The Purloined Recipe

From www.101cookbooks.com

A compelling combination of a short list of ingredients that don’t sound particularly exciting on the page, but come together into something more than the sum of their parts. Shaved fennel, thin zucchini coins, arugula, dill, nuts, and feta are tossed with fresh lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. That’s it, really. Dead simple. I use a mandoline to make feathery whispers of fennel, but if a knife is what you’ve got, that’ll work too. The version in my book calls for pine nuts, but I had sliced almonds on hand today, so that’s what I used instead

Serves 4 to 6

Prep time: 10 min

If you’re using a knife to prep here, do your best to slice things very, very thinly – not quite see through thin, but close

1 medium-large zucchini, sliced into paper thin coins
2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed and shaved paper-thin
2/3 cup / .5oz/ 15g loosely chopped fresh dill
1/3 cup / 80ml fresh lemon juice, plus more if needed
1/3 cup / 80ml extra virgin olive oil, plus more if needed
fine grain sea salt
4 or 5 generous handfuls arugula
Honey, if needed
1/2 cup / 2 oz/ 60g pine nuts, toasted (I used almonds)
1/3 cup / 2 oz / 60g / feta cheese, crumbled

Combine the zucchini, fennel and dill in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice, olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Set aside and marinate for 20 minutes, or up to an hour.

When you are ready to serve the salad, put the arugula in a large bowl. Scoop all of the zucchini and fennel onto the arugula, and pour most of the lemon juice dressing on top of that. Toss gently but thoroughly. Taste and adjust with more of the dressing, olive oil, lemon juice, or salt if needed. If the lemons were particularly tart, you may need to counter the pucker-factor by adding a tiny drizzle of honey into the salad at this point. Let your taste buds guide you. Serve topped with pine nuts and feta.

arugula, fennel, salads

Adapted from Justin Melnick, executive chef of Tomasso Trattoria

Serves 6

When beets are on the menu at Tomasso Trattoria, the staff is likely to be eating beet greens. They’re nutritious and delicious, here blanched and sauteed, then topped with a lemon vinaigrette, chopped tomato, and toasted almonds.

• Greens from 2 bunches beets
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 red onion, very thinly sliced
• 1 ripe tomato, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted until golden

1. Rinse the greens thoroughly in several changes of water.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the greens. Blanch 1 minute. Drain and rinse with cold water. With your hands, squeeze out the excess liquid. Chop the greens coarsely.

3. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. When it is hot, add the greens, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes or until the greens are tender but still bright colored.

4. Transfer the greens to a bowl.

5. In a small bowl, whisk the lemon juice, salt, pepper, and remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Pour the mixture over the greens and toss well. Add the onion, tomato, and almonds. Toss again. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if you like. Adapted from Justin Melnick, executive chef of Tomasso Trattoria

beets, garlic, onions, other greens, salads, tomatoes

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

Raw young turnips are sweet, with a tender-firm crunch. In this refreshing salad, lemon juice and tart, crispy apples accentuate both of these qualities. For a sweet treat, try tossing in some raisins.

Makes about 2 cups

1 cup peeled and grated raw young turnips
1 cup peeled and grated tart apples
½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Toss the turnips, apples, parsley, lemon juice, and vegetable oil in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

parsley, salads, The Recipes, turnips

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

Crisp young turnips mixed with dried apricots and toasted walnuts, then tossed with a refreshing, flavorful yogurt-based dressing, make for a unique and special salad that will delight your dinner guests. This recipe is a great way to use up any leftover turnip or radish greens.

Serves 4 to 6

½ cup walnut pieces
4-5 young turnips, cut into matchstick-size sticks
½ cup finely sliced dried apricots
1 small bunch parsley, chopped
1 bunch young turnip greens or radish greens, coarsely chopped
½ cup mild-favored vegetable oil
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup vinegar
¼ plain yogurt
2 shallots, quartered
1-2 jalapenos or other chili peppers, stems and seeds removed, quartered
1 clove garlic, quartered
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 tablespoon grated horseradish
1 teaspoon soy sauce or tamari
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Salad greens of your choice.

1. Toast the walnuts in a dry, heavy skillets over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until lightly browned and fragrant. (Be careful not to over toast them, as they will burn very quickly once toasted.) Transfer the walnuts to a dish to cool.
2. Combine the turnips, apricots, and walnuts in a large bowl and stir to combine.
3. Put the parsley, chopped greens, vegetable oil, olive oil, vinegar, and yogurt into a blender; process briefly, until the ingredients are just combined. Add the shallots, chili pepper, garlic, dry mustard, horseradish, and soy sauce or tamari; process until thick and creamy. If necessary, thin the dressing with a little extra yogurt or a tablespoon of cold water.
4. Pour the dressing over the turnip-apricot-walnut mixture; toss until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Line individual plates with a generous amount of salad greens; spoon the turnip mixture on top. Serve immediately.

