Big News...

So I can finally tell you all why I suddenly stopped blogging... I'm pregnant (and the thought of food, much less cooking and photographing it) wasn't agreeing with me for a few months.

Our CSA regular season ended November 1st so I won't have as many interesting cooking opportunities for a while, we've decided to not do our winter CSA this year. I'll come over here and post if I make any interesting cooking endeavors but most likely I'm going to continue to be pretty quiet on here for a while.

Thanks for reading so far!
Julie

Pumpkin Pie!!

We received a New England pie pumpkin in our CSA a few weeks ago and I had the perfect recipe to try out with it!

First I cut the pumpkin in half and scooped out all the seeds and pulp and rinsed the seeds to separate them from the pulp. Then I set them aside to dry to make roasted pumpkin seeds later.

Then I popped the pumpkin halves in a large microwavable bowl and put a bit of water in the bowl and cooked the pumpkin until it was tender. After allowing it to cool enough to handle I scraped the flesh out and tossed it in the food processor with my spices and pulsed it until it was smooth and well mixed. Then I just followed the recipe above and it turned out amazing! The best part is I have enough pumpkin pie filling left to make another pie :-)

Sorry I've Been MIA...

Between traveling, being sick and making a lot of the same meals/dishes that I've already posted about I haven't been here in a while...

Vegan Zucchini Bread

Yum!

The recipe is...

3 cups of flour (I used unbleached all purpose)

1 11/2 cups of sugar (I used raw)

1 tbsp each of baking soda, baking powder and salt

4 tbsp cinnamon

3 tbsp vanilla

2 cups shredded/grated zucchini

3 "eggs" I make eggs by combining 1tbsp ground flax seed to 3 tbsp water per egg, so this was 3 tbsp ground flax seed and 9 tbsp water, let it sit for 5 minutes. 

1 cup of oil (I used unrefined coconut oil)

Combine the dry ingredients, add in the wet and mix well.

Bake it in a greased loaf pan at 350 for an hour or until it's cooked through.

This Week's Haul!

This week we received tomatoes, kirby Cucumbers, garlic, arugula, Basil, carrots, fennel, a pepper, cantaloupe, peaches and pears. Our yogurt was greek and our cheese was plain cheese curds. 

So far I've made my vegetarian stroganoff using some of the onions from last week and some of the garlic from this week. I can't remember if I've posted the recipe here yet or not so here it is (again?)...

I put two packages of white mushrooms, sliced, into a large saute pan with a little olive oil heated in it, add a large diced red onion (I used a white onion this time but red tastes better) and 2 cloves of garlic minced. Saute until it's all tender, add your ground "meat" (I use Quorn crumbles, they're soy free but you can use whatever you like) and a generous pour of red wine (I don't measure but you can never use too much red wine...) and cook until the red wine is reduced. Then you add your sour cream (again, I don't measure and don't think you can ever use too much sour cream) and serve over egg noodles. It's my 3yo's favorite meal!

I've made a nice batch of pesto using the basil and arugula and some more of the garlic as well. 

I plan to make carrot cake blondies using some of the carrots and just made a vegan zucchini bread using some zucchini I got from my aunt's garden, not CSA veggies but it totally deserves to be in the blog so that will be my next post :-)

An Overdue Haul Photo

This is two weeks ago's haul photo, sorry it's so late... life sometimes takes over my free time ;-)

We got a head of red lettuce, green beans, kirby cucumbers (pickles, yay!), onions, Swiss chard,  tomatoes, beets, donut peaches and yellow plums. our yogurt was cream top and we got a Revival cheddar cheese.

Meals from this haul included (faux) chickn (faux) caesar salad, macaroni and cheese made with the Revival Cheddar and the Grace cheese from a previous week served with green beans and Swiss Chard and red potatoes like I've made before. 

I Haven't Disappeared!

I went on vacation last week and Ava picked up our CSA share and ate as much as she could before she also went on a little vacation... so no photos this week. Tomorrow I get this week's share and I'll be back with some great recipes!

This Week's Haul

We got a head of cabbage, a huge zucchini, a eggplant, a bunch of onions, a head of lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, peaches, apricots, yellow plums, greek yogurt and feta cheese.

Quinoa Tabbouleh-esque Salad

I saw a quinoa tabbouleh salad posted on a website Ava visits and was inspired to create my own recipe, because I love tweaking recipes...

