Veggie Tart

As you can imagine, it is squash season.  This week we got both pattypan squash and zuccini.  I have been in the mood for a savory pie, so I took a look around on the internet.  I ran across a recipe that sounded yummy, here's how I adapted it for my share:

Garden Vegetable Tart
Adapted from http://www.fitwoman.com/expert-advice/recipes/garden-vegetable-mozzarella-tart

• 1 ½ cups sliced zucchini*
• 1 ½ cups sliced and quartered pattypan squash*
• ½ cup sliced sweet onion*
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 ready-to-bake pie crust
• 2 tsp dried basil
• 8 ounces (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese
• 4 ounces (1 cup) shredded Swiss cheese
• 3 eggs, beaten*
• Salt
• Pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a large Ziploc bag, toss vegetables with the oil and vinegar; spread vegetables on a cookie sheet and bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven.

Heat oven to 350° F. Unroll pie crust dough into a 9-inch glass pie plate. Press crust gently against the sides and bottom. Fold excess crust under and press firmly with a fork or flute the edge. Spread 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Swiss on the bottom of the crust and layer cooked vegetables on top of the cheese. Sprinkle on basil, salt and pepper to taste. Pour beaten eggs evenly over the vegetables and top with the remaining cheese. Bake for 35 minutes. Let stand about 5 minutes before serving. Makes 6-8 servings.

*CSA ingredients

Noodle-less Veggie lasagna

So today's adventure starts with two medium zucchini's.  I have both zucchini and yellow squash, some beautiful tomatoes and swiss chard.  Since I have never worked with swiss chard and I have always wanted to try lasagna with zucchini "noodles", I decided to try and use all of these items and throw together a lasagna.

Swiss Chard Tomato Lasagna with Zucchini Noodles

• 1 bunch Swiss chard*
• 3 large tomatoes*
• 2 medium zucchini*
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp dried basil (I would use fresh, but I don't have any)
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 (15-oz) container part skim ricotta
• 1 large egg*
• 2 cups part-skim mozzarella, split
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan, split

Wash chard and remove stems; coarsely chop.  Fill a large Dutch oven with water; bring to a boil.  Add chard to water and simmer for 1 minute (after returns to boil).  Quickly remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water.  Squeeze water from the chard and lay out on paper towels; set aside. 

Wash and cut and X into bottom of tomatoes.  Bring water to boil in same Dutch oven.  Carefully put tomatoes into boiling water.  Allow to boil for 1 minute or until skin starts to pull away from flesh.  Remove to ice water.  Peel tomatoes, remove cores and dice into 1/2 inch dice.  Heat oil in large skillet.  Add garlic and saute until fragrant.  Add tomatoes and spices.  Bring to a simmer and cook 15 minutes.  Add Swiss chard and cook until heated through.

Wash zucchini, cut ends off, then thinly slice lengthwise (1/4 inch slices).  Boil water, add slices to water and then simmer for 2 minutes (after water boils again).  Remove to ice water, then layd out on paper towels to dry a bit.

In a medium bowl, beat egg.  Add ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup mmozzarella and 1/4 cup parmesan; mix well. Heat oven to 350F.

To assemble lasagna, spray large baking dish with cooking spray.  Place a layer of zucchini "noodles in bottom of pan.  Spread 1/2 cheese mixture over "noodles".  Spread 1/2 tomato chard mixture over cheese. Repeat layers.  Add third layer of zucchini noodles and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan.  Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and brown.  Makes 8 servings.

Note: because there is no starch, this is a very wet lasagna.  Serve in a bowl with a spoon.  The liquid could be drained to make it easier to serve, but I find it very tasty and serve it with the lasagna.

*CSA ingredients

Lentils and Chorizo

I am starting to go through the meats that I have remaining from the winter.  Today, I had taken out a package of chorizo links.  I decided that a nice hearty lentil soup would be a great way to use them.

Hearty Lentil & Chorizo Soup

• 1 lb chorizo links*
• 1 lb lentils
• water
• 2 small carrots
• 3 small potatoes
• 1 cup chopped sweet peppers
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp tumeric
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 1 Tbsp garlic w/ herbs

Pour lentils in a large Dutch oven.  Sort and remove any hard pieces.  Cover with 3" water and add chorizo links.  Place over high heat and bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer for 45 minutes.  Add water as needed.

Peel carrots and cut into 1/2 inch pieces.  Dice potatoes in 1/2 inch dice.  Chop peppers, if needed (I used frozen that I had chopped at another time).  Remove sausage links from pan and cool.  Add vegetables to soup.  Season with sea salt, tumeric, cayenne and garlic.  Thinly slice links and return to pan.  Cook until vegetables are fork soft.  Makes 8 servings.



