These posts are a little behind schedule – the CSA finished a couple of weeks ago, but I have been bad about posting. Sorry about that!
In the crate:
Eggplant
Bell peppers
Red onions
Kale
Potatoes
Jalapenos
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Apples
Peaches
Pears
Plums
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I made the Peaches and Cream Pie again because I enjoyed it so much the last time. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I ate all of it, and Jasper didn’t get a chance to try it! So I wanted to make it again for him. I only ate it warm before, but this time I discovered that it is quite good cold as well.
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I also made a peach and plum galette using the recipe for a plum galette from a couple of weeks ago.
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Then I decided to make corn muffins with some of the corn left over from week 14. Great idea, but they didn’t turn out well, unfortunately.
I used Jiffy mix and added corn kernels, sour cream, and some shredded cheddar cheese.
I remember Jiffy mix as being really good, but these came out dense and had a horrible chemical taste. I looked online and discovered many people complaining about Jiffy mix in the past couple of years. I don’t know what has happened to them, but stay away! Anyway, I had to throw the muffins out, but I think that they would be really great if you used cornmeal and not a mix. We all make mistakes!
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Morton’s Steakhouse has a really great prime rib on weekend’s, and we like to treat ourselves occasionally. The problem is that the portions are HUGE so we always end up with leftovers. I wanted to be a bit more clever with them this time (as opposed to just reheating), so I decided to make a stew.
I started by separating the meat from the bones, cubing it, and discarding as much fat as I could.
I browned the meat and the bones (bones = flavor!) in the insert of my slow cooker.
Then I added in carrots, celery, and onions and potatoes from the CSA.
I topped everything off with chicken stock (beef would be better, but I didn’t have any on hand) and red wine and let the slow cooker do it’s thing.
I didn’t get a chance to take a picture of the finished stew unfortunately, but I will tell you that it was a little thin. So I added a bit of corn starch slurry and put the insert back on the burner to cook down a little bit. It came out beautifully! I took the bones out before serving, of course. Jasper thought it was really delicious, so I will definitely keep this in mind for leftover prime rib again.
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I had been making a ton of recipes from my Martha Stewart pie book, but I hadn’t made any of the savory recipes yet. So I decided to try out this savory chard and goat cheese galette.
The first step is to separate the stems from the leaves of the chard (I used both chard and kale). Then, caramelize the stems with an onion and some balsamic vinegar.
Spread the caramelized mixture onto a round of pastry made with whole wheat flour, oats, and cream cheese.
Spread a mixture of goat cheese, cream, and nutmeg on top of the onion mixture.
Next comes a layer of wilted chard leaves.
Finally, top it off with golden raisins and toasted pine nuts before folding up the edges and baking it.
I ended up with some burnt raisins on top, so next time I think I will cover it with foil for the first half of the baking time.
The result was delicious! The crust was tender and flaky and hearty from the oats and whole wheat. The creamy goat cheese and the sweetness from the raisins and balsamic onions balanced out the slight bitterness from the greens. I thought it was just lovely. Jasper, on the other hand, was not a huge fan. I think that if you are not that fond of bitter greens to begin with, this might not suit you. Adding the kale certainly made it more bitter, so going with chard alone would probably make this milder and more universal.
Swiss Chard and Goat Cheese Galette
adapted from Martha Stewart
For The Crust:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 oz cream cheese
1 large egg yolk,
1 large egg yolk and 1 tbsp heavy cream, for egg wash
For The Filling:
12 oz green Swiss chard, washed, stems removed and reserved
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, sliced lengthwise 1/4 inch thick
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
6 oz fresh goat cheese, room temperature
2 tbsp heavy cream
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
2 tbsp golden raisins
Make the crust: In a food processor, pulse flours, oats, and salt to combine. Add butter, cream cheese, and 1 egg yolk, and process until dough just comes together, 15 to 20 seconds. Press dough into a disk. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate 1 hour or up to 1 day.
Make the filling: Slice chard stems into 1/4-inch pieces. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium. Add stems and onion slices, and cook, stirring, until slightly brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
Cover skillet, and reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until stems are very soft, about 15 minutes. Add vinegar and cook, stirring, until liquid is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat, and transfer onion mixture to a nonreactive bowl.
Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in same skillet over medium-high. Add chard leaves, and saute until slightly wilted, about 1 minute. Stir in thyme; season with salt and pepper.
With an electric mixer on medium speed, mix goat cheese and cream. Beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in nutmeg; season with salt and pepper.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a 12-inch round, 1/4 inch thick. Arrange onion mixture evenly over dough, leaving a 3-inch border around edge. Spread goat-cheese mixture over onion mixture, and top with chard-leaves. Sprinkle with pine nuts and golden raisins. Fold in edges of dough, and press down gently to seal. Transfer tart, on parchment, to a rimmed baking sheet. In a small bowl, beat remaining 1 egg yolk with remaining 1 tablespoon cream; brush exposed dough. Refrigerate until dough is firm, about 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake until crust is golden, 40 to 45 minutes. Cover with foil if raisins start to burn. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.