Category Archives: CSA

Zucchini Bread

July 19, 2007 – 6:26 pm

Although I picked up my 10th CSA today, I am still playing catch-up in my documentation of produce deliveries and am thus posting a recipe I made way back in week 4. While banana bread is probably my favorite quick bread, I look forward to making this zucchini bread every summer. Spiced with cinnamon and sweetened mostly with brown sugar, this moist seasonal bread makes a wonderful addition to breakfast coffee or afternoon tea all summer long. It takes no time to make and, when prepared in mini loaf loaf pans, makes a nice gift as well.

Week 4
1¼ pound bag of pea tendrils
1 head green butterhead lettuce
1 crown broccoli
2 small zucchini
1 bunch scallions
1 head green or red leaf lettuce
1 kohlrabi root
1 quart strawberries

Zucchini Bread
Yield: 1 large loaf or 3 mini loaves

a scant 2 cups (8 oz.) flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. kosher salt

1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
¾ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2½ cups grated zucchini

Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Grease loaf pan or pans. Whisk together first five ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk remaining ingredients except zucchini. Add zucchini to the flour mixture and toss to coat. Add dry to wet and stir till until combined. Pour into pans. Bake until toothpick comes out clean, about 35 – 45 minutes for mini loaves, and 45 minutes to 1 hour for a standard loaf pan.

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Appetizers CSA Eating Locally Salads Side dishes Vegetarian

Three Summer Salads

July 13, 2007 – 8:26 am

Before I received my first CSA produce box this spring, I resolved to document each delivery. Alas, now in week nine, I’ve only recorded the contents of three boxes, and have not posted nearly as many recipes as I had hope. I have, however, been truly enjoying my vegetables each week, the variety and quantity forcing me, at times, to be creative: I fix cucumber and kohlrabi sandwiches for lunch; eat zucchini, raw, thinly shaved with lemon vinaigrette and Pecorino Romano; and when in the company of my sister, enjoy corn — only corn — for dinner: just yesterday we polished off a dozen ears together. Below are recipes for three summer salads, each requiring the dressing of a simple lemon vinaigrette.

CSA Week 9
3 green zucchini
3 yellow squash
2 stalks fennel
2 bunches Detroit red beets
1 dozen ears of sweet corn
2 candy onions
3 tomatoes
2 heads lettuce
1 bag green beans

Zucchini Ribbon Salad
Serves 4

2 medium zucchini
Lemon Vinaigrette (recipe below)
Pecorino Romano
Freshly ground pepper to taste

With a y-shaped peeler, skim long, wide strands from one side of the zucchini. Flip the zucchini over and repeat the same motion until the zucchini no longer can hold its shape. (Discard remaining, or save for another use, such as zucchini bread.) Place zucchini ribbons in a large bowl and drizzle with lemon vinaigrette to coat. Shave, using the same y-shaped peeler, pieces of Pecorino and set aside. Season zucchini with freshly ground pepper and toss in the Pecorino shavings. Serve immediately.

Grilled Panzanella Salad
Serves 4

1 loaf bakery-style bread such as French or Italian
extra-virgin olive oil
2 beefsteak tomatoes
1 cucumber
½ red onion
½ cup ciligene mozzarella (small balls)
Lemon Vinaigrette
1 bunch basil

Preheat the grill to high. Cut four ¾-inch thick slices of bread and brush each side with olive oil. Grill for 1-2 minutes a side, until each side has nice grill marks. Transfer to a cooling rack.

Cut the tomatoes into big, irregular-shaped chunks. Peel cucumber, if desired, and cut into similar shapes. Finely dice the red onion and place in a large bowl with the tomatoes, cucumber and mozzarella. Drizzle in the lemon vinaigrette until everything is nicely coated. Tear basil leaves from their stems (leaving the leaf intact) directly into bowl.

Cut the grilled bread into cubes and add to the bowl. Toss to combine and serve.

Cucumber-Feta Salad
Serves 4

2 medium cucumbers
1 bunch mint
4 oz. feta cheese*
Lemon vinaigrette

Cut cucumber into small cubes and place in a large bowl. Chiffonade (very finely mince) the mint and add to bowl. Crumble feta atop cucumber-mint mix and toss salad with the lemon vinaigrette.

