Smoothies are an easy way to cram more veggies into your day. A little fruit covers . . . → Read More: How to Make a Winter Smoothie with Local Ingredients]]> In the winter, I usually crave hot breakfasts. Oatmeal with applesauce and peanut butter, eggs of all sorts, or pancakes. Recently, I haven’t been eating particularly well, so I’ve been trying to get a little “insurance” at breakfast to make up for the Pad Thai at lunch and burger, fries, and a shake at dinner. Yep. That was yesterday.

Smoothies are an easy way to cram more veggies into your day. A little fruit covers up the healthy taste and if the green color bothers you, just avert your eyes. This has become my go-to recipe, but you can make some tweaks if it’s not sweet enough for you. Add a tablespoon of maple syrup or use a whole peach/banana instead of half.

We don’t have a fancy blender…although I really really really want one, I can’t justify the crazy price. There’s an easy technique for making a good smoothie with a normal blender. Check out this video from Good Eats – the technique info starts at about 4:22.

My blender has four speeds. I run it on the first until the vortex starts, then each higher speed for one minute. If a bubble forms, I turn off the blender, give it a little shake to encourage the “burp”, then turn the speed back up. It takes about 4 minutes of blending, but that’s enough time to put away the ingredients and make a cup of tea.

If you want to get crazy, add half an avocado to the mix. We ordered a box of them from California Avocados Direct, a responsible family farm, and were blown away.

Local Winter Smoothie

Makes 1 large smoothie

Directions

1. If you are organized and want to be like Alton Brown, prep your smoothie the night before. Put everything except the ice cubes into the blender (in order) and stash it in the fridge. In the morning, add the ice and blend, following the directions above. Make sure all the spinach/kale blends in. Sometimes a leaf or two will stick to the side. This is a great way to have a nice smoothie even on a busy morning.
2. If you, like me, are usually not that with it at bedtime, make your smoothie when you’re ready to eat it. Add all the ingredients to the blender (in order) and blend, following the directions above. It might take a little longer for the vortex to form, because the fruit is still frozen, but you can get it going by stopping the blender and smushing the spinach/kale down toward the blades. When you start up the blender again, the smoothie should start moving. It might take a couple of tries. If it’s really giving you trouble, add a little more water/juice/milk. It’ll thin out your smoothie, but usually does the trick.

Sunday nights are for Game of Thrones in our household. I don’t know about you, but I always want to order dinner on special TV nights. Whatever your show is, there’s something ritualistic about waiting for the doorbell to ring and then curling up on the couch with a fork and a pile of delicious, but kind of bad for you, food. A gigantic salad just doesn’t do it for me while I’m watching . . . → Read More: Why Buy? D-I-Y! Chinese Takeout Edition]]>

Sunday nights are for Game of Thrones in our household. I don’t know about you, but I always want to order dinner on special TV nights. Whatever your show is, there’s something ritualistic about waiting for the doorbell to ring and then curling up on the couch with a fork and a pile of delicious, but kind of bad for you, food. A gigantic salad just doesn’t do it for me while I’m watching intrigue unfurl.

To stay strong against the temptation of the stack of delivery menus this week, I searched through my recipe collection to find something new and tantalizing. Mission accomplished! I LOVE Chinese food, but have been avoiding it due to some migraine issues. I’m also a big fan of scallops – or fishy marshmallows, as Erik calls them. Chinese food + scallops + spicy + some greens (so you don’t feel too bad) = General Tso’s scallops! Delicious enough that I might have to make them again next Sunday. Unless our copy of A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook arrives by then.

There are two things that might scare you off from this recipe.

First – Shouldn’t we be avoiding seafood? Mercury and overfishing and all? The Environmental Defense Fund says that scallops are low in contaminants, so we can eat more than four meals a month without concern. It recommends bay scallops (the small ones) over sea scallops (the marshmallow-sized ones), because the usual harvesting method is less harmful to the environment. Sea scallops are still “ECO-OK”, though.

Second – You seriously want me to fry those things three times? Yes, I do. Here’s the problem. If you use a low temperature for long enough to cook them through, they’ll be really greasy. If you cook them only at the high temperature, they’ll burn before they finish cooking. This is a worthwhile compromise. I was skeptical too, but it was really much easier than I expected. Just make sure that you have a thermometer that goes up to 400 degrees and everything is ready to go before you start frying. The oil heats up pretty quickly, since it’s not very deep. (If you don’t have a wok, use your widest pot.) Since each cooking time is short, it’s really no more work than stirring a pot for 5 minutes. Things move pretty quickly once you start frying, which you can take advantage of if you’re well-prepared beforehand.

