Chicken Satay Skewers and Peanut Sauce

It's not uncommon to find a dish that becomes the go to for the season. Particularly in summer. At the beginning of the season we are brimming with new food ideas and the playing commences. The idea blossoms. A new recipe is tried. Then it's finessed and put on the repeat cycle. Why waste good knowledge and recipe development?

Here at home we tend to be chicken, fish and veggy people. Partly age, I think. It's just that much easier to digest. And if it's chicken, the boneless skinless thigh wins the day. More flavour, more tender, more juicy than the classic breast.

I wish I could even remember what started me down the road of chicken satay and peanut sauce last month. Somewhere along the way I tripped onto Mark Bittman's recipe in the New York Times. Then I read the comments. All of those comments. Everyone had input on how to make it that much better. I quickly mined the worthy ideas, checked other recipes and then came up with this.

To everyone that has an opinion to improve Mark Bittman, I thank you. Hopefully his ego does too!

Expect to see this regularly in my summer rotation. Probably with a few more touches and tweaks.

How about you? Any suggestions on how to make it even that much better?  I'm all ears.


Chicken Satay Skewers and Peanut Sauce
Yield: 8 skewers

Ingredients
1/2 cup peanut butter, preferably chunky, also natural if you have it
1 tablespoon curry paste, red Thai
1 tablespoon chili paste, like sriracha or sambal
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coconut cream, approximately
2 tablespoons kecap manis (a sweet soy sauce)
3 tablespoons lime juice, or more if needed
lime zest, from one lime
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into large chunks
2 teaspoons fish sauce, also known as nam pla
2 teaspoons brown sugar
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
salted peanuts, optional - rough chopped
Lime wedges

Method
Put peanut butter in a small bowl; add curry paste, sriracha, salt and enough coconut milk to achieve a creamy but quite thick consistency. Stir in kecap manis, lime juice, lime zest, nam pla, brown sugar, garlic and ginger. Taste and adjust accordingly for seasoning and heat. Set aside 3/4 plus cups for sauce. Marinate chicken in the remaining mixture overnight.

Set oven rack to the third level from the top. Preheat the broiler to 500F.

Line two baking sheets with foil, shiny side down. Skewer chicken chunks on 8 skewers. Place 4 skewers on each baking sheet. Place under the broiler for 5 minutes, Turn over and broiler for another 5 minutes. Then turn over and broil for a remaining 5 minutes until nicely browned and cooked through.

Serve hot, on a bed of coconut rice. Squeeze a bit of lime juice on the chicken. Drizzle with sauce. Garnish with cilantro and chopped peanuts if using.

TIPS:
If using wooden skewers, soak them first.

Notice how I have no oil in the marinade.  It doesn't need it since the peanut butter is loaded with it.

This works well on the barbecue, of course. It would be helpful to grease the grill first, though. Watch the heat! Barbecues can be ruthless on skewers where meat is sauced and has some sweetness. You do not want char on the outside and raw on the inside. But once you've tried the broiling method, you might not bother with messing up your grill.

Jasmine rice is a good match.  Adding coconut cream to the water will take it from bland to bold.

Do not skimp out on cilantro. It will bring it all together.

Asian cucumber salad can be a good match as a side.  The vinegar will balance the sweet of the marinade and sauce.

A great party meat for a crowd since it can be mostly prepared ahead, including skewering. The cooking time really is minimal.

For Asian ingredients here in Ottawa, I like to shop at Manphong Supermarket on Somerset Street. Also, their cilantro is particularly fresh and clean.

Play with the taste and find your own palate. Recipes are a suggestion, not the law! Enjoy.

Meringue Nests

The meringue nest is the base for many timeless desserts. You're only limited only by your imagination. Fillings could be whipped cream and berries, lemon curd and fruits, ice cream and compote, or mousse and chocolate shavings, or ....

Maybe crumble them up to make Eton Mess!

MERINGUE NESTS
Yield: 8 nests

Ingredients
4 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon cream of tarter
3/4 teaspoon lemon juice
200 grams super fine sugar

Method
Cover two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Make four 2 1/2" circles on each sheet.  Turn the parchment paper over, penned side down.  The penned circles will show through as a guide when forming the nests.

Heat the oven to 190F.

In a clean bowl and using an electric mixer, whip egg whites, cream of tarter and lemon juice together until the whites double in volume.  When the whisk is drawn through the whites it should hold a peak.

