The Purloined Recipe

Excerpted with permission from Farmer John’s Cookbook: the Real Dirt On Vegetables: Seasonal Recipes and Stories from a Community Farm by Farmer John Peterson and Angelic Organics (Gibbs Smith, Publisher). www.AngelicOrganics.com/cookbook

This version is moist and refreshing. It has lots of juicy tomatoes and dressing, as well as lots of fresh green parsley and mint. Don’t worry if you don’t have exact quantities; as long as you remember to keep things in balance by cutting back the mint (and perhaps the onion), it won’t matter if you use a little less of the other ingredients. You may also make this a drier Tabbouleh by using a larger proportion of bulgur.

Serves 6

1 cup hot water
½ cup bulgur
3 cups chopped fresh parsley
2 tomatoes, seeded, finely diced (about 2 cups)
½-1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
½ cup finely diced onion (about 1 medium onion)
2 large scallions, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons) plus more to taste
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon ground allspice

1. Combine the water and bulgur in a large bowl. Cover and set aside until the bulgur has completely absorbed the water, 30 minutes to 1 hour. (If after 1 hour the grains are plump and there is still water in the bowl, strain the bulgur and squeeze out any excess water.)
2. Stir the parsley, tomatoes, mint to taste, onions, and scallions into the plumped bulgur. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, and allspice; toss until thoroughly combined. Add lemon juice to taste (this salad should be lemony but not unpleasantly tart).
3. Cover and let stand for 20 minutes to let the flavors develop. Serve at room temperature.

Recipes By Ingredient, The Recipes, mint, onions, parsley, salads, side dishes, tomatoes

Serves 4

Vary the sauce with any tender herbs you have on hand.

3 shallots, minced (about 1/4 cup)
1 teaspoon coarse salt, plus more for seasoning
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cups packed mixed fresh herbs, such as mint, flat-leaf parsley, tarragon and Basil, finely chopped
¼ cup snipped fresh fennel fronds, finely chopped
Freshly ground pepper
¾ pound spaghetti or other pasta

1. Fill a large pot with water; bring to a boil over high heat. Add salt and pasta. Cook until the pasta is al dente according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, place shallots on a cutting board, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Using the side of a chef’s knife, crush into a paste. Transfer to a medium bowl, and add oil and lemon juice. Whisk to combine. Add herbs and fennel fronds to shallot paste, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Drain the pasta in a colander, and return to pot. Stir in the herb sauce. Serve warm.

Recipes By Ingredient, The Recipes, basil, eggplant, entrees, mint, onions, parsley, pasta, sauces

Serves 8-10

3 cucumbers
3 large oranges
15 small red radishes
A few fresh mint leaves, coarsely minced
Salt
Olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon, more to taste

Peel cucumber and slice very thinly. Peel the orange by cutting away the skin,
through the white pith, down to the orange pulp. Cut in half and slice thinly.
Rinse the radishes and slice very thinly. Put the cucumber, orange and radishes
in the bowl. Add the mint leaves. (This salad can be prepared ahead up to this
point.) Just before serving add salt, lemon juice and olive oil to taste and toss
well.

Recipes By Ingredient, The Recipes, cucumbers, mint, radishes, salads

Serves 4 to 6

Everything about this dish is summery and fresh-including the cook, who hasn’t
had to hover over a steamy stovetop to achieve this surprisingly intense blend of
flavors. A shareholder recipe-tester says the sour cream gives this soup lovely
richness and suggests using a little finely chopped fresh dill for a pretty garnish.

4 cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 to 2 cups water
2 cups plain yogurt (or 1 cup plain yogurt combined with 1 cup sour cream)
1 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
Several fresh mint leaves
2 tablespoons fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried dill
1 tablespoon honey
1 to 2 teaspoons salt
2 scallions, finely chopped

1. Combine the chopped cucumber, 1 cup water, yogurt, garlic, mint, dill, honey, and 1 teaspoon salt in a blender or food processor. Puree the ingredients, adding more of the water until the soup is a consistency you like. Season with more salt to taste.
2. Transfer the soup to a large bowl and chill for several hours. Garnish each serving with chopped scallions.

Recipes By Ingredient, The Recipes, cucumbers, dill, mint, soups

(recipe from the book Local Flavors used with permission of the author, Deborah Madison)

Agua frescas are always best drunk the day they are made.
4 cups honeydew or other melon, cut into chunks
1 med. Cucumber, peeled and chopped
Simple syrup (see below)
Zest and juice of 1 or 2 limes
Handful of mint leaves, lemon verbena or pineapple sage
2 cups spring or mineral water

For garnish, sprigs of mint leaves, lemon verbena or borage flowers.

To make a simple syrup: 2 ½ cups water, 2 cups sugar. Put water and sugar in a
pot and heat until dissolved and liquid is clear. Let it cool then decant into a jar.
Store in the cupboard or refrigerator.

Puree the melon and cucumber in a blender or food processor just enough to
break them up without letting them get too foamy. Pour the juice into a large
pitcher; add the syrup to taste, lime zest and juice, and herbs. Chill well. Stir in
the spring water and serve over ice. Garnish with any of the herbs or borage
flowers.

beverages, cucumbers, melon, mint

(recipe from the book Local Flavors used with permission of the author, Deborah Madison)

1 bunch scallions, including greens
1 Serrano chile, finely diced
grated zest and juice of 2 limes
1 Tablespoon of light soy sauce
1 Tablespoon of light brown sugar
4 teaspoons roasted peanut oil
1/3 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
6 mint leaves, slivered
6 Thai basil leaves

1. Peel cucumber, half it lengthwise, and cut it to long strips. Or remove long thin slices with a vegetable peeler. Thinly slice the scallions on a diagonal, making them long and thin.
2. Combine cucumbers, scallions, and chile in a bowl.
3. Combine lime zest, juice, soy, sugar and oil.
4. Toss the vegetables with the dressing and add the peanuts and herbs and
   toss again.

basil, chiles, cucumbers, mint, salad dressings, salads