Your crop box this month is truly the best of summer. Even in the excessive heat, we can eat fresh and healthy. Here are some cool recipes to help us get through the heat wave.
Gable Farm
Cherry Tomatoes
Fox Farm
Eggplant
Gable Farm
Spaghetti Squash
Gaytan Family Farm
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Sweet Corn
Roma Tomatoes
Pickling Cucumbers
Potatoes - Red
Onion - yellow
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If you are turning on the oven, may as well do more than one thing. You can roast your cauliflower, the roasted tomatoes (recipe below), the spaghetti squash, and even the red potatoes, if you choose.
Cold cabbage means coleslaw. I think you probably all have a recipe.
This cabbage recipe is new to me, not yet made, but it is what I will make with the cabbage in this month’s box. It certainly seems a winner with the lemon sauce, and the chili-oil.
Lemony Cabbage Shwarma with Garlic-Chile Oil and Pine Nuts
From Food52. Serves 4.
Ingredients
For the cabbage shawarma:
1/2 medium cabbage, first layer discarded
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/4 teaspoon citrus salt (or, sub in 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt with 1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
1 pinch kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
1/2 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
For the tahini lemon sauce & garlic-chile oil:
1 clove garlic, peeled
Peel from 1 lemon, without white pith
2 lemons, juiced (use the lemon(s) you've peeled and/or zested)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon tahini, well stirred
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 teaspoons red chile flakes
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (optional)
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
5 tablespoons pine nuts, finely chopped
7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more to toast pine nuts
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon red or white wine vinegar
1 pinch sea salt, plus more to taste
Directions
Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
To make the shawarma spice, in a small bowl, combine the coriander, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, paprika, ginger, cloves, turmeric, and citrus salt and set aside.
To make the cabbage shawarma, chop the cabbage into 2-inch chunks. (The layers will fall apart after cooking). Spread the cabbage over a large baking tray, drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the shawarma spice, a pinch of salt and pepper and the citrus salt. Toss well so the cabbage is evenly coated.
Place the cabbage in the center rack of the oven and bake for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, switch the oven to broil setting and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, making sure it doesn’t burn. Toss the cabbage and broil for another 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside until ready to dress.
To make the tahini sauce, combine the lemon peel, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, honey and tahini paste in a food processor along with a pinch of salt and pepper and blend until smooth. Set the sauce aside.
To make the chile oil, place a medium pot or pan on medium-high heat. Toast the chopped pine nuts with a splash of extra-virgin olive oil, stirring often and keeping an eye on them so they don’t burn. Once golden, quickly remove them from the pan and set aside. Let the pan cool for a few minutes. Return the pan to a low heat, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil, and add the chopped garlic. Leave the garlic to soften very gently and become slightly golden, about 12 minutes. You may raise the heat slightly for the last minute or so if it’s not becoming golden. Add the chile flakes, Aleppo pepper, vinegar, and bay leaves. Cover all of this with the additional 4 tablespoons olive oil, season with a pinch of sea salt, and let sit for 10 minutes, until the oil takes on a reddish hue and the chile flakes have somewhat rehydrated. Add the honey and the pine nuts, mix well, and set the chile oil aside.
To serve, transfer the cabbage onto a serving dish of choice. Toss 3/4 of the chopped parsley through. Drizzle generously with the lemony sauce and as much chile oil as you like (careful, it’s spicy). Top with the remaining parsley and enjoy.
The sauce can be made 3 days ahead and the chile oil can be eaten for up to a week.
If you feel like a fermentation project, I highly recommend these video instructions for making sauerkraut. I have made this a number of times, and it is always tasty.
Many of us love corn on the cob, but here is another way to enjoy the fresh corn taste in other ways.
Sweet Corn Butter
From Food 52.
Ingredients
2 ears of fresh corn, shucked
Corn a few days old works especially well
Butter and salt to taste (optional)
Directions
Cut off kernels: Use a chef's knife to cut the kernels from each ear. To wrangle the kernels, arrange towels around the cutting board and cut the corn in the center of the circle. Or balance the ear in the center of a Bundt pan and cut. Or lay the ear on its side and slice the kernels off with a sturdy chef’s knife. 8 ears of corn will yield 4 to 5 cups of kernels. If you’re a go-getter, you can also scrape the back of your knife along the cob to get the juice.
Blend (or juice): Your best move is to juice the kernels. But if you don’t have a juicer, put the kernels in a blender or food processor and buzz them up like crazy—let the blender run on the highest speed (I’m talking the “liquefy” setting) for about 2 minutes. Once the kernels are blended into a smooth puree, pass the puree through a strainer with a rubber spatula. Ta-da! Corn juice.
