Category: Recipes

Sunday, July 31st, 2011 04:01 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Hot Nights and Cold Pickling

We had a great night of pickling thanks to CSA members and pickle mavens Nina Rubin and Mimi Hall. Following “Beck’s Cold Water Pickles” Recipe (below) we submerged everything from string beans, okra, radishes and of course cucumbers into a cold bath of briny goodness and pondered the distinctions between the old “Ball Blue Book” recipes and “Jewish”/Eastern European pickles. Most importantly, Mimi and Nina helped unveil some of the mysteries of canning and showed us a simple and adaptable method to preserving your CSA bounty. What are some of your favorite ways to “put up” an abundance of a certain item (say for instance – tomatoes?)

Beck’s Cold Water Pickles

Mimi generously shared this old family recipe with us. We altered it a little (mixed a brine and included fresh dill, whole coriander, mustard seed, and in some cases replaced the cayanne with whole hot peppers. It will be hard to wait the week to try them!

Into each 1/2 gallon jar put:
2 tablespoons of salt
4 cups apple cider vinegar
10 whole allspice berries
1/4 teaspoon (less) cayenne
pinch of alum
2 or 3 cloves of garlic
Put in first layer of vegetables and some dill. Finish packing pickles (not past first rim). put dill and other spices under top layer. Fill with cold water. Put on tops. PUt on drain board and shake to combine ingredients. Leave for 5 days, then refrigerate.

Sunday, July 31st, 2011 03:47 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Field Pea and Mint Hummus

This recipe was born out of my inherent distaste for the naked field pea, and the fact that my two year old will eat anything hummus like (this week anyway). This is a nice Southern Interpretation of a once exotic, now ubiquitous Israeli dish. It is also very adaptable and makes great use of this week’s field peas, all of the delicious Riverview Farms garlc sitting in my hanging kitchen basket and fresh mint from the garden (or market). It is also highly adaptable (as most bean dips are) – leave out the curry, substitute parsley or basil for the mint – roast some of those great red peppers and toss them in your cuisinart – you name it!

Ingredients:
1 1/2-2 cups field peas
2-4 cloves of fresh garlic
juice of one lemon
3 tablespoons tahini
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon curry (optional)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh mint
salt to taste

Boil peas in salted water. Drain and cool slightly. In the meantime combine garlic, mint, salt spices and tahini in food processor. Pulse several times to combine. Add field peas, lemon juice and spices. Run food processor and stream in oil until you get your preferred consistency (less for chunkier, pastier hummus, you may need a little more for creamier hummus). You can also stream in a little hot water if you want to loosen up the mixture without adding more oil.

ENJOY!

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011 03:06 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Braised Cabbage with Cauliflower, Mushrooms and Caraway

I was inspired by a fellow CSAers Facebook Post entitled “Dear CSA, thank you for teaching me that cabbage is not so bad – it’s not so great, but it’s not so bad either so, thanks for that”.   I’m a huge fan of a whole slew of raw cabbage creations, but for those of you that want a milder bite of cruciferous goodness – you might prefer this dish.  I wanted to use that gorgesous purple caulflower but had to feed more people than usual so after browning those little purple flowerets, I turned the head of cabbage, some lovely mushrooms and soem caraway seed that found its way into my pantry via my Rye Bread baking father in law.  What resulted was a homey german/scandinavian type of dish that I’ll definitely make again – maybe next time with Kohlrabi!

1 large head of cabbage, shredded or sliced thin
1 small head cauliflower, cut into small flowerets
1 lbs mushrooms
two cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup broth (veggie or chicken
1/4  cup olive oil, dividied
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp. sugar (or maple syrup, which is what I used)
2 tablespoons toasted carraway seeds
1 tsp. brown or dijon mustard

In a medium saute pan, brown cauliflower flowerets in 1-2 tblsp. olive oil and kosher or coaruse sea salt.  Set aside.  Brown mushrooms in 1-2 tbsp. olive oil.  Set aside.  Heat remaining olive oil and add thinkly sliced cabbage, cook until slightly softened.  Add minced garlic, cook for 2 more minutes and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Add cauliflower and mushrooms back into the pan with broth, sugar, mustard, and vingar.  Cover and let simmer on low to medium for 10-15 minutes.  Sprinkle with Caraway seeds before serving.

