Kitchen Gadget Girl Cooks

Eggplant

We hosted an 80th birthday party this weekend for a dear friend, and now we are enjoying the leftovers. Although, I have a bit of a rule on leftovers – no more than 3 meals of the same food (including lunches and the first time the food is served). Tonight will be our last night. Some leftovers I did throw in the freezer for later (experimented with my Food Saver and a farro salad), so it is not like I cannot revisit these dishes again.

Our vegetable box from Two Small Farms had several treasures this week: Padron Peppers, Eggplant and Fennel. We also found Lettuce, Celery, Strawberries, Parsley Root, and Summer Squash. I am still wussing out on the Parsley Root, throwing the tops to the chickens and saving the roots for my stock bag. I keep a stock bag in the freezer, with all sorts of tasty vegetables that are past their prime, or not usable in day-to-day cooking. When I am ready to make stock with a leftover carcass, I throw a handful or two of these vegetables in the pot. Things like celery tops, onion skins, carrot peels, asparagus spears, and parsley root are all ideal.

I have a great Sausage and Eggplant soup that I like to make, but it is too early to serve for dinner (it has deep flavors that I enjoy more in the fall), so I am going to make it and freeze it for later. It is so great because most people cannot tell there is eggplant in the soup!

Padron Peppers

My menu plan for the week of August 30th is:

Monday: Fennel salad, roasted salmon, sauteed padron peppers and summer squash, brown rice

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Cabbage rolls (still have 3 heads of cabbage from a couple weeks ago!), bread, green salad

Thursday: Leftovers or something from the freezer

Friday: Takeout and movie night!

What is on your menu plan this week?

Garlic Bulb

This week is back-to-school in our household, and I thought it would be nice to have a couple of the kids’ favorites. While on vacation, we used a couple pounds of our Morris Grass-fed ground beef for tacos and sloppy joes, and I think I will bring those items back this week. Maybe a large batch of sloppy joes so I can tuck some away in the freezer for later!

Our box from Two Small Farms contained many staple items this week, which allows me a lot of flexibility in menu planning. In addition to a bag with Garlic and mixed Onions, we also found Tomatoes, Strawberries, Green Onions, Carrots, Potatoes and Cabbage. I managed to score an extra cabbage (or two), so I will be putting up a batch of sauerkraut today. It needs a couple weeks to sit and meld before I can make my favorite Pork Chops and Sauerkraut.

Here is my menu plan for the week of August 23:

Monday: Sloppy Joes, carrot sticks, special first-day-of-school dessert treat

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Roasted carrot soup, corn bread muffins, sliced tomatoes

Thursday: Tacos with a Rancho Gordo Bean Pot, chopped tomatoes

Friday: Movie night and takeout

What is on your menu plan this week? Any special back-to-school favorites?

Cantaloupe

Our box from Two Small Farms CSA was full of many summer time favorites, including Sweet Corn, Zucchini and Cantaloupe. We also found Onions, Spinach, Red Beets, Strawberries and Purple Cauliflower.

Here is my menu plan for the week of August 2:

Sunday: Corn, sauteed spinach, grilled zucchini, grilled lamb chops

Monday: Hamburgers, Corn and Zucchini Saute, sliced cantaloupe

Tuesday: Farro and Roasted Beet Salad, grilled sausages, nectarines and plums

Wednesday: Orecchiette with Cauliflower and Zucchini, bread

Thursday: Cauliflower, White Bean and Feta Salad (I am going to use red cabbage instead of endive. Nice mix with the purple cauliflower)

Friday: Out to dinner

What is on your menu plan this week?

Bianco di Maggio Onions

Our organic vegetable box from Two Small Farms was packed with a large head of Romaine Lettuce, so this week’s menu is going to involve quite a bit of salad. I think I am going to bring back the Taco Salad from a few weeks ago, as that was a hit with the kids, plus I think it will travel well to our Tuesday swim meet.

The rest of our box contained Strawberries, Chantenay Carrots, Bianco di Maggio Onions, Basil, Green Beans, Fennel, and Potatoes.

