Flora’s seasonal recipe: Italian potato salad

An Italian recipe from my kitchen? Shocking right?!

This one is one of my favorites, especially during summer, when it’s hot out and cooking over a stove is just not as fun as it is when it’s 11 degrees outside and gets dark at 4pm! I keep reminding myself to enjoy every minute of these slow summer months, to take advantage of the long days, cool mornings, and magical evenings, even in the face of week-long heat waves.

As part of my summer celebration, I absolutely love making this salad. It brings back many memories of childhood, and tastes similar to panzanella, another fresh and fantastic Italian summer salad, with the addition of old bread, cucumbers, garlic and capers. Welcome to my world of summer!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium potatoes
• 1 small red onion
• 2 medium tomatoes
• 1 handful basil
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon balsamic or red wine vinegar
• Pinch of salt + crack of pepper

Directions:

Boil potatoes (or take the easy way out and score, wrap in paper towel, and microwave). Once cooled, dice potatoes into cubes. Cut tomatoes into medium wedges, julienne your onion, chiffonade your basil. Place basil to the side. Add tomatoes and onions into a medium-large bowl. Then add olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Let them mingle. Finally, add potatoes, and mix it all up. Finish with a gorgeous garnish of basil. Serve and smile…

homage to herbs

Herbs are a delicious and nutritious way to add flavor to lots of dishes. They taste magical in various outlets; omelets, spritzers, on all sorts of meats, seafood, tofu, in ice cream, vegetables, pasta sauce, salad dressings, marinades and rubs, and in creative desserts.

As wonderful as they are as accompaniments to many dishes, have you considered using them to make an herb salad, containing only herbs?  Yes, it can be done, and the results will leave your taste buds as happy as ever!

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of the following herbs: parsley, basil, chives, taragon, dill
• 1/4 cup white wine or cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Wash all herbs in cold water and pat dry. Tear off the leaves and combine in a large bowl. Cut chives into 1/2 inch pieces and add to the rest of the herbs. To make the vinaigrette, mix the mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper together, then slowly whisk in the olive oil until the mixture gets thick. Toss the salad with enough dressing to lightly coat each leaf. It is also fun, and pretty to add edible flowers (like nasturtiums) as a garnish, or serve as is.

Herbs not only taste great, but are also packed with important nutrients. We used the following herbs in our salad:

• Parsley: Derives its name from the greek word for “rock celery,” parsley is packed with vitamins B, A, C, K, E, magnesium, iron, calcium, potassium.
• Basil: Prized in many cultures as the “holy herb,” basil is a great source of vitamins A + C, magnesium, iron, calcium, potassium.
• Chives: Containing the most vitamin A of all of their allium family members, chives are rich in vitamins K, C, B and minerals such as copper, iron, manganese, zinc and calcium.
• Tarragon: Used to treat toothaches in Ancient Greece, tarragon is full of vitamins A, B, C, potassium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc.
• Dill: Native to Southern Russia, this fernlike herb is a great source of calcium, iron, magnesium and vitamin A.

Photo courtesy of Denise Defreyne

bountiful butter beans

For those of you familiar with our blog, you may know how we got our name. For those of you who are new to our blog (welcome!), we are happy to share our story with you. Our co-founder and CEO, Belinda grew up on a farm in North Carolina. She used to shell butter beans with her grandmother (say that 5 times), and this experience stood out to her as one of her fondest food memories.

Don’t have much time to head to the farm and shell butter beans? Don’t fret, here are some great options that will make it easier for you to include these delightful beans in your diet. BPA free canned butter beans are delicious, all you need to do is drain and rinse them, then you can add them as the protein component to your salad (or other meals), like we did in our photo! Looking for another alternative? Buy them dry and soak them overnight. Simmer them in water on your stove top for about 1 hour to 1.5 hours, and they are all ready to eat. With your canned or home cooked beans, try making a butter bean dip:

Ingredients:

• 1 can of butter beans (which makes about 2 cups)
• 2 medium sized garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• sprinkle of salt and a dash of pepper

Directions:

Rinse your butter beans, and peel garlic cloves. Place beans and garlic into food processor, add the olive oil and lemon juice and process until you have reached a dip like consistency (if too thick add a bit of water). Taste the mixture and adjust seasoning. Scoop into a bowl and finish with a drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and a dash of pepper. Enjoy with pita, crudites, tortilla chips, on bread to make a sandwich…the possibilities are endless!

Flora’s seasonal recipe: welcome back asparagus!

I’d like to give a warm welcome to our long lost friend, asparagus. When spring arrives, I always look forward to the shoots and stalks that we get to enjoy during this transformative time of year. When you are in the practice of eating seasonally you tend to get really excited about welcoming back certain items into your kitchen, and boy am I excited for asparagus’ debut!

I love asparagus, not only for it’s nutty-sweet taste, but also for the nourishment I receive from them. Asparagus is full of vitamin K, B’s, C, beta-carotene, zinc and other trace minerals that helps clear our skin, and clean our blood. Thanks my friends!

When I have a bundle of asparagus waiting to be devoured, one of my first inclinations is to sauté them like we did last spring, but this spring I want to try something different, so I’m going to make a fresh asparagus soup for chillier spring evenings.

Here’s how:

Ingredients:

• 1 Bunch of local asparagus
• 4 cups of vegetable stock
• 5 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt + pepper to taste

Directions:

Roast your garlic, by placing your cloves (keep the peel on) in the oven at 400F for 30 minutes. Add your stock and bring to a boil. Snap off the bottom of your asparagus stems (save them for a shaved salad later), and simmer them in the stock for 10-20 minutes or until your asparagus is fork tender. Place your tender spears and vegetable stock into your blender (or keep it in your pot, and use an immersion blender), add the roasted garlic (peels removed) and blend until smooth. Top your soup off with a drizzle of olive oil, and sprinkle with a touch of salt and pepper. I added a touch of goat cheese to mimic the effect of creme fraiche, but the soup stands well on it’s own without the addition of cheese.

Happy spring eating to all!

Photo courtesy of Benson Kua