Leeks

Botanically known as Allium porrum, leeks are a member of the Allium family of vegetables.   More familiar Alliums include onions, garlic and shallots.  Unlike their cousins, leeks differ in a couple of ways.  In flavor, leeks are more subtle and sweeter than a standard onion.   In structure, unlike most Alliums, leeks do not form bulbs. 


In addition be being delicious, leeks have great health benefits.  Leeks, like their Allium cousins, have been shown to improve the immune system, lower cholesterol and help fight cancer.  More specifically, leeks are a good source of fiber, folic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin C, manganese and iron.  

SimpleBites.net has a wonderful write-up on leeks, how to prepare them for recipes, and a few recipes that you may want to try.  

SimpleBites.net - Leeks

 Enjoy!

Celeriac

I, like many, are new to the vegetable called celeriac. Here's a little information on this not-so-pretty vegetable:

Celeriac, also known as celery root, is a type of celery grown for its roots. Unlike most root vegetables, celeriac is low in starch and high in water and fiber. It is a good source of dietary fiber, Vitamin B6, Magnesium, Potassium and Manganese, and an excellent source of Vitamin C and Phosphorus. It tastes quite similar to celery, and can be prepared like other root vegetables such as rutabagas, parsnips, and carrots.   (source: tinyurbankitchen.com)

Here's a recipe that I'm trying this evening using celeriac:     Curried Celeriac Soup

I'll let you know how it comes out.     

edit 10/15 
This soup had great flavor but I would recommend a couple of changes.  First, decrease the amount of stock from 6 cups to 4.  The 6 cups was too liquid-y in my opinion.  You could always add a bit more stock at the end if you find the 4 cups too thick.  As I had used the 6 cups of stock, I added a small can of cannellini beans to the soup to thicken it up a bit and the additional protein and fiber never hurt.  You could keep the beans whole or blend them into the soup, your choice.  I heard from a few of you at the market regarding this soup and would love to hear from any of you that try this recipe.  Thanks! 

Spaghetti Squash is here!

We have harvested our spaghetti squash and will be bringing them to the market this weekend. Spaghetti squash is a winter squash that contains an inner flesh that turns into strands resembling spaghetti when cooked.

Spicy Spaghetti Squash with Black Beans

Serves 4

Serve these stuffed squash halves immediately or fill with the stuffing and refrigerate them, covered, one day in advance. Simply reheat them before serving.

Ingredients

1 medium spaghetti squash

Filling
2 teaspoons olive or corn oil
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1 jalapeño chili, seeded, minced
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped
1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained well
1/2 cup sweet corn, frozen or fresh
1 teaspoon chili powder
All of the reserved cooked squash, about 4 cups
1/3 cup cilantro, minced
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon sea salt

Method

Roast squash in a 375°F oven for 50 minutes until tender or cut squash in half and place in a microwave dish with 1/2 inch of water, lightly covered with plastic wrap for 20 minutes on high until tender. cool. When cool, scoop flesh from squash halves leaving the shell intact for stuffing.

For the filling, heat oil in a large pan and sauté red onion, jalapeño chili and red pepper for 2 minutes. Add beans, corn and chili powder; sauté 1 minute longer. Add cooked squash, cilantro, lime juice and salt, cook 1 minute until heated through.

Fill squash halves with filling, mounding mixture in the center.

Nutrition

Per Serving (269g-wt.): 160 calories (30 from fat), 3.5g total fat, 0.5g saturated fat, 6g protein, 29g total carbohydrate (7g dietary fiber, 5g sugar), 0mg cholesterol, 330mg sodium

Source: WholeFoodsMarket.com

Recipe: Chipotle Cheddar Chard

The bright assorted colors of rainbow chard are especially lovely in this spicy, cheesy dish. Make a double batch and enjoy it as a quesadilla filling. Yum!