Still whipping, add the fine sugar one tablespoon at a time.  Make sure it is fully incorporated before adding the next spoonful.  When all the sugar has been added, the whites will be stiff and glossy.

Put the whipped egg whites into a 18" piping bag with a 825 open star piping tip.

Pipe starting in the centre of the circle and continuing in a spiral until your penciled circle is almost filled in.  Then pipe a ring or two around the edge of the base to form the nest. If you still have meringue leftover after making the nests, pipe 'kisses' on the open spaces on the pan.

Let the nest sit for about 30 minutes before putting them in the oven. It helps to preserve the cup shape without the sides tipping over during baking.

Bake for 2 hours. Turn off and leave in the oven for at least another 2 hours.  The nests and kisses should be completely dry and crisp. Cool completely before removing them from the parchment.

The meringues store well in the freezer in an air-tight container.

TIPS: 

Do not make meringues on a humid day. The moisture in the air will affect the meringues from aerating properly and also drying properly. The end result will be chewy.

Make sure your bowl and whisk is completely clean of debris and moisture.  Otherwise, your whites may not aerate well. Or at all.

Use room temperature egg whites.  Cold egg whites will not ensure the maximum volume.

It is important to not add the sugar too early.  The whites need some structure first in order to successfully incorporate the sugar.

Do not add too much sugar at once.  Just a tablespoon at a time. Also, make sure it has been completely whipped in before adding more.  Overwhelming the whites with sugar put them at risk of deflating.

If using a hand mixer, do not use the top speed.  The process will go too quickly. You need to take time to add the sugar and have it 'melt' into the egg whites before the whites are fully whipped.  Not too slow either!  If the sugar is not incorporated properly, you will get sugar beads forming on your nests as they bake.

Where were you on 9/11?

14 years ago today as my mom and I were pulling into Låsby, Denmark we heard the horror of what was unfolding in New York City at the Twin Towers.

I went frantically in search of English television. The wonderful people at Hotel Låsby Kro set us up in one of their meeting rooms and got the TV working. We were on our way to Copenhagen and this event altered the tone for the rest of our trip. 

When air space finally reopened around the world a week later, we headed home. It was a constricting feeling to know that the only way back to Canada was by flight. 

My moment of levity came when security confiscated my mother's toe clippers at the Copenhagen airport. Yep, even this sweet old lady from Canada was not above suspicion. Her weapon was seized. 

Any person conscious on September 11, 2001 will forever be able to answer "Where were you on 9/11?" Sadly, our world changed in that moment. I wish for the good old days.

Creamy Zippy Strawberry Ice Cream

Alison on Instagram (who says she isn't sweating the small stuff) also says she wants to make strawberry ice cream.  Her neighbourly voice from my Instagram feed was a forceful reminder of why I started to blog in the first place.  To share my love for food, ideas about food and successful recipes.

Along the way I played with prose and photography but at the end of the day, none of it affects how good food can taste if you have helpful instructions and a solid recipe.

So Alison, here you go and I hope your day in the berry patch is full of red.

I started with a recipe by Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez from Gourmet Magazine June 2001 and made the modifications that suit my tastes.  I was attracted to this recipe because it used whole eggs instead of a high number of egg yolks as I have seen in other recipes and have used before.  It was time to give this idea a try.

The berries I used were purchased from Shouldice Farm 3 days before and were still in good shape. I had washed, cleaned and cut them right away.  They were stored in the fridge in a glass bowl (without sugar) covered in plastic wrap which meant they kept well. Because I bought 4 litres of berries, I knew I wanted to do more than eat them for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  I'm glad I tried ice cream.

I measured out about 3 cups of my prepared berries for this recipe which resulted in about 1 1/4 cups of purée.  More details in the recipe.

I was diligent about using my Thermapen along the way to make sure my base custard didn't cook too long.  That spells disaster as the eggs will curdle if they get too hot.  Also I made sure that the mixture going into the ice cream machine was super chilled. It was between 40F to 45F (4C to 8C).

I decided to skip the big lemon flavour and opted for adding in a balance of vanilla and balsamic vinegar.

The ice cream machine is a home machine by Cuisinart with a double-insulated freezer bowl.

Good luck and thank you Allison for the nudge to get me to write up this recipe!  It's a keeper for me.

