Farm to Table with Eggplant | Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Baked Eggplant Parmesan

1 large eggplant, peeled and thinly sliced
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups panko crumbs
2 tablespoons oregano
1 tablespoon garlic powder
3 cups sauce, divided
1/2 cup grated or shredded cheese cheese (I used a three cheese blend)
 bunch of fresh basil
  
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix crumbs, oregano and garlic powder in a plate.
Dip eggplant slices in egg, then in bread crumb mixture.
Place in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment.

 Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes on each side.

In a 9x13 inch baking dish spread sauce to cover the bottom. 
Place a layer of eggplant slices in the sauce and sprinkle with cheese. 
Repeat with remaining ingredients, ending with the cheeses. 
Sprinkle basil on top

Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until golden brown. 

Serve with pasta.

Farm to table with Tatsoi

Tatsoi. Another beautiful deep green vegetable I'd never heard of. I learned it's a dark green Asian salad green with a mild mustard flavor, similar to bok choy. Apparently it doesn't have a long storage life, and since mine is already a little wilted, this should be a perfect recipe.

 Browned Butter Pasta with Tatsoi
Adapted from Appetite for China

Pasta of your choice (I used wheat penne)
1/2 stick unsalted butter
Bunch of tatsoi, rinsed
Grated cheese (I used Romano)
Pepper
Lemon wedges

Cook pasta to al dente.

When pasta almost done done, melt butter in a skillet.

Swirl the butter in the pan as it foams and drain pasta.

When butter begins to brown, toss in pasta and mix to coat with butter.

Add tatsoi and cook until slightly wilted, about 1 to 2 minutes.

Plate and serve immediately with grated cheese, pepper and lemon wedges.

Farm to Table with Summer Squash

Summer squash must be in abundance at our farm. Our share this week had 8! My first thought was to grill them, but then I came across a recipe to bake them with breadcrumbs. It made a great side for chicken on the grill.

Baked Summer Squash
Adapted from The Kitchn

8 summer squash (such as yellow crookneck squash or pattypan squash)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup grated cheese (I used Romano)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons oregano

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Remove stem ends and slice squash cross-wise in 1/4"-thick rounds and toss with olive oil.

In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs, cheese, oregano and pepper.

Arrange the squash rounds in bottom of a  baking dish and sprinkle with the bread crumb mixture.

Cover baking dish with foil and bake in oven for 30 minutes or until tender.

Remove foil and bake another five minutes.

Preserving Fresh Basil {tutorial}

We got a huge bunch of basil in our share today. Knowing I wasn't going to use it all fresh, I wanted to save it for later. The process I use is like making pesto, but you freeze it into little pods to use later in sauces and soups.

 

Put fresh basil leaves in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped.

Add about 1/2 cup of oilve oil and process until smooth.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop spoonfuls of the basil mixture onto the sheet.

Freeze for about an hour or until frozen.

Store pods in a freezer safe bag for up to two months.

Use for sauces and soups.

Farm to Table Stir Fry

I find that sometimes we don't use everything in our share quickly enough, so this week I wanted to
use multiple vegetables in one recipe. This stir fry incorporates snow peas, carrots and broccoli from
this weeks share.

Vegetable Stir Fry

Snow Peas
Broccoli
Carrots
Olive Oil
Sauce (I used Old Cape Cod Honey Orange)
Brown and Wild Rice (I used Bob's Red Mill)
Peanuts

Put vegetables in a stir fry pan with a touch of olive oil.
Cook over low to medium heat until tender.
Add sauce and stir until incorporated.

Cook rice according to package.
Serve vegetables over rice and sprinkle with peanuts.

Sweet Potato Muffins

I puree organic fruit and vegetables for my baby and I'm always trying to think of ways to use the extra puree. These Sweet Potato Chip Muffins are a hit with my 3 year old and my husband.

Sweet Potato Muffins
Adapted from Weelicious

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup old fashioned oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 large eggs, whisked
1 cup sweet potato puree*
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup apple sauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Place the first 7 dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine.
In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients.

Slowly combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients just until they are combined.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Fill greased muffin pan and bake for 15 minutes or until cooked through.

* To make sweet potato puree, I boil chunks of peeled sweet potato until they are tender. Drain, let cool and then puree in a blender or food processor, adding water to get the desired consistency.

Farm to Table with French Breakfast Radishes

I have to admit something. I'm not sure I've ever tried a radish before. I've seen them in the grocery store and as garnish but I didn't know what they tasted like until I met these. This week I used the arugula and the radishes from my share to make a salad. A lemon vinaigrette complimented the flavors perfectly.

Arugula and Radish Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing

Bowl of arugula
Handful of french breakfast radishes
Juice of two lemons
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons mustard (I used a honey mustard, but dijon would work well too)
Pepper

Wash arugula and let dry completely. Place in serving bowl.
Wash radishes and cut into quarters. Sprinkle onto arugula.

In a small bowl or jar, combine lemon juice and olive oil.
Whisk until combined.
Add mustard and pepper and whisk again.

Pour over salad right before serving and toss.

marshmallow pop {tutorial}

I see these cute little chocolate marshmallow treats a lot when I search for party inspiration. Turns out they are super easy to make! Here's a quick tutorial so you can make them for your next party or gathering. 

