Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Thanks to year-round member Grant for sharing this recipe.  It's similar to the Salsa Verde recipe that I have posted but it sounds much easier to prepare and also I'm sure the veggies have a deeper flavor.  And you don't have to sautee peppers on the stove - which is a bonus if you're working with really spicy peppers such as ghost, habanero or mature padron because when you sautee those peppers, the fumes can seriously irritate your eyes, nose and lungs.  Take care when working with spicy peppers.

From Grant:

Here is the recipe for Roasted  Tomatillo Salsa that I make almost weekly now.  Borrowed sort of from epicurious.com once upon a time.

Prep time:  5 min

Cook time:  10 min

1 pint (or so) of tomatillos, peeled and rinsed

3-6 spicy peppers (variety to taste:  ghost, pablano, habanero, or even mild/sweet would probably work, depends on your preference.  My goal is to make my wife’s eyes water when she eats…with tears of joy as well as tears from spiciness!)

1 medium garlic (separated but not peeled, or 6-8 cloves)

4-5 small or 1 large onion, chopped

1 handful of fresh cilantro

A bit of basil or parsley if available

Place tomatillos, unpeeled garlic, and peppers on baking sheet under the broiler.  Leave until browned, turning occasionally (approx. 5 minutes, the peppers are ready sooner)

Peel the roasted garlic (easy to do just by squeezing) and carefully separate seeds out from roasted peppers.  Place all ingredients together (including cilantro, onion, and other greens such as basil or parsley) into food processer (it usually works best if the tomatillos are put in first).  Process until of a smooth consistency. 

Enjoy with chips, nachos, or as a garnish on just about any food item. 

Kohl Rabi, Turnips, Radishes, etc.

Kohl Rabi is a tasty root veggie.  Well, it's kind of a root - it actually forms a bulb above ground.  Some people describe it as a mix of turnip and cabbage.  If harvested during the colder months, it is sweet and juicy.  During the days leading up to summer, it can become more bitter, spicy and woody.  So, if you try it in late June or July and don't like it, give it another go in October or later.  The frost/colder temputure really brings up the sugar content of this veggie.

Turnips or kohlrabi or radishes or daikon radish or rutabaga:

A few ideas on how to use:

1. We generally eat these raw.  The children, for some reason, prefer all members of the cabbage family raw.  This includes cabbage, kale, collards, kohl rabi, turnips, etc.  We peel the kohlrabi or turnip with a paring knife and then slice it and serve fresh with salt and sometimes a little lime which is squeezed on the slice. We generally don't peel radishes.  Depending on your spice preference, you can peel daikon radish.  If you don't, it will be spicier.  Which is generally OK after a frost but can be really overwhelming before a frost.  So taste it to see if you like it.
2. You can include these in a combination with other root veggies for roasting.  Cut up all root veggies and toss in olive oil, salt and any other dry spice that you like and roast at 350 or 400 until they are fork-tender.  Turn a few times to brown.  Yum.
3. You can cut up into 1/3" wide strips x 1/2" wide and sautee with your greens.  The root veggies add a bit of crisp texture to your greens.
4. You can add to a pot roast.  These white root veggies, including radishes, daikon radish, rutabaga, etc. will absorb the flavor of the meat and impart a bit of their own flavor on the dish.  Again, it's a nice texture combined with meat - definitely comfort food.
5. You can cube any of these veggies, par boil them until tender, drain and toss with a little butter and salt and serve as a side dish.
6. For spicier root veggies, some people grate and combine with tuna fish or saute some and serve as a bed with fish.  It's not always horse-radish hot but can be.  Cooking will tone down the spice.
7. Don't forget that the greens of all of these veggies are high in vitamin C.  All greens make a nice pesto - some spicier than others.  Radish greens are very tasty sauteed with a little butter and salt.  Try it, I think you'll like it.

 How to store:
All of these will store for months.  Remove the tops immediately and store separately in the fridge.  Place root veggies in a sealed plastic bag with a little moisture in the crisper.  Should keep for 2 months or more as long as they don't freeze.

Asian Kohl-Slaw

Thanks to summer member, Janet, for forwarding this idea on another way to use kohl rabi.  Sounds tasty.

Asian Kohl-Slaw
http://www.annarbor.com/entertainment/food-drink/im-not-a-big-fan/
Dressing
* 1 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tablespoons fresh ginger root, minced
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 1/4 cup sesame oil
* 3 Tablespoons rice vinegar
* 3 Tablespoons tamari
* 2 Tablespoons honey
* 2 Tablespoons vegetable broth or water
* 2 Tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (optional)
In a small bowl add the honey and vegetable broth (or water) and microwave for 30 seconds to dissolve the honey. Blend all of the ingredients together, except for the toasted sesame seeds. If you have an immersion blender it will help blend the garlic and ginger and make the dressing creamy. Add the sesame seeds and chill for several hours.
Slaw
* 3 medium kohlrabi bulbs peeled and grated (cut bottom 1/4 of the root side off and discard)
* 4 carrots, grated
* 6 scallions, white and light-green parts, chopped
* 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
* 1 cup slivered almonds, dry roasted
* one packet ramen noodles, dry roasted (discard flavor packet)
In a bowl, toss the kohlrabi, carrots, green onions and cilantro and chill. Break up the ramen noodles into small pieces. In a pan over medium heat, dry roast the ramen noodle pieces and slivered almonds until lightly browned. Stir constantly to keep from burning. Put the toasted noodles and almonds in a bowl and set aside to cool.
Right before serving toss slaw mix, toasted almonds and noodles and dressing.