*CSA ingredients

Houtz Cheese

So, I probably wouldn't have posted this recipe tonight, because I hadn't intended to use any CSA products. I had purchased an eggplant at our local market and I really needed to use it. My husband wanted Pasta al a Norma (a sicilian dish), but it calls for ricotta salata and I don't have any handy.  If you've ever had Pasta al a Norma, you know that it really needs that particular cheese (it has a creamy texture that is unique).  I ran across this recipe which is similar and also calls for ricotta salata or parmesan. Well, I ran out of parmesan. In the last package, we received a wedge of cheese called Houtz.  It is a hard goat cheese that apparently is only made locally (at least that's all I could find when I Googled it).  I decided to open and taste it...Leland, if you are reading this, you should do the same!.  It turned out be a very nice sharp dry cheese.  Very similar to parmesan.  So, I substituted it in the recipe that follows:

Penne with Spicy Eggplant and Tomato Sauce
http://www.cookingclub.com/recipes/articletype/articleview/articleid/6891/penne-with-spicy-eggplant-tomato-sauce

• 12 oz. (3 cups) penne (tube-shaped pasta)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium eggplant, cubed (1 inch) (4 cups)
• 1 1/2 cups purchased puttanesca pasta sauce (I used roasted garlic with kalamatas added)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup (1 oz.) finely grated ricotta salata or Parmesan cheese (I used Houtz*)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or basil (optional)

1. Cook penne in large pot of boiling water according to package directions; drain.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add eggplant; cook, stirring frequently, 8 minutes or until well-browned. (Reduce heat to medium after 3 to 5 minutes to prevent overbrowning.) Add pasta sauce, salt and red pepper. Reduce heat to medium; cook 1 to 2 minutes or until hot. Place in large bowl. Add pasta; toss to combine. Sprinkle with cheese and oregano.

*CSA ingredient

Broccoli Rabe (aka Rapini)

Today's veggie choice ended up being broccoli rabe (aka rapini).  Apparently, despite picking up at the third pickup time, all of the spinach, mixed greens and rhubarb were already taken.  So, I did a little research:

Rapini is a member of the Brassiceae family of which turnips also belong.  It is known as broccoli rabe because of the head of flowers which looks like broccoli, however, it is not related to broccoli. 

I also received merguez sausage, a lamb sausage, in this share which was completely thawed when I got it home, so I wanted to make something with the sausage as well as the rapini. In the extra share that I received this week (due to my vacation last week), I also received ramps.  Here's how I put them together:

Macaroni with Merguez, Rapini and Ramps

• 1 lb merguez sausage*, casings removed
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 (8-oz) pkg whole wheat pasta (I used macaroni)
• 1 bunch rapini*
• 1 bunch ramps*
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup water
• salt & pepper, to taste
• Grated Parmesan or romano

In a deep frying pan, heat oil over high heat.  Reduce heat and add sausages, breaking into small pieces during cooking.  Cook sausage through; set aside.

Cook pasta in a large Dutch oven according to package directions.  Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup cooking water; set aside.

Remove woody ends of rapini and then cut into 2-inch pieces.  Wash ramps and cut into 2-inch pieces.  Heat water and oil over med-high heat.  Add ramps and rapini to pan, mix well, cover and cook until wilted.  Add sausage to pan and season with salt and pepper.  Mix sausage mixture into pasta until well combined; add cooking water as needed.  Serve 1 1/2 cups and sprinkle with grated cheese.

*CSA ingredients

Roasting away!

Tonight's fun was roasting a chicken in the oven.  The fun part of this is that I have never actually done this before.  I am so fond of my crockpot, I have always roasted my chickens either in that or on the grill (indirect heat).  So, I looked up a recipe on Saveur.com and adapted it by what I had available.

Oven Roasted Chicken

• 1 4.5-5 lb free-range whole chicken*
• 1 honey tangerine
• 3 cloves roasted garlic
• 1 stick fresh butter, room temperature*
• 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
• salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450F.  Spread butter over entire chicken with your hands.  Salt & pepper to taste.  Place chicken in a roaster.  Cut tangerine in half, squeeze juice over chicken, then place tangerine halves in chicken cavity along with thyme sprigs and roasted garlic.  Roast for 10-15 minutes; baste and lower oven temp to 375F.  Roast 30-45 minutes, basting 2-3 times until skin is brown and crispy.  Thermometer inserted into thigh should read 165F.  Turn oven off, crack door and allow chicken to rest 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

*CSA ingredients

Ramps and berries

If you have never tried ramps, you are in for a treat.  Ramps are wild leeks with an onion/garlic/leek flavor.  I was a little concerned at first because I am not terribly fond of either onions or leeks, however, there is a sweetness in ramps that you don't find in any of the three.  Since we had gotten frozen pizza dough and fresh mozzarella in the last CSA package, I thought I would try the ramps on pizza.

White Ramp and Garlic Pizza

• Frozen pizza crust, thawed*
• Olive Oil
• 4 oz fresh mozzarella, shredded*
• 6 roasted garlic cloves, sliced
• 6 ramps*
• 1/4 cup parmesan-reggiano, grated

Wash ramps, cut off root ends and remove outer coating.  Bring water to boil in a medium saucepan.  Add ramps and blanch for 2 minutes.  Remove ramps from water and drain well.  Cut into 1-inch pieces; set aside.