CREAMY ZIPPY STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM
Yields 5 cups

Ingredients:
CUSTARD
1 3/4 cup heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon salt
*
2 large eggs
1/2 cup vanilla sugar**

STRAWBERRY PURÉE
3 cups trimmed and quartered strawberries
1/4 cup vanilla sugar**
3/4 teaspoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Method:
Combine the cream and salt in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over medium low heat.  Once it starts to bubble remove it from the heat.

As the cream is warming, whisk eggs with 1/2 cup vanilla sugar in a medium bowl (glass or metal - not plastic).  Use a hand mixer on low if you prefer.  Add the hot milk in a slow stream, whisking quickly.  That helps to bring up the temperature on the eggs without overheating the eggs. The official term is 'tempering'. (Tip: when you have the top edge of the pot on the top edge of the bowl as you do the slow pour, it helps to control the pour and avoids spillage.)  Pour the egg/cream mixture back into saucepan and cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly.  The magic temperature you are shooting for is 170F.  No more or you will curdle the eggs.  Do not let it boil.  The custard will thicken slightly. Watch the heat!

Then pour the heated custard through a fine sieve into a metal or glass bowl (not plastic!).  This is important to get out egg bits and vanilla bean bits.  You want a really creamy ice cream, right?  If you have the patience of Job, go ahead and cool it at room temperature and then chill it in the fridge for most of the day to get it to 4C to 8C.  If you have the lack of patience that I do, then put ice cubes with some water in a bowl and place the bowl of custard on ice, stirring until it is chilled.  It will likely still need some time in the fridge. Sorry about that. But at least you won't be waiting forever.

You can make the strawberry purée before or after the custard. Whatever suits your kitchen ballet.  It too needs to be super chilled.  Purée approximately 3 cups of prepared strawberries with 1/4 cup vanilla sugar, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar.  I have a VitaMix and it is a dream for this job.  Force the purée through a fine sieve to remove the seeds.  You need 1 1/4 cup of  purée for this recipe. Put in a bowl and cover with saran wrap.  Again, I had no patience to do the fridge chill so I popped it in the freezer for about an hour.  When it hit 4C I mixed the strawberry purée with the custard.  Again, I knew I was all set when the temperature of this strawberry custard mixture was between 4C and 8C.  Gawd bless the Thermapen.  One of my most favourite kitchen gadgets.  It will definitely help you to not sweat the small stuff.

Now get that ice cream machine set up.  The double-insulated freezer bowl needs to be completely frozen.  I have it in the freezer overnight as a minimum. Start it up and pour the strawberry custard with care through the top opening.

The ice cream should be ready in about 20 minutes  Today it was just shy of 20 minutes.  You will hear the machine start to lag when it is getting close. It is important that it doesn't start to completely freeze but it should move like VERY slow moving lava.  If you start to see freezing close to the edge, you're done!

Pour the prepared ice cream into an airtight container.  I prefer a shallow container to give me even freezing in a hurry. Place plastic wrap directly on top of the ice cream before putting on the lid to avoid crystals forming on the top. I had the ice cream in the freezer for 3 1/2 hours before serving.

Ice cream keeps for one week.  I feel a bit silly saying that! ;-)

** My vanilla sugar is regular granulated sugar that houses my old vanilla beans that have had the seeds removed for other recipes.  The used vanilla beans infuse their flavour into the sugar. (If I didn't have vanilla sugar on hand I would have put a vanilla bean in the cream as it was heating.  Another alternative is putting pure vanilla extract in the custard after it has heated to 170F.)

Phyllo Tart with Ramps, Tomato and Cheese

A phyllo tart is an attractive dish for entertaining and it's also exceptionally versatile when mixing flavours and styles.  I recently created a Leek, Asparagus and Mushroom Tart for Edible Ottawa magazine's May issue. Today's lunch was a take on this tart with a change up to the cheeses I used and the vegetables for decorating.  This tart was even easier since I didn't do a full filling 

Tarts like these can be used as a starter course for a dinner party, a main component on a lunch plate or even cut into multiple pieces to serve as hors d'oeuvres.

Enjoy your launch into spring entertaining.

