EverGreen Farm Recipes

Zucchini Bites

A recipe from Martha, long time CSA member.

Zucchini Tomato Bites

5 small-medium size zucchini cut into 1/2 inch slices 

4 oz. Gorgonzola cheese crumbled and chilled.       

1 pint cherry tomatoes thinly sliced                           

Fresh basil                                                              

Fresh ground pepper to taste                                       

6 oz Parmesan finely grated.                                        

                                                                                                                   

Line baking sheet with parchment.  Scoop out the center of each zucchini slice carefully with melon baller, creating a shell that resembles a bowl.  Fill each with 1/2 tsp gorgonzola.  Top each with 1 tomato slice and basil (small leaf).  Sprinkle with parmensan.  Bake at 400 deg. for 5-7 minutes but do not let it brown, just melt cheese.  You may prepare several hours in advance and store, covered in refrig. Bake just before serving.

Makes 50-60 appetizers. Enjoy!

Creamy Zucchini Soup

A recipe from long time CSA member Martha which she got from one of her favorite recipe books.

Creamy Autum Zucchini Soup 

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion

6 green onions, chopped                   

2 cloves garlic, minced                      

1/4 cup butter or margarine                   

 4 x 8 oz. zucchini, sliced                       

                               

4 medium carrots, sliced     

                 

(Optional) 2-3 sliced radishes

14 oz. chicken broth

1 1/2 cup water

1/2 cup half N half

salt and pepper

3/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves.

Cook onions and garlic in butter in 4 quart saucepan over medium heat for 8 minutes or until tender.  Stir in zucchini, carrots and radishes.  Add broth and water and mix well.  Bring to boil then reduce heat.  Simmer, covered for 15 minutes or until veggies are tender.  Process soup in batches in food  processor or blender until chunky.  Return soup to saucepan and stir in half N half and salt and pepper. Cook until just heated through, stirring frequently.  Stir in the basil just before serving. Enjoy!

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil

This recipe originally comes from simplyrecipes.com

Shain found an incredible Bruschetta recipe this year and it is our favorite by far.  He doesn't follow the recipe exactly, but these instructions are a good place to start.

Ingredients

• 6 or 7 ripe plum tomatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped.  (we typically add more)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 1 baguette French bread or similar Italian bread
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Method

1 Prepare the tomatoes first. Parboil the tomatoes for one minute in boiling water that has just been removed from the burner. Drain. Using a sharp small knife, remove the skins of the tomatoes. (If the tomatoes are too hot, you can protect your finger tips by rubbing them with an ice cube between tomatoes.) Once the tomatoes are peeled, cut them in halves or quarters and remove the seeds and juice from their centers. Also cut out and discard the stem area.

(We simplify this step by blanching the tomatoes in boiling hot water then submerging immediately in cold water.  The skins slide off easily.  We also skip the "remove seeds and juice" step.)

2 Turn on the oven to 450°F to preheat.

3 While the oven is heating, chop up the tomatoes finely. Put tomatoes, garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, vinegar in a bowl and mix. Add the chopped basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

4 Slice the baguette on a diagonal about 1/2 inch thick slices. Coat one side of each slice with olive oil using a pastry brush. Place on a cooking sheet, olive oil side down. You will want to toast them in the top rack in your oven, so you may need to do these in batches depending on the size of your oven. Once the oven has reached 450°F, place a tray of bread slices in the oven on the top rack. Toast for 5-6 minutes, until the bread just begins to turn golden brown.

Alternatively, you can toast the bread without coating it in olive oil first. Toast on a griddle for 1 minute on each side. Take a sharp knife and score each slice 3 times. Rub some garlic in the slices and drizzle half a teaspoon of olive oil on each slice. This is the more traditional method of making bruschetta.

5 Align the bread on a serving platter, olive oil side up. Either place the tomato topping in a bowl separately with a spoon for people to serve themselves over the bread, or place some topping on each slice of bread and serve. If you top each slice with the tomatoes, do it right before serving or the bread may get soggy.

Makes 24 small slices. Serves 6-10 as an appetizer. Or 3-4 for lunch (delicious served with cottage cheese on the side.)

Arugula Basil Pesto

4 cups arugula
1 cup basil
salt & pepper to taste
2 Tbsp pine nuts (may also substitute other nuts or even almond meal)
3 to 4 garlic cloves
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Puree all ingredients together in food processor or blender.

Serve over hot pasts or toasted baguette slices. 

