Vegan Recipes

Rainbow Chard with Pine Nuts, Garlic and Basil

rainbow chard, bunched

Add brilliant color to your meal with rainbow chard.

1 large bunch rainbow chard
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons pine nuts
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves (8 to 10 large leaves)

Cut the stems from the chard leaves. Cut the leaves into 2- to 3-inch pieces and wash and dry them well. Rinse the stems and slice them crosswise 1/4-inch thick.

In a 12-inch stir-fry pan or skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the pine nuts and cook, stirring constantly, until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the pine nuts to a plate, leaving behind as much oil as possible.

Return the pan to medium-high heat, add the chard stems and a pinch of salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until shrunken and beginning to brown lightly, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook just until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add the chard leaves and salt. Toss with tongs until just wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, add the cold butter pieces and stir just until the butter has melted.

Using tongs, immediately transfer about half of the leaves and stems to a serving plate and arrange. Sprinkle on half of the Parmesan, basil, and pine nuts. Layer on the remaining leaves, stems, and pan juices, and garnish with the remaining cheese, basil, and pine nuts. Serve immediately.

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Shara’s Pesto

Basil

Basil shares the spotlight with arugula and fava beans in this tasty hummus dip.

1 bunch basil
1 bunch arugula
1 bunch garlic scapes
1 cup shelled fava beans
2 tablespoons soy sauce, Braggs, or tamari sauce (or more to taste)
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Boil 5 cups water in a saucepan. Add the fava beans and garlic scapes and cook 5 minutes or until soft. Add the arugula and basil and cook 2 minutes more. Drain, add all other ingredients, and put into a food processor. Process until smooth.

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Dandelion Soup

Red dandelion greens in the field

The humble dandelion, so rich in nutrients.

Serves 4-6

1 cup dandelion roots
4 cups cubed potatoes
2 cups dandelion leaves
2 cups onion, diced
2 or more cloves garlic
2 tablespoons vinegar
Salt to taste

Clean and chop dandelion roots and cook with potatoes in water to cover. Meanwhile, saute onion 5 minutes, add chopped dandelion leaves, cover and cook over low heat until potatoes in other pot are done. Drain roots and spuds, reserving water for future soup or bread, and put in serving bowl. Mix everything else together and add to bowl. Serve hot or cold.

We thank Healing Wise by Susun S. Weed for this recipe.

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Spring Tonic Soup

Serves 13-15

2 cup onion, chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups fresh burdock root
1 cup fresh dandelion (leaf & root)
1 cup fresh yellow dock
4 ounces seaweed
2 cups carrot, sliced
6 cups potatoes, cubed
4 quarts water
Salt to taste

Cook onion in oil in soup pot until golden. Add soaked, but not parboiled, burdock root slices. Chop fresh dandelion leaves and roots and add. Chop fresh leaves and roots of yellow dock (Rumex crispus) and add. Add all remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook covered at least an hour.

We thank Healing Wise by Susun S. Weed for this recipe.

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Roasted Dandelion Root Tea

Dig up and carefully clean some dandelion roots. If picked late in the spring, you may want to remove some of the root hairs. I usually cut off the tops in the field. Wash the roots thoroughly either in a bucket filled with water and physically agitate the roots with your hands, or take a hose and spray off the dirt. Clean until the water runs clear. Then take a knife and cut the roots into chunks. Wash one more time.

Put 2 cups of chunky roots into your food processor and chop until coarse. Put these into a separate bowl and process the rest 2 cups at a time until finished.

Spread the roots onto cookie sheets to a depth of 1/2 inch. Place in oven set at 250 degrees. Leave the door slightly ajar so that excess moisture can escape. Drying and roasting the roots takes about 2 hours. When dried they change from a yellowish color to a dark coffee color. Stir frequently with a spatula to assure even drying and roasting. Rotate sheets. Watch carefully during the last minutes so they do not burn. Cool and then store in glass jars. I grind my roasted chips in a coffee grinder used for herbs.

For tea, use 2 tablespoons dandelion root powder per 12 ounces water in a French press or place in saucepan with water and steep as an infusion.

Adapted from rosesprodigalgarden.org/recipes/dandelionrecipes.html.

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Cream of Dandelion Soup

Red dandelion greens in the field

Add dandelion greens to soups and stews to provide a mineral-rich ingredient.

4 cups chopped dandelion leaves
2 cups flower petals
2 cups buds
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
1 cup chopped leeks or onions
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups water or veggie/chicken stock
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon curry powder or turmeric
2 cups whole milk or milk substitute

Gently boil dandelion leaves in 6 cups water. Pour off bitter water and boil gently a second time, pouring off the bitter water.

In a heavy soup pot, saute leeks and garlic in butter or oil till translucent. Add 4 cups water or stock, leaves, flower petals, buds and salt. Simmer gently for about 45 minutes.

Add milk and simmer a few minutes more to meld the flavors. Season to taste. Garnish with flower petals.

Adapted from rosesprodigalgarden.org/recipes/dandelionrecipes.html.

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How to Use Fresh Fava Beans

fava beans

Fava beans are fun and delicious!

One of the largest beans and certainly the richest in flavor, favas are a real harbinger of summer. People all over the world enjoy their rich taste and generous nutrition. Also called “broad beans,” they are high in fiber and iron, and low in sodium and fat. They have no cholesterol but so much protein that they were called “the beef of the poor” in Charles Dickens’ day.

