Ingredients:

2 pounds medium shrimp, cleaned

1 cup fresh mint leaves

2 tablespoons lemon juice

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cucumber, seeded and diced (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 lemon, zested

Salt and pepper

Procedure:

Cook shrimp in boiling water for 3 minutes, drain and cool in refrigerator.

Put mint and lemon juice in food processor and pulse to coarsely chop the mint. Drizzle olive oil into processor while pureeing until mint is finely chopped.

In a serving bowl, toss shrimp, cucumber, mint mixture, zest, salt and pepper to combine.

This will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Farm Vegetable Stir Fry

Ingredients:

Cabbage   (Julienne)

Squash      (Sliced thin)

Red Choi     (Quartered)

Onions     (Julienned)

2 cloves crushed garlic     (minced)

Canola & Sesame Oil

Procedure:

In a wok or large skillet, heat canola oil over high heat until almost smoking. Add the Cabbage and onion while stirring constantly. While continuing to stir, add successively the squash, , and teriyaki sauce. Cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Add the bok choi, and salt and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes more.

Stir in snap peas and sesame oil and remove from heat. Serve immediately.

Kale Chips w/ Lemon

Ingredients:

2 bunches fresh kale, stemmed, torn into bite-size pieces

Extra-virgin olive oil

Flaky sea salt

1 lemon

Crushed red pepper flakes

Procedure:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the kale in a large bowl and dress very lightly with olive oil so the leaves are barely coated. Season with salt. Spread the leaves out across 2 roasting sheet trays so they aren’t stacked up on each other too much. Roast in the oven until crispy but still green, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and dress with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a touch of crushed red pepper flakes.

Strawberry Cobbler

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces and chilled

2/3 cup heavy cream

2 pints whole strawberries, hulled

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, baking powder and salt. Add chilled butter and cut into dry ingredients with a pastry knife until crumbly. Add cream and stir with a spoon until dough comes together.

Roll dough to 1/2-inch thickness and cut to fit over the baking dish.

Mix strawberries in baking dish. Top fruit with cobbler dough and brush with meltedbutter and remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 35 minutes. Serve warm.

Hopefully your CSA pick-up day is quickly becoming your favorite day of the week.  There is nothing better than the taste of fresh vegetables…especially when you have new ways to prepare them!  It’s very easy to make the same things over and over again…I often find myself on auto-repeat when it comes to meal planning, but it’s always way more fun to eat something new.  Even if it’s just a simple side dish, it can really change the flavor of  a meal and turn something familiar into something fresh and exciting!  This week we’ve come up with a number of side dishes that will allow you to use some (if not all of) your veggies so that you can really take advantage of what spring in the low country has to offer your palate.

Green Goddess Quinoa

www.tastespotting.com

The amounts in this recipe are not exact because a dish like this is meant to be made with handfuls of green, drizzles of this, and pinches of that, all of which will be different from person to person.  Adjust everything accordingly.

You can prepare all of the components ahead of time and toss together right before serving.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked quinoa

wild arugula, a generous handful

1 avocado, peeled and cubed

1 cucumber, diced

kale, sliced into slivers and dropped into boiling water for about 30 seconds

2 green onions, sliced thin

2 hardboiled eggs, cubed

english peas, about a handful, cooked

anchovy vinaigrette

salt and pepper to taste

For the vinaigrette:

1 or 2 large cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 small shallot, chopped

2 anchovy fillets

salt

pepper

handful of parsley leaves

juice from 1/2 lemon

2-4 tablespoons warm water

pinch of sugar

1/2 cup olive oil

Directions:  Place all ingredients in a food processor on medium speed until combined.

Alternatively, very finely mince the garlic, then mash with a fork with the anchovies, salt and pepper.  Add the rest of the ingredients and whisk to combine.

Toss all of the ingredients except the vinaigrette, salt and pepper in a bowl to combine.

Drizzle with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of vinaigrette and toss.

Taste, add more vinaigrette if needed.  Season with salt and pepper.

Zucchini Pasta with Heirloom Tomato Sauce

www.roostblog.com

For the Sauce:

4 cups chopped heirloom tomatoes (or any Sweetbay Tomatoes)

1 small shallot, coarsely chopped

1-2 cloves garlic

3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 cup coarsely chopped basil

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

5-6 medium zucchini

salt and pepper

Put the first five ingredients into a high speed blender and blend until smooth.  WIth the blender running, slowly pour in the olive oil and continue blending until fully emulsified.  Transfer to a bowl.

Trim the ends of the zucchini.  Using a spiral slicer or vegetable peeler, slice the zucchini into ribbons or curly noodles.  Toss with sauce, sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Top with pine nuts and some extra basil.  Enjoy!

Serves 4-6

Shredded Napa Cabbage Salad with Radishes, Golden Raisins, and Dijon Dressing

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

2 tablespoons sugar

1 head napa cabbage

4-5 radishes, thinly sliced

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh chives

coarse salt and pepper

Whisk together vinegar, mustard and sugar.  Toss together cabbage, radishes, golden raisin, and chives.  Drizzle dressing over salad.  Season with salt and pepper.

Radish Butter

This simple veggie spread will knock you out first with its speckled-magenta beauty.  Then you’ll be impressed by how it synthesizes the old-school delight of peppery, cool radishes from the garden, dabbed with a dot of good butter and a pinch of salt.  Spread it on a baguette, unsalted crackers or crunchy romaine hearts.

