Heirloom Tomato Pasta Sauce

 

Recipe by Robin 

Heirloom tomatoes! Those oddly shaped, strangely colored, and remarkably hefty hunks of flavor! They’re all over the farmers’ markets in September, maybe even in your garden. Though delicious on their own, they also add old-fashioned flavor to homemade pasta sauce. Cook up some sauce today and freeze it for the winter. You’ll love the fresh summery aroma and taste come January.

Sharmoula

Served as Dip = Sharmoula

Recipe by A. and Robin

I messed up. When trying to recreate my cousin A.’s delicious sharmoula, a traditional Libyan salad, memory didn’t quite serve. I got the ingredients right. I cut them right. I adjusted the proportions to maximize deliciousness. I made an acceptable substitution of green onions for red. I made it with love like A. said to. BUT, “Wait, you put the bread IN the salad?” asked A. when I sent a photo. I’d forgotten that the bread goes on the side, to serve like a dip. Still, my salad saved my days-old bread quite tastily.

Salsa Fresca Nueva

Recipe inspired by Casalegno Farms

Every time I make salsa I wonder why I don’t make it more often. It’s easy and delicious, and can be varied numerous ways. Though I usually make salsa with lime juice, recently I learned a Casalegno Farms family secret: grandma used apple cider vinegar in her salsa. I was skeptical, but its subtle fruitiness enhances the tomato and pepper flavors without adding extra flavors from the citrus. So it allows me to bump up the Southwest spicing with cumin and cilantro, or whatever else I might have on hand.

Shakshuka for Two

Serve on a Bed of Spinach with Crusty Bread

Recipe by Robin

Shakshuka! A fun word to say, and a delightful dish from North Africa that satisfies at both brunch and supper.  It starts with a thick whole-tomato sauce, chunky with onions and bell pepper, lightly spiced (or not so lightly—your choice) with exotic Middle Eastern flavors. Next, eggs are poached directly in the sauce and topped with green herbs. For extra color and veggie-power, I serve shakshuka on a bed of steamed spinach or julienned steamed zucchini. Traditionally it’s accompanied by hearty homemade white bread for scooping up the yummy sauce.

Southwest Chicken Salad

Salad Served

Recipe by Robin

Whenever Southwest chicken salad is on a restaurant menu, I’m likely to order it. Styles vary widely, but typically include salad greens, corn, beans, cheese, and a side of salsa. A chicken breast, hopefully browned and spiced, crowns the creation. Dressings vary from chili lime vinaigrettes to creamy flavored ranches to green goddesses. This first attempt to recreate the salad at home was a great success, largely due to the rich, creamy homemade avocado ranch dressing. Fresh corn-off-the-cob from last night's Farmers' Market leftovers adds more taste appeal, though in a pinch—or in winter—frozen cooked corn will do nicely.

Sausage and Peppers

Recipe by Robin and Bruce

‘Way back when the millennium was new, my husband-to-be and I moved in together and started cooking. Sausage and peppers was one of our first comfort food recipes. I credit Bruce for the chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (smoky preserved jalapenos), which spices up the traditional Italian recipe. We quickly discovered that making large batches of the recipe allowed us to either freeze half or share some with friends who were tending sick or injured family members. Originally we served sausage and peppers over wide noodles. On French bread is also traditional. These days we prefer no-carb, all-veg spaghetti squash.

Escarole and Poached Egg Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

Hearty Dinner Salad

Recipe adapted from Magazine Clipping

How do you turn a side salad into a satisfying dinner salad? Start with a somewhat larger bed of greens, then add a substantial quantity of topping ingredients, especially protein and carb-rich veggies. Then increase the quantity of dressing accordingly. In this case, I increased the amount of tomatoes, peas, and eggs. Rodoni Farms is still selling fresh English peas at the Farmers’ Market, which make the salad all the more healthful and delicious than the frozen peas in the original recipe. This is the perfect salad for that short period of time when the last of the peas’ season converges with the first of the tomatoes’.