INGREDIENTS

PASTRY

3 sheets of phyllo pastry

1 to 2 tablespoons melted butter

3 teaspoons Dijon mustard

FILLING

3 oz Fontina cheese, thin slices

2 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded

4 small ramps

1 teaspoon fresh thyme

3 oz small tomatoes, halved

salt and pepper

olive oil

METHOD

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Cut 3 sheets phyllo in half crosswise. Brush melted butter and a touch of mustard on each sheet and overlap so that the sheets are staggered lengthwise and can cover a 14-inch by 4 to 5-inch tart pan.

Place into the tart pan and pleat in the edges.

Place the Fontina cheese into a single layer on bottom of the tart. 

Chiffonade the leaves from 3 of the ramps. Thinly slice their bulbs. Sprinkle half of the prepared ramps over the Fontina cheese. As well, sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the fresh thyme.

Layer on the shredded mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle on the remaining prepared ramps and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of fresh thyme.

Feel free to adjust the amount of ramps and thyme you want to use according to your tastes.

Place a whole ramp decoratively over the cheese.  Arrange the tomato halves around the ramp.

Season with salt and pepper and lightly drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes until the phyllo is golden and the cheese has melted and is showing colour. Check after 20 minutes to see if it should be covered with foil for the remaining time.

Let it stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Mrs. W's Mean Cottage Casserole

What makes our time here on earth have real meaning?  Whose lens do we look through when we take stock of a life well lived?  The lens of the public? Or the view from the family?  Too often we praise greatness for worldly accomplishments when one's home life was a crumbling inferno.  Perhaps that is greatness over acknowledged.  I for one, side with the view from the family.

March 2013 the world was a flutter about the New York Times obituary for Yvonne Brill.  Leading commentary referred to the fact that "she made a mean beef stroganoff" and was "the best mom in the world".  Both testaments appear to be attributed to her son, Matthew.

To the rest of the world though, Yvonne Brill was a brilliant rocket scientist and so says that NYT obit "in the early 1970s invented a propulsion system to help keep communications satellites from slipping out of their orbits."

Losing your mother is one of the most earth shattering moments in your life.  Many of us outlive our parents and must endure this pain.  This most certainly was real for Matthew Brill too.  Perhaps his mother's rocket knowledge was not foremost in his mind as he tried to soothe his broken heart.

My own mother has been gone now for more than a decade and I know in the darkest moments it was not my mother's 'accomplishments' that gave me comfort when I was pushed from my slumber with constricting grief.  For me, my days were made bearable by the tribute to her strong character, her unwavering ethnics, her sense of community, her sense of fairness, her tender caring, her highest priority to family near and far, and her genuine love for all.  For me, she was "the best mom in the world".

This past week one of my most special friends from school days lost her mother very suddenly at the age of 83.  She too lost "the best mom in the world".

Mrs. W had similar qualities to my own mother - though still quite a unique lady - which made spending time in their home such a pleasure.  I have a number of memories about her involving food. No surprise I guess.  Mrs W was active in the Scouting movement.  When I was still in high school I had the privilege to attend a Cub Camp weekend as the troop's Cook! 'Come and get it!' They ate well.

At one of the annual Scouting banquets (always catered potluck style) Mrs. W brought her Cottage Casserole.  It has a bit of an Asian flair. She had lived in Toronto before joining our farming community. This was pretty cosmopolitan cuisine for our meat and potatoes crowd and my father in particular was delighted at the new taste.  It was made many times over the years and has been adopted into the kitchens of my brothers and their children too.  Last week there was much talk of this casserole as we remembered a great lady in character but also in the kitchen.

Matthew Brill was lucky to have a very accomplished mother, who gave much to her field of science and to her country.  But, maybe more importantly, he can say "she was the best mom in the world", not to mention "she made a mean beef stroganoff"!

For Matthew, my dear friend, and me, to say we had "the best moms in the world" carries the day.  Good food was a bonus too. Rockets and the like, icing on the cake.

Although I never had Mrs. W's beef stroganoff, she sure made a mean Cottage Casserole.

MRS. W'S COTTAGE CASSEROLE
Servings: 8

2 Green Peppers, chopped
2 cups Celery, chopped
1 Spanish Onion, chopped
2 cans Mushrooms, with juice *
2 cans tomato soup, condensed **
2 lb Ground Beef
4 tbsp Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
Salt
Pepper
6 oz Chow mein noodles

Sauté everything together. Save 1/2 noodles for topping. Mix well and bake at 325ºF uncovered for 40 to 45 minutes.

