This Week's Share-Lots of Summer Squash

This week's share includes lots of summer squash.  Its time to pull out the zucchini bread recipes or follow the links listed below.

This Week's Share Includes:

Beets

Carrots

Scallions

Lettuce Mix

Purslane

Mint

Zucchini

Zephyr (yellow squash) Squash

Patti Pan Squash

Martha Stewart's Summer Squash Recipe Link

Fine Cooking's Yellow Summer Squash Link

101 Cookbooks' Summer Squash Recipe Link

Zephyr, Scallop Sunburst Patti Pan, Costata Romanesco Zucchini, Zucchini

Notes From Nikki-Roasted Fingerling and Tomato Salad with Tarragon Dressing

Photo by Kiah Graham

Roasted Fingerling and Tomato Salad with Creamy Tarragon Dressing

Hello summer! Hello heat! Thank goodness Claire is supplying us with ample amounts of salad greens to eat; light dinners for oppressively hot evenings (or lunches for afternoons). This recipe does call for a quick roasting of the baby fingerlings from your Inverbrook share in a hot oven. It doesn't take long though, and having roasted potatoes in a salad helps to add staying power. Feel free to use whatever type of tomatoes you have on hand. I just happened to find some local grape tomatoes that were divine. Enjoy, and stay cool!

Ingredients
1 bag of Inverbrook salad greens, washed, spun dry, and torn into bite-sized pieces
1/2 lb or so baby fingerling potatoes, washed (and scrubbed in spots if needed)
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
2-3 T chopped chives
Handful of fresh tarragon leaves (or more, I love tarragon so I tend to go heavy)
3-4 T extra virgin olive oil, plus another tablespoon or so for roasting the potatoes
Dollop or two of mayo
Dollop or two of sour cream, plain whole milk yogurt, or even cottage cheese
2-3 tsp dijon mustard (depending on your taste for it)
1 tsp local honey (support local beekeepers :-))
Generous splash or two of white wine vinegar (or a big squeeze or two of lemon juice)
Sea salt
Fresh ground pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. Drizzle 1-2 T olive oil over a baking sheet and spread the potatoes over. Season with a bit of sea salt and fresh ground pepper.
3. Roast in the oven for until fork tender (about 15 minutes). Remove and set aside.
4. While the potatoes are cooling, put the chives, tarragon, 3 T olive oil (you can add more later if you need it), a dollop of mayo and a dollop of sour cream (or yogurt or cottage cheese... again you can add more later if need be), 2 tsp dijon (or more if you really like dijon), 1 tsp local honey, a generous splash of white wine vinegar or a squeeze of lemon, and a dash of sea salt and fresh ground pepper into a food processor or blender. Process until smooth.
5. Taste and adjust (very important!). At this point you can add in more mayo, sour cream (or yogurt or cottage cheese), vinegar or lemon juice, dijon, sea salt, chives, tarragon, etc. It took me a few tries to get this perfect, and my taste buds are different than yours so what worked for me won't necessarily work for you. Play with it. Have fun!
6. Toss the potatoes with the tomatoes and a bit of the dressing.
7. Toss the salad greens with a bit of the dressing.
8. Toss the dressed salad greens with the dressed potato/tomato mixture.
9. Drizzle with a bit more dressing if desired, and toss lightly again.
10. Serve topped with a bit of ground pepper, and a tarragon sprig for garnish.

Serves 4-6

This Week's Share--Happy Summer Solstice

Wow, summer has certainly arrived with a bang.  It is hot outside.  Not exactly the type of weather that inspires cooking.  Luckily this week's share contains plenty of vegetables that lend themselves to cold salads.  You could roast up the beets, summer squash, baby potatoes and carrots.  Then serve them over a bed of lettuce with your favorite dressing, finally add shrimp or grilled chicken and you have a complete meal.  Enjoy.

This Week's Share Includes:
Beets
Potatoes
Carrots
Scallions
Mixed Lettuce
Purslane
Summer Squash



Just in case your beets are starting to pile up click here for a link for pickled beets (so you can save them for later).

