first night I made tacos with the beans and salsa, and the following night I topped a pink potato (yep, it even has pink flesh!) with beans, salsa, and sauteed corn and zucchini.  Both were amazing, and the downside of writing these posts a week later is that I can't run to the refrigerator for more. 

Smokin' black beans (adapted from "Vegetarian Planet" by Didi Emmons)
(Printable version)

8 oz. dried black beans, soaked in water overnight
5 cups water
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced
1 tsp cumin
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup cilantro stems, minced
1/2 tsp salt

Combine beans, water, chipotle pepper, cumin, onion, and garlic in a medium pot.  Bring this to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer for an hour.  Stir in the cilantro and salt and cook until beans are tender (about 30 more min), adding more water if necessary.  Serves 3.

Heirloom tomato salsa (adapted from Simply Recipes)
(Printable version)

3 medium heirloom tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 onion, quartered
2 jalapenos, seeded and quartered
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 cup cilantro
juice of one lime
pinch of salt

Put everything in your food processor or blender and process until everything is thoroughly chopped and at your desired consistency.  Makes approximately one quart.

CSA round-ups weeks 5 and 6

You may have noticed that I skipped a CSA round-up (ok, probably not, but you can at least pretend).  When I received the previous share, I was extremely busy, and prepared everything in very simple ways, so there weren't many posts.  I started with kale, cabbage, green and yellow beans, cucumbers, a green pepper, banana peppers, and pattypan squash.  I pickled the cucumbers and all of the peppers, steamed the cabbage and beans, and sauteed the squash.  But the kale did find its way into this zucchini, tomato, and kale saute:

I did a better job with my last share. I ended up with cabbage, pattypan squash, an eggplant, corn, red potatoes, yellow beans, and cucumbers.  This is why I love summer!

The first thing I did with this batch of veggies is combine the corn with black beans and tomatoes for stuffed pattypans:

The cabbage went into this new and different Thai cabbage salad with chicken:

And finally I also stuffed the eggplant with red quinoa and mushrooms:

The cucumbers made their way into several salads (both green salads and cucumber and tomato salads), the beans and potatoes were simply boiled but still delicious.  I don't know how much longer we'll have summer veggies because we've had a cold snap lately, but I hope they can hold on a bit longer - I'm not ready for fall and winter.

Red quinoa and mushroom stuffed eggplant recipe

I was never a huge eggplant fan growing up.  I don't think that I hated them, but they would have never made my list of favorite vegetables.  Now I can't go to the farmers' market without buying at least one.  I even tried to grow eggplant this year, but it didn't quite work out (I only got one... and I'm pretty sure that it should get bigger, but it hasn't grown in a couple of weeks).  It's an intimidating vegetable - it can be bitter or dry and chewy if not prepared correctly - but it's definitely worth experimenting until you get it right.

I was inspired to stuff eggplant again from a post at Healthy Green Kitchen, and I'm a big fan of this recipe.  I particularly liked the addition of pumpkin seeds for a little bit of crunch, and the yogurt held the stuffing together so that I didn't make a huge mess when trying to eat it.  I was sad that the beautiful stripes in the eggplant faded into a dull purple when it was baked, but I got over it pretty quickly once I tasted it. I'm submitting this dish to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is organized by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, and is hosted by Chris from Mele Cotte this week.

Red quinoa and mushroom stuffed eggplant (adapted from Healthy Green Kitchen)
(Printable version)

1 medium eggplant, stem end removed
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
8 oz button mushrooms, sliced thinly
2 Tbsp fresh rosemary, minced (or 2 tsp dried)
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 cups spinach
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 cups cooked red quinoa
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds

Cut eggplant in half lengthwise, and scoop out most of the insides (leaving about 1/4" attached to the peel).  Chop the insides and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Saute the onion until it's tender, and then add the garlic and cook for another minute.  Stir in the chopped eggplant, mushrooms, rosemary, and wine.  Let this cook until the mushrooms and eggplant are tender and the wine has evaporated.  Then add the spinach and cook another couple of minutes until the leaves wilt.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add this mixture to a mixing bowl with the egg, yogurt, and quinoa.

Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat until they start to pop (about 5 min), stirring frequently.  Then stir the seeds in with the other filling ingredients.