Okay, one more thing. Our recipe calls for kale flowers, which you might not be able to find. They’re just the flower buds from overwintered kale, but we hadn’t seen them before this season. They taste kind of like broccoli rabe, but less bitter. If you can’t find them, feel free to use broccoli (which the original recipe calls for anyway) or broccoli rabe. You could also just leave it out.

Beware! The original recipe from The New York Times calls for marinating the scallops for six to eight hours. We didn’t overlooked that and only did it for three. Still delicious.

General Tso’s Scallops

Serves 4

Directions

1. Make the marinade by mixing the egg, 1 1/2 TBsp of rice wine, 1 tsp of soy sauce, 1 tsp sunflower oil, and 1/4 cup of cornstarch in a medium bowl. Add the scallops; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 3 to 8 hours.
2. When you are ready to cook, make the sauce by combining in a small bowl 1 TBsp of rice wine, 2 TBsp of soy sauce, the chicken stock, sugar, and white vinegar.
3. In another small bowl, mix the arrowroot powder with 1 1/2 TBsp of warm water until it dissolves.
4. Put the remaining 1/2 cup of cornstarch in a wide bowl (I used a small casserole dish). Remove the scallops from the marinade with a fork, giving each a little shake to remove the excess liquid. Toss the scallops in the cornstarch so all sides are coated.
5. Add 4 cups of peanut/safflower oil to your wok or large pot. Set a colander or strainer over a large bowl. You will fry the scallops three times. Start heating the oil on high and check the temperature every few minutes. Once it comes up to the right temperature, carefully put the scallops into the oil and start the timer. After the time has elapsed, remove them with a spider or slotted spoon and allow them to drain in the colander while the oil heats up to the next temperature.

   

   • Stage 1: 280 degrees for 30 seconds (shake off the excess cornstarch before adding the scallops to the oil)

     

   • Stage 2: 350 degrees for 20 seconds

     

   • Stage 3: 375 degrees for 45 seconds

     

6. Once the scallops are fried three times, turn off the heat. Pour the oil into another pot so that it can cool. If you want, you can filter the oil through a coffee filter and reuse it. Wipe any remaining little bits out of the wok with a paper towel. 
7. Get the sauce, dissolved arrowroot powder, dried peppers, garlic, ginger, scallions, balsamic vinegar, and sesame oil ready and near the wok. It’s go time! Be careful about breathing in the aromas coming off of the wok. The spiciness can irritate your nose and lungs, so just don’t hang your head over it.
8. Put the wok back on high heat. Once it’s hot, add 1 TBsp of peanut/safflower oil. Swirl it around the wok and then pour out all but 1 tsp. 
9. Add the chili peppers to the wok. Stir them around until they start to burn. 
10. Add the garlic, ginger, and scallions. Stir for about 10 seconds. 
11. Add the sauce, stirring until it boils (which might be immediately). 
12. Give the dissolved arrowroot powder a stir and then pour it in. Stir until the sauce thickens (which might be immediately). Turn off the heat. 
13. Add the scallops and steamed kale flowers to the wok and toss to coat. Add the balsamic vinegar and sesame oil and stir.

      

14. Serve with rice. Eat on couch. Stare at TV. 

The final week of the Dark Days Challenge is focused on breakfast. We’ve done a bunch of breakfast posts, so we were a bit stumped. I wanted to do another baked good, but didn’t want to split two dozen muffins or a whole coffee cake with Erik over the next two days. Yogurt and granola parfait with strawberries? I just couldn’t decide. So then I forgot all about it… ….until this morning. I was . . . → Read More: Dark Days Challenge: Breakfast]]>

The final week of the Dark Days Challenge is focused on breakfast. We’ve done a bunch of breakfast posts, so we were a bit stumped.

I wanted to do another baked good, but didn’t want to split two dozen muffins or a whole coffee cake with Erik over the next two days.

