Roasted Chinese Long Beans with Miso-Butter

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Hello!

I love recipes that deliver big flavor with minimal effort – and this is one of those. These beans are great simply sauteed but I wanted to dress mine up a bit. After they were roasted, I chopped them into bite sized pieces and served them with brown rice, cherry tomatoes and a fried egg (topped with a little soy sauce and hot sauce – yum!). We hope you enjoy!

Roasted Chinese Long Beans with Miso-Butter
4-6 servings

Recipe notes: 1) providing a recipe using a broiler is always tricky because broilers vary so much between ovens. When I used this technique, I found that the resulting beans still have a good amount of crunch. If you want your beans cooked through more, I would suggest adjusting the oven racks down an extra layer so you have time to cook the beans through without burning the butter mixture, 2) if you haven’t planned ahead and don’t have room temperature butter, you can soften it in the microwave on 20% power in 30 second increments.

Ingredients:

  • 1-1/4 pounds Chinese long beans, ends trimmed
  • 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons white miso
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

  • Adjust one oven rack to about 6″ inches away from the broiler with a second rack on a level just below that one. Preheat your broiler to high.
  • Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil and evenly distribute the beans between the two sheets.
  • Mix the butter, miso, garlic and black pepper together in a small bowl until uniform. Dollop the mixture over the beans (it doesn’t have to be even – they will be tossed again in a minute).
  • Place one tray of beans on the higher rack under the broiler for 1 minute. Remove from the oven and toss the beans to evenly coat with the now melted butter mixture. Return to the oven on the lower rack and cook for 8-10 minutes (mine needed 10 minutes), or until the beans have started to soften but still retain some texture. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly, then transfer to a serving or storage dish. Repeat with the remaining tray of beans.

 

Cherry Tomato Gazpacho

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Hello!

I think it is required to eat gazpacho at least once during the summer. It is so fast and refreshing, perfect for dinner on a steamy evening. We hope you enjoy our version!

Cherry Tomato Gazpacho
makes 2 generous servings

Recipe notes: 1) I used Niedlov’s sourdough bread but any white sandwich loaf will do; 2) I didn’t peel the cucumber because the skins on our Diva cucumbers are thin. If you have cucumbers with thick, bitter skin, I would suggest peeling beforehand.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large slice (1-1/4 ounces) white bread
  • 1-1/4 pound cherry tomatoes, stems removed
  • 1 medium (6-1/2 ounces) cucumber, ends trimmed and roughly chopped
  • 1 medium (1-1/2 ounces) peeled and trimmed shallot
  • 1 large garlic clove, peeled
  • 2-3 teaspoons sherry vinegar
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • Fresh black pepper to taste
  • Extra-virgin olive oil and thinly sliced basil for serving

Directions:

  • If you don’t have slightly stale, day-old bread, toast the bread to dry it out a bit. You want it to be just a little golden. Tear into large pieces and add to a blender.
  • Set aside 2-3 ounces (a small handful) of tomatoes for garnish and place the remaining in the blender with the bread.
  • Add the remaining ingredients, starting with 2 teaspoons vinegar, to the blender. Process on high until very smooth, 1-2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Transfer to a bowl and top with remaining tomatoes, halved, olive oil and basil. Serve.

Minted Eggplant Dip

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Hello!

Just a quick recipe post for the lovely Japanese eggplant Mark and Gina will have available at market. Japanese eggplant have thinner skins, less seeds (which can make eggplant bitter), and denser flesh than the large Italian variety. They also cook really fast given their small size, making them perfect for the broiler, which I use in the recipe below.

We hope you enjoy!

Minted Eggplant Dip
makes about 1 cup

Ingredients:

  • 13 ounces Japanese eggplant (about 8 small), washed and dried thoroughly
  • 1-1/2 to 3 teaspoons minced mint
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced (about 1/2 teaspoon)
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • Crackers, pita or cucumbers for serving

Directions:

  • Adjust oven rack to the highest position and heat broiler on high.
  • Prick each eggplant numerous times with a sharp knife to ensure they don’t explode when cooking. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and evenly arrange eggplant on sheet. Cook eggplant for 4-5 minutes, or until skin is well charred. Carefully flip eggplant over and cook an additional 4-5 minutes. Remove from oven and check for doneness by piercing with a knife. If eggplant is not completely soft, return to the oven and continue to cook. You may need to lower the oven rack and continue to cook further from the broiler if skins are already blackened but the flesh is not cooked through. Once cooked completely, remove from the oven and allow to cool.
  • Once eggplant is cool, cut open and scoop out flesh with a spoon. Transfer to blender with the remaining ingredients, only adding 1 teaspoon of mint to start. Blend on high until smooth, about 15-30 seconds. Taste, adding more mint or other seasoning if desired. Serve.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

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Hi everyone!

