The difference between fresh cilantro from a farm, root and stems on and cilantro from a grocery store is noteworthy. A) you get the roots which is wonderful because they are delicious and used in many Thai and Vietnamese dishes (and maybe other, Indian, etc?), see the homemade Green Curry Paste below, B) the cilantro will stay fresh much longer—you’re not likely to get a slimy mess for weeks by which time it will be long gone, and C) the flavor is just better, fresher and more vibrant. And the cilantro inspired many of the recipes in this week’s packet.
Roasted Summer Squash with Parsley (or Cilantro) Garlic Dressing
Rice Noodles with Vietnamese-inspired Cilantro Dressing (and carrots and turnips)
Thai Green Curry (with home made Curry Paste) with Turnips and Carrots
Black Beans with Cilantro and Walla Walla Sweets and Lime
Beet Cilantro and Avocado Salad
Onion Rings (link)
Tzatziki
Summery Carrot Soup with Cilantro Cream
Roasted Summer Squash with Parsley (or Cilantro) Garlic Dressing
I typically make this with parsley but cilantro is a good substitute.
However many summer squash you want to use, washed, trimmed and cut into ¾-inch dice or chunks
Olive oil for toasting
½ cup parsley or cilantro, finely chopped (see headnote)
1 large clove garlic, minced
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ – 1/3 cup good olive oil
Salt & freshly ground pepper
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
Toss the diced squash with a bit of olive oil and salt and spread it on a sheet pan, preferably in one layer. Roast, turning occasionally until browning around the edges and tender about 20 minutes. You can also broil the squash to speed things up a bit but watch it carefully as it can quickly burn.
Mix together the parsley or cilantro, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning. Toss the squash with the dressing. Let rest for 15 minutes if you can before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Rice Noodle and Fresh Herb Salad with Vietnamese-inspired Dressing
–adapted from Tea&Cookies
This is a very herb-heavy variation on my favorite Asian noodle salad. I could eat this every week all summer long. I wrote lots of variations into this recipe so you can make it throughout the year with different herbs and vegetables. For this week’s share I would just cilantro for the herb (if you have basil or mint then by all means add some but just cilantro will be good too), carrots (grated), cucumber (finely chopped) and turnips (grated) and some diced Walla Walla Sweets.
Dressing:
This is a Vietnamese-inspired dressing, tart with lime juice and salty with fish sauce and a bit of spice from chili paste. You don’t have to use this dressing, you can make your own (a simple soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil will do the trick), but this is a good starting point. You can adapt as you like. And this makes enough to keep a jar around in the fridge for your next batch of cold noodles (it will last at least a week).
½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/3 cup fish sauce
½ cup rice vinegar
3 cloves garlic, finely minced and then mashed with some salt with the side of a chef’s knife
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons sambal oelek chili sauce (or less if you’re sensitive to spice) or ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or a Serrano chili, minced (seeds and all if you like spice)
Whisk all dressing ingredients together in a bowl or shake in jar, until smooth. Taste and add more sugar or lime juice, as desired (you may also like sesame oil or soy sauce in this dressing, play around and find your favorite mix).
Noodles:
You can use different noodles. I use rice noodles, but you can use Japanese soba noodles made from buckwheat, thin somen noodes, or thinner rice noodles. The rice noodles hold up really well over time and soak up the dressing, the soba noodles add their own nutty flavor. Experiment and see what you like best. I use 8 ounces of noodles typically for four people.
Herbs:
I add 3-4 cups of herbs in varying ratios when I have that much on hand this time of year. I love the trio of basil (Thai especially but regular Genovese works well too) mint and cilantro, Green onions are a lovely addition too. I leave the basil and mint leaves whole (just picked off their stems) and very roughly chop the cilantro since I’m too lazy to pick off the leaves. Cilantro stems are tender so you can just chop off the bottom few inches of the bunch and use the rest.
Cilantro
Mint
Basil
Chives—can throw a bunch of chives in if you have them on hand (especially if you are missing green onions)
Green onion—sliced thin on a diagonal, I use two or three per batch of noodles or chunk of diced Walla Walla
Vegetables:
There is a wide range of vegetables you can use, some listed below. The one trick I rely on is to use a mandoline to slice the harder vegetables into matchsticks, which works well with the noodles and allows the flavor of the dressing to permeate.
Pick the combination that appeals to you.
Cucumber—adds a refreshing crunch, slice with mandolin (or finely chop with a knife)
Zucchini—I use this when I have no cucumber, or need to use up my squash
Carrots—more crunch, definitely use a mandoline (or grater, if you don’t have one)
Hakurei Turnips, peeled and julienned or grated
Radish—gives a nice peppery kick, refreshing crunch, nice color
Green beans—blanch these for 3 minutes, slice thinly
Peas—shelled or in their pods, also slice thin
Corn—I toss in fresh corn cut off the cob
Tomatoes—cherry tomatoes or larger ones cut into dice
Pick two to four vegetables you think would taste good together and add them to your cold noodles. Remember to slice them thin, if they are sliceable, so they don’t drop out of the mix and fall to the bottom.
Instructions:
Cook 8 ounces of noodles according to directions, rinse with cold water and set aside. Can be cooked ahead. Then toss the cold noodles with the herbs and vegetables to mix (you may want to use a knife or scissors to cut the noodles into smaller pieces for ease of mixing and eating). Add dressing and toss again. You might want to add the dressing shortly before serving, or be prepared to taste and add more dressing later. The noodles and vegetables have a way of sucking up the flavor.
