The lettuce this week is gorgeous and will be delicious with the Caesar dressing from last week or with a lighter/simpler dressing. I’ve started making the Caesar dressing more often though and not just reserving it for romaine. You’ll also want to use the lettuce and arugula first since it has the shortest shelf life. You can either store them in plastic bags in the fridge right when you get your share or you can wash the leaves and roll them up in a cotton dish towels and then store those in plastic bags in the fridge.
I have not always been a great fan of fennel but am rapidly turning into one. Both recipes in this week’s packet, one cooked and on raw, are keepers in my book. And enjoy the beautiful broccoli. Happy cooking!
Kale Mint Salad with Peanut Dressing
Arugula, Fennel and Caper Salad
Fennel Pilaf with Toasted Cumin and Golden Raisins
Green Curry with Green Garlic and Broccoli
Broccoli Pesto Orzo Salad (link)
Kale and Bean Stew
Kale Mint Salad with Peanut Dressing
–inspired by Food52
This is a new flavor combination for me and I liked it a lot. The mint, kale and peanuts make for a strong, vivid and almost rich salad.
1 small-medium bunch kale, well washed and any tough stems trimmed and then cut as thinly as you can
¾ – 1 cup fresh mint, chopped
1 cup dry roasted peanuts (alternatively you can use toasted walnuts)
Peanut/Sesame Dressing:
3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoons tahini (optional—I like the combination very much though)
2-3 tablespoons hot water
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon dried red chili flakes (or more if you want a bit more heat)
Toss the chopped kale, chopped mint and the nuts together in a large bowl.
Whisk all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl until smooth. Alternatively to you can blend or process the dressing until smooth.
Pour two-thirds of the dressing over the kale, mint and nuts and toss well, making sure you’re really covering the kale well. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Arugula, Fennel and Caper Salad
Arugula and fennel have a certain similarity. Both, eaten plain with no dressing (or other treatment) can be very strong and pronounced, but dressed they play much more nicely with others and taste better (to me) themselves. I experimented with this combination this weekend and really enjoyed it. And I didn’t have radishes on hand but they would make a wonderful and beautiful addition here.
1 large fennel bulb (or however much you want to use), trimmed and sliced as thinly as you can
1/2 bunch arugula, trimmed, well washed and dried
3 – 4 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced or chopped
1 tablespoon capers, very well rinsed and squeezed out, chopped
1-2 ounces feta, crumbled
about 1 ½ – 2 tablespoons lemon juice (to taste)
The best olive oil you have
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Toss the vegetables in a salad bowl and add the dressing ingredients. Gently mix and taste and adjust seasoning to your liking. Since both the feta and capers are salty go easy on the salt to begin with and add more as needed.
Fennel Pilaf with Toasted Cumin and Golden Raisins
–adapted from Culinate.com from the Megan Scott collection
I adapted the original recipe to use much more fennel, added some fresh garlic and topped it with lemony Greek Yogurt. I’m a bit of a fennel skeptic and just loved this dish. I also don’t typically love raisins in my savory food but this dish has a mellow sweetness that’s just lovely and I wouldn’t omit them.
Serves 4 as a main, topped with Greek Yogurt sauce or 6 as a side
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large or two smaller fennel bulbs, diced; fronds removed and a few reserved
1 onion, diced
5 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 cup long-grain white rice, such as basmati or jasmine
¼ cup golden raisins
2 cups veggie bouillon broth, chicken or vegetable stock or water
½ teaspoon salt (unnecessary if your stock is salty)
For serving:
About 1/3 – ½ cup Greek yogurt (whole milk) into which you stirred just a little lemon zest, about 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, a bit of salt and a glug of olive oil.
A couple tablespoons of chopped fennel fronds
In a large skillet for which you have a lid, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion and garlic. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are translucent, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Add the cumin seeds and the rice and mix well to coat the rice with oil. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking and browning. Then add the raisins and broth or water and salt, if your stock isn’t very salty. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Let rest, covered, for 5 minutes before serving.
To serve, fluff the rice with a fork. Top with Greek yogurt and fennel fronds, if you’d like.
Green Curry with Green Garlic and Broccoli
This is the simplest of curries. Just a few ingredients and the broccoli and garlic shine. You can certainly add chunks of firm tofu or chicken if you’d like. Do so towards the end, just to warm through (the chicken would need to be already cooked of course).
About 3-4 cups broccoli florets and chopped stems
5 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped (they are slippery at this stage and a little harder to manage)
1 can coconut milk (full fat)
2 – 4 teaspoons green curry paste (Thai and True is my favorite and a local product)
1 2/3 cup water (1 can’s worth of water)
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Juice of 1 lime
Basil (optional)
Rice (for serving)
Everyone’s taste varies so experiment with the amount of curry paste. 2 teaspoons gives the dish a mild to medium kick and 3 is about medium.
Add the curry paste and ¾ teaspoon of salt to a large soup pot along with about ¼ cup of coconut milk and the garlic. Coconut milk is often partially solidified at room temperature and you want to use the thickest (or solid) part for this early stage. Over medium heat cook the curry paste and garlic in that small amount of coconut milk for about 3 minutes. and stir well to coat. Then add the remainder of the coconut milk and one can’s worth of water and bring the curry to a simmer. Add the broccoli and cook for about 4-5 minutes until its tender but still bright green. If you have basil, add a handful of whole leaves at this point. Taste the curry and season with additional salt if needed. Finish with the juice of the lime and serve hot, over rice.
This is a wonderful salad from Heidi Swanson’s book Super Natural Everyday and I wouldn’t change a thing so I’m including the link.
Well actually, I just made this again and adapted it based on what I had on hand, so: I used toasted sunflower seeds (1/2 cup) instead of pine nuts. I skipped the creme fraiche in the pesto but included a little crumbled feta when I tossed it all together at the end. The pesto is rich enough you don’t really need it though. I also didn’t have an avocado and still loved it. Cook-with-what-you-have baby:)!
Kale and Bean Stew
This is so simple and so good. Having good, local dry beans is ideal but most of our local grocery stores have decent dry bean selections. Good olive oil is also important here.
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
4-5 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 pork sausage or 2-3 slices bacon, or other sausage of your choice, sliced (optional)
1 teaspoon smoked Spanish Paprika (pimenton) if you’re not using meat
2 cups cooked white beans (or 3-4 diced potatoes if you don’t have beans)
1 big bunch kale
5-6 cups homemade veggie bouillon or chicken or veggie stock
Freshly ground pepper
Salt
Good olive oil for drizzling.
Grated Parmesan for garnish, optional
Sauté onion and garlic in the olive oil gently over medium heat until for about 10 minutes. Add sausage or bacon and cook a few more minutes or add the pimenton if not using meat. Add beans, (or potatoes), kale, bouillon or stock and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook until everything is tender, about 20-25 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and serve in wide bowls with a drizzle of good oil and a bit of Parmesan.