Using your Produce

From the Garden this Week…

Red and Green Salanova Lettuce Crowns, Bok Choi, Pac Choi, Sweet Peppers, Green, Yellow or Purple String Beans, Tomatoes, Basil, Thyme, Sugar Pie Pumpkins, Swiss Chard,

Coming Soon…

Spring Mix, Arugula, Sweet Potatoes and Yams, Pumpkins

This week, I wanted to offer a recipe that combined small quantities of different vegetables. Sometimes we have a limited quantity of a particular item that is ripe and ready. It’s always better for us to send out the item, but I know it might be hard to come up with an idea to use just a small amount of something. So I have put together a recipe that will allow you to use a bit of this and a bit of that. This type of recipe is great to adapt to any vegetable that you will see throughout the year. The main concept to understand is that different vegetables cook at different times. And some don’t mind being over-cooked, like a leek and some need to be just barely cooked like Swiss chard or spinach. Feel free to make changes to your dietary needs and preferences. You could serve the chicken and vegetables over rice, if you don’t want pasta. Feel free to omit the chicken to go vegetarian and if you are dairy free, substitute a bit of stock or water for the cream and you can leave out the cheese. I also love to make this type of meal to help introduce new vegetables to other members of my family. These are great techniques to learn and apply through the year.

Mixed Vegetable Pasta:

1/2 pound dry pasta

2 teaspoons salt

2 chicken breasts

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon flour or cornstarch

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided1-2 small leeks, or 1/2 onion, chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon minced fresh or dried thyme, oregano or rosemary

1 handful beans, ends removed

1-2 sweet peppers, chopped

2 tablespoons white wine

1/2 cup cream or half and half

1 small bunch greens, choppedfresh chopped herbs, basil or parsley

Salt and fresh ground black pepper

Grated Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, with 2 teaspoons salt. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. While the pasta is cooking cut the chicken into cubes and put in a bowl with ½ teaspoon salt, garlic powder, flour and 1 Tbs. olive oil, mix well. When the pasta is done, drain the water and set the pasta aside. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add 1 Tbs. of oil. Cook the chicken cubes in the skillet, turning once. When the chicken is cooked, add the leeks, garlic and herbs. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the white wine and cook until the liquid has evaporated. Add the beans, peppers and cream, cook for 1-2 minutes allowing the cream to come to a boil. Add the greens, fresh herbs, and cooked pasta. Turn the heat off, stir well and season with salt and pepper and garnish with Parmesan cheese.