* Earlier this week at Whole Foods I discovered a tub of marinated feta, beautifully packaged and stamped with an enticing slogan: “Eat shamelessly straight from the tub,” — I couldn’t resist. Produced by Meredith Dairy in Australia, this sheep’s- and goat’s-milk cheese, has a creamy texture and wonderful flavor — the hints of thyme, peppercorns and garlic perfectly detectable. While this farmhouse feta truly is a treat, any will suffice in this simple summer salad.

CSA Week 8
1 lemon cucumber
2 dasher cucumbers
1 bunch dandelion greens
1 candy onion
1 head radicchio
1 head lettuce
1 bag green beans
1 dozen ears sweet corn
1 bag potatoes
1 bag yellow squash

Lemon Vinaigrette
Yield = 1 cup

¼ cup finely chopped shallots
¼ cup lemon juice
½ tsp. kosher salt
¼ tsp. sugar
freshly ground black pepper to taste
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Whisk shallots, lemon juice, salt, sugar and pepper. Slowly drizzle in the oil and whisk until emulsified. Transfer to a jar and refrigerate until ready to use.

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Baking Breakfast CSA Olallie Cafe recipes

Almond Scones with Strawberry Jam

June 14, 2007 – 2:29 pm

So many goodies arrived today in my CSA basket, but most notably, a jar of homemade strawberry jam from Countryside Produce in Paradise, PA. Last week we received a quart of strawberries, this week jam — heaven! Sadly, we may already have reached the peak of strawberry season: This past Tuesday, at the South and Passyunk Farmers’ Market, Gloria from the Rineer Family Farmstand doubted she would bring any more strawberries this summer. Although I will miss the fresh strawberries, I will happily savor this jam. For a wonderfully sweet breakfast, serve the jam with these buttermilk-almond scones.

CSA Week 5:
1¼ lbs sugar peas
1 head cabbage
1 crown broccoli
3 zucchini
1 bunch scallions
1 head green leaf lettuce
1 head red leaf lettuce
1 kohlrabi root
1 bunch cilantro
1 bunch garlic scapes
1½ lbs kale

Almond-Buttermilk Scones
Yield=6

a scant 2¼ cups (10 oz.) all-purpose flour
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon (2.33 oz) sugar
1½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup sliced almonds
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 stick cold unsalted butter

2 tablespoons milk
turbinado or demera sugar for sprinkling

Set oven to 375°F.
In a medium to large-sized mixing bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the almonds and stir to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and the vanilla. Cut the cold butter into the flour mixture and stir to combine. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and stir to combine. Gently knead the dough together in the bowl until it is just combined. Be careful, however, not to mix and knead the dough too much—you just want to combine the ingredients. If you have to add a tablespoon more of buttermilk, do so, but otherwise just gently pack the mixture into a ball and then turn dough out onto a work surface.

Gently pat and shape the dough into a rectangle approximately ¾ to 1 – inch thick. With a knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into six triangles. At this point, either freeze the cut scones in a zip lock bag or place them on Silpat or parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.

Brush the scones with the milk and sprinkle with the sugar. (Note: you can brush the scones with anything you like: eggs, egg whites, cream, even water. If you don’t have turbinado or demera sugar, regular granulated sugar is a fine substitute.) Bake the scones for approximately 15-18 minutes. (When you bake frozen scones, remove them from freezer while oven preheats. Brush with wash just before baking and bake 18-23 minutes.) Serve immediately with strawberry jam.

Unfortunately, as of now, I have no recipe for strawberry jam, but will post one as soon as I find one. These and the strawberries above are from the Rineer Family Farmstand.

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CSA Grass-fed Meat Meat

Grass-Fed Beef

June 8, 2007 – 5:12 am

When I stopped by the Fair Food Farmstand last Thursday to pick up my CSA, I picked up a package of grass-fed ground beef as well. Before reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma (Michael Pollan, 2006), I didn’t know that cows are natural herbivores and until recently ate grass primarily.

