Category Archives: side dishes

Adventures in CSA: Brinner Gone Wild

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I don’t know about anyone else, but there are some nights when the meal plan is just kinda filled with question marks. We had actually planned for tonight to be makeshift Chinese food (some frozen General Tso’s Chicken with rice on the side, plus some manner of veggie and maybe some egg rolls or other appetizer from the deep freeze). Still, the CSA veggies beckoned, and we decided to go for a “brinner” (breakfast as dinner) instead.

You see, there are few foods that make me come running nearly so fast as hash browns. No – not home fries…little chunks of potato with peppers are just kinda meh, in my opinion. But, you shred some potatoes, throw those suckers into a pan and turn ’em golden brown…well, that just makes a little pan of heaven. So, DH took our lovely little red potatoes from the CSA, shredded them in the food processor, and tossed ’em in a pan with some butter. They took longer than either of us were hoping for, but the end product was still crispy in spots and soft in others (perfect!) and delightfully yummy. We paired those with french toast and turkey sausage. But didn’t we still need a veggie? Why YES.

At this point, that’s when things get “wild”. Brinner went smorgasbord when we added kale chips to the mix, crisping up the CSA kale in the oven. The recipe couldn’t be simpler – just wash and dry kale leaves, then chop into small pieces. Toss the pieces in a bowl with a small amount of olive oil and spread them no more than one layer deep on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle some seasoned salt on top (we used Penzeys 4/S Special Seasoned Salt) and bake at 350F for about 10-13 minutes. Even the kids got behind the idea of kale chips!

As with last week, we’ve made a good dent in the CSA box. We haven’t yet tackled the butternut squash (it’s still got plenty of time), and we have both onions left to be used. I did try one of the Asian Pears today, but I’m pretty convinced it wasn’t 100% ripe yet, since its flavor was so subtle as to be non-existent. Ah well, it can’t always be a winning day.

On the plus side, tomorrow is Friday and that means it’s CSA pick-up day! I’m looking forward to see what’s in my third veggie box…

Tomato-Cucumber-Bean Salad

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The CSA box for week 1 gave us tomatoes and cucumbers. My first thought: why not make a salad? But, what else should I add…? Not having tons of time to make complex dishes or tons of stuff from scratch every day, making a simple salad like this helps out by providing a good salad that can be a side for lunch or dinner. Adding some beans gives it color – and more fiber (yeay!) – and helps me ignore the fact that I’d really like to add some feta. Since DH has not yet climbed on the feta bandwagon, I figured beans were the safer addition. His verdict: tasty win!

Tomato Cucumber Bean Salad

Pretty colors = Pretty tasty

 

Prep Time:  5-7 mins

Cooking Time: n/a

Serves: 4-6

 

Ingredients

1 large slicing or heirloom tomato, washed and chopped into small pieces

1 large cucumber, washed and chopped into small pieces

15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

15 oz can chick peas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed

2 Tb lemon juice

salt and pepper, to taste

 

Make it Happen

Stir to combine all ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Use either a few grinds of salt and pepper or a small amount, checking for taste as you go.

Easy-peasy French Fries

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Again, the CSA is getting me to think differently – which is a really good thing. It’s part of what I hoped would happen, that I’d branch out and try new foods. Now, it’s not like I’ve never EATEN fries and never MADE fries, but by “made” I can say that I had only ever heated up fries from a bag that came from a freezer. Until now.

To say that this recipe is easy would be an understatement. It’s stupid-easy. It’s “I can’t believe it took me this long to make my own fries” easy. You can make these plain or add your own topping, once the fries are done cooking. We chose to add rosemary and garlic powder to ours, and they were OMNOMNOM good. My next topping will likely be garlic – and I’ll list what needs to be done to make those, too.

Make sure to pick potatoes that are sized to your preferred length of fry. Ours were the CSA potatoes, which were on the small side. They made delightful fries, though I can imagine that people who revel in the longer fries might have wished for bigger ‘taters.

Updated on October 9, 2011 to add: Note that I recommend using olive oil. If you want your fries to have a more conventional taste, go with vegetable oil instead. After a lower-than-anticipated acceptance rate from the little people of the house, I made a small batch with vegetable oil instead. Presto-change-o…they love ’em!

Easy-Peasy Fries

OMNOMNOM FRIES OMNOMNOM

Prep Time: 15-20 mins

Cook Time: 35-40 mins

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1-1/2 to 2 lbs red skin potatoes, washed

olive oil (or vegetable oil, for a more conventional taste)

salt

Make it Happen

1. Preheat your oven to 450F.

2. Slice the potatoes into strips about 1/2in thick. Cover in water and soak for 10 minutes.

3. Drain and dry the fries. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over top of the fries and toss to coat. Make sure that all of the fries are coated with a thin layer of oil.

4. Lay the fries out on a non-stick baking sheet, one layer thick and place in the oven once it’s preheated.

5. Cook the fries for 35-40 min, to desired crispness, turning them every 10 mins.

6. After you remove the fries from the oven. grind or shake a small amount of salt on them.

Alt endings…

Rosemary & garlic: sprinkle about 1 tsp dried rosemary and 1-1/2 to 2 tsp garlic powder on the fries; toss to coat.

Garlic: peel and mince 3 cloves of garlic; briefly heat (2 min) in about 1-2 Tb olive oil. Pour over the fries and toss to coat.