CSA-The Element of Surprise {Thanksgiving Special}

I am a planner. And a list-maker. I plan my dinners in advance every week. I compile piles and piles of "candidates" for weeknight dinners and Sunday dinners. And then I eliminate, and group meals together, and assign dates. And then comes the grocery shopping lists, organized by categories, and even by which aisle comes first at the store.

So it probably doesn't come as a shock that at first I struggled with the "surprise box" that comes as a part of my CSA share. CSA stands for “Community Supported Agriculture.” It is a direct way for you to buy seasonal produce from the farmer. You buy a share at the beginning of the season, and each week you get a variety of vegetables. Yes, it is locally and organically grown. Yes, it tastes way better than anything I could find at a grocery store. It is so freshly harvested that you can literally smell (and see) the soil on the vegetable. But what happens when you find an awesome recipe for green beans and an even better recipe for asparagus, but you get spinach and eggplant?

When my CSA share first started last spring, I struggled with the element of surprise. CSAs are volunteer organizations, which means the delivery schedule can change at a moment’s notice and so can the week’s vegetables. Since they wouldn't post what you were expecting until the very last minute, or at all, you can imagine what this does to a person who has spent all of Wednesday night searching for recipes on epicurious.com, and is dying to know if she will be able to make them or not. The CSA share I receive is huge, so I can’t justify buying additional vegetables. In fact, at the beginning I had to throw out a few things that never got cooked, and I felt guilty about it.

But the more the weeks passed, the more I started feeling excitement about each week’s upcoming surprise. Can I cook kale the same way as I do spinach? What do I do with that weird looking root? Did you know brussel sprouts grow on a stalk? Or yellow summer squash comes in all different sizes, and colors, and shapes? And what the hell is cerliac? Since nothing is labeled, I had to determine which vegetable and herb was which by shape, color, taste, and smell (and occasionally Google). Every Monday I found myself impatiently waiting to get my box like a little kid on Christmas morning. I was curious to see whether or not I was ready to step out of my comfort zone, improvise with what arrived, or try something completely new.

This November, my CSA is coming to a close, and I'm really sad to see it go. It has made me a better cook, a healthier person, and above all a more spontaneous cook. So I'm dedicating my post this week to meals that involve fresh vegetables, whether or not they come out of a box. Oh, and these work wonderfully as thanksgiving side dishes for next week.

Buttermilk Mashed Kale, Turnips, and Potatoes

 

I saw Giada make kale mashed potatoes once, and when I got potatoes and kale from my CSA last week, it was the first dish I thought of. She uses mascarpone cheese to thicken the mash, but I had buttermilk left over in the fridge and thought, “Hey Ina Garten has a great buttermilk mashed potato recipe!” Turnips are root vegetables, so they work great here as well. And I couldn’t help adding some of the amazing smelling fresh sage from the share to perfume the whole dish.

 

 

Buttermilk Mashed Kale, Turnips, and Potatoes (Inspired by Giada De Laurentiis’s Mashed Potatoes with Kale Recipe and Ina Garten’s Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes Recipe)

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Yields 3-4 servings

Ingredients
 

Potatoes and Turnips:

• 7-8 small-medium sized potatoes (any kind will do here, I used small from my CSA share, you can use 3-4 large russet potatoes) peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
• 2-3 medium sized turnips
• 1 teaspoon salt

 Kale:

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Half a bunch kale, stemmed and chopped into 1-inch pieces
• 1 shallot, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth

Assembly: 

• 1/4 cup milk
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• Few sage leaves, chopped
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

     Directions

For the potatoes and turnips: Combine the potatoes,turnips, and salt in a saucepan with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until warmed through. Add the buttermilk. Set aside until you are ready to assemble.

For the kale: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sautee kale with salt for 5 minutes. Add the shallot, cook for a minute until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Add the chicken broth. Cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted, for 8-10 minutes.

