The Sad Demise of Cruella Cabbage

Last evening the world lost Cruella Cabbage.  Oh, Cruella we barely knew you...but if it is any consolation,you were delicious.

Yes, friends I used the cabbage from this week's share for my newest culinary adventure!

My original plan was to stick with my good old fashioned Irish heritage and make Corned Beef & Cabbage, especially since my share this week came with carrots, but all the recipes I found called for cooking times from 2-40 hours!  I wanted dinner and I wanted it in a reasonable amount of time.

I went to graduate school in Pittsburgh, PA and had the opportunity to really enjoy great Polish food (OMG  homemade pierogi) so I knew I could find a good cabbage recipe if I did a search for cabbage and kielbasa..and boy was I right!  I found my recipe - Kielbasa and Cabbage Over Mashed Potatoes - through Epicurious.  It sounded delicious and the prep/cooking time was approximately 45 minutes - right what I was looking for.

Unsurprisingly, the part of the process that took the most time was the prep.  I've been doing a lot of cutting and slicing since I started this blog, but I don't seem to be getting any faster at it.  My boyfriend can cut things so fast I'm afraid one day he's going to lose a finger, but at my pace I figure all of my precious digits are safe. I must at least be starting to build some defenses around "onion tears" since I only had to stop once this time to grab a tissue! Yay for small victories!  (Don't worry...I always wash my hands after a tearful onion induced episode).

There was nothing particularly challenging about this meal - add some vegetable oil to a skillet and brown the kielbasa, add the sliced cabbage and onions until the cabbage starts to brown, add 1.5 cups of water to the pan and let the water boil down until the cabbage softens. It's the second half of the recipe I changed...but just a little.  It's also where I cheated a bit...don't judge me!!!

The recipe calls for peeling and cutting up 3/4 lb of russet potatoes...which I did...but then calls for steaming them until tender before mashing.  Instead, I just boiled them like I normally would to make mashed potatoes.  This is also where I cheated a little.  You see, my boyfriend - who was sitting on the couch watching TV - makes really really good mashed potatoes so when the boiling was done I basically made him add all the goodies to it and mash them up for me.  His "technique" involves adding some milk (or cream), cream cheese, salted butter (not unsalted like the recipe calls for), and shredded cheddar cheese.

I decided it technically wasn't a big deal to ask him to do the potatoes since they didn't come in the share and the point of my blog is to use the items in my CSA share...which I did...by myself.  Sometimes, technicalities can be a wonderful thing (or excuse).


THE RESULTS 

The final meal was REALLY FLAVORFUL...and really simple...and really cheap (I think I spent about $6 at the grocery store on the kielbasa and potatoes since I had everything else at home). It made just enough for two people and wasn't as heavy to eat on a hot day as I expected it might be.  We'll be making this again in the future...particularly when the fall and winter come around.

Scapes, Beets & Broccoli

Ok, friends...as promised this is my "catch up" post!

Last week I bought some packaged, marinated BBQ ribs and thought I'd take a crack at making my first real, full meal.  I bought enough of the ribs to make them last through 2 dinners so I could focus on using some of my share items as sides - collard greens, turnips, beets, beet leaves and broccoli.

A lot of those sides were less than special - I just sauteed the collards and beet greens and roasted the turnips - all with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic.  They weren't bad, mind you, but didn't require any real cooking intuition.

I will make one small note here to say HOLY COW BEET GREENS ARE DELICIOUS!!!  I usually just discard them because, let's be serious they look disgusting, but a coworker told me they were the best part so I figured I'd give them a try.  He was soooooo right.  I'll never waste a beet green again...and neither should you!

I did make three dishes worth sharing with you all in a little more detail - Garlic Scape & White Bean Dip, Beet & Tomato Salad and Broccoli and Cheddar Cornbread.  I figure it's best to go from easiest recipe to most involved (although all three of them are really a snap).

