Recipes for 12/26/09

Conventional Nantes Carrots – Weiser Farm Tehachapi, CA
While Weiser Farm is not organic, they produce incredible root crops that taste nothing short of magic. These nantes carrots are sweet and juicy and are perfect for the carrot juice lovers out there. Their sweetness also makes them perfect for snacking, or turn them into a quick salad by shaving them thinly and tossing them with a simple champagne vinegar and honey vinaigrette.

Organic Lacinato Kale – Coke Farm San Bautista, CA
The popularity of this variety has increased greatly since it was first introduced into our SFF program – and it’s no surprise why!  One taste of this great green with its unusual meatiness and incredible flavor was all it took to become a fast favorite with customers and employees alike.  Delicious raw in salads, barely wilted or braised for hours, lacinato kale is very versatile.

Organic Red Cabbage – Coke Farm San Bautista, CA
Most people turn their noses up at cabbage for many reasons, but I personally love the stuff!  Delicious raw in coleslaw or braised gently, cabbage is a great winter staple.  I’ve read online that the perfect remedy for cooked cabbage without the infamous smell is to slice it thinly and cook for no more than 4 minutes.  I’ll have to try that myself to see if it works, though I don’t mind the smell of cooking cabbage – I find it to be sweet as it’s simmering slowly on my stove top. 

Organic Arugula – Coke Farm San Bautista, CA
With its strong, familiar aroma, arugula is a popular choice for mixing into otherwise mundane salad greens for an extra kick of peppery flavor.  Not very many people know that like basil, arugula can be made into a delicious spicy pesto.  Arugula is a great leafy green to spice up simple pasta dishes.  Just toss into the mix and let the residual heat from the pasta wilt the leaves.

Organic Sunchokes – Coke Farm San Bautista, CA
This mix-up of a vegetable also called the Jerusalem Artichoke is neither from Jerusalem, nor from the artichoke family.  These misshapen knobs are actually the roots of a type of sunflower. Their name is derived from a mispronunciation of girasole - Italian for sunflower - and the resemblance of their nutty flavor to the meat of the artichoke.  Nevertheless, this humble tuber can be eaten raw (taste and texture is very similar to a water chestnut!) or cooked, in which case it becomes very much like a potato.  It is also very nutritious and most of that nutrition resides in the skin, so just lightly scrub it to clean it instead of peeling!  And just like a potato, sunchokes can oxidize so prepare them just as you’re about to cook them.

Organic Spaghetti Squash – Coke Farm San Bautista, CA
The smell of roasting squash is perfect on cold, wintry nights.  There’s something about the aroma they exude that makes a house smell and feel so comfortable.  It’s probably due to the fact that whether they are prepared as a soup, gratin or roasted with poultry, the flavor and texture of squash gives one that warm and squishy feeling.  Spaghetti squash specifically is intriguing in that once roasted, the flesh comes out in strands mimicking spaghetti noodles.  This is a great alternative for vegans who crave “noodles” but don’t want the egg in traditional pasta recipes.

The Vegetarian Basket also includes: Beehive Cheese Co. Promontory Cheddar (Uintah, UT)

The Omnivore Basket also includes: Beehive Cheese Co. Promontory Cheddar (Uintah, UT) and Creminelli Cacciatore Salame (Springville, UT)

Customers who opted for additional fruit will be receiving: Organic California Ruby Grapefruit from Rucker Homestead (Mecca, CA)

~Organic certification is provided by California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF). CCOF has been helping to create and maintain extremely high standards in organic farming since 1973.~

Spiced spaghetti squash
serves 4

1 (3-4 pound) spaghetti squash
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

1. To roast the squash: Cut the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and roast the halves face-down in an oiled baking pan for about 40 minutes in a 375°F oven, or until tender.
2. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until it is barely golden. Stir in spices and salt and remove from heat.  Keep in a warm spot until spaghetti squash is done.
3. When spaghetti squash is cooked, scrape squash flesh with a fork into a large bowl, loosening and separating strands as you remove it from skin. Toss with the spiced butter and cilantro.
*This is delicious served with simple sautéed greens such as arugula, kale or escarole – or herbed couscous for a great vegetarian meal!

Sunchoke salad with arugula and parmigiano reggiano
serves 4

2 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ lb sunchokes, trimmed and thinly sliced
5 ounces arugula, washed and trimmed
2 ounces parmigiano reggiano, shaved thinly

1. Whisk together orange juice, vinegar and mustard in a medium bowl.  While whisking, gradually drizzle in oil.  Season vinaigrette to taste with salt and pepper.  This can be made one day ahead.
2. Combine the sunchokes and arugula in a large bowl.  Drizzle with the vinaigrette and toss gently to coat.  Sprinkle the parmesan strips over the salad and serve immediately.

Arugula pesto
makes about 1 cup

2 cups arugula leaves, stems removed and packed
½ cup walnuts
½ cup parmigiano reggiano
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic (for less intense garlic flavor, try using roasted garlic)

1. Toast the nuts in a pan over medium heat until lightly brown.  Combine the arugula, walnuts and garlic into a food processor.  Pulse while drizzling the olive oil into the processor.  Remove the mixture from the processor and place in a bowl.  Stir in the parmigiano reggiano.
2. Mix with freshly prepared pasta of your choice.  If needed, you can add a little water or olive oil to thin it out if it’s too thick.
*Because the pesto is so dependent on the individual ingredients, and the strength of the ingredients depends on the season or variety, test it and add more of the ingredients to taste.

Sweet and sour red cabbage
serves 6-8

¼ cup butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 medium shallot, diced fine
2lb red cabbage, thinly sliced (about 12 cups)
6 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the garlic and shallots and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add the cabbage and sauté until slightly wilted, about 5 minutes.  Add sugar, toss to coat evenly.  Add vinegar.  Reduce heat to medium-low; cover, simmer until cabbage is tender, strring often, about 30 minutes.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Shopping list...

Spiced spaghetti squash
-1 spaghetti squash (about 4lb in FULL shares and about 2lb in HALF shares)
-1 package Plugra Unsalted Butter
-1 bulb garlic
-1 jar Frontier Whole Cumin Seed
-1 jar Frontier Whole Coriander Seed
-1 jar Frontier Cayenne Pepper
-1 bunch cilantro

Sunchoke salad with arugula and parmigiano reggiano
-1 container Liberty Heights Fresh, Fresh Squeezed Orange juice
-1 bottle Uniq Cabernet Sauvignon Vinegar
-1 jar Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard
-1 bottle California Olive Ranch Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil 2008 Harvest
-½ lb sunchokes (2lb in FULL shares and 1lb in HALF shares)
-about 2 bunches arugula (4 bunches in FULL shares and 2 bunches in HALF shares)
-1 small wedge Parmigiano Reggiano

Arugula pesto
-2 cups arugula leaves (4 bunches in FULL shares and 2 bunches in HALF shares)
-1 small package walnuts
-1 medium wedge Parmigiano Reggiano
-1 bottle California Olive Ranch Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil 2008 Harvest
-1 bulb garlic or 1 package Liberty Heights Fresh Roasted Garlic

Sweet and sour red cabbage
-1 package Plugra Unsalted Butter
-1 bulb garlic
-1 medium shallot
-2lb red cabbage (about 4lb in FULL shares and about 2lb in HALF shares)
-1 package Woodstock Farms Sugar Cane
-1 bottle Compagnia del Monta Balsamic Vinegar Modena #2