Monday, July 21, 2008

CSA Heaven/Hell

Hello Friends,


It's been a few weeks since I posted, and what a few weeks it's been. My CSA has been going strong (yay) and my remaining tomato plants have little green tomatoes that are (slowly) growing toward fruition. All of this is wonderful, except for the part where, as a result of my job at Big Boston Firm, I am never home. I am almost to the point where I will have to drop off food at people's houses, ring the bell, and then run away before they know it was me.


Of course, the zucchini frittata on the front step might give that away.


One of the things I like about keeping kosher is that it requires mindful eating. No matter where you fall on the spectrum (if, like me, you believe that there is such a thing), from mashgiach to "everything but bacon", if you keep kosher to any degree, you are thinking about what you are putting into your body, what you consume, where it comes from, and how it got to you.


I was contemplating this yesterday afternoon as I meticulously inspected and pitted sour cherries. The cherries in question had come from a cherry tree in my friends' yard (thanks Jane and Brett!) that had been sadly neglected by J&B's landlord. As a result, the tree had lovely fruit but a roaring fruit fly infestation. Hence my careful cherry-by-cherry inspection. Keeping kosher for me means not eating bugs (at least, not those that can be avoided by careful inspection), so I went through and checked each cherry for any blemishes, then hand pitted the good cherries, and plopped them into the sugar and cinnamon and blueberries. Of the fruit I picked, about half made it into the cherry-blueberry cobbler I made last night. I stole, I mean adapted, the recipe from 101 Cookbooks, which is one of my favorite cooking blogs (find the recipe here). Needless to say, a careful perusal of 200 cherries is time consuming, but it was nice to know that I was eating local (and presumably organic, if you can call it organic with the ground-level pollutants that may linger in Somerville back yards) cherries that I had picked myself.


In addition to the cherry-blueberry cobbler (a la mode), we had Greek salad with cucumber, arugula and mesclun from my CSA, and zucchini-corn quesadillas with zucchini and corn from my CSA. I've included the zucchini and corn quesadilla recipe below. I will admit that, had I had less time, I would happily use canned "refried" beans in this recipe - TJs has a mix that is totally awesome. If you were feeling really ambitious (clearly I was not), then you could start with dried pinto beans or similar white beans, soak them for 24 hours, boil them, and then begin with the recipe below. Any of these three options would be acceptable. Do what works for you.

Zucchini-Corn Quesadillas
1 large zucchini, washed, stems removed, in 1/2" dice
1 ear corn, husked, kernels cut off with a sharp knife (try not to hurt yourself while doing this).
1 medium onion in 1/4", divided
1 can pinto beans
2 cloves garlic, minced or put through a garlic press
salt and pepper to taste
3 whole wheat regular-size tortillas (or other tortillas of your choice)
1 1/2 cups low-fat shredded cheese (mexican-style blend, if you can find it, mild cheddar or pepper jack if you can't)
6 tsp EVOO, divided
1/2 cup each sour cream and salsa, for serving

1. In the skillet, place 2 tsp of EVOO and heat to medium-high. Add half the onion and cook until translucent and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook about 30 seconds. Add can of beans (including juices). Cook, stirring occasionally, about 5-7 more minutes. Remove from heat. With a potato masher or fork, squish the beans until the mixture resembles a thick paste. If the beans are too chunky, add a couple tablespoons of water. Season with salt and pepper (easy on the salt). Transfer beans into a tupperware container. Rinse out the skillet.

2. Put the skillet back on the heat, add 2 more tsp. EVOO, and add the remaining half of the onion. Again, cook until translucent. Add zucchini and cook, stirring frequently, until zucchini is falling apart and browning in places, about 10 minutes. Add corn and cook an additional 2 minutes. Put in a second tupperware container and wipe out skillet.

3. Assemble the quesadillas. In each tortilla, spread about 1/4 cup of the bean mixture on one half of the tortilla. Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of cheese over the beans. Cover with about 1/3 cup of the zucchini-corn mixture. (You can fiddle with these proportions depending on your taste). Repeat with the remaining two tortillas. You will probably have some leftover zucchini mix and beans (dinner tomorrow night too). Fold each tortilla in half to create a half circle of deliciousness.

4. In skillet, pour a scant amount of EVOO (1/2 tsp?) and heat over medium-high. Swirl oil around in pan, then add the quesadillas. Cook on bottom until brown and crispy (keep an eye on it to avoid scorching) and then gently flip over to brown the other side. Repeat with remaining quesadillas. Serve with sour cream and salsa.

Enjoy!

Sunday, July 6, 2008

The Calzone of Frustration

Well, everyone, happy 4th of July.

