Keeping the Green Stuff Pretty

On occasion, we get a bunch of herbs in our box.  This week was Italian parsley.  This is good for more than garnish, believe me!

But herbs wither and get ugly pretty quickly, don't they?  They do, if not optimally stored.  I've kept lots of different herbs pretty and usable for weekS.  Yes, that's plural, as in two or more.  How?  Easy.  It's a plant, it needs water.  Wash them like salad, and spin dry.  Cut off like the bottom 1/8 inch from the stems and stand them in a tall, slender glass of water.  Put an Ziplock bag over the top of the glass, leaving the bag open around the bottom, and stand it in the fridge.  See this for details.

Photo via Serious Eats

Check back in a few days, and as long as you keep water in the glass, the herbs will stay fresh. See? No throwing away withered ones!

What to do with your now long-lived parsley?  Here's three options:

Photo via Taste of Home

My favorite is buttered parsley potatoes.  Wash and halve baby potatoes (I find reds work best for this) and boil them until soft.  Drain the water and add butter to the still-hot pot with the potatoes.  Salt & pepper generously and liberally add fine-minced parsley.  Toss until the butter melts and the herbs are evenly distributed.  Leftovers are great for breakfast, seared in a hot pan.

Valerie suggests this chickpea salad.  Like lots of these sorts of salads, it's better after a day or two in the fridge.

Photo via Food.com

Remember our discussion about pesto?  Parsley walnut pesto is a great topping for grilled beef or pork.

CSA Mixology 101

Photo via Green Thumb White Apron

I spend a lot of time working in the kitchen.  A lot.  Don't get me wrong, I love doing so, but eventually you reach the point of, "Enough!"  So, fellow fledgling chefs, let's kick back for some cocktails!

I've made two of the cucumber salads mentioned in our last post, but I've still got one more cucumber left.  Cukes just seem to say, "Refreshing."  There are a couple of cocktail recipes I've found that leverage that.  Adding in a little basil to reinforce the summer-iness and lime for even more refreshment, you can make an awesome gimlet.  Or, for something a bit more refined, how about a cognac cocktail?

Photo via Food.com

This week, we will have more blueberries and another awesome cantaloupe.  Obviously these two can pair up to make a colorful, delicious fruit salad, but how about another cocktail or two?  Fresh berries are an incredible bar ingredient.  Something refreshing with blueberries and mint, maybe?  Or, for the more serious mixologist, something with absinthe?

As for the cantaloupe, its gorgeous color can be brought to full bloom in a Fiery Torch.  Or how about a glowing orange cantaloupe martini?

In any case, hand off your keys, get the blender or the shaker, and let's have a few!

Photo via Rachel Ray Magazine

Time to Cool Off

Yes, it's too early to start complaining about the heat. But I'm going to anyway. I guess I'm just a wimp. While I am no fan of winter, I would rather be too cold than too hot. So what am I to do to keep cool as it gets warmer and warmer?

Thankfully, we have cucumbers. The saying, "cool as a cucumber," is definitely based in fact.  Eating them definitely makes you feel cooler. And what better way to eat them than in a cucumber salad.

Photo via Bon Apétit

Like coleslaw, the debate about cucumber salad revolves around using the cream-based dressing or a vinegar-based dressing. We've had this discussion before.  While I remain strongly in the vinegar camp for coleslaw, I'm pretty equally divided when it comes to cucumber salad. My favorite is the one my mother made when I was a child, and I guess a lot of us have dishes like that. Her cucumber salad was very simple: peel the cumbers, slice thinly, optionally add a green or yellow onion also sliced thinly, and a bunch of chopped fresh dill. The dill has to be fresh. Has to. Put in a small squirt of olive oil, salt and pepper, and cover the cucumbers with white vinegar. It's great after a couple of hours, and perfect the next day.

Here are some more cucumber salad recipes, and I've included ones from both sides of the argument.

• I still have half a bunch of radishes from a week ago that I need to use up. I'm planning on trying this recipe this week.
• I remember buying tahini for some recipe once. I had to buy a big jar, even though I only needed a tablespoon or two. I wondered what the heck to do with all the extra tahini. It makes some pretty good cookies, but the real find was using it in a cucumber salad dressing.
• You can shell some of the peas from this week's box for this creamy cucumber salad.
• When it gets really hot out there, this crab and cucumber salad will be super refreshing!
• And I guess, technically, tzatziki sauce is a kind of cucumber salad...

Photo via Simply Recipes

Being Well Dressed

This time of year, there's lots and lots of lettuce to go around. We're getting it in our boxes, and also getting it from our gardens. So, of course, we have salads every day.  I much prefer my own dressing. It's nice to know what's in the food you're eating. Ever try to read the label for a bottle of salad dressing? I hope you remember your chemistry from college...

Photo via The Daily Meal

Making salad dressing is extremely easy. It's also cheaper. Well, you can buy very fancy ingredients, of course. Trust me, I spend lots of money on that.  But it doesn't have to be.  You need a bowl, and a whisk. That's about it. Here are some common salad dressing recipes that can get you by most of the year.

• Mustard vinaigrette – This is about as easy as it gets. You need two parts of some kind of vinegar, one part of some kind of mustard, and one part olive oil.  Feel free to get as creative with this as you like. Try different kinds of mustard (I would stay away from the bright yellow kind, but try just about everything else).  Try different kinds of vinegars: cider, red wine, rice, or the flavored ones.  There is a great store for flavored vinegars and oils in Springfield Town Center.  To make the dressing, whisk together the mustard and vinegar, and slowly stream in the oil as you constantly whisk. You're getting them to emulsify.  And a little salt and pepper, and you can add spices or fresh herbs too.  Voilà!
• Citrus vinaigrette – The same as above, but replace half of the vinegar with some kind of citrus juice. Lemon and lime work well, orange mostly doesn't have enough acid, but you could put a little orange juice and a little lemon juice together.
• Bleu cheese – Yes, it's wonderful. Yes, it's also completely full of calories and fat. You could make it full fat, and it's way better than what you get in the store, or you can use low-fat or fat-free dairy ingredients.  Mix together 3 tablespoons butter milk and sour cream, 2 tablespoons mayo, 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar, and 1/2 cup crumbled bleu cheese.  Season with salt and white pepper.
• Thousand island – This one is deceptively simple.  It's just equal parts ketchup, mayo, and relish.  Both mayo and ketchup are also way better when you make them yourself.
• Lemon poppyseed
• Sorry Alton, but your Caesar dressing is missing 2 anchovy fillets.  Once you add those in, it's perfect.
• This buttermilk ranch recipe is a little involved, but oh so good!

Photo via Alton Brown