Blueberry-Lemon Coffee Cake

I bought an extra pint of blueberries for this cake at the CSA on Saturday. My folks came to visit for my Dad’s birthday and I made him this cake and some zabaglione gelato. It was yum! The recipe is adapted from the Joy of Baking. Needless to say we licked our bowls clean.

Zucchini-Pesto Pancakes

Last night I wanted to use up the zucchini I got in last week’s share and the last of the basil pesto I made. I was thinking I was going to do some sort of pasta thing, but then I stumbled upon this recipe in Bittman’s book and since I have been on a “pancake” trip as of lately, I thought I would give it a try. They definitely tasted delicious, but they just never got sturdy you know? A little too runny and goopey, but a neat idea!

Pick-up: June 28

• Peaches – A.L. Gaventa & Sons, Paulsboro, NJ
• Cilantro – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ (gave away, R and I don’t really like cilantro)
  
• Bok Choy – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Spring Onions – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Spring Mix – Greensgrow, Philadelphia
• Blueberries, Little Buck, Hammonton, NJ
• Collards – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Golden Beets – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ (beet greens)
• White Corn – A.L. Gaventa & Sons, Paulsboro, NJ
• Cheese – Heini’s Soft Yogurt Cheese, made with 100% Amish milk
• 1/2 Gallon Hormone-free 2% Milk

A la Carte Items:

• 2 vine ripened tomatoes, NJ
• 3 red peppers, NJ
• 3 long hot peppers
• 1 cantaloupe
• 1 pint more blueberries
• 1 pound ground Angus beef

Tofu & Swiss Chard Stacks

Tonight’s recipe came from a last minute Google search for “tofu and swiss chard”. Yet again Google confirmed its Godliness, and right at the top of the list was this recipe from Cooking Light: Tofu and Swiss Chard Stacks. Stacks??!!! like pancakes?! yes folks, but in actuality more like lasagna. I can’t tell you how exciting finding and creating this recipe was for me. I skipped the mushrooms (R is a mycophobe) and sesame seeds and I paired the stacks with sweet brown rice topped with furikake seasoning, yum!

Afternoon Snack.

D’Anjou Pears with Cherry Grove’s Provolone Rustico cheese slices, perfect pairing!

Rolled Kale with Feta and Olives

Since R was on call tonight, I got to cook with ingredients he’s not so into, such as: tomatoes, feta, and olives. I was waiting for an “on call” night to make this recipe found in Mark Bittman’s book. Very simple. First wash and slice off the kale leaves from their stems. Then saute some garlic (I used garlic scapes instead, found at Headhouse Farmer’s Market) and the chopped up stems in olive oil. Roll feta pieces into the individual leaf strips and nestle in one layer over the garlic. Top with chopped tomatoes and kalamata olives and pour a half cup of dry wine over. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat, cover tightly and simmer for about 10 minutes until kale is tender and feta is melted. It was YUM!

Burgers and Beet Crisps

Tonights meal is all local ingredients, minus the garlic, jalapenos and mustard! The burger meat I bought at Greensgrow and is from Meadow Run Farm in Lancaster County. The onions and the jalapeño cheddar are from Sunday’s Headhouse Square Farmer’s Market. The tomatoes were grown locally in NJ and the lettuce, beets, eggs and olive oil rolls were from this week’s share. For the burgers I used the recipe that came in last week’s Greensgrow Newsletter:

Provolone Burgers
from Taste of Home Magazine

Ingredients:
1 egg, beaten
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons basil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 cloves garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 ½ pounds ground beef
4 slices provolone cheese
4 hamburger buns
lettuce leaves
In a bowl, combine the first 7 ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 8 patties. Grill, uncovered, over medium hot heat for 5 to 7 minutes per side, or until juices run clear.
Top each patty with a cheese slice and grill 1 minute longer, or until cheese is melted. Grill rolls, cut side down, for 1 to 2 minutes or until toasted. Top with lettuce and burgers.

*I added a jalapeño to the mix and used fresh oregano (dad’s garden) and basil (this week’s share).

I followed Mark Bittman’s recipe for beet crisps, really easy! Except I wish I had had a mandoline to slice them evenly, I ended up burning most of them since they were not uniform in width.

Sunday Morning

I was this close to chucking the beet greens I chopped off from the roots and then realized I could sauté them like spinach and make a scrumptious breakfast sandwich (and if you know anything about me, you know how I feel about breakfast sandwiches, yummmmm). What’s great about beet greens, is that they have a more interesting flavor than straight up spinach and a little bit of a bite. Plus they turned the garlic and juices pink! pretty cool. I fried an egg for myself and scrambled a couple for Rick, sandwiched them into a bun with a slice of jalapeno cheddar cheese. It was one of the best breakfasts I’ve ever made, serious.

Pick-up: June 21

• Basil – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Romaine Lettuce – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Carrots – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Beets – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Swiss Chard – Flaim Farms, Vineland, NJ
• Zucchini – Lucky Brand, Vineland, NJ
• Olive Oil Burger Buns – Abruzzi’s, NJ
• Cheese – Cherry Grove’s Provolone Rustico, Lawrenceville, NJ
• Nature’s Soy Organic Firm Tofu, Philadelphia, PA
• Dairy Option: 1 dozen Free-Range Eggs
• A la carte purchase: ground beef

OK, I lied, I didn’t take a photo again this week of the whole bunch. We were running around really busy yesterday morning and I didn’t have a chance to stop and set up a photo. But here’s one shot of our big bunch of basil we got, pesto time! I can’t wait to have a garden one day! ugh!

Braised Cabbage and Cheese Pierogi

I saved the pierogi for tonight and wanted to accompany them with the cabbage.  My friend and chef extraordinaire, Melissa Kelly, gave me a real simple idea for the Napa Cabbage.  Cut the cabbage into wedges, put in pan with a lil liquid (I used water since I didn’t have any stock around), drizzle with some olive oil, salt and pepper and add any herbs (I used the rosemary Rick picked up a couple weeks ago from our share).  Cover and Braise! It was delicious!  and so simple!  They went really well with the butter seared pierogi.  Now all that is left from this week’s share is the kale and I have an idea how I will use it this weekend.   Happy Friday!