July 17: Pasta with “sausage,” fennel, and peppers

Jul 17 2012 Published by under CSA Diary

I went grocery shopping today and saw green peppers were on sale for .99 each, so I bought two. When I got home I discovered I already had two green peppers in the fridge from my last shopping trip. Oops! Peppers are really versatile, and we go through them pretty quickly, so no real harm done.

Of the CSA veggies from last week, the fennel and Swiss chard were looking a tad sad, so I opted to make a sausage and peppers style pasta dish for dinner. I had some Field Roast Smoked Apple Sage vegan sausage in the freezer, and since I know apples and fennel work well together, I sliced up two links and browned them in a little olive oil. I set the sausage aside while I prepared the sauce.

I thinly sliced the fennel bulb and 1/2 of a white onion. I sauteed these in olive oil along with one clove of garlic and a little salt, until everything was really soft. Next, I added one green pepper, chopped, and sauteed several minutes more.

Once the veggies were cooked down a bit, I poured in a 28-oz. can of crushed tomatoes and a little balsamic vinegar and let the sauce simmer on low, stirring occasionally, while I boiled the water for the pasta. (I always make my own pasta sauce. It’s cheaper than buying jarred sauce and doesn’t have the added salt and sugar that most brands do.) I topped the cooked penne with a large scoop of the sauce and a few pieces of the Field Roast sausage and that was dinner. Quite tasty, too, if I do say so.

NOTE: I also had a large salad for lunch, making a nice dent in the head lettuce and using up the last CSA tomato.

CSA delivery progress:

  • Sugar snap peas
  • Onion
  • Fresh garlic
  • Cucumber
  • Fennel (2 bulbs)
  • Tomatoes (2 large)
  • Kohlrabi
  • Eggplant
  • Green beans
  • Swiss chard
  • Lettuce head

No responses yet

July 15: Eggplant Provencal

Jul 15 2012 Published by under CSA Diary

I found a recipe for Eggplant Provençal in my Appetite for Reduction cookbook that calls for both eggplant and fennel, so I cooked up a batch this afternoon. The ingredient list is quite long, but I was fortunate to have everything in the house.

Eggplant, fennel, onions, garlic, yellow potatoes, carrots, and lentils are cooked in red wine, vegetable broth, and herbs are simmered together, with a little tomato sauce and some chopped kalamata olives stirred in at the very end, to form a stew that can be served alone or over rice. I chose the latter.

I really like this recipe, and will definitely make it again. It makes a very hearty vegan dinner.

CSA veggies used: 1 eggplant, 1 bulb fennel

 

No responses yet

Delivery 3: July 12, 2012

Jul 12 2012 Published by under CSA Diary

As I mentioned in my last post, Vermont Valley had to skip a week of deliveries due to the extreme heat and drought we are having in Wisconsin. The heat has broken a bit, but we still have not gotten any rain. Even so, this week’s delivery is gorgeous variety of tasty veggies. I can’t wait to get started eating them!

We got:

  • Sugar snap peas
  • Onion
  • Fresh garlic
  • Cucumber
  • Fennel
  • Tomatoes
  • Kohlrabi
  • Eggplant
  • Green beans
  • Swiss chard
  • Lettuce head

Looking this over, I’m thinking the lettuce, tomato, cucumber, kohlrabi and fennel will make some fantastic salads. Kohlrabi also makes an excellent dipping vegetable for hummus. Swiss chard is highly nutritious and can be used much like fresh spinach. I admit this is not one of my favorite veggies, so I may end up juicing the chard. We’ll see. Eggplant is delicious grilled, but a grill is probably the only kitchen appliance we don’t own. So, I will probably roast it in the oven. I’m not sure about the rest yet, but my plan is formulating. More tomorrow!

 

No responses yet