The switch from feeding cows grass began in the 1950s, after farmers discovered how to grow corn cheaply and efficiently with the help of artificial fertilizers. When this discovery led to the creation of large surpluses, however, the excess corn traveled to ranches. And when ranchers discovered how quickly cows could grow on a corn-based diet, they moved cows from the pastures into feedlots and fed them this energy-packed grain. Both parties profited: farmers from solely growing corn; and ranchers, by raising cattle indoors with that corn.

Although grain-fed cows produced well-marbled meat — a highly desired product by all meat-lovers — the meat also became less healthy, and the practices employed to create the meat, less humane. The ethical and environmental concerns surrounding feedlots have been widely voiced, particularly because cows, living in cramped quarters on unfamiliar grain diets (which their ruminant stomachs have difficulty digesting), receive hormones, supplements and antibiotics to promote growth and protect against diseases — drugs never needed when cows fed on grass. Furthermore, when manure is not spread across the land by grazing cattle, but instead dumped in large quantities, the soil becomes overloaded with nitrates, which in turn run off and pollute nearby waters.

Grass-fed meat is far superior nutritionally than grain-fed meat. Grass-fed meat not only is lower in total and saturated fat, but also contains 75 percent more omega-3 fatty acids, 78 percent more beta-carotene, 300 percent more vitamin E, 400 percent more vitamin A and 500 percent more conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) than grain-fed cows.

To read more about the health benefits of grass-fed beef and the practices of raising cattle on corn visit Eatwild.com.

Grass-fed beef has been dismissed as bland and oddly textured by many meat lovers. Although I haven’t tasted many cuts of grass-fed meat, I love the grass-fed ground beef I buy from the Fair Food Farmstand. My friend and I enjoyed delicious grilled burgers last Thursday evening. We seasoned the meat with kosher salt before forming the patties and mixed in a finely chopped onion as well. On a crusty roll with lettuce and tomatoes, these pasture-perfect patties are pleasantly pleasing.

CSA Week Three:
1 lb. baby lettuces
1 bunch French breakfast radishes
2 heads baby bok choy
1½ lbs red Russian Kale
1 bunch dandelion greens
1 head Jericho Romaine
1 bunch scallions
1 head green leaf lettuce

Grass-fed Burgers
Yield = 3 burgers

1 lb. grass-fed ground beef
½ medium onion finely chopped
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

buns, lettuce, tomato, cheese as needed

Spread the ground beef out in a large bowl. Season evenly with kosher salt. Spread the onion across the meat evenly as well. Gently mix the mixture, then form into 3 patties, being careful not to pack the meat or mix the meat too much. Chill the patties until you are ready to grill.

Preheat a grill to high. Season patties on both sides with kosher salt and pepper. Grill to desired doneness.

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Appetizers Bread CSA Entrees Hors d'oeuvres Vegetarian

Grilled Flatbread

June 1, 2007 – 4:20 am

The second Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA box again abounded with beautiful produce: baby lettuces, French breakfast radishes, bok choy, pea tendrils, cremini mushrooms, mustard greens, scallions and, most intriguing, fleur de choy. Fleur de choy, the edible flower of the bok choy plant, can be eaten raw or cooked, or used as a garnish. Chopped and sautéed with garlic and olive oil, the green stalks and yellow flowers brighten any simple pasta dish.

This grilled flatbread, strewn with sautéed cremini mushrooms, scallions and taleggio, and drizzled with truffle oil makes a light summer meal when paired with a simple mixed greens salad.

Grilled Flat Bread with Crimini Mushrooms, Taleggio and Truffle Oil

½ teaspoon instant yeast
1½ cups warm water
4½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb. cremini mushrooms, roughly sliced
kosher salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup finely chopped shallots
8 sprigs thyme, leaves removed, roughly chopped

olive oil for brushing
4 scallions, trimmed and sliced thinly
4 oz. Taleggio
truffle oil to taste

In a large bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the water. Swirl the bowl to dissolve the yeast, then at 2 cups of the flour. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit 1 hour.

