Seasonal Recipes

Roasted Garbanzo Beans with Swiss Chard

I found this recipe at Bon Appétit, it is a great was to serve chard.



Garbanzo beans:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine first 5 ingredients in 8x8x2-inch glass baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour oil over; cover dish with foil. Roast until garlic is tender, about 45 minutes.

Chard:
Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add garlic, bay leave... Read more

Roasted Sunchokes and Carrots

This summer, I grew Sunchokes for the first time. It was amazing to watch one small tuber rapidly grow to a huge clump of sunflowers that towered over the garden shed. The best part, was knowing that this winter I could eat the fleshy tubers. So I have been experimenting. I sauteed them with mushrooms, made a soup, and last night I roasted them. They were great roasted.

The best place ... Read more

Yellow Lentils

It has been a week now since we have seen temps above freezing. As a result we don't have any fresh veggies from the garden. So now we will be eating more dishes like this.

Saute the onions in the oil until tender. Add the lentils and water. Grind the peppercorns, coriander seeds and cardamon seeds in a spice grinder. Add to the pot along with the rest on the ingredients except salt. ... Read more

Pumpkin Pecan Pie

Every year I try to make my Thanksgiving meal, more seasonal and more local than the year before. I accomplish this in two ways. One, by continuing to grow more and more of the ingredients I need, or by finding local farmers who grow them. The second way is to change what I serve. Since Thanksgiving is a meal full of tradition, this step is harder than trying to grow my own wheat, grinding it ... Read more

Potato Leek Soup

I got this very simple recipe from my friends at CheaterChef.com. Every time I make it, I am always amazed at how flavorful it is even though it is made with water rather than broth or milk.

Melt the butter in a large soup pot. Saute the leeks in the butter over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and water... Read more

White Bean and Kale Soup

Kale is one of the few things that survived the winter in my garden this year. I used basil I froze last fall and tomatoes I dried last summer to complete this soup.

Heat a liberal amount of olive oil in a stock pot. Saute onions and celery until tender. Add tomatoes, basil, broth, beans, vinegar and cheese rind. Simmer for at least 1 hour. Stir in pasta and cook for 5 to 10 more minutes... Read more

Red Bean and Tortilla Soup

I have been making this soup for years. When my family requests chili, but I am too busy, this is a great quick substitute that they all love.

Cook the beans and chipotle as described in the notes section below.

Cover the dried tomatoes with boiling 1/2 cup water and let soak while beans cook. When they are re-hydrated puree with the soaking water.

Put a dash of oil in a sto... Read more

Sweet Potato Pancakes

My kids ate sweet potatoes, and LIKED them!!

My family is not a big fan of sweet potatoes. But since they are a great winter vegetable, packed with nutrients, I keep searching for ways to serve them, that they will like. Finally, success!! These were so good that my kids consumed them before I could get a photo.


Place sweet potatoes in a medium saucepan of boiling water, and c... Read more

Black Bean Soup with Lime

Last summer I had an empty spot in my garden, where the soil was really heavy. I decided to plant beans that I would till in to improve the soil. I chose Mitla Black Beans. It turns out that these bean plants not only improved my soil but also ended up in our soup. I got enough beans to make this recipe twice. Of course you could use any dry black beans.

Saute garlic, onions, and celer... Read more

Kale

For almost a year the only fresh vegetables I have purchased from the supermarket have been potatoes, onions and celery. Most everything else has come from the garden. What I could not grow, I purchased from a local farmer. Some veggies, the ones we use a lot of, like onions and potatoes, came from all three sources. A few weeks ago a cold snap killed a lot of my winter garden. So now my only... Read more

Good Luck Stew

New Year's Day when I was a kid growing up in Atlanta meant two things. My father watched football on TV and a my mother made the traditional southern New Year's Day meal: pork roast, sweet potatoes, corn bread and for good luck, black-eyed peas and collard greens. Lucky for me my favorite dishes in this meal are the peas and the greens.

For years I have been in searching for a black-ey... Read more

Cheesecake with Ginger Snap Crust and Cranberry Orange Sauce

I like this cheesecake recipe because with the strong flavors of ginger snaps and cranberries most people don't notice that I have used soy cream cheese. Of course you could make it with cow's cream cheese.

