Sadly we’re getting to the end of the summer tomato season, so make sure you get every bit of goodness out of the wonderful heirloom fruit we received this week. For ideas, check out the recipes in our archive and the journal entry from earlier this week for great tomato ideas.
Gophers, tomatoes and peaceful coexistence
Dill and Heirloom Tomatoes –
Opening the bag this week we were greeted with the cool and refreshing scent of fresh dill. I love dill yet rarely buy it since I tend to focus on the more “popular” herbs like parsley and basil. The lovely delicate and feathery leaves in our bag reminded me of what a wonderfully unique flavor this herb offers, and that I should bring it home more often. Considering we had some lovely new potatoes from the farmer’s market, fresh bell pepper from our garden and tomatoes and dill from Freshness Farms it wasn’t surprising that everyone came to the same conclusion about what to make: French Potato Salad. This is a very loose dish and perfect when you have fresh dill on hand. Add some drained canned tuna or cannellini beans and the dish becomes a main course. Dry or freeze the dill you have left-over. To dry – rinse and pat dry, then lay the stalks out on a cookie sheet in the sun. Turn the stalks every now and then. After several days the herb should be fully dry. Store in a glass jar or plastic bag. To freeze – rinse and dry herb, then roughly chop. Place in a plastic bag in the freezer and use whenever fresh dill is called for. Either method works great for preserving this fabulous flavor.
Strawberries and Spinach –
There’s really nothing simpler and more delicious than a fresh spinach salad with sliced strawberries – and considering we’re looking at some of the last berries of the season, we need to show them off to full advantage. Here’s a salad that everyone likes and could not be any easier.
Spinach and Strawberry Salad with Feta Cheese and Nuts
Celery –
Well – I hate to be too pushy, but if you didn’t prepare the celery and fennel salad that I suggested last week, and you still have fennel in the fridge, maybe the stars are now fully aligned for trying this fresh, crisp and citrusy salad after all! I admit right up front that I’m not generally a huge fan of raw fennel – I usually cook mine. This salad is the exception for me – magnificently balancing a variety of flavors and textures – sweet citrus, spicy greens, crunchy celery and the licorice taste of fennel. Try it – you might end up a convert like me!
Celery, Fennel and Citrus Salad
Mushrooms –
My original thought was a big warming pot of mushroom soup, but when I sat down to do my usual cookbook browsing, I came upon a recipe that spoke to me – so I have to go with it: Mushroom Ragu. This recipe comes from Alice Water’s The Art of Simple Food (a favorite of mine), where it is described in these words “a rich deep-flavored pasta sauce, like Bolognese – but meatless”. The recipe calls for 2 pounds of “shrooms” which will be no problem with this week’s bounty, but if I do have any left-over I’ll saute them in a little olive oil and butter, some minced garlic and fresh chopped herbs. We’ll serve them with scrambled, free-range eggs (delivered with my veggie bag this week). Scoop a little of each up and eat it on toasted rustic bread. Yum!
