Salad Mix
Russian Kale
Butterhead Lettuce
Summer Squash Mix
Red Ace or Chioggia Beets
Hakurei Turnips or Red Radishes
Flat Leaf Italian Parsley
Fresh Garlic
Polenta Bowl With Garlicky Summer Squash & Kale
Charred Corn Tacos with Zucchini-Radish Slaw
Mashed Zucchini Salad (Ajlouke Qura’a)– The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
In this Tunisian salad the blandness of zucchini is lifted by the very rich flavoring.
1 lb zucchini
Juice of ½ a lemon or more
3 Tbls extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp harissa (or a little chile flake)
1 or 2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp caraway seeds
Trim the ends of the zucchini and cut into large pieces. Boil in water for 10-15 minutes, until very soft. Drain then chop and mash in the colander to get rid of excess water. Beat the rest of the ingredients together and mix into the zucchini. Serve Cold.
Zucchini Salad With Raisins and Pine Nuts – The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
The combination of raisins and pine nuts was brought by the Arabs all the way to Spain and Sicily.
1 lb Zucchini
4 Tbls Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
2 Tbls Pine Nuts
2 Tbls Black or Gold Raisins or Currants
1 clove Garlic, crushed and chopped
Salt and Pepper
2 tsp dried mint (optional)
Juice of ½ Lemon, or more
Saute the Zucchini quickly in the oil with the pine nuts, raisins, and garlic. Add salt and pepper and dried mint, if using, and cook, stirring, over moderate heat until the zucchini slices are just tender. Serve hot or cold with lemon juice squeezed over the salad.
Turnip and Orange Salad –The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
This Salad is Tunisian. Wash 1 lb young, tender turnips and slice them very thinly. Macerate for an hour in a mixture of 3 Tbls olive oil and the juice of one bitter Seville orange or a mixture of orange and lemon juice (the dressing needs to be sharp), with a crushed clove of garlic, salt, and pepper. A pinch of ground chile is optional (aleppo pepper is amazing). Serve as it is with a few sprigs of parsley or add a chopped up orange (my favorite).
Roasted Beets, Avocado, and Sunflower Seeds from Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden
1 lb beets
kosher salt & black pepper
extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tbls red wine vinegar
¼ cup salted roasted sunflower seeds
½ cup lightly packed roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
4 scallions, trimmed, (including ½” off the green tops), sliced on a sharp angle, soaked in ice water for 20 minutes, and drained well
½ cup lightly packed, seeded, chopped pickled peppers
2 firm-ripe avocadoes
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Trim the tops and bottoms of the beets. Wash the greens and spin dry in a salad spinner. Rinse and scrub the beets to remove any mud and grit. Cut up any larger beets so that they are all about the same size.
Put the beets in a baking dish that’s large enough to accommodate all of them in a single layer. Season with salt, then pour ¼ cup water into the dish. Cover tightly with foil and steam roast until the beets are tender when pierced with a knife. Depending on the size, density, and age of the beets, this could take between 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Meanwhile, if you have beet greens to cook, heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add a glug of olive oil, add the beet greens, and toss them until they are wilted and a bit stewed, about 5 minutes. Set aside until cool, then chop through them a few times.
When the beets are tender, let them cool until you can handle them, then rub or pare away the skins. Cut into ½-inch wedges or chunks and pile into a bowl. Add the greens.
While the beets are still warm, sprinkle with the vinegar, ½ tsp salt, and many twists of pepper. Toss to distribute the seasonings and let the beets absorb the vinegar for a few minutes. Add a healthy glug of olive oil and toss again. Let the beets sit at room temperature until you are ready to serve.
To assemble for serving, add the sunflower seeds, parsley, scallions, and pickled peppers and toss gently. Peel the avocadoes and cut them into neat chunks that are about the same size as the beet wedges, and add them to the beets too. Toss thoroughly but very gently, so you don’t mash the avocado too much. Taste and adjust with more salt, black pepper, vinegar, or oil. Serve right away.