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011 02:59 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Cabbage Salad with Lime and Cilantro

When I hear the word coleslaw, I immediatey think of my Grandma Rose.  At every family gathering from summber barbecues, to birthday parties to Thanksgiving, without fail the “famous” coleslaw would make an appearance, even if you went through the whole meal without it – she’d suddenly pop up out of her seat and exclaim @#$(i0 I forgot to serve the coleslaw and guess what became our dessert.   Personally I didn’t care for the mayonaise based version she served and had written offf cabbage salads altogether until I was introduced to the wonderful world of oil and citrus based cabbage concoctions.  A few weeks ago while preparing my husband’s birthday fish taco feast my three year old and I came up with this version (she insisted it needed mint) which incoproates not one but two of our box items this week.  This basic recipe is so adaptable and can go from having a mexcian flair (as written here with olive oil and cumin) to asian (sesame oil, rice vinegar and soy sauce).  We served it tucked into our homeade tortillas, grilled fish, avocado and crema – but it makes a great side dish and is particularly good with toasted almonds, peanuts or sesame seeds.

  • 1 large head of cabbage, shredded or sliced thin
  • one red pepper – julienned
  • juice of one lime
  • 1 tablespoon honey or agave nectar
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons white or apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablepoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1/4 cup chopped mint
  • 1/4 cup chopped basil
  • salt and pepper to taste

optional: 1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds, toasted chopped peanuts, or 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds.

Wash and dry cabbage thoroughly.  Shred or thinkly slice using chef’s knife, shredder or food processer.  Thinly slice or julienne red pepper and chop herbs.   Combine these items in a large salad bowl.  Whisk together lime juice, agave, cumin, vinegar salt and pepper.  Stream in olive oil while whisking.  Drizzle over salad and toss to evenly coat.   If adding nuts or seeds, wait to toss in until just before serving .

Wednesday, June 1st, 2011 03:08 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Red and Golden Beets with Arugula Walnuts and Tarragon Vinaigrette

2 Large Golden Beets and 2 Large Red or Candy Cane Beets
1 pound arugula
¾ Cup toasted walnuts
2 tablespoons minced shallots
2 tablespoons agave nectar or 1 tablespoon sugar
Juice of ½ lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar (or another red wine vinegar)
¼ cup olive oil
1) Roast beets in oven in a ½ inch water covered with foil for an hour at 400 degrees.
2) Remove from oven and place in Ziploc bag or another bowl covered tightly with plastic wrap.
3) While beets are cooling, prepare vinaigrette. Combine minced shallots with agave nectar or sugar and lemon juice. Whisk in tarragon and vinegar. Stream in olive oil while whisking. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4) Beets should now be cooler and ready to peel, slice thinly and halve. Combine beets with arugula, sprinkle with walnuts and when ready to serve, toss with vinaigrette.
Thursday, February 10th, 2011 03:46 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

The Tu’besh “Shot”

Reduce over high heat:

  • 1 bottle nicely
  • balanced
  • red wine (I used a Spanish Grenache)
  • 1 bottle Pom fresh pomegranite juice
  • 10 chopped medjool
  • dates
  • 2 Tbl fig jam
  • 1 Tbl olive oil (fruity/spicy/unfiltered)
  • 1 teaspoon malt powder (this is the
  • barley)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 tsp
  • salt
  • juice of 1/2 lemon (more if needed)

Reduce to a thick syrup.  Taste while reducing and add more fig jam is additional sweetness is desired.

Combine 1/2 oz. syrup with 2 oz. gin (for large batches, use this 1:4 ratio) and shake hard over ice.

 

Strain into a cocktail glass.  L’chaim!

Thursday, February 10th, 2011 03:42 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Seven Species Salad

 

  • 1 cup cooked wheat berries
  • 1 cup cooked pearled barley
  • 1 cup chopped stemmed dried figs (calmyra or black mission)
  • ¼ cup pomegranate juice mixed with ¼ cup water
  • 1/3 cup chopped kalamata olives
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon drained capers chopped
  • 1 ½ tablespoons fresh thyme
  • 2 tablespoons date honey (or pureed dates)
  • 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
  • 6 shallots (medium to large)
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
  • ½ cup chopped toasted walnuts
  • ¾ cup halved seedless grapes
  • ¼ cup chopped parsley

Combine chopped figs and 1/3 cup water in heavy medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until liquid evaporates and figs are soft, about 7 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl. Mix in olives, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, capers, and chopped thyme.   Combine fig and olive mixture with wheat berries and barley.

To make date/pomegranate dressing:

Mince 1 of the shallots.  Combine with date honey (or pureed dates) and pomegranate molasses, sherry vinegar and lemon juice and shallot.  Wisk in 2 tablespoons olive oil in a steady stream.  Season with salt and pepper

Add vinaigrette to grain and olive/fig mixture.