Yogurt and granola parfait with strawberries? I just couldn’t decide. So then I forgot all about it…

….until this morning. I was out for a run in the beautiful almost-spring weather and remembered. Dang it! So here’s what I had for breakfast – two poached eggs on leftover mixed green salad with sunflower thyme pesto. Completely local, but maybe not breakfast-y enough for some people. It totally hit the spot for me, though. Maybe I’ll have a muffin for lunch to even things out.

Many of our friends have had babies in the last couple of years. We’re really lucky to have this amazing group of kids to play with and moms and dads to admire. They’ve given me quite a bit of food-related knowledge. For example, if it falls on the floor, it is either totally contaminated (first kid) or fine after you shake off the dog hair (second kid).

I’ve also learned that one of . . . → Read More: Why Buy? DIY! How to Make “Hot Pockets”]]>

Many of our friends have had babies in the last couple of years. We’re really lucky to have this amazing group of kids to play with and moms and dads to admire. They’ve given me quite a bit of food-related knowledge. For example, if it falls on the floor, it is either totally contaminated (first kid) or fine after you shake off the dog hair (second kid).

I’ve also learned that one of the best things you can give parents of a newborn is food that can be eaten with one hand. Since we really like these “haute” pockets (shmancy, huh?), we figured they’d be an awesome food gift for our friends who just had their second daughter…especially since their first child is only a year old. Heroes!!

This recipe does take a little bit of time, but it makes six good-sized pockets, enough for almost a week of lunches. They’re sturdy enough to toss in your purse (maybe wrapped in one of these cute food cozies) and taste just as good at room temperature as they do warm. I haven’t tried it, but I’m sure you could freeze and reheat them like the real thing (2 minutes in the microwave or 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven).

In my quest to convert you to the DIY version, I tried to look up comparable nutrition information. I gave up. They’re all so meaty and cheesy that it’s not a fair contest. You could fill this dough with whatever you want, though, so if you have a favorite flavor, give it a try!

Greens-Stuffed Haute Pockets

Serves 6

Directions

1. To make the dough, add the yeast to 1/2 cup of room temperature water. This will dissolve the yeast so that it’s ready to work.
2. Whisk together the flour, 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, and sugar. This is sort of a lazy girl’s version of sifting.
3. Whisk together one egg and the olive oil. Add this and the dissolved yeast to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until it forms a shaggy (i.e. dry) dough.
4. Dust a clean counter with flour and dump out the dough. Knead the dough for a couple of minutes until becomes nice and smooth. It shouldn’t be sticky, so knead in a little more flour if it is.
5. Pour a drop of olive oil into a clean bowl. Form the dough into a ball, put it in the bowl, and roll it around in the oil. Cover the bowl with a towel and let the dough rise for an hour or until it has approximately doubled.
6. While the dough is rising, get a big pot of water boiling. While it’s heating up, prepare your greens by removing the stems/ribs.
7. Once the water is boiling, blanch the greens. To do this, add a couple of big handfuls of greens to the water and cook for 3 minutes (only 1 minute for spinach). Don’t crowd the pot too much. While the greens are cooking, fill a big bowl with ice water. Once the time is up, shock the greens (stop them from cooking) by transferring them from the pot to the ice water. Use tongs or a spider to let most of the hot water drain off first. Once the greens are cool, drain them well.
8. Once all the greens are blanched, shocked, and drained, squeeze the pile with your hands to remove most of the water. Then, roll up the greens to a dishtowel that you don’t really care about and wring out some more water. Avoid white towels, because they’ll turn green. The idea is to get rid of as much water as you can so that the pockets aren’t soggy.
9. After you’ve squeezed and squeezed, you’ll have a loaf of compacted greens. Chop this up into about 1/2 to 1 inch pieces. Set aside until the dough has risen.
10. Once the dough has risen, put the ball on a lightly floured counter and cut it into six equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball and let them rest on the counter for 15 minutes. This will relax the dough so that it doesn’t spring back when you roll it out.
11. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
12. While the dough is resting, beat the second egg and add almost all of it to the greens. Save about 2 tablespoons. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper to the greens and mix well. I like to use a fork, because it helps to break up the clumpy greens. Plus, I just used it to beat the egg, so it’s already dirty.



