Pasta with Fennel, Kale, and Lemon

• 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• ½ large red onion thinly sliced

• 2 fennel bulbs, tough outer layer removed and fronds reserved thinly sliced

• 3 large garlic cloves finely slivered

• 2-3 large pinches red pepper flakes

• 1 large bunch of lacinato kale tough stems discard and leaves roughly chopped

• juice of one lemon

• 10 ounces spinach fettuccine

• kosher salt

• freshly ground black pepper

Put a large pot of well-salted water on to boil. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over low heat. Add the onion and cook gently for 5 minutes, or until the onions are beginning to soften.

Turn up the heat to medium, add the sliced fennel, and saute gently for an additional 6 to 8 minutes or until the fennel is tender and slightly caramelized. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for another minute or two. Turn off the heat.

When the fennel is almost cooked, add the pasta to the pan of boiling water and cook until al dente, adding the kale to the pasta pot about 2 to 3 minutes before the pasta is done cooking.

Drain the pasta (reserving ½ cup of the starchy cooking water) and greens thoroughly and toss with the onion and fennel mixture in the pan - adding pasta water if necessary. Add the lemon juice, season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

Drizzle each serving with lots of grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese.

Tomato Leek Sauce

This recipe is adapted from the Washington Post. It is delicious and versatile. Serve it over any cooked grain (try the barley, wheat berries or triticale from the farm), over potatoes, pasta, fish or chicken for an easy meal. Add a hot pepper for some heat or some fennel or fennel seeds for a change of pace. 

Ingredients:     

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cups thinly sliced cleaned leeks (white and light-green parts)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 sprigs thyme

4 medium tomatoes, coarsely chopped, plus their juices

1/3 cup sauvignon blanc or other dry white wine

Coarse or flaky sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the leeks, garlic and thyme. Stir to coat, and reduce the heat to medium; cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until tender but not browned, stirring occasionally.

Add the tomatoes plus their juices and the wine, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook uncovered for about 30 minutes, adjusting the heat as needed. The mixture will thicken and begin to look like a chunky sauce. 

Discard the thyme sprigs. Taste, and adjust the seasoning before serving or cooling and storing.

White Bean Salad with Fresh Fennel and Capers

4 1/2 c water
1 1/2 c dried white beans
5" strip kelp or kombu
1 fennel bulb
1 1/2 c sliced red or green pepper
1 c coarsely chopped zucchini
1/2 c coarsely chopped red radishes
1/4 c capers
1/2 c orange juice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tspn grated orange zest
1 tspn ground cumin
1 tspn white wine vinegar (opt)

 Bring the water, beans, and kombu to boil in a 2-qt stockpot. Reduce the heat to med low and simmer covered or 1.5 hrs or until beans are tender. Drain and set aside to cool.
Discard fronds and stalk from fennel, peel away touch outer leaves. Cut the bulb in half, then slice the halves into thin strips.
Combine the beans, fennel, pepper, zucchini, radishes, and capers in a large bowl.
In a small bowl whisk together the orange juice, oil, balsamic, zest, cumin, and vinegar until well combined. Drizzle over the salad ingredients and toss.
Serve immediately

This is from Going Wild in the Kitchen from our shareholder Leslie Cerier - available in the Farm Shop.

Raw Fennel with Lemon Dressing

1 medium fennel bulb
3 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp chopped parsley

Trim the bottom from the fennel bulb. Quarter it lengthwise and cut out any hard core. Slice the quarters crosswise 1/4 inch thick and transfer to a mixing bowl. Toss the fennel with the lemon juice; then add the olive oil, salt, sugar, a generous sprinkling of pepper, and chopped parsley. Toss well to combine; chill for about 30 minutes. Correct seasonings and serve chilled.

Fennel and Kale Salad

Shareholder, Jill Shulman, passed this recipe on to us and said it was passed on to her at a potluck. Easy and delicious! Thanks Jill!

Dressing: 

(I like to make the dressing first to allow the flavors to blend.  Also, it is better to err on the side of too much dressing, rather than too little for this salad - the dressing softens the kale and makes it yummier). Just mix it all together!

juice of 3-4 lemons or limes

3 cloves crushed or finely chopped garlic (or to taste)

olive oil

grainy mustard (several tablespoons - you have to go by taste)

Salad Ingredients:

I large bunch of kale with spines removed, finely chopped

2 bulbs of fennel sliced really thin (I like to use a cheese slicer to make them really fine)

2 green apples sliced really thin

1 -2 cups of  fresh grated good parmesan or asiago cheese

Carrot and Fennel Salad with Toasted Walnuts

PLACE 1/2 cup raw walnuts in a dry skillet on medium heat and toast until fragrant. Cool and chop.

MIX the following in a bowl:

2 cups shredded carrots

1 medium fennel bulb cut into thin strips

2 scallions, sliced thin (use chives or onions if scallions not available)

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

2 Tablespoons walnut, flax or olive oilSalt and pepper to taste, can also add anise hyssop leaves, lemon balm or parsley for additional flavor)

SPRINKLE walnut on top and EAT!

Root Vegetable Gratin

Root Vegetable Gratin

1 onion, sliced
2 cups fennel,
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 lbs mix of sweet potato, potato, celeriac
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups chicken or veg stock
2 cups grated gruyere cheese
2 tsp thyme
2 1/2 cups breadcrumbs
2 to 3 Tbsp melted butter

Peel and slice veggies 1/4" thick. Heat oven to 350°F. Butter a deep baking dish. Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat and add the onions and fennel. Sautee about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook one more minute. Combine mixture with remaining vegetables, cream, stock, cheese, thyme, 1 Tbsp kosher salt and 1 1/2 tsp black pepper. Pour into baking dish. Mix breadcrumbs and butter and distribute over top of dish. Bake 1 1/2 hours uncovered, til very tender when tested with a knife. Let set 15 min and serve!

I made this for a meal train for friends who recently had a baby, and it was a big hit. Recipe and photo from Smitten Kitchen blog.

Stuffed Cucumbers

I first remember a recipe similar to this from a Mollie Katzen cookbook, but could not find it in any of my current books.  This is adapted from a recipe I found this at food.com. I used almonds instead of walnuts, but otherwise followed the recipe. It it great as an appetizer or side dish. I preferred it within a few hours of making it, as the cukes start to release some of their water after about four hours and lose a bit of their crunch. I highly encourage experimenting with this recipe - dill, yogurt, sour cream, fennel fronds, olives, smoked paprika, hot peppers......

1/2 cup nuts - walnuts were in original recipe, I loved raw almonds

1/4 cup parsley

1/2 cup feta

1/4 cup milk

1 garlic clove

1/2 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp cayenne

4 medium cukes

Halve cukes and cut out seed to make a cuke boat. Throw everything else together in a food processor and process until well mixed, with little bits of nut. Fill your boats and serve as an appetizer or side dish.

Grilled Fennel (with or without parmesan)

Ingredients:

1 large or 2 smaller fennel bulbs, fronds removed (I like to save the fronds either to chop on top of salad, chew on while cooking or use for herb tea)

olive oil

lemon juice

salt and black or lemon pepper

parmesan cheese shavings (optional)

irections:

Stand the bulb up and cut the fennel in half vertically from top to bottom, to leave each half intact. Cut each half into 1/4-inch thick slices.

Brush or spray each side of the slices with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Heat grill (or pan) and cook on each side until starting to brown on outside and softening on inside. Remove, squeeze lemon juice on top and sprinkle parmesan over the top, if desired.