Baked Tunisian Eggah

Eggah! A Fantastic Way to Eat Your Veggies

Recipe from Mediterranean Light

Eggah! I made it because I love saying it, and because bell peppers and tomatoes will soon be out of season. Tunisian eggah is technically an oxymoron, since eggah is an Egyptian dish, and the closest dish in Tunisia is called tagine (and is quite different that tagines from other Arabic countries). It’s called kuku in Iran, and Ej’jah in other places. It’s similar to Spain’s omelette, except it’s packed with festive red and green veggies rather than potatoes, and spiced up with cumin, cinnamon, and other lovely aromatics. It’s similar to a frittata, but thicker and more fragrant.

Summer Corn and Tomato Salad

Summertime and the Living is Yummy

Recipe by Robin

The quintessential summertime meal is made with garden-fresh corn and tomatoes backed by toothsome barbecue. Late summer bell peppers and sun-loving herbs are the proverbial icing on the cake. For years I’ve wanted to create a corn and tomato salad. Finally this year I was spurred to action. Jeanne, a thoughtful librarian colleague, brought several pounds of flash-frozen halibut to work. Every summer her kids board charter boats in Ketchikan, Alaska to do some deep sea fishing, and she shares their fishy wealth with others. Her generous contribution inspired me to get going on the corn salad.

Minestrone with Chen Pi (Tangerine Peel)

Minestrone with Tangerine Kick

Recipe from Chinese Herbal Cookbook

As my friend Jon says, “One of the reasons I love food so much is that it’s an adventure if you go for new things...exotic spices, cuisines from around the world and ingredients that make you go 'hmmmm'. My most memorable meals are a symphony of textures and flavors. It's the magic of one flavor picking up where the last left, harmoniously and at the same time an experience all its own.” Inspired by Jon, I offer this long-forgotten recipe: Italian style minestrone with Chinese chen pi, or dried tangerine peel. Tangerine permeates the dish in a subtle but game-changing way.

Fresh Corn and Tomato Soup

Summer into Fall Soup

Recipe adapted from Undated Photocopy

As we slide from late summer to autumn next week, we’re enjoying the end of surprisingly long corn season here in Santa Cruz county. Though corn isn’t easy to grow near the coast, Happy Boy Farms has supplied us with an enormous amount of organic ears at farmers’ markets this season. Combined with Happy Boy’s bargain-priced heirloom tomatoes, corn makes a colorful, delicious, and healthful soup. Bonus: easy prep and few other ingredients needed. Simply add corn and tomatoes to sautéed aromatics, add a little water and seasoning, and cook down. What’s not to like?

Tomato Basil Catsup or Jam

The Ultimate Burger Condiment

Recipe Adapted from Vegetable Recipes I Can’t Live Without

At last it’s getting colder in Santa Cruz, after a couple of too-warm winters. Our garden tomato and basil crops are winding down, and there are only a few over- or under-ripe varieties left at the Farmers’ Markets. These tomatoes might not be flavorful enough for salads. But any sort of tomato, even green, can be preserved in a catsup-like jam, according to author and Moosewood restaurant chef Mollie Katzen. I tried it with both over-ripe paste tomatoes and old pithy heirlooms. I might try it again with my green tomatoes, if the frost comes before they ripen. The sweetness (or tartness) of the tomato variety will dictate the sweetness/tartness ratio of the end product. You can alter this somewhat by varying the amount of honey and cider vinegar added to the mix.

Vegetarian Pepperpot

Colorful and Comforting

Recipe Adapted from Live Earth Farm

After a month in the UK, I’ve returned to California, where it’s suddenly autumn. Shorter days, yellow leaves, and pumpkins in the market are sure signs. Though I seriously miss the delicious UK foods, I’m jumping back into US cuisine with the compellingly named Pepperpot soup. Traditionally, Amish folk prepared Pepperpot with tripe. I’ve never prepared tripe, and most likely never will. Luckily, our CSA recipe maven Rebecca Mastoris sent us a vegan option in a recent newsletter. I’ve doubled the amount of veggies to make a thicker, heartier soup (and to use more of our CSA share veggies), and have adjusted the spicing. The result is a warming, well-spiced bowl filled with early fall veggies. What a delightful American way to welcome the new season!

