CSA Box Weeks 17 & 18

I have to admit, I've been busy with work, house stuff and marathon training that blogging has been neglected. But I also have been busy cooking, which is definitely a good thing. Can't let that wonderful food from my box go to waste. Here are pictures of my food friends for the last two weeks of the summer CSA session.

Week 17


Week 18 (Last week of the summer session!)


I didn't get a chance to post individual blogs featuring the dishes I cooked but I have referenced the sites I used to make my dishes -

Miso Glazed Bok Choy (used tat soi)
Sesame Noodles with Radish Salad
Corn and Clam Chowder (potatoes, celery, carrots, onions)
Pad Thai (carrots, broccoli)
Kale Chips
Green Bean Casserole
Basil Eggplant

Thai Lettuce Wrap

Mmmm..lettuce wraps are a great way to use up a mix of veggies and that lettuce you have in your fridge. Iceberg lettuce is best for this recipe, but you could probably replace it with red leaf or romaine.

Thai Lettuce Wrap

Homemade Tomato Soup

I made this for dinner the other night - it was very nutritious and tasty! I would definitely recommend doubling the recipe next time for leftovers. Instead of the 3/4 cup of oil which I think was a bit excessive, I used about 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, and substituted great tasting vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.

Homemade Tomato Soup Recipe

Tofu Bim Bim Bap

I got inspiration to make this dish after eating at a Korean restaurant earlier this week. It was a hole in a wall joint in the Paldo market in the Crossroads area in Bellevue. This dish is a mix of lightly sauteed zucchini, carrots, bean sprouts, mushrooms, and tofu, topped with an egg and gochujang, a hot pepper bean paste. The hot pepper bean paste is what makes it taste great - if you can't find it at your local asian supermarket, you can easily make it yourself. Yum!

Makes 4 servings

about 4 cups of cooked rice (1.5-2 cups of uncooked rice - I used organic brown rice)
2 cups of carrots, julienned
2 cups of zucchini, julienned
8 oz of bean sprouts, washed and drained
4 oz of dried mushrooms, sliced
8 oz of firm tofu, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
4 eggs
some vegetable or canola oil
gochujang sauce (or make yourself - try this one)
salt to taste

1. Soak the mushrooms for 10-15 minutes until they plump up and ready to slice.
2. Julienne the carrots, zucchini. Then slice the mushrooms once they are plump and soft.
3. In a pan, heat some oil, stir fry the zucchini for just 1-2 minutes. Add salt to taste. Place in a small bowl. Below are all of the ingredients to stir fry.
   

   

4. In the same pan, add additional oil, and stir fry the carrots for 1-2 minutes. Place in a small bowl.
5. In the same pan, add additional oil, and stir fry the sliced mushrooms for 1-2 minutes. Add 1 tsp of soy sauce and 1 tsp of sugar.
6. In the same pan, add additional oil, and stir fry the bean sprouts for 1-2 minutes. Add salt to taste. Place in a small bowl.
7. In the same pan, add additional oil, stir fry the tofu cubes. Add 1 teaspoon of soy sauce. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes. Place in a small bowl.
8. In the same pan, add additional oil, cook the eggs. You can cook it sunny side up, but I like my eggs cooked almost thoroughly. Place the eggs on a small plate/bowl.
9. In a serving bowl, add a cup of cooked rice, topped with all of the vegetables, including the egg and about 1 tsp of gochujang sauce, depending on how spicy you want it!
   
   

   

   Here's the gochujang sauce I used.
   
   

   

Vegetable Fried Rice

Fried rice is one of my comfort foods. To make delicious fried rice, you'll need to cook it on high heat, add just the right amount of seasoning, and stir fry it just long enough so the vegetables and rice don't become too mushy. Since my next CSA box is coming soon, I used whatever vegetables I had in my fridge. Here's a quick and easy recipe:

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked rice (I used leftover cooked brown rice)
1-2 cups of carrots, chopped
2-3 cups of green cabbage, shredded
2 cups of celery, chopped
2 cups of spring onions, green and white parts, chopped
2-3 large eggs
3-4 tablespoons of oil

Seasoning:
3 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspon fish sauce
dried chili peppers

Directions:

1. When the pan is extremely hot, pour in the oil and stir in the white part of the spring onion. Stir quickly.
2. Add the eggs and scramble until almost cooked.
3. Add all of the vegetables, except the green part of the spring onion, along with the cooked rice. Stir quickly.
4. Add the soy sauce, fish sauce, and chili peppers.
5. Stir for 1-2 minutes.

Curried Pea Soup

This is one of my favorite soups so far. This pea soup is packed with flavor and nutrients! I normally love making my own vegetable broth, but since I didn't have any on hand, I purchased organic vegetable base from Better Than Bouillon. Boy, it made the soup so much more flavorful! The small amount of curry definitely gave the soup just the right amount of spice and punch to it.

Serves 6-8.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 onions, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
2 medium potatoes, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 1/2 cups fresh shelled peas
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoon of curry powder
3-4 cups vegetable stock (you can use other soup bases if you're not a vegetarian)
2 cups of milk
salt and pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter and add garlic, onion, celery, carrots, and potatoes to the medium pot. Saute for a few minutes until soft.
2. Add the peas, sugar, curry and 2 cups of stock. Cover and summer for 15 minutes until all the vegetables are tender.
3. Puree with a hand blender one batch at a time. Pour back into the pot; add remaining stock and enough milk for desired consistency.
4. Turn off heat - keep warm on stove.
5. Add salt and pepper. Serve either hot or cold.

Here are the fresh peas after they've been shelled! They look so delicious already!

Easy Lettuce Salad

This is a very healthy and refreshing lettuce salad that you can easily make in minutes!

Ingredients:
1 medium head of lettuce (I used red leaf, but you can use a variety of lettuce types)
2-3 avocados, sliced into 1/2 inch cubes
2 medium carrots, julienned
2 tomatoes
1-2 T balsamic vinegar
2-3 T extra virgin olive oil
hard boiled eggs (optional)

Serves about 4.

Wash the lettuce leaves and spin in a salad spinner to remove excess water. Tear the leaves into bite size pieces. Combine the remaining ingredients into a large bowl and serve!