First CSA box of the season!

-
Saturday, May 9 we got our first CSA delivery of the season. I love most of the veggies and a couple I could live without. We got spinach, overwintered parsnips (very sweet), rhubarb, sunchokes, ramps (I LOVE RAMPS), sorrel, chives, winter black radishes and burdock. The last two items I wouldn't miss.

I usually plan what I'm going to do with my bounty right away but Saturday was a meeting of our gourmet group for dinner at our place. It was a wonderful meal, so I guess I'll digress and talk about our Taste of New England dinner.
Appetizer: Lemon Crumb-Broiled Sea Scallops (Lora)
Soup: New England Clam Chowder (Lora)
Salad: Cucumber Salad with Shaker Buttermilk Herb Dressing (Victoria)
Breads: Classic Parker House Rolls (Lora)
Steamed Brown Bread with Raisins (Edith)
Durgin Park Cornbread (Jim)
Main Dishes: Vermont Chicken & Leek Pie with Biscuit Crust (Edith)
Yankee Cafe Fresh Fish Cakes and Down East Crab Cakes (Victoria)
Shaker Roast Pork Loin with Cider-Sage Gravy (Mollie)
Side Dishes: Durgin Park Style Boston Baked Beans (Edith)
Shaker Whipped Winter Squash with Cape Cod Cranberries (Victoria)
Church Supper Broccoli and Cheese Bake (Mollie)
Fluffy Mashed Potatoes (Mollie)
Dessert: Best Boston Cream Pie (Lora)
Cranberry Apple Walnut Pie & Ice Cream (Edith)
Jim brought wonderful wines to accompany our fabulous repast.
My daughter, Tracy, from Chicago joined us for this dinner.

I made a spinach salad on Monday evening with homemade French dressing. I put in mushrooms, an avocado, tomatoes, green onions and hard cooked eggs. Very tasty. You can use almost any vegetables you like. The dressing was 1/3 cup olive oil, 1/3 cup canola oil, 1/3 cup red wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/2 teaspoon paprika, salt & pepper.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fresh Amaranth (Red Spinach)

-
Image
Amaranth Leaves are very similar to spinach in flavor and use. They're beautiful to look at. Its tempting to just keep the bunch as a decorative bouquet. This time I decided to use mine in Chinese Spinach Curry. This is not a perfected recipe, but I would make it again so I thought it was worth posting. Thotakura Palakura Tomato Kura 1 tablespoon peanut oil or other mild oil ¼ teaspoon each--cumin, mustard seeds and curry leaves (I think the quantity of these spices should be doubled) 1 big onion - finely sliced, about one cup 2 tomatoes - finely chopped, about one cup 5 green chillies--finely chopped (I used 1 Serrano, which I seeded--5 seemed excessive for our tastes but it needed either more than 1 pepper or to leave in some of the seeds. In other words it lacked heat) 1 teaspoon - ginger garlic paste ½ tsp each- turmeric and salt 1 bunch fresh amaranth (leaves and tender stems) - finely chopped, about 5 cups 1 bunch fresh spinach - finely chopped, about 5 cups 1 can of chick
Read more

Celery Root, Cracked Wheat, and Every-Fall-Vegetable-You-Can-Find-Chowder

-
This soup turned out to be tastier than I expected which is why I'm including it in my blog so that I don't forget about making it again. I think it is due to the celery root puree. This makes it necessary to add another step to preparing the soup but it is definitely worthwhile.  You could substitute another grain for the cracked wheat, such as farro.  However, I happened to have cracked wheat available and it cooks quickly. 1 celeriac (celery root 3/4 - 1#) 1/2# onions, sliced (yellow or red) 3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced or chopped 3 tablespoons unsalted butter Kosher (or sea salt) and cracked black pepper 2 tablespoons olive or sunflower oil 1 cup cracked wheat Several sprigs fresh thyme if available, otherwise use dried thyme 1 stalk celery, diced -- note, I used my vegetable chopper to chop all the root vegetables so they were about a 1/2 inch dice 1 carrot, diced 1 turnip, diced (I didn't have a turnip so I used a daikon radish) 1 medium potato, unp
Read more

Roasted Beets & Carrots with Couscous and Citrus Dressing

-
This dish can be served warm or cold, leftover the next day.  Delicious both ways.  It is a bit labor-intensive but very tasty and a good way to use some of those winter vegetables. 1# beets, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks 1/2# carrots, cut into thick coins 1/2# onions red or yellow onions or shallot, cut into chunks (a little less is fine) 1/2 cup Citrus Vinaigrette 1 cup Israeli couscous 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped 1 large sprig of thyme, if fresh is not available sprinkle in some dry 1/4-1/2 tsp. dried chile flakes 1/2 cup salted roasted sunflower seeds (raw seeds are also OK) 1 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese Heat oven to 450℉. Toss the beets with a small amount of olive or sunflower oil, season with salt and pepper and spread on a rimmed baking sheet.  Roast for 10 minutes.  Toss the carrots and onions with oil and season with salt and pepper.  Add to the baking sheet.  Roast all the vegetables until tender and lightly br
Read more