Serve over rice.

* Real mushrooms were not so readily available at the grocery store back in the 70's.  I have moved on to the real deal in my kitchen now.  Although I made the recipe as instructed for this post,  consider replacing the canned mushrooms with 2 cups of sliced sautéed button mushrooms and 8 to 10 oz of unsalted beef, vegetable or mushroom broth.

** you might not be much into canned tomato soup but I offer no substitute.  It just wouldn't be a recipe from the 70's without it!!

Guisado de Pollo

Hello food friends!  I hope the chilly days of January have been good to you.  The commitments we have made to be better to ourselves and to others are still full of hope and promise.

One of our hopes for 2015 is to take the time to enjoy the hard work and creations of the many, many wonderful recipe developers who sweat over ingredients and flavour combinations. Then scripting them with clear and hopefully, easy to follow methods. We want to try new dishes, explore new genres and learn new techniques.

Our repertoire of Mexican dishes has true favourites and we turn to them time and time again, just 'because'. But it's time to make room for new friends.

When I saw the Guisado de Pollo recipe from Saveur, the long list of ingredients was enticing, not intimidating.  The best part was that most of the ingredients were actually in the house.

I followed the recipe to the letter. Well, almost.  There was a bit extra tomato as I had more than the required 15 ounces.  I also added the juice from my canned pineapple.  But other than that, I stuck to the script.

What did I learn? This doubting Thomas did not think the suggestion for preparing the chicken could give me tender shreds.  But who am I to question the wisdom of the Saveur engine.  It is a personal flaw I am trying to push pass. Unfortunately I have those feelings more than I would like.

Well here I am now with a beautiful Chicken and Potato Stew full of tender shredded chicken brimming in the broth.  As much as I obsess about trusting methods in the recipe, I also can go over the top when I have beyond expected success. I have a funny feeling this kitchen is going to see a lot of shredded chicken in the weeks to come. Yes, perhaps just a bit over zealous on tender shredded chicken.

The mister says this recipe is even better the next day and that he would love to have it again. Who doesn't love a 'keeper'.

The recipe for Saveur's Guisado de Pollo can be found on their website.  Here is the ingredient list to get you all juiced up.

* The beautiful artisan Country Sourdough bread in the photo comes from Bread By Us, 1065 Wellington Street West in Ottawa.

GUISADO DE POLLO (Chicken and Potato Stew)

By Beth Kracklauer and Saveur magazine

Serves 6 to 8

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup canola oil
1 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 small white onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped fresh or canned pineapple
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried thyme
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 canned chipotles in adobo sauce, finely chopped
1 jalapeño, quartered lengthwise
1 lb. Yukon gold potatoes, peeled, cut into ½" cubes
4 cups chicken stock
3 sprigs epazote or cilantro
1 (15-oz.) can whole peeled tomatoes in juice, crushed
3 tbsp. capers, rinsed
Juice of 1 lime

My Own 30-Minute Marvel - Spaghetti with Sautéed Onions, Garlic and Roasted Tomatoes

Fall is firmly entrenched here in Ottawa.  The calendar says so and so says the frosty nights.  My tomato plants have given their last gasp and I am grateful for their offerings and sacrifice.

As the remaining soldiers ripen on the counter, I eventually take the most red and juicy and press them into service.  Yesterday's roasting was a combination of Romas, San Marzanos and cherry tomatoes.  The cherry tomatoes stay whole. A dribble of olive oil. Salt and pepper. 300ºF for 2 hours. Works like a charm.  Often I just lay them out in a ziplock bag after and freeze them.

The Autumn issue of LCBO Food and Drink has a classic recipe for Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe in its 30-Minute Marvels feature by Kristen Eppich.  I saw it yesterday while flipping the pages, but I wanted more than 'macaroni and cheese for grown-ups'. Not one for following recipes anyway, I treated it as inspiration for my own pasta dish.

In the spirit of being free and easy in the kitchen, this recipe has no specific measurements. I just go by feel.  It's pretty easy to make and 30 minutes might actually be a stretch. I was the only one dining in last night so it was dinner for one. Dining alone doesn't have to mean tea and toast. I dare you.

Play away and use lots of garlic. And cheese too.

Go fetch yourself a nice glass or wine and turn on the dinner music. Maybe you're dining alone but you're doing it in style.