6 servings, about 2/3 cup each
Active Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes







Ingredients

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 pound chard, stems and leaves separated, chopped (see Note)
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth or water
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Preparation

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and chard stems and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add tomato, broth (or water), chipotle to taste and salt; bring to a simmer. Add chard leaves and cook, covered, stirring once, until just tender, about 2 minutes. Scatter cheese evenly over the chard and cook, uncovered, until the cheese is melted, 1 to 2 minutes more. Serve immediately.
Tips & Notes

Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Note: After washing the chard for these recipes, allow some of the water to cling to the leaves. It helps steam the chard and prevents a dry finished dish.
Nutrition

Per serving: 90 calories; 6 g fat ( 3 g sat , 1 g mono ); 13 mg cholesterol; 5 g carbohydrates; 4 g protein; 2 g fiber; 315 mg sodium; 493 mg potassium.
Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin K (313% daily value), Vitamin A (100% dv), Vitamin C (30% dv), Magnesium (17% dv).

Enjoy!

Source:  EatingWell: December 2006

Recipe: Roasted Cipollini Onion and Cherry Tomatoes

This recipe highlights two of the items that we are offering this week at the market.  The cipollini (pronounced chip-oh-LEE-nee) onion and your preference of cherry tomato...sun gold and/or the heart-shaped tomato-berry tomato.

The cipollini onion differs from regular pearl onions in that they they roast up sweeter and have none of the typical onion "bite".

Ingredients:

1 pound cipollini onions
1 pound cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
Coarse salt
4 slices of country or ciabatta bread, one-inch thick
1 15-ounce can of white beans, drained and rinsed or 1 1/2 cups cooked beans of your choice
Garlic clove (optional)
Few fresh basil leaves, slivered

Preheat oven to 375°F. Boil a small pot of water and blanche the cipollini for 10 seconds, then plunging them into cold water. Use a paring knife to make a small slit in each, and slide them out of their skins and outer layer.

Spread peeled onions and tomatoes in a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and a few good pinches of coarse salt. Toss everything together until well-coated and roast in preheated oven for about 45 minutes, reaching in every 15 minutes with a spatula to roll the tomatoes and onions around to ensure all sides get blistered.

Just before you take the tomatoes and onions out, place your bread slices on the oven rack (or a tray, if you’re more refined than us) and let them toast lightly. You can rub the toasts with a halved garlic clove, if you like, while still hot. Use tongs to arrange toasts in one layer on a serving platter. Dump the white beans over the bread, and using a pot holder, scrape the entire contents of the tomato-and-onion roasting pan, still hot, over the white beans. Do not skimp on the juices that have collected, all of them — don’t leave any in the pan. They could make a religious person out of you.

Sprinkle the dish with the basil and eat at once.

Serves four as a small dish, two as a main

Source:  smittenkitchen.com

Recipe: Pappardelle with Zucchini Blossom* Sauce

Ingredients

Good-tasting olive oil
1 Tbs unsalted butter
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
1 medium carrot*, finely chopped
Leaves from 10 sprigs Italian parsley, finely chopped
12 zucchini blossoms* quartered from stem to tip
Salt
6 saffron threads
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1 egg yolk
½ lb. pappardelle (any egg noodle will do)
Pecorino Romano, finely grated

Put a large pot of salted water over high heat; this will be your pasta pot.

In a large skillet, warm a splash of olive oil and the butter over medium heat. Add the red onion, celery, carrot, and Italian parsley, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are translucent. Add the zucchini blossoms, a pinch or two of salt, and the saffron, and stir gently to mix. Add about ¾ cup of broth, and stir to combine. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the rest of the broth a splash or two at a time, taking about 5-8 minutes to add it all. Stir frequently. Allow the sauce to simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated and only a thin film of thickened broth remains in the pan. Remove from the heat.

In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk slightly with a fork.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta until tender but al dente. When the pasta is almost ready, place the zucchini blossom sauce back over medium heat. Use a small measuring cup to scoop up about 3 Tbs of pasta water and, whisking constantly with a fork, gradually add the hot water to the egg yolk: together, they should make a loose, pale yellow liquid. Pour this mixture into the sauce in the skillet, stirring well. Using tongs or a spider, scoop the finished pasta from its pot into the skillet, and toss with the sauce over medium heat for about 30 seconds.

Serve, topped with grated Pecorino.

