This week at the Orono Farmers’ Market, the hot item was neither rhubarb nor asparagus. Bok Choy, the leafy, versatile Chinese cabbage, made its first appearance of the summer and was eagerly snatched up.
Continue reading “Bok Choy, from Farmers’ Market to Picnic Table” »
Since asparagus showed up at my farmers’ market, the first hour of shopping has turned competitive. Typically mild-mannered customers, crazed by the precious green and purple spears, cast territorial glares as they scout which farmers have got the goods and race to claim their shares. By nine o’clock, not a trace of asparagus remains.
In this dish, fresh asparagus lends its earthy flavor to a spring risotto. Like pasta and stew, risotto is a year-round dish that can be endlessly customized to showcase seasonal flavors. Making risotto with barley is both easier and healthier than using arborio rice, which has been scrubbed clean of nutrients and requires constant stirring.
While mild rice serves as a backdrop for flavors and textures, barley asserts itself: its warm, nutty flavor and chewy texture complement subtle spring vegetables. Pearl barley, the type most commonly found in grocery stores, has been scrubbed of its bran. Hulled barley, which retains its bran, has a nuttier flavor and more fiber, protein, and healthy oils, but you’ll probably have to make a trip to the natural foods store to find it.
Made with whole grain, barley risotto sticks to your ribs. It’s just the thing to warm you up on a cool, rainy spring night.
Leek and Asparagus Barley Risotto
Small bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces (about 1½ cups)
4 Tablespoons olive oil
4 cups sliced and rinsed leeks, white and light green parts only (about 2 medium)
1½ teaspoons chopped garlic
2 ½ teaspoons minced fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
1 carrot, diced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 cup barley (pearl or hulled)
½ cup dry white wine
4 cups vegetable broth, or 2 cups broth and 2 cups water
Salt to taste
Lemon wedges
Steam asparagus 3-4 minutes, until just tender. Rinse under cold water and set aside.
Warm broth (and water, if using) in a small saucepan over low heat. Keep broth warm on a back burner.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Sauté leeks, garlic, and thyme 8-10 minutes, until liquid evaporates and leeks begin to brown lightly.
Add carrot, celery, and barley to pot and stir for three minutes. Add wine and stir frequently until almost evaporated.
Add 2 cups of the broth and stir. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes, until broth is absorbed. Add the remaining broth and simmer for 15-18 minutes, until broth is almost absorbed. Add steamed asparagus and stir frequently, until liquid is absorbed and asparagus is heated through.
Remove from heat. Season with salt to taste. Serve with a drizzle of the remaining olive and lemon wedges.
Serves 4.
Mary Lake is a writer, teacher, columnist for MF&L, and vegetarian blogger: Mitten Machen
This weekend I picked up my first CSA delivery of the season, a bag of
radishes, spring onions, and delicate salad greens. The reappearance of
edible plants has me dancing around the kitchen and daydreaming about
salad. This one, light and fruity, highlights the gently-flavored
vegetables you'll find this week at your local farmers' market.
It's spring vacation for Maine’s teachers and schoolchildren, and April showers are forecast across the state. I'm sure I’ll appreciate May flowers once they get here, but it's tough to stay inside when I'm dreaming of long walks in the sun.
As the weather warms up I find myself craving fresh, colorful foods like pesto. April is too early for basil, but arugula, one of the first delicate greens to show up at the farmers' market, packs a flavorful punch of its own. It's an unassuming little leaf with the bite of freshly ground black pepper.
Dried beans never get the respect they deserve. Humble earth-tones and understated packaging belie their versatility. Yawning with boredom in the bean aisle, too many people pass up this low fat, high fiber, economical protein. But as any vegetarian with a stew pot and a little creativity will tell you, a spectrum of tastes, textures, and colors means you never have to feel bored by beans.
