Vegan Kitchen

Have you seen today's post about canning, preserving and a weekly menu? Last week when I scheduled it to publish this morning I made a small error that resulted in Google reader picking up the post a whole three days early. Ie: if you read blogs through Google reader the post would of showed up on Friday, not today which was the intended publish day. I caught the mistake right away and changed the publish day so that it didn't show up on the blog till today but the RSS "damage" was done. 

All of that to say I fear that today's post got lost in the people's weekend RSS reading.

So I'm just pointing your attention to today's post, in case you visit FIMBY via Google reader. Sorry for the mix up. Scheduling posts can be a pain but is very necessary at this point of busy-ness in my writing, homemaking and homeschooling schedule. Thanks for your patience.

This summer has been a fabulous growing season, unlike last year's disappointing months of rain. Simply fabulous.

I am loving summer. And I am loving our share at the farm. With a csa you share the risk but you also share the bounty, and what a bounty it is. August pick ups have included zucchini, kale, chard, beets, onions, garlic, tomatoes, basil, potatoes, carrots, cucumbers and green beans. Lots and lots of green beans.

On a recent Saturday I spent most of the day in the kitchen dealing with this bounty. But lucky for me it was a gorgeous day and as I cooked I was serenaded by crickets, watched butterflies and laundry dance in the backyard and smelled the nectar sweet fragrance of the butterfly bush wafting through the open windows. It was wonderful.

Beans, butterflies... where was I? Ah, cooking in the kitchen. The reality of a having a full farm share during a bounteous season is that you have to do some preserving.

Thing is, I don't really can. I don't see the point because of all the nutrition that is lost in the process.

Right now I don't have the mental energy or time to invest in fermented foods which proponents say is a more nutritious preservation method. Also, we are blessed with reliable electricity (please don't burst my bubble by telling me the carbon footprint of this little dependency) so the freezer and fridge are what I use for the small amount of preserving I do.

One thing I'm freezing this month are blanched green beans. I've even been making ice so I can quickly cool them after their dip in boiling water, hoping to preserve them well for fall eating. If I had time I might have made dilly beans but that was simply not a priority this year.

Also preserved are a whack of fridge pickles. Not the most nutritious (salt, sugar, vinegar) but easy and tasty. I have no other clever ideas for preserving cucs. I use my personal fridge pickle recipe but if I had been braver I might have tried a variation of this live fermented pickle recipe from Clean.

Couple questions for you:

1. Can anyone recommend a tasty vegan one pot meal featuring green beans? I'd love to add more ideas to my limited green bean repetoire. Remember I'm a one pot wonder cook. I make one thing - that's supper. Unless it's a birthday or something special like that.
2. Has anyone experimented with live fermented cucs, green beans or beets (the other veggie we get that is hard to put into a one pot meal)? I'd love some tried, true and easy recipes. I fear spoilage and wasting good vegetables.

An August Menu

I know this has been a lot of rambling to read. Kitchen work is kind of like that. To thank you for sticking with me here's my menu from the past week in which I used large quantities of zucchini, green beans and added cucumbers to every salad.

• Monday - spaghetti with Newman's own jar sauce, sauteed onions, garlic, summer squash and basil
• Tuesday - new native potatoes with green bean casserole, loosely based on this recipe (I skipped the topping and doubled the recipe to use 3 lbs of beans and was rewarded with lots of leftovers!)
• Wednesday - enchiladas with leftover potato and black bean filling. Enchilada sauce recipe found here.
• Thursday - kidney beans with sauteed zucchini, tomato and basil
• Friday - stirfry made with leftover green bean casserole, fresh farm kale and tofu
• Saturday - wraps with beans, zucchini, tomatos, salsa, guacamole

For lunches we ate farmer's market corn-on-the cob, tabouleh salad (with lots of cucs), leftovers, green salads with shredded beets and a bunch of other veggie additions.

I am pleased to report that my summer menu plan has been working beautifully. This has been an active season for our family and I just don't have much time to devote to menu planning. My regular rotation takes most of the mental energy out of the planning process.

early farm apples

What fresh garden/farm/market meals are you eating these days?

We're doing a backpack/camping/hiking food giveaway at ADVENTUREinPROGRESS. This is some truly healthy and tasty ready prepared meals, just add hot water! If your family is into the outdoors and needs a meal to take on an adventure you should check it out.

In early July I prepared a lunch for twenty-five young adults working with Lots To Gardens. This was one of the commitments I was referring to in this post (the clash of too many commitments having brought me to the brink of my sanity.)

Our family has invested in this non-profit for the past five years or so and in I've blogged before about cooking meals with them, planting seeds, supporting summer festivals and attending harvest fundraising dinners.

This was my third summer cooking a large lunch for their crew of youth workers and staff. I was given a gift certificate (a small stipend) for my effort but it was most definitely a labor of love.

The meal criteria from LtG were these: The meal should contain a whole grain, lean protein, colorful veggies and fruit. Dairy and meat optional but if so with vegetarian options. No pork (due to religious restrictions), low sugar, low salt, no HFCS or partially hydrogenated oils.

This I could do.

In addition I added the following criteria: I wanted to use as much Maine grown and in season produce as possible. Also, to provide a gluten-free option to the one g-free staff member.

With those criteria in mind and also the reality that I would be feeding mostly hungry teenagers I choose to make one of my family's favorite pasta dishes and finish it off with strawberry cobbler for dessert.

I'm not including the cobbler recipe here because it wasn't vegan and you can find those recipes anywhere on the net. We don't usually eat this kind of dessert but I needed something to appeal to the masses, so to speak. The cobbler included locally found ingredients - strawberries, whole wheat flour, oats (I made a g-free version also with my baking mix) and butter. All of which you can buy from Maine farms and mills.

Without further rambling here's the pasta recipe which I call Asian Noodles or Sesame Noodles depending on my mood.

Pasta Base:

• 16 oz. brown rice spaghetti (or whole wheat)
• 12-16 oz. tofu (I buy my organic, non-GMO tofu from this Maine company)
• 2 medium cucumbers, chopped
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 2-3 medium carrots, shredded
• 3-4 green onions, sliced diagonally
• 1/2 cup unsalted peanuts
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth (my recipe mix here)
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp soy sauce, or less to taste
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• 1/2 inch chunk gingerroot, grated or minced
• 3 tsp sugar or brown rice syrup
• 1/2 tsp asian chili paste (optional)
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions (or until tender but firm). Drain and rinse under cold running water. Drain well and place in large mixing bowl.
2. Add tofu, cucumbers, pepper, carrots and onions.
3. Whisk together dressing ingredients; toss with pasta mixture.
4. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and cilantro.
5. Serve immediately or refrigerate for later.

Notes:

• The main work of this meal is in chopping the veggies. So if you have a few kids on hand this could go quick.
• This is one of our family's favorite quick summer meals and you can really use any crunchy vegetable you want.
• In the winter you can use raw cabbage and bean sprouts instead of fresh garden veggies.
• This recipe feeds our family of five. I pentupled (is that a word?) it to feed twenty five.