Winter Squash Muffins

Makes 20 small muffins

Steam these squash for autumnal muffins.

3 eggs
1 cup honey
1 cup veggie oil
2 cups steamed squash
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup raisins

Beat the eggs until light and foamy. Add the honey, oil, squash and vanilla, and mix lightly but well. Combine the flour, salt, soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. Add to the egg/squash mixture and stir until well blended. Add nuts and raisins. Pour into greased or lined muffin tins. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 20-25 minutes. They will stay fresh for 4 days, or freeze them for up to 2 months.

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Posted on February 28, 2014

Garlic Dip

So healthy and so tasty!

Makes 3/4 cup

2 cups cooked Nash’s field peas
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup chicken or vegetables broth
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. Thin with additional water, olive oil or lemon juice as desired. Serve with carrot sticks, celery, kholrabi, cauliflower, steamed beets, halved Brussels sprouts, bok choi stems, sunchokes, etc.

We thank The World’s Healthiest Foods for this recipe.

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Posted on February 28, 2014

Sunchoke Rosemary Chips

Use sunchokes in place of potatoes — for example, make sunchoke chips. The advantage: sunchokes don’t cause a spike in blood sugar like potatoes do.

1/2 pound large sunchokes
1 1/2 tablespoon coarse salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in center. Slice sunchokes lengthwise 1/8 inch thick and toss with salt. Place slices on paper towels in a single layer, cover with 2 paper towels and let sit 15 minutes, pressing to absorb liquid.

In a bowl, gently toss sunchokes with olive oil and rosemary. Place in single layer on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake, flipping halfway through, until golden and crisp, about 30 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet.

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Posted on February 28, 2014

Wheat Berry Casserole

Nash’s soft white wheat berries, up close and personal.

Serves 4

2 cups Nash’s soft white wheat berries, sprouted
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
3 cups beef or chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon dried green pepper corns, crushed

Place 2 cups sprouted berries in a flameproof casserole with stock and salt. Bring to a boil and skim.

Add thyme, rosemary and peppercorns and boil vigorously until liquid has reduced to the level of the wheat.

Transfer to a 250-degree oven and bake for about 4 hours or until berries are tender.

We thank Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon for this recipe.

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Posted on February 21, 2014

Triticale Breakfast Cereal

Cooking whole grain triticale or wheat berries in the crock pot is fantastic because they can cook on low overnight and be perfect in the morning! They freeze really well too, which means we keep them in Tupperware and pull out small portions as needed to minimize cooking time on busy mornings!

You can use any of Nash’s whole grains for breakfast, but my favorite is triticale because of its hearty, nutty flavor.

Triticale Breakfast Cereal

Optional: Soak 2 cups of whole rinsed triticale or wheat berries for several
hours or overnight.

Combine in crock pot 4 cups of water with soaked (or unsoaked) whole
grains. Cook on low for 7-9 hours.

Enjoy whole cooked grain as a breakfast cereal with your favorite toppings, including bananas, cinnamon, cardamom, honey, maple syrup, yogurt, Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk, nuts, ground flax seeds, freshly grated ginger, dried fruit, etc.

We thank Brigid Walsh for this recipe.

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Posted on February 20, 2014

Six Nettle Recipes

Young nettles are easily blanched and frozen to enjoy year round. They are easy to dry as well for healthy herbal teas.

Farmer’s Nettle Frittata
Saute red onions, mushrooms in season, grated carrot, finely sliced broccoli spears and minced chickweed together in olive oil until wilted. Add a handful of minced young nettle stalk and leaves on top, cover and let steam until nettles wilt. Meanwhile, prepare a mixture of eggs, minced parsley and dried basil. Stir well and pour it over the steaming veggies. Place a cover on the pan, wait until eggs set, then flip until done. Delicious as is or with salsa or chickweed pesto.

Leek, Chickweed and Nettle Soup
Saute chopped leeks, celery and crushed garlic cloves in olive oil until soft; add diced potatoes (I use russets or Yukon golds). Add minced chickweed, nettles, parsley, dried basil, turmeric, salt and perhaps a bit more oil or butter. Saute a few minutes more, mixing all the ingredients well to blend the flavors. Cover with stock or water and simmer until everything is tender. Other veggies can be added, such as tomatoes, grated carrots, or perhaps a tin of salmon added at the end for even more variety. Unlike most leek and potato soup recipes, I do not use milk or cream as an ingredient, nor do I find a need to puree if the ingredients are diced small enough, as everything seems to meld together just fine.

Nettle Lasagna
Any spinach lasagna recipe will do for nettle lasagna with the obvious substitution of sauteed or steamed young nettles. If you make your own noodles, toss a spoonful of dried nettle powder into your flour mixture for added nutrition or into your homemade tomato sauce.

