Produce Shopping at Underwood Family Farms

This time we went to the produce and picked it ourselves instead of waiting for it to come to us.

There was a large selection of fruits and vegetables.

The highlight was picking strawberries.

And now we're ready to start cooking.

Kale and Beet Quiche

The pawns:

Beets, beet greens & kale.

I adapted my recipe from this recipe.

2 medium sized beets with greens separated and chopped (get rid of those stems)
1 bunch of kale, deveined and chopped
1/2 of a sweet onion, chopped
3 cloves-o-garlic minced
4 eggs
3/4 cup of half-n-half
1//2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup goat cheese
1 deep dish pie crust (in retrospect, I would make my own pie crust next time)
Olive oil
Alcohol (deglazin')
Salt & Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and get scrubbing on those beets. Once clean, massage some EVOO on those puppies and get them in the oven for about 40 minutes or so - until fork tender. Set them aside to cool - you'll eventually dice 'em  up when they are aren't flaming hot.

Pop in the premade pie crust for about 8 minutes into the oven.

In a skillet over medium heat, splash in some EVOO and get the garlic and onions to caramelize. After about 12 minutes or so, add in the kale and cook that down another 10-15 minutes. Deglaze that skillet with a few tablespoons of alcohol - wine preferred, I used a chardonnay I had on hand. Combine with diced beets and set aside for a moment.

In a separate bowl, combine eggs and half & half - whisk, whisk, whisk.

Now for the layering. Procure your pie crust and add in a layer of the kale/beet cooked goodness. Top off that first layer with some walnut/goat cheesyness & then drown the whole lot in the cream egg mixture. And then repeat once more. Be careful on the whole drowning bit - I ended up with an egg spill on my counter because I got a bit happy with my pouring.

Then into the oven still at 350 for about 45 minutes or so. Make sure the center isn't squishy. Toothpick that quiche to make sure she's done.

The results:
Not too shabby. It was different. But then suddenly addictive. I ate a small slice and was like "Yes. Yes, this agrees with me." Then I had another huge piece and swooned. I haven't had many-a-quiche in my life, and this recipe was a first for me, but I'm definitely interested in experimenting and formulating a good formula.

Veggie Stir Fry

The cast:

Green beans, garlic & collards.

The veggies:
1/2 lb green beans
1 bunch collard greens
3 cloves of garlic (minced)
1 red onion chopped
1 pkg of white mushrooms
1 can bean sprouts

Das Sauce:
2 tbsp sesame seed oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp oyster sauce
1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
6 tbsp water

In a large skillet, fill with enough water to just cover the bottom and get the green beans and collards in to cook for about 5 minutes (over med-high heat) - until beans are vivid green and collards wilted. Remove and set aside. Add ingredients for sauce, plus garlic and onions, cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add in collards, beans, mushrooms and bean sprouts, saute another 5-10 minutes.

The results:
Delightfully yummy. This was the first time I ever attempted stir fry and I was pleasantly pleased with the results. I doubled up the sauce recipe, which worked fine, but for my tastes, it ended up being a bit too salty, so I think the next time around, I'll add in a few more tbsps of water to dilute it. This is going to sound terribly cheesy, but I'm developing mad respect for collards. They're so versatile and hardy. I see my relationship with collards lasting for a very long time.

Also - I need a wok. My favored skillet is a champ, but a wok would have been nicer for this project.

Turkey Cabbage Wraps

My produce items: cabbage, zucchini, thyme

1lb of ground turkey
1 zucchini diced
1/2 cup of diced mushrooms
1/2 cup of diced onion
2 cloves of garlic minced
thyme leaves from 2 stems
2 teaspoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
salt and pepper
6 cabbage leaves

Combine zucchini, mushrooms, onion, garlic, thyme and olive oil in a skillet on medium heat.  Stir as it cooks to coat everything evenly in olive oil and cook evenly about 10-15 minutes.

