Lima Bean And Dill Kuku

Photo from Sanam Lamborn of The Persian Kitchen blog.

This week, JP tells me Glade Road Growing's bag will contain dill.  While it's too late in the season potatoes or cukes--two of my favorites with fresh dill--the herb is used as a common ingredient in Persian cooking.  You can combine it with rice or try my adaptation of Sanam Lamborn's recipe for Lima Bean Kuku, which is she describes as a Persian version of a frittata or quiche. 

Since pomegranates are in season, you might want to pair this with a Persian salad consisting of salad greens topped with pomegranate sees, walnuts and feta, with a dressing made of pomegranate juice or molasses, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper.

Lamborn's recipe, shown, serves four and is cooked in a non-stick skillet.  I don't like non-stick skillets, so I  bake mine in the oven.  For a more ornate version served by chef  at the Obama White House, see this New York Times recipe.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 pound of lima beans (frozen or fresh)
1 medium onion peeled and diced
6 garlic cloves, smashed, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon butter
6 duck or chicken eggs
1 ½ teaspoons coarse sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper1 bunch of fresh dill, washed and roughly chopped
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon of lemon juice
1 tablespoon rice flour
1/4 extra virgin olive oil

1.  Add lima beans to salted boiling water and wait for water to return to a boil.  Then turn down heat and simmer until tender.

2.  Heat cast iron skillet until a drop of water evaporates and turn down to medium low heat.  Melt butter and coat pan.  Sauté until translucent, stirring occasionally.  Add garlic and cook until both are golden in color.  Cool to room temperature.

3.  Heat oven to 400 degrees and line a 9-x-12-inch baking dish with parchment paper.

4.  Crack eggs in a mixing bowl and pierce yolks with a fork.  Add salt, pepper, rice flour and baking soda and whisk together.  Fold in onions, garlic lima beans and lemon juice.

5.  Brush prepared baking dish with 1/4 cup oil. This may look like a lot, but it gets absorbed into the batter. Add batter, smoothing out the top and pushing it to the sides. Bake until center is set, about 20 minutes, and transfer to a cooling rack.

6.  Cut into 6 equal pieces. Serve hot or room temperature, with pita and yogurt, if desired.

Greek Potato Salad with Tomatoes, Quick Pickled Onions and Soft-Set Eggs

Photo by Stacie Billis


Serves 4

Ingredients:

Pickled onions

1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup water
2 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 teaspoon honey

1 medium red onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced

Potato salad:

4 large potatoes scrubbed and cut into one-inch cubes
2 cups of tomatoes cut into wedges
4 soft set duck or chicken eggs

Vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon of honey
1 teaspoon of sea salt
Fresh ground pepper

Garnish:

3 tablespoons of chopped herbs (cilantro, parsley, mint, dill, basil or a combination)

Directions:

1.  Mix together vinegar, water spices for pickled onions.  Bring to a boil and take off heat.  Pour over onions and let cool.  Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours.

2.  Steam potatoes in covered pot boiling water until tender, about ten minutes.  Transfer to a bowl to cool.

3.  Meanwhile cook eggs in a large saucepan of boiling water until whites are set and yolks are still slightly soft, about 7 minutes. (You can cook the eggs a minute or two longer if you like them more set.) Drain and rinse in cold water until cold.  Drain and peel.  Set eggs aside.

4.  To make vinaigrette, whisk lemon juice, mustard, and honey in a large bowl. Whisking constantly, gradually add oil; whisk until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.

5.  Add vinaigrette to potatoes, tomatoes and pickled onions and toss.  Transfer to four individuals bowls.  Quarter eggs and tuck one in each bowl between veggies.  Garnish with chopped herbs.

Spaghetti Squash Ramen

Photo from Anarchist Kitchen.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash, halved and de-seeded
2 carrots, cut in half lengthwise and cut into sticks
1/2  # mushrooms, sliced
2 cups arugula (or kale, chard  or spinach) chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup of cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh ginger, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, smashed, peeled and finely chopped
4 tablespoons of miso, thinned with water
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tablespoon of demerara sugar
1 fresh lime lime
sea salt to taste
4 tablespoons of toasted sesame seed oil
8 cups of water
4 hard-boiled chicken or duck eggs, peeled and halved

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 400 C.  Cut squash in half and remove seeds.  Place face down in baking dish with some water and bake for for 40 minutes.