Buon appetito!

PASTA WITH SAUTÉED ONIONS, GARLIC AND ROASTED CHERRY TOMATOES
Inspired by millions.

Ingredients:
Cooked spaghetti noodles for one
Olive oil
Unsalted butter
Cooking onion, finely diced
Garlic, minced
Chili flakes
Salt and Pepper
White wine
Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated
Oven-roasted cherry tomatoes
Chives
Basil

Method:
Heat olive oil and butter. Sauté the onions.  It's okay if they take a bit of colour. That will just give more flavour. Add minced garlic and chili flakes and turn the heat down low. Garlic can burn easily. Season with salt and pepper.

To make a sauce in the oil and onions, turn up the heat, add the white wine and reduce.

Add the pasta (it should be slightly underdone in order to finish in the pan) and a small handful of cheese.  Combine so the pasta gets well coated in the sauce. Add the tomatoes to warm. Do not stir them in or they will break apart. You can add warmed tomatoes at plating if you are worried about them bursting apart.

When plating, incorporate torn pieces of basil. Sprinkle with more cheese and then chives.

 

Roots and Shoots Farm - 11th Week of CSA Food 2014

We have had our Roots and Shoots Farm CSA basket from week 11 for ten days now. Although we have been eating out and enjoying other market produce, the basket is getting fair attention and plans are being made for it all.

I did not take as many pictures of our dishes as I have the prior month. There are a few included here.  Just try to imagine it all, though!

Parsley - I used a good part of it in my Italian Meatball recipe. The darling son used some for the broccoli soup.  I plan to clean the rest, chop it and freeze it.

Swiss chard - I have a special friend who needs good food to help her body feel good as you faces monumental health challenges.  I will be gifting her some lentil soup with Swiss chard on my next visit.

Romaine - we used this head last weekend for one of our favourite salads.

Carrots - we have been eating these sweet treats raw.  I have a blue cheese dip in the fridge whenever that bite needs a 'pow'. The remainder were roasted and used in a Roasted Carrot and Coriander Soup.

Broccoli - the darling son made a Broccoli, Red Onion and Dill Soup.

Tomatoes - they have been used in a big Greek Salad and also on sandwiches.

Cucumber - we used it in our big Greek salad.

Potatoes - we served them as baked potatoes at a dinner party.  Butter, sour cream, chives, bacon. The whole dreamy messy business.  I microwave the potatoes first until they are done 3/4's and then put them on the BBQ to finish and get a crispy skin.

Sweet peppers - the red one was used in the zucchini fritters.  The other two remain.  I haven't made green pepper steak in ages.  It will happen on a cool day when we want hearty food.

Onions - we used the white one in our penne pasta dish.  The red one has been used in our big Greek salad and in the Broccoli, Red Onion and Dill Soup.

Beefsteak tomato - we used him in a pasta dish.

Kohlrabi - it was pickled.

Music garlic - we used the garlic in two soups, the penne pasta, the bowtie pasta and also when pickling the kohlrabi. Garlic keeps so well, I am not worried about how long it hangs around.  This is my 36th garlic for 2014.  The third one in my CSA baskets.  I have been buying garlic as I see them at farmers' markets and festivals.  I plan to cellar about 50 heads over the winter.

Zucchini and summer squash - they were all used for zucchini fritters.

THE PARADE OF FOOD DISHES

Broccoli, Red Onion and Dill Soup

Penne Pasta. The beefsteak tomato was peeled, slightly seeded and then added into the pan with the onions, garlic and kale for a hint of a tomato flavour.  We actually used a small jar of our homemade basil pesto on the penne and tossed in some oven-roasted Roma tomatoes. Garnished with toasted pine nuts and Parmesan cheese.

Mama Alberta's Italian Meatballs -  I used my favourite recipe.

Roasted Carrot and Coriander Soup

Pickled Kohlrabi - - I used Linda's recipe on Garden Betty. I hope they turn out. They are still in pickling mode for a few more days.

Zucchini Fritters.  I used Smitten Kitchen's recipe for inspiration.  I use less flour, added bits of red pepper and also cilantro.  They ended up being served up with pico de gallo, avocado whip, sour cream, sriracha.

Bowtie Pasta - Used a clove of garlic in the homemade basil pesto. (Basil and tomatoes are from our garden.) 

