What a summer this has been! The weather has been entirely unpredictable, incredibly hot early, refreshingly cooler in August. Our local growers are coping, but avocados are not readily available. So, this zine will cover recipes for very hot weather, and cooler. Which would you vote for?
(With holiday season approaching, our featured image this month is from Arcata's North Coast Food Co-op bakery, offering high quality pastries to its community since 1973. Imagine starting the time clock on that kind of legacy here in Riverside.)
Justin Gay
Salad Mix
Gaytan Family Farm
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Spinach
Cherry Tomatoes
Cilantro
GCantaloupe
Beets
Beetfsteak Tomatoes
Huerta del Valle
Green Onions
Tarsadia Organic Farm
Pomegranates
Not a member yet? Why not? Click here to join the co-op at $100 for full membership. Be a member and a co-owner, bringing the power of economic independence to Riverside. Members can subscribe to our crop box too! $27/month with delivery available for $7.50/month. You benefit, your community benefits, and our partner farms and growers benefit.
This recipe has several herbs, but you can leave them out if they are not ones you like. It is also possible to cut down the cheese amount, if that is your preference.
Shaved Summer Squash Salad
From Tasting Table. Serves 6 – 8.
Ingredients
1 cup whole-milk ricotta
½ cup olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon honey, plus more for garnish
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 garlic clove, finely grated
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
¼ cup mint leaves, divided
¼ cup basil leaves, divided
1 tablespoon thyme leaves, divided
2 pounds summer squash, thinly sliced on a mandoline
½ serrano chile, thinly sliced
¼ small red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons toasted sunflower seeds, for garnish
Directions
1. In a small bowl, whisk together the ricotta, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, honey, lemon zest, garlic, salt and pepper until smooth. Set aside for later.
2. In a mini food processor or blender, combine ¼ cup of the olive oil with half of the mint, basil and thyme leaves. Purée until smooth, then strain, discarding any solids.
3. In a large bowl, toss the sliced summer squash with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil; the remaining half of the mint, basil and thyme leaves; and the serrano chile, red onion, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
4. Spread the ricotta on a platter. Top with the summer squash mixture, using a slotted spoon to make sure it's well drained. Drizzle with the herb oil, garnish with honey and the sunflower seeds, then serve.
This salad is simple, once the zucchini is cut. If you do not have a mandoline, a good peeler will work too. Make sure you allow enough time for the zucchini to marinate.
Marinated Zucchini, Kalamata and Mozzarella Salad
From Food 52. Serves 4.
Ingredients
4 medium yellow or green zucchini
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pinch salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 balls buffalo mozzarella
16 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
1 handful fresh basil and oregano leaves (cilantro and mint work well, too), finely chopped
Directions
1. Cut the zucchini into ribbons with a mandoline or a vegetable peeler. Put them in a bowl and add the lemon juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir well. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Cut the mozzarella into small pieces and add them, the olives, and the chopped herbs to the chilled zucchini. Stir well and serve!
Some of you probably know that Food Rescue is a project of the Riverside Food Coop. What better way to use old bread than a savory bread pudding. I like sweet bread puddings too.
Tomato and Cheddar Bread Pudding
From Food 52. Serves 6 to 8.
Ingredients
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
About 8 cups of 1-inch sized bread cubes
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 pint cherry tomatoes or golden cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
2 tablespoons chives, chopped
4-6 leaves of basil, torn, plus more for garnish
5 eggs
2 cups half and half
1 teaspoon salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Using a pastry brush, grease a 2 1/2 quart-sized casserole dish with some butter. You will likely only use about a tablespoons of it here. Set the rest aside.
3. In a big bowl, whisk together the eggs, half and half, salt, pepper and the remaining melted butter. Whisk well to combine. Add the bread cubes, cheese, halved tomatoes and all the herbs. Using two big spoons, or your hands, toss the mixture to moisten all of the bread cubes but being careful not to break the bread too much. Dump the mixture into the baking dish and spread it out evenly.
4. Place the dish into the oven for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before serving. Garnish the top with some torn basil and serve warm.
Yottam Ottolenghi has a new cookbook, Simple: a Cookbook, to be out next month. I found this recipe as a preview. The pairing of unexpected flavors, and, of course, the liberal use of yogurt is definitely an Ottolenghi recipe.
Hot, Charred Cherry Tomatoes
From the LA Times. Serves 4.
Ingredients
12 oz (350 grams) cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil
¾ teaspoons cumin seeds
½ teaspoon light brown sugar
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3 thyme sprigs
6 oregano sprigs: 3 sprigs left whole and the rest stemmed, to serve
1 lemon: finely shave the skin of ½ to get 3 strips, then finely grate the other ½ to get 1 teaspoon zest
Flaked sea salt and black pepper
1 2∕3 cups (350 grams) extra-thick Greek-style yogurt, fridge-cold
1 teaspoon Urfa chile flakes (or ½ tsp other crushed red pepper flakes)
Directions
Heat the oven to 425 degrees.
