Archive for the 'Recipes' Category

Winter Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing

Published on November 27, 2011 in Recipes. 0 Comments

A big winter staple for us is what we call “winter salad”; When you eat it you can feel it charging up your body with sun energy.

Winter Salad

Mix in approximately equal parts:

Grated carrots

thinly sliced cabbage

thinly sliced kale leaves.

(optional but great is toasted sesame and sunflower seeds)

We dress it with Lemon Tahini Dressing; here is a recipe our friend Heather came up with  and Emilly adapted to approximate Annies Goddess Dressing. We eat this on winter salad but also on rice and steamed vegetables, or raw vegetables, or other vegetable dishes.

Lemon Tahini Dressing

Mix together (in a blender if you want, but we just mix it in a jar)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup oil (mix of olive and sesame is great)

1/2 cup tahini

2 T apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup tamari

1 T minced onion

1 garlic clove minced

1/4 cup water.

Quince Tarte Tartin

Published on October 29, 2011 in Recipes. 0 Comments

Quince Tarte Tatin
Recipe adapted by surfindaave and the Serendipitous Chef on line http://serendipitouschef.blogspot.com/2006/09/turning-gold-to-rubies-whb.html

Ingredients:
2 cups white or whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup cold butter, cut into little cubes
1/3 cup very cold water
4 whole quince, peeled, cored, and cut into slices
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup agava nectar (or sugar)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine the pastry dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the cold butter and quickly massage with your fingers until the mixture resembles a very course meal with pea sized lumps of butter. Add the cold water and quickly mix and form the mixture to a ball. Turn out onto counter and form into a disc. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

Combine the butter and agava in a 10 inch diameter cast iron or heavy bottomed pan with short sides. Heat until sugar turns a golden amber color about 5 to 7 minutes. Swirl pan to combine butter. Add the quince slices, toss to coat completely, and sautee over medium heat until the slices start to soften, stirring frequently.

Turn off the heat. Working quickly, remove the slices from the pan to a plate. Arrange the slices in the pan, starting on the outer perimeter of the pan, and working in a circular manner towards the center of the pan, packing the slices close together and in an interlocking design. Cover the bottom of the pan completely and evenly.

Place the pan over medium high heat, and, without stirring, cook the quince slices for a few minutes, letting the caramel come to a full bubbly boil, until the caramel is a deep brown. Remove the pan from the heat.

While the quince slices are cooking, on a lightly floured surface roll dough into a circular shape about 1/4 inch thick. Diameter should be at least 1 inch larger than the pan with the quince.

Place circle of dough over surface of quince and tuck edges underneath quince to neatly cover.

Bake for 20 to 40 minutes or until pastry is golden (mine took a long time, maybe because of the whole wheat flour?). Remove from oven and let stand 15 minutes. Flip quince tart onto a serving plate or wooden board. Serve warm with Crème Fraiche. Enjoy!

Fava Bean recipe

Published on July 12, 2011 in Miscellany and Recipes. 0 Comments

How We Eat Fava Beans at Plum Forest Farm
To eat fava beans remove the beans from the large outer pod. In the early weeks we generally eat the whole remaining bean including the slip of skin outside the inner bean. (Does this sound complicated? You’ll see once you open them up.) We cook the podded beans in olive oil and garlic in a cast iron pan until tender, which may be about 5 minutes. Later in the season we may remove the secondary pod as well (after cooking) if it is tough. Then salt and eat!

    Fava Beans with Olive Oil and Parmesan

- Serves 2 as a little snack
From www.restaurantwidow.com/2007/05/fava_beans_a_si.html.

1 pound fava bean pods, favas removed from pods (further description of husking follows; removing them from the pods should be self-explanatory)
Really good extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt (I like Maldon)
Freshly cracked black pepper
Good Parmesan

Place the favas in boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes. Rinse in cold water and begin the second shelling. Of course, as with all tedious things, there’s an easy way: (for a right-handed person) take the fava bean in your left hand, between thumb and forefinger, “belly” (hollow, scooped out side) up, with the sprout end (sometimes has a black striped) towards your right hand. With your right hand, hold a small pairing knife perpendicular to the bean, cut horizontally across the sprout end, making a tiny slit. Squeeze the bean out of the husk; it should pop right out. Repeat, ad nauseum, remembering the whole time how delicious favas are and how much you are going to enjoy them.

Bring another pot of water to a boil and salt liberally. Add the husked beans and boil for another 2 minutes. Rinse the beans lightly in cold water and drain well. Place on plates and drizzle with olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add just a few tiny grates of Parmesan.

Eat, savoring bean by bean, enjoying the fruits of your labor.