Here is my menu plan for the week of July 12:

Monday: Taco Salad, carrot sticks

Tuesday: Swim Meet

Wednesday: Supper Club at the Pool – grilled onions, a Green Bean and Fennel Salad (no mushrooms) or Potato and Green Bean Salad or Green Bean and Potato Salad with Pesto, along with the ubiquitous hot dogs and mini-burgers from Trader Joes.

Thursday: Freezer surprise – still getting our standalone freezer ready for the big influx of meat from Morris Grass Fed.

Friday: Kid’s Night Out!

I am also feeling like I could use a whole grain salad in my life, so I might make one to have on hand for lunch or snacks. This Farro, Radiccio and Roasted Beet Salad looks good, I could use Fennel instead for a different flavor profile.

What is on your menu plan this week?

Savoy Cabbage

Summer is really in full swing, and between camp, swim meets and poolside BBQs, we are not home that much to cook. I am on the constant lookout for fun recipes to take to the pool, salads and sides that are easy to share in our weekly supper club. Please, send your favorites!

My new FoodSaver arrived this weekend and I am having fun packaging and repackaging items for my freezer. The FoodSaver is a kitchen tool recommended to me way back by Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen, and since, many folks over have told me how great they are (thanks Rainier Wolfcastle!). The device sucks all the air out of special plastic bags, and then seals it all up. The resulting flat package is perfect for freezer storage.

Excuse me for a moment.

Now I am back. I remembered I had some plum butter in the freezer that I wanted to FoodSaver (can you use it as a verb?). Ranier suggested I freezer items that were very moist, then FoodSaver them, which would be better for the machine and not cause all my product to be sucked into the machine. So I did that, and just needed to finish the job.

The plum butter I made in my crock pot, using a clue or two from Marisa at Food in Jars (Slow Cooker Blueberry Butter) and Terri from Knit & Nosh. My first batch failed, but the second worked fine and I think the trick is to leave the lid slightly askew. Sounded weird to me, too, but it worked. I ended up throwing in about 6 pounds of plums (skins and pits and all) and 3 cups of sugar, and letting the whole thing cook for about 12 hours. Then I allowed it to cool and using my hands, found and removed all the pits. Then I used my immersion blender to make it smooth. I decided to freeze it, since I was not sure if it would be safe to can, since I let it cool.

Onto this week’s menu plan. Our box from Two Small Farms contained Hamburg Parsley (I shamelessly fed mine to the chickens), Strawberries, Romaine Lettuce, Red Beets, Bianco de Maggio Onions, Cherry Tomatoes, Round Zucchini, and Savoy Cabbage. I am excited about the cabbage and plan to try stuffed cabbage rolls. I also need to clean out the freezer, since next week, I pick up my split half of beef from Morris Grassfed. That’s 80+ pounds of grass-fed goodness. Yum.

Here is my menu plan for the week of July 5:

Monday: Leftovers from July 4th BBQ + a little zucchini, onion, corn sauté I threw together

Tuesday: Cabbage rolls with ground beef, salad, bread

Wednesday: BBQ at pool – Potato salad (or maybe this Potato Salad), Roasted Beets with Balsamic, watermelon, hotdogs and hamburgers

Thursday: Swim meet

Friday: TGIF and mini-block party

What is on your menu plan this week? Any special Independence Day dishes to share? I made a peach pie that was great (with Trader Joe’s pie crusts! Cheating, I know.) from How to Cook Everything. My baked beans were just so-so. The potato salad Christy brought was excellent. And of course, how can you go wrong with brownies!

Basil

As it turns out, with the kids off at sleepaway camp, and a couple dinners out, I am thinking that I don’t actually need a menu plan this week. Our box from Two Small Farms has a couple things that I will need to eat this week (Little Gem Lettuce, Strawberries, Cherry Tomatoes) but the rest ought to be ok until this weekend, which since it is the 4th, works out well.

The rest of our box contained Basil, Mei Quin Choy (like Bok Choy), Purplette Cocktail Onions, Orange Cauliflower and New Potatoes.

By the way, did you hear about the Basil Blight hitting the East Coast? Sounds like the perfect time to make an easy pesto with this week’s basil!

What is on your menu plan this week? Any interesting hot-weather ideas? Check out these thirteen dinners for a hot night….