Whisk and cook: Here’s where the magic happens. Pour the juice into a medium saucepan. Heat the juice over medium heat, whisking constantly. Continue whisking until the mixture begins to thicken and the frothy bubbles begin to disappear, about 4 minutes. When the mixture is thick and bubbling, whisk and cook for about 30 seconds more. Remove from the heat.
Season (optional): Taste it—and look for sweet, smooth, earthy, and buttery. If you want, add a few pinches of salt and pats of butter. The corn butter will keep for about 3 to 5 days in the fridge.
Ideas for use:
• Slather onto cornbread or a muffin instead of butter
• Use it on sandwiches instead of mayonnaise
• Fold it into sautéed spinach with onions, and finish with just a touch of cream for killer creamed spinach
• Dribble it onto a hot dog (it’ll remind you of a corn dog)
• Stir it into risotto and finish with Parmesan
• Blend it with vanilla ice cream for a crazy delicious milkshake
• Top tacos or fajitas with it
• Mix it with shredded cheese, a little sour cream, and a jar of drained jalapeños, bake and serve as a LIFE ALTERING dip for tortilla chips
The recipe below takes some time to make, but you end up with an incredibly useful addition to sandwiches, pasta, a topping for toasted crusty bread, a start for a baba ganouch dip, or as a side to grilled meat, or just our of the jar.
Eggplant Confit
From Food52. Makes about a quart.
Ingredients
1/4 to 1 3/4 cups olive oil, divided
5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
5 anchovy fillets, finely chopped and smashed into a paste
Finely grated zest and juice from one large lemon
1 to 1 1/2 pounds small- to medium-sized eggplant, halved
kosher salt, to taste
Handful of fresh thyme sprigs
3 dried chiles, or to taste
Directions
In a 12-inch skillet with lid, heat 1/4 cup olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and anchovy, and cook a few minutes until the garlic starts to soften and the anchovy melts into the oil. Add the lemon zest to the pan (I like to do this by grating the zest with a microplane directly into the pan).
Sprinkle the cut sides of the eggplant generously with salt. Arrange the eggplant, cut-side down, in a single layer in the pan (if they overlap a bit, that’s fine). Pierce the skin of each eggplant a few times with a fork. Lay the springs of thyme over the eggplant, and nestle the dried chiles among the eggplant. Pour more olive oil over the eggplant until it’s nearly covered (it doesn’t have to be fully submerged). It will most likely take between 1 and 1 1/2 cups of olive oil.
Cover the skillet, turn the heat to very low, and cook until the eggplant are completely soft and tender, anywhere from 1 to 1.5 hours depending on size and variety of eggplant. Cut off a little piece to taste if you're unsure. Remove pan from heat. Adjust seasoning and acidity to taste with salt and lemon juice. Let cool.
Pack in a large jar or storage container, then cover with the cooking oil. Tightly covered, the eggplant should last about two weeks in the refrigerator.
The cucumbers in your box are Kirbys, used for pickles as they are a bit drier than an English cucumber. Refrigerator pickles are easy, and can be spiced in various ways.
Refrigerator Dill Pickles
From AllRecipes.
Ingredients
3 ½ cups water
1 ¼ cups white vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 cups cucumber spears, or slices for pickle chips
2 cloves garlic, whole
2 heads fresh dill
Directions
Stir water, vinegar, sugar, and sea salt together in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil; remove from heat and cool completely.
Combine cucumber spears, garlic cloves, and fresh dill in a large glass or plastic container. Pour cooled vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture. Seal container with lid and refrigerate for at least 3 days.
One of my favorite ways to eat Roma tomatoes is to slow roast them. I wait all year for these tomatoes. No others will do, in my opinion. These can be frozen for times when there are no wonderful Roma tomatoes.
Molly Wizenberg's Slow Roasted Tomatoes with Sea Salt and Ground Coriander
From Food52.
Ingredients
Ripe tomatoes, preferably Roma
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Ground Coriander
Directions
Heat the oven to 200° F. Wash the tomatoes, cut out the dry scarred spot from the stem with the tip of a paring knife, and halve the tomatoes lengthwise. Pour a bit of olive oil into a small bowl, dip a pastry brush into it, and brush the tomato halves lightly with oil. Place them, skin side down, on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle them with sea salt and ground coriander—about a pinch of each for every four to six tomato halves.
Bake the tomatoes until they shrink to about 1/3 of their original size but are still soft and juicy, 4 to 6 hours. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, and allow the tomatoes to cool to room temperature. Place them in an airtight container, and store them in the refrigerator.