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 large carrots
1 medium onion
1 large cucumber
2-3 small cloves of garlic
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts
The juice of one large lemon
olive oil (I free poured it but I'd guess 1/3 cup)
Black pepper to taste.

Cook the quinoa in 3 cups of water until it's tender and the water is absorbed. Let it cool.
Shred the carrots and garlic in your food processor.
Chop up the cucumber into small bite size pieces.
Chop the onion and drain the artichoke hearts and then either chop them or do like i do and break them into pieces using your fingers.
Squeeze the lemon juice into the veggies and add the oil.
Once the quinoa is cooled mix it all together and let it marinate overnight.

Yum!

This Week's Haul!

This week we got a head of lettuce, a bunch of Swiss chard, a bunch of carrots, a bunch of kohlrabi, yellow squash, cucumbers, a head of cabbage, two heads of garlic, peaches and plums and from our dairy CSA we got a pint of cream top yogurt and some Grace cheese. 

Yellow Squash, Red Potato and Onion Pancakes!

I love those nights when you make a meal that has everyone coming back for third helpings, this is one of them.
Ingredients are:
3 medium yellow squash
2 small onions
4 medium red potatoes

They are super easy and SUPER delicious! I grate everything together in my food processor and then put it in a big mixing bowl and add flour slowly until it's a pancake consistency.

Then fry them up in a little oil.

Then dig in!

This Week's Haul

I was running way behind picking up our share this week so by the time I got home I had no time to take a photo, sorry... I know it's boring without a photo.
This week we got: Swiss chard, red potatoes, onions, Italian parsley, a head of lettuce, cucumbers, yellow squash and patty pan squash, and French radishes.
Edited: I forgot to mention the sweet yellow plums, juicy ripe peaches, marinated mozzarella cheese (with basil and sundried tomatoes) and quart of blueberry smoothie!

Last night when I got home from picking up our share I made the swiss chard and red potato recipe I posted earlier in the blog for dinner. It was delicious as always.

This Week's Haul...

I don't have a photo of this weeks haul because Ava worked one of her volunteer shifts and brought everything home with her at the end of the night and put it away...
We got new potatoes, kale, a bunch of carrots, a bunch of spring onions, snap peas, a bunch of japanese turnips, a head of red lettuce, some red and yellow plums, some cherries, raw milk havarti cheese, cream top yogurt, and a bonus unsalted butter and half and half from "Milk, Not Jails" who provide milk products to our CSA from Ronnybrook Farms. (We don't normally get the MNJ items but there were leftovers and they sold them to Ava for cheap).
I don't have any new meals planned for these yummy veggies this week, we had a (faux) chicken (faux) caesar salad using the lettuce and I have a stir fry planned for the carrots, turnips, snap peas and onions. The kale will be served steamed along side a baked ziti I have planned for this week. That just leaves the potatoes which I'll use in some future endeavor. My 3yo has already demolished the plums and cherries ;-) The havarti is going into sandwiches and the yogurt is making a couple smoothies for my daughter (who is obsessed with smoothies).

We're going away next week so our CSA share is being donated to a local food bank, so I'll return to my regular programming the following week... Enjoy your 4th of July!!

Chioggia Beet Chips

The chioggia beets (pronounced kee-oh-gee-ya) look really cool when sliced and make a yummy treat when baked!

To make the chips I cut the greens off the beets, peeled them and then sliced them in thin slices using my mandolin. Then I blanched them in water by bringing the pot of water to a boil, adding the slices and turning off the heat and letting the beet slices sit in the hot water covered for 15 minutes. Then I poured them into a colander and let them sit for another 15 minutes. Then I lightly tossed them in some olive oil and salt and laid them on a baking sheet lined with foil in a single layer closely packed in. I baked them at 275 for about an hour, when you first take them out they won't be crisp yet, they crisp up as they cool. To cool them I laid them on baking racks with paper towels on the counter underneath to catch any stray oil. 

Yum!

Black Forest Cake!

YUM!!!

I made a simple cherry pie filling by hand pitting all our cherries, putting them in a medium saucepan and cooking them on low until their juices came out (about 10 minutes), then I added a cup of sugar and a 1/4 cup corn starch to help it thicken. Stirred that until it all mixed and let it cool. 