Garlic Scape and White Bean Dip
The recipe, courtesy of the New York Times, calls it a dip, but it's pretty much hummus except with

cannellini beans instead of chick peas.  It requires ZERO cooking and only has 3 steps so it's pretty awesome.  The dip is delicious and replaced the hummus I usually bring to work every day.  It's also way cheaper to make then buying hummus!

NOTE: I did learn that I am going to have to buy a food processor.  I know some people swear by the Magic Bullet, but mine simply does not work.  It'll work for about three rotations and then get jammed up, so I have to shake it around, let it make another three rotations and repeat about a million times.  When thinly slicing 4 garlic scapes is easier than using a food processor you know you're in trouble.

Beet & Tomato Salad
Not a lot of ingredients necessary for this yummy dish!  I took inspiration from this recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart, but basically just used my intuition (even I don't know to know exactly how many pounds of tomatoes and beets I need to make a cold salad).

To keep things a little on the cheaper end, I picked up a container of mixed gourmet tomatoes.  They
were on sale at the grocery store and figured it would be less expensive and easier than getting a bunch of heirloom and cherry tomatoes separately.  Visually, they're really pretty too :)  I sliced a handful of the tomatoes in half.  I also picked up a small container of crumbled feta cheese.  Everything else I needed, I had - olive oil, salt, pepper...and of course beets!

I had 3 beets from last week and 2 from this week so they all got roasted.

I cut the greens and stems off (save them for later..remember, they're delicious), washed them thoroughly, put them on a sheet of aluminum foil and drizzled with olive oil and a little salt and pepper.  Wrap the beets up in the foil, pinching everything closed tightly, placed the tin foil packet on a baking sheet and popped them in the oven at 425 for about 45 minutes.  Depending on how big they are, the cook time varies.  Just take them out and poke 'em with a fork to see if they're tender.  If you have to force the fork at all they're not done yet - throw 'em back in the oven! When the beets are tender, let them cool enough to handle without burning your hands off.  Then rub the skins off under some warm running water...they should peel right off with little effort.

I chopped the beets up in a few ways to see what worked best and I think slicing them in half and then cutting 1/4" (ish) slices worked best.  Visually, probably slicing the entire beet into slices would look prettier, but I'm a practical woman and cutting them into bite-sized slices made more sense to me.  Do whatever you want...be creative...go crazy!

Once that's accomplished, all that's left to do is plate!  Take a plate (so easy), lay out the beets and tomatoes

however you want (you're just going to eat the darn thing anyway) and drizzle a little olive oil over the top along with some salt and pepper.  Top with the feta cheese and you're ready to go!

NOTE: Those of you who cook more than I do can confirm or deny this observation but it seems to me like you can't make ANYTHING without olive oil.  I'm not sure about the nutritional benefits of this stuff, but I sure hope it's ok for you!!!

NOTE 2: Beets are a mess so beware!  They're lovely magenta juices get all over everything and can stain your clothing so either dress appropriately or wear an apron when you work with them.  I must have washed my hands/table/floor about a million times during the skin peeling and cutting portion of this process!

Broccoli and Cheddar Cornbread
I am particularly proud of the success of this one, guys!  I found the original inspiration for the recipe at the Food Network website, but it calls for boxed cornbread mix, which...ewwwww.  I am a baker at heart and box recipes feel like a true betrayal...also, they're D.R.Y.

I have a great cornbread recipe already, from AllRecipes.com, that is pretty easy and super delicious.  I make two small changes to the directions:

1. I used canned corn instead of frozen corn because who wants to deal with defrosting corn when you just don't have to do it.
2. I usually bake mine is a 9"x 9" baking pan instead of in muffin cups since I usually make it to go with dinner instead of for breakfast.  This change means playing with the bake time a little, but just check to ensure that an inserted toothpick in the center comes out clean before you turn off your oven and cool.  Also, be sure to use vegetable oil cooking spray on the pan...NOT baking spray.  The baking spray gives the outer edges and bottom a floury taste that detracts from the flavor.