Lentil Soup

Roots and Shoots Farm - 9th Week of CSA Food 2014

When I picked up my Week 9 CSA basket from Roots and Shoots Farm I did not expect that my golden beets would turn into pickles.

We have had golden beets before this season.  For this half share member, repeats hardly ever happen because of careful planning by owner, Robin Turner.  He makes a point of managing the variety from basket to basket.

I was delighted for the second go-around (and said as much to Robin) because I love roasted beets - particularly in a salad. And they might as well be golden because they sure look good on the plate.

Because they cellar so well, beets are one of the last items used up in our share. First to hit the kitchen counter here is the more delicate produce.

For almost two weeks I had it in my head that I would eventually roast my beets. It didn't happen. Maybe because of the big heat this past week. Instead, the beets were pickled.

Although my bunch only gave me two 500 ml jars of pickled beets, I found my Rødbeder groove.

Rødbeder is a Danish recipe for pickled beets.  It's practically a national dish.  My mother used to make rødbeder all the time. Sometimes just a few jars and sometimes it was a preserving bonanza.

I happily channeled my mother to make these gorgeous beets.

The entire basket was beautiful. Check it out for yourself. I have also included pictures of some of the dishes we made with our produce.  You can see why it's been a challenge to eat out this summer.  The fridge is constantly full.

Iceberg Lettuce

Adirondack Reds - Surprise! They have pink flesh!!

Beans - Green, purple and dragon tongue

Onions

Tomatoes

Curly Kale

Carrots

Cucumbers

Garlic

Green pepper

Zucchini

Golden beets

THE PARADE OF FOOD DISHES

Wedge Salad I used the Iceberg Lettuce. If you need a blue cheese dressing for the Wedge, I blogged about it here.

Hash browns with a poached egg. I did not realize our potatoes this week were a variety with pink flesh.  I found out they are called Adirondack Reds. They do keep their colour and apparently even more so when boiled or roasted.  I also used some of the onions and green peppers for this dish.

When I discovered the potatoes had a pink flesh I wanted to make an old-fashioned retro vintage potato salad with hard-boiled eggs and mayonnaise.  I did mince in some of the onions.  I used other potatoes too as well as green onions and chives.  I kind of thought the Adirondack Reds looked like big chunks of canned ham.  It actually was delicious. Just had to eat with my eyes closed! ;-)

I eat beans raw or steamed.  Pretty plain.  I think they deserve that - as does much produce.  But this time I was determined to be clever.  I decided to bake them with a coating and treat them as party food.  They were coated in flour (consider a gluten-free option), egg seasoned with Dijon and salt & pepper, panko and Parmesan seasoned with cayenne.  The dip is mayonnaise with chives, dill and Michaelsdolce's sriracha.

Heirloom Tomato Salad. I used one of my tomatoes from my CSA share, tomatoes from my garden and some tomatoes from the Ottawa Farmers' Market.  I like this salad because the Parmesan crisps add a bit of crunch. (They are easy to make!)

Bruschetta. I was able to use more of my tomatoes, onion and garlic.  I added basil from my garden and broiled a bit of Parmesan on top.

Greek Salad! I used a lot of my tomatoes, a cucumber, and some of the green peppers.  Also in there is olives, red onion and feta cheese from Milkhouse Farm and Dairy. Check out Milkhouse on social media.  I dare you to not fall in love with their sheep.

Judy Dempsey's Shakshuka recipe featured in the Ottawa Citizen.  I used onion, kale, green pepper, garlic from my basket.

The darling son took most of the carrots with him to Algonquin Park for his canoe trip. His paddle buddy took a great shot of their carrot sticks on the scene.

Agurkesalat is another Danish recipe I make often. It is a quick pickle recipe for cucumbers.

I often use my agurkesalat on my open-faced sandwiches.  It goes well with pork and beef. And in this case, lamb sausage from Milkhouse Farm and Dairy!

Zucchini Fritters.  We used all our zucchinis for this party snack.  The usual suspects of flour, egg, salt and pepper.  Plus green onions. Next time I'm going to add red pepper for colour. This dish has me wanting a Spiralizer.

Pickled beets.  Most people eat their pickled beets so fast that they don't make it into the pantry for winter.  Just to be a food safety nut, I did put these through the water bath canning technique to keep my options open.  Gift receivers like to know you went the extra mile for their safety too.