Tasty Tuesday!

Black Bean and Patty Pan Squash Enchiladas

     Ah, the patty pan squash. You are so unusual. And, when I cut you in half you look like Boo from Mario. See...

I harvested quite a few recently and I didn't know any recipes I could use them for. I came home and found a recipe for enchiladas using summer squash (yellow squash and zucchini) so I said why not. If you haven't used patty pan squash before I definitely recommend them. They are really versatile. I harvested these when they were about the size of my hand but I later found out that patty pan squash are often harvested when they are very small and eaten whole.

 
     Anyway, here is this week's recipe. I'll be the first to admit that they don't really hold together that well but they taste great. Have homemade enchiladas ever stayed together? Let's get NASA on this. We have to create an enchilada that stays together people! If you want a vegan version of this recipe just subsitute the cheese with a little nutritional yeast. Enjoy!

• 1 onion, chopped
• garlic
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2-3 medium sized patty pan squash
• 1/2 teaspoon of cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 can of black beans, drained
• Juice of half a lime
• 1 bag of shredded cheese (or couple ounces of nutritional yeast)
• 1 can of enchilada sauce (around 10 ounces should be enough)
• Corn tortillas

1. Heat the oil in a medium sauce pan and saute the onions until soft. Add the garlic, bell pepper, and squash for another 2-3 minutes (until the squash is soft). Add the spices, black beans, and a little salt to taste. Cook for an additional 5 minutes or so and add lime juice.
2. Preheat the oven to 350, oil a large baking dish, and pour a shallow layer of enchilada sauce of the bottom. Add a little of the squash mixture and shredded cheese to each tortilla and roll up (burrito style) placing each enchilada seam side down in the baking dish. You may need to heat the tortillas in the microwave for about 30 seconds to make them pliable. 
3. Pour remainder of enchilada sauce over the top of enchiladas, sprinkle with a little more cheese, and bake for 20 minutes.

The onion, garlic, and bell pepper are no match for my Santoku knife

Close up!

And another...

Let that mess saute for a bit

Festive...

Cheesy

Take care of yourself and each other...

Today's Harvest

     It has been an unusual couple of weeks for me. I may write more about what has been going on recently in another post but today I'll just write a little about my garden. The garden made it through Hurricane Irene last weekend with no problems but unfortunately not everyone in our neighborhood was spared from damage.

There is a house under that tree

     The garden is still producing quite a few things. I'm doing my best to preserve the produce before it spoils. I want to write an entire post about preserving soon so look out for that. In the mean time, enjoy these pictures of today's harvest. The beans are still going strong and I just picked my first few habanero peppers. 

Take care of yourself and each other...

Tasty Tuesday!

Cucumber Kimchi (Oi-Sobagi)

     I'll be the first to admit that this week's Tasty Tuesday post may not be for everyone. I bring to you cucumber kimchi or in Korean, "oi-sobagi". If you aren't familiar with kimchi, it is the national dish of both Koreas and as much as a daily staple as rice. There are many different varieties (it is mostly made using cabbage) but they all have the same basic ingredients or red pepper, onion, and sometimes carrots. It can be extremely spicy or mild depending on your preference. I often hear from non-kimchi eaters that the vegetables in kimchi are rotten. This is a misconception but the mixture is slightly fermented much the same way pickles are slightly fermented. This fermentation allows the kimchi to be naturally preserved. I still choose to refrigerate mine but some people think it is unnecessary since kimchi was invented thousands of years before refrigeration (nearly 3000 thousand years before).

