Bountiful Basket

We've started doing this every week now. Here is what we got today. I am a horrible picture taker! Already made a plum cobbler that was devoured, and some marinara sauce, no telling what else I will be making this week.

Asian pears, bosc pears, mineolas, bananas, red plums, and gala apples

This is the Italian Add-on, Eggplant, Zucchini, garlic, onions, parsley, rosemary, sage, basil, and mushrooms.

Bananas, oranges, peaches, tomatoes, strawberries, lettuce, leeks, broccoli, plumcots, potatoes, and corn

This week's Bountiful Basket

Wow, awesome basket this week! Conventional was kale, romaine, celery, bell peppers, broccoli, green onions, tomatoes, bing cherries, mangoes, bananas, galia melon. We got the sourdough bread add-on, and in the guacamole add-on we had green onion, avocados, limes, jalapeños, garlic, yellow onions, chipotle peppers, and cilantro!

 

It's all put up and I am beat!

This Week's Basket

(not my picture, I'm good at stealing lately)

Fruits: Cherries, Mangoes, Blueberries, Bananas, Peaches
Veggies: Romaine Lettuce, Tomatoes, Potatoes, Avacado, Napa Cabbage

Asian Add-on (not pictured): Napa Cabbage, Bok Choy, Onion, Ginger, Thai basil, Snap Peas, Green Onion, Garlic, Celery

What a basket! We are ordering every week now. No more processed foods for us!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

original picture from mel's kitchen

original recipe here

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
1 small onion, diced
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, preferably sharp or extra sharp
1/2 cup shredded swiss cheese
2 1/2 to 3 cups chopped, lightly steamed or blanched broccoli

Directions:
Simmer chicken broth and chopped onion for 15-20 minutes in a covered small saucepan, until onions are soft. Heat milk in microwave for 1-2 minutes. In a separate medium-sized stockpot, melt butter then add flour, salt and pepper. Cook together, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes, then whisk in warmed milk. Stir and heat together on medium heat until soup starts to thicken, about 5-8 minutes. Add warmed chicken broth and continue to stir until well blended. Add cheeses and stir until completely melted. Stir in seamed broccoli. Add more salt and pepper to taste, if needed. Serve immediately in bowls or bread bowls.

Serves 4

Plum Freezer Jam

going to put my notes right up front on this.

*I used the food processor to "roughly chop" the plums. Don't do it. Instead mash them with a fork or potato masher. It helps gel the jam and doesn't make so much juice so the pectin will set.

 Ingredients:

3 cups prepared fruit (buy about 2 lb. fully ripe plums)

¾ cup water, divided

5-1/2 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

1 box SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin 
Directions:

Rinse clean plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly. 

Pit and finely chop unpeeled plums. Mix plums and 1/4 cup of the water in small saucepan. Bring to boil.

Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 5 min. Measure exactly 3 cups prepared plums into large bowl. Stir in sugar. Let stand 10 min., stirring occasionally.  

Mix remaining 1/2 cup water and pectin in small saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 min. Add to fruit mixture; stir 3 min. or until sugar is dissolved and no longer grainy. (A few sugar crystals may remain.)

Fill all containers immediately to within 1/2 inch of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; immediately cover with lids. Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. Jam is now ready to use.  

Store in refrigerator up to 3 weeks or freeze extra containers up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator before using. Okay one more note, we didn't thaw our jam out this morning, it didn't need it on our fresh toast. Maybe because I messed ours up. Ooops. It is soooo gooood though :)

Cherry Freezer Jam

This is a picture of my plum jam (too lazy to get the cherry out)

I have never made this before. Ever. Wouldn't have even considered it. It is delicious and easy!

Ingredients:

2 cups prepared fruit (buy about 1-1/2 lb. fully ripe sweet cherries)

2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

4-1/4 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

3/4 cup water

1 box SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin

Directions:

Rinse clean plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly. (I bought a package of 3 rubbermaid container for $2.50 at Dollar General)

Stem and pit cherries. Finely chop or grind fruit. Measure exactly 2 cups cherries into large bowl. Stir in lemon juice and sugar. Let stand 10 min., stirring occasionally.    

Mix water and pectin in small saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Boil 1 min., stirring constantly. Add to fruit mixture; stir 3 min. or until sugar is dissolved and no longer grainy. (A few sugar crystals may remain.)    