Then I made a dark chocolate cake in two 9" layers, put some filling between the layers and some on top, then sprinkled it with powdered sugar and viola! A cake to make your knees buckle ;-)

So Far This Week...

So... I took photos and accidentally deleted them from my camera before uploading them, oops!
This week has been a few repeats of previous weeks (arugula pesto, steamed kale, salad...). I also made escarole and white beans, my first time, and it turned out yummy and I'll be making my vegetarian stroganoff because my 3 year old has requested it.

Vegetable Soup!

I forgot to take a photo of my soup from last week...
I used the carrots, some kale (I had steamed the rest of it and served it with the mac and cheese), garlic scapes, the fresh peas (shelled), celery, red potatoes, black beans, canellini beans, a parmesan rind and a can of diced tomatoes with some vegetable broth I had saved from a previous recipe and enough water to cover the rest of the vegetables. Yum!

This weeks Haul!!

This week we got some chioggia beets, a head of lettuce, a bunch of arugula, a bunch of italian parsley,  a head of escarole, some garlic scapes, some sugar snap peas, a TON of cheeries, some garlic herb quark cheese and a quart of orange yogurt smoothie. 

Caerphilly Mac and Cheese!

This is my favorite cheese for making macaroni and cheese, yum!!

Ingredients:
1 2/3 cups dry macaroni, cooked and drained.
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 12oz can of fat free evaporated milk
1 cup water
2 tbsp butter
2 cups shredded sharp cheese.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a 2 quart casserole dish.
Combine the cornstarch, mustard and pepper in a medium saucepan and stir in the evaporated milk, water and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 1/2 cups of the cheese until melted. Add the cooked macaroni and mix well. Pour in into the casserole and top with the remaining cheese. Bake it for 20-25 minutes until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.

Swiss Chard and Red Potatoes!

                                        This is definitely one of my favorite summer meals!
 It's super simple, just wash and chop a bunch of swiss chard, cube 3 medium red potatoes, chop some garlic or garlic scapes (I used two garlic scapes this time) and saute it all in a little olive oil. When everything is getting close to tender add some fresh dill and cover until it all it's tender and the flavors meld. Yum!!!

This Weeks Haul!

This week we received...

Some loose spinach, a bunch of kale, a bunch of swiss chard, a bunch of carrots, garlic scapes, a head of lettuce, some snap peas, strawberries, apples, greek yogurt and Caerphilly cheese! I have some delicious plans for these goodies!

Weekly Wrap Up...

There were a few things we received last week that weren't shown/talked about...
We got a pint of strawberries, they were gone too fast to photograph ;-)
2 Empire apples
A bunch of beets, my mom took them home with her because she loves beets.
A bunch of collard greens, we steamed them and served them with the vinaigrette I mentioned in my last post.
A bunch of rapini, that gets sauteed with garlic.
A bunch of snap peas, my 3yo and I shelled them and ate them raw as a snack.
A pint of cream top yogurt and a package of cheese curds.

From now on I will take a photograph of the haul when we get home with it.

Arugula Pesto Over Wheat Penne

We were away over the weekend for my dad's memorial service so while I made this Friday, I'm only getting around to posting it today. It was served with a big, simple, salad using lettuces we got from the CSA with my favorite vinaigrette.
Vinaigrette recipe:
olive oil
dijon mustard
balsamic vinegar

shake it/whisk it together and top your favorite greens or salad!

Arugula Pesto recipe:

1/4 cup walnuts

3 cloves of garlic

1 bunch of arugula (about 2 cups chopped)

1/2 cup olive oil 

1/3 cup parmesan cheese (I tend go heavier on the parm)

Stir Fry!

Welcome, hopefully this is the beginning of some amazing CSA inspired meal posts!

Tonight I made a stir fry with fresh shiitake mushrooms, broccoli, cauliflower, celery, baby bok choy and carrots served over red quinoa with a rosemary garlic sauce (the sauce was a pre-made sauce).

Here's everything all prepped in the pan.

And here is the final product plated up!

I almost never measure anything when cooking, I just go by my eye so I can't really tell you the amounts of anything, there's really no wrong way to make a stir fry!

Beginnings!

This is just my first post... to get things started. I'm going to post photos of our CSA hauls each week along with photos and recipes of the meals I create. Hopefully it's interesting to someone other than me...