Sprinkle pizza pan with cornmeal.  Stretch pizza dough to fit pan.  Brush with olive oil and sprinkle garlic slices over pizza.

Sprinkle with fresh mozzarella, then ramps and finally parmesan-reggiano.

Bake at 475 for 8-10 minutes until crust is browned.

Makes 6 slices.

VARIATION:

Ramp, Feta, tomato, garlic white pizza

Same as above, but add wedged tomatoes and sprinkle with Feta instead of parmesan-reggiano.

Also makes 6 slices.

Bonus Recipe:

Berry Custard Pie

Adapted from Allrecipes.com recipe:

• 1 cup baking mix
• 1 1/2 Tbsp white sugar
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cups raspberries
• 1 cup blackberries
• 3 Tbsp white wheat flour*
• 1/2 cup fresh plain yogurt*
• 2 egg whites*
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

In a small bowl, mix together baking mix, 1 1/2 Tbsp sugar and milk.  Press into prepared pie plate with flour coated fingers. Sprinkle berries onto crust.

In another bowl, combine flour, yogurt, egg whites, sugar, nutmeg and vanilla.  Pour over berries. Cover edges of crust with foil.

Bake at 450F for 10 minutes.  Turn heat down to 350F and bake for 30 minutes or until center is set.

Makes 8 servings

*CSA ingredients

Pork Shoulder

One of the best parts of these CSA packages are the meats we receive.  However, I have a small freezer, so I do have to be fairly consistant about making the larger pieces.  This weekend, it is a pork shoulder roast.  I have gotten 3 of these this winter and it's kind of funny because I buy shoulder roasts once every couple years normally.  The first, I slow roasted in the oven.  The second, I cooked in my crockpot.  Today, I braised my pork roast, and it turned out beautiful!  Since we had gotten a very nice brussels sprouts relish a couple weeks ago and I had just gotten some swiss cheese and turkey breast, I decided to make a variation on a Cuban sandwich for lunch.  It was so good, I cut a few slices to make sandwiches for tomorrow.  The rest, I pulled and put in a homemade BBQ sauce.  Here are the recipes:

Braised Pork Shoulder

• 1 5-lb pork shoulder roast*
• sea salt and pepper, to taste
• cayenne pepper
• 5-6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 jalapeno pepper, diced
• 1 med red onion, thinly sliced
• water

Rince roast and dry with paper towels.  Season with sea salt, pepper and cayenne.  Place in a large Dutch oven.  Add thyme, jalapeno and onion slices.  Fill the Dutch oven halfway with water.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 3-4 hours or until thermometer inserted into the center reads 160-180F.  Remove roast to plate; cover and allow roast to sit at room tempurature for 10 minutes.  Drain onions and peppers and place in a large bowl.  For Cuban sandwiches, slice a few thin slices.  For pulled pork sandwiches, pull meat, removing fat, and mix with your favorite BBQ sauce.


Betsy's Cuban Sandwich

• 1 thin slice pork roast* (see above)
• 2 thin slices roasted turkey breast
• 2 thin slices Swiss cheese*
• 1 tsp brown mustard
• 2 tsp Ann's Raspberry Farm Brussels Sprout Relish*
• bagel thin

Split bagel thin and spread one side with brown mustard.  Spread the other side with relish.  Layer pork roast, turkey breast and Swiss.  Close sandwich and either heat for 40 seconds in microwave on HIGH or grill.  Serve with chips or fruit (this is served with Heirloom Corn Chips*).

Sorghum Honey BBQ Sauce

Note: I was distressed to find out that I had not published this recipe when I made it for the last pork roast, nor did I save it.  This is what I remember from making the sauce.

• 3 C ketchup
• 1 C sorghum*
• 1/2 C cider vinegar
• 1/2 C honey*
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme (I would use fresh the next time I make this)

Place all ingredients in small saucepan.  Heat until boiling; reduce heat and simmer 1 minute.  Adjust flavors as needed (I did add a bit more honey because this seemed a bit tart).  For 2/3 of a 5lb pork roast, use about 2 cups of sauce.  Pull the pork, removing the fat, and then mix with BBQ sauce.  Serve on a roll or bagel thin.

Oh one more thing:  I wanted to show you the beautiful head of butterleaf lettuce I received in my CSA package.  I just wish it would stay looking like that.  I am going to try to talk my husband into using it tonight in place of rolls for the pulled pork.  We can have baguette for starch on the side.

Here is one of the lettuce rolls before rolling.  They were so good!!!!!  The bread is what's left of a baguette I purchased earlier in the week from Murray Hill Market.



