RECIPE: Shaved Fennel Salad

Note: If you're using a knife to prep here, do your best to slice things very, very thinly - not quite see through thin, but close.

Ingredients:

1 medium-large zucchini, sliced into paper thin coins

2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed and shaved paper-thin

2/3 cup / .5oz/ 15g loosely chopped fresh dill

1/3 cup / 80ml fresh lemon juice, plus more if needed

1/3 cup / 80ml extra virgin olive oil, plus more if needed

fine grain sea salt

4 or 5 generous handfuls arugula

Honey, if needed

1/2 cup / 2 oz/ 60g pine nuts, toasted (I used almonds)

1/3 cup / 2 oz / 60g / feta cheese, crumbled

Combine the zucchini, fennel and dill in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice, olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Set aside and marinate for 20 minutes, or up to an hour.

When you are ready to serve the salad, put the arugula in a large bowl. Scoop all of the zucchini and fennel onto the arugula, and pour most of the lemon juice dressing on top of that. Toss gently but thoroughly. Taste and adjust with more of the dressing, olive oil, lemon juice, or salt if needed. If the lemons were particularly tart, you may need to counter the pucker-factor by adding a tiny drizzle of honey into the salad at this point. Let your taste buds guide you. Serve topped with pine nuts and feta.

Serves 4 to 6.

RECIPE: Swiss Chard Stalk Bake

adapted from http://www.elizabethminchilliinrome.com

Ingredients:

1 1/4 pound of Swiss Chard Stalks
1 1/2 cup grated cheese (a mix of pecorino or parmesan is great)
1 cup ground capocollo (pulse in the food processer). Omit if vegetarian; for spice, add red pepper flakes.
olive oil 
freshly grated black pepper (tellicherry peppercorns are my favorite)
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Steam the Swiss Chard stalks until just tender. Drain.

Preheat oven to 350F

Steam Swiss Chard Stalks until tender. Drain.
Drizzle olive oil on the bottom of a baking dish. 
Put a layer of stalks on the bottom of the pan.
Scatter the capocollo on top. Scatter about half the cheese. Add parsley.
Add freshly grated black pepper.
Add the final layer of chard, completely covering the first layer.
Add the rest of the cheese, drizzle with more oil and bake for about 20 minutes, until all is browned.

This Week's Fruit & Veggie Shares

This week's shares include the following:

Vegetables:
Corn
Cilantro
Beans
Eggplant
Zucchini
Lettuce
Parsley
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Fennel
Chard
Tomatoes
Cucumbers

Fruit:
Peaches
Plums

Enjoy and have a great week!

RECIPE: Easy Plum Preserves

Ingredients:

2 lbs plums (seeded, rough chop)

1/2 C sugar (or to taste)

1/2 C port wine or canton ginger liquor (or water)

Cinnamon stick (optional)

Combine ingredients in a non reactive heavy saucepan. Simmer uncovered and stir occasionally. Stir more often at the end to prevent sticking and burning. Takes about an hour depending on your desired consistency. Remove cinnamon stick and cool before storing or serving.

RECIPE: Pickled Green Beans

Ingredients:

Coarse salt

1 pound green beans, trimmed

1.5 cups distilled white vinegar

2 garlic cloves

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Procedure:

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil; add salt. Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside. Cook beans until just tender, about 3 minutes. Immediately transfer with tongs to the ice-water bath. Drain well, and transfer to a large bowl.

Bring 1.5 cups water, the vinegar, 1.5 tablespoons salt, the garlic, and the cayenne to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat; simmer 4 minutes. Pour brine over beans. Let cool completely, about 30 minutes. Transfer to airtight containers; refrigerate at least 1 week (pickles will keep 3 weeks more).

RECIPE: Favorite Kale Salad

Ingredients:

2 big bunches of Lacinato Kale, washed well, stemmed, rolled into a bunch and sliced thinly

Puree the following altogether to make the dressing:

1 clove garlic

1 tbspn apple cider vinegar

1 tbspn dried thyme

1/2 cup sunflower seeds, soaked for a few hours, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup water

2 tsp sea salt

Toss kale in marinade and refrigerate overnight.  You can eat it fresh but it is really best eaten the next day to allow the flavors to blend well together.

RECIPE: Steamed Collards with Lemon Balm Cream

Adapted from Farmer John’s Cookbook: The Real Dirt on Vegetables

1 lb. collard greens (stems removed, slice crosswise into ½ inch strips)

¼ c. butter

2 Tbsp. flour

1 c. half & half or heavy cream (or vegan equivalent)

1 Tbsp. chopped fresh lemon balm

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Place chopped collards into a steamer basket over 1-1/2 inches boiling water, cover, and steam just until tender (about 20 minutes). Meanwhile, melt butter in a medium skillet on medium-low heat. Sprinkle in flour and stir to form a thick paste. Stir in ¼ c. of the cream and gradually add the rest, stirring so it changes to a thin, runny sauce. Stir in lemon balm and add salt & pepper to taste. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until thick again. Remove from heat. Pour sauce over the collards; toss to coat well.