Chard Cheese Pie

Thanks, Debi, for forwarding this one.  It looks like a good one.

Chard Cheese Pie (Community Farm of Ann Arbor Cookbook)

6 c. lightly-cooked chard, well-drained (we also used coarsely chopped kale or a combo)

2 c. low-fat cottage cheese

8 oz. feta cheese

2 eggs, beaten

Juice of 1 lemon

½ tsp salt

1 c. whole grain bread crumbs or croutons (we used only ¾ c. bread crumbs)

Optional: 1 medium onion, chopped and sautéed

Preheat oven to 350.  Sauté onion if using.

Beat together cheeses, eggs, lemon juice and salt.  Stir a cup of this mixture into the chard (and onion, if using) and press it into a well-greased 9x9 pan or baking dish.  Spread the remaining cheese mixture evenly over the top.  Sprinkle with bread crumbs.

Bake for about ½ hour until set.  Allow to stand for several minutes before cutting into squares.  Serves 4-6.

Sorrel

This is an excerpt from a site I found which is pretty handy.  Here's the link:
Harvest To Table
Harvest To Table
Prepare: To keep sorrel fresh, do not wash the leaves until just before eating. Immerse the leaves in water and shake them delicately but do not soak them.
Cook sorrel with the stems removed. To remove the stems, simply fold the leaves in half lengthwise and pull off the stem.
Steam leaves until wilted or cook them in a little butter.
Serve: Sorrel can be served raw or cooked.
Use raw whole French sorrel and shredded garden sorrel in salads. They will have a zesty spinach flavor. Reduce the vinegar or lemon in accompanying dressings to compensate for the acidity of sorrel. Whisk a little honey or sugar into the dressing to counter sorrel’s acidity.
Sorrel is best served in combination with other foods. Add a few shredded leaves to baked and scrambled eggs. Fill an omelet with sorrel cooked in butter with shallots.
Add sorrel to creamy dishes and sauces. To make French sorrel sauce, cook the sorrel in a little butter, add fish or chicken stock and cream and stir until smooth. Stir shredded sorrel into creamy potato or leek soups just before serving. In Eastern Europe, slices of smoked sausage are used in a creamy sorrel soup.
Cook sorrel in the same way as spinach, lightly steamed or boiled. Sorrel stalks can be cooked like rhubarb. Sorrel cooks and reduces in volume quickly. The cooked leaves may turn a drab khaki color.
Sorrel makes a good garnish for fish and veal. Sorrel can be used to tenderize meat: wrap around steaks or add pounded leaves to marinade. Italian salsa verde is made from raw sorrel, watercress, and onion chopped and blended to a creamy emulsion with oil and vinegar; serve with poultry or fish.
Flavor partners: Sorrel has a flavor affinity for butter, soft cheeses, chicken, cucumber, eggs, fish (especially salmon), lamb, leeks, lentils, lettuce, mussels, pork, potato, salmon, scallion, shad, shallots, sour cream, spinach, sweetbreads, tomatoes, and veal.
Sorrel combines well with borage, chervil, chives, dill, lovage, parsley, and tarragon.
Nutrition: Sorrel is rich in potassium and high in vitamins A and C and oxalic acid.

This recipe was forwarded by Kristen & Rob.  I am also forwarding their comments.  I made this last week for a pot luck - using collards - and it was a hit!  I didn't have bread crumbs or anything to sub in but it still worked.  Thanks, you two, for the new idea on how to use greens!

Notes from Kristen:

Rob asked me to send you the link to the recipe he uses for greens. It is our go-to dish to eat-up large volumes of greens we don't know what to do with.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/kale-gratin-with-pancetta-recipe/index.html

Caveats:

1. The recipe calls for kale but he's used essentially any non-cabbage, non-lettuce green.

2. He uses 2-3 times the amount of greens specified without increasing the proportion of other ingredients, parboiling really reduces the amount of greens

3. Can substitute milk for cream

4. He usually substitutes 1-2 slices of bacon for amount of pancetta specified

5. Fresh grated nutmeg really makes a difference vs. dried ground, but not essential

The recipe:

Kale Gratin with Pancetta

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 to 1 1/3 pounds kale, stems stripped and chopped, about 6 cups
• Salt
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 pound pancetta, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 cup cream
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg, eyeball it
• Black pepper
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano

Directions

Preheat the broiler but place the oven rack on the second shelf down from the heat source.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a deep skillet or pot, add the kale and salt and cook 5 to 6 minutes; drain and dry the greens.
Return the skillet to the stove over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and pancetta. Crisp the pancetta and add the cream and garlic. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper then reduce 7 to 8 minutes to about 1/2 to 2/3 cup. Add cooked greens to cream and stir to coat evenly. Transfer to shallow casserole.
Toss with breadcrumbs with the remaining 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil. Season the crumbs with salt and pepper and combine with cheese. Place the casserole on the second shelf under broiler and brown breadcrumbs and cheese for 5 minutes.