Midsummer Splendor Recipes
As summer produce continues to ripen apace in the garden—from the baby cabbages and slicing cucumbers to sweet peppers and cherry tomatoes—this week’s box puts the seasonal bounty to delicious use in a farm-fresh menu starring savory Greek sausage atop rich Spanish lentils. Garlic fougasse bread, light-bodied Vinho Verde wine and a savory galette tart topped with blue cheese, figs and arugula also anchor this midsummer meal.
Here are a few recipes ideas for the week:
Fig & Blue Cheese Galette
Topped with sweet onions and peppery arugula, this savory starter is wonderful sliced in wedges and served with crisp wine.
Spanish Lentils with Greek Sausage & Sweet Peppers
Slow-simmered with garlic, onion and a hint of paprika, these rich beans pair beautifully with sausage and peppers.
Crisp Cucumber & Cherry Tomato Salad
This cool side is tossed with spring onions, a medley of herbs and our blood orange-white balsamic vinaigrette.
Grilled Fennel & Radicchio
Also tossed with this week’s vinaigrette, this salad boasts a wonderful smoky flavor from the grill.
Fennel & Lemon Relish
This crisp slaw from Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food II is excellent tossed with grilled summer squash.
Spanish Lentils with Greek Sausage & Sweet Peppers
Slow-simmered with garlic, onion and a hint of paprika, these rich beans pair beautifully with sausage and peppers.
Ingredients:
1½ cups lentil beans, rinsed
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon each fresh chopped parsley and savory
½ teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
2 cups waters or chicken broth
3-4 links Greek sausage
1 pound small sweet peppers, halved, seeded and cut lengthwise
1-2 spring onions, thinkly sliced (if desired)
Method:
1. Soak lentils in a pot of cold water for an hour prior to cooking. Drain and rinse.
2. Heat olive oil in large stock pot on low heat, add onion, paprika and garlic. Sauté until onion begins to look translucent and garlic browns a little. Add water or chicken broth and lentils, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook until lentils are just cooked, not mushy, about 40-45 minutes. Remove from heat and add in fresh herbs and season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Meanwhile, in a skillet, cook sausages in a half inch of water until done and
remove. Discard cooking water. In the same skillet, add peppers and onions along with a drizzle of olive oil and turn heat up to high. Sauté peppers and onions, until peppers and onions just begin to blister and char. Add sausage, turning down heat, and continue cooking until the sausages are browned. Slice sausages diagonally in large slices to serve.
4. To serve, ladle helpings of lentils into bowls and top with sausage and pepper mixture, garnishing with additional parsley if desired.