Continue reading “An Easy Lunch Idea: Tangy Black Bean Dip” »
Those of us who love to eat are spoiled here in Maine. It’s easy to lose perspective and take for granted things that make eating in our state unique. In an age when the White House has an organic backyard garden, I’d assumed that enthusiasm for locally-grown food was sweeping the country. Not so, says Russell Libby, executive director of the Maine Organic Farmers and Growers Association, who spoke this week in Belfast at a screening of the film Tableland. Maine is one of only a handful of places, along with Vermont, the Pacific Northwest, and pockets of Wisconsin, where organic, locally-produced foods are widely available. Nowhere else is interest in eating locally and sustainably so fervent.
Maine Maple Sunday, which falls this year on March 22, is a chance to see local syrup producers at their craft. Sugarhouses throughout the state will be open for tours and tastings, with pancakes and vanilla ice cream to go around.
I am enamored with coconut, nature’s most decadent creation. Rich and slightly sweet, coconuts are dessert growing on trees. Equipped with a hammer, I could be very happy stranded on a deserted tropical island.
Continue reading “Dairy-free Dessert: Cinnamon Coconut Rice Pudding” »
Continue reading “Wild Rice Stuffed Cabbage with Roasted Potatoes” »
Everyone I know is sick: my husband, my dogs, the kids at school. They have a merciless cold that won’t let go, and they keep breathing near me. We’ve reached the point in winter when the snow has gone from fluffy and cute to rock-hard and brown.
It’s time for soup!
I’ve been craving something rich, creamy, and comforting, something that will fill me up and ward away the cooties. I decided to take my basic any-vegetable soup recipe and make it decadent.
Potatoes pureed with broth give the soup a hearty base that is dairy-free and low-fat. Beans, carrots, parsnips, and kale offer a lively variety of texture and color. This is an adaptable recipe, and you could experiment with other root vegetables or leafy greens. The seasoning is mellow and warming, and even better the next day after the flavors have developed.
Curl up with your box of tissues and a mug of soup, and wait out the remainder of the winter.
I love to cook with seasonal, locally-grown fruits and vegetables. Nothing beats the taste of ripe produce plucked from familiar soil, and the knowledge that I’m supporting sustainable agriculture. But around here, February is a hard time to stand on locavore principles.
After another morning walk with the dogs in subzero temperatures, my long underwear frozen to my legs, I broke down and bought some red peppers and tomatoes. That they’re even available means it’s summer somewhere, right?
Monday evening I looked at my last banana, which was solid brown, and realized it wasn't up to the task of Tuesday morning's smoothies. Instead I incorporated it into a batch of muffins, along with September's neglected applesauce and some frozen blueberries.
Eating a muffin while driving to work the next morning, I felt it just wasn't living up to its potential. Possibilities leapt to mind. Nutmeg! Whole wheat flour! Or instead of blueberries: cherries, with almonds on top! And orange zest! When I got to my desk the first thing I did was jot down my dream muffin’s ingredients.
My new and improved muffins taste like a sunny day in August with dandelions and a hammock, just the thing for January mornings when it's 20 below. They are egg and dairy-free, so they contain no cholesterol. Pureed fruit moistens the muffins rather than oil, which are light and airy thanks to a generous dose of baking powder. Wheat flour gives them substance, and bits of dried cherry and crunchy sliced almonds provide a bit of cheer.
They are easy to whip up in your bathrobe on a lazy weekend, or in the evening for a breakfast you can toss in your bag throughout the week. They’ll bring a taste of springtime to your coldest midwinter mornings.
Cherry Almond Muffins
1/4 cup softened margarine (Earth Balance is non-dairy and non-hydrogenated)
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup nondairy milk (soy, rice, oat, or almond)
1 soft brown banana
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon freshly grated orange peel
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup dried cherries, chopped
1/4 cup sliced almonds
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a muffin tray with paper liners or oil the cups.
In a medium bowl, blend the margarine, applesauce, milk, banana, almond extract, and orange peel until smooth.
In a large bowl sift together the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and combine, without over-mixing. Stir in cherries.
Divide batter evenly among 12 muffin cups. Sprinkle almonds on top of each muffin.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins are browned.
Remove the muffins from the oven and cool them on a wire rack. Makes 12 small muffins.
A recipe for a vegan blueberry-wheat muffins is available on my blog.
Mary Lake is a writer, teacher, columnist for MF&L, and vegetarian food blogger: Mitten Machen
