Melon with Fresh Mint & Lime Syrup
Try this sweet-tart syrup with your favorite summer melon.
Ingredients:
1 Canary melon
½ cup sugar
¼ cup thinly sliced mint leaves
Grated zest and juice of 1 lime
Method:
1. Stir the sugar, 2 tablespoons of water, lime zest, and 1½ tablespoons of the lime juice in a small heavy saucepan over high heat until the sugar dissolves and the syrup comes to a boil. Let the syrup cool completely, and then refrigerate it until cold.
2. Strain the chilled syrup into a small bowl and stir in the mint. Allow the mint to infuse into the syrup for at least 5 minutes.
3. Set the melon on a work surface and with a sharp knife trim away the rind and cut the melon into 2-inch chunks. Transfer melon to a large serving platter and pour the cold syrup over the melon, and serve.
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Blue Cheese-Stuffed Roasted Pears with Arugula
Roasted and topped with cranberries, hazelnuts and blue cheese, these pears from the Barefoot Contessa are incredibly flavorful.
Ingredients:
3 ripe, but firm, pears
3 ounces Westward Blue cheese
¼ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
½ cup apple cider vinegar
Freshly-squeezed lemon juice
3 tablespoons port or dessert wine
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup olive oil
6 ounces arugula greens
Sea salt
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Slice pears lengthwise into halves. With a small sharp paring knife and a melon baller, remove the core and seeds from each pear, leaving a round well for the filling. Toss the pears with some lemon juice to prevent them from turning brown. Arrange them, core side up, in a baking dish large enough to hold the pears snugly.
2. Gently toss the crumbled blue cheese, dried cranberries, and walnuts together in a small bowl. Divide the mixture among the pears, mounding it on top of the indentation.
3. In the same small bowl, combine the apple cider, port, and brown sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Pour the mixture over and around the pears. Bake the pears, basting occasionally with the cider mixture, for 30 minutes, or until tender. Set aside until warm or at room temperature.
4. Just before serving, whisk together the olive oil, ¼ cup of lemon juice, and ¼ cup of the basting liquid in a large bowl. Divide the arugula among 6 plates and top each with a pear half. Drizzle each pear with some of the basting liquid, sprinkle with salt, and serve warm.
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Pear-Apple Crisp
A quick and easy dessert using fresh apples and pears: Simply toss with cornstarch and sugar, then sprinkle with the topping from this week’s box.
Ingredients:
2 cups apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
2 cups pears, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
½ cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1-2 tablespoons butter
Farm & Larder fruit crisp topping
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°.
2. Toss the apple and pear slices with sugar and cornstarch. Place in oven safe dish and add butter dabs to the top. Sprinkle the fruit crisp topping evenly over the fruit, covering it completely.
3. Bake until the topping is lightly browned and the fruit is bubbling, about 35-40 minutes.
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Braised Purple Carrots & Fennel
Seasoned with orange and honey, this beautiful side goes with well alongside roasted chicken or pork tenderloin.
Ingredients:
1½ pounds purple carrots, peeled and cut into 3-inch chunks
1 fennel bulb, cored, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
Zest from 1 orange
½ teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
¼ cup water
¼ cup orange juice
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat. Add the butter, olive oil, and honey. Stir well and add carrots, fennel, orange zest and fennel seeds. Toss until the slices are well coated with the oil.
2. Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the fennel starts to soften. Add the water, orange juice, salt, and pepper. Toss quickly and reduce heat to between medium and medium-low. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
3. Uncover the pan. Raise heat to high and fast-simmer until the juices have all evaporated and some of the vegetables are golden-brown, about 6 to 7 minutes, tossing only occasionally so as not to break the vegetables. Serve immediately.
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Pan-Roasted Corn & Baby Shiitake Mushroom Risotto
This beautifully-fragrant risotto makes delicious use of bright summer corn.
Ingredients:
1½ cups Arborio rice
3 cups fresh corn kernels
1 cup baby Shiitake mushrooms, washed and trimmed
5 cups F&L chicken stock
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 French red shallots, minced
¼ cup dry white wine
¼ cup freshly-grated Grana-style cheese
3 tablespoons combined freshly-chopped parsley and chives
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. In a medium saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a boil over moderately high heat. Lower the heat to keep the stock at a low simmer.
2. Meanwhile, in a large, heavy saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter in the olive oil. Add the shallots and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 4 minutes. Raise the heat to high, add the corn and mushrooms and cook until all are lightly browned and softened, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir until the grains are thoroughly coated with fat, 1-2 minutes. Pour in the wine and continue stirring until most of the wine has evaporated.