Fill all containers immediately to within 1/2 inch of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; immediately cover with lids. Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. Jam is now ready to use. 

Refrigerate up to 3 weeks or freeze extra containers up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator before using.

Last Saturday's Basket

picture from someone else but wow what a basket!

Our veggies: Red corn, cucumbers, squash, brocoli, carrots, butter lettuce
Our fruits: Black grapes, raspberries, cherries, plums, strawberries, cantaloupe
Our add-ons: 15 pounds of Rainier Cherries, 12 pounds of plums, and tropical granola

Yum!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

original recipe can be found here.

1/3 cup honey

1/4 cup lime juice (from our last basket)

1 Tablespoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded
8-10 flour tortillas, (I use the soft taco tortillas because they fit perfectly in the pan)

1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded

2 cups green enchilada sauce

1/2 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the honey (their tip: spray your measuring spoon with cooking spray before measuring out the honey), lime juice, chili powder and garlic powder together and toss with the shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour (or toss together in a Ziploc bag and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours).

Spray a 9X13 pan. Pour enough enchilada sauce on the bottom of each baking pan to create a thin layer on the bottom. Fill flour tortillas with chicken and a generous amount of shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas.

Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover chicken marinade (our chicken absorbed all the marinade). Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and top with reserved cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.

Eggplant Mushroom Lasagna

original recipe found here

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil or spray

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large eggplant, washed and cut into 3/4 inch cubes

2 cups sliced mushrooms

1-16 ounce can tomato sauce

1-16 ounce can tomatoes, with liquid

1 teaspoon dry oregano

1 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups shredded mozzarella

1 cup low-fat cottage cheese (or more)

1/4 cup chopped parsley

8 ounce lasagna noodles

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

In large saucepan, sauti onion and garlic in the olive oil until onion is softened. Add the next ingredients through pepper flakes. Cover and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes. Uncover and cook 25 minutes more. In a bowl, combine cottage cheese, mozzarella, and parsley. Cook, rinse and drain lasagna noodles.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Assemble: Lightly coat 9x13 inch pan with non-stick spray. Layer noodles, cheese mixture, 1/4 cup Parmesan, then eggplant sauce. Repeat. Bake, uncovered for 30 minutes until heated through.

****I'll be honest, I have never precooked the noodles in lasagna. I did this time just to see, and it was a good idea. There isn't enough heavy sauce to cook the noodles in the 30 minutes. I cooked our pasta for about 8 minutes.

July 7th's Bountiful Basket

So sad we didn't get our Italian Add-on it looked great, we did get our conventional basket though and our bread. I volunteered this week as well. Whew! What a workout.

Nice baskets this week.

Strawberries, Green Seedless Grapes, Mangos, Plums, Nectarines, Bananas, Limes
Tomatoes, Cauliflower, Lettuce, Zucchini, Green Beans

Anaheim Chile Relleno Casserole

*this is really good

Casserole Ingredients:
8 Anaheim Chiles; roasted, peeled and seeded

3 Eggs

1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese with peppers or regular jack

1 1/2 cup Milk

1/2 cup Flour; plus 1 tbsp

1 pinch Salt and Pepper

1/2 teaspoon Cumin

1 dash Cayenne; if you like some heat

Sauce Ingredients:

1/2 cup onion; diced

1 16-oz can Tomatoes; dice, in juice

1/2 teaspoon Cumin

1/2 teaspoon Black pepper

2 dashes Cinnamon

garlic; minced

Preparation:
Clean your peppers of seeds and veins, cut in half width wise.
In blender add eggs, milk, flour, salt, pepper, cumin and pulse a few times, do not over blend
Butter Casserole dish or grease.
Layer the chilies, then the egg mixture, then the cheese.
Repeat layers, top with just a small dash of Cayenne if you like a little heat.
Bake for 55 minutes at 350* then let rest for 15 minutes before you cut or it will be watery.

While casserole is baking, add the sauce ingredients to the blender and just pulse a few times, heat in sauce pan, bring to simmer, and simmer for 45 minutes.

Spaghetti Squash with Jalapeno Cream

original recipe from myrecipes.com

Ingredients

1 spaghetti squash (about 3 lbs.)