*CSA package ingredients

Chicken and more chicken

It is so hard to keep up with this type of blog when you are always on the road.  Hawaii was beautiful and I loved the food there.  Then last weekend I was in Troy.  Before I left for Troy, I finally took the roasting chicken out of the freezer to thaw, and today, I roasted it in my crockpot.  I made it as simple as you could imagine.  I rinsed the chicken inside and out, dried it with paper towels, placed it in the crockpot and lightly seasoned with salt and pepper.  After covering, I cooked the chicken on HIGH for an hour, then reduced the heat to LOW and let it cook for 9 hours.  Believe me, there is nothing better than returning from home to an apartment that smells like cooking!  Here's how the chicken turned out:

I had a drumstick for dinner and it literally just fell off the bird.  There is definitely something to free-range chickens because this was the tastiest chicken I have had in years despite the limited seasoning!

To use up some of the remaining chicken, I am going to make Pad Thai.

Chicken Pad Thai

2 packages rice noodles
4 cups shredded chicken
1 lg carrot, julliened
1 1/2 cup Pad Thai Sauce

Cook rice noodles according to package directions.  In the meantime, cook the carrots in a microwave steamer for 4 minutes (I cannot have raw carrots due to allergies).  Drain the noodles, return to pan, add chicken and carrots.  Then pour sauce over noodles and mix well.  Serving size 1 1/2 cups.  If available, garnish with chopped peanuts (not included in WW points).

Weight Watchers PlusPoints Value: 11

If I have more chicken leftover, I will just shred it, add some of my leftover BBQ sauce (that I made several weeks ago for the pork shoulder) and make sandwiches.  I am thinking this will make a great lunch!

More from Sunday, Jan 23.

So, I have continued to cook through the day today.  Since I received some fresh black-pepper pasta in the package yesterday, I decided to make a homemade tomato sauce with the meatballs.  Of course, I wasn't on the CSA plan over the summer, so I had to use store-bought canned tomatoes (no fresh available either), but here is what is in the crockpot right now:

Betsy's Slow-Cooker Italian Meatball Sauce

Makes 12 servings

• 24 Italian sausage Meatballs (http://csafoodie.blogspot.com/2011/01/csa-meatballs.html)
• 1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 28-oz can whole tomatoes, crushed
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1 Tbsp sweet basil, dry
• 1 tsp oregano, dry
• 3 cloves garlic

Place all ingredients in slow cooker.  Cover and cook 6-8 hours on LOW.  Serve over 1 cup cooked pasta.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus value (1/2 cup sauce with 2 meatballs): 6

While the sauce is cooking, I am also slow-roasting a pork shoulder.  I am cooking it several hours at 250F.  I just peeked at it and it is looking beautiful.  The nice thing about pork shoulders is that they can be pulled and mixed with bbq sauce to make fantastic sandwiches, or cut up and used in stew or soup.  This was a 5 lb shoulder, so I should be able to do quite a bit with it.  Currently, I am trying to decide how to make a homemade bbq sauce.  Since I got a jar of sorghum with the CSA package, I am looking at recipes that would normally have molasses in them.  Once I decide on a recipe, I will post it here.  And I am thinking some cornbread would be nice too (cornmeal and sorghum from the CSA package).

CSA Meatballs!

So, this may be hard to believe, but I have only once in my lifetime made meatballs before.  This is especially surprising if you know that my great grandparents were from Sicily!  :-s  But this week, in our CSA package, we got three packages of ground meat: hamburger, veal and Italian sausage.  Perfect combination for meatballs, don't you think?  We also got a dozen fresh eggs, so I am very flush with eggs.  Thus, this morning, I decided to do my best to make meatballs.

Italian Sausage Meatballs

Makes about 50 meatballs

• 1 lb hamburger
• 1 lb Italian sausage (bulk)
• 1 lb veal, ground
• 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp sweet basil, dried
• 3 garlic cloves

Place all three meats in a large bowl and mix well.  Add breadcrumbs, egg, basil and garlic; mix well (try not to handle meat too much).  Line baking sheets with foil and spray with cooking spray.  Make meatballs by taking a small handful of meat mixture and rolling it into balls (about 1-1 1/2").  Place on baking tray, about 1/2" apart.  Bake at 375F for 20 minutes.  Either freeze for later use or add to homemade sauce.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus value (2 meatballs per serving): 4 points

I will make some spaghetti sauce later to put some of them in (the rest will be frozen to take to my husband).  I also recieved some fresh black pepper pasta in the package this week, so I will probably have meatballs over the fresh pasta for dinner tonight.  Yum!  Can't wait!

CSA Sunday night dinner

The day ran long today and we both fell asleep watching an old episode of Dr. Who (think Tom Baker).   Thankfully, I had already decided we wouldn't make it to Melting Pot and cancelled the reservation.  We are thinking we will do that for lunch tomorrow.