13. After 15 minutes, roll one of the dough balls into a circle approximately 7 inches across (that’s about the size of my hand). If you keep your counter floured and rotate the dough after each roll, you’ll keep it from sticking and get a better circle.
14. Lightly pack the greens mixture into a 1/2-cup measuring cup and turn them out onto the bottom half of your dough circle. You might need to use a slightly larger or smaller cup, depending on the volume of your greens. Using the reserved egg mixture, brush a little onto the bottom edge of the circle. You could use your finger if you don’t have a brush. Stretch the top of the circle over the greens to meet the bottom edge. Fold and crimp the edges together. The egg will help glue the pocket shut.
15. Transfer the pocket to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or lightly dusted with cornmeal and repeat with the other five dough balls. Three pockets will fit on each sheet pan. Brush the pockets with the remaining egg for a nice, shiny finish.
16. Bake for 25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through for even browning.

Guideline 1: Commit. Get a . . . → Read More: Cooking for One: Inappropriately Large Salad]]> Here’s another attempt at avoiding delivery while Erik is out of town – a salad that is nearly the same size as my laptop. I’m a hungry girl, so normal salads don’t really do it for me. I need a thoughtfully composed bowl of tasty things or I don’t feel satisfied. Instead of giving a recipe, I’ll give you my little guiding principles for making a GIGANTIC, super-filling salad.

Guideline 1: Commit. Get a big bowl. Much bigger than you think you’ll need. Better to look silly and keep your salad together, than use a small bowl piled precariously high. The second part of committing is to use your hands to toss everything together. Maybe I’m not very coordinated, but I’ve never had good luck with salad tossing utensils. I either toss more on the floor than in the bowl or don’t adequately mix everything. My (clean) hands work great though!

Guideline 2: Only use things you like. I don’t like celery, so you won’t see it in any of my salads. I prefer dark leafy greens (kale, spinach, etc.) to lighter ones (romaine or iceberg). I also like some sweetness from fruit and a mixture of crisp and soft things. I don’t like a huge bowl of crunchy veggies, because I get bored of chewing them. You get the picture. It also helps to have some prepped stuff in the refrigerator. If you like beets on your salad, as I do, roast a few right away, so that they’re ready for a quick salad later in the week.

Guideline 3: Know a few good dressing recipes. I love the standard oil and vinegar, but it doesn’t always make the cut. We have found that raw food cookbooks and websites (like Choosing Raw) have great recipes for interesting dressings that can turn a pile of produce into a meal.

Guideline 4: Mega salads aren’t diet food! It’s a meal, so treat it like one and pay attention to what you’re putting in it. Like any meal, it should be substantial enough to keep you full, but not overloaded with calorie-rich ingredients. The salad I made today had a riff on this avocado-mustard dressing with a small avocado (about 200 calories) and a tablespoon of olive oil (120 calories). I also added about a tablespoon of toasted pine nuts (50 calories or so). As a meal, this is fine for me. It’s filling and delicious, but not a reason to reward myself with ice cream this afternoon. Even though it’s definitely ice cream weather…

Check out our salad posts for some ideas. As the weather warms up, it’s nice to have an arsenal of dinner ideas that don’t require the oven or stove.

We loved it so much, we didn’t take a single photo. . . . → Read More: Dark Days Challenge Week 6: Embracing Curly Kale]]> In our sixth week of the Dark Days Challenge, we learned to appreciate curly kale. We love love love lacinato/Tuscan/dinosaur/black and Red Russian varieties, but for some reason we (*cough* Erik *cough*) discriminate against the standard curly variety. Like most biases, we just had to meet an individual curly kale recipe in “person” to let go of our stereotypes. Oh, also, the chorizo helps.

We loved it so much, we didn’t take a single photo. [Update: oops, we did. I just wasn't on top of things - Erik ]

Smoky Kale and Chorizo

Serves 2

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil with 2 teaspoons of the salt.
2. While the water is coming to a boil, rinse the kale, remove the stems, and tear the leaves into large pieces.
3. Once the water is boiling, add the kale and let it cook for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, taste a leaf to make sure it’s not rubbery. If it is, cook for another minute or so. Once it’s done, drain the kale in a colander – pressing to remove as much water as possible.
4. Meanwhile, heat large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Once it’s warm, add the chorizo and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until it just starts to brown.
5. While the chorizo is cooking, measure the spices and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt into a small bowl.
6. Once the chorizo has cooked for 4 to 5 minutes, add the garlic and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds.
7. Push the chorizo and garlic to one side and dump the spice mixture directly onto the pan. Stir the spices around for a few seconds to toast them. Once you can smell the spices, mix them into the chorizo.
8. Add the kale to the skillet and stir for a minute to combine and reheat the kale a little.
9. Turn off the heat and add the honey and sherry vinegar, stirring to combine.