2 cups milk

2 to 3 jalapeños, stemmed, seeded, and chopped *I didn't drain the peppers from the cream, and if you like it hot leave in some of the pepper seeds

2 tablespoons butter, plus more for pans

3 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup shredded jack cheese

Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°. Cut squash in half lengthwise and use a spoon or melon baller to remove seeds and surrounding fiber. Put squash, cut side down, on a lightly buttered baking sheet and bake until tender when flesh is pierced with a fork, 30 to 40 minutes. Or poke several holes in skin of squash with a fork and microwave it on high 10 minutes. Squash should be tender when pierced with a fork; if it isn't, microwave on high in 1-minute intervals until tender. Let sit until cool.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm milk and jalapeños until bubbles form along the edge of the pan. Remove mixture from heat and let sit 15 minutes. Strain and discard jalapeños.

When squash is cool enough to handle, use a large spoon to scrape the strands out of the skin and into a large bowl.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 2 tbsp. butter. Whisk in flour and salt and cook, whisking, until flour smells cooked (like piecrust), about 3 minutes. Slowly pour in jalapeño-infused milk while whisking. Reduce heat to medium and continue whisking until mixture thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Pour mixture over squash and stir to combine. Transfer mixture to a buttered 2-qt. baking dish. Sprinkle with jack cheese and bake until bubbling and brown on top, about 30 minutes.

Fresh Plum and Oatmeal Muffins

the original recipe is from Cooks.com. I have tweaked it. I must say these are good, but dense.

In a blender puree enough plums to make 1 cup; set aside.Cream 1 stick of butter and 1 cup brown sugar. Add 1 egg and pureed plums.

Stir in:
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon

Add:

1 1/2 c. old fashion oatmeal
1 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

Stir carefully only until moistened. Spray an unlined muffin pan with cooking spray in bottom of the pan put a pecan half centered between 2 slices of fresh plum *(see note). Fill muffin pans 2/3 full of batter and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Remove from oven and invert while still hot. Replace any fruit and nut pieces that stay into pan in your muffins. Cool 5 minutes. Sprinkle with granulated sugar. Serve warm or cold. Can be frozen for later use.

*my changes were I chopped some pecans and added into the batter. I also plunked a piece of plum in the middle of the dough once it was in the muffin pan. The first time I put the plums and pecans at the bottom and when I turned the muffins out, they fell out.

Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa (this may be my favorite!)

Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa Recipe http://www.whatscookingamerica.net

Ingredients:

1/2 pound tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and quartered
1/4 to 1 fresh jalapeno chile pepper*
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup lightly-packed fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 large ripe avocado, peeled and diced
1/2 cup minced onion
2 to 3 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lime juice
Coarse salt to taste
* You can adjust the amount of peppers according to your taste.

Preparation:
In a food processor, process tomatillos, chile peppers, garlic, and cilantro until coarsely chopped. Pour tomatillo mixture into a bowl and stir in olive oil, diced avocado, and minced onion. Add lime juice and salt to taste.

Grey Squash Casserole

Ingredients:
3-4 Mexican grey squash
½ onion
2 cloves garlic
1 can creamed corn
½ C. Green chilés (canned or frozen/thawed work fine)
1 C. of grated Mexican cheeses (queso)

Preparation:
Slice the onion and sauté with a bit of salt until cooked and slightly brown
Add chopped garlic and sauté for just a minute longer (don’t let the garlic brown)
Add the sliced Mexican grey squash and perhaps a bit of water. Cook and stir until the squash is done. (Not crisp but not mushy!)
Add the can of creamed corn
Cook a bit more until everything is bubbly warm

Spray a 9 X 9 casserole dish with a non-stick spray
Pour this mixture into a casserole
Top with the cheeses (queso)

Bake in the 325° oven until cheese is bubbling and is browned.

Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

2 Acorn Squash Halved, Seeded
2 tb Brown sugar
2 tb Maple syrup
1/2 ts Ground cinnamon
1/4 ts Ground ginger
1/4 ts Salt
2 tb Chopped parsley

Preparation:
Prep: 10 min Microwave: 8 - 10 min Bake: at 375F for 10 min Place squash, cut side down, in shallow microwave safe dish. Add 2 Tbsp water. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Microwave on HIGH power 8 - 10 min, until tender. Let stand 5 min. Heat oven to 375F Carefully remove plastic wrap. Cut squash halves in half lengthwise. Place, skin side down, on baking pan. Mix sugar, syrup, cinnamon, ginger, salt in bowl. Spoon on squash. Bake in 375F oven 10 min, until squash is glazed. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately. Makes: 8 servings