Purslane Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

Shareholders Steve and Zoe in love ... with strawberries

Here's what Farmer John had for us in Silver Lake this week:

Avocados
Navel oranges
Daikon radish
Russian kale
Beets
Red chard
Onions
Arugula
Dandelion greens
Romaine
Squash blossoms
Garlic chives
Mixed herbs
Purslane

And here's what Tara brought down from McGrath Family Farm, certified organic growers in Camarillo:

Beets
Carrots
Haricot verts
Red chard
Spring onions
Baby arugula
Dandelion greens
Mixed lettuces
Baby summer squash
Strawberries

Purslane has a reputation for being a somewhat ubiquitous weed that's easy to grow, but ironically many people have never heard of it, and even fewer have tasted it. It's a delightful green with a bright, lemony flavor akin to sorrel. It can be eaten raw or cooked; and it's lovely simply thrown into a green or mixed salad.

Here's a simple dish using several of this week's vegetables plus a few more that you might have growing in your garden or can pick up from your local farmer's market. It only takes a few minutes to whip up this light and delicious salad.

Purslane Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

1 bunch purslane
1 large heirloom tomato
2 Persian cucumbers
1/2 small red onion
1-2 small ripe avocado
1/2 C loosely packed chopped Italian parsley
1/4 C extra virgin olive oil
2-3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
1-2 T red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

1. Wash, dry, and pull the leaves off the purslane. Place in a bowl. Compost the stems.

2. Wash, dry, and coarsely chop the heirloom tomato and place in the bowl with the purslane.

3. Wash, dry, and halve lengthwise the Persian cucumbers, then chop crosswise in 1/4inch slices and add to the bowl.

4. Thinly slice lengthwise half of a small red onion. Then cut the slices in half (or thirds) crosswise and add to the bowl.

5. Halve the avocado(s) lengthwise. Remove the pit(s). Cut the flesh of each half lengthwise and crosswise into medium dice and scoop out from the skin and into the bowl.

6. Add the chopped parsley to the bowl.

7. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

8. In a separate small bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients until well-combined to make the lemon vinaigrette. Pour the dressing over the salad, toss, and correct the seasoning, if necessary.

This salad is also very nice with the addition of chopped fresh mint. Another variation to consider is adding a little minced fresh garlic to the lemon vinaigrette.

Enjoy!

Shelley

Salade Nicoise

What a bountiful week!

Here's what Farmer John had for us in Silver Lake this week:

Navel oranges
Avocados
Daikon radish
Red radishes
Red & golden beets
Curly green kale (pictured below)
Green chard
Tat soi
Arugula
Romaine lettuce
Dandelion greens
Tomatoes
Squash blossoms
Mixed herbs

And here's what Tara and Danielle brought down from McGrath Family Farm, certified organic growers in Camarillo:

Carrots
Forono beets
Black kale
Red chard
Spring onions (that's what Danielle is holding below)
Sweet corn
Baby arugula
Mixed greens
Green string beans
Strawberries

When I saw the beautiful strings beans at the CSA pick-up this week, I thought Salade Nicoise. I learned to make Salade Nicoise in 1977 in a class on the regional foods and wines of France. In that class, our Salade Nicoise was built on a base of blanched string beans, boiled potatoes, and butter lettuce. It also had oil-packed, canned tuna, anchovies, olives, red onion, tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and fresh parsley all in a Dijon mustard vinaigrette.

Since then, I've enhanced my recipe with the addition of capers, fresh basil, and lemon juice; and I've embraced the California version using fresh, seared Ahi tuna, at least some of the time.

Over the years, I've eaten many Nicoise salads and I've seen other ingredients included such as fresh or roasted red peppers; mixed greens, especially arugula, instead of or in addition to butter lettuce; and balsamic vinegar dressings.

Here's a nice blueprint for this lovely composed salad. Don't sweat it if you don't have (or don't like) all the ingredients, it's a wonderful full-meal salad however you make it.