There’s a great restaurant near where we used to live in NYC called Northern Spy. Definitely give it a try if you’re in the area – it was one of our favorites. They make a kale salad for dinner that’s really simple, but almost perfect. . . . → Read More: Is this the best kale salad ever?]]> It’s a bold statement. I’m not shy about it. It could be the best salad salad ever. I’ll leave it up to you, dear reader, to decide for yourself.

There’s a great restaurant near where we used to live in NYC called Northern Spy. Definitely give it a try if you’re in the area – it was one of our favorites. They make a kale salad for dinner that’s really simple, but almost perfect. For brunch, they add a poached egg and make it perfect. Yum yum yum. Erik and I have been eating a lot of kale salads with poached eggs lately. It sounds kind of strange, but give it a shot. It makes a quick, filling, and nutrious meal any time of day. Two nights ago, I was HANGRY (so hungry I was angry) and Erik soothed me with one. Before I had time to protest, BAM! it was on the table and calming me down.

Perfect Kale Salad

Makes 4 servings

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the squash in half and place, cut side down, in a small baking dish. Bake the squash until soft, about an hour, depending on the size of your squash. Remove from the oven and let cool.
3. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
4. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet (or pizza pan) and bake for about 15 minutes or until browned. Watch them carefully, because they’ll go from nicely browned to burnt very quickly. You can do all these steps a few days ahead, if you want.
5. Once the squash is cooled, remove the skin and chop into bite-sized, but small pieces. Reserve about 1 cup for the salad. Refrigerate the rest for a quick side dish another time.
6. Start a pot of water boiling to poach the eggs.
7. Pour the lemon juice into a large salad bowl. While whisking, add the olive oil in a thin stream to help it emulsify. Whisk in the salt and pepper.
8. Prep the kale, following these instructions, but slicing the ribbons only about 1/4 inch wide. As you finish the kale, toss it into the bowl with the dressing.
9. Toss the kale in the dressing, making sure to coat all the leaves. I usually just use my (clean) hands, because I seem to be unable to keep salad in a bowl any other way. It also gives me a chance to give the kale a little tenderizing massage.
10. Once the water is at a rolling boil and the kale is dressed, poach the eggs. Only make as many as you want to eat that meal. This salad keeps well in the refrigerator, so you can make a quick meal of the leftover tossed salad and a newly poached egg. We use nifty egg poachers, like these, and cook our eggs for two and a half to three minutes for a cooked, but runny, egg. You could also just crack them gently into the boiling water and then fish them out with a slotted spoon. It takes a little practice, but works.
11. Put a pile of kale on each plate. Top with the squash, cheddar, almonds, and a poached egg (or 2).
]]> http://eatlocal365.com/2011/12/13/is-this-the-best-kale-salad-ever/feed/ 3 http://eatlocal365.com/2011/05/10/greens-are-back-mixed-green-salad-with-sunflower-thyme-pesto/ http://eatlocal365.com/2011/05/10/greens-are-back-mixed-green-salad-with-sunflower-thyme-pesto/#comments Wed, 11 May 2011 00:05:19 +0000 Lindsay http://eatlocal365.com/?p=3493

Greens, I have missed you! After a winter of cabbage and root vegetables, I was DYING for a big green salad. Armenia has great tomatoes and cucumbers already, but they don’t really have a green salad tradition. I knew the first thing I would make once home would be a ridiculously huge salad.

We weren’t able to go to the market on Saturday because of a wedding (congratulations!!), so we went to the much . . . → Read More: Greens are back! Mixed Green Salad with Sunflower Thyme Pesto]]>

Greens, I have missed you! After a winter of cabbage and root vegetables, I was DYING for a big green salad. Armenia has great tomatoes and cucumbers already, but they don’t really have a green salad tradition. I knew the first thing I would make once home would be a ridiculously huge salad.

