This week your basket contains: SPRING ONIONS, snap peas, lettuce, beets, broccoli or Asian broccoli, cooking greens (bok choy & spinach), new potatoes, kale, and dill.

HAPPY SUMMER SOLSTICE!  It looks like summer weather has shown up just in time for the official first day of summer.  Lets hope that the crops respond positively to the change.

Spring onions are mild and sweet.  They have the added advantage of still having greens that can be used like scallions or chives.  While the main portion of the spring onion can be used like a storage onion, the recipe below is an interesting and tasty way to make use of them.

ROASTED ONIONS ON A BED OF HERBS

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. olive oil

3 large onions, halved

salt and pepper

fresh herbs (like dill or parsley)

1 cup dry white wine or water

Heat the butter and oil in a wide skillet, then add onions, cut sides down.  Cook over medium high heat until well-browned, about 15 minutes.  When browned, turn them over and cook on the curved side for a few minutes,  Season well with salt and pepper.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line the bottom of a 10 inch earthenware dish with the herbs.  Place the onions, browned side up, on the herbs and pour in the wine.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake until tender when pierced with a knife, 1 hour or longer.  You can serve the onions with a quick vinegar sauce made by deglazing the skillet with 2 Tbsp. of sherry vinegar.  Serves 6.  From Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison.

The recipe below is something I am always happy to make.  It is one of my favorite flavor combinations.

BEET AND BROCCOLI SALAD

A great salad can be made with beets and broccoli. We steam the broccoli and beets together with the sliced beets on bottom.  Generally, when the broccoli is done (i.e. just turned dark green and starting to get tender) the beets are also done.  We then toss them in a simple vinaigrette and serve them either warm or cold.  This vinaigrette is the one we use:

VINAIGRETTE

1 clove garlic

1 tsp salt

3 Tbs red wine vinegar

1 tsp wet mustard

5 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

black pepper

Press garlic into the bottom of  your salad bowl.  With a fork, mix well with salt until it forms a paste.  Mix in vinegar and mustard until salt is dissolved.  Whisk in olive oil to make an emulsion.  Add black pepper to taste.  These proportions are in no way set in stone.  You should experiment to find the proportions you prefer.  Also, other spices, herbs and vinegars can be used to vary the dressing.

Kale chips are a tasty way to use your greens.  They also work as a sneaky way to get greens-reluctant kids to eat kale!

MICROWAVE KALE CHIPS

5-10 kale leaves

4 tsp. olive oil

Kosher salt

Remove stems from the kale leaves and tear into 2 inch strips.  Wash and thoroughly dry the leaves and toss them with oil in a large bowl.  Spread approximately 1/3 of the leaves on a large plate and sprinkle with salt.  Microwave for three minutes.  If leaves are crispy, transfer them to a serving bowl; if not, continue to microwave leaves in 30 second increments until crispy.  Repeat with remaining leaves in two batches.  The kale chips can be stored for up to a week in an air tight container.