From the Market: Corn, lettuce, cukes, onion, garlic, potatoes
From the Porch: Cherry tomatoes, basil, thyme

The potato pouch is very simple, just drizzle some olive oil on the bottom of the tin foil pouch, add thinly sliced potatoes onions.  Drizzle more olive oil on top and give a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper along with some fresh thyme sprigs.  Roll up the tin foil and pop it on the grill over medium high heat for about 20 minutes.

Corn off the Cob w/ Roasted Garlic and Basil
I made this as a side dish but feel free to increase the quantity!

2 ears fresh corn sawed off the cob (this is always messy but if you cut the tip of the ear off it provides a level surface to stand the corn up on)
2-3 garlic cloves, roasted emily crow style*
drizzle of olive oil or butter
freshly chopped basil
salt and pepepr to taste

In a saute pan heat the oil and add chopped roasted garlic.  Add corn kernels, salt and pepper and stir until it is all coated.  If the corn is fresh then it doesn’t need to cook it just needs to heat through  and get some of that yummy roasted garlic flavor so about 30 seconds to one minute.  Take off heat and top with freshly chopped basil.

*Emily showed me a quick & easy way to roast garlic.  Peel the cloves, put them in a tin foil pouch with salt, pepper and a generous amount of olive oil.  Close up the pouch and toss it on the grill over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes.  Emily and I like to snack on the smaller crispier cloves like little savory candies and the left over olive oil in the pouch can be used in salad dressings.

Green lentil Salad w/ Mushrooms & Thyme
1 C green lentils
1 Celery stalk, roughly chopped
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1/2 onion
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 bay leaves
1/2 package mushrooms, medium chopped
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme, chopped
bunch of scallions, chopped
1 TBS champagne vinegar
olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

Put lentils in a pot with celery, carrot, onion, bay, garlic, salt and pepper.  Cover with water and let simmer until lentils are tender (20-30mins) and skim off the foam that appears on the surface.  While lentils are simmering saute the mushrooms with olive oil and freshly chopped thyme. When the lentils are tender, drain and let cool and discard the vegetables and bay leaves.  In a large bowl combine lentils and mushrooms, drizzle some extra virgin olive oil to moisten the mixture and add a splash of champagne or white wine vinegar to awaken all the flavors.  Add the scallions and your work week salad is complete.

This salad is tasty warm or cold, if I have goat cheese on hand i like to sprinkle it on top, but my Man Crow persists it is fine without.

Red Wine Mushroom Risotto
I dubbed this version “red wine” mushroom risotto because the last time I made it I used a white wine and missed out on the striking burgundy color.

Ingredients:
1 C Arborio rice
1 Quart Stock, mushroom would work nice but chicken or vegetable are fine
1/4 C red wine
1 package mushrooms, medium sliced*
1 celery stock, diced
1 large shallot, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 TBS freshly chopped thyme
1 bay leaf
2 TBS butter
1/4 C parm or pecorino romano
Salt & Pepper to taste

BEFORE you start on the risotto make sure you bring stock to a low simmer.
MELT 1 TBS butter and a drizzle of olive oil in a heavy stock pot.
SAUTEE shallots, garlic, bay leaf, salt and pepper until tender and add rice.
COOK rice until it becomes translucent and then deglaze with wine.
ONCE wine is absorbed add stock in batches making sure it is absorbed before adding more.
WHEN half of the stock is added stir in mushrooms and thyme and continue to add stock until the rice is tender but still holds its consistency.
TURN off heat, stir in remaining butter (should be room temperature) and grated cheese, remove bay leaf and its ready to serve!

*Riane was in charge of chopping the mushrooms and I’m glad she chose to slice them medium thick- they really held up in the cooking process.

Baked Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
Simmer a mixture of regular and sweet potatoes in a pot of salted water until fork tender.  Drain and set aside.  Pour milk (can substitute with stock) and a couple tablespoons of butter into the pot and warm until butter is melted.  Add the potatoes back to the pot as well as some salt, pepper and freshly chopped thyme and mash until smooth and creamy.  Transfer potatoes to a baking dish, top with desired grated cheese (i chose cheddar and parm) and place in the oven at 375 until the top begins to brown.  On a normal week I would use this as a side dish but when you are in pain and you’re looking for something similar to the texture of babyfood, this is surely a delicious substitute.

Right out of the oven!

I followed my stand-by frittata recipe which I always play around with the amount of eggs.  For a large crowd 10 is good but I have made this with as little as 6, you just add less milk and keep an eye on it in the oven because it will probably need a little less than 15 minutes.  Rather than using broccoli and red bell pepper I started by sauteing mushrooms, garlic and freshly chopped thyme in the skillet.  Continue to follow the recipe stirring in grated grueyere into the egg mixture.  This serves well with mixed greens and or a slice of toast (I recommend When Pigs Fly Tuscan Wheat).

On actual Thanksgiving I went to my friends Eric, Karen, and Anders house for a festival of people who couldn’t or didn’t go home for the day. All in all I think there were about 17 people, each who brought something delicious to the food table.  For these festivities I made  butternut  Squash and Goat Cheese Gratin, Roasted Garlic & Herb Mashed Potato, Pumpkin Tart, and a crazy cheese terrine. There were certainly a few highlights including but not limited to, a garlic soup meant to be a soup but turned into a delicious gravy, and cranberry cheddar cheese with whole wheat and sunflower bread.

For the first time in a long time, I decided to follow a few recipes to the t to see how I could do. With the exception of a few budget-friendly changes in cheese selection, I first went with this recipe for a cheese terrine. Although I did not find it particularly yummy, others did. The concept of adding more butter to cheese is a little strange, and kind of gross. It was fun, however, learning a new skill, and I will probably apply a similar technique in the future to make cheese delicacies. Above is a picture of my terrine, as you can see from that link, the Bon Apetite cooks have had more success…

The last two weeks my farm box has been overflowing with food. So much so that I have a back-up of things like pumpkin, squash, and potatoes. I had two butternut squash staring me down! It only seemed logical to try this recipe for a butternut squash & goat cheese gratin. Again, I think theirs came out looking a bit more appetizing, however, this was one of the more delicious food items I have ever had, ever, ever.

Now for the recipes!

I was in charge of the traditional-ish sides this year: mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. Wednesday night I roasted my pumpkin, and roasted my garlic. Come Thursday morning, I realized I don’t own a pie dish. My brain went a-twittering for solutions to my predicament.  Ah-ha! Tart pan. All in all it worked out quite well, but I made the crust a bit to thick for a tart pan, but I think I have mastered my pie recipe of the future!

pumpkin tart
for the crust:
make a pastry crust of your choosing, but add some cinnamon and a pinch of sugar.

for the filling
2 cups pumpkin puree
cinamon
nutmeg
pomegranate molasses
2 eggs
1/2 c sugar
salt
1-2 T flour, to stiffen

for the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 t vanilla extract
1 T cinnamon

Method: Prepare crust and set in refrigerator. Blend the pie filling ingredients together in a food processor, adding the eggs last, and 1 at a time. Roll out dough and press into tart pan. Pour filling over crust and bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Allow to cool slowly and set. Whip cream, serve on top. Enjoy! It might also be nice to put some candied walnuts on top of the crust, before you pour in the filling, and on top, with come drid cranberries, cherries, or other dried, sweetened fruit. Cheese, also never hurt anybody.

roasted garlic & herb mashed potatoes
1 large bag of Potatoes
3 heads of roasted garlic
1 T chopped sage, thyme, & rosemary
salt
heavy cream
butter

Method: Roast Garlic. Boil large chunks of Potato. Combine ingredients to your liking.