2.  In a skillet, add about 1 tbs sesame seed oil. Sautee half the mushrooms with the carrots and half the grated ginger and garlic. When carrots look soft take everything out of the skillet and set on a plate.

3.  In the same skillet, add the greens and remaining garlic and saute them. They will wilt quickly. Once done add them to the cooked veggie plate.

4.  To make broth, bring water to boil in the skillet with the rest of mushrooms and ginger, oil,  pepper flakes and sugar.  Let broth cool until it's warm, stir in the miso and the lime juice.

5. Take spaghetti squash from oven and use fork to remove insides in strands. Divide the squash among four bowls, add broth, and place veggies on top and garnish with onion greens, cilantro and hard boiled eggs.

Farm Fried Rice

Photo by Julia Mueller of her  vegetable fried rice from her blog, The Roasted Root.

When Sally and JP told me that  farm share from  Glade Road Growing  this week was slated to include baby bok choy, carrots, sweet peppers, lettuce mix and garlic this week, I suggested that I come up with a recipe for fried rice (which will use everything except the lettuce.)  Mueller's  recipe, which she developed for the spring features broccoli, spinach and green onions and is a side dish, but her photograph was so beautiful and her blog so in line with the kinds of recipes I develop that I decided to feature it here.  Like hers, my fried rice is mostly veggies with some rice, rather than the reverse proportions that you will find in your typical Chinese restaurant.  Mine is more yellow, as I use turmeric and olive oil to flavor the rice.

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Serves 4


Ingredients
2 cups brown rice
4 cups water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon of ground turmeric

1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 baby bok chok, sliced thin on the slant
2 cups shredded carrot
1  piece fresh ginger, finely chopped to make 1 to 2 tablespoons
8 cloves garlic, smashed peeled and finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 onion, chopped (or green onion, if you make this in the spring)
2 cups green peas (fresh if you make this in the spring, frozen this time of year)

8  duck or large chicken eggs, well beaten (you can substitute 1 cup of cooked chicken for 4 of the eggs, if you prefer.)

4 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
4  tablespoons miso, thinned with an equal amount of water
Chopped roasted peanuts

Instructions

1. To cook the rice, in a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom and a tight-fitting lid, combine the rice and water and bring to a boil.  Rinse.  Return to pot, add teaspoon sea salt, 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil  and ground turmeric and bring again to a boil again.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Turn off heat and leave for 40 minutes until water is absorbed.

2. While rice is cooking, saute the vegetables. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large skillet, wok, or saucepan and heat to medium-high. Add the bok choy, bell pepper and onions and cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 3 to 4 tablespoons of water, cover, and continue cooking until the bok choy  is bright green and the peppers and onions have begun softening, about 3 to 5 minutes.

3.  Add the shredded carrot, ginger, garlic and pepper flakes. Continue cooking until garlic and ginger are very fragrant, about 3 minutes.

4.  Transfer the cooked rice to the skillet with the veggies and add the peas.  Stir everything together well and reduce the heat to medium-low. Allow the rice mixture to sit.

5.  Scramble the the eggs in a separate skillet and add to the fried rice.  Turn off the heat and stir in the miso, toasted sesame oil and peanuts. 

Quinoa and Chard Fresh Spring Rolls

Photo by my one of my favorite food photographers and stylists, Andrew Scrivani, for the New York Times' Martha Rose Shulman's recipe (which is different than mine, but also delicious.)

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Sally tells me that the Glade Road Growing bag share for June 21 will include  rainbow chard, broccoli, carrots, bunch onion, basil, and summer squash.  I thought I'd come up with a recipe for spring rolls that uses the chard as a wrapper rather than rice paper.

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Serves 8


1 bunch rainbow chard
2/3 cup of raw quinoa
4 hard boiled chicken or duck eggs, peeled and sliced into in half lengthwise, as you would slice them for deviled eggs.
1 summer squash, cut into matchsticks
2 large carrots, cut into matchsticks
fresh basil leaves, reserve 8 for garnish
2 green onions, sliced thin, reserve some of tops for garnish
1 tablespoons miso, thinned with water
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger


1.   Make dipping sauce(s).  You will find the ingredients and recipes for a sweet  miso sauce here and/or a peanut sauce (with other nut substitutes, if you are allergic) here.

2.  Cook the quinoa.  You can find the directions here.

3. Wash and prep the veggies.

4.  Remove the large stems from the chard. Break the spine with a fork, Blanche chard for one minute. Set aside to cool and drain.

