This flavorful salsa is excellent on top of pork tenderloin, or served with crackers and whipped ricotta!
Ingredients:
1½ cups cherries, pitted
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup diced shallot
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Method:
1. Heat the grill to high.
2. In a medium bowl, toss the cherries with oil until well coated. Carefully place the cherries onto the grill grates (or use a grilling basket) and grill until lightly charred in spots and tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Use tongs to return the cherries to the bowl. Set aside to cool slightly.
3. Once the cherries have cooled, add the onion, garlic, vinegar and cilantro. Mix well, then season with salt and pepper.
As July transitions into August, we have started to reach the pinnacle of summer as a bounty of crops seemingly ripen at once—sweet corn, dark red cherries, crisp lettuce greens, eggplant, summer squash and more. Thus, this week’s box pays tribute to the summer harvest with a beautiful assortment of local produce, plus creamy feta cheese from Harmony Fields, farm-fresh eggs, fragrant herbs and garlic fougasse bread. Bon appetit!
Here are a few recipe ideas for the week:
Grilled Eggplant with Lemon & Mint
Tossed with fresh mint for added brightness, this barbecued eggplant boasts a wonderfully-rich and smoky flavor.
Grilled Cherry Salsa
This flavorful condiment is excellent on top of pork tenderloin, chicken or fish.
Grilled Corn & Poblano Salad
Smoky, a little spicy and very summery, this salad with a snap to prepare.
Sautéed Summer Squash
So simple, so flavorful: These summer beauties are excellent served over grilled crostini, tossed into pastas, or scattered over pizza.
Grana Cheese-Roasted Broccolini
Tossed with garlic breadcrumbs and nutty Grana cheese, this tender broccolini is fantastic tossed with pasta or served atop grilled bread with a poached egg.
The Italian summer calls to mind visions of beautiful wine, homemade pasta, and garden-fresh produce simply and beautifully prepared. Hence, this week’s box captures the flavors of summer by way of Italy with handmade semolina bucatini noodles to toss with Skagit River Ranch Italian sausage, plus fresh, creamy fior di latte mozzarella-style cheese from Ferndale Farmstead Creamy. Also included for this relaxed, refreshing meal: Pain au Levain bread, red wine, and a colorful assortment of summer produce that includes Little Gem lettuces, golden beets, English shelling peas, rainbow parsley, salad burnet, chives, cauliflower, sweet cherries, and much, much more.
Here are a few recipe ideas for the week:
Summery Bucatini Pasta with Italian Sausage
This light and lovely pasta makes the best of summer tomatoes and herbs; we also recommend adding a dollop of this week’s fior di latte cheese to each serving!
Shelled Pea, Red Spring Onion & Sweet Red Pepper Salad
A perfect summer side for grilled proteins and veggies, or even tossed with cold pasta!
Escarole Salad with Radish & Spring Onion
This salad is packed with bold flavor, drizzled with a Parmesan-Dijon dressing.
Herb-Roasted Cauliflower
Seasoned with parsley, garlic and lemon, this incredibly-easy cauliflower recipe is a keeper.
Cherry-Rhubarb Polenta Cake
Our spin on the cheery Italian-style torta di polenta cake featured in Edible Seattle magazine.
Our spin on the cheery Italian-style torta di polenta cake featured in Edible Seattle magazine.
Ingredients:
2 cups fresh or frozen rhubarb, chopped into ½-inch pieces
2 cups fresh or frozen cherries, pitted
1 cup turbinado sugar
1 cup baker’s or granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon flour, for coating the pan
2 cups almond flour
3 eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Juice of ½ orange
Zest of 2 oranges
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon polenta
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
2 tablespoons almond slivers, for garnish
Method:
1. In a bowl, mix rhubarb and cherries with turbinado sugar. Set aside for about an hour at room temperature, or until all the sugar is dissolved.
2. Preheat oven to 325°. Using wrappers from the butter, grease then flour a 9-inch cake pan and cut a circular piece of parchment paper to cover the bottom. (A springform pan is ideal for this recipe, but if you don’t have one, slide two extra thin strips of parchment underneath lining, leaving excess on both sides. This will create ‘handles’ to help you pull out the cake once it is finished.)
3. Using a stand or hand-held mixer, beat the softened butter and baker’s/granulated sugar until light and fluffy (about 4 minutes at medium speed). Stir in the almond flour, then beat in the eggs one at a time, until batter is airy and soft. With a large spoon, fold in vanilla extract, orange juice and zest. Add polenta, baking powder and salt, folding in gently. Fold cardamom gently in as well.
4. Spoon the batter into prepared pan and smooth out evenly. Take one cup of the marinated rhubarb and cherries out of their syrup and drain on a paper towel. Press piece gently into the batter and scatter almonds over top. Set cake pan on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes, until the cake set in the middle and deep golden brown on top. Remove from oven and let sit 5-10 minutes. Gently remove from pan and leave on a wire rack to cool.
5. Cook the remaining rhubarb and cherries over medium-low heat until liquid has reduced and is thick and syrupy. Serve over finished cake with fresh cream, ice cream or crème fraîche.