If the beans are very young, the whole bean can be chopped up and used, pods and all. Otherwise shuck them to your preference. There is a whiteish skin around the bean itself, which some people like to eat, and others prefer to discard (see below).

Sauté shucked beans with peas and mushrooms, or with shrimp and thyme for a delicious and elegant summer supper. Toss them into soups, stir-fries or pasta. Roast them with garlic, olive oil and salt to taste, or use them raw, whole or chopped into salads. Puree favas for an alternative green base to pizza or pasta. Boil and mash them, and spread the paste on crostini.

Shucking favas

First, split the pod at the seam and remove the beans. There are about 4 to 5 per pod.

To remove the second skin, there are two different methods. The first is to make a small slit with a knife along the edge of the bean to pop the bean out of its skin.

The alternate, and more popular, method is to blanch them for 1-3 minutes. Remove the beans from the boiling water and immediately submerge them in ice cold water to stop the cooking process. At this point, you can spread the beans out on a cookie sheet to freeze, then bag and store in freezer. If you’re going to use them right away, squeeze them out from their skins, and use as directed in any recipe of your choice.

Sauteeing fava beans

Shuck 2 pounds of fava beans. Use either method to remove the outer skin of the beans. You should have about 1.5 cups beans. Over medium heat in a skillet, melt together 1 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon olive oil, add two minced garlic cloves (or 2 finely chopped garlic scapes) and sauté for 1 minute. Add the fava beans and sauté for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are done to your preference. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper, serve, and enjoy!

Or get a little fancier. Add other delicious items, such as caramelized onions or fennel, chunky fresh tomatoes, a bit of chopped proscuitto, and a cup of chopped endive. Serve on fettuccine with a light cream sauce.

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About Rosemary

Like many herbs, rosemary is steeped in myth. The name derives from Latin for “dew” (ros) and “sea” (marinus), because in many locations, it needs no water other than the humidity carried by sea breezes. In Greek mythology, it was draped around the Greek goddess Aphrodite when she rose from the sea. The Virgin Mary is said to have spread her blue cloak over a white-blossomed rosemary bush when she was resting, and the flowers turned blue. The shrub then became known as the ‘Rose of Mary.’

Rosemary contains rosmarinic acid, a powerful antioxidant known for its anti‐inflammatory, anti-allergic, anti‐fungal and antiseptic properties, as well as vitamins C, A, B‐complex, and many minerals. It tastes great with roast pork, lamb and chicken. Add it to a marinade with garlic and lemon juice. Soak fresh rosemary in olive oil or vinegar to infuse them, or soak it in milk or cream and use in desserts. Add it chopped to soups, salads, and pasta, or mix it with garlic and butter for a flavorful garlic bread. When Farmer Nash makes ground pork burgers, he will
always add chopped fresh rosemary at about 1 tablespoon
per pound of pork. Delicious!

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About Hulless Oats

Oat groats

The naked oats in your farm share box this week can be made into a tasty and hearty oatmeal breakfast.

Also called “naked oats,” the variety of these hulless oats is appropriately called Streaker. When harvested and threshed, the oat kernels are almost free of the tough, inedible hulls of common oats. After winnowing, the grain is ready to cook for oatmeal or grind for oat flour. Remove any lingering hulls by floating them off in water, then check for any tiny pebbles that may have gotten through in the threshing process. Once soaked, hulless oats can be sprouted because they are a healthy living grain, unlike common oats that are de‐hulled by a heat process that actually damages the whole grain. Use oat sprouts in salads or in your leftover turkey sandwiches.

Hulless oats contain lots of dietary fiber, cancer-fighting phytochemicals, protein, vitamin B complex, and minerals like magnesium, zinc, phosphorus, manganese, copper and iron. They help lower cholesterol, reduce the risk of heart disease, prevent type 2 diabetes, and aid in weight control. Soaking sprouts prior to cooking is recommended, especially if you want to prepare them as a porridge, and they do wonderfully in a crockpot. You can also soak them overnight, put them raw in a blender with juice, milk or yogurt, and the sweetener of your choice, and blend until smooth. Then layer chopped fruit, raisins, nuts, etc. with the blended oats to make a beautiful breakfast parfait!

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Using Fresh Dill

dill, bunched

What’s your favorite use for dill? Let us know in the comments below!

Looking for dill-flavored inspiration? Here are several fantastic uses for dill that you might not have thought of.

  • Add sparkle to a tuna sandwich.
  • Enhance a cold gazpacho soup.
  • Mix 1/4 cup fresh dill with 1/4 cup vinegar, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add 2 sliced cucumbers, 1 cup sliced red onion, and 2 cut-up tomatoes. Toss, and let stand at least 15 minutes before serving.
  • Got a favorite pureed carrot soup recipe? Be sure to garnish it with some delicate dill fronds for a treat that’s not only tasty, but visually appealing.
  • Dill with salmon is a marriage made in heaven. Add finely chopped garlic, too!
  • Add to Greek green salads, with romaine, sliced scallions and crumbled feta.
  • Make your own sourdough bread? Throw in some olives and dill.
  • Chop 1/2 cup dill fine and mix with 2-3 tablespoons butter, salt, and pepper.
  • For an incredible roasted chicken, use a spoon to get dill under the skin of the breasts, thighs, and legs, and massage it around the meat. Stuff some into the cavity of the chicken with lemon slices and garlic.
  • Add to potato soup, or potato salad with lemon and green onion.
  • Add to cole slaw, omelets, lentil dahl, or borscht.
  • Make dill sauce with plain yogurt, mayo, sour cream, garlic, lemon, and salt and pepper.

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