Recipes using fresh produce

Here's some recipes for fresh produce. I'm going to the farmers market this morning to hopefully buy tomatoes to make fresh salsa.

Swiss Chard

olive oil
1/4 red onion, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/8 tsp. dried crushed red pepper, to taste, optional
1 bunch of Swiss chard, washed and chopped
2 Tablespoons water
salt and pepper, to taste

Saute the onion, garlic and red pepper. (You can use a large saucepan or large skillet.) Then add the rest of the ingredients and heat on medium heat for 10 minutes. As a variation, substitute 1 tablespoon of water for vinegar and add smoked turkey or ham pieces.
(I love Swiss chard, even just boiled briefly with salt).

Blake’s Fresh Salsa

Combine the following and chill covered for 1/2 hour.
2-3 cups chopped Roma tomatoes (when canning salsa, its best to blanch and de-skin the tomatoes. This is not necessary for fresh salsa.)
½ cup red onion
½ cup green pepper
1 Jalapeno, 1 green chili and 1 Poblano or whatever you can find, (Use one Jalapeno pepper per two tomatoes, adjust to taste.)
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground black pepper
¾ tsp. salt
1 Tbs. white vinegar or lime or lemon juice
2 pinches finely chopped cilantro

Roasted root vegetables

Preheat the oven to 425F°. Peel and cut vegetables into approximately 3/4 inch cubes.

1 pound potato

1 pound rutabaga or parsnips

1 pound sweet potato

4 Tablespoons olive oil

2 tsp. dried rosemary or other herb

2 cloves garlic

salt

Use some of the olive oil to oil the pans. Mix the rest with the garlic, finely minced or pressed, and the rosemary. Using your hands, rub oil mixture all over the vegetable pieces. Arrange in a single layer on the prepared pans. Salt lightly and place in preheated oven.

Turn once, after 20 to 25 minutes (pull pan out of oven to do this) and continue roasting until done, a total of about 45 minutes. Vegetables can be roasted at a lower temperature for a longer time, if  necessary to accomodate other food being roasted.

Tabouleh 

1/2 c bulgar, cover with boiling water for 30 minutes, then strain very well.
1 1/2 cup of chopped parsley, maybe more
1/2 cup diced green onion
1/2 cup diced cucumber
1 cup diced tomatoes
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper
1 Tablespoon fresh mint, optional
Mix ingredients and serve or refrigerate.

Hummus is easy to make and is often served with tabouleh. Empty a can of garbanzo beans in a food processor, along with 1/4 cup of the juice, add 2 cloves garlic, pressed, dash of salt, 1 Tbs. olive oil, 1 Tbs. lemon juice and process to a pulp. If you have tahini, add 1-1/2 Tbs. Add a dash of cayenne pepper if you like.

Fried Thai basil eggplant 

1 tablespoon oil

2 -3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 pound chicken strips, (optional)
2 green onions

2 chile peppers finely chopped or other hot peppers

1 big  or 2 small eggplant, cut irregular

1 tablespoon sugar or brown sugar

2 tablespoons soy sauce or fish sauce

1 bunch basil, washed and stems removed 

Cut eggplant into uniform irregular shapes. Heat oil in pan and saute chicken, then add garlic and peppers and onion until lightly browned. Add eggplant, 1/2 cup water cover and simmer 5 minutes, until eggplant becomes translucent. Add more water as needed. Stir in sugar and fish sauce or soy sauce. Turn off the heat and add the basil, stirring gently. Serve with rice.