Thai Green Curry (with home made Curry Paste) with Turnips and Carrots
–adapted from multicuriosity.com
There’s good store bought green curry paste to be found in town (Thai and True) but homemade is still a notch above and with your beautiful cilantro this week you might give it a go.
This makes quite a bit of curry paste so feel free to save some for another meal. It keeps in the fridge for several days and freezes well.
In a food processor combine:
1 stalk lemongrass (trimmed of the outer, fibrous layers and roughly chopped),
1 or 2 hot chili peppers (jalapenos or serranos),
1/4 cup minced onion
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1-inch chunk peeled ginger
1 1/2 cups cilantro stems and leaves and roots (washed and roughly chopped. Make sure you get the dirt out of the stems where they come out of the root—dirt tends to get stuck in there)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
3 Tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce or a combination
2 Tablespoons lime juice
Zest of 1 lime
1 teaspoons brown sugar
3-4 tablespoons coconut milk or water (enough to blend ingredients together)
Process everything until it forms a paste—it doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth.
2 carrots, scrubbed and thinly sliced
3 turnips, scrubbed and diced
Remainder of the can of coconut milk
Water
Sauté paste in 2 tablespoons sunflower, coconut or sesame oil over medium high for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the carrots and turnips.
Stir and cook 3-5 minutes then add 1 1/2 cups coconut milk—more or less what you’ll have left in the can or 1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth and about 1 cup of water and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer another 5 minutes or so until the vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust seasoning. It may well need salt. Serve with Jasmine or Basmati or other long grain rice.
You can also make the paste in advance and store it in the fridge for up to a week before using it.
Black Beans with Cilantro and Walla Walla Sweets and Lime
This is a fresh, lovely combination for a summer supper. If you have any cherry tomatoes ripe in your garden, cut those in half and toss them in too. Quantities are completely up to you. Use what you want, taste and adjust. It’s great with pretty much an ratio.
Black beans (home-cooked or canned-rinsed if canned)
Cilantro leaves and stems, washed and roughly chopped
Diced or thinly sliced Walla Walla Sweets
Lime juice and a little lime zest if you want (a little goes a long way)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Olive oil
A little ground cumin and cayenne if you’d like
Toss everything together. Taste, adjust seasoning, enjoy.
Beet, Cilantro and Avocado Salad
When I get a bunch of beets, as you know, I almost always roast the whole batch and then have the pleasure of having roasted beets on hand to use however I want. So, I highly recommend roasting all at once while you’re doing something else in the kitchen since they do take some time.
3 medium beets, roasted and peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 avocado, diced (optional)
2 slices of good, crusty bread, toasted and cut into bite-sized squares (optional- but makes it nice and hearty)
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro, leaves and stems and finely minced roots
2 tablespoons finely diced Walla Walla sweet
2-3 tablespoons toasted pumpkin or sunflower seeds
Juice of half a lemon or about 1 ½ tablespoons red wine or sherry vinegar
2-3 tablespoons good olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Toss everything together. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Onion Rings
Onion rings are not something I typically make but when one of my favorite food bloggers, David Lebovitz, writes about onion rings I pay attention. So, here is his recipe (adapted from Hooters☺) in case you want to make some this week with the gorgeous Walla Walla Sweets.
And here’s an onion tart recipe from Edible Portland which will use up a good amount of your onions this week.
Tzatziki
This cool, creamy Greek side/spread/dip is one of my all time favorite foods. I pile it on toasted bread and I add it to pita or regular sandwiches. I eat it with boiled potatoes or thinly sliced grilled beef or salmon.
2 medium cucumbers, peeled, seeds scooped out and fairly finely chopped
1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt or plain whole milk yogurt strained in cheese cloth for 2-3 hours to remove the whey and make it dense and richer (you can skip this step too but it will be a bit runnier but still delicious)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped dill (for an inauthentic substitute add chopped parsley, chives or basil—it will still be delicious)
1 tablespoon white wine, cider or champagne vinegar (or lemon juice)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Scooping out the cucumber’s seeds may seem silly but you want to remove as much moisture as possible for this dish and keep the firm, fleshed part.
Mix all the ingredients together. Taste and adjust seasoning. Chill for at least an hour if you can. It keeps well for about 3 days and gets a bit stronger (from the garlic) as it sits.
Summery Carrot Soup with Cilantro Cream
I don’t make many soups in the summer but the carrots are so gorgeous that I’m inspired.
3-4 carrots, scrubbed and chopped
1 cup diced Walla Walla Sweet
4 cups (or more) vegetable broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Finely chopped cilantro
Greek yogurt or crème fraiche or sour cream
Lemon juice
Sauté the onion in some olive oil or butter—carrots like butter a lot—for 5 minutes or so and then add the carrots and the broth. Simmer for about 15 minutes or until the carrots are very tender. Now you can use an immersion blender or regular blender or food processor to process to your desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. If the soup tastes very sweet stir in some lemon juice or vinegar at this point. And if it’s too thick thin it a bit with more broth or water.
Stir together the yogurt or crème fraiche, cilantro, lemon juice and some more salt and maybe a little olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning. You want it to be nice and bright.
Serve soup with a generous dollop of the cilantro cream.