Classic Caprese Salad

Caprese Eye-Candy

Recipe by Robin

Few salads are as attractive as Caprese salad when compared with the amount of work needed for their creation. Caprese’s bold colors, reminiscent of the Italian flag, appeal to the eye as the simple combination of basil, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella appeals to the tastebuds. Though home chefs will be hard pressed to match the restaurant version with cheese and tomato slices exactly matching in diameter and thickness and perfect tiny basil leaves, the home-based result is plenty appealing when carefully arranged. Garden basil prepared chiffonade-style and sprinkled over the top fools the eye into thinking that the tomato and cheese slices match more perfectly.

Pan Grilled Tilapia or Salmon with Pineapple Salsa

Colorful and Healthful

Recipe adapted from Health.com

As we look towards the treat- and comfort food-laden holidays, it’s good calorie economics to eat more lightly in the meantime. And so I offer this recipe with light, inexpensive, and sustainably farmed tilapia. The original recipe, no longer available at Health.com, called for salmon, higher in calories but filled with healthful omega 3 oils. It’s the tail end of salmon season in the Bay Area, so I’ve included a salmon cooking variation at the end. With its higher oil content, salmon browns more readily, but tilapia browns up just as deliciously using a method I derived from my dad.  Atlantic or Pacific cod, lingcod (plentiful right now), and line-caught black rockfish are sustainable white fish that can be prepared like tilapia.

Buckwheat Kasha Stuffed Zucchini

Topped with Last of the Garden Basil for 2013

Recipe inspired by Mom & Old House Farm

At this time of year, as we approach Day of the Dead, the veil between the worlds gets thinner as we remember loved ones who have passed. Before my mom died, 10 years ago now, she reminded me of a stuffed zucchini I’d made for her way back when with buckwheat. I’d completely forgotten. During those early days I threw together whatever ingredients I had without much thought—or many ingredients. So this recipe is an approximation of the dish that Mom liked, and can be improvised upon freely.

Garden Swiss Steak

With Wholewheat Pasta: Nontraditional and Yummy

Recipe adapted from Meals for One or Two

Swiss steak was all the rage in the 1950s. Our moms and grandmas made it, but today it’s distinctly out of fashion. And yet moist-cooking an inexpensive steak to tenderness is economical. The rich juices can be served over potatoes or noodles, making it a classic comfort food.  Slowly simmering Swiss Steak creates a voluptuous smell that permeates the senses long before dinner. And did I mention that it’s delicious? I’ve never blogged a beef recipe before, but Swiss Steak is worth celebrating. This recipe, from Mom’s cookbook, features the unusual addition of garden carrots, zucchini, and tomatoes.

Autumn Minestrone

Autumn Colors and Flavors

Recipe Inspired by The Art of Simple Food

One of my favorite things about autumn is a steady supply of fresh butternut squash. Complimenting both savory and sweet dishes, often used in “pumpkin” pies, a sweet treat simply steamed with a touch of butter, it’s the quintessential fall vegetable. So when Alice Waters suggested, in her classic book The Art of Simple Food, to try butternut in place of zucchini to make a summery minestrone into a fall dish, I had to give it a whirl. Indeed, the soup is a delightfully autumn-like orange, and as full of chunky goodies as its warmer weather brethren.

Gazpacho with Basil and Parsley

Refreshing and Healthful

Recipe by Robin

After the delicious results of preparing cousin Sheila’s Mexican-style Gazpacho, I wanted to find a more traditional Spanish recipe. However, the original gazpacho turns out to be an entirely different soup, dating back to Greek and Roman civilizations. Its main components were bread, olive oil, water, vinegar, and garlic. Or perhaps the Moors brought a similar gazpacho, sans vinegar, to Andalucia. In any case, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers weren’t added until they arrived from the New World in the 16^th century. Given the bounty of these veggies at my house, sticking with the ancient tradition was not an option. As usual in the gardener’s kitchen, necessity was the mother of invention.

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Ready to Bake

Recipe adapted from Mom’s

As of last week it’s been 10 years since my mom died. Cooking was her passion, and it was indeed sad when she had to give it up due to disability in her latter years. Still, she remained interested in food and its preparation till the end, watching cooking show on TV and perusing menus from local restaurants. Even when she was barely able to feed herself, she enjoyed a rich variety of foods and knew which menu items were tastiest. Like many of Mom’s recipes that I’ve blogged, stuffed peppers were made without a written recipe.  Throughout the years I’ve made many attempts to recreate this classic Polish recipe.  Finally, I’ve gotten pretty darn close.