Salad with Oven-Roasted Peppers and Feta Dressing

Zucchini with Lemon and Thyme

Crisp Potato-Eggplant Tart

• 2 1/4 cups finely diced, peeled eggplant
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt plus more to taste
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons safflower oil
• 3 tablespoons minced shallots (can sub onions or leeks)
• 4 large Idaho potatoes (can sub fingerlings)
• Pepper
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

Place eggplant in a nonreactive bowl. Toss with 1 teaspoon of salt and allow to sit for 20 minutes. Remove to a clean kitchen towel and tightly twist to squeeze out all moisture. Set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add the eggplant and shallots and sauté for about 6 minutes, or until very tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

Peel potatoes. Using a hand grater or mandoline, shred potatoes into a clean kitchen towel. Tightly twist to squeeze out as much moisture as possible.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Heat remaining 1/4 cup of oil in a 9-inch ovenproof, nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Using a spatula, evenly press half of the potatoes into the pan. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spread the reserved eggplant over the top. Pat remaining potatoes evenly over the eggplant. Again, season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until bottom is golden. Carefully turn and dab the crust with bits of butter. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until bottom begins to crisp. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked and tart is golden and crisp. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut into 6 wedges and serve immediately.

Spanish White Beans with Spinach

Cook onion and sun-dried tomatoes in 1/4 cup oil with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper in a 5- to 6-qt pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and paprika and cook, stirring, 1 minute.  Stir in beans, water, spinach, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until spinach is wilted, about 5 minutes. Season with pepper and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoon oil.

Recipe for CSA Week 2

Turnip Gratin

• 1 pound russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/6-inch-thick slices
• 1 pound turnips, peeled, cut into 1/6-inch-thick slices
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 cup half and half
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced crosswise
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine first 6 ingredients in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to simmer. Remove from heat.

Arrange potatoes and turnips in 13×9x2-inch glass baking dish, alternating and overlapping slightly. Pour warm cream mixture over. Sprinkle with pepper.

Bake until vegetables are tender and top is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly, then serve.

Easy Caesar Dressing- The Silver Pallette Cookbook

• 1 cup Best Foods mayonnaise
• 9 anchovies
• 1 1/2 Tb garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup plus 1 Tb freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon sherry wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon grainy mustard
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco or Jardine’s brand Texas Champagne
• 25 grinds black pepper, coarsely ground

Place mayonnaise, anchovies, garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, and mustard in a food processor bowl equipped with a steel blade. Process until anchovies and garlic are pureed. With motor running, drizzle olive oil and Tabasco. Stir in black pepper. Decant into a storage jar and refrigerate until needed.

Makes about 2 cups. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 1 month

Recipes for CSA Week 1

Rhubarb Recipes

Balsamic Rhubarb Compote

• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon grated peeled fresh gingerroot
• 2 fresh rhubarb stalks, leaves discarded, ends trimmed, and stalks cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices, or 2 cups frozen sliced rhubarb, thawed, reserving liquid

In a saucepan simmer vinegar with sugar and gingerroot, stirring, until sugar is dissolved and stir in rhubarb (with reserved liquid if using frozen). If using fresh rhubarb, simmer until crisp-tender, about 1 minute, and transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl. If using frozen, as soon as mixture returns to a simmer transfer rhubarb with slotted spoon to bowl. Simmer liquid until thickened slightly, about 5 minutes, and remove pan from heat. Stir in rhubarb. Serve compote warm or at room temperature.

Open-Faced Rhubarb Tart

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
• 1/2 to 2 tablespoons cold water
• 1/4 cup whole blanched almonds
• 1 1/4 cup rhubarb (preferably about 1 1/3 inch wide)
• 1/4 cup apricot preserves, melted and strained

Make crust: Whisk together 1 cup flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, and salt. Blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with remainder in small (roughly pea-size) lumps. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons water and stir with a fork until incorporated. Gently squeeze a small handful, it should together without crumbling apart. If it doesn’t, blend in remaining 1/2 tablespoon water. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and smear 3 times in a forward motion to help distribute fat.  Gather dough and form it, rotating on work surface, into a disk. Chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.  Roll out dough between sheets of wax paper, 2 overlapping sheets each for top and bottom, into a 12-inch round and chill until firm, about 15 minutes.

Make a filling: Pulse almonds with 2 tablespoons sugar and remaining 2 tablespoons flour in a food processor until finely ground (be careful not to grind to a paste.) Cut rhubarb crosswise, holding knife at a 45 degree angle, int 1/4 inch thick slices.

Assemble tart: Preheat oven to 375 F. Remove top sheets of wax paper and invert dough into a large baking sheet, then remove remaining wax paper (now on top). Fold edge of crust in to form a 1/2 inch border, pressing to seal to bottom crust. Spread ground almonds over crust (except border). Top with rhubarb, overlapping slices and arranging them decoratively. Score edge of crust decoratively, then chill tart 15 minutes. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup sugar evenly over rhubarb and bake in lower third of oven until crust is golden brown on edge and rhubarb is tender, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool tart on baking sheet on a rack, then brush rhubarb with enough preserves to coat evenly.

Mint Recipes

Mojito Marinade

Epicurious  | May 2001   by John Stage and Nancy Radke Dinosaur Bar-B-Que