Author Archives: Pumpkin Ridge Gardens

Collard Greens Gratin

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4 oz. very thinly sliced country ham or prosciutto

1 cup coarse fresh breadcrumbs

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

1 cup finely grated Parmesan, divided

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 bunches collard greens (about 1 lb.), center ribs and stems removed

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Pre-reheat oven to 325°. Place ham on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until crisp, 20–25 minutes; let cool and break into pieces.  Combine breadcrumbs and 2 Tbsp. oil in a medium skillet; toast over medium heat, tossing occasionally, until golden brown and crisp, 10–15 minutes. Remove from heat and add thyme and ¼ cup Parmesan; season with salt and pepper. Mix in ham and set aside.  Cook collard greens in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender and bright green, about 4 minutes. Drain, transfer to a bowl of ice water, and let cool. Drain and squeeze dry with paper towels. Coarsely chop greens and place in a large bowl.  Heat remaining 2 Tbsp. oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened and golden, 15–20 minutes. Transfer to bowl with greens; set aside. Reserve saucepan.  Increase oven temperature to 400°. Melt butter in reserved saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is smooth and very pale brown, about 4 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk, ½-cupful at a time; add nutmeg. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, whisking often, until thickened, 5–8 minutes. Whisk in remaining ¾ cup Parmesan. Add béchamel to collard green mixture and mix to combine; season with salt and pepper.  Transfer collard green mixture to a 10” cast-iron skillet or 9” pie dish and top with breadcrumb mixture; place pie dish on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until gratin is bubbling, 15–20 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

A Simple Recipe for the Hearty Greens You Don’t Know What to Do With

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Hearty greens

Toasted sesame oil

Soy sauce

Furikake* or toasted sesame seeds

Tear the leaves from the tough stems (if any) and boil in water until tender (1 to 3 minutes).  Drain the greens in a colander and push on them to remove as much water as possible.  Roughly chop the cooked greens and place them on a serving platter.  Lightly sprinkle with soy sauce and sesame oil and toss to coat.  Sprinkle with furikake or sesame seeds and serve as a side dish.  From The Farm to Table Cookbook by Ivy Manning

*Furikake is a mixture of sesame seeds, seaweed, and sea salt available in most Asian food stores.

Corn and Zucchini Salsa

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3 medium zucchini, cleaned, trimmed, and diced

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 ears  yellow corn, husked, silks removed

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 cup fresh lime juice (8 medium limes)

1/2 cup cider vinegar

2 jalapeno chiles, seeded and minced

1/4 cup finely chopped scallions with tops

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Toss the zucchini with the salt and “sweat” for 3 minutes in a nonreactive colander. Rinse and dry. Coat the corn with 2 teaspoons of the oil and roast on a cookie sheet in a 400 degree oven for 30-40 minutes. Cool. Cut off the kernels and scrape the cobs. Combine the zucchini, corn, remaining oil, tomatoes, lime juice, vinegar, jalapenos, scallions, garlic, and pepper in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for 2-3 minutes. Ladle into hot, clean jars. Cap and seal. Process in a boiling-water-bath canner for 15 minutes. From Preserving the Harvest by Carol Costenbader

Carmelized Corn and Red Peppers

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2 cups fresh corn kernels

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 red bell peppers, chopped

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 garlic clove, chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

Heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add corn; stir until beginning to dry and brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. Add oil to skillet. Heat over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, onion, and garlic. Sauté until peppers are tender, about 8 minutes. Mix in cilantro and chili powder, then corn. Stir until heated through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Modified Double Celery Turkey Salad

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Thanks to one of our subscribers for the following new version of a recipe we’ve given.  She describes this as “a winter tonic!”

MODIFIED DOUBLE CELERY TURKEY SALAD

Dressing:

¼ head crushed garlic

olive oil

toasted sesame oil

soy sauce

rice vinegar

black pepper

Salad:

1 grated celeriac

few stalks minced celery

2-3 grated carrots

1 lb. cooked turkey

1 roasted beet, diced

Saute garlic in olive oil briefly, just so that it is not raw.  Whisk garlic together with other dressing ingredients to taste.  To roast the beet, wash,  wrap in aluminum foil and bake in 350-degree oven for about an hour or until easily pieced with a fork.  Allow to cool, then rub off the skin with your thumb.  Dice or shred the turkey.  Mix salad ingredients with dressing (adding beets last and mixing only gently afterward) and serve.

