Weeks pass, clouds roll in, plants grow and summer passes us by. Cindy and I are into our 12th week of our CSA and I think I'm finally getting a handle on the weekly mother lode and how to utilize "ingredient eating" recipes when I can. Ya, I know, it has taken me almost the whole 20 weeks to get it. Chuckle to yourself and move on.
A couple Fridays ago, my friend Heidi invited several of us over for an impromptu dinner party. It was 74 degrees and sunny when I left the office and perfectly enjoyable outside as we set the table in the backyard (minus the mosquitoes, of course). I hate going to parties empty-handed, so as soon as I was home, I went to work on a simple and delicious salad. I had found a recipe weeks earlier in a magazine that would foot the bill and I had everything I needed on hand - amazing! That really is nothing short of a miracle, because I'm always missing SOMETHING for a recipe.
* Random note: Can someone please explain to me why Blogger doesn't recognize the capital "z" anymore? I hate note properly titling things, but since I would rather have something there rather than a blank space, lower case "z's" are what you will be getting...until I figure out another font that I like.
zucchini salad (adapted from Martha Stewart's Living Magazine)
Ingredients:
2 medium zucchinis, trimmed and cut into 1/2" cubes
4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
zest from one lemon
Juice from half a lemon
salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
In a bowl, toss together zucchini, cheese, oil, dill and lemon juice. Pour into serving bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with lemon zest. Serve and enjoy!
* Most popular questions I've been asked when I've told friends about this ridiculously simple and delicious recipe: "You mean you don't cook the zucchini? Is it really good raw?"
*Most common answers given: "Well...yes, it is raw." And, "Of course! I wouldn't eat it or tell ya about it if it wasn't good." Sheesh...ye of little faith.
Lazy Daisy
Sunday mornings are my quiet time. I like to sleep in and wake slowly. Make a pot of French press coffee and watch "Sunday Morning" in my pajamas. Yes, I watch "Sunday Morning." I've watched it since I was a kid. My parents still watch it, too. It's like the "easy listening" version of the news, and I like it.
It is also the one morning of the week when I make breakfast. My friend Kaitlin had suggested I give ricotta pancakes a try some time ago when our blueberries first started coming on the scene. I had everything I needed in the kitchen and after a slow start to my morning, I tried out this recipe for my Sunday brunch. While it was a bit more work than usually for pancakes, they were light, tender and the blueberries added all the sweetness I needed. Perfection!
Ricotta Pancakes with Blueberries (from Food & Wine)
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 large eggs, separated
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons milk
6 ounces ricotta cheese (1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
Unsalted butter, for the griddle
1 pint fresh blueberries or 2 cups frozen blueberries, thawed
Pure maple syrup, for serving
Preparation:
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, ricotta, milk, sugar and vanilla extract until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
For this next part, I didn't feel like lugging down my 300 pound KitchenAid from the cabinet, so I went low-tech here and tested my whisking stamina. However, if you're smarter and less lazy than me, use your mixer.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on medium speed with the whisk attachment until the whites are frothy. Beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Ooh! Look at those soft peaks! I'll tell you what, I have more respect for French pastry chefs now. They love their whisks for a number of reasons and now I understand why...just don't ever ask me to arm wrestle one of them.
Fold the egg whites into the batter until no more streaks appear.
and we're folding...
...still folding here...
Pour a scant 1/4 cup of batter into a buttered skillet and cook on medium-high heat until bubbles start to form around the edges. Drop several blueberries into the wet batter and gently press down. Cook on the first side for 1 to 2 minutes.
Flip and continue to cook for another minute or so on the other side until cooked through. Remove from pan and place on a plate and keep warm. I usually cover the plate with a clean dish towel, like my mom did.
...at least that is what should've happened. These pancakes were slightly different than the traditional batter in that they puff up almost immediately and it can be a challenge to know when to flip as there were already bubbles due to the egg whites. Let's see my first few attempts, shall we?
Take One: Skillet too hot and cooked the bottom before the top set up. Kerplop...
Take Two: Better job on the bottom, but the flip needs some work. Kersplat...
Take Three: As close to perfection as I came...I didn't add any more butter to the pan this time and used a little less batter. This is important to know! Pancakes are something worth mastering...even if you have to ruin a few along the way to get there...
Because the result is Sunday breakfast nirvana...fluffy, light and slightly sweet from the berries.
Oscar didn't get to lick the plate...I didn't feel like sharing.
Veggie Monster
I finished the day with a hearty late summer soup that'll get me through the week. I saw this on an episode of "Giada at Home" and loved that I had almost everything but the polenta in my kitchen and that I could whip it up in about 30 minutes. I used the veggies I did have, so I omitted the 3 tomatoes from her recipe because I used them for something else. By all means, though, throw them in! All that summer freshness in one pot was blissful. I mean seriously people, this recipe ate a lot of vegetables. Let the chopping begin!
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 carrots, peeled and diced into 1/2" pieces
1 onion, diced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
2 medium zucchinis, diced into 1/2" pieces
2 medium summer squash, diced into 1/2" pieces
2 ears of corn, cheeks cut off the cobs
4 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup instant polenta
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons butter
Preparation:
In a large heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, onions, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion begins to brown, about 6 minutes.
Stir in the butter and season with salt and pepper. I like to sprinkle a little bit of the fresh herbs on top because it's pretty...and it tastes good...like this soup. The polenta thickens the broth and makes this a hearty meal in a bowl. Freeze some of this and enjoy in the middle of winter when there isn't a single fresh-from-the-earth vegetable in sight. That's what I plan to do!
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