This is just a quick post with a tasty recipe for roasted tomatillo salsa. My husband said it was the best tomatillo salsa he has every tried, so thought I should share it!

We hope you enjoy the 4th!

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa
makes about 1 cup

Recipe notes: 1) you can use cilantro in place of papalo, but I would add 3 or 4 times as much; 2) broilers vary widely, so keep a close eye on ingredients in the oven.

Ingredients:

  • 12 ounces (about 20) tomatillos, husk removed, cleaned, and cut in half lengthwise
  • 2 small or 1 medium jalapeno, stem removed and cut in half lengthwise (remove seeds and ribs for a less spicy version)
  • 1/2 medium yellow onion (about 4 ounces), peeled and sliced 1/4″ thick
  • 1 large garlic clove, unpeeled
  • 1/2 teaspoon minced papalo
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons water (more if you want a thinner salsa)

Directions:

  • Adjust oven rack to the upper position and pre-heat the broiler to high.
  • Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the tomatillos and jalapeno cut side down on the baking sheet. Add the onion and garlic clove to the baking sheet and spread all ingredients evenly. Broil for about 5-7 minutes, or until most ingredients are blistered and blackened. You may need to remove the blackened items and return the rest to cook under the broiler for a few more minutes. Once cool enough to handle, peel the garlic clove.
  • Transfer all ingredients to a blender and blend on high until ingredients are fully broken down and incorporated, about 15 seconds. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

Fresh Tomato Salsa with Papalo

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Hello!

I love fresh, easy to prepare meals, especially in the scorching heat of summer. It doesn’t get fresher than this quick, flavorful salsa. Pair with tortilla chips and a protein source (I would go for a black bean salad) and you have dinner! Margaritas wouldn’t hurt either 🙂

This salsa is unique with the addition of papalo, an intense herb somewhat similar to cilantro, but with an aroma and flavor all its own. It is also called papaloquelite, poreleaf, mampuito, summer cilantro, and Bolivian coriander. It is often used as an alternative to cilantro, which makes sense as it thrives in the summer heat when cilantro will bolt. For more information, including recipes, check out this site.

Fresh Tomato Salsa with Papalo

Recipe notes: 1) if you are inclined, you can drain the diced tomatoes for 30 minutes in a colander to make the salsa less watery (which might be desirable depending on how to plan to use the salsa); 2) the spiciness of jalapenos vary greatly, so I always recommend adding some of the minced flesh to start, taste, then add more flesh and/or seeds/ribs until the desired heat level is reached; 3) papalo has an intense flavor, so start with just a small amount and add more as desired. You can substitute cilantro but I would use 2-3 times the amount called for.

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound firm, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1/2″ dice (see recipe note)
  • 1 medium jalapeno, cut in half, seeds/ribs removed, minced and reserved, flesh minced (see recipe note)
  • 1/3 cup minced red onion
  • 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon minced papalo (see recipe note)
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced (about 1/2 teaspoon)
  • 4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon table salt
  • Few grinds of fresh black pepper

Directions:

  • In a medium mixing bowl, add all ingredients and mix well to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Best eaten fresh.

 

Raw Sesame Marinated Kohlrabi

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Hello!

Mark and Gina aren’t setting up at market tonight but they will be there to drop off pre-ordered items from 4:30-5pm. Be sure to stop by next week and grab some goodies!

Below is a quick recipe for kohlrabi. We hope you enjoy it!

Raw Sesame Marinated Kohlrabi

Recipe note: this marinade is great for cucumbers too!

Ingredients:

  • 1-1/3 pound kohlrabi (without the stems), about 5 small, peeled and sliced into finger length pieces (about 2″ long x 1/2″ wide)
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon agave nectar
  • 1 tablespoon white or black sesame seeds, toasted

Directions:

  • Place kohlrabi pieces into a dish that holds them in a couple of layers (you don’t want them all stacked on top of each other or they won’t marinate evenly).
  • In a small bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients together to combine then pour over the kohlrabi. You can either serve immediately or store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator and serve within a few days.