Cream of Celery Soup

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3 tablespoons butter

1 1⁄2 lbs celery ribs, sliced

2 large onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons flour

6 cups chicken broth

1 bay leaf

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3 -4 dashes hot sauce

salt

white pepper

celery leaves

In a large sauce pan, melt butter, add celery, onions, and garlic. Cook over medium low heat until soft. Add flour and cook 1-2 minutes over low heat. Add chicken broth and bay leaf, bring to a boil reduce heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes. Remove bay leaf, puree (in small batches) in a blender or processor. Add cream, lemon juice, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Reheat and simmer 5 minutes. Garnish with celery leaves. Adapted from Geniuskitchen.com

Creamy Porcini and Barley Soup

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½ c. pearl barley

4 ½ c. chicken stock

1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms

2 c. boiling water

1 Tbsp. butter

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 cup minced onion or shallot

8 c. sliced white mushrooms

2  small celeriac

1 tsp. dried sage

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. black pepper

2 Tbsp. flour

1 cup cooking sherry

½ c. lowfat sour cream

chives for garnish

Combine barley and 1 ½ c. broth in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then simmer until tender, 30-35 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine porcinis and boiling water in a medium bowl and let soak until mushrooms are soft, about 20 minutes. Line a sieve with paper towel, set in over a bowl and pour mushrooms and soaking liquid through it.  Reserve soaking liquid. Chop porcinis finely. Heat butter and oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring often, until softened. Add white mushrooms and cook, stirring often, util they have released their juices and started to brown.  Add porcinis, celery or celeriac, sage, salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften.  Sprinkle flour over the veggies and cook until flour is incorporated, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon, until most of the sherry has evaporated. Add the soaking liquid and the remaining 3 c. of broth, increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes.  Add the cooked barley and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream until incorporated. Garnish with chives. Serves 4. Adapted from Eating Well Jan.-Feb. 2007.

Simple Cauliflower Soup

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Sometimes people are not too fond of the mustardy flavor cauliflower can have.  We have learned from Cook’s Illustrated that the compounds that make that flavor are eliminated when the florets are cooked for 30 minutes or more.  What remains are the nutty flavors you get from roasting cauliflower.  We took advantage of this to make a simple creamy soup by simmering cauliflower in broth for thirty minutes then blending that along with sautéed onion with an immersion blender until creamy.  We sautéed a few florets in browned butter and added it to the soup after blending to get the full range of flavors.  You don’t need to add cream (but we did) and it was delicious.

Curried Cream of Carrot Soup

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2 Tbs. butter

2 med. onions, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

¼ tsp. dry thyme

1 lb. carrots, pared and diced

2 cups vegetable broth

2 tsp. curry powder

1 cup milk or cream

 

Melt butter in a saucepan.  Add onion, garlic and thyme.  Sauté until onion is soft.  Add carrots and cook 10 minutes.  Add chicken broth and curry powder.  Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes.  Puree in a blender; return to pan and add milk or cream until the soup reaches desired consistency.  Heat for 5 minutes and serve garnished with yougurt or sour cream and chives.

Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage

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1 head cabbage

3 Tbs. olive oil

8 oz. ham cut in ¼ in. cubes

6 cloves garlic, diced

1 onion

5 ½ cups chicken stock

1 1/3 cups cornmeal

½ Tbs. hot paprika

½ Tbs. sweet paprika

6 oz. tomato paste

1 tsp parsley for garnish

1 sweet pepper cut into rings and seeded

Salt & pepper to taste

Sour cream

Remove the core from the cabbage. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add the cabbage head. Watch the cabbage and remove the outer leaves with tongs as they become tender (it takes about 3-4 minutes per leaf).  Remove the thick ribs from the leaves and set them aside.  Repeat until you have 12-15 leaves.  Remove the remaining cabbage head, cut into thin slices and set aside.  Using a 4 qt. sauce pan, cook the ham in the olive oil until slightly browned.  Add the garlic and onion and cook until golden.  Add 2 ½ cups of the stock and bring to a boil.  Whisk in the cornmeal, hot paprika, salt and pepper. Place a cabbage leaf on a flat work surface and place ¼ cup of the filling in its center. Fold the top of the cabbage leaf over the stuffing then fold in half crosswise.  This should fully encase the stuffing.  Roll the leaf into a tight cone shape and set aside.  When all the leaves are filled, spread the sliced cabbage  in the bottom of an 8 qt sauce pan.  Sprinkle with sweet paprika.  In a bowl, whisk together the tomato paste and the remaining stock.  Pour this over the stuffed cabbage leaves, bring to a simmer, reduce heat and simmer approx. 45 minutes or until tender.  Transfer the stuffed cabbage leaves to a serving platter, strain the sauce (removing the sliced cabbage) and spoon the sauce over the stuffed leaves, garnish with parsley, sliced pepper rings and sour cream.  Sprinkle with additional paprika.  Adapted from Saveur #159, October 2013