I have to say, as much as I try for optimism, balance and harmony in my life, I am feeling a little blue. Well, at least frustrated.

I spent most of the long weekend in transit - to and from downtown on Thursday and Friday and to and from Maine on Saturday and Sunday. On the 4th itself, I managed (for the first time in a LONG time) to get totally soused, and spent the morning of the 5th sweating and trying not to throw up on the train to Maine. When I got there, my haphazard attempts at sunblock application has resulted in a look that I can only refer to as "spotty lobster." Curse my Anglo-Saxon heritage that resulted in this alabaster skin.

Second, I returned to find that someone has stolen my tomato plant. Who DOES THAT?!?!?!?! Seriously, not cool. Thankfully, I had two different tomato plants that were hidden and thus not stolen, but I still am feeling pretty crap about the tomatoes that were stolen. I hope, as an act of karma, that the tomatoes are secretly infested with aphids that will decimate the measly garden of the tomato thief.

Third, I have a lingering cough from the cold I got two weeks ago that just will not go away. Air conditioning (and the resultant dry air) seem to be making it worse, so I have turned off the a/c in the hopes that the more humid air will be better. So far, the cough is the same but my apartment is reaching a sauna-like temperature.

Finally, I am mildly wrapped around the axle about my single status. I spent the weekend with one of my best friends, a person who has seen me through tough times, and whom I love dearly. However, she has just started seeing this boy, and they text 20 times a day. Each. My other friend and I had to announce moratoria on texting while driving and texting while in mid-conversation. It's just rude, and I don't care how much you are smitten with someone, it is not acceptable in anyone over the age of 16. However, I'll admit that I was also annoyed by it because it was such an in-your-face reminder of my own lack of text messages.

In fact, I had sent a text off into the void this afternoon, hoping for an answer, and was met with...nothing. I'm hoping that the nothing is the result of busy-ness, or a lack of cell reception/charging, and not a sign that I'm not on the text-back list. Anyway, it's Sunday and I am tired and feeling crappy and I probably shouldn't be cooking like that, but I did cook, and it turned out great. I added extra spices and flavors to try and work out my frustration - not at the incommunicado person, but at myself, for not being able to just be happy by myself and without the reassurance of a returned text. I just wish I could be as secure in the whole dating thing as I am in every other aspect of my life. Like cooking. Anyway, here is my recipe for a dish I name the Calzones of Frustration.

Calzones of Frustration
(makes 4 large or 6 medium servings)

Filling:
2 large bunches (about 10 cups, packed) swiss chard and/or spinach, washed, spun dry, trimmed and cut into large pieces
1/2 medium sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsn EVOO
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 c. ricotta (cottage cheese would also work)
2 eggs
1/4 fresh or store-bought pesto (be careful with rennet in store-bought varieties)
1/4 c. grated kosher parmesan cheese

Dough (adapted from How to Cook Vegetarian by Mark Bittman):
3 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp (one packet) instant quick rise yeast
2 tsp kosher salt
1 c. warm water
3 tbsn EVOO
a pinch each of rosemary, garlic powder, and chili flakes

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees (this will take a while). If you have one, put the pizza stone in to warm up.

2. Make the dough. Mix the dry ingredients other than the yeast together to blend. Pour yeast on top, followed by water. Mix until a dough begins to form. Add olive oil and knead for about 1 minute. Cover with a warm, damp kitchen towel and place in a warm spot to rise about an hour.

3. Meanwhile, in a large, deep skillet over medium heat, cook the onions until soft and beginning to brown. Add tablespoon of olive oil and continue to cook until approaching golden brown. Add chard/spinach and salt and pepper. Cover and let cook down, stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool.

4. While the greens cool, mix together the ricotta, pesto, parmesan and 1 egg.

5. When dough is risen and puffy, remove from mixing bowl and punch it down. divide it into four roughly-equal pieces. Knead each for a few turns, then flatten (either with your fingers or with a well-floured rolling pin) into disks about 8" in diameter. Layer greens and cheese in a half-moon on one side of the dough, leaving a 1" border of plain dough. Repeat with all four pieces.

6. Beat the remaining egg with a little water until scrambled. Brush the egg along the dough border and fold the remaining half-moon of dough over the filling, pressing to seal the seam and then folding the edge inward. Brush the top of each calzone with egg wash and cut a slit or two in the top to all steam to vent. Transfer to a pizza peel well-coated with corn meal.

7. Place on pizza stone in oven and bake 12-15 minutes, checking after 10 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes before eating. Serve with tomato soup or marinara sauce.

Hoping tomorrow will be better. At least I had a good dinner. :0)