5. Mix quinoa, garlic, ginger, vinegar and miso in a bowl.  (If you have extra, you can refrigerate the excess tossed in salads.)

6.  On the large end of each large end of a chard leaf,  put a 2 T of the quinoa mixture in the middle of the leaf.  Nest half of a hard boiled egg in the center with the white side down.  Layer on matchstick veggies crosswise, green onions.  Top with basil leaves.  Fold in the sides and roll like a burrito.

7.  Refrigerate for  one hour before slicing in half, cross wise.   They will look something like this.   (If you prefer your veggies cooked, you could steam the rolls for six minutes and then refrigerate. If you do not have a steamer. you can use a pot of water with a colander and some foil for a lid. 

8.  Serve on plates garnished with extra basil leaves and green onions.  I like to put the dipping sauces in individual ramekins on the plates or you can set out in small bowls with a spoon for sharing.

Fresh Lumpia (Filipino Egg Rolls) with Sweet Miso Garlic Sauce

Inspired by a recipe at Epicurious by Mark Bittman, food columnist for the New York Times.  Photo by Keith Ferris of the Culinary Institute of  America.

Serves 4

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Lumpia are Filipino egg rolls, similar to crepes.  I prefer them fresh.  You can also deep-fry them.  Some folks use pre-made wrappers, but the homemade ones are easy, I promise.

Ingredients:

Wrappers:
1 duck or chicken egg
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 cup water
extra virgin olive oil

Sauce:
1/2 cup of water
2/3 cups demerara sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TB miso
4 T   roasted peanut, chopped


Filling:

extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves,
2 green onions minced
1/2 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup shredded Napa
1 pound of roasted chicken or pork removed from bone and shredded or tempeh, sliced thin
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons dry sherry
1 c. cilantro leaves, trimmed from stems and chopped

To make 8 wrappers:

1. Pre-heat over to 200 degrees F.  Whisk egg until slightly beaten.  Whisk in 1 cup water and 1 cup flour until very smooth. 
2. Heat an 8- or 10-inch well seasoned cast iron over medium heat. When a drop of water skitters across the surface before evaporating, add a teaspoon of oil and spread over pan.  Ladle 2 tablespoons of the batter into the skillet and swirl it around so that it forms a thin layer on the bottom of the pan. Pour the excess batter back in the bowl. When the wrapper is just cooked through and the edges lift away from the pan, remove it without turning it over. Transfer to a ovenproof plate, cover and place in the oven to keep warm.
3.  Repeat with the remaining batter, separating the  lumpia wrappers with parchment paper to keep from sticking and cover with large lid to keep from drying out.

To make sweet garlic miso sauce:

1. Stir sugar and water in a saucepan and cook over low heat until slightly caramelized and thickened, about 5 minutes. 
2. Remove from heat and stir in garlic and peanuts.  After it cools slightly, stir in miso. Set aside.

To make filling:

1.  Coat a large skillet in oil and turn the heat to medium.
2.  Heat a minutes and then add garlic and green onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 15 to 30 seconds. 
3. Add the napa and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. 
4. Add the meat or tofu and heat through. Add the salt, pepper, and wine and remove from the heat.

To assemble:

1. Lay a lumpia wrapper flat on a work surface and place 2 tablespoons of cilantro leaves on top. 
2. Line 2 heaping tablespoons of stir-fry mixture on top of the cilantro. Fold in the sides and roll tightly, sealing the seam  with a few drops of water spread your fingertip. 
3. Serve two on each plate, garnished with more cilantro and accompanied by a ramekin of the  sauce.

Spinach-Feta-Quinoa Cakes with Lemon-Dill Sauce

Photo by Allyson Zea for her blog, Domestic Superhero.

Glade Road Growing will have its first farm share on May 31.  JP tells me there will be spinach and green onions and so I created a recipe, which is similar to one on Allyson Zea's blog.