Homemade Pickle Plate

Last weekend, I was honored to host a baby shower for a good friend, Dena. It was over 90F outside, but we managed to have a lovely lunch in the garden. The actual party was not a problem, but I found myself very worried about the games. Fortunately, Dena absolved me of this responsibility, declaring that games were unneccessary. Yippee!

Once I could focus on the food, the menu came together quickly:

Baby Shower Lunch Menu

• Farro Salad with Artichokes, Garbanzo Beans and Sun-dried Tomatoes
• White Bean and Tuna Salad
• Sliced salumi
• Italian cheese
• Fresh bread and butter
• Cantaloupe and strawberries
• Prossecco, lemonade and ice tea

Blueberry Slab Pie

For dessert, I made Blueberry Slab Pie, which was very easy to make and tasted great. I was slightly disappointed that I could not use local blueberries, but since the recipe called for 8 cups, I decided that my budget would be much happier with frozen wild blueberries.

Farro Salad

Farro Salad with Chickpeas and Marinated Artichoke Hearts
from Whole Grains for Busy People, by Lorna Sass

For the salad
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 TBS balsamic vinegar
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups semi-pearled farro
12 ounces marinated artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
1 1/2 cups chickpeas (canned or fresh cooked), drained and rinsed
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil (chopped, or look for julienned in the jar)

For the dressing
3 TBS oil from the sun-dried tomatoes
3 TBS grated Romano cheese
1 TBS lemon zest
3 TBS lemon juice
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Salt & pepper

Pour balsamic vinegar over onion in small bowl. Set aside.

Bring 2 1/2 cups water and salt to a boil; add farro and cook for 20-25 minutes, until tender. Drain.

Combine artichoke hearts, chickpeas and sun dried tomatoes in medium bowl. Toss in farro and onion with any unabsorbed vinegar.

To make the dressing, whisk olive oil, cheese, lemon zest, lemon juice and parsley. Toss with remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings. Chill until ready to use.

Note: This salad kept very well, and could be made a day ahead of your party.

Tuna Salad

White Bean and Tuna Salad
from Mediterranean Light, by Martha Rose Shulman

1 red onion, thinly sliced
3-4 TBS red wine vinegar
2 cups cooked white beans (I used canned here, not enough time to cook my own)
1- 6 1/2 ounce jar water-packed tuna (I went for the nicest tuna I could find)
2 tomatoes, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice of 1 lemon (3-4 TBS)
3-4 TBS flat-leaf parsley, chopped (can also use basil)
2 TBS olive oil
1 TBS plain, lowfat yogurt
1 TBS capers, rinsed
Salt & pepper
Tomato wedges to garnish

Toss onion with 2 TBS vinegar and add water to cover. Let soak 30 minutes and drain.

Toss together remaining ingredients (except tomato wedges). Taste and correct seasonings. Chill until ready to serve. To serve, line a serving bowl with lettuce, mound salad in the middle, and garnish with tomato wedges.

Chives

Last week’s Orzo with Grilled Shrimp and Summer Vegetables worked really well, just not on Wednesday as I had planned. Wednesday, I had a leftover farro salad from a baby shower (post to follow), and we brought that to the pool along with a cherry cobbler. Not sure why I did not pull off a pie, but for some reason, I had difficulty finding a recipe I wanted to use and as the day got later and later, I realized all I had time for was the cobbler. Still tasty.

And I never got to the Kale-Potato soup on Thursday. We had loads of leftover Sloppy Joe, as well as Taco Salad, so Thursday was leftovers. The Kale might be enjoyed by the chickens, unless I get it cooked in the next day or so.

I do recommend the Orzo salad, it was easy to prepare and while I served it room temperature, it is great made-ahead and chilled. I used pesto I had in the freezer, and the shrimp were frozen and thawed. Since we have various food issues in the family (one does not like cheese, kids are not wild about shrimp) I served the salad, shrimp and mozzarella cheese balls separately, a make-your-own dinner. To round out the meal, we had fresh melon and strawberries from our box.

In our box from Two Small Farms, we also found Chives, Fennel, Spinach, Strawberries, Cherry Tomatoes, Chantenay Carrots, Lettuce, Basil and Beets. I traded my basil for more beets, which I plan to roast and toss with balsamic vinegar.