Add the salt and olive oil to the bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Add the remaining flour to the bowl, stir to form a mass, then turn mixture onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 5 minutes, or until smooth and satiny, adding flour only as necessary. Place the dough in a large, lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot until doubled, about 2½ hours. Punch down the dough and divide into 4 balls. Place balls on an oiled sheet tray, grease the tops of the balls lightly, cover with plastic wrap and let rise 35-45 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil until almost smoking. Add the mushrooms and leave undisturbed for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes pass, shake pan gently, season with kosher salt and pepper to taste and add the shallots. Let cook for 2 minutes longer, until shallots are lightly golden, then remove from the heat. Sprinkle with the thyme, then transfer to a plate to cool.

Preheat a gas or charcoal grill to medium-high. Clean grill grates and lightly grease with oil. Roll each ball into a 10- to 12-inch circle or rectangle. Brush one side of rolled dough with olive oil and place on grill, oil-side down. Close grill cover and let cook 2 minutes, checking after the first minute. Lightly brush the top side of dough with oil, then, using tongs and a spatula flip the dough.

Top dough with cheese and scallions and close grill cover. Let cook for 2 to 5 minutes longer until dough is cooked through and cheese has melted. Remove flatbread from grill, place on cutting board, drizzle with truffle oil, cut and serve. Repeat with remaining dough.

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Appetizers CSA Eating Locally Salads Vegetarian

Salad From My CSA Basket

May 24, 2007 – 7:51 pm

This past March I signed up for the Lancaster Farm Fresh Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). I had just read Michael Pollan’s, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and felt inspired to start buying locally produced foods as often as possible. I visited Maysie’s Farm Conservation Center in Glenmoore, PA and spent a few hours touring the green house, hoop house and barn with Sam Cantrell, the owner of the farm. Sam explained to me the concept and history of CSAs and when I left the farm I resolved to join one. While many CSAs exist outside of Philadelphia, two of the larger ones — Lancaster Farm Fresh and Red Earth Farm — deliver to locations all across the city.

Greens in Maysie’s Farm Conservation Center’s hoop house:

To learn more about CSAs and Maysie’s Conservation Center read this article.

Last Thursday, members of the Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA received their first, long-awaited share of vegetables for the 2007 growing season. This box, packed on Wednesday night with vegetables harvested earlier that day, included 2 heads of bok choy (one green, one red), 2 big heads of Romaine, 1 bunch of asparagus, 1 bunch of French breakfast radishes, 1 bag of mesclun and 1 bag of mustard greens. On Thursday morning, a Lancaster Farm Fresh truck dropped off the boxes at 10 locations outside of Philadelphia and 10 locations in the city. I picked up my box at the Fair Food Farmstand in Reading Terminal Market. This salad of grilled tender asparagus, peppery sliced radishes, and herby mixed greens is just one of the delectable dishes I enjoyed this week from my basket of bounty.
Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA

Grilled Asparagus, Sliced Radish and Mesclun Salad
Serves 4

1 bunch asparagus
1 tablespoon olive oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste
8 breakfast radishes
8 oz. mesclun
1 cup yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup red cherry tomatoes, halved
Parmigiano Reggiano

Tarragon – Shallot Vinaigrette (recipe below)

Turn grill to high. Toss asparagus with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Place on grill, cover and cook 5 minutes, checking after 3. Test one asparagus with a knife, and remove from the grill if tender. Let cool, then chop into 2-inch lengths on the bias.

Cut the ends of the radishes and slice thinly using a mandoline or knife. Halve the tomatoes and set aside. With a vegetable peeler or knife, shave off large strips of cheese from the block of Parmigiano Reggiano. Set aside.
To assemble, place asparagus, radishes, tomatoes and mesclun in a large bowl. Toss lightly with dressing. Divide evenly among plates and top with the shavings of Parmigiano.

Tarragon-Shallot Vinaigrette
Yield = ½ cup

4 teaspoons sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallots
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2-3 tablespoons tarragon, finely chopped

In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, shallots, mustard, sugar and salt. Let mixture macerate for 20 minutes. Slowly drizzle in olive oil, whisking constantly until emulsified. Stir in tarragon. Taste, add more salt and pepper if necessary. Set aside.

One of the border collies at the farm: