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This recipe is from the book Farmstead Chef. My mom made it for her neighbors. She thought it was good, and would make it again, but she said it would be even better with bacon crumbled into it too to give it a stronger flavor. Our CSA member Lynn is one of the aforementioned neighbors, and she liked it so much she asked that I post it here.
I admit, before retyping it from the book, I googled it and found it already typed up here. (I borrowed their picture too.)
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh zucchini (or any summer squash), shredded
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or any hard granular cheese)
- 1/4 cup bell peppers, finely chopped (I used a mixture of orange, red and yellow)
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon canola oil or non-stick spray for preparing the pan
- Pita chips and sliced raw vegetables for dipping (such as carrots, cauliflower, peppers, rutabaga, kohlrabi, cucumbers, Hakurei turnips, or even blanched green beans).
Directions
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
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Toss the zucchini and the salt in a large bowl. Let sit for an hour to extract the water from the zucchini. (There will be a lot of water.)
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Drain the zucchini and press out any excess water.
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Mix the mayonnaise, yogurt, cheese, peppers, green onions, garlic and Worcestershire sauce until well combined.
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Prepare an 8-inch baking dish by lightly oiling it with canola oil or coating with non-stick spray.
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Spread the dip evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes at 375 degrees, or until bubbly.Serve hot with pita chips and a variety of fresh, raw vegetables for dipping.
YIELD: 8 appetizer servings.
Here’s a recipe that some kid gardeners made me — it was delicious and offered a different taste family than the usual Minnesota quick marinated cucumbers. The recipe is originally from Martha Stewart.
The longer the cucumbers have to soak up the flavors of the marinade the more delicious they will be.
Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart’s website.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- 3 Israeli or Kirby cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
- 1 scallion, white and light green parts, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
Directions
- In a shallow dish whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, salt, and cayenne. Add the cucumber, scallion, and garlic. Stir to combine. Press down and spread out cucumbers in dish. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour but up to 2 days.
My Grandma Vangie made this recipe for us at lunch today, and it was totally DELICIOUS! Best of all, the four garden ingredients are in your box this week — just waiting for you to make Creamy Cucumbers!
Creamy Cucumbers
from the St. Pat’s church cookbook
2 cukes or 1 long seedless cuke
1 med onion
1 tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
½ cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tbsp. chopped fresh dill
1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Thinly slice cucumbers and onion. Mix into vinegar, salt and sugar. Let stand for 30 minutes, then drain off the liquid. Mix mayonnaise, sour cream, dill and parsley. Pour onto cucumbers and mix. Makes about 2 ½ cups.
What to do with all the bok choy we’ve been blessed with lately, from CSA member Lynn:
Unwrapped Spring Roll Salad
1 pack thin rice noodles – cook and save some of the water.
2 small bunches of Bok Choy thinly sliced including the greens.
1 bunch green onions thinly sliced including some of the green.
1 cup diced cucumber.
1 grated carrot.
handful of chopped mint
handful of chopped cilantro
Toss together.
Make a dressing using:
½ cup of the reserved water
½ cup chunky peanut butter
¼ cup Hoisin sauce (or less depending on your taste)
And for a little kick a dash of garlic chili sauce
If serving later, wait to add the dressing. I had some shrimp left over from the night before so I tossed these in with the salad. You could add just about any vegetable.
You can thank your farmer (and my mom) Carol for finding this recipe!
Fennel Salsa
Ingredients
1 English (seedless) cucumber, diced
1 large fennel bulb, diced
1 avocado – peeled, pitted, and diced
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 cup pickled banana peppers, diced
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Combine the cucumber, fennel, avocado, red onion, banana peppers,
cilantro, honey, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Allow mixture
to sit 20 minutes before serving.
Here’s a super simple cucumber recipe thanks to CSA member Debbie! Wash the cukes first and soak a while in ice water.
NEVER FAIL COLD WATER DILL PICKLES
2 quarts fresh cukes
2 heads dill (When I don’t have it, I use dry dill seed & dill weed)
3 Tablespoons canning salt
1 cup white vinegar
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
2 Tablespoons whole mixed pickling spice
Pack cukes lightly in 2 quart jar. Add rest of ingredients. Fill jar with cold tap water. Keep in the refrigerator. Shake occasionally to dissolve the salt. Leave sit 2 weeks.
We just broke into the 1st jar of the season-yum!
PS-Another cuke beverage-Cucumber water is refreshing and delicious. Just add a few slices of cuke to your glass or pitcher of ice water. It’s a lot like adding lemon slices but the cuke slices are crisp and crunchy when the water is gone!
Cucumbers are cool and refreshing, and during this past week’s delivery a couple of members shared their suggestions for cucumber drinks:
Vanessa’s Cucumber Smoothie
cucumbers
ice cubes
honey
milk/rice milk/soy milk/etc
Blend together and enjoy!
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Tom’s Cucumber Margaritas
can be found at Masa restaurant, located on 11th & Nicollet in downtown Minneapolis (in the basement of the Target headquarters building). “The best margarita you’ve ever had!”
This is my Grandma Vangie’s tried-and-true recipe for refrigerator pickles. This is an especially easy kind of pickle to make because you don’t need to worry about properly sealing any jars, and they keep for a very long time in the fridge. They are also an excellent way to use up some of the lovely cucumbers in your box!
SWEET REFRIGERATOR PICKLES
4 cups vinegar
4 cups sugar
8 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoons celery seed
2 teaspoons mustard seed
enough cucumber slices to fill a one gallon or 5-quart ice cream bucket
optional: onions and green peppers
Boil the sugar and vinegar. Let cool. Wash and slice enough cucumbers to mostly fill up your container. Add other ingredients to bucket of cucumbers. When the boiled mixture is cool pour over the cucumber slices and spices. Cover.
Put in fridge, stir/mix daily for 5 days. They are then ready for eating. Store covered in your fridge — keeps a long time (my Grandma says easily for many months).
Reimann Family Farm 