This morning I had put some beef ribs in the crockpot, so we had dinner already cooking.  I was just sitting here thinking about it and realized that something from my CSA packages was in each part of dinner tonight, so here is what we had:

Kapusta Soup (http://csafoodie.blogspot.com/2011/01/kapusta-soup.html)

Stuffed Acorn Squash (http://csafoodie.blogspot.com/2011/01/what-to-do-with-squash.html)

Southwestern Beef Short Ribs

Makes 2 servings

• 2 English-cut beef short ribs (abt 2 lbs)
• Chili seasonings/Beef Rub (http://csafoodie.blogspot.com/2010/12/idea-for-slow-cooker-pot-roast.html)
• 1 can Rotel Tomatoes with Chiles
• 1 cup Salsa (I used the salsa I received a few weeks back in my CSA pkg)
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar

Rub the short ribs with the seasonings.  Place in a prepared crock.  Cook on LOW for 4 hours.  Mix the tomatoes, salsa and vinegar in a small bowl.  Pour over ribs (after the 4 hours) and turn cooker to HIGH.  Cook for 1 hour.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus Value: 8 pts

Spelt Granola Apple Crisp w/ Vanilla Bean Ice Cream (http://csafoodie.blogspot.com/2011/01/apple-crisp.html)

In all, I used cabbage, butter, acorn squash, salsa, spelt granola and apples in tonight's dinner.  So, I guess you could say that it was a CSA dinner all around!  I realize that the rib recipe is the same as the roast recipe that is on one of the pages I referenced here.  I actually developed this recipe for the ribs and then adjusted it to roasts.  Either way, it is a tasty way to eat beef!

I am grateful that tomorrow is MLK day.  I don't have to go into work, but I will be working.  We have to have the proposal as close to being done as possible when we submit it to the grant office Tuesday.  We will have another week to tweak it before I submit, but their new policy is that you have to turn in something close to complete 5 working days before the deadline.  So, I have 2 more pages to get rid of before I can submit it.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!  And Mark and Michelle Bone, I hope that your grand opening went well!!!!!

Beef Stew in the Crockpot

I finally have a day that I can do some cooking and get gifts finished.  Maybe today, on Christmas Eve no less, I can finally get into the holiday spirit.  I thawed the beef roast that I received two weeks ago and it is now in the crockpot with a bunch of other CSA veggies cooking into a stew.   Here is the recipe:

 

Crockpot Beef Stew

• 1 3-lb chuck blade roast
• 8 cups water
• 4 medium carrots, large dice
• 4 stalks celery, sliced thick (I had done this and frozen them several weeks ago)
• 6 small red peppers, sliced (also frozen)
• 1 lb fingerling potatoes (larger ones cut into 1" pieces)
• 5 small to medium red onions
• 1 tbsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp garlic powder (I don't have fresh garlic available)

 

Prepare the vegetables as follows: carrots and celery in thick slices, potatoes either whole or cut to 1" pieces, red peppers sliced to 1" slices and red onions halved or quartered (depending on size).  Place vegetables into crock, add water and place roast on top.  Add spices and cover and cook 3-4 hours on high.  Remove roast and cut into bite-sized pieces.  Add meat back to crock and cook on LOW for 1-2 more hours.

 

Normally I would increase heat to HIGH again and add 1 cup barley (cook for 1 hour on HIGH).  Unfortunately, I also don't have barley here, so we will have to "suffer" without.  I also do not have red wine here, so I will check spices once the initial cooking is done and adjust as needed.

 

I am working on a pair of leg warmers as a gift for my mother-in-law while waiting for the stew to cook.  I hope I can complete them.  I cannot believe that I am just now making her gift this year!  It has been a crazy end of the year.

 

I want to wish all of my readers a very Merry Christmas.  We finish the moving next week and then I will have to get busy cooking again.  I am a couple packages behind on using my CSA packages and they are enticing me to do some serious cooking!

An idea for slow cooker pot roast

I just had a request from my friend Leland to post my recipe for pot roast in the slow cooker.  This is a recipe that I actually developed for English style beef short ribs, but found that it works just as well for pot roast.  The dry rub can be adjusted based on your tastes in chili seasonings.  But I like cumin, so I am more likely to add more of that than less.  I believe the original idea came from Better Homes and Gardens, but I just looked at the recipe and it is quite different from my final version.  However, if you are interested in the recipe that started all of this, you can find it at: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/beef/sizzling-southwest-short-ribs/

Southwest Crockpot Pot Roast Recipe 

• 3 lb Beef roast
• Chili seasonings/Beef Dry Rub (see recipe below)
• 1 can Rotel tomatoes with chiles
• 1 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar

Rinse beef roast and dry carefully.  Rub with chili seasonings.  Spray your crockpot with cooking spray and place the roast inside.  Cover and cook 4-6 hours on LOW.  Mix tomatoes, salsa and vinegar and pour over roast.  Cover and cook an additional 3-4 hours on LOW. 

