Cultivating Sustainability

This is a really simple, yet delicious salad…and a great way to use up some of your CSA farm share cabbage.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium head of green leaf lettuce*
• 1/2 head of green cabbage, chopped*
• 3 scallions, chopped*
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 2-3 tbsp lemon garlic vinaigrette
• 3 tbsp feta, crumbled

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine lettuce through walnuts in a large bowl.
2. Toss with lemon vinaigrette. Serve immediately and sprinkle with crumbled feta.

This delicious pasta makes the perfect summer meal – light, but hearty enough to be filling. The potatoes add a nice, unexpected texture. (*Indicates Potomac Vegetable Farm (PVF) produce. For more information about what we are doing with our PVF CSA share, click here.)

INGREDIENTS

• 3 cups (packed) fresh basil leaves*
• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 3 tbsp walnuts
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 medium onion, chopped*
• 1 medium zucchini, sliced*
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 8 oz fingerling potatoes*
• 12 oz pasta, such as gemelli, cooked

DIRECTIONS

1. Blend basil, 1/4 cup oil, pine nuts, walnuts and garlic cloves in a food processor until finely chopped. Add grated parmesan. With machine running, gradually blend in remaining oil. Set pesto aside.
2. Cook potatoes in a pressure cooker, according to your pressure cooker’s directions (or add potatoes to boiling water and boil until tender, about 7 minutes). Set potatoes aside.
3. In a large pan, saute onion and zucchini in 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil until tender.
4. Combine cooked pasta, potatoes, zucchini and onions. Add a out 1/2 to 3/4 of the pesto and toss to coat (reserve remaining pesto for another use).
5. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately in large past bowls, and top each dish with 3-5 bocconcini (small nuggets of fresh mozzarella).

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Don’t be intimidated by this 2 layer, 99.9% organic cake! It is probably one of the easiest cakes to make – even my husband with is rudimentary baking skills can make this delicious dessert. And one of the best things about this recipe…it has half the fat of the typical carrot cake recipe, because it substitutes all-natural organic apple sauce for half of the canola oil. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

Dry Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups organic cane sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose, organic flour
• 2 tsp organic cinnamon
• 2 tsp organic baking powder
• 2 tsp organic baking soda
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 cup organic walnuts or pecans

Wet Ingredients

• 3 cups peeled and grated organic carrots
• 1/2 cup all-natural, organic applesauce
• 1/2 cup organic canola oil
• 2 free-range, organic eggs*

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 tbsp organic butter, chilled
• 1 (8 oz) package organic cream cheese (preferably Neufchatel cheese – also called 1/3 less fat cream cheese)
• 1 lb package organic powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp grated organic lemon rind

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using cooking spray, evenly coat 2 round, 8-inch cake pans and lightly dust with flour.
2. Mix all dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
3. Mix all wet ingredients together in a separate bowl. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well (note: batter will be very stiff).
4. Spread the batter evenly into TWO round, 8-inch baking cake pans.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of each cake pan comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 5-10 minutes on a wire rack. Loosen cake layers from sides of pans using a narrow spatula or plastic knife; turn out onto wire racks; and let cool completely (about 30 minutes to 1 hour).
6. Meanwhile, prepare the frosting. Beat butter and cream cheese at high speed of a mixer in a large bowl until fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar, vanilla and lemon rind; beat at low speed until just blended (do not overbeat, or icing may become runny). Cover and chill.
7. To frost the cake, place 1 cake layer on a large plate. Spread about 1/3 the cream cheese icing on top of the layer; spreading carefully from the center out to just the edges of the cake layer (it is easiest to use a large knife). Top with the second cake layer and repeat, however this time use all the remaining icing and spread the icing over the sides/edges of the cake layer, making sure to evenly spread the remaining icing over the sides and top of the cake.

I first discovered the wonderful pasta recipe in Cooking Light Magazine in October 2005. I’ve been making it at least once a year, since. This recipe includes my adaptations. Serve with fresh grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese and a side salad, or in this case sauteed broccoli rabe with garlic, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. while the vibrant green pesto darkens with age, the pasta tastes great the next day for lunch, too.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large butternut squash, peeled and cubed (1/4 inch)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3/4  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1 cup  fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup fresh sage leaves
• 2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 4  tablespoons  extravirgin olive oil
• 2  garlic cloves
• 1/3  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• 16 oz uncooked pasta (such as cavatappi or corkscrew)
• 4  cups  torn arugula
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 450°.
2. Arrange squash in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. Sprinkle evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Bake at 450° for 20 minutes or until squash is tender, stirring after 10 minutes. Cool squash slightly.
3. Meanwhile bring 4-5 quarts water to a rolling boil. Cook pasta according to directions.
4. Combine 1/4 teaspoon salt, parsley, and next 5 ingredients (through garlic) in a food processor; process until finely chopped, scraping sides. With processor on, slowly pour broth through food chute, processing until well blended.
5. Combine the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, squash, pasta, and pesto in a large bowl, and toss well to coat. Add arugula, shallots, and pepper; toss to combine. Serve immediately.

This delicious variation of apple crisp combines the sweetness of local fall apples with the tartness of New England fresh cranberries. Serve crisp hot, room temperature, or cold with a couple scoops of vanilla bean ice cream. Recipe adapted from Fine Cooking (click here for the original recipe). (* Indicates CSA vegetable.)

INGREDIENTS

For the streusel

• 4-1/2 oz. (1 cup) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped lightly toasted walnuts
• 1/4 tsp. table salt
• 3 oz. (6 Tbs.) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling

• 5 medium tart baking apples (or a mixture of CSA apples)*
• 6 oz. fresh cranberries (1-3/4 cups)
• 3/4 cup plus 6 Tbs. granulated sugar
• 1 oz. (3-1/2 Tbs.) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven, set a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet on the rack, and heat the oven to 350°F.
2. Make the streusel. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, walnuts, and salt. Using your fingers, blend the butter into the flour mixture. Set aside.
3. Make the filling. Peel, quarter, and core each apple. Cut each quarter lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices and then cut each slice crosswise at 1/4-inch intervals to make tiny rectangles. In a food processor, pulse the cranberries with 3/4 cup of the sugar until coarsely chopped. In a large bowl, combine the remaining 6 Tbs. sugar with the flour, ginger, and cinnamon. Toss in the cranberry mixture and apples.
4. Mound the filling into a 8X8″ baking dish. Sprinkle the streusel topping over the apple mixture, pressing the streusel between your fingers into small lumps as you sprinkle.
5. Put the crisp on the heated baking sheet and bake until the streusel is deeply browned and the filling is bubbling vigorously at the edges of the pie, 50-60 minutes. Check every 20 minutes, and if the pastry edge or the streusel browns before the filling is done, loosely cover the top or edges of the pie as needed with aluminum foil.
6. Transfer to a rack and cool completely before serving. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour (plus 1 tbsp for dusting the baking pan)
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 4 cups apples (about 5-6 medium apples, peeled and cut into small 1/4 inch pieces)
• 1 cup chopped nuts (such as pecans or walnuts)
• 1 cup dried fruit (such as golden raisins or currants)
• Cooking spray

DIRECTIONS

1. Peel and chop apples.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a bundt pan evenly with cooking spray and dust with about 1 tbsp of flour. Remove any excess flour.
3. Mix dry ingredients (flour through nutmeg, only) in a large bowl. In a separate bowl whisk wet ingredients (eggs through oil, only).
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Fold in apples, nuts and dried fruit. There is only enough batter to evenly coat the apples, nuts and dried fruit. The mixture will be very sticky.
5. Pour evenly into bundt pan and cooking for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Serve with vanilla ice cream.