Midsummer Farm CSA Weekly Newsletter: Share Pick Up #9 Greetings Midsummer Farm CSA subscribers!
EGG UPDATE:
The Summer Egg of 8 dozen eggs is now officially over. I do the egg share for only 8 weeks in the beginning of summer because as day light shortens and we get very hot weather, the hens sometimes start cutting back on egg laying. So far this year this doesn't seem to have happened, and so I am going to add a bonus dozen to egg share member baskets this week in celebration! I am also going to offer a second egg share to anyone who may want it - another 8 dozen eggs that would take us to the final vegetable share week... it is the same price as the first summer egg share - $60 for 8 dozen eggs. Let me know if you're interested!
Peacock Feathers
Our peacock is moulting! If you want some peacock feathers, let me know and I'll add them to your basket~
And our second planting of summer squash is finally producing and so we have squash again in the baskets this week as well as the first of the peppers.... We will also have greens and spinach and Ping Tung Long Eggplants. Below are some of my favorite recipes this time of year...
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RECIPE: Zucchini Salad with Baby Arugula
Spinach and Pine Nuts
Ingredients:
1 medium or 2 baby zucchini or summer squash
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 large handful of baby spinach leaves, rinsed and dried
2 tbsp finely shopped chives or 1 tbsp welsh onions or scallions
3 tbsp pine nuts
freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
Trim both ends of the zucchini, cut each in half. Using a mandoline or julienne peeler, create long spaghetti-like strips of zucchini. Transfer to a bowl and toss with lemon juice. Drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with salt, tossing again thoroughly. The salt will start to draw water from the zucchini. Arrange arugula on each plate, top with the zucchini mix, sprinkle with onions and pinenuts and black pepper. Serve immediately.
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RECIPE: My Grandmother's Zucchini Bread
I've been waiting all year for squash season to make this cake! Ingredients:
2- 1/2 cup flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1-1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup olive oil
3 large eggs
2 cups grated zucchini or other summer squash (the bigger, drier ones work best for this)
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 tsp vanilla
about 1 cup pignoli nuts for garnishing the top (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees / grease pan. Mix flour and dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, beat sugar, oil, and eggs. Add dry ingredients to sugar mixture beat until smooth. Batter will be very thick at this point. Then, add the grated zucchini, chopped nuts, and vanilla, folding and stirring until consistently mixed. Sprinkle top with pignoli nuts and bake about 1 - 1 1/4 hours until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Zucchini and Summer Squash do not store very well but I have stored it grated for making Zucchini Breads. I grate up a big bunch and freeze in 2 cup measurements so I can easily de-thaw and make breads all winter. The zucchini bread itself also freezes very well.
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This is one of my favorite summer comfort foods.
Ingredients:
olive oil
dried or fresh oregano - about 1/2 tsp dried or 1 tbsp fresh
a sprinkle of chili flakes if you want
a sprinkle of garlic powder or minced fresh garlic
onions of various sorts
peppers of various sorts
little frozen "salad" shrimp
you can also add squash, kale, chard, or really any other vegetable!
sea salt and black pepper to taste
cooked pasta (retain a bit of pasta water in case)
Directions
Chop the peppers and onions into 1/2 sized pieces. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan. Add oregano, garlic, and chili flakes. Once warmed and starting to smell good, add onions, peppers, and shrimp. Cook until onions and peppers are softened. Add other vegetables such as squash or chopped chard. Once those are just getting tender, add pasta. Thoroughly mix and let pasta cook in sauce for a bit to meld flavors. If a little oily, add a dash of the retained pasta water. And then serve!
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RECIPE:Simple Zucchini Salad 4 medium zuccini or summer squash 1 Tbsp. lemon juice 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil 1/4 cup parmesan shavings (peel cheese with a vegetable peeler) Preparation:Using a sharp knife or kitchen mandoline, slice zucchini as thinly as possible. Put slices in a large bowl and toss thoroughly with lemon juice. Arrange zucchini slices on a serving platter. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle to parmesan shavings. Serve immediately. Zucchini and Avocado Salad Just add sliced pieces of avocado to grated zucchini and dress ______________________________________________________________________ RECIPE: Greek Style Zucchini Salad 1/2 pound zucchini (grated) 1 tablespoon mint (chopped) 1 tablespoon dill (chopped) 1 green onion (sliced) 1/4 cup feta (crumbled) 1/2 lemon (juice and zest) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 clove garlic (grated) salt and pepper to taste Directions: 1. Mix the zucchini, mint, dill,green onions and feta in a large bowl. 2. Mix the lemon juice, zest, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl. 3. Toss the salad and the dressing. 4. Chill in the fridge for several hours to overnight before serving. _______________________________________________________________________
RECIPE: Zucchini Ricotta Frittata Recipe 6 large eggs 1/2 cup ricotta cheese 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 1/4 teaspoon salt Freshly ground black pepper to taste 1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 2 small zucchini, or one larger one, washed and sliced into thin rounds (about 3/4 pound) Directions: 1 Beat the eggs in a medium bowl. Add the ricotta and Parmesan and beat to combine. Add the salt, freshly ground black pepper, basil and thyme and beat to combine. Set aside. 2 Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch oven-proof stick-free skillet on medium high. When the oil is hot and begins to shimmer, add the zucchini slices. Stir so that the zucchini slices are all coated with some of the oil. Cook, stirring only occasionally (if you stir too much the zucchini won't brown), until the zucchini slices are lightly browned, about 5-6 minutes. Remove from heat. Remove zucchini slices from the pan with tongs or a slotted spoon to a bowl. Let cool for 30 seconds or so, and then stir the zucchini slices to the egg mixture. 3 Reheat the skillet. There should be a couple of tablespoons of oil left in the pan, if not, add some. When the oil is hot, pour the egg mixture into the pan. Do not stir it. Reduce the heat to medium. Let the egg mixture cook. Run a spatula along the edge of the frittata, separating the cooked edges from the pan. Let the egg mixture cook until the bottom is golden brown and the top is beginning to set, about 5-6 minutes. 4 Set the top rack 5 inches from the heating element in the oven. Preheat the oven broiler. Once the top of the frittata has started to set in the pan on the stove top, remove the pan from the stove and place it in the oven. With the broiler on, the door of the oven needs to be open. You can let the pan's handle stick out from the oven through the open door. Cook under the broiler until the top starts to become lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Alternatively, instead of using the broiler, you can place a plate face-down on top of the skillet. Flip the skillet over to release the frittata on to the plate. Then slide the frittata from the plate back on to the skillet. Let cook for a couple of minutes more until the bottom side gets browned. 5 Slide the frittata out of the skillet onto a serving plate. Let cool for a minute or two and serve. _______________________________________________________________________
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