Chili seasonings/beef dry rub (this recipe can be made in larger quantities using the same proportions of ingredients) 

• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp cumin (this can be adjusted to taste)
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• 1/4 tsp dry thyme
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (dried)

Mix seasonings in a small bowl.  Heat a small dry saute pan over medium heat.  Add seasonings and cook, stirring, until they release their aroma.  Quickly remove from the heat so you do not burn them.  Let them cool and then store in a sealed container or bag.  Possible uses: 

1)Use 2 tbsp in a standard chili recipe in place of the seasonings.

2) Use as a dry rub on beef roast or ribs.

3) Use as an alternative dry rub for pork ribs.

My version of the Pesto Lasagna

Okay, well, I took the time this morning to go ahead and make the Pesto lasagna that I posted the other night, but I adapted it to use more ingredients from my CSA (I still had chicken to use up).  So, here is the recipe as I adapted it and a picture of the whole lasagna:

Pesto Spinach Chicken Lasagna

Adapted from Better Homes & Garden

• 12 dried regular or whole wheat lasagna noodles
• 1 recipe Lemon-Parsley Pesto (see recipe below) or 1 cup purchased pesto
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 15-ounce container ricotta cheese
• 1 8-ounce package shredded Italian blend cheese or mozzarella cheese (2 cups)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 cups chopped fresh spinach
• 1/2 of an 8-ounce package fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 2 cups leftover chicken, shredded
• 1 28-ounce can whole Italian-style tomatoes
• Fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley leaves (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a 4-quart or larger pot cook noodles according to package directions until just tender. Drain noodles; rinse with cold water. Drain well; set aside.

Prepare Lemon-Parsley Pesto; set aside. In a medium bowl stir together egg, ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the shredded Italian blend cheese, salt, and pepper; set aside.

To assemble lasagna, lightly coat the inside of a 9-inch springform pan or 13x9x2-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange 4 of the cooked noodles in the bottom of the pan, trimming and overlapping as necessary to cover bottom of pan with 1 layer of noodles. Top with spinach. Spoon half of the ricotta cheese mixture over spinach, spreading evenly. Spoon one-third of the pesto over ricotta layer, spreading evenly. Top with another layer of noodles, trimming to fit. Top with mushrooms and chicken. Spread remaining ricotta cheese mixture over mushrooms. Spread half of the remaining pesto over ricotta layer. Top with another layer of noodles and remaining pesto. Drain tomatoes. Slice, quarter, or halve tomatoes and place on top of layers.

Place pan in a foil-lined shallow baking pan. Bake, covered with foil, in a 375 degrees F oven for 40 minutes; uncover and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted and lasagna is heated through. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Nutrition (8 servings): Calories 513, Fat 26g, Carbs 42g, Fiber 4g, Protein 29g
Weight Watchers PointsPlus Value: 16

Now that we have eaten some, I would make some major changes to this recipe.  The pesto really didn't add anything to the flavor profile.  I think I would choose to just use fresh basil leaves instead.  And there wasn't nearly enough tomatoes.  I would add a layer of tomatoes in the middle too.  But it was very tasty and very hearty.  A good 16 points spent, I believe.

What to do with late spinach

Good morning everyone.  Well, we all survived Thanksgiving, so now it's onto Christmas.  It's going to be a crazy month with concerts, meetings, moving....hope we survive!

So, this morning, I have been trying to figure out what I want to do with the spinach I received in this CSA package.  I have never really worked with late spinach.  I usually buy baby spinach.  But I found a recipe that I think will be quite good.

Pesto Lasagna Pie

From Better Homes & Garden

ingredients

• 12 dried regular or whole wheat lasagna noodles
• 1 recipe Lemon-Parsley Pesto (see recipe below) or 1 cup purchased pesto
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 15-ounce container ricotta cheese
• 1 8-ounce package shredded Italian blend cheese or mozzarella cheese (2 cups)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 cups chopped fresh spinach
• 1/2 of an 8-ounce package fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 28-ounce can whole Italian-style tomatoes
• Fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley leaves (optional)