What you'll need:

• marshmallows
• pop sticks (I get mine at a craft store)
• chocolate chips 
• parchment paper
• sprinkles or jimmies

Gather ingredients and supplies.

Push pop stick into the center of each of the marshmallows.

Put chocolate chips in a glass and melt, 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until smooth.

Dip marshmallows into the chocolate until they are completely covered, 

place on parchment lined plate or pan and decorate.

Place in refrigerator until they are ready to be served.

thread spool flower cookie {tutorial}

I've been wanting to try this idea since I cut it out of a martha stewart living years ago. It's been tucked away in one of my idea binders that sits on my shelf waiting for me to have a little bit of free time. Finally had a little time and love how the cookies came out.

What you'll need:

• cookie recipe (preferably something with the consistency of a sugar cookie)
• plastic thread spool

Clean an old plastic thread spool.

 Make cookie dough. A sugar cookie consistency works best.

Roll dough into balls and place on parchment lined sheet.

Dip spool into flour and press into ball, repeating for each ball.

Bake according to the directions, let cool and dip into glaze.

Farm to Table with Scapes

Garlic scapes...another vegetable I hadn't heard of before picking up our farm share. After some reading it looks like they are the flower stems that garlic plants produce before the bulbs mature. Growers often remove the scapes to push the plant’s energy toward bigger bulbs, but when harvested while they are young the scapes are delicious. And it turns out they are.

I made mine into a pesto, which I put on wheat pasta with tomatoes and broccoli.

 

Garlic Scape Pesto

Adapted from Serious Eats

3/4 cup coarsely chopped garlic scapes

Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon

1/2 teaspoon salt

A few generous grinds of black pepper

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Combine the scapes, lemon juice and zest, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse about 20 times until fairly well combined. Pour in the olive oil slowly through the tube while the motor is running. When the oil is incorporated, transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the grated cheese. If you plan to freeze the pesto, wait to add the cheese until after you've defrosted it.

Oh Boy!

 I'm going to my dear friends baby shower and I'm making the cupcakes. Since everything I make for my girls seems to involve a shade of pink, it was fun to use a different color palette for her cupcake toppers. Classic vanilla cupcake recipe to follow.

Simple White Cake
From Allrecipes

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9"x9" pan or line a muffin pan with paper liners. 

In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the prepared pan. 

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven. For cupcakes, bake 20 to 25 minutes. Cake is done when it springs back to the touch. Makes 12 cupcakes.

 

Quick Buttercream Frosting
Adapted from Confections of a Foodie Bride 

 

1 stick of butter, at room temp
3 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
pinch of salt

Place all ingredients in mixer bowl. Beat on low just until powdered sugar is well incorporated. Turn to high and whip for 3-4 minutes, until light, fluffy, and smooth, stopping once to scrape down the sides. Makes enough for 12 cupcakes.

Peanut Butter & Jam Cookies

My daughter asked me if we could make cookies today. It's almost 100 degrees but I'm always up for baking. When I asked what kind she said peanut butter & jelly...or grilled cheese. Not sure I know of a good grilled cheese cookie recipe, so I think we'll go with the pb&j thumbprints.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprint Cookie 
Adapted from Taste and Tell

1 3/4 cups wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4  cup butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup apple sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1  egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup strawberry jelly

Preheat the oven to 350F.
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars. Add the egg and mix well. Add in the vanilla and peanut butter, mixing well. Add in the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Incorporate apple sauce.

Shape the dough into 30 balls. Space about 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Using your thumb make and indentation in the center of each cookie.

Bake for 8 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from the oven, and using the end of a wooden spoon, press down on the thumbprint to make sure the cookie has an indentation. Cool completely on a wire rack.

When cool, fill each cookie with about 1 teaspoon of jam.

Farm to Table with Green Cabbage

Here's my first farm to table journey with a green cabbage.
I used the beautiful vegetable to make an Cabbage-Apple Slaw and severed it with chicken sausage.

 

Chicken Sausages with Cabbage-Apple Slaw
Adapted from Every Day With Rachael Ray

3/4 pound green cabbage, thinly sliced (3 cups)
2 apples, such as granny smith and mcintosh, cut into matchsticks
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup milk
4 teaspoons grainy mustard
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 fully cooked chicken sausage links (about 9 ounces), halved lengthwise

In a bowl, combine the cabbage and apples. In another bowl, whisk together the vinegar, milk, mustard; season with salt and pepper. Toss with the cabbage. Add crumbled blue cheese.

In a skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Prick the skin side of the sausages with a fork, add to the skillet and cook, turning once, until browned, about 5 minutes. Serve with the cabbage-apple slaw. Serves 4.

Organic CSA

This year we decided to join a CSA at one of our local organic farms. I thought it would be a great way to show my little girls where food really comes from while supporting a local farm.

We've picked up our share for two weeks and we've gotten things like bok choy and cabbage. And I've already been exposed to vegetables I've never heard of. Kolrabi? Yes, that's a vegetable! My first thought was that my husband can throw all the uncommon ones in the juicer, but after a little recipe search I'm thinking maybe I can find some creative ways to use them.