A quick note about shopping and pantry stocking: My hope is that with a well stocked pantry/fridge/freezer and a weekly CSA share, trips to the store can be a bit less frequent and when you do go you’re mostly restocking. Everyone has a different routine and style but in case you’ll be using my weekly recipes and tend to shop on weekends before my recipes post I thought I’d list a few of my favorite things you’ll see in the recipes quite often.
Herbs—you’ll be getting quite a few in the share throughout the season but I have a prolific herb garden and use them abundantly in cooking and buy additional ones, like cilantro, almost weekly. Others you’ll see often in the recipes are parsley, mint, and basil.
Scallions—you have them this week but I tend to buy more of those often too.
Whole milk Greek or regular plain yogurt—for quick toppings, dressings, sauces, etc.
Eggs, milk, sharp cheddar and Assiago Stella (what I call poor man’s Parmesan)
A variety of noodles and pastas—soba, rice, regular durum wheat.
Quinoa, rice(s), farro, red lentils, small French green lentils, all kinds of dry beans (black, pinto, white, chickpeas)
Bacon and sausages (in the freezer) to have at the ready to use as flavoring in dishes. Also in the freezer; chicken stock, salmon.
Raw sunflower and pumpkinseeds, various nuts
Turnip Notes
Bok Choy Fried Rice with Coconut Milk and Peanuts
Scallion Pancakes
Butter Lettuce Salad with Toasted Sunflower Seeds
Spring Quinoa Salad with Fennel, Scallions and Mustard Lemon Vinaigrette
Chard Tart
Turnip Notes
The turnips are so tender and sweet you really don’t need to cook them but I do suggest you add them to the bok choy fried rice, below. The turnip tops are also tender and bright green and are delicious in many preparations. You can simply sauté them in a little olive oil and maybe some minced garlic and have them as a side. You could chop them up finely and add them to the scallion pancakes (below). You could add them to the chard tart or to the fried rice. So many choices!
Bok Choy Fried Rice with Coconut Milk and Peanuts
–loosely inspired by Food Matters by Mark Bittman
This is a great way to use up leftover or previously frozen rice and whatever veggies you have on hand. You don’t want to use freshly cooked rice as it will be too sticky so cook a pot of rice in the morning and then let it sit out all day and it will be perfect for fried rice in the evening.
You can easily add chicken or beef cut fairly small. If you’re going to add meat, stir-fry the veggies first, then remove from pan, add meat and stir fry until cooked. Add veggies back in as well as rice, garlic, etc. and proceed with recipe. The addition of coconut milk is a bit unusual here but I think it’s a nice touch.
Serves 4
3 tablespoons coconut, vegetable or olive oil, divided
4 scallions, thinly sliced
3 turnips, scrubbed and diced fairly small (or several carrots, diced or thinly sliced)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3-4 medium cloves)
1 medium head bok choy, trimmed, well washed, leaves and stems cut in half lengthwise and then into thin strips crosswise (about 4-5 cups sliced)
1 tablespoon minced ginger
3 cups cooked long-grain white or brown rice, day-old (freshly cooked rice is much too sticky)
2-3 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup coconut milk
2-3 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoons soy sauce or Tamari
1-2 serrano chilis seeded and minced (or ¼ tsp chili flakes)
Salt
1/3 cup chopped, roasted peanuts (wonderful but can do with out in a pinch)
½ cup chopped basil or cilantro or mint (wonderful but can do with out in a pinch)
Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the oil in the largest skillet or wok you have over high heat. Add the scallions, ginger, garlic and turnips and cook, stirring frequently for about 1-2 minute until fragrant. Add the bok choy and cook for a few more minutes. The bok choy will give off some liquid and you want to keep the burner up as high as it goes to evaporate that quickly. Add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons oil and the rice, breaking up the chunks (with your fingers is easiest) as you go. Mix the rice in well and cook for a minute or two then make a well in its center and pour in the egg; scramble it a bit then incorporate it into the rice.
Add the coconut milk and cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has boiled off or been absorbed, a couple of minutes or so. Add the fish and soy sauce, and the minced chilies. Turn off the heat and serve, topped with the herbs and peanuts. Taste and add salt if needed.
Scallion Pancakes
When I have a beautiful bunch of scallions this is one of my favorite things to make. Substitute a gluten free flour/binder if you’d like. And feel free to toss a bunch of finely chopped turnip tops into the batter.
Yields about 18 4-inch pancakes
1 large bunch scallions, washed and trimmed of roots
1 bunch turnips tops (optional, see Turnip Notes, above and headnote)
2 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
1 3/4 cups water
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
Oil for pan-frying
Dipping Sauce:
1/3 cup soy sauce or tamari
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 clove garlic or 1 stalk green garlic, minced
Cut the scallions tops/greens into 1-2-inch lengths and cut the white part into thin rounds. In a large bowl whisk the eggs with the flour, water and salt. Add the scallions/onions and mix well. Taste for salt. It may need more. The batter should be fairly runny, a bit thinner than regular pancake batter.
Stir together all the dipping sauce ingredients in a small bowl.
Lightly cover the bottom of a large, heavy skillet with oil and heat over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot fry the pancakes, either in typical pancake size or large, to fit the pan. If doing the latter you’ll cut them into wedges to serve. I tend to make small ones. Fry for about 3 minutes per side or until golden. Serve with the dipping sauce.
Butter Lettuce Salad with Toasted Sunflower Seeds
This is a very simple salad that shows off the beautiful tender greens this time of year. Feel free to add some very thinly sliced fennel or anything else you’d like.