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a 4-quart or larger pot cook noodles according to package directions until just tender. Drain noodles; rinse with cold water. Drain well; set aside.
2. Prepare Lemon-Parsley Pesto; set aside. In a medium bowl stir together egg, ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the shredded Italian blend cheese, salt, and pepper; set aside.
3. To assemble lasagna, lightly coat the inside of a 9-inch springform pan or 13x9x2-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange 4 of the cooked noodles in the bottom of the pan, trimming and overlapping as necessary to cover bottom of pan with 1 layer of noodles. Top with spinach. Spoon half of the ricotta cheese mixture over spinach, spreading evenly. Spoon one-third of the pesto over ricotta layer, spreading evenly. Top with another layer of noodles, trimming to fit. Top with mushrooms. Spread remaining ricotta cheese mixture over mushrooms. Spread half of the remaining pesto over ricotta layer. Top with another layer of noodles and remaining pesto. Drain tomatoes. Slice, quarter, or halve tomatoes and place on top of layers.
4. Place springform pan in a foil-lined shallow baking pan. Bake, covered, for 45 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with remaining Italian blend cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes more or until cheese is melted and lasagna is heated through. Cover and let stand for 20 minutes before serving. Carefully remove sides of pan. Top with parsley leaves. To serve, cut lasagna into wedges. (For 13x9x2-inch pan, bake, covered with foil, in a 375 degrees F oven for 40 minutes; uncover and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted and lasagna is heated through.) Makes 8 to 10 servings.
5. Lemon-Parsley Pesto: In a food-processor bowl combine 4 cups fresh spinach leaves (about 8 ounces), 1/2 cup fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley, 1/3 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese, 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts, 2 cloves garlic quartered, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cover and process until nearly smooth. (If desired, use a blender and add 2 to 4 tablespoons water with the spinach leaves.) Makes about 1 cup.
6. Cooking Club Directions: Prepare lasagnas as above for each member except do not add tomatoes and do not bake. Cover each pan with plastic wrap (if freezing, also wrap in aluminum foil). Package remaining cheese in a resealable plastic bag or a resealable freezer bag for each member. Refrigerate up to 24 hours or freeze up to 3 months.
7. Test Kitchen Tip: It is possible to make up to a quadruple batch of ricotta mixture at one time.
8. Reheating and Serving: Thaw lasagna, if frozen, in the refrigerator 48 hours before baking. Place thawed or refrigerated lasagna on a foil-lined baking sheet. Remove plastic wrap; top lasagna with tomatoes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In springform pan, bake, covered with foil, for 60 minutes; uncover and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 15 minutes more or until heated through. (For a 13x9x2-inch pan, bake, covered with foil, for 40 minutes; uncover and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted and lasagna is heated through.) Cover and let stand for 20 minutes before serving. Carefully remove sides of pan, if necessary. To serve, cut lasagna into wedges. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

I need to run to the grocery store for supplies after going to work, but this should be dinner tonight.

Off to get things done!!!!

Monday Nov 22 dinner

Today had only one element from the CSA package, but it was the big one.  I roasted the chicken in my crockpot today and it tasted so good!  Although, I could have used a bit more salt.  I obviously don't have fresh from the farm chickens very often!  LOL!  The rest of dinner consisted of plain brown rice and a roasted butternut squash.  And of course, a bowl of borscht!

 

Slow Roasted Chicken

• 1 5-lb fresh chicken*
• 1/2 stick butter*
• mixed herbs (I used a garlic and herb mix)
• sea salt (please remember this, I forgot)

 

Remove chicken from the packaging and rinse inside and out.  Dry chicken thoroughly and place into the crock of a large crockpot that has been prepared with cooking spray.  Bring butter to room temperature and mix your herbs into the butter.  I do this to taste and based on what herbs I am using.  Some herbs are stronger than others and need smaller quantities.  Rub the butter all over the chicken and then sprinkle with salt.  Cover and cook 8 hours on LOW.

 

 

Brown Rice (in a rice cooker)

• 2 scoops brown rice (approx. 3/4 cup per scoop)
• 6 cups water

 

Place water and rice in bowl of rice cooker.  Choose brown rice setting and press start.

 

Note: this is easily done on top of the stove as well.  You will want to use a 3 qt saucepan.  Put the rice and water in the saucepan.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cover.  Cook until all water is absorbed.  Fluff rice as soon as it is done to prevent sticking.

 

 

Roasted Butternut Squash

• 1 medium butternut squash*
• 1/4 stick butter*
• mixed herbs (I used garlic and herb mix)

 

Preheat oven to 400.  Remove stem and then with a sturdy knife, cut squash in half lengthwise.  Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Place squash halves cut side up on the sheet.  Cut butter into pats and place them on the squash halves.  Sprinkle with your herbs.  Cover squash with foil and cook for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and cook for another 20 minutes.  Squash is done when it is fork tender.

 

Note: this recipe should work with any type of winter squash.  I prefer butternut squash, but acorn and buttercup squash are good too.

 

 

For Thanksgiving, my brother is cooking dinner.  This is always a treat because cooking is a passion of his.  And the food is always great!  For the first time, he said we could bring an appetizer.  I had some beets left over, so I decided to make pickled beets for the first time.  They turned out great!  Here's the recipe:

 

Cider-Vinegar Pickled Beets
From Food & Wine Magazine

 

• 1 cup cider vinegar with 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced*
• 4 cloves garlic, quartered
• 1 Tsp yellow mustard seeds
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 whole cloves
• 1 1/2 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp dried thyme (would be better with fresh - 2 tbsp)
• 2 lbs medium red beets, peeled and cut into 2-by-1/2-inch sticks*

 

In a saucepan, bring the vinegar mixture, sugar, onion, garlic, mustard, bay leaves, cloves, peppercorns, thyme and oregano to a boil.  In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the beets until crisp tender, about 10 minutes.  Drain and transfer to a heatproof bowl.  Pour hot liquid over the beets and let stand at room temperature for 4 hours or refrigerate overnight.  Drain the beets, transfer to a bowl and serve.

