We are well over a month into the first year of the CSA, and let it be known that, so far, I’m winning. Yes, vegetable eating has become a competitive sport around here. It’s more me vs. the crisper drawers than me vs. Sara (she’s more of a hapless bystander). So far, I’ve eaten my weight in rhubarb, figured out that garlic scapes go with just about everything, and snuck parsnips into every dish I could think of (although I did not repeat the parsnip frosting disaster of ‘03). Last week I actually reached parsnip 0 in the fridge. This hasn’t happened in weeks. This week, I had to buy extra vegetables because I ran out. I am so winning!
Here’s a recipe I came up with to use up all those parsnips. You could mix it up with other root vegetables — carrots would be especially nice in this, I think.
Roasted Parsnip Spread
Good as a sandwich spread or as a dip for veggies or pita
3/4 C red lentils
3 parsnips cut into 1-inch chunks
3 garlic scapes cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 tsp dried rosemary
salt
olive oil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar or lemon juice
black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. Put red lentils in a small pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil over med-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until lentils are cooked (about 15 minues). Drain and set aside.
3. While lentils are cooking, arrange parsnips and garlic scapes on a large, rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with rosemary and a couple pinches of salt. Drizzle with about 1-2 Tbsp olive oil and toss to coat vegetables. Roast in oven until parsnips are tender and slightly browned (about 20-30 minutes). Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
4. In a food processor, combine lentils, roasted vegetables, vinegar (or lemon juice), and salt & pepper to taste. Process until smooth and adjust seasonings to taste.
I have three whole weeks off school before Summer classes start. This is exciting for a lot of reasons, one being that I get to cook more than once a week. I’ve got plans for several nights this week to use up the ingredients of our CSA box.
Here’s what we got:
Spinach
Arugula
Parsnips
Sunchokes
Sorrel
Nettles
Rhubarb
Chives
Red Radish
Hon Tsai Tai
Green Garlic
And here’s the plan:
Soup: nettles, sunchokes, chives, green garlic
Green curry: hon tsai tai, green garlic
Pesto: sorrel, arugula
Veggie burgers: spinach, radishes, chives
Pie: rhubarb
Side dish: parsnips (roasted)
I’ll post recipes throughout the week.
I love having a plan.
Our first CSA box came from Harmony Valley last week, and it was everything I dreamed of. It was all I could do to not sprint the 3 blocks to our pickup location (I definitely would have had Sara not been walking with me). Upon returning home with our bounty, I immediately put some asparagus in the oven to roast for dinner.
Figuring out what to do with the rest was more of a challenge, but I made a master plan for using everything and we’ve done pretty well so far — especially since it’s finals time. There’s a lot to cover, so I’ll have to do these posts in installments. Here’s a recipe I came up with to use up a good portion of our vegetable abundance:
Lemony Lentil & Spring Vegetable Salad
3/4 C French lentils
3/4 C pearl barley
2-3 C parsnips chopped in 1/2-inch pieces
5 sunchokes peeled and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
6 garlic cloves, peeled
6 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 bunch ramp bulbs sliced thin
4 radishes sliced
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 large or 2 medium lemons
salt
black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add lentils and barley and boil until tender — but not mushy (about 20-30 minutes). Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
3. Toss parsnips, sunchokes, and garlic cloves with olive oil, spread on a rimmed baking sheet, and roast in the oven, stirring occasionally (or, not at all if you’re forgetful like me) until partially browned (about 20-30 minutes).
4. In a large bowl, combine cooked lentil mixture and roasted parsnip mixture with ramps, radishes, lemon zest & juice, remaining 4 Tbsp olive oil, and salt & pepper to taste.
Never heard of a sunchoke? Neither have most people. This was the first time I’d cooked with them and I think roasting is the way to go — it seems to bring out their artichokey flavor. They’re hell to peel, though — look at all the nubs:
Time: 45 minutes
