Weekly Share June 22nd – 28th

Escarole
Russian Kale
Cabbage: Tendersweet (Tues) or Napa (Sat)
Suyo Long & Slicer Cucumbers
Cousa & Zephyr Squash
Tropea Spring Onion
Basil

Things like cabbage, escarole, kale or summer squash can become more delicious as you cook them in fat and finish with a good dose of salt & acidity. If your feeling like your fridge is full and the abundance is too much to handle, take a few lbs of squash or half a huge head of cabbage and slice thinly. Saute over medium high heat onions and/ or garlic in your fat of choice (butter, bacon grease, olive oil, or a combination) and then add whatever veggie single layer, salt and cover for a few minutes to sweat (remove the liquid) as well as get a little char, uncover stir it up and move to the side, add fat if needed and add another layer of veggie. Do this 3-5 times and the initial stuff will be confit with the latter ones having some texture. Finish with lemon, vinegar, or the like. Enjoy the share….Autumn & Brian

Cucumber-Basil Egg Salad

Cucumber and Baby Pea Salad

Escarole Caesar With Sardines and Hazelnuts

Escarole with Onion and Lemon

Halibut with Spring Onion and Summer Squash Sauté

Cabbage And Basil Salad

New Cabbage with ScallionsThe Taste of Country Cooking by Edna Lewis
The first time we would cook and serve our newly grown garden cabbage was on a wheat-threshing day. We would cut up many heads and cook them in a large iron pot with liquid from the pork shoulder and a small amount of fat for seasoning. Cabbage cooked that way was a hearty fare, good sustenance for hardworking men. We children usually had the food that was left over from the midday meal that night for supper and thought it was just great. No other food in the world seemed to have quite the good flavor of what was left over from a wheat-threshing dinner.
1 2-pound head new cabbage
1/3 cup tender green scallion tops, cut into ¼” slices
2 cups boiling water, or preferably stock from boiled pork shoulder
3 Tbls freshly rendered fat from bacon or ham
salt and freshly ground pepper
To prepare the cabbage, trim away the outside leaves and cut the head into quarters. Cut away the core, leaving just enough to hold the leaves intact. Place the pieces of cabbage in a bowl of cold water for about 15 minutes or so to wash out any dust or bugs, particularly if it has come straight out of the garden. Remove, drain in a colander, then place in a 3-quart saucepan and add the scallion tops to give added flavor and color. Pour the boiling water or stock over and toss the cabbage with two spoons to make sure that each piece is scalded. Add the fat so that it coats the cabbage, then turn the burner low so that the cabbage boils briskly but not too rapidly for 25-30 minutes –any longer and the cabbage will become too soft and its taste will change. Drain. Toss the salt to taste and a good grating of freshly ground pepper to heighten the flavor. Serve hot.

This entry was posted in weekly share and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.