In a mixing bowl combine the tomatoes with the olive oil, cumin, sugar, garlic, thyme, oregano sprigs, lemon strips, ½ teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper. Mix to combine, then transfer to a baking sheet just large enough — about 6 inches by 8 inches — to fit all the tomatoes together snugly. Place the sheet about 2 inches beneath the broiler and roast until the tomatoes are beginning to blister and the liquid is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Turn the oven to the broil setting and broil until the tomatoes start to blacken on top, 6 to 8 minutes.
While the tomatoes are roasting, combine the yogurt with the grated lemon zest and ¼ tsp of flaked salt. Keep in the fridge until ready to serve.
Once the tomatoes are ready, spread the chilled yogurt on a platter with a lip or in a wide, shallow bowl, creating a dip in it with the back of a spoon. Spoon the hot tomatoes on top, along with their juices, lemon strips, garlic, and herbs, and finish with the oregano leaves and chile flakes. Serve at once.
It may feel like summer, but pomegranates are here to remind us it is fall. The seeds are a nice addition to many dishes:
Sprinkled on salads
Roasted meats
Roasted sweet potatoes
Yogurt parfaits
Roasted delicate squash
Fruit salad
If you whirl the pomegranates in a blender, then strain so you have only juice, you can use it to make pomegranate molasses or jelly. Pomegranate molasses adds a sweet, pucker-worthy tang (in a good way) to every dish it touches. Try it in salad dressing, as a glaze for roasted vegetables, in a marinade, and even drizzled on oatmeal.
Pomegranate Molasses
From Food 52. Makes about 1 cup.
Ingredients
4 cups pomegranate juice
½ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Directions
1. Place all the ingredients in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Over medium heat, cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar completely dissolves.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 70 to 80 minutes, or until the mixture is the consistency of thick syrup. Allow to cool for 30 minutes and then transfer the molasses to a glass jar to cool completely. It will keep, covered in the refrigerator, for up to 6 months.
Here is a healthier re-do of an old favorite recipe, Creamed Spinach. A favorite side at some old-fashioned steakhouses, but with much less fat and fewer calories.
Better than Creamed Spinach
Food52. Serves 2.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red chile or jalepeno, diced
½ yellow onion, diced
½ tablespoon tomato paste
12 ounces of fresh spinach
½ teaspoon flour
1 cup Greek yogurt
1 garlic clove, diced
Directions
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy pan.
Add half of a yellow onion that has been diced. Saute until translucent, about 3 minutes.
Add diced chile/jalapeno and saute for 1 minute. Add diced garlic clove.
Add 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.
Add spinach in 3 batches. Cook spinach until it wilts and then add next batch until all 3 batches have wilted.
While spinach cooks, mix 1/2 teaspoon flour with the Greek yogurt until smooth. When spinach has wilted, mix Greek yogurt into the spinach. Cook 1 minute. Season to taste and serve.
If soup weather should settle in, I will be trying this recipe. I love the idea of working with your broth, and not adding all the spinach at once. Author Notes: This is an old family recipe that I just recently learned from my aunt. When my aunt makes it, she keeps all of the elements separate—the leek broth in one pot, rice in another pot, chopped spinach in a bowl and grated cheese in another bowl—and assembles small batches of the soup as needed. If you are serving a lot of people at once, you can add all of the spinach to the leek broth, but be sure to keep the rice or pasta separate—it will soak up all of the broth after a night in the fridge. Finally, I know Edam and Gouda cheese sound odd for soup, but I actually prefer them to Parmigiano Reggiano here. Worth trying if you are up for it. Also, I prefer this soup with rice over pasta, but use what you like.
Leek and Spinach Soup
Food 52. Serves 8 to 10.
Ingredients
6 leeks (depending on size, up to 8)
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pinch Kosher salt and pepper to taste
1 Parmigiano Reggiano rind (optional)
6 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
2 cups cooked rice or pasta (see notes above)
5 ounces spinach, pulsed in food processor until it resembles roughly chopped parsley
1 Lemon (optional)
Directions
1. Thinly slice all of the leeks and place in a large bowl filled with cold water. Let stand for five minutes to allow any dirt to settle to the bottom.
2. Place butter and olive oil in large soup pot over low heat. Scoop out leeks from bowl of water and place in pot—any water clinging to the leeks is just fine. Season with a big pinch of salt. Cover pan and cook for ten minutes. Remove lid and continue cooking over low to medium-low heat for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until leeks are soft and have shrunk down considerably. The leeks shouldn't begin to brown or get caramelized; they should be soft and giving up lots of liquid.
3. Add cheese rind (if you have one) and 6 cups of the chicken stock. Let simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. Taste and adjust for salt and pepper. Add up to 2 more cups of chicken stock if necessary. (If your leeks are big and/or you've used 8 of them, you might need the extra 2 cups.)
4. At this point, you have a few options. If you're making the soup for a crowd, you can add all of the spinach to the pot at once. (If not, you might want to keep the spinach separate—it quickly loses its bright green hue once it enters the broth.) If you're making a small batch of soup, just heat a small amount of broth in a separate pot with however much spinach you would like.
5. Add cooked rice or pasta to individual soup bowls. Ladle leek broth overtop. Pass salt, pepper, freshly grated Edam, Gouda or Parmigiano Reggiano, and lemon on the side. Serve with crusty bread.