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Serves 4

Ingredients:

2/3 cup raw quinoa
bunch of green onions
several spigs of fresh dill enough to make 4 tablespoons chopped
1 lemon
1 cup Greek yogurt
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic
10 ounces fresh spinach (You can also use kale, arugula, chard or a combination.)
2 slice whole grain bread, crumbled into soft crumbs
4 chicken or duck eggs
1/2 # feta cheese
Salt
Black pepper

To make the sauce:

1.  Finely chop 4 tablespoons of the green portion of the onions and 4 tablespoons fresh dill.
     Reserve 1/2 of the dill for the quinoa cakes.  If you have extra dill, do not wash the portion you are
     going to store.   Just shake the stems loosely and place them in a plastic bag with a piece of paper
     towel to absorb and condensation and store in the refrigerator.
2.  Squeeze the juice from one lemon and measure out 4 teaspoons and refrigerate the rest in a lidded
     jar for another use.  Zest the lemon from the peel. You will use 1/2 teaspoon of the zest from the
     skin for the cakes.  You can dry any remaining zest on a piece of parchment paper and then store
     in a small spice jar.
3.  Whisk 1 cup plain Greek yogurt and the lemon juice and add in the herbs.  Season with salt and
     freshly ground pepper.
4.  Cover and refrigerate the sauce for at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to
     meld.

To make the quinoa cakes:

1.  Cook the quinoa by bringing 2  cup of water to a boil.  Add the 2/3 cup of  raw quinoa and return
     to boil.  Take off stove and rinse well.  Add back in a scant 2 cups of water and return to stove and
     bring to a boil.  Turn down to low.  Cover.  Cook 15 minutes.  Let stand for five minutes and then
     fluff with a fork.
2.  While quinoa is cooking, finely chop the white portion of the onions to make 1  cup and the four
     cloves of garlic.  Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic, stirring
    often, until softened, about 4 minutes. Chop the spinach and cook, stirring often, until wilted, about
    3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a medium-size bowl.
3.  Beat the eggs lightly.  Add to bowl with the onions, garlic and spinach mixture, along with the
     cooked quinoa.  Crumble in the feta cheese and bread crumbs. Stir in the remaining tablespoon of
     chopped dill, the 1/2 teaspoon of the lemon zest and 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper.  Let
     mixture sit for a few minutes to allow the bread crumbs to absorb the moisture.
4.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
5.   Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Form quinoa mixture into cakes about 2 1/2 inches in
      diameter and 1/2 inch thick and place on sheet.
6.  Bake for about 20 minutes or until the bottoms are brown.  Flip with a spatula and bake for
     another five minutes.
7.  Serve warm with the lemon-dill sauce.

Spaghetti Squash with Spicey Tomato Sauce and Lentil, Mushroom and Millet Balls

Photo by Jodi Moreno

Serves 4

1. To bake the spaghetti squash, pre-heat the oven to 375º. Place the squash on a baking sheet (whole) and bake for about 1 hour. Let it rest until you are ready to assemble the spaghetti squash and sauce.
2. Keep the oven on at the same temp to cook the veggie balls. While the squash is baking, rinse 1/2 cup of raw millet and place in a small pot with 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 25-30 minutes, until all of the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat and set aside.

3. While the millet is cooking, place 2 cups of dried red lentils in a medium pot with 4 cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for about 20-25 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Drain the lentils and run them under cold water. Drain well.

4. While the lentils are cooking, peel and finely chop one red onion to make one cup and smash, peel and mince 8 cloves of garlic. Wash and finely chop 1/2 pound of mushrooms. Place a cast iron pan over medium heat, add the 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and sauté the onions and garlic for about 2 minutes. Remove half and reserve for sauce. Then add the mushrooms and cook until browned. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

5. In large bowl, combine the lentils with the mushrooms mixture. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Next, lightly beat two eggs, add and stir. Then add 1/4 whole wheat cup of flour (or substitute garbanzo flour, if you want the recipe to be gluten free) and stir. Lastly, add the millet and stir until everything is combined. Place the mixture in the refrigerator for 20 minutes (or longer) while you start to make the sauce.

6. In a cast iron pan, add the remaining onions and garlic and 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes and cook in 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil until tender, about another three minutes. Add 1/2 cup of fresh chopped basil leaves and one pound of chopped tomatoes (or two small cans of unsalted diced tomatoes.) Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20-30 minutes.

7. While the sauce is simmering, shape the veggie balls by rolling between your palms and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10 minutes.

8. Remove veggie balls from the oven, and finish cooking in the tomato sauce for several minutes.

9. Cut the cooked squash in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, remove the seeds and the pulp and discard. Then, continue to remove the insides by scraping with a spoon and place the spaghetti squash in a large bowl. Drizzle with a little olive oil and a pinch of salt.