We weren’t able to go to the market on Saturday because of a wedding (congratulations!!), so we went to the much smaller Monday market yesterday. Luckily, there was still a great selection of beautiful dark leafy greens and herbs and we bought a lot – two bunches of Swiss chard, one of red Russian kale, one of collard greens, one of komatsuna, and a bag each of spinach and arugula. This is pretty typical of us in the summer, but does take a little advanced planning. To minimize waste, we try to stick to the following rules:

1. When we get home, we wash and dry the greens before we put them away. We wrap them in big tea towels and then pack them in special reusable plastic bags, but you could use paper towels and regular plastic bags as long as they’re clean and dry. We also prep them by picking out any less than perfect leaves and removing stems and chopping, if necessary. This does take some time on Saturday morning, but it saves a lot of time during the week and makes it more likely that we’ll cook at home instead of ordering take out.
2. If we’re planning to eat any of the greens raw, e.g. in a salad, we do it early in the week. As greens age, they get more bitter and less tender.
3. If we’re planning any recipes where cooked greens are the star of the show, we make those by mid-week. The greens can wait a little longer, since they’re cooked.
4. Finally, if we have any greens left at the end of the week, we cook them and use them as an accent, e.g. pizza topping or frittata.

As an example, here’s our meal plan for the week:

• Mixed green salad with sunflower thyme pesto (Monday)
• Swiss chard with pinenuts and grain (Tuesday)
• Herb salad with curry dressing (Wednesday)
• Asparagus with “cheezy” sauce (Thursday)
• Mashed sweet potatoes with ribbons of collard greens (Friday)

This salad is based on a recipe from Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen and definitely hit the spot last night. It’s hearty enough for dinner and a great introduction to raw dark leafy greens, if you’re a little hesitant. We used olive oil in the dressing, but realized right after we poured it in that we should have used our local sunflower oil. Next time! The recipe makes 4 large servings, but only dress what you plan to eat right away to avoid soggy greens. Don’t be too worried about the exact proportion of the greens. We used about the same amount of each type, but it’s not an exact science. It’s okay if a bunch of kale is smaller than a box/bag of arugula or whatever.

Mixed Green Salad with Sunflower Thyme Pesto
Makes 4 large servings

Amount	Ingredient	Preparation	Where we bought it (* Union Sq. Greenmarket)
1 bunch	Kale	Use red russian kale if you can find it, otherwise Tuscan/dinosaur/lacinato kale	Lani’s Farm *
1 bunch	Mustard greens	We used komatsuna, which was very tender.	Lani’s Farm *
1 bunch	Spinach	Or several handfuls, if loose	Lani’s Farm *
1 bunch	Arugla	Or several handfuls, if loose	Lani’s Farm *
4 TBsp	Fresh thyme	Strip the leaves off the stem by pinching your fingers around the stem and gently pulling down	Lani’s Farm *
2 cloves	Garlic	Finely chopped	Keith’s Farm *
1 cup	Oil	We used olive oil, but would use sunflower oil next time
1 cup	Sunflower seeds
1/4 cup	Apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp	Kosher salt




Directions:

1. Remove the stems and ribs from the mustard greens and chop both the mustard greens and kale into 1/2-inch ribbons (see directions here).
2. Tear the spinach and arugula into bite-sized pieces and remove the stems, if they’re thick or annoy you (as they do Erik).

   

3. Put the greens into a big mixing bowl and toss to distribute everything evenly. If you don’t plan to eat the whole salad, put the amount you want to save back in the refrigerator.

   

4. Add all the dressing ingredients to a blender or food processor and process until it is as smooth as you’d like. I like it a little chunky. It will be thick like pesto.

   
   

5. Pour the dressing over the greens, remembering to save some of the dressing if you’ve saved some of the greens, and toss thoroughly. You might need to spread it around a little bit, because the dressing with want to clump in the middle of the salad. Refrigerate any extra dressing for up to four days.

   

6. Let the salad sit for about 10 minutes to allow the greens to soften a bit. Then chow down!

   

After eating this, I felt like my body was reset after all the travel and restaurant food of my business trip. Bring on summer!!

]]> http://eatlocal365.com/2011/05/10/greens-are-back-mixed-green-salad-with-sunflower-thyme-pesto/feed/ 0 http://eatlocal365.com/2011/03/13/market-day-first-signs-of-greenhouse-spring/ http://eatlocal365.com/2011/03/13/market-day-first-signs-of-greenhouse-spring/#comments Sun, 13 Mar 2011 23:58:50 +0000 Erik http://eatlocal365.com/?p=2956

The point of our Market Day! posts is to catalog what’s available at our local market from week to week throughout the year. We also just like posting nice photos.