Garnish with additional grated Parmesan cheese.

Freezing Herbs

If you ever find yourself with "extra" herbs and don't want them to go to waste, I have a helpful hint for freezing them.  This tip works especially well with parsley and cilantro.  Just place the herb in a blender  (stems can be removed first if you desire) and puree with as little water as necessary to get the leaves to chop.  Then pour the mixture into ice cube trays.  Once solid, the herb cubes can be frozen in a freezer bag and used as needed.  The herb's true flavor is maintained incredibly well, it smells and tastes so fresh.  Just pop a cube into a soup, mashed potatoes, spaghetti sauce, or whatever.  Or you can put a cube in a strainer and allow the water to melt off, then add the herb to your cooking.

Basil Recipes

Basil Puree

4 tablespoons olive oil
8 cups washed and dried bail leaves

Blend until pureed.  Transfer to clean jar.  Store in refrigerator.  Each time you use it stir and then top with a thin layer of oil.  It will keep one year by doing this.  This is good on grilled meats, stirred into soups or mixed with sun-dried tomatoes and broiled on bread.

Frozen Basil

Basil Leaves
Olive Oil

Chop basil leaves, cover with oil, place in freezer bag, date, and freeze.

Pesto

2 cups packed basil leaves
1/2-cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup lightly toasted pine nuts
2 garlic cloves chopped fine before putting into food processor
1 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2tbsp of Romano cheese (optional)
Sea Salt
1,1/2 pounds of cooked Angel Hair Pasta

1.    Lightly toast pine nuts (be careful, they burn fast).
2.    Grate Cheeses.
3.    Briefly soak the basil in cold water, pat dry with paper towels.
4.    Put basil olive oil, pine nuts, copped garlic, and a pinch of salt in a food processor bowl and process to a uniform, creamy consistency.
5.    Transfer to a bowl and mix in the two grated cheeses by hand.
6.    When spooning the pesto directly over hot pasta you may dilute with a tablespoon or two of hot water.

Basil Bean Salad

2 pounds of fresh green or wax beans trimmed, washed, and dried
3 minced green onions
2/3 cups of minced fresh basil
2-4 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp or red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp of sea salt
Dash of fresh ground pepper
2/3 cup of freshly grated Romano cheese

Cut beans into 1-1/4 inch pieces.  Place in a saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil.  Cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until the beans are tender-crisp.  Rinse with cold water and drain well.  In a bowl, combine the beans, onions, basil, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper.  Sprinkle with Romano cheese and toss to coat.

EverGreen Farm Deli Sandwich with Pesto ( Megan's Favorite Sandwich)

Deli Buns
Sun dried Tomato Turkey Breast
Deli Swiss cheese
Sliced vine-ripe tomatoes
Pesto (see recipe)

Spread the pesto on 1/2 of bun. Layer turkey, cheese, and tomatoes over pesto.  Top with other half of bun.  Bake until cheese melts at 400 degrees.

Prawns with Pesto Sauce (Makes 4 Servings)

Sixteen prawns or jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined (about one pound)
Lemon Marinade (about 1 cup)
Juice of a lemon (approximately 1/2 cup) or part lemon juice and part dry white wine equal to 1/2 cup
Pesto Sauce (see pesto recipe)
Lime wedges

1.    Make the pesto according to the recipe (bring to room temperature if cooled or frozen).
2.    Combine the prawns and the lemon marinade in a zippered plastic bag.  Seal the bag and refrigerate for one hour.
3.    Prepare a barbeque by heating coals or preheating gas grill or broiling pan if using the broiler.  Lightly the oil the cooking grate or broiling pan.
4.    Drain the prawns and discard the marinade.  Grill the prawns for about three minutes on each side or until they are cooked through.
5.    Transfer the prawns to dinner plates, allowing 4 per serving.  Garnish with lime wedges.  Serve with pesto sauce on the side.

Grilled Salmon with Basil and Mint

1 lemon sliced into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 cups plus 1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil
6 one inch thick pieces of skinned salmon
3/4 cup of minced mint
3/4 cup of minced basil

Brush lemon and salmon with olive oil.  Season fish with salt and pepper.  Grill salmon.  When the salmon is almost done, grill lemon wedges until grill marks appear (2-3 minutes on each side).  Heat basil and mint in remaining olive oil until wilted (about 1 minute).  Serve salmon dressed with herbed oil  and garnished with grilled lemon wedges.