To assemble: Drain the potatoes and turnips and place in a large bowl. Pour the milk-butter mixture in a slow stream as you mash them with a potato masher. Add only enough to get a thick consistency, I don’t like the potatoes to be pureed. You may not need the whole thing as I didn’t. Add the kale mixture, sage, Parmesan, salt and pepper to the bowl, and stir until smooth

 

Lemony Brussel Sprouts
 

 

I am a big fan of brussel sprouts with bacon, but I wanted to make an alternative side dish that is still hearty but a little more refreshing. Lemon does the trick in this recipe. Since my brussel sprouts were small, I didn’t need to add water to cook them through. If you find that they are not softening enough add a small amount of water during the cooking process.

 
 

Brussel Sprouts with Lemon Vinaigrette and Walnut –Bread Crumb Topping (Inspired by Shredded Brussel Sprouts with Walnuts and Spiced Bread Crumbs Recipe from Food & Wine, and Brussel Sprouts with Warm Lemon Vinaigrette Recipe from Martha Stewart)

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Yields 2-4 servings

Ingredients:

• Walnuts, 2 tablespoon, chopped
• Panko bread crumbs, 2 tablespoon
• Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• Brussel Sprouts, About 2.5 cups (I received tiny ones from my CSA share, if you have larger ones just quarter them. Make sure to remove the outer yellow leaves)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Pinch freshly ground pepper
• 1 small shallot, peeled and sliced thinly
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 lemon, quartered
• Zest of half a lemon
• Parsley, chopped, about 1 teaspoon
 

Directions:

 

1. Spread the walnuts in a small frying pan , and do not add any oil. Cook, stirring frequently, over medium-high heat, until walnuts starts to brown and they smell toasted, about 4 minutes. Add the bread crumbs and red pepper flakes, and cook stirring constantly for another minute. Set aside.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet pan over high heat. Add Brussels sprouts to the skillet. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, stirring constantly, until it caramelizes. If you find that the brussel sprouts are not tender, add about ¼ cup of water, and cook for a minute or two. Add salt, pepper, and shallots, and cook for 30 seconds more. Add the garlic, cook for about 15 seconds as you stir.

2. Place the brussel sprouts in a serving platter. Squeeze the juice of a quarter of a lemon, more according to taste. Drizzle with oil if it feels dry. Sprinkle the top with the bread crumb mixture, lemon zest, and parsley. Garnish with lemon quarters.

Butternut Squash Soup

 

 

 Whenever I see butternut squash, I immediately think of soup. It is the perfect balance between hearty and healthy. I changed a few things about the recipe; 1 decreased the amount of apples and apple cider as I didn't want it to be too sweet. I decreased the amount of onions, as 3 seemed like a lot to me since I was using smaller butternut squash. I used chicken stock instead of water to give the soup more flavor and depth. I saw that a Food & Wine recipe had used crispy pancetta on the soup, I only had prosciutto and it provided the perfect crunch and salty bite.
 

 

Butternut Squash And Apple Soup with Crispy Prosciutto (Adapted from Ina Garten's Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Recipe and Butternut Squash Soup with Crispy Pancetta Recipe from Food and Wine

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Yields 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons mild curry powder
• 2 medium butternut squash
• 1 apple
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 cup apple cider
• 4 slices prosciutto

Directions

Warm the butter, olive oil, onions, and curry powder in a large stockpot uncovered over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until the onions are tender. Stir occasionally, scraping the bottom of the pot. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread the prosciutto slices in a single layer. Bake for 10-12 until crispy. Let cool.

Peel the squash, cut in half, and remove the seeds. Cut the squash into chunks. Peel, quarter, and core the apple. Cut into chunks.

Add the squash, apple, salt, pepper, and chicken stock to the pot. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook over low heat for 30 to 40 minutes, until the squash and apple are very soft. Puree the soup with an immersion blender in the pot. Alternatively process the soup in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade.

Pour the soup back into the pot if you used a food processor. Add enough of the apple cider to make the soup the consistency you like; it should be quite thick. Check the salt and pepper. Crumble the prosciutto on top, and serve hot.