Place eggplant shells in a baking dish and rub the insides with olive oil.  Stuff with the filling mixture, spreading any extra filling around the shells in the baking dish.  Cover the dish with foil and bake at 400 for 25 min.  Then remove the foil and bake for another 20 min.  Serves 3.

Thai cabbage salad with chicken recipe

You probably know by now that I can't get enough cabbage, so I definitely wasn't disappointed when Mom suggested that I get one when we picked up my CSA share last week.  We didn't end up eating it while my parents were here, but I knew that I could put it to good use.  I decided to do a cabbage salad, but I wanted to try something different than my usual Chinese cabbage salad.  This Thai version looked delicious, so I gave it a shot.

I really liked the way that this turned out.  The cabbage wasn't swimming in dressing, so it retained its crunch even after several days.  It had a nice amount of spice, too, with that wonderful Thai curry taste.  I really don't think that salting the cabbage does much, so feel free to skip that step if you're short on time.  And next time I just may add some shredded coconut.  It can't hurt, right?

Thai cabbage salad with chicken (adapted from Serious Eats)
(Printable version)

1 small cabbage, shredded
1 Tbsp kosher salt
2 medium carrots, shredded
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp Thai red curry paste
1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp honey
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
juice and zest of 2 limes
1/2 cup roasted peanuts

Toss cabbage and salt together in a large colander and let sit for 30 min.  Then rinse cabbage and let it drain for a few minutes.  Combine cabbage, carrots, chicken, and cilantro in a large bowl.  In a separate bowl, stir together curry paste, fish sauce, vinegar, oil, honey, cayenne, and lime juice and zest.  Toss this dressing with the cabbage mixture and sprinkle with peanuts.  Serves 4-5.

Corn, black beans, and tomato stuffed pattypan squash recipe

I came home with 3 beautiful pattypan squash from my CSA share this week.  I occasionally slice and saute pattypans if I'm running short on time, but most of the time I can't resist their shouts of "stuff me!". This was also the first week of corn in my share, and I couldn't wait to try it out.

Corn, black beans, and tomato stuffed pattypan squash
(Printable version)

3 large pattypan squash
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 can, drained and rinsed)
2 ears corn, kernels cut off
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 Tbsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
salt to taste
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Put the squash in a large pot with about 1 inch of water.  Cover pot, bring water to a boil, and let the squash steam until they begin to get tender (about 7 min).  Remove squash from pot and let them cool.  Once they've cooled, cut off stems and scoop out as much of the inside of each squash as possible.  Roughly chop the scooped out squash and set it aside.

Heat oil over medium heat in a large skillet.  Saute onion until it's tender, and then add garlic and cook for an additional minute.  Stir in chopped squash, beans, corn, tomatoes, and spices and cook for a few minutes.  Place the squash shells into a large baking dish and stuff them with the bean mixture. Top each squash with a pinch of cheese.  You will likely have tons of the bean mixture left, so pour this into the dish around the squash shells or bake it in a separate dish.  Bake at 350 for 20 min.  Serves 5.

First of all, this corn is delicious.  I'm tempted to buy dozens of ears from my CSA farm at the farmers' market and freeze the kernels.  The problem is that I have very little freezer space left, and I would love to store peaches and applesauce for the winter.  We'll see what wins when it's all over.  Anyway, enough about corn.  The squash was very good, and I was happy that I listened to its pleas for stuffing!  This would have been great with a jalapeno, but I was all out of fresh peppers.  I'm submitting this dish to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is organized by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, and is hosted by Rachel from The Crispy Cook this week.

Zucchini, tomato, and kale saute recipe

My parents are visiting me this week, and we decided to venture to Toronto and Niagara Falls while they're here. Taking a trip always means franticly cleaning out the refrigerator first (I can't stand the thought of food going bad while I'm gone), and this time I had some zucchini and kale that really needed to be cooked. I also have a plethora of tomatoes right now because my parents brought me at least a hundred from my grandparents' garden in Georgia. I couldn't be happier - my grandparents have the tomato growing down to a science. Or maybe it's all in the soil. Either way, I love them enough to bite into several a day as if they're apples. I knew that whatever I did with my zucchini and kale, it was going to include these amazing tomatoes.

