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While you are snacking on cherries, sort through the box and find the strangest looking vegetable you can find. These are garlic flowers, the buds that garlic sends up in late spring. A milder form of the same garlicky goodness, garlic flowers are a wonderful early season replacement for garlic in stir fries, soups, and even salads.
Today's box has a decidedly Asian vegetable theme. The Chinese kale (which looks like long stalks with broccoli tops) has a flavor somewhere between mustard greens and broccoli, and may be cooked as you would broccoli. Rinse and slice or cook whole with a little sesame or olive oil. Leaves, stems and buds are all edible!
Mizuna (the frilly leaved bunch) is a type of mustard, best used fresh in salads.
Cosmetically challenged (but undoubtedly tasty) Joi Choi is mild and sweet when cooked. Even insects appreciate its flavor. Steam or stir fry it. Or put it into a steaming hot bowl of miso soup. Although I prefer not to give anything that looks less than perfect, the joi choi is an exception. We tuck it under row cover (a thin fabric which should keep the pests out) just after we seed it, and every year the little insects manage to get in and snack on the tender leaves. So. . . please forgive the tiny insect holes. They absolutely do not affect the flavor!
Bouquets are desktop size this week; we love callas and mini bouquets and the two of them make a perfect fit!
Enjoy your veggies!
Heidi
Tofu Stir Fry with Peanut Sauce
Trim ends of garlic buds and slice up the stem to make thin garlic medallions. Leave the bud whole. Saute slices and buds with 2 Tbsp olive oil and 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil until soft and slightly brown in places. Set aside.
Cut tofu into small cubes or crumble. Toss in lightly oiled skillet. Add a dash of soy sauce and a pinch of black pepper. Allow to brown lightly over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, coarsely chop:
- 1 bunch carrots
- 1 bunch Joi Choi
- 1 bunch Chinese Kale
Steam lightly until crisp tender.
For the sauce, mix with a whisk:
- 5 TBSP water
- 4 TBSP peanut butter
- 1 TBSP rice vinegar or white vinegar
- 2 tsp soy sauce or tamari
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 1/4 tsp powdered ginger
- Pinch of cayenne (optional)
Add more water if desired. Add to browned tofu. Stir in vegetables and simmer lightly 1-2 minutes.
adapted from Eating Well, Feb-March 2005
Minted Beet Salad
- 1 bunch beets, trimmed, leaving 1 inch of the stems intact, and scrubbed
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves, rinsed, spun dry, and shredded fine
- soft-leafed lettuce, rinsed and spun dry, for lining the plates
Wrap the beets together tightly in foil in 2 batches and roast them in the middle of a preheated 350°F. oven until they are tender. The beets may be roasted 2 days in advance and kept covered and chilled. Unwrap the beets carefully and let them cool until they can be handled. Slip the skins off the beets, cut off the stems, and cut the beets into 1/4-inch pieces. In a large bowl whisk together the vinegars, the sugar, and salt to taste, add the oil in a stream, whisking, and whisk the dressing until it is emulsified. Add the beets to the bowl with two thirds of the mint and toss the salad until it is combined well. Line 4 plates with the lettuce leaves, divide the beet mixture among them, and sprinkle each salad with some of the remaining mint.
Serves 4.
Gourmet, July 1992
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