My cornbread recipe is a little on the sweeter side since it uses honey and sugar so I wasn't 100% sure how it would taste with the savory additions of broccoli and cheddar, but in the end it was FABULOUS.  The whole pan of cornbread was gone in 48 hours.

I used a cup of broccoli (what was left after my hot pockets from last week), but I think it would be wise to include more - 1.5 or 2 cups.  I cut the big chunks of stem off because I thought it would make the bread a weird consistency and broke the florets into smaller pieces to avoid getting a HUGE piece of broccoli in a single bite.  Then simply steam it (don't add salt to your steam for this recipe like I did in the hot pocket recipe).

Mix, with a rubber spatula, the broccoli and about 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese, pour the mixture into the pan and bake (it takes about 10-15 minutes longer to bake in the 9x9 pan than the muffin tins).

When it's done set on a wire rack to cool before removing it from the pan.

SO GOOD! 

NOTE: I only used about 1 cup of the cheese when I made mine, but it needed more.  Also, I'd like to go a little more crazy and add some cooked yellow onion to it too.  Next time...and there will be a next time.

So there you go folks!  Everything I've been up to, but haven't had a chance to post yet.  Hope you enjoy these ideas and as always, you can find all the recipes from my blog on my Pinterest board.

PS - Keep and eye out for a bonus veggie person this week!

          

New Challenges for Week 3

        

Hi friends! 

You wouldn’t believe how behind I am in my blogging!  The good news is that I’ve been using EVERYTHING (save that blasted lemon balm) from my CSA shares…the bad news is I am up so late cooking I have no energy to write my entries. 

I am going to get to my weekly CSA inventory and Veggie Person today to keep on schedule, but I’ll be working on a big entry to cover some of the smaller dishes I’ve made over the past few days including Garlic Scape and White Bean Dip, Broccoli and Cheddar Cornbread, and a simple Beet and Tomato Salad.  I’ve also roasted some turnips and sauteed collards and beet greens, but they were simple cooks and probably not worth going into great detail.  I am particularly excited to share the cornbread recipe since I combined two recipes into one with great success!!!

Now onto more timely things! 

I have to tell you, the share from ReVision Urban Farm this year has been nothing short of fantastic.  The variety is heads and tails above where it was last season.  If you feel at all inspired to participate in their awesome share program, you can click here to fill out a form or call 617-822-FARM (3276).  And yes, the cost of the season share will be prorated.

The share this week included:

• Beets
  
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Garlic Scapes
• Kohlrabi

You guys should SEE the bunch of broccoli from this week’s share!  This photo doesn't do it justice.  It’s probably the size of my head.  When I saw it I joked that it would make the perfect bridal bouquet for a farm themed wedding.

I have never heard of…or seen kohlrabi before.  It’s such a crazy looking vegetable, but apparently it is very popular in CSA programs and urban farms. Check out this great article from TIME magazine to learn more about this super healthy, delicious sounding alien veggie. 

You might assume I chose the kohlrabi for my veggie person this week since it’s such a unique specimen, but I couldn’t resist the little head of cabbage.  I am considering making it a two veggie person week, but for now I present to you Cruella Cabbage!

Note: My phone isn’t new enough to support Instagram’s new video feature sooooo I’ll be sticking with Vine video until they make the update available for oldsters like me!  You can, however, follow my regular pictures on Instagram here.

Who Wants a Hot Pocket?

It's been a busy few days that left little time for cooking, but I finally get back into the kitchen on Sunday afternoon (in the heat...without air conditioning... that is how committed I am). 

I was fortunate enough to get broccoli in my share again this week so I did some good searching for a recipe to use it in.  I debated a stir fry and a chicken broccoli and ziti dish, but kept digging for something a little more out of the ordinary.  I narrowed it down to two recipes - Homemade Chicken and Broccoli Hot Pockets or Broccoli Cornbread. 

I chose the Hot Pockets for a two reasons:

1. I make a killer cornbread already so there wasn't much of a challenge involved
2. Making cornbread would mean making something to go along with it and I did not want to deal with that!