Serves 4
1/3 -1/2 cup basil cut into thin strips (chiffonade) or parsley or 2 tablespoons chives
1 small-ish head butter lettuce, washed, dried and torn
1/3 cup (or more) toasted sunflower seeds *
Dressing:
2 tablespoons heavy cream or whole milk plain yogurt or just a bit more olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
2-3 cloves new garlic, minced, sprinkled with coarse salt and then mashed into a paste with the side of a chef’s knife on your cutting board
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
A bit more salt and plenty of freshly ground pepper
Put the basil or other herbs, lettuce and seeds in a salad bowl. Mix the dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Toss dressing with salad and taste and adjust with more salt and/or pepper and/or vinegar.
*To toast sunflower seeds preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread seeds on a rimmed baking sheet and toss with a just a little olive oil and a few pinches of salt. Toast seeds, stirring once or twice as the seeds on the side of the pan will toast more quickly, until deep golden brown, about 12-15 minutes. Cool on sheet and then store in a tightly sealed container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Spring Quinoa Salad with Herbs
This is a good “dinner” salad on a warm night especially if you add beans or cheese or seeds/nuts. It’s great for lunch at work or as part of any potluck or picnic. And it’s a loose recipe so taste and adjust as you go and vary to suit your taste. This makes quite a bit of salad so feel free to cut the recipe in half. I tend to load mine up with herbs—mint, parsley, cilantro, chives and thyme. The more the better I think.
Serves 4-6 depending on what else is served
1 1/2 cups quinoa
3-4 Hakurei turnips, washed, trimmed and diced quite small (or a handful of radishes)
2 carrots, scrubbed and diced (optinal)
2 small-medium fennel bulbs, trimmed (tops reserved), finely diced or thinly sliced
4 scallions, thinly sliced
½ cup loosely packed fennel fronds, chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs (parsley, mint, cilantro, etc.)
Salt and pepper
1 cup cooked beans/chickpeas (optional)
Dressing:
1 ½ tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
1 stalk green garlic or 2 garlic cloves, minced
Grated zest of a lemon
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 -1/2 cup good olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Put the quinoa in a fine meshed sieve and rinse it under cold, running water for a minute. Quinoa has a natural coating (saponin) which is a bit bitter and the rinsing removes it. Put the rinsed quinoa in a pan and add 1 1/2 cups water and ½ teaspoon salt. Bring it to a boil then cover and turn down to a simmer. Cook, for about 15 – 18 minutes until the quinoa is tender and all the water has been absorbed. Let sit, covered, while you prepare the vegetables.
In a large bowl mix chopped vegetables and herbs. In a small bowl whisk mustard, garlic, zest and vinegar until smooth. Slowly add oil while whisking until the mixture is smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. This dressing needs to be salty and tart. The quinoa will absorb a lot. You’ll be surprised how much vinegar and salt you need especially if you don’t eat it right away.
Toss the cooked quinoa with the vegetables and herbs and drizzle on the most of the dressing and adjust with salt and pepper to taste. Add more dressing if needed.
Chard Tart
If you’ve been put off by tarts and finicky dough that crumbles and breaks, try this. It makes you look really accomplished and fancy and is delicious. And if you’re really short on time you could even skip the crust and just bake the custard and veggies in a cake pan or cast iron pan until slightly puffed and cooked through.
Serves 6 (makes great leftovers)
Preheat the oven to 425ºF
1 recipe Tart Dough (recipe follows)
1 large bunch of chard, leaves only, roughly chopped (reserve stems to sauté with onions to start a stir fry, sauce, etc.)
1 tablespoon butter
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 eggs
1 cup whole milk
3 tablsespoons freshly grated Parmesan (or Gruyère or just plain old cheddar if that’s what you have)
A few pinches of ground nutmeg (optional)
Heat the butter in a wide skillet; add the onion and cook it over medium heat until it is translucent and soft. Add the garlic, and the chard leaves by handfuls, if necessary, until they all fit. Sprinkle in a large pinch of salt. Turn the leaves over repeatedly so that they are all exposed to the heat of the pan, and cook until they are tender, 5 minutes or more.
Make the custard. Beat the eggs; then stir in the milk, lemon peel (if using), grated Parmesan, and a few scrapings of nutmeg. Stir in the chard and onion mixture. Taste and season with salt and a few grinds of pepper. Pour the filling into the prepared tart shell and bake until the top is golden and firm, about 40 minutes.
Tart Dough
–Adapted from David Lebovitz
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
(or ¾ cup apf and ¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour)
4 1/2 ounces, about 9 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut into cubes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
2-3 tablespoons cold water
Make the dough by mixing the flour and salt in a bowl. Add the butter and use your hands, or a pastry blender, to break in the butter until the mixture has a crumbly, cornmeal-like texture.
Mix the egg with 2 tablespoons of the water. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the beaten egg mixture, stirring the mixture until the dough holds together. If it’s not coming together easily, add the additional tablespoon of ice water.
Gather the dough into a ball and roll the dough on a lightly floured surface, adding additional flour only as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to the counter.
Once the dough is large enough so that it will cover the bottom of a 10-inch tart pan and go up the sides, roll the dough around the rolling-pin then unroll it over the tart pan. “Dock” the bottom of the pastry firmly with your fingertips a few times, pressing in to make indentations. (I occasionally forget to do this with no ill effect so don’t sweat it if you forget.) If you don’t have a tart pan you can use a 9 or 10-inch pie pan too. The recipe for the dough is pretty generous so will fit a pie pan too.