Salade Nicoise

Serves 2

2 C loosely packed butter lettuce or mixed greens
1/4 lb small or thin string beans, blanched and cooled
4 smallish new potatoes, boiled until just tender and cooled
1 can oil-packed tuna
1 medium tomato,sliced lengthwise into 6-8 sections
2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
1-2 T thinly sliced red onion
8-10 black Nicoise olives, or more to taste
4 canned anchovy fillets, or more to taste
1 T capers, or more to taste
1 T chopped fresh Italian parsley
1 T chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste

For the Dressing:
3 T extra virgin olive oil
1 T wine or cider vinegar
1 T fresh-squeezed lemon juice, or more to taste
1-2 t prepared Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

1. Briskly mix together all the ingredients for the dressing until emulsified. Set aside.

2. Wash and dry the lettuces and/or greens. Break into bite-sized pieces. Toss with 1-2 T of the dressing. Arrange dressed greens on 2 plates.

3. Toss the blanched string beans with 1 t of the dressing and arrange half the beans in a small stack on each plate.

4. Slice the potatoes and fan out half the slices on each plate. Drizzle with a few drops of dressing.

5. Drain and flake the tuna. Divide among the 2 plates.

6. Arrange half the tomato sections and one quartered hard-boiled egg on each of the 2 plates.

7. Scatter the finely sliced onion, olives, and capers among the 2 plates. Drape 2 anchovy fillets on each plate. Sprinkle with the chopped herbs, salt and pepper to taste, and drizzle with the remaining dressing.

If you don't have Nicoise olives, you can substitute Kalamata olives or dried black olives. If you like your salads more heavily dressed, double the dressing recipe.

Enjoy!

Shelley

Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce

Drove up to Camarillo this morning with Danielle to pick up freshly harvested organic carrots and more from McGrath Family Farm.


Farmer John brought a fresh batch of yellow onions to the pick-up today.


Fresh organic strawberries from McGrath.


Got 10 batches of rhubarb for shareholders who love to bake and experiment...

Here's what Farmer John had for us at the Silver Lake pick-up this week:

Beets
Sweet yellow onions
Negi onions
Turnips
Radishes
Baby romaine
Mizuna
Lemon basil
Green chard
Dandelion greens
Squash blossoms

And here's what Tara picked up this morning from McGrath Family Farm in Camarillo. All of these items are certified organic and picked fresh this morning while Tara waited:

Baby beets
Black kale
Rhubarb
Baby turnips
Carrots
Spring greens mix
Spring onions
Red chard
Dandelion greens
Strawberries

Rhubarb has always signified spring to me, but in warmer climates like Southern Califronia, rhubarb can grow practically year-round. Rhubarb's beautiful magenta stalks belie a puckery tartness that's often tamed with sugar and fruits. Rhubarb makes a lovely pie, either on it's own or mixed with apples or strawberries. Rhubarb makes great jam or preserves as well, mixed with citrus, strawberries, or raspberries. Here's a simple Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce that you can use as a topping on ice cream, vanilla pudding, custard, cake, or just about anything that might benefit from its bright, tart and sweet flavors.

Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce

5-6 large stalks rhubarb
1 pint hulled strawberries
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C water or fresh-squeezed orange juice
zest of 1 lemon or orange

1. Trim the rhubarb and remove any tough stringy parts with a vegetable peeler, if necessary. Cut crosswise into 1/2-3/4 inch pieces.

2. Combine rhubarb and all other ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring regularly.

3. Cook for about 10 minutes, until rhubarb is tender, skimming off any foam that might form.

4. Cool to room temperature before using on ice cream. Or top warm custard or warm vanilla pudding with warm Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce. Sauce will keep covered in the refrigerator for about a week.

Enjoy!

Shelley

Beachwood Canyon 6/8 pick-up

Russian Kale

Final pick-up for Round 2 of our CSA program in Beachwood Canyon and this week Farmer John brought:

Russian Kale
Radishes
Negi (green) onions
Red onions
Beets (2 golden, 1 red)
Mizuna (in the mustard family - lovely fresh in a salad)
Dandelion greens
Zucchini squash blossoms/baby zucchini
Arugula
Red romaine and oak - young and tender for salad
Nectarines
Avocados
Oranges
Kabu or Japanese turnips

Let me know if you're in for Round 3!! We start back up again on Tuesday, June 22.