1/2 pound radishes trimmed

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, completely softened

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Thinly sliced baguette

Put the radishes in a food processor and pulse until the radish is chopped into a very fine dice, four or five 3 second pulses.  Transfer the contents to a length of cheesecloth or a double thickness of paper towels and wring out the excess liquid.  Transfer to a medium bowl and add 4 tablespoons of butter.  With a rubber spatula, cream the radish and butter together, adding more butter 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture comes together in a smooth, pliable mass.  Transfer the mixture to a bowl, sprinkle the salt and pepper over the top, and serve immediately.  Remove it from the fridge 15 minutes before serving it to let it soften.  Sprinkle the salt and pepper over the radish butter before serving.

Click here to fill out an application >>

Winter intern, James, after completing the animal house-ing...

If you’re going to the BB&T Charleston Wine + Food Festival, be sure to catch Maria with Hugh Acheson of Five & Ten, the National, Gosford Wine (located in Athens, GA) and Empire State South (in Atlanta, GA),  Scott Crawford from The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary NC, and Jessica Mischner Senior Editor, Garden & Gun, as they talk about how to use the “whole vegetable” in cooking!

More info is here >>

Read More >>

Happy New Year!!

from all of us… ktc and the farm crew!
.
Food Stories and More…

Not to bore you with the details, but the Baldwin family has some pretty strong traditions around the holidays. Having moved to Charleston from Northern California almost six years ago, we continue to travel back there to spend the holiday with our closest family friends. Maria and Diane spend a few blissful days….well….cooking!

Christmas eve, just after mass, we begin our culinary journey with an annual gathering around the big round table to a platter of steamed dungeness crab, freshly harvested from the waters of Bodega Bay. A simple ceasar salad and some good butter are all we need. It could not be more familiar, comforting or delicious. The wine and the stories of all the years together around this wonderful table flow generously as the glow of the season descends upon us. Our blessings are so apparent and our thankfulness is abundant.

This year, Christmas morning was all about donuts! We are about to begin baking for the cafe on Clements Ferry Road, and so the first of many donuts to come were shared by family on Christmas morning. Christmas is a time to pause and indulge in the simple pleasures, and what could be more suitable than a fresh, homemade,
French Toast Old Fashioned Cake Donut!
They were delightful!

(I don’t think I should eat one of these every day….)

Christmas Dinner Menu
Truckee, CA
12/25/2011

Puree of Root Vegetable Soup
turnips, parsnip, carrots, onion and celery in a homemade chicken stock – all from Diane’s CSA from Tierra Farms in Santa Rosa, California. Topped with a small dollop of creme fraiche, chopped dried cranberries and walnuts.

Winter Greens Salad
Radicchio, Escarole, and Spinach with dried cranberries, candied walnuts and roasted beets and red onion. Greens and beets from Diane’s CSA.

Roast Prime Rib of Beef
from a wonderful meat market in Santa Rosa (grass-fed and local), dry rubbed with juniper berry, cracked pepper, sea salt and rosemary.
Served with horseradish and local meyer lemon cream.

Puree of Potato and Parsnip

Simple, Buttered Farm Fresh Carrots

Christmas Coconut Cake
…in honor of my mother who made this traditional dessert every year. I spend Christmas eve baking and grating fresh coconut to make this beautiful cake each year, and when we share it for dessert at our Christmas dinner, we realize we really do get to have our cake and eat it, too!

Christmas is my favorite family food holiday with those I love the most. Thank you for allowing me to share it. God Bless You this season and Happy and Healthy New Year!

• Family (maximum six people): $50
• Individual: $20
• Child: 13 & under: $10
• Free: Two years old and under

(Please, print your receipt for entry to the event)

All proceeds benefit children with disabilities and special needs involved in Adaptive Gardens of the Lowcountry’s horticultural therapy programming.

We look forward to seeing you!

Don’t forget to check out KTC Take Home Meals! KTC Take Home is our line of prepared meals that you can take home, heat in the oven, and eat! Check out the new product category, try one, and let us know what you think! This week we have delicious BBQ pulled beef and Sarah’s special slaw. Pair the two for an awesome, healthy meal on the go!

Easy ideas such as: having a homemade salad dressing that you love prepared at the beginning of the week and ready in the fridge for your delicious evening dinner salads; and then using the same dressing to marinate the chicken thighs or for a luscious yogurt dip for raw veggies.

Health professionals and nutrition scientists now realize that most prepackaged foods that many Americans rely on for at home meals are full of salt, sugar, preservatives and are made from unhealthy products. These foods are contributing to obesity and other medical issues in the US.

We will not let labels such as “low fat, no fat, sugar free or diet” fool you – what matters is the integrity and wholeness of the foods that we eat. We will help you with all the information that is out there (we have already sifted through it). We will show you how to make the best informed decisions for your family’s diet, and guide you to the most professional and up to date information.

Our goal is to help you relax about eating, get back to basics and enjoy food again!

45 minute consultation and kit:

*7 days of menus from breakfast to lunch (don’t worry – you won’t be cooking every meal from scratch – we will include days with leftovers and prepared foods to pick up at Our Local Foods. We want to make your life easier not harder.

*Recipes (easy to follow) for each day – with variations

*What gadgets you need in your kitchen – (fewer than you think)

*Walk through tour of the store with explanation of our foods and our sources

*List of websites and books to read if you choose

*Your kit of menus and recipes will be assembled in an attractive Our Local Foods binder

Complimentary beverage with cheese and fruit sampler will be served during your consultation.

Your consultation with your week of menus and recipes will be customized to your family’s needs and preferences. You will be asked to fill out a brief questionnaire when you schedule in order for us to prepare your individualized consultation.

Call or email for pricing.

Consultations by Jaqueline Gowe