Slice remaining shallots.  Heat sauté pan and add 2 tablespoons olive oil and a sprinkle of coarse sea salt or kosher salt. Fry shallots until browned.

Right before serving, sprinkle toasted walnuts fried shallots and grapes over grain mixture.  finish with chopped parsley.

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010 03:15 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Coconut Milk Braised Greens

Slice and caramelize 1 onion in a large pot or work with olive oil and sea salt

Stir in 1/4 tomato paste, 2 minced cloves of garlic, 1 tsp cumin and 1/2 tsp smoked paprika

Mix in 1/3 cup coconut milk and stir until a thick liquid is formed (you can put in a little vegetable broth here as well to make more liquid

Toss in washed and chopped greens

Cover and steam/braise for 10-15 minutes

sprinkle lime juice over top before serving

Friday, October 1st, 2010 03:26 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Andy Friedberg’s Apple and Greens Wrap

Soup and Sandwich in the Sukkah Winner shared his Wrap Recipe that was popular with tasters, judges and was the favorite item of 4 year old Joey

  • Garden of Eatin brand whole wheat Wraps
  •  Tahini
  • Red Miso Paste
  • Agave Syrup or Honey.
  • Greens mix (lettuce, tatsoi, collards, turnip greens, radish greens – whatever is on hand)
  • olive oil
  • Lemon or Lime juice
  • Apples (golden delicious, granny smith)

Mix one part tahini to two parts miso.  Add sweetener to taste.  Toss greens with vinaigrette (2/3 olive oil to 1/3 lemon or lime juice) – season with salt and pepper to taste.  Slice Apples and assemble with miso-tahini spread and dressed greens

eat and  smile!

Tuesday, September 28th, 2010 03:24 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Nina Rubin’s Creamy Leek, Potato & Kale Soup

Ingredients:

  • 2 large leeks
  • 5 Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed  (skin on)
  • 3 sweet potatoes cut up, skin off
  • 2-3 boxes of vegetable broth + kale water
  • 1 large bag of chopped fresh kale or 2 bunches of fresh kale
  • 1 pt. creme fraiche or sour cream
  • salt & pepper to taste

1.  Wash leeks thoroughly and the white part into smallish chunks.2.  Saute the leeks in olive oil until translucent,3.  Pour in the broth and add the potatoes, salt & pepper to taste.4.  Wash kale, chop roughly and steam it.(reserve the water if you like and add to soup).       Preserve color by putting kale into an ice water bath after steaming.  Chop finely when cooled…set aside.5. Simmer soup, then puree with stick blender, or in batches in blender/food processor.6. Add chopped kale to pureed soup, adjust seasoning and serve

Tuesday, September 28th, 2010 03:21 am GMT +00:00 Naomi Rabkin

Jennifer Leson’s Red Curry Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients

  • 3-4 pounds butternut squash, peeled cut in 1-inch cubes (you may want to find ones that aren’t as curvy – the bigger the bottom the more seeds)
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 bunch green onions (may want to set aside some of the greens for a lovely garnish) 1 tsp cumin 1 tbsp red curry powder 1 tsp red curry paste 2 tbsps tomato paste
  • 3 cloves garlic 1 can coconut milk (full fat – it won’t kill ya) 1 rounded tbsp brown sugar 3 tbsp fish sauce (or sub to-taste with soy sauce or salt)  1/4 cup torn fresh basil leaves *adjust for salt and heat before serving
  •  Dutch Over with Lid
  1. Butternut Squash – I like to soften them in the microwave for a few minutes which makes it a lot easier to peel.  Peel and cut into 1 inch cubes and set aside.
  2. DO not turn on the stove yet.  In dutch oven add vegetable oil, green onion, cumin, red curry powder, red curry paste, tomato paste.  Now turn on the stove to a medium heat mix and let them stir for about 5 minutes.  It’s going to wake up the spices, soften the onion, and caramelize the tomato a little bit.
  3. Add crushed garlic and stir for about another minute.
  4. Add coconut milk – mix in
  5. Add brown sugar and fish sauce.  Mix up and bring to simmer
  6. Add butternut squash and bring stove to medium low.   Toss it down, pat around.  Put lid on and set timer for 5 minutes.  Every 5 minutes take off the lid and give a good stir (want to cook evenly).  After about 20-25 minutes the butternut squash should be tender – check with a paring knife (you can serve it this way as well as a side dish).  If you want as a soup keep going about another 5-10 minutes until at puree consistency.
  7. When at point that you want your squash add freshly torn basil.
  8. Taste – may want to adjust the salt and heat to your liking.
  9. When serving add green onion for garnish.  Enjoy!

 

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