For crust:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Finely grind cookies in food processor. Add butter; blend until moist clumps form. Using plastic wrap as aid, press crumb mixture onto bottom and 1 ... Read more

Solstice Chocolate Crackel Cookies

I think this is the first recipe I have posted that didn't have at lease one ingredient from my garden in it. For us this is a very seasonal recipe, so I decided to post it anyway. I only make these cookies once a year for the winter solstice. As a gardener who hates the short dark days of December, I love to mark the solstice. I know that each day will now be longer than the last, and before l... Read more

Fried Rice with Turnips and Carrots

It seems like I have been slipping turnips into a lot of dishes lately. This was a quick easy supper made with leftover sticky rice, and turnips, garlic and dried, Thai hot peppers from the garden, and carrots and eggs from a local farmers. Remember, fried rice is perfect for using up leftovers or odds and ends, so I have not given amounts. Please use whatever vegetables you have on hand.
<... Read more

Italian Turnip Soup

I love this soup! Since it only requires a handfull of ingredients, it's easy to make and it's yummy. What more can you want. Since I always have the garlic, rice, stock and cheese on hand and in the cold months I try to have turnips and parsley in the garden, this is a soup I can make without any planning. Add bread and a salad for a quick, easy supper.

I am posting this as part of ... Read more

Vegetable Potpie

The first time I made a potpie I was amazed at how much work was involved. Later I realized that potpie is something that was traditionally made with leftovers. So when I had a little gravy and some pie crust dough left from Thanksgiving, I decided to make a potpie. I had potatoes and carrots from a local farmer, and broccoli leaves and turnips in the garden. You could use any vegetables you h... Read more

Pumpkin Coconut Soup

I am posting this as part of Grow Your Own, a twice-a-month blogging event that celebrates the foods we grow or raise ourselves and the dishes we make using our homegrown products. Rachel of The Crispy Cook is our host for Read more

Trout with Lemon and Dill

My husband and I became vegetarians in 1990, for 14 years we at no mammals, foul or fish. About four years ago we began adding a little fish to our diet, mostly when we traveled or were guests in someone's home. Recently, however I have started preparing fish at home, usually for guests. So I must confess, I know nothing about the seasonality of fish. I usually just buy whatever looks good at ... Read more

Raab with Garlic and Dill

Broccoli Raab is a great cold hardy green, that is quick and easy to grow. This is the second year I have had it in my garden, and I am still learning about it and interesting ways to prepare it. For example, yesterday I learned that it is more closely related to turnips than broccoli. Wonder why broccoli is in the name?

Fresh raab can be a little prickly and bitter, but blanching take... Read more

Fall Salad with Radish and Raisins

This is a great cool weather salad.

Toss greens with Mustard dressing. Sprinkle with remaining ingredients.
Mixed salad greens
radishes, thinly sliced
green onions, chopped
raisins
Pecorino cheese, thinly sliced , I use a vegetable peeler
Mustard Dressing... Read more

Awesome Fall Nori Rolls

Most mothers know not to tinker with foods their kids like. At my house that means that nori rolls are always stuffed with cucumbers and nothing else, otherwise my 12-year-old son will not eat them.

I wanted to serve nori rolls at a party recently. However, having spent most of August and September finding things to do with all the wonderful fresh cucumbers that poured out of my garden,... Read more

Potato Soup with Split Green Peas

Potatoes are one vegetable that we depend on a lot, especially during the winter. While my potato harvest this year was the best so far, it will not get us though the winter. So when I noticed that my favorite local farmers, Fresh Harvest Coop had fall potatoes this week, I stocked up. I used a few of those potatoes to make this soup, which wa... Read more

Onion Soup

Saute onions in oil till tender. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes.

This soup is great served with thick slices of toasted French bread with melted cheese.
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 cups assorted onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic
6 cups dark broth
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon molasses
... Read more

Fruit and Nut Kale

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic; cook and stir until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mustard, vinegar, and broth, and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the kale, cover, and cook 5 minutes until wilted.

Stir in the dried cranberries, and continue boiling, uncovered, until the cranberries have softened.... Read more

Kohlrabi Stew

Saute onions in oil for several minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender.
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion -- slivered
3 medium kohlrabi-- peeled and cubed
3 medium carrots -- 3/4 inch chunk
2 medium potato -- 3/4 inch chunk
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes -- chopped
2 cups vegetable broth Read more

Collard Greens

To prepare greens, heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Add greens and remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 45 minutes or until greens are tender, stirring occasionally.
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch collard greens, stemmed and chopped<... Read more

Roasted Roots

Wash, peel and cube any or all vegetables listed above. Place in a single layer in shallow baking pan. Drizzle with olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Place in oven turned to 400° (no preheating necessary). Bake till vegetables begin to brown.
carrots
potatoes
beets
parsnips
turnips
olive oil
salt & pepper
... Read more

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