Yield: 2-3 servings
Source:  orangette.blogspot.com

Enjoy!

what we're bringing to market - July 9th

What a day!  Lots of downpours as well as thunder and lightning.  Mother Nature provided us with some much needed rain, but her timing was less than stellar (over-night rains are much preferred).  Regardless, this week's harvest is complete and here is what we'll be bringing to the Pawtuxet Village Farmers' Market this week:

one of the collard plants in our fields

Gold of Bacau Wax Pole Beans
Ronde Di Nice Zucchini
Papaya Pear Summer Squash
Beets w/ greens
Fennel w/ fronds
Escarole
Bright Lights Swiss Chard
Lacinato Kale
Collards *
Cippolini Onions w/ greens
Red Marble Onions w/ greens
 




* Not sure what you can do with Collards?   Here's a recipe from one of my favorite food magazines, Eating Well:

Pasta with Greens & Tomato Sauce

 

4 servings, 1 1/2 cups each

Active Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes 

Ingredients

• 1 pound collard greens, (about 12 cups), stripped from thick stems, washed, dried and coarsely chopped (1/2-inch pieces)
• 2 ounces sliced pancetta, or bacon, finely diced (3/4 cup)
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, (not drained)
• 1/4 cup water
• 8 ounces medium pasta shells, (3 cups)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preparation

1. Bring 2 cups lightly salted water to a boil in a large wide pan. Add collards and cook until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water and press out excess moisture. Set aside.
2. Put a large pot of lightly salted water on to boil for cooking pasta.
3. Cook pancetta (or bacon) in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until golden, 5 minutes. Drain; discard fat.
4. Add oil to the pan and heat over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and crushed red pepper; cook, stirring, for 30 to 60 seconds. Add the pancetta (or bacon), tomatoes and water; bring to a simmer, mashing the tomatoes with a potato masher or the side of a wooden spoon. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until thickened, about 20 minutes.
5. About 10 minutes before the sauce is ready, cook pasta in the boiling water, stirring often, until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water and drain the pasta.
6. Add the pasta, collards and reserved pasta-cooking water to the tomato sauce. Heat, stirring, until the pasta has absorbed some of the flavors, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon into pasta bowls, sprinkle with cheese and serve.

 

Nutrition

Per serving: 364 calories; 9 g fat ( 3 g sat , 4 g mono ); 14 mg cholesterol; 60 g carbohydrates; 17 g protein; 9 g fiber; 851 mg sodium; 256 mg potassium.


From EatingWell:  Winter 2003

Gold of Macau Wax Pole Bean

We'd like to announce the arrival of the Gold of Bacau Wax Pole Beans!  

While Christina was working on a farm in France, she was introduced to growing pole beans in a hoop house.  In tribute to her mentor, Christina searched for a pole bean to plant in her own hoop house.  What she found was the Gold of Bacau Wax Pole Bean.  This tender Romano-type wax bean from Bacau, Romania is a wide (~1/2") and long (6-10") pod.  Despite this size, they are as sweet and string-less as the smallest of beans. 

This is a photograph of one of the two "walls" of the Gold of Bacau Wax Pole Beans, in our hoop house, just prior to flowering (mid-June).  As of today we are happy to be harvesting these delicious beans.









Gold of Bacau Wax Pole Bean Vinaigrette
Serves 6

2 lbs. beans
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Place all ingredients but the beans, salt and pepper into a bowl.  Aggressively mix, with a wisk, until ingredients are fully integrated.  Taste mixture and adjust as necessary.  Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. 

Cut beans into 1" pieces.  Steam beans until tender.  Drain.  Add beans to bowl containing vinaigrette and toss.

Enjoy!  

Escarole!

We'll have escarole at the Pawtuxet Farmers' Market this week.  Don't know much about escarole?

Here are some things you might like to know about this healthy and hearty green.  High in folic acid, fiber, and vitamins A & K, escarole can be eaten raw or gently cooked.  It is a less bitter variety of endive with a flavor similar to radicchio.  Here is a recipe you might want to try:

Escarole and Bean Soup  Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

 

Prep Time:  12 min
Cook Time:  10 min
Level:  Easy

Serves:  6 servings 

 

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 pound escarole, chopped
Salt
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 (1-ounce) piece Parmesan
Freshly ground black pepper
6 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
Serving suggestion: crusty bread

 

Directions

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add the escarole and saute until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add a pinch of salt. Add the chicken broth, beans, and Parmesan cheese. Cover and simmer until the beans are heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.  Ladle the soup into 6 bowls. Drizzle 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil over each. Serve with crusty bread.