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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.

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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

If you enjoy the tangy-sweet taste that comes from adding mandarin orange segments, raisins, or chunks of apple to a salad, then you already know how delicious fruit and salad dressing can be. In this salad, choi provides a succulent base for a mixture of apples, grapes, mild onion, and freshly toasted almonds, all smothered in a luxurious poppy seed dressing. (The Sneaky secret to the dressing’s impossible smoothness is silken tofu, which purees beautifully and makes an exceptional, flavorless base for soups, sauces, and dressings.)

This recipe yields more than 2 cups of dressing, so you’ll have plenty left over for other salads. Silken tofu is widely available in grocery stores and health food stores.

Serves 4 to 6

½ cup slivered, blanched almonds
1 cup mild-flavored vegetable oil
½ cup honey
½ cup white vinegar
4 ounces soft silken tofu
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 ½ teaspoons dry mustard
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika (optional)
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 bok choy or other white-stemmed choi/choy, trimmed, stems cut diagonally into thin slices, leaves sliced into thin strips
1 large sweet apple, peeled, cored, diced
1 cup red or purple seedless grapes, halved
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Toast the almonds in a heavy (preferably cast iron) skillet over high heat until they begin to brown slightly. Transfer the nuts to a bowl to cool.
2. Put the oil, honey, vinegar, tofu, poppy seeds, dry mustard, alt, and paprika in a food processor or a blender. Process or blend the ingredients until smooth. Pour the mixture into a bowl and stir in the onion. On cover the dressing and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve the salad.
3. Toss the choi, apple, and grapes in a large bowl.
4. Pour the dressing over the ingredients; toss until everything is thoroughly combined. Cover the bowl and set it aside at room temperature for 15 minutes to let the flavors develop.
5. When you’re ready to serve, stir in the toasted almonds. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

bok choy, onions, Recipes By Ingredient, salad dressings, salads, The Recipes

4 servings, 2 cups each

Dressing:

1/4 c. tomato juice
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3c. chopped green pepper
Coarse-ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced

Salad:

6 c. mixed salad greens
2 c. diced tomatoes
1 c. diced cucumber
½ c. thinly sliced basil
1/3c. crumbled Feta cheese
1/4 c. sliced green onions
15-oz. can cannellini or
other white beans, rinsed

Combine dressing ingredients with a whisk. Salad: combine greens and
remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add dressing mixture, tossing gently to combine. Serve immediately.

basil, cucumbers, garlic, lettuce, onions, Recipes By Ingredient, salad dressings, salads, The Recipes, tomatoes

from Cory and Shanti Rade

Japanese Salad Turnips, sliced about ¼ inch thick
Sugar snap peas, strings pull off, cut into 1 inch pieces (optional)
One of the following herbs: chives, garlic chives, green onions or dill, chopped
Rice vinegar
Olive oil
Sesame seeds, toasted
Salt

Place all the vegetables in a bowl, add the oil, vinegar, salt and sesame seeds. Mix well. Place in the fridge for at least an hour to let the dressing soak in. Enjoy.

This recipe also works well in summer with cucumbers in place of turnips.

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1 c. fresh or frozen green peas
1 med. size carrot, peeled & chopped
1/2 sm. stalk celery
1 oz. mozzarella cheese, cut in sm. cubes (about 1/4 c.)
2 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. buttermilk
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 tbsp. plain low fat yogurt
1 1/2 tsp. mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. balsamic or red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. dried basil, crumbled
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. Sugar

In small pan, bring 1 inch of water to boil; add peas and carrots and cook 5 minutes. Drain; rinse under cold water; drain. Place in medium bowl; add celery and cheese; toss well to mix.

In small bowl, combine buttermilk, green onions, yogurt, mayonnaise, vinegar, basil, pepper and sugar. Spoon over salad and toss well. Cover and refrigerate.

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Preparation time 40 min. chilling time 2 hrs. 308 calories

Serves 4

1 pound small potatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
½ pound whole green beans
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 ½ teaspoons sugar
4 teaspoons brown mustard
3/4 teaspoon dried dillweed
Lettuce leaves
1 – 6 1/2 ounce can tuna, drained and broken into chunks
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and cut into chunks
½ small red onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings
2 hard-cooked eggs, cut into wedges

1. In a large saucepan bring 2 inches of water to boiling. Add potatoes and green beans. Cover and simmer 10 minutes or just till tender. Remove beans with a slotted spoon; drain potatoes. Cover and chill for 2 to 24 hours.
2. Meanwhile, for dressing, in a screw-top jar combine lemon juice, oil, sugar, mustard, dillweed, 2 tablespoons water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Cover and shake well to blend. Chill for 2 to 24 hours.
3. To serve, place lettuce leaves on a platter. Arrange potatoes, beans, tuna, tomatoes, onion, and eggs atop lettuce. Shake dressing and drizzle over salad.

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