The Union Square greenmarket is extensive, including farms from New York, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Western New England (Vermont, Connecticut, and Western Massachusetts). It’s also indicative of similar climates at similar latitudes.

We haven’t done a Market Day post in a while because . . . → Read More: Market Day: First Signs of (Greenhouse) Spring]]>

The point of our Market Day! posts is to catalog what’s available at our local market from week to week throughout the year. We also just like posting nice photos.

The Union Square greenmarket is extensive, including farms from New York, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Western New England (Vermont, Connecticut, and Western Massachusetts). It’s also indicative of similar climates at similar latitudes.

We haven’t done a Market Day post in a while because nothing much has changed at the market in months. And that will continue to be the case for another 4-6 weeks. However, yesterday we saw the very first signs of spring (albeit most likely helped along by a few greenhouses).

Norwich Meadows Farm has been back at the market for a few weeks. Recently they started selling baby spinach and two forms of kale. It’s nice to see greens at the market again, but we suspect that these were at least helped along by a portable greenhouse (which can be placed directly over the soil bed), if not an actual greenhouse or hothouse.

Given their location in far Western New York State, maybe they were spared some of our worst snow. These greens are hearty and will grow as soon as they are given then chance by nature, but we’re still skeptical. As the first out of the gate with the greens, their prices are steep. We’ll stop by and ask them next week about how these were grown, if we have time:



Fiori di Fenice sells flowers, which are definitely greenhouse flowers, but they were such a nice change from winter that we had to buy some of those orange tulips:



The tulips at home:



]]> http://eatlocal365.com/2011/03/13/market-day-first-signs-of-greenhouse-spring/feed/ 0 http://eatlocal365.com/2011/03/01/how-to-make-pizza/ http://eatlocal365.com/2011/03/01/how-to-make-pizza/#comments Tue, 01 Mar 2011 05:12:38 +0000 Lindsay http://eatlocal365.com/?p=2796

Pizza is a definite DIY situation. It’s cheaper, less likely to be delivered cold, and only covered in surplus commodity cheese if you like that kind of thing. The most time-consuming part is making the dough, which has to rise for an hour or so (although you could cut this to 30 minutes if you were in a big hurry). Because of this, we usually save pizza for weekends and plan to work out, . . . → Read More: How to Make Pizza]]>

Pizza is a definite DIY situation. It’s cheaper, less likely to be delivered cold, and only covered in surplus commodity cheese if you like that kind of thing. The most time-consuming part is making the dough, which has to rise for an hour or so (although you could cut this to 30 minutes if you were in a big hurry). Because of this, we usually save pizza for weekends and plan to work out, call our parents, or catch up on the DVR while the dough’s doing its thing.

The dough recipe is adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything, which I got for making a donation to WNYC. Actually, I made the donation to WNYC to get the cookbook and it has totally paid off – good recipes and Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me…a seriously good deal. He uses a food processor, but we prefer to use the stand mixer, because our tiny food processor would probably burst into flames if we asked this of it. This NY Times article has the food processor instructions, if you’re so inclined.

Homemade Pizza
Makes 2 12-inch diameter pizzas (You can make larger pizzas with thinner crusts or smaller pizzas with thicker crusts, but this is fits nicely in our oven).

Ingredients for Crust

Amount	Ingredient	Preparation	Where we bought it (* Union Sq. Greenmarket)
11 3/4 ounces	1/2 white flour	a.k.a. “brown” flour (half all-purpose and half whole wheat bread flour), about 2 1/2 cups, volumetrically	Cayuga Pure Organics *
2 ounces	Cornmeal	About 1/2 cup, volumetrically	Cayuga Pure Organics *
2 tsp	Instant yeast	Not to be confused with active dry yeast	We use this brand.
2 TBsp	Sunflower oil		Stolor Organics *
2 tsp	Coarse kosher or sea salt




Topping Ideas (per pizza)

• 1/2 cup prepared pizza sauce
• About 5 ounces of cheese, such as fresh mozzarella or ricotta
• Veggies! Onions, mushrooms, sautéed greens, peppers, tomatoes. Really whatever’s in season.
• Your favorite precooked meat
• Any leftovers you find in the refrigerator



Directions

1. Weigh flour and cornmeal in stand mixer bowl using the tare (zero-out) function on your scale. That is, put the bowl on the scale, press tare, add 11 3/4 ounces of flour, press tare, and add 2 ounces of cornmeal. No dirty measuring cups!

