Tropical Carrot Salad

This is my take on a Mr. Natural's favorite.


Salad:
2 cups grated carrots (the fresher the better)
1 cup raisins
1 1/2 cups whole cashews
1 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened)
1 20 oz. can pineapple tidbits (drained)

Dressing:
reserved juice from pineapple tidbits
1 T vanilla
2 t agave nectar

Stir thoroughly to incorporate all ingredients. Chill for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Serve in ice cream dish-- this is dessert!!

Pick up this week

This week:

5 quarts mustard greens

5 quarts red leaf lettuce

1 head butterhead lettuce

1 head napa cabbage

5 quarts carrots

5 quarts beets

1 head escarole

8 leaves rainbow chard

10 garlic scapes

1 sunburst squash

1 zucchini

10 scallions

I couldn't resist the curly zucchini and had to take it home.

The shape of the garlic scapes is also amusing to me.

Sesame-Scallion Pancakes with Zucchini-Carrot-Apple Relish

Didi Emmons' recipe for scallion pancakes seems to be a rampant favorite among CSAs.
















Here I substituted whole wheat pastry flour for all purpose and ommitted the dipping sauce in favor of a relish akin to that served with pupusas. However, instead of cabbage, I used zucchini. I also added apple and kept the spicy nature of pupusa relish by topping with Sirancha hot sauce.

Entertaining for a Veggie Planet’s Sesame-Scallion pancakes:

Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour, plus more if needed
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3 tbsp canola oil, plus more as needed
3 scallions, white and green parts, chopped
3 tbsp toasted black or white sesame seeds


Relish:
1 medium zucchini (shredded)
15 young carrots (shredded)
1 apple (shredded)
1/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 t salt
1 t pepper

Directions:
1) Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and 1 tbsp of the oil in a medium bowl. With a wooden spoon, stir in 3/4 cup boiling water to form a soft dough. (Add additional flour or boiling water if necessary). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 3 minutes. Cover the dough with its bowl and let stand for 30 minutes.
2) Dust the dough with a bit of flour and roll it into an 8×16 inch rectangle. Brush 1 tbsp of the oil over the surface of the dough and sprinkle it with the scallions and sesame seeds. Starting on one long side, roll up the dough like a jelly roll. Cut the roll into 8 even slices. One at a time, lay a slice of dough on the work surface. Flatten it with a floured hand, then roll it into a 4-inch disk.
3) In a large non-stick skillet, heat the remaining 1 tbsp canola oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the skillet and adding oil as needed, pan-fry the pancakes until crisp and brown, about 1 minute per side. As the pancakes are done, transfer them to a baking sheet and keep them warm in a 250 degree oven while you fry the rest. Serve the pancakes warm with relish and Sirancha hot sauce.

Layered Polenta with Mustard Greens & Sunburst Squash

Keeping it infinitely simple. Since we started the farm share, I have cut down on the amount that I go to the store a lot. I have just been living off the other ingredients in my pantry to round out my meals. I have a variety of grains and beans to work with and so far it has been very easy.

















Ingredients (Serves 4):
3 cups water
2 vegetable bullion cubes
1 cup polenta
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
3 T olive oil
1 sunburst squash cut into 4-5 slices
1 T Montreal steak seasoning
2 T olive oil
5 qrts mustard greens
24 oz. jar of pre-prepared pasta sauce

Directions:
1) Bring water to a boil and lower to a simmer
2) Add bullion cubes
3)Slowly stir in polenta so that it does not clump
4) Stir in nutritional yeast
5)Cook for 1-2 minutes and set aside
6) Brush olive oil on squash slices and sprinkle with steak seasoning.
7) Grill squash for 3-5 minutes on each side
8) Wilt the greens in the olive oil for 2-3 minutes
9)Heat the pasta sauce until warm throughout
10) Plate with a layer of mustard greens, polenta, sauce, and top with grilled squash and basil

Neighbor Salad and Joi Choi Curry

Friday we went over to visit friends and share the wealth of veggies from our CSA. I brought I head of lettuce, I head of escarole, 1 head of Joi Choi, and 10 garlic scapes. Our friends had some store bought produce to mix in with the salad. It was good food and good company and all remarkable simple.

Neighbor Salad:

Ingredients:

1/2 head of lettuce

1/2 head of escarole

1/2 cup carrots

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes

1/4 cup candied pecans

1/2 cup chopped garlic scapes

Toss all ingredients together. Add whatever store bought dressing you fancy.

Joi Choi Curry:

Ingredients:

2 T canola oil

1 medium head Joi Choi (chopped and separated into greens and stems)

1 can coconut milk

1 T mild curry p.

1 T hot curry p.

Directions:

1) Saute stems in canola oil for 2-3 minutes

2) Stir in greens

3) Place lid on top and steam for 3-5 minutes

4) Add coconut milk and curry powders

5)Simmer all for another 2-3 minutes or until Joi Choi is tender

6) Serve over brown rice or grain of your choice

Radish Top Soup and Scallion Biscuits

How to make the most of your produce? I am used to cooking with turnip greens and beet tops either wilted or raw, but had never thought of using radish tops before because they seemed prickly and perhaps inedible. Then I came across a recipe for Radish Top Soup on allrecipes.com. Since its very meat/dairy heavy I veganized it. For the biscuits I used a recipe from La Dolce Vegan [p. 271] as the base and made a few modifications such as using spelt flour, oil for margarine, and adding scallions.

Radish Top Soup (Serves 4):

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil

4 shallots (minced)

6 small red potatoes (halved)

4 cups raw radish greens (chopped)

4 water

2 vegetable bullion cubes

1 T cumin

2 t salt

2 t pepper

Directions:

1) Saute shallots in olive oil until transluscent

2) Mix in potatoes and radish greens and pour in water and veg. bullion

3) Add cumin, salt and pepper

4) Bring to boil and simmer for 30 minutes

5)Allow to cool slightly

6) Process until smooth and creamy using an immersion blender

Scallion biscuits (Makes 12):

Ingredients:

2 cups spelt flour

2 t baking powder

1 t salt

1/4 cup olive oil

3/4 soymilk

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 cup scallions

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 450 F

2) Mix dry ingredients in large bowl.

3) Stir in the "milk", vinegar, and oil and mix.

4) Fold in scallions

5) On a well oiled cookie sheet, drop 12 spoonfuls of dough, evenly spaced.

6) Bake 15 minutes

Quick and Easy Beans

Quick and Easy Beans:

2 cans pinto beans, rinsed and lightly drained
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 Tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. salt

Mix all of the ingredients and cook until incorporated and warm throughout.

Ymmm. Goodness, all around!!!

Tips: You want a little moisture left in the beans so that all of the dry yeast and spices will mix. Also tasty with a dark beer or two.