Have a great week!

Tara

Strawberry Shortcake

Here's what Farmer John had for us in Silver Lake this week:

Red beets
Red radishes
Avocados
Grapefruit
Tat soi
Negi onions
Russian kale
Arugula
Red romaine
Green chard
Squash blossoms

This week we're introducing a new farmer, Phil McGrath from McGrath Family Farm. They are certified organic and are based in Camarillo. This week, McGrath Family Farm provided:

Carrots
Black radishes
Strawberries
Mizuna
Spring onions
Black kale
Dandelion greens
Romaine head lettuce
Red chard
Lemons
Garlic

Local strawberries have been in season for nearly two months; and we're fortunate to have such luscious berries grown less than 50 miles away in Camarillo. A substantial percentage of the nation's strawberries are grown in Camarillo which gives us access to some of the ripest and freshest fruit on the market.

Ripe strawberries are terrific by themselves or with a little cream, but strawberry shortcake is a wonderful and easy dessert to whip up. When the strawberries are as beautiful and tasty as the ones we got today, I like to start by macerating only half of them; I use the rest fresh. Then I mix up a quick shortcake, or sweet biscuit dough, and bake it. Just before serving I whip the cream and assemble the dessert.

Strawberry Shortcake

Macerate the Berries:
Wash 1 pint strawberries. Divide in 2 equal portions. Remove the hulls and slice half of the berries into a medium bowl. Set remaining berries aside. Sprinkle 2-3 T granulated sugar over the sliced berries. Cover and set aside on the counter for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally, or refrigerate for several hours. The berries should soften slightly and the sugar and juice from the berries should form a light strawberry sauce. If you'd like, add 1-2 t Grand Marnier or Cointreau with the sugar.

Make the Shortcake:
1 C flour
2 t baking powder
1 rounded T granulated sugar
1/4 t salt
1/2 stick (1/4 C) cold butter, cut into pieces
3 oz milk or cream

1. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Sift the dry ingredients into a medium bowl or stir them thoroughly with a fork.

3. Add the butter pieces and mix with a fork or pastry blender until the mix resembles a coarse meal. [You can do this in a food processor, just be careful not to over-mix.]

4. Add the milk or cream all at once and mix with a fork or your fingers until just combined. It's ok if it's lumpy. Don't over-mix.

5. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Knead it once or twice until it holds together. Pat it to 1/2 inch thickness and cut into desired shapes. I usually pat mine into a round disk and cut it into 8 wedges.

6. Place shortcakes on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool.

This recipe makes about 8 shortcakes, but you'll only use 4 with 1 pint of strawberries, as 1 pint of berries makes about 4 servings. For 8 servings, double the berries or add a pint of another fruit. Or save the shortcakes for another use, they're great for breakfast with butter and jam.

To assemble shortcakes:
1/2 C whipping cream (or more to taste)
1/2 t vanilla
2 t powdered sugar

1. Whip the cream with the vanilla and sugar.

2. Slice the remaining fresh berries that were set aside and stir them into the macerated berries.

3. Slice open 4 shortcakes and arrange on 4 plates.

4. Divide the strawberries among the 4 shortcakes. Be sure to spoon some of the juice from the macerated berries on each of the shortcakes.

5. Top with whipped cream.

Enjoy!

Shelley

Beachwood Canyon 6/1 pick-up

Here's what Farmer John had for us at the Beachwood Canyon CSA pick-up yesterday:

Russian Kale
Negi Onions (aka Japanese, Green Onions)
Beets
Tatsoi (Chinese Spinach - sautee this one)
Collard Greens
Swiss Chard
Radishes
Zucchini Squash Blossoms + baby zucchini
Young Red Romaine
Mixed herbs - oregano, sage, thyme
Oranges

Enjoy!

Tara