Notes From Nikki--Father's Day Pancakes with a Green Twist

Photo by Kiah Graham

Banana, Coconut, and Cinnamon Pancakes with a Green Twist
If you're like me, you've got greens piling up in your fridge and are trying to stuff (or sneak ;-)) them into anything and everything this time of year. Why not pancakes? The idea came to me this morning as I started pulling out ingredients to whip up a batch of golden griddle cakes for Father's Day.
The recipe could easily be cut in half. This one makes about 18 medium-sized pancakes.
It would be fun to substitute the cinnamon with curry or garam masala, or use a teaspoon or two in conjunction with it. Let us know if you decide to try it.
Enjoy!

Ingredients

3 C white whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
Generous pinch of sea salt
1-2 tsp cinnamon (depending again on your taste for it)
3 C + milk (buttermilk, kefir, and coconut milk would also work, or a combination)
3 large eggs
1-2 tsp of vanilla extract (depending on your taste for it)
2 ripe bananas
1-2 healthy, generous handfuls of beet greens, stemmed and torn (you can also use kale, chard, or spinach)
1/4 C (heaping) shredded coconut (unsweetened)
Butter and/or coconut oil for the griddle
Maple syrup and more butter for serving

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl using a wire whisk for even distribution.
2. Add the shredded coconut to the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.
3. Using a food processor or a blender, puree the bananas, greens, and 1 C of the milk.
4. Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl by hand with a wire whisk, and add in the vanilla, whisking to combine.
5. Add the pureed banana/greens mixture to the eggs and vanilla, plus 2 more C of milk. Stir to combine.
6. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until well incorporated. Add more milk if you like a thinner pancake batter.
7. Add butter and/or coconut oil to a griddle pan and turn the heat to medium.
8. Once the griddle is hot, start making and flipping your pancakes. (I like to keep the finished ones in a 250 degree oven until they're all done.)
9. Serve piping hot, topped with a pat of butter and a splash of real maple syrup. Sprinkle a little extra cinnamon on as a pretty garnish.

Makes 18 medium-sized pancakes

This Week's Share-More Beets and Carrots

I wanted to thank everyone for a very successful first week of the CSA and I apologize for not getting these recipe ideas posted sooner.  This week's share will look very similiar to last week's with a few additions including scallions, baby squash, and a spicy salad mix. 

This Week's Share:
Head Lettuce
Mixed Lettuce
Spicy Salad Greens
Very Spicy Arugula
Baby Squash
Scallions
Beets
Carrots
Mint

Below is a great meal idea from CSA member Nikki Graham.  Enjoy the recipe and enjoy your share.

From the Root to the Shoot: Roasted Beets and Baby Carrots with Sauteed Beet Greens and Garlic Scapes
I don't know about you, but I love it when I get to use the whole of a plant, in this case the beets (the root), and the gorgeous beet greens (the shoots). It's especially arousing when I can turn this whole into a delicious dish! I ended up serving this alongside grilled chicken and more garlic scapes (they are delicious grilled, by the way). Totally unnecessary, although the two paired beautifully. The beet dish is hearty in its own right, especially with a little goat cheese (and perhaps a sprinkling of toasted sunflower seeds or slivered almonds to add protein). I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Ingredients

8-10 beets with tops (greens)
2 bunches of Inverbrook baby carrots (about 15-20), tops removed, ends trimmed (slice any thick ones in half or quarters vertically so they roast somewhat uniformly)
2 garlic scapes, finely chopped
Small handful of chopped chives
3 glugs of extra virgin olive oil
2 T white wine vinegar
1 T local honey (support local beekeepers! :-))
Goat cheese
Sea salt
Fresh ground pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. Remove the tops from the beets.
3. Remove the stems from the tops and chop them. Set aside.
4. Trim the long, skinny ends off the beets (I just break them off).
5. Place the beets in a roasting pan or glass pyrex dish, cover, and roast until tender (easily pierced with a fork).
6. While the beets are roasting, toss the baby carrots in a bit of olive oil on a baking sheet and season with sea salt and fresh ground pepper.
7. Once the beets have been in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or so (almost done), add the carrots to the oven and roast until tender and starting to brown in spots (they should roast much quicker than the beets).
8. While the beets and carrots are finishing roasting, add a glug of olive oil to a skillet, along with the garlic scapes, and turn the heat to medium. Once the pan is hot and the scapes become fragrant, add in the chopped beet greens and saute until wilted. Throw in a pinch or two of sea salt and cracked pepper.
9. Once the beets are tender, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool a bit while the carrots finish roasting.
10. Once the beets are cool enough to handle, slip the skins off and cut them into quarters or sixths, depending on size.
11. Once the carrots are finished roasting, toss them together with the beats.
12. Whisk together another glug of olive oil, the honey, and the white wine vinegar. Add a pinch of sea salt, a dash of pepper, and the chives. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
13. Toss this dressing with the beets and carrots. Taste and adjust.
14. Serve the the dressed carrots and beets atop a bed of sauteed beet greens, along with bits of goat cheese.
15. Garnish with a bit more cracked pepper and serve.