10. Spoon the sauce over the squash. Give it a light toss to combine. Spoon the spaghetti squash with the sauce onto plates, and finish with a couple of veggie balls. Serve warm with an optional garnish of some crushed red pepper, chopped parsley, and/or parmesan cheese.

Thai Grilled Eggplant Salad (Yum Makeua Yao)

Photo from Rachel Cox of Rachel Cooks Thai

The farm share for Glade Road Growing for the week of August 4 is slated to include: tomatoes, lettuce mix, cucumber,  cilantro, and eggplant.  I thought I'd travel this week to Thailand, inspired by Rachel Cox, but substituting this homemade vegetarian sauce for the traditional fish sauce and peanuts for the dried shrimp...

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Serves 4


1.  To make the sauce,  the night before, combine in a large sauce pan and bring to a boil:
      1 1/2 cups shredded seaweed
      1/2 cup of dried shitaki mushrooms
      6 cups water
      6 fat cloves garlic, crushed but not peeled
      1 T peppercorns

Lower heat and simmer about 20 minutes. Strain and return the liquid back to the pot. Add 1 cup soy sauce, bring back to a boil and cook until mixture is reduced.  Remove from heat, cool and  and stir in 1 TB miso.  Decant into a bottle and keep in the refrigerator.




2.  If we have oriental eggplant this week, use them whole.  If they are the Italian variety, you can cut them in half. Grill outside or roast in oven or convection oven until soft to the touch, which will take about 20-30 minutes.   Remove and let cool in a covered container.

3.  While the eggplant is cooking, boil 4 eggs (duck eggs are great, or chicken eggs, if you don't have them) for approximately 7 minutes to achieve a soft boiled egg. Allow to cool and then peel.
4.  Chop 1/4 cup of cilantro coarsely.  Thinly slice 2 TB of shallots or thinly chop the same amount of red onions.  

5.  To prepare dressing, combine:
      1 T sauce from step one
      1 T lime juice
      1 T demerara  sugar
      1/2 tsp.  dried red chili peppers 

6.   Peel the eggplant and cut into bite-sized pieces. You should have roughly 1 cup. If you have more or less, adjust the amounts of the other ingredients accordingly. Combine the  eggplant with the chopped cilantro, 4 T chopped toasted peanuts and dressing. Divide into four bowls. Slice the soft boiled eggs in half one to the side of each salad. ( (If you are feeding vegans, you can substitute a block of tempeh, sliced thinly.)  Serve while the eggplant is still slightly warm.

Kohlrabi Fritters with Tzatziki (Greek Cumber Yogurt Dill Sauce)

Photo from Blooming Glen Farm in Pennsylvania

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The July 1 farm share from Glade Road Growing is expected to include kohlrabi, cabbage, summer squash, cucumbers, onion, and dill.

There's more information on the cabbage relative and a recipe for an apple and kohlrabi slaw at my post from last year.  This week I I thought I'd provide a recipe that combines it with the cucumbers, oninion and dill.  You can also eat kohlrabi raw, in soup, roasted, steamed or spicy in Indian recipes.

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I'm not sure how many kohlrabi bulbs will be in the farm share.  While this fritter recipe calls for four, you can make up the difference by using the summer squash. Or if you'd like to use the squash for another recipe, you can use potatoes (and omit the oats or brown rice.) The kohlrabi greens, if they are included, will be edible. The greens, too, are edible. Take the smaller, newer leaves, trim them and cook as you would beet greens, until they are tender.

Serves 4 - 6

Start by making the Tzatziki sauce and put in the refrigerator to thicken.  You will only use a portion for this recipe and can use the rest as a salad dressing or dip during the rest of the week.

1.  Peel 4 kohlrabi bulbs and shred (or mix shredded kohlrabi and unpeeled shredded summer squash or potatoes to make 2 - 3 cups).  Place in colander and squeeze out excess moisture.

2.  In a bowl, combine:

2 beaten eggs
1/2 cup cooked oat groats or brown rice
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3. Add kohlrabi or kohlrabi-squash mixture by the spoonful and mix until coated.

4.  Form fritter mixture into two inch balls and lightly coat with whole wheat flour.

5.  Heat lightly oiled cast iron skillet until a bead of water evaporates.  Drop into skillet. Press gently with spatula to flatten. Cook for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until golden brown.


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Want a good recipe for the cabbage?  You can shred it and make it into a slaw using the recipe I've linked to or here's a recipe for my favorite cabbage borscht.