For anyone interested in the Broccoli Cornbread recipe - don't fear - I have leftover broccoli from the hot pockets and decided to make it later later this week so stay tuned!

So I went to the grocery store to pick up the few ingredients I needed (pizza dough, chicken and shredded cheese), came home and got started.  I was evidently so excited I didn't even bother to read the directions.  I slices and cubed the chicken and threw it in a pan with some olive oil on the stove.  Turns out the recipe calls for you to bake the chicken.  I thought for sure when I realized my error that I had ruined it for good...I hadn't.  I am assuming that perhaps baking the chicken makes it more moist (I have no idea if that's true or not), but cooking on the stove top was fast and didn't seen to make a difference in the end product.

Once the chicken was all cooked, I cleaned the sautee pan (we only have one...the handle broke off the other one we had and it has yet to be replaced) and used it to steam the broccoli.  I had never steamed broccoli (or any other vegetable) before so I actually had to look it up.  It called for boiling 1/4 inch of water in the pan, then adding a 1/2 tsp of salt and the broccoli and covering it until it was tender.  The steamed broccoli was so good with just the added flavor of the salt I actually ate some of the florets that were supposed to go into the hot pockets....oops.

Then I attempted the roll out the pizza dough...which was significantly more difficult than I had anticipated.  Every time I tried to roll it out, it's elasticity cause it to shrink back in.  I was spending so much time trying to roll it, and it was so hot in my apartment with the oven on, that it actually started to bubble on the counter!  I finally decided to ignore the directions (the dough was only supposed to be 1/4" thick) and just make due with what I had managed to accomplish.

I cut the large sheet of dough into four, as the recipe instructed and spread out the cream cheese on the pizza dough, followed by the alfredo sauce, chicken, steamed broccoli and shredded cheddar cheese.  Looking at it, I thought there was no way all the filling was going to fit into the dough pocket and once again was sure I had messed it up.

Once again, I was wrong.  The same elasticity that drove me mad while I was trying to roll the dough out, also made it really forgiving as I folded up the top and bottom ends of the pocket followed by the long edges. I realized at that moment that I probably could have (and should have) added more stuffing, but it was simply too late.

I put the pockets on the baking sheet and coated with the oil and onion powder (I didn't have parsley so I skipped it) and then let it rest for a half hour.  Let me tell you how much that half hour killed me.  I thought FOR SURE (again) that all of the insides were going to ooze out or thin the dough during the resting time and they'd be a hot mess instead of a hot pocket.  They were, of course, just fine.

After baking for 20 minutes they were browned and beautiful and I couldn't wait to try it!

THE RESULTS!

The Homemade Hot Pockets were pretty darn good.  I knew exactly what I would do to make them even better if I made them again based on some of my little mishaps, but overall I would recommend the recipe to other people.  It was relatively easy to execute (save the stretchy dough), highly economical, and tasty.

If I were to do it again I'd do the following:

• More filling!  Don't be afraid of the dough slice to filling ratio - boy can that dough go a long way!!!
• I would assemble them on the baking sheet...just to make transferring them from one spot to another easier.
• I would add some Parmesan cheese to the olive oil/garlic powder mixture...and get myself some dried parsley.  The crust could have used the additional flavor.
• Bake for just a smidge longer.  I was concerned about it burning and even though the dough was fully cooked I think I would have liked it to be slightly more crusty.

Thanks again for  checking in and being a part of this adventure!  I am always so pleased (and surprised) when I hear that people are reading.  You guys are keeping me motivated!!!

As always, feel free to follow me on:

         

Stunning Swiss Chard

         

As I mentioned yesterday, Chef Pinkerton decided we should use the swiss chard from our share for dinner last night...and once he sets his mind to something there's no changing it!  

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, lets just take a moment to
acknowledge how fricken awesome looking swiss chard is!  It almost feels a shame to cook it instead of putting it in a glass vase to show off their incredible stem colors.