Zucchini, tomato, and kale saute recipe

(Printable version)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced thinly

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 large zucchini, sliced

5 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped (or 1/2 tsp dried)

1/2 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped (or 1/2 tsp dried)

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

salt to taste

2 bunches kale, stems removed and leaves roughly chopped

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat, and saute onion until tender. Then add garlic and cook for another minute. Add zucchini, tomatoes, basil, oregano, pepper, and salt, and let cook until zucchini is fairly tender and tomatoes are falling apart (about 10 min). Stir in kale and continue to cook until kale is wilted and tender. Serves 4.

At the end of a busy day, I was simply looking for a way to quickly cook my veggies, but after all was said and done, I would definitely make this again. Somehow cooking kale with other veggies makes it less obvious that you're eating it for the umpteenth time this year. Mom said, "It was a really good blend of flavors. What's the word? Well-blended." Profound, Mom, profound. But I'm very glad that she liked my concoction! I enjoyed this so much that I'm submitting it to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is organized by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, and is hosted by Prof. Kitty from The Cabinet of Prof. Kitty this week.

Curried lentil and Swiss chard stew recipe

In an attempt to avoid going crazy from consuming greens at every meal, I made a list of every recipe in my cookbooks that calls for some type of greens. It didn't take long for me to turn to the list and figure out what to do with my most recent bunch of Swiss chard.

Curried red lentil and Swiss chard stew (adapted from "Bon Appetit: Fast Easy Fresh" by Barbara Fairchild)

(Printable version)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced thinly

1 Tbsp curry powder

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

3 cups veggie stock

1 bunch Swiss chard, stems removed and leaves chopped

1 1/2 cups red lentils

1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (or 1 can)

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until tender and golden. Then stir in curry powder and cayenne and cook for another minute. Add stock and chard leaves and bring to a boil. Toss in the lentils and chickpeas, cover, reduce heat, and let simmer until the lentils are tender (about 10 min), stirring a couple of times. Serves 4.

I made this on a whim, but ended up enjoying it far more than I ever thought I would. The flavors blended together nicely, and the curry and cayenne provided the perfect amount of spice. I liked the chickpeas in there - just when your mouth was getting used to the feel of lentils and chard, there was a new and surprising texture. I forgot how quickly red lentils cook, and I need to keep these around more often. This was definitely a winner! I'm submitting this to My Legume Love Affair, which is organized and hosted by Susan at The Well-Seasoned Cook.

CSA round up week #4

Whoops! I forgot that I needed to do a round-up for my last CSA share until I picked up a new batch of veggies this week. I'm really excited that the variety is increasing with each week, and I can hopefully avoid having kale grow out of my hair follicles. On this particular week, I was about to go bonkers with all of the greens, so I rebelled and avoided the greens like the plague as I was choosing my items. Yes, that's my form of rebellion... obviously I was never a problem child.

This CSA share consisted of beautiful carrots, okra (!!), green and a few yellow beans, squash, cucumbers, and kohlrabi. Here's how I celebrated the true beginning of summer goodies:

Summer squash is one of my absolute favorite veggies. I will never ever tire of it. I promise. Ask me at the end of September and I will be missing it already. This particular squash found its way into a greens, squash, and chicken lasagna:

I was ecstatic to see that okra was an option! I love okra, and made an omelet with stewed okra and tomatoes:

I couldn't resist the urge to make quick refrigerator pickles with the cucumbers and a few banana peppers:

The colorful beans were the perfect match for purple potatoes in an easy boiled beans and potatoes veggie dish:

The kohlrabi and some of the pickled cucumbers made frequent appearances in salads. I LOVE salads filled with summer veggies.

And finally, I roasted the carrots with a bit of olive oil and thyme for an amazing side (ok, I actually ate this for dessert one night). The best thing about local carrots is that they don't have to be peeled - the entire thing tastes great! And I love the funny shapes :)

I am so excited to see more variety, and can't wait to see what the next few months bring. Today I confirmed that there will be more okra (it's in the greenhouse, so it will survive for quite a while!). I have to control myself when I go to the farmers' market because there are so many amazing fruits and veggies and I want to buy all of them. It's a good thing that I've been eating everything in sight lately!