Nettle Quiche
Again, there are countless recipes for making quiches. My favorite is from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest by Mollie Katzen. Since I make my own crusts, sometimes I’ll throw in a tablespoon of dried nettle powder with my flours. For the filling, I use a large handful of chopped and steamed nettles, along with sauteed onions, mushrooms in season, chopped broccoli, and an assortment of fresh and dried herbs laid on a bed of feta and shredded raw cheddar cheeses. Over that goes an egg-and-milk mixture to which I might mix in an additional tablespoon of flour depending on how moist my ingredients are.

Nettle Greens Medley
Saute slivers of red onion and garlic in olive oil or coconut oil until translucent. Add equal amounts of chopped Swiss chard and nettle tops. Pour in a small quantity of water, cover with lid and steam until wilted and tender. Mix gently to blend the veggies and oil, sprinkle on some sea salt and serve.

Sesanelp
A seasoning mixture of sesame seeds, nettle seed and nettle herb plus kelp and Celtic salt. Tasty! Roast 1/2 cup sesame seed in a frying pan to your liking. Cool. To a blender add cooled sesame seeds, 2/3 cup of nettle seed, 2 tablespoons dried nettle herb, 2 tablespoons kelp granules and 1/2 teaspoon Celtic salt. Blend till fine. Store in a glass jar. Goes great with a wide variety of foods. My morning toast is sprouted grain bread with a dribble of olive oil topped with this mixture and nutritional yeast. Yum!

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Posted on February 20, 2014

Roasted Beets with Mustard

You can’t beet these beets!

2 pounds small beets (12-16 beets)
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup sliced scallions
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Scrub the beets well and cut in half lengthwise. Toss the beets with oil on a baking sheet with sides. Arrange cut-side down and roast until tender when pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes, then peel off and discard the skins.

Cut the beets into matchsticks. Place in a serving bowl and toss with scallions, mustard and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.

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Posted on February 19, 2014

Potato and Sweet Potato Torte

These Alaska Bloom potatoes would love to become potato torte!

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 large leeks, trimmed, washed (see tip) and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 pound sweet potatoes (about 2 small), peeled and cut into 1/8-inch-thick slices
1 pound all-purpose potatoes, preferably Yukon gold (2-4 medium), peeled and cut into 1/8-inch-thick slices.

Position oven rack at the lowest level; preheat to 450°F. Coat a 9 1/2-inch, deep-dish pie pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom with parchment paper or foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add leeks and thyme; cook, stirring often, until tender, about 5 minutes. (If necessary, add 1 to 2 tablespoons water to prevent scorching.) Season with 1/8 teaspoon salt and pepper.

Arrange half the sweet potato slices, slightly overlapping, in the prepared pie pan and season with a little of the remaining salt and pepper. Spread one-third of the leeks over the top. Arrange half the potato slices over the leeks and season with salt and pepper. Top with another third of the leeks. Layer the remaining sweet potatoes, leeks and potatoes in the same manner. Cover the pan tightly with foil.

Bake the torte until the vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the torte to loosen it. Invert onto a serving plate. Remove paper or foil and serve.

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Posted on February 19, 2014

Mixed Greens with Oranges and Balsamic Vinaigrette

2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 small navel oranges
2 bunches arugula or watercress, stemmed, washed and dried (about 4 cups)
1 small head romaine lettuce, washed, dried and torn (about 4 cups)
1 small red onion, thinly sliced

Whisk together orange zest and juice, balsamic vinegar, shallot, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk in the oil until well blended.

Remove the rind and white pith from the oranges with a very sharp knife and discard. Slice oranges thinly, or remove the individual segments by slicing between the membranes. Halve the orange slices if they are large.

Toss the arugula and romaine together in a shallow salad bowl. Separate the onion slices into rings. Scatter the onions and oranges over the greens. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad and toss.

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Posted on February 19, 2014

Raab & White Bean Soup

Eliza, produce manager of our farm store, shows off a bunch of tender cabbage raab, perfect for this soup.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
3/4 cup diced carrot
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 cup veggie or chicken broth
2 cup water
1 cup white wine
3 potatoes, diced
1 turnip or parsnip, peeled and diced
1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh sage, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
1 16-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
2 cup finely chopped raab
1 small red chili pepper, seeded and chopped
Ground black pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat; cook and stir in the onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the carrot and garlic and cook 5 minutes more.

Pour in the broth, water & wine; stir in the potatoes and parsnip, rosemary, sage and thyme. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the beans, raab, chili pepper and black pepper and simmer, covered for 30 minutes more.

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Posted on February 19, 2014