I was so happy this past January to have the CSA cash my check for a share of the crop this summer. The long wait has finally ended with the first fresh produce pick-up today. It has been 4 long years since I was last able to secure a share, and I will never let it go again! This is an opportunity to get back into cooking fresh, simple, and healthy meals. I never buy collard greens or chard at the store, so figuring out how to prepare these portions of our share this week will be interesting! I hope also to get back into updating (and ORGANIZING) this recipe site as we adventure through the summer’s produce. And of course meander off on all of the other tangential topics like I do.
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This sounds like a yummy and light dish, found on a recipe card at the grocery store.
2 medium spaghetti squash
olive oil
olives, chopped
salt and pepper
Bake squash for 30-40 minutes in a 400 degree oven. Take out, cool, scoop out squash, add olive oil, olives, and salt & pepper to season. Mix together and serve it up!
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2 lemons, zested
2 small oranges, zested (or 1 large orange, zested)
1 bottle Pinot Grigio wine
3 cups sparkling water
In a small bowl, toss the citrus zests together. Divide the zest mixture among an empty ice cube tray, top with water and freeze for 3 to 5 hours.
In a large pitcher, combine the wine with the sparkling water and the citrus zest ice cubes. Stir and serve.
From Everyday Italian
6 slices prosciutto
2 oranges, zested
2 small oranges, juiced or 1 large orange, juiced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 clove garlic, peeled
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
10 to 12 ounces pre-washed spinach
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.Place the prosciutto slices on a baking sheet and bake until just crisp, about 10 minutes. Let cool. Crumble the prosciutto slices into a container and store in the refrigerator.
In a blender, combine the orange zest, orange juice, balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth. With the blender running, add the olive oil in a steady stream until combined. Transfer to a container and store in the refrigerator.
To serve, put the spinach in a large bowl. Toss with enough of the vinaigrette to coat the spinach. Sprinkle with the crisp prosciutto crumbles, toss again, and serve.
From Everyday Italian
1 can medium, pitted, black olives, drained
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 small clove garlic, coarsely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Place all ingredients, except the salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor. Blend until the mixture is chunky, scraping down the inside of the bowl, if necessary. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
From Everyday Italian
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Fresh, tasty and nutritious, salmon and avocado sushi is easy to make at home. Sarah Hobbs shows you how to make this popular treat to share with friends. Serves 6 as a light meal
You will need:
2 ½ cups (540g)
koshihikari rice*
33/4 cups (935ml) cold water
½ cup (125ml) rice vinegar
2 tbs caster sugar
½ tsp salt
6 nori sheets*
200g fresh salmon, cut into 1cm-thick batons
1 avocado, halved, stoned, peeled, thinly sliced
Light soy sauce, to serve
Wasabi paste, to serve
Pickled ginger, to serve
- Place the rice in a sieve. Rinse under cold running water, to remove any excess starch, until water runs clear. Place the rice and water in a large saucepan, covered, over high heat. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 12 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Remove from heat. Set aside, covered, for 10 minutes to cool slightly.
- Combine the vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl. Transfer the rice to a large glass bowl. Use a wooden paddle to break up rice lumps while gradually adding the vinegar mixture, gently folding to combine. Continue folding and fanning the rice for 15 minutes or until rice is cool.
- Place a sushi mat on a clean surface with slats running horizontally. Place a nori sheet, shiny-side down, on the mat. Use wet hands to spread one-sixth of the rice over the nori sheet, leaving a 3cm-wide border along the edge furthest away from you.
- Place salmon and avocado along the centre of the rice. Hold filling in place while rolling the mat over to enclose rice and filling. Repeat with remaining nori, rice, salmon and avocado.
- Use a sharp knife to slice sushi widthways into 1.5cm-thick slices. Place on serving dishes with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger, if desired.
*Koshihikari rice is a short-grain rice that has a soft, sticky texture when cooked. It is available from supermarkets and Asian grocers.
*Nori sheets are thin layers of dried seaweed and are available from supermarkets and Asian grocers.
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Serves 4
Preparation time: 15 minutes
(plus 1 hour marinating time)
Cooking time: 10 minutes
12 sprigs rosemary
900g chicken thigh fillets (about 7), trimmed, cut into 2cm cubes
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tbs brown sugar
1 tbs olive oil
200g tub hummus
4 small wholemeal pita breads, halved, toasted
2 vine-ripened tomatoes, sliced
80g baby rocket
Olive oil and lemon juice, to serve
- Remove lower leaves (reserve for another recipe) from rosemary sprigs to form skewers then, using a sharp knife, trim ends on an angle. Thread chicken on to rosemary sprigs.
- Combine vinegar, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste in a large, flat dish. Place kebabs in marinade and turn to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour
or until ready to cook. - Heat oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook kebabs, in batches, for 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally, or until cooked through. Serve immediately with hummus, pita breads, tomato and rocket, drizzled with
a little oil and lemon juice.
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Serves 4
1/4 tsp wasabi paste
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tbs black vinegar
1 tbs light soy sauce
1 tbs water
1/4 cup finely chopped chives
4 (about 100g each) pieces sashimi-grade tuna
1 firm ripe avocado, halved, stoned, peeled, finely chopped
1/4 (about 50g) white radish (daikon),peeled, cut into matchsticks
Micro salad leaves, to serve
Wasabi paste, extra, to serve
- Combine the wasabi, sesame oil, vinegar, soy sauce and water in a small jug and place in the fridge to chill.
- Place the chives on a plate. Roll each piece of tuna in the chives to lightly coat. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 15 minutes to chill.
- Use a sharp knife to slice the tuna into 5mm-thick slices and arrange on serving plates. Top with avocado and daikon and sprinkle with salad leaves. Drizzle lightly with a little of the dressing.
Serve immediately with remaining dressing and extra wasabi, if desired.
It’s been months since the last time I posted a new recipe. Postings usually coincide with school breaks, and unfortunately also with the amount I cook. Today is the second to the last day of spring break. Oh well. Summer break is just around the corner! This is a recipe I found online to try (simplicity is always desired!) on the thawed sole filets I bought from Trader Joe’s. My husba and I have made agreements never to buy frozen fish from there because it’s never been good. I always try it again after several months or so, just because they continue to carry it so people must buy it and their products are generally good, so maybe it’s something that I’m doing wrong.
Anyway, here’s the recipe I’m going to try tonight. Hope it turns out well!
8 filets of sole
½ pound mushrooms, washed, sliced
½ cup bread crumbs
½ cup water
1 lemon, juice only
3 tablespoons butter
Seasonings to taste
Put the filets of sole in a small buttered baking dish. Season. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Add mushrooms, water, butter and lemon juice.
Bake in hot oven for about 10 minutes. Then serve.