Cook ground turkey meat in a separate skilled.  Add salt and pepper to taste and soy sauce.  Stir and flip meat over to coat in soy sauce and cook ground pieces evenly.  About 15-20 minutes.  Add turkey to the vegetable skillet.  Mix well as you cook for an additional 3-5 minutes.  I had 90 percent lean turkey so I didn't drain it as there was hardly any liquid in the skillet.  You need a little bit of drippings for flavor but if you have excess you should drain most of it.

Serve inside of a crispy cabbage leave.  Wrap it up into a roll as you eat it.

Serves 6

Final Verdict: Yummy and healthy

The filling was very yummy.  If the cabbage leaf has a crack or tear in it, eating can get a little messy.  Tilt your head when eating (like it's a taco) to prevent contents from spilling out as you eat.  I thought it was very good.  The cabbage was good and very firm but it would probably have been better as a lettuce wrap.  I don't particularly like eating the white parts of the cabbage so I ate around it.  Still it was a very yummy meal and healthy to boot.

Radish and Apricot Salad with Apricot Salad Dressing

My Produce Items: Lettuce, Apricots, Radish

Apricot Salad Dressing Recipe:

1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 whole fresh apricot, pit removed
1/2 teaspoon spicy brown mustard
1/2 teaspoon horseradish
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Place all ingredients into blender and blend on highest setting until smooth.

Radish and Apricot Salad Recipe:

Lettuce
3 fresh apricots cut into 1/8ths
8 fresh radishes cut into 1/8ths
1/4 onion sliced
1/2 package of goat cheese

Toss ingredients together in a bowl and add the dressing.

 Final Verdict: Delicious!  The salad is crispy, sweet, and tangy and is a great addition to a variety of meals.  We served it with black bean patty cheese burgers and it worked marvelously.

Sauteed Spinach and Turnips

My Produce Items: Spinach, Turnips, Gypsy Sweet Peppers

1 turnip skinned and diced
1 bunch of spinach
1 gypsy sweet pepper
1/2 onion diced
1/4 teaspoon of paprika
1/8 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of lime juice
1 tablespoon olive oil

Heat up olive oil in a pan.  Sautee turnip, spinach, onion and sweep pepper.  Add spinach and sautee until cooked soft.  Add paprika, salt and lime juice.  Mix well and cook until done.

Serves: 4-6

Final Verdict: Good but I don't really like turnips.

This dish was a good side to go with something.  It was good but I really don't like turnips and even cooking them in good flavors just didn't make me like them anymore than I already don't.  It was good and pretty healthy but I honestly just didn't like it because I don't like the taste of turnips and the turnip flavor was prominent.

Bowl of Vegetables

My pick: Onion, Zucchini, Bok Choy

I added some additional vegetables for texture and color: carrots, yellow zucchini, celery and kale.

I sliced the onion very thinly and sauted it slowly until the onion was soft,  caramelized and brownish. Added cubed carrots and celery, mixed it with dried herbs, salt and some vegetable broth. Added diced Zucchini (green and yellow), continued the cooking. At the end, for the last couple minutes: added cut Bok Choy and Kale under the mix until all the vegetables were cooked. 

Served vegetable-mix over brown rice.

Bok Choy: Chinese cousin of the Western Cabbage.  High in Vitamin A and C.

Onion: a vegetable known since the Bronze Age settlements, used as food and medicine. Onions are in the same family as leeks and garlic.

Zucchini is a hybrid of the cucumber and related to the squash family. Zucchini is low in calories, contains Folate, Potassium and Vitamin A. 

Guacamole

I got: Avocados, Carrots and Radicchio – what a mix.

Living in Los Angeles in an Avocado-rich world gives us all kind of Guacamoles, most of them VERY good. The making is simple but some of Avocado-mixes taste better than others. I got my try this time. It's my first Guacamole. 

Cut avocados in half, removed seed. Scooped out avocado from the peel, mashed the meet with a fork. Added small-diced onions and tomatoes, salt and pepper, juice of a ½ a lemon, some cilantro and pepper flakes.

