This week’s box included: summer squash (zephyr bi-color, zucchini, yellow), cucumbers (mostly Kirbys, plus one burpless), apples, green bell peppers, cantaloupe, turnips greens, garlic, spaghetti squashes (the dark yellow ones), cherry tomatoes. You can see a photo that can help with identification on our Facebook page or check out our weekly video on Instagram.
Did you watch Charlotte on Instagram as she unpacked today’s box? As she said, kind feels like fall is here but then we’ve got summer vegetables, too, including those “picklers that just won’t stop”
I, for one, am thrilled that they won’t stop. I love those little Kirby cucumbers. I slice them onto sandwiches, eat them as a dipper for yogurt mixed with garlic and lemon, and turn them into salads. I haven’t pickled a single one this year despite the abundance.
Are those not the most adorable little spaghetti squash in today’s box? I once worked with someone who would take spaghetti squash to work and cook it in the office microwave, then stir in some Parmesan, salt and pepper and call it lunch. She would have loved these little individual sized squash. I’ll be working at my desk at home, and I think she just inspired my lunch for tomorrow.
My husband will immediately inhale the tiny cantaloupe, probably not leaving any for me. I would guess it’s the last one we will see this year. When he saw me unpacking the contents of the box, he immediately said he was going to eat it filled with vanilla ice cream. My mother loved cantaloupe filled with plain yogurt. To each his own.
I was hoping for an eggplant because I want to make eggplant caponata for a dinner party I’m having Thursday evening, but no eggplant means I’m making squash caponata instead. I thought surely we have a caponata recipe at grassfedcow.com but I cannot find one! So I’m appended one below – it’s the one I will adapt for squash. I love the combination of vegetables AND I add some golden raisins for a bit of sweet.
And for those turnip greens, I’m turning to a recipe that originally called for mustard greens, Coconut Saag. Recipe’s below.
Eggplant Caponata
From A Couple of Cooks
1 1/2 pounds eggplant (2 medium) (or squash!)
1 celery rib
1 medium red onion
1/2 bell pepper
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup olive oil
14-ounce can crushed fire roasted tomatoes (or you can use your cherry tomatoes)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 pinch red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons capers, drained
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup golden raisins – my addition
Basil, for garnish
Toasted pine nuts, for garnish (optional)
Cut the eggplant into small cubes, about 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch. Dice the celery. Slice the red onion. Dice the red bell pepper. Mince the garlic.
In a Dutch oven or large saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the eggplant, celery, red pepper and red onion and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook 3 to 5 minutes until the eggplant and onions are browned and softened. Add the crushed tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, sugar, red pepper flakes, capers, and salt. If using raisins, add them now. Cover and simmer on low for 10 minutes, stirring once, until very tender. Taste and add another pinch or two of salt. Serve warm, garnished with chopped basil and toasted pine nuts. Or, chill for up to 1 day and serve cold or at room temperature (the flavors taste even better after refrigerating).
Coconut Saag
From Priya Krishna
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
3 green cardamom pods or ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
1 1/2-inch piece ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound mustard greens, tough ends trimmed and greens roughly chopped, or fresh baby spinach (or turnip greens!)
Juice of 1/2 lime,
1 small Indian green chile, serrano chile or Thai bird’s-eye chile, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 (13-ounce) can coconut milk
1 (12-ounce) block extra-firm tofu or 1 (8-ounce) package paneer, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon asafetida (optional, but really fantastic)
1/4 teaspoon red chile powder, such as cayenne or Kashmiri
Rice, for serving
In a large, deep pan or Dutch oven over medium heat, warm the vegetable oil. Once it shimmers, add the coriander and cardamom and toast the spices until fragrant and starting to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute more. Add the mustard greens, a large handful at a time, and cook until just wilted and still bright green. Don’t overcook the greens!
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lime juice, chile and salt. Let cool for a few minutes, then transfer to a blender (or use an immersion blender) and blend into a chunky paste. Return the mixture to the same pan over low heat. Stir in the coconut milk, then gently stir in tofu. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes more, until the tofu is warmed through and has soaked up some of the sauce. While the tofu cooks, in a small pan or butter warmer over medium-high heat, melt the coconut oil. Add the cumin seeds, and once they start to brown and dance around in the pan, about 1 minute, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the asafetida, if using, and red chile powder. Pour the coconut oil mixture over the saag and serve with rice.