Last year my swiss chard was left to spoil in the vegetable crisper so that just simply could not happen again!  I was excited to use it this time around and since I had taken the day off of work I had ample time to cook (and eat) at a reasonable hour. 

Side Note: I think it probably takes me twice the amount of time noted on the recipe instructions to make pretty much anything...probably because I insist on washing the dirty dishes as I go along instead of waiting until I'm done (I can't help it...dirty dishes make me crazy), don't have great knife skills and am too afraid to multi-task, lest something go awry.  I don't mind that it takes me awhile to get things done, but it sometimes means dinner doesn't get served until 8 or 9pm!

So aaaaanyway, off to Google I went - excited about all the possibilities that may lie ahead - and there they were - about a million recipes for sauteing swiss chard.  "No way!" I thought, "there is NO WAY I am going to just make a side dish with all of the time I have to cook today!" (I know at some point during the season things are going to get busy and I am going to get lazy and having an easy out like a sauteed side or a kale-based smoothie will be a godsend, so I am holding off on those outs until I really NEED them.)

I decided to switch gears and search my next favorite recipe spot - Pinterest - and low and behold I found a bunch of possible recipes that were pretty delicious looking.  I pulled up four of them and went through the task of analysing the ingredients and process.  I tossed out one that required me to purchase way too many ingredients (budget conscious!) and another because I didn't have the proper tools.  I asked my boyfriend to decide which of the finalists sounded better to him and that lead me to a fantastic recipe for Sweet Potato and Swiss Chard Tart (basically a quiche...people want to sound so fancy).

Preparing the swiss chard took FOREVER!  I had to cut the stems out, which was easy (but sad..so pretty), but I also had to cut out the ribs, which are plentiful.  A colleague of mine told me this morning that I could have just ripped them out, but I am admittedly a little anal retentive so I actually used a pairing knife to slice them out. THEN the leaves that were left had to be cut into ribbons.  Once that was done the rest of the prep was pretty easy going.

The recipe assumed I knew my way around a kitchen a little bit more than I do, but it was a chance to use my own best judgement and let my instincts guide me...and it was slightly terrifying.  I've always enjoyed the rigidity of baking because the recipes are meant to be executed precisely and without error...follow the directions and you should be golden.  The flexibility in cooking has always been a little bit scary to me - for example being told to "season to taste" makes me feel slightly apoplectic.  In the end, though, everything turned out great.  Ain't that just like life?

I took the easy route and purchased a frozen pie crust instead of making my own.  I would have liked to make the whole thing from scratch, but I don't own a proper pie pan or pie weights.  These go on the mythical "kitchen goods to purchase" list.  If you choose to take the same shortcut I did, be warned that the recipe is enough to fill 2 pies.  This was fine by me because the frozen pie crusts at my grocery store came in packages of two anyway.

Note: The recipe calls for a half cup of grated cheese, but never actually tells you when to add it!  More improvisation!  Heart palpitations!  I added shredded sharp white cheddar to the egg mixture before pouring it into the veggie filled pie crusts.

THE RESULTS!

The "tarts" were absolutely lovely.  They were perfect for dinner on a crisp, sunny day and would make for a great brunch too.  Next time around, I would be a little more liberal with seasoning the veggies with the salt and pepper and could probably use another leaf or two of the swiss chard, but overall this was a great treat and I have no complaints.

 

Feeling Confident for Week 2!

          

Hi Friends!  Thanks for being a part of this journey through my CSA with me!  I hope, if nothing else, you've found some cool recipes to make at home by taking a look at my posts.  Remember you can find them all on my Pinterest page.

As I mentioned when I first began, one of my goals was to use as much of my CSA as possible each week so food wouldn't be wasted or go bad.  I am very happy to report that the majority of the greens from Week 1 have been used!  The carryovers are the garlic scapes (more on them later), lemon balm (still trying to figure out exactly what to do with that) and the oregano (which I plan on drying and preserving this weekend).  Everything else has been used in fabulous and delicious ways.

