Maryland's Pick- Week Two

This was our second week of Maryland's Pick from our local Whole Foods. Another big bag of green, healthy, and delicious items!!

Not much different than last week. Again, all organic items from Homestead Farms. I am really excited about the squash. Quinoa zucchini fritters are definitely happening this weekend.
We also will make some kale chips with the lacinato kale.   The contents of the bag from the weekly email looks like this:

1 bunch Curly kale

1 bunch Lacinato Kale

1 bunch Basil

1 bunch Parsley

1 lb Yellow squash

1 lb Patty Pan squash

1 lb Zucchini

1 bunch Dandelion greens

1 bunch Sorrel

                                                            1 bunch (1/2 lb) Garlic Scapes

If my kale chips are yummy, I will share the recipe. We have just made kale salads and they are good enough.  We also used the lacinato kale on top of a pizza I made yesterday as well. I will share that new find next week.  It tasted incredible.

Eat your greens!  If you are not sure what to make with some of these greens, put a little bit in a fruit smoothie, simple and delicious.

It is not too late to signup for your own Maryland's Pick bag at your local Whole Foods. What are you waiting for??? Go get a bag for yourself!

Fennel Chicken Salad

We got 6 big bunches of fennel in our Maryland Pick bag this past week. I have never bought fennel before and I really did not know what I would do with it.  Since we were sick this past weekend, we had a lot of chicken soup, and soup means leftover cooked chicken.  We threw together a delicious fennel chicken salad and it was so good.  The fennel tasted even better than celery does in it. Crunchy, fresh, and delicious.
Give it a try!

Fennel Chicken Salad
2 cooked chicken breasts cut into chunks
5 fennel bulbs, diced
1/2-3/4 cup mayo
parsley
salt
pepper
onion flakes
chopped almonds
1 T lemon juice
dry cranberries
sunflower seeds
grapes, diced
Put  all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Serve on bread, challah, cracker, lettuce, kale, whatever you have available!

Garlic Scapes Dip

This weekend was full of sickness. UGH!!!  Diane was so sick with a high fever, strep throat, just wanting Mama's cuddles.  But our basket of greens was calling so we made our first recipe.  If you like the flavor of garlic this dip is for you!!  It is super strong, yet delicious.

This recipe is really easy to make.  The green curly things are called garlic scapes.  You cut off the flowers and the ends, then you chop up the green stalks.  They are really the coolest looking vegetable I have ever seen.

Garlic Scapes Dip
15 ounces can of butter beans or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup garlic scapes, chopped (discard the flowers)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup olive oil
2 T lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
Drain and rinse your beans. Put them in the food processor.  Pulse them a few times.  Add in all the pieces of garlic scapes and the parmesan and olive oil.  Process for a minute.  Add in the lemon juice and spices. Process till very smooth.
This dip would be great on a falafel sandwich or on whole grain crackers, a sliced baguette, or in a
tomato half.

Maryland's Pick: Week One

The day was finally here. I have wanted to sign up for a CSA for many years, but it is always so expensive.  When I saw signs atour local Whole Foods Rockville, for a local CSA called Maryland's Pick I stopped at the customer service desk for more info.  $20 a week for the whole summer. SOLD!

The excitement was really building for us because we signed up over two weeks ago but this was our first bag.  The first week, we signed up too close to delivery date, so they would not have time to make our bag.  Last week we arrived first thing on Sunday morning(pickup can be friday, saturday, or sunday), to find out that someone else picked up our bag on Saturday!!! So sad, but no worries, we were not charged for it, so we just had to wait another week.

I did not get to take a picture of the red bag all the goodies came in, because everyone took everything out too quickly.  Here is everything that came in the bag.

An email is sent on Thursday, sharing the items that will be in the bag, along with the Farm that they will come from. (Today the offerings were all from Homestead Farm)  Everything in the bag each week is locally, freshly picked and organic!  Recipes and suggestions are also included in the weekly email.
The breakdown of our veggies were:

 Three kinds of Kale: Red Leaf, Green and Lacinato

Garlic Scapes

Sorrell, dandelion greens and the scapes again

And last but not least some baby squash

My little girl is home sick today with a fever and feeling quite crummy, so the cooking of these gorgeous veggies will have to wait a few days.  But, I do know we will make an arugula salad with pine nuts and fennel as well as a kale salad and some kale chips.  If you want to sign up for this awesome bag, ask at your local Whole Foods, and you will be enjoying some awesome local produce just like we are.  I know that there are a few spots left at the Rockville Whole Foods, so what are you waiting for?? Go signup now.

Zucchini Muffins and Fritters for the win!

I love zucchinis.  I could eat them everyday and be a very happy person.  My favorite way to eat them is so simple. Peel, cut into coins, then saute them in a tiny bit of EVOO with some Chickpea Flour sprinkled on top as well as some salt. YUM. So easy and so delicious.
Since we have an abundance of zucchini this week, we branched out from our usual snack and made muffins and fritters. They both are amazing.  The muffins are vegan and the fritters are not, but could easily be made vegan with an egg substitute.
Hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

Zucchini Muffins
1 and 1.5 cups sprouted wheat flour ( or your favorite flour)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup coconut oil (or your favorite oil)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup grated zucchini
 Preheat oven to 350.  Peel and shred your zucchini.  Squeeze out excess water.  Put zucchini in a small bowl.  Mix in applesauce, sugar, vanilla, vinegar and oil.
In another bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
Combine wet and dry ingredients, combine until just mixed.  Fold in chocolate chips, and some nuts would also be delicious.
We made 11 muffins from this batter.  Bake 19 minutes.

Zucchini Fritters
1 cup cooked quinoa
1.5 cups of shredded zucchini, can be a little more or less too
1 onion shredded
1 egg
1-2 egg whites
1/2-3/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Oil to saute them in
Peel and shred your zucchini. I used 3 medium ones. You can use more or less if you have it.  If you use your food processor, this just takes a few minutes.  Pop the onion in and shred that too.  Try to squeeze out and get rid of as much water as you can.
Place zucchini and shredded onion in a large bowl. Stir in the egg, egg whites, wheat germ and spices.  Keep stirring.  Add in parmesan cheese.  You want to try to get the mixture to stay together when you form it into the patty.  If you need to, you can add more egg white or wheat germ to form the patty easier. 
Make sure your Oil is very hot in the pan.  Fry a small patty and brown it on each side.  Eat it as soon as it is ready. Delicious, healthy and easy!