week of 5/16…

Just harvested & in this week’s HH Bins…

• French Oak Lettuce     (Garden of…, cert. Organic, Los Olivos)
• Multi-color Carrots    (Jose Alcantar Garcia, cert. Organic, Carpinteria)
• Leeks    (Jose Alcantar Garcia, cert. Organic, Carpinteria)
• Broccoli  (Rancho Cortez, pesticide free, Santa Maria)
• Japanese Turnips   (Roots Farm, cert. Organic, Los Olivos)
• Lemon Balm     (Earthtrine Farm, cert. Organic, Ojai)
• Brooks Cherries!    (Burkdoll Farms, pesticide free, Visalia)
• Ruby Red Grapefruit   (Somers Ranch, cert. Organic, Fillmore)
• Chandler Strawberries   (Lane Farm, pesticide free, Goleta)

This Week’s Tips

• Everything can go directly in the fridge…these Chandler Strawberries are an old-heirloom variety which are tender and sweet and tend to have a shorter shelf life than varieties, so enjoy pronto!
• HOW TO TRIM, CUT, WASH & PREPARE LEEKS…EASY VIDEO TIP—–>….http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8glwRaS8OM
• LEEK STALK OPTIONS: http://www.bonappetit.com/search/query?query=leek&qt=dismax&sort=score+desc&global-search-submit.x=0&global-search-submit.y=0&global-search-submit=submit&allRecipes=true
• LEMON BALM!….a member of the mint family, is considered a calming herb. It was used as far back as the Middle Ages to reduce stress and anxiety, promote sleep, improve appetite, and ease pain and discomfort from indigestion. Even before the Middle Ages, lemon balm was steeped in wine to lift the spirits, help heal wounds, and treat venomous insect bites and stings.  Makes for a relaxing after dinner tea!
• TURNIP TIPS- can be eaten raw, grilled, broiled, sauteed or roasted. Enjoy the nutrient packed greens chopped in salads or sauteed like spinach.  For a quick hand snack, slice them thin and top with a little salt, wait 3 min and enjoy.  Also tasty sliced and steamed with a little butter and salt.

This Week’s Recipes

JAPANESE TURNIPS w/ MISO BUTTER

The small, round, mild white turnips known colloquially as Japanese turnips are at their most delicious when simply cooked with their greens.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons white miso
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, divided
• 1 bunch Japanese turnips with greens
• 1 cups water
• 1 tablespoons mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)

Steps

1. Stir together miso and 2 tablespoon butter.
2. Discard turnip stems and coarsely chop leaves. Halve turnips (leave whole if tiny) and put in a 12-inch heavy skillet along with water, mirin, remaining tablespoon butter, and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then boil, covered, 10 minutes.
3. Add greens by handfuls, turning and stirring with tongs and adding more as volume in skillet reduces. Cover and cook 1 minute. Uncover and continue boiling, stirring occasionally, until turnips are tender and liquid is reduced to a glaze, about 5 minutes. Stir in miso butter and cook 1 minute.

*adapted from bonappetit

 

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CHINESE-STYLE BROCCOLI, CARROTS & LEEK

Ingredients

• 1 bunch broccoli
• 3 medium carrots, scraped
• 1leek, white part only
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon finely minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Steps

1. Trim the broccoli, discarding thick stems and leaves. Cut into flowerets. Slice carrots and leeks thinly.
2. In a wok or large saute pan, heat the peanut oil. Add minced garlic and ginger and stir-fry briefly to flavor the oil. Add broccoli, carrots and leeks and toss briefly to mix well. Add chicken broth, cover and cook for 3 minutes over medium heat. Remove cover, raise heat, and cook, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes, until vegetables are tender.
3. While vegetables are cooking, toast sesame seeds in a separate saute pan until they are golden brown. Set aside.
4. When vegetables are done, add soy sauce and mix well. Remove from heat, turn into a warm serving bowl and sprinkle with sesame seeds and sesame oil. Serve immediately.

*adapted from nytimescookingthebounty

 

 

 

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STEAMED BROCCOLI & LEMON BALM

Ingredients

• 3 -4 cups fresh broccoli florets
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 cup butter
• lemon balm

Steps

1. Place the sugar the bottom of your pan, insert steamer basket. Add the enough water to come just below the bottom of the steamer basket. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium.
2. Add broccoli to basket and cover with a lid. After 4 min add lemon balm.  Steam for 2-3 minutes, depending on your tenderness preference.
3. While steaming broccoli, melt butter in the serving bowl in the microwave.
4. Add broccoli and stir to coat.

*adapted from gourmet

 

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LEMON BALM VINAGRETTE

This is delicious on salads, especially fish or chicken salads. You can also marinate chicken or fish piece in this mixture before cooking.  After cooking, serve the vinaigrette as a sauce.  Makes about 2/3 cup.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. shallots, minced
• 2 Tbsp. lemon balm, minced
• 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
• 6 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 4 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp. brown sugar
• 8 Tbsp. olive oil

Steps

1. Mix first 7 ingredients together, then slowly blend in the oil. Mix well before serving.

*adapted from herboftheyear

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MEDITERRANEAN LEEK & BROCCOLI PUREE

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pound broccoli, cut into 1-inch chunks, including stems
• 1 large leek, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt or light sour cream
• salt and pepper

Steps

1. In a large heavy-bottomed stock pot, combine broccoli, leek, garlic and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, over low heat until broccoli is tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and puree in the pot with an immersion blender (be careful not to spatter!), or transfer to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth.
3. Stir in yogurt or sour cream and season to taste with salt and pepper.

*adapted from smittenkitchen

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ROASTED LEMON BALM CHICKEN

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup lemon balm leaves, divided
• 1/4 cup softened butter
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (3 1/2) pound whole chicken
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Steps

1. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Set aside 1/3 of the whole lemon balm leaves. Chop the remaining lemon balm. Place the chopped herbs into a mixing bowl with the butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and stir until evenly mixed. Loosen the skin of the chicken, and rub the butter mixture underneath the skin, over the breast and legs. Rub the skin of the chicken with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Place the reserved herbs into the cavity of the chicken, and place breast-side-down onto a roasting pan.
3. Roast in the preheated oven 30 minutes, then turn chicken breast-side-up, and continue baking until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 20 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C).
4. Remove the chicken from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing.

*adapted from culinate