     There are two reasons I decided to make kimchi and share it with you this week. The first reason is that I have been overwhelmed with cucumbers from my own garden and the Towson University Urban Farm and needed to find something to do with them. Cucumber kimchi is my favorite type of kimchi so I decided to make some. The second reason is because of my own Korean heritage. My grandmother came to the United States in the early 1960's from South Korea and later became an American citizen. At the time, it was in my grandmother's best interest to assimilate into American culture and become part of the melting pot. She dealt with racism and xenophobia and made the decision to bring up her children (my mother, aunts, and uncles) as Americans, not as Koreans.  However because of this I never really learned much of my Korean ancestry and basically know nothing of my family before the arrival of my grandmother in the U.S. I don't blame anyone for this cultural loss. I probably would have decided to assimilate into American culture too under the same circumstances.  But, I have been trying to reconnect with my Korean roots for a few years now. Learning the cuisine of Korea has been one small part of this learning process. I might share more Korean recipes later down the road but for the time being, give this a try. If you don't like it, that's fine. If you do, then great! Go out and learn about other culture's food while you are at it. Enjoy.

• 6 fairly large cucumbers
• 1 carrot (shredded)
• 3 green onions chopped into 3/4 inch pieces
• 1/4 to 1/3 of a yellow onion (finely chopped)
• 2-3 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 1/4 cup of fish sauce or soy sauce (I used soy sauce)
• 1/4 cup of hot pepper flakes
• 3 tablespoons of salt
• 1 tablespoon of sugar

*note: The hot pepper flakes may not be the hot pepper flakes that you normally think of. This is hot pepper flakes used specifically for making kimchi. They can be found easily in any Asian food store. I would not substitute these hot pepper flakes for any variety you find in a regular grocery store as they are much more spicy. You want to be able to enjoy the kimchi not have it blister your tongue!!!

1. Wash cucumbers, cut each one in half, and then cut 4 slits into each half to create a pocket (see picture). Don't cut them all the way through and leave about 1/4 inch intact at the bottom.
2. In a large bowl salt the cucumbers, mix, and let stand for about 45 minutes. This will draw moisture out of the cucumbers and allow them to become more malleable. This may look like a lot of salt but you will be washing it off later.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the fish sauce (or soy sauce), 1/2 cup of hot pepper flakes, the garlic, and 1 tablespoon of sugar. A fork works great for this.
4. Add the onions and carrots to the paste and mix.
5. After 45 minutes wash the cucumbers thoroughly and stuff the mixture into the cucumber pockets. You may want to use rubber gloves for this. 
6. Place the stuffed cucumbers into a tight sealing container and you can then place it directly into the refrigerator or allow it to sit at room temperature for 24 hours. 
7. At the end of the 24 hours you will find liquid created from the cucumbers at the bottom of your container. This liquid acts as a preservative so do not discard it.

Cut slits into the cucumber creating a "pocket"

Salt the cucumbers down and mix. This is also a great way to find hidden papercuts on your hands.

The kimchi paste (it tastes better than it looks)

Add the carrots and onions to the paste

Now mix it all together

The cucumbers are now stuffed. Let those babies marinate.

Take care of yourself and each other...

The Beautiful Tomato

     Here are a few varieties of tomatoes I've grown in my garden this year plus one I just bought from a local produce stand (that giant yellow variety at the top). Over the past couple of years I have given a lot of thought as to where my food actually comes from. Most of this blog has in fact been dedicated to food. So, in this post I want to talk a little about tomatoes. 

     One thing that fascinates me are the endless varieties of tomatoes that are out there. There are all sorts of shapes, sizes, and colors to choose from and any trip to a local farmers market gives the impression of a wealth of diversity. However, as I started researching tomato varieties, I learned that all tomato varieties we find here, either in a supermarket or a farmer's market, are all the same species, Solanum lycopersicum. Humans have created many varieties of tomatoes through artificial selection and this explains the origins of most heirloom varieties we have today.

     Even the supermarket variety, sold during the winter, perfectly red, and still on the vine, is the same species...but that is where the similarities end. If tomatoes are a summer time crop why are they still sold in supermarkets during the coldest of winters? Why is anything out of season sold in a supermarket for that matter? The answer is mostly through importing it from world regions that are warm enough to grow tomatoes during the northern hemisphere's winter. 

