Hope you all enjoyed Week 1 with us! This week we have something that we don’t normally do, radicchio! We have some great neighbors in the valley that grow along side us and we love supporting them so we teamed up with Local Roots farm to bring you their favorite crop, radicchio. Radicchio is in the chicory family and can be tossed in salads raw or roasted to really bring out the underlying sweetness that it hides within it’s leaves.
-Liz
Roasted Radicchio and Pear Salad
Here is one use for that awesome radicchio. Just this weekend I had a sweet little salad of sliced radicchio, cabbage and parsley with a simple red wine vinaigrette. This was paired with a braised lamb ragu and polenta, it was the best accompaniment to such a rich dish! Feel free to forego the roasting here and do this same seasoning with raw radicchio and pear and maybe some of those pea shoots!
1 medium head of radicchio, cut into quarters
2 medium pears
1 teaspoon minced thyme leaves
3 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon aged balsamic vinegar
Preheat oven to 400. Remove any wilted outer leaves of the radicchio, cut head in half, then cut each half into 2 equal wedges, leaving most of the core on so the pieces remain intact.
Cut the pears into quarters and remove the core, leaving the skin on.
Toss the pears and radicchio wedges in a bowl with the thyme leaves, olive oil, and a good amount of salt and pepper (be sure to get the seasoning in between some of the radicchio leaves).
Place radicchio on sheet pan and roast about 20 minutes till you have some crispy edges. During the last 5 minutes of cooking toss the pears onto the pan with the radicchio just to soften them a little.
Transfer everything from the sheet pan to a platter, drizzle with balsamic vinegar, and sprinkle with a little sea salt and some cracked black pepper.
Roasted Roots for Any Meal
You don’t need a recipe for every single root veg out there. Most are interchangeable and having a bunch of preroasted veggies on hand at the beginning of the week makes for super easy meals throughout the week. This makes use of what is in this week’s box, but anything can be switched out for what you may have on hand. This kind of cooking more closely resembles my everyday fare. The word ‘recipe’ can only be used loosely here, but that’s our goal. To be able to cook easily and happily without stringent recipes is awesome and ensures you get the most out of your CSA box.
1-2lbs beets, cut into ½ in. chunks. (I never peel them but if you tend to think they are a little too ‘beety’ or dirty tasting sometimes taking the skins off helps alleviate this.)
1-2lbs rutabaga, peeled and cut into ½ in. chunks
1 large yellow onion, cut in half and cut into slivers
3 cloves garlic, minced
¼ C olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 425F.
Toss the everything except the garlic with olive oil and salt and pepper. Place on baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes till just about done. Add garlic and mix on baking sheet. Roast another 5 minutes.
Now is when the good stuff starts.
• Use this mix as a hash for breakfast/dinner with a fried egg or two.
• Toss in a blender with some good stock and make an awesome thick and delicious soup.
• Mix with 6-8 beaten eggs, pour into a skillet and make a frittata.
• Use as topping for polenta with some parmesan
• Toss with some hearty grains (farros, quinoa, brown and wild rice) and the protein (or lentil) of your choice.
The sky is the limit don’t let your past experiences with some of these roots dissuade you from trying them again.
Caramelized Onion, Kale and Pear Galette
Galette: the fancy name for a rustic conglomeration of stuff in a crust. No need for fancy pans just fold the dough over your filling and go! Hey, those roasted roots from that last recipe could get tucked into the other half of dough and paired with some goat cheese. I mean, if you’re feeling fancy.
For the crust:
1 ½ cups Jubilee Farm whole grain flour
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting counter
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, very cold
½ cup ice water
For the filling:
1 bunch kale, course stems removed and leaves sliced thin
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 to 2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced into slivers
1 good sized pear, halved, cored and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch of sugar
¼ teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
3/4 cup fontina cheese, grated or cut into small bits
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
Crust: Whisk together both flours, sugar and salt, place in the bowl of a food processor. Cube the butter and add to the food processor. Pulse until butter and flour combine to form a course sandy mix. Slowly stream in about ½ cup of ice cold water just until dough comes together. Lightly flour counter and turn dough out. Knead gently a few times just till dough comes together. Divide into two even pieces and flatten each into a small disk. Wrap in plastic and place in fridge for about an hour before proceeding with your recipe. You’ll only use one half of the dough here, toss the other in the freezer for your next creation.
(You can also do all of the above steps simply using your hands or a pastry blender if you don’t have a food processor)
Caramelize onions: Melt butter in a heavy skillet and cook onion over low heat with the remaining half-teaspoon of salt and pinch of sugar, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly golden brown, about 20 minutes. Add in thinly sliced kale and cook till wilted. Stir in cayenne.
Mix kale, caramelized onions, cheese and herbs together in a bowl.
Assemble galette: On a floured work surface, roll half the dough out into a 12-inch round. Transfer to an ungreased baking sheet. Spread kale, onions, sliced pears, cheese and herb mixture over the dough, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border. Fold the border over the kale, pear, onion and cheese mixture, pleating the edge to make it fit. The center will be open.
Bake until golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, let stand for 5 minutes, then slide the galette onto a serving plate.
Jubilee Farm 