I was so excited to keep the momentum going this week that I dropped by my office on a vacation day just to pick up my share!

The share this week included:

• Beets
  (No Bears/Battlestar Galactica)
• Broccoli
• Collard Greens
• Garlic Scapes
• Swiss Chard
• Turnips
• Watercress

I was really happy to see more broccoli this week since it's one of my favorite veggies and can be used in a ton of different ways.  It also stores pretty well so I know I can hold onto it for a few days without worrying about it wilting or going bad.  I was a little less excited about the turnips and watercress since I'm not entirely sure what to do with them.  I've roasted turnips in the past, but they were much bigger than the ones that I got today.  I know watercress is supposed to be lovely in tea sandwiches, but aside from that I'm at a loss.  My cat Pinkerton, however, thought the watercress was delicious so after making sure it was safe for cats we let him nibble on a few leaves as a treat.

My little (or not so little) furball was particularly interested in all the greens I brought into the house today and patrolled the kitchen counter, sniffing and assessing each item.  He was particularly partial to the swiss chard (as you can see in this photo), so I decided that would be the featured green in my meal of the night, which I'll post about tomorrow.  Pinkerton's adopted brother, Yoda, was considerably less interested in the share.

A note about Garlic Scapes: I only had about 2 scapes from the first week of my share.  As you can see in this picture of Chef Pinkerton, I got quite a few more this week.  I've decided to make a garlic scape pesto over the weekend, which will use all of the scapes from weeks 1 and 2 so look for that soon!

Veggie Person of the Week

After taking a good look at my items I selected the next addition to the veggie people family - Meet Bobby Beet-nic!



All of my veggie people are available to adore on Instagram!

Be on the lookout tomorrow for my first recipe post of the week - Sweet Potato and Swiss Chard Tart with Sharp White Cheddar Cheese!  Trust me...you'll want to file this one away for future reference!

Excellent Escarole

          

My share this week came with a beautiful head of escarole and I wanted to use it sooner rather than later so it wouldn't wilt and start to go bad.  I've had escarole about a million times, but pretty much only in this incredible veal and escarole soup my aunt makes at Easter every year.  Because of this, I immediately thought about making a soup, but when I started reading the directions I realized I didn't have the proper cookware to make it happen (add a dutch oven to the shopping list...right after a blender).  Instead, I found a pasta recipe that would fit the bill and not take all night to make.

When I told a coworker what I planned on making she looked at me funny and said, "What's escarole?"  I told her it was a green, but after that I didn't really know what else to say so I knew I had some reading to do.  Escarole is actually a variety of broad-leaf endive.  Endives are high in folic acid, fiber and vitamins A and K.  Most endives are pretty bitter, but escarole is less so.  So, as my dad used to say, we learn something new every day!

Now that's we've covered the academics, let's get down to the recipe - Penne with Sausage and Escarole!

I had 2 sweet Italian sausages leftover from making sausage and pepper sandwiches last week so I figured this would be a good opportunity to use those and some of my share items.  It was also pretty economical because I only had to pick up a few items from the grocery store - red bell pepper, yellow onion, additional sausage and penne pasta.  I already had the garlic and escarole from my share, and the olive oil, salt and pepper and parmesan cheese in the pantry.  The recipe is pretty straight forward and not at all complicated - although taking the sausage out of the casing was a little icky texture wise.

Basically - cook the pasta, sautee the onions, bell pepper, sausage, escarole and garlic then add everything together in one bowl and top with parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil. 

The whole recipe can be found on my Pinterest CSA recipe board or just click here.

THE RESULTS!

The recipe was good, but made SO MUCH FOOD!  It would have been perfect for a family of four, but if I were going to make it again I'd probably cut the measurements in half to make it more suitable for a household of 2.  There are a LOT of leftovers in the refrigerator.  It was also slightly more spicy than I thought it would be and I'm not sure if it was from the sausage spices or the amount of black pepper added to the sautee.  Note: The recipe suggests putting crushed red pepper on the top, which I skipped.