The supermarket tomato

     The tomato is a little different though. Tomatoes can be grown year round in the U.S. in states like Florida or inside factory size green houses that dot the landscape as far north as Maine (if you want to read more about these green houses click here). Florida is not at all ideal for growing tomatoes however. There is very little soil (mostly sand) and it is far too humid, which is a perfect for fungus and insects. To combat weeds, fungus, and insects Florida tomato growers spray their fields with 110 herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides annually. Thirty-four of these herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides are known and proven to cause brain and nervous system damage, harm human reproductive systems (causing birth defects), cause cancer, and can cause death when in contact with human skin. Most of these chemicals are banned outright for most crops but are still perfectly legal for tomato production. This is mainly due to powerful agriculture lobbies in Florida. Since these chemicals are used every year a large amount remain in Florida's sandy soil and residual chemicals are routinely found on supermarket tomatoes but nothing higher than "acceptable levels". Unfortunately, the large (mostly immigrant and mostly poor) workforce that picks Florida's tomatoes are exposed to amounts far higher than what is considered acceptable.     

     All of this for those perfectly round and nearly tasteless tomatoes that people buy during the winter. The search for perfection can be a troubling thing. The tomatoes from my garden look lumpy in comparison. Most end up cracking or have a soft spot or two but the taste and quality is far superior. Say no to out of season foods. Demand quality.

*sources: 

Vegetable Production Handbook of Florida 2010-2011 (link)

               

Estabrook, Barry. 2011. Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit. Andrews McMeel Publishing LLC, Kansas City, Missouri.

Take care of yourself and each other.

     

Tasty Tuesday!

Chard with Pan Roasted Tomatoes and Kidney Beans

     Two Tasty Tuesday posts in a row again. I'm slacking. Actually that's not the case. I've been busier than ever as of late. My own personal garden and the Towson University Urban Farm (Check out the garden on Facebook) are producing more delicious vegetables than I know what to do with. I've began to explore the world of food preservation and I'm working on a few blog posts on the topic that will be coming soon. 

     Speaking of the Towson University Urban Farm, I picked tons of fresh rainbow chard yesterday and due to a lack of refrigerator space I decided to have some for dinner. This week I give you chard with pan roasted tomatoes and kidney beans. The tomatoes used in this recipe are from my garden (they are a Cassady's Folley heirloom variety). This turned out to be a great recipe and the mixture went very well with the whole wheat couscous I pulled from my cabinet. The dish will go equally well with brown rice. Instead of using the kidney beans you can use chickpeas but I've consumed way too many chickpeas lately and decided to substitute kidney beans instead. Enjoy!

• 1 cup of whole wheat couscous (or brown rice)
• olive oil
• several small tomatoes cut in half length-wise (cherry tomatoes will work just as well but you should increased the quantity used)
• 1 bunch of chard (Swiss chard, rainbow chard, etc.) stems removed and leaves torn
• Small handful of raisins (feel free to leave these out if you don't dig on raisins) 
• garlic, 2 or 3 cloves, thinly sliced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 can of kidney beans or chickpeas
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice

1. Cook the couscous in a small pot (I use a ratio of 1 cup cous cous to 2 cups water)
2. Heat the oil in a pan, add the tomatoes, cut side down, and let brown. This will take a few minutes. The tomatoes will become very soft so be sure not to mess with them too much. 
3. Once browned, turn tomatoes over and cook for an additional minute. Carefully transfer the tomatoes to a plate.
4. Add the chard, garlic, raisins, a little water, salt and pepper to the pan. Cook, tossing until the chard wilts.
5. Return the tomatoes to the pan, add the kidney beans (or chickpeas) and the lemon juice and toss until the mixture is heated through.
6. Serve over couscous or brown rice.

A little bit of chard

EXTREME CLOSE-UP!

Tear the chard into large pieces. The heirloom tomatoes wait.....

Brown the tomatoes in olive oil.

Toss in the chard

Return the tomatoes to the pan and add kidney beans and lemon juice

Take care of yourself and each other...