Serves 6 as a side dish.

Photo by Kiah Graham

Notes from Nikki-Curried Spinach and Garlic Scapes

Photo by Kiah Graham

You kow the haverst season has officially begun when Nikki offers up her amazing recipes.  Enjoy!

Spinach, Cauliflower, and Coconut Curry

I am so pleased to be sitting down to type my first recipe of the season! This may seem like an odd thing to be cooking during a heat wave, but, truth be told, I turned on the air conditioning. I know, I totally caved. All this heat and humidity and it's still May! I just couldn't do it. Plus I had spinach and garlic scapes from Inverbrook in the fridge, along with a head of cauliflower that desperately needed to be used or it was headed to the compost pile. Add to those a flourishing cilantro plant that was trying to bolt (why can't I grow cilantro?!), and the rest is history. It had to be done. A lovely curry over rice. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. You can always wait for a cooler day to make it. :-)

Ingredients

4-6 T cold-pressed, organic coconut oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2-3 garlic scapes, chopped (or 3-4 cloves of garlic minced)
2-3 T of your favorite curry powder
sea salt
1 bag of Inverbrook spinach, washed, stemmed and torn into appropriately-sized pieces (however you like it [you can also substitute a bunch of kale or chard])
1 head of cauliflower, cored and broken or chopped into small florets (bite-szed)
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (optional)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (use 2-3 cans if you're omitting the chicken)
1 can coconut milk (not light)
1 28 oz can chopped tomatoes
Generous handful of chopped cilantro leaves

Steamed basmati rice

1. Saute the onions and garlic scapes in 2-3 T coconut oil over medium heat until the onions are translucent.
2. Add the curry powder and stir to combine.
3. Throw in sea salt to fit your liking.
4. Add the tomatoes and coconut milk and bring to a simmer.
5. If you are using the chicken, brown it on both sides in 2-3 T coconut oil in separate pan over medium high heat. Once it is finished browning, place it in the pan with the simmering tomatoes and coconut milk.
6. Add the cauliflower to the simmering tomatoes and coconut milk and simmer until the cauliflower is soft and the chicken is cooked through.
7. Add the spinach to the mix, stirring until wilted.
8. Add in the chickpeas.
9. Turn off the heat and add the cilantro.
10. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
11. Serve atop a bed of steamy basmati rice.

Partnering with FIG West Chester

I am pleased to announce that I will be a blog contributor for the "hyper-local, super-social community builder that believes in the power of creative communication" know as Fig West Chester.  For (very happy) personal reasons I have been spending much more time in the borough of West Chester as of late, and it makes sense that I further cultivate the relationship between the charming town and its surrounding agricultural community with this partnership. 

For those who are not familiar with the Inverbrook Farm blog, let me take a moment to introduce myself.  My name is Claire and I am a founding partner and farm manager of Inverbrook Farm CSA and Friday Farmstand.  You can find out about becoming a member and buying products from the farm at our website www.inverbrook.com. 

The blog is largely geared toward the seasonality of the farm--highlighting vegetables, herbs and flowers that are included in the weekly CSA share or at the Friday Farmstand.  I still have a handfull of CSA shares available, if you are interested in signing up check out this link. The blog includes recipes ideas from CSA member, doula, and mother of four Nikki Graham.  This recipe idea from last year's season seems most appropriate, as local strawberries have begun to appear at the farmstands and farmers markets in our area.

This new collaboration with FIG will provide just the impetus I need to look beyond the farm every once and a while; to highlight the amazing agricultural bounty that lies within our local landscape.  Chester County has a rich agricultural heritage that now includes wine, cheese, meats, fruits, ferments and all kinds of vegetables.  We are developing a terroir of our own.  I look forward to sharing this culinary exploration with you all, in the meantime I encourage you to get out and taste the delicious diversity the can be found at our local markets, farm stands, and CSAs.

Photo by Kelly G