I cleaned carrots and cut them in smaller pieces as decoration and as choice to eat instead the normal tortilla chips. 

Avocado: is a tree from Mexico, introduced to California in the 19^th Century. About 95% of the US avocado production is located in Southern California.

Avocados have more potassium than bananas, are rich in Vitamin B, E and K.

Carrots: rich in b-carotene turning into Vitamin A in our body.

Radicchio: Italian cousin of Chicory. 

Broccoli Rabe and Gypsy Sweet Peppers Fritatta

My Produce Items: Broccoli Rabe, Gypsy Sweet Peppers

 (Recipe from epicurious.com)

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 small bunch broccoli rabe, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 4 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced

• 8 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 cup (packed) shredded sharp provolone cheese

Preheat broiler. Heat oil in large ovenproof skillet over high heat. Sauté bell pepper and onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add broccoli rabe and garlic, stirring to coat with oil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. 

Meanwhile, whisk together eggs and next 4 ingredients in large bowl. Arrange vegetables evenly in skillet, then pour egg mixture over. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until eggs are set around edges and almost set in center, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle evenly with cheese. Transfer skillet to broiler and heat until eggs are completely set and cheese is melted and bubbling, about 2 minutes. Run spatula around skillet edges to loosen frittata. Cut into wedges and serve hot or at room temperature.

Seeing as I do not have a cast iron skillet, I improvised and sauteed the vegetables and then transferred them to a pie dish and poured the eggs over them there.

All in all, this was pretty tasty. The broccoli rabe has more of a bitter taste so it paired well the onions and the sweet peppers. The bottom came out a little crisper than I would have liked, but I think this was due to my pie pan usage instead of a skillet. I would definitely make this again with some slight adjustments, but all in all, it's pretty yummy.

Cherry Walnut Bread

I had some leftover cherries, so I decided to make bread.

2 cups of chopped pitted cherries
1 2/3 cups of sugar
2/3 cup of vegetable oil
1/2 cup of milk
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
4 eggs
3 cups flour
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
4 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix sugar, flour, baking powder.  Add eggs, oil, milk, vanilla extract and stir evenly.  Add cherries and walnuts and mix well.  Pour into 2 greased bread baking pans.

Bake for 50-60 minutes until toothpick can be inserted into the center and come out clean.  Cool 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 2 loaves.

Final Verdict: Excellent

This is actually my recipe for cranberry bread but I used cherries instead of canberries.  The only difference is for cranberry bread I also add 2 teaspoons of grated orange rind.  I didn't think that would go with cherries as well so I left it out.  The cherry walnut bread turned out excellent.  I didn't have enough cherries for 2 loaves so I only made one and halved all measurements but I figured it was easier to post the full recipe.

Cherry Salsa Pork Chops

My Produce Items: Cherries, Gypsy Sweet Peppers

1 cup of pitted chopped cherries
2 gypsy sweet peppers
3 green onions
1/2 teaspoon of cilantro
1 clove of garlic
1 pinch of crushed red pepper
2 limes
1/8 teaspoon of mexican oregano
Seasoning salt
3 boneless skinless pork chops

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly season pork chops with seasoning salt and mexican oregano.  Place pork chops in a baking dish, cover with tin foil and bake for 60 minutes (I had very thick cuts of pork so I baked it for 60 minutes).

While pork chops are baking pit and chop the cherries, dice up sweet peppers, chop up onions, mince garlic and fry all in a frying pan for 10 minutes.  Add in cilantro, crushed red pepper and juice from the limes stirring constantly so it doesn't burn and cook for another 5-7 minutes.

Pour salsa on top of pork chops before serving.

Serves: 3

Final Verdict: Good

This turned out really good.  I think I used one too many limes.  The lime juice from one would have been plenty.  Using two slightly overpowered the salsa.  The salsa itself was very good though.  Basically it was like making salsa by substituting cherries for the tomatoes.  It went really well with the pork too.  I think pork is the right meat to compliment the salsa.