3. Add 1 cup of the simmering stock to the rice and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until the stock has been absorbed. Continue adding stock, 1 cup at a time, stirring the risotto until the stock is absorbed before adding more; the risotto is done when the rice is just tender and the sauce is creamy, about 20 minutes. Stir in the cheese, herbs and the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Season with salt and pepper and serve at once.
Variation: This risotto is also delicious topped with crispy chopped bacon!
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Sautéed Rainbow Chard
These flavorful greens are wonderful topped with our fig-walnut preserves!
Ingredients:
1 bunch rainbow chard, separated
2 Cipollini onions
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Farm & Larder fig-walnut preserves
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Peel and mince both garlic cloves and onions. Heat olive oil in a medium sauce pan, then sauté onions and garlic until soft and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
2. Add in rainbow chard, sauté on medium-low heat until softened. Remove from heat, transfer to serving platter and top with a spoonful of fig preserves.
Variation: In lieu of the preserves, top greens with grated Parmesan and toasted pine nuts.
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Frisée Salad with Figs, Grapes and Blue Cheese
Juicy, crisp and cheesy—this salad has it all.
Ingredients:
½ head frisée, cored and thinly sliced
2 cups mixed summer greens
4-6 fresh figs, washed and halved
1 cup grapes, washed and halved
½ cup crumbled blue cheese
Fresh ground pepper
For vinaigrette:
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup white balsamic vinegar
1-2 tablespoons honey
1 garlic clove, finely minced
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the vinaigrette until thoroughly combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper; set aside.
2. On a serving tray arrange the frisee and greens and then top with the figs, grapes and crumbled blue cheese. Drizzle with the white-balsamic vinaigrette and season with additional pepper as desired.
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Roasted Acorn Squash with Pasta & Duxelles
The classic pairing of squash and sage is utterly delicious combined with our housemade duxelles and pasta.
Ingredients:
For squash:
2 Acorn squash
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons honey
1 tablespoon fresh sage leaves, coarsely torn
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
To finish:
½ cup half & half
½ cup grated Pecorino cheese
1 pound Lagana Foods’ campanelle pasta
Farm & Larder duxelles
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Scrub squash well and cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds and attached pulp; cut each half lengthwise again, then slice crosswise into ¾-inch thick slices.
2. In a small bowl, mix melted butter with honey. Arrange the squash in a single layer on a baking sheet and brush each piece with the butter and honey, reserving half of the mixture. Season the squash lightly with salt and pepper and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Roast for 20 minutes.
3. Add the fresh sage to the remaining butter-honey mixture. Remove the squash from the oven and turn them with tongs. Brush each piece with the butter mixture, season again with salt and pepper, and return to the oven, uncovered for 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook al dente, about 8 minutes, reserving ½ cup of the cooking liquid. Drain pasta.
5. Combine pasta in a large serving bowl with half & half and Pecorino, adding pasta cooking liquid as needed to create a loose sauce. Add squash and duxelles, toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper as needed, and top with an extra grating of Pecorino cheese.
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Pistou
This incredibly-flavorful sauce is the perfect accent to this week’s rustic stew.
Ingredients:
1 cup stemmed basil leaves
¼ cup chopped tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon pine nuts, lightly toasted
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. In a food processor, combine the basil, tomatoes, garlic and pine nuts. Pulse to chop, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.
2. Once all the ingredients are evenly chopped, run the processor and drizzle in the olive oil in a slow stream. Once the oil is incorporated, stop the processor and season the pistou with salt and pepper to taste. The pistou will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for several days.
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Sautéed Frying Peppers & Onions with Roasted Potatoes
Tossed with onions and roasted potatoes, these peppers are just as wonderful for brunch as they are for dinner!
Ingredients:
4 Jimmy Nardello peppers
2 Cipollini onions
1 pound French fingerling potatoes
4-6 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
Method:
1. Slice the peppers in half lengthwise and remove the stem and any seeds. If there are any large, thick ribs, remove them as well. Peel and slice Cipollini onions into 1-inch chunks.
2. Heat a large, seasoned cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until searingly hot. Reduce the heat to medium and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the peppers and onions in a single layer. Cook without stirring or moving for 5 minutes, letting the steam build up under the peppers to soften. Flip with tongs and cook undisturbed for 5 minutes more, letting both peppers and onions blister and char in the oil.
3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°. Wash fingerlings and slice into bite-sized chunks, then toss with 4 tablespoons olive oil, plus sea salt and fresh pepper to taste. Spread potatoes on sheet pan and roast for approximately 30-40 minutes, until cooked through and browned.
4. Add potatoes to skillet with peppers and onions. Season with salt and pepper if needed, serve hot.
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