   

2. Add the yeast and salt to the flour mixture. Because they’re such a small amounts, it’s best to measure them in teaspoons, rather than by weight.

   

3. In a measuring cup, combine 1 cup of water and the sunflower oil.

   

4. With the paddle attachment and the mixer on low, slowly add the liquids to the dry ingredients. Mix until there isn’t any dry flour on the bottom of the bowl, about a minute.

   

5. Switch to the dough hook and knead the dough on speed 2 or 4 for 3 or 4 minutes. I just let it knead until I’m done cleaning everything else up and it forms a nice ball around the hook.

   

6. Remove the dough from the bowl. Put a small puddle of oil (a teaspoon or so) in the bottom of the stand mixer bowl, drop the dough in, and roll it around so that it’s covered in oil. This will make sure it doesn’t stick to the bowl while rising. You could use a second bowl if you want, but I don’t like to do dishes. Actually, Erik usually does the dishes, so I don’t like feeling guilty about NOT doing the dishes. It’s easy to do as long as you remember to unscrew the cap of the oil before you get your hands all doughy.

   Cover the bowl with plastic wrap (or the shower cap you took from the hotel you stayed in last week) and let the dough rise for an hour or 2. Ideally, you should wait for it to double in size, but you can cut this short if you’re in a hurry.

   

7. Once the dough has risen, preheat your oven to 500 degrees, or as hot as it will go. Set a baking stone or cookie sheet in the top third of the oven to preheat. Lay out two sheets of parchment paper that are about 16 inches long.
8. Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured counter. Cut it in half and gently shape each into a ball. At this point, you could tightly wrap one of the dough balls in plastic and freeze it, but we like pizza leftovers, so we never do. Drape a towel over the dough and let it rest for 20 minutes. This will make it easier to shape.

   

9. While the dough is resting, prepare your toppings. We made two different pizzas. One had a sliced portobello mushroom (from Bulich Mushrooms), half a sliced red onion (Paffenroth Gardens), and about 5 ounces of sliced fresh mozzarella (from Eataly, since we forgot to get it at the greenmarket). The other had about 5 ounces of sliced fresh mozzarella and 5 ounces of ricotta (also from Eataly, but made in Brooklyn).

   

10. Lay one of the sheets of parchment paper on a pizza peel or (our preferred method) an upside-down cookie sheet. We flip the cookie sheet over, so that the pizza will slide off cleanly without bumping into the raised edges.
11. To shape the dough into pies, start by patting out one of the balls into a circle. After a while, the dough will start resisting, so use gravity. Hold the disc at the top with both hands and turn it like a steering wheel, using your thumbs to create a lip around the edge. It won’t get perfectly round, but you can fix that later. Once it’s as big as you want it, lay it down on the prepared parchment paper and pat or stretch it into a nicer shape. Fix any holes by pinching the dough together.

    



12. Spread the first crust with about 1/2 cup of prepared pizza sauce. We canned our own this summer following this recipe. Lay on your toppings. If you’re using anything delicate, like greens or herbs, tuck them under the cheese so they won’t burn.

    

    

13. Once your pizza is dressed up and ready to go, open the oven door and pull out the rack as far as it will go. Use an oven mitt! In a smooth motion, pull the pizza onto the stone or baking sheet using the corner of the parchment paper. Be careful!

    

14. Check the pizza after 8 minutes and then every 1 or 2 minutes thereafter until it’s done. Our oven usually takes about 12 minutes, but it depends on how long it preheated and what toppings we used. You want a dark brown crust and some brown spots on the cheese.

    

15. While the first pizza is baking, prepare the second following the same steps.

    

16. This is the hard part. Don’t eat it right away! If you cut it too soon, it will just be a big juicy mess. Wait 5 minutes (more if you can) for it to cool and firm up.

    

]]> http://eatlocal365.com/2011/03/01/how-to-make-pizza/feed/ 4