Week #20, Beth’s dad, purple + moon

Beth’s dad

My father passed away last week.  He was very frail and his time had come.  Steve and I left the farm to visit my parents for a few days, the first time I’ve seen them since the pandemic began.  I am so grateful that we had those days with my dad.  I got him to laugh a few times.  He passed the night after we left.  The funeral was this week, but we could only attend virtually – this pandemic has wrecked many things.

Thank you for the sweet messages that many of you sent.  I feel very supported by all of you, as well as our wonderful farm crew who took on extra work to allow me the space I needed.  They kept the farm running.  Thank you all.  Beth

Veggie List & Veggie Notes
Week #20, October 1/2, 2020
– Weekly shares
– EOW/ purple
– Sampler/ moon

Green beans, 1 lb
‘Molli’ yellow potatoes, ~ 3 1/3 lb
Leeks, 1 or 2
Kale or collards
Broccoli
Romaine lettuce
Peppers, green or red or yellow, 2 – 4
Poblano chiles, 3
(Poblanos are in the bag of beans.)
Parsley, 1 bunch
Garlic

Next week’s box will probably contain sweet potatoes, winter squash, some kind of green, and more.

Yellow potatoes – These are from our friends at Driftless Organics.  ‘Molli’ is a good all-purpose potato.  Some potatoes have flaws that will need a little trimming.  
Peppers (sweet) – We’ve begun stripping pepper fields, so you’ll get a medley this week.  It’s time.  Frost is coming.
Poblano chiles (triangular, shiny, MILDLY HOT) – We’ve packed your poblano chiles in your bag of beans, so they are easy to identify.  Poblanos have lots of great flavor in combination with manageable heat.  Roast and add to soup or casseroles.  To reduce heat, remove the seeds and midveins. 

Your poblano chiles are in your bag of beans.  These are mildly hot.  All the other peppers (outside the bean bag) are sweet.

RECIPES

Visit our 2020 Recipe Log or our 2019 Recipe Log or join our Facebook discussion group.

LOCAL THYME/ Cooking 101
Broccoli and Braising Greens Soup
Wilted Braising Greens with Bacon and Vinegar (also a vegetarian version in the recipe)
Green Beans Braised with Bay Leaves

LOCAL THYME/ Cooking 202
Broccoli Hummus
Greens and Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Garlicky White Wine Reduction Sauce with Tomatoes
Niçoise Salade Chickpea Bowl

LOCAL THYME/ Quick & Easy Meal
Taco Salad with Skirt Steak & Roasted Poblano Buttermilk Dressing

RECIPES FROM LAUREN

ROMAINE CHOP SALAD WITH ROASTED POBLANO DRESSING
This recipe is intended as a lovely side salad to accompany any fall meal, but if you want to make it a full meal, feel free to add some grilled chicken or crispy tempeh.
Serves 2-4
Takes 30 minutes

3 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, smashed
3 cups torn sourdough or ciabatta bread
Kosher salt
1 head romaine
2-3 avocados, cubed
4 hard-boiled eggs

Roasted Poblano Dressing
2 poblanos, broiled for 5-8 minutes; put into a bowl and covered with a plate for 5 minutes
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
1/2 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1. Preheat broiler to high.
2. Roast poblanos under broiler, flipping every couple of minutes so they are well charred on all sides. This should take 5-8 minutes. Place poblanos in a bowl and top with a plate to let the peppers steam and allow the skins to come off more easily. After 5 minutes, remove the poblano skins.
3. Combine poblanos and remaining dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Add more buttermilk if the mixture is too thick.
4. In a large skillet, heat olive oil. Once it shimmers (but before it smokes), add garlic and bread. Saute for 5-6 minutes until bread is toasty. Discard garlic.
5. Serve salad by diving washed and torn romaine leaves among 2-4 salad bowls. Top with avocado, hard-boiled eggs, and fresh croutons. Drizzle with dressing.

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ONE POT GREEN CURRY
If green curry paste isn’t currently a staple in your household, it really should be. I love its bright, mellow, herbaceous flavor. I have made my own but honestly generally just keep a jar of the Thai Kitchen green curry paste (available at pretty much any grocery store in the ethnic/international aisle) on hand. It’s super tasty and also happens to taste good with pretty much any vegetable. 101 cookbooks has a Simple Asparagus Soup recipe made with green curry paste (and a handful of other ingredients) and it was the meal that converted me from a red curry to a green curry fanatic.

Serves 6-8
Takes 55 minutes

3-1/2 cups water, divided
1-1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
1 cup white rice
2 tablespoons butter (or coconut oil if vegan)
1 large yellow onion (or 2 medium shallots), diced
1 bell pepper (green or colored– whatever you have on hand), seeded and diced
2 tablespoons green curry paste
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 16-ounce cans full-fat coconut milk
2 cups potato, sweet potato or winter squash (I usually use potatoes or a combination of sweet potatoes and potatoes but whatever you have on hand will work great)
1 pound steak of your choice, cubed (skip if vegan or substitute a bit more potato/sweet potato)
2 cups green beans, ends trimmed and cut in half
1 tablespoon fish sauce, plus more to taste (skip if vegan)
Lime wedges, optional

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 1-3/4 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil. Once boiling, add rice. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until all the water is absorbed (about 12 minutes). Remove the pot from the heat but leave the lid on for at least 5 minutes. Remove lid and fluff with a fork just before eating.
2. In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion or shallots along with 1 teaspoon salt and cook until fragrant and softened (about 5 minutes). Add peppers and cook 5 minutes more. Add green curry paste and brown sugar, cooking until it just begins to brown and gets fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
3. Add coconut milk, remaining water and potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Add the steak and simmer 10 minutes longer. Add the beans and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
4. Remove from heat. Add fish sauce, taste and adjust seasonings as desired.

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GLAZED SALMON WITH LEEK & KALE RAMEN NOODLES
Takes 1 hour
Serves 5

6 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar, divided
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 pound skin-on salmon filets
2 leeks, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons sugar
20 twists black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
5 ounces ramen rice noodles (I love anything from Lotus Foods)
1 bunch kale, stems removed and roughly chopped
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds

1. Mix together 4 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar, brown sugar and toasted sesame oil in a large bowl. Add salmon and place in the fridge for 20 minutes to marinate. If the salmon isn’t full covered by the liquid, flip once during the marinating process.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a medium bowl combine leeks and garlic.
4. In a small saucepan, heat canola oil over high heat until very hot but not smoking (about 400 degrees). Pour over leeks and garlic. Stir once and then let sit for 5 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar, sugar, black pepper, red pepper flakes and salt. Toss to combine.
5. Once oven is preheated, place salmon skin side down on prepared baking sheet. Pour half the marinade over the top. Discard the rest. Bake for 10 minutes.
6. Bring large kettle of salted water to a boil on the stove. Add ramen noodles and cook according to package directions. Drain and add to a large bowl. Add kale while the ramen is still hot and toss to combine so that the kale wilts a bit. Add leek mixture and toss again to combine.
7. Remove salmon from oven, flip so it is skin side up, and preheat the broiler. Finish salmon under the broiler so the skin crisps. It will take 1-2 minutes depending how hot your broiler gets. Check it frequently so that it doesn’t burn.
8. Serve noodles with salmon and top with sesame seeds.

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