Menu Plan – June 21st

Monday: Roasted potatoes with butter and chives, grilled chicken, roasted beets with balsamic, sauteed greens

Tuesday: Swim Team Psych Dinner

Wednesday: Dinner at the pool: salad with fennel and shredded carrots, hot dogs and mini burgers (check out Trader Joes mini burgers and buns, very cute!)

Thursday: Salmon, salad and bulger pilaf (and whatever other veggies might still be lurking in the crisper)

Friday: TGIF (I already have a stash of finger foods from CostCo to bust out this week. Did you know that Paul Bertolli has a line of Fra’Mani foods sold at CostCo? Look pretty tasty, might have to try them once the weather gets cooler. Not that it has been very hot. Funny summer.)

What is on your menu plan this week?

Our first week of summer vacation and so much to do! Camps and swim team and poolside BBQs. I feel like I am already behind, and summer is supposed to be relaxing. Ack.

Avocado

Our box from Two Small Farms this week had a nice large bag of Bacon Avocados, my favorite. There might be some guacamole, or maybe in salads or my favorite, on toasted sourdough with mayonnaise and salt. This is one food I am glad the kids don’t like, leaves more for me!

The rest of our box contained Lacinto Kale, Parsley, Strawberries, Romaine and Red Leaf Lettuce, Summer Squash, New Potatoes, and Cherry Tomatoes. The strawberries and tomatoes were instantly inhaled, here is my plan for the rest of our vegetable box for the week of June 14:

Monday: Summer Squash Sloppy Joes, salad

Tuesday: Taco Salad (includes lettuce, tomatoes, black beans, and taco-seasoned meat), guacamole, chips, salad

Wednesday: BBQ at the pool – I plan to bring Orzo with Grilled Shrimp and Summer Vegetables, as well as a Cherry Pie!

Thursday: Kale-Potato Soup (from our CSA newsletter), bread, salad

Friday: Kid’s Night Out! (translation: kids are busy, so adults get to go out too!)

What is on your menu plan this week? Any suggestions for good BBQ food?

Lettuce

Healthy Salads

Our box from Two Small Farms is loaded with lettuce, so I think this week is going to be all about salads. Hopefully the weather will cooperate, as salads are best, IMHO, when it is too hot to cook. And, as it turns out, the folks at Tossed (those of you in New York might know this made-to-order salad spot) sent me the top 10 things to put in a salad, and the top 5 mistakes to avoid:

Top 9 Additions to a Healthy Salad

1. Spinach
2. Broccoli
3. Carrots
4. Sunflower Seeds
5. Almond
6. Grape Tomatoes
7. Shiitake Mushrooms
8. Apples
9. Strawberries

Top 5 Ways to Ruin a Healthy Salad

1. Iceberg Lettuce
2. Too Many Croutons and Bacon Bits
3. Loads of cheese
4. Fried anything
5. Overdressed (that is too much salad dressing, not the tuxedo problem)

The rest of our box, in addition to Spinach, Red Butter Lettuce, Romaine Lettuce and Arugula, contained Cilantro, Strawberries, Chantenay Carrots, Summer Squash and Oyster Mushrooms. I think I am going to have a salad bar available at most of the dinners this week with some of the items from the good list (I will prepare everything ahead of time and keep in the fridge, so we can just pull out and put on the table for everyone to make their own salad). I ended up with 3 bunches of cilantro, so I am going to make pesto and stick it in the freezer for use later this summer.

Here is my menu plan for the week of June 7:

Sunday: Lamb kebabs, orzo salad with zucchini and feta, red leaf butter lettuce salad

Monday: Arugula pesto on broiled salmon and tossed with whole wheat pasta, braised spinach, green salad bar

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Rotisserie-style Chicken in the Crockpot (new family favorite), grilled zucchini, green salad bar, bread

Thursday: Eating out to celebrate the end of school year!

Friday: TGIF and mini block party (I think I am going to make Wild Mushroom Crostini, although technically, it is supposed to be Appetizers of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Maybe I can find some other way to use the mushrooms. I could also make some sort of rolls with the zucchini, since we have quite a bit of that. Other suggestions?)

What is on your menu plan this week?