 

If I find anymore time before we leave (I am thinking this is unlikely), I also have a Crispy Garbonzo Bean recipe I would love to try.  Busy day tomorrow, so not sure I will have the time.

 

Enjoy!  Tomorrow is pickup #2!!!

*CSA ingredients

Monday, Nov 15 dinner

I went back and forth today with what I wanted to make for dinner.  I ran across a recipe for broccoli lemon pasta which sounded really good, but didn't use either bacon or tomatoes.  And I got probably 10 roma tomatoes with my CSA package, so I went back to my original idea.  So, here is the recipe that I found for a Bacon Tomato Carbonara:

Bacon & Tomato Spaghetti Carbonara

From http://www.ontariogreenhouse.com/documents/show/184

(updated on Feb 18, 2009)

• 8       Slices bacon, chopped*
• 2       Tbsp butter*
• 1/3    Pkg (900g) spaghetti
• 4       Eggs, beaten*
• 1/3    Cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 2       Large Ontario greenhouse tomatoes, seeded and diced*
• ½      Cup grated parmesan cheese
•          Salt and pepper to taste

 

In a frying pan, cook bacon until crisp. Drain and reserve drippings. Set aside. Combine the drippings and butter and set aside. In a sauce pan, cook the spaghetti per package directions. Drain and return to the sauce pan. Add butter mixture, eggs, cheese and parsley. Toss to combine. Cover and stir over low heat until mixture is creamy and slightly thickened. Stir in tomatoes. Add salt and pepper. Serve immediately, sprinkled with more parmesan cheese if desired.

Obviously, I just substituted the pumpkin sage linguine for the spaghetti.  Here's the picture:

Here's what I have left:

a couple cups of califlower

half dozen roma tomatoes

half of the bacon

8 oz fresh milk gouda

2 lbs fingerling potatoes

4 cups diced green peppers (in the freezer)

2 bunches of beets with leaves

1 5-lb local whole chicken (which never thawed this weekend, so it's in the freezer for now)

I actually need to at least cook the beets to peel them tonight, but would like to get the borscht put together so the leaves don't go bad on us.  Beet leaves are what give the borscht the flavor we love.  And I should have enough beets to pickle some too....can't wait for that!

*CSA ingredients

Sunday night dinner

Okay, so I will admit....when I am in the process of cutting up vegetables, I do tend to get a little over-ambitious in plans.  Because I knew that it would take the longest to peel the brussels sprouts leaves, I started with that dish tonight.  And then I realized that the dish called for quinoa and decided: "Maybe I don't need to make carbonara tonight".  I think I was probably right with that assessment.  Here's the recipe for the brussels sprouts:

 

Sauteed Brussels Sprouts over Quinoa
Adapted from Vegetarian Times Magazine

• 2 Tbsp pepitas (they called for hazelnuts)
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 8 oz Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
• 1 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup quinoa
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 2 oz fresh romano (they called for feta), optional

 

1. In a small dry saute pan, toast pepitas over medium heat, stirring constantly, until they begin to pop and turn brown.  Set aside.

 

2. Bring water to boil.  Sprinkle with quinoa. Reduce heat to a simmer, cook 15 minutes or until all the water is absorbed.  Remove from heat and set aside

 

3. In the meantime, peel leaves from Brussels sprouts halves, discarding the cores.  Heat olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add Brussels sprouts leaves and saute for 5 minutes.  Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons water and cook for about 1 minute more or until leaves are tender.  Add minced pepitas, garlic, salt, pepper and cooked quinoa; mix well.

 

4. Place mixture into bowls and sprinkle with romano cheese.  Makes 2 servings.

 

Tip: When they suggest that you cut the brussels sprouts in half, follow the advice.  It does make it easier to peel the leaves from the core.

 

 

 

This was an absolutely lovely dish, but would only qualify for a light dinner.  My husband was not ready for just a light dinner, so I made a soup from the cauliflower. 

 

Curried Cauliflower Apple Soup
Adapted from recipe by Gail Greenblat

• 16 oz cauliflower florets
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp curry powder
• 8 oz applesauce (I used natural)
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup water

 

Steam cauliflower in microwave for 8 minutes on High.  In a smaller bowl, combing olive oil, garlic and curry powder.  Heat 3 minutes on High. Watch closely so it doesn't burn.

 

In a large bowl, combine caulflower, curry mixture, applesauce, broth and water.  Heat at 80% for 5 minutes more.  Cool.  Puree with an immersion blender (I do not have one of these, so I used a good old-fashioned blender).  Adjust seasoning. 

 

 

 

I was surprised how bright green the cauliflower pureed up!  I didn't think that it was quite that green.  I might increase the curry next time and then add a few diced apple pieces as a garnish.  But this is definitely a keeper recipe!

 

BTW, if anyone is wondering what I'd like for Christmas, an immersion blender would be really nice ;).  I am sure I won't get it this year, but it is something that would be quite handy!